Pizza Pizza
 Day 1 and 2

Pizza Pizza
 Day 1 and 2

For day one of my 40 Days of Random Acts of Kindness, I decided to buy pizza for the 1st day of class at a local college.  The plan was for my husband and I to grab a pie, leave it in the college’s break room before classes start.  So my husband and I arrive at the pizza parlor to find a woman and the staff having a very heated conversation about the cost of her order.  Apparently, she wanted their “Special” with some additions.  My husband was so impressed with my idea of RAK, that he offers to cover the cost of her order!  Now, I assumed he meant the difference in the cost of the special and her additions, but he paid for the ENTIRE order!  Completely blowing my 40 day RAK budget!  He then proceeds to ask what pizza I wanted to buy for the college students.  I had to explain, that we did our RAk for the day. So, day one I bought an angry woman a pizza.  Not my idea of what I wanted this project to be, however, it was random and it was an act a kindness for the lady and the employees who  no longer had to endure her screaming.  And guess what day two was?  Yep, pizza for the college students. 

The countdown begins…

In forty days I will turn forty years old.  I always imagined some fabulous vacation or huge party to celebrate my big 4-0, but when it came time to plan, I came up with nothing.   In fact, I thought I would get some warm fuzzy feeling or maybe feelings of dread for reaching this milestone…and again nothing.   When my friends turned 40, they had cool catchy themes…Forty and Fabulous…Forty and Fit… Forty and Fine…  They had parties, girl’s trips, spa days…And here I am with…nothing.

I am plain.  I am fine with that, but Forty and Plain just didn’t have a catchy ring to it. Plus the only alliterations I could think of was Forty and Fat and well, um… yeah…no.  So, yeah, the fancy forty themes went out the window. 

So here I am with my birthday idea (drum roll please)…

40 days of Random Acts of Kindness!!!!

The forty days leading up to my birthday I will do random acts of kindness for strangers and people I know.  Some will be big, some will be small.  I hope to put a smile on someone’s face and I hope it encourages others do something nice for no reason whatsoever.

This idea is not unique to me.  I actually first read a blog of someone who did it for her 30th birthday and I thought it was a great idea.  So when I couldn't decide what I wanted to do for my special day, I decided to do several good deeds leading up to my big day.  How awesome am I that I would spend the last 40 days of my 30s making other people smile?   Ha!  

But seriously, I will be posting what I do each day.  Feel free to post any random acts of kindness you do during the next 40 days.  Nothing is too small.  You never know what small gesture could make someone’s day.

Here is a list some awesome Ideas.  http://www.randomactsofkindness.org/kindness-ideas

High Tech, Low Tech, NO TECH

Conversations in real Life


This past weekend I went to dinner with a friend.  As we were waiting to be seated, I noticed a family of four also waiting.  A Father, Mother, and 2 Daughters ages 3 and 4 (about).   The Mother and Father scrolled aimlessly through their phones, while the Daughters watched an ipad.   The only communication I witnessed was the older Daughter said, “Mom” and pointed to the ipad and the Mother said a one word reply.  

Later that same evening, a woman and an early teenage girl sat at a table near us.  Before even looking at a menu, the teenager is looking at her phone. She continues to look at her phone while the woman (maybe her mom), figures out what she wants and then stares into space. Not until the waiter comes does the girl quickly look at her menu and orders food and then, goes right back on her phone.

Why did these people come out to dinner?  

This made me think of my students and why so many of them have a hard time expressing their thoughts and paying attention and why I have confiscated so many phones in the classroom. When they leave school, do my students ever put down their phones?

I have 2 simple things that parents can do to help children be less addicted to technology.  

1.     Make dinner a NO TECH Zone


If you are not waiting for an important call, put the phone away.  Games, tablets, and phones should be turned off and put away.  Children develop vocabulary through conversations and if everyone is just staring into their phones, what vocabulary are they learning?   Teenagers need to begin preparing for life without their parents and learning conversation skills is extremely important.  If you really have nothing to talk about and you are all just staring at each other, play 20 questions, make up a story together, ask trivia questions…Just be creative. 

Plus, it’s just plain rude to be on a phone at dinner. Even if there are no children present, you should still be present for whoever you are with. That means no scrolling, texting, or clicking. It’s only an hour.  It can wait.

2.     No internet for children at night

This sounds simple, but if your children have their own phones, laptops, video games systems, or tablets, they will be accessing the internet long past the time when you are fast asleep.

Have your children (this includes Teens) turn in their technology after 8 or 9pm (or earlier if they are young). Yes, turn it in.  Your child will text and surf the internet if they have their phone in their room at night.  What kind of text do you think 13 year olds send at midnight?  I have many of my former students as FB friends and believe me, the ones that are on the internet late night are always talking about being bored, asking anyone to text them or ovoo them (video chat).    Asking if anyone if they thinks they are cute, and posting sexy pictures of them laying in bed.

Have a spot for laptops, phones, tablets… to be stored in the evening.   Unless your child is writing a term paper, there is no need to be on the internet in the late evening.  The internet is a breeding ground for porn, bullying and sexual predators. Phones, tablets, and video games all give your child unlimited access to the internet.

Yes, I am trying to scare you. Parents should be scared and take precautions. Instead, play board games or have them get prepared for the next day, or have them read a book.. I mean read a real book, not one that your child reads on a tablet. That tablet may have books, but it also has the internet. Unless, you use an old school book only e-reader or have some way to block the internet, they will be fine with an real book. Plus books are free from the library.

Remember technology is a privilege, not a right.   It is a super highway full of information and social interactions, but no one needs access to all that information or social interactions 24 hours a day. You may in fact be more active and socialize with “real” people if you put it away sometimes.  

Today I watched the video posted below.  While waiting for a bus, this woman just danced like no one was watching.  No special dance or anything.  She just grooved to the music that I assume she was listening too.   I would NEVER do this.  Mostly for fear of being recording and posted on youtube.  However, this woman inspired me to sing out loud today.  Normally,  in the car, I stop singing a when I approach lights or when someone is driving along side me, but today I just sang loudly with the window down.  And off tune.  And I didn't even care.   I may even do the same thing tomorrow.

"When you wish someone joy, you wish them peace, love, prosperity, happiness... all the good things.”
~ Maya Angelou




This year, my friends and I, decided to start the year with an empty jar and fill it with notes about good things that happen.

Thanks to EHC, Shannon, I started my new year writing a simple note about my great 1st day of the year.  She gave everyone at our New Years Eve party, jars with the Maya Angelou quote on it, note paper, and pens.  I had no excuse. not to get started on this challenge.  I very am excited to add many more notes throughout the year and I may be passing out jars next Christmas to my friends and family.   

If you don’t have a jar, use a box, or even a plastic baggy. The point is to just write down good things that happen to you in 2013 and store them, so you can reflect on the positive things in your life next New Years Eve.

Am I smarter than a 5th grader?  Yes! I taught 5th grade for years.  Am I smarter than a 6th grade?  Uuum, that has yet to be seen. 

This year,  I am teaching 6th grade math online.  I have been loving it, this entire year…until this week.  We are in our Statistics unit.   6th grade statistics, how hard can that be?  The lesson I am planning is about outliers.  EASY!  If an amount in the data set is way larger or smaller than the rest of the numbers, it’s an outlier.    So I am looking through the book, and they are asking about the IQR and the quartiles and giving me some formulas, huh?  Am I looking in the wrong book?…SIGH…. I will be smarter than a 6th grader by the time I teach this…I hope…

UPDATE:
Well, I mastered this 6th grade lesson and unit.  I even used some sample questions from a college website.   Yes, that's how hard this unit was!  My students understood it by the end and that is the important part.  I'm ready for next year!