Day 338: Supported Those With Disabilities

Countries spanning the globe today celebrated United Nation's International Day of Persons With Disabilities.  15% of the world, or one billion people, are living with some sort of disability, be it mental, developmental or physical.  Of that number, 100% of those people deserve to be treated just the same as everyone else on the planet.  The theme for this years IDPWD is "Removing Barriers To Create An Inclusive And Accessible Society For All," and with my random act today, I hope to help support that.

For over 90 years, the Easter Seals have been helping people with disabilities and special needs gain independence and overcome obstacles.  They have done this by providing services such as medical rehabilitation, employment training, and many other programs that help people achieve their personal goals.  I thought, what better way to stay in the theme for International Day of Persons With Disabilities than to make a donation to a great organization that helps people gain access into everyday society.  So today, for my random act of kindness, I supported those with disabilities by making a small donation to the Easter Seals organization.  

Day 337: Bought A Bow Tie

I've probably mentioned 10 different times on this blog how many weddings I have been to over the past year.  My wife and I have attended or been invited to 16 different weddings in 2012.  I am guessing this will be the most we ever have to attend in a year because we, and most of our friends, are right in that prime marrying age range.  While I love going to weddings because I get to hang out with friends, eat good food, and show off my dance moves, the biggest reason why I enjoy going is because of the actual ceremony.  I am an emotional mess during them.  I've never NOT cried during a ceremony, and I am in no way ashamed to say that (plus my wife likes it when I show my sensitive side).  Seeing two people look at each other and pledge their undying love to one another really pulls at my heart strings.  When two people exchange their vows to one another, nothing else matters except the love that they have for one another.  I know that marriage isn't for everyone (see: Clooney, George) but for two people who love each other that much, marriage should be allowed for everyone.

As a youngster, I would say that I didn't want my child to be gay.  The reason I said that is pretty cut and dry: ignorance.  I didn't have any reason to say that other than fear of the unknown and plain, old idiocy.  Many things in my life that I have done, I can look back on and laugh or be proud of.  That isn't one of them.  Luckily, I learned to open my eyes, educate myself, and learn the err of my ways.  If Isla chooses to get married in the future, to a man or a woman, I can't wait to walk her down the aisle and hand her off to the love of her life.  In the current world we live in, however, Isla, if she were to be gay, my friend Sasha, and many other people aren't afforded that experience right.  That is something that needs to change.

I love the show Modern Family.  On Friday, I saw a story about how a star of that show, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and his partner started an organization that is fighting for marriage equality called Tie The Knot.  Tie The Knot raises funds for different equal rights and marriage equality groups through the sale of bow ties creates by The Tie Bar.  So today, for my random act of kindness, I bought a bow tie to support equal rights in a place where "all men are created equal."  To me, this isn't a political issue or a religious issue.  It is a kindness issue.  The overarching message that I am trying to convey with this blog is that you need to treat others the way you want to be treated.  By saying others don't deserve the same experiences in life as you is the opposite of that golden rule.   

Day 336: Cut Off All My Hair

On the left: Sam Sheepdog from Looney Toons On the right: So fresh and so clean, clean

The last time I got a real haircut was in late November of 2011.  I say "real" haircut because I went in for a trim in September at a random barber shop and ended up losing a big chunk of my coif.  The reason for growing my hair was because I wanted to donate it to Locks of Love for one of my random acts of kindness.  Since I am not one known for having an attention to detail, I didn't realize until late in the year that you had to have an 8 inch ponytail in order to donate your hair.  Unfortunately, I wasn't going to be able to grow my hair that long in one year, and to be honest with you, I'm not sure my boss would have appreciated me trying to do outside sales while looking like Antonio Banderas in the movie, "Desperado."  I wanted to figure out a way to still utilize my hair for a random act of kindness, and last week I saw a story that gave me an idea.  In an effort to show unity with Chuck Pagano, head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, as he was going through treatments for Leukemia, two cheerleaders for the team decided that they would shave their heads.  Now I know it isn't as drastic a move for me to shave my head as it is for 2 women, but I thought I would try to both raise cancer awareness and show unity with everyone out there I know who is themselves or knows someone going through chemotherapy.  So today, for my random act of kindness, I cut off all my hair to do so.  My wife was happy that I finally got rid of my Movember mustache along with the hair.  She said that I look 10 years younger than I had before, so that's a plus.