Do Something Great This Weekend

Alright, I’m still pissed off over Barnes & Nobel calling this week ‘Black Friday Week’ on top of Black Friday even existing, but my rage from this morning as dissipated a bit and I’m going to do something constructive. I’m going to ask you to donate but in a few different ways that I think are great.

First, I implore you to donate money or blood to the American Red Cross. For some of you donating blood is a bit of a commitment, which is why I point out that you can also donate money to the Red Cross. I ask for a blood donation first because they always need blood, I assume they always need money too but blood and components are more important to me. A few years ago when my mother was sick the donations of blood, packed white blood cells, packed red blood cells and plasma were important and great in helping her. Due to the kindness of other people she made it a bit longer and was able to take care of some things before dying. She encouraged my brothers and myself to donate, as a way to pay forward the kindness of someone else who donated. I have reasons to not be able to donate blood, but will find a chance to donate money to the Red Cross, which is tax deductible for the fiscally minded in the room.
Information on donating to the Red Cross can be found here: Donation information

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If you want to donate money to children, there's Desert Bus for Hope. It's a real time game about driving from LA to Las Vegas, a 6 hour drive or something, but the bus is made to not be able to drive straight so you can't just hold don the button and walk away which the game plays itself. Donations means people play this game for longer periods of time, it's a vicious hellish road or boredom with very little. When you complete the trip, you are awarded with a return trip! Should you crash you get to wait for a tow truck to pick you up! Riveting, isn't it? The money donated goes to Child's Play, an organization that gets video game systems and toys into hospitals to make a child's stay suck a little less. You can straight donate money to DBH, or you can  bid on some of their fabulous auctioned prizes, which currently include Jayne's Hat, a Megaman helmet knit hat and other handmade goodies, a Darth Vader figure in it's original 1996 box and what not. Some Dark Horse merchandise has be put up for auction; there's a replica of Ramona's star bag, a pixel Goomba blanket, Magic cards, a DJ Hero bundle, and more, so you can be selfish and helpful at the same time! What I really like about DBH is that is showed up out of nowhere i 2007, I heard about it then, and it's been growing since.

Desert Bus for Hope Child's Play

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The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society because it's not  all about breast cancer, and which is what my mom had.They have some text message donation and different ways to help, and things you can buy online if you want to help that way.

Donate online right now and How to Help

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I think I've tapped out my writing abilities for now, but please, if you can, donate. If not to these donate to other valid and safe groups that need money or attention. There are national bone marrow donation groups, specific cancers, children, education, homeless, LGBT groups and more out there that need attention. I decided to channel my rage in getting an e-mail calling this week 'Black Friday Week' into sharing information about worthy groups that are always looking for help. So please, do something great and donate. Not just this winter, not just winter but all year round, the need doesn't stop just because the year's over.


Jasmine P.