Friday's Random Thoughts!

Happy Friday (a.k.a. FIF)!

1. This weekend, a group of friends and I are heading down towards the Bluffs in Winona to become “one with nature”…yep, we’re going camping! I don’t know if I would consider myself a “true camper”, since I don’t like to get dirty, hate bugs, and am not a big fan of sleeping on the ground, but I do enjoy getting out and camping every now and then. We haven’t actually been camping for 2 years, so I figure I’m about due. This time of the year is especially gorgeous with the leaves changing. I’m really looking forward to a weekend away with the “camping crew”!

2. Each year, the U hosts the Community Fund Drive (most companies do something similar) and our goal is to get 100% participation. Normally I delve deep into my wallet and give money each paycheck and donate; however, I think that certain people at the U and within my Department have lost the true meaning of why we’re giving money. For each specific department within the U, if you have 75% participation, you’re department gets a free lunch at the end of the CFD. I guess I feel like being rewarded for doing something charitable defeats the purpose. I think that you should give because you want to, not because you know there’s something in it for you – though, I can understand why the U thinks this is a good strategy for getting more people to donate. But, what really bothers me is that we get heckled non-stop for a month about donating and if you seem the slightest bit reluctant to donate you get the “all you need to give is $1.00 so that we can get our free lunch”….WAIT, does anyone else think that is totally wrong? Maybe I’m being stubborn in my thoughts and ways, but it’s hard for me to hear that. It shouldn’t be about the free lunch, but about knowing that you’re making a difference in someone else’s life who is truly struggling. Therefore, I’ve decided not to donate my money to our CFD this year (I want to stand strong in my beliefs that we shouldn’t donate because we only want something in return for ourselves), but instead am going to take what I would normally donate in a year and give it to something very near and dear to my heart. I’m a strong believer in donating (whether it be money, time or other ways) and feel that the reason behind your donation shouldn’t be about a free lunch, or whatever the “incentive” might be, but because you want to help somebody else out (no strings attached)!

3. I can’t believe it’s October 1st, today. Where did the summer go? I love the fall, but can’t believe that we have to wait another 9 months for warm, sunny weather. I’m definitely not a winter person – It’s too cold and gets dark way to early which leads to me being one bummed out girl! Hopefully we’ll have a mild winter, with very little snow-fall…haha, who am I kidding, this is MinneSNOWta after all!

4. On the upside, we’re having a “tailgate” potluck at work today. I love potlucks, but don’t love the feeling after eating mass amounts of food, which means I’ll be sporting a “food baby” come 1pm today :) Is anyone else suddenly very hungry?!

Hope everyone has a fabulous weekend! A special shout out to the people running the Twin Cities 10 Mile, Half & FULL Marathon this weekend, especially to my friend/co-worker Carly – good luck! I’ll be cheering for you in spirit since I won’t be able to watch in person this year!