August | 2014 | Life Preservers

Go Ahead, Make Fun of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

Some people sniff out enthusiasm like a dog looking for a place to poop. You knew it was only a matter of time until the Negative Nancies started in on the Ice Bucket Challenge for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), better known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

Well, go ahead and make fun of me. I’m not embarrassed that I did the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Amazingly, I’m not even embarrassed that I displayed my fat body sopping wet on facebook.

I was challenged by a good friend, so there was peer pressure. I am also a silly-leaning human who has worked in both marketing and fund-raising, so the campaign itself caught my interest.

But the reason I made extra ice and charged up my video camera last week was for my Uncle Tom.

He was a wonderful human being. He was kind, funny, generous, and very active. One of those people who always had something going on, places to go, things to do, pranks to set up. He was my Dad’s best friend. He was my cousins’ loving father. He was one of the good guys.

I should note that the doctors never specifically diagnosed what he was going through. The only explanation they were ever able to give was that it was “like ALS.” And, like ALS, the connections from brain to spine to muscles were being disconnected one by one. Click, your feet don’t work. Click, your eyelids won’t stay open even when you’re awake. Click, you’re not allowed to drive anymore. Click, people can’t understand what you’re trying to say. Click, you can’t climb stairs. Click, you’re not allowed to live in your home anymore. Click, you can no longer swallow food. Click. You were gone much too soon.

I did the challenge for a guy who, even in his toughest moments, would have gotten a good laugh from seeing people pour a bucket of ice water over their heads. He would have liked the creativity. He would have understood the math of how word spread. He would have gotten a kick out of the fact that silliness can be a power for good.

I did the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Feel free to make fun of me. Make fun of everyone who took a moment out of their day to honor a friend or help raise funds. Go ahead, because even your sarcasm will help raise awareness.

Links:

To donate: http://www.alsa.org/donate

Here’s a great blog post about the challenge: What an ALS Family Really Thinks about the Ice Bucket Challenge

The best challenge video I’ve seen: Bill Rudy

August 20, 2014 at 2:00 pm 3 comments

Have a Nice Day

Used to be, you needed something, you went to a human being. Bank teller, gas station attendant, store clerk. The list of jobs that have dwindled or disappeared because of technological improvements is long and getting longer.

Let me say it up front: I’m not against technology. I love some bits of it. For one example, I think the option to renew vehicle registration online is a modern-day miracle. (I have this friend; she’s a bit of a procrastinator.)

I really do appreciate many aspects of speed, convenience, and independence that have come into being because of technology. But it has begun: Companies are no longer offering convenience as a competitive differentiator; they are selling it. The easy-breezy options we have grown accustomed to are now a potential trap.

Gas pumps are up-selling — Would you like a car wash? — and researching — What is your ZIP code? Some pumps are now programmed to ask so many dang questions, it’s easier to get away from a Jehovah’s Witness.

Banking machine charges keep going up, and they too are being programmed for sales — Are you interested in a loan? (How long did you stand there waiting, and how many people were behind you in line, the first time a bank inserted an advertisement on its ATM?)

What do we actually gain by ringing up our own groceries? Especially when, nine times out of ten, the person who used to do that job is forced to stand there and watch you fumble about while politely asking if you’d like any help doing his/her job.

Today, I was trying to order some concert tickets on a website. There was a problem, so I ended up calling and getting the tickets by phone. Nice surprise: It was cheaper by $6/ticket because there was no processing fee.

So . . . getting rid of human beings doesn’t increase profits enough? Now, you want to charge a fee for an interaction with something incapable of problem-solving? And, so . . . if not for there being a processing glitch, I would never have known I could avoid the processing fee?

Boing!

Let me say it again near the end: I’m not against technology. I could hardly write a blog without it. And I’m not suggesting it would be better to be some sort of crazy hermit (even if there are days when I think I’d be really good at that). But perhaps we should do a little something to stem the tide?

How about this: How about, once a week, skip the touch pad and do something the human-being way. See what happens. Maybe you’ll save some money. Maybe you’ll save some time. Maybe you’ll hear a joke or meet someone interesting. Maybe you’ll get a free mint.

Give it a try. Maybe you’ll have a nice day.

August 19, 2014 at 2:41 pm Leave a comment

Kiss Me, Baby!

Every August, from when I was 6 months old until I was 18, my family and my cousins’ family rented a cottage together at a place called Sandy Lake. It would take a gazillion hours to tell you all about it, longer still for me to stop talking. But, in honor of the time of year, let me share a glimpse.

One day during our 1975 vacation, my Dad went in to shave. When he was all lathered up, he dashed out into the cottage and yelled, “Kiss me, baby!” The rest, I think you can figure out for yourself.