Suess's Pieces

Do I really have to tell you why it’s a good idea to support your local library? I didn’t think so.

Now, the Indianapolis Marion County Public Library has the Indianapolis Public Library Foundation to take donations. But if you’re not from ’round these parts, it probably makes more sense to give locally. You can start by paying back those fines you owe.

If you’ve got more time than money, consider volunteering.

Ways to Volunteer

• Man (or woman) the information desk
• Become a tutor
• Teach an informational course in your area of expertise
• Teach someone to read
• Deliver books to the homebound
• Donate used books for the next library book sale fundraiser

Yesterday, Dan and I did some shopping. We were probably out for an hour, and decided we’d hit a nearby drive-thru for a bite to eat. While waiting to get our food, Dan suddenly remembered, “Oh, no. Did we put the bags of candy out of the puppy’s reach before we left?” (He’s nearly 12, but he’s still our puppy.)

If Dan hadn’t, I certainly hadn’t. “Oh man. He’s going to be so sick. We’ll be taking him out every five minutes today. Better keep a trash bag downstairs too, just in case.”

We got our food and drove straight back to the house. Opening the door, we found Taubensee whining his I-missed-you-guys whine. His tail was—no, his whole back end was wagging at us.

And the bags of candy? Completely untouched, even though the bags were sitting at puppy eye level. What a good dog!

Taubensee was spoiled with treats intended for his sensitive canine belly, and I promised him I’d tell everyone how they could help animals this month.

How to Help

• Give money to your local humane society.
• Donate food, toys and other essentials at your local shelter.
• Adopt a furry friend. (Taub says it’s even okay if you pick a cat.)
• Next time you’re at the pet shop and they ask if you want to buy a can of food for a local shelter? Say yes!

I was going to highlight something else today. But while making my way through Google reader yesterday, I came across a post by TMC at Return to Rural. She wrote about a cool little project I’d never heard of before. Click over to read about it and find out how you can support people with love letters. I’ll be back tomorrow with my regularly scheduled 12 Ways to Give post.

There are lots of hungry people out there. So today’s 12 Ways to Give is all about ways to give food.

Green B.E.A.N. Indiana

I’ve talked about Green B.E.A.N. before. They are not exactly a charity in the traditional sense (I should probably add that they did not compensate me to blog about them), but they do some really great work in the communities they serve. They are now operating from Ft. Wayne and Indianapolis, IN; Columbus, Dayton, and Cincinnati, OH; and Lexington, KY.

Every two weeks I order a produce bin from them and get meat and eggs from local farmers. That alone makes them awesome, but I learned this week that customers can leave canned goods in their empty bins through the Constant Canned Food Drive and they will match every pound donated in the month of December with fresh produce donations!

I love these guys. For real.

Don’t Have Green B.E.A.N?

You can give through your local church or community food bank. Or serve a meal at the local mission. Or invite your unemployed neighbor over for a meal. Or drop off cans in the big cardboard box at your kid’s school. The opportunities to give food are everywhere this time of year.

Photo credit: canna_w