Keeping up with Sheri’s Loopy Life….

266 Comments »

1. Carrie said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:35 pm

   Um, I haven’t shouted at anybody yet today. Does that count?
   Hmm. Well, I found the perfect night-light for the kid on our company’s adopt-a-holiday-family thing. That was planned, though, so I don’t think it falls under the random part. Gonna have to work on that.

2. MaryEllen said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:36 pm

   I’m definitely a believer in RAK. I live in an apartment complex with a fair number of older residents, and if I see someone struggling with heavy grocery bags I always offer to help.

   It can be so easy to forget to be nice to people when you have a million errands to run, and cookies to bake, and packages to wrap and mail… Thanks for reminding us all to be kind - the holidays are the perfect time to add RAK into our daily routines, and maybe we’ll make them second-nature and continue the whole year through.

3. Gina said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:37 pm

   Not sure if this qualifies as the person knew that I was the one doing it, but I have a special neighbor going through a miserable, prolonged divorce and through and unintentional error had her gas cut off last spring, because nasty nature of the divorce and the fact the house is for sale she did not get the gas re-connected. However, it is now cold here and she was trying to live with a space heater. So, I called the gas company and have agreed to cover her bill should she not pay so she could have heat. Not totally random but I just had to do something for her.

4. Michelle said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:40 pm

   Hubby and I were coming back from Thanksgiving and taking the shuttle from the airport to the subway. It was a bit crowded for 10:30pm, but we went to the back and found a seat for me and Hubby stood next to me. The young man I sat next to realized we were together and got up so we could sit together. So nice! He wouldn’t take no for an answer. Now I’m wondering what I should do for someone else!

5. Karen in Toledo said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:42 pm

   I made the decision last week to not buy yarn (eeeek!) in late November and during December. That money instead would go to charity as a generous donation. It’s already made. http://www.offhanddesigns.com/fundraiser.html

6. Hariamrit said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:44 pm

   When I was not very well off I lived in a Studio Apartment with no heat. I could only afford a tiny electric heater and believe me I was grateful for that. A coworker knew of my situation and came over with a very large electric heater. That was eyasr ago and i have never forgotten what that meant to me. We are still friends today.
   ———
   I shop at Publix Supermarket and most of the time they have bags for the needy. At the beginning of school it is school supplies, Holidays is food and during the year canned goods for the food banks. I always take a bag. It makes me aware that there are many people who are less fortunate than me. And on the way home while driving I think about all the things I am grateful for.

   And it just so happens I am on my way to shop at Publix and will be buying a food bag today.

7. Lori said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:44 pm

   Well, it was a holiday weekend here in the restaurant business, which can get crazy. People are cranky and tired and want to impress their family. It can be very hard on our hostess to have all those people in her face demanding tables we don’t have. So, I got her this little rubber doll I saw in one of those 25-cent candy machines at the grocery store. He had flames for eyes. I named him “El Diablo” and told her that he was her mascot for the night and whenever people were really giving her a bad time, she could look at El Diablo to give her strength. She really perked up when I gave her El Diablo and carried him with her everywhere all weekend!

8. Karen Lauterwasser said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:44 pm

   i had the chance to replace a set of DPN’s damaged by a knitter’s dog. i was hoping she would take me up on my offer, and I had the “Pay it Forward” argument all ready if she tried to tell me not to bother (after all, she had to share her snail mail for this to take place). Well, not only did she graciously accept my offer; she also wrote me the loveliest e-mail with her own “Pay It Forward” story from another time in her past. It was the most amazing coincidence of ideas.

   I think the concept of paying it forward is sort of the corollary to random acts of kindness.

9. Amy said,

   November 26, 2007 @ 12:47 pm

   I gave a co-worker a knitted hat for his new baby today, I think that it seemed quite random to him, as we do not work directly with each other and not friends in any other way.

   I will try to do something a little more random sometime today.

   Also my officemate offered to run an errand for me as she was going to the mall over lunch… so that was a kindness paid to me.

10. Megan said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:49 pm

    Two little ones…

    To me: I had to go out in the rain during work, and instead of having to take the elevator back upstairs to grab my umbrella, the security guy let me borrow his.

    From me: On the way back from the above errand, a man was walking in front of me with an unzipped backpack and the contents gradually fell out. I helped him pick his papers up from the wet ground.

11. Robin said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:49 pm

    I feel funny telling someone about what I do. This is an act of kindness that lasts all during the school year. I take a little boy to the babysitter to save his mom and dad from having to leave work to pick him up. I really enjoy doing it because if I didn’t he might not be able to go to preschool and I know how much the kids enjoy it.

12. Camille said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:50 pm

    I always yield to more than one car that is merging onto the highway during rush hour. One is the norm around here, but I’d like to think not fighting to merge makes their day a bit brighter for that second person.

13. Laura said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:51 pm

    Last week I sent two movie tickets to my accounts receivable team member. She is in Calgary and I am in Vancouver. She emailed me and said that her and her husband haven’t been to a movie in 20 years….but both of them went on a date night with the tickets. That made me feel awesome. She is works really hard for our team and I think that sometimes she is taken for granted.

14. JoAnn-WI said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:52 pm

    I love to bake and so yesterday I made 2 loaves of banana bread. I took a loaf over to my back yard neighbor who, on Friday, underwent her first chemo treatment for breast cancer.

    Thanks for starting this new RAK contest. I will be more aware of people in need. Although RAK should be done with with no rewards, the Loopy prize certainly would be the icing on the cake!

15. Sarah said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:53 pm

    When I was in college, I worked part time as a nanny. The little girl I took care of was sick, and I was at the pharmacy after taking her to the doctor. It was cold season, and the place was packed. The poor thing was very fussy, as she had an earache and was running a low fever. I was pretty frazzled as I had been running around all morning with her, and I must admit, a cranky, feverish three year old did not really help my state of mind. We got up to the counter to pick up her antibiotic, which was covered by her health insurance and I just had to pay the co-pay. Not a big deal, since it was less than 10 bucks and I had money given to me by her parents for occassions like this….but with all the rushing and fussing, I left my wallet in the car. I had resigned myself to packing the baby up and heading back out to the car to get it, then coming back in and waiting in line with her again, when an elderly woman behind me stepped up to the counter and insisted on paying. She wouldn’t take no for an answer, she said she remembered what it was like to have a sick toddler, and that if she could make my day a bit easier, she’d be glad to do so. Her RAK saved my sanity that day.

    Fast forward seven years or so… a week ago, we had some unusually cold weather come through our area. I was at the pharmacy picking up a prescription, and there was a lady in front of me picking up about 5 or 6. She was an older lady, and was fumbling with her purse. She had a terrible cough and was all bundled up against the chilly wind. The line at the pharmacy counter was pretty long, and the cashier was being SO RUDE to her. It was obviously she couldn’t find what she was looking for, and she was getting really upset. Apparently, she had forgotten her wallet at home. I stepped up to the counter and paid for her meds. She didn’t want me to, but I wouldn’t take no for an answer.

    I love RAK’s….I try to do a few a month, or more frequently when the situation allows.

16. Dina said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:54 pm

    Last week I was doing my Thanksgiving grocery shopping with my toddler in tow. He was getting increasingly cranky as the cart filled up, and was coming close to a meltdown as we got into line.

    Although the woman in front of me had already started putting her things on the conveyor belt, she told me to go ahead of her. “I know how it is, and the last thing you need right now is to be trapped here feeling like a bad mother just because your little boy wants to go home”.

    I couldn’t thank her enough!

17. Barbara said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:55 pm

    I use to have a sticker in the back window of my car that said “Random Acts of
    Kindness and something else I can’t remember. Not to blow my own horn,
    but I have been practicing random acts of kindness since 1991. They are
    getting few and far between because I am not too well. I have been giving money
    to my friend who has nothing, several times a year.Sometimes I give it to her and
    sometimes, I slip it under her door in an envelope so she doesn’t know who is
    giving it. She also helps me out by
    making big bowls of soup for me since I can’t do that anymore. I just gave her
    some money last week and if I’m out, I’ll pick up some food for her. Also the
    person before me mentioned “pay it forward”. That is a very good movie if
    you haven’t watched it yet.

18. Danielle Meder said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 12:59 pm

    Well, last week, on the 21st, I was at Starbucks getting my morning green tea when the gentleman at the counter next to me ordered and then left his wallet in his car and ran out. I offered to pay (the barista looked shocked, out here in Cali I wonder if it’s not common to pay for anothers drink) and I paid. Well, the guy never came back so I took the drink (after waiting 10 minutes to make sure-he didn’t know I was paying so maybe it was too expensive) and delivered it to my office. The manager at SB gave me a coupon for a free drink which I used on someone else since I didn’t want a reward for doing the good deed. It was a RAK that went a little awry but hey, it’s the thought that counts! RAK are great…should be a year round thing we all do…:) But the holiday season does offer a new sense of generosity!

19. Sharon said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:02 pm

    RAK done for me: Last week I had to renew my registration sticker for my car and get new plates. The bolts were rusted and I couldn’t take them out, so I had to stop by the shop to have them do it. I don’t feel so silly now about not being able to change my license plates since he had a difficult time, too. I asked him how much, and he said don’t worry about it. I even tried to make him take something for it but he wouldn’t.

20. Kim B. said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:02 pm

    Last week I took a food box to a family in our community who has had a lot of bad luck this year — lost job, ill child, very little in their minds to be thankful for. Few people know of their plight and while I was grocery shopping I decided to add them to my list and got them a turkey and all the trimmings plus some extras. I put the box on the porch, rang the bell and jumped into my car and drove off as they were answering the door. It was dark so they will never know who left the food. Made me feel really good inside.

21. Amanda said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:03 pm

    This is such a wonderful idea!

    My story doesn’t fit exactly into your request that we talk about a random act of kindness that happened to us but this post has reminded me of one of the most beautiful random acts of kindness that I witnessed a few months back that I want to share.

    I was waiting in line at your Classic-ly Canadian coffee and doughnut joint a few months back. The person directly ahead of me in line was an older gentleman who was obviously struggling to keep things together and who likely hadn’t seen a decent meal in the last little while. He asked the clerk how much a cinnamon bun would cost him. She told him that it would be $1.75 or so. He opened his hand to reveal a little clutch of pocket change that would never even come close to that amount and proceeded to count it out. I watched and started to think about whether I was going to do the normal human thing and offer him the extra he’d need to get the cinnamon bun. As I reached into my wallet to pull out an extra dollar, a man from further back in the line went up to him and said to the cashier “Why don’t you just add that bun to my order.” he then went up to the man and asked “would you also like some soup, or how about a sandwich? Order whatever you want, it’s on me.” The older man ordered a sandwich to go with his cinnamon bun and a nice warm coffee.

    I am still very much moved by that man’s kindness and humanism. It is something that inspired me to shed a cynicism in the face of my fellow man. Thank you for reminding me of that.

22. Katrina said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:06 pm

    I hosted Thanksgiving this year for my entire family, which is enormous! I was glad to do it, but not only did people offer to walk my dog for me, they all left some money for me to help pay for all of the food! Some of them hid the money, and I only found it after they left and had cleaned up. Sneaky.

23. Nancy said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:09 pm

    The weather here in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs has been bizarre this fall and winter. It was really warm then cold then back again. The leaves have taken forever to fall.

    Finally most of them are down and this weekend I took to cleaning up my front and back yard, no easy task when you live in an established tree heavy area. The elderly woman at the end of the street has a huge corner lot. Until recently, she had a yard service come and do all the cleanup, there was no way for her to do it herself. This year, because she has been ill, there was no money for that and so she went out in the frigid cold and started doing it herself. After about ten minutes she was done.

    After a friendly wave, she headed inside. I headed to all of the neighbours and before I knew it there were 12 of us outside making incredible progress in no time flat. By the time she realized what was going on, we had raked, edged and fertilized the entire thing. The look on her face and the tears in her eyes hit home harder than any words ever could.

    It may not be the biggest RAK around but to see a neighbourhood like it should be, looking out for its own…. it was truly special.

24. Linda said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:14 pm

    I try to do RAK’s at least once a week. My mother’s health is not so good, and since June, she has either been in the hospital, a rehab facility, or now in a facility that deals with Alzheimer’s and Dementia. When she was in the rehab facility, I would vist her everyday and her roommate did not receive a lot of visitors, so when I would come, I would make sure that she also received a treat and would always ask if she needed anything. Even though my mom is no longer there, I drop in every weekend to see two of the ladies that are still there to make sure that they have a visitor and see if they need anything.

    This year, when thing were really bad, many of my friends banded together and made sure that someone dropped off foodstuff every couple of days and they worked out a schedule to walk my dog for me so that I could stay at the hospital.

    Kindness makes the world go around, not money!

25. Monica said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:21 pm

    I drove my kids to the bus stop this morning since it was raining. Not really a RAK since I do it when ever the weather is bad. But they sure appreciate it when they see the other teens standing in the rain. I always offer to let them wait in the van. We sometimes have a van load of kids. Not so many this morning though, just a few took me up on the offer.

26. Carla said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:21 pm

    What fun! I have done that with Dairy Queen in the summer when it is really hot and busy. I also signed up to do the pass it on thang on Fiberfishes blog. Have you heard about it? You send a handmade gift to 3 people some time in the next 365 days! -

27. Tammy said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:33 pm

    Mine isn’t totally random, but there’s a very sweet single mom in our church, and my DH and I left an unsigned “thank you” card for her with a $100 bill tucked inside. We’ve been blessed and wanted to be a blessing to someone else.

    Another idea - and this involves the same single mom - but we have no idea who is doing this - but someone sends her son a card every year in February with money in it and instructions for him to take her out on Valentine’s Day. Whoever is doing this has been doing so since her son was young (he’s 14 now).

28. Kathryn in Minnesota said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:40 pm

    We have three dogs, one of which does agility, and the agility people in our neck of the woods are really good at cleaning up after their dogs. The people in my neighborhood aren’t so consistent. My random act has become so regular it’s no longer random, though I hope it still counts for the drawing. : ) Every time I pick up after one of our dogs, I pick up after somebody else’s dog. This is keeping the lawn at the elementary school across the street just a little bit better looking, and better smelling . . .

    Thanks for a great idea! I’m taking on the challenge of adding to my regular random acts something truly random in future weeks. When I lived on the East Coast, I used to pay the toll for the person behind me. I miss that — it really cheered up the drive.

29. Beth said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:41 pm

    A few nights ago, the boys told me that a van had pulled up our driveway. I went to the front door to see who it might be. My neighbor from across the street had come by with a casserole for us “just because”. I often give her our outgrown toys for her much younger boys and she said that while this meal could not pay me back for all the toys, it was something she could offer us.

    I was so touched by the complete randomness of the meal as I hadn’t given her new toys in months. It’s hard to put the feeling into words but it meant a lot to me that she thought of me while she shopped and cooked and delivered our meal.

30. Susan L said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:44 pm

    A number of years ago, I paid the toll for the guy behind me. - Not totally random, since we’d just left a bar/club where we’d been talking for quite awhile, but it still surprised him.

    More recently (sometime last year), I was driving home with one of the dogs in the car, & as I came to a stop-sign a few blocks from home, a woman sitting in a car at the side of the road called out her window imploring me to call the police. I looked & saw that several of her car windows had been smashed. She had 2 small kids with her. I parked the car & went over to her, & she told me that her boyfriend had smashed the windows, taken her cell-phone & the car keys, & went off. I let her use my cell phone to call the police, stayed there helping keep the kids calm & under control til the police came & while she gave them a report. I called my daughter (who was at home a few blocks away) & had her come walk the dog home. I let the woman use my phone to make a few more calls & wound up staying with her until a relative came to pick her & the kids up.

    Acts of kindness done for me, which I’ll never forget:
    (1) As I stepped off a Metro bus (sometime in 1989!), I dislocated my ankle. I was only 4 blocks from home, but as I couldn’t stand on that foot, let alone walk, I hopped over to a tree & had to lean against it. A passerby called 911 for me, & a young woman who got off the bus at the same time waited with me until the ambulance came, as I was feeling very lightheaded (I’d gone into shock).

    (2) While driving back from an out-of-town trip with my daughter, then around 4 or 5 yrs old, one of my tires blew out, with pieces flying everywhere. This was around 9-to-10pm on the Capital Beltway (Rte 495, where traffic moves at 70mph in the slow lane despite a 55mph limit). A stranger pulled over immediately behind me & offered to change the tire for me. I started to pull things out of the trunk so we could get the spare out, & he took over & told me to just take care of my daughter & he’d take care of the rest, which he did, including putting everything back in the trunk afterwards. He refused to take any money for his troubles, & said that if I really wanted to do something, I should just donate to a charity of my choice (which I did).

31. alyson said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:47 pm

    I think that’s a wonderful idea!!! Thank you for enabling us to do wonderful things (not that buying yarn isn’t a wonderful thing - you’re quite the enabler in that department as well.) And I’m quite impressed that you still paid for Sports Car Guy - ‘cuz I’d just been thinking, “Yeah, I’ll do that! But probably only if the guy behind me has a crappier car than I do.” Heh….whoops.

    I had a lady come up to me after a training class one day, and she praised my public speaking ability and then told me that she thought I was quite pretty. It was such an unusual thing, an unsolicited flattery on my appearance, and I was completely touched. So I’ve tried to adopt that from her - so often when someone pays us a compliment, we feel uncomfortable. And so we tend not to compliment others so we don’t make them uncomfortable - how silly! So any time I look at someone and think something complimentary, I try to tell them also, in a non-threatening way. (You know the sort of thing - you’re with your husband and you whisper, “Look at that girl’s hair. It’s so shiny and pretty.” Or “Isn’t that woman just stunning, so smartly dressed?” So now, if I can, rather than glancing at and away from the girl in front of me in the grocery line, I’ll tell her, “You have such a pretty smile.” Or, if I’m feeling shy that day, I’ll say it to my husband, but loudly enough that I know she’ll hear me. Subversive compliments can sometimes easier for people to enjoy.

32. fbz said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:53 pm

    i seem to be very lucky and have had a lot of random acts of kindness bestowed upon me throughout the years. the biggest and the most poignant was of course when a new york city bus driver put aside my clarinets which i had left on his bus at 3am coming (i was playing professionally at the time so i had a case with 5000 dollars worth of clarinets and traveling through queens and brooklyn to get home from the airport) and called an old number i had left inside the case, when that didn’t work, did an internet search and found my email address. he then emailed me and kept my clarinets safe for the four days he was searching how to find me! i knew i couldn’t repay him for his kindness so i went and got him a 50 dollar gift card for a big cd and music store in the city because he also gave me the gift of music. this was back in 2002, people seemed to rally together and do nice things for strangers so often after the towers fell, but this bus driver went way out of his way for me. thank you mr. bus driver again for rescuing my favorite clarinets!

33. Angie said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:53 pm

    I’ve had someone pay for my toll at one of the Chicago tollways. It was such a small amount that really made a big impression.

    The local groceries always have the pre-bagged food around the holidays. I always buy one at least 2 or 3 times during the holiday season.

    Amanda’s story (2 above) brought tears to my eyes…what a nice guy.

34. Sarah T. said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 1:54 pm

    My fiance and I took a 3-day trip to San Francisco a few years ago. We decided to stay in a nice hotel close to downtown and just hoof it around the city all weekend - we couldn’t really afford to ride the busses, trolleys, or subways. However, when we were waiting to check in to our hotel, a man walked up to me and asked if I was checking in. When I said yes, he handed me 2 week-long metro passes with 3 days left on them! I guess it didn’t really cost him anything, as his family was checking out, but it was very kind of him to think of people who could use the passes, rather than just throw them out.

    Last year, I “payed it forward” while traveling in Sweden by giving my Stockholm Metro pass to someone waiting in the subway station as I was leaving the country.

35. Rebecca said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:04 pm

    these aren’t lately but

    one to me - my coworker gave me a really nice gel pen because he knew I liked them.

    one from me - I let a guy go ahead of me in the Wal-mart line and this Wal-mart always has long lines.

36. susan said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:09 pm

    My random act of kindness today was to help a friend (who works in a yarn shop)
    to help rearrange the display shelves! It is NOT her favorite thing to do, as she
    says she doesn’t have the eye to do it!

37. Barbara said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:10 pm

    Instead for giving gifts to each other, two friends and I have adopted a Katrina victum family (mother, father and 5 children) who have had to move in with the women’s mother. We got their name from a local Care and Concern Shelter. We are purchasing gifts to be opened the 12days before Christmas. These will include a movie night…complete with a current movie,, snacks and a comfy blanket/throw to sit upon.
    Another package will contain a gift card for a Pizza, a cute pizza cutter and a disposable camera to record the event. We did this last year for a women and her childrenr that were going through a difficult time and were truly the recipients of a special blessing. Each day’s gifts will include a Bible Verse that points to Christmas and God’s special care for those in need. Wkhen the large box of gifts is delivered, there will be a card that says……Merry Christmas from HIS MAJESTY’s SECRET SERVICE

38. Jodi said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:12 pm

    Sheri, what a great idea. Even though that guy had a fancy sports car, you just never know what’s going on with him — he might be lonely or recently divorced or just lost his job. Or he might just be pleasantly surprised by another’s kindness!

    Incorporating kindness into every day is a wonderful idea. I’m gathering up our old but still warm and serviceable winter coats and sneakers and donating them to a local shelter. I know they always need donations of new socks and underwear, so I’ll stop by Target first, too.

39. Kelli said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:15 pm

    I love RAK. Sometimes I get my boss a peanut butter cookie from our favorite bakery here just because I know he loves them. I also found the face mask my room mate looked at three stores for when I was in CVS one day, so I bought a bottle for her. My mom was having a hard day last Monday so I brought her a lemon bar (sooooo tasty, I bought one for me too!). I try to hold doors, let people go in front of me in line, and pass along the savings if I find a good one every day.

    But, can I think of any RAKs I’ve done in the last few days? Not really, I’ve been holed up in my house and haven’t had the chance. lol

40. Melissa said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:20 pm

    I decided to forgo the thanksgiving festivities this year and instead served dinner to a community of people in NYC living with HIV/AIDS.

    I found it was a great way to stop feeling sorry for myself when things didn’t turn out quite how I wanted them to.

41. Kristi said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:20 pm

    I always, ALWAYS let the people with less items than me go ahead. I have Murphy’s Law with lines, so I know that I better get the people behind me out as fast as possible.

    Last year I took the kids to the local fair where they zipped through rides like they were going out of style. I had THREE people come up to me with ride tickets they had left over, such a nice thing to do!

42. Julia said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:22 pm

    I’d like to add that random acts of kindness don’t need to involve money, or items, or anything material. They don’t have to anonymous. Sometimes it’s just taking the time to tell a stranger you appreciate them.

    Most people don’t know what I do for a living. They may have a vauge idea, “Oh, Julia works at the animal shelter.” or “Julia is a veterinary technician”.

    I work in a shelter for sick and injured stray animals that also investigates animal cruelty charges. I see every horrible thing that people can do to an animal - using them as target practice, starving them to death, setting them on fire. I am also directly responsible for the euthanasia of roughly 100 homeless animals every week. And, in payment, most of the time all we get is public scorn, nasty articles in the paper about our euthanasia rate, and the knowledge that I’m one of the few people who have the strength to offer kindness and care to animals that have gotten the short end of a very small stick.

    Two weeks ago, after a nasty, brutal article in the paper about the behavior evaluation we put all of our adoptable dogs through, someone cornered me while I was giving medications out in adoptions. I have no idea who she is, but she took my hand, looked me in the eye and said, “Thank you for everything you do. I wouldn’t have the heart for it. These animals are very lucky there are people like you in the world.”

    And then she left. I had to be one the nicest things anyone has every done for me, and, for once, made me really feel like people appreciate what I do, and that I’m doing something worthwhile.

43. Bertha said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:24 pm

    This is so little, I am not even sure it qualifies as a RAK, but every time I use the vending machine here in our office building (2-3 times a week), I leave the change from my dollar in the little change return slot for someone else to find and use. It’s only 10-50 cents at a time, but it’s nice to find money (especially money which can be spent on snacks) and if that brings someone a teeny bit of happiness during what I am imagine is normally a crappy work day, it makes me feel good.

44. Margaret said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:30 pm

    Last week I heard about a co-worker that had just completed his Master’s degree after many long years of night school. I bought a bunch of balloons and tied them to his desk.

45. Kristin said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:30 pm

    Well, my youngest DD was born at 24 weeks gestation, and weighed 1.5 lbs. Yes, One and a half pounds. All of the times that we nearly lost her, the same doctor was on-call. He was an older gentleman, who garnered my respect very early on. As she started to get better (but still very sick and about 2 lbs now), he asked me if I listened to any classical music - HELLO - music major in a former life. He said that he read studies that Brahms was thought to promote intelligence in preemies, etc.
    I immediately rushed out that night, and got a bedside tape-player, and some Brahms. But alas, when I got to her incubator the next morning, there was a fresh stack of Brahms music there. Hmmm………..He never said a word, but I knew it was him. My daughter will be six years old in a couple of months……she’s doing really well - a miracle!
    I love RAK’s - they always make me feel better as the giver, rather than the receiver though!

46. Alexis said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:32 pm

    I had my wallet returned to me once when I had dropped it in a Home Depot parking lot– before I even realized I had lost it! That had me marveling about my karma for a good long while afterward. Sometimes it’s just nice to be reminded that there are kind, compassionate people out there. I know I’ve had days when I’ve felt like there aren’t!

47. mouse said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:33 pm

    This RAOK actually got me on the road to a love of fiber arts, unintentionally.
    When I was pregnant with my son (now 6) my husband and I were really hard up for money.. so we weren’t able to buy things ahead of time for the baby like folks do when they are expecting. I was really upset when I went into labor an entire month early and didn’t even have clothing for the baby. When the nurses came back from giving my son his first bath.. he was wearing tiny hand knitted baby booties and a little hat. I was so touched that someone had spent their time to make something for someone that they didn’t even know that I swore I’d learn to knit or crochet so that I could repay the kindness one day. About a year later I learned to crochet and the first thing I did was make baby booties and hats for the local hospitals. I still try to make at least one baby set a year and donate them because I know how happy those simple little knits made me feel.

48. Leah said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:34 pm

    Our neighbor brought us a pecan pie for thanksgiving, still warm from the oven. A few months ago my husband and I got a new washer and dryer and our neighbors was broken, so we gave them our old ones to bless them It is so fun when everyone starts looking for ways to bless others instead of tear them down!

49. Carole said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:36 pm

    I used to do RAOK more frequently and have gotten out of the habit so thank you for the reminder. But I will tell you that Saturday night Dale and I went out to dinner and we had the most wonderful waitress. She was sweet and friendly and helpful and we just really liked her a lot. I made a point of asking for the manager when we left and I sang her praises high. I always appreciate it when someone tells me my staff did something good and I thought I’d return the favor.

50. Melissa Featherly said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:38 pm

    I don’t know know if this is a RAK in the sense that I didn’t recieve anything other than that warm happy feeling…but… here goes anyway. My pastor shared a story with our Church Sunday Morning about my son. My husband had told it to him during Monday night visitation and he shared it sunday will the whole church. I had been fighting with my husband and hearing the story made me realize that we are good parents and we love each other and nothing else should matter. So his act of kindness was reminding me what I have to be thankful for and it was worth more than anything I could have recieved.

51. Lani said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:49 pm

    I’m not sure a RAK from a husband counts, but I’m going to post it here anyway. Last week I was frantically trying to finish a baby present before leaving for an out of town Thanksgiving. Well, husband sat me down and told me to knit. Not only did he do all the packing and carting our puppies off to their “sitters”, a task in and of itself, he cleaned the whole house, did the laundry and mowed the yard because he knows that I really stress about coming home to a messy place. Not only did it put me in a great mood because I managed to finish the present but when we came home it reminded me again of how much my husband loves me and the trouble that he went through to do something exceptionally nice for me.

52. Laurie said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:50 pm

    Thanks for reminding us all about the joy of RAK’s! In my line of work, I am in and out of doctors’ office buildings and offices almost on a daily basis. The two large buildings I go to both have SLOW elevators, and I always try to make a point to hold the elevator for people if I see them coming, especially those with physical limitations. I know how it is to wait on an elevator, so if I can help others out, I do that! I also try to help people out who don’t know which floor to get off on as I know where most of the doctors in those buildings are located. One day I got on the elevator with a young woman holding a baby and two older children in tow. The older kids were arguing over who got to “push the button”, and I could tell the mom was pretty stressed. I asked the kid who didn’t get to push the button (who was almost in tears) to push a button for me. I got the biggest, brightest smile from that little girl and a smile and thank you from mom as well! It was a small thing, but I was glad to help her out just a little bit.

53. Lisa said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:52 pm

    I have a sweet friend who has been saying she wants to learn to knit socks for about a year….we’ve tried a couple of times but …anyway, she travels and always brings me some sock yarn. The last ball came from Germany. I knit her a pair of socks with it..
    We both feel very blessed!

54. Mary said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:54 pm

    I stopped into a local take-out lunch place today and there were 6 local firefighters in line ahead of me. I had an interesting thought about what I could do to thank them for their service so when it came time to check out, I went ahead of them and told the person at the register that I was buying lunch for them and handed her my credit card. They protested, but in the end, I bought lunch for 6 very happy firefighters! I think I felt better about it than they did!

55. Cat said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 2:55 pm

    How interesting! I can’t wait to read what others have done or had done to them.
    Just this morning I sent some $$ through paypal to someone who is sending yummy care packages to our troops in Kandahar. She buys the things herself and sends the packages with her money so I thought I would help her out a bit.

    Hugs!!!!!

56. Jan said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:01 pm

    I was paid forward by someone who took me back to my train station when I’d slept through it. He and I had talked on the platform before boarding the train, and he woke me as the train left my station, saying “our station is next”. The scenery didn’t look familiar, so I asked where we were, and he told me what station we’d just left. He was kind enough to take me back to my station.

    Some weeks later, I had the opportunity to pay back that kindness, and took a lady back to her train station when she missed it. Had a lovely chat with her on a Friday afternoon.

    Today I spoke with my friend who rides the train and then the local bus here at work. He had a lamp for his desk, and when I asked him about it, he said it was a daylight lamp to add a little cheer. I told him he seems quite cheery to me, and he said that was thanks to nice folks like me to chat with. I returned that compliment, as I feel he always cheers me up, too!

    Thanks for another thoughtful contest!

57. Amy said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:03 pm

    Well, the random acts that I’ve done that come to mind are to people who know it came from me.

    One of my favorite things to do is when someone I’m friends with or someone I work with is having a rough day, I like to buy them a card to cheer them up. And, sometimes if I can’t slip away and get a regular card, I send an egreeting - just something to put a smile on someone’s face… : )

58. Wollmeise said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:07 pm

    What a great idea! That should be the learning-testing curve for the next year, not only for Christmas.
    Beta-phase and we know it works! The creative part is a big challenge, it would be to simple to donate some yarn. Perhaps some voodoo-yarn ( with positive vibrations), which teases out the best from the knitting person?
    Sheri I´m in the boat, no in the next boxes!
    Why do you dislike to spend a kindness to a young man with a gigantic car? You are a mum and you know that would be heart education :-). And please promise me to not escape the next kindness time, to get the thank you (or not) is important for human relationships.

    Hi all it´s also important to be kind to yourself (a worldwide women problem)

    Claudia

59. Karen said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:07 pm

    This isn’t really “random,” but I think it falls under the general category. I do volunteer work for the county’s hospice organization, visiting patients in their homes for several hours in order that the primary caregiver can get away for a while and have time for his or herself. My volunteer days are Saturdays, as my husband is off Sunday and Monday (I also don’t work on Mondays, so that’s our “weekend” together). Last week I received a call from hospice asking if there were any way that I could visit someone on Sunday, as the people who regularly volunteer for Sundays already had assignments.. The caregiver hadn’t been out of the house for a week (taking care of his mother who has ALS and his father, who was injured in a fall), and just wanted to play a little golf. My husband and I didn’t have any plans for the day, so I cheerfully took the assignment. It may have been an act of kindness to give the son some time away and to help this elderly couple with anything they might need, but in all truthfulness, this was one of the most meaningful visits I’ve ever had. The woman’s sweetness and courage while facing such a devastating disease and her husband’s obvious love for her is something I’ll never forget.

60. Tigger's Mom said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:08 pm

    I’m a big believer in RAK so I love this! Here are some I practice: paying for tolls, coffee, fast food, dry cleaning, etc for someone else. Putting my cart and another cart in the parking lot cart keeper. Getting a cart for someone. Picking up items that have fallen on the floor in a store. Helping others reach things on high shelves in a store. Letting others in line in front of me (in traffic, a store, the PO, a restaurant, etc). Complimenting strangers. Holding the door. Donating money/time/items to those less fortunate. Giving unexpected gifts to friends. Once my husband and I paid the restaurant bill of a family with exceptionally nice children. Just recently I explained how to do a craft to a woman in the aisles of Michaels, and I helped her select appropriate materials. She was so excited!

    At Thanksgiving we saw a cousin we hadn’t seen in years. She gave us a photo taken by her father about 1950 of my husband’s father (long deceased) and mother when they were newlyweds. It was a fun, touching and very unexpected RAK.

61. rohanknitter said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:10 pm

    This is such a great idea and some of these comments are making me cry!
    Last spring I messed up my back pretty badly, and a blogging friend I only know from online sent me a huge get-well-soon package. It was so sweet!

62. Anita said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:11 pm

    I work for a school district in a moderate to low income area and found out at a “community services” meeting that the Thanksgiving baskets being put together by our community agencies were all short on turkeys - NONE! No turkeys whatsoever. 125 Thanksgiving baskets with no turkeys! So I contacted the Student Council teacher and the National Junior Honor Society teacher at the Middle School where I formerly worked. This middle school’s enrollment is approximately 85% military dependent students, who are amazingly resilient and generous despite their own holiday circumstances (most are missing at least one parent this holiday season), and lo and behold, all 125 turkeys and loads of other necessities and extras were provided by these two groups. In the end, we (me, the teachers, the kids, their principals, the school district, and all the people who benefitted) all felt a sense of satisfaction for making a difference!

63. Lee Cockrum said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:18 pm

    Great idea!! I have always believed in doing whatever you can to help someone else. As I get farther along in life, I often have more money than I once did, but even when I did not have much, I always shared whatever I had, money, time etc. The most recent thing that I did was buy a meditation book for a friend who was asking me about meditation resources (I study Buddhism). It was so nice to see the look of surprise when I gave it to her. Most recent received kindness was someone buying a soup for me while I was at the local yarn store and people were ordering takeout. When I went to pay for mine, a friend had already paid for me.

64. Lisa said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:19 pm

    We used to have a babysitter when our kids were small. She was great with them and had very little money. When she had her senior pictures taken we knew she was really strapped for cash. and would have had a hard time paying the bill. We went to the studio and payed it for her. She did guess it was us, and she cried, but it was so much fun just knowing she wouldn’t have to use ALL her money to pay that bill. It truly is so much better to give than receive.

65. Lisa said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:24 pm

    Not just my “random act” but one I was part of….my children’s school adopted a small school in Africa where some ot our teachers had volunteered this summer. Many children walk miles to attend. Our school collected more than 250 bikes to send to Ghana, a parent who owns a shipping company has agreed to ship all the bikes plus a school bus the school refurbished and has donated. Each child at the school in Ghana was “adopted” by one of our kids so the bikes went from a specific child to a specific child. As things got rolling, people began to donate clothes and school supplies and backpacks and dictionaries. It was an amazing thing to be a part of. All from my dear friend ( the one who I said brought me yarn a few posts back) having an idea. It has challenged me to dream big. Who could have ever seen all this from someone saying..”I wish those kids had bikes to ride to school”.

66. Elise said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:24 pm

    I am having trouble thinking of a RAK that has happened to me recently, I was feeling down earlier this year and decided to try to do one nice thing for someone each day. It was mostly things like holding doors open for people, doing my roommates dishes, or letting someone else have a seat on the train, but I like to think it helped a little.

    My dad and I were shopping on black Friday and we let someone go ahead of us in line at one of the crowded stores, she had gotten seperated in line from her adult daughter and they had to drive a couple hours home. It’s just nice to do something like that for someone else, this time of year crowds seem to get extra “pushy”.

67. sara l said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:24 pm

    I always let the person behind me in the grocery line with just a few items to go a head of me. Usually it’s an employee on a break, so they are always quite happy to take me up on the offer.

68. Melanie said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:27 pm

    I think this is a great idea, and thanks for the reminder to do something nice for no apparent reason!

    I actually got a RAK today. I work on a university campus and it was raining really hard, but I needed some breakfast so I walked out of my building downhill to the dining hall for a bagel. As I was heading down these huge marble stairs I slipped and fell 6 huge stairs to the bottom. A student I had passed about 10 seconds earlier came racing down to help me up and he made sure nothing was broken and that I was ok. He was so nice I almost cried right there! I’d love to find him and send him something nice. But I might have to settle for sending someone yarn!

69. Mo said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:28 pm

    Who knew Starbucks had drivethrus? I must really live in the sticks!

    I met a woman at Rhinebeck who is good friends with a co-worker. Now this Rhinebeck woman is a very hard worker and never does anything for herself. Last month she was diagnosed with pneumonia which meant she was down for the count for over a week. She spins, knits and weaves for a living. I said to co-worker - Let’s send her a care package! So we put together all sorts of healthy snacks, teas, some books, some chocolate (everyone needs chocolate), some handmade soap and more and sent it on to her. She said she ought to get sick more often!
    Luckily she is much better now.

70. Stacey said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:36 pm

    I ALWAYS offer to help the elderly, in the store getting something from a high shelf, with their bags, whatever I feel is needed. And the best part is that I think I am rubbing off on my children. My sons, 3 & 5, are often caught holding open the door for girls. It makes me feel like I might being doing something right by them. But the best one was last week. My youngest, Isaak age 3, and I were standing in line at W*lgreens waiting our turn. The gentleman behind us was trying to pull some cash from his pocket and out with it came a bunch of change. My son saw this, and started picking them up. I thought he would be tempted to pocket them. But NO. He had a few in his little hand and held them out to the gentleman and says in his tiny little voice “here sir, you dropped these” I almost cried I was so proud! And the man said thank you and gave him a quarter for “helping him”! He was so excited! So he learned to help people and, in turn, got a reward! Maybe I am doing this parenting thing right….

71. Liz said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:39 pm

    Great idea, Sheri!! It’s so easy to forget, whether we are in the middle of a string of petty annoyances or truly in the depths of despair, how fortunate we really are. We have food to eat and a place to live and yarn to knit, friends and family to love. That’s pretty darn lucky, I’d say.

    I had a coworker who would leave me little gifts when I had helped her with something–a scratch off lottery ticket, some chocolate, etc. It was completely unnecessary…I was just doing my job, after all. But it always made my day. I was very sad that she was laid off at the end of last year. This past summer, her daughter was tragically killed in a boating accident in Alaska while working with Americorps. Her daughter was missing for some weeks, and they had to hire divers to find her once the official search was called off, to great personal expense. Fundraisers were held to help the family pay for this, and you can bet that I didn’t hesitate to contribute. Kindness begets kindness.

72. Hillis said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:42 pm

    I showed my elderly neighbor my fingerless mitts this morning. She loved the colors, so as soonas I finish this comment, I am going to knit her a pair. Thanks for the idea during our Holiday Season and for thru the year.

73. Gina said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:43 pm

    Every Sunday my best friend and I go to a nursing home near our house and provide a church service. Since we go every week, we know the residents pretty well. Yesterday I reached and gently pressed one resident on her shoulder. She was so happy and said that felt “so good” , so I massaged her shoulders for a little while. She enjoyed it so much. It was just a small thing, but it made us both happy.

74. Michelle said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:45 pm

    RAK done to me… A woman at Kohl’s offered me her 15% off shopping pass ~ which I used and in turn passed on to someone else.
    It is contagious!

75. Gina said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:53 pm

    The receptionist at my old job wore a beautiful pin..a ballerina..very pretty, not gold or anything, but just beautiful. I admired it and she took it off and gave it to me! I was wearing it the other day at my new job with a shawl I knitted. A co-worker admired my shawl…so I took the pin off and gave her the shawl! She was thrilled!

76. aimee said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:53 pm

    How funny that you would mention this today. I was at the grocery, putting the stuff in my trunk. Then I went across the way and offered to take a mom’s cart back for her–you know, she had a toddler and an infant after all. I had no more put the 2 carts together and turned around, and there was another person there and offered to take both carts back to the store for us! I said to him. “well there’s just niceness all around today” and he said “that’s how it always should be!” It made me smile all the way home. RAK by me, and to me all at the same time!

77. Terri said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:57 pm

    Here are a couple of things that happened last weeek, so they do not count for a drawing, but may provide inspiration to someone.

    #1Post Office. There is a long line at the counter and a gentleman who needs 2 stamps. He walks over to the machine only to learn that it will not take his $20 bill. He asks me for change. I give him my stamps. Happiness all around.

    #2 Elderly Neighbors. A few days ago a dump truck pulled up in front of our neighbors driveway and dumped a load of wood. I immediately dipatched the kids to go stack it. It took the 4 of them less than 1/2 hour to stack a cord of wood. I can only imagine the relief our neighbors felt at not having to do it all themselves.

78. Sarah said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 3:58 pm

    On Saturday at the baggage claim, a gentleman accidentally picked up my suitcase and took it home with him. I did not realize this, so I stood in line and reported my suitcase missing… I was a bit cranky about it, but thankful that DH, baby and I made it home safe and sound. Once we got home, the phone rang and this man was so apologetic and sorry. He even drove WELL out of his way to drop off our bag before he went back down to the airport to look for his! He could have just dumped it back at the airport and I never would have known. I could not believe how kind he was and how he really tried to make his mistake right. I don’t really see that much these days! RAK month is a great idea!! It will push me to get out of myself and focus on the needs of others!

79. Joannah said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:00 pm

    Today I had the chance to do a lovely piece of “business as usual”. I teach at a college and received an email from a less-than-techno-savy father. His daughter is on a semester abroad program in a remote area, no email, etc. He is bravely attempting to register her for the spring semester and couldn’t get the the program to register her for one of my spring courses to work. I was able to assure him that I can sign her into the class, no problem. Done.

80. Marianne Y said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:05 pm

    I love your Random Acts of Kindness them for December concept! Over the years, I have gone out of my way to help small children or the elderly, with many things, especially looking for things, reaching things, etc. It will be much harder for me to do now, that I am handicapped and basically homebound for awhile, with this fractured back that is not healing problem. (I hope to know more about that after my appt with the neurosurgeon at the Univ of Michigan down in Ann Arbor on Wed this week, finally!)

    This summer, someone gave us a Random Act of Kindness when we made our latest trip to Michigan’s upper peninsula where my son goes to college, in late June. As we were crossing the Big Mac (nickname for the Mackinac Bridge, long suspension bridge connecting Michigan’s two peninsulas), the car in front of us paid the bridge toll (for our car, but not our boat that we were pulling). That was totally unexpected, and totally appreciated, for the thoughtfulness. We were stunned, in part because I had the correct change out for our car and our boat. We thought that the bridge toll operator made a mistake in calculating our bridge fee because I had the correct change out (for what it would have been). We talked for miles about who might have done that, and how cool that was!

81. aimee said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:09 pm

    By the way, I just wanted to mention this too: It’s quite possible that your RAK at Starbucks inspired mr sportscar to do a RAK himself. That’s the beauty of it! A great RAK idea if someone lives in the city, is to feed someone’s parking meter if they need it.

82. Sarah in Ohio said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:09 pm

    Sheri, you are seriosuly th enicest woman in the world, love the idea. Monday and Wed. my son has preschool so it’s a ritual that after we drop him off my daughter and I go through the drive thru, me for a coffee (peppermint white chocolate mocha, yum) and for her an organic vanilla milk. We only drink soymilk here (because too much regular milk makes my sons eczema flare up) so when we pull up to Starbucks my daughter, Anna, squeals, “Anna’s milk house!” Ok, just like to share that cute story. But this Wednesday I will definitely pay for the person behind me.

    I’d be more than happy and excited to donate a skein of my yarn (www.perfectdayyarns.com) if you are interested

    Two RAKS for one week, not a shabby start!

83. TMTTYRR said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:28 pm

    Boy, people have done some nice things. I feel really insignificant by comparison.

    I suppose I never think of the things I do as being acts of kindness, or perhaps not random. I don’t know.

    But this is a really good idea! We should all be more kind to one another this time of year, when it’s so hard to be overbusy and grumpy and underrested!

84. Meg said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:28 pm

    This is my favorite loopy contest ever! I think one of the easiest RAKs to do is just letting someone ahead in line - of course, they know who did it and it doesn’t cost a dime, but it can be so helpful. A couple months ago I ran out to get ibuprofen for my daughter who was running a fever - just had the one thing and wanted to get home quick. There was only one register open, and the lady ahead had a basket full but let me go first. I really appreciated it. Same thing when the kids have had enough of the store, etc. Sometimes you can tell when someone could really use a little extra kindness. Just today I donated some food to a drive they’re having at my school. I always try to give baby cereal or formula to those things since I know they are needed.

    About the guy with the sports car, if he is well enough off to get his own coffee, maybe he’s also well enough off to do some RAKs of his own, and maybe you inspired him!

85. Tiffany said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:29 pm

    I treated myself to a day at the movies this Saturday. When I got up to the ticket guy to tear the ticket and go in to the theatre, another family with two kids in tow got there at the same time as me on the other side of the line. The ticket guy reached toward me to tear my ticket, but I told him to go ahead and help the family first. I was by myself, and the few extra seconds didn’t matter to me. What I thought was really great about it was that the ticket guy smiled really big as he tore their tickets and then turned to me to say how nice that was and how glad he was to see someone do something nice and not be in such a rush that they have to be first.

    Now to think about what I can do this upcoming week. I love the idea of random acts of kindness.

86. Samantha said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:30 pm

    Well this actually happened this summer, but I went in to a gas station bathroom and noticed that in the handicap bathroom, there was a little table with a cloth on it (underneather was storage for toliet paper, etc). On the table there were some flowers and behind them were some pads, obivously left by the gas station for some poor lady who had forgot one that day to use. Well, I hate pads, so I took a tampon out of my purse and left it there. I don’t know, but I felt like I was helping some random woman….
    Oh, and today I was in line for the bathroom, and I let the person behind me go.

    Apparently all my acts of kindess have to do with a bathroom(???).

87. liz from CT said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:31 pm

    I was a ‘victim’(Ha!) of two RAKs last week. First at my LYS, I was paying with a gift certificate & the total came to .81 cents more than I had and I had no cash or change on me. The shop owner told me to pay next time. That was so nice, I couldn’t believe it.
    Then, the day before Thanksgiving, I was at the grocery store for the second time that day b/c I forgot to buy 1 thing(but it was a completely necessary thing so i had to go back) and a woman let me go in front of her in line. It was fantastic.
    So this week, I’m all about paying it forward. I’ve got a store credit at Starbucks, perhaps I’ll pay for someone’s coffee tomorrow.

88. Danielle from SW Missouri said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:35 pm

    When I worked as a nurse (last time was in 2005) I saw many RAKs, my personal favorite was when a co-worker(in a Nursing Home) seeing that one of the residents didnt have anybody visiting her during the holidays got permission to take the lady who had Alzheimers home with her not only for Thanksgiving but also for Christmas. After I left nursing I went to work for wal-mart and remembering the RAKs from my nursing carreer i started helpin those who needed it whether it was for a simple carryout or if needed a few dollars to help if they fell alittle short. My coworkers at wal-mart got together and donated 250 dollars for me and my family when I was diagnosed with a disabling spinal cord injury. When I attempted to thank them for their generosity they told me there was no need as most of them had seen me give money or carry out items when needed, and this was one way they could repay me for helping out Wal-Mart’s customers

89. Linda in Ohio said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:36 pm

    Since my two large maple trees seem to blow all of their leaves into the old lady next doors yard, each year, I rake her yard instead of my own. (I don’t have the stamina to do two yards). I just finished doing it for the last time (#6) yesterday.
    I am always so glad when this job is over, as I hate to rake leaves. WE are having the trees removed next year as we are getting too old to be doing this…just like our neighbor!!!

90. Gina said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:38 pm

    Last December my then 6 year old daughter wore a Christmas sweater to the grocery store. The greeter at the door was also wearing a Christmas sweater. She noticed my daughter and complimented her. The next week my daughter asked to wear her sweater to the store. The greeter was also wearing her sweater. This went on all through December. The greeter learned our names and always made a point to ask about our week. The first week in January the greeter asked me to come to the store office. In the office she had her Christmas sweater in a dry cleaning bag. She wanted to give it to my daughter but first made my daughter promise that when she outgrew her sweater, she would pass it on to another little girl.

    It will be awhile before my daughter grows into the sweater but its hanging at the back of her closet. We contacted the main office for the grocery store so that the greeter could be properly recognized for her outstanding customer service. The greeter went on to retire this past spring but my daughter never fails to make mention of her when we shop that store.

    The sweater was too small this year so we packaged it up and sent it to a home for orphaned children in the Appalachian region.

91. Kristi ~ Ohio said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:38 pm

    I love RAKs. I definitely try to practice this. However, someone did something nice for me that I can’t forget. My husband dropped me off at our LYS for a class…I had had surgery a few days before and couldn’t drive. After the class was over, the store closed, and my husband was running late picking me up. This couple that I had met the week before through the LYS stayed with me outside in the dark until my husband came for me. It was so thoughtful. As for me, when driving, I try to let someone pull in in front of me that is coming out of a gas station, side road, store, etc. I love the “pay for the person behind you” concept and will put it on my list of things to do! Thanks Sheri. Kristi

92. Crystal said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:40 pm

    I love the idea of Random Acts of Kindness.

    Each year I’m the treasurer for our work United Way fund drive, it’s kind of small, but I always buy the “silver” change from the events so that teller at the bank doesn’t have to deal with 10 lbs of change.

    I got hit by a huge kindness today. We draw names for Christmas presents, I drew my Mother in Law, and was struggling with what to give to her. My Brother in Law found 2 great gifts for her and bought them, so all I have to do is reimburse him for them. It just too sweet, having one less gift to think about.

93. Wendy said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:40 pm

    Well, if the RAKs count for Black Friday, I’ve got one. Mom and I were in line at Kohl’s and the people in front of us had their arms full of gift stuff. In fact the guy kept dropping things and then dropping more when he bent down to pick up the previously dropped item. Mom and I had a buggy thing so I rearranged our gift stuff to make some extra room and offered part of our cart to the people in front of us. They were reluctant at first but then gave into it. Good thing too as we were in line for 50 mintues! They were very grateful indeed! As it turns out, we started talking and we apparently attended the same high school years ago. How cool!

94. Sharon said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:43 pm

    Oh, these heart warming stories are making my tears flow!! Knitters have BIG hearts!
    Thank you, Sheri for inspiring us. Last week for Thanksgiving I bought my Physical Therapist and his assistant pies for their dinners. They have helped me so much after my knee replacement. As I walk on the treadmill and am finally free of pain…I have these 2 guys to thank!

95. Wendy said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:43 pm

    Oh and another one… same shopping trip. After waiting in the check out line for forever, we finally reached the register and the woman there was just the most pleasant person I’ve ever had wait on me. It was already 12:30 and she’d been working since 4 am. Hard to believe that anyone working those hours on Black Friday could find a way to still be pleasant and cheerful. I made sure to tell her how pleasant our check out experience was and offered to pass the comment off to her manager. She almost cried and said that no one has ever given her a pat on the back for a job well done.

96. Shari said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:50 pm

    My foster son is one and is special needs. People are often uncomfortable around him and will avoid making eye contact with us. So it always makes my day when people come up to us when we are out and say something nice. Wether it is complimenting his long eyelashes or admiring his outfit, it always brightens my day.

    I always try to keep snacks in my car for the panhandlers at the street light intersections. I don’t usually give them money but I also don’t want them to go hungry. I sometimes have treats for their dogs too.

97. Aimee said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:58 pm

    I do a lot of charity work, but that isn’t the point of this as that is all planned. I would however like to take the opportunity to share a RAK that was done for me. This time last year my family was going through a tough time. My step-father was very very ill. We were hoping he would make it to Christmas, but he wasn’t able to hang on. I spent my 30th birthday with him in the morning and then came back to Charlotte. Days later I was back there as he had taken a turn for the worse. It was a tough time. My loving online friends - very few of whom are knitters - got together and sent a box to me a few days after he passed. I opened a HUGE box FULL of yarn from people all over the WORLD! All sent to one person to collect and send on to me. Now, I love yarn, so it was the perfect gift for me, but more than that it reminded me that while he was gone (and honestly in a better place) and things looked so grim and terrible, that I was just the luckiest girl who had people who still loved her and wanted her to be happy. Which is the point, I think.

    This same friend who coordinated all of this now has a terrible cancer horror in her family. In honor of her mother (who has a recurrance of ovarian cancer) who loves angels we are all making and sending and buying angel things to her so that she is reminded that she is loved no matter how hard things get.

98. Kym Hretz said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 4:59 pm

    I live in a town that has a “downtown” area with parking meters. I try to make sure I have extra change to plop into any expired meters as I walk by. A ticket for an expired meter is $10 dollars if you pay it within 24 hours but jumps to a ridiculous $25 if you pay it after the 24 hour period! Noone deserves that.

99. Barb said,

    November 26, 2007 @ 5:03 pm

    I haven’t been RAK’d lately, but I will tell you a story about my helping a homeless man for a few months about 20 years ago.

    I was working at FAO Schwartz in Boston when I was in college. I was living at home and used to bring my lunch and eat it in the public garden. One day the only bench was occupied by a homeless man and I sat next to him. I was eating my turkey sandwich while he watched. I was very hungry but I also knew that he was much more hungry. I gave him half of my sandwich, my apple and my cookies ( I had taken a couple of bites from my first half. He was so happy. The next day I made two sandwiches and brought two apples and lot more cookies and bought and extra soda thinking maybe he would be there. He was. I gave him his lunch and we sat and talked a little while we ate. This went on a few times a week for the summer into the fall. It got too cold to eat outside and I don’t know what happened to him. He was a Viet Nam veteran who was very nice. He had fallen on hard times. He didn’t complain about his life to me. He knew that the way I could help him was to feed him and listen to him for a little while a few times a week. I don’t know what happened to him, but I felt good giving him a little nourishment for a few months. Not a whole lot, but a lot for this 20 year old.

100. Dj said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:10 pm

     I do this frequently when I put fuel in my car. With gas prices the way they are I try to pay for someone who can only afford $5.00 at a time. Gives them the money back to buy food or something else they may nee but not have the money for. Since hubby works for a restaurant we see these kinds of things all the time and we frequently return the favor.

     I recently paid for someone’s milk because they were short about 80 cents.

101. Allison said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:11 pm

     A couple of years ago, when I was a new mom and stressed out about work and babies and everything else, I was also cooking dinner for our local homeless shelter about once a month. On this particular time, the two people who were supposed to help me cook had bailed; the car had no gas in it; and both my kids were crying about not wanting to go for a car ride. As I struggled to load my car with kids and hot food, and struggled not to cry from stress, my neighbor pulled up and asked if she could help. I said, “No, no, I can do it - it’s just…” and then spent 5 minutes bending her ear. At the end, she said, “I’ll do it” and calmly loaded all the food out of my car and into hers. Now, it was about a 25 minutes drive to the shelter! I’ve moved away and lost touch with her, but that moment still sticks in my mind.

102. Jocelyn said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:15 pm

     What a great “contest” for December! When I used to live in a city that had toll bridges, I pulled up one day to be told that someone had paid my toll already (as prices had recently doubled, this was a really nice treat). After that, I would occasionally do the same thing — it made me feel so good I figured I should pass it on. I have one more that happened to me today: I was having lunch with some work colleagues, and one of them told me that a former student of mine (he kept the student anonymous) had told him that all students should be required to take my class because he thought it was so good. I tell you, it absolutely made my day!

103. Nancy said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:21 pm

     RAK have always been a part of my family’s life. My mom never drove but we always had a way home from where ever, thanks to friends folks. Brownies are to do a good deed every day, and to have it count as a “good deed” it must be done without fanfare or sometimes with the person not knowing who did the deed. My husband and I donate blood and are designated as organ donors. We have done this for years, just because it seemed the thing to do. Six years ago my brother became quite ill very suddenly and we we were told he would need a heart transplant. After only 2 days on the list, he received an organ from someone who did the most gracious RAK of all. For this I give thanks every day and will forever be in debt for my personal miracle. I was always told that one did not repay a kindness but paid ahead for one that would be done for us. It will take a lifetime to pay ahead for this gift.

104. Orghlaith said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:36 pm

     My DH (who is referred to as HIM) took his new sleeping bag to the truck stop (he is a trucker) to give to a homeless man. He didn’t make a fuss, just told me he was going to do it. That is why I married him. He just does these things. I have a whole list of similar acts. He is my hero. Quiet, self-effacing, kind. Oh, and sexy too.

105. Julie-Ann in West Indies said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:39 pm

     We all go around doing random acts of kindness even when we aren’t aware of it, like it’s a habit to do that thing, but it’s a kindness to the person it’s done for. For example, today in the Supermarket with my sister, while we were talking, I noticed a guy coming out of, I think it was, the storeroom with a whole load of bags of stuff in his hand and two of them fell, so while still talking quite animatedly to my sister, I pick them up for him and barely noticed him say thanks. I’m used to doing that, it’s automatic for me, like if I’m in a clothing store (in the States) and I see stuff on the floor I take it up and rehang it.

106. Kathi in Fenton said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:39 pm

     I was the recipient of an act of kindness today! Our trash is usually picked up on Thursday. since Thanksgiving was on Thursday my husband put the trash out on Friday - no pick up so he lugged it back out on Saturday - no pick up. This morning as I was pulling up the shades in the greenhouse the trash man drove up & he must have seen the look on my face - but he stopped & waved for me to bring out my trash & then came up & helped me carry out the last 2 bags!!!!! Now that’s what I call exceptional customer service!!!!!! But ya know what - that is just his normal behavior - he is always going beyond what you’d expect!!

107. Sandy Ziegler said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:39 pm

     Through the grapevine, I heard of a family who could not afford a Thanksgiving meal. So, I purchased a 21 pound Butterball Bird, dressing mixes, cans of cranberries, a bag of potatoes, boxes of jellos, etc. etc. etc. and left it in a big box on their doorstep. They had EVERYTHING they needed to prepare a wonderful meal. They have four children and the father lost his job and the mother is suffering from breast cancer. I rang the doorbell and then got in my car and sped off. But, I did peek around the corner to make sure they answered the door and got the goodies.

108. Marsha in Colorado said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:41 pm

     To me- After my knee replacement 2 yrs ago, friends came in and changed the sheets on my bed, straightened the house, and left flowers for me to find on my return from the hospital.

     From me-We have many out of state tourists who buy groceries here, but don’t have the “value” card that allows them significant savings. I always let the person ahead of me use mine, if she doesn’t have one.

     I always thank people in service jobs for working that day, especially on holidays.

     RKAs are really great-we never know how far one will travel…..

109. Donna said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:47 pm

     I’m going to brag on my daughter - 15, high school sophomore - She has started her own RAK for her youth group leader. Every month she gives her a little anonymous gift, some cards, a mug, bubble bath. My daughter found someone to help her get these things to her and who can sometimes pass back the reactions. It is so fun to see my little girl growing into a generous, thoughtful young woman.:)

110. Zuleika said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:48 pm

     I always try to do some sort of random kindness on a daily basis. It gives you such a good feeling to do things without thought of reward. Recently I found a wallet on the ground and took it to the police station. I also said no thanks to the reward offered. Yesterday after dialysis my mother asked me to mend a hole in her crocheted slippers. While she slept, I made her a new pair and hung them on her door handle so she’d be surprised when she awoke.
     I also give to the needy regularly.

111. sarah lou said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:51 pm

     well, i hope i’m not spoiling the surprise, as i think it would have arrived to you all, today… but spurred on by your recent request for music suggestion, last week i had my top choice mailed to your loopy office! does that count?

112. Dana said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:55 pm

     Today after reading this, I made sure to let a few people merge in front of me while coming home in rush-hour traffic. I really hope that they return the kindness to someone else if they get a chance.

113. Christine said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 5:58 pm

     I’ve really enjoyed reading others’ comments. Teh RAK I usually do is if I find myself in a grocery store on my lunch break I try to pick up little treats for my coworkers to help the afternoon go by faster.

114. Erin in Minnesota said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 6:15 pm

     I feel like this is so small compared to the other RAK’s out there, but I always hold doors for people, especially if they look like they’ve got full hands, but just in general. I’m usually not in so much of a hurry that I don’t have the additional 30 seconds to help out someone else and it nearly always makes me feel good if I can help anyone else out.

115. JRR said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 6:22 pm

     Here in NYC, I buy a monthly MetroCard which costs a flat rate for unlimited rides, so long as they are 20 or so minutes apart. When I get off the train, I look to see if there is someone who needs to be swiped in. It costs me nothing but saves the other person $2.00, which is often more than the person can afford, or saves the other person time waiting for the next train they can’t find their card and would miss the train. It pays me back to know that I live in a city where people do nice things for others–and that I’m contributing to that!

116. Allison said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 6:22 pm

     Whenever I see someone at a stoplight asking for help, I often stop and ask them their name, and introduce myself and my 5-year-old son. I help if I can, but I always tell them that there are people in the world who love them, that I am one of those people, and that my son and I will pray for them if that’s allright with them. It’s odd, but so often, the people I meet are moved, sometimes to tears, to have someone ask them their name.

     I have been moved myself, sometimes to the point of jumping out of the car to give them a great big hug! My son always remembers them in his prayers, asking God to keep them safe and to make sure that they are healthy and that they have a place to sleep. It’s nothing, really, and yet it has really deepened our appreciation for the incredible gifts we’ve been given, and also our compassion for those who feel forgotten.

117. Karen B. said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 6:44 pm

     There is one Random Act of Knitting kindness I’d like to acknowledge and that is from a woman named Angie M. in Indiana. I have a couple of physical problems that make knitting difficult at times. Knowing this, Angie insisted that she pick up where I left off and knit a beautiful Chevron scarf, with each stitch meant to represent her healing hope for me. She recently sent me the completed scarf, wrapped around specially selected chocolates. I can’t tell you what this means to me :o)

     I’ve only met Angie once but I can tell you that she is one in a million!

118. Amy Scott said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 6:51 pm

     I have a great RAK story:

     When my dh and I were dating, we had a weekend where we were both broke. We wanted to go out, so we hit my then boyfriend’s coin jar and pulled out enough for us to split a sundae at IHOP.

     So here we are at IHOP enjoying our pocketchange sundae and having a great conversation, and it was time to pay. So we started counting our change (while giggling the whole way through). This 40ish gentleman came up to us and plopped a $ 20 bill on our table and said, “I had someone do this for me one time, and now I want to do it for you too.” He went on to tell us a story about how someone paid for his gas.

     We were so shocked, and we were thankful for the RAK. I’ll never forget this and it always brings me back great memories.

119. Rachel said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 6:53 pm

     My RAK of the week would be helping a person out at the store, she had dropped quite a few items; everyone breezed by her, I halted everyone around her and helped her pick up everything, she was so thank ful. as I was to at least help her!

120. Cheeky Red Head said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 6:59 pm

     A RAK that someone did for me was that a friend that I was still just getting to know sent me a wonderful skein of sock yarn she had dyed herself just because, she said, the colors reminded her of me. As for the RAK I do for someone else, I make it a regular habit to let folk go ahead of me in line at the super market. One time there was lady ahead of me in line that I heard say what a great sale the stoer had on chiken. Her little girl was sitting in the front of the cart holding a container with a single cup cake in it and it was one of the last things to be run up. When the total was more money than the lady had she said some thing had to go back. I could see the torn look on the ladies face while she considered putting back the cupcake and/or the chicken. I leaned over to the cashier and said I would pay whatever the amount was that she needed. The lady just looked at me like I was nuts, she just couldn’t believe I would do something like that for a complete stranger. I told her that the $4 or $5 that I was spending on her chicken was the best meal I paid for all week and that there was no way I was going to let her daughter not have her cupcake.

121. Topaz said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 7:01 pm

     I have to share a lovely thing that my kids did several years ago– hopefully it will inspire someone else. The kids all had money set aside to buy Christmas gifts for each other. My neighbor had taken temporary custody of her niece and nephew and she came over almost in tears one day because she didn’t know how she could afford Christmas gifts for her family that now totaled 8. My lovely, wonderful, sweet kids heard me tell my (then) husband about my friend’s angst. They pooled their money together, come to me and asked if they could buy gifts for the nieghbors instead buying for themselves. My friend AND her husband actually cried when the kids came over with the wrapped presents.

122. Chrissy said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 7:02 pm

     I have knitted 6 stocking hats for charity this holiday season, and I’ll probably knit a few more, and maybe some mittens, too.

123. Phyllis said,

     November 26, 2007 @ 7:06 pm

     I try to help people when I’m out shopping, getting things from shelves that are too high, picking up dropped items, opening doors, the usual courtesy things that so many have forgotten about.

     I’m also taking a gift up to my spinning teacher later this week. She’s celebrating the first anniversary of her shop. (And yes, Sheri, it will resemble a certain pie plate.)

     I was on the receiving end a few weeks ago. I helped an artist friend buy a ne