I love a good cup o’ Joe, and am getting more partial to a tasty cup o’ tea too. But whether I’m picking up something on my way to work, meeting a friend over a steaming mug, or working off-site, I like it best when I can make sure that my drink is doing something good in the process.
I want to support businesses that are trying to make the world a better place, and my suspicion is that you do too. This is an easy way to quite literally, put our money where our mouth is.
So here are a few of my favorite local altruistic experiences:
This Tuesday, October 6, you can buy the first copies of my friend Katrell’s book, Tiger Heart. I would absolutely love for you to do this! You won’t regret it. It’s the really incredible true story of her life, and how she dreamed up her organization, The Learning Tea, which provides college educations for impoverished girls in India. For those of you who have been reading this blog for a while or following me, this is the woman I went to India with this summer.
The proceeds from the book will support the organization, so you’d also be benefiting a great cause. There is a lot of humor in the book, but also a lot of inspiration. One of the reasons Katrell wrote the book, the first in a series of three, is that she wanted people to see that amazing things can be done without a lot of resources or money. And I assure you, she is doing some remarkable work. Each of the girls in her program is talented, and has accomplished a lot. All they needed was the chance, which this program gave them.
The book includes some really crazy stories, some of which may even be hard to believe. But if you’ve been to any third-world country, I assume it won’t sound too far-fetched to you. 😉 Weird things happen in these places! Maybe that’s part of the reason we love them.
So, whether you love reading, social justice, Atlanta, India or inspirational stories, I think you’ll really enjoy the book. I certainly did.
And here are a few other ways you can support Katrell’s work:
If you’re in the Atlanta area, you can attend the book launch party on October 15 at the Margaret Mitchell House.
Please visit TheLearningTea.com for more info about the program, or Dr. Bombay’s for info about her tea shop that funds the organization. It’s awesome!
Purchase tea! The current tea is loose leaf, but she hopes to move to tea bags before too long. This was part of the work we did on the trip.
If you’re in the Atlanta area, stop by Dr. Bombay’s for a cup of tea or coffee! High tea is also served daily, and is delicious! Many of their food items are made in house, or bought from locals. And the last Monday of each month is a 4-course meal for $20 that supports The Learning Tea.
It’s been a great week! Some common things, some random things and some unexpected things. I figured I’d just share those with you.
Sunday
First of all, we had amazing weather all week long! August is usually crazy hot and humid, giving our city the nickname “Hotlanta.” But this past week, it was as if Southern California descended upon us and kissed our foreheads. It’s been so wonderful to be outside, and I’m hoping this trend will take us into the fall.
Monday
I ate lunch with my friend and co-worker, Jen, who is always fun to talk to. We’ve both had a lot going on lately, so there’s never a lull in the conversation. She’s been a great source of encouragement and advice, and hopefully I am returning the favor. I’m glad to have a few good friends at the office that I can really hang out with.
I also received my copy of The Entitlement Cure by Dr. John Townsend. He is the co-author of Boundaries, probably the book I have recommended more than any other. If you haven’t read it, do yourself and everyone else around you a favor. It changed my life. But, I am really excited to be a part of the launch team for this new book. That means I’m getting to read it, promote it and give my feedback before it actually becomes available for sale. Pretty fun. So far, I can already tell you that it’s worth the read! Entitlement is an issue I think we all struggle with on some level, so I love that this book is addressing it.
Tuesday
This was a whopper of a day! I got an alert from a travel website I follow, TravelZoo, that said Frontier airlines was having a crazy two-day sale, with fares as low as $20 per one-way, AND they gave you a $5 code.
I have a lot of work travel coming up this fall, plus two event launches, so it really wasn’t a good time for additional personal travel. But for a deal like that, I had to look, right? And I thought maybe I could swing something in my own time zone to make it easier. I’ve really been wanting to get up to NYC to take in a Broadway show. I start getting a little antsy if it’s been too long—and it’s been too long. I’ve always said, if airlines would make it cheap to get in and out on the same day, I’d go regularly to see a show. But alas… So, I thought this would be my chance. Unfortunately, you only had one flight each day to choose from, so it ended up as an overnight trip, which hopefully I can use hotel points for. But, drum roll please, I scored a round trip flight to NYC for $30!
So, of course, now I’m on a buyer’s high! I looked to see if there was another option I could take advantage of. DC is another place I’ve been wanting to get back to, and it happened to be one of the handful of options open for this deal. Plus, there are still a number of things I’ve never done in DC. So, I snatched that one up too—yes, for $30 round trip! So, now I have a total of seven trips in about a 10-week time period, but I’m going to get to do some fun things!
I also started listening to Jen Hatmaker’s new book, For The Love. I can’t even begin to describe how much I adore this woman and want to be her friend. This new book just makes me dive a little deeper into my obsession. I laughed and cried and have already recommended this book to everyone I saw this week. Love. Love. Love. Get it now!
To top that day off, I had a long-overdue coffee date with my friend, Michelle. We were able to just slow down and catch up for a few hours. It was lovely, and the perfect end to Tuesday.
Wednesday
I went to my regular naturopath appointment, and got the results back from some recent tests I had done. Thank goodness—things are getting better! I’ve had chronic health issues for almost three and a half years. But my most recent blood and saliva tests show improvement and my body starting to work more the way its supposed to. This was a relief, since I was going through yet another phase of being frustrated about all of this. I am grateful for all of their help, and despite the expense, know that treating my body naturally is the way to go. Huzzah—starting to see some real progress!
I also finished watching the final season of The Newsroom. My love for Aaron Sorkin’s writing knows no bounds. It began with Sports Night, then The West Wing, followed by Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (my fav), and now The Newsroom. I wish everyone everywhere spoke the way this man writes. Wit and repartee and banter at its finest. Aaron, I’m waiting with baited breath until your next TV show. Please don’t make me wait too long.
Thursday
Despite my horrendous start to the day in getting my driver’s license renewed, the rest of the day was pretty enjoyable. (See rant on Facebook here. ) If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, you know I love conferences and frequently attend them. Well, my friend Eryn was speaking at a conference in LA this week that I really wanted to go to, but couldn’t make it work. It’s called Yellow Conference, and I have been stalking them for about a month now.
Since I could attend, I ended up purchasing the Live Stream pass. So, Thursday was spent listening to incredible women and men with inspiring stories while I worked away at my computer. It was not as awesome as it would’ve been to be there, but still a great alternative. I was unable to listen in on Friday, but I’m excited to go back and watch the videos soon. And, Yellow Conference, I’ll see you in person next year!
Friday
Friday was a day for reconnecting. I had morning coffee with my friend, Pattie, who was in town for the day. She was the Georgia Chapter co-director for Not For Sale when we met, and was a great boss to volunteer under. She moved to South Georgia a while back, so I rarely see her anymore, and this was a real treat. It was fantastic to hear what’s going on in her life and tell her about mine. We always speak so easily with each other, and it was a great way to start the day.
After that, I headed over to one of my favorite places in ATL, Dr. Bombay’s, which has been mentioned numerous times on this blog since I just went to India with my friend Katrell who is the owner, as well as another friend and her employee, Stephanie. I hadn’t been able to hang out with Stephanie since returning from India, so we planned to work on our own stuff, drink chai, and chat in between. This was so nice. Katrell was also in that day so I got to hang out some with her too. It was a great way to end the work week—productivity, friends, coffee, tea and patio weather.
Saturday
Energy is a precious and rare commodity with any long-term illness. And for one that began with mono, it’s especially true. So perhaps it was the momentum of this week, but I woke up with a good amount of energy and a desire to be outside in this terrific weather in case it decides to take a hike. So, I headed out to the Silver Comet Trail for a long walk. I ended up making it about 3.5 miles, which I was pretty proud of. And it was doubly good because I listened to my newest audio book, Off Balance, during the first part of the walk and prayed on the way back. I was tired and sweaty when I finished, but it felt really good. I’m so grateful to have ended my week this way. Praying I’ll be able to do it again soon!
Wow—the holidays are here again! I know we all say this every year, but 12 months flew by way too fast. Here we are, on the day after Thanksgiving, and pretty soon the pumpkins will be replaced with snowmen (if they haven’t been already).
While we are out enjoying the last days of 2013, let’s make them count. There are so many fantastic things to do and see, and more importantly, people to spend time with.
Make this December one to be remembered. But, okay, don’t forget to Instagram the photos while you’re at it. 😉
Brrrr—it’s getting chilly outside, and this girl’s already hitting the hot cocoa pretty hard! But cocoa and blankets and cold weather mean one thing, the holidays are coming. Ready or not, they’ll be here before you know it. While that’s frightening on one hand, it means a lot of fun holiday events on the other! Can’t you just smell the logs on the fire? And though we are never short on events in Atlanta, there’s an especially exciting lineup of fall and winter happenings to add to your to do list.
Mental Post-Its 