Have you ever seen one of these posters before? I see them at bus stops all the time and I just can’t quite figure out what the hell they are selling! I’m sorry, but people don’t just buy expensive bus shelter ads to promote random acts of kindness unless it’s to advertise their church or “Random of Acts of Kindness” is some new type of iPhone rip-off Sony’s trying to hawk.

So, being the Curious George that I am, I went to the interwebs to investigate. Thanks to star.com I found out that it’s a “multi-million dollar bilingual [ad] campaign” created by “executive chairman of Media Experts Mark Sherman…along with Toronto-based advertising agency, Zulu Alpha Kilo.” The campaign runs rampant throughout Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Montreal and Halifax and was supposed to cease it’s run on August 21, 2011 but last time I checked it’s March 2012 and the ads are still everywhere. Honestly, I couldn’t find much dirt on these guys. I found on newswire.ca that much of their advertising space was donated by media outlets and vendors, and many of the people who worked on creating the campaign donated their services for free. So, does that mean that this entire ad campaign should have cost millions of dollars but no one paid a cent for it? I don’t buy it.

I’m just not too sure about all this. Yes, they are only advertising good behaviour and I am all for smiling at strangers and being a good citizen, but I honestly find their approach bizarre and suspicious.

What are your thoughts on peopleforgood.ca?

Mo’ Houses out!

KONY 2012 from INVISIBLE CHILDREN on Vimeo.

You’ve probably already seen this KONY 2012 video as it’s been viral for a few days now and it’s been stirring up quite a bit of controversy ever since. When I first watched it, I was completely enamored, completely shocked, and completely sucked in. I mean, how could I not be? Not to mention I’ve got a soft spot for anything Africa related as I did a two month volunteer trip to The Gambia when I was 18, but I’ll leave that story for another time.

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Giving back doesn’t always mean giving money. It can mean giving your time to volunteer, giving your clothes or household wares to the Salvation Army, or even giving up your organs when you die. I remember when I was a kid, I never wanted to be an organ donor. I was convinced that even though I’d be dead, I would still feel the surgeon cutting out my heart and liver. Well, I guess I’ve been desensitized by watching too many episodes of ER and Grey’s Anatomy because now I have absolutely no problem with them scooping up any organs they want. Plus, it seriously took me 5 min. to register. What have you got to lose, besides a bunch of body parts you won’t need anyway?

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One of the things I hate about the post-Christmas season is that everyone is done with giving. Sure, you donated a few canned goods to the food bank and some money to the hospital, but guess what? People in need are in need year round. If you’re feeling tight on cash from overspending during the holidays, ever thought of giving blood?

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A little while ago I read an article on Moneyville.ca about how Air Miles had just implemented a “use them or lose them” policy, meaning if you don’t use your Air Miles within 5 years they’ll disappear. It’s funny because my sister was just talking to me about how she’d heard this might happen and mentioned that she’d already redeemed all of her Air Miles for Chapters gift cards. Smart girl my sister, smart girl. Well, it’s been a couple weeks since that announcement was made, so I thought it’s about time I check how many miles I’ve I racked up in the 5 or 6 years since I got the card.

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