Random Acts of Kindness Day and My Way Day

Random Acts of Kindness Day 

I wasn't surprised to learn that there was an official Random Acts of Kindness Day (which is actually in the middle of Random Acts of Kindness Week), but I did find it interesting that there is an entire organization devoted to this concept.  For a complete history of the day, inspiring individual stories, ideas for activities, and other information, I recommend taking a look at the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation.

Today I was busy working from home so I didn't have a chance to do anything to commemorate the day, unless you count complimenting a few posts on Facebook and moving Archie away from approaching dogs in case they didn't want to play and bark with him.  It's a good thing there's an entire week of opportunity!

Of course, I would rather take the RAK Foundation's approach and just live a kind life.  Living in a city, there are lots of opportunities to be kind to strangers or be selfish.  I must admit that leaving my corporate job and getting a dog are two major life changes that has made me kinder in most situations.  I have more patience and am not as stressed or consumed with my own life.  

My Way Day

There are so many random and obscure holidays and national days that there are times when days will inevitably clash.  Celebrating My Way Day and Random Acts of Kindness Day may make one a bit nutty.

The day takes it's name and attitude from the expression "It's my way or the highway."  According to Days of the Year, you celebrate by doing whatever you want, however you want.  Using this logic, I suppose it is possible to combine this with your random acts of kindness -- just make sure you're being kind exactly how you want to be kind.

SOY Mystery Scarf CAL Completed

The four-week crochet-a-long for a Scraps of Yarn Mystery Scarf is over and I now have a new scarf to wear on dog walks for the rest of the winter.  In true My Way Day fashion, I expanded the instructions for week 3 and totally disregarded the finishing instructions given on week 4.

Week 3 was the week that all of the flower motifs were sewn together and then the granny row neck portion was crocheted.  I quickly noticed that the scarf would not be a practical length for a Chicago winter and the flowers would hang in an awkward way.  I ended up more than doubling the amount of granny rows so that the flowers would start below my shoulders instead of close to my neck.  This made the scarf much more proportional, in my opinion.

Week 4 provided finishing instructions that were just not my style -- a couple rows of crocheting along each end of the scarf, followed by the addition of fringe.  I knew that I would not be happy with a scarf finished in that fashion.

Instead, I crocheted around the entire scarf with black yarn and also added some black edging to a couple of the larger spaces between flowers.   This gave the scarf a more polished look and also reinforced the many joins and ends associated with a scraps of yarn project.  After blocking the scarf, the end product is colorful and fun.