reach out & read
back in my residency days [i realize it was less than a year ago, but it feels like another era!], i saw many of durham’s cute young children in my own primary care clinic every week. one of the best parts of each visit was the privilege of handing out a free book to every child between the ages of 6 months and 5 years — from little cardboard books with pictures for the tiny ones to drool on to actual story books [in english OR spanish!] for the older tykes.
for some of these children with families struggling to make ends meet [as a resident, i saw a population that was mostly on medicaid], these may have been the only kid-friendly volumes in the house. and since i have written about how important books were to me growing up, that makes me so sad! but a small collection is worlds better than no books at all. and i truly do believe that early exposure to the world of the written word has the power to make a difference in some of these kids’ lives.
she looks into it! image from reach out & read washington‘s site
the organization that makes giving away these books a reality is called reach out and read. last year, i decided to do something i had never done before and asked you all if you would be able to contribute to this worthy cause. i was participating in a race [which ended up as my 5K PR . . .ahh i can’t believe i ran that fast just one year ago] and was able to raise over $200 — which translates to a lot of books!
fast forward one year and let me tell you — i will not be ‘racing’ that 5K. however, i will still be participating [and hopefully helping a friend through her first race!]. and therefore, i wanted to ask you all once more — if it would cause no hardship — whether you would be able to contribute to this cause in 2011.
click the above to be taken to official active.com donation page, or go here
oh: and to sweeten the pot, anyone who donates anything will be entered to win a baked good of your choice [made by moi].
but wait, there’s more!
i feel like i can’t ASK for something without giving you all something, too. and that is why today’s post is also a giveaway sponsored by . . . well, me. since i am not oprah [YET!], there will be no cars up for grabs. but there will be a BOOK! [almost as good . . . right?]. the winner will choose a selection from the options below, and i will ship your choice directly from amazon.
the options
the happiness project by gretchen rubin
40 days to personal revolution by baron baptiste
168 hours: you have more time than you think by laura vanderkam
norwegian wood by haruki murakami
pre-order of this won’t hurt a bit [out may 11] by michelle au
organized simplicity by tsh oxenreider
rules of entry
✰ for one entry, leave a comment with your #1 top favorite book EVER on this post
✰ for an additional entry, please tweet/blog/facebook this post with reference to reach out & read
✰ contest will end this saturday, 3/26 [the day of the race]
you do not have to donate to enter the giveaway, but even small amounts ($1? go for it, seriously!) would be much appreciated!
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3.21.11
workout: 3.2 (ish) mile run in the AM (about 32 minutes – not sure of exact distance). i did not get to yoga because the day simply was jam-packed! my arm/shoulder area is still sore when i wake up, but seems to improve throughout the day.
easy indian
mondays are always a hard night for me — we have meetings until 6, and the afternoon is packed with obligations so that i often have work left over that i just can’t ignore. luckily, i prepared the pantry with some easy indian knowing that the cooking light chicken with fennel that i had planned just might have to be tabled until tuesday.
i let the brown rice cook while i typed 3 consult notes, dumped the contents of some cans onto pots on the stovetop, and voila!
jyoti mustard greens; jyoti chickpea/potato curry; brown rice; yogurt; cucumber
yum.
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