Thursday, September 25, 2008

ShallowGal and the (somewhat) selfless act

This morning ShallowGal was at the bank. Apparently there's something wrong with the economy, maybe, (or was it astronomy?) and ShallowGal thought maybe she could be of some assistance.

The bank manager told ShallowGal about a new promotion; open a new checking account and get a $50 Visa gift card. Now ShallowGal already has two checking accounts; the joint account with PCSguy for bills and her secret account. The secret account is in case SG needs to bail in the middle of the night. (1) Or PCSguy needs bail in the middle of the night. But that would probably come out of the joint checkbook anyway.

With an extra $50, ShallowGal would treat her family to Chinese food tomorrow night after swim practice. At the good place too, not the crappy buffet.

But then the bank manager started to mess with ShallowGal's head. She said that instead of $50, they would instead donate $100 to ShallowGal's favorite 501(c)(3) charity. King Solomon himself never faced such a choice!

Clearly this is a test of ShallowGal's character. And there is little that ShallowGal excels at more than fake secret tests of character. Except maybe quizzes about reality television shows on Bravo. (2)

ShallowGal's favorite charity is UNICEF. Instead of feeding her family fried dumplings, UNICEF would take the money and give FIVE HUNDRED children measles vaccines. Oh they are good at fake secret character tests, these people.

But then ShallowGal thought of something she likes more than Chinese food, and possibly even more than measles shots (3) And that is comments.

So here's the deal. Leave a comment telling SG if you would take the $50 or donate $100 to charity, and if so, which charity. On September 30th, one comment will be "randomly" (4) chosen, and the money will be donated to that charity, in that commenter's name.



1) However SG will not get far as the secret account has about $400.
2) Hot Tranny Mess for $200, Alex!
3) That's going to count against me on the fake secret character test, isn't it?
4) Randomly is is quotation marks because we all know that these things are fixed. But it's going to a charity, for sure.

12 comments:

vuboq said...

Given that vuboq is totally without a job right now, he would take the $50. and buy groceries. or treat his friends to happy hour (speaking of happy hour, did ShallowGal get my email?).

Were vuboq not unemployed he would give the money to either (1) the Washington Animal Rescue League, (2) Food & Friends, or (3) the Whitman-Walker Clinic. OR he would make a donation to one of his many friends who are raising money for various causes that he can't contribute to right now. *sigh*

the unemployment. it suxor.

Anonymous said...

ummmmmm........


Sista #2 would definitely take the $50 gift card.

Dammit....my family needs to eat. I would take them out to stuff our faces.

You want me to open another account??? Feed me mother f-er.

Does this mean #2 is going to H E double toothpick?

peace
#2

Anonymous said...

I know you too well, SG. You're a sucker for a good cause. You never even considered keeping the $$.

Anyway, my favorite charity is The House of Mercy in Manassas, which helps needy families in the community.

http://www.divinemercynow.org/HouseofMercy/tabid/66/Default.aspx

I'm Julie said...

Ooh I love a contest, especially a fixed one.

I would donate the money FOR SURE. And then in self righteous pride I would take my family out for Chinese food, and brag about how, like totally spiritual and giving I am. More won tons, please!

I would donate the money to Father Marcs orphanage, because in all seriousness, whenever I bitch about how hard my life is, I get an e-mail from him about how he can only afford to feed the kids one meal a day. Reality check!

Cindy said...

I'd probably get all stressed out thinking about how many needy charities there are out there, and how $100 is barely going to put a dent in any of their needs. Then I'd think about how my husband just lost his job and we're moving to save money, and I'd be tempted to just keep the $50. Then, finally I'd remember my important life principle "I never gamble with money I've worked hard to earn...but windfall money I can gamble with" and I'd buy myself some lottery tickets!!

Otherwise, I'd give it to my favorite local charity, Lost Dog and Cat Foundation. I have a dog and two cats that they rescued from being put to sleep in a shelter, and I wish I could adopt every single animal they have.

Anonymous said...

Teri is right. SG never considered keeping the money. My vote is donate. But I'd also vote for some dumplings sometime this weekend.

PCSGuy

~Swankymama said...

I would donate. To the Susan G. Koman 3-day walk for breast cancer. People who walk the 3-day have to raise $2200 each. Or they don't walk.

It's for a good cause.

Kelly said...

There are so many good charities out there. However, Children's Safe Drinking Water is on the top of my list these days.

http://www.csdw.org

ShallowGal said...

I am LOVING the charity suggestions, keep 'em coming !!

{sue} said...

I would donate AND go out for Chinese. (Although the husband doesn't like money spread out like that, so he wouldn't want another checking account at all!) My charity du jour is National Childrens Medical Center - my daughter has received great care there.

Emilita said...

I realize the time for suggestions already ended, but I had a different idea than other posts. Take the $50, and instead of donating the $100 from the bank to charity, do some good deeds yourself. Like volunteer a at a soup kitchen or help house-bound elderly people.

In my mind: $50 would cover my lunch at work for two weeks. (Or at least a week and a half if I felt especially extravagant. I always walk to a local Safeway for the salad bar or a sandwich.) And it'd probably give me a few dollars to do something fun with too.

My time, on the other hand, is something far more precious. And probably more difficult for you to give up, especially with young kids. But by giving time, you could see the actual fruits of your labor. Plus sometimes volunteers are just as in demand as funds.

So I think taking the money and volunteering could be a win-win situation. You get Chinese food night *as well as* the satisfaction of helping others. (If it's logistically feasible, of course.)

Nanny Goats In Panties said...

"Or PCSguy needs bail in the middle of the night." HA HA HA!!!!!

I would take the $50 just on principle. I hate feeling like I'm being tested or manipulated or whatever. I will give to whomever I want whenever I want and not be character tested into it (unless I was running for office or I was a celebrity, in which case, I would gladly hand over $100 and then some and make sure paparazzi was around to capture that moment). But I would give to whichever charity had the lowest overhead, where the beneficiaries actually see most of the money rather than it going to admin costs.

(Found you via Texas Holly, btw).