volunteering my morning...

...starting with plans to meet the vendor who stocks Sara Lee baked goods. He had agreed to provide me with 150 hotdog buns, to donate to the Summer-fest event at the Civic Center today. Only problem being, I went to meet him at the wrong Walmart. So there I was, and he wasn't. A phone call resolved that, and I got the buns, to take downtown.

Along with 6 x 24 hot dogs and a whopping big pile of donated (slightly stale) cookies. I will trust you to not repeat this: but some of them have been in my fridge for two months, awaiting the Summer-fest. Some were picked up last night, and I am hoping the people who ate them could not tell which ones were nearly fresh and which ones had been awaiting consumption for weeks.

I was supposed to be down there at 7:30, but was nearly an hour late, as a result of the non-meeting at the wrong store to bun pick up. And got there, with cookies, hot dogs, buns, and 18 x 5 cases of bottled water much later than planned. Only to be reminded: If I don't write it down, it won't happen. I had agreed to put together a gift basket for a door prize, and completely forgot. Until someone said 'gift' and I thought: 'Oh, s#%t!'

Where upon I made up an excellent lie. Saying I had forgotten it (which is truer than anyone will ever know) and that I had left it at home, and would go get it, be back before 9:00. Went to the 'just a buck' store and bought twenty dollars worth of stuff, including a little plastic basket. And across the street to the grocery store, where I know for a fact they use clear cellophane to wrap fresh fruit gift baskets. And wrapped it all up, adding frou-frou and long streamers of curling ribbon.

It all worked out - I will just add the cost of the basket stuff to the donation I will take off my taxes.  Summerfest is an annual event the senior citizens of the area enjoy where they can go and get hot dog lunch, win a variety of door prizes, a t-shirt with sponsors names printed on the back, learn about community resource. All free, just show up and enjoy sitting in the cool building, being entertained by musical acts, skits, hula dancers (fully covered.)