Hopefully all or at least most of us donate clothes that are in good condition to shelters or organizations. I’ve been fortunate to work in the fashion industry for a long time, so there’s lots of items that are in great shape and need a better home than I could provide. Therefore, I often drop off bags of clothes, shoes and accessories to Salvation Army, Goodwill or shelters.

A Salvation Army center is not far from where I live, so this is the main one I drop off to. There’s one woman that is always at the donation area accepting product. She doesn’t wear a tag, so I’ll call her Lana. No matter the season of year, time of day or day of the week, Lana always has an attitude. The first time I went in there I thought maybe she’s just having a bad day, I understand how frustrating it can be. The following time I decided to drop off, I was met with an even worse attitude. Still not trying to give what I get, I met her with a smile and an even tone of voice. Last week was approximately my seventh time donating to that location and of course Lana was there with a scowl and a side eye on her face. I proceeded to hand her my bags and wait for her direction. In an annoyed tone she said “It’s just clothing right”? I told her yes there’s clothes and also shoes for men and women. She responded in the driest tone “so it’s not just clothes then”. Again, not wanting to give her the attitude she was giving me, I simply said “well no, you assumed it was just clothes without me telling you what was in the bags first”. Lana’s upper lip snarled like Scar’s in the Lion King (watch it, if you don’t get the reference) and in the snappiest tone said “if you want an itemized list you do it yourself, I don’t have time and that’s not my job”. She turned and walked back into the donation abyss behind her. Not wanting the last of our exchange to be negative, I ended it by shouting to her back, “try and have a good rest of your day”, before I walked out.

Whenever I encounter Lana I want to yell at her, “If you hate something so much, why are you here”! Lana makes me see red every time she opens her mouth. It’s the Salvation Army! The meaning of salvation is deliverance from harm/ruin and the way she acts is the opposite- her attitude is harmful and it could ruin your day if you let it. We’ve all had crappy days due to whatever circumstances and then had to do our jobs, some of us are better at hiding it than others. Clearly Lana needs an acting class or something to figure out the best techniques to handle it. Don’t let the Lana’s out there who hate their jobs and give horrible customer service, negatively affect you, especially when you're doing something positive. Continue to work on your patience and compassion so you know how to react when met with someone like her. Although I may have wanted to snap back (and I almost did on more than one occasion), I wasn’t going to let her take me out of character. I know she’ll be in there the next time I decide to go, so until we meet again Lana...

Go through your wardrobes and donate. It doesn't have to be just clothing, donate houseware and decorative items that are in good condition too!

It’s been a little over a week since I logged off all social media. I only use Instagram and Pinterest, I have rarely gone on Facebook since last year. This didn’t start as some sort of experiment, but it has become one inadvertently. Originally I did it because I was tired of how much I constantly check and scroll on Instagram- I was basically a zombie just flipping through pictures and double tapping the image. You don’t realize how much of a distraction it is in your daily life until you stop. Once I logged off I immediately felt relief, there was no more pressure for me to post something (mind you I’m the one who’s putting that on myself). I come from a career in marketing (10+ years), so I know and understand the world we live in and how important social media is for our voices to be heard and to promote ourselves. I get it, I don’t care as much, but I get it.

Don’t get it twisted I love to post pictures or video of my friends, loved ones or a fun adventure because they are special to me and I want to share. I just don’t do it for the double tap. For me, there are images that have received 20 and then there are those with over 200. It’s funny to see what gets what, as in what others deem as “cool” or skip over because they feel it doesn’t deserve their endorsement. As if any persons validation should be important enough for you to become a feen for a “like”. But there are those that crave it, they “do it for the gram” and it’s only good for them when they see how many approve of it. I know quite a few people that do this and it makes me sad for them, I want to break their chains from the stronghold they have over themselves.

I will log back on this week, mainly because some friends and I are on a group DM (direct message- for anyone who is not familiar). We literally talk all day every day about politics, funny memes, crazy videos we see, calling out each other, promoting what we have currently going on, etc. So in a way, I have felt disconnected from life in that sense. Of course, I talk to them outside of social media, but some are more likely to check a DM than a text because that’s the culture we are in.

I have used the collective time sans social media to read, whether it’s a book or the news or information about something of interest. It’s interesting to see how much time logging on and scrolling can take out of your life, instead of spending time in the present. I need to continue to take my own advice, but it’s hard when it has become habitual. I love to take pictures or video so that won’t stop, but I know that I don’t need to be so quick to post and constantly look to see how many people liked it. If I like it, that’s enough and what others choose to deem worthy of their “likes” should not be my concern. So the question remains with me: did my experiment cleanse my self-inflicted social paranoia? In a way, yes. I no longer feel the need to log on, but I will because there are things I need to publicize and I want to support those who support me by promoting their stuff too. Social media as we all know is a gift and a curse, but we learn (or will learn) that once you have love for yourself you no longer need likes.

With just one click, it owns you and you become a slave to it.