It is not dawn yet and I'm up getting plants ready to go the local Farmer's Market. Our Master Gardener's are doing a sale at the Market this morning and the funds raised will help fund our projects for the year. I am donating 20 large plants - 5 varieties of tomato, 2 varieties of bell pepper, Shasta daisy, and Blackberry lily.

@drdawg, I like your good deed for the day.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to do a good deed related to gardening. My neighbor who has an overgrown extremely natural yard (the same person for whom I secretly pull some weeds when they grow too tall) hired a professional landscape maintenance man to cut his weeds/lawn down. Before he began to work I asked if I could have a moment to gather some seeds for a particular wildflower, Helianthemum carolinianum/Carolina rock rose , which thrives in that yard. After I gathered the seeds I made a package of seeds along with planting instructions to give to the landscape man.

When he finished his work I noticed he had also cut down two small American Beautyberry/Callicarpa americana plants. Oh, no, another good deed was needed. I gave the man a jar of the American Beautyberry jelly and instructed him how to identify the shrub before cutting a yard in the event he may want to dig up the plants and relocate them. I invited the man to join All Things Plants.

Way to go, Greene.

In the urban parts of New Jersey, a good deed would draw suspicion from some people, like they were wondering what my "angle" was.

I just said that, as a Boy Scout, I was supposed to do at least one good deed every day ... and I was WAY behind on my quota".

That seemed to satisfy the skeptics.

I swear, I NJ, if you walked up to a stranger and tried to hand them a $20 bill, they would freak out and assume you were somehow setting them up for a mugging or some complicated scam.

When I slowed my car down down approaching an on-ramp, to let someone pull into traffic, their heads would spin around looking for the cop car or out-of-control truck that was the only reason they could CONCEIVE OF for anyone slowing down to let them get in front.

Eventually I learned to relish the rascality of teasing NJ drivers this way. Just be polite and considerate: they will NEVER figure it out!

That's a sad commentary on our "Northern" folk, Rick. Where did trust go?

I kind of think that it has more to do with being "urban" than with being in the Northeast. Maybe cities drive us crazy, and nature restores sanity. Or maybe we are like rats - when the population density gets high enough, we start attacking and eating each other.

When the population density is high enough, you bump into scammers and rude people and outright criminals often enough that you expect them everywhere. And that's true even if the percentage of ratfinks is constant everywhere.

But I believe that once people see rotten behavior in their neighborhood fairly often, they start to think "everyone is a bum!" or "If I'm the ONLY nice guy, I must be a sucker". Then the percentage starts going up.

As with insane drivers, we mostly don't notice the 99 people on the sidewalk who are normally polite. But we remember for decades the one person in a three-piece-suit who elbowed grandmothers out of his way because he was "so important" (in his own mind).

In the PNW, aggressiveness in drivers seems to correlate with distance from a major city, and perhaps with population density.

Anyone else do any good deeds today?

I saw a fisherman hauling his boat today. It was windy and his lifejacket blew out. I pulled up next to him and let him know

I'm taking a day off work Friday, planning an extended weekend helping my SO weed and prepare soil for 2 Knockout Roses, orange lilies and other plants. Then we'll plant them.

Last night I shopped for and bought the KO Roses. Tonight I'll figure out how to reconfigure my trunk and back seat to carry bags of composted manure and tools and two big KO roses. Tomorrow night I'll buy the manure to fill my turnk.

Mostly those are future good deeds.

Does it count as a "good deed" if you enjoy doing it?

No, @RickCorey, it does not count if you enjoy it. With all your helpful suggestions, please allow me to give you a suggestion. Instead of cleaning/straightening your trunk and hauling bags of manure, just put a lead on the cow and walk her to your garden; then point at the spot you would like her to deposit the manure. Just kidding.

@jvdubb, that was a good deed. Those things can be costly and the boater is required to have them on board. You helped him to stay legal. Betcha most of the other drivers just whizzed past without stopping. Good for you!

I was asked to do a good deed today to give someone a ride; then they spoiled it by giving me gas money, so it doesn't count.

I didn't mean to start anything here.....................

RickCorey said:
Does it count as a "good deed" if you enjoy doing it?

Absolutely! I think you should always enjoy doing a good deed. If it wasn't enjoyable and make you feel good you probably wouldn't do it.

[quote=@jvdubb, that was a good deed. Those things can be costly and the boater is required to have them on board. You helped him to stay legal. Betcha most of the other drivers just whizzed past without stopping. Good for you! [/quote]

Well, he was heading towards the lake so I figured he was going fishing. I know legally the life jacket is required in the boat. Those fines can be hefty. I know if I was heading to go fishing and was excited about my day and then found out I couldn't go because I lost equipment I would be really bummed! But I don't know that he was able to get it back. But I at least tried!!

Today I was taking the dogs for a car ride as they were bored. (I always feel like a rich, spoiled person when I do that.); I saw my neighbor walking. He is handicapped, but he was walking much slower than usual and today was using a cane. Even though I had the dogs in the car I took a chance and offered him a ride. He owns a dog so I figured the dogs would sense he is a good person.

It all worked out well. He had recently fallen and was having trouble walking, but needed to run some errands in 90° weather. The dogs were well-behaved, enjoyed the company and it was a good day.

Edited for spelling

Good for you, Greene.

What makes me mad is the people who say, "Oh, you should never do that because they might sue you." Really? Guess not yet in my lifetime. I mean, if I was slowly limping down the street I would like to think that someone, anyone would offer me a ride, right?
Okay, if someone is wearing highpower running shoes and fancy athletic gear I'll figure they are limping because they 'hit the wall' during their exercise session; those types I don't offer help but would help them if they requested it.

The other day there was a post (I think it may have been on FreeCycle) saying a dog needed a ride to Cleveland. Only the dog; the people were flying to Cleveland. I'd like to think someone gave that dog a ride. Wish my car was in better shape; that would have been a good story to tell.

I know the world is different than when I was growing up, and we no longer give rides to strangers. When I went to college, I paid my own way. I had no car - can you imagine a college student today without a car! Anyway, my budget in undergraduate school was $50/week. I spent approximately $10/day on meals and whatever else I needed (supplies). By Friday, my money ran out. Mississippi State University was 125 miles from home, so I hitchhiked home every Friday afternoon and then hitchhiked back again every Sunday afternoon. That was every week for two years. I hitchhiked in rain, sleet, mid-day heat, and bone-chilling cold. Often, whoever picked me up was not going all the way to Jackson, and let me tell you, you have never seen "dark" until you have been put out on a country road, in the middle of nowhere. Back in the 60's people were nice and I always got a ride, though I might have to stand with my thumb out for quite a while, particularly on those dark, lonely roads. I would still pick up a kid, someone I thought was still in school. When I pass someone up, and some of those hitchhikers are really scary looking dudes, I often feel guilty. As I say, just another world.

My best hitchhiker day was when I was leaving Springfield, Massachusetts on my way south. I saw three young men hitching for a ride near the highway. I stopped and they all jumped into the car. When they asked where I was heading I told them - Florida.

Well, those boys got out of my car right there and then. They whooped and hollered, screamed and shouted; when then calmed down and got back into the car. Turns out this was their first time to hitch a ride. Their friends told them all kinds of horror stories and they were prepared for the worst. What they never figured on was making it to Mom's house in one ride. Talk about luck.
It was the best day for everyone. (This was before Interstate 95 was completed.)

Good story, Greene.

Here's another one. I only carried a small duffel bag back and forth, going home in Jackson and then back to Mississippi State. I had hand-lettered a sign for my return from Jackson and back to Mississippi State. The sign simply said: "MSU". Each Sunday, after lunch, I would be dropped off on what would ultimately become I-55, but back then was simply Hwy. 55. My drop-off location would be in North Jackson, since I was traveling NE. Anyway, one afternoon, sign in hand (no thumb necessary), a nice, older couple pulled over and said "Get in. We can take you the whole way." That was always the best statement I could ever hear. We set out going north. Hwy. 55 went to Memphis and then on north from there. About half way to Memphis, one would then turn east, going on to Starkville, my destination. We got to that turn-off point but we kept going north. After a few miles I asked: "Where are we going?" His reply was: "Memphis". I said: "I am going to MSU in Starkville". There was a moment of silence and then his wife chimed in: "We thought you were going to Memphis State University" - (the other MSU!) They pulled over and let me out. I crossed over the median and put up my MSU sign. It was not long before Mississippi State students pulled over and gave me a ride onto Starkville. My family thought that was funny but at the time I didn't see the humor in it.