Today is MN Give to the Max Day through GiveMN.org. If you know people in MN, you’ve probably seen links and pleading for donations to various organizations. It can be a bit overwhelming. But let’s break this down a little bit.

This picture links to their FAQ. Cause QUESTIONS!

Give to the Max Day is a special day set up to raise as much in donations as possible. GiveMN and razoo provide an easy donation system that makes sure the donors get receipts for their taxes and everything. They handle all the money and that “donation” stuff so the organization can focus on things like incentives, performances, or just putting that money to good use.

Handy. But the big question is, why? Why one day? What’s so special about today? Can’t I give any day?

First, yes. You can give any day. On any given day, thousands of non profits in the Twin Cities can accept donations from you. You CAN donate. But $5 to your favorite charity says you don’t. It’s not that you’re a bad person. You’re a good person. You intend to give. You have the desire to give. But that 5 seconds that you think about it, you get distracted. Or money is tight, and you space on it for next paycheck. Or you get a candy bar or something.

Look, this isn’t to make you feel guilty. We ALL do it. So, these kids set aside a day to donate, that you can’t space out on or put off til later. Today is the day.

Second, prizes and incentives. All of the organizations have the opportunity to win more money. Also, many of them have matching abilities. So if you give them $10, they just got $20. Holy shit- what a deal!

Third, peer pressure. All the cool kids are doing it.

So, what follows is a bunch of pictures that link to different GiveMN opportunities, with a little description on why I’m promoting that charity. Some of them have affected me directly. Some of them are because of friends. Some of them are good causes that I’ve supported in the past. Some of them involve bunnies.

There is a lot here. There are THOUSANDS of opportunities on the site. Take a moment to find something to support. It does a heart good.

I studied improv at the Brave New Institute. I couldn’t have taken many of the classes I did if it wasn’t for full and partial scholarships I received.

The Companion Rabbit Network places homeless rabbits. Also, LOOK AT THAT FACE and say no

Camp Quest is a secular summer camp for free-thinking youth that a bunch of my friends put on. Who doesn’t like summer camp?

Every year I participate in their cancer walk. If you don’t know why funding cancer research is important, I got nuthin.

Comedy Corner Underground is owned and operated by local comedians. Bill and I have done a few shows there.

Comedy Suitcase produces comedy for all ages. Not kids comedy. All ages comedy, so parents get to enjoy the show as well. Can be tricky, but they always pull it off.

Compatible Technology International (CTI) creates practical tools that help poor communities in developing countries overcome their most crucial food and water challenges. My friends grandfather is heavily involved with this group.

Fraser is Minnesota’s largest and most experienced provider of autism services. This is another charity walk I do every year, and it’s never a large amount of people or money, because working with someone with autism is taxing.

human beings can be such dicks. We race greyhounds for our entertainment, and then, when they’re no longer good or fast enough…. well, this organization places as many retired greyhounds as possible.

I’m a big supporter of HUGE theater. They have drop in classes every Wed for super cheap, and they’ve let me play on their stage. And there’s a chair in that theater with my name on it. ALSO, stop by the theater today- they’re doing an improv-a-thon.

Daylight Center is a school, dormitory, and community outreach facility where children from the war-torn world of nomadic Kenya find safety, food, education, and love.

Minnesota Chorale is a group you might not hear from often because they are horribly under-funded. But OMG are they amazing! I’d love to hear more from them around the cities.

The Minnesota Reading Corps (through ServeMinnesota) helps tutor and teach reading to thousands of children. They’ve got a matching program AND every dollar donated locally leverages 3.5 dollars in a federal match. I feel really strongly about this one.

I love working with Six Elements Theater. I’ve done their Human Combat Chess show in the past. Their productions are always stellar.

MN Fringe Festival is really where I got my start in the theater scene here. I continue to be amazed at how many wonderful productions come out of a non-juried system.

My friend sends her kid here. “Each year, donations fund financial assistance for students. We include over $800,000 in our operational budget to help students in need; nearly $400,000 comes from the draw from the endowment and the rest comes from annual support. “

I have several crafty friends involved with this cooperative group. The idea of sharing space and tools, learning how to do all that building stuff… it’s a really awesome thing.

TheUpTake.org, celebrating its fifth year, is a nonprofit, citizen-driven news organization that acts as catalyst for positive change through the direct power of social media and storytelling.

Walking Shadow has done some AMAZING productions, and I was lucky enough to be involved in the one pictured here. Also, I’ve know John since I was like 12.

This morning, Jared got a glass sliver in his foot.

It’s not the most surprising thing in the world. The boys break glasses ALL THE TIME. Like, in the past 5 years, I’ve broken one glass. And yet, I’m missing about twelve glasses (don’t even get me started on plates). And the frequency has only increased since it’s become Jared’s chore to do the dishes. Add to that, I’m not always around to clean up the glass. I have had one of the guys sweeps an area, proclaim it clean, and then I go over it afterwards and still find chunks of glass I can pick up with my hand, let alone the glitter of tiny glass shards all over. If I’m not there to clean it again 5 times, the house looks like this:

“All clean!”

My child was walking around our apparently dangerous floor, barefoot and on the balls of his feet, when the sliver of glass struck. He cried out, hobbled over to a chair where he grabbed his foot and saw about 3 mm (metric, bitches) of blood covered something sticking out. I came around the corner, and my child said “don’t touch my foot!”

Uh huh.

I come over to investigate, and Jared says “if you give me tweezers, I’ll get it out myself.” He seems calm at this point, and if he can get it out himself, it should build confidence. Plus, any time I get within 3 feet of him, he screams “don’t touch my foot!” like an over-sensitive car alarm for a podiatrist. I hunt down the tweezers, and hand them to him.

And then a pause.

And then he starts crying. The idea that it’s going to hurt has him in tears over the pain HE HASN’T EVEN EXPERIENCED YET. He is so afraid of the possible pain he can’t bring himself to bring the tweezers to his foot. He keeps saying things like “my brain tells my hand to move to my foot, but my hand won’t do it.” I offer to do it for him, and he gets a horrified look on his face like I offered to punch him in the gut and steal his stuffed animal.

Yes, my pre-teen has a security stuffed bunny, and if you say anything about it I’ll punch you in the gut and steal your gun, your door lock, or your savings account. We all have our things that make us feel secure. At least his comes in adorable cuddle form.

OH! *Now* I get A.I.

So Jared and I go back and forth, him saying he’ll do it, then bursting into tears. Me offering to help, and him giving his own mother horrified looks. About 15 minutes into this, I tell him he has to get it done in 10 minutes, or I’m going to do it.

He hands me the tweezers, and covers his foot with his hands. I mention to him that I can’t get to his foot, and he says that he wants to be ready. I suggest that he can’t hold onto his bunny that way, and he gives me a look that says “Don’t be a bitch.”

He eventually moves his hands to his bunny, and I move in. And then he drops his bunny to cover his foot, casting his most beloved item to the floor, bawling his eyes out and saying IT HURTS. And I still haven’t even touched his foot.

This type of behaviour happened for another half an hour. I finally had him sitting on his hands, his bunny tucked under an arm, looking away. I had slowly inched myself closer and closer. He screamed when I went in, and then 2 seconds later: …that was it?

Yes my son. All that crying and tears and anguish, and it was 2 non-painful seconds.

My son and I had a talk after that about the difference between being courageous and being fearless. Courage is doing something even though you’re afraid. It takes bravery, and telling your body to do things it wouldn’t normally. Fearless is the absence of fear. It’s not having that fear at all. By doing courageous things, you can get to a point of being fearless.

My son picked up on the connection right away. You see, I’m the marketing director and a founding member with a very courageous group of people putting together a comedy production company. The company is a collaboration of partner groups, many of whom already do offensive and risky comedy, to produce and encourage the production of comedy that takes chances. That “pushes buttons and pushes boundaries.” Comedy that is Fearless.

Oh, that’s the name of the company, by the way. Fearless Comedy Productions. In fact, when I say that some awesome comedy partners are collaborating with Fearless, YoungNotions is one of them. See the button in the upper right? Go there. I mean, right now it’s the countdown to the website that will launch in a couple days and a list of partners. But check it out, and check out the other partners, and check out our facebook page at www.facebook.com/FearlessComedyProductions and follow us on Twitter @FearlessComedy.

Come on! Do it! Don’t be afraid… it’s not like I’m trying to take a sliver of glass out of your foot.

I’m sick. Really sick. Freezing under a pile of blankets while sweating sick.

And it’s mine and Bill’s 2 year anniversary. We’ve been married 2 years today. We’ve been together over 4 years.

I planned on blogging about it today, but I’m really sick. My brain is like a mush of can’t think. I just woke up from my second nap of the day, and I’m ready for another.

What was I talking about again?

OH! Bill. Gosh, I really like that guy. I like him a lot. So much that I married him 2 years ago. It’s been a good two years, too.

Sorry- I’m back. I had to run to the bathroom. Seriously, kids. I am really sick.

The thing is, last year on our anniversary, he made this incredible post about how I stole his engagement idea. For Valentines day, he made me a thoughtful card and posted it. For my birthday, he talked about how awesome I am. I wanted to do the same for him today.

I wanted to talk about our courtship. How we met at an open mic, and how impressed I was with how little ego he seemed to have for a stand up. How I enjoyed hanging out with him at Monday Night Comedy Show, and how we would tease each other, but just as friends. How he asked me on Facebook chat to tell me if I ever had a crush on him, and then I said that I had. He didn’t ask me out then, so I figure my shot was over. And then the next night, as I was lamenting the lack of gentlemen in the world, he told me he was one and asked if he could prove it to me.

I was going to talk about our first official date, where we got super dressed up and went to the CC Club. How I got buffalo sauce in my eye, and then he impressed me with his sweet nerd skills in Galaga. How we went back to my place, and just talked for hours. And made out a little.

I was going to talk about the first time he told me he loved me. He said he opposite of hated me, and I told him that was indifference, and then we argued over what the opposite of hate was, and he pulled out a thesaurus, and showed me the antonym for hate was love. And then I said I opposite of hated him, too.

I was going to talk about how, when I told him I just had a sweet idea for a Fringe show, and applications were due in 5 days, and I had no money… how he encouraged me to apply to Fringe, and to apply for a deferment of payment, and that he believed in my ability to produce a show. And how, when I produced that show, he was there every step of the way, running for me, playing stage manager, and just supporting me when it all became too much.

I was going to talk about how wonderful it is to write with him… how we both approach comedy differently and can come together to write a sketch that is a thousand times better than what we could do separately.

And how awesome it is that we share a blog.

And how he makes me chicken soup when I’m sick.

But you guys… I can’t do it any justice. I want to talk about these things, not just mention them and that they happened, but nothing I can think to say is good enough. Nothing really shows how incredible and amazing Bill is, or how absolutely wonderful our marriage. None of my words are good enough.

When we got married 2 years ago, and a comedy show host had us vow for better or worse, in good and in bad, through sickness and health…. as long as we both shall live.

Bill, you’re stuck with me and my sickness. You vowed it, sucker. As an anniversary present this year, I got you some snot blown into a tissue. I made it myself.

Happy anniversary!