kind streets

One of the aftershocks of my time with LVC is a rather more serious consideration of how I treat the people I run into when I'm walking around a city.
Normally it's quite simple--you try not to run into anyone, and if by chance you make eye contact, you may smile or nod or say hello. However, it's a lot more challenging when someone is trying to get your attention--and here I'm thinking of those hoping for your literal change and those hoping for greater change--canvassers for various advocacy and relief organizations.
I confess that I don't always know what to do with street canvassers. The easiest tactic is to just walk by, keep my eyes down, and shake my head vaguely. But that doesn't feel quite right to me--no matter how passionate you are about something, it's got to be hard to have hundreds, thousands of people giving you the brush. So lately I've been making eye contact, smiling, and then saying I'm not interested, so that I don't waste their time.
Today I did that, and then, since I was waiting for the bus anyway, ended up talking to one of them. And in the course of this conversation, I had two new insights for dealing with street canvassers in a way that is respectful and potentially beneficial to both sides.
1) I feel like this should have been obvious to me ages ago, but ask about alternative ways to help the cause that doesn't involve making a donation. The gentleman I talked to today was speaking on the behalf of an animal rights organization. Aha, I said. I don't have money to join your organization (plus, I'm not sure I agree with it). But what can I do in my daily life that will make a difference? He suggested free-range chicken products. I could easily have followed up with more questions along that line, which could have been a very helpful conversation informing my practices as a consumer.
2) Provide yourself with an easy out, aka, these particular canvassers were fortunately located in front of a bus stop. At the beginning of the conversation, I said that I would have to scoot when my bus came and sure enough, just as I was being presented with a form to fill out, my bus arrived and I scampered away. As someone who dislikes saying no, it made it much easier to engage, knowing that I would have a viable excuse to leave the conversation.

graduate school?

This year of LVC has been like a graduate course in "real life." I haven't missed college this year because my mind has been so engaged with all the new, real-life stuff that I've been learning about through my work, my housemates and living in DC. At our house retreat last weekend, Nora shared something she'd written for her school's alumni network--alums were invited to post mock-courses that described what they were living and learning in their time after college. Aha! I said. It's not just me. So this is my list of "courses" that I have taken this year (with thanks to Nora for originating GWS/MUS 287).

EDUC 350: Advanced Topics in Adult Education (no prerequisites)
RMCS 230: Washington Natives: the story of Washington D.C.'s black community
MATH 005: Elementary School Math for Former Math Majors
ENGL 200: Basic Grammar and Usage for Writers of GED Essays
ECON 215: Simplicity and Sustainability in Collective and Personal Budgeting
GWS/MUS 287: All the Single Ladies: Female Empowerment through Communal Living, Pop Music, and Learning to Like People Different from You Even Though They May Drive You Crazy
PE 207: Urban Biking
HEALTH 115: Cooking for Food Allergies and Picky Eaters
EVS 010: Composting for Dummies