Rules of the Boom Boom Revolution:
1. Register your deck online - done
2. Complete the assignment on the card (26 to choose from) - 2 done
3. Go online and write about the experience...reactions, feelings, blah blah - 1 done
4. Pass the completed card on to someone else for them to complete - 1 done
5. Hope the person you passed the card to actually completes it and then goes online and writes about it - none done
6. Track how far your card goes - never going to happen
7. Complete the deck - = (
So, the first one I did was pretty basic, or so I assumed. I had to buy a stranger a cup of coffee. It's really hard to do that without someone thinking you're hitting on them or that you're just a total freak. This assignment took me 4 days. Finally I found a dad-looking guy to buy coffee for. I was at my regular coffee shop before it closed and became a fucking AT&T...yuck!...the gentleman target was in line behind me while I was paying. This one really only works at a coffee shop that stays busy because there are at least 2 employees; one ringing you up and one making the drinks. The barista behind the bar asked him what he wanted before the barista ringing me up was finished so I told her to put what he ordered on my card. I knew her because I was a regular, so she just rolled with it. Apparently I picked the wrong day to do my good deed because he was ordering for 3 other people! The barista just kept looking at me like "should I keep putting these drinks on your card???". I paid for all the drinks...it was around $16, but it was totally worth it. He was shocked and speechless and grateful. When he finally composed his thoughts, his words were jumbled and awkward. He asked what I did for work, if I lived in the area, if my parents knew how great their daughter was, why I did this, if I knew how much this made his day and how he couldn't wait to tell his co-workers and lastly what my name was. It was sweet and actually made my day!!
The second one was less fulfilling. The assignment was to reconnect with someone you lost touch with or had a falling out with. I invited an ex-friend for coffee. This friendship ended over a guy...which is just stupid, but whatever. I needed some liquid courage for this meeting so went for a drink with some great friends from work. Some advice - going to a bar with friends before meeting someone who wasn't a good friend to you is not a good idea (I was 17 minutes late and the bar was only a block away). It was awkward and forced, but moments of it were kindly familiar. I think I was expecting an apology or some sort of acknowledgment of bad-frienditis, but received neither. I'm not sure if I have a false sense of the kind of friend I am, but I was sure there was some small void in her life without me in it. It sucks when a relationship ends without explanation, but when a friendship ends with that relationship and you lose 2 people you were close with it kind of stings. And by "kind of" I mean it is a thorn in your foot that hurts every time you take a step and no matter how hard you try to find the thorn you can't. This "assignment" did not leave me feeling as great as the previous one.
There are 24 more acts of kindness that I have not yet completed and there is a good chance that I won't attempt any of them. HOWEVER, there is a deck of these cards that is geared toward tweens/teens and I think it would make an awesome gift. The assignments are much easier and are things they can do at school, like eat lunch with someone sitting alone. So nice! http://boomboomcards.com/
The end.
I love this post. Also, I want to say for the record that eating lunch with people who are sitting alone can get you a born again Christian named Pam who comes to your house and tries to convince you and your sister that they should really think about going to Bob Jones University. Just saying.
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