Google Helps Me Be More Eco-Friendly

Google's ever-expanding Transit Trip Planner has added five more cities to its "how-to-get-from-point-A-to-point-B-most-quickly" service.

Despite being unable to test this for real (as I don't live in Portland, Eugene, Honolulu, Pittsburgh, Seattle or Tampa) in theory it seems like the caring commuter's dream.

Friend and CPC member Joanna shared with us a few weeks ago her "Day Without a Car" journey:

now I buy gas half as often as I used to, which makes me and my wallet feel good.

With Google Lab's desired usefulness and attention to time-spent, we Nashvillians are eager for them to expand into our city, as our public transportation options are few and far between.

Additionally, in some cities Google will tell you which is cheaper, public transportation, or your '87 Camry, and help you make informed decisions that affect your ecological footprint.

World, Betsy. Betsy, World.

Allow myself to introduce...Betsy Neely, the newest part of CoolPeopleCare.

We're growing fast and need more people on board to handle this growth. Betsy is the right person for the job.

I met Betsy at Vanderbilt this year. She has a desire to change the world, whether it be by small steps or leaps and bounds. To that end, she does what she can in her everyday life to make it happen. She is a champion of equality and believes that the voiceless need voices.

A South Carolina native, Betsy made her way through Atlanta and Chicago before arriving in Nashville. She's an integral part to this team and we all look forward to working with her.

Betsy's hiring is a benchmark for CoolPeopleCare. Our site traffic continues to increase, more people and nonprofits are hearing about us and jumping on board, and more people in more places (around the country) are finding us.

Stephen and I knew we had something of value when we sat down and dry-erased it out one afternoon in May. We're glad we were right.

We want October to be bigger than September, so keep doing what you're doing. Stop by the site every day, sign up for the 5 Minutes of Caring emails, and PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, tell your friends about us. The revolution is growing. Stay tuned for more exciting announcements in the next few weeks.

Rain Barrel Bonanza

A helpful note from a new CPC member:

I loved the article on rain barrels, and I thought I'd mention that although you can't get a free one anymore, there is a way to get one at a discount. The Harpeth River Watershed Association sells them at 50% off the $80 cost with any membership. The cost of membership is $40, so that evens out to $80. But you get a rain barrel AND support a great cause! The website is www.harpethriver.org.

Thanks for the note and for sharing useful info for the community.

A Revolution's Infancy

Sam's a good writer. And from time to time, people ask Sam to write for them. Not just to republish a blog posting, but to write something specific for a specific publication.

The folks at ethicsdaily.com asked Sam to write a review of a documentary a few weeks back.

Now they've asked him to tell the story of CoolPeopleCare to their readers. If you've got a few moments, read it in its entirety. If you've got 1 minute, here's an excerpt:

What was happening? Why were so relatively few people trying to land deals with big brokerage firms? Where were the people looking to make a career in sales, real estate or big business?

Was it just the company I kept? Or, was it something bigger? Was it a larger movement of young people who had come to the realization that things need to be changed and that they were the ones to do it, unyoked by marriage, children and home ownership?

But there seemed to be no one to organize this mass of do-gooders. They were like uncoordinated soldiers on some social battlefield. Each was Google-ing for opportunities.

Some struck nonprofit gold and got their unsexy wish--interning for free in D.C. by working nights in a coffee shop and dedicating their days to changing some policy that more than likely would never get their names into the history books.

But those unable to land Peace Corps internships or other socially aware gigs eventually shuffled into an office somewhere, punching a clock, serving not the public interest but the bottom line.

But their dreams of a better tomorrow were not shattered. They would give all of their weekend to a Habitat build, or serve on a nonprofit board, or teach a Sunday school class, or run every charitable 5k they could find. The grandeur of generosity had not faded. It was alive and well.

What's your dream of a better tomorrow?

John Mayer Album Not Good For Reason You Think

Last night I had a dream. I had an awesome dream. Children in the park. Playing games in the…

No, wait. That’s a Lionel Richie song.

Last night I had a dream. I had a troubling and frightening dream. I was at a John Mayer house concert. You know, intimate setting, 50 of your closest friends and family. And he was awesome. He took a break to hit the head, grab some water, and I approached him to engage in, presumably, witty repartee.

Instead, I ended up knocking upside his head with his bassist’s bass guitar.

It was an accident. I was mortified. And John couldn’t continue his set. Needless to say, my closest friends and family quickly became distant.

I was chagrinned, and made a b-line for my car, which, in perfect anxiety-dream fashion, I could not find.

I’ll spare you the rest of my dreamscape and segue into my point.

John Mayer’s latest album, Continuum, is good. Not in the way Inside Wants Out was good. Or even the way Room For Squares or Heavier Things were good.

It’s good in the way that Oasis Center is good. The way Hands On Nashville is good. The way Second Harvest is good.

Good in a way where people take the opportunity to make a difference using the tools they’ve been given in hopes of moving others to effect, inspire and desire change.

I won' believe that “Waiting On The World To Change” is a call to non-action. Given Mayer’s creative, near-brilliant wordsmithing and thoughtful ambition, I can only assume it’s somewhat tongue-in-cheek.

I hope so anyway. At the very least, John is standing on his stage, one of the largest and most influential in the Western world, bringing to market a real message, in the packaging of his first chart-topping single.

If he can make a case that the world needs change, risking worldly ridicule, surely the rest of us can make our own case, on our own stage, in front of our own audience, and work towards directing this ever-changing world down the path towards a more positive and self-sustaining world.

One day our generation, is gonna rule the population, so we keep on waiting...

Rewind: Week of 9/18-9/22

In case you were too busy last week watching all the fall television premiers ("Studio 60" definitely exceeded expectations), here's what you missed at CoolPeopleCare:

Monday, September 18: Help Katrina Pets

North Shore Animal League America shows us that it's easier than we think to help New Orleans pets.

Tuesday, September 19: Buckle Up

Fasten your seatbelt. We need you to keep coming to our site.

Wednesday, September 20: Register to Vote

It’s your right – why not take advantage of it?

Thursday, September 21: Peace One Day

Today is International Peace Day. How will you celebrate?

Friday, September 22: Vitally Important

Make a statement now about donating your organs.

And for those of you with "More Time on Your Hands:

Friday, September 22: Recycling Rain

It's free, there's a lot of it, and it's nature's way of quenching thirst. Why would you use anything else to water your plants?

Heart of the Matter

And we're very excited to announce GivingMatters.com as our newest partner.

GivingMatters.com is an easy-to-use online database that allows users to search by specific non-profit, or by issue area in order to get more information about a possible donation recipient. The site provides very detailed reporting about the organization, from board members to budgets and everything in between.

And once you've found where it is you'd like to give your money, they provide that opportunity too, right there in a few easy steps.

GivingMatters.com benefits Music City as it:

• Encourages more strategic giving from Middle Tennessee’s current philanthropic community.

• Expands the number of community donors by helping match donor interest with need.

• Increases dollars given by identifying pressing needs and showing donors how their leadership can impact critical issues.

• Advances the nonprofit sector as a whole by strengthening individual agencies and encouraging collaborative partnerships.

CoolPeopleCare feels very fortunate to have partnered with a very well-respected foundation (The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee) and we're excited about the ideas we share for community growth and involvement.

What GivingMatters.com has been able to do for financial giving, CoolPeopleCare hopes to be able to do for an individual's gift of time.

Proof That It Works

I've given my house an energy audit, changed all of my light bulbs, and replaced my thermostat with a digital model. And guess what? I'm saving energy AND money:

With all things being equal (cost of electricity, degree days, etc.), this is a savings of about $20 over last year. And, by using 173 fewer kilowatt hours, I kept about 167 pounds of coal in the ground this month.

Dare youself to save the world.

Sam's Public Darfur 'Diary'

For more than a year, Sam has been writing the blog "Darfur Mondays" in hopes of raising awareness about the reality of genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan.

His dedication to raising awareness of the terror being played out in a part of the world so far from home has led to a little more exposure.

Today Sam's review of the documentary "Darfur Diaries" is published on ethicsdaily.com. Please give it a read:

Overwhelmingly, the theme that comes across in these interviews is one of separation. People are separated from the land that they can trace back through nine generations of grandfathers. Husbands are separated from wives, and parents from children. Those who were in school before the attacks are separated from education. Nearly everyone is now separated from food. But worst of all, this reality is separated from the rest of the world.

The big things, like the situation in Darfur, can so easily seem so small when they're so far away. Sam is doing his best to bring this horror to our very privileged doorsteps in order to motivate and inspire, and hopefully mobilize a community half a world away to act in whatever way they can.

For a first step, head this direction. And thank you to Sam for keeping our eyes open.

Not A Bad Idea

I prefer the “Rain: Kerri Walsh” spot from Gatorade to the new spot featuring Peyton Manning, primarily because I’m a guy. However, the copy for the new ad includes the line “the rebirth of cool,” which, for those dedicated CoolPeopleCare fans should sound familiar.

Check out our “rebirth of _____” shirt among many t-shirts at our CafePress store, and support CPC while also teasing others’ brains.

Rewind: Week of 9/11-9/15

Monday, September 11: Be the Expert

You could spend lots of money and time getting some advanced degrees – but we've got an easier way.

Tuesday, September 12: Two Clicks

Thanks to generous site sponsors, your hand-eye coordination provides half a bowl of dog food to a needy pet.

Wednesday, September 13: Take an Extra Step

Why not free up a close space for someone who may be a tad sore in the toes?

Thursday, September 14: Peace Corps Stories

Travel around the world in less than five minutes by reading stories written by actual Peace Corps volunteers.

Friday, September 15: Talk to a Human

It's easier than you think to talk to a real person when dialing an 800 number.

Making Charity Sexy

Charitable givers are making headlines. With Buffet's donations still fresh in people's minds, the newest issue of "Fortune Magazine" has Bill Clinton on the cover and the word 'philanthropy' across the front, as if he were some sort of generous superhero.

Inside the issue, Clinton's foundation and another, the Robin Hood Foundation, are highlighted due to their effectiveness. At use are historic business principles, like keeping costs down and rewarding top performers. The magazine also features innovative ways each charity is using that could be profitable for any organization to employ. Such coverage and analysis keep goodwill on the minds of many by telling its story far and wide.

So, philanthropy is popular. But, is it easy?

It is if you're millionaire Bill Clinton or one of the billionaires who gives to Robin Hood every year. But what about the little guys and girls who work for a paycheck and still want to give back?

Groups like Kiva show that anyone can be a lender. The organization deals out microfinance loans to people in countries facing drought, disease and famine. Lenders can lend as much or as little as they want. Lenders get repaid, and of course are then encouraged to re-lend to another worthy cause.

And, my own CoolPeopleCare helps those of us who can't be fulltime philanthropists. We've got jobs to work and kids to feed, but we still want a difference to make. So, we email out articles showing you how to help someone or something in less than 5 minutes. Add up a few minutes here and there, multiply this by millions of people, and you’ve got a revolution that seems very Gates-esque.

I’m glad that Warren Buffet and Bill Clinton grab the spotlight due to generosity. Sure, there will be critics who question motive, but the proof is in the pile of cash. Soon, when malaria is eradicated, when villagers in Lesoto have water and sustainable farms, and when every kid in Harlem can read, we know who to thank: them and us.

The bigwigs are the face folks. They give the money, write the checks, rub the elbows and get the credit. But those of us on the ground make their money work. We show up to tutor for an hour, we tell a friend to donate $25, we sell some stuff on eBay for a good cause, and we adopt a pet. They earn and we spend. And then they earn more and then we spend more by giving more back and getting more people involved at the grassroots level.

Sure, we won't make headlines. We'll be too busy making learners, survivors and dreamers.

We've Cracked the Top 1,500,000

We couldn't have done it without you, our loyal readers and site visitors.

As of today, September 14, 2006, on the eve of our 4-week anniversary of going live, we've finally cracked the 1.5 million plateau -- by nearly 100,000.

And exactly what plateau am I speaking of? Well, it's none other than Alexa.com's traffic rank of all web sites anywhere in the world.

We are now the 1,400,362nd most visited web site in the world. Just think of the 5-10 web sites you visit a day, we're one of them. And for that, we are eternally grateful.

We couldn't be happier with our meteoric rise to web-stardom. Next step? Breaking the "glass ceiling" of the top 1 million most visited sites in the world. And who knows what after that -- 900,000? 800,000? A cool half a million?

The possibilities are endless in this fickle and absolutely unquantifiable world of the Internet.

But honestly, it's just an honor to be ranked.

I wonder who's number 1,400,363?

And just in case you're wondering, today's top 5 are:

1. Yahoo.com

2. Google.com

3. MySpace.com

4. Microsoft Network (MSN.com)

5. EBay

Hard to believe, huh. I haven't even heard of like, half of them. Have you?

More About Kiva.org

We stumbled upon Kiva.org a few weeks ago and added their link to our home page.

Their mission is amazing. They are working to financially enable entrepreneurs in developing countries by connecting those that have with those that do not.

And the "those that have" that I'm talking about are people like you and me.

Their lending program is such that even small donation amounts of as little as $25 go to people like Patricia Ibarra Calderon of Mexico and make a real difference. All she needs to get her business venture off the ground is $375 and she's over half way there.

I don't think we can even begin to fathom the power in what Kiva.org president Primal Shah calls "microfinance."

"In this way, people like you can help provide affordable working capital for the world's poor -- money to buy a sewing machine, livestock, etc. -- empowering them to start a business and earn their way out of poverty," said Shah in a recent interview.

Can you imagine dripping the final drop in the small bucket of a developing country's innovative and hard-working entrepreneur so that they can work their way out of poverty? For the price of a dinner for two at your local pizza joint, you can make a difference.

And this is the same principal that we here at CoolPeopleCare.org are working to uplift in respect to individual's time.

It isn't necessary that you spend an entire day, or week, or lifetime digging ditches, building wheelchair ramps, staffing soup kitchen lines -- but it is necessary that you spend some time pitching in in your community.

Which is where "5 minutes of caring" comes in. In the same way a small $25 loan can bring real change to an entrepreneur halfway around the world, your five minutes at your computer can bring change to someone or something somewhere in this world.

If it's money you have, click on over to Kiva.org and give freely. If it's time you have, try out our ARCHIVES for some sweat-free volunteer time, and know that you're making a difference, 5 minutes at a time.

The Things We Do For Love

Noted MIT scientist, designer and artist John Maeda says "Simplicity=being found."

With that in mind, as CoolPeopleCare.org is still in its infancy (not yet a month old) and, yes, we're already trying to find ourselves.

To that end, we're "claiming" this blog on Technorati. To do that, they tell me to post this link:

Technorati Profile

And then something magical might happen.

Might.

So, feel free to help us "be found" by linking to us in any way you can, emailing your friends, signing up for our daily, 99-words of yumminess, and/or anything else in the world you can think of to help us grow this community.

And if you're interested in Maeda's laws of simplicity, then click here.

My favorite is LAW 3: Time

The average person spends at least an hour a day waiting in line. Add to this the uncountable seconds, minutes, weeks spent waiting for something that might have no line at all.

Some of that waiting is subtle. We wait for water to come out of the faucet when we turn the knob. We wait for water on the stove to boil, and start to feel impatient. We wait for the seasons to change. Some of the waiting we do is less subtle, and can often be tense or annoying: waiting for a Web page to load, waiting in bumper-to-bumper traffic, or waiting for the results of a dreaded medical test.

No one likes to suffer the frustration of waiting. Thus all of us, consumers and companies alike, often try to find ways to beat the ticking hand of time. We go out of our way to find the quickest option or any other means to reduce our frustration. When any interaction with products or service providers happens quickly, we attribute this efficiency to the perceived simplicity of experience.

Achieving notable efficiencies in speed are exemplified by overnight delivery services like FedEx and even the ordering process for a McDonald’s hamburger. When forced to wait, life seems unnecessarily complex. Savings in time feel like simplicity. And we are thankfully loyal when it happens, which is rare.

Of course this is the cornerstore of our little site here. We value time, and know you do to. We should all strive to be efficient in the work that pays us as well as the behavior and habits that define us.

Join us.

Facebook is Open for Business

Yes, I'm writing about Facebook again. Yesterday, news broke that the site will be open to ANYONE with an email address, and not just students and faculty. While privacy restrictions will be readily available, this is clearly a step in the MySpace direction.

Up until now, Facebook made smart business decisions that positively affected its users and advertisers. Because their end users do not pay their bills (like a retail site), Facebook has opened its doors to nonprofit groups and political candidates, knowing that mobilizing a young base for these entities could make the world a better place. But now, EVERYONE will be on Facebook, which of course, makes it not as cool.

I asked a teenager about the changes, and she thinks even more people will dump MySpace for Facebook, which some have done for a variety of reasons. Facebook has a cleaner look, doesn't burden you with dating service ads, and easily connects you with friends. And, your parents can't snoop your profile and pictures, even if they're a professor somewhere.

While parents still shouldn't be able to see what pictures and thoughts their students are posting, it seems like once again a decision by Facebook brass has upset its loyal users. Will they jump ship? Time will tell. But, I think that Mark Zuckerberg, who has already made lots of money off of his toy, is getting ready to sell. A few months ago, folks were speculating the site could get close to $2 billion on the open market. Now that its potential for eyeballs looking at ads has greatly increased, I can see Mark walking off into the sunset around Christmas time with maybe double that.

Apple's iTunes Store

So, Apple is changing the name of its "Music Store" to just be "Store."

Seems logical to me. I mean, it's been a while since they only sold music there, so perhaps it's beyond past time for the moniker upgrade.

But they've changed it now (or as soon as your iTunes client is updated or you download the new iTunes 7) since they're going to offer movies for download.

Yippeee! Hooray! I may never have to leave the house again.

To get video rentals that is.

Though, I tried NetFlix years ago, and it turns out I didn't watch movies often enough to make it at all cost-effective to auto-pay them a monthly fee (like $20 or something insane) -- I might have incurred a few late-charges in my day with Blockbuster, but never to the tune of $20 (which was in essence what I was paying to not watch my 3 movies each month.)

So, that "at-home" service was of no fiscal use to me (though I did feel pretty cool for being a part of the NetFlix club before everyone had heard of them).

But now Apple could be my salvation. Sure, it'll cost at least $9.99 to download a movie, and sure right now it's only stuff from Disney and their subsidiaries. But given Apple's recent track record, I have a feeling that "$9.99" very well may be the new "99 cents."

Apple continues to set trends as opposed to react to trends. They'll make downloading movies for a somewhat reasonable dime something resembling respectable and doable for those families that have some means by which to watch the movies.

Myself, unless I want to watch "Toy Story 2" on my 12" laptop whilst the heat from the bulging battery nearly-singes my leg's lap hair (too far?) I'm not equipped to hop on this bandwagon.

So, I could by a Mac Mini for around five-hundy, but my 32" Panasonic is a bit too old (like 2 years) to be easily hooked up for compu-viewing (alongside the TiVo, DVD player and stereo receiver.)

I'm going to have to accept the fact that I'm just going to be a bit behind the curve on this one (thankfully my 4-year-old iPod still downloads and plays music).

By far, I am no Luddite. But I am also not willing to drop coin into every cool bucket that gets carried past me -- I'd be doing my family, community and self a disservice if that were the case.

Instead, I actively choose to support local organizations and charities (some listed on our PARTNERS page, and some not) with time and, as possible, money.

It may be only a small price to pay to lag behind the bleeding edge of techno-savviness -- but it's the price I choose to pay to support those doing good in the community.

And it's a price I gladly pay.

Rewind

Here's last week's 5 Minutes of Caring from CoolPeopleCare. Sign up to get these emailed to you each day:

Monday, September 4: Buy Two
The next time you're at the grocery store, buy an extra of each non-perishable food item on your list.

Tuesday, September 5: Eat a Cold Meal
By eating a cold meal, you'll save about a dollar and keep four pounds of coal in the ground.

Wednesday, September 6: Sharpen Your Pencil
While soldiers are continually going on long deployments in Iraq, communication from home can be slow at best and nonexistent at worst.

Thursday, September 7: Get Your News
While it's tempting to watch the news, unless you live on a satellite ranch, you're only getting a few perspectives.

Friday, September 8: You're Welcome
Be thoughtful and mindful and take time to graciously accept the kind gestures of others.

Who Killed the Electric Car?

I think it was General Motors in the garage with a monkey wrench.

Lynnette and I pay-per-viewed this documentary while it was raining one evening in Philadelphia. The film is well made, presents facts and theory, and leaves the conclusions to be drawn by the watcher.

Sure, it has an agenda (what movie doesn’t?), but it also gives you the facts. You definitely don’t feel sorry when GM and Ford release