Random Acts of Kindness

[TheSpade]

We only do kind acts so we can feel better about ourselves?

 

[fastandbulbous]

Yes, altruism is hard wired into us by our genes because cooperation means that we benefit in the long run (read 'The Selfish Gene' - it goes a long way towards explaining a lot of human behaviour)

 

[B9]

I recall she was carrying a huge boquet of flowers, she was pretty as well - question is would I stop for some grim faced old bat as well - probably maybe?

Well as I unsuccessfully tried to snooze the answer came to me - yes I would, I did, I have. Mrs Martin - an old lady from two streets away on an estate I lived on many years ago - she had what they then called senile dementia & would wander all over town, sometimes in a precarious state of undress . Anyway I first encountered her when she sort of walked into my house - believing it to be hers or her sons house - I couldn't figure which house she really thought it was & neither could she :D. I gave her a cup of tea & then found out who she was ( by asking around the streets) & took her home. After that if I saw her ambling about the place I'd pick her up & take her home - she was somewhat incontinent as well - it didn't pay to be a passenger immediately after she'd been in the cab :D

 

[StoneHappyMonday]

I can testify that there are people in this thread who have done me and people I know random acts of kindness. And I'm not talking drug dealing. Ok, I'm not just talking drug dealing.

My point. I think the problem lays within the cynical attitude of living in Britain. When I left on my travels around the world (hello from Hue, Vietnam btw) our first country was Ecuador. In a lot of places there we were immediately jumped upon with people offering to help us find our bus/hotel/whatever. On the first few occasions we ignored such help. This is partly because I have been to countries (Morocco springs to mind) where an offer of help is followed by a request for money.

BUT.

Ecuador is the friendliest country we have been to (lots of others have been friendly too). People there want to help you through pure altruism. It is a trait that is sadly dying (in Britain) or being manipulated by living in a society where dog eats dog and the biggest dog with the most toys (rip Inonzi Prowler) is the winner.

Well done for offering Felix. Don't let the bastard attitude grind you down.

 

[masaz]

aye i love doing stuff for people, let some old lady behind me in the queue in front of me a few weeks ago and she was really happy. should do stuff like that more often really

it's nice when people do it for you too. a couple months ago i was in a similar situation to the lass felix mentioned. car had packed in at the stables and mum wasn't going home for four or five hours. set off walking, about five mins in it started absolutely pissing it down and i was in sandals (shut up they're nice to drive in). had about three miles of up hill wandering to go, when an old couple pulled up and asked me if i'd want a lift home. i said that would be lovely ^_^

course in retrospect i could have taken mum's car home and gone to pick her up when she needed me but i don't think like that til waaaaaaaay after the fact.

 

[Treacle]

I gave some homeless guy my last ten pence, the other day. I know it's not a lot, but I hope it helped him afford his next drink/fix, or whatever. There is always someone else worse off than you.

 

[Bella Figura]

I like being generous/kind to people less fortunate than I (who the fuck with a heart wouldn't).

When i was living in London and going through a period where i was getting mugged constantly it just made me hate other people and be completely untrustworthy. Now I can barely keep my head up when i walk down the road, let alone make eye contact with anyone.

Thank god i moved away.

 

[CbRoXiDe]

Not a major thing, but I always let people out at junctions in the morning/afternoon traffic, and then they do the typical hand up acknowledgment towards you, and then you do it back to acknowledge that they've acknowledge you, it's a weird lil thing, but it makes me feel quite good I guess :D.

 

[UnfortunateSquid]

Ooh I remembered one, I found some little girl's purse whilst wondering through milton keynes after a rave once, tracked her down and sent it back

I did nick 2 quid out of it to do my laundry though (I was stoned and I had no change!)

Actually people have managed to return my stuff to me on a few occasions (I lose a lot of stuff), which is always nice.

 

[fastandbulbous]

Ir is a reciprocal thing. In the local fish'n'chip shop, where they've often given me the fish trimmings for the cats, I've twice been given too much change and immediately said so. Im ,y opinion, it's the right thing to do (and that's why I believe in karma working both ways - if you spend your life being greedy, selfish and only thinking of yourself, in the end it will come back to you and slap you hard in the face)

I just wish more people would realize that rather then being obsessed with a materialistic "me, me, me" attitude. If they did, the world woyld be a much better place (that's basically the reason I don't like coke - more than any drug I've seen it amplifies the "me,me,me" part of a persons character)

 

[Ismene]

i asked them if they would like a lift somewhere, but they turned the offer down as if i was some kind of weirdo or something.

But you were wearing a dress and carrying a machette at the time wern't you felix

 

[UnfortunateSquid]

I always give back my excess change to small businesses.

Sainsburies, however, have twice overchanged me to the tune of 20 quid (both times they got confused and gave me back my original 20 pound note, my change and my shopping ) and immediately did a runner. Fuck multi-milion pound companies.

Hope the cashiers didn't get in any trouble though

 

[masaz]

Ir is a reciprocal thing. In the local fish'n'chip shop, where they've often given me the fish trimmings for the cats, I've twice been given too much change and immediately said so. Im ,y opinion, it's the right thing to do (and that's why I believe in karma working both ways - if you spend your life being greedy, selfish and only thinking of yourself, in the end it will come back to you and slap you hard in the face)

I just wish more people would realize that rather then being obsessed with a materialistic "me, me, me" attitude. If they did, the world woyld be a much better place (that's basically the reason I don't like coke - more than any drug I've seen it amplifies the "me,me,me" part of a persons character)

oddly i find the people least likely to have the materialistic me me me attitude are good old drug taking folk such as people here :D might just be a personal thing but it definitely rings true with me anyway.

 

[parttime crackhead]

i prolly dont do anything spectacularly kind regularly, but just little things like holding doors open for people, giving a fiver to the big issue guy. in fact chatting to the big issue guy, its always the same guy at the bus station when im heading home from work & i stop n chat to him for a bit, i like to think he appreciates it as most people dont even acknowledge that hes there. hes a sound wee guy an all. tbh hes prolly thinking "get this cunt away from me!!!" but fuck it, hes getting chatted to whether he likes it or no!! lol

 

[TheSpade]

Holding doors open, giving change to homeless folk and handing back wallets etc. That's stuff that most people do, I think most of us (as in the population as a whole) are fairly kind in that repsect but we probably don't go out of our way often enough to do proper acts of kidness.

 

[Public//Enemy]

Im nice to people.. generally.. tho probably not nice enough.

I wanted to volenteer help people in need but I dont fancy having to pay for the curtisy of helping people ><

Piss take that is tbh...

 

[Carsick]

I know it's not exactly an act of kindness, but could easily have walked away with the £60 that the girl in front of me left hanging out of the cash machine yesterday.
She was lucky it was somebody like me as well, because it was in quite a rough area.

 

[Arnold]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/sussex/7903257.stm
It is nice to see that happening.

 

[felix]

Not a major thing, but I always let people out at junctions in the morning/afternoon traffic, and then they do the typical hand up acknowledgment towards you, and then you do it back to acknowledge that they've acknowledge you, it's a weird lil thing, but it makes me feel quite good I guess :D.

same here, i do it even if i don't 'have to' or have right of way or 'it's not my turn'. i hate when they breach protocol and don't acknowledge it though! but never give up.

Actually people have managed to return my stuff to me on a few occasions (I lose a lot of stuff), which is always nice.

i recently bought 200 fags from ASDA, but left them in my trolley. drove home, realised, phoned them, and the girl said someone had handed them in. i was most shocked and delighted.

But you were wearing a dress and carrying a machette at the time wern't you felix

no, i was wearing my police uniform and driving my police van. i cannot think for the life of me why they turned me down.

I always give back my excess change to small businesses.

Sainsburies, however, have twice overchanged me to the tune of 20 quid (both times they got confused and gave me back my original 20 pound note, my change and my shopping ) and immediately did a runner. Fuck multi-milion pound companies.

Hope the cashiers didn't get in any trouble though

any inconsistencies in till totals usually get taken out of their wages. so i wouldn't have the heart to take it, i always hand it back. and they are usually so shocked and grateful, it's worth it just to see the look on their face.

 

[monstanoodle]

It was a windy day and I was walking around the graveyard near my house (very pretty place) waiting for Mr. dealer to deliver, just looking at the graves and listening to some of Sora's music.
I noticed that one of the gravestones had a wind chime on it that was all tangled up, so I just spent a little while untangling it and then stood and listen to it rock out in the wind.

I'm not sure if this constitutes as an act of kindness or not, but it was pleasing to do

But you're totally right squid

we're all scared of each other now, kindness is treated with extreme suspicion, nobody expects anyone to do anything for nothing.

Couldn't have said it better...