Sadly, regular exposure to politics can have a detrimental effect on your mental health. To defend ourselves from this, some of us turn off from politics altogether. But, since knowledge is power, that can be a self-defeating response. You really do need to know what is going on.
Others of us take mental health breaks. We try to just turn it off for a little while to gather the strength to wade back into the fray. While that can be helpful, it also has a drawback because it isn’t possible to take enough breaks to really recover without becoming uninformed. Of course, many of us rely on Daily Kos to help us catch up when we have been out of the loop for a while.
Personally, while I find the occasional break useful, I prefer a more proactive way to maintaining my mental health – doing good. There are many opportunities for reaching out to help others in our local community, and there are often opportunities to do good in our online communities. Here is a way you can do some good that should give you a real lift too.
One of the best examples of Doing Good I have seen online is Sara R, who is the driving force behind the Community Quilt project. Over the past two years, Sara and her sister have made 48 quilts for Kossacks facing major health issues, with many more in the works. Her labor of love has brought strength and comfort to community members and their families and friends.
She has also made many quilts to support the goal of more and better Democrats, and the Indigenous Democratic Network (INDN), which focuses on electing Native American candidates and mobilizing the Indian Vote.
citizenx spoke eloquently about Sara’s contribution in a comment today:
Sara R is a DailyKos angel (94+ / 0-)
and when the history of this site is written she should have a chapter of her own.
I see her solicitations for comments to go onto kossacks quilts and I never contribute. I don't do well in expressing my feelings in this type of forum and it bothers me greatly so I just pass.
I just paypaled $100.00 for back payments that I should have made for materials because Sara R is the very best that DailyKos has to offer.
I talk a lot of smack and say a few blue things but people like Sara R bring back into focus what this place is really all about.
I experienced Sara’s kindness and generosity first-hand last summer when I learned Dr. Harrison had been diagnosed as terminal. I contacted Sara and, although she already had several quilts in the works, she posted a diary for his quilt the same day. She and her sister made a beautiful quilt and sent it in less than a month, and it provided great comfort to Dr. Harrison and his family during the last weeks of his life.
If you have been around Daily Kos lately, you probably know that Sara R is confronting a health crisis and is in urgent need of help. Like many people, Sara is unemployed and without health insurance. Unfortunately, she is also in need of immediate surgery. In December, Oke wrote about Sara’s medical issue in a beautiful diary that included a wonderful picture of Sara at NN10 with the INDN Star Quilt.
Today there were two more diaries detailing Sara's situation. For more specifics, check out this diary by it really is that important , which includes details about Sara’s condition from Nurse Kelley. And Timroff describes the importance of one of Sara’s quilts in Still trying to help Sara.
So if you would like to do some good today for one of the angels among us:
- Make a donation to help defray Sara’s medical expenses:
- You can use Sara’s PayPal account here.
- If, like many of us, you can’t/don’t do PayPal, you can contact iriti for snailmail alternatives at this email address.
- Send well wishes:
- Sara’s email address is here.
- If you want to send snailmail,, email iriti. or me for information.
Before you rush off to donate to Sara R, here is a word from our sponsors. . . .
We have so many insightful and powerful diaries written here at Daily Kos. Our diaries inform, inflame, impassion, and even entertain. We Kossacks have strong voices and an even stronger will to be the change we wish to see in this country.
One of the richest, and perhaps most under-appreciated, areas of thought come in the form of comments attached to these diaries.
Here at Top Comments we strive to recognize and promote the talent of this community by highlighting outstanding comments found throughout the day by the diarist, and through nominations by other Kossacks. So when you find a comment that enlightens, entertains, or encourages, send it to:
topcomments at gmail dot com.
Comments should get to the inbox by 9:30 EST to be included that day (but we will carry over later ones). Don’t forget to include your Dkos screename, a link to the nominee, and a brief comment about why you think it is a Top Comment.
Tonight’s Top Comments. . . .
From KelleyRN2:
Behold KristyAnn's first-ever Daily Kos comment, inspired by her love for Sara R. Let's welcome her, shall we?
From twigg:
This comment by LunkHead, in response to the Cheap Food Diary by slinkerwink is just hilarious.
From Ed Tracey:
In one of today's diaries (by 4CasandChlo) about the situation in Egypt - I was relieved to learn that Bendygirl - whom we were advised in last night's Cheers & Jeers had a child there in Cairo - wrote to say that she heard from her 17 year-old thusly: "There are tanks on her street, a public water fountain was torched, some looting, and her host siblings went to the protest ... but, my baby is safe".
From me:
smileycreek gives us a wingnut anatomy lesson that explains a lot.
BenderRodriguez expands on the Obama's toupee wingnut theory and when RustyCannon joins the bandwagon, describes the full arc of creating wingnut conspiracy theories.
Tonight’s Top Mojo . . . .
Top Mojo excluding search-identifiable tip jars, first diary comments, Cheers and Jeers, and Mojo Friday:
1) Why isn't it getting any play? by ActivistGuy — 195
2) I keep crying... by Sara R — 110
3) Sara R is a DailyKos angel by citizenx — 107
4) I Hope the Mubarak Regime is Toppled by JekyllnHyde — 103
5) this diary should in no way be construed by fizziks — 99
6) To everyone who helps Sara... by Ekaterin — 91
7) thanks for your scholarship and finely detailed by ganymeade — 86
8) read bobswern's diary by teacherken — 85
9) My circumstance is similar by kevin k — 85
10) I still wonder... by Timroff — 81
11) Sara R by KristyAnn — 81
12) Don't know if you saw it or not... by ratmach — 80
13) When Republicans attack our "government" by recontext — 80
14) The Wingnuts Have it All Wrong by JekyllnHyde — 78
15) Thank you. by AllisonInSeattle — 75
16) One of the best movies ever, imo. by Nulwee — 73
17) beans & tortillas by zqxj — 73
18) You might not by Kitsap River — 70
19) "It's a hard world for little things." by Nulwee — 68
20) Thanks for doing this for a very good cause! by BFSkinner — 67
21) There is a reason martyrs are feared by those by nailbender — 64
22) Thanks. by irishwitch — 64
23) you can drop the snark by teacherken — 63
24) citizenx that is lovely. It is difficult by maggiejean — 62
25) That sounds like quite a preacher: by KroneckerD — 61
26) Randi Rhoades talked about this on her show. by smoothnmellow — 61
27) Thank you. That is why so many rapes don't by maybeeso in michigan — 61
28) I once told a man who thought a woman should by Sirenus — 61
29) Bless your heart, you just exemplified the effect by Oke — 60
30) good magic is possible n/n by renzo capetti — 59
31) The Koch Brothers Unplugged by JekyllnHyde — 59
32) One reason I recommend the CIA World Factbook by alizard — 59
Top Mojo with No Exclusions:
1) Tip Jar by 4CasandChlo — 479
2) Donations, not tips by Timroff — 312
3) It never stops. by KingOneEye — 302
4) Tip Jar by bobswern — 301
5) Tip Jar by irishwitch — 295
6) Tip Jar by A Siegel — 212
7) Why isn't it getting any play? by ActivistGuy — 195
8) I read and could not go back to sleep by teacherken — 193
9) Tip Jar by slinkerwink — 190
10) Tip Jar by fizziks — 173
11) Tip Jar by nyceve — 140
12) Tip Jar by Foodforethought — 126
13) Tip Jar by James Allen — 114
14) I keep crying... by Sara R — 110
15) Sara R is a DailyKos angel by citizenx — 107
16) I Hope the Mubarak Regime is Toppled by JekyllnHyde — 103
17) this diary should in no way be construed by fizziks — 99
18) Scritchie Jar by triciawyse — 97
19) Tip Jar by bicycle Hussein paladin — 94
20) To everyone who helps Sara... by Ekaterin — 91
21) thanks for your scholarship and finely detailed by ganymeade — 86
22) My circumstance is similar by kevin k — 85
23) read bobswern's diary by teacherken — 85
24) Tip Jar by dmac — 82
25) Sara R by KristyAnn — 81
26) I still wonder... by Timroff — 81
27) Don't know if you saw it or not... by ratmach — 80
28) When Republicans attack our "government" by recontext — 80
29) The Wingnuts Have it All Wrong by JekyllnHyde — 78
30) Tip Jar by Troutfishing — 78