It’s been nine months since Alissa and I shared a lunch in New Jersey, with Riley refereeing the discussion about “burying the hatchet, and coming back to Addicts.” To be honest, I don’t know who instigated the idea…but we both knew that I was burned out on managing a business, TSTO Friends (by myself), a giant family, and our work in Uganda. Something had to give…
In the end, it was one of the best decisions I have made in a long time. Yes, there was wailing and gnashing of teeth on both sides, as my loyal readers at Friends didn’t want me to quit, and those who had come to hate me for various reasons (founded and unfounded) at Addicts were more than protective and wary of my “ruining” Addicts with my “Cranky Posts” and “guilt trips.”
What I hope we have ALL learned in the past year (especially those who watch our Addicts Live posts) is that I have softened, am generally happy, and love being here.
The friendships that have been rekindled between Alissa, Wookie and I are important (perhaps someday they will explain where Bunny ran off to…but, it’s just not important at this juncture). We are a team…and good friends…and willingly donate our time and efforts to keeping you informed and entertained about TSTO, while offering a place to hang out.
I get pestered regularly by my old regulars (many of whom followed me over, but remain relatively quiet over here) to tell the story of our work in Buyijja. But the fact is, my “Less than welcoming vibe” about the topic (as in, I was warned by countless TSTO diehards NOT to talk about anything but TSTO!!!!!), has kept me from doing so.
However, Alissa is a huge supporter of our work (everything I earn here goes directly to our work there)…and even in the worst of times between us all, Wookie/Joe donated, knowing that the work surpassed the disagreements we had. It was Alissa who gave me the OK to start the conversation, but I had still been hesitant.
But now, there is an emergency situation that makes it necessary for me to shout, “COME ON… GET OVER IT…WE ARE MORE THAN JUST TSTO!!!!”
And we are…
I have seen the best of this place, and the fact is, many of you have followed me over to “CrankyOldGuy.com” for my political rants…and some have even made the leap over to FriendsOfBuyijja.com to follow our work there on your own.
And to that point, the last Addicts Live chapter…I was challenged by one of our own to perform a task to earn a donation.
Thanks JosephineKickAss/GranmamaDar! So…there has been “Crossover assimilation” with no horrible results.
But…I need to do more. There is a crisis in Buyijja. The well we built has run dry, and the water tables have dropped, due to the drought conditions that have plagued Central Africa for the past year. The rain season is late in coming, but offers us a chance to help immediately with something that can stem the tide of need while we come up with a more permanent solution.
The Rain Collection/Storage tank will change lives…immediately.
I’m not going to go into how messed up the world is right now…and that while we seem fixated on Government, and more international issues than I could list in an afternoon, I will point out that this region of the world is completely forgotten. The lack of basic needs…food, water, shelter and education, are what we work to solve.
I call it “Preemptive Security” in that we are stemming the tide of poverty, ignorance and famine, which are the building blocks that turn desperate people into “terrorists.” The irony of the cost of a single missile -vs- funding and support for an entire region is not lost on me. But, concentrating on economies of scale makes my head hurt.
I will also not point out, that literally EVERY DOLLAR donated…even $5 (or a fraction of what we spend in donuts/digital baubles in our game) can help save a life.
So………………………
Take the Time to Do Something That Matters… this community is capable of so much more. Let’s start with changing lives while we all worry about “getting everything in this update.”
YOU CAN DONATE FOR THE WATER TANK HERE…DONATE
YOU CAN FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OUR WORK IN UGANDA HERE...
Let’s do this… there are tens of thousands of you who swing by here for info on a weekly basis. Take the time to do something more. Thanks for your support!