Archive for ‘Reader of the month’

7 results.

READER OF THE MONTH: Pie it forward

by Gav on May 10, 2013 at 8:20 am
Posted In: Reader of the month

pieitforward

Sarah and Chris have quit their jobs and gone on the road to give away free pie across America. Yes, you heard me right … PIE! Take it away Sarah …

Our project is named Pie it Forward (or OccuPIE) and we’re currently six weeks into our six month tour of the US, giving away free pie in multiple cities and inspiring people to be kinder to each other.

Our purpose with this trip is simple – to inspire people to recognise how their own successes are dependent on the unsung contributions of thousands, perhaps even millions. We hope to get people thinking about how they can “pie it forward” in their own lives by sharing their resources, talents, or time.

The trip is funded with donations and our tax returns, which were pretty meagre. We started out the trip with a couple thousand dollars, which was all spent on gas and food very quickly. Luckily people have responded well to our mission. Fans have given us bags of flour, sugar, apples, baking supplies and of course, the much appreciated hot shower and laundry combo.

We both quit our jobs for this project. Chris was working a very demoralising job for a company that will remain nameless, so he was happy to go. I on the other hand was working at a homeless shelter, and they’ve said they’d be happy to take me back if we decide to return to the area after our tour. I miss all my old coworkers and clients a lot and they were very supportive of me while I dreamed up this project.

Every time I check Zen Pencils, I find a new comic that’s even more relevant than the last. “I would rather be ashes than dust” really hit home for me. All my life, I’ve heard people telling me to be more cautious, to plan carefully, to wait, to plan for fun 10, 20 or even 50 years from now. When I shared my last big dream with my family, they said “Sure, go ahead and do that, after you’ve had a career, put your kids through college and saved up enough for retirement.” I didn’t even have children at the time (still don’t) so why was I being told to shelf my dreams?

I’ve had enough. Life is too short, too unpredictable, to not spend every available moment making it better for ourselves and those around us. I know anything could happen, and I can finally say I’m living without regrets. If World War III breaks out tomorrow, I can die peacefully knowing that I’ve brought happiness to every single person who got a slice of our homemade pie.

You can visit Pie it Forward’s blog here. If you have an interesting story to tell and would like to be a reader of the month, then send me an email. – Gav

6 Comments

READER OF THE MONTH: Kaitlyn Munro

by Gav on April 14, 2013 at 9:09 pm
Posted In: Reader of the month

munroKaitlyn Munro is a reader from Iowa, USA who is about to embark on a life-changing journey. Take it away Kaitlyn:

I work as a part time bartender in my sleepy-small hometown. About a month ago, that combination of circumstances blended into just the right formula for me to stumble upon Zen Pencils (specifically the one attributed to Sophie Scholl The Fire Within, which is still my favorite) and for the remainder of my evening, into the wee hours of the night, I sifted through every single comic. I devoured them in one sitting, pausing only long enough to share about a half dozen on Facebook, so that my friends out in the universe could share in the glory of what I’d found.

I needed that extra burst of inspiration because I was running on empty. I was preparing to sell most of my carefully collected worldly posessions, studying for and taking the GRE (Graduate Requirement Exam) to study philosophy and women’s studies, and anxiously waiting on a definite confirmation for the next phase of my life, which I have now gotten. In May of this year, I will be moving to Burma (Myanmar) to teach English for a year. It’s something that, with every piece of the cultural puzzle I attempt to fit together, and with every reminder of how vastly different my life is about to become, I actually feel a wave of peace wash over me because this is what feels right in my life. Not scrambling to find another job temping in an office, not measuring my life by the accomplishments of my peers, not rushing to see how many people remembered me that day, no. None of those things have given me the oceanic serenity that this pending adventure has. It’s the very reason that Marianne Williamson’s quote Our Deepest Fear has resonated with me for some time. Through this decision I will really be testing this theory: that “our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, but that we are powerful beyond measure.” It’s the same kind of connectedness that this comic translates to me, the universal oneness of hope and moxie that shines through individual people changing the world despite a social group’s (or religious, or governmental, or whatever) insistence we cannot. And I was excited to see the quote used from the democratically elected representative in Burma, Aung San Suu Kyi (Freedom From Fear) who was held under house arrest for the duration of her term (and then awarded a Nobel Prize for her efforts to heal and help her country).

Finding a beautiful, inspiring quote, can lift us up like a close friend. Zen Pencils has been, in my short acquaintance with the site, a source of inspiration for someone who aspires to live in the same ways that have inspired those words.

You can help Kaitlyn’s move to Burma by supporting her IndieGoGo campaign.
Do you want to be a Reader of the Month? Do you have a interesting story to tell? Has Zen Pencils helped you make a big decision in life? Do you use your talents for good, not evil? Then let me know via my contact page.

2 Comments

READERS OF THE MONTH: February

by Gav on February 15, 2013 at 9:00 am
Posted In: Reader of the month

Each month I shine the spotlight on some of my awesome, brilliant and incomparable readers. You lot are the best fans a blogger could ask for. This month meet Sreeja, Alex and Zeina.
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18 Comments

READERS OF THE MONTH: January

by Gav on January 18, 2013 at 8:00 am
Posted In: Reader of the month

Each month (or whenever I can get my act together), I spotlight some faithful readers with an interesting story to share, whether it be how this site has helped them or what they do for a living.

OSCAR from Guadalajara, Mexico.

I’ve had a pretty traumatic life, I ran away from home when I was 11 years old because of an abusive step-mother and lived with an aunt for 2 years. But I was too much of a rebel and decided to live on the streets when I was 13 years old. I used to sleep on the steps of the Jalisco stadium in Guadalajara, and I eventually got a job as a car washer.
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18 Comments

ROTM: Explosives expert in Afghanistan

by Gav on November 5, 2012 at 9:00 am
Posted In: Reader of the month

This is a special edition of Reader of the Month, featuring Tom Jones*, an explosives and munitions expert currently in Afghanistan helping to locate and disarm IEDs scattered throughout the country. I was very surprised to receive an email from Tom, explaining that he enjoyed Zen Pencils and looked forward to it every week. There I was, in my safe little home-office scribbling cartoons, and someone in Afghanistan working in a warzone and saving lives takes time out to email ME?! We began corresponding and Tom’s story became so compelling that I had to share it with you.
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9 Comments

READERS OF THE MONTH: October

by Gav on October 4, 2012 at 8:35 am
Posted In: Reader of the month

Hey folks, here are four loyal readers who say that Zen Pencils has helped them in their daily lives, something that I still can’t quite believe is possible.
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5 Comments

READER OF THE MONTH: Jeff Ackerman

by Gav on August 30, 2012 at 7:00 am
Posted In: Reader of the month

I get so many lovely emails from readers telling me how much they appreciate this website that I thought I should share some of the love with all of you. One thing I never expected when I started this thing was the strong community of like-minded people that has developed. So to promote this even further, each month I’m going to highlight one special reader, let them tell you a bit about themselves and what they get out of Zen Pencils. First up, it’s Mr. Jeff Ackerman!
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3 Comments