Cat Fight In The Kitchen-Wattpad Rant

Charities and Fundraisers

Can I just start this rant by saying that I have trust issues as it is...if you give me assorted chocolates I'm going to hate you forever. Seriously, who is the asshole that invented the concept?

Anyway, let's talk about something sweet and fun: Charities and Fundraisers

Lately I've noticed that when an author wants the MC and the hot love interest to get together, they throw in a chapter with a dance...and don't get me wrong, I love chapters with dances! I loved prom at my high school, because everyone was so weird and awkward and uncomfortable and it cracked me up. I love seeing animals out of their zoo.

Seriously, though, how many dances do high schools actually have nowadays? We had one: prom. That was it. And people were so uncomfortable, we didn't really talk to new people or ask strangers to dance. That happened at the after parties...

I get that these chapters are a way for the MC and her love interest to finally hang out, but has anyone ever thought about them hanging out at a charity event or fundraiser?

Hear me out! I came from a really small town where football was a big deal. So every season there were always fundraisers by the booster club and the whole team always had to show up. We spent tons of time serving at pancake breakfasts or potlucks and such. And we had a hell of a time.

Now, I know that I hung out with the football team anyway (my dad was the head coach), but lots of people came to them and we got to hang out with everyone. The band people had to serve food and the cheerleaders helped with clean up. The choir would perform and the art club would help decorate. And we all got money for our departments and we all got to have fun.

So make the characters get volunteered for charity events or fundraisers! It's actually kind of fun if you make it that way. Our starting lineups and I were always reps for the athletic department and we got to do lots of fun, silly things. And we let other departments in on the fun too, so they could raise money for their own clubs or charities.

Try doing this: put them in a silly situation for a good cause.

For example, one year, at our county fair, people could pay to see one of the football players put make up on a girl (without her help), and of course they wanted to see the starting tight end put makeup on the coach's daughter. So I got to sit in a chair while my best friend tried in vain to figure out how exactly foundation was to be blended and if the darker color goes on the outside of the eyelid or inside.

He actually did a fairly good job (although he was terrified trying to do the eyeliner), but it was because he'd watched me do my makeup so many times before. But some girls looked horrible and no one cared. It was fun. We all laughed and had a good time and raised some really good money.

The quarterback put makeup on the choir's competition soloist and she looked like Mimi from "The Drew Carey Show". A fullback put makeup on one of the majorettes and she looked...well...scary.  But honestly, it was so much fun. And although everyone felt really stupid, it was for a good cause.

Then, another time my best friend and I reffed a charity volleyball game where the coaches played some of the teachers. Then our mayor, our sheriff, our judge, our lawyer (yeah, we had one in town), and two police officers played the official school volleyball team. That was fun, because I got to meet a lot of the officials and all the proceeds from the tickets went to charity. And they sucked so it was funny to watch.

Once my best friend coached a peewee football team and I assisted him, so we got to meet hilarious little kids and their entire family.

Another time they did a kissing booth at the fair, although we weren't a part of that. But I heard it was gross fun.

Ah! Another fun thing we did at the county fair was the portraits. Y'know those street artists that draw caricatures of people? Well we did that with the football team and they were awful pictures, but people would buy them, because they were cute and funny.

Our community had a lot of respect for the boys in the athletic department, because, unlike people on Wattpad, they recognized the countless hours these guys spent at practice to be as good as they were. "Natural talent" wasn't recognized. "Busting your ass to be someone" was.

But when the opportunity arose for them to see starters fail, they were all over that. They would pay money to watch these boys that they loved seeing dominate the field on Friday nights make fools of themselves for fundraisers.

And they were all nice guys, so they happily made asses of themselves just for the hell of it.

And we did it to give back to people and the community.

When my best friend had his accident, the town hosted a fundraiser so his family could afford the surgeries and the rehab and physical therapy. And everyone loved him from his work on his teams and his volunteer work, so literally it was one of the biggest fundraisers we'd ever had.

I met tons and TONS of people. Everyone wants to talk at charity events and, being the best friend, everyone had to ask me how he was. Alumni that had graduated in the '60s were asking me how he was and so I got to meet a lot of really cool older people. I got to meet the little kids that thought he was the best football player they'd ever seen. I saw the little ten year old girls that swooned over him during basketball season because he was "really tall". All these people I'd never talked to before were suddenly very interested in chatting and now I have new acquaintances.

I went to all kinds of dinners to raise money for other families in need too. We raised money for cancer treatment, surgeries, sick newborns, people who lost their houses or land or jobs. And we all made the best of it. I worked with people in the band, the science club, the math club, the business club...you name it, we worked together.

And I met people I'd never known in my life.

Everyone can put their differences aside for charity.

And besides, it's always good to laugh the first time you hang out with someone, so why not let the MC get to know her love interest while they're being fools?

I'm getting bored of them always dancing and that being the sweet moment. There are other things people can do, so let's be original!

Let me know if this helped...or if you have any ideas...or need anymore.

Really. I think this could lead to some fun chapters, so at least consider!

And enjoy the Joseph Birdsong video. He's funny.