This is the last time I'll beg...

I'm sure you all want me to stop begging for money and make a real post and I will, soon, I promise. Ha, look at me with my ego, acting like I have readers who anxiously check in every day, anticipating more of my wit and photography and painting, only to find a plea for funds. Well, maybe you do that, I don't know your life. Anyway, I'll get back to that soon. Or not. I don't know my life either. But this is it, the last you'll hear from me, a last-ditch effort to get the money we need.

Here, let me give you some compelling facts about the water crisis:

• 1.1 billion people in the world do not have access to safe drinking water, roughly one-sixth of the world's population.
• 2.2 million people in developing countries, most of them children, die every year from diseases associated with lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene.
• The average distance that women in Africa and Asia walk to collect water is 3.75 miles.
• Tens of millions of children cannot go to school as they must fetch water every day.
• 80 percent of diseases in the developing world are caused by contaminated water.
• If we did nothing other than provide access to clean water, without any other medical intervention, we could save 2 million lives a year.
• The average American uses 100 to 175 gallons of water per day. The average African family uses 5 gallons per day.
• The UN estimates it would cost $30 billion to provide access to safe water to the entire planet. That’s a third of what the world spends in a year on bottled water.

And facts about the solution:

• Access to safe drinking water helps make a productive life possible.
• Children, especially girls, go to school.
• Women can take better care of their families, gain respected roles in their community and start income-generating businesses.
• Village healthcare costs go down, making more time and funds available for economic development.
• People are less likely to migrate to overpopulated cities if they have the chance to have a good life in their rural community.
• Once wells are operational, measured disease drops by 80% and child mortality drops by 99% almost overnight.   
• The average cost to build a freshwater well in most developing nations is between $5,000 to $12,000. That means an entire community of people’s lives can be forever saved with as little as $5K.

You guys, this is a real problem and one that we can really help solve. Our group has raised around $3500 so far through fundraisers like yard sales and begging and begging- really, we went downtown and wandered the streets and asked for money. In just a few weeks we've gone from under $1000 to where we're at now, just $1500 short of the goal. God is at work here and it's been amazing to watch. So, if you feel moved, please donate. You can do it here, through Paypal. It's secure, and any and every amount will be so, so much appreciated.

Thanks for sticking with me- we'll be back to our normal pointless programming shortly.

In the meantime, please enjoy this photo of a terrifying Costa Rican clown garbage can. You're welcome.