Monday, September 17, 2012

Nerding Out

My kids are all really good at math.  They get it from James, not me.  They are nerds.

I’ll admit that I’m a nerd too.  I’m a nerd because I like Excel spreadsheets.  I mean, I REALLY like Excel spreadsheets (I’m a spreadsheet junkie).  I create spreadsheets for anything possible… groceries, menus, housecleaning, job charts, home school, scouts, schedules, etc. 

Do you want to know the reasons why I like spreadsheets? 
It’s simple.
Order.
You can put lots of information into boxes and everything stays lined up in columns and boxes.  It looks neat and tidy, and it’s easy to read.
Plus, there’s one additional advantage to the spreadsheet.
Insert the correct formula, and it does the math for me!  This is a huge plus!

Right now I have a spreadsheet with all the donations we’ve received.  It includes names, dates, amounts, totals, etc.  I like how it tracks everything for me in neat columns.  It’s a beautiful thing.

This morning (after getting my HIV and Syphilis Blood Tests taken care of for our Ukrainian medical report) I sat and admired this spreadsheet.  Then, I created some new mathematical formulas and came to some new realizations.

Here are the facts:

75% of the donations we’ve received have been $100 or less.
58% of the donations we’ve received have been $50 or less.
45% of the donations we’ve received have been $25 or less.
33% of the donations we’ve received have been $20 or less.
20% of the donations we’ve received have been $15 or less.
13% of the donations we’ve received have been $10 or less.

Do you get the picture I’m trying to create here?  If not, let me draw it a little more clearly.

The highest percentage of our donations have come from lots of people donating smaller amounts.  

It adds up, it really does.

This is what happens when we get a donation for $100.   



And this is what happens when we get a donation for $10.



See the difference?

That’s because there isn’t a difference. 

Every donation counts. 
Every donation gets us closer to our goal. 
Every donation helps save Albina, Alina and Maks.

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