Oddly Zen

Seeing as how it has been a while since I went on ga-ga, a-gushing about Google, it is long overdue.

I love Google. Seriously!

Have you heard of Grand Central? I have just one thing to say about it…

Wow.

I now have a local Tulsa number (for life, for free!) that I can forward any and all numbers I wish to. I can even take calls from oddlyzen.com. I will embed the widget here and you can call me. (It will also be at the bottom of the page.)

And then, I find out about Project CARE:

At GrandCentral, we believe that everyone has a right to be connected. Regardless of their circumstances, every individual deserves the ability to be in touch with family, friends, potential employers - anybody. This need is particularly great, and largely unmet, in the homeless community.

GrandCentral is commited to helping those in need stay connected by offering individuals a local phone number and voicemail box for life. Through our Project CARE initiative, GrandCentral is providing, free of charge, a local phone number and voicemail box to members of the homeless community in San Francisco. We hope to extend this program nationwide as we build out our services.

Project CARE (Communications and Respect for Everybody) recognizes the desire for those in need to get back on their feet and begin a new life. An essential element to that proposition is a consistent and reliable phone number - a place where anyone (family, friends, social workers, health care providers, potential employers, etc.) can leave you a message.

No longer will the pay phone at the local shelter be the only way to reach a homeless client. Whether applying for a job, waiting for medical test results, or trying to get in touch with family, Project CARE provides homeless clients with link to the real world and an ability to connect.

I think this is brilliant and it is about time that socially conscious, free information technology reaches the masses. I’ve walked a mile in those shoes and it is a desperate, scary place. You never realize what a phone — a gadget we take so much for granted — is worth.

And now, thanks to Google and Grand Central… it is on the house.