I want to tell you something, Hubski: If you are in a state which has a Victim Advocate program (or county, city, whatever... call your local police department and ask) you might find that you would really enjoy being involved, especially if you're both good with people and the kind of person who sort of always wanted to be a cop or firefighter or EMT but never wanted to have that lifestyle full-time.

I'm on-call tonight and really enjoying it. It's up there with the most rewarding volunteer work I've ever done (tied with going along for animal cruelty seizures as a teenager), and it cured what used to be a severe phobia of being exposed to death. Way back in the day, I once completely lost it just because my then-boyfriend bought some TV trays from an estate sale, which meant that someone who was now dead had at one time touched those exact trays and that was terrifying. Now I can deal with bodies in the room with me, no big deal, I got this.

If you have ever been a victim of crime, you might relate to feeling like the accused has lots of "rights" and you, the victim, have none. Victim advocacy programs are a way to give some important rights to victims, while guiding them through any legal process that results from the crime. We are also able to help connect victims with resources that can help them materially, such as getting locks changed on the house of a DV victim to keep the perpetrator out, or finding shelter placement for an assault victim who doesn't want to return home.

This as volunteer work is NOT a good fit for the indiscreet (on that note, I can't answer any questions about my calls...), people who can't go without a few hours of sleep (I'm on call overnight), or people who want to play cop and interrogate witnesses (you're there for the victim, not to get their story). It may be a good fit if you find you're already the person all your friends call when they're in crisis, and/or if you're one of those people who can hold a group together in moments of uncertainty and fear. I've always joked that I melt down at the sight of a spider, but I would have a totally cool head at a murder scene... turns out that's basically true :P If you're that person, you might enjoy this.

Aight, that's all I wanted to say :)