And now for something completely different ...

Help me to raise $15,000 for Amnesty International by November 3rd 2013 and I will:

• Run the New York Marathon barefoot

• Tattoo the Amnesty logo onto my foot

I'm completely serious. I'm putting skin in the game. 

How you can help:

1. Toss a few bucks in yourself, it takes 30 seconds and you get a tax deductible receipt plus your name up in lights for the whole world to see.

2. Whip a hat around the office -- "hey, there's this crazy Ozzie getting a candle and barbed wire tattooed on his foot, chuck in a couple of bucks..."

3. Shout a round for Amnesty. Just one beer round money in here instead.

4. Ask your contacts to donate five bucks. If you encourage just 10 twitter/facebook/LinkedIn followers to donate, and they encourage 10 others, and they in turn encourage 10 more then this is the math: 10 x 10 x 10 x $5 = $5,000. And if the average donation is just ten bucks, then ...

5. Ask your company to donate. $250 buys a small logo on my marathon shirt, $500 a large one. I'm pretty sure the video of my tattoo will go viral, providing a great return on investment!

6. Let your local media know. They are always looking for a different ankle. 

7. Other ways? Let me know in the comments below.