The 24th floor
Whenever I get the chance to look out at the skylone of a city from a tall building, I feel a renewed sense of awe. It’s much like the boys who stand on their desks in the movie “Dead Poets’ Society”. I gain a new perspective.
The view from the 24th floor
More often than not, the view is one filled with beauty.
Janelle and Patty
Janelle and Patty packed up and headed to Nepal. Awesome. They brought back the stories of girls who live in the Unatti Home in Bakhtapur, Nepal, a group home for underprivileged girls. Even more awesome. Watch their video, read about their journey, and contribute to the home.
Filmmakers Janelle Eagle and Patricia Ramsey are traveling with The Unatti Foundation. This incredible organization has an important mission: The Unatti Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to raising funds to provide food, shelter and education for the multitude of orphaned and underprivileged children of Nepal.
Most awesome.
Music therapy
Music therapy
We always knew it was good for us, now it’s official. Music is therapy.
Scientists are looking at how music can help relieve pain and depression.
From the BBC article:
By considering elements of a song’s rhythm patterns, melodic range, lyrics or pitch, the team believe music could one day be used to help regulate a patient’s mood.
Awesome.
Memory Project
Memory Project
The Memory Project is nothing short of awesome.
Art students are given photos of children from around the world who are orphaned, abandoned or otherwise disadvantaged. They draw a portrait of those children from the photos and send it back to them.
Why? To develop understanding, caring and a positive sense of self.
What could be more awesome than that?
Custom license plates
Weeee! Washington plate
Custom license plates (aka: vanity plates) are awesome. They tell you a little bit about the person driving the car they’re on. And sometimes, they impart a little wisdom, a little humor, a little inspiration.
They remind us to have fun, love life, and even to remember the Golden Rule.
So, keep your eyes open for a bit of license plate wisdom out there. (Yes, that’s yet another blog from one of the creators of 365 Awesome. What can we say? It’s an addiction…)
Barefoot Pinot Gris
Barefoot Pinot Gris
I’m a wine lover. I love good wine. What I love even more? Good wine at a great price.
Enter Barefoot wines. They’re award-winning. What’s more, they’re yummy. And you can find them for under $6 a bottle.
The Pinot Gris and Savignon Blanc are my favorites.
If you’re looking for a good everyday wine, try Barefoot. It’s awesome.
Big Belly Solar Compactor
Big Belly in Portland, OR
Here and there throughout Portland, Oregon, you’ll see a funky looking trash can. Only they aren’t trash cans–they’re Big Belly Solar Compactors. And they’re awesome.
From the bigbellysolar.com website:
By using solar power to compact waste at the point of collection, each Big Belly solar compactor can hold about 5 times the amount of waste as a typical receptacle, eliminating the need for 4 out of 5 collection trips system wide. Network monitoring software provides the information required to drive deep efficiencies in deployment and management of assets and crews. The result is up to 80% reductions in gas-guzzling trash vehicle trips that waste time and fuel, clog streets, pollute the environment, and divert valuable staff time from other priorities.
In Philadelphia they replaced 700 trash cans with 500 Big Belly compactors reducing weekly collections from 17 to 5. With an immediate 70% savings, the first year saw cost reductions of $900,000 and they estimate saving $13 million over 10 years.
Really awesome.
Solar panels on a Big Belly in Portland
Donut Nook
Donut Nook
There’s something satisfying about going to an old-fashioned donut shop and getting a freshly-made donut.
At Donut Nook in Vancouver, Washington, you get an old-fashioned experience. The donuts are made on-site every day. And they are the best donuts I’ve ever had. The buttermilk bar is like heaven coated in glaze.
The prices are old-fashioned, too. All donuts are 90 cents each. Except day-olds. Those are 55 cents. Awesome.
In Cheers-like fashion, it’s frequented by locals who make it a regular enough spot to keep their own coffee mugs behind the counter.
Kim Ruocco
Kim Ruocco and kids (photo by Christian Science Monitor)
Kim lost her husband, and the father of her children, to suicide. John Ruocco, a Marine, killed himself in 2005 after being deployed in Iraq.
Kim has talked to military personnel around the country and now manages suicide outreach for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS).
Taking her personal tragedy and putting it to use for the good of others, Kim Ruocco is pretty awesome.
Bret J. Barrett
I really enjoy food places that have local art on the walls. This week, when eating at The Mission, I noticed the bold lines and colors of Bret J. Barrett. Animal legs standing in for car wheels, a dog with a helicopter for a head. His stuff was different.
Bret Barrett at The Mission in San Diego
Different in the good way. In the awesome way. His pieces had a clarity about them, their bright colors and clear vision a delight to find on a restaurant wall.
