I started a project at the beginning of 2021.
It’s called Great News.
Once a month or so, I send out a collection of news that is uplifting, hopeful, and encouraging.
News about kind people doing good deeds. News about progress and positive momentum. News about whales and trees, dogs and kids, delightful projects, and more.
Because sometimes, you need a moment of pure joy. A dose of medicine to lift your spirits. I hope that Great News can be that medicine for you.
Here is the latest installment of Great News, in no particular order...
...It's the final one of the year, so it's a big one! What a year it has been...
- Great news if you love celestial events. If you missed yesterday's solstice celebrations, fear not. You can watch videos of the solstice sunrise recorded at Stonehenge and other sacred locations. How neat is that?
- This will restore your faith in humanity: an artist named Amarildo Silva Filho turns old tires into cozy beds for stray dogs and cats. Over 6,000 beds and counting.
- Great news if you love trees. A couple planted a tree 43 years ago. Today, it towers high above the town. Decorated with holiday lights, it illuminates the winter darkness and brings joy to all. Tiny seeds can grow into big, bright, beautiful things.
- A rapper released a song and urged listeners to call a hotline if they're struggling with anxiety and depression, feeling hopeless about life, or experiencing a mental health crisis of any kind. The song inspired a huge flood of people to call and get help. The hotline reports: the song may have helped to save hundreds of lives. What a powerful reminder that one song, one essay, one book, one project (big or small) can make such a difference in the world. Special thanks to Anna for notifying me about this story.
- Great news if you love makeovers and magical moments. Queer Eye is coming back! New season drops on December 31. Who's ready to binge-watch every episode and cry-sob-laugh-smile-wheeze with emotion until you turn into a mushy blob of tears? Me. That's who.
- Ever since I moved to Hawaii, I've become obsessed with ube aka purple sweet potato, which is very popular here. Here is a recipe for ube cheesecake. Look at that incredible purple color. All natural. No artificial dyes. Whoa. Nature is magic.
- Here is a great music playlist that I made awhile ago. Perfect if you want to get moving and do a vigorous workout, dance, ferociously declutter your closet for the New Year, etc.
- And, here is a great playlist for moments when you want to melt into a puddle of goo and chill out completely. My friend Molly made that one.
- A newsletter reader named Cary wrote in to share this excellent news: "I recently co-founded a company called goodbuy. Our mission is to make it super easy for folks to shop online at small businesses. goodbuy is a tool that you add to your computer that intercepts you when you're shopping on mega-retailers'
sites—and shows you the same product you're searching for (or something even better) from one of 183,000 small businesses. So, folks can be sure they're spending their money in communities they care about, such as: AAPI-owned, American made, Black-owned, cruelty free, ethical business, family-owned, Indigenous-owned, Latina/o/x-owned, LGBTQIA+ owned, veteran-owned, women-owned"...and more. Cary! That is incredible. What a cool project. Thank you for
sharing.
- Great news for dog paw-rents. This helpful article has tips on how to help your pup stay calm during fireworks on New Year's Eve, Fourth of July, and other explosive events.
- What went right this year? A round-up of 26 pieces of very good news. From medical advances, to companies experimenting with shorter work-weeks, and more, some things are moving in a positive direction. Not everything is going great (that's for sure) but there are many wins to celebrate.
- Do you want to create more visibility for your business, your books, your artwork, or whatever you make and sell? Great news: my friend Danielle has written numerous pieces on the topic of visibility. Dive into her beautiful blog archives to find helpful ideas—written with such a gentle, nurturing tone. She also runs a program called Visibility Medicine if you want to invest in yourself (and your career) in 2022.
- Great news if you love music (or work in the music industry). My amazing dad, Don Franzen, started a newsletter called Your Inside Track. Don is a lawyer. In his newsletter, he (and his law colleagues) write about what's happening in the music industry from a legal perspective—what musicians and other professionals need to know, how to protect your art, how to review a contract and
make sure it's actually a good record deal and not exploitative, how to avoid copyright lawsuits and other calamities, and more. So helpful. And, no cost. Sign up here.
Such Great News.
-Alex
PS. Do you have a piece of Great News you'd like to share? Something you saw in the news? A cool project you've been working on? Click *reply* to email me and my team. We read (and reply) to every email that comes in. We love hearing positive news. Thank you.
PPS. This particular newsletter might contain a typo or two. My apologies. Sometimes, humaans make mistaks. Especially during a cozy, sleepy holiday week.
PPPPS. Happy holidays, merry everything, and thank you for being part of this newsletter readership and community! It's a joy to send notes to you...today and always.
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