Tag: Positivity

Opera for the People – New York Ticket Lottery

NEW YORK – Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani, Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice Julie Su and New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) Commissioner Diya Vij today announced “Opera for All,” a long-term partnership between the City and the Metropolitan Opera that will provide 70,000 free tickets this season to New Yorkers who have never attended a performance at the Met.

Beginning this month, the Met will release 10,000 tickets each month throughout the 2026-27 season, about 10% of all tickets for the season. New Yorkers can enter the monthly lottery at on.nyc.gov/opera or through the Met’s app. This season’s performances include Macbeth, Lincoln in the Bardo and La Bohème.

Mayor Mamdani Launches “Opera for All,” Bringing 70,000 Free Metropolitan Opera Tickets to New Yorkers

Denver Water – Good Stuff

Damn Denver, you guys have some real scrumptious water. Even the stuff coming out of the shower in my cheap motel was delightful. Thanks for paying the taxes that make this possible!

(Also, please don’t tell me that your water has dangerously high levels of mercury or is implicated in regular cholera outbreaks. I need to believe that at least one thing in this world is pure.)

https://www.reddit.com/r/Denver/comments/1tk6sru/denver_water_appreciation/

pmurcsregnig
That was one of the first things I noticed when I moved here. Fresh and crisp

wineandwings333
It is good. Every time i travel the water disturbs me

Swimming in Chicago River – First Time Since 1926

DOWNTOWN — For the past 98 years, swimming in the Chicago River was unthinkable.

The once-contaminated river was a dumping ground for industrial pollution and sewage, creating toxic smells that kept would-be swimmers far away.

But today, the Chicago River is cleaner than it was decades ago, and Sunday marked the first time an open-water swim has been held in the river since 1926. Organized by nonprofit A Long Swim, the event celebrated the city’s progress toward cleaning the river while raising money for ALS research and youth swim education programs.

For Olivia Smoliga, a two-time Olympian from suburban Glenview, the opportunity was too historic to pass up. After finishing her one-mile race in first place, she felt ecstatic to be part of history.

Swimmers Return To Chicago River For 1st Time In A Century, Marking Dramatic Transformation
Hundreds of swimmers dove into the Chicago River on Sunday to raise money for ALS research and highlight the river’s rebound after years of pollution and unsafe conditions.

New Orleans – Sneauxmageddon 2025

r/NewOrleans – Sneauxmageddon 2025

Sneaux Photeaux Pt. 2 – Stunning Stillness. Morning Light on Esplanade After the Historic Snowfall
byu/picturethisyall inNewOrleans

found my new desktop background
byu/rokons inNewOrleans

Ok, so, we’re in for 36 hours or more of ice and fuckery. But having a snowball fight with adult strangers right in front of the cathedral was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I have seen the snowballing of the pope.

Thank you New Orleans for getting weird, once more.

I’ll see you on the other side of this pipe freeze.

That snowball fight in Jackson Square
byu/HeresYourHeart inNewOrleans

Renewable Energy in California

Something approaching a miracle has been taking place in California this spring. Beginning in early March, for some portion of almost every day, a combination of solar, wind, geothermal, and hydropower has been producing more than a hundred per cent of the state’s demand for electricity. Some afternoons, solar panels alone have produced more power than the state uses. And, at night, large utility-scale batteries that have been installed during the past few years are often the single largest source of supply to the grid—sending the excess power stored up during the afternoon back out to consumers across the state. It’s taken years of construction—and solid political leadership in Sacramento—to slowly build this wave, but all of a sudden it’s cresting into view. California has the fifth-largest economy in the world and, in the course of a few months, the state has proved that it’s possible to run a thriving modern economy on clean energy.

California Is Showing How a Big State Can Power Itself Without Fossil Fuels
For part of almost every day this spring, the state produced more electricity than it needed from renewable sources.
By Bill McKibben

Tennessee Auto Workers Vote to Unionize

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) — Employees at a Volkswagen factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee, overwhelmingly voted to join the United Auto Workers union Friday in a historic first test of the UAW’s renewed effort to organize nonunion factories.

The union wound up getting 2,628 votes, or 73% of the ballots cast, compared with only 985 who voted no in an election run by the National Labor Relations Board.

Both sides have five business days to file objections to the election, the NLRB said. If there are none, the election will be certified and VW and the union must “begin bargaining in good faith.”

President Joe Biden, who backed the UAW and won its endorsement, said the union’s win follows major union gains across the country including actors, port workers, Teamsters members, writers and health care workers.

Tennessee Volkswagen employees overwhelmingly vote to join United Auto Workers union
AP

Cannabis Legalization in Germany

Crowds gathered in Germany overnight to celebrate the legalization of cannabis starting from Monday.

There was music and dancing at the Brandenburg Gate in central Berlin, where attendees waved placards and blew clouds of smoke into the air.

One person could be seen cycling through the crowd dragging an artwork of a giant cannabis leaf on a trailer behind their bike, while another ceremoniously rolled a joint in front of television cameras.

Germans celebrate as recreational cannabis use becomes legal
CNN

Hats off to Taylor Swift and the Food Banks

When the Arizona Food Bank Network received a call that Taylor Swift wanted to make a hefty donation to the charity as she kicked off her Eras tour in the state, some staffers thought it was a prank.

But it was no joke. The megastar, who is raking in big bucks from her blockbuster concerts, has been giving back to communities where she plays. From Georgia to Michigan to Texas to California and in between, food banks have benefited.

In Arizona, Swift’s donation in March allowed the network to send several tractor-trailers filled with 40,000 pounds of fresh produce to its member food banks, said Terri Shoemaker, a spokesperson at the nonprofit organization. Plus, it bolstered funding for programs aimed at combating hunger, such as helping eligible children gain access to free and reduced-price school meals and senior citizens obtain food stamps.

Taylor Swift is a hero to food banks from coast to coast

Empathy as Elevated Form of Understanding – Arnold’s Monday Motivation

Arnold’s Monday Motivation
“Opinion is the lowest form of human knowledge. It requires no accountability, no understanding. The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another’s world. It requires profound purpose larger than the self.”

Someone sent this to me this week, and it said it was from Plato. I looked it up, and apparently, he never said this (just like a lot of quotes I see from myself!). But that doesn’t bother me. It’s a great quote, and we can all learn from it.

It’s easy to have an opinion. Today, it’s easier than ever to broadcast your opinion to everybody. Unfortunately, because of the way social media works, it’s the negative opinions that get the most love. People love to complain or criticize. It doesn’t take much effort, and it’s an easy way to get likes.

Like always, I’m asking you guys to take the harder road. Try to understand other people. Find your empathy.

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