The Wholesome Thread

[Eric]

Let's share some of the more wholesome stories we see out there.

https://www.reddit.com/r/MadeMeSmile/comments/10p4ufm

Japanese cafe uses robots controlled by paralysed people

The project aims to give some disabled people more independence, interaction and paid work.

www.bbc.com

 

[Colstan]

Anton Petrov, who does videos on astrophysics and science topics, has raised $230,000 in charity for an orphanage in South Korea, all donated by his Youtube viewers. He started a charity drive after his newborn son died of SIDS, late last year. His son's name was Neil (after Neil Armstrong). His older, surviving son is named Yuri (after Yuri Gagarin).

 

[Herdfan]

I hope this is within the spirit of the thread. Just fun to watch.

https://twitter.com/buitengebieden/status/1620844273347477504?s=20&t=ifNAf3QiuKAb9HMOg_qWcQ

 

[Eric]

Regardless of his tumultuous time in office, he's always been a really awesome human being.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/comments/10y1x7n

 

[lizkat]

Ran into this in the NYT. I just love stories about libraries today. The librarians and patrons are awesome!

A Love Letter to Libraries, Long Overdue (paywall lifted)

Last fall, The New York Times sent photographers to cities, suburbs and rural areas in seven states to document how different libraries respond to the needs of their communities, and the many ways in which patrons find a haven in each one.

At the time, the news was full of grim dispatches from the land of letters. In Colorado, two branches closed because of meth contamination. In McFarland, Calif., city leaders debated whether to convert a library into a police station. In New York City, Mayor Eric Adams proposed massive budget cuts that would slash library hours and programming. The American Library Association announced that attempts to ban books were accelerating across the country at a rate never seen since tracking began more than 20 years ago.

It was enough to make you wonder if the ancient tradition of book lending was going the way of card catalogs.

Then the photos started to roll in, and they told a different story. In this version, toddlers tried to catch bubbles on the loose in the library. Grateful seniors welcomed monthly deliveries of movies and crime novels. Teenagers strummed guitars together. Children and caregivers gathered beneath technicolor trees to listen to a picture book read by a beaming librarian. In a different time zone, another librarian worked contentedly in the cozy oasis of a bookmobile.

We all know that books connect us, that language has quiet power. To see the concentration, curiosity and peace on faces lit by words is to know — beyond a shadow of a doubt, in a time rife with shadows — that libraries are the beating hearts of our communities. What we borrow from them pales in comparison to what we keep. How often we pause to appreciate their bounty is up to us.

 

[Clix Pix]

Yes, and the final paragraph of the article again deserves repeating:

"We all know that books connect us, that language has quiet power. To see the concentration, curiosity and peace on faces lit by words is to know — beyond a shadow of a doubt, in a time rife with shadows — that libraries are the beating hearts of our communities. What we borrow from them pales in comparison to what we keep. How often we pause to appreciate their bounty is up to us."

As a retired librarian, this article really brought a smile to my face.....so heartening to see a visual and verbally/textually expressed realization of the value of public libraries in this rather awful era when there have been so many, many negative articles about appalling situations recently. Today's librarians are having to meet challenges which would have seemed unfathomable in my time, but they're hanging in there, moving forward nonetheless, those men and women to whom books and people are both meaningful and that they know need to be able to continue being brought together.....

The other day I went to my local branch to return some books and to pick up more, and I noticed that the parking lot was unusually full. As I was walking towards the entrance to the building, I could hear singing, a lovely voice coming from the library's meeting room, and a quick glance through the window showed me a large group of people and someone at a microphone.... I couldn't understand the words, and then it dawned on me that this was a celebration of the Chinese New Year. Inside the library, I glanced over at the bank/double row of computers and each machine had someone in front of it, working away.... This was during school hours so there weren't many children in the library at that time but I smiled as I noticed a young woman checking out a big stack of picture books for her toddler.... I returned the books I'd borrowed and then browsed the shelves for new reading material to bring home and enjoy......

 

[Eric]

Spotted in a local area

https://www.reddit.com/r/mildlyinteresting/comments/1177qua

 

[lizkat]

For anyone in driving distance of Philadelphia,,,, a breath of spring before spring is at hand. The annual flower show is back in the convention center this year after an outdoors-only version during the covid pandemic. People from the Catskills are so desperate for spring during a bad winter that they get charter buses to go down there as day trips! Anyway it will run from March 4th through 12th, for those tired of the occasional (or, persistent) snow drifts.

The Philadelphia Flower Show is returning to the Convention Center in 2023, and the stakes are high

After shifting outdoors for the last two years, the Flower Show is back in its old home. But will it be back to the cultural event and fundraising juggernaut it once was?

www.inquirer.com

This is not your local village garden show... it's an extravaganza, with ticket prices to match. But if your family goes for this kind of entertainment, it makes for a great outing.

Everything you need to know about the 2023 PHS Flower Show

The Philadelphia Flower will be at the Convention Center, here is how to get tickets, hours, food, drinks, and activities

www.inquirer.com

Adults: $43.50.
Students (18-24): $30 with a valid student ID.
Children (5-17): $20. Kids 4 and under enter for free.
Family discounts: There are two packages: two adults and one child ($100) or two adults and two children ($120).

There is also the option to insure your tickets by paying an extra $3 per person. This will grant you a refund in case you can’t make it due to weather, accident, injury, or illness.

 

[Eric]

Dramatic effect FTW.