this post was submitted on 18 Jun 2023
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Betterment and Praxis

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The community for cool things you've done out in the real world, or are doing in the real world!

Covers things like volunteer work, community gardens, political activism, organizing clubs and communities in your public circles, and all the information surrounding how to do that stuff. Also covers self-help and betterment, because to help your community it helps to help yourself!


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Is it a favourite park or walking track? The library? Do you have a really fun festival that your community is known for? Tells us about it!

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (2 children)

My town (and all the towns around it) are expanding bike infrastructure like mad. I bike to work and I believe in building communities that aren’t car centric, so I’m thrilled to see it happening in real time. And I found a route to my work that’s almost all on protected bike lanes. It makes me happy

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

That sounds fantastic! Thankfully I am a remote worker, but I would love to bike to do everything I can't do at home. I seem to be in a very car-centric area, but they are expanding bike lanes.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 years ago

I try really really hard to make sure where I live and work makes this possible. I only apply to apartments near bike infrastructure, I only apply to jobs within biking distance… this apartment was a compromise with my partner, so it feels like a gift from the universe to have bike lanes extended to our house.

As long as you try sometimes to bike, you’ll make yourself visible and I have faith that makes a difference. Your city council person might see a bunch of bikes some morning and choose to vote in favor of more. Baby steps :)

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Choice! I love a good cycle way. We used to live in a really cycle friendly city but it's a bit harder living rurally. There are cycle ways but there is one super dangerous 2 lane tree lined road that we'd have to share with stock and logging trucks 😬 hopefully someday they will connect the tracks. Car centric infrastructure makes me feel very isolated

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

There are three farm stands within cycling distance of my house (I believe one is technically in another town, but that doesn't matter), plus the seasonal farmers' market.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 years ago

That sounds heavenly!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago

It's not really super recently anymore, but my wife and I moved about 10 months ago and then she has had a series of injuries that made it hard for her to walk since the start of the year, so it's been hard for us to find things we like in in our new city. We're starting to new for new apartments, but apparently it's still a bit early for our move date. I am hoping that we can move out of the quasi industrial area (right by the high way and most of the businesses near by are really b2b and not consumer facing) and into a real neighborhood will help a lot.

I can talk a lot about the things I liked in our old city, though

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I live in a shithole city in the desert with high crime rates (my home has been broken into twice in 4 years (while I was home)) but my favorite thing about it is the natural environment. Very beautiful place. I hope we get more social programs to better the community, but where I live, all of the money goes to like 10 square miles in the city center and everyone else is left to rot in an over-policed, car-centered, 40km sprawl.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (1 children)

That's really hard. I hope you can muster up some support from other locals and make some changes!

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Sadly everyone where I live seems to be socially conservative if they're over the age of 25 so I'm just working on doing some good old AEO on peers.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 years ago (1 children)

I live in a town with a small liberal arts university and a lot of retirement homes. This gives it a really interesting vibe - generally artsy and relaxed. Most of the time, anyway.

My favorite thing the town does is our annual chalk art festival! I don't create art, but I like walking around and seeing what other folks created.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 years ago

I bet the art is beautiful!!

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

Kalamazoo Michigan, the art scene and LGBT+ friendliness. My mail person is queer, half of the library staff are queer, our mayor was a gay man, there's a queer theatre and queer resource center downtown, it's really great!

Sadly we have no set queer bar, though one of them is our unofficial bar but it wouldn't stand up to a proper one.

Oh and of course it's the first and only city I've lived in after moving out, and I went to college here. It's near to my heart. And with Gretchen Whitmer and Jocelyn Bennett killing it, I'm relatively happy hear in the mitten ❤️

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago (2 children)

I'm a NYC native, and I am always struck by the accessibility of cultures we have to offer. Any time I discover a new cuisine or dish I haven't tried, I'm basically guaranteed to find it in this city. There are lots of things I hate about NYC, but I love that we've got so much of the world to offer, with a transit system that can get you there.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

NYC truly seems like a melting pot. The food must be incredible

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

Can relate. Kuala Lumpur isn't anywhere near the magnitude of NYC, but the accessibility of food from all around the world has made me a much better cook.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

This made me realize I really don't like where I live...

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

My town has a lot of history that, I think, is pretty cool, especially surrounding our nation's founding fathers and the actions of radical abolitionists

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 years ago

I like the library, it has a pretty good board game collection, I've gotten some switch games out from there rather than dropping $60-70 on them, not to mention books, movies, audiobooks, museum discount passes, etc.

Also, it's nice being back in a town with sidewalks, decent low-density roads around, local businesses nearby. A lot of my middle school/high school life was lived on a narrow hilly road with no shoulder that made it hard to get anywhere before I could drive.

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