News — Social Activity
What Matters To A Teenage Boy Is Probably Not What You Think
Posted by Lisa Johnson on
The following was a response to a question to a college essay asking, "What matters to you?" A bit unexpected... (GUEST BLOG by Izzy Johnson) -- Ever since I was young, one of my biggest fears has been being alone. That’s why community is so important to me. Although it has been challenging to feel a sense of belonging within groups, I crave connection. Who would have thought that spending Wednesday evenings sweating with a bunch of middle-aged women, dancing to R&B music, would be something that makes me happy? I was born almost a month early,...
- 73 comments
- Tags: Adolescence, Affirmation, Celebrate Life, Community Building, Connection, Exercise, Family, Health and Wellness, Inspiration, Love, Middle Age Life, Mothering, Parenting, Power, Relationships, Resilience, Self-Help, Social Activity, Strength, Teen Boy
DEEPENING FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS WITH WOMEN & THEIR FATHERS AND SONS: STEP BY STEP
Posted by Lisa Johnson on
When I was little, every Sunday morning started by walking with my dad “to get the paper.” Instead of The New York Times being delivered to our house, he liked to go down to the local drugstore for it, and I would accompany him. As the eldest child, my sister still a toddler and at home with my mom, I basked in his full attention. The neighborhood I lived in was called Indian Village, and all of the streets were named after Native American tribes. Probably less for tradition and more as a deterrent for cars, almost every...
- 1 comment
- Tags: Adolescence, Adolescent Boy, Agility, Capable, Celebrate Life, Childhood, Connecting, Connection, Conversation Starters, Dissolution of Long-Term Marriage, Divorce, Divorce and Children, Endurance, Family, Family Life, Feel Good, Fitness, Friendship, Good Idea, Happiness, Healing, Health, Health and Wellness, Identity, Love, Men's Life, Mental Health, Middle Age Life, Motherhood, Mothering, New Year's Resolution, Parenthood, Parenting, Real Men, Reclaim, Recovery, Relationships, Relatives, Resilience, Self-Help, Social Activity, Starting Over, Suicide, Teen Identity, Tough Life Decisions, Walking, Womens Issues, Workout
The Evolution of a Gym Rat: Instagram Envy, and How I Made Fitness A Top Priority
Posted by Lisa Johnson on
Under the guise of business, I began dipping into the waters of Instagram for the past year, and observed that anyone with posts related to exercise, workouts or hard bodies, seems to get LOADS of likes. Why do people pay so much attention to everyone else’s progress? Is it really motivating to see how far others have succeeded? In elementary school, I was a gymnast. My best friend used to tease me because I wore sweatpants to school four days a week, and owned one pair of patchwork dungarees with a parrot on back pocket (boy, do I wish...
- 0 comment
- Tags: Affirmation, Agility, Back Injury, Can Do, Capable, Cardio, Celebrate Life, Childhood, Connecting, Dance, Dance Party, Endurance, Envy, Family Life, Feel Good, Fitness, Friendship, Good Idea, Gym Rate, Gymnastics, Happiness, Healing, Health, Health and Wellness, Injury, Instagram, Middle Age Life, New Friends, New Year's Resolution, Parenthood, Physical Therapy, Power, Priority, Recovery, Self-Help, Share your Story, Social Activity, Social Media, Starting Over, Strength, Treating Oneself, Womens Health, Workout, YMCA
Baltimore Artscape 2016: Our Escape
Posted by Lisa Johnson on
I stumbled upon Artscape three years ago, when I had to deliver my daughter to Baltimore to an all-weekend birthday party, and found I had an entire twelve hours of day to spend by myself on the Saturday between the Paramour / Fall Out Boy concert on Friday night, and the Saturday arcade and laser tag festivities. The birthday girl’s mother, who knew I was artsy, recommended going to what was fortuitously happening that very weekend – the largest free art festival in the country, smack in the middle of Baltimore. Though “The Wire” was my all-time favorite show,...
- 0 comment
- Tags: Art, Best Birthday Presents for Teen Boys, Body Adornment, Capitalism, Community Building, Creative, Education, Environmental, Fashion, Get Noticed, Good Idea, Handmade Gift, Health and Wellness, Knock Your Socks Off, Paper Art, Psychotic Leopard, Recycling, Shopping, Social Activity, Steampunk, Talent, Upcycle
Bringing New Life to Old Things, and the Sexiness of Nerdy Boys' Hands: Refinishing a Dresser
Posted by Lisa Johnson on
One of the big changes with my new relationship, which isn’t so new anymore, is that my boyfriend actually likes to DO things together. Instead of sitting and watching shows nearly every night as the highlight of our “time together,” he actually likes to go tag “sailing” with me on Saturday mornings, so we’re able to kill several birds with one stone: I work and spend time with him, he enjoys treasure hunting, and he’s got a great eye for stuff I miss, and is happy to stand guard while I do my last loops and revisit what I might...
- 0 comment
- Tags: Can Do, Capable, Cheap Gift, Connection, Crafty, Creative, Dating, Expert Advice, Garage Sale, Good Idea, Handmade Gift, Knock Your Socks Off, Lover, Men's Life, Middle Age Life, Power, Real Men, Reclaim, Recycle, Reflection of personality, Romance, Rummage Sale, Self-Sufficient, Shopping, Skill, Social Activity, Tag Sale, Talent, Upcycle, Use Your Hands, Womens Issues, Yard Sale