Positively Loving Bicyclists!

My friend Shaina shared the following story with me: (click the link to read more) 

Melbourne's Bikers are Victims of Artist's Guerilla Thank You Notes

This inspired me to start thanking Minneapolis bikers!  When I moved here two years ago I knew Minneapolis was a clean healthy city but had no idea how bike friendly it was.  I don't own a car and find it amazing that I am able to bike when it is 20 degrees out and can travel from my home to downtown safely in half the time it would take to drive.  

So this post is to all the bikers who:
would rather spend their gas money a smarter way
bike year round
don't own a car
will bike when it is raining out simply because of how great it makes them feel
love fixing & building bikes
want to make their city a healthier place! 

                                

                           

Thank you to all who bike to make your city a healthier safer place with one less car on the road! 


Write Positive. Post Proudly.
Kirsten

Positive each place I go

Last week I was having a terrible day.  Missed my bus, work is out of control, I didn't get to the bank in time, toothpaste is on my sweater, I just want a sleeve of girl scout cookies days.  The next day I decided to make each part of my day positive.  Positive for me and hopefully for the stranger who found the square I left behind.  

Here is my day day in squares: 

Busing to downtown Minneapolis to run some errands: 

At the bank: 

In the skyway having lunch: 

At Target: 

 At Target looking at the latest games (OPERATION Star Wars!!) 

 At Barns & Noble flipping through design books: 

 Busing back to Uptown

At LA Fitness

 (this was the fastest I have ever seen someone pick up a Positive Square!) 

Last stop of the day...grocery shopping!

Little Cuties now makes juice!

Life sometimes is hard.  Isn't it supposed to be?  It makes the days where you realize that life is positively fine...positively great...positively wonderful just that much better.  And believe me...finding OPERATION Star Wars was positively great!   

Write Positive.  Post Proudly.  

-Kirsten

Positively: Your Turn To Be A Square! (CONTEST!)

A little over three months ago I started Positively Square and it has been so wonderful.  I have received emails from so many of you and sent out Positively Square cards to 11 states all over the country and today I just mailed squares over to Singapore!

There is a bar called Muddy Waters just down the block from me that I go to often and the other week two of my friends and I left behind three Positively Square cards to our waitress who gave us beyond amazing customer service (and also a slice of some wickedly awesome cake..on the house!).  Today I received a text from my friend who works there saying that the squares were up on the wall at Muddy Waters!  


As I read this text message the biggest smile was on my face.  Positively Squares are slowly making their way around!  Last week I got a message via Pintest from a girl who lives in Montana saying that she found a Positively Square card in a museum!  I love it. 


So what inspired all of this was the book Start Something That Matters written by the founder of TOMS shoes Blake Mycoskie.  I was given two copies of this book and was chosen to write a review of it and to come up with a contest to give away the second copy.  I started something that matters and now I want someone else to read this amazing book.  It tells the story of TOMS and how he started it all with just a simple idea.  There are so many other success stories that are shared, such as how Method got started (Target shoppers would know this cleaning brand!)  This book is just..simply inspiring.  It is not just for entrepreneurs, this book is for anyone that wants to read about good people doing amazing things in this world.  That you can do whatever you want to do and that you can start doing that something right now!  


T H E   C O N T E S T: 


1) Take a Positively Square card (you can make up a square if you don't have one or I can mail some out to you!) write a positive message on it for a stranger or for someone you know.


2) Take a picture of your square as you are about to leave it behind.  


3) Upload it to Positively Square's Facebook Page. (or email it to positive.square@gmail.com).  


4) Vote by "liking" on Facebook  what Positive Square picture /story you enjoyed the most!  (tell your family and friends about Positively Square to get their votes!) 


The photo / story that receives the most "likes" on Facebook by 3/15/11 will get their own copy of Start Something That Matters!


Thank you all so much for supporting this simple idea and for making it matter! 


Write Positive.  Post Proudly.
-Kirsten

ˆ

Positively: Suds & Giggles

Some things will never change.  Such as the love I have for my family, shamrock shakes, spending the day in yoga pants, and laundry mats.  Coincidentally laundry mats never change either.  The one four blocks from my house still has a laundry detergent dispenser from 40 years ago.  It could be the clean scent of lemon and lavender that makes going to the laundry mat so great, or the fact that it is 100% acceptable to be out in public in your grossest sweat pants you own without judgment.  In addition to these things it also brings back memories of my mother and sister on Saturday afternoons spent laughing over Women's Day magazines and counting down the minuets till we could leave to go get a Culver's custard cone as a reward for folding towels and being mom's little helpers for the day.

Both of my parents were pretty smart.  Mom would give us treats for helping out while my dad would turn the worst part of laundry into the greatest.  Socks.  Growing up with two other sisters there would be about 20 pairs of socks in a load and of course all different cuts and sizes.  My dad started up a game called Sock Connection (there is a whole song that goes along to this...I will sing it for you sometime if you ask)  Every time there was a sock with out its partner we would put it in this basket of lonely socks and once it got full enough we would do Sock Connection and wouldn't you know it..we would walk away each with a few more pairs of socks!  

Now I am all grown and only folding my own socks (however I still manage to lose a few each time...).  As I sit and wait 24 min for my wash load to finish I look around to a place that hasn't changed decades.  The soda machine with a generic Orange label made me giggle to myself....I hope that never changes.  

What I am getting at though is love what you love out of life, no matter how small or silly it may be.  And though you may change as your life goes on take comfort in the fact that somethings never do :D 

Write Positive.  Post Proudly.  

-Kirsten 

Positively: Children's Hospital and Clinics of Minnesota

On my walk over to the Children's Hospital and Clinics of Minnesota there was a small floral shop; I thought it would be nice to leave some flowers around the waiting rooms along with some Positively Squares cards.  I was hoping to find some happy daises but all I could find were a handful of tulips.  As I continued on my way I realized that I had no clue as to what to expect or even what to write when I got to the hospital.  

When I walked through the front doors I slowly took in my surroundings.  Down the hall there was a woman being broadcasted with a puppet next to her both reading off bingo numbers (kids were calling in that won...this made me laugh to myself)  On the other side was a cafeteria where good moms and dads who had to take off from work were seated with their kids eating lunch.  As I sat from afar I studied their faces.  Moms and dads for the most part were extremely quite, looking across the table at their spouse in silence while their kids happily sucked down juice boxes...maybe not knowing what they were doing there or maybe knowing but in this tiny moment were completely happy with life, sometimes just being next to your parents can do that.   

Some nurses practically fell onto the chairs where they let out a sigh of exhaustion.  One nurse in particular had no expression at all on his face, either from numbness to whatever he was going through or it could just be he was in need of a bed and a pillow.  

As I sat writing I realized that these kids needed some positivity but more importantly I found out the staff and parents needed it more.  I went to five different waiting rooms throughout the Children's hospital, leaving behind 32 squares for parents, kids, and staff:   

The last message was my favorite to share.  Be silly, keep smiling.  Even if you are perfectly healthy it is an important thing to remember!  If you want share this and keep the positive message going please do!  And if you would like some squares of your own please email:  positive.square@gmail.com

This was an amazing experience and I can not wait to see where these squares end up next!

Write Positive.  Post Proudly 

- Kirsten

Positively Nadeau

Nadeau is a lil furniture store in Minneapolis that is full of wonderful, colorful, amazing things that makes me want to have an entry way to my own bed room (the amount of foyer tables in this place is incredible.)  About once a month I grab something carmel from Isles Bun & Coffee and walk next door to walk through a maze of bright yellows tables, warm blue chairs, and earthy green dressers.
(so long IKEA) 


As I venture through pretending I am in the market for a dinning room table I leave Positively Square cards here and there knowing that some lucky buyer will get an extra positive smile as they haul away their new belongings.  

I take my last sip of something camel latte and walk outside into the cold Minnesota air.  Though no yellow table is in my home (yet) I have a home full of positivity.

                                                                          ..which is all one really needs :D  

Write Positive.  Post Proudly. 

- Kirsten

Positively Cheapo

Cheapo (the one in Minneapolis) is a common place for me to go to when I want to kill an hour, which is something easily done when I am browsing the vinyl section.  I had a handful of Positively Squares in my pocket and as I pawed through stacks of album covers I left behind squares to artist worthy of a positive shout out.

One artist worthy of this is my best buddy Kevin.  Guy is an amazing drummer/song writer and as I was flipping through the Local section I came across one of his CDs.  It made me so proud and happy to see it, I wrote on the square "this album is crazy great. metal strong"  

This Kenny Loggins vinyl made me smile instantly.  On the back of the square I put "for $2.95 you can get amazing art work!"  Who can resist those flowing locks, well thought out typography and those 1990 geo shapes!! (whoa nelly) 
The best part about this vinyl is that there are 3 copies of it in the store...pick one up.  

  

If anyone knows me they know that I feel strongly about a few things: 1) Die hard is the greatest action movie ever made. and 2) hearing The Black Keys makes my unbelievably happy, and I will ramble on about them for at least the duration of whatever song of their's that is playing on the radio, bar, or commercial.  In between Rubber Factory and  Thickfreakness I wrote "you have awesome taste in music"  (and whoever picks it up does)  The Black Keys circa 2003...can't get any better (but some how they keep out doing themselves).  Alright Black Keys ramble over. 

Positively Square hasn't seen the last of Cheapo.  Till then though go pick up some Kenny Loggins and enjoy a sunny afternoon looking at that grin on your record shelf! 

Write Positive. Post Proudly. 

-Kirsten