猫咪AV

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It鈥檚 coming. A slow, haunting, funeral-like procession of discounted gym memberships, bullet journals and gallon containers marked with the hours in a day. There are probably a few aggressive reading lists or mantra posters mixed in somewhere too.

That鈥檚 right鈥娾�斺�奿t鈥檚 New Year鈥檚 resolution season.

This means it鈥檚 time to write down arbitrary 鈥渂ut actionable鈥� goals on a piece of paper, tape it to your computer monitor and completely ignore it for another 12 months. We all dread it, yet every year, without fail, we all do it.

So why not mix it up?

Living in the Bay Area is hard enough on everyone without adding in fucking CrossFit. A resolution to make existing a little easier for one another could go a long way in a place where the average rent is more than 50 percent of an individual鈥檚 income and everybody has聽at least聽two jobs. Here are a few ways you can actually make the Bay a better place this coming year鈥娾�斺�奲ig and small.

1. Help Kids聽Read

Put your bookish tendencies to work, and volunteer to read with kids this year. Reading out loud with kids can stimulate their imagination while helping them gain confidence in their own reading skills. The聽聽has a whole list of things you can apply for, or you can check out聽猫咪AV聽for the Bay Area or Silicon Valley. If you don鈥檛 have much time to spare, you can always donate books to聽, which works with local organizations to give books to kids in need.

2. Help Out Some Furry聽Friends

If you can鈥檛 commit to full-on rescuing a furry friend this year, you can still help in other ways. Check out the聽聽for ways you can volunteer in their city shelters, or check out the聽聽for similar opportunities. You can help with training classes and pet photography or simply take a couple of dogs for a long walk. Or keep your efforts hyper-localized, and see if your neighbors need a dog walker while they take a weekend trip or someone to snuggle with their cat for an evening.

3. Give Up Your Seat If You鈥檙e Able聽To

During peak hours, BART estimates that nearly 70,000 people ride through the Transbay Tube each way. That鈥檚 a聽濒辞迟听of people crammed in on top of each other, rocking and jostling sometimes for hours. If your legs work and you鈥檙e able to stand for a little while, give someone else your seat. It鈥檚 a small act of kindness that goes a long way.

4. Support Local聽Art

If you make this your resolution, you鈥檙e going to have a聽damn busy聽year. You can start, first and foremost, by expanding your art consumption to local galleries like聽聽in Oakland or聽聽in San Francisco. There鈥檚 also no end to festivals or street fairs where you can dive into hyperlocal art scenes, such as the San Francisco Zine Fest or the Solano Avenue Stroll. And, of course, don鈥檛 forget SFMOMA, the Oakland Museum of California or the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA), where local exhibitions may rotate through.

5. Plant a Tree鈥娾�斺�奛o,聽Really

Not to sound like the Lorax or anything, but there are few things that improve a community like trees.聽聽accepts volunteers of all abilities and many ages to plant trees throughout the city in an effort known as 鈥渦rban greening.鈥� If you鈥檙e in the East Bay, check for your local Sierra Club chapter, or volunteer with聽.

6. Help People Experiencing Homelessness in Your Community

聽offers a variety of programs for helping people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco get the care and services they need. This ranges from day-to-day services, such as getting help with a DMV-issued ID or getting a haircut to setting up a one-stop shop in the form of 鈥渃ommunity days of service,鈥� where providers come together in one place.

Across the bridge in Oakland, the East Oakland Collective organizes community action days to distribute food and necessary hygiene items to those in need. Additionally, the member-based organization also hosts events around civic engagement and economic empowerment. You can learn more about their next聽.

7. Buy Coffee for the Person in Line Behind聽You

Starbucks has a whole system for this during the holiday season, but if you鈥檇 rather shop local and still surprise the person in line behind you, simply leave a few dollars with the barista and ask that it be put toward the next person鈥檚 order. No one is ever hurt by a free cup of coffee.