14 Years of Live Local USA

January 25th, 2012 - today.

So much more I'd like to have done; so many ideas I wish I'd had time to develop. The conversations we have here matter - celebrating the people and places which built communities, opening minds and empowering small business owners - but it's a drop in the bucket compared to what we're up against.

 

What If We Pick The Better Option?

What if we choose what makes a positive impact, rather than what's easiest? I know, sounds brilliant, doesn't it? But hear me out.... we make decisions based on their benefits to our community, shifting purchases to independent businesses, for example, and guess who wins. Any guesses?

Choosing An Independent Coffee Shop Still Matters

Something as simple, as humble, and as inexpensive as a cup of coffee....may not seem like a great big financial impact to you. But the point of "shifting our focus", making choices that support actual humans we live next door too.....that's where the power is. THAT's where we start to take back our streets and towns, cities and neighborhoods, from being turned into places that all look exactly alike; cookie cutter shells of one another. Because who wants to live where everything all looks the same, without real flavor and variety?

Why My Dollars Go Somewhere That Matter

I hate shopping. It's not a sport or a hobby, or God forbid, a social thing, because I cannot stand trying to shop with anyone else around.

Choosing To Spend At Independent Businesses | Celebrating National Ice Cream Month

You may be wondering.... what is the big deal about ice cream? Why the excessive focus on July's celebration of frozen dessert? I will tell you! It's because getting an ice cream cone may appear to be a simple, small thing; not a lot of $$$ if you just get a scoop - of course you could venture into the sundaes and buckets and flights and so on....but I digress.

The High Cost of Social Isolation

I think we are becoming a lonely society. Fueled largely by the ease online shopping and the constant advertising showing us just how much better life is on the couch.....are we just swallowing what they are telling us, hook, line and sinker - and forgetting to think for ourselves? I'm not going to post some graphic here with a blanket statement saying people are lonely because they buy online. I do however, believe there is a distinct possibility that "advances in technology" and "one-click options" are not as helpful (or healthy) for our state of mind, as getting out and interacting with one another.

"Keeping Doors Open and Lights On" | Why Small Business Support Matters

I am keeping doors open; I do help keep lights on, because I know our independently owned and operated businesses are essential and critical to a thriving community. Choices are - and always have been - important to me, as I assume they are to many folks, and yet we have so many people willing to walk away from the icons of their towns and main streets, the heartbeat of the city they call home, in pursuit of online clicks and instant gratification of....doing nothing but waiting for a box to arrive. How did we get here!?

Moving Forward: November 8th

We made it - we got through this week of voting and non-stop election coverage - and social media posts that didn't always bring out the best in everyone. I specifically did not make posts of any kind this week about politics or voting or anything, because I know you saw plenty of that elsewhere.

Were We Actually "Better" Back Then?

If we pause to think back, maybe to childhood, perhaps.......our communities, towns and neighborhoods weren't built on monopolies and a handful of mega-sized corporations, were they? I don't remember the existence of such massive buildings we have today; I remember going to the family-owned hardware store with my dad, where he knew the owners, and they always talked forever while I roamed the aisles of the most fascinating store ever.

Building your community, or killing it?

Sorry, not sorry..... there is nothing like seeing a town, a once-thriving and beautiful community, which courted a big box retailer, bent over backwards to bring them there, and eagerly spent millions to ensure the terms dictated by a corporation would be met..... become decimated and vacant.

Celebrating National Farmers Market Week

Observed during the second full week of August each summer, is National Farmers Market Week. We're celebrating this milestone by sharing the love of fresh food, eating better, and knowing the people who grow and farm where you live! We have graphics and images showing support for our farm families, local growers, and markets across the country which provide Americans with a direct link to the people who feed the world.

Start With a Locally-Grown Tomato...or Two

Slow down. Yes, you....even though you are cruising along on your way home, thinking of the groceries you need to pick up.....instead, pull off the road at that little produce stand up ahead, or make a turn into an area farmer's market, and just.....explore. It's summer, and summer is for adventures and discovery, right?

Why Can't Consumers Find Independent Businesses?

PLANTS. Hanging baskets, coleus, those things with the big leaves, tall orange lilies, potted plants, flowering bushes....etc. It's that time of year people are buying and planting these things, right? Right. And where are we buying them? Does it occur to the average consumer to look a little harder for a locally-owned greenhouse or family farm, or are we just blindly heading down the road to a big box store?

  

Could We Be a More Focused "Local Movement"?

Thursday May 9th: Some days I pause for a few seconds and think.....what if I did this full-time, this semi-obsessive pursuit of small business promotion? 🤔 And then I think, well, that would drive people away from the page pretty darn fast if I was posting even more, writing blogs and dumping the chaos of stuff out of my brain. 😂

Choose Indie Businesses to Spend Better (Simple Truths)

Decisions about where we buy = conscious actions that shape our world. Maybe not today, or this week, or next month, but each of our daily choices casts a shadow or a light on the future. Which would you choose your footprint to reflect?

Read More, Scroll Less

On this #ibd2024 Eve, I have to post this startlingly simple image. Although I don't have kids, I work in a field where we see the good, bad, and ugly side of social media and technology, so this hit home. (PARENTS....if you can inspire minds, spark imagination, keep your kids from going over the toxic precipice that is online insanity.....DO THAT).

Independent Yarn Stores

Saturday, April 27th is Local Yarn Store Day, a celebration of indie retailers, lovers of handcrafts, and passionate people who are out there making the world a little bit better with their shops and stores. We recognize many of these holidays throughout the year over on our Facebook page; matter of fact, Independent Bookstore Day is also happening on the 27th, Local Record Store Day was April 20th, and there are countless other occasions every month.

Why THIS Bakery matters (and why our choices STILL matter)

8:30 on a brisk spring Saturday morning.....I've already been up early to feed and walk the pack of rescued doggies, but went back to bed, where to be perfectly honest, I could stay for hours. 😅

Shop Small, Buy Better this February

"The commitment to our towns, neighborhoods and cities happens with each choice we make." Welcome to February, the Month of Love, and our collection of images and reminders to download, share, and repost on your social media channels. Together we speak up with a louder voice ~ pass on some heart-shaped messages this month to encourage and reminder your fellow residents to support meaningful growth and strength in the zip code you call home.

Retro-style "Shop Local" Graphics with a Hip Vibe

"Love for local businesses" ~ rolling out the retro style designs for 2024, all with the message of spending better and shopping small. Because nothing says "community" like local support during challenging times....am I right?