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Woman shares her struggles of working full-time while homeless, and it changes her life

Sometimes the internet really delivers.

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Royalty-Free photo: Woman holding mop | PickPik

Sometimes the internet is like a great big community. One that supports its members who are in need of help.

Aaliyah (@oc.liyahh) revealed her struggles of working full-time, without a home of her own, in a heartfelt TikTok video. Little did she know that sharing her story would lead to not only sincere support from total strangers online, but some actual solutions for her problem.

As a full-time employee at Home Depot, Aaliyah worked eight-hour shifts, five days a week. But once she clocked out, it didn’t get much easier.

Having only her car for shelter, Aaliyah would have to use facilities like Planet Fitness to take a shower, only occasionally being able to afford a night in a hotel. With those kinds of challenges, it’s perfectly understandable she admitted to always being tired and “barely ever smiling.”

@oc.liyahh #fypシ #viraltiktok ♬ Sure Thing (cover version) - Tik Toker

Aaliyah’s clip soon went viral with more than 5 million views, and though there were some accusations of Aaliyah “faking it,” the overall response was incredibly supportive. Some even came out to share similar experiences.

“I used to sleep in my car and take showers at the gym also and worked two jobs and barely slept,” one person wrote, encouraging her with, “now I own a small business, my house and two vehicles.”

Another added, “keep at it. I was homeless…I would shower at friends’ houses and ride a bike to work. Now I got my own place and car.”

It does help to hear how others have overcome obstacles you’re currently facing, but Aaliyah received even more reason to remain hopeful.

Unbeknown to her, Aaliyah’s very workplace could provide assistance. Many TikTok users informed her of the Homer Fund, a grant program that provides financial assistance to employees facing hardship. According to the company website, more than 150,000 associates have already been helped.

In a series of follow up videos, we find out that Aaliyah did reach out to the Homer Fund, and received not only emergency funding to get a hotel, but permanent housing as well.

This young woman went from “barely being able to smile” to dancing and feeling “beyond grateful.”


This article originally appeared on 2.3.22

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Innovation

She just landed her dream home and it all started with trading a single bobby pin

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Demi Skipper's 'Trade Me Project' on Instagram.

It’s amazing what you can do with perseverance, optimism and a single bobby pin.

The Today Show recently highlighted the incredible success of 30-year-old Demi Skipper’s “Trade Me Project,” where Skipper documented her 28 trades that landed her the keys to her very own dream home.

And it all started with (you guessed it) a bobby pin. The real crazy part: It happened in the span of just a year and a half.

You might be thinking, “wait, I’ve heard this story before, haven’t I?”

Indeed, Skipper's idea was inspired by Kyle MacDonald, whose initial red paperclip trade landed him a house within a year, back in 2005. He even has a TED Talk about it:

What if you could trade a paperclip for a house? | Kyle MacDonald | TEDxViennawww.youtube.com

I’m fairly certain, though I have no hard evidence to prove it, this is the concept behind a hilarious scene from "The Office," where Dwight Schrute tries to educate us all about “The Art of the Swap.”

Spoiler alert: The swap doesn’t go quite as well for Dwight as it does Skipper and MacDonald.

Dwight's 'Art of the Swap' - 'The Office'www.youtube.com

Since Skipper recorded her bartering journey on Instagram and TikTok, the story of a bobby pin magically transforming into a home—and more importantly, what that represents—has gone mainstream yet again.

The bobby pin led to earrings …

Across social media, Skipper would note which items got swapped, along with their retail value. In this case, something worth a penny got traded for something with a thousand times more monetary value.

… which were traded for glassware …

As we will see, big changes happen as a result of small moments.

… then a vacuum …

Personally I might have just stopped the trading journey here.

… then a snowboard …

Here’s where things really started to rev up.

… eventually she traded for a car …

… and an even better car …

No offense to the Dodge Caravan.

… fast forward to a controversial Chipotle Celebrity Gift Card …

Yeah, some people were not jazzed about this one, and called it her worst trade. To be fair, free Chipotle every day for a year, plus a catered meal for 50, that racks up.

“You’ll be lucky to get $500 for it,” one user wrote.

As it turns out, luck was indeed on Skipper’s side.

… which got traded for this …

Skipper made one Chipotle fan an offer they couldn’t refuse. In exchange, Skipper received an off-the-grid trailer worth about $40,000.

There was one caveat: The trailer would require a drive from Skipper’s home in San Francisco over the border with Canada to pick it up. But I mean, once you’ve made it this far, what’s a few thousand miles?

… and finally, a new home.

@trademeproject

The Final Trade 🥺🏠 #trademeproject #letsgetthishouse

♬ Inspiring and spectacular emotional epics(869013) - Minette

And then came the final chapter when a house flipper in Tennessee, who had been following Skipper’s bobby pin saga, reached out showing interest in a trade. One solar-powered trailer for one house.

And it happened on the day after Thanksgiving, no less.

Running up to her new home, a teary Skipper is seen in the TikTok video saying, “This just shows you: it’s possible!”

According to Today, Skipper reports that people have been “overwhelmingly positive” in their response, saying that “people really have doubted me, and I certainly did at times during the journey too. But I learned a lot about myself in the process, and I was really amazed by my ability to stick with it.”

Now what?

Well, first there’s the big move from California to Tennessee. Then, renovation. Followed by … doing it all over again. Skipper revealed her plans to “donate the next house … to a person who needs it, no mortgage, no rental” and that would be the start of a brand new trade journey.

“There’s been a couple of people who have done this once, but no one’s crazy enough to do it twice,” said Skipper.

After hearing this story, I can't help but think of what other amazing things might occur as a result of really working toward something every day.

Or, when viewed from a lens of something other than success, I think about how our world might be changed with the simple commitment of one kind act each and every day.

There are people, like Skipper, who are leading by example. And it certainly makes that first step seem much more doable, whether that’s a bobby pin, a good deed or even a kind word.

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Heroes

Michael Sheen explains why he decided to become a 'not-for-profit' Hollywood actor

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Welsh actor Michael Sheen.

It’s one thing to make it to the top. It’s another to help others up as well.

Michael Sheen has already gifted the world something really special. His long list of acting credits include some bona fide iconic characters. Even if you don’t recognize the name, you’ll know the face. Seriously, this guy has been in everything.

If Sheen’s incredible talent isn’t enough to make you love him, his compassion and generosity will certainly win you over. He recently revealed that he will no longer be earning profits from his acting work, and will use that money to support others.

“I’ve essentially turned myself into a social enterprise, a not-for-profit actor,” he explained in a recent interview with The Big Issue.

“I’ve realized in the last few years that I want to be one of those people who help other people the way so many people helped me…I’m at the stage of my life and career where I have a window of opportunity that will probably never be this good again. I’m able to get people in a room, I can open doors. I don’t want to look back and think, I could have done something with that platform. I could have done something with that money.”

Sheen is no stranger to lending his talents to a good cause. In addition to “The Passion,” his now famous 72-hour immersive play, Sheen also teamed up with David Tennant (his co-star from Neil Gaiman’s "Good Omens") to film "Staged," a British comedy Zoom series created during the pandemic.

There is a hilarious episode that was filmed for Red Nose Day, a campaign to help end child poverty. You can watch it below.

I hope seeing an aggravated Marlowe (Sheen) get one-upped by Shakespeare (Tennant) tickles you as much as it did me.

This time, Sheen is focusing his efforts to support the Homeless World Cup Foundation. According to its website, the foundation uses football to encourage those who are homeless to change their lives, as well as challenge attitudes toward those experiencing homelessness.

The organization was struggling to fund its 2019 event. That’s when Sheen made an important decision.

“I realized I could do this kind of thing and, if I can keep earning money, it’s not going to ruin me,” he told The Big Issue.

Knowing that the event could be an “extraordinary, life changing experience” for people all over the world who needed it, Sheen became determined. So determined that he sold both his homes, one in the U.K. and one in the U.S., to make it happen.

And in that moment of giving, Sheen gained a new perspective.

“There was something quite liberating about going, alright, I’ll put large amounts of money into this or that, because I’ll be able to earn it back again,” he shared.

The “not-for-profit” actor’s first film to be entirely dedicated to charity will be “Last Train to Christmas,” which premieres December 18. I don’t know what makes me happier: Michael Sheen’s big heart or his huge mullet in the role.

Either way, he’s great at giving us something to smile about.

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Culture

Dictionary.com's 'word of the year for 2021' is here, and it's surprisingly perfect

Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

2021's word of the year is…

Dictionary.com has officially announced its 2021 word of the year, and that word is:

Allyship

Despite the plethora of divisive stories this year—debates about vaccines, gun safety, education, abortion, the validity of conspiracy theories—this word has prevailed in our collective consciousness. And that alone indicates something much more uplifting: What matters most to people is helping one another.

Stemming from “alliance” (meaning the “merging of efforts or interests by persons, families, states or organizations,” according to Dictionary.com) “allyship” had only been added to the platform a month before earning the 2021 title. And in this year alone, it was in the top 850 searches out of thousands and thousands of words, and its frequency of use has surged 700% since 2020.


Dictionary.com gives two different definitions:

Allyship (noun)

1. advocates and actively works for the inclusion of a marginalized or politicized group in all areas of society but is not a member of that group, and acts in solidarity with its struggle and point of view and under its leadership.

2. the relationship of persons, groups or nations associating and cooperating with one another for a common cause or purpose.

At first glance, “allyship” might appear better suited for 2020, following George Floyd’s death and the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement. And with searing headlines of political discord, pessimistic outlooks on the pandemic and an overall dismal public view of humanity, “allyship” seems … a less than optimal choice. Did they consider “vaccine” like Merriam Webster did? Or “variant”? How about “Delta”? Surely these options better reflect the times?

Associate Director of Content & Education John Kelly noted, “It might be a surprising choice for some,” but “in the past few decades, the term has evolved to take on a more nuanced and specific meaning. It is continuing to evolve and we saw that in many ways.”

Allyship has now extended to frontline workers, teachers and parents who have gained support and advocacy during the pandemic.

“This year, we saw a lot of businesses and organizations very prominently, publicly, beginning efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion. Allyship is tied to that. In the classroom, there is a flashpoint around the term ‘critical race theory’. Allyship connects with this as well,” Kelly said.

The site also noted how a theme of genuine, nonperformative allyship was at the center of many “defining new stories of 2021” that made a lasting positive impact, from Simone Biles and the mental health of athletes to the Great Resignation and workplace burnout.

“These events were notable not only in their own right, of course, but also because of the ways we largely reacted to and discussed them through the lens of who gets a voice, who deserves empathy, and who and what is valued. This was a lens of allyship,” according to Dictionary.com.

When the world is looked at through this lens, perhaps the path toward 2022 is more compassionate and collaborative than our fears would indicate. And perhaps we can take a more elevated view of what it means to be an ally. At the end of the day, we could all use a little more friends and a little less enemies.

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