On The + Side: Wildflowers, Chocolate and Gratitude

We hope everyone had a safe and socially distanced Independence Day weekend! Welcome back to On The + Side, your weekly dose of uplifting stories, wellness tips and resources to keep yourself in good spirits during difficult times. Let’s dive in!

Positive Focus

What stories have made you smile lately? From new theme park attractions to apps that preserve our environment, our community continues to inspire us.

• Orange County has launched the Do Your Part ORL campaign, encouraging businesses and residents to do their part to keep Central Florida safe and healthy during the pandemic. Check out their site for tools and resources to get started!
• Dr. Phillips Charities has just pledged $1 million to support non-profits who are doing COVID-19 relief work. You can learn more here.
• Save the bees! One UCF professor created the Lawn to Wildflower app to provide landscaping guidance and help Central Floridians plant wildflowers to attract pollinators like bees, butterflies and moths.
• Splash Mountain will soon undergo a makeover and feature Tiana from The Princess and the Frog. These changes will take place at both Walt Disney World and Disneyland in the near future.

Wellness Boosts

What are you doing to stay healthy while maintaining your social distance? We share a few fun ways that you can get started.

• Dance it out! Liberate Artists is hosting a free digital dance experience from July 27-30, which will foster an inclusive environment for people of all ages, races, body types and economic means. You can learn more about the event, register, donate or sign up to volunteer here.
• As we’ve talked about previously on the blog, having a gratitude practice can help you through the tough times in life. Robyn from Real Food Whole Life shares the magic of “mundane gratitude” and how we can adopt it throughout the day, regardless of how busy we may be.
• In times of change and hardship, resilience is everything. Check out these tips for incorporating resilience into your work life.

For the most up-to-date guidelines on taking care of yourself during this global pandemic, visit the CDC’s website.

Additional Resources

With coronavirus cases in Florida on the rise, many of us plan to continue staying home. Check out our tips for how you can learn something new or entertain yourself during your newly relaunched quarantine.

• Did you know that July 7 is World Chocolate Day? In honor of this much-needed holiday, try to figure out this tricky chocolate-themed brain teaser.
• Amazon Prime Video is now offering watch parties similar to Netflix and Hulu! While social distancing, you can watch movies and TV shows on Prime with groups of up to 100 of your closest friends from a Desktop device.
• The Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra has partnered with WMFE to offer free archived performances as part of their OPO On The Air series. The performances will take place Thursdays at noon and Saturdays at 7 p.m. Learn more about the initiative here.
• The Hannibal Square Heritage Center is the perfect place to learn about the heart of Winter Park’s African-American West Side. Check out their website to schedule a private 30-minute docent-led tour, and view photographs and art installations that document events throughout history.
• High schoolers are invited to tune into these virtual STEM Chats, hosted by UCF professors. From sea turtles to zombie ants, these STEM Chats allow students to ask questions and engage in topics related to biology and engineering.
• As vacation plans continue to be placed on hold, virtual tours are all the rage! Take a virtual tour of some of the most iconic places in Japan through this free guide.

We’ll be back next week with more positive stories and resources to make this time a little easier for everyone. To get notifications when we post a new issue, subscribe to On The + Side.

For the latest COVID-19 updates from Addition Financial, please visit our response page.