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The ADVANCE, January 3, 2024/Page 5A
Give your living room a new vibe
An "out with the old,
in with the new" mental
ity can extend to people's
visions for their homes. A
home in need of repair or
renovation can serve as a
catalyst to take inventory
of personal style and help
make interior spaces reflect
one's unique vibe.
A living room can grow
stale over time and often
serves as a catch-call for
clothing, blankets, gadgets,
and other items. Upon rec
ognizing a living room has
seen better days, individu
als may decide it's time to
give the space a new vibe.
That transformation can
start with these strategies.
Organize first
Clutter frequently is
the culprit behind a living
room that may not give off
the vibe individuals desire.
As families grow and peo
ple add belongings, space
may be at a premium. Less
is more has never been a
more important concept.
Remove extraneous items
before purchasing new fur
niture or transitioning to a
new design. You may even
want to remove everything
and start from scratch be
fore reintroducing desir
able elements to the space.
Seek the assistance of
professionals
Some people are adept
at decorating and design
ing spaces. But just as you
wouldn't perform your
own medical procedures,
you should leave jobs like
interior design and renova
tions to the professionals.
Hiring a professional inte
rior designer and contrac
tors can really bring a liv
ing room together in ways
homeowners may have
never imagined. These pros
can build off of your ideas
and truly create a space that
may be worthy of a maga
zine spread.
Promote wellness
You may want to con
sider adding natural materi
als in the design to promote
well-being. Eco-friendly
furnishings, raw fibers and
organic textures will create
an environment from sus
tainable choices. Plenty of
plants also can create a wel
coming environment that
helps you surround your
self with positive energy
and the items you love.
Light it up
One of the easiest
ways to transform a room's
vibe is to utilize lighting.
Change draperies to allow
more natural light to shine
in. Consider additional
windows or skylights if
yours is a particularly dark
home. If you desire to cre
ate a more vivid or cozy
ambiance, use a combina
tion of accent, task and
supplemental lighting in
the space so there are no
dim corners.
Create an industrial or
urban vibe
Industrial-chic design
celebrates the bones of a
building. It's what makes
city lofts so appealing,
with their exposed beams
and brick. Even those who
live in suburbia or out in
the country can give a liv
ing room this look with
subtle nods to the style.
Unadorned windows,
clean lines on furniture,
oversized, gallery-style art,
and metal accents can add
touches of this popular
look to your home.
Revamping a living
room doesn't have to be
difficult. With an idea in
place and some profession
al touches, an entirely new
vibe can be achieved.
Three ways to get
involved in local politics
Towns and cities often
benefit greatly from resi
dents' desire to give back to
their communities. Some
residents may donate to
their favorite charities,
while others may coach
youth sports teams. Involv
ing oneself in focal politics
is another way individuals
can strengthen their com
munities.
Politicians may be the
faces of focal politics, but
volunteers are often the
engines that make political
operations run smoothly.
The following are three
simple ways people with a
passion for politics can get
involved in their focal gov
ernments.
1. Volunteer with a
campaign. Local politicians
maybe your neighbor, your
children's youth sports
coach or a friend you've
known since childhood. All
political campaigns rely on
the efforts of volunteers to
get their messages out, and
that's especially so in fo
cal elections. Local candi
dates likely don't have the
financial war chest that's
available to statewide or
national politicians. As a
result, local politicians of
ten must stretch every dol
lar, and that becomes easier
with each additional volun
teer who joins their staff. If
there's a candidate you feel
strongly about, don't hesi
tate to volunteer with his
or her campaign.
2. Work with a non
profit organization. Many
nonprofit organizations are
involved with focal politics.
Some may support a candi
date who's supported their
missions, while others'
missions may be rooted in
politics. For example, a fo
cal nonprofit may be cen
tered around getting more
young people to vote. Indi
viduals who don't want to
get involved in the partisan
side of focal politics can
still lend a hand by working
with nonprofit organiza
tions that are not affiliated
with a party or candidate.
3. Work with focal elec
tion boards. Local election
boards rely on volunteers
come Election Day. Such
volunteers work in polling
stations, which typically
open in early morning and
may remain so until 7 p.m.
or 8 p.m. The more volun
teers who can pitch in on
Election Day, the more
smoothly voting can go.
That may translate to short
er lines and a more enjoy
able voting experience for
focal residents. Local gov
ernments also may need
volunteers throughout the
year to work during city
council meetings.
Individuals need not
run for office to get in
volved in focal politics,
which provides a great way
for residents to give back to
their communities.
Reach thousands of potential buyers!
Call 537-3131 and advertise
your home for sale in the
Real Estate Pages
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New Year's resolutions
for your social life
New Year's resolutions
tend to focus heavily on
healthy aspirations. Each
January, people from all
walks of life express a de
sire to lose weight, exercise
more, quit smoking, or get
more sleep. However, that
doesn't mean that resolu
tions cannot involve fun
with friends.
Resolutions that focus
on improving social con
nections might be some
thing to consider this year.
Expanding your social life
can prove beneficial, as
strong social connections
are important to maintain
ing cognitive health and
emotional well-being. The
following are some social
ly-minded resolutions.
• Volunteer. One of
the best ways to meet new
people is to engage in activ
ities that attract like-mind
ed individuals. Volunteer
activities are one avenue
to explore. Volunteerism
can start in schools, com
munity centers, houses of
worship, and elsewhere
through the community.
• Change your inter
nal narrative. Sometimes
people have a hard time
making friends simply
because they have pre
conceived notions or
place judgments on those
around them. Judging oth
ers can be detrimental to
establishing relationships.
Changing how you view
others can help.
• Join a social app.
Whether it is to meet new
friends or potential roman
tic partners, now may be
the time to put yourself out
there. Apps that promote
personal relationships
help people vet individu
als so they're not walking
into situations completely
unaware. Pew Research
says 53 percent of people
under the age of 30 report
having used a dating site or
app, and the popular app
Meetup boasts 60 million
members.
• Try new activities.
If you've been meaning
to learn how to brew your
own beer or create acrylic
art craft projects, now is
the time to dive in. Engag
ing in new hobbies and ac
tivities puts you in touch
with other people, which
can help foster new friend
ships.
• Practice active lis
tening. Resolving to make
established relationships
more secure may come
down to listening better.
Too often people are har
ried and rushed and may
miss key signals a partner
or friend is giving them.
By slowing down and lis
tening, while also trying to
see the situation through
another's eyes, you can
strengthen connections.
• Host a gathering.
Make time on the calendar
to hang out with others. If
you don't make an effort
to get together, you can't
expect others to want to
do the same. Sometimes
you have to take the lead to
create social situations and
gatherings.
Resolutions to revi
talize your social life can
make for a great start to a
new year.
Cozy up to winter movie releases
Even though it may
have been many weeks
since the nation collec
tively adjusted their clocks
to "fall back," now that the
holiday twinkle lights that
illuminated homes and
businesses have been put
away, mid-winter darkness
may seem even more ap
parent. The hours of day
light are incrementally in
creasing, but with the sun
still setting relatively early,
those eager to fill the eve
ning hours may be wonder
ing how to pass the time.
Watching a movie is an
ideal activity for the cold,
dark evenings of winter.
Nestled in the theater with
a bucket of popcorn and
other favorite treats, mov
ie-goers will not be both
ered by falling snow or the
sun setting outdoors. It's
time to gear up for a new
year of feature films. Here's
a look at movies coming to
big and small screens soon
enough.
• "Alexander and
the Terrible, Horrible,
No Good, Very Bad Day
Movie" (January 5): A
Mexican-American family
who have lost connection
to their culture and each
other embark on an epic
road trip that ends up going
wrong in various ways. Eva
Longoria and Jesse Gar
cia are featured in the film
available on Disney+.
• "The Beekeeper"
(January 12): A man is on
a brutal campaign for ven
geance. The stakes are el
evated when it is revealed
he is a former operative of
a clandestine group known
as "Beekeepers." The film
stars Jason Statham, Josh
Hutcherson and Minnie
Driver.
• "Mean Girls" (Janu
ary 12): This is the film
adaptation of the musical
version that made waves
on Broadway. The Plastics,
an A-list clique at school,
welcome a new student,
but things go awry when
she makes the mistake of
falling for the ex-boyfriend
of the Plastics' leader. Tina
Fey, John Hamm, Jenna
Fischer, and an assortment
of teen stars comprise the
cast.
• "The Book of Clar
ence" (January 12): Set in
biblical times, the movie
tells the tale of Clarence,
a down-on-his-luck deni
zen of Jerusalem trying to
capitalize on the influence
of the Messiah for his own
gain. Benedict Cumber-
batch, Omar Sky, James
McAvoy, and LaKeith
Stanfield are among the
cast members.
• "Distant" (January
19): Josh Gordon and Will
Speck star in this movie
about an asteroid miner
who, after crash-landing on
an alien planet, must find
the only other survivor. He
is faced with harsh terrain,
a lack of oxygen and strange
creatures along the way.
• "Madame Web" (Feb
ruary 14): Dakota Johnson
stars as a clairvoyant in
this Spidey spin-off action
movie.
• "Ordinary Angels"
(February 23): A hair
dresser rallies a community
to help a widower save the
life of his daughter who is
critically ill. The movie is
based on a true story, and
features Alan Ritchson and
Hillary Swank.
• "Kung-Fu Panda 4"
(March 8): Poe and friends
take on a chameleon foe
while on the search for
a new Dragon Warrior.
The original cast returns
and includes the voices of
Jack Black, Angelina Jo-
lie, Dustin Hoffman, and
more.
This winter, families
and friends can rally to
gether to chase away the
chill and darkness with
movies that light up the big
and small screens.