Oldest Mall in U.S. turned into apartment homes

By
Monica Pop
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Finding the perfect place for living isn’t really the easiest thing. The rent is pretty high, especially if you want to get yourself a downtown apartment. As the cities become overcrowded, the demand for affordable, but yet cozy and useful home is constantly increasing. All this made Evan Granoff, the owner of the oldest shopping mall in America, to convert the closed shops into livable and affordable space. Needless to say, people are falling in love with the tiny apartments. 

Built back in 1829, The Arcade closed after struggling to fill its cramped commercial spaces in 2008. The building that is now turned into a growing housing trend of micro apartments has been through numerous restorations throughout the years and was designated a national landmark in 1976. 

As the concept of living in a shoebox started becoming trendy, Granoff decided it was about time for him to introduce it to the people of Providence. The overall number of living spaces inside the building is 48 and their size varies between 225 to 800 square feet. With the upper floors now being loft apartments, the building’s owner retained the retail spaces on the ground floor. There are numerous shops offering food, coffee, and even designer clothes inside the household. 

Each of the homes comes with the most basic necessities such as a bed with drawers, cushioned bench/seating, refrigerator, and shelves. However, as The Arcade falls into a rooming house, cooking facilities are not allowed. The good thing is that microwaves are not considered cooking devices so tenants may use them if they choose to. 

Some of the tenants share their stories of why they opted for a tiny home. It’s important to mention that most of them don’t really spend that much time at home. I guess these lofts are perfect for these people exactly.

One of the people who are willing to show us their home is Dr. Karim. Her tight schedule, the night shifts, and the fact that she is constantly traveling internationally makes her the perfect tenant of this perfect home. She also says how not having a stove doesn’t really bother her. 

Another tenant is Sharon Kinnier who uses the loft only when she’s working in a Providence lab formulating organic cosmetics as she spends the rest of the time with her husband in Washington D.C.

Tenants can choose to pay for a personal Wi-Fi connection or watch TV in the common area. The great thing about the building is that there is natural light that pours into the space to help make tenants feel warm. 

It’s amazing how many people are interested in getting one of these tiny homes. You may be surprised by there is even a list of people waiting to move to The Arcade. The tiniest units rent for $550 per month, almost half the city average.  

Take a look at the video below and see what these tiny homes look like. We are sure you are going to love them, unless you prefer more spacious living spaces. 

Would you live in one of these? Please share your thoughts with us in the comments section below. 

Creative couple builds adorable 80-square-foot guest house – They did it with just $700

By
Monica Pop
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Imagine getting your piece of paradise for just $700. If you think we speak nonsense than you should definitely check out this amazing project a couple from Missoula, Montana started. 

Using only re-purposed materials, photographer Alla Ponomareva and her husband Garrett built the coziest and most adorable tiny place. The plans from Derek “Deek” Diedricksen they used cost them around $1,200. 

Source: Alla Ponomareva

The house is shaped in the form of the letter A and is totally amazing both on the outside and in the inside. It has a huge deck, large windows, solar panels, and translucent wall. 

The best thing is that during summer time, this tiny space expands by pushing the see-through wall. It definitely offers pure enjoyment. 

Source: Alla Ponomareva

Once the wall expands, it becomes a patio roof and having a glass of wine, or reading a book outside gives you feeling of calmness and freshness. 

“When the wall is up, its a whole different experience. Luckily, Montana has almost no mosquitos to speak of in the summer time, so there’s no need for a mosquito net,” Alla says on her blog.

Source: Alla Ponomareva

The interior is full of vivid colors that add to the appealing looks of the place. 

Source: Alla Ponomareva

 

“Be happy, enjoy the little things,” a sign reads above the window.

I am sure everyone would like to be a guest of the Ponomavera’s family and spend a night or two at this beautiful cottage. 

Source: Alla Ponomareva

The two separate sofas can serve the purpose of beds for sleeping in during the night. 

Source: Alla Ponomareva

The cottage might be small but has enough storage space to fit all your most valuable belongings. It doesn’t have a full kitchen but it does have some of the most basic necessities.

Source: Alla Ponomareva

The large water jug can be used for washing dishes, or brushing teeth, and the Coleman portable burner can be used for cooking simple meals or warming coffee or tea.  

Source: Alla Ponomareva

The hammocks only add to the whole experience and let you enjoy the fresh air to the fullest while relaxing. 

Source: Alla Ponomareva

 

“If you haven’t seen the stars in Montana, then you haven’t truly seen the stars…” Alla says.

Some fun facts about this A-frame:

  • It only took Alla and Garrett around 3 weeks to build.
  • Design plan was created by Derek “Deek” Diedricksen.
  • Can sleep two people comfortably, three if they’re in a sleeping bag on the floor.
  • Guests can use the outdoor portable toilet and solar shower.
  • Total cost was approximately $700 using mostly recycled and reused materials.

We simply love this tiny but functional cottage. What about you?

Source: Alla Ponomareva

Photo of elderly woman forced to stand while youngsters remain seated busy on phones sparks outrage

By
Monica Pop
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Recently, a Facebook user posted a photo of an elderly woman on a train clutching a pole for support while some younger people are sitting and staring at their phones. This sparked outrage at the community members who agree how young generations lack good manners and don’t stick to the basic moral values that are supposed to be followed in order for this world to become a better place. There are those, however, who believe that we don’t know what was really going on on the train and whether someone offered their seat or not. The person who posted the photo wrote the caption “No Respect” and no matter if you believe this is right or wrong, this speaks a lot about failed humanity. Many took to social media to judge the person who took the photo saying they should have done something regarding the situation the lady found herself in instead of just taking photos for gathering likes and comments. A 16 year old teen commented how he would always offer his seat to an elderly person the moment they enter the train. He says how he would have done the same thing for this poor lady who is obviously having hard time standing on her feet.
Facebook
According to some, this all have to do with how we raise our children and how much time we spend telling them how the elderly should be paid ultimate respect. However, there are divided opinions regarding this too. As one woman says, “My son is 7 years old I just asked him what is wrong with this picture and he said the lady mommy and those two with the headphones not giving their seat to her. Because she’s older They are rude mommy,” another person adds: “If he’s 7, he’s at the perfect age to teach him not to make assumptions based on limited information. He’s assuming they’re rude but doesn’t know if they’ve already offered their seats, if she is standing because she’s about to get off, if there are open seats out of view, etc.”
Facebook
A person named Heather says how we are all judgmental without knowing the whole story behind the photo. She says it’s very unlikely that no single person offered their seat. She assumes how the person posting the picture aims at people saying bad things for the future generations, including inciting hatred.
Facebook
Sydney Trains told Daily Mail: “Sydney Trains encourages all of its passengers to observe appropriate transport etiquette including respecting elderly, disabled or pregnant customers by offering up their seats.” BBC on the other hand makes an assumption that sometimes people won’t offer their seat to someone else not because they are selfish but because they fear the consequences that actually stop them from getting up and offering their seats to someone who needs it more than they do.
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Although selfishness is to be blamed for this type of rude behavior by the train passengers, Dr. Oliver Scott Curry, an expert in human behavior, based at the University of Oxford believes that it’s also a result of buck-passing. That means every person believes that other one would offer their seat and say to themselves, “let someone else stand up, why should it be me?”
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“There’s a fear of getting it wrong, of seeming patronizing or thinking someone is a charity case. It doesn’t hurt for the person needing help to ask for it.” According to Dr. Curry many times it happens for passengers to get competitive and offer their seat in order to show they are more of gentleman than the others.
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Sometimes people believe they could be making a mistake if they choose to offer their seat. Let’s say a lady just had lunch and her tummy appears big only because she ate and not because she’s pregnant which may lead for the person offering the seat to find themselves in an awkward situation. That is why many people simply avoid eye contact with other passengers. So, in case you want to offer your seat to someone without getting into any form of contact, you can just stand up and if they really need to sit down they’d do it.
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Doctors discover surprise inside pastor who donated kidney

By
Sylvia
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Who would knew that this would happen?

In North Carolina, one man’s generous act has ended up saving his own life despite helping another. It was Pastor Tim Jones, who wanted to donate his kidney to help a man he befriended at a church fundraiser last fall. Don Herbert, who is also a former professional wrestler turned gospel singer, had been suffering from kidney failure which required a kidney donation.

“I wanted to give him a chance at life, I wanted to give him hope. I prayed for peace with it and a couple of days later God gave me peace. I told my wife we’re going to do this,” said Jones.

He went for testing, and was a match for Herbert! After many preliminary tests and procedures, the transplant was finally scheduled at Duke University Medical Center – and it was a success. Plus, the operation not only saved Herbert’s life, but Jones’s as well.

Jones’s surgery spanned for 6 hours, twice as long as expected as doctors had found an aneurysm in one of his arteries. It had never shown up in any of the preoperative tests – until now.

The chances of finding a donor were very slim due to the many recipants on the waiting list for a new kidney. Herbert had met local pastor Tim Jones during a church craft and bake sale. Don struck up a conversation and shared his love of gospel music, leading the two to quickly become fast friends. Now Herbert is in trouble.

After a medical check-up at the Duke University Medical Center back in early November, 56-year-old Herbert was diagnoised with Stage 4 Kidney Disease. Both of his kidneys were failing, but that was not the only issue. He also needed a heart catheterization, which caused him to be removed from the hospital’s kidney waiting list. This news left both Herbert and his wife Belinda greatly depressed.

Belinda wrote about her husband’s plight on their Facebook page, in the form of a personal plea to anyone who would give Don a chance at another organ donation. Jones had been browsing Facebook in the afternoon, and came across Belinda’s post.

Tim and Sherry then invited both Don and Belinda Herbert to their Salisbury home located in Settlers Grove. The couple informed them about Don’s whole medical history and experiences. It was then Jones told Herbert he wanted to donate one of his kidneys to him, as a gift. It was a perfect match which saved 2 lives.

“What if it was me? Or what if it was you? How many people would be lining up, waiting to give us a kidney?”

On the other hand, Jones has expressed that he was in fact, not nervous at all for the procedure. “Things are risky for me, I understand that. But they are more risky for Don. My wife kids me and says, ‘You act like you’re giving him a piece of gum,’” he laughs.

Watch the story of the two men unfold in the video below!

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Teacher Informs Man After Taking A Photo In McDonald’s: “I Hope You Know, You’re Going Viral”

By
Sylvia
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This is incredibly moving!

The kindness of strangers is very rare, but valued by society. This notion has highlighted the friendship between a man from Indiana and an elderly woman – they became a hot topic on social media! The man in question was Eric Haralson. He was in the middle of his lunch in November 2018 at a McDonald’s outlet when suddenly, a woman whom he did not know personally had approached him. The old woman then asked Eric if he would mind if she sat down at the very same table he was sitting at, just for some company.

“She said she just wanted a little conversation, because no one likes to eat alone.”

Eric said: “No, not at all.” After speaking to her, he even proceeded to clear the table and a seat, for her to sit down. During their friendly chat, Eric learnt that the woman was named Jan, and that she lived in an apartment by herself, located not far from the McDonald’s itself.

Midway, Amanda Craft told Eric: “You’re such a gentleman. I hope you know you’re going viral.” Craft was a teacher who had been also dining at the restaurant. What Eric did not expect was that had taken a photo of them and posted it on her Facebook page – and the picture went viral almost instantly. Eric walked her to her car after lunch, and talked for 20 minutes more. The pair even exchanged phone numbers!

“It was so heartwarming to see this man and this older lady sit together, and eat. They didn’t know each other, but he was so kind. The woman had a contagious laugh, and my friends and I couldn’t help but laugh along,” Craft says in an interview.

Watch the footage in the video below!

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Man Learns Of His Fate After Beating Daughter’s Rapist To Death

By
Sylvia
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Was this justified?

In Shiner, one Texan father had beaten a man to death who was in the midst of raping and molesting his daughter. The court has ruled that he would not be charged with murder, due to a 911 tape released. The father had been recorded, frantically pleading for help over the phone before the man’s death.

The Lavaca County grand jury had declined to hold the 23-year-old father responsible for the death of Jesus Mora Flores, a 47-year-old ranch helper hired to help with the horses on the property.
Both the prosecutors and the police decided for it to be so after reviewing the evidence provided. The father was ruled to be authorized to use deadly force, in order to protect his daughter. The incident happened back on 9 June, on the family ranch itself.

The attack happened on the family’s ranch which was located along a quiet and two-lane county road, between Shiner and Yoakum. Mr. Flores had been described to be forcibly carrying the man’s daughter into a secluded area before attempting to rape her.
Running toward his daughter’s screams, the father pulled Mr. Flores off and proceeded to inflict several blows to the man’s head and neck area in anger – which proved to be fatal. Mr. Flores’s pants and underwear were also found to be pulled down, while authorities were examining his lifeless body.

The now 5-year-old girl was taken to a hospital for a medical examination. Both the overwhelming forensic evidence left behind by Mr Flores and eyewitness accounts supported the young father’s story – his daughter had been sexually molested. The girl’s father was never arrested, and the killing was ruled as a homicide instead.

Watch the two court footages in the videos below:

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Mom surrenders newborn twins to fire station under safe haven law

By
Monica Pop
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No one really knows why would a parent, especially a mother, leave their newborn baby and refuse to take care of it. The sad reality is that many women decide to give their bundles of joy for adoption, and the reasons for doing so are numerous. Recently, a mother of two healthy twins made a decision to surrender her babies to the San Bernardino Fire Station in California. The official report by the Fire Department, which they also shared on their Facebook page, states how the babies were clean and fed and brought to the local hospital for further check-up minutes after their arrival at the station. The firefighters offered the mother medical assistance too, but she refused any further help. She was also told how she could come back and take her children back withing 14 days if she wishes so. This period of two weeks is regulated by the safe surrender state law.
“This is exactly why the Safe Surrender program was created,” said Fire Chief Mark Hartwig. “This young mother did the right thing by bringing her babies to the fire station. Regardless of your circumstances, the Safe Surrender program is a viable and loving option—no questions asked.”
This law known as California’s Safe Haven Law allows new mothers or other people, to surrender a baby to a designated “safe-surrender site” within 72 hours of birth. The baby and the person bringing the newborn both get coded ankle bracelets in case the parent changes their mind and wants the baby back. After the medical examination and treatment, the babies are placed to foster homes, or pre-adoptive homes. This policy of placing the baby at a safe site allows mothers who are not able to take care of their little ones to get them to a place where they know they will be given proper care and later a forever home. This prevents babies to be abandoned and end up dead which is punishable by law. From 1999 to 2018, 3,524 newborns were surrendered using Safe Haven laws, 1,397 newborns were illegally abandoned, 773 newborns were found dead, and 462 newborns were found alive, according to National Safe Haven Alliance.
“You may have heard stories about babies being left in dumpsters, public toilets, or other unsafe locations. The parents abandoning their babies may have been under severe emotional or financial stress. The mothers may have hidden their pregnancies, fearful of what would happen if their families found out. Because they were afraid and felt they had nowhere to turn for help, they abandoned their baby,” according to the California Department of Social Services website.
This law that protects both the biological parent and the baby was first introduced in California in 2001 and was formally signed in 2006. This law resulted in 931 babies being surrendered in California in the year of 2017. In Los Angeles County, 151 babies have been given to the safe places since 2001.
“One hundred and forty-nine families have been blessed, 149 mothers made the right decision, 149 children have the right to grow up and be whatever they want to be because of the love and the care of the safe-surrender families,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe said in a video posted to the L.A. County Safe Surrender Facebook page.
All haven-safe sites have signs displayed. This law resulted in many baby lives being saved, as mothers choose to place them in these places instead of simply abandoning them.

Makeover guy’s mom shows how to create younger face

By
Monica Pop
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They say apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and these skillful mother and son prove that right. As we’ve brought to you numerous stories of the amazing transformations of Christopher Hopkins, the Makeover Guy, we now present to you his lovely, talented mother Joann Hopkins. 

As this beautiful lady aged, her cute face got filled with some wrinkles. It’s not like it affected her stunning looks that much, but using make-up, she gets to look as fabulous as she did in her younger days. Joann admits she loves wearing make up, even while sleeping. 

YouTube

She only applies new fresh look in the morning, after she thoroughly cleans her face. She knows how wearing make up during the night isn’t really a good thing to do, but she can’t help but look amazing all the time. 

As for you, we guess you should always opt to take the make-up off your face before you go to bed and avoid skin damage, acne, and even premature skin aging. And if you really can’t go make-up free, you can simply apply it before you start the day and let your face clean while sleeping. 

YouTube

Joann however, has flawless skin and this routine of hers didn’t affect her face that much. She’s really aging well. 

She doesn’t care if people believe she puts too much make-up because as she says, she really wants to look and feel young. And we have to be honest, with her make-up on, she does look many years younger. Everyone should be able to feel great in their skin and that’s exactly what this lovely lady is trying to achieve. 

YouTube

Joann is a real professional and possesses some crazy skills. She basically transforms into her younger self thanks to some eye shadows, the right foundation, and a lipstick which is on point. One may notice how one side of her face is slightly higher, but Joann manages to cover that perfectly. It’s no wonder Christopher is the god of make-up himself. He had a great teacher. 

The MakeOverGuy shares:

“This is what I watched every day growing up and it still fascinates me. You can tell where I get my inspiration. I will always see her as she appears after.”

We are stunned how a 78-year-old could look as great as Joann. And we are so glad her son got to inherit her amazing talent and make so many women happy. 

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