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Our Vision

At a time when politics is polarized, conversation is via text, families are dispersed, and people live alone longer, Americans are at times lonely & without connections. The challenge is how to create connection opportunities. Amalgamated Amalgamations is an interactive community of people with ideas, experiences, and thoughts on creating and building connections with family, friends, and even strangers.

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Creating Opportunities to Say “Hello!”

I love our backyard! I have created an oasis that provides me multiple levels for entertaining and hosting, but because it is such a sanctuary when we are back there, no one knows we are there.

To combat the isolation of our own making, we have moved 2 chairs out to our front lawn and sometimes we will sit out there.  Continue reading “Creating Opportunities to Say “Hello!””

Nine Ways to Use Music to Connect

Photo by the Barbershop Harmony Society

Music may be the food of love, but it is also a universal way to connect with others.

Music is a great way to find like minded people in your area. There is plenty of research linking making music with improved cognition, connection between the hemispheres of the brain, and language processing, but music may help us read emotions in sounds and in each other. Whether you want to make music or just listen to it, here are some ways that music can help connect us.

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When an Event Begs for a Gathering

 

A pile of tomatoes from the garden
Fall brings a ton of tomatoes and lots of reasons to gather

Our family has had success bringing people together around specific events. There are times when it makes sense to bring either friends or new acquaintances together to either celebrate or even create a community.  Here are just two simple opportunities that have worked for us.

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10 Minutes a Month – Easy Tribal Potluck Dinners

Why potlucks?

Potluck dinners scale. More people showing up = more food. Sharing food and conversation is the keystone tribal/family activity.

I started organizing potlucks my last few years in college. I’d make a huge pot of beans for veggie burritos. The only rule: no one could take leftovers home. We’d eat for the rest of the week.

Simplest: Anarchist Potluck

  • Set a day, time, and location.
  • Invite people.
  • Refuse to offer suggestions or coordinate what folks bring.
  • If everyone brings salad, order pizza.

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Potluck Disasters and Other Opportunities

Problem solving with friends 

 

Planning a gathering can seem daunting. A potluck leans heavily on the ‘luck’ and that is good, but organizers can still worry about what is in the pot or on the table.

Some challenges can be avoided through good planning. We don’t want to make the organizing so tight that by the time the event arrives, the organizer is exhausted of it, waiting for it to be over. But some tools can help to know who is showing up, what they are expecting, and whether they are bringing anything to the gathering.

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5 to 20 Minutes a Month – Organize Hikes: Walking and Talking

Why?

It’s a great way to build community. In addition, it has significant health benefits to everyone that joins in:

The smart move is to combine them all.

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Introduction – What’s Here and Why

Why does this website exist?

I’ve always been interested in things that strengthen the community. That ranges from political organizing in my 20s (aimed at providing stable housing and keeping neighborhoods working as a communities) on to ongoing efforts to get folks together for potlucks, hikes, dance parties, family reunions and the like.

Recently I noticed that a variety of political and social commentators have names a strong network of friends as a key antidote to political craziness, social media manipulation, and even some negative health effects.

I agree and have argued the same. I’ve thought I’ve trying to add what I’ve learned to the pot.

What finally tipped this this website from concept to  reality?

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A Paucity of Words

What’s wrong with this picture?

Plutchik Wheel of Emotions
Plutchik Wheel of Emotions

This diagram above is from a course on user interaction design.  The teaching:

  • Motivation is tied to emotion. (Agreed.)
  • It’s important to understand that when designing user experience. (Agreed.)
  • And here are all the relevant emotions in one useful diagram! (Agreed…until I started thinking about it.)

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Build Bridges – Resource Links

Random list of possible resources for bridging political divides