upworthy

Skip Black Friday and shop discounts at these companies making a positive impact on the world

Michelle Gant
11.27.19
Courtesy of DoneGood

While Thanksgiving is meant to celebrate all we have to be grateful for, it's also the unofficial kick-off to the holiday shopping season. Last year, Americans spent about $1 trillion on gifts. What if we all used that purchasing power to support companies that reduce inequality, alleviate poverty, fight climate change, and help make the world better?

Between Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the coming days will have spending on everyone's brains. But in an effort to promote the companies doing good for the world, DoneGood founder Cullen Schwarz created Shop for Good Sunday (which falls on December 1 this year.)

Dubbed the "Alternate Black Friday," Shop for Good Sunday is dedicated to encouraging people to shop brands that do good for people and the planet. It also serves as a reminder to support local businesses making a positive impact in their communities.

While Shop for Good Sunday technically falls on a single day, this year, participating ethical and sustainable brands are running discounts for the whole week prior.

Where you invest your dollars matters, and there's great potential to put that money to good use if you know how. Check out these six brands that sell amazing products while also making a positive impact on the world. You'll not only be getting your loved ones meaningful gifts, but also making the world a brighter place along the way.

Isn't that what the holidays are really about?

Functional outdoor gear

Parque Rain Shell

Cotopaxi makes unique, sustainable outdoor gear, like this Parque rain shell, while keeping ethics at the core of its business model. The company gives 1% of its annual revenue to organizations that fight poverty and improve the human condition.

Modern furniture

Simbly Coffee Table

Simbly is a direct-to-consumer furniture company that sells modern, sustainable products built in the U.S. made of FSC-certified wood. And for every product sold, the company plants a tree.

Beautiful jewelry

Tho Bar & Geo Buffalo Horn Earrings

Hathorway is a jewelry company that handcrafts its accessories with materials like ethically-sourced up-cycled buffalo horns and handwoven rattan. Each item is designed and assembled in the U.S. with thoughtfully selected materials sourced from Vietnam, Thailand, and South Korea. A portion of the company's profit goes to initiatives that empower young, underprivileged women.

Luxe linens

Bamboo Charcoal Sheet Set

Ettitude crafts its home textiles from CleanBamboo fabric, a unique material made from 100% organic bamboo, the most resource-efficient plant on the planet. It also requires significantly less water to grow and produce than traditional cotton textiles. The products are also ethically made and come in packaging made from extra pieces of fabric.

Unique wood wares

The Charcuterie Board

Would Works creates and sells beautiful household wood products handcrafted by people experiencing homelessness or living in poverty. The company works with its artisans to provide job skills, financial literacy, and an income so they can reach their financial goals.

Empowering candles

She Inspires Candle

Prosperity Candle products are created by women refugees building a brighter future for themselves and their families. Each candle is made of soy-blend wax with essential oils hand poured in a well-designed container that is easily refilled or repurposed.

Find more of these great deals at DoneGood!

*Upworthy may earn a portion of sales revenue from purchases made through affiliate links on our site.

black fridaycyber mondayshop for goodsustainability
Business

Gen Xers who grew up going to the mall share the stores and restaurants they miss going to the most

"Orange Julius!"

Image via Reddit/hotbowlsofjustice

Going to the mall in the 1980s makes Gen X nostalgic.

Generation X (those born from 1965-1980) grew up in the glory days of the shopping mall. Back then, it was *the* place to hang with friends, shop, and of course—indulge in food court classics.

Today, while shopping malls still exist—Gen Xers know they don't come close to what they were when they were growing up. Over on Reddit in the subforum r/GenX, they reminisced about their once-favorite mall haunts, snacks, and meals.

These are some of the most memorable stores and restaurants that Gen X misses from malls in the 1980s.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

"Orange Julius. One can of concentrated orange juice, one can of water, one package of instant vanilla pudding plus ice in a blender." - califachica, seeingeyefrog

"My favorites were the old iron on T-shirt stores, and the arcades. I remember the T-shirt stores the most. The walls were completed paneled with the decals whatever. You'd pick out a shirt and a decal, and they'd iron it onto it right there. I still remember the smells. Got my first Star Wars and Kiss shirts that way." - this_is_Winston

"I was Partial to Waldenbooks, The Jean Scene (my mom shopped there, I was like 8), Spencer's and Aladdin's Castle." - Rob1150

"Free samples at Hickory Farms, poking around Spencer’s, prom dress shopping at 5-7-9." - Shesgonedownhill

"I miss the mall around the holidays. the smell of the mall was unique, everyone would get their holiday scented stuff in which made this weird meta-smell in the whole mall that wasn't quite Christmas votive candle, but also not quite peppermint. the hickory farms pop up was great for the aunt who didn't want to gamble on a shirt size, so here ya go 9 year old nephew, welcome to summer sausage. the Santa village *was always pretty tight and whimsical, even as a filthy degenerate mallrat, you behave around Santa's village. especially if you're gonna buy weed from him later." - achmejedidad

- YouTube www.youtube.com

"Spencer's is still in business, just that it's a far cry from its 80's self. I miss KB toys, Sears, & the food court in general." - aogamerdude

"Waldenbooks, Musicland & World Bazaar." - FrankenGretchen

"I miss Sam Goody or Tower Records. Plus our mall had a cigar shop in it back in the day where we would occasionally sit and smoke." - single_dad2025

"Going to Brookstone and playing with all the toys. I never spent a dime there, but it was one of my favorite places to hang out." - gravitydefiant

"I loved B. Dalton’s so much. I bought each Sweet Valley Twin’s (middle school series :) book as soon as it was available, and finished it within a day. My conservative parents wouldn’t allow the Sweet Valley High series in our home. …and the bookstore was next to a fantastic Midwestern food court. Great memories." - ebi14312

@strombo

Yeah. I slept in a mall. 80s and 90s were peak mall times. #IYKYK #genx but if you don’t let me take you back to a time of the Cineplex/Googolplex multiplex, Radio Shack, Mrs Fields days. Because a fella named Jacob Baldwin threw a little spotlight on the mall of my misspent youth. #80s #90s #canada_life🇨🇦 #amusementpark

"Contempo Casuals, free samples at See’s Candies, eating French fries at Bob’s Big Boy, the makeup counter at May Company, Waldenbooks." - frozen_charlotte

"The candy stores! The ones that sold everything by the pound, I think ours was called Candyopolis. Loved them." Puzzleheaded-Sky3141

"I remember when Gadzooks was a legit skateboard shop. But some stores I remember that are long gone now, Circus World Toys, Hastings Records, Gold Mine arcade, Babbages, Merry go round/Chess King to get them fresh Z.Cavarichi’s and Girboud’s lol." - chriscab

"I thought Wicks n Sticks was magical." - SimpleVegetable5715

"Miss the baked ziti from Sbarro." - bunkie18

1980s1980s mall80s80s mallfood courtgen xgen x mallgen xersgeneration xgoing to the mallmall foodmall restaurantsmall storesmallsorange juliusshopping mall80s stores1980s shoppingmall culturemall
Culture

Elton John shares 'truly priceless' piece of his own musical history gifted to him by a stranger

That’s real generosity.

Photo credit: Erin Scott / The White House via Wikimedia Commons (public domain, cropped)

A record store owner gave Elton John a "priceless" musical gift.

Elton John might be our most prominent ambassador for the magic of vinyl records. His personal collection is famously massive and his taste equally expansive—in a 2020 interview with Goldmine, he claimed to own "over 120,000 CDs and 15,000 pieces of vinyl." Not too shabby! But even if he owns thousands of albums, one particularly meaningful LP has never graced his shelf. Until now, anyway.

On November 5, the singer-songwriter posted on social media about the lovely musical gift he received from Alex Rodriguez, the owner of L.A. shop Record Safari and the Vinyl Record Curator for the Coachella music festival. After coming across the "original acetates" from the first recordings of John’s blockbuster seventh album, 1973’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Rodriguez worked hard to make contact with the musician. (For clarity, as DJ and vinyl expert B-Pushr notes on Instagram, an acetate is a "one-off cut," made from aluminum with a lacquer coating, that allows artists to hear their work before it’s officially pressed.)

A selfless act of kindness

"Every so often, there are acts of kindness that remind you there are still a lot of good people in this world," John wrote, noting that the acetates are still in "beautiful condition," packaged in their original sleeves from Trident Studios, where the album was completed. He described them, accurately, as a "real piece of history."

"Instead of selling them or keeping them for himself, Alex reached out and offered to return them to me personally," he continued. "While they’d be valuable to anyone, to me these recordings are truly priceless, and I am incredibly grateful for his kindness, generosity, and his love of music. Thank you, Alex. This is a gesture I’ll never forget."

The post, which includes an excellent photo of John and Rodriguez posing with the acetates, drew the attention from thousands of musicians, record collectors, and others simply inspired by this selfless act of kindness. Rodriguez also added a sweet note in the comments section, saying it was "totally awesome" to return these discs to their proper owner.

"Even when people doubted I could get it back to you, I believed!" he wrote. "My gut feeling told me you would want this back, mostly because I know you are a fellow record collector/aficionado! Thank you for the kind words, definitely one of the coolest memories to hold on to! I knew the future of this acetate lied beyond the yellow brick road!"

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Elton John's record-collecting roots go deep

Genuinely heartwarming stuff—and clearly much appreciated by John, given his deep passion for physical media. In a 2017 video for Record Store Day, being honored by the brand as a "Legend," he talked about the roots of this love. "I remember [my mother] buying 'Heartbreak Hotel' by Elvis Presley, which changed my life," he said. From there, his collection steadily swelled until 1990, when he sold all his records to raise money for the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

"I sold the whole collection, singles and everything, to someone in St. Louis for about $250,000," he said. "I hated getting rid of it, but I had so much that I [didn’t have anywhere] to put it. Then I obviously started collecting CDs and cassettes, but it wasn’t the same, and then two years ago, there’s a store in Vegas called Wax Trax Records, and I started collecting vinyl—slowly—and replacing what I’d sold."

These days, even just being in a record store puts him in a Zen-like state: "I can go into the record store in Vegas and spend three hours there," he said. "Just the smell of it and the looking at it and the wonder of it, the memories. Music has been my whole life. It’s been my crutch; it’s been my soulmate…It’s never lost its shine."

- YouTube www.youtube.com

elton johnrecord storesvinyl recordsmusic historyhuman connectionkindness of strangersfriendshipmusiciansrock musicmusic
Music
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Thousands of concertgoers in Poland spontaneously sing 'Bohemian Rhapsody' and it's flawless

You can't not sing this song.

Sandra Maria/Youtube, Official Lives & Music Videos/Youtube

harry styles concert

The music of Queen has a profound visceral effect on everyone. Few pieces of art can cause complete strangers to put aside their differences and come together in song, but by golly, “Bohemian Rhapsody” is one of them. It would be cheesy if it weren’t so absolutely beautiful.

This pertains even to non-English-speaking countries, it appears. Recently, thousands of Harry Styles concertgoers in Warsaw, Poland, began cheering as those iconic beginning piano notes penetrated the air.

It wasn’t long before the entire stadium was singing along to that beloved tune and acing every single lyric. As one person commented on YouTube, even though most people in Warsaw don’t speak English, “they sing Queen.”

The passionate impromptu performance serves as a reminder of how special both Queen and the late Freddie Mercury remain today.

“No other band will ever come close to Queen. They were lightning in a bottle and Freddie was a whale in a teardrop. Once people keep singing his words, FM will live on forever,” another YouTube viewer wrote.

Indeed, seeing an entire stadium come alive with “Bohemian Rhapsody,” you can’t help but feel Mercury’s soul return to the mortal plane, as if we’ve all been transported back to that historic Live Aid concert in 1985 when he had the entirety of Wembley Stadium wrapped around his finger for 21 glorious minutes.

Watch below, and try not to sing along. Scratch that—sing your heart out.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Just when you think nothing could top that—earlier this year, pro-level muscians came out of nowhere onto the streets of Paris to pull off an epic flash mob perfomance of the beloved hit:

That's the true timeless beauty of this song. no matter who is singing it it's always a semi-spiritual experience that brings people together in a magical way.

This article originally appeared on 7.14.23

Joy

4-year-old's emotional intelligence is off the charts, and people are giving kudos to his mom

The incredible bedtime conversation between 4-year-old Aldie and his mom is being shared by millions.

@mom_aldie/TikTok@mom_aldie/TikTok

Screenshots of a mom and her 4-year-old

Some kids can wow us with their abilities, from being precocious philosophers to musical prodigies. Whether a child's extraordinary talents are due to "nature" or "nurture" is always a big question mark, but there's no question that some kids stand out among their peers for the things they can do.

Sometimes they even stand out from grownups. Take young Aldie, for example, whose ability to articulate his feelings exceeds many adults. When you find out he's barely 4 years old, hearing him calmly talk about his emotions and good choices is all the more remarkable.

Aldie's mom, Jonisa Padernos, tells Upworthy that she's felt he was "really special" since he started talking in full sentences at 20 months. "Believe it or not, he had no major tantrums in his toddler years because he was always able to express [himself] with his words," she says.


emotional intelligence, Aldie, @mom_aldie, TikTok, viral video, parenting, gentle parenting, Jonisa Padernos, articulating emotions, kids Screenshots of a mom and her 4-year-old talking@mom_aldie/TikTok@mom_aldie/ TikTok

Padernos started young, asking Aldie questions and giving him time to answer without interrupting. "I’d always ask his opinion or feelings towards something and I don’t rush him to answer," she says. "I give him time and just listen. I make sure I also tell him how I feel and explain to him because I think kids copy us, and if we do that, they would think that it’s normal to feel all those emotions as long as you can express it with words and [are] able to process it."

Check out the conversation between Aldie and Padernos at bedtime as he goes through a recap of his emotions that day, which has racked up more than 17 million views on TikTok.

@mom_aldie Bedtime conversation. The last part made me ❤️🥹 #fyp #momlife ♬ Chopin Nocturne No. 2 Piano Mono - moshimo sound design

The way Aldie shared what he was feeling about his mom not letting him go outside, how he helped his papa make a better choice with his emotions, and how he described the different emotions he feels is more than most adults can muster when they've had "a hard time doing emotions" during the day. And the way Padernos listens and reflects and reassures him is so, so beautiful.

People in the comments agreed.

"Emotionally intelligent, articulate and able to string super sophisticated sentences together," wrote one commenter on Instagram. "I taught 7-year-olds that weren’t this advanced - heck, most adults aren’t this emotionally intelligent. I have confidence in his future and the consequences are working beautifully Mama. We have to raise kids other people will like too. 😍👏"

"Wowwwww….. I’m so amazed by this baby’s EVERYTHING … the emotional intelligence, the vocabulary, empathy, the processing skills…all of it! ❤️❤️❤️❤️" wrote another.

emotional intelligence, Aldie, @mom_aldie, TikTok, viral video, parenting, gentle parenting, Jonisa Padernos, articulating emotions, kidsGif from 'The Office' via Giphy


"The most mature conversation I’ve heard about emotions - tbh I don’t think I’ve ever been as honest about my feelings as this little one was 🙌🏽 feeling so inspired by both of them. ♥️🫶🏽✨" shared another.

There's a lot that parents can do to help their children develop this kind of emotional intelligence, and this interaction between Aldie and his mom is a prime example.

"My advice is just be present, encourage kids to tell you how their day was or anything, listen and give them time to express without rushing," says Padernos. "Be patient, consistent and honest when communicating with them. Always remember that kids mirror us and so we have to show and express our emotions so they will be encouraged to also express their feelings to us. And when we get mad or frustrated, also let them know and explain why and apologize if you feel that you’ve let your emotions get in the way."

While not every child will be able to understand and articulate as clearly as Aldie did at such a young age, most kids are far more capable of understanding and processing emotion than we give them credit for. Proactively teaching them how to communicate what they're feeling and explaining how emotions work can go a long way toward helping them develop the self-regulation tools they'll use throughout their life.

This article originally appeared two years ago.

Kids
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