Weekly Solutions Round Up — The Solutions Journalism Exchange

Jul 22

Jul 22 Weekly Solutions Round Up

Our Solutions Round-Up of lighter, feel-better SoJo is written by Michael Davis, former editor of, well, you name it — most recently, the Statesman Journal in Salem, Ore. Now Michael is SJN’s region manager for the South, observing quarantine protocols in Davidson, N.C. He'll feel significantly less isolated if you contact him at michaeldavis@solutionsjournalism.org.

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July 22, 2020

Four of out of five dentists recommend this week’s Feel-Better Roundup for a more dazzling smile.

REVENUE-STREAMING TROUBADORS MAKE DO IN MONTANA

Montana Free Press reports that solo musicians in that mountainous state have discovered that virtual gigs for an online audience have advantages to performing at, say, local breweries. When live, in-person work dried up in the spring, some enterprising musicians found a revenue stream online to keep them afloat. Erika Frederickson reports “streaming solutions show potential to become valuable additions to musicians’ post-pandemic toolbox.”

SERENADING IN THE CITY THAT CELEBRATES L’AMOUR

Speaking of performing, one jazz club in France has arrived at a solution to bring back the experience of live performance during the pandemic for small audiences, including audience of one. The Guardian’s Kim Willsher reports from Paris. on a pandemic safety measure that begins and ends in five minutes.

TURNS OUT BILLY JOEL ACTUALLY DID START THE FIRE

When Billy Joel released “For the Longest Time” in August, 1983 B.C. (before COVID), his ode to doo-wop led to an outbreak of finger popping. Now, the Phoenix Chamber Choir from Vancouver (the other B.C.) has reimagined the would-be 50s-anthem as a sing-along to reflect our socially distanced times. It’s so cool it’s hot.

IGNORE SCIENCE AT YOUR PERIL, NEVER MASKERS

Science Daily offers some empirical evidence why people who refuse to wear a mask are more prone to COVID-19 infection than those who do. This may not get through to those who believe the Constitution provides an inalienable right to dismiss scientific fact as hooey, but it is good evidence to spread to others, nonetheless.

TWO ANNUAL EVALUATIONS: RUFF AND RUFF

Apparently, the pandemic has not eliminated annual evaluations, those work reviews some dread more than a snootful of swamp gas. A video posted by a BBC sportscaster working with some loyal assistants from home, offers no remedy for the enduring the process, but it does explain why some feel more hounded by the boss than others.

BACK TO THE FUTURE PERFECT…OR IS IT PLUPERFECT?

If you’ve ever wondered how far back in history could you travel and still be understood using contemporary English, Kathy Copeland Padden has an answer. Writing for Medium, the student of political history and language reports that if your time machine (or souped-up Delorean) deposits you in any era prior to Shakespeare, you will need to resort to pantomime. As it happens, there was a Great Vowel Shift around 1500 that shook things up.

GET YOUR MIND INTO THE SEWER

Finally, this. The Gothamist reports that New York is on the brink of employing an additional means of tracking coronavirus. Turns out the analysis of human waste can provide critical important information. So, the next time you hear “Let’s go, Mets!” think about those lusty beer-drinking fans contributing to science by scooting to the loo between innings.

July 9, 2020

REVENUE-STREAMING TROUBADOURS MAKE DO IN MONTANA

Montana Free Press’ Erika Frederickson reports that solo musicians have discovered that virtual gigs for an online audience can help them stay close to fans — and make some money. When live, in-person work dried up in the spring, some enterprising musicians found a revenue stream online to keep them afloat.

SERENADING IN THE CITY THAT CELEBRATES L’AMOUR

Speaking of performing, one jazz club in France has arrived at a solution to bring back the experience of live performance during the pandemic for small audiences, including audiences of one. The Guardian’s Kim Willsher reports from Paris on a pandemic safety measure that begins and ends in five minutes.

TURNS OUT BILLY JOEL ACTUALLY DID START THE FIRE

TWO ANNUAL EVALUATIONS: RUFF AND RUFF

Apparently, the pandemic has not eliminated annual evaluations, those work reviews some dread more than a snootful of swamp gas. A BBC sportscaster taped his evaluations of two assistants from home, whose “opportunities for growth” points included ruining the sofa and catching zero squirrels. Watch it next time you feel hounded by the boss.

BACK TO THE FUTURE PERFECT…OR IS IT PLUPERFECT?

GET YOUR MIND INTO THE SEWER

The Gothamist reports that New York is on the brink of employing an additional means of tracking the coronavirus. Turns out the analysis of human waste can provide critical information.

SEND RINGO A BELATED BIRTHDAY WISH

Last time we sent up a flare to let readers know about a celebratory hour of music to honor Ringo Starr’s 80th birthday and funds for charities and initiatives he supports. If you missed it, the love fest is available on YouTube. Included is a clever split-screen performance by Sheryl Crow, singing “All You Need is Love” and accompanying herself on ukulele, accordion, cello, guitar and more.

July 2, 2020

Welcome to this week’s cavalcade of news to amuse. We are dubbing it the “Guaranteed to Raise a Smile” edition, and it will include a musical interlude.

But first, some international news.

EUROPEAN VENDING MACHINES ARE OFFERING GRAB-AND-GO PPE

As pandemic lockdown restrictions diminish and more Europeans prepare to travel, automated “safety stations” are being stocked with disinfectant wipes, face masks and hand sanitizers.

The website Planet-Vending.com reports 1,000 vending machines are available at high-traffic travel locations including the Zurich Airport and the Brussels Railway Station. Here in the United States, we can only dream of using such a convenience, given that the European Union has essentially said to Americans, “We don’t want your stinkin’ COVID cooties. Stay home.”

ISRAELIS INVENT A FACE MASK WITH AN AUTOMATIC YAP-FLAP

The BBC reports that an Israeli company has designed a remote-controlled face mask that can open automatically when a fork reaches the mouth. According to the report, it was developed to allow safer dining in restaurants. Users can also manually engage the slot to open by squeezing a hand-held lever. The mask opening closes with a second squeeze. Attention Baby Boomers: The mouth flap is reminiscent of the primitive 1950’s animation featured in “Clutch Cargo.”

‘SURFING THERAPY’ PROVIDES AN ESCAPE FOR CAPE TOWN KIDS

Now to Cape Town, South Africa, where children from troubled townships are taking instruction in surfing. “People Fixing the World,” the exceptional solutions journalism series produced by the BBC, reports on the use of “surfing therapy” for kids from Khayelitsha, described as a “tough place to grow up” amid high incidence of rape, teenage pregnancy, drug use and crime. “We use surfing as a way to build relationships with caring adults and children,” said Time Conibear of Waves for Change, the organization behind the project.

UNDETERRED LIBRARIAN SAYS THE STORY TIME MUST GO ON

“Miss Dani” would not be denied.

When COVID-19 put the kibosh on the music-and-movement story hours she had been hosting for the Bay County (MI) Library System, Dani DiAmico turned to YouTube for a solution. Since early spring, she has been posting video versions of her upbeat (and highly educational) story times. She’s reaching her audience, and the best word to describe her enthusiasm is contagious. A recent episode broke down the letter sounds in the word “web” which segued into an inventive arts and crafts demo. Totally delightful.

LIVERPUDLIAN RICHARD STARKEY REMAINS A STARR FOR THE AGES

OK, so his dark hair is 40 years younger than the rest of him, but Ringo Starr, the everyman Beatle, is about to turn 80. Ringo told Rolling Stone that while sitting out the pandemic in California, he has been finalizing plans for a music benefit extravaganza to mark the big birthday. The “hour of music and chat” will include Paul McCartney, Sheryl Crowe, Ben Harper and Gary Clark, Jr., among others. As always, the twice-inducted Rock Hall of Fame drummer (once for the Beatles and once for his solo career) has a solution for all the world’s ills: more peace and love. Once again, Ringo fans throughout the world will mark his birthday at noon (local time) on July 7th by saying, thinking or posting #peaceandlove. Hurrah for Richard Starkey, the soon-to-be octogenarian octopus in the garden.

MILEY SCORES AT AN EMPTY ROSE BOWL

That promised musical interlude arrives in two parts. The first is a video of Miley Cyrus singing a Beatles classic, with a countrified twist. It was filmed in that stadium in Pasadena, with not a little old lady – or anyone else -- in sight.

ONE WAY TO STOP THE FOOS FROM FIGHTING

ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel found the best way imaginable to personally thank TJ Riley, a Bronx nurse (and Dave Grohl fan) who has recovered from COVID-19.

That’s all you need to know. Riley’s reaction to being serenaded with the Foo Fighters “Everlong” tells the rest of the story.

Have you seen or heard a story deserving of a Feel-Better shoutout? Simply email michaeldavis@solutionsjournalism.organd you’ll be doing your patriotic duty. Enjoy your holiday weekend, and May The Fourth Be With You. Or is that Schwartz Be With You?

Oh, what the heck. Here’s one more of Kimmel’s Health Care Hero segments. It’s germane, as you’ll see.

June 30, 2020

After a few weeks of having little to say – except to glumly mutter, “I read the news today, oh boy.” – your Feel-Better Roundup correspondent is back and better than ever, with an edition we’re calling “I’m Still Standing…Except When I’m Not”

EVEN ROCKETMAN NEEDS A BOOST

Our friends at the BBC provided us with a tuneful start this week with this dispatch about Sir Elton John. It seems Canadian troubadour Ron Sexsmith rang up his friend Elton to ask if he had seen a music video produced in the U.K. by students from the Telford Priory School in Shropshire, England. The ensemble gave a rousing performance of “I’m Still Standing,” deemed “brilliant” by Reginald Kenneth Dwight, the chap who wrote the tune. “I watched it three times in a row because I couldn’t believe how good you sang and played it,” Sir Elton said in a video message to the students. “It really cheered me up.”

HOW NOW, JERSEY COW?

Your loyal correspondent posted a Q&A on Medium this week that revisited a previous Feel-Better item about reducing methane emitted by cow burps and toots. In an effort to learn more about how garlic in a cattle feed additive may be making the planet less gassy, I connected with New York Times reporter Adam Satariano on Zoom, who amusingly explained why healthy skepticism is required to produce solutions journalism. He also explained how a Jersey cow named Peaches became an inside informant, of sorts.

MAYBE WE’LL JUST GO BACK TO WAVING BYE-BYE

An essay at Time magazine’s website contemplates what will replace the firm handshake and warm hug in the less-touchy world we’ll inhabit when the pandemic poops out. Health writer and editor Mandy Oaklander says, “If social touch disappears more than just temporarily, there’s no consensus on what will replace it. But one thing is little disputed: Social interactions are about to start feeling really weird.”

THREE STRIKES YER OUT, MR. PEANUT!

The humble goober pea has become a casualty of COVID-19, and the surprising reason behind the decline in peanut consumption is directly tied to the suspension of play by Major League Baseball and minor leagues teams throughout the U.S. Turns out a high-end peanut variety is annually produced specifically for ballparks, and now millions of bags are waiting out the pandemic in cold storage. Kim Severson, writing for the New York Times, explains retailers are being enlisted to unload team-branded peanuts to consumers so the crop won’t go to waste.

6 BILLION POSSIBLE PLACES TO PRACTICE SOCIAL DISTANCING?

The dependably intriguing Science Daily website offered exciting news for salespeople scouting possible new territories. The site reports that there are as many as 6 billion Earth-like planets in the Milky Way galaxy, according to fresh estimates from the University of British Columbia. That amounts to one planet like ours for every five Sun-like stars in the final frontier.

NASA GREEN LIGHT’S RICHARD BRANSON’S ULTIMATE HIGH

Here’s how to one-up friends who are off to the Hamptons or Palm Springs for a getaway weekend. Virgin Galactic will be offering space trips thanks to a new agreement with NASA’s Johnson Space Center. The program will offer “private training packages” for people who have the immune-to-danger gene and the expendable income (up to $250,000 per person). Sir Richard Branson’s space tourism company would also ferry government-sponsored scientific missions to the International Space Station. Here’s what CNBC had to say.

HELP FROM THE PEOPLE WHO GAVE US “SAVING RYAN’S PRIVATES”

You can’t make up this stuff. Companies are looking to the adult film industry for guidance on measures to protect employees from COVID-19 infection. “We can actually learn a lot about safety guidelines by listening to producers of porn,” said Perry N. Halkitis, dean of Public Health at Rutgers University. “Thinking back to the H.I.V./AIDS crisis, the adult film industry had to learn how to keep their workers safe.” He suggests following the Four Ts: Target, Test, Treat and Trace.” Michele C. Hollow reported this development for the New York Times.

May 20, 2020

It’s the “Potpourri” edition of the Feel Better Roundup, a nod to that perennial catch-all category on Jeopardy!

BUT WHAT IF THE FROG TURNS INTO A PRINCE?

First, we know what happened to all those teacher’s pets when the pandemic forced school closures. The little darlings became the primary responsibility of their parents to educate.

But what, you ask, became of the classroom pets, all those aquarium fish and tadpoles and Guinea pigs? Minnesota Public Radio’s Sarah Stacke reports on the pandemic-era status of Frisky the frog and Holly the Russian tortoise, former residents of P.S. 58 in Brooklyn, NY.

BASEBALL IN THE POST-SALIVA ERA

Now, after a ride across the Brooklyn Bridge we find ourselves in Manhattan, where the lords of Major League Baseball have shared their plan to modify the Grand Old Game for the COVID-19 era. In a story headlined “MLB proposes safety plan that covers everything from sunflower seeds to lineup card exchanges,” The Washington Post’s Barry Svrluga explains that, in a move that has taken since the 1860s to enact, spitting – whether on the field, in the dugout or into an umpire’s eye -- will be outlawed as a safety precaution. Scratching, apparently, will continue be permitted, as will the disruptive taunt made famous by Ferris Buhler, “Hey batta-batta-batta,suuwwwwing batta!”

NO SNEEZE-GUARD NECESSARY

Few know that during your Feel-Better Roundup columnist’s days on the air, his radio persona was Al Fresco.

And speaking of outdoor dining, Kriston Capps of CityLab reports that eateries across the nation are showing the way toward providing safe services to a general pubic taking first tentative steps out from their homes. In Tampa’s famous (and reliably delicious) Ybor City district, streets have been closed off to allow more room (and social distancing) for temporary dining facilities.

HONEY, YOU’RE AWFULLY QUIET TONIGHT

Under the headline “Mannequins, shower curtains, carhops and pulleys: Restaurants get creative to keep diners distant,” Emily Heil expounds in The Washington Post on the innovative efforts restaurant owners have taken with “the goal of injecting a little bit of normalcy in a decidedly not-normal time.” The much-heralded luxe location known as “The Inn at Little Washington” is using mannequins in vintage costumes to fill empty chairs, in compliance with Virginia’s edict that restaurants may only operate at half capacity.

WHAT’S THE SOUND OF NO HAND CLAPPING?

Florida musicians are finding new audiences via virtual connections, but the absence of applause is just plain weird for performers used to audience reactions. Curtis Ross reports.

DIETER! “REAR WINDOW” IS PLAYING ON OUR FRONT WINDOW

Your correspondent’s favorite potpourri item arrived from Germany via Fast Company’s website. Enjoying a night of cinema is as easy as looking out the window in Berlin, thanks to Olaf Karkoff, who devised Window Flicks, a means of projecting movies onto residential building exteriors. Any Berliner can apply to have a social-distanced screening, as long as they live in a residential area where at least 20 units have an unobstructed view. And what about popcorn, you ask? Well, Karkoff’s team distributes the universal movie snack from an outfit called Knalle Popcorn.

ORWELL? MORE LIKE “OH, WELL”

You know what didn’t fly? The idea of pesky drones flying overhead to monitor public compliance to stay-six feet apart. The town of Westport, CT, also wanted to use drones to detect whether citizens were suffering from fever and cough. Orwellian enough for you? The townspeople felt so, and the idea went down in flames. Lindsey Van Ness, an editorial assistant at Stateline created the buzz around this story.

HELP! I NEED SOMEBODY! (NOT JUST ANYBODY)

The Feel-Better Roundup can be even better with your kind and clever assistance. Nominate items for the next editor by emailing michaeldavis@solutionsjournalism.org. There’s no prize for doing so, but as your correspondent’s mother is fond of saying, “Contributing is its own reward. And while you’re up, grab me a cold one.”

May 13, 2020

Welcome to the Go Forth edition of the Feel-Better Roundup, the weekly balm to soothe your aching psyches.

First this, from Across the Pond: Friend and colleague Emily Kasriel, a news executive with the BBC World Service Group, sent along a dispatch that asks whether experiences in nature can manage stress and anxiety during the lockdown. They can! No green near you? Even listening to recordings of nature and screens with nature views help.

COLLABORATION: IT’S A BEAUTIFUL THING

Nothing makes your feel-better chronicler feel better than to learn about collaborative efforts clicking somewhere out in the great wide open. That’s certainly been the case in Austin, where a local doctor and an engineer devised an ingenious device — a tent made of PVC pipe and plastic sheeting — that is keeping frontline healthcare workers safer in Texas. It reduces the risk of COVID-19 infection during the process of inserting a breathing tube down a patient’s airway. Multimedia journalist Yoolin Cho of KXAN reports.

TAKE A MULLIGAN

Another uniquely human trait that gladdens the heart of your feel-better teller of tales is ingenuity. It has been that way since your faithful correspondent read “Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel” as a precocious imp. Cut to pandemic-era New York, where Project Isaiah is delivering much-needed meals to older residents through a clever partnership with an airline caterer. The story, published on the Civil Eats website, explains “Project Isaiah was built from the ground up in a manner of weeks by two women with no distribution or crisis management experience, just “mad spreadsheet skills,” some powerful connections, and ability to work the phone.” Portland-based freelancer Brendan Seibel reports.

GRADUATION ON THE BIG SCREEN

Across the continent, good-hearted citizens have done their best to provide at least a pinch of pomp to mitigate against the dreadful circumstances faced by this year’s crop of high school and college graduates. To wit, the faculty and staff at North Salem High in Upstate New York came up with a scheme to move graduation ceremonies to a facility an hour north, to one of just a few remaining drive-in movie facilities in the region. School officials kept the plan top secret, fearing other schools might appropriate the idea. Ultimately, the announcement came – reality-TV style – during a live video reveal. NPR’s Tovia Smith provides the rest of the story.

WHAT’S UP, DOC? YOUR FACE ON A BILLBOARD!

There are proud parents, and there are the parents of Brandon Truett, who recently earned his doctorate in English from the University of Chicago. In true pandemic style, Brandon defended his dissertation on Zoom. The Truetts announced the achievement on a giant billboard in Brandon’s South Carolina hometown. Considering the cost of stamps, it might have been cheaper than mailing announcements. The Chicago Tribune’s Elyssa Cherney reports.

GRADUATION NIGHT OF A THOUSAND STARS

Finally, this: John Krasinski called in a few chits to provide graduation advice to a collection of college grads assembled for an episode of the wildly popular “Some Good News” video podcast. They received words of wisdom from Oprah, Steven Spielberg, Jon Stewart and Malala. It’s five-star lockdown entertainment, as is another “SGN” episode during which Martha Stewart makes pierogi.

May 6th, 2020

Now it’s time for this week’s Clear-the-Air edition of the Feel-Better Roundup.

I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW…

We can hope that, in time, there may be less methane threatening the planet from the business ends of cattle.

But today, thanks to pandemic, air pollution levels are dropping around the globe, as are jaws. Astonished residents of the Punjab region of northern India awoke one day to see the magnificent Himalayas for the first time in decades. As reported at CNN’s website and beyond, the temporary closing of factories in India along with massive reductions in daily use of internal combustion engines have cleared the skies well enough for locals to make out the snow-capped, jagged mountain range in the far distance.

WILL IT PASS THE SNIFF TEST?

The pandemic has been the best thing to happen to dogs since supermarkets started stocking fresh mini-meals for them in refrigerated endcaps.

There’s great pub for pups on just about every media platform. One wonders if furloughed flacks at Rogers & Cowan are doing pro bono work for the canine community.

And it’s not just here in the United States.

Over in the jaunty U.K., The Independent reports that dogs in Britain could be trained to sniff out COVID-19 in humans. Medically trained “sniffer dogs” could be taught to detect changes in body odor that can occur during respiratory diseases. If this experiment proves successful, could a dog trainer win the Nobel Prize for Medicine?

THE PANDEMIC’S WINDS OF CHANGE

Producers at the CBS Morning News reminded us that necessity is the mother of invention with a report on a surge in innovation triggered by the pandemic. Among the inventions: a safe way to open and close a door without touching the handle.

ADDING AN AIR OF SOPHISTICATION

Thanks to the BBC, schoolchildren in Great Britain have had celebrity guest instructors during lockdown. Who better than David Attenborough to teach geography during the virtual learning initiative? Or Manchester City footballer Sergio Aguero to teach kids how to count in Spanish? There’s even a Doctor Who angle, as actress Jodie Whitaker has been enlisted as an instructor,

LOVE IS IN THE AIR – BUT LEAVE YOUR MASK ON

Finally, this. The Washington Post reported that one besotted duo in the District got married recently -- in the middle of the “friendliest street in town.”

The Feel-Better Roundup was compiled by SJN’s Michael Davis, who encourages readers to send COVID-19-related notes, quotes, brickbats and bouquets to michaeldavis@solutionsjournalism.org,