Posts Tagged With: taking action

Day 4772: The USA

Posted on January 25, 2026 by Ann Koplow

The USA is becoming more dangerous for more people, every day.

Last night I asked a question about what to do about the USA.

Let us bear witness to the horrific shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, USA — and the despicable response from the USA government — with the official statement from his family.

I captured these images in the USA yesterday before looking at the awful news.

On Opposite Day, I wish the USA government would do the opposite of what they’re doing now. In the meantime, we in the USA and around the world need to oppose them.

Here’s what I find when I search for “the USA” on YouTube.

Thanks to all who help me deal with living in the USA, including YOU.

Categories: life in the USA, personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: bearing witness, Boston mayor Michelle Wu, Comfort Kitchen, January 25 2026, krispykarim, Opposite Day, statement by Alex Pretti’s family, taking action, the killing of Alex Pretti, Twitter and Bluesky | 6 Comments

Day 4424: 1 Person Can Make a Difference

Posted on February 11, 2025 by Ann Koplow

Despite my horror at the chaos, destruction, and injustice that toxic leaders are creating in this world — which can make us feel hopeless and helpless — I still believe that 1 person can make a difference.

I hope this 1 person can make a difference by sharing images, questions, and answers in her daily blog.

1 person can make a difference AND (as the 1 Daily Bitch is reminding me) 1 person might need to say “can’t” at times.

1 person can make a difference on YouTube.

1 person can make a difference by expressing gratitude to people who show up, including YOU.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: Boston hospital, February 11 2025, feelings chart, how to make a difference, One Person Can Make a Difference, self-care, taking action, TED talk by Shawna Coronado, The Daily Bitch Calendar, tuna dish, Twitter | 12 Comments

Day 4387: What we can do

Posted on January 5, 2025 by Ann Koplow

When we’re feeling discouraged and powerless, it helps to focus on what we can do (instead of what we can’t do).

Because yesterday was National CanDo Day, I could ask this question on Twitter:

I can say that it always helps me to connect to others and get different perspectives.

I can take pictures of Joan, right now, and share them with you.

Also, even though I’m still having problems with congestion and with my phone, I can share today’s observances …

… and search for “what we can do” on YouTube.

What we can do is try to understand ourselves and others, as Sally Kohn is doing in her great TED talk What we can do about the culture of hate.

What we can do is express gratitude for the important people in our lives, including YOU.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: acceptance, cats, connection, gratitude, January 5 2025, National CanDo Day, overcoming obstacles, Sally Kohn, taking action, Twitter, What we can do about the culture of hate | 8 Comments

Day 2368: ACT

Posted on June 26, 2019 by Ann Koplow

I act, every day, to

publish a blog here at The Year(s) of Living Non-Judgmentally and
encourage people to act in beneficial ways.

And yet, this is my first blog post with the word “act” in the title. Time to act!

What does “act” mean to you? To Merriam-Webster, it means:

act noun
\ ˈakt \
Definition of act
1a : the doing of a thing : DEED
an act of courage
b law : something done voluntarily
2 : the process of doing something : ACTION
caught in the act
3 : the formal product of a legislative body : STATUTE
an act of Congress
also : a decision or determination of a sovereign, a legislative council, or a court of justice
4 : one of the principal divisions of a theatrical work (such as a play or opera)
a play in three acts
5a : one of successive parts or performances (as in a variety show or circus)
a magic act
b : the performer or performers in such an act
a two-person comedy act
c : a performance or presentation identified with a particular individual or group
They took their act on the road.
d : the sum of a person’s actions or effects that serve to create an impression or set an example
a hard act to follow
6 : a display of affected behavior : PRETENSE
put on an act that deceived nobody
His friendly concern was just an act.
7 often capitalized : a formal record of something done or transacted
8 : a state of real existence rather than possibility
into the act or in on the act
: into an undertaking or situation as an active participant
saw the success they were having and wanted to get in on the act
act verb
acted; acting; acts
intransitive verb

1 : to take action : MOVE
think before acting
acted favorably on the recommendation
2 : to conduct oneself : BEHAVE
act like a fool
3a : to perform on the stage
began acting at the age of eight
b : to behave as if performing on the stage : PRETEND
seemed angry but was just acting
4 : to perform a specified function : SERVE
trees acting as a windbreak
5 : to produce an effect : WORK
wait for a medicine to act
6 : to give a decision or award
adjourned without acting on the bill
7 of a play : to be capable of being performed
a play that acts well
transitive verb

1a : to represent or perform by action especially on the stage
will act the part of Romeo in tonight’s play
b : FEIGN, SIMULATE
act indifference
c : IMPERSONATE
2 : to play the part of as if in a play
act the man of the world
3 : to behave in a manner suitable to
Act your age.
4 obsolete : ACTUATE, ANIMATE
ACT abbreviation
Definition of ACT
1 Action for Children’s Television
2 Association of Classroom Teachers
3 Australian Capital Territory

To therapists, ACT (abbreviation) also means Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. I shall now act to quote the Wikipedia description about ACT:

The objective of ACT is not elimination of difficult feelings; rather, it is to be present with what life brings us and to “move toward valued behavior”.[6] Acceptance and commitment therapy invites people to open up to unpleasant feelings, and learn not to overreact to them, and not avoid situations where they are invoked. Its therapeutic effect is a positive spiral where feeling better leads to a better understanding of the truth.[7] In ACT, ‘truth’ is measured through the concept of ‘workability’, or what works to take another step toward what matters (e.g. values, meaning).

ACT (abbreviation) also means this:

When I was caught in the act taking that photo yesterday, I acted to smile and give a thumbs up to the ACT workers near that truck.

Here are other ways I acted yesterday:

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I have to act fast to finish this post with a Stephen Sondheim song (which features actors avoiding action by focusing on fault).

It’s never just an act when I express gratitude to all who help me act to create this daily blog and — of course! — thanks to YOU.

Categories: definition, group therapy, personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: "Into The Woods", "Your Fault", Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Advanced Concepts in Tile, coping and healing groups, fish dish, healing power of groups, Stephen Sondheim, summer, taking action | 8 Comments

Day 2087: Boxed in

Posted on September 18, 2018 by Ann Koplow

Do you ever feel boxed in? Helpless? Paralyzed? Trapped?

When you feel boxed in, what do you do? Does it help to think outside the box? Or is staying in the box more safe and comfortable than venturing outside of it?

Do any of my photos from yesterday make you feel boxed in?

Michael’s meals, if there were ever any left-overs, would make a great box lunch.

Last week, when I was boxed in by many cars on my way to work, I received these messages from fellow boxed-in commuters who were using the traffic app Waze:

Why is traffic always so bad with 1/2 inch of water. Shoot me.

Good morning from hell on earth.

As usual, I felt less boxed in, knowing I was not alone. Hell on earth is not as bad when you have company.

Lately, Michael and I have been doing the box step and other dance steps with each other twice a week, thinking outside the box as we take turns choosing what music to dance to. This was Michael’s outside-the-box choice from last week:

I wish I could write lyrics like that. I may be boxed in by less song-writing experience and talent than Richard Thompson, but I’ll keep trying. That’s the way to get out of whatever box you’re in — keep trying and keep boxing your way out.

Please put your reactions in a comment box, below.

Boxed-up thanks to all who helped me box together today’s boxed-in post and more boxes of thanks — of course! — to YOU.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: ads, “Valerie”, feeling boxed in, Richard Thompson, song writing, taking action, thinking outside the box, traffic, Waze | 23 Comments

Day 1579: Action

Posted on April 28, 2017 by Ann Koplow

When people take the action of joining my therapy groups, I recommend these weekly actions:

Do something mindfully, using your senses to stay in the moment.

Take one action you think would be helpful.

Notice and challenge an unhelpful thought.

For example, I am writing this blog post mindfully, using my senses to stay in the moment. I just took the helpful action of writing an email to my realtor, expressing my thoughts and feelings about a property. My next action is to notice unhelpful thoughts about an action I took yesterday:

I’ve made another mistake. I should have known better.

Here’s the action of challenging that unhelpful thought:

Everybody makes mistakes. I’m doing the best I can. Every mistake is an opportunity for me to learn and grow.

Yesterday, my actions included:

Voting for myself to be the next president of a group psychotherapy organization,
Putting an offer on a house near the water,
Expressing appreciation for the departing interns at work, and
Facilitating two therapy groups.

Every day, I take action shots and share the action here.

When I show up at YouTube and gently search for “action” there, it’s true that I find this:

If you think it would be helpful to make a comment below, please take action.

My final action in this post? Expressing gratitude to all who helped me create it and to you — of course! — for your action of visiting this blog today.

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: Carl Jung, Carl Jung Action Figure, challenging unhelpful thoughts, cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive distortions, Coping and Healing group, helpful actions, Stephen Colbert, taking action, Trump's 100 Day Action Plan | 28 Comments

Day 1207: The Verb

Posted on April 21, 2016 by Ann Koplow

The verb is the part of speech that denotes action.

I’m taking action, now, to show you the first photographic action I took yesterday.

I’m taking action with these quotes about the verb:

Life on earth is more like a verb. It repairs, maintains, re-creates, and outdoes itself. — Lynn Margulis

I think that we all do heroic things, but hero is not a noun, it’s a verb. — Robert Downey, Jr.

I believe in the verb, not the noun – I am not a writer, but someone compelled to write. — Richard Flanagan

I thought art was a verb, rather than a noun. — Yoko Ono

Gratefulness is a double-edged sword. Because I think we’ve poured it into a feeling. And the batter of gratitude gets kind of stuck to the edges of the Williams Sonoma melamine mixing bowl. But gratefulness, the act of being grateful is actually… a verb. It’s an activity. — Abigail Spencer

Marriage is not a noun; it’s a verb. It isn’t something you get. It’s something you do. It’s the way you love your partner every day. — Barbara de Angelis

One of the glories of English simplicity is the possibility of using the same word as noun and verb. — Edward Sapir

I think (verb) it’s interesting that most of those quotes relate (verb) to a word’s part of speech — noun or verb?

I find (verb) that particularly interesting because most of the photos I took (verb) yesterday relate (verb) to that, also.

Since actions speak (verb) louder than words, I shall now act (verb) and show (verb) you those verb-ose pictures:

More thoughts about verbs and actions:

The homework for my therapy groups includes taking a helpful action, every day.
I heard this song in my head, yesterday, while I was thinking about words, actions, and verbs:

What action might you take, here and now?

Here’s my final action in this post:

Categories: personal growth, photojournalism | Tags: "The Word" by the Beatles, actions speak louder than words, Cake in Lexington Massachusetts, quotes about verbs, taking action, the verb, The Verb Hotel, verb, verbs and nouns | 17 Comments