Today, we’re kicking off our summer bonus episodes with a little ode to sidewalk art installations! We’re not just talking about little free libraries (though those are awesome!) we’re talking about the weird, wild and creative ways people express themselves and spread joy through artistic, playful, interactive installations on their sidewalks, stoops and fences, and the unique, important role these little joy blips have in building stronger communities.

I first stumbled across the PDX Dinorama Instagram account, run by Portland’s Rachael Harms Malant, during the pandemic. The account didn’t just promote the little Dinorama she built in front of her house, it was more like a record of all the little fun and funky sidewalk installations that are speckled around the city. From PDX Sidewalk Ducks to a 6-hole golf course that someone built in their front yard, the installations Rachael was highlighting on her account went way above and beyond anything I’d seen, and with little kids to get out of the house and little money to spend, I was so grateful for every last one of them. I’ve been wanting to have her on the show for ages to talk about her passion for these little expressions of joy and welcome that pepper our city (and are popping up around the world now), and I am so thrilled to have her episode kick off some summer MOFITA fun.

Chatting with Rachael was seriously heart-warming summer fun, and we hope you’ll tune in! In in the episode, she shares tips for creating your own little sidewalk joy invitation, and she has tons of examples and tutorials on her Instagram page, too.

But, all you really need to do to get inspired is head outside on a walk, especially if you’re lucky enough to live in a town with folks on the sidewalk joy map. As Rachael explains in the episode:

“People are craving community, and community is — and is going to continue to be — so very important for all of us. So this kind of connecting and sharing that Sidewalk Joy helps promote in different communities is going to continue to be vital.”

If you walk around your neighborhood and don’t see any little mini-fig galleries, dinoramas or take-a-car-leave-a-cars, maybe your could be the first!

LINKS

* The Portland Sidewalk Joy map

* The Worldwide Sidewalk Joy map

* Rachael’s sidewalk joy creation tips + ideas

If you love the work we do on Mother Of It All, please consider becoming a paid subscriber, which you can do at motherofitall.substack.com. Paid subscribers get access to everything behind the paywall, like subscriber-only episodes, book reviews and more. If you subscribe at the founding member level, we’ll send you one of our awesome tote bags. If you can’t become a paid subscriber, that’s OK! It’s always free and helpful to follow, share, rate and review our show here and everywhere else you listen to podcasts you love. Thank you!

* Visit our Bookshop storefront to find all the books we’ve mentioned here and in previous episodes. When you shop there, we get a small affiliate fee (yay, thank you!).

* Visit motherofitall.com to send us ideas for a future episode or learn more about the show.

* Follow the podcast on Instagram (@themotherofitall) or Bluesky (@motherofitallpod.bsky.social)

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit motherofitall.substack.com/subscribe