A few weeks ago, we got inspired to spread a little positivity around Seattle by creating something called “guerrilla compliments.” We met up with readers Tara Clark and Xanna Vegsundvaag at Eastern Café in Chinatown-International District and wrote up around 40 thoughtful and inspiring cards with hopes of putting smiles on some of our neighbors’ faces. (One of the messages is today’s subject line ☝️.) And what’d we do next? Hid ‘em around Seattle for you to find and re-hide in a new spot.

We documented part of it in this video with hopes that our project might inspire you to write up some compliments to hide around your neighborhoods. Need a lift this morning? Go hit play.

Want to make and hide your own compliment cards? We’d love to see ‘em! Be sure to tag #guerrillacompliments on Instagram so we can see what you made and where your neighbors’ days got a little brighter. 😊

They didn’t have to do it. But they did: Pearl Jam raised $10.8 million to tackle our homelessness crisis this summer in a ginormous campaign that included loads of partners and two massive summer concerts at Safeco Field. Yesterday our hometown rock stars said more about where it all came from and where it’s all going. One highlight: $750,000 is going toward something called diversion. That’s what advocates call one-time payments that help people with critical things like fixing their vehicles or making that deposit on a new apartment. 🎸 (The Seattle Times)

Our first midlife crisis. A cover of an 1980s Washington Magazine recently took columnist and Seattle historian Knute Berger back in time. It featured legendary Seahawk Brian “The Boz” Bosworth and slightly-less-famous geek Bill Gates. And what did it remind him of? A city whose cultural and physical landscape was in flux. Sound familiar? Knute thought so. “It’s proof that this period of growth isn’t something new, but another round of growing pains we’ve actually been through before,” he wrote. (Crosscut)

Shambles. Washington State’s foster care system is a mess. How’d it get that way? By allowing state leaders to “[remove] more children from their families than it has the capacity to adequately house,” Allegra Abramo reported for Investigate West and Crosscut. Being over capacity has meant housing abused and traumatized kids in hotels, which has cost taxpayers an estimated $6.1 million since 2015. Costs aside, not having a place to call home is bad for the kids, too. Experts say not having stable housing deepens the trauma kids experience in the foster system. This is a frustrating, but important read. (Investigate West, Crosscut)

Puptacular peaks. Want to bring Mr. Fluffles to explore the great outdoors with you on a hike? Besides making sure to keep him on a leash, you first need to make sure the trails you’re eyeing are dog friendly. Curbed has a great roundup, including Seattle’s Arboretum and Discovery Park trails, the popular Rattlesnake Ledge, and the Mount Erie Trail near Anacortes with views of the San Juans. Not outdoorsy? Enjoy the list for all the adorable pup pics. 🐶 (Curbed Seattle)

PUTTING OUR MONEY WHERE OUR ❤️ IS

Thanks to the dozens of you who’ve been telling us about the last time you gave money charitably to something around Seattle. We’re hearing about some pretty creative, meaningful, and surprisingly routine ways you support a big range of things.

“I feel like a part of something larger than myself,” reader Pandora Bjeletich told us.

Remember your latest local boost? Big or teeny, it all adds up. Take a minute to tell us about it here, and stay tuned for more in our Evergrey Giving Guide project.

Oh, and congrats to Lisa Gallo, whose shares of The Evergrey this week won her a pair of VIP tickets to the Futurewise Feast with Friends next Tuesday. 👏

Be kind out there, all.  — The Evergrey