The Good News Thread

[Benjamin]

Seeing as currently a lot of very heavy topics being discussed, here’s a place to refresh your soul.

Feel free to post more happy/upbeat news stories.




Lost Dog Finds Way Home Across 150 Miles of Neighboring State, Villages Hold Feast in His Honor

Yamagarni village in the Karnataka state of India recently witnessed a strange sight. A jubilant crowd paraded a black dog covered in garlands through the streets until they reached a feast prepared in its honor.

For the villagers, the return of the dog, which had been lost, was a miracle.

Fondly called Maharaj, the elderly companion was lost among the crows of pilgrims at a site in the neighboring state of Maharashtra, but managed to navigate by memory back home, traveling nearly 150 miles on its own.


In the last week of June, Maharaj joined its owner Kamalesh Kumbhar on a pilgrimage

Kumbhar told news media that he visits the sacred site of Pandharpur every year on Hindu holy days in July and August.

“Maharaj has always liked listening to bhajans [a devotional song]. Once, he had accompanied me on another padayatra trip to Jyotiba temple near Mahabaleshwar,” Kumbhar told Indian news outlet PTI.

For nearly 150 miles, the dog followed the master, who walked with a group of his friends, chanting these songs.

At a certain point in his devotionals, Kumbhar said he noticed that the dog was missing. When he went looking for him, a group of people told him that the dog had left with another group.

“I still searched for him everywhere and I could not find him. So, I thought maybe the people were right, that he left with someone else. I returned to my hometown on July 14th,” Kumbhar said.

The very next day though, Kumbhar said, to his surprise “Maharaj was standing there in front of my house, wagging his tail as if nothing had happened. He looked well fed and perfectly fine.”

Overcome with happiness, Kumbhar said, he and the villagers celebrated Maharaj’s return with a feast.

“It is such a miracle that the dog could find its way, although it was 250km or so away from home. We think it was Lord Panduranga who guided him.”


https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/lost-dog-finds-way-home-across-150-miles-of-neighboring-state-villages-hold-feast-in-his-honor/

[Glenn.]

Aww like homeward bound

[Benjamin]

Aww like homeward bound

Loved that film so much!

[arista]

Kaz will love this.
1st story
Dog returns home in India

[Ninastar]

When the cat fell down the waterfall I think that was the first time I ever wanted to kill myself

[Ninastar]

Trauma inducing ass movie

[Benjamin]

Trauma inducing ass movie

Coupled with Lion King, Animals of Farthing Wood and All Dogs go to heaven

[Ninastar]

Coupled with Lion King, Animals of Farthing Wood and All Dogs go to heaven

Don’t forget Watership down

Tbh tho the animals of farthing wood was genuinely so distressing and sad, I can’t believe it was made into a movie

[Benjamin]

Don’t forget Watership down

Tbh tho the animals of farthing wood was genuinely so distressing and sad, I can’t believe it was made into a movie

Literal childhood and adult nightmares about that.

[Glenn.]

Why don’t we chuck Marley and Me in the mix too. And Hachi!

Thought this was supposed to be a good news thread :joker:

[Crimson Dynamo]

The gospel is the “good news” because it contains the exceedingly wonderful
message of God’s redemption of sinful humanity through the death and
resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. The gospel is the heart, the central core
of Christian preaching.

The English noun gospel comes from the Anglo-Saxon term godspell,
meaning “glad tidings.” It is translated from the Greek evangelion, which
means “good message.” Originally, the word was related to news of military
triumph. But when the New Testament was recorded, its writers assigned the
term gospel to the “good news” of salvation in Jesus Christ.

The gospel encompasses the entire communication of redemption and
salvation to humans as preached by Jesus Christ and His followers (Matthew
4:23; Romans 10:15). Later, the term gospel was also applied to the four
historical records of Jesus Christ’s life written by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and
John. These four men are the original “evangelists,” or writers of the
evangelion.

--------------

so repent you vile Tibb sinners

:hee:

[Benjamin]

Teacher Crochets Personalized 'Mini-Me' Dolls For Each Student As Heartfelt End-Of-Year Gift


A third-grade teacher in Oxford, England, crocheted personalized "mini-me" dolls for each of her students as an end-of-year gift.

The intricate and thoughtful creations have not only delighted the children but also garnered widespread admiration.

https://www.sunnyskyz.com/uploads/2024/07/12fqo-teacher-crocheted-each-kid-class-end-of-year-gift.jpg

Sara Shabir is a third-grade teacher at Tyndale Community School. According to the Oxford Mail, Shabir's inspiration for the project came from her deep affection for her students and her desire to give them a memorable and special gift.

"The idea came from me just wanting to do something special and exciting for my class whom I adore," she shared with the news outlet.

Shabir, who taught herself to crochet during the Covid lockdown, explained that the project was also a way for her to enhance her crocheting skills.

"I learned to crochet - self-taught - during the Covid lockdown and have been creating things since then, so I wanted to push myself and make these dolls to build my own skills as a crocheter," she said.

One appreciative parent took to social media platform X to share a photo of the dolls, praising Shabir's dedication and creativity.

"My daughter's Y3 teacher is the absolute GOAT. She single-handedly crocheted a mini-me of each kid in her class as an end-of-year gift. Approx. 8 hours per doll. Even the hairstyles and clothes are spot on. What a legend," the parent wrote.


https://www.sunnyskyz.com/good-news/5494/Teacher-Crochets-Personalized-039-Mini-Me-039-Dolls-For-Each-Student-As-Heartfelt-End-Of-Year-Gift#

[Ammi]

Chimpanzees may actually be capable of speech, study of old footage suggests…


A new examination of controversial old footage of chimpanzees suggests the apes may be capable of learning to speak human-like words given the right circumstances.

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, suggests that chimpanzees likely possess the basic brain building blocks to produce “first words” similar to those spoken by human babies in their babbling stage.

This adds to the notion that great ape vocalisation abilities are underestimated, according to the international team of researchers from the UK, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Scientists have wondered for decades why humans are the only primates to have evolved speech even though some great apes like gorillas and bonobos have learned to communicate via vocal sounds and gestures.

Researchers have speculated this could be due to differences in throat organisation as well as variations within the brain.

Past research has hinted that chimpanzees may be an outlier among apes with the ability to speak human words, albeit at a rudimentary level under special circumstances.

In one study decades ago, a husband–wife duo coaxed their adopted chimp over several years to say simple words like “mama” and “papa”.

The work was discredited, however, because of ethical concerns that the infant chimp was taken away from its mother from the wild.

The new study assessed such documented cases of chimpanzee communication and subjected the recordings to phonetic analysis.

Scientists found three recorded videos suggesting that chimps could be taught to speak human words in a rudimentary way.

In particular, chimpanzees may be capable of utilising their voice, jaw and lips to speak individual syllables.

They may even be capable of achieving a contrast in how they pronounce consonants and vowels, researchers said.

In one of the old videos recorded by the husband and wife team, the adopted chimpanzee can be heard saying “papa” at least three times and the word “cup” once.

Two other videos assessed in the new study, including one shared in 2007 on YouTube, capture chimps uttering the word “mama”.

While the chimp vocalisation methods seem different from human speech, researchers said these attempts are “essentially word-like”.

They further conducted an online experiment in which human listeners naive to the origins of the recordings “reliably perceived” the chimpanzee utterances as syllables “ma-ma”.

However, citing a limitation of the study,, researchers said their analysis is based on secondary data, sourced from historical footage.

They called for controlled ethical experiments to validate the findings and investigate the conditions in which chimpanzees may acquire human speech-like vocalisations.

“Great apes can produce human words; the failure to demonstrate this half a century ago was the fault of the researchers, not the animals,” scientists concluded.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/chimpanzees-may-actually-capable-speech-093226253.html

[Ammi]

Missing for 12 Years, Beloved Cat Named Artie Finally Reunited with His Family…

A Welshman has been reunited with a family cat who has been lost for 12 years.

Then just 17 years old, Theo-Will McKenna was attending a university near the family’s home in Connah’s Quay, Wales when their cat Artie got out and never came home.

McKenna remembers staying out for hours with a bag of treats but couldn’t locate their beloved white and grey cat. McKenna would visit once a week for months to look some more, but gradually lost hope of ever seeing Artie again.

“It didn’t feel real. I thought there was no way it could be him,” he added. “It had been 12 years—he went missing when I was 17. I thought no cat could survive 12 years on the street.”

Artie then received some much-needed medical treatment, “removed some teeth, treated his hyperthyroidism, and took out some precancerous lumps in his ears,” McKenna said, adding that while Artie’s days on the streets were behind him, new challenges remained—like getting used to McKenna’s other cat.


“I reached the point where I thought that either, God forbid, something had happened to him, or someone else [had] taken him in,” he said.

Then in 2024, residents of a home in Connah’s Quay called a local veterinarian after a grey and white cat appeared in their backyard one day, and stayed put for four days straight.

The respondent vet found that the cat, who turned out to be the missing Artie, was carrying a microchip registered to Theo-Will McKenna’s mother and a contact number for North Clwyd Animal Rescue (NCAR).

NCAR got the call and came to pick up Artie, but with the microchip registered to an old phone number, they took to Facebook to try and find the McKennas. One of Theo-Will’s friends apparently recognized Artie and sent the post to him

“They got him stable and then posted on their Facebook page, explaining that he’d been found… My friend saw it and sent me the post—it took me a second to recognize him, because he looked so bedraggled and skinny,” McKenna said.

“We’re still in the trial period, but he’s been completely fine. He’s purring up a storm every time I go near him… My other cat has been a little bit wary, but we’ve been doing introductory methods and getting her used to his smell. It’s a slow process, but I’m absolutely determined that he’s staying with me.”


https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/SWNS.jpg

[Ammi]

Black rhino raised in Yorkshire has calf in Rwanda…

A black rhino raised at a North Yorkshire zoo has given birth to a calf after being released in Rwanda.
Olmoti, an eastern black rhinoceros, arrived at Flamingo Land in 2015 with her mother Samira.
In 2019, Olmoti was transferred to Akagera National Park in Central Africa as part of a relationship between Rwanda and the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA).
Drew Bantlin, a regional conservation manager for African Parks, confirmed Olmoti recently had her calf, adding: "The team has seen Olmoti and the calf twice this week and report they continue to do well."
The father of the calf is Mandela who, along with Olmoti, was one of five black rhinos transferred through EAZA, Flamingo Land said.
A photo of the mother and baby was taken during an aerial patrol, with a camera trap also capturing them in the national park.

Breeding programmes have taken place across Europe to help boost black rhino numbers, as they are listed as critically endangered by the World Wildlife Fund.
The schemes have been so successful that 10% of the entire world population lives in European zoos, leading to some being sent back to where the animals originally came from.
Olmoti arrived at Flamingo Land when she was nine months old from a zoo in Zurich and was later moved from North Yorkshire to the Czech Republic.
In 2021, Olmoti's mother gave birth to a male named Jabali, the first black rhinoceros to be born at Flamingo Land.

[Benjamin]

Black rhino raised in Yorkshire has calf in Rwanda…

A black rhino raised at a North Yorkshire zoo has given birth to a calf after being released in Rwanda.
Olmoti, an eastern black rhinoceros, arrived at Flamingo Land in 2015 with her mother Samira.
In 2019, Olmoti was transferred to Akagera National Park in Central Africa as part of a relationship between Rwanda and the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA).
Drew Bantlin, a regional conservation manager for African Parks, confirmed Olmoti recently had her calf, adding: "The team has seen Olmoti and the calf twice this week and report they continue to do well."
The father of the calf is Mandela who, along with Olmoti, was one of five black rhinos transferred through EAZA, Flamingo Land said.
A photo of the mother and baby was taken during an aerial patrol, with a camera trap also capturing them in the national park.

Breeding programmes have taken place across Europe to help boost black rhino numbers, as they are listed as critically endangered by the World Wildlife Fund.
The schemes have been so successful that 10% of the entire world population lives in European zoos, leading to some being sent back to where the animals originally came from.
Olmoti arrived at Flamingo Land when she was nine months old from a zoo in Zurich and was later moved from North Yorkshire to the Czech Republic.
In 2021, Olmoti's mother gave birth to a male named Jabali, the first black rhinoceros to be born at Flamingo Land.

:lovedup:

[Livia]

Coupled with Lion King, Animals of Farthing Wood and All Dogs go to heaven

I can't watch anything where animals are harmed even though I know it's not real. I watched Game of Thrones recently and I was genuinely worried for the dragons...

[Benjamin]

I can't watch anything where animals are harmed even though I know it's not real. I watched Game of Thrones recently and I was genuinely worried for the dragons...

Never watch those films I listed then, will destroy you :laugh:

[Livia]

Never watch those films I listed then, will destroy you :laugh:

I never will. I remember watching Bambi as a child and sobbing till my throat hurt.

[Benjamin]

I never will. I remember watching Bambi as a child and sobbing till my throat hurt.

Yeah that was tough. All Dogs Go to Heaven was the saddest but was also a nice story (about them dying).

[Ammi]

…I haven’t watched All Dogs Go to Heaven…but there is also Hachi/A dog’s tail as well, which is obviously based on a true story…and although it’s heartbreaking, it’s also pretty beautiful and uplifting in showing that incredible dog/dog owner bond …

[Livia]

Yeah that was tough. All Dogs Go to Heaven was the saddest but was also a nice story (about them dying).

It's strange I can watch war films, gangster films, people getting shot and blown up all over the place but if a dog whimpers, I'm finished.

[bots]

The good news is that Ben is now prepared for a riot if one kicks off near him tonight. He bought a balaclava earlier

[Benjamin]

Woman in stitches after realising reason for husband's favourite washing machine cycle

When it comes to picking a washing machine cycle you'll likely take into consideration the material of the clothes being washed, how hot you want the water to be, and how long you want it to go on for.

But for one man, his favourite washing machine cycle has nothing to do with washing clothes. And his wife was recently in stitches after finding out his hilarious reasoning.

Taking to TikTok, content creator Roni Hughes asked her husband to repeat which washing cycle he usually uses, while trying to fight off laughter. Her husband replies that he usually goes "for the Mix one".

"And why, why do you select the Mix one," asked Roni, while giggling. Spoken completely calmly, the husband replies: "When you select the temperature it plays the Harry Potter theme tune."

Roni's husband demonstrates, and sure enough, the beeps made by the machine sound like Hedwig's Theme from the Wizarding World film franchise. Understandably, Roni, who "wasn't expecting that", she starts laughing.

Other social media users were also in fits of laughter, with one person saying: "This man has life figured out. Respect." Another commented saying: "I ran so quickly to our washing machine to try this. Mindblown!" "Omg. We have this washing machine I have just found my new cycle," said a third.

The washing machine brand appears to be Hisense. Mix washing machine cycles are usually designed for washing a mix of different fabrics and colours.

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/real-life-stories/woman-stitches-after-realising-reason-33360106

[Ammi]

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/real-life-stories/woman-stitches-after-realising-reason-33360106

…:laugh:…delicates, regular, cool wash or Hedwig’s…?…


wtHra9tFISY

[Benjamin]

Herd Of Cows Saves Stranded Baby Seal

Video link - https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/herd-of-cows-saves-stranded-baby-seal_n_6300fd42e4b00c150d61ee9e

[Ammi]

Morrisons opens 'Kids corner' with books, games and puzzles to keep entertained this summer…


It’s good news for families as Morrisons has launched Kids Activity Stations in partnership with the National Literacy Trust.
The project in all their stores is aimed at boosting literacy for children and their ‘Kids Corner’ includes a book swap, games and puzzles helping to make every visit into Morrisons supermarkets fun for kids and families this summer.
The idea builds on the Little Libraries which Morrisons launched in 2021 with Canterbury-based children’s author, Rebecca Smith who approached Morrisons asking for help to tackle the issues surrounding children’s literacy.
All of Morrisons 397 cafés nationwide will be kitted out with the stations which will host activity sheets and games to keep kids entertained whilst learning - free colouring crayons will also be available for kids to use.
Additionally, the ‘Kids Corner’ book swap scheme aims to keep reading skills sharp during the summer holidays.
When children have access to books, they are more likely to enjoy reading and be better readers.
Yet research conducted by National Literacy Trust shows that, due to the rising cost of living, 1 in 5 (20%) parents say they are buying fewer books for their children, increasing to 1 in 3 (36.1%) of those who are struggling financially as a result of the crisis.
The Morrisons Foundation, which supports charities making a positive difference in local communities, has donated £100,000 to fund the scheme.
In recent months, Morrisons has also introduced a range of child-friendly initiatives to keep little ones entertained during school holiday shopping trips.
Kids can now play shopkeeper at the child-friendly checkouts and have a go at scanning their items before taking them home.
Plus, child-sized trolleys are available for kids to mimic their parents’ shopping routine, making the shopping trip a fun and engaging experience.
In addition to the new Kids Activity Stations, Morrisons is reminding families of its Kids Eat Free offer.
Families can enjoy a complimentary child’s meal with the purchase of an adult main meal over £5, available daily for any child under 16 in Morrisons cafés nationwide.
As part of the deal, or for just £3.50, kids can enjoy a sandwich, snack, and drink.
With choices like ham or cheese sandwiches paired with snacks such as Hula Hoops, Babybels, fruit bags, flavoured milk, Robinsons Fruit Shoot, or Cawston Press Juice.
Are you doing something to help people or make the world a better place to live in? Let us know news@goodnewspost.co.uk
The hot meal options are sure to be a hit too, with favourites like Chicken Nuggets, Chips & Beans, Bangers and Mash, or the new Tomato and Cheese Beans Nachos, all typically priced at £3.50 each.
Joseph Clark-Bland, Morrisons Corporate Affairs Manager - Community & Morrisons Foundation, said: “We understand the importance of keeping children entertained and nourished during the summer holidays.
“By offering a fun way to hone their literacy skills alongside the National Literacy Trust, plus, free meals in our Cafés, we aim to support families and make every visit to Morrisons enjoyable and memorable.”
Jason Vit, Head of Local Areas at the National Literacy Trust, said: “We are thrilled to collaborate with Morrisons to create exciting spaces where children and families can access books and fun activities for free over the summer.
“When children have access to books and enjoy reading, it can boost their confidence and wellbeing and help them do better at school. But our research shows that too many children are missing out on these benefits because they don’t have books at home or at school.
“The Kids Activity Stations in Morrisons cafés will help more children and families unlock the magic of books this summer.”


https://goodnewspost.co.uk/morrisons-opens-kids-corner-with-books-games-and-puzzles-to-keep-entertained-this-summer/

[Ammi]

Herd Of Cows Saves Stranded Baby Seal

Video link - https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/herd-of-cows-saves-stranded-baby-seal_n_6300fd42e4b00c150d61ee9e

…seal of approval for the cows…?…we think so…:love:…

[Benjamin]

…seal of approval for the cows…?…we think so…:love:…

:laugh:

[Benjamin]

Morrisons opens 'Kids corner' with books, games and puzzles to keep entertained this summer…


It’s good news for families as Morrisons has launched Kids Activity Stations in partnership with the National Literacy Trust.
The project in all their stores is aimed at boosting literacy for children and their ‘Kids Corner’ includes a book swap, games and puzzles helping to make every visit into Morrisons supermarkets fun for kids and families this summer.
The idea builds on the Little Libraries which Morrisons launched in 2021 with Canterbury-based children’s author, Rebecca Smith who approached Morrisons asking for help to tackle the issues surrounding children’s literacy.
All of Morrisons 397 cafés nationwide will be kitted out with the stations which will host activity sheets and games to keep kids entertained whilst learning - free colouring crayons will also be available for kids to use.
Additionally, the ‘Kids Corner’ book swap scheme aims to keep reading skills sharp during the summer holidays.
When children have access to books, they are more likely to enjoy reading and be better readers.
Yet research conducted by National Literacy Trust shows that, due to the rising cost of living, 1 in 5 (20%) parents say they are buying fewer books for their children, increasing to 1 in 3 (36.1%) of those who are struggling financially as a result of the crisis.
The Morrisons Foundation, which supports charities making a positive difference in local communities, has donated £100,000 to fund the scheme.
In recent months, Morrisons has also introduced a range of child-friendly initiatives to keep little ones entertained during school holiday shopping trips.
Kids can now play shopkeeper at the child-friendly checkouts and have a go at scanning their items before taking them home.
Plus, child-sized trolleys are available for kids to mimic their parents’ shopping routine, making the shopping trip a fun and engaging experience.
In addition to the new Kids Activity Stations, Morrisons is reminding families of its Kids Eat Free offer.
Families can enjoy a complimentary child’s meal with the purchase of an adult main meal over £5, available daily for any child under 16 in Morrisons cafés nationwide.
As part of the deal, or for just £3.50, kids can enjoy a sandwich, snack, and drink.
With choices like ham or cheese sandwiches paired with snacks such as Hula Hoops, Babybels, fruit bags, flavoured milk, Robinsons Fruit Shoot, or Cawston Press Juice.
Are you doing something to help people or make the world a better place to live in? Let us know news@goodnewspost.co.uk
The hot meal options are sure to be a hit too, with favourites like Chicken Nuggets, Chips & Beans, Bangers and Mash, or the new Tomato and Cheese Beans Nachos, all typically priced at £3.50 each.
Joseph Clark-Bland, Morrisons Corporate Affairs Manager - Community & Morrisons Foundation, said: “We understand the importance of keeping children entertained and nourished during the summer holidays.
“By offering a fun way to hone their literacy skills alongside the National Literacy Trust, plus, free meals in our Cafés, we aim to support families and make every visit to Morrisons enjoyable and memorable.”
Jason Vit, Head of Local Areas at the National Literacy Trust, said: “We are thrilled to collaborate with Morrisons to create exciting spaces where children and families can access books and fun activities for free over the summer.
“When children have access to books and enjoy reading, it can boost their confidence and wellbeing and help them do better at school. But our research shows that too many children are missing out on these benefits because they don’t have books at home or at school.
“The Kids Activity Stations in Morrisons cafés will help more children and families unlock the magic of books this summer.”


https://goodnewspost.co.uk/morrisons-opens-kids-corner-with-books-games-and-puzzles-to-keep-entertained-this-summer/

That’s a great idea. :clap1:

[Ammi]

Newcastle United introduces ‘sound shirts’ for deaf supporters…


Newcastle United have collaborated on shirts that allow deaf fans to ‘feel’ the noise of St James’ Park for the first time
The roar of the crowd reacting to a match-clinching goal makes for an unforgettable sporting moment – and now deaf fans can ‘feel’ the electric big stadium atmosphere thanks to sensory ‘sound shirts’.

Newcastle United kit sponsor Sela developed the world-first tech alongside the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) to make live football more accessible to people with hearing loss.

It uses microphones placed around St James’ park to convert noise into digital sound. The data transmits wirelessly to shirts equipped with haptic technology – the same sensory feedback you get from typing on your phone – to recreate stadium noise as touch sensation.

It’s part of the Unsilence the Crowd campaign, an initiative that’s designed to provide an inclusive football experience for deaf fans. It follows research by the RNID which discovered that almost three-quarters of people who are deaf or have hearing loss believe haptics can improve the match-day experience.

Lifelong Magpies fans David Wilson and Ryan Gregson were among the first to road test the kit as they watched their team see off raiders Tottenham in a 4-0 win in April – and declared it a huge win. “For the first time, I felt included 100%,” said Gregson, speaking through a sign language interpreter. “To experience the noise through vibration was just wonderful.”
“I’ve never felt anything like it,” added Wilson.

Haptics secreted on different areas of the shirt signify specific crowd reactions. Vibrations in the shirt sleeves mean the home team is singing. Buzzing in the back of the shirt means an away goal. “It was very quiet round the back,” Gregson joked.

Sela, a Saudi Arabian events and marketing company, will now offer the tech at all Newcastle home ties, and hopes more clubs will follow its lead.

“We would welcome the whole football family to join us by adopting the technology. By acting now, we can collectively make watching live football matches an incredible experience for everyone who loves the game,” said Sela VP Ibrahim Mohtaseb.

Teri Devine, director for inclusion at RNID, added: “One in five adults in the UK are deaf or have hearing loss, but people often face barriers in everyday life – including in live sports events. It’s fantastic to see Sela and Newcastle United leading the way in championing this technology which has the potential to have a real and lasting impact on how people who are deaf and have hearing loss experience live sports.”

[Mystic Mock]

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/oklahoma-4-h-teen-gives-away-6000-backpacks-packed-with-1-3-million-in-school-supplies-to-families/

[Ammi]

Paralyzed Man Sets Off to Cycle Entire Length of Britain on a Motorized Bike Controlled by His Chin…


A 47-year-old paralyzed man hopes to become the first person to cycle the entire 1,000-mile length of Britain using a motorized bike controlled by his chin.

Andy Walker set off on his epic voyage from Lands End today, in a specially made quad-cycle with the goal of arriving at John O’Groats in two weeks—and he’s raising thousands for a charity involved in motor neuron disease (MND), an incurable brain condition.

The ex-competitive swimmer was 28 when he suffered a spinal cord injury after hitting a rock as he dove into the sea from Goa, India. He was left paralyzed from the neck down, and local doctors gave him just a one percent chance of survival.

But he refused to give up. He underwent a major operation at a hospital specializing in spinal injuries in Delhi, and was later flown back to England, where he spent a further eight months at Sheffield Northern Hospital.

“Since my accident, I’ve had absolute conviction and determination to lead a full and rewarding life,” said Walker. “Taking on these extreme challenges helps me continue to live my dream and make a difference to other people.”

Andy previously rode 350 miles across Kenya on a motorized quad bike and says he is motivated to complete these extreme charity challenges to “transform” the lives of others.

“This will be physically and mentally tough for me, but I’ll be able to get through it with the support of my friends and family, and knowing the money I raise will help transform the lives of so many people.”

Andy team, including his cousin Lisa and lifelong friend Alan, will be traveling across the country this month, taking in some of the UK’s most beautiful landscapes. They’ll start in Cornwall before heading through Shropshire, and then go up to the Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District, before reaching John O’Groats in Scotland.


One of Andy’s heroes is former rugby league star Rob Burrow who died recently at age 41 from MND, after relentlessly campaigning to raise awareness of the disease. A third of the money Andy raises on GoFundMe will go toward building the new Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease, in partnership with Leeds Hospitals Charity.

Paul Watkins, the director of fundraising for that charity, said Andy embodies the famed rugby player’s legacy.

“Andy is embodying Rob Burrow’s famous quote, ‘In a world full of adversity, we must dare to dream’.

“His positive attitude and determination has proved he can overcome his own barriers to inspire others.

“This challenge is an incredibly difficult one, so for someone to be doing that on a bike controlled only by their chin, is truly incredible.

In addition to raising money for charities, Andy has also set up a motivational speaking company, called Living Your Dreams, to help inspire others to live life to the fullest.

In 2019, Andy was awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire, a title bestowed on Brits for outstanding achievements or service to the community over the long term).

At the time, he said, “I’m a bit of a character… Getting awards and MBEs isn’t what my life is about.

“I try to support people—and that’s what the challenge was all about, raising money and awareness for such a great cause. I’ve had so much support from my family and from the charity, so if I can help somebody I will.

“My main aim has been to prove that life goes on.”

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/paralyzed-man-sets-off-to-cycle-entire-length-of-britain-on-a-motorized-bike-controlled-by-his-chin/





…Andy…:lovedup:…an incredible guy…

[Benjamin]

Paralyzed Man Sets Off to Cycle Entire Length of Britain on a Motorized Bike Controlled by His Chin…


A 47-year-old paralyzed man hopes to become the first person to cycle the entire 1,000-mile length of Britain using a motorized bike controlled by his chin.

Andy Walker set off on his epic voyage from Lands End today, in a specially made quad-cycle with the goal of arriving at John O’Groats in two weeks—and he’s raising thousands for a charity involved in motor neuron disease (MND), an incurable brain condition.

The ex-competitive swimmer was 28 when he suffered a spinal cord injury after hitting a rock as he dove into the sea from Goa, India. He was left paralyzed from the neck down, and local doctors gave him just a one percent chance of survival.

But he refused to give up. He underwent a major operation at a hospital specializing in spinal injuries in Delhi, and was later flown back to England, where he spent a further eight months at Sheffield Northern Hospital.

“Since my accident, I’ve had absolute conviction and determination to lead a full and rewarding life,” said Walker. “Taking on these extreme challenges helps me continue to live my dream and make a difference to other people.”

Andy previously rode 350 miles across Kenya on a motorized quad bike and says he is motivated to complete these extreme charity challenges to “transform” the lives of others.

“This will be physically and mentally tough for me, but I’ll be able to get through it with the support of my friends and family, and knowing the money I raise will help transform the lives of so many people.”

Andy team, including his cousin Lisa and lifelong friend Alan, will be traveling across the country this month, taking in some of the UK’s most beautiful landscapes. They’ll start in Cornwall before heading through Shropshire, and then go up to the Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District, before reaching John O’Groats in Scotland.


One of Andy’s heroes is former rugby league star Rob Burrow who died recently at age 41 from MND, after relentlessly campaigning to raise awareness of the disease. A third of the money Andy raises on GoFundMe will go toward building the new Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease, in partnership with Leeds Hospitals Charity.

Paul Watkins, the director of fundraising for that charity, said Andy embodies the famed rugby player’s legacy.

“Andy is embodying Rob Burrow’s famous quote, ‘In a world full of adversity, we must dare to dream’.

“His positive attitude and determination has proved he can overcome his own barriers to inspire others.

“This challenge is an incredibly difficult one, so for someone to be doing that on a bike controlled only by their chin, is truly incredible.

In addition to raising money for charities, Andy has also set up a motivational speaking company, called Living Your Dreams, to help inspire others to live life to the fullest.

In 2019, Andy was awarded the MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire, a title bestowed on Brits for outstanding achievements or service to the community over the long term).

At the time, he said, “I’m a bit of a character… Getting awards and MBEs isn’t what my life is about.

“I try to support people—and that’s what the challenge was all about, raising money and awareness for such a great cause. I’ve had so much support from my family and from the charity, so if I can help somebody I will.

“My main aim has been to prove that life goes on.”

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/paralyzed-man-sets-off-to-cycle-entire-length-of-britain-on-a-motorized-bike-controlled-by-his-chin/





…Andy…:lovedup:…an incredible guy…

Good on him :love:

[Ammi]

Good news as England’s first official Hedgehog crossings installed…

England's first official hedgehog crossing road signs have been unveiled in Kingston, south-west London.
Some 150,000 hedgehogs are killed every year on roads across the country. Experts believe that these deaths are contributing to the animal’s decline in the UK.
Kingston council have now installed four newly approved crossing signs in Old Malden where about 100 of these animals thrive in the large gardens and green spaces.
The new signs feature a hedgehog with white quills inside a red triangle, designed to be easily visible to drivers.
This design was approved by the Department for Transport in December last year.

https://i.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExY3o2bXF0eDQxZGk5eGw0enZwcG4ya2R 3cjIzeHF5aWdlb3EwNW40diZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfY nlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/aRUzQgxa63Ali/giphy.gif


…marvellous hedgehog advancement…:flutter:…

[Benjamin]

Blind woman 'nervous but excited' about skydive


A blind woman doing a skydive to raise money for charity says she is "nervous but excited" - and expects her guide dog to be excited too.

Louann Kent is doing the tandem skydive to raise money for Guide Dogs, external, which partnered her with Ugo the golden retriever back in 2017.

Mrs Kent, who is from Derby, said Ugo had transformed her life and enabled her to do things independently.

Ugo will not be accompanying her on the tandem skydive on Saturday, but will be waiting on the ground for her to land.

"I think he'll be excited but he just gets excited about everything," she said.

"He'll just start wagging his tail and wonder what's going on."

Louann, who lives in Chaddesden, was born with high myopia and wore glasses and contact lenses from a young age.

As she got older she had complications from the myopia, and her sight started to deteriorate while she was pregnant with her second child in 2004.

She said losing her sight while looking after two young children was difficult.

"It was quite frustrating really," she said.

"I used to have to pick my children up from nursery and I couldn't see in the dark.

"I can always remember walking back and trying to avoid all the bushes. There were lots of difficult times."

By the time her third child was born in 2012 she had completely lost her sight.

Louann decided to get a guide dog so she could take her son to school independently, and she was partnered with Ugo in 2017.

"I can always remember the day I did it all on my own and the feeling was amazing, to be able to take him to school, drop him off and come home on my own," she said.

"My heart was beating all the way, it was pounding out my chest, it was so scary. But that feeling of doing it, walking on your own, normally at a normal walking pace, it's amazing."

She described Ugo as "amazing" and "the most loving dog".

"Even now at the age of nine he still gets excited, and he's so loving, he follows me around everywhere at home," she said.

She decided to do the charity skydive after finding out about it in a Facebook post, and has already raised more than £1,000 through sponsorship.

Although she has always wanted to do a skydive, she is also apprehensive.

"I think it's more the fact that I can't see and I've got hearing loss as well, I'm thinking am I going to be communicating OK?" she said.

She is one of more than 100 people across the UK who are taking part in 12 different skydive events for Guide Dogs, which they have nicknamed Blind Panic.
Collectively they are hoping to raise £100,000.

Claire Robotham, a fundraising manager for Guide Dogs, said: “We’d like to say a big thank you to Louann and all the volunteers taking part in the Blind Panic challenge, helping to raise vital funds for our organisation.

“As a charity we rely almost entirely on donations and fundraising, so every penny she raises will help make a difference to people living with sight loss."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ck7gwmzp899o

[Benjamin]

Crisp packets, bread bags and yoghurt tops to get a new life as furniture for NHS gardens

Thousands of pieces of soft plastics, such as bread bags and crisp packets, dropped off by customers at Tesco stores are to get a new lease of life as outdoor furniture and garden equipment in a series of community gardens being designed for NHS Property Services.

Veolia has introduced an innovative recycling process that can turn soft plastic, which previously was difficult to recycle, into items such as benches, decking, tables and raised beds.

The recycled gardening products will be donated to the NHSPS Social Prescribing Programme to introduce nature around health centres for use by patients and the local community.

The programme, being coordinated by environmental and community charity Groundwork and in partnership with government-owned health estate organisation NHS Property Services and the UK’s leading resource management company Veolia, will see gardens created in community locations across the country with furniture and equipment made entirely from hundreds of thousands of pieces of soft plastic returned to store by Tesco customers.

A bench alone uses more than 2,500 pieces of soft plastic to create.

The first of the  gardens will be created at the John Scott Health Centre in London, owned by NHS Property Services, and will include trellising, decking, raised beds, seating and tables all made from recycled bread bags, crisp packets, yoghurt tops and other pieces of soft plastic.

The garden is one of the 100 hubs and green spaces designed and delivered as a part of NHSPS’ social prescribing programme.

Social prescribing aims to provide non-clinical routes to treatment for people with a range of social or health issues, giving them more choice and freedom to receive the support they need.

By addressing the root causes of ill health and enhancing overall wellbeing, social prescribing has emerged as a powerful tool in the healthcare landscape. Demand on the voluntary sector to deliver services that can help address specific social needs is increasing. And through strategic partnerships with Integrated Care Boards, Trusts, GPs, and the voluntary sector, NHSPS has been identifying and redeveloping vacant space in its portfolio to help support local communities this way.

Further projects are planned at: Tarleton Health Centre, Preston; Maghull Health Centre, Merseyside; Goscote Hospice, Walsall; Shaw House, St Austell and Whitby Community Hospital.

Tony McElroy, Tesco Head of Campaigns, said: “It’s fantastic to see the soft plastic that our customers are returning being turned into something new that will benefit communities and help give young people a stronger start in life.

It’s still our absolute priority to remove and reduce as much plastic as possible and make sure everything we use is recycled and kept out of the environment.”

Dr. Min Rodriguez, Head of Social Impact at NHSPS, said: "We are really proud of the impact our social prescribing sites have had on individuals and communities – just between 2022 and 2023 we have reached 60,000 patients. This collaboration with Tesco, Veolia and Groundworks highlights the potential of innovative partnerships to not only create vibrant spaces for public benefit but also to drive positive change in healthcare and environmental sustainability. And it’s particularly special that we are repurposing soft plastics instead of increasing waste.”

Graham Duxbury, Groundwork’s UK Chief Executive, said: “This is a great example of innovative thinking to minimise plastic waste while improving much needed open spaces in local communities. We’re proud to be playing our part in delivering this project with the sustainable design expertise and nature-based solutions brought by our Landscape Architects and look forward to seeing the benefits it brings to communities and the environment.”

Adam Wylie, Managing Director - Commercial, at Veolia said: “It’s great to be working on this unique project which brings together three of our partners: Tesco, one of our most innovative partnerships that is bolstering the circular economy; with the NHS in providing energy, decarbonisation and resource management solutions; and Groundwork as our charity partner and with whom we have delivered ambitious social value campaigns across the country to support the local communities we serve every day.

“Utilising recycled materials in green spaces and collaborating across private and public bodies to deliver these social prescribing gardens is a testament to how we can and must all work together to deliver ecological transformation.”

Dr Mareeni Raymond, GP Principal, said: “The Heron Practice is a Greener Practice Silver award winning team who recognise the importance of reducing health inequalities and improving health outcomes by being outdoors, having cleaner air and taking part in activities for mental and physical health. We have been so pleased to be able to support patients through social prescribing and volunteer-led community activities including medication, exercise and now, a patient and staff gardening group.

 "Watching a derelict wasted space become transformed into a haven of flowers and edible plants has been positive for our team and we look forward to nurturing the space, connecting communities and enjoying home grown plant-based food as part of our continuing journey as a practice.”
 
Tesco’s 4Rs packaging strategy aims to remove plastic where it can, reduce where it can't, reuse more and recycle what's left. To date, Tesco over 2.3 billion pieces of plastic have been permanently removed from Tesco own brand products in the UK, including:

●    200+ million bags from Tesco.com deliveries
●    100+ million extra lids from products such as wipes, creams, yoghurts and desserts
●    50 million pieces of plastic wrapping from cans of branded beers and ciders

https://goodnewspost.co.uk/crisp-packets-bread-bags-and-yoghurt-tops-to-get-a-new-life-as-furniture-for-nhs-gardens/

[Benjamin]

Could a mod/admin possibly sticky this thread please?

[Ammi]

…this story is from May 2024, so a few months ago but still a good story to know…

From living on a bench to hosting huge lockdown quizzes…

A once homeless man who shot to fame during the Covid pandemic when his virtual pub quiz went viral around the world has shared his "inspiring" life story in a new book.
Jay Flynn's weekly quiz became a lifeline for millions who struggled with the isolation of lockdown and raised more than £1m for charity.
It also earned Jay a regular quiz slot on Zoe Ball’s Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 2.
It's certainly been remarkable rags-to-riches story for the now 41-year-old from Darwen, Lancashire.
Jay had been homeless for two years and slept on a riverside bench on the Embankment in London.
He said he could see no way out before he was "saved" by a homeless charity 15 years ago.
"I hit rock bottom, fell through rock bottom and went even further down," he said.
"They rebuilt me so I could integrate back into society and become the person I am today."
In his newly published autobiography, The Quizmaster: From Life on the Streets to a Global Quizzing Sensation, Jay said he wanted to show that "sometimes you can find the answers you’re seeking in the most unexpected places".

After turning his life around, Jay became a pub landlord in Lancashire and ran a weekly quiz night.
When the Covid restrictions came in, he moved the quiz online, intending for it to only be for his regulars.
"I wanted to do something for the quiz teams in Darwen because I knew some of them would be on their own," he explained.
"I put a message on my social media and it went viral and blew up.
"By the time that first quiz came around there were half a million people interested and around 250,000 watched - it was the best of mistakes I've ever made in my life!"
Word spread fast and the quiz was soon attracting millions of views as well as celebrity guests.
Jay said lots of people wanted to monetise it on his behalf but "I am not for that in any way shape or form - it was supposed to be something for people to enjoy."
And so he thought it would be better if charities could benefit instead.
"We raised £200,000 for Alzheimer's research the day Steven Fry was on," he said.
"For someone like me who never claims to be a professional quiz host to suddenly go from not being well known to having Stephen Fry and Jonathon Ross appearing on a quiz of mine just doesn't feel real."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ck7lgr7m1z1o

[Ammi]

An orangutan mom lost 2 babies. Then a zoo brought in 30 women to teach her how to breastfeed...


For months, 30 women breastfed their babies in front of a pregnant orangutan as part of a plan to teach the expecting mother how to care for her newborn at the Dublin Zoo in Ireland.

Mujur, a critically endangered Bornean orangutan, had given birth twice before, but both of her babies died, with Mujur failing to show the maternal qualities needed to keep them alive, the zoo said Tuesday. So when she became pregnant again, the zoo hatched a plan for a unique parenting class.

"In preparation for the birth of this newborn, Dublin Zoo has been working with Mujur for months, leaving no stone unturned in our efforts to give her the best chance possible to develop these necessary maternal qualities," the zoo said.


In 2016, when the International Union for Conservation of Nature listed Borenan orangutans as a critically endangered species, the organization noted the animal's population was on the decline. The organization estimated there were around 104,700 Bornean orangutans at the time — a sharp decline from an estimated 288,500 animals in 1973. The numbers could drop to just 47,000 by 2025, the conservation organization warned. Major threats to the species include habitat loss, illegal hunting, fires and climate change.

Orangutan females typically give birth every three to five years, and only to one infant at a time, the Dublin Zoo said. Orangutans have the longest period of dependence on the mother of any land-dwelling animal, including humans, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo. Newborn orangutans are completely dependent on their mothers for food and transportation for the first few years of their lives.

"This means that maternal qualities are absolutely vital for the wellbeing of the infant," the Dublin Zoo said.

To teach 19-year-old Mujur the maternal skills she needed, the Dublin Zoo showed the pregnant orangutan videos of other orangutans feeding their babies. The zoo also asked for volunteers from lactation groups in Dublin and surrounding areas.

"Mujur was extremely interested in watching the women feed their babies through the glass, even mirroring some of their actions," the zoo said.

Mujur did show maternal care toward her son after his July 31 birth, but she wasn't putting him in the right position for feeding. The zoo typically would not intervene, but because of the importance of the newborn orangutan and his genetic profile — inherited from his father, who died in February at age 45 — the zoo ultimately separated the unnamed newborn orangutan from Mujur and began bottle-feeding him.


He's getting around the clock care now and will eventually be cared for by Monkey World, a specialist institution in the U.K. that's more suited to hand-raising orangutans.

"The whole team has already fallen hopelessly in love with him, and it will be difficult to say goodbye, however we are confident that he is being sent to the best possible place for him to continue to develop and thrive," the Dublin Zoo said.


https://assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com/hub/i/r/2024/08/14/89e96764-5c0d-4a5d-aedd-43cc1c7cde54/thumbnail/1240x826/d8e5b9157072c2905870cfb37147965d/3e3a9493.jpg?v=d8f7565ef3e8b72561ee316b5993cbf9

[Benjamin]

An orangutan mom lost 2 babies. Then a zoo brought in 30 women to teach her how to breastfeed...


For months, 30 women breastfed their babies in front of a pregnant orangutan as part of a plan to teach the expecting mother how to care for her newborn at the Dublin Zoo in Ireland.

Mujur, a critically endangered Bornean orangutan, had given birth twice before, but both of her babies died, with Mujur failing to show the maternal qualities needed to keep them alive, the zoo said Tuesday. So when she became pregnant again, the zoo hatched a plan for a unique parenting class.

"In preparation for the birth of this newborn, Dublin Zoo has been working with Mujur for months, leaving no stone unturned in our efforts to give her the best chance possible to develop these necessary maternal qualities," the zoo said.


In 2016, when the International Union for Conservation of Nature listed Borenan orangutans as a critically endangered species, the organization noted the animal's population was on the decline. The organization estimated there were around 104,700 Bornean orangutans at the time — a sharp decline from an estimated 288,500 animals in 1973. The numbers could drop to just 47,000 by 2025, the conservation organization warned. Major threats to the species include habitat loss, illegal hunting, fires and climate change.

Orangutan females typically give birth every three to five years, and only to one infant at a time, the Dublin Zoo said. Orangutans have the longest period of dependence on the mother of any land-dwelling animal, including humans, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo. Newborn orangutans are completely dependent on their mothers for food and transportation for the first few years of their lives.

"This means that maternal qualities are absolutely vital for the wellbeing of the infant," the Dublin Zoo said.

To teach 19-year-old Mujur the maternal skills she needed, the Dublin Zoo showed the pregnant orangutan videos of other orangutans feeding their babies. The zoo also asked for volunteers from lactation groups in Dublin and surrounding areas.

"Mujur was extremely interested in watching the women feed their babies through the glass, even mirroring some of their actions," the zoo said.

Mujur did show maternal care toward her son after his July 31 birth, but she wasn't putting him in the right position for feeding. The zoo typically would not intervene, but because of the importance of the newborn orangutan and his genetic profile — inherited from his father, who died in February at age 45 — the zoo ultimately separated the unnamed newborn orangutan from Mujur and began bottle-feeding him.


He's getting around the clock care now and will eventually be cared for by Monkey World, a specialist institution in the U.K. that's more suited to hand-raising orangutans.

"The whole team has already fallen hopelessly in love with him, and it will be difficult to say goodbye, however we are confident that he is being sent to the best possible place for him to continue to develop and thrive," the Dublin Zoo said.


https://assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com/hub/i/r/2024/08/14/89e96764-5c0d-4a5d-aedd-43cc1c7cde54/thumbnail/1240x826/d8e5b9157072c2905870cfb37147965d/3e3a9493.jpg?v=d8f7565ef3e8b72561ee316b5993cbf9

orangu


Soo cute :love:

[Ammi]

orangu


Soo cute :love:

…:laugh:…: orangu :…:love:…

[Benjamin]

Oooh orangu has been removed from the swear filter hahahaha

https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/facebook/000/010/606/orangutan_square.jpg

[Ammi]

…I’m so dumb, I honestly don’t know why it was ever filtered…but I think the forum was like a different universe in the nightime hours and that was back in the day when it was all sept up before morning broke so, so much I didn’t understand…:laugh:…

[Ammi]

Oooh orangu has been removed from the swear filter hahahaha

https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/facebook/000/010/606/orangutan_square.jpg

..that’s a big ol’ orangu there…just because you can…:laugh:…

[AnnieK]

Could a mod/admin possibly sticky this thread please?

Done :love:

[Benjamin]

Done :love:

Ledge :love:

[Maru]

…I’m so dumb, I honestly don’t know why it was ever filtered…but I think the forum was like a different universe in the nightime hours and that was back in the day when it was all sept up before morning broke so, so much I didn’t understand…:laugh:…

Imagine how it feels in this timezone :laugh: It's like 3pm or so here while it's 8-9pm there... depending on Daylight savings time. Makes dealing with shifting BB schedules fun, not even accounting for when it moves to another channel :laugh: By the time I've caught up I'm only talking to TiBB's zombies...

[Ammi]

Imagine how it feels in this timezone :laugh: It's like 3pm or so here while it's 8-9pm there... depending on Daylight savings time. Makes dealing with shifting BB schedules fun, not even accounting for when it moves to another channel :laugh: By the time I've caught up I'm only talking to TiBB's zombies...

….ahhhh, I hadn’t thought of it that way…that you must always feel like a ‘morning bird’ to the night owl of others because of the time zone differences and often feel as though you’re on catch up….yeah, I do relate to that because so many members were night owls when I joined and it wasn’t just that feeling that ‘you had to be there’ to get the in jokes, you know…?..but also, when I logged on…?…the general vibe was alway…ok, time to log off now, it’s time for sleep…

[Benjamin]

Giant panda twins born to oldest first-time mum

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/38cb/live/93c3c9a0-5b83-11ef-8454-799cad427daf.jpg.webp

Hong Kong is celebrating the birth of twin giant pandas by its beloved Ying Ying, who is a first-time mum.

The birth is a "true rarity" as their mother is the oldest giant panda on record to give birth for the first time.
Ying Ying delivered the cubs on Thursday, one day before her 19th birthday. If she were a human, she would be the equivalent of a 57-year-old.

A photo of the twins - a male and a female - has received over a thousand congratulatory comments on Facebook.

The cubs are currently "very fragile and need time to stabilise" under 24-hour intensive care, according to their caretakers.

"We are all looking forward to meet the giant panda cubs. Please wait a few months patiently to make their debut and officially meet everyone!" Ocean Park Hong Kong said.

Of Ying Ying's twins, the female cub appears to be more fragile because her body temperature is lower and her cries are weaker compared to her brother, the park operator said. She weighs just 122g.

Ying Ying was "understandably nervous" during birth and spent most of the time lying and twisting on the ground, Ocean Park said.

Giant pandas are notoriously reluctant to mate. Ying Ying and the twins' father, Le Le, have been housed at Ocean Park since 2007, when they were gifted to Hong Kong by Beijing. They mated successfully in March.

China's long-term conservation effort has reversed the population decline of giant pandas. They are now considered a vulnerable species and no longer endangered.

Aside from serving as theme park attractions, pandas have also figured in China's diplomatic efforts.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1l5mdq31ejo

[Ammi]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1l5mdq31ejo

…:lovedup:…can you imagine if they stayed pink …how much would we want a pink panda pet…:flutter:…

…well done Ling Ling and Ye Ye on their two gorgeous gorgeous babies…:love:…

[Ammi]

Rapper Flavor Flav and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian team up to help Olympian Veronica Fraley pay her rent…


…a few weeks late with the story, but…


Ahead of her Olympics debut, track and field athlete Veronica Fraley had a more pressing concern on her mind than the Games: paying her rent on time.

Fraley, 24, lamented her situation on social media Thursday as she prepared for her women's discus throw qualification round in Paris.

"I compete in the Olympic Games TOMORROW and can’t even pay my rent," Fraley, is the 2024 NCAA discus champion, wrote on X. "my school only sent about 75% of my rent while they pay football players (who haven’t won anything) enough to buy new cars and houses"

Her post quickly drew the attention of rapper Flavor Flav and Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, who both responded online pledging to help by sending Fraley some money directly.

"I gotchu,,, DM me and I’ll send payment TODAY so you don’t have to worry bout it TOMORROW," Flav replied Thursday on X, "and imma be rooting for ya tomorrow LETZ GO,!!!

Flav, a founding member and the hype man of Public Enemy, has become known as a hype man for U.S. women's water polo. He sponsored the team after player Maggie Steffens shared an Instagram post mentioning that many Olympians must work multiple jobs to support their athletic careers.

Ohanian, who is married to gold medal-winning tennis champion Serena Williams, also pledged to help Fraley on Thursday. He shared a screenshot of a $7,760 Venmo payment he sent her, writing that he chose that amount because he liked the number (it alludes to his venture capital firm, Seven Seven Six).

Fraley did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A representative for Ohanian declined to comment.

A representative for Flav confirmed that he paid Fraley's rent in full. The representative did not disclose how much was sent.

Flav said through the representative that he is "happy to help out those who are representing the best of us. This is exactly why I’m in Paris and the awareness I been trying to bring to these athletes needs."

Fraley's post has generated an outpouring of sympathy from internet users who expressed shock that an Olympian wasn’t earning enough to make ends meet.

Fraley, who competed for Clemson University from 2019 to 2021, finished 10th overall in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, according to her bio page on the official athletic site of the Vanderbilt Commodores.

She is pursuing her second master’s degree from Vanderbilt in human development studies, according to a news release from the university’s athletic department. As a graduate student this year, she won a bronze medal in the discus at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials.

"Thanks for the supporting messages but I want to clarify my irritation isn’t with the school itself, mainly the rules that bar me from making the amount I’m WORTH as a collegiate athlete such as NIL which favors popularity over performance," Fraley later wrote on X. "that’s all I’m sayin. Wish me luck tm!"

"NIL" is short for "name, image and likeness"; college athletes are allowed to be paid for the use of their names, images and likenesses in accordance with their states' laws.

A spokesperson for Vanderbilt, which is in Nashville, Tennessee, referred NBC News to a statement it issued on its website, in which the university said it provided Fraley “with the maximum financial aid consistent with NCAA regulations.”

“We also help our student-athletes navigate name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities, acknowledging that these are completely separate and independent of the university by NCAA regulations and state law,” the university said Friday. “We congratulate Veronica not only on her many athletic accomplishments but also for completing her courses to earn her master’s degree. It is exciting that this Vanderbilt graduate is representing the United States at the 2024 Olympic Games.”

In her X post, Fraley thanked Flavor Flav directly and shared Ohanian's post.

"this makes every difference in the WORLD & I hope to represent team USA well this week," she wrote.

She also shared a link to a GoFundMe campaign, asking for support from the broader public.

“After Paris, I am aiming for the 2025 World Championships and 2028 Olympics next as I begin my professional track and field career!” she wrote on X.

[Benjamin]

Stray Pup Chases a Doggie Day-Care Bus and Gets Adopted

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/imrs-2-e1724235647489.jpg
Nellie, left, and Waylon ride the Keller Creek Boarding and Grooming pup bus in Franklin County, Georgia. Waylon was later adopted by one of the daycare’s clients. (Keller Creek Boarding and Grooming)

A determined Lab has found a new home in Georgia after galloping alongside a doggie daycare bus until he won over the driver and found a new home.

In Franklin County, the story begins when the driver of the ‘pup bus’ was doing his rounds to bring clients’ dogs to daycare.

Coming to a house he knew well, a Labrador retriever who had been attending Keller Creek Boarding and Grooming for three years named Motley was waiting for the bus like normal, but this time he had a friend.

Tyson Cash, the owner of Keller Creek, contacted Motley’s owners to ask who the new arrival was, but to his double surprise, the owners said they had not adopted any new dogs.

They added, however, that a stray Lab had been in the area for a few days and neighbors were feeding and occasionally letting it stay on their property. Keller Creek is a reputable doggie daycare center, and Cash couldn’t take the risk of letting a stray onboard. So after loading Motley, he closed the door.

“I didn’t know about his vaccination status. I didn’t know if he was on flea and tick prevention,” said Cash. “I didn’t want to jeopardize all the other dogs, [but] he wanted on the bus badly. He was doing everything he could to get on with the other dogs.”

Steeling himself, he drove off, but the yellow Lab gave chase. Heart aching, Cash asked his wife to take a video and photo of the dog alongside the bus to post on social media to see if anyone in the area knew who his owners were.

A crazy dog dad through and through, Cash was pondering if there were any way he could find room in his house—filled with 9 other pooches as things stood—for this dog desperate for company. But fate, fortune, and a friendly soul stayed Cash’s hand.

Also onboard the pup bus was Nellie, another yellow Lab, whose owner saw the Facebook post and felt even worse than Cash did.

“To see a dog so desperate to catch a ride was very heartbreaking,” she told the Washington Post. “I thought, I’ve got to reach out and see if anybody has a home for this dog. If not, I want him.”

Ask and you shall receive. Pearce was put in contact with a woman who had been allowing the stray to stay on her property—she called him Waylon, but her two dogs were entering heat, so she had to cast him off yet again.

Pearce and her boyfriend went to bring the dog to the vet as he was in bad shape; covered in ticks and fleas, and suffering from malnourishment. They also found that Waylon had a microchip—the manufacturer of which was able to organize a transfer of ownership from the previous owners to Pearce without the latter learning anything about the former..

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/imrs-3-e1724237166327.jpg
Nellie, left, snuggling with Waylon credit – Sadie Peace

Now Nellie and Waylon are the best of friends, following each other everywhere, and the Pearce home has become one of joy and cuddles.

Last week, Waylon finally got his wish—a ride on the pup bus when he climbed aboard alongside his new sister much to Cash’s delight, who said it was the best ending to the story anyone could have hoped for.

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/stray-pup-chases-a-doggie-day-care-bus-and-gets-adopted/

[Ammi]

…Nellie and Waylon…:lovedup:…gorgeous story…

[Maru]

Old story, but this is the business right here...

https://i.postimg.cc/p9RbRxbJ/pic-with-judge-rodwin.jpg (https://postimg.cc/p9RbRxbJ)
Five siblings who were in foster care celebrate Thanksgiving together thanks to a single father who adopted them
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/foster-dad-lamont-thomas-adopts-five-siblings/

[Benjamin]

Old story, but this is the business right here...

https://i.postimg.cc/p9RbRxbJ/pic-with-judge-rodwin.jpg (https://postimg.cc/p9RbRxbJ)
Five siblings who were in foster care celebrate Thanksgiving together thanks to a single father who adopted them
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/foster-dad-lamont-thomas-adopts-five-siblings/

Awww :love:

[Ammi]

Old story, but this is the business right here...

https://i.postimg.cc/p9RbRxbJ/pic-with-judge-rodwin.jpg (https://postimg.cc/p9RbRxbJ)
Five siblings who were in foster care celebrate Thanksgiving together thanks to a single father who adopted them
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/foster-dad-lamont-thomas-adopts-five-siblings/

…:lovedup:…always so lovely to hear when siblings are able to stay together…

[hijaxers]

It sure is and they are lovely and should stay together.

[Ammi]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ck7gwmzp899o

…just connecting this story and the sky diving theme…

Woman to mark 102nd birthday by breaking skydiving record…


A woman from Suffolk plans to mark her 102nd birthday on Sunday with a record-breaking skydive.

Manette Baillie will become the oldest person in Britain to skydive when she jumps from a plane over East Anglia on Sunday.

It will also mark the first time she has ever done it.

She will be completing the challenge from Beccles Airfield to raise money for three causes: the East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA), the Motor Neurone Disease Association and Benhall Village Hall.

Ms Baillie, who served in the Woman's Royal Naval Service (WRENS) in Egypt during the Second World War, told the EAAA: "You must always look for something new.

"I was once married to a paratrooper but have never done it [a skydive] myself."


Well wishes and donations have come in from parachutists and experts studying how best to live fulfilling lives well into old age, and Ms Baillie has even received a personal letter from the Prince of Wales ahead of the challenge.

The almost 102-year-old, who still drives, is no stranger to pushing herself to her limits - she celebrated her 100th birthday behind the wheel of a Ferrari racing car at Silverstone, reaching a speed of 130mph.

"Community, friends and being among people is my secret to a fulfilling life," she said.

"Keep busy, be interested in everything, be kind to those around you and let them be kind to you. And don't forget to party."

In a statement, the EAAA said: "We love hearing about the inspirational stories from EAAA supporters, so we were completely overwhelmed when we heard about Manette's kindness and her exciting plans to celebrate her 102nd birthday."

It added: "From everybody at East Anglian Air Ambulance, a heartfelt thank you and happy birthday, Manette."

The record for the oldest person ever to skydive belongs to 106-year-old Texan Alfred "Al" Blaschke.


…her jump is today, Go Manette…!!!!!!….:love:…


https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/zn18eGinmeAAsVB8yiYABg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyODA7aD03NjA-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/sky.com/10f2dcdc7e9aa46ce260b60c60bb0926

…a very stylish lady…

[Ammi]

…just connecting this story and the sky diving theme…

Woman to mark 102nd birthday by breaking skydiving record…


A woman from Suffolk plans to mark her 102nd birthday on Sunday with a record-breaking skydive.

Manette Baillie will become the oldest person in Britain to skydive when she jumps from a plane over East Anglia on Sunday.

It will also mark the first time she has ever done it.

She will be completing the challenge from Beccles Airfield to raise money for three causes: the East Anglian Air Ambulance (EAAA), the Motor Neurone Disease Association and Benhall Village Hall.

Ms Baillie, who served in the Woman's Royal Naval Service (WRENS) in Egypt during the Second World War, told the EAAA: "You must always look for something new.

"I was once married to a paratrooper but have never done it [a skydive] myself."


Well wishes and donations have come in from parachutists and experts studying how best to live fulfilling lives well into old age, and Ms Baillie has even received a personal letter from the Prince of Wales ahead of the challenge.

The almost 102-year-old, who still drives, is no stranger to pushing herself to her limits - she celebrated her 100th birthday behind the wheel of a Ferrari racing car at Silverstone, reaching a speed of 130mph.

"Community, friends and being among people is my secret to a fulfilling life," she said.

"Keep busy, be interested in everything, be kind to those around you and let them be kind to you. And don't forget to party."

In a statement, the EAAA said: "We love hearing about the inspirational stories from EAAA supporters, so we were completely overwhelmed when we heard about Manette's kindness and her exciting plans to celebrate her 102nd birthday."

It added: "From everybody at East Anglian Air Ambulance, a heartfelt thank you and happy birthday, Manette."

The record for the oldest person ever to skydive belongs to 106-year-old Texan Alfred "Al" Blaschke.


…her jump is today, Go Manette…!!!!!!….:love:…


https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/zn18eGinmeAAsVB8yiYABg--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyODA7aD03NjA-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/sky.com/10f2dcdc7e9aa46ce260b60c60bb0926

…a very stylish lady…

…a vid of Manette’s sky dive at the weekend, what an incredible lady…:love:…she really is what superstars are made of…

BR9Jd5wU1Vc

[Benjamin]

…a vid of Manette’s sky dive at the weekend, what an incredible lady…:love:…she really is what superstars are made of…

BR9Jd5wU1Vc

I saw this too. Love her so much. :love:

[Ammi]

I saw this too. Love her so much. :love:

…Manette is an absolute babe, isn’t she…? …when I’m 102 yrs old, she’s who I want to be…:love:…

[Benjamin]

…Manette is an absolute babe, isn’t she…? …when I’m 102 yrs old, she’s who I want to be…:love:…

Same haha.

[Benjamin]

A boy was in tears because he didn't have PJs for Pajamas Day. His bus driver came to the rescue

https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-560w,f_avif,q_auto:eco,dpr_2/rockcms/2024-02/PAJAMA-DAY-BUS-DRIVER-MC-240215-5a0c62.jpg
Bus driver Larry Farrish Jr. made sure Levi was able to participate in Pajama Day at school

School bus driver Larry Farrish Jr. is known in his community for going above and beyond. Now he’s touching the hearts of strangers after an act of kindness went viral.

Farrish Jr., who drives buses in Louisville, Kentucky, recently noticed a little boy named Levi was having a rough morning.

“Normally when I pull up, he’s standing there waiting for me with a big smile, but on this day, he was sitting on the ground with a jacket over his head,” Farrish Jr., 35, tells TODAY.com. “I asked him, ‘Hey buddy, what’s going on? What’s wrong?’”

That’s when Levi, a first grader at Engelhard Elementary School, explained through tears that he didn’t have pajamas for Pajama Day. Farrish Jr. closed the doors, and watched as Levi slid into a seat away from his friends.

Farrish Jr. says knowing that Levi wanted to participate but couldn't, filled him with sadness.

“I thought, ‘I gotta fix this,” Farrish Jr. says.

After Farrish Jr. finished up his morning routes, he headed to a Family Dollar store and purchased two pairs of pajamas for Levi. Then he headed over to Levi’s school to make things right.

“I said, ‘You were hurting this morning, you were crying,so I got you these pajamas,” Farrish Jr. recalls. “He was so excited — you should’ve seen how his face lit up.”

Farrish Jr. adds that Levi hugged the pajamas to his chest.

https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-760w,f_avif,q_auto:eco,dpr_2/rockcms/2024-02/PAJAMA-DAY-BUS-DRIVER-MC-240215-03-0d2b9a.jpg
Levi rocking his pajamas on Pajama Day.Jefferson County Public Schools

Mr. Larry, as the kids call him, turned Levi’s whole day around.

“I can tell Mr. Larry is nice and his heart is filled with joy,” Levi said in a news release. “When he got me the pajamas, I did a happy cry.”

Farrish Jr., who previously worked as a correctional officer and a truck driver, says he’s found his calling.

“I’ve been driving buses for seven years. It’s my passion because I get to build bonds with the children,” he says. “I truly love every minute of it.”

After Jefferson County Public Schools posted on its Facebook what Farrish Jr. did for Levi, people started sharing their own stories.

“Mr. Larry is the absolute best. We were blessed with him as our bus driver for 4 years. Top notch human," one person wrote.

Added another, “Larry is the absolute best and kiddos know they are in great, caring, capable hands with him!!!

https://www.today.com/parents/family/bus-driver-saves-day-gets-pajamas-for-boy-rcna139017

[GoldHeart]

https://www.today.com/parents/family/bus-driver-saves-day-gets-pajamas-for-boy-rcna139017

Awww :)

[Benjamin]

Thousands Raised for Homeless Busker After Performance Goes Viral on TikTok

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/John-Metcalfe-busking-w-guitar-from-Stephen-Flynn-video-SWNS.jpg

Donations totaling nearly five thousand dollars were raised for a homeless busker after a video of his soothing voice and guitar riffs went viral on TikTok.

The 59-year-old was filmed wowing strangers with his rendition of the Dire Straits hit ‘Sultans of Swing’ as drivers queued up at a MacDonald’s drive-thru.

And now nearly £5,000 (British pounds) have been donated to John Metcalfe, who says he’s hoping to buy a camper van to tour the country while playing music.

Before the fateful encounter, Stephen Flynn had dined with some colleagues for breakfast in Liverpool on August 20.

“Coming back out, we spotted John on the corner. My mate said, ‘Look at him with his guitar.’

“So I drove round and started to record. I just said, ‘Give us a little tune,’ and the rest is history.

“I put it on TikTok and it just went through the roof.”

Stunned by the tally of 11 million views of the performance (watch it below), Stephen decided to do more to support the man, beyond his original cash tip.

“I went back, and I saw him, and I went, ‘John, you’ve gone viral. Give us your number, I’ll stay in contact with you.’”

He set up a GoFundMe page to support John after learning he’d been living in a broken-down Peugeot.

“I’ve been ringing him every day and I’ve been going up and looking after him.”

Stephen said he was in awe of the amount of money that locals donated to John—but the notoriety has also led to an opportunity to perform in Liverpool.

“People just come together when things like this happen.

“He just needed a little bit of a pick me up. He hasn’t looked back since.

“Hopefully he’ll get his little camper-van and he can then sail off into the sunset—that’s the plan.”

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/thousands-raised-for-homeless-busker-after-performance-goes-viral-on-tiktok-watch/

[Benjamin]

‘We all want to feel like we belong’: Teen girl’s joy over a rare birthday party invite goes viral

One teenager's overjoyed reaction to being invited to a birthday party is going viral.

Macy is a 15-year-old high school freshman and she has Down syndrome. Her mom says she can “count on one hand the amount of birthday parties” Macy has been invited to since she started kindergarten.

“Yesterday Macy got in the car and showed me an invitation to a birthday party for a friend at school who is also in the life skills program,” Macy’s mom, Heather Avis, began an Instagram post.

“Her joy from this invitation is palpable. WOW!” Avis wrote. “To me it spoke of a longing fulfilled. All I could do was laugh with her and then cry as I celebrated with her.”

https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-760w,f_avif,q_auto:eco,dpr_2/rockcms/2024-05/party-invite-down-syndrome-zz-240531-01-2d2477.jpg
Heather Avis and her daughter Macy.

In the video, Macy’s excitement is contagious as she waves the invitation in the air for her mother to see.

“You got invited to a birthday party?” Avis asks.

“Yeah!” Macy replies, with a huge grin on her face. Moments later, she lets out a happy squeal.

“You can hear me start to get choked up because my sweet girl is so elated to be included,” Avis tells TODAY.com in an interview. “It speaks to the common humanity that we all share. We all as humans want to feel like we belong. We all want to be wanted.”

Macy was in a general education setting with her grade-level peers until high school, when she switched to a life skills program for students with intellectual disabilities.

“As soon as Macy walked into the classroom as a new student, she was instantly embraced,” Avis tells TODAY.com. “No one was questioning if she has value and worth. She’s finding a place where she feels belonging and community.”

On May 30, Avis shared a much-needed birthday party update. In the footage, Macy is laughing and clapping her hands. Though Avis says Macy's language is limited, her body language tells you everything you need to know.

"What did you tell me when we were there?" Avis asks.

"I love it here!" Macy replies.

Later, she adds, "I love birthday parties!"

"Noteworthy detail: the birthday boy is a disabled student in the life skills class at Macy’s school. The party was inclusive not because a student in the general education program invited Macy, but because a person with an intellectual disability invited both disabled and non-disabled individuals," Avis wrote. "It was inclusive because people like Macy and the young man we were celebrating, who are often excluded, truly understand how to include others. Let’s reflect on that for a moment!"

Avis hopes that Macy will inspire others to embrace those who are left out.

“We all have opportunity to be the person to say, ‘I’m going to create a space where everyone can belong,’” she says.

https://www.today.com/parents/teens/teens-joy-birthday-party-invitation-goes-viral-rcna154928

[Ammi]

…ok, so the story itself isn’t recent but obviously it’s inspired a movie which is now a release…so we can allow…?…

Released to a delighted movie audience, My Pengiun Friend tells the story of a man and his long-lasting friendship with a Megallanic penguin.

But before the silver screen bore witness to the tale, it arose first on the news—in Brazil, where a retired stonemason named João Pereira de Souza discovered a penguin covered in oil from a recent spill on Proveta Beach in Rio de Janeiro state.

Taking the penguin home, João found the bird exhausted and depleted from his bout swimming through the oil spill. He nursed the penguin back to health, with plenty of soapy scrubbing and fish treats, naming it ‘Dindim’ after the toddler-speak of his son trying to say the Portuguese word for penguin (pinguim) when he was growing up.

After Dindim recovered his pomp, João released him on an island near Proveta Beach and went home; only to find that Dindim had followed him back, and remained on his lawn waiting to be let inside.

He finally left of his own accord in February of 2012. What happened then, and continued happening for years, is an annual visit following the fishing season where penguins remain at sea for months slurping squadrons of fish. Dindim would always come back to Proveta to see João, rather than travel off to a lovely summer island with his kin.

Every February he would leave, only to return in June—again and again for eight years.

Brazilian director David Schurmann embellished the story for My Pengiun Friend, at times going beyond the facts of the original story. (See the trailer below…)

“It’s lovely, lively, and guaranteed to get kids interested in the wild world around them,” writes Kate Erbland at the Indie Wire. “All the better if that also includes some outside research into what really happened with João and Dindim.”


BE0kfDCiod0

[Ammi]

'Ultra rare' orange lobster returned to ocean after ending up in New York supermarket
The orange lobster arrived at a store in Long Island in early June and was later named Clementine…

An "ultra rare" orange lobster has been returned to the sea after ending up in a supermarket's seafood section.

The lobster, later named Clementine, arrived at a store in Long Island, New York, in early July, and immediately stood out among a group of traditional brown lobsters.

With just one in 30 million lobsters being naturally orange, the rare crustacean became something of an attraction in the seafood section, according to animal advocacy group Humane Long Island.

The store's owner reached out to an aquarium to take Clementine in, but it declined the offer.

That is when Southampton Animal Shelter stepped in, calling in Humane Long Island to secure the lobster's safe release.

Working with the store, the animal advocacy group got Clementine back into the sea on Tuesday.

John Di Leonardo, executive director of Humane Long Island, told Sky News' US partner NBC News: "We got ourselves a big saltwater tank to rehab her in, we brought her down to the ocean, and she immediately began foraging."

"She was ready to go as soon as she saw the ocean," Mr Di Leonardo added.

The group said they put her in a cold saltwater tank shortly before dropping her in, at the advice of a veterinarian.

"Within hours, Clementine was swimming, foraging, and exploring the Long Island Sound, playfully following us around before disappearing into the ocean depths where she'll travel as far as 100 miles or more each year," the group said in a news release.

Mr Di Leonardo said lobsters like Clementine deserve to live freely.

"They all want to live natural lives in the wild," he said.

"They don't want to boil in someone's pot or stay in a cramped aquarium."

Lobsters often appear a shade of bright red or orange when cooked, but while alive can come in a variety of colours, including, most commonly, a mottled brown or a deep blue.

Their colour changes because of a pigment called astaxanthin, which is stored in their skin underneath their hard shell.

There are layers of lobster colours stored under the shell, according to the American Chemical Society, which includes red skin at the bottom, a layer of blue pigment in the shell's bottom layer, and orange on the outside of the shell.

These break down when lobsters are cooked, leaving just the bright red skin visible.

[Nicky91]

https://nltimes.nl/2024/08/31/number-online-bookstores-netherlands-doubles


The number of online bookstores more than doubled in the last five years, the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (KVK) reported. Especially the provinces of Utrecht and Noord-Brabant have seen more book-oriented online stores being run. The number of books sold online has stayed at around the same number.

According to the KVK, the Netherlands had 935 online bookstores in 2019, and there are now 1,948. Most online bookstores are run from the provinces of Noord-Holland and Zuid-Holland, with 382 and 396, respectively. The number of online bookstores increased the most in Utrecht, going from 88 to 207 in five years. But the number of online book stores also rose strongly in Noord-Brabant, from 116 to 271.

"There is an increase in the number of entrepreneurs in online book sales, but that does not translate into more online sales," said Marianne Slagter of the Dutch Booksellers Association. She referred to research conducted by KVB Boekwerk, the knowledge platform of the book sector, and market researcher GfK. The study showed that book sales have remained the same over the past three years at 43 million books annually. "So the market is quite stable," says Slagter.

The KVK also reported that the number of physical bookstores has been around the same for years. The Netherlands had 696 of these stores in 2019 and has 665 now. Slagter: "We see that people appreciate looking around in physical bookstores to pick a nice book out there.


this is what i call good news for book authors

[Benjamin]

The teen who’s developing a treatment for skin cancer, one bar of soap at a time

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Copy-of-kid-of-the-year-2024-heman-bekele-2-pr-1-1-e1725534644525-1800x0-c-center.jpg

Time magazine has named a 15-year-old scientist ‘Kid of the Year’ after he devised a skin cancer-treating soap

Heman Bekele, a 15-year-old from Virginia, US, has been honoured by Time magazine for his pioneering work and research into skin cancer treatment.

Heman was four years old when he started conducting his own science experiments at home, creating concoctions with whatever he could find. At six, he was given a chemistry set for Christmas, helping Bekele to the realisation that he wanted to help the world in some way using science.

He grew up in Ethiopia, witnessing first-hand the damaging effects of the sun, particularly on labourers, who often work in the blistering sun without skin protection. Bekele was shocked to realise that the cost of skin cancer treatment for those without insurance could be up to $42,000 (£32,000). It became his mission to come up with a more affordable treatment.

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/TIM240826-KOTY-Cover-FINAL-scaled-1800x0-c-default.jpg

After reading about imiquimod, a drug used to treat certain types of skin cancer that usually comes as a cream, Bekele thought a bar of soap – simple and affordable – could in fact be the drug’s perfect vehicle. Aimed at patients in the early stages of the illness, he resolved that the soap would be not only cost-effective, but more easily accessible too.

In 2023, Bekele applied for 3M’s Young Scientist Challenge and was invited to deliver his pitch to a panel of judges. He was declared the winner, receiving $25,000 (£19,000). Months later at a networking event, Bekele met his current lab partner, Vito Rebecca, a molecular biologist and assistant professor, who had read about Bekele’s work and found the teen inspiring. The two are now researching the effects of the soap at a Johns Hopkins University laboratory in the US, with the young scientist juggling the work with his classroom studies.

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Copy-of-kid-of-the-year-2024-heman-bekele-pr-1-1-1800x0-c-default.jpg

He’s come up with a way to combine the soap with a lipid-based nanoparticle that remains on the skin when the soap is washed away. “I’m really passionate about skin-cancer research,” he told Time magazine, “whether it’s my own research or what’s happening in the field. It’s absolutely incredible to think that one day my bar of soap will be able to make a direct impact on somebody else’s life. That’s the reason I started this all in the first place.”

Alongside Rebecca and his parents, Bekele is also supported by Deborah Isabelle, his 3M mentor, who says how fortunate she was to be paired with him, “an incredible, passionate, very inspiring young man”.

“A lot of people have this mindset that everything’s been done, there’s nothing left for me to do,” he told Time magazine. “To anybody having that thought, [I’d say] we’ll never run out of ideas in this world. Just keep inventing. Keep thinking of new ways to improve our world and keep making it a better place.”

https://www.positive.news/society/teen-developing-treatment-skin-cancer-one-bar-of-soap-at-a-time/

[Ammi]

…the vid did come up on today’s news page so I’ll put it here…

SYZePc895mM

[arista]

Happy Bear.

[Ammi]

…Lioness rescued from Ukraine steps out on grass for the first time…


EARsLCdYKxY

An animal rescue charity has successfully evacuated two lionesses from a war-affected part of Ukraine, and one has just been filmed taking her first steps into a new, calmer world.

Yuna the lioness had never even felt grass beneath her paws—having been raised in captivity in a small concrete enclosure. She had been traumatized long before the arrival of Russian bombs.

In concert with the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) The Big Cat Sanctuary in Kent, England, organized the retrieval and air transport of Yuna out of Ukraine in an operation that took 30 hours.

But it was a big success, with Yuna safely arriving at their 32-acre facility in Kent, and another lioness being dropped off at a similar sanctuary in Belgium.

At first, Yuna chose to remain in her artificial den sleeping on straw. For days she stayed there, traumatized by the sound of explosions and unwilling to venture out into the glowing light at the entrance of her new home.

“Yuna’s confidence growing day by day, and it’s truly moving to see. After more than two and a half years since the war, Yuna had her first opportunity to step outside,” states Cam Whitnall, Project Lead at Big Cat Sanctuary.

“Although she didn’t quite venture out, watching her tentatively peek at her outdoor space was such a heartwarming sight. It felt like a small but significant step forward in her journey of recovery. Each day here at the sanctuary, she’s becoming a little braver and more assured.”

[arista]

Yes nice Lion
saved from that War Nation

[Ammi]

Portland International Airport decided to surprise its visitors by bringing in a couple of therapy llamas for people to hug, pet, and feed
It was around the last holiday season when the staff of the Portland International Airport decided to add a twist to their regular support animal rotation, consisting mainly of dogs, by inviting a couple of llama newcomers.
Meet Prince and Beni — the two residents of Mtn Peaks Therapy Llamas & Alpacas farm, who are more than happy to pose for some pictures or be petted, hugged, fed, and loved.
Residing outside the city, the llamas visit the airport approximately twice a month, and they never go unnoticed. “It’s just pure joy,” said the PDX media relations manager, Allison Ferre, in her interview with PEOPLE, adding that “travelers’ faces say it best.”

Not everyone gets to meet them, as the animals can only stay at the airport for a specific period, so it doesn’t pose a danger to their health, but they’re sure to return for more
But despite their massive popularity and some people literally planning their flights in a way to get to visit Portland airport, these cute animals can’t stay there for too long at a time. “[The animals are] only here for periods of time that are healthy for them.”
Fortunately, the information about when you’ll be able to meet Prince, Beni, and perhaps other llamas from their herd is widely available online. “We usually promote it on our social channels in advance of when they’re coming,” explained Allison. “We get disappointment when people miss them.”
People online loved learning about this almost as much as travelers at the Portland International Airport loved actually meeting the llamas. The comments section was full of warm messages saying how wonderful it was to have such cute animals to greet you at the airport, while others were quick to make jokes about other, less huggable animals that you can encounter in other airports.

Therapy animals are no novelty. We have all encountered or at least heard of therapy dogs and cats who can be a great assistance to those in need. But if there are also llamas and alpacas who can do this job just as well, why don’t we meet different animals doing these jobs as often?
As animal behaviorist Julie Bond explained to Bored Panda when we reached out to her for an interview, it’s all about logistics and practicality. “Dogs and cats are just more available! There are far more dog and cat owners than llama owners,” she said, adding that most people who keep farm animals don’t really breed them for therapy work.
In addition, livestock can hardly be ‘house trained,’ which complicates the visits to indoor places where these animals are most commonly used for therapy. That is especially true when looking through the perspective of cleanliness since the chance of a cat or a dog leaving a stinky mess is much less likely than that of a farm animal.

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/12-66e02d348fa9c__700.jpg
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https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/2-66e02d1d04972__700.jpg

[Benjamin]

Aaaw therapy llamas :love:

[Ammi]

‘Miracle’ penguin found two weeks after escaping captivity in Japan…

A fugitive penguin in Japan has been found safe and sound two weeks after escaping into the sea and paddling for miles in what her keeper called a miracle.

Pen-chan, a female Cape penguin born and raised in captivity, who had never swum in the open sea before or fended for herself, absconded from an event in the central Aichi region on 25 August.

Her keeper, Ryosuke Imai, said a team began scouring the area immediately but a powerful typhoon that brought record rains across Japan hampered the search.

Given Pen-chan’s lack of preparation for life in the wild, the team thought she would not get very far or survive for longer than a week.

But on 8 September, Imai received information that the bird had been spotted happily bobbing in the water at a beach 30 miles (45km) away.

“I thought she would look exhausted, but she was swimming as usual,” Imai said after the animal was recaptured. “It was beyond my surprise … It’s a miracle.”

He said Pen-chan, who is six years old, must have been eating fish and crabs that she caught herself.

“I think she got there by stopping at various places for a break, but it’s still unbelievable,” he said. “She lost a little weight but she is doing great.”

https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/105aae40993d54800e60010eb4b6bfae22ca0e5d/0_535_2333_1399/master/2333.jpg?width=1140&dpr=2&s=none

[Kate!]

Love this thread. Some great stories. Thank you to all who've contributed.

[Ammi]

NIAMH Benjamin

…just to keep updated on the good …(…and the bad…)…news regarding everything potato and potato related…there is a site called Potato News Today…I mean, what other vegetable has its own dedicated news site because of its International/world value and importance….

https://www.potatonewstoday.com/

…anyways, today’s Potato Good News is…


Irish potato market holds steady, European seed production looks promising…

The latest weekly potato market report from the Irish Farmers Association (IFA) reveals a steady demand for potatoes in Ireland, with consumption holding strong as the harvest season progresses. As Irish growers continue to lift their crops, the market remains optimistic, although concerns about yields in later-planted crops are growing.

Recent reports suggest that these later-planted crops are likely to experience reduced yields, a situation exacerbated by colder night temperatures forecasted for the coming week. These conditions could further hinder the ability of these crops to bulk up, posing potential challenges for growers as the season advances.

Across the Irish Sea, the U.K. potato market is described as producing an “average” crop. Industry experts indicate that the final outcome of the season will largely depend on the success of the ongoing harvest and the sustained level of market demand. However, quality issues have surfaced this week, with high levels of bruising being a predominant concern. Additionally, some reports highlight significant waste deductions due to greening, impacting overall market efficiency and profitability.

In contrast, the European seed potato sector appears poised for a positive outlook. Reports indicate that seed production across Europe is expected to be sufficient for the 2025 season, thanks to an increase in planting area and favorable tuberisation conditions. This development offers a reassuring signal for the future stability of the potato industry across the continent.

As the season progresses, growers and market participants in both Ireland and the U.K. will be closely monitoring the weather patterns and market demand, which will play critical roles in shaping the outcomes for this year’s potato crop.

…so that’s all very lovely, especially for the potato farmers…:love:…

[Ammi]

Ukrainian soldier says dogs have saved 'hundreds' in war with Russia and praises British Army training…

Dogs have saved "hundreds" of Ukrainian lives by detecting Russian landmines on the front line, a serviceman has said.

The 24-year-old is one of 20 Ukrainians learning dog handling techniques from the British Army at a barracks in the East Midlands, as part of Operation Interflex.

Speaking through an interpreter at the barracks, the serviceman said he had always wanted to be a dog handler and that he is "proud" of working with them during the war.

"I really like the idea that I can pass on this knowledge," he added. "They save tens or hundreds of lives."

Biden 'not ruling out' allowing Ukraine to fire into Russia

The soldier, who cannot be named for security reasons, also said he and others have "got a lot" out of their UK training as it lets troops "experiment in order to become better".

"When different sabotage groups are entering the area and they are mining the roads, for example, we are using dogs there to be able to go through this area safely," he added.

"We have lots of different areas where the combat actions are not so active, but there is still a threat there, so there is a threat to life."

Sergeant Chris Jacques, of the 1st Military Working Dog Regiment, said the dog handling training involves using "stress factors" such as replicating battlefield sounds.

"It's important to give something back and also to see, especially in the current climate, how dogs can be used in the environment [Ukrainians] find themselves in at the minute," he said.

"We see what challenges they've had to deal with, we see what factors they're having to consider which we, at the minute, aren't having to consider, and they've been really engaging."

Armed forces minister Luke Pollard added that military working dogs "are an irreplaceable part of our defence forces," and said: "Their keen instincts, unwavering loyalty and remarkable ability to detect threats makes them vital to protecting our personnel.

"We owe them and their handlers a deep debt of gratitude for their service."

The Ministry of Defence said more than 45,000 Ukrainians have received training in the UK since Russia's full-scale invasion began in February 2022.

It comes after the National Audit Office (NAO) said in a report that Operation Interflex "constrains" the British Army's ability to train its own troops.

The parliamentary body said that as a result of the operation, Army units bidding for training areas were rejected eight times more often last year than in 2019.

The NAO report did not seek to evaluate the strategic case for supporting Ukraine or reach conclusions on value for money, and was intended only to set out the facts regarding what support was being provided.

https://e3.365dm.com/24/09/2048x1152/skynews-british-army-ukraine_6682604.jpg?20240912002613

[Benjamin]

NIAMH Benjamin

…just to keep updated on the good …(…and the bad…)…news regarding everything potato and potato related…there is a site called Potato News Today…I mean, what other vegetable has its own dedicated news site because of its International/world value and importance….

https://www.potatonewstoday.com/

…anyways, today’s Potato Good News is…


Irish potato market holds steady, European seed production looks promising…

The latest weekly potato market report from the Irish Farmers Association (IFA) reveals a steady demand for potatoes in Ireland, with consumption holding strong as the harvest season progresses. As Irish growers continue to lift their crops, the market remains optimistic, although concerns about yields in later-planted crops are growing.

Recent reports suggest that these later-planted crops are likely to experience reduced yields, a situation exacerbated by colder night temperatures forecasted for the coming week. These conditions could further hinder the ability of these crops to bulk up, posing potential challenges for growers as the season advances.

Across the Irish Sea, the U.K. potato market is described as producing an “average” crop. Industry experts indicate that the final outcome of the season will largely depend on the success of the ongoing harvest and the sustained level of market demand. However, quality issues have surfaced this week, with high levels of bruising being a predominant concern. Additionally, some reports highlight significant waste deductions due to greening, impacting overall market efficiency and profitability.

In contrast, the European seed potato sector appears poised for a positive outlook. Reports indicate that seed production across Europe is expected to be sufficient for the 2025 season, thanks to an increase in planting area and favorable tuberisation conditions. This development offers a reassuring signal for the future stability of the potato industry across the continent.

As the season progresses, growers and market participants in both Ireland and the U.K. will be closely monitoring the weather patterns and market demand, which will play critical roles in shaping the outcomes for this year’s potato crop.

…so that’s all very lovely, especially for the potato farmers…:love:…

:laugh:

[Ammi]

Moo-Deng: the two-month-old baby pygmy hippo becoming an online giant….


A two-month-old pygmy hippo has become an internet sensation across Thailand and beyond after footage went viral online of her wobbling around her enclosure, nibbling her zookeeper and being sprayed with water.

Moo-Deng has captured hearts across Asia. Fans have made cakes in her image and artworks showing off her cartoonish rosy cheeks and bright eyes. One cosmetics chain even jumped on the trend, telling social media users to “wear your blush like a baby hippo” in posts promoting products in pink and peach tones. In a reflection of her growing global clout, Time magazine’s website named her an “Icon” and “Legend”, saying “She Is the Moment”.

Her fame stems from a TikTok account with 2.5 million followers dedicated to the hippos and other species at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi, Thailand. Hundreds of thousands of people also follow accounts documenting their daily life on Facebook and Instagram.

Atthapon Nundee, 31, a zookeeper at Khao Kheow Open Zoo, said he began posting clips of animals on social media during the pandemic, when he found he had more spare time on his hands. Moo-Deng, whose name means “bouncy pork”, also the name of a Thai dish, has attracted the most attention by far.

“The moment I saw Moo-Deng born, I set a goal to make her famous, but I never expected it would spread abroad. I thought she could be famous in Thailand but not internationally,” he said.

Tourists’ social media videos have helped her achieve fame online, but so too has her character, he said. “She is called ‘bouncy’ and she is quite ‘bouncy’ too,” Atthapon said. Her siblings are also called variations of pork dishes: her half-sister is called Moo Wan (Thai sweet pork), her other half-sister is called Pha Lor (pork belly stew), and her brother is called Moo Tun (stewed pork).

Her popularity has created a surge in visitors to the zoo, which has raised concerns about her welfare. Tourists were accused of throwing water and seashells at Moo Deng to wake her, apparently because they wanted to take photos.

The zoo authorities have condemned those who have tried to disturb Moo-Deng. Atthapon said CCTV has been installed and an officer is present to watch over her.

“Most of the time she is sleeping,” said Atthapon, who added her behaviour is similar to a human baby, with playful outbursts and lots of rest. “She only has milk from mom, she doesn’t eat anything else besides milk.” At two months old, she already weighs more than 20kg, and it is possible that she will begin to eat grass next month.

Related: No more monkey business: Thai city’s macaques to be put in enclosures

Adult pygmy hippos also like to sleep a lot during the day. “Mostly they just sleep and soak in the water because it gets quite hot,” Atthapon said.

Pygmy hippos are listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List. A 1993 study suggested there were between 2,000 to 2,5000 pygmy hippos remaining in the wild. They are native to West Africa, where they live in swamps and near rivers, but are threatened by habitat loss due to human activities such as logging, mining, as well as hunting.

Edwin Wiek, founder of Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand, questioned the need for more pygmy hippos to be kept in zoo settings, where they have already been bred successfully, saying the focus should be on keeping them in the wild. “They are very endangered, but actually, with the proper enforcement and conservation plan in the wild – leave them alone, they can do really well.”

Atthapon said the zoo keeps Moo-Deng and other animals as close to nature as possible, and that zoos contribute to conservation work.

“I hope that the cuteness of Moo-Deng will raise awareness for people to come and learn about [the species],” Atthapon said.

YCM7utGdoxo

[bots]

she is spectacular :laugh:

[Ammi]

…I think she knows her spectacular-ness as well, she looks quite cheeky in that vid…:love:…

[Benjamin]

I love her :love:

[Kate!]

I love her :love:

Me too :lovedup:

[arista]

1834961781871051061

[Ammi]

1834961781871051061

…complete and utter bliss…:lovedup:…

[arista]

1835132876087509066

[Ammi]

1835132876087509066

…..:lovedup:…that’s a totally perfect banana split…

[Ammi]

Zoo welcomes 'feisty' mountain bongo calf…



A zoo has welcomed a critically endangered mountain bongo calf thanks to its successful breeding programme.
The male baby bongo was born at Marwell Zoo near Winchester on 4 September.
Keepers at the Hampshire zoo said he has been "very confident, energetic and adventurous right from the start".
There are only about 100 mountain bongos left in the wild, as they face threats like hunting, habitat loss and diseases from domestic cattle.

The large species of antelope is native to parts of Kenya where they live in forests and highlands.
Animal keeper Rhiannon Wolff said the new arrival "appears quite feisty and has been confidently exploring more and more of his habitat every day".
She continued: "This calf is a very important part of the breeding programme and European Ex-situ Programme which endeavours to ensure the survival of this species.”

The calf is currently spending most of his time in his bed stall, with his mother Jumapili checking in and feeding him throughout the day.
When they are young, all bongo calves have a chestnut coat with thin white stripes. They also have large floppy ears that they grow into as they get older.
Leopards are the main predators of bongos and when under threat, they run into the forest with their horns held against the back of their necks, so they avoid getting snagged on the undergrowth.
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/976/cpsprodpb/87fb/live/888aaaa0-71d0-11ef-984d-a5e2339939e6.jpg.webp

[Kate!]

Omigosh that's absolutely beautiful Ammi. X

[Ammi]

…I’m not sure this is a very recent story so much as an ongoing story that is updated regularly…but it’s worth a post…


This Rescue Dog Turned A Rare Disability Into An Adorable, Viral Walk…

SAhIm7ZI9vY

This story of Fenix perfectly encapsulates how second chances might turn your life around.
Fenix and his sister Nube were ready to be put down as they were malnourished, shaking, and due to their rare condition, couldn’t stand up or walk. To their luck, the rescue group “I Stand With My Pack” was determined to help both Fenix and his sister.
Long story short, now Fenix lives his life to the fullest after getting adopted by his loving parents Zoe and Eric Lumiere. However, what made Fenix an internet sensation is his unique walk. Zoe commented: “You know, I have no idea why Fenix prances the way he does. When he was little, if he started to run, he would fall over, like his back legs would catch up too much with his front legs and it wouldn’t work. So instead of only walking wobbly and slowly, we started to notice him prancing – in between running and walking. And he seemed to be able to do that well. Initially, he couldn’t turn without falling over, but for whatever reason his prance seemed to help him.”
Nube also got her happy ending and the siblings occasionally meet for walks and plays.

Fenix was born with a rare condition called cerebellar hypoplasia, meaning a part of his brainstem that controls movement didn’t develop properly. In an interview with Bored Panda, Zoe shared more about the process that led them to adopt Fenix ​​​​and what drew them to him despite his condition.
“We had been looking to rescue a dog from a shelter, and when we saw Fenix’ cute photo online we both just fell in love. I started crying as soon as I saw his face. I just knew he was my dog. It’s hard to explain. And so I filled out the paperwork to adopt him online that night. And we met him the next day. And the following day he came home with us. We did research his disorder, to make sure we had some awareness of what we were in for, but we just loved him so much already.”

Fenix’s joyful personality and unique prancing influenced the people around him. Zoe shared more about that.
“We just can’t believe how much Fenix has truly changed people’s lives. We have had multiple people tell us that Fenix has saved their life. If he can endure and overcome his challenges, then they can too. And specifically for many people with neurological challenges, including TBIs, and various neuro conditions – they found great acceptance and freedom in knowing they were different and moved differently – just like Fenix moves so differently – but he’s perfect the way he is. So many people seemed to get great comfort and support knowing that Fenix was so happy to be different and to have his own way of moving and living.
We can’t explain how so many people have resonated with Fenix. He just exudes joy and sweetness. Whenever we’re walking him people want to know more and come to meet him. And of course, now we do get at least a few folks every outing coming up to us, asking if this is Fenix, the happy dog. And we love letting folks take photos or videos with him.”

Zoe continued by sharing the challenges Fenix has faced.
“At first we tried little booties, and plastic socks because he would drag his paws and get sore spots on top. So we went to multiple vets who confirmed that it was best NOT to wear any kind of foot covering, but allow his body to adapt. Which it did! Stairs and jumping up on things were the next hurdle. At first, he would cry and run away when he saw stairs, but little by little, we just kept encouraging him, very slowly. Until they weren’t a problem anymore. And over time he stopped being afraid to jump off the couch. We just let him go at his pace, but we never stopped encouraging him to keep growing and evolving.”

Given Fenix​​’s condition, we were wondering what specific care or adjustments the couple had to make in his daily routine to accommodate it.
Zoe wrote: “Now we do very little. He simply hugs the side of the staircase to go up and down, and he goes slowly, but he doesn’t need any help. He can even jump up on our bed now, and he can jump off. And we take him for 3 or 4 little walks every day because he does get tired more quickly. So we either walk around the block, or take him to the meadow, or down to the river bottom, and take him for 20-minute walks, 3 or 4 times every day.
He does find eating more challenging than most dogs. So we did get him a Fluff Trough and that has made a huge difference. He can now eat on his own, and he doesn’t need me to hand-feed him.”


Lastly, Zoe added: “We are just so grateful for everyone’s loving support of Fenix. He has created an online family of people that are kind and compassionate. There are almost never any negative comments on his posts or videos because the energy that Fenix has created is one that’s inclusive and nonjudgmental. In the early days people did say some hurtful things, but over time it seems like all his followers, in their kindness and compassion, just helped create a safe and sweet place. I can’t tell you how grateful we are to keep meeting his fans and to keep making friends with those who love him. He’s given us more love, community, and inspiration than we’ll ever know. And so to everyone that follows, loves, shares him – just thank you a million times, thank you.”

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/41672972_304442033474085_6955071824820352002_n-65b1dc48a27e5__700.jpg
https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Meet-Fenix-the-inspiring-prancing-dog-who-was-left-to-die-and-is-now-a-social-media-star-66e82c7895e59__700.jpg
https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Meet-Fenix-the-inspiring-prancing-dog-who-was-left-to-die-and-is-now-a-social-media-star-66e82c7b232c9__700.jpg
https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Meet-Fenix-the-inspiring-prancing-dog-who-was-left-to-die-and-is-now-a-social-media-star-66e82d9ccea20__700.jpg

[Ammi]

Rare conjoined twin girls separated after 14 hour operation…

One-year-old twin girls, conjoined at the head, have been successfully separated during a 14 hour operation led by a leading British surgeon.

Professor Noor ul Owase Jeelani from Great Ormond Street Hospital used leading mixed reality technology to complete the complex procedure on Minal and Mirha in Turkey.

Both are recovering in hospital and are expected to make full recoveries and lead normal lives when they return home to Pakistan next month.

The operation at the Ankara Bilkent City Hospital on 19 July, which included a local team of medics, required two surgical stages and was completed over three months, with the final surgery taking 14 hours.

The girls, who were born in Pakistan, are called craniopagus twins because they are joined at the head.

They shared vital blood vessels and brain tissue and separation of the pair required extremely intricate surgery.

Mixed reality (MR) combines 3D images with the physical world and is used to increase precision during complex operations. It enhances a surgeon's view of a patient by mixing digital content - like 3D scans - while remaining in the real world.

A high definition 3D model was created of the twins to help train medics in Ankara on what to expect in the operating theatre, as well as allowing the UK-based team to prepare and rehearse the surgery.

Professor Jeelani said: "The technology developed to undertake this work makes a lot of the more routine surgeries we do, safer, less invasive and more effective.

"To be able to give these girls and their family a new future where they can live independently and enjoy their childhood is a special privilege," he said.

He has led several surgeries involving conjoined twins including three-year-old boys in Brazil in 2022, one-year-old twin girls in Israel in 2021, and in 2019 twin two-year-old girls from Pakistan.

The work was supported by Gemini Untwined, a charity founded by Mr Jaleeni to raise funds for siblings born joined at the head.

According to Gemini figures, one in 60,000 births results in conjoined twins, and only 5% of these are craniopagus children.

The life expectancy of twins who are not separated is very low. About 40% of twins fused at the head are stillborn or die during labour.

[arista]

Rare conjoined twin girls separated after 14 hour operation…

One-year-old twin girls, conjoined at the head, have been successfully separated during a 14 hour operation led by a leading British surgeon.

Professor Noor ul Owase Jeelani from Great Ormond Street Hospital used leading mixed reality technology to complete the complex procedure on Minal and Mirha in Turkey.

Both are recovering in hospital and are expected to make full recoveries and lead normal lives when they return home to Pakistan next month.

The operation at the Ankara Bilkent City Hospital on 19 July, which included a local team of medics, required two surgical stages and was completed over three months, with the final surgery taking 14 hours.

The girls, who were born in Pakistan, are called craniopagus twins because they are joined at the head.

They shared vital blood vessels and brain tissue and separation of the pair required extremely intricate surgery.

Mixed reality (MR) combines 3D images with the physical world and is used to increase precision during complex operations. It enhances a surgeon's view of a patient by mixing digital content - like 3D scans - while remaining in the real world.

A high definition 3D model was created of the twins to help train medics in Ankara on what to expect in the operating theatre, as well as allowing the UK-based team to prepare and rehearse the surgery.

Professor Jeelani said: "The technology developed to undertake this work makes a lot of the more routine surgeries we do, safer, less invasive and more effective.

"To be able to give these girls and their family a new future where they can live independently and enjoy their childhood is a special privilege," he said.

He has led several surgeries involving conjoined twins including three-year-old boys in Brazil in 2022, one-year-old twin girls in Israel in 2021, and in 2019 twin two-year-old girls from Pakistan.

The work was supported by Gemini Untwined, a charity founded by Mr Jaleeni to raise funds for siblings born joined at the head.

According to Gemini figures, one in 60,000 births results in conjoined twins, and only 5% of these are craniopagus children.

The life expectancy of twins who are not separated is very low. About 40% of twins fused at the head are stillborn or die during labour.

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/09/19/08/89855883-13867809-image-a-1_1726729941362.jpg

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/09/19/09/89859479-13867809-image-a-31_1726736327816.jpg


https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-13867809/conjoined-twins-seperation-surgery-minal-mirha.html

[bots]

a couple of cuties

[Ammi]

…thank you for the pics, Arista…:love:…beautiful babies…:lovedup:…it’s wonderful what the medical world can achieve…

[Benjamin]

Awww bless them.

[Ammi]

In a World First, Surgeons Operate on Rhino’s Broken Leg and Fix Her Limp…


A 2-year-old female rhino known for her “boisterous” nature has just undergone surgery on her ulna in a world-first procedure.

Using equine surgeons’ knowledge of similar procedures done on horses as a template, the team of specialist veterinarians successfully healed the rhino’s leg, and even got her up and about wearing a cast.

Amara is a southern white rhino—the most common species in Africa—born at the Knowsley Safari Park near Prescot, in northwestern England. Known for her love of roughhousing, Amara developed a limp, and vets pondered over what to do.


“Earlier this year, Amara began limping on her right front leg,” Knowsley Safari Park told ABC News in a statement. “The Knowsley Safari team brought in specialist equine surgeons from the University of Liverpool to help with the diagnosis, where radiographs confirmed a fractured ulna.”

“Under anesthesia in Amara’s enclosure, the large team performed a lengthy operation, including key-hole surgery of Amara’s wrist, in a procedure lasting five hours.”

The ulna is the medial bone that in humans connects the elbow to the wrist on the palm-side of the hand. Similar to humans, in rhinos the ulnar bone is found in the lower section of the front legs.

The safari park says no documentation or evidence of such a procedure was found in the run-up to the operation. The rhinoceros is part of the same order as horses—Perissodactyla—or odd-toed ungulates, and so equine surgeons led the procedure based on the same surgical methods used in horses.

“We were unsure if the cast would be strong enough and how Amara would cope with such a restriction on her limb,” Dr. David Stack, senior lecturer in Equine Surgery at the University of Liverpool, told ABC News. “We hoped that she would accept it and that she would be able to move around, get down, and, importantly, back up again, but this was unchartered water.”

The zoo told ABC that Amara is so far doing well. Her arm was supported in a full cast and she is kept in her enclosure to minimize movement.


gUuSbTauJ7Y

[Ammi]

100-Year-Old Holocaust Survivor Granted Wish to Reunite with Sister One Last Time, Thanks to AARP Program…

Helena Stefaniak’s life story is one marked by the bonds of sisterhood growing up in war-torn Warsaw—and she rekindled that spirit of resilience one last time at age 100, thanks to an AARP program that grants wishes for seniors.

Helena and her sister Barbara protected one another from the horrors of their surroundings during World War II. Yet, the war ultimately tore them apart five years after the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939. They forcibly took her to a work camp in Germany in 1944, while Barbara’s fate remained unknown.

Helena recounted her harrowing experience being on her own for three years, saying, “I was really lost. Most of the time the war was going, I was scared.”

Despite the odds, Helena never lost hope of reuniting with her sister.

After enduring years of hardship and uncertainty, Helena was liberated from the work camps and became determined to find her sister. The relentless search finally led to their reunion in Germany in 1947.

Helena and her new husband started afresh, moving to Connecticut and living among fellow Polish immigrants. The sisters reunited again in New Jersey in 1950, where Barbara lives—and their bond remained unbreakable through the decades.

This year, though, as she approached her 100th birthday—and with her health deteriorating—Helena’s greatest wish was to reunite with Barbara once more.

Touched by their story, Wish of a Lifetime from AARP made Helena’s dream come true, allowing her to travel from her current home in Montana to New Jersey, so she can spend precious time with her beloved sister.

“At our age, you have to say goodbye,” Barbara told GNN.

“I was very, very happy. I know I won’t see her again, and that was our last time.

Founded by Jeremy Bloom in 2008, Wish of a Lifetime, a charitable affiliate of AARP has granted over 2,700 wishes nationwide, averaging 300 per year.

“We believe that everyone should be able to age with hope and joy. We empower wish recipients to fulfill their hopes while reconnecting with the people and passions that matter most to them.”

Helena, for one, is grateful beyond words. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Sisters-Barbara-and-Helena-Credit-Dina-Averuk-Photography-%E2%80%93-Released-by-Wish-of-a-Lifetime-via-AARP.jpg
https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Helena-and-Barbara-in-1976-visiting-Poland-for-first-time-since-WWII-Submitted-by-Wish-of-a-Lifetime-from-AARP.jpg

[Ammi]

…I’m such a huge supporter of the dots…

Brontë sisters finally get their dots as names corrected at Westminster Abbey…

https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/Fb2RAxo6O4mV6D9niuzNSA--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTI0MDA7aD0xNDQw/https://media.zenfs.com/en/theguardian_763/15ac26bc50206ab816cb7a5df08c49a7

An 85-year injustice has been rectified at Poets’ Corner in Westminster Abbey with the corrected spelling of one of the greatest of all literary names. Reader, it is finally Brontë, not Bronte.

An amended memorial to Charlotte, Emily and Anne Brontë was unveiled on Thursday with added diaereses (two dots) that ensure people pronounce it with two syllables. As if it rhymed with Monty, not font.

The memorial was installed in 1939 and, for whatever reason, came without the diaereses that the Brontës used.

The correction came about after an approach to the abbey by Sharon Wright, the editor of the Brontë Society Gazette, who visited Poets’ Corner as part of research for a new book.

“The first thing I thought was: ‘They’ve spelt the names wrong!’ Surely I can’t be the first person to notice it. I don’t think I am but I might be the first to call it to anyone’s attention and say ‘can we spell the names right please?’,” Wright said. “These women are three of this country’s greatest writers. They deserve to have their names spelt correctly on the memorial created to honour them.”

Wright remembered feeling genuine indignation when she saw the plaque. “I’m from Bradford like them and I want them celebrated properly in London, or that London, as we say. They are Yorkshire heroines and their name is Brontë, not Bronte.”

Wright said everyone else’s name in Poets’ Corner was spelled correctly, not least the poet Robert Southey who is represented by a magnificent monument and bust.

Southey is something of a villain in Brontë circles in that he told 20-year-old Charlotte that poetry and literary creation could not and should not be a woman’s work. “I thought ‘they’ve got his name right’ before I went stomping off,” Wright said.

She was half expecting a battle to get the name corrected but actually found an open, friendly door and a willingness to correct.

The reasons for the mistake are not clear although timing presumably played a part, in that the tablet was installed on 8 October 1939, soon after the outbreak of the second world war.

It meant there was no fanfare. In a letter dated 2 November that year, Paul de Labilliere, then the dean of Westminster, wrote: “I should greatly wish that its completion should be marked by a ceremonial unveiling but in these times anything of that sort is out of the question.”

The installation was sponsored by the Brontë Society, founded in 1893 and one of the oldest literary societies in the world.

It was July 1947 before there was a formal ceremony at the abbey with the society, by which point bigger issues about rebuilding the nation were on collective minds. Or society members perhaps felt they should be grateful for just being there. “I don’t know,” said Wright. “You know Yorkshire people, we do like to stick our hand up and make a fuss, so I don’t know what happened there.”

The missing diaereses may be as much of a mystery as the diaereses themselves. No one can say with absolute certainty why the Brontë name evolved from their father Patrick’s Irish surname of Prunty or Brunty when he arrived at St John’s College, Cambridge, in 1802.

It may have had something to do with his admiration for Horatio Nelson, who was made Duke of Bronte, and the way Patrick, as someone born in County Down, would pronounce it. It may also have been a gentrification based on a Greek word for thunder.

None of that matters in Wright’s eyes. “This is not about the men, it’s about the women and their name was Brontë, that is how they spelt it from being really little girls. This is a really happy and timely ending to the story.”

Those sentiments were echoed by the dean of Westminster, David Hoyle, who said he was grateful to have the omission pointed out and now put right.

“Memory is not a locked cupboard, but an active thing,” he said. “The Brontë Society have given us a glimpse of their commitment to a lively remembering.”

[Ammi]

…I knew that some day, this would apply as the perfect gif…85 years actually but close enough…

https://i.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExcjJrcTNjYjZ2cGUzbnE0aTE3aDM5YXZ kN2VxYWhtd2d2N21hdGJlcSZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfY nlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/FoH28ucxZFJZu/giphy.gif

[bots]

i've been waiting for my name to be spelt correct ... böts

[Ammi]

i've been waiting for my name to be spelt correct ... böts

https://i.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExdzRkdTRnMDIyOHB1ejZtMzFzcG10MmJ laG9pOHV4ZnNvMHpjaXhucyZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfY nlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/FoH28ucxZFJZu/giphy.gif


…:fan:…

[bots]

https://i.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExdzRkdTRnMDIyOHB1ejZtMzFzcG10MmJ laG9pOHV4ZnNvMHpjaXhucyZlcD12MV9pbnRlcm5hbF9naWZfY nlfaWQmY3Q9Zw/FoH28ucxZFJZu/giphy.gif


…:fan:…

not quite that long :laugh:

I was just thinking the other day that i was born about 14 years after the 2nd world war ended and the technology jump from then to now is just mind bending :laugh:

[Ammi]

not quite that long :laugh:

I was just thinking the other day that i was born about 14 years after the 2nd world war ended and the technology jump from then to now is just mind bending :laugh:

…for any of us if we live to an older age…?..the changes in our lifespan will be incredible…I mean, even for much younger people, the landscapes of their childhood will look entirely different from the landscapes that are familiar to them now…that’s a thought I often have in thinking of my parents who have both passed now, how many changes they saw through their lives and how many ‘firsts’ they felt a part of…?…you know…


"I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die."

[Ammi]

….is this a good news story…?…I think so, any old cheese is good news…

Cheese dating back 3,600 years found in Chinese tomb, researchers say…


The world's oldest piece of cheese has been discovered - found laid across a mummy's neck.

A 3,600-year-old coffin was opened in the Xiaohe Cemetery in Xinjiang, China, during an excavation in 2003, where a substance was draped across the neck of a mummified young woman.

Despite seeming like a piece of jewellery at the time, scientists have now said they have identified the sample as the oldest piece of cheese in the world.

Qiaomei Fu, a paleogeneticist at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, told Sky's partner network NBC News: "Regular cheese is soft. This is not. It has now become really dry, dense and hard dust."

She explained that when the woman's coffin was exhumed, it was found to be well preserved because of the Tarim Basin desert's dry climate.

While the production of cheese has been long depicted in history, the researchers wrote in a study - published in the journal Cell - that the "history of fermented dairy is largely lost in antiquity".

Speaking to NBC News, Ms Fu said that she and her team took samples from three tombs in the Xiaohe Cemetery and processed the DNA to trace the evolution of the bacteria across thousands of years.

The samples were then identified as kefir cheese, made by fermenting milk using kefir grains, and there was also evidence of goat and cow's milk being used.

In their research, the team said the use of kefir cheese shows how Bronze Age populations interacted and how the Xiaohe people - who were known to be genetically lactose intolerant - consumed dairy before the era of pasteurisation and refrigeration.

They wrote: "These 3,500-year-old kefir cheese samples are among the few dairy remains preserved more than 3,000 years and were produced by the Bronze Age Xiaohe population - a population that possesses mixed lifestyles and techniques."

However, when asked by NBC if the cheese was edible and if she would try it, Ms Fu said "no way".

[arista]

https://www.instagram.com/p/C_3fulCuW7l/


Dog running after that Ambulance
as his owner is off to hospital................................



In Columbia

[Ammi]

https://www.instagram.com/p/C_3fulCuW7l/


Dog running after that Ambulance
as his owner is off to hospital................................



In Columbia

….awwwww, the power of dog love and devotion…:lovedup:….I hope that his human was ok and recovered/recovering well…

[Benjamin]

An 8-year-old heart transplant candidate was craving pickles, so a hospital chef taught her how to make them

https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-560w,f_avif,q_auto:eco,dpr_2/rockcms/2024-09/8-year-old-girl-heart-transplant-pickles-zz-240920-01-4f63b5.jpg
Emerson Bayse, 8, and her homemade pickles at Boston Children's Hospital.

Emerson Bayse loves pickles.

The 8-year-old heart transplant candidate got a hankering for the briny bite once she started preparing for her procedure. Many cardiac patients are on fluid restriction, which can cause them to crave salty things.

She’s partial to a dill spear but also appreciates a pickle chip now and then.

The team at Boston Children’s Hospital, where Bayse is a patient, fully embraced her new obsession back in March, and a child life specialist from the Association of Child Life Professionals started decorating her peripherally inserted central catheter (aka PICC line) with pickle stickers.

Bayse began her treatment at home in Medway, Massachusetts, while she was still seven years old. Once school let out in June, she went inpatient at Boston Children’s, where she met chef and program manager of culinary services Sarah Bryce.

In her hybrid administrative role, Bryce leads tasty, interactive and often bedside experiences.

She uses cooking and food to engage with patients and (hopefully) make their time spent at the hospital a bit more fun. She’s done everything from cupcake decorating to bedside nachos and, now, in-room pickling.

“I’ve done pizza, which is probably the most asked for and the one I do the most,” Bryce says, later adding that she mainly works with kids ranging in age from four to 16. She’s also made waffles with a mini waffle iron to try to get patients excited about eating breakfast, decorated whole birthday cakes and sugar cookies, filled cannoli to order and even attempted to make soft pretzels, which Bryce says didn’t work out so well.

Bryce was a patient at Boston Children’s as a kid, and she remembers how impacted she was by some of the moments she shared with staff.

“I really wanted to make a difference,” she says of the decision to revisit the hospital in a non-patient capacity. Now, she’s studying to be a dietitian.

“I’ve worked in these rooms and I’ve seen what a difference it is for a child to eat — just trying to get them to eat something,” she continues. “It sounds so simple, right? But it really can be a huge difference.”

https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-760w,f_avif,q_auto:eco,dpr_2/rockcms/2024-09/8-year-old-girl-heart-transplant-pickles-zz-240920-02-3745bb.jpg
Bryce (left) and Bayse (right) pickling

Bryce tells TODAY.com she received several emails from Bayse’s doctors and administrative caretakers about her craving for pickles.

After working with Bayse’s clinical dietitian, Bryce knew just the right activity to suggest when it came time to make her culinary rounds.

Bryce asked Bayse if she knew how pickles were made.

“She said, ‘No! I would have never thought about it,’ and I said, ‘What if we made some together?’” Bryce recalls. “Her eyes lit up and she was like, ‘We can do that?’” And Bryce replied, “We can do anything — if you say you want to do something, I’m gonna try my best to do it.”

Three days later, Bryce had found a refrigerator-stable recipe (she can’t bring equipment like induction burners into hospital rooms, so she had to get creative), prepped brine and brought all the necessary parts over to Bayse’s room.

They ended up making seven different kinds of pickles, including cucumbers, garlic, onions and watermelon.

“She loves Ken’s Italian Dressing; we made a pickle with those,” says Bryce.

“My mouth was also watering,” Bayse says of the exciting moment she learned about the activity, adding that the resulting pickle party is now a fun hospital memory for her.

After the first mini taste test, the duo threw a pickle party where folks from several departments stopped in for a treat. And by the end, “The pickles were gone,” Bryce says. “All of them.”

Bayse used her expertise to guide visitors through the different varieties, helping them decide which to try first and which would be best as a follow-up.

She says she was most excited about her pickle juice ice cubes, which she served with lemonade to anyone who stopped in.

“It was the best two hours of my life,” Bryce says of the party.

“The fact that they’re so supportive of just knowing what the kids are interested in and like to do and then just going with that idea, they’ve really normalized the experience for Emerson here at Children’s Hospital,” Allison Bayse, the patient’s mom, tells TODAY.com. “Taking something like a PICC line that runs into your body and delivers medication and to put pickles on it and to like make it not scary is such a gift.”

The point of the culinary program, Bryce says, is to spread a little joy. Bayse took that intention and extended it to others.

https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-760w,f_avif,q_auto:eco,dpr_2/rockcms/2024-09/8-year-old-girl-heart-transplant-pickles-zz-240920-07-9f8b6c.jpg
Bayse welcomed folks into her room for a pickle tasting.

Bryce says Bayse does a “great job” getting other people involved in her activities. When the hospital debuted its lobby aquarium, Bayse created an under-the-sea-themed table — featuring Goldfish and blue candy, of course — for staff and visitors, as well as a fall-themed one earlier this month.

Bayse’s nurses and doctors have also dubbed her the “unit magician” — she performs magic tricks under the moniker “The Magnificent Cardio” for both patients and staff on her floor, and she broadcasts her magic show to anyone in the hospital who wants to watch but might not be able to leave their rooms.

https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-760w,f_avif,q_auto:eco,dpr_2/rockcms/2024-09/8-year-old-girl-heart-transplant-pickles-zz-240920-06-cc0239.jpg
Bryce (left) teaching Bayse (right) how to pickle.

“She’s modeling from these adults their care and interest in her, and she’s taking that and trying to give it back to the other kids here in the building,” says Bayse’s mom.

Pickling is an age-old practice used to preserve foods that would otherwise spoil. So, when asked what she would choose if she could pickle anything at all, food or not, Bayse thought for a moment and emphatically said, “Ketchup!”

The staff, on the other hand, said they’d choose to preserve Bayse’s magic.

https://www.today.com/food/people/heart-transplant-candidate-pickle-party-rcna170806

[Ammi]

….awww, a great story…:love:.many happy pickle making times to Emerson and wishing her excellent health with her new heart…:love:…

[Benjamin]

The fact she made pickle juice ice cubes for lemonade :clap1:

[Ammi]

The fact she made pickle juice ice cubes for lemonade :clap1:

…:laugh:…if Ben had a daughter….eh…you and she would be a great/enterprising team of home makes…:flutter:…

[Benjamin]

…:laugh:…if Ben had a daughter….eh…you and she would be a great/enterprising team of home makes…:flutter:…

Hahaha we’d be at farmers markets selling the **** out of chutneys, preserves, pickled goods, candles and wax melts :laugh:

[rusticgal]

I never will. I remember watching Bambi as a child and sobbing till my throat hurt.



lol….me too :bawling:

[Ammi]

Hahaha we’d be at farmers markets selling the **** out of chutneys, preserves, pickled goods, candles and wax melts :laugh:

…you really would…not the dream team but the pickle pair…and I know from games etc that you’re very good at selling your product so I’m thinking that you’d be making your chutneys and pickles from a paradise island somewhere gorgeous…

[Benjamin]

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Carter-with-lamellar-ichthyosis-family-photo-by-mom-Shai-Bresee-via-gofundme.jpg

Boy with Rare Skin Condition Can Sleep with Eyes Closed for The First Time in 7 Years


This little boy from Nevada is pictured here before a life-changing surgery that allowed him to blink and sleep with his eyes closed—for the first time in his 7 years of life.

Can you even try to imagine what that must have been like?

Carter Bresee was born with lamellar ichthyosis (LI) a rare genetic skin disorder in which the body creates skin cells that do not separate from each other at the surface of the skin the way they should. In addition, the body does not shed the skin fast enough, causing brown scales to form.

Fox News has followed his condition for years, leading to Carter developing a bit of a supporter base in Nevada, many of whom contributed through a GoFundMe to his medical bills in May, when he had the chance for a life-changing eyelid skin graft.

It also resulted in Carter’s eyelids turning outward, preventing him from closing his eyes.

“He cannot blink, he sleeps with his eyes open and is often experiencing lots of pain and discomfort because of this,” Shai, Carter’s mom, wrote on that GoFundMe, which raised $46,000 towards the $8,000 cost of an oculoplastic surgery that would help the boy close his eyes.

“I didn’t realize what a sense of community we really had,” she admitted to Fox 5, after seeing how much money the two had received. “It’s really crazy to feel so included.”

Last month in San Diego, the surgery was carried out successfully, and Carter slept. Oh boy did he sleep.

“He slept until noon today. He got the best night’s sleep,” Shai said in a video interview after the boy’s first night of being able to sleep with his eyes closed.

She added that he was a “champ” throughout the sometimes painful surgery, remaining calm and asking for medicine if it got too severe.



https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/boy-with-rare-skin-condition-can-sleep-with-eyes-closed-for-the-first-time-in-7-years/

[Ammi]

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/boy-with-rare-skin-condition-can-sleep-with-eyes-closed-for-the-first-time-in-7-years/

…oh I’ve read of this condition before and with eyelashes growing inwards and I can’t even begin to imagine that pain almost every second of every day…’he slept until noon…:love:…wow, how it must feel for his mom to be able to say those words after the years of pain she’s watched him had to suffer…so amazing and wonderful to hear about this surgery…and as the person to perform the surgery/or the team, I should say…how incredible that must feel for them to, to know that they’ve been part of giving this little guy some sleep and a release from his constant pain…so emotional for them, I imagine they’ve shed some tears…I wish Carter well for his future…:love:..

[Ammi]

Britain Celebrates Birth of Baby Bongo Antelope–with Fewer Than 100 Left on Earth…

In an English safari park, keepers are celebrating the arrival of a calf from the world’s most endangered species of antelope, the eastern mountain bongo.

Born October 16th, first-time mom Othaya welcomed a male calf in the late afternoon marking the first bongo calf born at Woburn Safari Park in over 10 years.

It’s both a major success for the park and global conservation efforts to save this species native to Kenya.

“Othaya the bongo has successfully given birth to her first calf on Wednesday afternoon. After a long labor, the large healthy male calf was born and was soon seen standing on wobbly legs, in the deep bed of straw prepared for his arrival,” stated Tom Robson, Head of Reserves at the park. “Both mom and calf are doing really well.”

Sonny, the calf’s father, joined the four-strong bongo herd at the park last November and successfully mixed with the females, wasting no time in doing his job and displaying breeding behaviors.

“The bongo is part of a crucial breeding program and we are hoping in the future our new calf will travel to another wildlife collection and start a breeding group of his own,” Robson added.

Once the mom and baby are ready, they will rejoin the rest of the bongo herd in the African Forest exhibit, where visitors will soon have the chance to see the calf in person.

The eastern mountain bongo species has been hunted almost to extinction in the wild, and with less than 100 individuals remaining, this birth is hugely important for the future of the species.

Its near-cousin the lowland bongo is readily dispersed across the Congo region and southern West Africa, and is not endangered. The mountain bongo, with its much deeper red coat, is found only on Mount Kenya.

It has been estimated that without appropriate protections, the eastern mountain bongo may go extinct within 2 decades. However, several Critically Endangered species, like the West African lion, have made recoveries on the continent in recent years.


https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/credit-Woburn-Safari-Park.jpg

[bots]

very cute :laugh:

[Kate!]

Omigosh that's adorable

[Ammi]

…this story is around one year old but I’m going to post it anyway because it’s pretty cool…

NASA Finds Cluster Of Young Stars That Looks Exactly Like A “Cosmic Christmas Tree”….

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/1737176016622125352-png__700.jpg


https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/nasa-christmas-tree-space-cluster-2-65853d53397bd__700.jpg
All of these little stars are in our Milky Way, located about 2,500 light-years away from Earth, and are both smaller and larger than the Sun, ranging from some with less than a tenth the mass of the Sun to others containing about seven solar masses, NASA stated.
In the jolly photograph, the cluster’s resemblance to a Christmas tree has been enhanced through image rotation and color choices.
According to the American Space Administration, optical data from a telescope showed gas in the nebula represented by wispy green lines and shapes, which created the boughs and needles of the tree shape.

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/nasa-christmas-tree-space-cluster-3.jpg

[Niamh.]

looks like the grinch running away in the that top picture

[Ammi]

looks like the grinch running away in the that top picture

…after stealing the cosmos like he stole Christmas…

[Niamh.]

…after stealing the cosmos like he stole Christmas…

https://38.media.tumblr.com/66b8eb82eb423b060aa3585932cc7336/tumblr_nh378jFKma1rp0vkjo1_500.gif

[Zizu]

looks like the grinch running away in the that top picture


I see it !!

That said I see ‘things’ in cloud formations as well

LoL


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[Niamh.]

I see it !!

That said I see ‘things’ in cloud formations as well

LoL


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Cloud watching is a favourite pass time of mine :laugh:

[Ammi]

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/This-artist-continues-to-create-drawings-inspired-by-cloud-shapes-New-Pics-65d89f0950a97__880.jpg

[Niamh.]

looks like she's blowing smoke/fire from her mouth too

[Ammi]

Baby orangutan's first-class ticket to new home…

When you're a baby orangutan facing a long and daunting trip abroad, a bit of luxury goes a long way.
Kiwi was given a first-class ticket as she sailed across the English Channel with her carers to start a new life in Dorset.
Born in a Spanish conservation centre, the nearly-one-year-old was rejected by her mother.
After attempts for another orangutan to adopt her failed, she has moved to Monkey World in Wareham - home to Europe's specialist orangutan creche.

She made the 90-minute journey from Calais to Dover in the best available seats of the P&O ferry Liberte to ensure she had a stress-free place to stay for the crossing.
Jack Steer, P&O Ferries port operations director, said: "It is not every day we have an orangutan onboard and it was a special day for our P&O Liberte crew who greeted Kiwi and arranged a quiet place for her to stay as she sailed across the English Channel."
Kiwi is the second baby orangutan to join the creche at the Dorset ape rescue centre for orphaned and rejected youngsters in recent weeks.

Three-month-old Sibu moved to the centre in October from Dublin Zoo after his mother was unable to feed him.
Monkey World said Kiwi had settled in with Sibu, spending time together within the nursery to watch the older orangutans.
Still needing night milk feeds as well as comfort, Kiwi and Sibu spend evenings and mornings together with the specialist Monkey World care team.
They will eventually move up to the nursery full-time with four other young orangutans born in Hungary, Germany and the UK.
'An international crowd'
They are cared for by foster mother Oshine, an orangutan from Borneo rescued from the illegal pet trade in South Africa in 2010.
Monkey World director Dr Alison Cronin said: "It is so important that the babies grow up with others of their own kind rather than with people so that they mature into healthy and well-adjusted adults.
"It is hard work caring for two needy orphans but it means the kids will be able to grow up together under the watchful eyes of their older brothers and sisters and adopted mother.
"It is quite an international crowd at the orangutan nursery and, while it is very sad that they are not being cared for by their mothers, all of us from Spain to Ireland to Dorset are doing everything possible to give these gorgeous babies families of their own kind."
With the addition of Kiwi and Sibu, Monkey World said it has cared for 13 orphans from seven countries over the years.

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/d684/live/818d73a0-a8b6-11ef-a4fe-a3e9a6c5d640.jpg.webp
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/3302/live/8ef10890-a8b6-11ef-bdf5-b7cb2fa86e10.jpg.webp
https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/cdf5/live/a6240f30-a8b6-11ef-8ab9-9192db313061.jpg.webp

[Ammi]

…orangu….

[Zizu]

No more international breaks in the football season until March apparently


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[Benjamin]

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/This-artist-continues-to-create-drawings-inspired-by-cloud-shapes-New-Pics-65d89f0950a97__880.jpg

:lovedup:

[Benjamin]

Cat wriggles through drainpipe - but with less-than-purrfect results

A female cat called John was found with her head poking out one end of a pipe and needed to be rescued by firefighters.

https://e3.365dm.com/24/11/2048x1152/skynews-cat-drainpipe-john_6756210.jpg?20241124010049

The female black cat, called John, was found with her head poking through one end of the pipe, which was connected to a garage in Clevedon, North Somerset.

https://e3.365dm.com/24/11/2048x1152/skynews-cat-john-drainpipe_6756214.jpg?20241124010658

Firefighters were called at 9.55am on Saturday and used small tools to rescue the feline before she was whiskered away to a local vet, where the rest of the pipe was removed.

https://e3.365dm.com/24/11/2048x1152/skynews-cat-drainpipe-john_6756213.jpg?20241124010508

https://e3.365dm.com/24/11/2048x1152/skynews-cat-drainpipe-john_6756211.jpg?20241124010134

Posting on Facebook, Clevedon Fire Station said the cat suffered no serious injuries.

"John (Yes John) the cat had get [sic] herself (Yes John is a girl, it's a long story) stuck in a garage drainpipe from the inside of the garage," they added.

"The crew used ladders and small tools to cut John out. The easiest and least distressing option was to cut a section of the pipe out with John in situ."

Vets4Pets Clevedon said in a statement shared by the fire station that John was "cuddled and pampered" before being reunited with her "relieved owner".

They added the cat was given oxygen therapy and sedated while the pipe was removed by the fire brigade.

https://news.sky.com/story/cat-wriggles-through-drainpipe-but-with-only-some-success-13259673

[Ammi]

…the unfortunate case of the mis gendered cat and the drainpipe rescue is a Christmas story that we all need to be made into a musical…she doesn’t look like a John, I have to say…look at that smile with all of the firemen buzzing around her…I’m glad she’s ok…:lovedup:…

[Ammi]

Last Friday, Coffee Milano Cafe in Middleborough, Massachusetts posted a sign advertising a deal offering customers free coffee if they danced into the shop.

“Want a FREE COFFEE?? Walk in and give us your BEST Dance moves for 5 seconds!!” the sign read, adding that their marvelous moves would be recorded for social media — and it turns out people were not shy in the slightest.

On Sunday, the coffee shop posted a TikTok showing what happened after the sign was posted.

The clip is set to Los del Río’s “Macarena” and starts with a woman who kicks off her shoes to bust a move, followed by folks doing Irish jigs, waltzes, flossing, conga lines and so much more.

The happy faces of the dancers is also reflected in the comments section of the video, which garnered more than 7 million views and over 15,000 comments.

“This is such a good way to spread positivity,” commented one TikTok user.

“Girl took off her shoes and moonwalked! She deserved 2 cups,” wrote another, and someone else added, “1st girl is vibes.”

“Why am I crying?! This makes me sooo happy,” wrote another TikTok user, and many replied saying they were moved to tears, too.

The cafe’s owner, Josh Rashid, tells TODAY.com he got the idea after he saw a pizza shop do the same dancing deal for free slices on social media. “I was like, ‘This is genius.’”

The next day his social media manager teased the promotion on the cafe’s Facebook and he posted a sign on the door.

“We had probably 15, 20 people show up and dance for us,” he says. “It was kind of cool.”

Rashid says he’s thrilled the comments section is overwhelmingly positive.

“You know, life isn’t always easy,” he says. “Sometimes you just see something that puts the greatest smile on your face, and it brings tears to your eyes.”

Rashid says customers have been asking if he plans on throwing more dance-for-coffee parties, so the shop’s social media pages are already hinting at the next one.

“Just keep dancing,” he says. “Enjoy life. It’s short. It’s fun. We have good days, we have bad days, but sometimes a coffee and a dance makes it all better.”

_1Ncu3II2Lo

[Kate!]

A couple are celebrating the unexpected arrival of their premature son who was born in their car after it got stuck in flood water.

Becky Whittle and Luke Browning, from Newent, were on their way to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital on Sunday when their son Noah was born.

They were already on a detour to avoid flooding caused by Storm Bert but got stuck outside Malvern Tyres in Gloucester.

"We’ve had fun along the journey and we realise how lucky we are because it could have gone really badly," Becky said.

Mother and Baby are doing very well.

[Zizu]

A couple are celebrating the unexpected arrival of their premature son who was born in their car after it got stuck in flood water.

Becky Whittle and Luke Browning, from Newent, were on their way to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital on Sunday when their son Noah was born.

They were already on a detour to avoid flooding caused by Storm Bert but got stuck outside Malvern Tyres in Gloucester.

"We’ve had fun along the journey and we realise how lucky we are because it could have gone really badly," Becky said.

Mother and Baby are doing very well.


Fabulous !


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

[Ammi]

World's oldest known wild bird lays egg at 74….


The world's oldest known wild bird has laid an egg at the approximate age of 74, US biologists say.
Wisdom, a Laysan albatross, was filmed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) at the Midway Atoll national wildlife refuge in the Pacific Ocean with her latest partner looking after the egg.
Members of the species usually only live for 12-40 years, but Wisdom was tagged in 1956 when she was about five.
Her last offspring hatched in 2021. She is thought to have had more than 30 chicks in her lifetime.
The USFWS said on X that Wisdom was with a new partner this year and that her previous partner Akeakamai had not been seen for several years.
The species generally mates for life but she is already thought to have outlived at least three mates.
Jon Plissner, supervisory wildlife biologist at the refuge, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Wisdom was one of two to three million Laysan albatrosses who travel to Midway to breed.
He said biologists were unaware of any other birds even close to her age, the oldest being 45.
"It's really been remarkable," he said. "Wisdom seems to pique the interest of people across the world. We wait each year with bated breath for her return."
He said Wisdom still appeared to have the energy and instincts to raise another chick, and that there was a 70-80% chance of the egg hatching.
Albatross parents share incubation duties and, once the chick hatches, feeding duties.
Wisdom was first identified and tagged in 1956 after laying an egg. Laysan albatrosses are not known to breed before the age of five.
Midway Atoll is part of the Hawaiian archipelago but does not fall within the US state of Hawaii and is described as an unincorporated territory of the US.
The wildlife refuge is home to the largest colony of albatross in the world.

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/480/cpsprodpb/de31/live/61e000a0-b251-11ef-be96-59d5b40d461a.png.webp

[Mystic Mock]

https://news.sky.com/story/cat-wriggles-through-drainpipe-but-with-only-some-success-13259673

At least John is okay now.:dance:

[Benjamin]

An 84-year-old used a pair of jeans to help repel a masked man who twice tried to rob him in a launderette.

Ron Croker was drying his clothes in Maltby, South Yorkshire, when the would-be robber burst in and demanded: "Give me you ********** money now!"

Mr Croker stood his ground and refused to give up his wallet.

He slowly walked towards the man and managed to force him out - all while holding a pair of his jeans in one hand.

The man came back for another try but was again met with stiff resistance from the retired building site foreman.


As the attacker tried to grab him, Mr Croker screamed "get off!" and whipped him with the jeans as he again bundled him out the launderette.

"I've worked all my life for my money. He's not having it," Mr Croker told the BBC.

"I gave him an almighty shove and he went rolling into the road," he added.

https://news.sky.com/story/man-84-fights-off-launderette-robber-with-pair-of-jeans-in-maltby-13289281

[Ammi]

https://news.sky.com/story/man-84-fights-off-launderette-robber-with-pair-of-jeans-in-maltby-13289281

…:love:…a jeanius use of a clothing item…?…

[Benjamin]

Bringing picture books to life for blind and visually impaired children

For over 30 years, Living Paintings has been helping blind and visually impaired people enjoy art through touch and sound. Here, we explore the hard work involved in adapting a two-dimensional book for its readers

In his garage workshop, 88-year-old Len Webb uses a chisel to carve the underwater creatures that were originally illustrated by Axel Scheffer for Julia Donaldson’s picture book, Tiddler. Having previously worked in set design, Webb has been volunteering for Living Paintings for more than 20 years. “Len is an absolute diamond,” says Living Paintings’ head of communications Nick Ford.

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Output_PN_LIVINGPAINTINGS_2411271225-1-scaled-1500x0-c-default.jpg

Living Paintings’ CEO Camilla Oldland with Nick Ford at the charity’s headquarters in Kingsclere, Hampshire.“Reading a book to your kid is one of those special things in life, and it’s heartbreaking to imagine [missing out on that],” says Oldland. “Books should be for everyone.”

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Output_PN_LIVINGPAINTINGS_2411270967-1-scaled-1500x0-c-default.jpg

A tactile version is in the works of Under the Love Umbrella by Davina Bell, which involves turning Allison Colpoys’ original illustrations into line drawings so that they can be carved. Living Paintings is reproducing the book thanks to fundraising by Lucy Mellon-Jameson, whose five-year-old son Jude died following a neuroblastoma diagnosis. “Neuroblastoma can cause blindness, and although Jude didn’t experience that, his mum wanted to adapt his favourite book into a version that blind and visually impaired children can enjoy through touch and sound,” Ford explains.

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Output_PN_LIVINGPAINTINGS_2411271168-1-scaled-1500x0-c-default.jpg

Webb uses a fine sandpaper to smooth down the surface of his carvings. “The main challenge,” he says, “is carving tactile images that our visually impaired library members will find easy to follow.” Once he has completed the master artwork for Tiddler, multiple copies will be reproduced with a Thermopress machine that creates moulds and presses the shapes into heated plastic. Around 35 copies of each book will go into the Living Paintings library, which is free to join.

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Output_PN_LIVINGPAINTINGS_2411271245-1-scaled-1500x0-c-default.jpg

Once pressed, volunteers meticulously apply several coats of paint to each copy. Here, one volunteer paints a seahorse’s scarf, while another adds detail to a portrait of Peppa Pig. Pictures of Spot the Dog dry on racks in the background. Living Paintings has around 120 volunteers, from carvers and painters, to Braille proofreaders and scriptwriters, who write audio guides, as well as blind and visually impaired people who check the books are ready for the public.

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Output_PN_LIVINGPAINTINGS_2411271055-1-scaled.jpg

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Output_PN_LIVINGPAINTINGS_2411271124-1-scaled.jpg

“We’re often asked why the books are in colour,” Ford says. “The majority of blind and visually impaired children have some level of sight, but also, these books are designed to be shared.” One visually impaired boy felt a “bit isolated” at school, Ford recalls, until he received a Living Paintings book. “Suddenly he had this unusual, colourful object just for him, and all the other children were flocking over. It was a catalyst that helped him talk to his classmates.”

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Output_PN_LIVINGPAINTINGS_2411271136-1-scaled.jpg

A finished copy of Tiddler. The process of bringing a book to life, from gaining the publisher’s permission to ending up on the library shelves, takes around six months. The audio component is also crucial, Ford says, in “guiding little fingers over those raised pictures, so readers can build up a picture in their minds”. Living Paintings’ books have been voiced by numerous celebrities, including Dame Joanna Lumley, Sir Derek Jacobi and radio host Greg James.

https://www.positive.news/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Output_PN_LIVINGPAINTINGS_2411271194-1-scaled-1500x0-c-default.jpg

https://www.positive.news/society/bringing-picture-books-to-life-for-blind-and-visually-impaired-children/

[Ithinkiloveyoutoo]

^^^^ nah I genuinely love this story :bawling:

[Ammi]

…:lovedup:…that’s such a work of love…Len Webb…:love:…the carvings are gorgeous ….

[Ammi]

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/67168e33a0204_464170304_854840703496356_8432059334 94029926_n__700.heic

[bots]

i love the idea of australia, but i just couldn't cope with their wildlife :laugh:

[Ammi]

Now from Turkiye comes the story of an annual spring reunion that has captivated the hearts of a nation for 14 years.

It involves a simple rural fisherman Adem Yilmaz, waiting in his boat for the return of a dear friend: a white stork named Yaren.

Casting his lines and nets upon the beautiful Uluabat Lake near Yilmaz’s home of Eskikaraagac Village in the region of Bursa, he has waited patiently, eagerly, for the white stork’s arrival.

“Yaren generally comes at the beginning of the month, and when it didn’t show up, I feared something had happened to it,” Yilmaz told national news. “I spent a week in sorrow, thinking it might have faced danger on the way. But thankfully, Yaren has returned. This morning, it came to my boat and ate the fish I had brought for it.”

It is the 14th year that Yaren has come to the lake to perch on the prow of Yilmaz’s rowboat after making a 2,500-mile journey from the species’ winter breeding grounds in sub-Saharan Africa.

The white stork (Ciconia ciconia) flies this route, via the Balkans, Greece, and Turkiye, or via Gibraltar, every year before returning in spring to nest and raise its young. Eskikaraagac is part of the European Stork Villages Network, an organization that honors and celebrates towns whose members prioritize and engage with stork conservation strategies.

Alper Tuydes, a wildlife photographer from Turkiye, traveled to the lake to wait for Yaren along with Yilmaz for the chance to photograph the charming bond between man and bird that has captivated even the political elite.

“Spring has come, longing is over… That heart-warming reunion happened again on its 14th anniversary,” Ibrahim Yumakli, the Turkish Minister for Agriculture and Forestry, wrote on X. “Uncle Adem and Yaren are together again.”

“It’s a beautiful reminder of the importance of nature, friendship, and the deep connections that can transcend the barriers of species,” wrote Turkiye Today. “For those lucky enough to witness this annual reunion, it’s a heartwarming sight that continues to inspire and delight.”


M1UMuHmPZ84

[Benjamin]

He Was Injured with Crutches When a Group of Scary Teens Offered ‘the Kindness of Strangers’

From the Guardian comes the story of a man who at his most vulnerable received commendable kindness from a source all unlooked to.

Part of the paper’s “Kindness of Strangers” series, the report tells the story of Richard Munoz, who broke his ankle playing basketball and needed corrective surgery which left him on crutches.

Living in an urban environment, a typical day in the life of Mr. Munoz involved a lot of walking beyond the door of his flat, where he says there lay a park routinely occupied by groups of teenagers.

Every day after school, these teenagers would assemble there to smoke cigarettes and make snide remarks at occasional passersby. Munoz never got involved, but the route to the corner store was through that park, and though he could order groceries for delivery to his unit, there were times when certain small things were needed for expediency.

And it was pursuant to one such need that he entered the park on his crutches one day coming home from the corner store with milk only to see the gaggle of teenagers there. Attempting to pass by without rousing them, he heard one call something out to him—the particulars of which Munoz did not catch.

He tried to ignore them, but his pulse quickened as a few stood up and began approaching him.

To his surprise, they came to offer a helping hand with his bags, which he accepted nervously.

“A lot of people were kind to me during that injury experience—and a few weren’t kind at all—but by far the most helpful were those teens,” Munoz wrote.

Throughout the rest of his recovery, the park-loiterers were a constant helping hand, taking his garbage out, letting him cut in front of them in line at the store, and regularly asking if he needed a hand with anything.

By the end of the experience, he wrote a letter to the school administrators explaining the good deeds of the teenagers and suggesting they be recognized for their kind efforts, though the author admitted he didn’t know if the letter had been received.

“I’d been bullied a lot in high school and the experience helped me resolve a lot of the residual wariness I had about groups of teenagers,” wrote Munoz. “It also showed me that we can’t define strangers from the small glimpses we see of them, even if we see them every day. Those teens were more than their stereotype—and I’m grateful for it.”

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/he-was-injured-with-crutches-when-a-group-of-scary-teens-offered-the-kindness-of-strangers/

[Ammi]

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/DJwhKKcCR7S-png__700.jpg
A Dutch nursing home has found a brilliant, mutually beneficial model: free housing for college students in exchange for companionship with elderly residents.

At Humanitas in Deventer, students live rent-free-with one condition: spend at least 30 hours a month connecting with residents through conversation, shared meals, and simply showing up.

This intergenerational living setup doesn’t just tackle loneliness-it boosts mental well-being, breaks down age-related stereotypes, and gives everyone involved a greater sense of purpose.

I will always promote the importance of having a life full of loving relationships of all kinds; platonic relationships feed our souls too

[bots]

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/6964/live/0e0e27f0-50ca-11f0-8f34-1d8449bb8ffa.jpg.webp

Two bears who sparked the evacuation of a wildlife park involving trained firearms staff and police had headed straight for the honey store, the park has said.

Wildwood Devon, a conservation charity near Exeter, said European brown bears Mish and Lucy made their way to the food store after breaking free - and then consumed a "week's worth of honey".

The park was evacuated after the alarm was raised at about 15:00 BST on Monday - 16 people including children were locked into a play barn for their safety.

Mark Habben, director of zoological operations at Wildwood Trust, said emergency procedures were deployed and the public was "not in harm's way".

The trust has now launched an investigation into how the pair of "young bears", weighing about 180kg (397lb) each, escaped as there were no signs of enclosure damage, it said.

Mr Habben said: "Both bears are extremely happy. The team were very, very calm, as were the bears at all points.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgrxn4x7yx2o

[Ammi]

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/6964/live/0e0e27f0-50ca-11f0-8f34-1d8449bb8ffa.jpg.webp

Two bears who sparked the evacuation of a wildlife park involving trained firearms staff and police had headed straight for the honey store, the park has said.

Wildwood Devon, a conservation charity near Exeter, said European brown bears Mish and Lucy made their way to the food store after breaking free - and then consumed a "week's worth of honey".

The park was evacuated after the alarm was raised at about 15:00 BST on Monday - 16 people including children were locked into a play barn for their safety.

Mark Habben, director of zoological operations at Wildwood Trust, said emergency procedures were deployed and the public was "not in harm's way".

The trust has now launched an investigation into how the pair of "young bears", weighing about 180kg (397lb) each, escaped as there were no signs of enclosure damage, it said.

Mr Habben said: "Both bears are extremely happy. The team were very, very calm, as were the bears at all points.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgrxn4x7yx2o

….ahhhhh, I read this story yesterday…:love:…all’s well that ends well and when honey is in the local area, they should always be pre-beared and ready for the breakout…I’m glad all are safe, though…these stories/events can sometimes end tragically….

[AnnieK]

Please stop discussing other members. Keep it to actual good news

[bots]

I don't think Mish and Lucy are members here yet :laugh:

[Ammi]

Man left paralysed by shooting takes on marathon…


A Londoner left paralysed from the waist down after being shot in the back and told by doctors he would never walk again is preparing to take on the London Marathon.
Darren Awol was targeted in an unprovoked attack in Anerley, south-east London in 2011. His attacker has never been found.
The former Post Office cashier from Bromley, south-east London, said he had contemplated suicide during long periods of feeling "dark and gloomy" before he "had a conversation with myself" and "built my self confidence".
He said: "Your limitations are as far as you allow them to be: it's not about the medal but being able to do something I never thought I'd be able to."
'Gym is therapy'
He added: "My whole thing is just whatever you're going through, believe in yourself and rely on yourself because ultimately you've only got yourself."
During Sunday's race, the 42-year-old will be supported by his brother and a physiotherapist he met during his first three months of treatment.
He uses elbow crutches and has splints on each leg to remain balanced but can't feel as much on the left side of his body.

The south-east Londoner plans to walk at the start and end of the race and along the Embankment and Tower Bridge. He will use a wheelchair for the rest of the route.
"It's been daunting because I haven't been in wheelchair for 10 or 11 years so going back to learn how to use a wheelchair has been hard," he said.
"I'll be so happy to cross that line – it's about raising awareness for the next person.
"I want people to think: a guy who defied all the odds did it and they can do it and turn up for themselves."

He revealed his son, who was aged just two at the time he was shot, was his "biggest motivation" to recover.
He said: "It gave me the momentum to see me walking again.
"Going to the gym is therapy for me: movement is a wonderful medicine.
"If we can uplift each other and change someone's life, it's free. No matter what I go through mentally and physically, I show up for life."
The money he raises will go towards opening a unit for people to train with spinal injuries, multiple sclerosis, strokes and cerebral palsy.

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/c066/live/e0588070-211d-11f0-bc02-6f0ee6586b19.jpg.webp

[Ammi]

Tortoise found 2.8 miles from home after 16 days on the run…


A runaway tortoise was found nearly three miles from home, 16 days after escaping from its pen in Devon.

Shelly the leopard tortoise vanished from Shillingford Abbot, near Exeter on July 9.

The 40lb reptile was then discovered near The Orange Elephant ice cream parlour, close to the A379 near Kennford, some 2.8 miles away as the crow flies.

Nick Phillips, Shelly’s owner, said: “She was spotted by the farmer, who thought she was a big rock. Luckily, he realised rocks don’t usually move and gave us a call.”

The family had looked for the tortoise in verges, undergrowth and local woods, and used thermal imaging to try and spot her.

Mr Phillips said Shelley’s appetite had diminished after returning home, adding: “We tried runner beans, cabbage, cucumber, the full monty. She wasn’t interested. I’ve no idea what she’s been eating, but clearly it wasn’t salad.”

Mr Phillips’s daughter Becky said: “She’s quite big and can travel nearly a mile a day. It seems people don’t know what to do when they see a tortoise on the loose, because she was just left there.

“We think she escaped by clawing under the chicken wire of her pen.”


https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/a7lmWGE9TZ35tUloDyKHtw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTI0MDA7aD0xNTA0/https://media.zenfs.com/en/the_telegraph_818/896d261d0ea9ad7bd8401bb98d749c8f

[Mystic Mock]

At least she's safe now.
Ammi

[Ammi]

At least she's safe now.
Ammi

…:love:…yes, her days on the run are over for now…which is the story in a shell, Mock…

[Mystic Mock]

…:love:…yes, her days on the run are over for now…which is the story in a shell, Mock…

I like the pun.:laugh:

[Mystic Mock]

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/a-policing-act-of-kindness-in-detroit-after-little-boy-calls-911-to-chat-about-soccer/

[Ammi]

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/a-policing-act-of-kindness-in-detroit-after-little-boy-calls-911-to-chat-about-soccer/

…so sweet…:lovedup:..thank you for that, Mock…:love:..

[bots]

A wasp riding a broomstick

https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/749b/live/85fa1730-622f-11f0-83d2-4f671b8c1523.jpg.webp

[Mystic Mock]

…so sweet…:lovedup:..thank you for that, Mock…:love:..

We need more genuinely good stories like that one being talked about in the world.

Which is why I do like this thread as it cuts out the fakeness that MSM headlines tend to create.

[Ammi]

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/yup-that-exists-pics-4-68aeb32106ca7__700.jpg

[Ammi]

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/yup-that-exists-pics-8-68aeb329a2c98__700.jpg

[Ammi]

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/yup-that-exists-pics-3-68aeb31ec6295__700.jpg

[Ammi]

https://www.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/yup-that-exists-pics-14-68aeb339c8cfe__700.jpg

In Japan’s Ako City, vending machines have leveled up for emergencies.

When an earthquake or severe disaster strikes, they automatically unlock, giving people free access to food, water, and survival gear.

These machines are packed with drinks, instant meals, masks, and even portable toilets, making sure communities have what they need when disaster hits.

[Benjamin]

Teen’s iPhone Called 911 by Itself After Severe Crash, Saves Her Life

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Lindsays-vehicle-after-the-crash-credit-Leskovac.jpg
Lindsay’s vehicle after the crash – credit, supplied by the Leskovacs

A tragedy suffered, an even greater tragedy avoided: that’s the narrative on Laura Leskovac’s mind since her daughter was seriously injured in a car crash.

The greater tragedy? What would have almost certainly happened had her daughter Lindsay not had the crash detection feature activated on her iPhone 14.

Falling asleep at the wheel and obliterating her car against two poles and a tree, the phone knew what had happened and immediately called 911 emergency services.

“The person from the fire and rescue told me that 911 said the phone initiated the call, so I looked further into that to find out…” Laura told ABC 21 WFMJ. “And I discovered that iPhones […] have an automatic crash detection on it, if you have the setting on.”

Laura said the phone was connected to 911 for 22 minutes, during which Lindsay, who broke both her femurs, as well as bones in her pelvis, hips, and cervical spinal region, managed to help the paramedics find her location where she lay trapped under the car.

“We’re so blessed that she’s alive; it’s a miracle. We’re also blessed that there’s no paralysis,” Laura said.

The mother added her daughter has a long road to recovery, but that the most important thing was that she had the technology and that it was activated, for otherwise, there may have been no road left at all for the teenager.

If you have an iPhone 14 or newer, you too can activate the detection system by scrolling down to Emergency SOS under the settings menu and activating Crash Detection. From that menu, you can also select which number it is your phone should automatically dial—911 in most cases—although you can change it—for example to an embassy number if you’re traveling out of country.


https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/this-teens-iphone-called-911-by-itself-after-severe-crash-saves-her-life/

[Benjamin]

Tooth Is Implanted in 34-year-old’s Eye to Restore His Vision After Two Decades

There’s an old Babylonian/Biblical legal maxim that goes, “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.”

For Canadian Brent Chapman, his new maxim is “a tooth for an eye,” because he has become the first in his country ever to receive an osteo-odonto-keratoprosthesis.

If your Latin is on point, you’ll realize that translates to a tooth-in-eye prosthetic—literally Chapman’s tooth has been surgically implanted into his eye to act as a lens fixture which has enabled him to see again.

It’s considered a last resort, and after 50 surgical transplants and procedures, that’s where Chapman was alongside his dedicated ophthalmological surgeon Dr. Greg Moloney, who has been putting Chapman under the knife since he was a teenager.

Now 34, Brent suffered a rare reaction to ibuprofen at age 13 that left severe burns on his cornea. The cornea acts like a windscreen, keeping debris and liquids out of the eyeball while allowing light to penetrate and reach the retina and optic nerve, but the burns permanently obscured the vision in his right eye while his left was lost entirely to infection.

The tooth-in-eye surgery is rare; very rare—so rare that despite being pioneered in the 1960s Chapman’s procedure is the very first ever done in Canada. According to Dr. Moloney, it’s turned to when all other options have already been tried and failed, or the initial damage to the cornea is so substantial that ophthalmologists know there’s no chance conventional replacements or grafts will succeed.

The tooth is chosen because it’s made of the hardest material produced by the body. A hole is drilled through the canine tooth and a hi-tech lens is fitted inside. The tooth is then attached to the cheek through the eye, and an aperture to the retina and optic nerve is created so that the light can enter the lens and reach it.

With glasses Chapman has about 20/30 vision, meaning at 20 feet he can see clearly what someone with perfect vision can see at 30.

Dr. Moloney spoke with CNN about the procedure, the bizarre sense in it, and the effect it has on people.

“The tooth is a really ideal structure for holding a focusing element in place. It’s hard, it’s rigid, it survives in poor environments, and the body accepts it because it’s part of its own,” said the corneal surgeon from the University of British Columbia. “It’s like watching people come out of a time capsule and reintroduce themselves to the world, it’s very emotional for us.”

Chapman agreed.

“It’s really indescribable, to be able to see the whole city and how there’s a whole world that’s just intersecting,” said the professional massage therapist, looking out at Vancouver from Moloney’s office on the 16th floor.

He can’t wait to “not make everything about me,” go to Japan, and not have to worry about plans falling through or piling various medications and emergency contacts into his luggage and phone in case his vision fails again.

“It was so unpredictable, I would make these plans, and it would be heartbreaking when I couldn’t do them,” he told CNN.


https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/tooth-is-implanted-in-34-year-olds-eye-to-restore-his-vision-after-two-decades/

[Ammi]

Green turtle brought back from brink of extinction…

The green turtle is back from the brink of extinction in a major victory for conservationists.

Populations have recovered so much its status has been downgraded from “endangered” to “least concern” in an update to the official red list compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) .

Numbers have increased by more than a quarter since the 1970s as a result of focused conservation efforts to reduce hunting and egg-harvesting for food.

The species is of vital importance to its native habitat of tropical coral reefs but it almost became extinct after English sailors discovered its meat was delicious and turtle soup became a sought after dish in the UK in the 18th century.

Roderic Mast of the IUCN said: “The ongoing global recovery of the green turtle is a powerful example of what coordinated global conservation, over decades, can achieve to stabilise and even restore populations of long-lived marine species.

“Sea turtles cannot survive without healthy oceans and coasts and humans can’t either. Sustained conservation efforts are key to assuring that this recovery lasts.”

Other positives from the updated list include the tiger showing signs that its decline has been slowed. It is still endangered and extinct in nine of the 24 areas in its traditional range but there are signs that protection efforts are working.

https://uk.yahoo.com/news/green-turtle-brought-back-brink-152708807.html

[Benjamin]

Green turtle brought back from brink of extinction…

The green turtle is back from the brink of extinction in a major victory for conservationists.

Populations have recovered so much its status has been downgraded from “endangered” to “least concern” in an update to the official red list compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) .

Numbers have increased by more than a quarter since the 1970s as a result of focused conservation efforts to reduce hunting and egg-harvesting for food.

The species is of vital importance to its native habitat of tropical coral reefs but it almost became extinct after English sailors discovered its meat was delicious and turtle soup became a sought after dish in the UK in the 18th century.

Roderic Mast of the IUCN said: “The ongoing global recovery of the green turtle is a powerful example of what coordinated global conservation, over decades, can achieve to stabilise and even restore populations of long-lived marine species.

“Sea turtles cannot survive without healthy oceans and coasts and humans can’t either. Sustained conservation efforts are key to assuring that this recovery lasts.”

Other positives from the updated list include the tiger showing signs that its decline has been slowed. It is still endangered and extinct in nine of the 24 areas in its traditional range but there are signs that protection efforts are working.

https://uk.yahoo.com/news/green-turtle-brought-back-brink-152708807.html



You know how much I love turtles :lovedup:

[Ammi]

…and what about cats, is there enough love for them also…?…

Amsterdam is building tiny staircases to help cats exit its canals…

https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/amsterdam-cat-staircases-canals-b2800234.html

[Ammi]

Denmark to abolish tax on books to tackle decline in
reading among young people…

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crm48mvl33ro

[Ammi]

A 7-year delayed dam project in czech republic was completed by
beavers in 2 days, saving £1m…

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/beaver-dam-czech-republic


…some of these stories are a bit earlier in the year but still…good news is good news…

https://static.boredpanda.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/cute-baby-beavers-0111.jpg