robeight

I write about good news, productivity, and healthy living.

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Item: A Fancy Mirror Rarity: ✦ Uncommon

Which video game character do you most identify with (and why, if you like)?

Feed your dashboard by answering my question, blogger.

Tommy Vercetti

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Item: The Screen Rarity: ⏶ Common

Console or PC?

Feed your dashboard by answering my question, blogger.

PC

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Item: The Couch Rarity: ⏶ Common

Couch co-op or online?

Feed your dashboard by answering my question, blogger.

Online

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UK Couple Finds Valuable Rare Gold Coins During Home Reno

A UK couple finds rare gold coins worth over $285-thousand while renovating their home. An anonymous couple was renovating their 18th-century North Yorkshire townhouse when they discovered something under the floor in their kitchen. At first they thought it was an electrical cable, but soon realized it was a stoneware cup, about the size of a soda can, full of more than 250 gold coins.

The coins date between 1610 and 1727 and although they are rare, they were once coins used in everyday trade with an original value of $50 to $100. The coins are believed to have belonged to a couple from a wealthy trading family who lived in the home around the turn of the 18th century. Fortunately for the owners, the coins don’t qualify as “treasure,” so they were able to keep all but a single coin, which is headed for a British museum. 

The couple plans to sell most of their coins at auction soon and the auction house estimates that they will sell for more than $285-thousand. Auctioneer Gregory Edmund calls the find one of the largest ever recorded. "This is a fascinating and highly important discovery,” he says. “It is a wonderful and truly unexpected discovery from so unassuming a find location.”

Source: Smithsonian Magazine

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Woman Who Can Smell Parkinson’s Helps Scientists Develop Test

A retired Scottish nurse who discovered she had the ability to smell Parkinson’s disease has inspired scientists to develop a new test to diagnose it. Back in 1982, Joy Milne noticed that her husband Les, who was in his early 30s at the time, started to smell different. A decade later, her husband was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, and then in 2009 they got involved with Parkinson’s UK and she realized that everyone with the neurodegenerative disease shared that same distinctive smell.

Milne approached disease researcher Tilo Kunath at the University of Edinburgh, who consulted his colleague Perdita Barran at the University of Manchester who specializes in smells and the three of them started a ten-year process that ultimately led to the development of a simple skin-swab test that is 95% accurate in diagnosing Parkinson’s. Barran says there’s not currently a chemical test for the disease and at any given time thousands of people are on wait lists for neurological consultations.

Their goal is to create a test that any GP doctor would be able to use at their practice and they say that would be “transformative.” Although they have developed the test in the laboratory environment, it will likely be a couple of years before the tests would be widely available. Milne knows what a difference a test like this would have made for her family. "We would have traveled more. If we had known earlier it might have explained the mood swings and depression," she says. And before her husband passed away in 2015, he made her promise that she would investigate her theory, which she has.

Source: BBC

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How To Cope With The Post-Vacation Blues

Now that most COVID restrictions have been lifted, lots of people are finally getting to take those vacations they’ve been planning for so long. Even a quick getaway can help ease stress, unless you’re hit with flight cancellations or have to deal with general travel chaos. But even if your getaway goes perfectly as planned, you still have to face reality when you return home and that can leave you with a case of the post-vacation blues.

Nobody wants to have to deal with that and these tips from experts can help you avoid it:

Plan a buffer for when you come back - Overloading yourself with a long to-do list of tasks to tackle as soon as you return home can make that contrast between vacation and reality feel more severe. So, if possible, try to give yourself a buffer day to transition before going back to work and try to minimize household chores. Psychologist Dr. Andrea Bonior says that way you “can exhale and have some time to just be able to readjust.”

Try to maintain a vacation mindset - “Remember that ending the vacation doesn’t mean ending the fun,” explains Dr. Laurie Santos, Professor of Psychology at Yale. She suggests finding ways to get more of that travel feeling in everyday life by doing things that make you feel good when you’re in your “vacation mentality,” like walking through a new neighborhood or trying a new restaurant.

Practice gratitude - Take some time to reflect on your positive travel memories by journaling or making an album of photos from your trip. In addition to being thankful for what you had, try to bring that gratitude to your daily life as well to help you appreciate all the good in it.

Exercise - You may not feel like getting back into the swing of your workout routine, but lots of studies have shown that moderate to vigorous aerobic exercise can help ease anxiety and depression. According to one recent study, adults who did activities equivalent to 1.25 hours of brisk walking a week had an 18% lower risk of depression than those who didn’t exercise.

Acknowledge your feelings - “Research shows that for us to be able to just articulate that we have a certain emotion makes that emotion feel less scary, so we feel more in control,” Bonior explains. So talking about how you feel, either with others or in a journal, can help you feel better and hopefully shake off those post-vacation blues.

Source: CNN

Photo credit: RAEng Publications / Pixabay royalty free images

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Nursing Home Recruits Babies To Bring Joy To Residents

A nursing home in Japan is recruiting babies to raise the spirits of the home’s residents. When Gondo Kimie, director of the Moyai Seiyukai elderly care home in Kitakyushu, Japan, noticed how the home’s residents cheered up when her grandchildren visited, it gave her a great idea. She started distributing flyers around the neighborhood looking for new moms who would bring their babies into the home to cheer up the elderly residents.

Over the last year, the program has grown from a single baby to 32 infant “employees” under three-years-old, mostly from the immediate neighborhood. The babies are compensated with free formula and diapers and their mothers can get cups of tea from the in-house cafe. Whenever the infants show up for a visit, the residents perk up and it creates a happier atmosphere.

"Even the people who usually don't speak much and don't smile a lot or don't move, as soon as they see the babies, their facial expressions get brighter," Gondo says. The babies are giving the residents much-needed social interaction and Gondo hopes it will help combat the image of care homes as depressing places full of lonely old people. She also hopes that the program will have a positive impact on the children and that they will continue to visit as they grow up.

Source: CNN

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Ruby Bridges, Desegregation Trailblazer, Writes Kids’ Book

Desegregation trailblazer, Ruby Bridges, who at six-years-old became the face of desegregation, has written a new children’s book. When Bridges was a six-year-old first grader in New Orleans in 1960, her parents volunteered her to be among the first Black children to be integrated into all white schools in Louisiana. Images of Bridges being escorted by federal marshals past hateful protesters on her way to school helped define the civil rights movement and became the inspiration for the 1964 Norman Rockwell painting “The Problem We All Live With.”

Bridges, now 68-years-old, has written a book about her experience from the perspective of that six-year-old little girl. And considering that she was the only student in her class for that first year and faced daily death threats, the perspective isn’t what you would think. Instead of focusing on the hate, the book is about the wonder that Bridges experienced and the kindness she received from supporters and from her teacher, Barbara Henry, who Bridges describes as her “very best friend.”

This is the fifth book that Bridges has either authored or co-authored, but this is the first that is geared toward little children. The book, “I am Ruby Bridges,” is out now and features illustrations by award-winning artist Nikkolas Smith. Bridges hopes that her book will inspire other children to continue to fight for what is right and fair. “You have a responsibility to open the door to keep this moving forward,” she says.

Source: My FOX 8

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Inspired By Kindness Of Strangers On 9/11, Man Starts Kindness Initiative

A man who was inspired by the kindness that a small Newfoundland town showed him and thousands of other stranded travelers on 9/11, starts a kindness initiative that has grown into a global phenomenon. On September 11th, 2001, Texas businessman Kevin Tuerff was flying back to the U.S. from Europe when the Twin Towers were attacked and the FAA grounded all U.S.-bound flights. His plane and many others were diverted to Gander, Newfoundland.

It took a week for Tuerff to get back to his home in Austin, Texas, but the experience he had in Gander would stay with him to this day. Gander, a town of about 9-thousand residents, opened their homes and welcomed more than 7-thousand travelers that day and Tuerff wondered if a small Texas town would be as welcoming to strangers in need.

The experience he had in Gander inspired Tuerff to start a pay-it-forward initiative at his company. He gave employees money and time off to perform random acts of kindness on the anniversary of 9/11 and every year since, the initiative has grown in size. This year, Tuerff’s group, PayItForward911.org, has a goal of performing more than 22-thousand good deeds leading up to September 11th. Later this year, Tuerff is heading back to Gander for a special performance of the Broadway musical “Come From Away,” that was inspired by the little Canadian village’s kindness. He says he’s thrilled to be going back to show the people of Gander all the good that they’re kindness has brought to the world.

Source: People

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Uvalde High Wins First Home Football Game Of Season

The Uvalde High School football team wins their first home game of the season. In the first home game for Uvalde High in Uvalde, Texas, since the town was devastated by the school shooting at Robb Elementary earlier this year, the Uvalde Coyotes scored a “W.” Playing against the Winn High Mavericks from Eagle Pass, Texas, Uvalde won 34-28 in a dramatic game.

Although thoughts of the 21 victims of the Robb Elementary shooting were on the minds of the teams and spectators, it was an opportunity for a happy moment for the town. The stands were filled with community members sporting their “Uvalde Strong” shirts and the opposing team even played a video of teachers and students from their school wearing Uvalde’s colors and sharing messages of support for their neighboring community.

At a pre-game dinner the night before the home game, the team got a surprise visit from Houston Texans coach Lovie Smith and Texans linebackers Christian Kirksey and Kamu Grugier-Hill, who came out to show their support for the community. The Texans also gifted the team new uniforms and equipment and announced that the Texans plan to honor Uvalde with “Uvalde Strong” stickers on their helmets at their first home game on September 11th. "We'll always be in your corner,” Kirksey told the Uvalde players. “We'll always have your back."

Source: Good Morning America

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UPS Driver Surprises Buddy On Route For His 5th Bday

A UPS driver in Florida forms a friendship with a little boy and surprises him on his fifth birthday. Most weekday afternoons, you can find Brantley Kimbel looking out his bedroom window at his family’s Plant City home waiting for his friend, UPS driver Michelle Dearhart. The two have formed a special friendship over the last couple of years while Brantley has been isolated at home because of health concerns.

Brantley’s mom Leslie Kimbel says Dearhart’s visits have been the highlight of his days spent at home. “Not seeing his grandparents, not seeing his cousins,” Leslie explains. “Michelle was his best friend at that point. It was just a face that he loved.” The UPS driver would bring her friend candy on her daily visits and when her birthday came around, Brantley was waiting with flowers and chocolates.

So when Brantley celebrated his fifth birthday recently, Dearhart brought her friend a special surprise. On the big day, she pulled up in an extra-special UPS delivery truck with flames down the sides. Brantley ran out of the house and Dearhart picked up her friend and they hugged. Then she delivered some gifts for the birthday boy, including a brown and yellow UPS superhero cape, and let him sit in the driver’s seat of the truck. It was a doubly special day, too, because Brantley had just been given a clean bill of health. Dearhart was happy to be a part of her friend's special day, saying, “This is a birthday he’s never going to forget.”

Source: WPTV

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Man Builds Benches For Bus Stops After Seeing A Woman Sitting In The Dirt

A Denver man is building benches for local bus stops after seeing a woman sitting in the dirt waiting for a bus. James Warren was walking through his Denver neighborhood when he saw a woman sitting at a bus stop on the ground and thought, “That's not dignified at all. We need to be doing better by our fellow city members." He could have left it at that, but instead he decided to do something about the problem.

Warren’s father is a homebuilder and he had the tools, so he picked up some discarded wood scraps from a construction site and built a bench for the bus stop. That was earlier this year and after building that first bench and placing it at that one bus stop, he’s gone on to build seven more, placing them at stops around the area. Each bench is unique and takes him a couple of hours to construct, but all of them are branded with the message: “Be Kind.”

Warren has gotten some feedback from his benches from some who’ve used them and others who he’s inspired to build their own benches, which he appreciates. “It can feel really difficult to make a change in the world around us. But the truth is, anyone can be kind,” Warren explains. “And by being kind, you can make a difference … And that difference matters a lot." He hopes that his benches will continue to inspire others to be helpful and kind and maybe that will expand far beyond his neighborhood.

Source: CBS News

Photo credit: James Warren (Twitter: @J_M_Warren)

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Illinois Dad Donates Liver To Save Another Dad’s Life

An Illinois father of two donates part of his liver to save the life of another dad in his community, even though they’d never met. Last year, suburban Chicago dad Dan Droszcz was diagnosed with stage IV terminal liver cancer. The 52-year-old father of three was told by doctors that he wasn’t eligible for a transplant, but they’d do what they could to give him as much time as possible.

After undergoing surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation, his condition improved and he could get in line for a transplant, but since he wasn’t a great candidate, he’d be low on the transplant list. His best chance to survive was finding a living donor on his own, so his family started getting the word out and that’s how Chris Staehlin found out about Dan. Chris, a 35-year-old husband and father of two, was the first person outside of Dan’s family to get tested and he was a perfect match.

The only thing Chris knew about Dan was that he lived nearby and was a dad in need of a liver. Despite Dan’s family wanting to meet the man who was going to save their dad’s life, Chris held off in case something happened that would prevent him from being able to donate. The two had a successful transplant surgery the last week of August and afterward they finally met. "How's my liver treatin' ya?" was the first thing Chris said to Dan. "It's treating me good," he replied. "I love you, man. You're family now." Obviously, Dan and his family are eternally grateful for their hero, but what surprised Chris was how good it feels to know that he was able to help another dad be able to be there for his kids. "It’s a wild ride, from the start until now,” Chris says. “Crazy that I was able to help someone like this."

Source: Patch

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Man On Mission To Do 30 Acts Of Kindness Before 30th Bday

A San Francisco man is celebrating his 30th birthday by performing 30 acts of kindness. When Bryan Tsiliacos [[SIL-e-ah-cos]] turned 29 last year, he took stock of all the things that he had to be grateful for and noticed a trend. “I realized that every wonderful thing that has happened to me was thanks to the support and generosity of others," he says. So he decided that before his next birthday — his 30th — he would complete 30 acts of kindness.

After making more than 400 desserts for San Jose firefighters for his first act of kindness, Bryan reached out to school principals in Oakland for a list of supplies that their teachers and students needed and he got to work on his second act. He tapped donors across the country to gather around $12-thousand worth of supplies to donate to Oakland schools.

Bryan has been documenting his “30 acts by 30” project on his Instagram and TikTok pages and says that performing acts of kindness can be addictive and contagious. "Once you do one act of kindness you want to do another," he says. "So, I would encourage others to keep doing acts of kindness because one act can lead to hundreds." Bryan’s next act will be in San Francisco and he says he’ll share the details on social media soon.

Source: ABC 7 News

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Apple Watch Saves Cyclist After Crash Leaves Him Paralyzed

A California man says his Apple Watch saved his life after a bicycle crash that left him paralyzed. Ryan McConnaughey was mountain biking in San Diego county when he went headlong over his handlebars and hit the ground hard, breaking his neck and leaving him unable to move. "I instantly couldn't move anything from my neck down," he recalls. "And I was by myself, literally in the middle of nowhere, so if I were to yell or anything, nobody would find me."

The 23-year-old knew that his life depended on him getting medical care right away and the only person who had any idea of where he was located was his friend, Peter, who he’d been riding with earlier that day. With his phone in his backpack and him unable to move, his only option was to use his Apple Watch to call his friend. He called out to Siri to call his friend and was connected to Peter over speakerphone.

While he lay there waiting for help, McConnaughey also called his girlfriend, Lauren Housh, from his watch and left her an emotional message that she later shared on TikTok, where it’s been viewed by millions. Peter was able to find McConnaughey and get him help and he was airlifted to a nearby hospital. He had to undergo multiple surgeries and months of therapy and still doesn’t have use of his legs, but he has regained some movement in his arms. And he knows how lucky he is. He still thinks about how if he hadn’t been wearing his watch, he might not have made it. "I think about it all the time," he says. "Nobody knew where I was. There's no way I would have survived through the night."

Source: People

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Family Adopts Deaf Dog For Autistic Son With Hearing Loss

A family in Michigan adopts a deaf dog for their autistic son who is losing his hearing. During their recent “Clear the Shelter” event, the Humane Society of Midland County in Michigan posted a story on social media about Dave, a six-year-old deaf bulldog mix in need of a new home. Mindy Cousineau saw the post and thought Dave might be the perfect companion for her 14-year-old son Walker, who is autistic and also has hearing loss.

The Cousineaus headed to the shelter to meet Dave on the last day of the event. Mindy says Walker and Dave had an instant connection and she knew they wouldn’t be leaving the shelter without him. The connection continued when they got back home with their new pup. "We walked in and it was like Dave had always been there,” Mindy recalls. “There was zero transition period. It's like he's always been ours."

There was almost an immediate positive effect on Walker when Dave came to live with him. "Walker is feeling better about losing his hearing now that we have Dave, wearing his hearing aids all the time now and doesn't feel out of place,” Mindy explains. “The boys are inseparable. Neither one can be far from the other's sight. They sleep together and honestly do everything together since we got Dave." The Cousineaus hope that Dave’s story will encourage other families to be open-minded when it comes to adopting pets with special needs.

Source: Newsweek

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Christmas In September Delivers Free Toys To 100 Missouri Families

Christmas came early for dozens of families in St. Louis, Missouri, thanks to an event hosted by local police and a youth sports organization. STL Youth Sports Outreach and the North County Police Cooperative held a “Christmas in September” event recently and passed out sports equipment, games, and toys to nearly 100 local families in need.

Scott Collett with STL Youth Sports Outreach says the event will help get sports equipment to kids who might not be able to afford it. “I know the people that live in this community and how hard the struggle is,” he explains. “It’s a shame for a kid not to be able to play sports or not to have something just because of the money situation.” And the North County police got involved in the event as a way to give back to the community and to build relationships.

Single mom, Xaviera Stokes, who brought her three kids to the event, says it helps take some pressure off of her to provide for her kids. “Sometimes it can feel like I don’t do enough for them, but I’m limited on what I can do,” she says. “Things like this definitely help. It helps them feel good and it makes me feel good.”

North County Police  and STL Youth Sports Outreach have plans for more community events in the near future.

Source: KMOV