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Friends Miraculously Get Car Keys Back When Ocean Returns Them in Big Wave–VIDEO

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Lauren Thompson finds keys returned by the ocean – Alisha Kelly / SWNS
Lauren Thompson finds keys returned by the ocean – Alisha Kelly / SWNS

Two friends miraculously found their car keys minutes after they’d watched them get washed away by the ocean.

Alisha Kelly and girlfriend Lauren Thompson were at Trigg Beach in Perth, Australia, when their phones and keys got swallowed up by a large wave.

Alisha had managed to retrieve their phones before they were sucked into the sea, but they had given up on ever seeing the car keys again.

Then, ten minutes later while the 27-year-old was making a video describing what just happened (see below), Lauren suddenly spotted the keys floating lightly up the sand just a few feet away–riding another wave.

The video captured Lauren’s immense delight at finding the keys—and even more so when they realized the electronics still worked.

“We felt so lucky and grateful!” said Alisha, who’s from the Gold Coast.

“We had the keys sitting up on the beach on a rock and a random monster wave came and swept them away.”

“About 10 minutes later, we were laughing that they were gone—stuck without our car keys—and a wave brought them back up the beach about five meters away in another spot!

MORE GOOD LUCK:
• Indian Farmer Changes His Fortunes–Finding Two Diamonds in His Field 
• 1,000 year old Viking Sword Fished out of an Oxfordshire River with a Magnet–LOOK

“What was even more amazing is that they worked perfectly despite the swim… We genuinely were just so lucky.”

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Hero Brain Surgeon and Son Save 5 Malibu Homes From Wildfire Through Preparation and Sheer Will (WATCH)

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Dr. Chester Griffiths saves Malibu homes from wildfire – YouTube / Inside Edition
Dr. Chester Griffiths saves Malibu homes from wildfire – YouTube

A brain surgeon and his son ignored evacuation warnings and instead put into action an emergency plan to save their oceanfront home—and their neighbor’s home—in the gorgeous Malibu community near Los Angeles.

For two straight days and nights before firefighters arrived, a neighbor joined them in struggling to put out fires wherever they erupted during the blustery conditions brought on by fierce Santa Anna winds.

Brain surgeon Dr. Chester Griffiths says their victory over the Palisades Fire wasn’t just physical bravery.

For years in advance he planned for a wildfire by buying high pressure hoses, professional firefighting gear, and flame retardant home-building materials. Not only that, they trained to learn about disaster preparedness.

As a result, the father-son duo, along with neighbor Clayton Colbert and local firefighters, saved five homes along the beach where so many others were turned to smoldering rubble.

“We did it,” he said, exhausted, in a video for social media (watch below). “Our houses are here!”

Thankfully, the winds have finally died down in California, allowing firefighters to bring 40,000 acres of wildfires under control.

HAIL THESE HEROES By Sharing The Good News On Social Media…

Fish Rescued From Garden Pond After it Grew to be 6-feet Long–From Just Six Inches (LOOK)

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Steve Aldridge and Mark Adlan from Gloucester Koi Rescue catching a 5ft Diamond Back Sturgeon from garden pond- via SWNS
Steve Aldridge and Mark Adlan from Gloucester Koi Rescue catching a 5ft Diamond Back Sturgeon from garden pond- via SWNS

A fish was finally rescued from a backyard pond after it grew to be nearly six-feet long from its original size—when it could fit in the owners’ hand.

The sturgeon, nicknamed Stanley, was placed into an 11×10 foot garden pond by the Parker family when he was just six inches in length.

25 years later, homeowners Daniel and Jennie Parker were forced to pay a team of specialists to come and remove him after he grew to a massive 5’8″ long.

Fish expert Steve Aldridge, the owner of Gloucester Koi Rescue, traveled 40 miles to the home in in Bradford-on-Avon, England, to safely retrieve the overgrown Diamond Back Sturgeon.

“Stanley is the biggest sturgeon I have ever had to rescue,” said 51-year-old Aldridge. “The owners were under the impression he was about three to four feet long but he was much bigger than that.

The decades-old Diamond Back was transported to a private manor house and given a new lease of life in a much larger watery home.

“He has moved from a one-room apartment to a mansion,” joked the couple’s son, Tristan Parker, who split the cost of buying Stanley in 1999 for about £50 ($60) with his mom.

5-ft Diamond Back Sturgeon in backyard pond – via Gloucester Koi Rescue / SWNS

“We fed him loads and he just kept getting bigger and bigger.”

When the fish was smaller it would eat food from Tristan’s hand, but he hasn’t done that for “quite a while”, said Mrs. Parker.

In the end, the Koi rescue team didn’t even have a big enough box to transport him.

“I had to hand-build one to store him in for the journey.

“We had to stop four times on the journey to make sure he was okay,” recalled Aldridge.

LOOK: Massive 1100-Pound Sturgeon Reeled in –and Released– by British Tourist in Canada

5-ft Diamond Back Sturgeon grew in backyard pond-via Gloucester Koi Rescue SWNS.jpg

Jennie Parker says they are missing Stanley already.

“We talk about him all the time,” she mourned. “But it wasn’t fair to keep him in our pond as it was too small.

Sturgeons evolved millions of years ago with the dinosaurs but this species is now critically endangered in Europe.

MORE GOOD NEWS: Primeval Sturgeon Swim Again in Sweden After Scientists and Anglers Unite to Bring Them Back

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Your New Weekly Horoscope from ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny

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Our partner Rob Brezsny, who has a new book out, Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicated weekly column appearing in over a hundred publications. He is also the author of Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How All of Creation Is Conspiring To Shower You with Blessings. (A free preview of the book is available here.)

Here is your weekly horoscope…

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY – Week of January 18, 2025
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
During the next three weeks, doing the same old things and thinking the same old thoughts are strongly discouraged. For the sake of your spiritual and physical health, please do not automatically rely on methods and actions that have worked before. I beg you not to imitate your past self or indulge in worn-out traditions. Sorry to be so extreme, but I really must insist that being bored or boring will be forbidden. Stated more poetically: Shed all weak-heart conceptions and weak-soul intentions. Be of strong heart and robust soul.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Wilderness campers have developed humorous terms to gently mock their fears and anxieties. The theory is that this alleviates some of the stress. So a “bear burrito” refers to a hammock. It addresses the worry that one might get an unwanted visit from a bear while sleeping. A “bear fortune cookie” is another name for a tent. “Danger noodle” is an apparent stick that turns out to be a snake. “Mountain money” is also known as toilet paper. I approve of this joking approach to dealing with agitation and unease. (And scientific research confirms it’s effective.) Now is an excellent time to be creative in finding ways to diminish your mostly needless angst.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
If you were producing the movie of your life, what actor or actress would you want to portray you? Who would play your friends and loved ones? How about the role of God or Goddess? Who would you choose to perform the role of the Supreme Being? These will be fun meditations for you in the coming weeks. Why? Because it’s an excellent time to think big about your life story—to visualize the vast, sweeping panorama of your beautiful destiny. I would also love it if during your exploration of your history, you would arrive at interesting new interpretations of the meanings of your epic themes.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Abdulrazak Gurnah is a Tanzanian writer who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2021. He has also been shortlisted for four other prestigious awards. I find it odd that his acclaimed novels have received mediocre scores on the prominent book-rating website, Goodreads, which has 150 million members. Why is there such a marked difference between expert critics and average readers? I speculate that those in the latter category are less likely to appreciate bold, innovative work. They don’t have the breadth and depth to properly evaluate genius. All this is my way of encouraging you to be extra discerning about whose opinions you listen to in the coming weeks, Aries—especially in regard to your true value. Trust intelligent people who specialize in thoughtful integrity. You are in a phase when your ripening uniqueness needs to be nurtured and protected.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
“Every joke is a tiny revolution,” said author George Orwell. I agree, which is why I hope you will unleash an unruly abundance of humor and playfulness in the coming days. I hope you will also engage in benevolent mischief that jostles the status quo and gently shakes people out of their trances. Why? Because your world and everyone in it need a sweet, raucous revolution. And the best way to accomplish that with minimum chaos and maximum healing is to: 1. do so with kindness and compassion; 2. be amusing and joyful and full of joie de vivre.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Research suggests that if you’re typical, you would have to howl with maximum fury for a month straight just to produce enough energy to toast a piece of bread. But you are not at all typical right now. Your wrath is high quality. It’s more likely than usual to generate constructive changes. And it’s more prone to energize you rather than deplete you. But don’t get overconfident in your ability to harness your rage for good causes. Be respectful of its holy potency, and don’t squander it on trivial matters. Use it only for crucial prods that would significantly change things for the better.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):
I invite you to write a message to the person you will be in one year. Inform this Future You that you are taking a vow to achieve three specific goals by January 15, 2026. Name these goals. Say why they are so important to you. Describe what actions you will take to fulfill them. Compose collages or draw pictures that convey your excitement about them. When you’ve done all that, write the words, “I pledge to devote all my powers to accomplish these wonderful feats.” Sign your name. Place your document in an envelope, write “MY VOWS” on the front, and tape the envelope in a prominent place in your home or workplace.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Congratulations on all the subtle and private work you’ve been doing to make yourself a better candidate for optimal togetherness. Admitting to your need for improvement was brave! Learning more about unselfish cooperation was hard work, and so was boosting your listening skills. (I speak from personal experience, having labored diligently to enhance my own relationship skills!) Very soon now, I expect that you will begin harvesting the results of your artful efforts.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Construction on the Great Wall of China began in the 7th century BCE and lasted until 1878. Let’s make this monumental accomplishment your symbol of power for the next 10 months, Virgo! May it inspire you to work tirelessly to forge your own monumental accomplishment. Take pride in the gradual progress you’re making. Be ingeniously persistent in engaging the support of those who share your grand vision. Your steady determination, skill at collaborating, and ability to plan will be your superpowers as you create a labor of love that will have enduring power.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
We are all accustomed to dealing with complications and complexities—so much so that we may be tempted to imagine there’s never a simple solution to any dilemma. Copious nuance and mystifying paradox surround us on all sides, tempting us to think that every important decision must inevitably be taxing and time-consuming. As someone who specializes in trying to see all sides to every story, I am especially susceptible to these perspectives. (I have three planets in Libra.) But now here’s the unexpected news: In the coming weeks, you will enjoy the luxury of quickly settling on definitive, straightforward solutions. You will get a sweet respite from relentless fuzziness and ambiguity.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
When my daughter was 11 years old, she published her first collection of poems. The chapbook’s title was Secret Freedom. That’s a good theme for you to meditate on in the coming weeks. You are currently communing with a fertile mystery that could ultimately liberate you from some of your suffering and limitations. However, it’s important to be private and covert about your playful work with this fertile mystery—at least for now. Eventually, when it ripens, there will come a time to fully unleash your beautiful thing and reveal it to the world. But until then, safeguard it with silence and discretion.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
From a distance, the river in Brazil known as Rio Negro, looks black. The water of Rio Solimões, also in Brazil, is yellowish-brown. Near the city of Manaus, these two rivers converge, flowing eastward. But they don’t blend at first. For a few miles, they move side-by-side, as if still autonomous. Eventually, they fuse into a single flow, becoming the mighty Amazon. I suspect the behavior of Rio Negro and Rio Solimoes could serve as a useful metaphor for you in the coming weeks, Sagittarius. Consider the possibility of allowing, even encouraging, two separate streams to merge. Or would you prefer them to remain discrete for a while longer? Make a conscious decision about this matter.

WANT MORE? Listen to Rob’s EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES, 4-5 minute meditations on the current state of your destiny — or subscribe to his unique daily text message service at: RealAstrology.com

(Zodiac images by Numerologysign.com, CC license)

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“Fine art is that in which the hand, the head, and the heart of man go together.” – John Ruskin

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Vincent van Gogh ‘Almond blossom’ detail

Quote of the Day: “Fine art is that in which the hand, the head, and the heart of man go together.” – John Ruskin

Photo: Vincent van Gogh ‘Almond blossom’ (cropped)

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Vincent van Gogh Almond blossom (cropped)

Dad’s Hilariously Bad Paintings Go Viral–Now He’s Flooded with Portrait Requests (LOOK)

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Andy Corbley
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Jamie Matthias with family portrait – via SWNS
Jamie Matthias with family portrait – via SWNS

An English dad’s hilariously bad portraits have gone viral and now he’s receiving commissions for his works worldwide.

Jamie Lee Matthias’s whacky side hustle started by accident after he painted a terrible portrait of his wife Kate as a wedding gift.

Jamie Matthias painting from family photograph – via SWNS

Kate thought the artwork was so funny she posted a picture of it on social media and within days it racked up thousands of views and comments.

41-year-old Matthias has since been inundated with requests from people desperate for him to create funny versions of their own photographs.

“I actually don’t mean to paint badly and I’m doing my best to recreate the photos I get sent but it’s just the way they turn out,” he said, explaining that he, his wife, and their three kids have always painted. “It’s like a family activity. Kate was making a comment about how bad mine were and I said I would paint one for our wedding day, as a joke.”

“For me it’s just about the reactions and people have been loving it,” he said.

Matthias says he tries “to create an alternate universe where proportions have no meaning,” and never outrightly considered them as bad until people started telling him.

The painting he made for his wedding day was brought out by the kids, and the audience loved it, leading Matthias to get the idea of doing some over Christmas of family and friends.

– SWNS

“The reactions were priceless. I thought I’d stick one out there and see if anyone wanted one,” he explained to the English news media outlet, SWNS. He was stunned by the reaction.

“As a bit of a joke set up a… Instagram account called Terrible Art by Jamie Lee. We sent out the picture, the reaction, and a bit of a blurb and it just kind of blew up.”

“We’ve got orders all over England, Scotland, Wales, and even Northern Ireland, people all over the country seem to be really enjoying it. We’re at 71 orders now, and we put it up on January 2!” he said.

Best of all, his customers are totally getting into the joke, with the owner of the following portrait praising the “attention to detail.”

Each picture is acrylic on canvas and priced at £25 plus postage, which has led to a fairly sizeable demand which Matthias now balances with his job as an accountant.

“I’ve been drawing this way since I was a child, if anything some of the paintings have got a lot worse,” he said, adding that “there’s no risk of it getting better.”

SHARE This Great Dad Joke With Your Friends Who Need A Laugh… 

A Desert Full of Power: Gargantuan Solar Array 250-Miles Long to Power Beijing

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Andy Corbley
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The Kubuqi Desert in Inner Mongolia in 2017 (left) and 2024 (right) – NASA
The Kubuqi Desert in Inner Mongolia in 2017 (left) and 2024 (right) – NASA

To anyone walking under the grey skies of a smoggy Beijing day, it may seem madness to suggest that the entire city could run on solar power.

However, The sense of the plan comes into full focus through a pair of photographs taken by NASA’s Landsat 8 and 9 satellites—a vast array of solar panels stretching across the deserts of Inner Mongolia.

The empty Kubuqi Desert in 2017 – credit: NASA’s Earth Observatory.
The solar arrays at the Kubuqi Desert, 2024 – credit: NASA’s Earth Observatory.

At 250 miles long, 3 miles wide, and currently generating 5.4 gigawatts, the Kubuqi Desert solar array will be the world’s largest by a country mile when finished in 2030. Nicknamed the “photovoltaic sea,” there are already over 3 million solar panels shimmering along a stretch of mostly lifeless sand.

The Kubuqi’s sunny weather, flat terrain, and proximity to industrial centers make it a desirable location for solar power generation, NASA explains. Panels are being installed in a long, narrow band of dunes just south of the Yellow River between the cities of Baotou and Bayannur.

A split-screen image shows the incredible progress made between 2017 and 2024, including a giant image of a galloping horse—an homage to Mongolia’s culture and past—that holds the Guinness World Record for the largest image made out of solar panels.

It’s called the Fine Horse Solar Power Station in Chinese, and it currently generates enough electricity to power 400,000 homes.

The stretch of dunes over which the photovoltaic sea is ebbing was part of an ecosystem that was communicated to 13th-century Venetian traveler Marco Polo as being a “sea of death” and Chinese officials have a hunch that the solar arrays may bring tertiary benefits of transforming the desert into a more fertile area.

MEGA SOLAR PROJECTS: Largest US Solar Storage Project Goes Online – Enough for a Quarter Million Homes

The solar panels will help keep the sand dunes from moving and smothering nearby fields. The shade will keep the sand cooler and allow moisture to remain within it for longer, giving hardy plants a chance to gain a foothold in the area.

Western China has severe challenges with desertification and water stemming from the unique geography of the region. China has relied on heavy industry and importation to improve the livelihoods of communities here, as agriculture is extremely difficult.

A VERY SIMILAR STORY: China Announces Completion of a 1,800-Mile Green Belt Around the World’s Most-Hostile Desert

In a report from China Daily in September of last year, the Mayor of Ordos city near the Fine Horse Power Plant said that locals are beginning to plant crops underneath the solar panels and are having success with the exercise.

Authorities believe the solar sea could power all of Beijing in the future by channeling the energy of the panels down past the Gansu corridor into north-central China.

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33,000 Bucks Raised to Rebuild Deer Shelter for Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center

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Andy Corbley
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A male Sitka black-tail deer - credit: courtesy of AWCC
A male Sitka black-tail deer – credit: courtesy of AWCC

From Alaska comes the story of a wildlife rehab center that got its hooves on a few bucks to help out their deer following a recent storm.

On January 6th, 2025, a storm with winds exceeding 80 mph swept through the Portage Valley and destroyed the Sitka black-tailed deer shelter at Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC). Thankfully, all five of the resident deer were safe and unharmed; the shelter less so.

AWCC takes in many of Alaska’s large mammals if they’re found injured or orphaned. They enjoy the company of caribou, Sitka black tails, and even musk oxen, but the black tails are known as the friendliest residents.

The collapsed shelter – credit: courtesy of AWCC

“They’re some of the friendliest animals we have on the property, but they’re also very aware of their surroundings,” said executive director, Sarah Howard.

Keeping fur and feed dry year-round, the shelter was essential for providing a safe haven during harsh weather, an area for feeding, and a warm safe space for recovery after medical procedures when needed.

MORE STORIES LIKE THIS: Couple Uses Wedding Fund to Pay for Surgery on Injured Dog Found on Side of Road: ‘She Deserved a Chance’

The cost to replace the ruined shelter with a more resilient structure was estimated to be $30,000, which was, incredibly, crowdfunded with $3,000 extra in just 36 hours.

“Just super gracious for everyone’s support in the help that we’re now going to be able to immediately start building on Monday,” Howard told Alaska Public Media.

GNN has recently reported on some very rapid and enriching crowdfunding campaigns recently, but this urgent need for another species in another community far from big cities and big headlines is a reminder of the true scope of America’s generosity.

SHARE This Short, Sweet Story From The Far Frigid North Of America… 

Think Kids Are Addicted to Phones? US ‘Stationery Nerds’ Are Fueling a Japanese Notebook Boom

By
Andy Corbley
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- courtesy of Hobonichi
– courtesy of Hobonichi

One of the more uplifting economic bubbles you’ll read about, a feature in the Japan Times catalogs how Americans are just silly for stationery.

Japanese artisan notebook and stationery providers have been more than happy to fulfill this export niche, and one company in particular has produced a diary/planner that has captivated American journalers. But first a short history.

As the Japanese economy boomed off of consumer electronics, stocks, cars, and cultural media in 1980s, every hardworking businessman had a ‘system techō.’ These day planners were about the size of a compact Bible, and anyone who was anyone owned and used one.

“It was said that a man who had a system techō could do his job well, and that a man who could do his job well had a system techō,” Kyo Kohinata told the Japan Times’ staff writer Thu-Huong Ha.

Kohinata is a writer for System Techo Style, a magazine on all things techō—which is in and of itself an indication of where this story is heading.

Eventually, the Blackberry and smartphones led to the near-extinction of the techō, but they have made an incredible renaissance, and in the same way Nintendo is a byword for the handheld gaming console, Hobonichi is a byword for the system techō.

Since 2001, Hobonichi has been making techōs with incredible attention to detail. Smudge-resistant pages protect fountain pen users from mistakes, precise page sizes are designed to accommodate precise numbers of A6 photographs, and gorgeous artistic covers quickly captivated the Japanese, and then American journaling markets.

The first English-language techō was sold in 2013, and sales quickly dwarfed domestic consumption. Millions of these sometimes charming, sometimes quirky, sometimes professional diaries, journals, and planners are shipped all around the world every year—now fueled by a social media community of journalers.

Hobonichi’s products have become a phenomenon unto themselves.

MORE JAPANESE STORIES: Precocious Child Identifies Japanese Wolf Specimen Amid Museum Collection, Encouraged to Publish Scientific Paper

The 2024 edition of the Hobonichi Techo came in 236 varieties and sold 900,000 units. This year’s edition comes at an extra optional cost with a guidebook featuring testimonies from 56 people on how they use their notebooks, strategies for organization, and more.

They come in 6 formats: monthly, weekly left side, weekly vertical, weekly horizontal, weekly blocked, and daily, and are sold in six different stationery sizes, including Bible, A5, and ‘Micro,” which is about the size of a business card.

MORE RETRO-REVIVALS: Czech Village is at the Heart of Vinyl Record Revival, Survives Communism, Streaming, and the Pandemic

According to the Times, COVID-19 fueled the booming interest in artisan stationery even further. The combination of “non-essential” businesses being forced to close and being told to shelter in place made for fertile ground for venting frustrations into the crisp, white, newly cut pages of a brand new journal.

Even though those days are well behind us, for many the journaling trend stuck, and Hobonichi is just the tip of the spear of a variety of similar techō and stationery companies delighting Americans’ quiet hours with that famous and beloved attention to detail that makes Japanese products so renowned across the world.

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“Measure what is measurable, and make measurable what is not so.” – Antoine-Augustin Cournot

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Quote of the Day: “Measure what is measurable, and make measurable what is not so.” – Antoine-Augustin Cournot and Thomas-Henri Martin

Photo: Fulvio Ciccolo

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

FDA Finally Bans Red Dye No.3 from Food, Drinks and Medicines in US–Following Cancer Link

By
Andy Corbley
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A variety of sugary cereals that contain or once contained one or more food colorings - credit, unsplash
A variety of sugary cereals that contain or once contained one or more food colorings – credit, Unsplash

In a long overdue decision, the Food and Drug Administration announced this week it will ban the use of Red Dye No. 3 (RD3) in food. Food companies have until 2027 to remove it, while drug companies have until 2028.

The decision comes after years of advocacy from organizations that point to evidence showing how RD3 has caused cancer in animals. It has been banned in cosmetics since 1990, but remained in thousands of food and beverage products.

Recent research further underscores the dangers of this chemical dye in food. A 2021 study by California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment found that synthetic dyes like RD3 are linked to a greater risk of behavioral difficulties in children, including decreased attention span and memory problems.

“We wouldn’t be celebrating this historic decision today without the relentless leadership of public health champions like Michael Jacobson and others who took up this fight decades ago on behalf of consumers,” said President and co-founder of the Environmental Working Group (EWG) Ken Cook, in a statement celebrating the announcement.

RD3 has been singled out as a particularly harmful food dye because studies show it causes cancer in animals. Synthetic food dyes are not banned in Europe, but producers are required to put labels on the packaging similar to cigarettes explaining the risks. Most products indeed use curcumin for yellow, spirulina for blue, and carotenoids for red and orange.

“Today’s action by the FDA marks a monumental victory for consumer health and safety,” said Cook. “For years, Red 3 remained in food products, despite growing evidence linking it to health problems, particularly in kids.”

ANOTHER LONG-OVERDUE REGULATION: U.S. Unveils First-Ever Regulations to Remove ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water

“This ban sends a strong message that protecting the health of Americans—especially vulnerable children—must always take priority over the narrow interests of the food industry.”

CHEMICALS IN FOODS: US Appeals Court Rules the Approval of Human Antibiotic as a Citrus Pesticide by EPA to Be Unlawful

GNN last reported on food colorings when Yellow Dye No.5, called tartrazine and derived from coal processing were in the regulatory crosshairs for their effects on children related to hyperactivity. YD5 is still authorized for use as a food additive, despite its links with many diseases including cancer, asthma, and ADD/ADHD.

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New National Park Widens Protection of Legendary ‘Asian Unicorn’ Mountain Home

By
Andy Corbley
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A Saola (or Vu quang ox, known as the Asian Unicorn) Pseudoryx nghetinhensis ©David HULSE / WWF
A Saola (or Vu quang ox, known as the Asian Unicorn) Pseudoryx nghetinhensis ©David HULSE / WWF

The government of Laos DPR recently turned a vast area of hills and tropical forests over to conservation with the establishment of Xesap National Park (NP).

Aided by Western endowments and nonprofits, the establishment expands an already existing protected area to a total of 202,300 hectares, including the 49,000-hectare Pale area, which is thought to be a significant and relatively undisturbed habitat for key species.

courtesy of Pakham Outhanikone WWF-Laos

Nestled in the Annamite mountain ranges, Xesap NP is a biodiversity hotspot, home to some of Asia’s most endangered species found nowhere else on the continent.

Notably, Xesap NP is also one of the few places in the Annamites where the legendary Saola—known as the ‘Asian Unicorn’—has been sighted, and is thought to have high potential as a site for population recovery.

The Saola was only identified in 1992 by a local ecologist. The first few that made it into captivity have died shortly thereafter, and the species is listed as Critically-Endangered on the IUCN Red List.

Lacking a single horn like the mythical creature that kindly lent its moniker to this relative of the oryx, the Saola’s two horns instead grow very close together, such that from a distance or from the side, it may appear to have only one long horn.

“We believe this designation marks a crucial step towards enhancing conservation efforts and ensuring the sustainable management of Xesap’s rich natural treasures. WWF-Laos applauds the Lao government for this significant achievement and remains dedicated to supporting the park’s management through our enduring partnership with the provinces of Salavan and Sekong,” said Loris Palentini, Country Director, WWF-Laos, in a statement.

Roaming in the shadow of the so-called unicorn are fascinating animals like the elusive Roosevelt’s muntjac, vibrant red-shanked douc, the rare Annamite striped rabbit, and the stunning crested argus. New species are discovered in the Annamites at an incredibly high rate, even many large mammal species described for the first time by science in the last century.

Spanning the provinces of Salavan and Sekong, with nearly 35 villages located in and around the park, Xesap NP is now one of seven NPs in Laos DPR. With its forested valleys, limestone karst hills, vertiginous mountains, and extremely rich biodiversity and endemism, Xesap’s redesignation as an NP from a National Protected Area is a well-deserved recognition of its ecological importance in the Greater Mekong, the statement read.

FROM SOUTHEAST ASIA: Camera Catches Sighting of a Tiger with Cubs for First Time in 10 Years, Raising Hopes for Species in Thailand

“This announcement represents a major step forward for conservation in Laos and a significant breakthrough in the global effort to reach the 30×30 target,” said Molly McUsic, President of the Wyss Foundation which supported the work to create the park.

“Xesap National Park is a shining example of the progress we can make toward preserving biodiversity and protecting precious natural resources when we bring together government, philanthropy, and local communities. We applaud the Lao Government, WWF-Laos, Rainforest Trust, and other partners for their collective efforts to permanently protect Xesap.”

ALSO CHECK OUT: Precious Rainforests Are Being Preserved at Highest Rate in 30 Years, After Palm Oil Moratorium in Indonesia

Following the designation of the area as an NP, and given its long history of working in Xesap, WWF-Laos aims to further strengthen its partnership with the Department of Forestry and the Provincial Agriculture and Forestry Offices of Salavan and Sekong provinces, as well as with districts and local communities. Key goals include enhancing park management and biodiversity protection, promoting resilience of local community development, and ensuring long-term conservation success that benefits both people and nature.

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TikTok Landscaper Raises $800K for Elderly Disabled Woman Who Couldn’t Find Anyone to Mow Her Lawn

By
Andy Corbley
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credit SB Mowing via TikTok
Spencer and Beth in a before and after shot – credit: SB Mowing via TikTok.

Who knew that trimming bushes and mowing lawns could be the catalyst for so much good in the world?

Serially viral TikTok account SB Mowing has been featured on GNN before. Owned and operated by a young man named Spencer, it features him mowing people’s lawns who, for whatever reason, lack the physical strength or time to do it themselves.

In July, GNN reported that after finding a wounded tabby cat during one of his mows, Spencer took it to a cat shelter that was on the eve of closing down. Channeling his channels for good, SB Mowing sponsored a GoFundMe which raised $190,000 in donations to the shelter.

This time, Spencer was visiting an elderly woman with an overgrown yard named Beth.

Beth explains that after looking for someone to mow and sheer her yard and plants without success, a local government busybody paid her a visit and gave her a few weeks to take care of the mess or face a $240 fine.

“I’ll do the backyard—whatever you need, and I’ll do it for free I won’t charge you a dime,” Spencer says in the 6-minute video that accumulated 94 million views, adding that the lawn “isn’t even that bad, I’m going to get it looking like you’ve never seen it before.”

Off Spencer goes with his landscaping tools, needing about 4 minutes of extreme time-lapse videography to finish the job.

“I cried on and off just listening to your machines,” Beth admitted at the end of the video during the big reveal.

@sbmowing

Her Tears Said It All: “My Prayers Have Been Answered” #mowing #edging #cleanup #asmr #satisfying #sbmowing #cleaning #overgrownyard #fyp #fypシ #viral #viralvideo #transformation #overgrown #maruyama #badboymower #muckboots

♬ original sound - SB Mowing

That was the end of the video as far as Spencer was concerned, but not for his followers, who left over 21,000 comments, among which were hundreds asking if there were a way they could donate so Beth could afford to hire landscapers full-time.

MORE SOCIAL MEDIA GENEROSITY: 

A staggering $800,000 was raised in a GoFundMe set up for the purpose. In a January 13th update, Spencer announced he was working with an attorney to create a trust fund for Beth to ensure no one could take advantage of her for the new money she was about to receive. Some would be given to her in cash, and a portion would also be donated to charity.

“They kinda fell in love with you and your story,” Spencer explained to Beth in a follow-up video. “We just wanted to come together as a community to help you out and get you to a better spot.”

Overwhelmed, Beth remarked she “can’t even cry, I can’t even think… Those are the things dreams are made of.”

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Kazakhstan Sees Incredible Progress Scaling Back World’s Worst Environmental Disaster

By
Andy Corbley
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The North Aral Sea in 2005 (left) and 2018 (right) - credit: NASA
The North Aral Sea in 2005 (left) and 2018 (right) – credit: NASA

Efforts to restore the Aral Sea have seen Kazakhstan’s government increase the water volume in the northern portion by 42% in the last two years.

The volume is now determined to be 6.4 cubic miles, or approximately 30% more voluminous than Crater Lake in Oregon.

Furthermore, the salinity in the northern Aral Sea has declined four-fold, and annual fish catches have risen to top 8,000 tons. In 2024, Kazakhstan directed approximately 2.6 billion cubic meters of water—the equivalent of Scotland’s famous Loch Lomond—into the northern portion, a dramatic increase compared to 816 million cubic meters in 2022.

The figures are a stunning effort by a middle-income country that’s almost single-handedly reversing what is widely considered to be the world’s worst man-made environmental disaster.

Once the world’s 4th-largest lake straddling the border between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the shrinking and division of the Aral Sea is sometimes wrongly attributed to climate change.

In 1967 the Soviet Union began diverting water flows into the lake to irrigate cotton fields in these countries and Turkmenistan. Fed by the mighty Syr Darya and Amu Darya, rivers known by the Classical Greeks as the Jaxartes and Oxus, their diversion led the sea to empty, split into a northern and southern half, and shrink so dramatically that it desertified most of the land in the region.

The southern portion split into two separate arms, the vast majority of which lie within the territory of Uzbekistan, but the northern portion in Kazakhstan is looking a little more like a sea again.

OTHER ARAL SEA PROGRESS: Once Left For Dead, The Aral Sea Is Now Brimming With Life Thanks to Global Collaboration

“These figures are the result of systematic work over the past two years. We [Kazakhstan] have reached a mutual understanding with neighboring countries on the conservation and fair distribution of water resources in transboundary rivers,” said Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Nurzhan Nurzhigitov during a meeting with residents of the Aral district.

As often as possible, the ministry is emptying the fullest possible force of the Syr Darya’s waters into the sea when they aren’t being diverted for modern uses as the river also flows through Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan who have rights to use its water as well.

OTHER CENTRAL ASIAN NEWS: Wild and Wonderful Saiga is No Longer Endangered with a Million Roaming Now in Central Asia

The minister emphasized that the project’s ultimate goal is to improve the region’s ecology, boost fisheries and tourism, and enhance the quality of life for local communities.

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“The face is the mirror of the mind, and eyes without speaking confess the secrets of the heart.” – St. Jerome

By
Good News Network
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Lia Bekyan for Unsplash+

Quote of the Day: “The face is the mirror of the mind, and eyes without speaking confess the secrets of the heart.” – St. Jerome

Photo: National Cancer Institute

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Lia Bekyan for Unsplash+

Truck Driver Intervenes in Highway Shootout, Wins Goodyear Highway Hero Award

By
Andy Corbley
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Timothy VanNostrand named Goodyear Highway Hero
Timothy VanNostrand named Goodyear Highway Hero

A New York timber trucker has been recognized as a ‘highway hero’ after using his 18-wheeler to help corral a shooter who had injured a police officer.

It happened that on Interstate 88 in June 2023, Timonthy VanNostrand was preparing to pass a state trooper who was approaching a car he had just pulled over.

VanNostrand is the owner and operator of his own logging transport company in Northville, New York, and is well-acquainted with dangerous work; although the risks he faces don’t typically involve gunfire.

“It happened so fast,” VanNostrand told Fox News Digital. “I wasn’t 100% sure what I saw at first, but I saw the trooper kind of skip sideways a little bit.”

Then, VanNostrand explains, he saw the driver draw his gun and start shooting out of the back window of his car at the trooper which started a 12-minute ordeal where “bullets were flying.”

VanNostrand then pulled his logging truck in front of the shooter’s car, cornering him against the side of the road, and ensuring the shooter was stopped. Fox didn’t specify if he was taken into custody, wounded, or killed by the troopers and the eventual backup that arrived.

VanNostrand was later honored by the New York State Police and by The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company as a “Highway Hero.”

“The Goodyear Highway Hero Award is one way Goodyear recognizes the importance of the commercial trucking industry, which helps move 72.5% of the U.S. economy’s goods, according to American Trucking Associations,” Joe Burke, vice president of Goodyear North America Commercial Business, told Fox News Digital.

RICHLY DESERVED REWARDS: Florida Teen Wins Prestigious Carnegie Award and Full-Ride Scholarship After Daring Rescue

“The purpose of the Highway Hero program is to bring more awareness and appreciation to the powerful impact that commercial drivers can have on the roads, individuals’ lives and communities.”

VanNostrand was awarded a cash prize and a ride in the Good Year blimp.

UNLIKELY HEROES: 18-Year-old Uses Her Tracking Skills to Guide Hikers on Wildfire Evacuation Route

He told Fox that it felt like such a long time when “you’re sitting there” listening to gunfire, allowing plenty of time for second guesses, but “it turned out it was the right decision.”

“Most of the people I know and work with would do the same thing,” he said. “We all look out for each other, and 99% of us are looking out for everybody else too.”

SHARE This Highway Hero With Your Friends On Social Media…

Oldest Woman in China Reaches 124 with Pumpkin Lard Porridge and a Positive Outlook

By
Andy Corbley
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Qiu Chaishi celebrates her 124th birthday
Qiu Chaishi celebrates her 124th birthday

A Chinese woman recently celebrated her 124th Birthday, according to local civic documentation.

Crediting her longevity to a “love of lard” and an optimistic personality, her big day was celebrated on January 1st in her home of Nanchong city amid a horde of relatives.

Whether or not Qiu Chaishi really was born in 1901, she can recount her childhood growing up during the Qing Dynasty, the last royal dynasty in Chinese history which began in 1644 and ended in 1911.

Her family says she is still witty and articulate, despite losing a bit of eyesight after she turned 100. Chaishi currently enjoys the company of family members 5 generations from herself, living with her 60-year-old granddaughter Taohua.

In her youth, she was famed for her sharp accounting skills and physical strength that allowed her to work the plow and stack stones. Even as a ‘dodecagenarian,’ she can walk up and down stairs, light fires, feed geese, and cook.

Speaking with South China Morning Post, her relatives explain how Chaishi has always kept a disciplined routine: eating three meals a day, walking after each one, and going to sleep at 8 p.m.

Her favorite meal is pumpkin porridge with a spoon of lard on top, though on the doctor’s orders, she’s apparently cut back on the lard.

By age 40 she had 4 children, but her husband died suddenly and she was left to raise the kids alone. At 70, her son died of an illness and her daughter remarried, leaving a granddaughter whom Chaishi raised herself. Later, her granddaughter’s husband also died, and the two resigned the company of men to live together in a rural house in Nanchong, Sichuan Province.

“My siblings, husband, and son passed away long ago. The King of Hell must have forgotten about me!” Chaishi joked.

ELDERS AMONG US: The World’s Oldest Human Gives Us the Best Advice, Before She Dies at 117 Years

“After every misfortune, she stays quiet for a while, then bounces back with laughter and positivity,” said Taohua.

The occasion of her 124th Birthday was published on the news arm of the massive Chinese conglomerate Tencent, and readers were inspired and moved by Chaishi’s story.

MORE WILD CHARACTERS: ‘Road-Tripping Auntie’ Broke with Husband and Tradition to Travel Around China, Becoming Viral Celebrity

“She has witnessed China’s incredible history over a century. What a legendary life journey!” said one.

China’s average life expectancy recently rose over 78 years for the first time in its history. According to national statistics quoted by SCMP, Nanchong in the subtropical south has the highest number of centenarians in any Chinese province.

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Olympic Kite Surfer Saves Drowning Woman in Dramatic Video – WATCH

By
Andy Corbley
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Bruno Lobo with the woman around his shoulders - credit @brunolobo31.
Bruno Lobo with the woman around his shoulders – credit @brunolobo31.

An Olympic-level kite surfer for Brazil happened to be testing out some video equipment on his board when he suddenly became the only hope of rescue for a stranded, exhausted swimmer.

31-year-old Bruno Lobo described the rescue as “the day that God used me as an instrument to save this young woman, all honor and glory to Him ☝🏻 🙏🏻.”

The husband and father of one recorded much of the rescue completely by accident, as he was trying out a new mount that attached a camera to the front of his board.

“I went in at 17:40 to do the last test on the camera, it was a cloudy day, wind conditions were not the best, but I decided to test the support that had arrived, it was the first day using this material, I put the camera to record and headed to the coast,” Lobo wrote on Instagram.

“After sailing a few meters I heard a cry for help and looked at the girl who was drowning, I quickly approached her with the kite, I tried to calm her down and asked to climb on my back, she was quite tired and powerless, I used the equipment to bring her safely to the sand…”

After running to her friends and being examined by the lifeguards, the woman hugs Lobo and thanks him for saving her life.

IN AUSTRALIA: Seven Swimmers Owe Their Lives to Australian Teens on Boogie Boards–2 Rescues in One Week

Making his Olympic debut in Paris, Lobo won a gold medal at each of the last two Pan-American Games, but his Instagram account has mainly featured congratulations for the rescue.

MORE RESCUES LIKE THIS: Hero Surfer Rescues Stranded Deer in Ocean – Photographer Captures Moment

He replied that he did only what needed to be done and what was within his reach.

“Stay alert about the danger of the sea, rivers and anywhere you don’t know because the current in some places is usually very strong,” he wrote.

WATCH the video below… 

SHARE This Tubular Rescue With Your Friends On Social Media… 

Metal Detectorist Stumbles Upon 1,200-Year-old Graves of Impressive Viking Women

By
Andy Corbley
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released by Søren Diinhoff University Museum of Bergen
released by Søren Diinhoff University Museum of Bergen

A curious Viking age graveyard has been uncovered in southwest Norway containing jewelry and evidence of continental connections.

Three high-status women, though perhaps not Scandinavians themselves, were, or perhaps were not, interred there, and these uncertainties have raised interesting hypotheses.

Located near the coast in a Norwegian town called Fitjar at a farm called Skumsnes, the site was originally found by recreational metal detectives. Excavations took place in late 2024 and uncovered a variety of objects, such as a frying pan and textile equipment, that singled out the owners as women.

Jewelry and coins, including one of the first coins ever minted in Denmark, a necklace of glass beads, and a brooch that appears to have been made from a metal book clasp, also suggest the owners possessed noteworthy wealth and status.

“We think that the clasp in the first grave could very well have come from a Bible in England or Ireland,” says Søren Diinhoff, an archaeologist with the University Museum of Bergen, told Fox News Digital. “It had been ripped off and brought back to Norway where it eventually ended up as a woman’s brooch.”

Dating to the mid-9th century when the Viking age was in full swing, the provenance of some of the items almost certainly came through violent means. Other brooches made of trefoil appear to have been repurposed from the clasps of Carolingian sword belts, and, according to Diinhoff and a report from Science Norway, other items could have come from mainland Europe. 10 of the 11 coins found in the grave were minted by Louis I, a descendant of Charlemagne.

Were these items taken during a raid or did they come through trading? The word ‘Viking’ meant both trader and raider, and at different times in different places, the trader-raider balance varied.

One hypothesis is that the women themselves were from the continent, and perhaps married into the local population. However, it’s difficult to know because there are no human remains in the graves. To explain this, Diinhoff and others at first supposed the remains disintegrated in the moist soil—a common occurrence. Then, they changed their idea to the burial site being more of a memorial or cenotaph where offerings were left.

released by Søren Diinhoff University Museum of Bergen

This seems more likely to the archaeological team, since the necklace of glass beads was wrapped in a leather sack rather than placed around someone’s neck.

MORE STUNNING VIKING AGE FINDS: Archaeologists Confirm Oldest Viking Ship Burial in All Scandinavia–Could Rewrite the Viking Age

As to why this memorial exists, the site of Skumsnes is key. The excavation team knows that a large manor farm once existed at Skumsnes, and its position close to the water may have made it a common place of rest for travelers and sailors.

“Below the level of royal estates, we find strategic farms like Skumsnes,” Diinhoff told Science Norway. “On behalf of the king, shelter was provided to passing ships, which likely generated additional income.”

DIVE DEEPER INTO VIKING CULTURE: Surprising Sophistication of the Viking Legal Code Newly Discovered in Carved Runes

Farms were typically the sites of textile production, and a weaving sword, spindle whorl, wool shears, and a key suggest the people buried or not buried there were involved in weaving, a prestigious trade.

Interestingly, the site was contained within a perimeter of small stones in the shape of a boat—reminiscent of the rare Viking ship burials. In the center of the boat outline, where the mast would be fixed on a real boat, the archaeologists found a large stone with an indent in the shape of female genitalia.

For Diinhoff, this was the ultimate indication that the burial honored the women of the farm, without actually containing their remains.

MORE STORIES LIKE THIS: Gold Disk Unearthed Contains Oldest Reference to Norse God Odin: ‘A Huge Discovery’ of ‘Pure Ecstasy’

The excavation team ran out of time before they could fully uncover the third ‘grave,’ and metal detectives have confirmed other locations that suggest there may be 20 such ‘graves’ within and around the memorial.

Science Norway reports that archaeologists have seen a remarkable surge in the number of Viking age graves discovered recently; as much last year as in the previous ten, said Diinhoff.

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“Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.” – Erich Fromm

By
Good News Network
-

Quote of the Day: “Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence.” – Erich Fromm

Photo: National Cancer Institute

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

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