How about recycling an old aircraft into a new home?
What a creative idea: Joanne Ussary bought a used Boeing 727 for $2,000. It cost $4,000 to move and $24,000 to renovate. The plane, hoisted onto a cliff overlooking the beach and touting beautiful wooden floors and walls, looks like a great investment.
One of the bathrooms is still intact. There is a personal Jacuzzi in the cockpit.
(See the beautiful photos at AviationHumor.net)
Yale Law School, renowned for competitiveness and its Supreme Court justices, is embarking on a pilot program next week in which students can check out a “therapy dog” named Monty along with the library’s collection of more than one million books.
Monty will be available at the circulation desk to stressed-out students for 30 minutes at a time beginning Monday, for a three-day trial run.
Once again the creative genius of the Washington DC community is on display in the Easter candy parade of homemade art that is the annual — and always humorous — Peep diorama contest.
Each spring the sticky critter-confections are decorated and transformed by readers of the Washington Post into scenes depicting famous books, paintings, or a current event, such as the party-crashers in the White House.
This year’s grand prize winner, entitled “Eep”, featured the whimsical scene from Pixar’s animated film, Up, in which the Victorian home was pulled aloft — in this case by dozens of balloons crafted using the yellow marshmallow chicks and pink bunnies.
All the finalists are unique and worth a look… like the one pictured above, featuring the Obama dog, entitled, Little Bo Peep.
(WATCH the slideshow – warning: auto-playing ad – at Washington Post)
RELATED: Peeps Diorama Contest Displays Sticky Wit and Humor, 2009
Photo via Washington Post, used under Fair Use copyright law
Anthony Robles, born without a right leg, won the US national collegiate wrestling title at 125 pounds on Saturday, completing an unbeaten senior season and an amazing career.
Robles, 22, finished with a perfect senior season, 36-0, and his three-day performance at the NCAA wrestling tournament earned him the Outstanding Wrestler award.
I got a note from a mental health counselor at an inner city elementary school about an epidemic of negativity in her Dayton, Ohio school. Her moving testimony and her idea for closing the positivity gap, made me want to help:
“It seems the focus is always on the negative things that kids do. In the past 2 years, I have tried to spread positivity to the staff and students, like creating a nomination box for students and teachers to call out individuals when they have done something caring or responsible.”
“We teach in a poverty-stricken district. Drug use is prevalent, abuse is prevalent. Our test scores are low, not because our teaching staff is sub-par, but because these kids are worried about having enough to eat or mom/dad being high or violent when they get home. It gets to the staff, and then the staff bicker at each other, instead of lifting each other up.”
“I want to remind people that the kids can feel our negativity and frustration… But, with likely teacher lay-offs and testing coming up, people are feeling bleak and frustrated.”
“I would love to be able to buy your “Good Happens” tee-shirts for the staff, but there is no budget for this. I would need about 45. I completely understand if it isn’t possible to donate them, but would be eternally grateful if it does!”
As if to confirm Lisa’s good intentions, I received a notice from CafePress.com, the shop that prints and sells Good News Network merchandise, describing a 3-day sale ending Wednesday offering 20% off to shop owners for orders on their own stuff!
With my discount, most shirts would cost about $12.00 plus $2 each for shipping (if I ordered these during the sale period ending Wednesday night.)
If this story moves you and you can donate to this effort, I’ve set up a DONATE button using Paypal that will accommodate any amount. (All money would go directly to the cost of the shirt.) Please be generous, if you can. (All proceeds go toward cost of shirts.) NOTE: You do not need to have a Paypal account. Donations can be made directly with a credit card – Click where it says, “Don’t have a PayPal account?”.
SEND orders directly to: Lisa Otto, Virginia Stevenson Elementary
805 Old Harshman Rd.
Dayton, Ohio 45431
Shirt sizes needed:
5 mens – (3) 2XL size, (1) XL size, and (1) Medium.
Women’s sizes: 6 smalls, 11 medium, 9 large, 11 XL, 4 2XL
I hope many of you are moved to help with this! I will post updates here for a running tally, showing how many shirts were manifested. I will pay all shipping charges myself and purchase a couple shirts to get the tally moving!
(Send me a note if you order a shirt directly, to let me know what sizes you sent.)
When you donate, you can send an encouraging note to the teachers, or forward them to me by email or in the Comments space below.
May Good bless all the teachers!
AN UPDATE on the Successful Campaign can be seen here on the blog!
Thousands of layoff notices have been delivered to teachers nationwide, but one fifth grader has inspired an entire school district to show their appreciation for educators with her unselfish act to try to save her teachers.
Jocelyn Lam, a fifth grade student at Camino Grove Elementary in California decided there was something she could do to save her beloved teachers: she broke open her piggy bank and delivered $300 to the school principal—money she’d saved over several years doing chores and getting good grades.
She also included a handwritten letter addressed to the Arcadia Unified school board and superintendent, saying, “I really hope this $300 will help save the teachers that are about to be laid off.”
“Lam’s selflessness has catalyzed the community into action. Since her inspiring letter, the students and parents at Camino Grove have raised $20,000 toward saving teaching jobs and the fund raising has gone district-wide.”
(READ the story in Good.is)
On his three-day tour of Australia, Prince William was moved to tears while speaking to the family of Jordan Rice, the 13-year-old Australian boy who was hailed as a hero of the Queensland floods for insisting that rescuers “take my brother first”.
Hundreds lined the streets to cheer the prince on the 28th anniversary of his first ever trip to Australia, when he just nine months old, declaring that he had brought the sunshine back to battered Queensland.
You don’t see the Vermont governor criticizing public employees, like leaders in New Jersey, Maine, Wisconsin and other states. No members have walked out of the Vermont Legislature, which is considering legislation to require an increase in public employee pension contributions. State employee unions are not protesting at the capital. Why?
Four New York Times journalists were released unharmed by the Libyan government on Monday, six days after they were arrested and held.
The four journalists — all renown for their work in the Middle East — were arrested by forces loyal to Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi as they were covering from the rebel uprising in eastern Libya.
Turkish diplomats helped gain the release.
(READ the news in the Washington Post)
The Thai Military Bank has launched a “Make the Difference” campaign, beginning with the release of an inspiring short film that urges people to think differently if they want to succeed.
The film, based on a true story, tells the tale of an aspiring football team that lived on a tiny island in the south of Thailand — a floating village in the middle of the sea without an inch of soil for a practice field.
25 years ago, all the kids loved to watch football but had nowhere to play or practice. They challenged themselves to think differently and have become a great inspiration for new generations on the island, winning youth tournaments year after year.
WATCH the TMB video below… (Thanks to Susan for submitting the link!)
The Thai Military Bank has launched a “Make the Difference” campaign, beginning with the release of an inspiring short film that urges people to think differently if they want to succeed.
The film, based on a true story, tells the tale of an aspiring football team that lived on a tiny island in the south of Thailand — a floating village in the middle of the sea without an inch of soil for a practice field.
Local police rescued an 80-year-old woman and her grandson from their collapsed home, nine days after they became trapped following the earthquake in Japan.
The rescue is giving hope to people around the world.
The woman, Sumi Abe, and her grandson, Jin Abe, 16, were unable to pull themselves out of their earthquake-ravaged until today, when the boy reached the roof and called for help.
The two were quickly wrapped in blankets and rushed to a helicopter.
WATCH the NHK video from EuroNews…
Hometown hero, Will Smith and a long-time friend have come to the aid of West Philadelphia high school, which was targeted by computer thieves in February.
They have donated nearly 40,000 dollars worth of computers and other equipment to the school.
The Will and Jada Smith Family Foundation together with the Charlie Mack Cares organization shipped 30 new Macbooks to West Philadelphia High School; most of them for students.
Jerry and Tammy Backus moved to Tanzania in 2009 to open an orphanage and help the children find new families. The “Falco’s Girls Home” just made a new video and wanted to share it on the Good News Network.
Anyone from around the world can adopt children from the Falco Home. An attorney is on staff that can process all the legal paperwork and the process usually takes just 8 to 12 months.
WATCH the kids, below…
To donate or look into adoption visit, www.hishealinghands.org
The Japanese officials understand the bond between pets and their families.
While thousands of citizens are now stuck, living in evacuation centers and shelters, they find comfort in the companionship of their four-legged friends. Despite the dire conditions, dogs are welcome there.
South Korean media have been filled with reports of celebrities making donations or finding other ways to help out in Japan.
Heartthrobs from TV and music who have became popular in Japan donated generously to aid earthquake victims. Some gave between $90,000 and $180,000 each, but actor Bae Yong-joon, who became a superstar in the TV drama “Winter Sonata”, donated 1 billion won, or about $900,000, to a relief organization in Japan.
With millions of hits on YouTube this home video shows a 5-month-old boy who isn’t sure what to think when mom blows her nose. Sometimes he’s terrified, then he can’t stop laughing.
Chancellor Angela Merkel vowed Thursday that Germany would accelerate the transition to renewable energy and called for a “measured exit” from nuclear power.
On March 15, Merkel ordered Germany’s seven oldest nuclear plants closed for three months while the government carries out safety probes.
If the stay becomes permanent, lights will not go dark in Germany thanks in part to the country’s steady growth in solar power. An achievement notable in a country that stays cloudy much of the year.
Chancellor Angela Merkel vowed Thursday that Germany would accelerate the transition to renewable energy and called for a “measured exit” from nuclear power.
On March 15, Merkel ordered Germany’s seven oldest nuclear plants closed for three months while the government carries out safety probes.
If the stay becomes permanent, lights will not go dark in Germany thanks in part to the country’s steady growth in solar power. An achievement notable in a country that stays cloudy much of the year.
38 years ago, a young Australian doctor arrived in Launceston from the mainland, and stumbled upon a slice of paradise. He bought the land for $8000 and, soon after, an environmental activist was born.
Today, Bob Brown — now a Senator — will hand over the Tasmania property to Bush Heritage Australia, the conservation group he created in 1991 while retreating to his small cottage there.
The gift of his land, called ‘Oura Oura’ located in the majestic Liffey Valley, marks the 20th anniversary of Bush Heritage Australia, founded after Brown (by then, a Tasmanian MP) saved two parcels of Tasmanian forest destined for woodchipping by using his Goldman Environmental Prize as a deposit.
