The double amputee Olympic runner, Oscar Pistorius was the inspiration for a veterinary technician in St. Cloud, Florida to stop the request to put down a 2-week-old chihuahua puppy born without functioning front legs.
Vickie Dryer decided to rehabilitate him instead.
Before Howard Cooper sold the car dealership that he’d owned for 47 years, he stipulated that all 89 employees must keep their jobs.
Workers like Bob Jenkins, a 26-year mechanic, were thrilled. But not as shocked as they were when they were handed checks worth tens of thousands of dollars — thank you bonuses for their years of service.
“I was shocked,” Jenkins said, of 83-year-old Cooper’s generosity.
(READ the story from AnnArbor.com)
A horror crash almost cut the racing driver in half – but now he’s back and has won two gold medals in handcycling at the paralympic games in London.
Alex Zanardi astounded doctors by surviving the 220mph smash which sliced him in half.
The story of the ex-Formula One driver, even among Paralympic triumphs of humanity over disaster, is one of the most heartwarming tales of London 2012.
Egypt’s prime minister says Qatar has agreed to invest $18 billion in Egypt over the next five years.
The funds aim to help revive Egypt’s battered economy and lure back foreign investment that has all but disappeared since last year’s uprising.
Because September is National Yoga Month, we are updating a previous story with a handy downloadable infographic.
Good News Network viewer Mehndi Rao created the infographic to illustrate the 6 poses in the article below as a ready reference. (You can download and print from page two of this article)
Fifteen years ago, I would recoil from any form of exercise, as well as any green foods, I was overweight, inflexible … and debilitated by back pain. The 40 extra pounds on my frame — plus tight, shortened back muscles and weak abs — left me moving like an 80-year-old version of myself.
I started reading up and realized a shocking number of people suffer with back pain, partly from hours of sitting in a way that flattens the low back curve. (BTW, a Balance Ball Chair System, the very one I’m sitting on as I write this, is a great tool to help build core strength and re-align your spine.)
Then, I found yoga. Over time, using some of the same poses I’m showing you here, I built a lean and pain-free body.
With just a few moves, you can bring your legs, hips and spine into proper alignment, release tension and gain supportive strength. These poses provide traction for your spinal muscles as you root through the hips and let a gentle pull or gravity make space between the spinal bones. You’ll walk taller and enjoy a body that’s no longer stopping you, but rather serving you to live, move and play to the fullest.
Important tips for back pain sufferers
Don’t overemphasize your ab work. A common misconception about healing back pain is that the back is weak and you should just work the core more. Actually, when you only work the core muscles — as in, a hundred crunches a day — you may just be shortening your front body to match the back one. This can further pull on the spine and cause more disc compression and too little (or too much) curvature. The six-pack might look good in magazines but those bunchy, contracted muscles are actually not so hot for your back.
Breathe slowly and deeply through the nose for the duration of the practice. On your inhales, flare the ribs wide, and as you exhale, contract around your navel, still maintaining a long, natural spine.
Note: Consult your doctor or physical therapist before starting, especially if you’re experiencing severe back or leg pain now or during the practice, or if you have known disc problems, like hernias or degeneration.
Fists Forward Bend
Stand with feet hip-distance apart. Bend your knees and release your torso over your legs until your belly touches your thighs (or as close as you can get). Make two fists and place them in the opposite elbow creases. Relax your back, neck and head, and squeeze fists actively.
Fists and bent elbows together are a central nervous system trigger that causes your back muscles to open. You’ll feel it after just a few breaths!
Take 10-20 breaths here, releasing more tension from the back with every exhale.
(Continued on Page 2)
Finding himself besieged by a gaggle of young female devotees, Felix Finkbeiner is an environmental superstar and author of the book Tree by Tree… at the helm of a global network of child activists whose aim is to mitigate climate change by reforesting the planet.
The boy’s initiative, Plant-for-the-Planet, is a campaign for kids created in 2007 when he was just nine.
According to Wikipedia:
It was when Felix’s teacher set the assignment to prepare a school report about the issue of climate change, that Felix was first inspired. While conducting his research he came across the story of Wangari Maathai, the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate from Kenya who had worked to plant over 30 million trees across Africa as part of her ‘Green Belt Movement’. At the end of Felix’s presentation he shared the idea that the children of the world could plant 1 million trees in every country on Earth.
Planting the first tree at his school marked the official launch his campaign. Students in Bavaria and across Germany also got involved and continued to plant trees under the Plant-for-the-Planet name. After one year 150,000 trees had already been planted. During the following year the organization effectively developed into a worldwide movement after Felix was elected to the United Nations Environment Programme children’s board during the group’s conference in Norway.
By the start of 2011 there were children participating in more than 93 countries.
(WATCH the video below and READ the story in the Telegraph)
While some adolescent boys can induce hysterical adulation in young girls, Felix, 13, is no Justin Bieber. And yet, on a wet Sunday afternoon in southern Germany, he finds himself besieged by a gaggle of young female devotees.
Felix Finkbeiner is an environmental superstar and author of the book Tree by Tree who is at the helm of a global network of child activists whose aim is to mitigate climate change by reforesting the planet.
We hear all the time that we need to get off the couch, stop watching TV and get moving.
But what if watching TV under specific conditions could actually provide the mental boost we need to recharge for a difficult task?
New research from the University at Buffalo found that watching a rerun of a favorite TV show or movie may help restore the drive to get things done in people who have used up their reserves of willpower or self-control.
A young stay-at-home mom in Maine admits that she had to think about it a for a minute when her eight-year-old discovered $4000 on the sidewalk by a Sam’s Club.
As for her daughter Abbie? “It never crossed her mind to keep it.”
The Cambodian immigrant who lost it said, “I felt like there was no hope I would ever get it back.”
Gwyneth Paltrow, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Michael Douglas, Jessica Biel, and Samuel L. Jackson…
When enough A-list Hollywood actors come together for a cause, ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox networks will cooperate — and even donate commercial-free air time. Tomorrow night, at 8:00pm Eastern/Pacific and 7:00 Central, even cable channels will clear their schedules to broadcast a continuous one-hour fundraiser produced by the entertainment-industry-favorite, Stand Up to Cancer, co-founded by Katie Couric.
The telethon is designed to build public support for groundbreaking research and accelerate the delivery of new therapies to patients, getting them from the “bench to the bedside” as quickly as possible. What makes Stand Up to Cancer (SU2C) unique is its primary mission to bring together scientists from different disciplines across various institutions to work together.
Gwyneth Paltrow, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Michael Douglas, Jessica Biel, and Samuel L. Jackson…
When enough A-list Hollywood actors come together for a cause, ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox networks will cooperate — and even donate commercial-free air time. Tomorrow night, at 8:00pm Eastern/Pacific and 7:00 Central, even cable channels will clear their schedules to broadcast a continuous one-hour fundraiser produced by the entertainment-industry-favorite, Stand Up to Cancer, co-founded by Katie Couric.
The telethon is designed to build public support for groundbreaking research and accelerate the delivery of new therapies to patients, getting them from the “bench to the bedside” as quickly as possible. What makes Stand Up to Cancer (SU2C) unique is its primary mission to bring together scientists from different disciplines across various institutions to work together.
A dog named Tucker with a mysterious past as a stray on the streets of Seattle has become an unexpected star in the realm of canine-assisted scientific research.
He is the world’s only working dog, marine biologists say, able to find and track the scent of orca scat, or feces, in open ocean water — up to a mile away, in the smallest of specks.
None of the orca monitoring could happen without Tucker and his wet, black nose — or the new tricks that he taught the scientists.
(READ the story and watch “A Nose for Research” from NY Times)
Also, click to learn more about Conservation Canines at their website.
Two pieces of information released today paint a pretty strong picture for the US economy.
A new report by private payroll company ADP shows a significant number of jobs created, 210,000 – well ahead of the expected number.
Monthly unemployment claims also dropped by 12,000 last month.
An overly considerate couple is being praised for going above and beyond to placate their fellow air travelers.
The parents, accompanied by their 14-week-old twin boys, distributed sweets to passengers as a pre-emptive strike in anticipation of the infants wreaking havoc in the skies.
A German company has installed its first clean energy kiosk in rural Ethiopia powered by rooftop solar panels. The self-contained “SolarKiosk” functions as a small-scale power company for surrounding villages that have no electricity.
The large metal roadside booth, which can hold 6-8 people inside, is expected to provide enough power for villagers to charge their mobile phones and car batteries, run a computer, and power its own solar fridge. The refrigeration may be the region’s only way to keep medication and dairy products chilled.
The single mother of three has worked at Uncle Tony’s Pizza in Cranston, Rhode Island for the last 15 years. She has regular customers that leave her good tips, but never like the cash she got from a couple last month to whom she served pizza.
The strangers left her five crisp hundred dollar bills.
She was shocked but also thought it was all a mistake. “She held on to the money thinking they would come back for it.”
— WATCH the video below
— READ the story from ABC-6
Security Video Surveillance is always looking for wrongdoers. Rarely do we see clips highlighting the actions of good Samaritans or friends.
This is a great example of people doing good things when no one is looking.
(The song, “Give a Little Bit”, was recorded decades ago by Supertramp.)
After living through military combat duty, adjusting to civilian life is one of the huge challenges facing veterans returning home. Disabled veterans themselves, Michael and Brenda Carlson understand the trauma. But today they feel the serenity of knowing they are helping others overcome that stress.
Inspired by the sudden bonding between their father, who is a veteran suffering with Vietnam-era Agent Orange poisoning, and a little rescue dog in their home, Brenda had an idea.
After living through military combat duty, adjusting to civilian life is one of the huge challenges facing veterans returning home. Disabled veterans themselves, Michael and Brenda Carlson understand the trauma. But today they feel the serenity of knowing they are helping others overcome that stress.
Inspired by the sudden bonding between their father, who is a veteran suffering with Vietnam-era Agent Orange poisoning, and a little rescue dog in their home, Brenda had an idea.
Elkhart, Indiana was hit pretty hard by the recession of 2008. But now, things will run a lot smoother, after Hollywood producer David Gundlach bequeathed his entire personal fortune to the Elkhart community foundation, which supports the county.
Museums, parks and senior care facilities will all benefit from the $125 million dollar gift.
Gundlach made his fortune by starting an insurance company overseas. After his financial success, he started a movie production company in Los Angeles before dying from a sudden heart attack at age 56 last year. His first production was the award-winning film, ‘Get Low,’ featuring Robert Duvall, Sissy Spacek and Bill Murray.
(READ the story at the NY Daily News)
