New to you...

I actually thought that phrase was fairly clever when whatever TV station unveiled it as a way to palatably serve up repeats. I didn't have a whole lot of time to watch TV in my old job, and I didn't have a TIVO or DVR (still don't actually), so I missed a lot of episodes of my shows. To get sidetracked, yes, I am aware my parents have TIVO and I don't, but my rationale is that I really won't get to the old episodes by the time the new ones come around again, so I might as well just wait for the season to come out on Netflix. 

Anyway, I'm aware that most of you have far more to do at work than read my little old blog, so you may have missed some stories I've posted in the past. Now, I'm not actually re-posting those articles, but I have found follow ups in the papers on the original stories that I thought I would link to. I personally enjoy finding out "where they are now" so I thought you might too.

In my post entitled "It's a Small World," I had a story on Henry Allingham, who was Great Britain's oldest living WWI vet after he celebrated his 113th birthday. Yahoo! News has now reported he has become the world's oldest man after the previous title holder passed away. Allingham has seen three centuries turn, six monarchs and has five grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren, 14 great-great grandchildren and one great-great-great-grandchild. 

In a similar vein (and this is actually new to you), a Ukrainian family separated by World War II was set to be reunited by the Red Cross two weeks ago according to the Citizen in Laconia, N.H. The siblings had been separated first by foster care then again by the Nazis. All are in their late 80's and early 90's and were looking forward to the reunion.

My post last week called "Mmmmmmm...," was food-centered mainly because I am. : ) I have absolutely no idea what sparked it, but about six months ago I completely changed my diet to fresh, seasonal foods. The day after I posted on that topic, I found a story on msnbc.com about the White House's vegetable garden. Mrs. Obama invited the elementary school students who helped plant the garden back to the mansion to help harvest what they sowed. The kids were then invited to help prepare and then share in a meal created from and consisting of the produce from the garden. 

MSNBC.com also had a lovely little story that caught my eye. The headline was "Lottery winner plans to grow better carrots". How can you not click on that? It seems the 74 year-old lotto winner in the UK is an amateur gardener who has never been able to grow carrots in a part of his garden. With part of the $41 million prize, Brian Caswell is going to hire a professional to sort it out. How cute is that?

(Photo credit: www.citizen.com)

Friends are the family you choose...

Recently I added some photos my Facebook account from Easter and a friend's birthday to an album with the same title. It rings particularly true for me as I am so far from my actual family. While regretting the fact the economy is keeping me from going home, I do need to remember I chose to move farther and farther from Maryland. And I've had some great things happen to me no matter which (part of the) country I've lived in. 

So I guess I'm just grateful I've managed to find good people wherever I am, ones with whom I like to spend holidays and weekends and random nights out. But I do see my actual family as much as possible and, as they say, blood is thicker than water.

All of the stories I found today highlight the ties between family members. The Daily Express in England had a story a few days ago on the reunion of two sweethearts separated by her mother and WWII. The woman's mother didn't want her daughter being widowed so soon after marriage since the life expectancy of her sweetheart's military assignment was less than a month. The two survived the war and lived their lives, but recently she found him after 64 years and now they're back together.  

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported on the story of two siblings who lost each other during the Great Depression. Two of the four children of a migrant worker raising them alone after the death of his wife recently reunited after 73 years. The youngest son, 10 months old at the time, was given up for adoption and spent much of his life unaware of his other family. A 31-year search finally led him to his sister and her family.

This last one is more about the strength of families working together amongst themselves and with other families. Father John Lasseigne is a parish priest in a Southern California suburb hit very hard by the sub-prime lending crisis. One in every nine homes in his area is in foreclosure. CNN is hailing Lasseigne as a savior to his congregation for organizing a grass-roots community effort to help these people save their homes. 

Photo credit: theord.com

Flashbacks to sixth grade...

So I had to laugh when I found the following story on AOL News about a paraplegic man. Now you might think that was cruel until I finish telling you the story. Twenty-one years ago he was paralyzed from the waist down after a motorcycle accident. Recently he was bitten by a brown recluse spider. Yeah, I know, still not funny. Normally the venom from those spiders is fatal, but in his case it actually seems to have "woken up" the nerves in his legs. He's actually walking again. 

Now the reason I found this amusing was it immediately brought to mind the time my mother dragged me to the hospital in the middle of the night after I had been bitten by a spider in our attic. Looking back on it, I guess I can see why she was worried as the spot did swell and turn red, but all I can see now is the 11 year-old version of me in my enormous blue glasses, serious bedhead and oversized Minnie Mouse sweatshirt from a recent trip to Disney World being bundled off in the car to CCGH in the middle of a summer night. 

Although, I suppose I should be grateful for having a family who cared so much about me. The Australian version of ABC News carried a story on its website about a Congolese man who is going to be reunited with his family for the first time in 12 years after war ripped him from them. 

Police have finally ID'd a woman found wandering a New Jersey mall in 1994. Their initial search efforts yielded nothing so she was committed to psychiatric care, but an officer refused to give up and his latest efforts spurred an outpouring of information about the woman and her history (ABC News 13).

The last two stories of the day are about families grateful for happy endings, though they came in different ways. A family in Michigan was terrified their son was going blind for unknown reasons until they met an unlikely specialist - a neuro-ophthalmologist whose training helped him find a tumor and return the boy's sight (Grand Rapids News).

Finally, two sons of a man who died during World War II after his submarine went down off the coast of Alaska made a pact to find their father after the US Navy said it couldn't. Several years and an undisclosed sum of money personally financed by the two men finally revealed the location of the downed sub. The conclusion of the search helped the two men make peace with the tragedy, which was compounded by the fact their father couldn't even say goodbye to them due to the secrecy of the mission (MSNBC).

heart-warm-ing: adj. Causing gladness and tender feelings: a heartwarming tale

I love reading these stories every morning because they put me in a better, happier frame of mind. Today's articles had a little something extra that went beyond simple enjoyment. Good news brings momentary cheer, but heartwarming stories make you feel a little better about society and life in general.

I'm not entirely sure how this ended up in the Singapore Enquirer, but it mentioned people who are being called "recession angels." The story starts off with a man who is a nice reminder that those at the tops of banks and corporations aren't all greedy, horrible people. After selling his bank, he gave $60 million of the profit in bonuses to current and former staffers at all levels. 

It's always nice when a community pulls together and not just to help people dig out from a tornado or some other large-scale problem. In Canada, a loosely bound group of strangers in neighboring towns worked together to help one couple with a baby on the way find their dearly loved pooch who took off chasing a rabbit. (Edmonton Journal)

The Iraq war has been going on for over five years now, and you hear all about the big conflicts and battlefield success stories. But sometimes the everyday life back in the US for soldiers' families gets lost. You forget these people have more to their lives than picking up a gun and patrolling hostile countries. WOWK 13 News in Hungtington, W.Va. reported on a simple wish coming true: a 3 year-old soldier's son wished for his daddy to pick him up from school. 

Sometimes the justice system in this country can seem a little unjust. Laws are in place to protect us, but sometimes they have unintended consequences for those who are just trying to do the right thing. The Orlando Sentinel reported on a happy ending for a grandmother who had tried repeatedly to get custody of her great-grandson only to be denied by the Florida courts. 

Trying to keep the smiles coming...

These always make me smile, particularly when the ring true for me. Yesterday morning my kitty woke me up not once but twice in the middle of the night by ever so nicely slapping me on the cheek with her claws out. She wanted some attention. 

more animals

I can say without a doubt that even on day two of doing this, reading these stories before I post them has put me in a better frame of mind already. Now when I read the news sites, I also comb them for happy stories. Helps balance it all out.

In the New York Times, we have a story today on how Madison Avenue is jumping on the band wagon to produce happy advertising campaigns.

In "Grateful for rescuers," a man from California expresses his gratitude to the people who helped him after his car flipped over in a traffic accident (The Reporter, Vacaville, Calif.).

As you probably know, animals are close to my heart, so I am happy to have two stories featuring happy endings for dogs today. The Sun-Journal in Lewiston, Maine features this story about Buck the golden retriever who was found after being lost for six months, and the Santa Cruz Sentinel had a story on the SPCA booth at a local Pooches at the Park event. Apparently Little Trixie took advantage of a windy day for an adventure and was dropped off at the SPCA until her human could be found.

Last, but certainly not least, are the stories of two families reunited after many years apart. Two sisters who lost each other for 74 years met again thanks to the investigative work of a grand-daughter (KPIC 4, Roseburg, Ore.), while MySpace brought a family back together after 30 years (News 3, Savannah/Hilton Head, S.C.).