Good News Tuesday for May 16, 2023: Rwanda’s Malaria Fighting Milestone, Brooklyn’s Geo-Thermal Apartment Complex, The Good Cup, and a Marathon Assist

Seeking Balance One Tuesday at a Time

10,000 Caregivers Have Been Certified to Fight Malaria in Rwanda

This year, Rwanda reached a milestone: 10,000 caregivers have been certified to fight malaria. Historically, these caregivers were women who provided care at the expense of their own economic growth. Now, with certification program, they are paid a living wage for their work. Read about how this has helped Rwanda’s people and communities in this article from GoodGoodGood.

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Breaking Ground at a Geothermal Apartment Complex in Brooklyn

A large geothermal apartment complex is going up in Brooklyn, NY. It’s hoped that this project will provide a template for future buildings and reduce emissions. Here’s an article from CNBC including a video that that explains the concept.

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The Good Cup

A company called, Choose Planet A, has developed a foldable, recyclable cup that serves as a takeout container for hot and cold drinks. The Good Cup has a bio-based coating and does not need a plastic lid. It’s mainly available in Canada, Japan, Australia, China, and the UK. Let’s hope such earth friendly cups spread to every country. Take a look in this article.

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New York Governor Signs Bill Allowing Easier Access to Contraceptives

A new law that takes effect in November 2024, allows trained pharmacists to provide hormonal contraceptives including oral birth control pills, vaginal rings, and the patch to New Yorkers without a prescription. Here’s more from AP.

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Marathoners Help Runner to Finish Line

A runner in the 2023 London Marathon last month was having trouble, doubled over, and about to collapse. Watch as two other runners come to help him finish the race.

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SoCS: Resting is Not the Same as Giving Up and Why I Gave Up on The Rings of Power

Today’s prompt for #JusJoJan and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “throw in the towel.” Use the phrase “throw in the towel” somewhere in your post. Enjoy!

To “throw in the towel” means to quit something, maybe give up on something, after having worked on it for a while. Where does this phrase come from? Is it a football term? Don’t those football guys carry towels around? lol. I’m not a big fan of football. Maybe that’s un-American to some folks. Okay, the sport itself is okay I guess, okay. Stop saying okay. But I never really got the huge national extravagant $$$ part of it. But I didn’t really want to go there.

In general, where does one throw the towel? In the laundry basket? If a towel is dirty, then you should throw it in. That brings me back to what I really wanted to write about, and that is that sometimes it’s okay to quit. If something is not healthy, if it’s not working, and you’ve tried to the point of insanity or toxicity, and the fate of the world does not depend on your endeavor, then throw in the towel.

As a side note, resting or taking a break is not the same as quitting. I made a meme for that a while ago.

But sometimes, you just need to throw in the towel. About a week ago, I made the decision to throw in the towel on Amazon Prime which I got for the sole purpose of watching The Rings of Power. This was not an easy decision, because I am a huge fan of The Lord of the Rings (like some people are huge fans of football.) I can watch those movies, and The Hobbit movies over and over again, usually while doing stuff on the computer and stopping to watch when my favorite parts come on, like the parts with the elves.

After much consideration, including the cost of Amazon Prime and that I still want to watch Season 2 of Picard and Star Trek, Strange New Worlds on Paramount which costs less by the way, I decided that The Rings of Power was too dark for me. There were some characters I liked okay, but the orcs seemed a lot scarier, and the series just felt continually heavy. The final decision was the episode (still in season 1) where things happen to horses. I will not go into details (except to say there is fire involved), and I know it’s just a movie and those things didn’t really happen to the horses, but when you love animals and have a good imagination, it can be traumatic. And sometimes horses do get hurt on movie sets. So there. It’s done. There are plenty of other things to watch and books to read, and when the old LOTR and Hobbit movies come on cable, I’ll watch them again.

I had to look up the origin of throwing in the towel. It comes from boxing. The trainer throws in the towel to save his boxer when it is clear he’s not going to win. That way, he can live to fight another day, which brings us back to the idea that it’s okay to take a break and rest a while before going back into the ring of life.

And now, a message from Gandalf.

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To learn more about Stream of Consciousness Saturday,

visit our host, Linda Hill

by clicking HERE.

Good News Tuesday for Jan. 17, 2023: Decrease in US Cancer Deaths, a Helper Wins a House, Community Center Replaces a Polluting Factory, and Successfully Stopping Traffic for a Koala

Seeking Balance One Tuesday at a Time

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Death Rates from Cancer Decrease 33% in US

US death rates from cancer have decreased by 33% since 1991 according to a recent report from the American Cancer Society. The decrease is attributed to early detection, treatment improvements, decrease in smoking, and the HPV vaccine. Here’s more from CNN.

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Man Who Helped Disabled People Find Houses Wins a House

What goes around, comes around, and sometimes karma works within a person’s lifetime. Such is the case for Grant Carson who spent 27 years helping disabled people in Glasgow find homes and who recently won a £2.5million country house in a charity raffle. The Good News Network has details.

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Town Opens Community Center Where a Factory Used to Pollute a Black Neighborhood

For years, Ruth Reed and Mary Sue Rich worked to shut down a charcoal plant that polluted the air over Black homes in Florida. Finally, in 2018, after the city bought the property, “…Mrs. Reed sat on top of a Yellow Cat excavator and knocked the first wall of that charcoal plant down.” Earlier this month, the community celebrated the opening of the Mary Sue Rich Community Center at Reed Place on the site now containing a gymnasium, a branch library, a gathering place for seniors, a banquet hall and meeting rooms. NPR has the story.

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Stopping Traffic for a Crossing Koala

Will Thorton was sitting on his balcony in Queensland, Australia when he saw a koala bear trying to cross a busy highway, so he rushed out barefoot to stop traffic to help the koala cross the road.

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Good News Tuesday for Nov. 29, 2022: South Korea Close to Zero Food Waste, Genetically Engineered T Cells Help Lupus Patients, Free School Lunch in Colorado, and an 11-Year-Old Saves his Sister

Seeking Balance One Tuesday at a Time

South Korea has Almost Zero Food Waste

This article from The Guardian explains how South Korea recycles almost all of its food waste and gives examples of what a couple of US states are attempting to reduce food waste and methane from landfills.

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Genetically Engineered T Cells take Five Lupus Patients into Remission

Five patients with “untreatable” lupus were given an infusion of genetically engineered immune cells, or CAR T-cells which were originally developed to attack cancer cells. The genetics of the T cells were directed to specifically attack the defective autoantibody-producing B-cells that cause damage in lupus. All five patients went into remission. Here’s more from The Good News Network.

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Free Lunch for Students in Colorado

Voters in the US state of Colorado approved a ballot measure to provide free meals for all public school students. Here’s more from NPR

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11-Year-Old Saves His Sister from Second Floor of Burning House

Laprentis Doughty, age 11, ran back into his burning house when he realized his two-year-old sister, Loyalty, was still inside. You can read the story, here, and watch the video below.

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whether global, local, or personal,

in the comments!

Good News Tuesday for Nov. 8, 2022: Truce in Ethiopia, Gender Balance in New Zealand, Fruit Trees in Philly, Cancer Fighting Pomegranates, and Generous Trick-or-Treaters

Seeking Balance One Tuesday at a Time

Truce with Tigray in Ethiopia

A truce has been reached in the two-year conflict between the Ethiopian government and the forces of Tigray in the country’s northern region. It is hoped that this agreement will allow much needed aid to flow to civilians who have suffered atrocities and severe shortages of food and supplies. BBC reports that the current truce goes further than past ceasefires. Click here for details.

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Gender Balance in New Zealand’s Parliament

New Zealand’s Parliament now has equal numbers of women and men. The climb to this place of balance started in 1893 when the country led the way in recognizing a woman’s right to vote. Here’s more from RNZ.

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Fruit Trees in Philadelphia

The city of Philadelphia is planting fruit trees to help reduce food insecurity and help the environment. Here’s more from GoodGoodGood.

Pomegranate Seeds Can Help Fight Cancer

German scientists have discovered that substances in pomegranate help rejuvenate T cells to make them more effecting in fighting cancer. Here’s more from the Good News Network. (Yay! I love pomegranate and they’re in season!)

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Generous Trick-or-Treaters

In the monthly “Humankind’ section of my 1440 news update, I read about 12-year-old Kristina Kallman who put some of her Halloween candy in an empty bowl. Upon looking this up on Youtube, I found she’s not the only one. Here are two short and recent videos of trick-or-treaters being generous.

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Got Good News?

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SoCS: A Lost Covid test, Silent GERD, and the Hacking Cough is Going, Going…

 Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “me.” Find a word that starts with “me” or use the word “me” as the theme of your post. Have fun!

Meaningful posts should not always be about me, but that’s where my stream of consciousness sometimes goes. How about some meaningful health information that has recently come to my attention?

I’ve had this cough for at least three weeks after the acute phase of whatever virus attacked me during the first week of September. The cough is still with me, but it’s much better due to various medications aimed at loosening phlegm and suppressing the hacking. I never thought I’d be so excited about producing phlegm since the cough was so dry for so long. In googling dry coughs, I had read that acid reflux/aka GERD, could cause this kind of cough. I dismissed this since I have not had any GERD symptoms in quite some time.

I had a covid test on Thursday Sept 22, and they LOST my test! The sample didn’t make it to the lab and apparently went into some kind of black hole. On Tuesday, I went back for another test which turned out to be negative like the one on Sept 5. The cough being persistent, my nurse practitioner told the nurse to tell me to try omeprazole for acid reflux since I have a history of GERD. The nurse told me she had “silent GERD” with no symptoms and the omeprazole has helped her cough and sinus issues. I appreciate helping professionals sharing these kinds of personal experiences. In counselor training we were often cautioned about self-disclosure, but sometimes it is meaningful. I figured I might as well try the GERD/reflux meds being very tired of the annoying cough.

I started the OTC GERD medication on Wednesday and my cough was significantly better that day and today. Maybe it was just time, but maybe the nurse and FNP were right. Maybe “silent GERD” can cause a cough or make it linger. Maybe I’ll keep taking the anti-GERD meds along with keeping my Ricolas on hand for the cough which continues to flare up now and then.

Wherever I go, they go.

Meanwhile, Hurricane/Tropical Storm Ian is making landfall again (as I write this on Friday) and bringing lots of rain and wind to the Carolinas. I’m praying for the folks in Florida and glad Linda’s son is okay as well as our friends and relatives down there.

The oldest part of our fence blew down in the storm. I had it propped up with various pieces of junk. We knew we’d have to replace it soon, which now means tomorrow if we can get the materials. Marley will have to be on leash until it’s fixed.

Old Fence Blew Down

We finally made it to the beach last week. I didn’t swim, but the sea air did me good.

The bird is flying away like my cough…. going…. going….

Last week, I shared a photo of my son with his baby sister. I had completely forgotten to check another photo album and found more:

Click this. It’s my favorite.

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For more streams of consciousness and rules,

visit our host, Linda Hill by clicking HERE.

Good News Tuesday for September 27, 2022: Author Reconnects with Teacher, Blood Test for Early Cancer Detection, Regenerative Agriculture in Mexico, and a Special Police Dog

Seeking Balance One Tuesday at a Time

Author Reconnects with Teacher Who Taught Him to Read

Jamil Jan Kochai was a baby when his family moved to the US from Afghanistan. Due to his family’s moves, by second grade he was having a very hard time with reading and speaking English. His teacher, Ms. Lung worked with him every day after school teaching him to read. As an adult, Jamil who is now an author, spent decades trying to find his second-grade teacher. I hope you will read this moving story and find out how they reconnected.

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A Blood Test Can Detect Multiple Types of Cancer in Early Stages

A recent clinical trial involved 6,621 adults over 50 who took the Galleri blood test looking for early-stage cancer. In the 92 patients who tested positive, none had symptoms though 35 had solid tumors which were either too small to be detected normally or are not routinely tested. The Good News Network has details.

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Regenerative Agriculture and Agroforestry Improve Yield While Restoring Nature in Mexico

In the Mexican State of Chiapas, farmers, ranchers, and conservationists are working together to restore natural processes. Maria Luisa Gordillo Mendoza stated that with technical assistance and working to boost soil health, her corn yields have grown. One strategy used was growing beans with the corn to fix nitrogen and create organic cover to maintain moisture and reduce the need for herbicides. You can read more from goodgoodgood.com.

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Police Dog Awarded for Lifesaving Retires to Run on the Beach

A German Shepherd named Luna was honored with the Thin Blue Paw award after saving 38 lives during her 8-year career on the Scottish Police Force. Luna retired in June and now gets to run on the beach. You can read about Luna in this article from the Good News Network. Plus, here’s a video of Luna with her handler and guardian, Linda McBride.

PS. I wish all police and military dogs only did search and rescue and got to retire safely to live with their handlers.

Got Good News?

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SoCS: Staying Home and Watching Christmas Movies

Today’s prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “home.” Use it as a noun, a verb, an adjective, or an adverb. Enjoy!

The first thing I thought of was the song, “Home,” by Cat Stevens, from the album, Numbers. I’ll share that at the end of the post because that’s where it traditionally goes. Not that tradition is the be all and end all of everything. In the episcopal church tradition is one leg of the three-legged stool, along with scripture and reason. That reason part is part of the reason I go to an episcopal church as my home church.

I haven’t been to church in three weeks since I’ve been home sick. I like staying home most of the time, but I do miss singing in church. It will be a while before I can do that because of this nagging, dry cough. I got a new medication for it, so maybe it’s on its way out. Ricola cough drops have come in pretty handy.

Yesterday was the first cool day we’ve had here in a very long time. The high was in the 70s! It was wonderful! I love autumn. I got so excited to put in my orange, glowy, flickering light bulb on the front porch. I think I’ll make soup today. Looking forward to pumpkin or sweet potato pie and feeling well enough to walk Marley to the park. When we come back home, and walk through the gate, I tell him, “GO HOME,” at least twice, so if he ever runs off and someone tells him to GO HOME, he will know what that means.

I wish everyone had a safe home, a place where they feel comfortable, at least a safe, comfortable room or corner. Home really should be safe. If it’s not, get help. Please. Everyone deserves to have a safe place.

It is very possible that I have shared Cat Stevens’ “Home” here and not that long ago. Well, maybe everyone didn’t see it or hear it. I don’t mind listening to it again. Here it is: https://youtu.be/OmnIOc3WN5o

I was checking my photos and had taken some of the TV when I watched the Home Alone movies, 1 and 2. They are two of the many movies I can watch over and over again, along with Elf. When my son was about five or six, people were always saying, “He looks like that kid in the Home Alone movie.” He actually did. Now, not so much.

Here’s a picture of my son, age 7, with his new baby sister in 1993: (That was almost 30 years ago!)

1993 Time flies!

Here’s the feel good ending of Home Alone 2. Kevin is giving a gift to the homeless lady who became his friend and saved him from the bad guys.

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For more homey streams of consciousness, visit out host, Linda Hill by clicking HERE.

One-Liner Wednesday: The Best Years

“These, believe it or not, are the very best years of my life.” _ Mike Fremont

Mike Fremont is a 100-year-old runner. When he was 69, he was diagnosed with colon cancer and given three months to live. In response to that diagnosis and his research, he went “cold turkey” becoming100% vegan on a whole foods diet. I hope you’ll watch as much as you can of the inspiring interview below. Plus there’s an article from People here.

For more one-liners, visit out host, Linda Hill, by clicking HERE.

SoCS: Changing Thoughts on Diamond Rings, The Rings of Power, and Home Security, plus the Moonhaven Dance and my Latest Artwork

Today’s prompt for SoCS is, ring.

In my first engagement and marriage, I didn’t get an engagement ring. We were poor and that was okay with me, being a rebellious, nonconformist. I picked my own flowers for the first wedding. Having grown up in the 70s, I did not care about such things as fancy store bought flowers. A friend made my dress. Over the years, there was a shift. Not a big shift, but I loved getting an engagement ring in my second engagement ten years ago. The funny thing is that I don’t wear it a lot. I take it off when I go to the beach or the sanctuary where the roosters peck at it. The single diamond is set high and tends to scratch things. I wear it for dress up and leave it on till I go to the beach or sanctuary. And now, it’s not important to me as I seek simplicity and have my favorite thrift store jewelry for dress up. Though it is important to me that David was able to provide an engagement ring for me.

I got Amazon Prime for a free month to watch The Rings of Power. Being a huge fan of LOTR, I was excited to see the young Galadriel who I’ve learned is obsessed with finding and killing Sauron. I probably would have appreciated that more when I was younger and desired to save the world. After watching two episodes of The Rings, I have discovered that the orcs scare me more than they used to. Maybe it’s because they were living under someone’s house. I’ve decided not to watch any more of The Rings until I am recovered from my mystery virus. There’s still a nagging cough and feeling tired. It had become more important what I put into my body and mind. I want the pretty stuff with the elves. BBC has the first episode of Moonhaven, and I’m enjoying that. It’s not all pretty, but there’s a lot of pretty in the first episode to tickle this old hippie’s fancy.

Home security is something that’s been on my mind more. I’d like to have a camera and motion sensor at the front door at least. Don’t need a big complicated system. Maybe Ring would work. I don’t know. We got a motion sensor light with a battery and put it up over the front door, but it didn’t work, so I returned it. That was several months ago, so I guess it’s not that important. I just won’t think about the orcs. I need to focus on getting better and stronger. Maybe I’ll get a sword. (Just kidding.) Until then, there’s a baseball bat, a fenced yard, and a big dog who is secretly friendly to everyone.

Happy, healing thoughts. That’s what I need. The mysterious dance looks nice. But Moonhaven has plenty of secrets.

Here’s some art I did inspired by a cloud:

“Rising” by Joanna of the Forest

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For more about Stream of Consciousness Saturday,

visit out host Linda G. Hill by clicking HERE.