• Australia is no longer on fire
• U-Haul is offering free 30 day storage for displaced college students and discounted rates on moving services
• The second person in the world was just cured of HIV!
• There's going to be a new Dr. Seuss book this fall, published from a manuscript he wrote that was discovered 21 years after his death
• Student loan payments are being halted with no interest until the pandemic clears
• A zoo in Indiana recently announced the birth of two Chacoan Peccaries, an animal that is currently endangered (and also adorable)
• On that train, two cheetah cubs were recently born in an Ohio zoo via vitro fertilization, which could seriously boost efforts to help endangered species survive
• One more about animals - a komodo dragon in a Tennessee zoo just gave birth without male involvement! Which isn't something new, but it is rare and cool.
• The state of Virginia has banned conversion therapy for minors recently, and is the first Southern state to do so
• Scotland has created the worlds first Carbon Positive Gin made from peas instead of wheat, which reduces the carbon footprint created by normal gin making. Without wheat....it might also be a gluten free alternative (not certain on that one, you'd have to reach out to the creators). You can buy it here
• The worlds first 3D printed houses were just created in Mexico, with the hopes to combat homelessness. They are designed to withstand seismic activity and come with two bedrooms, a living room, kitchen, and bathroom.
• Disneyland is donating all acceptable food to food banks in Orange County during their closure
• The Olympic Games are hoping to become "climate positive" by the year 2030, and by next year they plan to start planting an "Olympic Forest" in Africa in an effort to combat desertification

• Cleveland Clinic has found a way to make the Corona Virus test go from a 5+ day waiting time for results down to 8 hours, which helps speed up treatment and quarantine and slows the spread of the virus
• You've definitely heard about this one, but citizens in Italy (including famous opera singers) have been singing with and playing music with each other during their quarantine
• Hundreds of local restaurants (and some chain restaurants) are offering free meals for kids who rely on school lunches as their primary source of nutrition.
• On this note, hundreds of teachers across the country are pulling from their pantries to make their less fortunate kids care packages (I know, they shouldn't have to, but they are, so let's celebrate the kindness)
• Students of a school in Pembroke got together for the 13th year in a row to shave their heads for cancer research, earning more than 100,000 dollars

• Woolworths has dedicated a set period of time for letting only elderly clients shop so they can stock up on supplies with less risk of catching covid19
• A customer at a bar in Columbus tipped the staff $2500 on a $30 bill because of the shutdown of in house service for all bars and restaurants in Ohio, which will severely impact servers wages and tips
• The last patient with Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo was just released with a full bill of health
• Scholastic is offering free courses for kids stuck at home during school closings
• Reporters Without Borders have opened an uncensored library.....in MINECRAFT. In countries where a lot of books or articles are banned, Minecraft is still available, and they have made these books and articles readable through the platform. You can download it here
• Today is National Panda Day!!!!! Here's a picture of a Floof Panda looking wistfully to their left:

• Michael Symon is hosting free online cooking videos during the Corona Virus on Facebook
• Ballet Nova Center for Dance is live streaming classes for all levels (beginner adult included!) on Facebook for the next week for anyone who might be interested in learning
• Uber Eats is waiving the delivery fee for all local businesses so that you can keep supporting your mom and pop shops without risking getting sick or getting others sick. They're also offering contactless deliveries, giving affected drivers financial aid, and are donating meals to first responders and healthcare workers in the US and Canada

Man Creates Edible Water “Jelly Drops” to Help Dementia Patients Stay Hydrated

mymodernmet.com

London-based student Lewis Hornby is a grandson on a mission. When he noticed that his dementia-afflicted grandmother was having trouble staying hydrated, he came up with Jelly Drops—bite-sized pods of edible water that look just like tasty treats.

Each of these colorful “candies” is made up of mostly water, with gelling agents and electrolytes making up just 10% of their composition. Available in a rainbow of colors and presented in packaging reminiscent of a box of chocolates, Jelly Drops are an easy and engaging way to avoid dehydration—a common problem for those suffering from degenerative neurological diseases.

“It is very easy for people with dementia to become dehydrated,” he explains. “Many no longer feel thirst, don’t know how to quench thirst, or don’t have the dexterity to drink.” With this in mind, Hornby set out to find a solution. In addition to seeking advice from psychologists and doctors, he opted to “experience” life with dementia himself through the use of virtual reality tools and a week in a care home.

Once he was familiar with what dementia patients need, he brainstormed what they want. “From my observations, people with dementia find eating much easier than drinking. Even still, it can be difficult to engage and encourage them to eat. I found the best way to overcome this is to offer them a treat! This format excites people with dementia, they instantly recognize it and know how to interact with it.”

Case in point? Hornby’s own grandmother’s reaction: “When first offered, grandma ate seven Jelly Drops in 10 minutes, the equivalent to a cup full of water—something that would usually take hours and require much more assistance.”

Source

“Image Credit: Carol Rossetti

When Brazilian graphic designer Carol Rossetti began posting colorful illustrations of women and their stories to Facebook, she had no idea how popular they would become. 

Thousands of shares throughout the world later, the appeal of Rosetti’s work is clear. Much like the street art phenomenon Stop Telling Women To Smile, Rossetti’s empowering images are the kind you want to post on every street corner, as both a reminder and affirmation of women’s bodily autonomy. 

“It has always bothered me, the world’s attempts to control women’s bodies, behavior and identities,” Rossetti told Mic via email. “It’s a kind of oppression so deeply entangled in our culture that most people don’t even see it’s there, and how cruel it can be.”

Rossetti’s illustrations touch upon an impressive range of intersectional topics, including LGBTQ identity, body image, ageism, racism, sexism and ableism. Some characters are based on the experiences of friends or her own life, while others draw inspiration from the stories many women have shared across the Internet. 

“I see those situations I portray every day,” she wrote. “I lived some of them myself.”

Despite quickly garnering thousands of enthusiastic comments and shares on Facebook, the project started as something personal — so personal, in fact, that Rossetti is still figuring out what to call it. For now, the images reside in albums simply titled “WOMEN in english!“ or ”Mujeres en español!“ which is fitting: Rossetti’s illustrations encompass a vast set of experiences that together create a powerful picture of both women’s identity and oppression.

One of the most interesting aspects of the project is the way it has struck such a global chord. Rossetti originally wrote the text of the illustrations in Portuguese, and then worked with an Australian woman to translate them to English. A group of Israeli feminists also took it upon themselves to create versions of the illustrations in Hebrew. Now, more people have reached out to Rossetti through Facebook and offered to translate her work into even more languages. Next on the docket? Spanish, Russian, German and Lithuanian.

It’s an inspiring show of global solidarity, but the message of Rossetti’s art is clear in any language. Above all, her images celebrate being true to oneself, respecting others and questioning what society tells us is acceptable or beautiful.

“I can’t change the world by myself,” Rossetti said. “But I’d love to know that my work made people review their privileges and be more open to understanding and respecting one another.””

eternity-hero:

ask-vi-and-cupcake:

datsemtx:

helthehatter:

·         We’re closer to having successful vaccines for lung and brain cancer.

·         New chemotherapy breakthroughs have increased the 5-year survival for pancreatic cancer from 16% to 27% (and is getting better)

·         Scientists figured out how to link robotic limbs with the part of the brain that deals with intent to move so people don’t have to think about how they will move the limb, it can just happen.

·         Child mortality is down everywhere and it keeps going down.

·         Thanks to the ice bucket challenge the gene responsible for ALS has been found, meaning we are closer to an effective treatment. Let me rephrase that: we are close to getting a treatment for a very bad disease because a lot of people (including really hot celebrities) got wet.

·         A solar powered plan circumnavigated the world.

·         Michael Jordan donates 2mil to try and help bridge connection between police and the community.

·         Tiger numbers are growing.

·         And manatees.

·         And pandas.

·         Pakistan has made strides toward outlawing honor killings.

·         70,000 Muslim clerics declared a fatwa against ISIS.

·         Pokemon Go players went insane with placing lure modules near hospitals for sick kids.

·         California is now powering over 6 million homes with solar power, a record in the US (and that is the tightest shit)

·         Volunteers in India planted 50 million trees in 24 hours.

·         Apparently world crime as a whole has drastically declined as a whole in the last couple of decades.

·         Coffee consumption has been proved to help curtail cancer and suicide rates.

·         Speaking of coffee Starbucks figured out how to donate perishable food in a food safe way.

·         500 elephants were relocated to a better, safer and bigger home.

·         We made massive strides in Alzheimers’ prevention (my grandmother literally told me that scares her more than getting cancer this is very good news)

·         The ozone layer is repairing itself and all the work we did to get rid of those aerosol chemicals was actually worth it.

·         A new therapy developed in Israel could cure radiation sickness.

·         The Anglican church resolved to solemnize same-sex unions the same as opposite-sex unions which required a super majority of all three orders of the church (lay, clergy, bishop).

·         The Rabbinical Assembly issued a resolution affirming the rights of transgender and non-conforming individuals.

·         Precision treatments for cancer are hitting clinical trials and WORKING (as someone who’s had relatives with cancer this is the best news)

·         Dentists are once again providing free care to veterans who need it.

·         The Orlando Shakespeare Festival showed up with angel wings to block funeral-goers for the Orlando Pulse victims, view from anti-gay protesters

·         We may have cured MS

·         Rise Women’s Legal Centre opened

·         Death by heart disease has decreased by 70% in the United States

·         Two brothers saw color for the first time thanks to specially-designed glasses

·         Pope Francis spoke against society’s obsession with physical beauty while dedicating Mass to the disabled community (love that dude)

·         Portugal ran its entire nation solely on renewable energy for four days straight

·         A retiree is launching a project to transport 80 endangered rhinos to an Australian reservation to save the animals from poaching

·         An Afghan teacher has been delivering books via bicycle to villages that lack schools

·         Harriet Tubman is going to replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill.

·         200 strangers attended the funeral of a homeless WW2 veteran with no family

·         A teen battling cancer married his sweetheart

·         Bank firm pays for college tuition for the children of employees who died in the 9/11 attacks

·         New medicine has been shown to increase melanoma survival rate to 40%

·         Over 800 Boko Harem Hostages were rescued by Nigerian Army

·         Toys R Us is Offering Quiet Shopping Hour for kids with autism this holiday season

·         Volunteers made special tiny Halloween costumes for NICU babies

·         A 4-year old befriends a lonely man and helped him heal after losing his wife

·         Families grew

·         People survived c ancer

·         People overcame depression

·         Any kind of victory, even if it affects only one person,  is a victory

·         Now for the pop culture good news

·         LEONARDO DICAPRIO WON AN OSCAR! EVERYONE READING THIS LIVED LONG ENOUGH TO SEE LEO FINALLY GET WHAT HE DESERVED

·         There’s a new Harry Potter book

·         And a movie

·         Harry Potter has no plans on vanishing with time

·         This sweet father gave candy to passengers on a flight so his little girl could trick or treat on Halloween

·         LET ME TALK ABOUT ALL THE KICK ASS MOVIES WE GOT THIS YEAR OH MY GOD

·         Kung Fu Panda 3, this franchise is still going strong despite that its about a panda played by Jack Black

·         Jungle Book. The amazing remake none of us saw coming

·         Finding Dory. I haven’t seen it yet but I’ve heard good things

·         Kubo and the Two Strings. Haven’t seen that yet as well but its Laika so I know it’s a masterpiece

·         Deadpool. The beautiful and super accurate R-rated marvel film

·         Captain America: Civil War. Seriously is the best marvel movie yet in my opinion I need more.

·         Zootopia. Oh don’t mind me I’m just a movie that tackled the issue of racism and not only game changed animated films but also made a billion dollars

·         The Hamilton Mixtape is coming out. Which is a bunch of artists singing songs from the musical (Sia, Usher, Regina Spketor, etc.) I’m excited.

·         A personal victory for myself, I joined Tumblr and met angels in blog form so…that’s uplifting.

·         And I met my favorite voice actor at a con which was a bucket list accomplishment.

Good Things that have yet to happen this year

·         Birthdays

·         Doctor Strange

·         Thanksgiving

·         Black Friday

·         Moana

·         Christmas

Good things that have nothing to do with the year but will hopefully make you feel better

·         Puppies

·         Chocolate

·         Rainbows

·         Rain (I like listening to rain it’s one of the most calming sounds)

·         Cartoons

·         Kissing

·         Music

·         Friends

·         FF: If you are a religious person you are an imperfect masterpiece

·         FF: If you are not then you are a splendid coincidence

·         Any year spent with loved ones be they family or friends is a good year. Trust me.

·         ”A laugh can be a very powerful thing. Why, sometimes in life, it’s the only weapon we have” –Roger Rabbit

#NeverForgetTheGood

*Plz feel free to add other good news (even if it’s something small like you ate cheesecake THAT is good news)

This is a gorgeous post, everyone should reblog it to see the balancing side to the whole bad things happening in the world!

I needed this

Something positive in this cruel world

Female Chief Terminates 850 Child Marriages in Malawi and Sends Girls Back to School | Viral Women

A Malawian female chief has established a new law to prevent child marriage in Malawi and has terminated approximately 850 child marriages across the country to date.

www.viralwomen.com|WRN Editor

According to a 2012 United Nations survey, more than half of Malawi’s girls are married before the age of 18. In addition, the country is ranked 8th out of 20 countries believed to have the highest child marriage rates in the world. Chief Kachindamoto is changing this one step at a time and has begun by annulling more than 850 child marriages, sending hundreds of young women back to school to continue their education, and by making astonishing strides to abolish cleansing rituals that require young girls to go to sexual initiation camps.