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89-year-old Joe looks forward to his new job

@The Guardian

An 89-year-old has found a job after placing an advert in his local paper asking for part-time work to stop him ‘dying of boredom’. Joe Bartley, from Paignton in south Devon, is due to start work at a cafe in the town after the owners of the family-run business spotted his ad.

“No matter what your age or your background, you deserve a chance,” Cantina Bar and Kitchen’s co-owner Sarah Martin told The Guardian. “Most people have got something to offer and Joe is someone who is keen, who is putting himself out there. What is not to like about that? A lot of people who come here don’t just come for coffee, they come for a chat, so Joe is perfect.”

Joe put an advert in the Herald Express twice last month. It read: “Senior citizen, 89, seeks employment in Paignton area. 20hrs+ per week. Still able to clean, light gardening, DIY and anything. I have references. Old soldier, airborne forces. Save me from dying of boredom!”

He said he had been overwhelmed by the response to the advert: “The owner phoned me and said she was interested, and asked me to come in. So I arrived at the cafe and we’ve had a bit of a chat with the owner, and shook hands.”

Joe has lived alone since his wife, Cassandra, died two years ago, and has been lonely. “When you live on your own there is no one to speak to. Since she died I’ve moved into a flat and it’s a big block. Once you walk into that flat it’s like solitary confinement.”

Joe also got a job offer from The Ginger Breadman bakery in Barnstaple, the owner explained he wanted the pensioner to know he had been offered a job in the hope that it would put a ‘smile on his face’. But Barnstaple was a little too far.

His new employer Sarah said: “He is delighted, and we are looking forward to it. We think about these things all the time. We are never going to be rich, but we like to give something back, so when we saw the advert there was no question – the minute we saw it we knew we’d give him a job.”

WW2 Prisoner of War's postcard returned to family

A postcard written from a Nazi labour camp in 1944 has been delivered to the writer's family after being found in an Italian street.

Valentina Romano, from Como, found the postcard on the pavement and was intrigued by the postmark featuring a Nazi eagle. The card was signed by Roberto Bianchi and sent from Breslau, now Wroclaw in Poland.

"My dear parents," he writes, "after a long silence, this is me letting you know that I'm now at another site where I work on the land. I'm in the open countryside, in a farmhouse. I've got plenty to eat, so don't worry at all - I'm very well."

Sending love to his parents and grandparents, the soldier concludes: "I'm always close to you in thought. There's nothing left for me to do except send you a kiss, dear mum and dad. I trust that I will soon return to you."

Ms Romano, a teacher in Italian and Latin, was determined to find the mystery writer's family and used Facebook to help track them down.

A journalist friend working for local TV station Espansione suggested Ms Romano should make a TV appeal, and a few days later the writer's family got in touch. Delighted, the teacher delivered the card to Roberto's 74-year-old cousin, Roman Bianchi.

She told the BBC: "When I handed over the postcard, they were so grateful, happy and emotional. I was happy to be told that Roberto had managed to get home and lived a long life.

Roberto Bianchi was born in 1924, and taken prisoner by the Nazis as a 20-year-old soldier. He survived the war and returned to the small town of Faggeto Lario, where he married and stayed for the rest of his life. He died in 1999.

"We did not know of the existence of this postcard. Reading the words of our cousin has awakened old memories - it was a great thrill for all of my family", Roman Bianchi told the Italian Huffington Post.

He said the card had been kept in his cousin's old house, and that the current occupant had emptied out everything. The relic would have been pulp by now, had it not blown away and settled in the path of Ms Romano.

Ms Romano told the BBC she hoped the 74-year-old would visit the school where she teaches, ‘to tell my pupils about that part of history that no-one should ever forget’.

It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month!

Don't forget to Check 'Em :)

Mary Berrys by Chris O'Hara

Best man's video stunt steals the show at wedding

Former Everton footballer Jamie Milligan couldn't hold back the laughter when his best man created an elaborate video stunt to entertain guests at his wedding.

Danny McKenzie stole the show at the wedding in Blackpool when he pretended to have forgotten his speech notes before dashing out of the room to ‘fetch them’. As Danny left a video continued to run on a big screen showing his ‘quest’ to retrieve the missing notes.

The slickly-made video had the guests crying with laughter as Danny chases across fields, flees a kidnapper, pulls up with cramp and enjoys a quick pint at the pub.

After racing home and suffering a washing machine-related mishap, Danny grabs his notes and catches a taxi back to The Villa where, wearing Jamie’s slightly-too-small football kit, he is greeted to a standing ovation.

The adventure took almost five days for Danny to film with the help of his brother Liam.

Hayleigh has THE best job in the world

Lucky lady Hayleigh Curtis is a chocolate scientist for Cadbury’s and her employer has just insured her taste buds for £1million. 

This means Hayleigh will now need to avoid sword swallowing, eating Fugu fish and chilli peppers with a Scoville heat rating of greater than 350,000, which could compromise her taste buds and render the insurance void.

Hayleigh is part of the Cadbury Innovation team of 300, based in the innovation kitchen at Bourneville in Birmingham, the home of Cadbury. The team is responsible for the creation and development of every new chocolate product created.

I wish I’d focused more on those sciences at school…

Dad turns son's imagination into visual art

Lithuania's Top Goat Beauty Pageant

Google praises 86-year-old for polite internet searches

Google has thanked 86-year-old May Ashworth who proved old-fashioned manners have a place in the modern world by typing ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ into her internet searches.

May Ashworth’s grandson Ben John, a 25-year-old from Wigan, found her laptop open and took a photo of the unusually polite online request. She was asking for a translation of the Roman numerals MCMXCVIII. He then tweeted the photo which has been retweeted more than 11,000 times.

He told the BBC he and his boyfriend do not have a clothes dryer so they go to Ashworth’s house for their laundry.

“I asked my nan why she used ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ and it seemed she thinks that there is someone – a physical person – at Google’s headquarters who looks after the searches.

“She thought that by being polite and using her manners, the search would be quicker,” he said.

Google tweeted back: ‘Dearest Ben's Nan. Hope you're well. In a world of billions of Searches, yours made us smile.

‘Oh, and it's 1998.’

Banksy suprises pupils with mural at Bristol School

Pupils and teachers heading back Bridge Farm Primary School in Whitchurch, Bristol after half term yesterday were stunned to find an original Banksy mural painted in the playground.

The secretive graffiti artist had left a spray-painting of a child holding a stick and chasing a burning tyre on the wall – the image is believed to be a modern take on hoop rolling, a popular game played by children during the Victorian days.

The six-foot high artwork also features a flower and a small house with ‘Banksy’ signed to the bottom left of the brick building.

A further note from the artist, pinned behind the mural, said: “Dear Bridge Farm School. Thanks for your letter and naming a house after me. Please have a picture.

“If you don’t like it feel free to add stuff, I’m sure the teachers won’t mind.

 “Remember - it’s always easier to get forgiveness than permission. Much love Banksy.”

Electric vans rolled out for delivery company

A London ‘farm food’ home delivery service has become the first in the capital to use only electric vehicles.

Farmdrop, which specialises in food from 70 farms and other producers within 150 miles of London, says the move will save hundreds of tonnes of CO2 as well as other harmful pollutants such as nitrogen oxide from being pumped into the atmosphere.

Farmdrop founder and former Morgan Stanley investment banker Ben Pugh said: “The mainstream food chain is harmful to our health, our environment, our local producers, and it needs fixing.

“Farmdrop is on a mission to make it easy to buy the freshest food direct from the best local producers and delivered to people’s doors in a convenient and green way.

“Our larger supermarket rivals all use diesel and petrol engines, but Farmdrop is the only grocery delivery service using 100 per cent electric. Not only does this mean cleaner air for Londoners but the savings on fuel allow us to continue to offer great value.”

Electric milk floats were once a mainstay of home delivery but have all but disappeared from London’s streets to be replaced by diesel vans. A conventional diesel delivery van emits 13.89 tonnes of CO2 and 10.36kg of nitrogen oxides into London’s atmosphere every year.

The small lorries that use diesel-powered transport refrigeration units are particularly harmful, giving out 164 times more particulates — the microscopic sooty flakes that are a by-product of burning diesel —than a diesel car. There are estimated to be 84,000 transport refrigeration units in Britain.

Original story here.

Abandoned kitten saved by kind hearted soul

This tiny kitten pictured above was found clinging to the tyre of a truck by a kind-hearted soul who decided he just had to come to its rescue. Immediately after finding the kitten, he sent the picture to his wife asking 'Can I bring it home?' His wife immediately answered: 'Who could say no to that face?' They took it to the vets where they found out the kitten was only 4-5weeks old. It's a mystery what happened to the poor kitten's mum but at least she has found a new, loving secure home to belong to – alongside her new siblings, a 19-year-old cat and 2-year-old dog.

Man sports new bionic arm

Meet James and his amazing bionic arm!

When James Young lost an arm and a part of a leg in an accident on his morning commute, he thought his love of playing video games was over. 

But after spotting an advert he began to work with prosthetics designers to create a unique limb that looks like something straight out of a science fiction movie. Enjoy the lovely BBC news video right here.

Edible six-pack rings that feed wildlife

Credit: Saltwater Brewery

Plastic six-pack rings are the bane of conservationists, entangling and killing sea life. But a Florida-based brewery has come up with an environmental alternative.

Saltwater Brewery has partnered with the ad agency We Believers to create what they say is the first fully edible beer can packaging. Made from byproducts of the brewing process such as wheat and barley, their six-pack holders, which are just as strong as the plastic variety, are fully biodegradable and completely digestible. Rather than ensnaring wildlife, the six-pack rings could serve as a satisfying snack. And if nothing bites, it will quickly decompose.

The company 3-D printed a test batch of 500 holders in April and now plans to scale up production to meet its current output of 400,000 cans per month. While the edible holders are more expensive to make, Saltwater Brewery wants this to set an example for other beer producers and encourage them to adopt the idea. They say if their edible holders become commonplace, they could potentially be as cheap as the regular plastic rings.

The six-pack ring crisis is not as dire as it was in the 1970s, when images of trapped wildlife first began to appear. Six-pack rings are now widely made from photo-degradable plastic, meaning that they dissolve in sunlight and should eventually fall apart. However, the current standards specify that the rings should be made to break down within 90 days, leaving plenty of time to harm wildlife. And, they don’t completely disappear, at least not for a long time, so they could still pose a risk to animals that eat them.

Moving away from plastic entirely and embracing sustainable solutions would be a much better idea. It’s not just drink holders that threaten wildlife - plastic of every size and description floats in the oceans. The Ocean Conservancy’s 2015 investigation found plastic inside many species of marine animals.

Running barefoot boosts your memory

New research from the University of North Florida has found that running barefoot boosts our working memory, the ability to categorise and remember figures, information and details within a short period of time.

Researchers enrolled 72 participants and split them into two groups – one would run barefoot at their own pace for 16 minutes, and the other group would run in shoes. Both groups had their working memory tested before and after the run.

The results were startling – the group who ran with nothing between their feet and the ground increased their working memory by a whopping 16 percent from the baseline, while those with shoes on found no increase whatsoever.

According to Dr Ross Alloway, one of the lead authors of the study, this is because barefoot running provides your brain with incredibly more 'feedback', warming it up for the later memory test.

"The little things often have the greatest impact. This research shows us that we can realise our cognitive potential and enjoy ourselves at the same time," says Alloway.”If we take off our shoes and go for a run, we can finish smarter than when we started."

The experiment is the first in the world to demonstrate that running barefoot leads to better mental performance compared to running in shoes.

Read more here.

Our Beautiful Planet as seen from space

Astronauts call it the 'overview effect' - the profound sensation of seeing Earth from space. They speak about how beautiful the Earth is and how fragile the atmosphere. They return to Earth telling of auroras draped over the Earth like a green curtain, and borderless land masses rather than countries.

Those spending time on the International Space Station, the orbiting laboratory 240 miles above our planet have become some of Instagram’s biggest celebrities posting stunning photos of Earth. Now those images have come together in a new IMAX, 3-D film shot by the astronauts on the station. Narrated by Jennifer Lawrence, “A Beautiful Planet,” gives viewers the closet view of Earth from space they can get without strapping into a rocket.

Only 550 people have visited space since Yuri Gagarin 55 years ago. But director Toni Myers aims to change that in the 45 minute documentary.

“I hope that it gives audiences an opportunity to experience what we experience,” said Kjell Lindgren, one of the NASA astronauts featured in the film. Despite whizzing over the surface of the Earth, he said he felt a strong connection to the planet, which is, ultimately, the point of the film.

One of the first to experience the 'overview effect' was Ed White, the Gemini 4 astronaut who in 1965 became the first American to perform a space walk. Floating in space, while passing over his hometown of Houston, then California, he was supposed to stay out for about 12 minutes. Instead, he stayed outside for twice that long, giddy and agog, 103 miles high, until commander James McDivitt was forced to call him in like a mother summoning her children at dinner.

Original story here.

What you can do with just 40 minutes a day!

New 'Casper' like Octopod discovered

Sticking with the octopus theme this week - scientists have discovered a cute little octopod resembling Casper, the friendly ghost, in the deep sea near Hawaii.

The animal, which is possibly a new species, was discovered by Deep Discoverer, a remotely operated vehicle, or ROV, more than 2 1/2 miles underwater.

Cirrate octopods, which have fins between their arms and little finger-like strands near their suckers, have been reported at depths up to 5,000m. But the octopod encountered by Deep Discoverer was incirrate, like the familiar octopus - and incirrate octopods have never before been detected at depths below 4,000m.

This animal was particularly unusual because it lacked the pigment cells, called chromatophores, typical of most cephalopods, and it did not seem very muscular, resulting in a ghostlike appearance, leading to a comment on social media that it should be called Casper, like the friendly cartoon ghost.

Original story here.

World's first Pastafarian wedding takes place

The world’s first Pastafarian wedding between a British groom and New Zealand ride has been held aboard a pirate ship in New Zealand.

Pastafarians belong to the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (CFSM), which the New Zealand government approved to conduct legal marriages in 2015. The church believes a god made of spaghetti and meatballs is just as likely as other gods. According to its website, its only dogma is ‘the rejection of dogma’.

British man Toby Ricketts and New Zealander Marianna Fenn have been together for four years. Although they never considered marrying before, when the first Pastafarian marriage celebrant was sanctioned by the country’s government they decided the chance to hold a humorous and original wedding was too good to pass up.

The bride and groom wore head-to-toe pirate regalia, and guests donned eye-patches, pirate hats and feathers for the ceremony which took place over the weekend. Fenn also wore a colander on her head – the official headdress of the church.

During the ceremony, Ricketts and Fenn exchanged rings made of pasta, and in his vows Ricketts promised to always add salt while boiling spaghetti.

The total cost of the wedding was NZ$3,000 (£1,460), and the couple supplied the wedding feast – 15kg of tomatoes from their garden, vegetarian meatballs, and plenty of pasta and bread.

The couple are the first to be married by CFSM marriage celebrant Karen Martyn who said she has at least a dozen more weddings lined up this year.

Original story here: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/apr/18/worlds-first-pastafarian-wedding-takes-place-in-new-zealand

Inky the Octopus makes a great escape

An octopus has escaped from the national aquarium in New Zealand by breaking out of its tank, slithering down a 50-metre drainpipe and into the sea.

Inky (pictured left) – a common New Zealand octopus – made his dash for freedom in the middle of the night after the lid of his tank was accidentally left slightly ajar.

One theory is that Inky slid across the aquarium floor – a journey of three or four metres – and then, sensing freedom was close, slipped into  the 50m drainpipe that lead directly to the sea on the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island.

Another possible escape route could have involved Inky squeezing into an open pipe at the top of his tank, which led under the floor to the drain.

Inky was brought to the national aquarium a number of years ago by a local fisherman who found him caught in a crayfish pot. He was in a bad way - scarred and ‘rough looking’, with shortened limbs.

Although the aquarium is not actively searching for a replacement for Inky, if a fisherman brought in another octopus it might be willing to take it on.

“You never know,” said Rob Yarrell, national manager of the National Aquarium of New Zealand in Napier. “There’s always a chance Inky could come home to us.”

Octopuses are known for being escape artists. Because they have no bones they are able to fit into extremely small spaces and have been filmed squeezing through gaps the size of coins. They are also understood to be extremely intelligent and capable of using tools.

At the Island Bay marine education centre in Wellington, an octopus was found to be in the habit of visiting another tank overnight to steal crabs, then returning to its own.

Read the original story here: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/apr/13/the-great-escape-inky-the-octopus-legs-it-to-freedom-from-new-zealand-aquarium

90-year-old beach belle Irene goes viral

Ninety-year-old Irene Carney from Australia has gone viral as she shows that you can rock a bikini at any age.

Encouraged by her friends and the carers at her nursing home to buy a bikini to wear on her cruise holiday, the great grandmother bought a trendy little retro polka dot number from a shop called Lady Watego in Byron Bay.

While enjoying her cruise holiday she posed for a snapshot and sent it to the shop. The assistants were so impressed with the way she nailed the look, they shared it on their Facebook page which has since gone viral, being shared over 863 times and attracting hundreds of comments from people praising Irene’s body confidence.

“Bloody hell…she looks better then me in a bikini and I’m almost half her age!! You ROCK Irene you beautiful woman!!” one woman wrote.

“I’m nearly 40 and have never EVER Had my photo taken in a cozzi, let alone a 2-piece. She is beautiful and proud. Love it,” added another.

Others commented how refreshing it was to see a ‘real’ woman flying the flag for body positivity.

“This is a real picture of a beautiful lady. No photoshopping. More realism in the world please then people would not have as many body issues,” one supporter wrote.

“Loving the attitude of this lady. A great example of loving yourself for who you are. You rock it and are an inspiration to many.”

Students get to hug a pooch and de-stress

This year students at Manchester Metropolitan University are fighting exam stress by petting puppies and dogs in a new collaboration with the Guide Dog Association.

By making a £3.50 donation to the charity, students can spend 15 minutes in a room full of puppies and dogs to cuddle to their hearts content, while they learn all about the inspiring work of the Guide Dog Association. While the students get a lesson in de-stressing, the dogs also benefit from socialising practise - an essential part of their guide dog training.

During a time when university stress levels are a nationwide concern, the university hopes that this initiative will relax students and help them to focus and concentrate on their exams.

At the session, which takes place on 27^th August, the dogs available to cuddle will range from puppies in training, working guide dogs and retired pooches.

Original story here.

Owls take shelter from Indonesian downpour

Image courtesy of Tanto Yensen

When two tiny Javan Scops Owls huddled together underneath a leaf to shelter from the rain in Jakarta, 36-year-old photographer Tanto Yensen managed to capture the picture with his camera.

The rare species of owl, known in Indonesia as the Celepuk owl, are native to the island of Java, Indonesia. Small in size compared to other owls, and with prominent ear tufts, its conservation status is considered 'vulnerable' due to loss of habitat.

Tanto says: “I was briskly walking home through the park when I spotted the owls perched on the branch of a tree.

“It had just started to rain heavily and the pair were huddled together underneath a flat leaf. It looked like they were using the leaf as an umbrella as they cuddled to keep warm.

“It was raining heavily in Jakarta for around an hour. Luckily, I had my camera in my bag, but I had to be careful not to get the lens wet.

“I used a plastic covering to protect my equipment which was a little fiddly. They looked so sweet that I couldn’t help but spend some time capturing the moment.

“I got soaked, but it was worth it.”

The photographer spent 20 minutes photographing the owls (which are 15cm tall) from a metre away before making his way home.

Read more here.

Toy dinosaurs are taking over the world...

...on Instagram anyway :)

The Instagram account of Argentinian photojournalist Jorge Saenz, based in Paraguay, has taken off in a big way due to his fantastic knack of capturing realistic and dramatic images with his bag of toy dinosaurs.

The photo captions are written from the dinosaurs’ perspective as Jorge has given each of them a name and distinct personality. “Dina (the big green Stegosaurus) is more aggressive and instinctive; Spiny (Spinosaurus) is mostly ironic; Brachy (a brown Brachiosaurus) is the romantic girlfriend of Dino, but very critical of male behaviour,” he says.

The images crop up all over the place, in the lagoon (garden pond) on mountains (a few small rocks) down a back street, in the shower. They are causing quite a stir on Instagram, with many faithful followers. The full collection has been tagged as #dinodinaseries.

Original story is here.

Happy Easter - however you may celebrate!

So most of us have been celebrating the resurrection of Christ this Easter by mainly hunting Easter eggs and gobbling them up. But in other countries Easter is celebrated in rather different ways. National Geographic has this year highlighted Slovakia’s tradition of whipping and drinking, Norway’s Easter crime fest and Jerusalem’s flam of Christ’s tomb. Enjoy!

Slovakia

Historically, young women would entertain a procession of visiting male friends and family members who douse them with cold water and lightly whip them with decorated willow branches. Women, in turn, give their visitors eggs, food, and perhaps a drink of vodka. The custom is linked to Pagan type folk traditions welcoming the spring season and purifying the body and soul. It was also hoped that the young twigs would transfer vitality and fertility to the women.

However, modern society has ended this unique tradition in some areas and greatly watered it down in others. Where women were once dunked in the river, they're now subjected to the use of a squirt gun or a perfume bottle, and whipping is often skipped altogether. The communist government's discouragement of religious rituals played a role in this, as did movement of rural peoples to cities where such provincial antics aren't in vogue.

Norway

Norwegians devour Easter crime stories, or Påskekrim, like candy each year in the form of books, shows, and even cartoons adorning their favorite brands of milk cartons.

According to Visit Norway, the nation's official travel guide, this unique secular tradition dates back to 1923 and sprang from the hopes of two young and broke authors who needed their crime novel to strike gold. On Palm Sunday of that year, the authors' publisher Gyldenal ran the book's title on the front page of the Aftenposten newspaper.

Most readers thought the advertisement for the book, Bergen Train Looted In the Night was news, not fiction. The resulting sensation not only sold many books, but launched the tradition linking Norwegian Easter with crime—one that's been happily embraced and embellished by publishers ever since.

Jerusalem

On the day before Orthodox Easter, the faithful gather at Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre on the site where many believe Jesus was crucified, entombed, and resurrected, to see an annual miracle they believe has occurred for more than 1,200 years.

Orthodox church leaders annually perform a ceremony in which they receive a flame that is said to form at Christ's tomb, and bring it forth to light candles that spread the flame—and the faith—among the audience. The flame is then taken by special airplane to Russia, Greece, and other countries across the Orthodox world.

Original story from National Geographic here.

Snow White the cat meets her fairy godmother

Photo courtesy of Rhonda Andersen

A fairy godmother took in a feral cat which had been badly mistreated and in a very bad way.

Four years ago, Rhonda Andersen noticed an angry little cat roaming the neighbourhood and looked after her for a few days but she soon disappeared and didn't return until last October in a much worse shape. She was skinny, dirty, matted, and had gloopy eyes.

Snow White, which Rhonda had called her, had stopped grooming herself and consequently, her coat was filthy with large mats of fur hanging from her throat and hip. Rhonda made a safe space for Snow White in her heated garage and vowed to make sure she would never have to fend for herself outside again. Her first priority was to help Snow White learn to trust her and to feel safe in her new surroundings. Slowly but surely, she started to relax and allow the occasional head scratch.

Photo courtesy of Rhonda Andersen

Because of her high level of anxiety and distrust, Snow White was sedated while a veterinarian checked her out, recommending a full dental extraction and gave her treatment for an upper respiratory infection. While she was sedated, the clinic took the opportunity to give Snow White a nice spa treatment. They bathed her, cut away the mats, and even gave her a pedicure.

Rhonda was able to schedule Snow White’s tooth extraction surgery once the upper respiratory infection was cleared up and was happy to be told that the cat didn’t have to lose all of her teeth after all. These days, Snow White now lives the life of a princess with Rhonda. She’s starting to trust that she’ll be fed every day and that Rhonda is only there to love and care for her. She says: “Inside that matted, grungy mess was a sweet, docile princess waiting for someone to rescue her. She will live happily ever after!”

Original story here.

Cat burglar obsessed with pants

Pic courtesy of Sarah Nathan/Facebook

A cat in New Zealand has taken to stealing men’s underwear and its incredulous owner has now counted more than 60 items of clothing within two months.

The six-year-old cat, named Brigit has now become a bit of a social media sensation in her native New Zealand.

Owner Sarah Nathan says that Brigit has stolen 11 pairs of men's pants and a whopping 50 socks and she has now started posting leaflets around her neighbourhood apologising for her pet’s behaviour and asking if anyone is missing their underpants.

Speaking to the New Zealand Herald, Sarah said: "In our last house she'd bring home a bit of everything - men's undies, women's undies, togs, she even brought home a hockey shin pad and a jumper.

"She was much less discerning - now she's decided menswear is the thing - and it's a very specific kind of underpants that she likes.

"It's an absolute obsession. A night does not go by without her bringing things home. I got up this morning and there were another four socks in the house."

Happy ending for homeless 73-year-old

A homeless 73-year-old woman has been given a place to stay in Chester after a huge response to a post about her on Facebook.

The elderly lady entered The Share Shop in Chester to ask if they had any ‘suspended coffees’ available. They did and the member of staff got talking to her and found out that she had been sleeping in her car with everything she owned since the end of November after being evicted from her home in Northwich.

The Share Shop posted about the lady's plight on Facebook and it was shared over 1,700 times, with the result that Chester Aid to the Homeless came forward and found a flat in the city centre for her.

The Chester Chronicle reported that Adam Dandy, co-founder of the Northgate Street charity shop, said their page was ‘inundated’ with offers to give her a place to stay:

“The response was amazing, I think about 90,000 people have seen the post. As soon as we put it out the page was inundated, we had people offering their spare rooms, money and even for her to have Sunday roast with their families.”

Cat helps autistic girl to communicate

A six-year-old autistic girl in Leicester has found therapy in painting and her cat.

Iris Grace Halmshaw was diagnosed with autism in 2011. Her disorder prevents her from speaking so with the encouragement of her parents she learned how to express her emotions through painting instead. Her beautifully abstract pictures are sold and the proceeds are used to pay for Iris' therapy treatments and art supplies.

In 2014, a new feline friend also helped to make a world of difference in Iris's ability and desire to communicate.

Through her research, mum Arabella had discovered that many children responded well to a variety of animals, from dogs to horses and they tried both, but Iris didn't connect. When her brother travelled to Sweden for Christmas and needed someone to cat-sit, Arabella was amazed to see the way they bonded.

She decided to reassess her assumption that cats were aloof companions and posted on Facebook asking about the most suitable breeds. Many people pointed her to the Maine Coon, a cat native to the U.S. She was excited to learn that they were friendly, intelligent, quirky, vocal and even fond of water!

When they brought Thula home from a local breeder, Iris immediately took to the fluffy kitten and cradled her in her arms in bed on the first night. Iris quickly gained confidence with speaking as she tried to tell her new pet what to do. She seemed to relax around Thula, stroking her ears and whiskers,and the cat didn't even mind when Iris held her tail.

Because Iris hated the sensation of things touching her skin, like clothing or water, getting dressed or taking a bath could be incredibly difficult. But as a water-loving breed, Thula hopped right in the bathtub. Soon, Iris began to take all of her baths accompanied by the kitten.

Thula just naturally seemed to know what Iris needed, adapting her behavior and becoming the perfect companion. If Iris became impatient in the car, Thula would walk over and sit on her lap to calm her down. If she had difficulty during the day or woke up at night, Thula would distract her until she had settled again.

Mum Arabella is a professional photographer. She has documented their journey through diary entries and photographs and now tells Iris’s story in her first book which includes many of Grace's paintings.

http://irisgracepainting.com/

Thirsty koala surprises cyclists

It was just another regular hot summer's day for a bunch of cyclists who went out for a ride in Adelaide, Australia. Until they met a koala looking for a drink!

Australian Woman's Weekly has reported that a group of cyclists who had stopped for a drink were amazed to see the koala climbing up the wheel of one of their bikes and perching there until the rider gave her every last drop in their water bottle. Fellow cyclist Nick Lothian, snapped the picture above, explaining that the koala chilled out on the bike for half an hour.

The group named the fluffy marsupial Carolina and took her to animal welfare officers to check if she had kidney problems, which could have explained the thirst. Thankfully, the tests came back all clear and Carolina was sent back into the wild.

Hedgehog Officer on the cards for Ipswich after a spike in numbers

Image by Suffolk Wildlife Trust

A dedicated officer could be employed in Ipswich due to sightings of a large numbers of hedgehogs.

Hundreds of residents have reported seeing hedgehogs as part of a survey by Suffolk Wildlife Trust and now BBC Suffolk has recruited Artist Birdie, whose recent image of Pudsey mourning the death of Terry Wogan went viral, to create a mascot for its campaign to help protect the hedgehogs. Spearheaded by presenter Mark Murphy, the radio station's Going the Whole Hog campaign will aim to make Suffolk the most 'hedgehog friendly county in the UK'.

Hedgehog campaign mascot by Birdie

After 2,500 sightings of hedgehogs around Ipswich, the trust said there was a 'rich natural network' for them due to the town's 'beautiful parks as well as the cemetery, allotments and churches'.

With fundraising, the trust hopes to recruit a dedicated hedgehog officer for Ipswich later this year.

Did you know? A baby hedgehog is called a hoglet

Saved penguin stays loyal to rescuer

Meet Dindim, the loyal penguin who travels 5,000 miles each year to visit the man who saved his life.

Back in 2011, a part-time fisherman Joao Pereira de Souza, 71, found the penguin in a sorry state, washed up on a beach in Rio de Janeiro, covered in oil and starving. Joao wasted no time in taking Dindim – the name he gave the penguin - home and nursing it back to health, which took a total of 11 months.

Once Dindim was well again, he was released back into the wild and Joao never expected to see him again. But just a few months later, the South American Magellanic penguin returned to the beach and followed Joao home.

Dindim now spends eight months with Joao and the rest of the year breeding 5,000 miles away off the coast of Argentina and Chile.

Norma chooses her dreams instead of cancer treatment

In the last six months, 90-year-old Norma has seen some of the most famous landmarks in the US after deciding to take the epic road trip after being diagnosed with cancer last year,

Norma is travelling in a motor home with her son Tim, daughter-in-law Ramie and their pet poodle Ringo. Over Christmas, she fulfilled one of her dreams by taking a ride in a hot air balloon.

Norma, from Michigan, told The Huffington Post: “People shouldn’t be afraid to travel. No matter your age.”

She made the decision to go on the trip in August 2015 after she was diagnosed with uterine cancer and was asked by a doctor about how she would like to proceed with her treatment. Norma, whose husband had died two days earlier, simply replied: “I’m 90 years old, I’m hitting the road.”

Her decision has been widely supported on her Facebook page documenting her trip, called Driving Miss Norma.

In a post on the page, her family wrote about the decision to not have treatment and to travel instead. According to them, Norma’s doctor fully supported the idea and said: “As doctors we see what cancer treatment looks like every day. ICU, nursing homes, awful side effects and honestly, there is no guarantee she will survive the initial surgery to remove the mass. You are doing exactly what I would want to do in this situation. Have a fantastic trip!”

Research Centre seeking panda hugger

The Giant Panda Protection and Research Center in China is hiring someone for an annual salary of $32,000 to spend every waking hour hugging and playing with baby pandas.

The applicant sought must be at least 22-years-old, like taking pictures of baby pandas, have a working knowledge of the breed, and be willing to hug, hold, and otherwise stimulate them while 'sharing in their joys and sorrows.'

Whoever lands the job will be working year-round alongside volunteers from the U.S., Europe, and Japan who only get to be panda nannies for a week or two at a time.

Big AI Go match to be streamed live next month

More difficult than chess: Ancient Chinese Board Game Go

Aritificial Intelligence (AI) is a subject for great debate but however fearful we are of computers eventually taking over the planet, it will always be pursued and dreamt of.

And next month AI will be another step closer as Google’s AI computer AlphaGo will battle the Go world champion - South Korea's Lee Sedol - live on YouTube.

Google's AI company DeepMind has announced that it has built a system of neural networks capable of beating the champion Go player. This ancient Chinese board game is considered an extremely difficult challenge for a computer — far harder than chess — and DeepMind's success was hailed as coup for AI research. However, the computer only beat the game's European champion, and in March, DeepMind's AlphaGo AI will take on the world champion, with YouTube live streaming the series of games which will take place in Seoul on March 9th to the 15th (there'll be a game a day apart from on the 11th and 14th), with AlphaGo facing off against Lee Sedol for a $1 million prize.

The event is similar to famous six-game chess matches between world champion Garry Kasparov and IBM's Deep Blue computer in 1996 and 1997. Kasparov won in '96, but was defeated in '97. Whether Sedol will be able to hold his own against Google's AI remains to be seen. AlphaGo comfortably beat the European champion, Fan Hui, five matches to nil, but Sedol is confident.

Parkour in Santorini!

An amazing collaborative project

This really is amazing. You can make art, music, film, request others to get involved, get involved in the work of others. This is the way forward. Get involved in the future :)

If you're going to make an ad...

...make it inspirational :)

Best fish and chip shop in the UK crowned

Photo courtesy of Simpsons

A Cheltenham fish and chip shop has been named the best in the UK out of 10,000 rivals across the country.

Simpsons Fish and Chips has been named the best in the 2016 National Fish and Chip awards.

The family-run business, which opened in 2009, won praise from the judges for pushing the boundaries away from the stereotypical chippy. Innovations include holding a monthly gluten-free frying day and publishing a children’s book to help young diners’ understand fish species and sourcing.

Simpsons scooped the top title – independent takeaway fish and chip shop of the year – in the awards organised by the trade body Seafish.

Bonny Ritchie, who runs Simpsons with her husband, James, said: “After coming in second for this award twice over the last few years, we really are over the moon to have finally won – third time lucky.

 “During the last year we’ve upped our game, streamlining our marketing activities, expanding the shop to double the size of our restaurant facilities, and launching our very own children’s book.”

In second place was Kingfisher Fish & Chips, in Plymouth, Devon, which boasts the record for the most sustainable seafood menu in the world – it has 12 MSC (Marine Stewardship Council) seafood species on the menu. This won it the separate “good catch” award for sustainable seafood.

The Cod’s Scallops in Nottingham came in third. The judges were wowed by its impressive selection, featuring many underused fish – herring, skate, gurnard, hake, and shellfish including crab, lobster, oysters and whelks – all served with chips fried in beef dripping or potato salad.

http://simpsonsfishandchips.co.uk/

This will put a smile on your face

Walk off the Earth's version of Adele's Hello. Love this group :)