L’Antidote: Five happy things to read today, December 24
We are living in unusual times. Everything gets a bit loud some days. So, every day of the week, we bring you a much needed dose of positivity to remind you that there is inspiration, kindness and eccentricity too.
Mrs. Chook the Surfer Chicken
Australian chicken lover Elaine Janes thinks it’s unfair to confine her pets to a backyard enclosure.
They need to get out in the world, she believes, and why not go surfing? And Mrs. Cook, a Plymouth Rock-bred hen, surfed the main beach at Ocean Grove in Melbourne, eliciting double takes and welcome laughs.
READ MORE:
* The Antidote: Five happy things to read today, December 23
* The Antidote: Five happy things to read today, December 22
* The Antidote: Five happy things to read today, December 21
According to The Age, Janes, 76, said that when she retired as a saleswoman in the auto trade, she vowed to challenge herself and try new things, and she applies that as well. to his fans.
Janes often takes Ms Chook for a swim in shallow waves on Ocean Grove beach and loves to sit with up to 10 chickens on a bench at Point Lonsdale, where people photograph and talk to them.
The birds are well known in the local cafes of Ocean Grove, where they sip baby cakes.
Mystery Santa surprised by CCTV sneaking in, leaving festive treats
Good News Network
Comic footage shows Santa Claus and an accomplice disguised as a giant Christmas tree dropping off around Alderney Close in England in the middle of the night.
A Secret Mystery Santa has been caught on CCTV spreading Christmas cheer as he leaves festive treats for residents of a quiet cul-de-sac in the UK.
According to Good News NetworkBaffled residents of Coventry, England scratched their heads when candy canes suddenly appeared overnight outside their homes last week.
Comic footage shows Santa Claus and an accomplice disguised as a giant Christmas tree making drops in the middle of the night.
Families say their children were thrilled to discover candy left on their parents’ cars before the big day.
Three year old’s 3D printed bionic arm is the “best Christmas present”
ROSS GIBLIN / STUFF
Three-year-old Avery Walker tries out his new robotic prosthetic arm, which was 3D printed and designed by Locky Stinson, 15, of Scots College in Wellington. Avery’s mother, Trudy Englebretsen, helps her learn how to open and close her fingers, which are actuated by sensors attached to her left arm.
Three-year-old Avery Walker runs in a princess dress, with a dog named Peanut, clutching a bag of Pascalls Explorers under her “little arm.”
That’s his name for his left limb, which never had an elbow or a hand – not that this limited his fierce independence.
“Its slogan is ‘I will do it myself’,” said mum Trudy Englebretsen. “She is very sassy and very competent.”
The preschooler, from Wainuiomata, climbs on a sofa between his mother and Locky Stinson, 15, who has started installing sensors on the top of his stump.
These will resume when Avery contracts his muscles – opening and closing his fingers on the 3D printed robotic hand that Stinson made for a school project, along with his Scottish college peers Liam Frampton, 15, and Ben Trolove, 14 years old.
The trio have gone through 12 prototypes, but the last arm is more or less the final version, says Stinson, and this is the first time Avery has tried it.
“This is probably the best Christmas present I have given someone in my life so far,” says Stinson.
Aussie strongman sets car towing record while raising money for sick children
The Hyundai Kona is a perfectly good, perfectly normal little SUV that many people have chosen as a form of transportation. But you know what almost none of these people ever thought?
“I wonder if I could pull my Hyundai Kona with my teeth?” “
But Australian strongman Troy Conley thought just that. In fact, he’s gone far beyond thinking of a single Kona and recently broke a world record by shooting five of them over five yards using just his teeth.
It was actually Conley’s second world record that day (at this time, actually) as he had just released 16 of the small SUVs as part of the Car Pull for Kids fundraiser.
Conley says his determination to raise funds for sick children came from his own experiences when he nearly died at the age of four after ruining a kidney. The medical help and kindness he received as a child inspired him to raise funds for charities like Hyundai Help for Kids – the charitable arm of Hyundai Australia, which recently reached the impressive number of having raised Australian $ 10 million to help change the lives of children in need.
Smiley the Kiwi finds a new home after 25 years with West Coast woman
JOANNE NAISH / STUFF
Lorrayne Alexander has cared for injured wild animals, like Smiley the Kiwi, for over 40 years.
Lorrayne Alexander is going to miss out on cuddling the kiwifruit she’s been caring for for 25 years every night.
Alexander ran the Wild Bird Refuge in Hokitika for over 40 years with her late husband Bevin, who died in September at the age of 78.
She recently contacted the Department of Conservation to find a new home for her last remaining kiwi called Smiley, a Rowi who has lived with her since 1995.
Smiley will fly – by plane – to her new home at Willowbank in Christchurch on Friday Wildlife reserve.
Alexander, who was principal of Kaniere School for 27 years, said he would miss the bird and give him hugs every night.
