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Score (91)
Watch This Man and His Deaf and Blind Puppy Have “The Greatest Love Story”
The heartwarming bond between a man and his puppy is truly special, as shown by the dashboard_doggos family on Instagram. Nellie, a deaf/blind pup, has stolen the hearts of many with her loving relationship with her dad. A recent video of them napping together highlights their deep connection and Nellie's sense of comfort and safety. The love story between Nellie and her human family members continues to grow stronger each day, bringing joy to all who follow their journey on social media.

Score (91)
Aerial Firefighters Just Released Incredible Footage as They Battle New South Wales Wildfires
Aerial firefighters shared an onboard view as they worked to contain a wildfire burning in rural New South Wales ahead of warm, windy weather. Video released by the rural fire service shows an up-close view of retardant being dropped over an area southeast of the town of Mudgee this week. "Work continues on the Middle Creek Fire NE of Windamere Dam, SE of Mudgee," said @NSWRFS on X, formerly Twitter. "It’s burnt 70+ ha but isn’t threatening homes. Crews strengthened containment lines ahead of warm, windy weather tomorrow. Here, Bomber 210 drops retardant to help prevent the fire from jumping. #nswrfs"

Score (98)
Man Fulfills Childhood Dream By Documenting Small Towns: "Every Town's Got A Story
A Nebraska man is on a mission to make sure every small town gets remembered — one visit, one book, and one story at a time. Seth Varner, a 25-year-old historian and self-publisher, has spent the last five years crisscrossing the Midwest to document the hidden gems and hometown pride of places most people drive right past. His goal: to visit every incorporated town in every state — and preserve their stories in print. “Doesn’t matter if it’s 10 people, a hundred people, a thousand people … every town’s got a story to share,” Varner told CBS Mornings. What started as a childhood dream has become a full-time mission. When he was just 10, Varner told his dad he wanted to visit every town in Nebraska. His dad laughed it off at the time. But during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, Varner, then home from college, found his old third-grade scrapbook. That memory stuck. “I was flipping through it,” he said. “I’m like, ‘I can fulfill that dream I had as a 10-year-old.’” So he called a close friend and pitched the plan: visit every town in the state. “Are you in?” he asked. Since then, Varner’s visited every incorporated town in Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, Kansas, North Dakota, and — as of last weekend — Minnesota. He’s chronicled his travels under the name Wandermore, a publishing company he founded to fund the project through sales of travel guides and Facebook content. Each Wandermore guide is a state-specific love letter to small-town life: where to eat, what to see, and the stories behind local landmarks. The books are filled with trivia, photos, and personality-packed interviews. Like the one about Elsie — the sole resident of a tiny Nebraska town who serves as the mayor, bartender, librarian, and honorary sheriff. Or the town of Frost, Minnesota, where two recent births pushed the population from 198 to a proud 200. “A lot of us don’t have a huge advertising budget to get the word out,” said Sarah Ferguson, Chamber of Commerce director for Blue Earth, Minnesota. “So when Seth offered to highlight what we have here, I was thrilled.” Blue Earth, of course, is home to the Jolly Green Giant — a 55-foot statue paying tribute to the state’s canned vegetable legacy. The books don’t just entertain. They leave a mark. “I can take a small town and then I immortalize it in a book,” Varner said. “Where people a hundred years from now can go back and be like, ‘This is what my grandparents’ town looked like.’” Each guide funds the next journey. Now, with Minnesota complete, the profits from book sales will go toward his next target: Colorado. These days, Varner’s travels include his wife, Eliese. At first, she wasn’t sure just how serious her husband was about visiting every town — until she saw him in action. “I was just kind of in awe, maybe, ’cause it is really truly like a lot of work,” she said. “I could not be more proud of him.” Whether it’s a giant vegetable statue, a single-resident town, or a population milestone of 200, Varner is reminding the world that every place matters — and every story is worth saving.

Score (97)
Metal Detectorists Discover Ancient Roman Coin Hoard in Kent
After more than 20 years of sweeping fields with his metal detector, Steve Dean has struck gold—well, silver, technically. Dean, 68, along with friends Glenn Church, 69, and Ed Denovan, 70, unearthed a remarkable hoard of around 400 ancient Roman coins buried in a farmer’s field near Maidstone, Kent. The discovery, estimated to be roughly 1,800 years old, is now in the hands of experts at the British Museum, who will assess its historical significance and market value. “It was a very unexpected find,” said Dean, a grandfather of eight who works in security at the University of Kent. “Only a few hoards are found each year and most detectorists never find one. It’s a bucket list find for most of us.” The three friends had been searching a seemingly unremarkable field when they came across a handful of coins after just an hour. They kept digging—and kept finding more. Eventually, they uncovered the base of a broken ceramic pot about 14 inches underground, with a mass of coins still inside. The scattered state of the hoard suggested that ploughing over the years had broken the pot and spread its contents across the field. “At this point, realizing that what we had discovered was historically important, we stopped digging and called the professionals in,” Dean said. Archaeologists Dr. Andrew Richardson and Paul-Samuel Armour from Isle Heritage arrived within the hour to excavate the site properly and transport the hoard for further study. “The hoard shows the Romans were here 1,800 years ago,” Dean added. “There must have been something in the area, something must have drawn them there.” While the precise location is being kept under wraps to protect it from illegal treasure hunters known as “nighthawkers,” the trio hopes to return next year once the farmer, who has already sown the field, gives the green light. The British Museum will now study the coins—likely Roman denarii or antoniniani—and estimate their worth, a process that could take up to two years. The museum has the option to purchase the hoard once its value is determined. If it does, the proceeds will be split equally between the three detectorists and the landowner. For Church, who began metal detecting in the 1970s, and Denovan, the find was also a first. “This was a first guard for all of us,” Dean said. “There is nothing remarkable about the field we found them in. But you never know what’s under your feet.” Now, they wait. And like the Roman coins they discovered, the value of patience might just pay off.

Score (95)
Why John Tesh Credits His Wife for Saving His Life Amid His Cancer Battle
John Tesh says he shouldn’t even be alive. But at 73, the composer and former TV host is not only surviving — he’s thriving, thanks in large part to his wife, Connie Sellecca. In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Tesh opened up about his years-long battle with prostate cancer and the moment everything changed: when Connie stepped in. Diagnosed with stage III prostate cancer in 2015, Tesh was initially told his tumors might be inoperable. Doctors warned he could have just 18 months to live. “I was in the heat of it,” he said. “And Connie mentioned two friends who might be able to help.” Those friends, whom she’d met more than five decades earlier during her modeling days in New York, pointed them to MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. “They said, ‘You gotta come here,’” Tesh recalled. And that advice may have saved his life. Unlike other hospitals that had treated fewer than 100 similar cases, MD Anderson had managed over 1,000. “They had more experience,” Tesh said. “They treat the whole body, not just the cancer.” That shift in care came after an MRI in 2017 revealed the cancer had spread to his pelvic lymph nodes, two years after what he thought had been a successful radical prostatectomy. Tesh now continues to monitor the disease with his team at MD Anderson, and recently spoke at a fundraiser for the hospital. “I feel I owe my life to them,” he said. His cancer journey isn’t the only thing making a comeback. Tesh is also enjoying renewed attention for Roundball Rock, the iconic NBA on NBC theme he composed in 1990. NBC recently revived the song for upcoming 2025 broadcasts. Tesh had recorded a new orchestral version — but fans overwhelmingly asked for the original. “They said, ‘No, no, no, we want the OG version,’” he said. “So the version you’re hearing now is the demo I did in 1999.” The resurgence mirrors his own. “There’s definitely an analogy there,” he said. “Both the song and I are rising from the ashes.” Tesh also released The Sports Album, a collection of high-energy sports themes, and says he’s feeling more grounded these days — thanks to music, family, and time with his three grandchildren. “I shouldn’t even be alive now,” he said. “I’m really grateful. This is a great place right now — this minute — to be grateful.”

Score (98)
How This Teen Inspired Millions With Her Journey From Paralysis To TikTok Fame
At 16, Emma Traveller’s world changed in an instant. A spontaneous double date to the sand dunes turned into a life-altering accident when the UTV she was riding in rolled four times. She hit her head on the roll cage and woke up paralyzed, unable to feel or move anything. Doctors told her she’d broken her neck — C5 through C7 — and suffered spinal cord damage at C4. She couldn’t breathe on her own, eat, or even cough. “I thought my life was over,” she says. “One day I was a healthy teenager — the next, I couldn’t even breathe on my own.” That moment marked the beginning of a journey that would ultimately lead her to build a community of more than 600,000 people on TikTok. Traveller spent 10 days in intensive care before transferring to Craig Hospital in Colorado, a leading spinal cord rehab facility. There, she began the painstaking process of learning how to live again — breathing without machines, swallowing, sitting up, slowly regaining movement in one arm. Her first breakthrough came with something small but symbolic: drinking from a straw. It was slow. It was frustrating. And it was deeply emotional. “There were mornings I didn’t want to get out of bed,” she says. “But then I reminded myself: I have a wheelchair. I’m alive. I chose gratitude, and that choice kept me moving forward.” While recovering, she started looking online for others like her. That’s when she discovered Makayla Noble, a former cheerleader who became a quadriplegic after an accident. Noble’s story lit a spark — and gave her permission to tell her own. Traveller, now 20, began documenting her life on TikTok and Instagram. She shared everything: daily routines, workout attempts, frustrations, small wins. Her openness resonated. Messages began pouring in from people going through their own struggles. “My family was recently in a Razor accident… I am so encouraged by your story and your attitude!” one person wrote. Another, a paraplegic of three years, said, “I’m still trying to be grateful I’m alive, but sometimes it’s hard.” Others thanked her for simply being real. “I love it when people going through really hard things message me to say my page helped them get through it,” she says. “It makes me want to keep doing this forever.” Today, she’s turned that momentum into purpose. Traveller now travels to speak at schools and conferences, visits kids in hospitals, and is writing a book with her mom. She also interned with an adaptive fashion designer in New York — inspired by the challenges she faced getting dressed after her injury. When she’s not working on speeches or therapy, she fills her days with movement and connection. “Getting ready takes longer, so I have to wake up early — but it’s worth it,” she says. “Staying busy keeps me out of my head and connected to everyone else.” Through it all, her message is clear: being in a wheelchair doesn’t mean giving up on happiness. It just means learning a new way to live. “I didn’t get the outcome I wanted — I wanted to go back to cheer and be my old self — but I’ve learned how to live in this new way,” she says. “Your circumstances don’t determine your happiness.” Traveller is quick to point out that life before the accident wasn’t perfect, either. “I used to constantly compare myself to others and struggled with body dysmorphia,” she says. “Now, I feel more confident because I focus on gratitude.” To others going through hardship, she offers the same advice she gives her younger self: “Stop comparing. Be kind. Everyone faces challenges — illness, mental health, family stuff. Helping others helps you, too.” What began as tragedy has turned into impact. And for Emma Traveller, that impact has become a calling.

Score (98)
Art Gallery Of Ontario Receives 450 Iconic Works From Warhol, Lichtenstein
The Art Gallery of Ontario is receiving a transformative gift — more than 450 artworks spanning over six decades of collecting — from the late Toronto philanthropists Morton and Carol Rapp. The donation, which comes from the couple’s estates, features works by some of the most significant names in postwar and contemporary art. It includes 13 screen prints by Andy Warhol, among them four portraits of Marilyn Monroe from 1967, and early works by David Hockney and Roy Lichtenstein. Also included are nine pieces by Jasper Johns, seven by Claes Oldenburg, and a selection of works by Robert Rauschenberg, including a screen-printed sculpture and an illustrated book. The AGO described the donation as a “significant bolstering” of its Prints and Drawings Collection, especially in capturing the explosion of printmaking that defined the late 1960s and 1970s. “This gift… enables [the AGO] to tell the full story of the medium’s renaissance in the late 1960s and 1970s and its ongoing evolution throughout the early decades of the 21st century,” the museum said in a statement. The donation also marks the AGO’s first acquisition of work by Abstract Expressionist Barnett Newman, whose 1964 lithograph CANTO XVIII is now entering the collection. The Rapps began collecting prints in the 1960s, drawn to the bold colours and experimental forms of the Pop art movement. In the 1990s, they shifted focus to photography, acquiring a chromogenic print by Yinka Shonibare and five photogravures by Kara Walker — all of which are now part of the AGO’s holdings thanks to the gift. “More than collectors, Carol and Morton Rapp were stewards of great art, eager to share and preserve the things that brought them pleasure, beauty, and insight,” said Stephan Jost, the AGO’s director and CEO. “During their lifetimes they contributed immensely to the cultural fabric of Toronto and to the AGO, and this gift by their family is a heartfelt expression of their enduring commitment to this place.” The couple’s relationship with the AGO stretches back to 1966. Over the decades, they donated 474 works, and this latest gift brings their total contribution to nearly 1,000. Carol Rapp, who passed away in 2023, was an actress and singer. Her husband, Morton, died in 2024. He was the former president of Smith Belting, which he expanded into the Canada-wide Multipower brand. The two were married for over 71 years. Their son-in-law, Jay Smith, continues their connection to the museum as a trustee. The donation comes as the AGO undergoes a major expansion. With designs by Diamond Schmitt, Selldorf Architects, and Two Row Architect, the museum is adding 40,000 square feet of gallery space, funded by a $35 million gift from Dani Reiss, chairman and CEO of Canada Goose. The project will add 13 new galleries across five floors, according to the AGO’s website. The Rapp gift ensures those new spaces will be filled with a deeper, more comprehensive collection — one that captures not just the art of the last century, but the passion of two lifelong collectors who never stopped sharing what they loved.

Score (96)
Habitat Horticulture Transforms Graffiti-Prone Walls Into Lush Pollinator Gardens
In a cityscape dominated by chain-link fences and graffiti-tagged walls, a California company is offering a striking alternative: living meadows that grow vertically. Habitat Horticulture, a firm based in Berkeley, has launched a project that replaces blank, graffiti-prone surfaces with panels of wildflowers and native grasses. Their creation, called Meadowall, is a pre-seeded, modular system that turns ordinary fences and walls into lush, colorful corridors for pollinators and pedestrians alike. The idea took root right in their own backyard. “Just down the street from Habitat Horticulture’s headquarters, a newly built fence along the greenway bike path was quickly covered in graffiti,” the company shared in a statement. Instead of repainting or ignoring it, the team saw an opportunity. They installed Meadowall panels over 1,500 square feet of fence near their Berkeley offices. Within weeks, the once-bland surface had sprouted into a living meadow. “As it grows, it transforms an ordinary walkway into a vertical meadow,” the company posted in a video. “A vital connection to nature for people and pollinators alike.” The change was more than visual. The installation created real habitat for birds, butterflies, and native bees, while also reducing urban noise and filtering dust and air pollution. According to the company, the panels lower sound pollution by an average of 15 decibels and trap harmful particulate matter from nearby traffic. “What was once a target for graffiti is now a vibrant, dynamic landscape,” the team wrote on their website. “It demonstrates how even the most utilitarian surfaces can become ecological assets.” The system is cost-effective, too. By using seeds rather than mature plants, Meadowall costs about 30 percent less to install and requires minimal maintenance. That balance of sustainability and practicality has led to growing demand in both indoor and outdoor spaces. In addition to outdoor walkways and fences, the panels have been installed in office lobbies, apartment buildings, college campuses, and even the side of a high-rise in San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood. That Tenderloin project has become a centerpiece of urban design in the area. “Straddling the corner of the building, the wall appears almost like a sentient being,” the company wrote, “contrasting the angular architecture with lush, soft plantings.” Beyond aesthetics, it helps restore green space in one of the city's densest neighborhoods. For Habitat Horticulture, the mission is part public art, part environmental commitment. “Easy to install and maintain, Meadowall offers a sustainable, visually stunning way to enhance urban spaces, communicate environmental commitment, and deter graffiti,” they say. In short: the next time you see a wall full of spray paint, imagine it blooming instead.

Score (96)
Sister Act of Kindness: Whoopi Goldberg Spreads Cheer by Answering Santa Letters for Children
Whoopi Goldberg has a holiday tradition that comes straight from the heart — answering letters to Santa. The 70-year-old actress and The View co-host shared on the Behind the Table podcast that each Christmas, she quietly takes time to respond to letters kids send to Santa Claus through the U.S. Postal Service. “I just feel like everybody needs a little help, and if you can help somebody... it's why I try to do Santa at the post office,” Goldberg said. “I try to get letters and we try to answer kids' letters to Santa.” “It’s things that we can do, and it doesn’t cost a lot,” she added. “Because you want to give people the ability to do something that brings up how they see themselves.” The small but thoughtful gesture is one of the ways Goldberg gives back during the holiday season — and it’s something she’s been doing for years. The comments came during a special podcast episode celebrating her 70th birthday, which also aired as a tribute on The View. The show highlighted several of Goldberg’s favorite charities, including One Simple Wish, which supports foster children; The Heifer Project International, which combats hunger through livestock donations; and God's Love We Deliver, which provides meals to people affected by serious illness, including HIV/AIDS. Goldberg said supporting those in need is more important now than ever. “A lot of people aren’t getting what they need,” she said, pointing to rising costs of living and financial insecurity. “It’s not fair. People used to actually have savings. And people can’t hold onto their savings, because every time you turn around, somebody’s hand is out.” Even with her own milestone birthday underway, Goldberg kept the focus on others. She marked the occasion on-air with her co-hosts — all except Joy Behar, who missed her third show in a row due to a broken toe. Behar still found a way to celebrate, sending Goldberg a birthday lasagna instead. As Goldberg put it, giving doesn’t always have to be big to be meaningful. A handwritten letter can go a long way.

Score (78)
Quarterback Finishes Final College Football Game After Cancer Diagnosis
Four early morning drives down US Route 52 shaped the most unlikely season of football in Minnesota this year. They started around 4 or 5 a.m. and always headed toward Rochester. Four Mondays. Four one hour rides. Three different drivers. One mission. Help Jack Curtis keep playing the game he loves. Curtis is a senior quarterback at Carleton College. He also has Stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Anyone else in his situation would step away from the field. Doctors at the Mayo Clinic told him they knew of no college football player competing during treatment. His athletic trainer spent 16 years in the NFL and has never seen it. Chemotherapy drains strength, clouds thinking, and leaves most people stuck in bed. Curtis planned to suit up anyway. Every other Monday this fall, starting on September 8, he arrived at the Mayo Clinic for long days of tests, blood work and chemotherapy. The medication flowed through a port in his chest. By the time he left, 12 hours had passed. Early Tuesday morning, he returned for an immunotherapy shot timed precisely 19 hours after the final infusion. By Wednesday, the protective effects of his anti-nausea medication wore off and he could not leave his bed. By Thursday afternoon, he shuffled to the practice field with a lawn chair. Fridays were a little better. He sometimes threw a few passes during a walk through. And on Saturdays, he played college football. Curtis has thrown for 2,776 yards and 26 touchdowns this season. He broke two school records and ranks near the top nationally in several Division III categories. Carleton is 6 to 3 with him at quarterback. “I do not know what the word to use is,” his father, Scott Curtis, said. “Awe, I guess. Yeah. I think it is awe.” Football has been central to Curtis’ life since childhood. He grew up in Charlotte in an athletic household. His father played football and tennis. His mother, Amy, played lacrosse and field hockey. As a kid, Curtis ran the Air Raid offense in Pop Warner games. He played both sides of the ball and laughed about how he earned the nickname “Spiderman.” “I’d get run over but I’d hold onto the other guy’s jersey for dear life and drag him down,” he said. He kept that attitude through injuries, setbacks and the stressful college recruiting years. He eventually landed at Carleton, a small school far from home. It was not his first choice, but the fit turned out to be right. He became the starter as a sophomore and built a close circle of teammates who became his roommates. They cook dinners together, play Mario Kart and plan for life after graduation. Curtis hopes to pursue aerospace engineering. Cancer arrived in the middle of all of it. He felt the first lumps in the spring. They did not hurt, so he ignored them. By summer, a mass sat under his arm and the pain spread across his chest. One night he woke up with an intense stabbing sensation. He wrote letters to his parents, his girlfriend and his best friends. “I thought about life without Jack Curtis in it,” he said. Two weeks of tests brought no answers until a biopsy in Charlotte confirmed Hodgkin’s disease. The cancer had spread in his chest cavity and surrounded his heart. Curtis cried until his doctor told him it was treatable. Then he asked if he could delay treatment until after football season. “The doctors laughed at us,” Amy said. “They said, ‘We’re starting next week.’” Treatment hit him hard. He spiraled through questions about school and football and the future. But after his second round of chemo, a PET scan showed no active lymphoma cells. The cancer was not gone, but he was making progress. He burned the letters he had written on the worst night of his life. Curtis asked his doctors if he could return to Carleton and continue treatment at the Mayo Clinic. Then he asked the bigger question. Could he play? “Well,” his doctor said, “it’s not like football is going to give you more cancer.” That answer opened a door that required perfect timing and massive logistical work. Treatments had to stay exactly on schedule. Immunotherapy had to happen on Tuesday morning. The medical teams coordinated records and insurance paperwork so Curtis could focus on school and football. His parents had to decide how to support him from 1,100 miles away. Amy wanted to keep him home but knew he needed to live his life. “Denying him was not an option,” she said. Carleton’s staff took over once he returned. Head coach Tom Journell personally drove him to his first Mayo appointment. “I was like, ‘You’re going to what now?’” Journell said when Curtis told him he intended to play. Trainers tracked his hydration and monitored his nutrition. Teammates cooked meals, drove him to appointments and guarded his privacy until he chose to share his story. Curtis delivered on the field. In his second game, he threw for 478 yards and six touchdowns. Some weeks he could barely move by Thursday, but on Saturdays he found a way to perform. “You look at him and think, ‘No way,’” athletic trainer Ron Roche said. “And then he goes out there on Saturday and zings the ball around.” The season has not been perfect. He injured the index finger on his throwing hand late in the year. Against Bethel, he pulled himself out because he could not grip the ball. Carleton lost. Roche made a custom splint to give him a chance for the finale. “I would never count him out,” he said. Curtis faces radiation next. He returns to the Mayo Clinic on November 19 to map out his schedule. Starting December 1, he will go back every day for treatment. If all goes well, he will ring the bell on December 19. He does not pretend any of this has been easy. But he knows why he kept going. He wanted the ordinary things. The games with his roommates. The team dinners. The feeling of being part of something that existed long before cancer and will exist long after it. Before each game, Curtis walks to the 50 yard line, drops to his knees and flicks a football toward the end zone. He used to hit the crossbar from that distance during a family trick he practiced with his dad. Now it falls short. “I can get it there,” he said. “And that was good enough.”

Score (97)
Arizona Rescue Team Airlifts Injured 57-Year-Old Hiker to Safety
A hiker was airlifted to safety after breaking her ankle on a mountain trail near Superior, Arizona, on the afternoon of November 14. The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) said their search and rescue team got a call about the 57-year-old hiker at approximately 1:30 pm, and were informed of her injury. Border Patrol Search, Trauma, and Rescue (BORSTAR) paramedics and PCSO search and rescue teams located the woman and treated her for her injuries before a helicopter hoisted her to safety. The sheriff’s office said the woman was taken to hospital in a stable condition.