2025 Is ‘Year Of The Octopus’ As Record Numbers Spotted Off England’s South Coast
by Lisa Bachelor, The Guardian
Record numbers of sightings of one of the world’s most intelligent invertebrates over the summer have led the Wildlife Trusts to declare 2025 “the year of the octopus” in its annual review of Britain’s seas. A mild winter followed by an exceptionally warm spring prompted unprecedented numbers of Mediterranean octopuses to take up residence along England’s south coast, from Penzance in Cornwall to south Devon. “The scale of the catch [recorded by local fishers] was of the order of about 13 times what we would normally expect in Cornish waters,” said Matt Slater.
Town Devastated By Wildfires Wins Half-A-Billion Christmas Lottery: ‘Something That Has Fallen From The Heavens’
by Andy Corbley, Good News Network
A Spanish town devastated by wildfires in spring has seen its luck turn with a hundred-million-dollar windfall from a national lottery program. Left with 120,000 acres of scorched woodland and 8,000 displaced residents, La Bañeza, in the region of Castilla y León, was engulfed in trauma and grief as much as smoke and fire. The town prayed for rain, but the sunny Spanish sky declined. Now, having bought 117 numbers in El Gordo Christmas lottery from the Spanish government, the town’s misfortune has turned to staggering quantities of luck, as each number paid out €400,000.
How Cities Are Building Affordable Housing For Teachers
by The Conversation U.S.
With teacher shortages mounting and housing costs soaring, school districts from California to Ohio are experimenting with a new solution: building homes for educators on school-owned land. For much of the 20th century, teaching was a stable, middle-class job in the U.S. Now it’s becoming a lot harder to survive on a teacher’s salary: Wages have been stagnant for decades, according to a study from the Economic Policy Institute, and teachers earn 5% less than they did a decade ago when adjusting for inflation. That’s one reason why there’s a widespread teacher shortage.
A Couple Invited A Homeless Man Into Their Home For Christmas. He Stayed There For 45 Years.
by Cecily Knobler, Upworthy
There are moments of kindness that miraculously can stretch into a lifetime. Such was the case for nearly 30-year-old Ronnie after he knocked on Rob and Dianne’s door one Christmas Day in the UK. Picture this: the year is 1975. It’s Christmas in Cardiff, Wales, and a young man named Ronnie Lockwood gives a rap, tap, tap on a door. Rob and Dianne Parsons answer to see him holding a trash bag full of his belongings in one hand, and a “frozen chicken” in the other. On the BBC Wales News Instagram page, the question is posed: “Could you imagine inviting a stranger into your home on Christmas Day?”
19 States To Raise Their Minimum Wage For New Year’s Day 2026
by Dave Jamieson, Huff Post
Nineteen states will raise their minimum wages to ring in the new year for 2026, with most of them reaching a rate of $15 per hour or higher. Another 49 cities and counties across the country will also be hiking their wage floors on Jan. 1, according to a breakdown by the National Employment Law Project. Even though the federal minimum wage remains just $7.25 per hour, a majority of states now require employers to pay a higher rate. New Year’s Day is the most common time for states to implement scheduled increases to their minimum wages, thanks to cost-of-living adjustments written into state laws.
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