11/16/2009 - WASHINGTON (AFNS) -- Defense and Veterans Affairs officials today announced another step in their efforts to streamline the process of determining veterans' disability ratings.

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What's Your Favorite Old Wives' Tale?

I was listening to the weather this morning and they were talking of the first snow. Did you know that whatever day the snow first falls will predict the number of snows you will have that season? So if it snow on the 13th of the month you will have 13 snows.

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A parent challenged the class to participate in the Kindness Counts activities on the Character Counts Web site during Character Counts Week. He said he would make a donation to Character Counts for each act of kindness.

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This will make you smile for sure!

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Good News Wednesday Has an Anniversary!

This week marks the one year anniversary for the concept of Good News Wednesday. Our friend, Azsky13 wrote the article kicking off the idea of posting only good news concentrating on one day a week.

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Good News: There's A New Collection of Pieces By My Favorite Mystery Writers; An Interview With Otto Penzler, Editor of "The Lineup"

Otto Penzler, owner of the famous Mysterious Bookshop in Manhatten, has done a brilliant project and, with this book, shared the results with us.

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If you have seen this in an email circulating the wires, ignore the email. Here is the source.

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When 10-year-old Sean Menard's battle with kidney disease took a turn for the worse, his former kindergarten teacher's aide offered him one of her kidneys. When it turned out she was not a good match, her husband volunteered.

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The "chocolate cure" for emotional stress is getting new support from a clinical trial published online in ACS' Journal of Proteome Research.

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Confusing parenthood and pet ownership: The words of the dog world. Kids chase fewer squirrels and postal workers than dogs, but the way we pamper our poodles and great danes and mutts has a lot in common with how we treat our toddlers and teens.

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You may think of potted plants as the poor man's pet, for someone who can't be trusted with a goldfish, let alone a cat or dog.

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Want a good laugh? Then read these crazy tech support stories!

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One Week of Sunsets in the Ozarks

We have had really nice weather this week and I was able to get a sunset picture almost every evening. The temperature has been really nice, the high has been in the 70's almost each day with very few clouds. Only one of the reasons I love living here in southwest Missouri.

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I do my best to save money wherever I can, but I have to admit, recently I have had a bit of a tough time making ends meet. My husband has stopped paying child support which has made things difficult.

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In more ways than one!

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As part of World Kindness Day this year, it wants Singaporeans to spring their own little surprises on those who have been kind to them.

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The Last of the Fall Colors in My Neighborhood

I'm pretty sure that the trees are going to lose their leaves really soon around here. We've already had a couple of hard freezes and most of the trees around here have already shed.

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These will make you feel like you're in the middle of a snowglobe. At least that's how I feel right now. The beauty and peace of snow.

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Though her parents didn't want her to know the severity of her cancer, they feel that she must have known what was happening. The tumor slowly took away her ability to talk. But Elena was still able to write.

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.....grab whatever product you use to clean. Maybe it's something that smells really citrusy. Do a bit of cleaning. Then take a few deep breaths.

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A Very Sweet Story About a Girl and Her Dog

This was sent to me my email and I thought it was too good not to share.

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GYMPIE man Bob Bingham believes in random acts of kindness. He was in the Bank of Queensland recently paying his rent, when he noticed commemorative coins on the counter.

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Students at Price's Fork Elementary School are getting an art lesson that should remain intact for decades. Each Friday, they're listening and watching as local artist Jane Vance illustrates the history of the community's school on pieces of linen.

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An interactive map with descriptions and histories of the mountains around Roanoke VA and the surrounding counties including my own.

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Every year more than a quarter of a million American college students head out to see the world through a study abroad program.

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