The public can once again enter the crown portion of the Statue of Liberty.

It’s the first time since it closed its doors in March 2020 because the Covid-19 pandemic.

While portions of the Statue of Liberty gradually reopened throughout the pandemic, the crown was kept off limits for more than two and a half years until Tuesday.

The National Park Service, which manages the New York City monument, was attempting to hold a soft reopening without too much advertisement in late October to celebrate the 136th anniversary of the statue’s dedication in 1886.

The plan was to acclimate newly hired staff to crown-specific safety and security protocols by having them train with veteran tour guides, but that didn’t happen because the demand by the public shortened the training program. (CNN)

The first glimpse of the “Lady in the Harbor” brought hope to all our ancestors who decided to leave their homeland and make America their new homeland.

We are indebted to them and their bravery!

Girls are growing with a rising number of external pressures, making their transition into teen and adulthood far more psychologically disturbing than it used to be.

Research shows sharp spikes in depression and anxiety among girls in recent years, at rates notably higher than boys.

In her new book, “Girls on the Brink: Helping Our Daughters Thrive in an Era of Increased Anxiety, Depression, and Social Media,” Donna Jackson Nakazawa looks into why this is the case.

CNN spoke with Nakazawa about new brain science on girls and puberty, and how our fast-paced, online lifestyle doesn’t work well with our psychological needs.

CNN: What is it about this moment in time that makes life so much more emotionally challenging for teenage girls?

Donna Jackson Nakazawa: There is so much focus on performance and competition.

Our children are missing that important part of childhood, those in between years, ages 7 to 13.

We’ve replaced that with a fast-moving culture and have also added in social media, which kids are not supposed to be on until age 13, but many get on much earlier.

As parents of girls you must become aware of these demands and encourage your daughters to communicate with you so that together you can deal with them.

Tucked away deep in the mountains dividing Georgia from its Chechen and Dagestani neighbors, Tusheti is accessed only by a long, narrow gravel road that climbs 10,000 feet above the gorges below.

It’s a wild, untamed treasure hidden on the frontier of Europe.

Pummeled with heavy snow throughout long winters, the tourist season is brief, with the region only accessible around 4-5 months of the year.

But it is a paradise for hikers looking to chart new territory. (CNN)

Hard to believe that there are still remote and beautiful regions of the world like Tushetti.

Another place to consider it you REALLY want to get away.

If not today, when?

With grocery prices soaring, consumers are changing the way they shop for food.

That’s great news for discount grocers like bare-bones supermarket Aldi.

Aldi, which requires a 25-cent deposit to use grocery carts, sells mostly store brands and doesn’t waste time on elaborate displays.

But more than one million new households shopped at Aldi in the year through September.

Foot traffic across most of its 2,200 US stores jumped about 10.5% year over year, even as grocery sector visits were about flat.

Aldi’s explosive growth is part of a wider trend, experts say.

“We’ve seen a pretty definitive shift in consumers starting to shop at the discounters like Aldi and Trader Joe’s and Lidl,” said RJ Hottovy, head of analytical research at Placer.ai.

“I suspect that we’re going to continue to see visitation trends favor these discounters,” Hottovy said.

“Give and it will be given unto you!”

You will never be content with yourself if you only TAKE!

The real secret to a happy, fulfilled life is to lift up others as you climb the ladder of success.

Most people in the world don’t have a pattern of success taught by their parents or grand parents.

Their lives are a vicious cycle of failure and disappointment.

Let’s remind ourselves that we can’t take it with us after our lives end.

So, why not share your ideas, advice and wealth with those caught in that cycle.

There is NO GREATER FEELING than to help someone incapable of helping themselves.

God will not ask, “How much wealth did you accumulate.”

He will only ask, “How much did you share with others?”

IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU!

London CNN

The world’s oldest and largest competitive Irish dancing organization has launched an investigation after being hit by allegations of competition fixing, warning “unethical behavior cannot and will not be tolerated.”

In a statement posted on its website on Thursday, the Irish Dancing Commission said its ethics committee had received “allegations, with supporting documentation, of several grievous breaches of our Code of Conduct” in July of this year.

The commission did not specify what kind of breaches were alleged, though local media reported they were related to accusations of competition fixing. 

The Irish Independent broke the news of the allegations in an exclusive investigation published on Wednesday.

“Due to the potential extent of such allegations, the services of an independent former judge of the Court of Appeal have been engaged.”

REALLY??? As a member of Irish history, I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Going on a vacation might seem like a rather unconventional way to try to improve your sleep habits.

But, sleep tourism has been growing in popularity for a number of years, with an increasing amount of sleep-focused stays popping up in hotels and resorts across the world.

Interest has skyrocketed since the pandemic, with a number of high profile establishments focusing their attention on those suffering from sleep-deprivation.

Over the past 12 months, Park Hyatt New York has opened the Bryte Restorative Sleep Suite, a 900-square-foot suite filled with sleep-enhancing amenities.

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts recently launched a collection of retreats called the Alchemy of Sleep, which are designed to “promote rest.” (CNN)

So, if you are sleep deprived, you might want to check it out!

If not today, when?

They are escaping in any means possible; bikes, cars, trains, planes, on foot.

Ten of thousands of the country’s best are not willing to fight in Putin’s illegal war.

If they were asked to defend the fatherland against an aggressor trying to change their way of life, they would stand and fight.

These young Russian people have watched 80,000 of their friends killed in a war with dishonest motives.

So, they would rather run away than be killed in the “Ukrainian Killing Fields.”

Wouldn’t you?

A protester met the full-force of NFL linebacker Bobby Wagner on Monday night as the Los Angeles Rams hosted the San Francisco 49ers.

At the end of the first half, a man ran onto the field at the Levi’s Stadium carrying a pink flare, temporarily halting play.

While he initially evaded the efforts of stewards trying to stop him, he made the mistake of running towards the Rams defensive bench.

Wagner and teammate Takkarist McKinley saw him coming and, as McKinley tried to grab hold of the protester, Wagner took him down.

Content with his intervention, the 32-year-old walked away as security escorted the man off the field.

That’s what Linebackers do!

Yes, yesterday was moving day from a condo back to a house.

We have moved many times down through the years.

It never gets any easier because we continue to accumulate STUFF!

From what I’ve read recently, America is on the move.

Climate change is causing more people to move because they are living in an area with too little or too much water.

Most moving companies we contacted are booked into the far future.

If you have a strong reason to move, it will hopefully be well worth the enormous effort required to pick up your like and put it elsewhere.

Good luck!