Are you hungry yet?
 
October 16, 2021 Psst ... hey! It's Scottie Andrew, subbing in for our dear AJ. Cute animals to follow.
What's your favorite fall comfort food? Mine is, hands down, butternut squash mac and cheese. It's a decadent, gooey entree that combines so many of my great loves: pasta, copious amounts of cheese and the superior autumn vegetable. I like to make mine with cavatappi because squiggly noodles, to me, taste fancier than plain elbows. For cheese, you can't go wrong with sharp cheddar, but I've also experimented with gruyere, muenster and gouda (the results: delicious!!!). Maybe next time I'll sprinkle in some cayenne for a kick. And now I'm hungry. Happy feasting!
If there's something you'd like to see here, shoot us an email. Know someone who could use a little Good Stuff? Send them a copy! We hope you love it as much as we do. Our favorites this week Get going with some of our most popular good news stories of the week  A love that saved a life  Boxing for inclusion
 Raise a glass to...  Debbie Blount, a 63-year-old college sophomore with a killer golf swing. Yep, this sexagenarian collegiate is a star of Reinhardt University's women's golf team. She's got about 40 or more years on her coaches and teammates, but they don't sweat the age difference — not when she's this good at golf and this supportive of a teammate. When she's not hitting in the mid-80s every tournament, she's supporting her sisters on the green, reminding them to stay positive and enjoy it — they're playing golf, after all! Debbie had long dreamed of going to college, but it wasn't until she lost her husband and found herself rudderless that she took the leap. After impressing her recruiter, she's now a full-time student, collegiate athlete and beloved friend. "I'm getting to live the dream," she told CNN. "I look around here and I can't believe I get to do it." Oh, and she's been nominated for homecoming queen, and the gals on her golf team have already agreed to help her pick out the perfect dress. Cheers to you, Debbie!  A bright idea  Ah, the age-old dilemma: I love my home, but I don't love the view. Such was the case with Vojin Kusic's wife. She could never decide which view she preferred — their house is in the countryside of Bosnia-Herzegovina in Eastern Europe — so Vojin, ever the doting husband, solved her problem by building her a rotating house. It benefits Vojin, too, who said he was getting tired of his wife's "frequent refurbishing" of their home. The speed of their spinning home is adjustable — at its fastest, the home can do one full turn in 22 seconds (do you wear a seatbelt in bed for that?) and 24 hours at its slowest. Vojin even joked that he can ward off unwanted visitors by simply turning the home so the front door disappears. Or … was he joking? And could he perhaps replicate this in the States? Asking for no one at all.  You gotta see this  Remember a few weeks back, when we shared some snaps from the Wildlife Photographer of the Year nominees? Well, the winners have been crowned, and their photos are as stunning and life-affirming as you'd expect. Here are a few of the most awe-inspiring images, starting with these two polar bears (pictured above) palling around. Martin Gregus won the "Rising Star Portfolio Award" for capturing this playful moment between ursine companions.  Oh, to be a Siberian jay surveying its wintery domain. The Finnish teen behind this pic, Lasse Kurkela, took top honors in the 15- to 17-year-old category.  And finally, we have a majestic mountain gorilla finding peace in the rain. Photog Majed Ali of Kuwait was awarded the prize in "Animal Portraits" for this image (and it might just be this author's favorite).  Heroes among us  Made Janur Yasa, a vegan restaurant owner on the Indonesian island of Bali, watched as his neighbors moved away, struggling to make ends meet during the pandemic, leaving trash behind. It was a doubly upsetting dilemma — but "inside the challenge there is an opportunity," Made (pictured center, in grey) said. So, as a solution to the economic downturn and the environmental crisis in his community, he began a barter program in which residents could exchange plastic for rice. It was a win-win, he said: His neighbors are fed, and he recycles their plastic. It's a system that's worked since May 2020, Made said, and has since extended to more than 200 villages. In under two years, he's collected around 500 tons of plastic, and he's not stopping anytime soon. "My goal is really to spread this movement," he told CNN. "We're trying to change behavior ... my method is showing them an example through action." Wanna get away?  National parks have come to China! This week the country announced around 88,000 square miles of land will be protected as national parks, including the Giant Panda National Park (and yes, there are pandas there). China's one of the biggest countries on Earth, so its national parks are fittingly diverse: There's the rainforest home of the critically endangered Hainan black-crested gibbon (a long-armed primate with orange or black fur) and the snowy, northeastern habitat of Siberian tigers and leopards. There's a national park here for everyone, no matter your favorite animal or preferred climate.  Who knew?  If you've ever found yourself with some loose, helium-free balloons and some spare time, you've likely played that game where you bop the balloon around the room without it touching the ground. This game was never named, as far as this writer is aware, and yet many of us have played it, accidentally destroying fragile home decor in the process. Maybe some of us should brush up on our balloon-bouncing technique, because now, a Balloon World Cup exists. The inaugural tournament took place this week in Spain, attended by players from 32 countries. The organizers pulled out all the stops for this international celebration of balloonery, even strewing a bunch of living room furniture on a stage where the final game took place for authenticity. No word on whether players were punished if they broke vases or precious family heirlooms while leaping across furniture to keep their balloons in the air. Peruvian teen Francesco De La Cruz won this year — but maybe next year's champ is reading this very newsletter! Rec of the week
Brought to you by CNN Underscored  24 items you should buy from Nordstrom's holiday guide Nordstrom's holiday gift guide is officially here, and no, it's not too early to start buying gifts. We pulled out the best picks to help get your shopping started. Shameless animal video
There's always time for cute animal videos. That time is now. Meet one of my favorite oddball animals, the tamandua, a tinier relative of the anteater. This wee baby likes hitching a ride on its mom's back and generally being perfect, and we're all better for it. (Click to watch.)  A newsletter for the good in life
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