The Water Cooler Week-in-Review

Good, clever, fun stories to share at the "water coolers" of your life.

Sports submitted by Nathan Whitaker

Tim Tebow finally made news by taking a date to an awards ceremony...and he only met her the night before.  Turns out that Kelly Faughnan had been diagnosed with a brain tumor the prior fall, and her wish was to go to Disney for the College Football Awards Show and "get a glimpse" of Tebow.  When he heard of her wish, he introduced himself, and after some time talking, invited her to be his date for the following day's event - including walking the red carpet.  The linked FoxNews video is a MUST watch...but keep the tissues within reach.

Sports submitted by Tom Walsh

Something people who aren’t sports fans don’t get is the way sports can create memories. Where you were, who you were with, and how you hyperventilated (even though you weren’t one of the people o n the field – I know, some people have a hard time getting past that part). So as we are beginning to see the end-of-decade lists, see if this list of the decade's 25 best games  evokes any memories for you and yours. Of course, part of the fun is arguing with the rankings. Here’s a game that would have made my list, thanks to my memories of watching it with friends at a sports bar deep in enemy territory and basically running for our lives when it ended.

Toys submitted by Jean Kingston

With just over a week left til Christmas, here's a helpful run-down of the "Best Toys from 2009."  I especially like the new "balance bikes" that are out now. We taught Christopher to ride a bike when he was four by having him balance on a pedal-less bike going down a very slight decline.  Once he had the balance down, we put the pedals on, and off he went!

Technology Run Amok submitted by Nancy French

The next time you open your phone bill, just think.  It could’ve been worse...  For example, a thirteen year old boy runs up a $22,000 phone bill.  (Here's the shocker: Verizon forgave it!)

Sports submitted by Mark Basnage

A great moment in American sports history, although little noticed at the time. How a junior high school teacher, a hearse driver, and the rest of the ragtag, semi-pro soccer team overcame 500-1 odds to shut out England 1-0 in an early round of the World Cup.

Giving submitted by  Mark Basnage

Who cares about charity during the holiday season? Apparently, Americans do-- and year round. Take a look at how our giving stacks  
up.

Education submitted by Tom Walsh

Finally, an inspiring story  you can use to get your kids to study science. And maybe get a doctorate in it. So they can earn $35 a night working at comedy clubs. (Warning: some of the content of this article may seem deeply unfunny to those of us who didn’t study science as diligently as your kids will after they read it.)

Community submitted by Tom Walsh

In the big picture, a handful of ordinary neighbors taking responsibility to make their little street into someplace good for their families is a small thing. But what if we all took responsibility for our communities? The determination, pluck and sheer hard work it took for some blue-collar folks in Philadelphia’s Fishtown to make it happen is remarkable -- and they didn’t just make it safe and clean, they made it beautiful.