Blue Sky Times: Reforestation, Big Puzzles and a Beatles’ Bass Guitar

Chicago is currently on pace to have one of its warmest Februarys on record, according to ABC 5, filled with sunshine and a cool breeze on our faces as we go about our days. These days are just the beginning of the bright months ahead of us. The Blue Sky Times is here to remind you to never lose sight of the blissful days here and to come. Here are this week’s good news stories.

Paul McCartney’s Bass Guitar

The bass guitar of Paul McCartney which was missing for over 50 years has been found by the instruments manufacturer, Höfner, and a husband-and-wife team of journalists after a five-year search, ABC News reported.  

McCartney purchased the guitar in 1961 for about $37 in Hamburg, Germany while they were there for a series of residencies. The guitar was used on The Beatles first two records before it was rumored to have been stolen while recording “Let It Be” in 1969, but no one was exactly sure when it went missing, according to ABC.

The first big breakthrough in the search for the guitar started with an email from Ian Horne who worked with McCartney’s band Wings. He said he saw the guitar get swiped from the back of the van in 1972 while in Notting Hill, London. 

From there, they published an update on the guitar and someone contacted them and said they believed their father stole the guitar and later sold it. 

The guitar was finally returned to McCartney in December.

Benefits of Reforestation

Efforts towards reforestation in the Eastern United States during the 20th century are paying off and has been shown to help reduce the rate of global warming, according to a new study published in the Earth’s Future journal.

For decades, scientists have seen the benefits in restoring and preserving the world’s forests as a way to mitigate the effects of climate change, but this research shows these beliefs in action, according to the study. Forests work to regulate atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations and help to keep air temperatures where they should be.

The study said the research project involved ground and satellite-based observations which showed a direct correlation between reforestation and the response of surface and air temperatures in the Eastern U.S.

Reforestation efforts help both the location of the reforestation as well as the neighboring areas and overall contributes to the long term slowing of the pace of global warming. 

Super Puzzlers

Older adults at the Springville Senior Center in Utah finished the largest commercially available puzzle in the world entitled “What a Wonderful World” last month. The artist behind this challenging creation, Eric Dowdle, was invited by the center’s Director Tori Eaton to visit the persevering puzzlers Jan. 18 when they were nearing completion, according to KSL.com.

Composed of 60 separate sections which combined become 29 feet long and 8 feet wide, the puzzle has 187 distinct paintings from the Dowdle Art studio in Utah showcasing landmarks from around the globe. Over 30 people helped solve the puzzle from October to January, and the city of Springville brought in a dozen tables to hold all 60,000 pieces assembled together, KSL.com reported.

This is hardly the first large puzzle the center has tackled but by far the largest, and it has since been deconstructed and taken to another senior center in Heber City, Utah to give even more older adults a shot at solving the mammoth puzzle.

“Loneliness is a terrible thing for older people,” Eaton said to The Washington Post. “Getting together to have some lunch and work for a couple of hours on a puzzle can make a huge difference in their day.”

Have a great week everyone and remember, as Simon and Garfunkel once sang, “Your time has come to shine / All your dreams are on their way.”

This story was written by Isabella Grosso, Lilli Malone, and Hunter Minné

Featured Image by Lilli Malone