Good News: Stories that cheered us up for the week 10-16 June

Braille for blind opera-lovers, a TikTok-famous Porirua hairdresser and a men's health month are among this week's feel-good stories from RNZ.

Polish octogenarian spins the hits

DJ Vika, 85, is one of Warsaw's most popular DJs - spinning techno at nightclubs by night and '70s hits at a senior citizens club by day. As a young woman, Vika wanted to pursue a life in music, but Polish people born before World War II had little choice in their careers.

After decades working as the head of a juvenile detention centre, Vika retired at 65 but grew restless and her husband suggested she find something else to pass the time. "She's unstoppable and but I think that's also makes her go on at the age of 85, she still has so much energy and appetite for life," says Vika! documentary director Agnieszka Zwiefka.

The Porirua hairdresser who became TikTok famous

Porirua-based Jasmine Lupo is a social media sensation, with videos of her hair transformations racking up over 35 million views on TikTok. Becoming a hairdresser has been a life-long career dream, she says.

"I have wanted to be a hairdresser pretty much my whole life. I dropped out of school when I was 16, school wasn't for me. And then I just kind of kept doing it - I've been doing it for 12 years."

One of the best parts of her job is putting her clients at ease, she says.

Braille surtitles for blind opera-goers 'life changing'

New technology - which sends surtitles to users' personal Braille-reading machines as the action unfolds on stage - was trialled last week during the Auckland season of NZ Opera's Le comte Ory.

Audio Described Aotearoa co-director Paul Brown, who was the first Braille reader to test the technology, said surtitles would make a huge difference for blind and low-vision audience members. "I could follow for the first time what was happening at the opera without having to listen to something else."

NZ Opera says it is committed to doing this for every show.

'Furiosa' actor leaves bullies for dust

Australian indigenous actor Quaden Bayles has achondroplasia, the most common form of dwarfism, and has faced his fair share of bullies because of it. But one of his finest triumphs is starring in the new Mad Max film Furiosa.

His mum has always told him: "'The world is your oyster. Whatever you want to do, you can do it. Don't let society put those limitations, don't even let the doctors put those limitations on you, you will continue to defy the odds and prove those statistics wrong."

Planting project protects the Pātea saltmarsh

Volunteers have planted more than 500 plants to help protect the ecologically significant Pātea saltmarsh in South Taranaki. The saltmarsh covers several hectares along the tidal reaches of the Pātea River and is the largest area of ribbonwood/sea rush vegetation between the Manawatū River and the Tongapōrutu estuary in North Taranaki.

Reforestation co-ordinator Joe Churchman said the saltmarsh played a crucial role in coastal ecosystems. "Protecting and restoring the saltmarsh is essential to maintaining biodiversity and ecological balance."

Men's health month helping to shift mindsets

Men are being encouraged to normalise talking about their emotions with a special month dedicated to their wellbeing. Across New Zealand, events have been set up in the hope men will embark on their own journey of healing and learning to express their emotions, in a country where one in eight men will experience serious depression during their lifetime.

Dietrich Soakai grew up in spaces where men rarely talked about their emotions and found an outlet for his feelings in spoken word poetry. Pasifika Medical Association (PMA), alongside Etu Pasifika, is leading some events.