Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 07/01/2026 - 12:00am
LINCOLN — Judges, lawmakers and Nebraskans representing all three branches of government converged on the steps of the State Capitol Thursday to form a human American flag shaped in the likeness of their home state.
It was a photographic moment — a tribute from folks who run the official seat of state government to the 250th anniversary of the United States and the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/24/2026 - 12:00am
In the trailer for “Toy Story 5,” a little girl named Bonnie is playing with her toys when a package arrives in the mail.
She opens it to find Lilypad, a tablet for children.
The iconic toys from the series – Woody, Buzz Lightyear, the Potato Heads, Forky and Slinky Dog – then watch in dismay as Bonnie casts them all aside in favor of the bright tablet screen. Rex the dinosaur exclaims, “What? Extinction? Not again!”
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/24/2026 - 12:00am
Sitting on a scorching sidewalk in downtown Winnebago, 7-year-old Tyler Free-LaMere's little hands danced across the black-and-white keys of her miniature keyboard, bringing the symphonies in her head into the world for people shuffling by.
Few on the reservation at the time realized little Tyler was laying the foundation for a groundbreaking future.
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/24/2026 - 12:00am
NEW ORLEANS — River Queen Greens, as the name suggests, lies just outside of the levee blocking the Mississippi River, a 20-minute drive from downtown New Orleans. The farm produces certified naturally grown vegetables to sell to local restaurants and at farmers markets.
But summer is the farm’s off-season, which means it’s time for cover crops. One of the fields has already grown a lush crop of sunflowers that reach shoulder height.
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/17/2026 - 12:00am
High above an Illinois cornfield, the plane with the “O” on its tail sliced through the cloudy blue sky.
Cullen “Bill” Leitner steered the Cessna 152 and watched the timer. Will Skradski surveyed the landscape below for secret checkpoints, referencing a paper map to track their position.
The duo was tasked with navigating a 125-mile route, unknown to them until shortly before takeoff, without the GPS tools pilots have come to rely on. Every second off schedule and every extra drop of fuel used counted against them.
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/17/2026 - 12:00am
A child at a playground tries to climb, jump or negotiate with a peer, and their attempt does not work. They fall, get left out of a game or reach another impasse. Then they try again.
Failure, conflict and frustration might look like a struggle, but this is often how children learn.
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/10/2026 - 12:00am
Nebraska’s state auditor calls it inexplicable. A former health insurance CEO suggests it’s excessive. A veteran doctor says it’s unheard of.
They’re reacting to what a nonprofit hospital paid its gastroenterologist in 2024: Nearly $5 million, according to public tax documents. That same hospital, Faith Health in Norfolk, paid a plastic surgeon $3.8 million.
Those sums made the doctors the two highest-paid employees of any Nebraska-headquartered nonprofit that year, according to an online database.
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/10/2026 - 12:00am
OMAHA — A key manager of a Nebraska grant program that’s investing multimillions into historically disadvantaged North and South Omaha neighborhoods has left state government to join the administration of Omaha Mayor John Ewing Jr.
Javier Saldaña Jr., formerly the economic recovery division administrator for the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, is now Omaha deputy chief of staff for economic development. His new job involves steering real estate development projects for Omaha and helping to carry out mayoral initiatives and priorities.
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/10/2026 - 12:00am
As the 2026 FIFA World Cup starts on June 11, 2026, traditional news and social media channels will be full of pictures of the players. Many of them will be showing their tattoos.
Body art has become increasingly part of international soccer, although its prevalence can vary across geographical regions. A study of athletes participating in the 2018 World Cup found that Latin American players were the most heavily tattooed, followed by those from Oceania and Europe. African and Asian players are the least tattooed.
Published by maggie@omahadai... on Wed, 06/03/2026 - 12:00am
A few years ago, Emily Rau decided she needed friends.
Rau had moved to Lincoln in 2014 for graduate school at the University of Nebraska. By 2021, most of her fellow students had left town, but she stayed and took a job as a professor with the university’s library.
“I was like, ‘OK, I need to make some friends that aren't grad students,’” Rau said.