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Wish You Were Here: Beachy Australia adventures

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

Our adventuresome, globe-trotting readers have been traveling to destinations as far flung as Austria’s cultural capital, the jungles of Uganda and the streets of Old Montreal — and sharing their experiences along the way. Today, a Saratoga couple are offering up details on New Zealand’s beach scene.Wish You Were HereAUSTRALIA: Saratoga residents Evelyn and Joe Longo visited family in Melbourne in February for a sun-soaked, beachy holiday. “We spent most of our time in the bay-side town of Black Rock,” Joe says. “Melbourne’s bay beaches are favorite destinations for Melbournians. On one side are the beautiful sandy beaches with shallow water — ideal for kids. On the other side are the surf beaches — ideal for adults.“The entire east side is well served with endless pedestrian and bicycle paths, safely separated from the traffic. All around the bay, each suburb has its own yacht club, making for great lunch and dinner destinations...

Father doing yardwork killed by his own truck after child set it rolling, police say

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

A young father doing yardwork at his Utah home was killed when his son, playing in a pickup truck’s cab, caused the vehicle to roll down a slope and run him over, police said.The man’s mother, working alongside him, was critically injured.The accident was reported around 4:30 p.m. Saturday in the 2-year-old Summit Ridge subdivision in Santaquin, along Interstate 15 about 20 miles south of Provo.The truck had been parked on a slope in the yard, and the pair were loading landscaping rocks into the bed. The child reportedly pulled on the truck’s gear shift and, though the vehicle was not running, was able to knock it out of gear, the police report said. The truck rolled backward, striking the 23-year-old man and his 47-year-old mother.The man died at the scene; the woman, with severe injuries, was flown to a hospital, police said.A GoFundMe page posted by a person identifying herself as the man’s sister-in-law said he was married and the father of two boys, ages...

VP Kamala Harris is finding her stride as Team Biden’s voice to Black voters

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

By Akayla Gardner | BloombergKamala Harris began finding her footing last year with a rousing, impromptu eulogy for a Black matriarch that drew a mostly African-American audience to its feet — a task she must now replicate on a wide scale to secure President Joe Biden’s reelection.Harris, the first woman, Black and Asian vice president, was unexpectedly called on stage to speak at the funeral last May for Ruth Whitfield, an 86-year-old woman killed in a racist mass shooting in Buffalo.“The more she talked, the more passionate and fiery she got,” said civil-rights leader Reverend Al Sharpton, who called her speech an “a-ha moment” for an administration that lacked a reliable bond with the Black community. “All of us knew we were looking for something. She’s become that something.”Harris is hitting some of her stride at a crucial moment as she and the president officially launch their reelection bid. Biden credits Black voters for his 2020 victory, with exit polls showing he carried 8...

Travel Troubleshooter: Hotels.com promised me a refund years ago, so where is it?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

DEAR TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER: We booked a room at the Oasis at Grace Bay in Turks and Caicos through Hotels.com in January 2020, for accommodations in early April 2020. When we booked the reservation, we could not reserve the same room for our entire stay, so we made two separate reservations.Christopher Elliott, the Travel Troubleshooter We had to cancel because of the pandemic. I emailed the hotel numerous times to resolve this, and the company finally issued a refund for one of the reservations, but not the other. I asked why, and they could not give me a straight answer.I reached out to Hotels.com, and they responded that they would issue a voucher for the same hotel. I did not want this and just wanted a refund. I went back and forth with them for a while on this and have not received my refund.Hotels.com now says my voucher has expired, and they can’t do anything else for me regarding this. None of this adds up. Can you please get my $1,632 back?— Michelle Sprek...

Wish You Were Here: Easter Island adventures

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

Our intrepid readers have been globetrotting — and reporting in — from locations as far flung as Uganda and New Zealand. Today, a Sunnyvale resident is sharing tales from the tip of Tierra del Fuego.Wish You Were HereEASTER ISLAND: Sunnyvale resident Peggy Graham’s recent travels took her to the southernmost tip of South America with stops at Easter Island and Cape Horn, as well as Santiago, Chile, and Buenos Aires, Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego and Trewlew in Argentina. “I went with Overseas Adventure Travel,” she says. “They have an amazing relationship with the local people, offering dinners with them in their homes. We were one of the first tours to go to Easter Island since the pandemic. It was always a dream of mine. We had a local guide, the daughter of an archaeologist, who grew up on the island.”Related ArticlesTravel | Wish You Were Here: Uganda gorilla adventures Travel | Wish You Were Here: New Zealand m...

Oakland Diocese files bankruptcy over child sex abuse lawsuits

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

(KRON) -- The Diocese of Oakland is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to child sex abuse claims, it announced Monday in a press release. The diocese says it faces more than 330 lawsuits alleging child sexual abuse.According to the release, Catholic schools in operation under the Oakland Diocese are part of separate legal entities and are not included in the bankruptcy filing. Employees and vendors will also be paid as usual with employee benefits continuing uninterrupted, the release continues. Oakland teachers strike continues Monday “After careful consideration of the various alternatives for providing just compensation to innocent people who were harmed, we believe this process is the best way to ensure a fair and equitable outcome for survivors,” said Bishop Michael C. Barber. “It will also allow RCBO to stabilize its finances and continue the sacred mission entrusted to us by Christ and the Church. Given our current financial resources, RCBO could not shoulder the burden o...

1 arrested after woman shot at DC post office

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

A woman is in the hospital after being shot in the parking lot of a postal facility in Northeast D.C. Monday morning.D.C. police told WTOP the shooting happened before 9:30 a.m. on the U.S. Post Office on Brentwood Road.One woman was shot and taken to the hospital. She is “conscious and breathing,” police said.One person — another woman — was taken into police custody. It is unclear if she is the shooter.Police did not say if the women work at the facility.This is a developing story. Stay with WTOP for the latest. Source

Ishbia hopes no punishment from NBA for Nuggets’ Jokic

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

DENVER (AP) — The Denver Nuggets remain hopeful that center Nikola Jokic receives no additional punishment by the league after he made contact in the stands with Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia.Ishbia feels the same way.From his Twitter account Monday, Ishbia praised his team’s performance and urged no further disciplinary action for the Nuggets two-time NBA MVP. “Great win for the Suns last night in an amazing series so far!” Ishbia posted. “That should be and is the only story. Suspending or fining anyone over last nights incident would not be right. I have alot of respect for Jokic and don’t want to see anything like that. Excited for game 5! Go Suns!”A fine from the league could be in line for Jokic. Or no punishment at all. But a suspension isn’t out of the realm of possibility, either, with the second-round series moving back to Denver for Game 5 on Tuesday night tied at 2-2 after both teams won at home.Nuggets coach Michael Malone is scheduled to address the media on Mond...

Judge: Wisconsin fake electors complaint must be reheard

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A Wisconsin judge said Monday he will order that the state elections commission reconsider a complaint filed against fake Republican electors who attempted in 2020 to cast the state’s electoral ballots for former President Donald Trump.But this time, Dane County Circuit Judge Frank Remington said, the commission must consider the complaint without the participation of one of its six commissioners who was also one of the fake electors.The Wisconsin Elections Commission, Republican commissioner Robert Spindell and those who brought the lawsuit ultimately all agreed that the complaint should be heard again without Spindell’s participation. Given that agreement, Remington said during oral arguments on Monday that he would write a written order as soon as next week to vacate the commission’s unanimous rejection in March 2022 of the complaint against the fake electors and to require it to consider it again without Spindell.“Surprise, surprise, I̵...

Sports on TV for Tuesday, May 9

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:14:29 GMT

(All times Eastern)Schedule subject to change and/or blackoutsTuesday, May 9COLLEGE BASEBALL6 p.m.ESPN2 — Vanderbilt at Louisville8 p.m.PAC-12N — BYU at UtahCOLLEGE GOLF4:30 p.m.GOLF — The PGA WORKS Collegiate Championships: Second Round, Shoal Creek Club & Bent Brook Golf Course, Shoal Creek, Ala.COLLEGE SOFTBALL7:30 p.m.SECN — Southeastern Tournament: Missouri vs. Mississippi St., First Round, Fayetteville, Ark.LACROSSE (MEN’S)7 p.m.ESPNU — Premier Lacrosse League Draft: From Bristol, Conn.MLB BASEBALL7 p.m.TBS — Boston at Atlanta9:30 p.m.MLBN — Regional Coverage: Houston at LA Angels OR Miami at ArizonaNBA BASKETBALL7:30 p.m.TNT — Eastern Conference Semifinal: Philadelphia at Boston, Game 510 p.m.TNT — Western Conference Semifinal: Phoenix at Denver, Game 5NHL HOCKEY7 p.m.ESPN — Eastern Conference Semifinal: Carolina at New Jersey, Game 49:30 p.m.ESPN — Western Conference Semifinal: Dallas at Seattle, Game 4SOCCER (MEN’S)3 p.m.CBS — UEFA Champions League: Manchester City at R...