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Legos, Barbie and Hot Wheels among most popular toys this holiday season, survey says

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

The holiday shopping season begins in earnest later this week with clothing, gift cards and toys at the top of many’s lists.A survey for the National Retail Federation found that 74% of consumers plan to shop over the five-day Thanksgiving holiday weekend.The survey found 56% of consumers said that clothing is on their holiday shopping list, 44% said they would be buying gift cards and 37% said that toys are in their shopping plans.Some shoppers strolling by storefronts on Bethesda Avenue in Bethesda, Maryland, on Monday evening said their shopping plans will include a mix of both online purchases and store visits.“I would go online first … try to get any good bargains and deals and then second … to finish off the shopping, I would wait until the last minute and try to pick up everything else that I didn’t get,” said Tiya Cross, of Bethesda, who said his holiday shopping list includes four children plus grandchildren.Legos, Barbie and Hot Wheels a...

NFL teams should take stock of Jerry Jones finally letting Jimmy Johnson into Cowboys ring of fame

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

With Jerry Jones finally letting Jimmy Johnson into the Dallas Cowboys ring of honor next month, it’s time to take stock of any remaining glaring omissions by NFL teams that give esteemed organization figures their flowers by naming them to their hall of fame, ring of honor or other circle of celebration.Men like Larry Fitzgerald, Tony Gonzalez, Bernie Kosar and Demaryius Thomas.Teams all have their own protocols, processes, criteria and even waiting periods for these honors. Some of the exclusions aren’t necessarily oversights or miscalculations and many may follow in Johnson’s footsteps soon enough.Jones announced Sunday that Johnson will go into the Cowboys ring of honor on Dec. 30 when the Cowboys host the Detroit Lions.Johnson led the Cowboys to back-to-back Super Bowls in the 1992 and 1993 seasons during his five-year tenure in Dallas, but the relationship between the two men who played football together at Arkansas in the 1960s deteriorated with a bitter feu...

Denver weather: Sunny, mild before Black Friday snow

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — Sunshine is back across most of the state on Tuesday with more seasonal temperatures. A cooldown and snow chances arrive by the end of the week in the Denver weather forecast.Weather today: Plenty of sunshineTuesday looks great across the Front Range with mainly sunny skies and seasonal highs in the lower 50s. What to expect from the Black Friday snowstorm in Denver The wind could pick up a bit in the afternoon, but it won't be as breezy as Monday.Pinpoint Weather: Daily forecast on Nov. 21 Weather tonight: Keeping it clearSkies stay mostly clear Tuesday night with a light breeze lingering. Low temperatures will dip just below freezing in the lower 30s.Pinpoint Weather: Overnight forecast on Nov. 21 Looking ahead: Black Friday snow and cooler tempsPlenty of sunshine is expected on Wednesday afternoon with a few extra clouds. Highs on Wednesday will be the warmest of the week with temperatures in the middle 60s. Clouds build in quickly and stick around on Thanksgiv...

Denver airport parking: Lots open Tuesday morning

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — The biggest travel week of the year is upon us, and the 785,000 travelers expected to travel through Denver International Airport's TSA checkpoints will mean an influx of cars parking at the airport.The busiest travel days are projected to be Wednesday, Nov. 22 and Sunday, Nov. 26, and travelers should be prepared to spend extra time parking and getting a shuttle to the airport. 5 tips for surviving holiday travel at Denver International Airport On Monday, lots like Economy East and Pikes Peak were at full capacity. However, many are back open on Tuesday.As of 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 21, almost all the lots were open.Economy East: OpenEconomy West: OpenPikes Peak Lot: OpenLongs Peak Lot: Closed Garage East: OpenGarage West: Open61st and Pena: OpenWhile the Longs Peak Lot is currently listed as closed, DIA's holiday travel guidelines said it will be open. Denver International Airport prepares for busy holiday travel week Free shuttle buses from the Pikes Peak and...

‘All I wanted to do was live’: After years of debate, a suicide safety net for the Golden Gate Bridge is nearing completion. Survivors say it’ll give many a 2nd chance at life

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

On September 25, 2000, Kevin Hines climbed over the rail of the Golden Gate Bridge.White fog hung below the gray skies that day. He recalled looking down at the rough, green waters below moments before he did the unthinkable: He jumped.“My hands left the rail and I had an instantaneous regret for my actions,” Hines told CNN.Hines fell 220 feet at a speed of 75 miles per hour – “equivalent to a pedestrian being struck by a car that is traveling that fast,” according to the Bridge Rail Foundation, a nonprofit working to prevent suicides on the bridge.During the 4-second fall, Hines said the feeling of depression left his mind, and was replaced by a survival urge he described as almost instinctual.“And at that time, all I wanted to do was live.”After he was rescued from the water, Hines needed three vertebrae replaced with a titanium metal plate and pins, ultimately undergoing four and half weeks of recovery. And in the years since, Hines has been traveling the world to share his rare ...

Germany freezes spending as budget crisis deepens

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

BERLIN — Germany’s finance ministry has imposed a spending freeze on all federal ministries, deepening a budget crisis that has rocked the ruling coalition since a bombshell ruling by the country’s top court last week.The finance ministry decision, which halts most new spending authorizations, followed a ruling by the constitutional court last week that blew a €60 billion hole in the government’s coffers. The government is now bracing for the potential of far wider financial implications stemming from the ruling that may limit its ability to draw money from a variety of special funds that have been established to circumvent the country’s debt brake, which restricts the federal deficit to 0.35 percent of GDP, except in times of emergency.In a letter to all ministries, State Secretary Werner Gatzer said the finance ministry is freezing spending “in order to avoid further upfront burdens on future financial years.” The step does not impact t...

Canton votes to hire independent investigator to examine police department

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

Canton voted to authorize an investigation and audit of its police department at a special town meeting Monday night.The special town meeting was called after residents organized to express concerns about transparency in the department.Authorized by Monday’s vote, a committee comprised of two members of both the select board and the police department, two representatives of the citizen organizers who called for the vote, and three town residents will work to hire an independent investigator to look into department operations.

MBCA announces latest class of inductees into the State Baseball Hall of Fame

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

The Massachusetts Baseball Coaches Association (MBCA) announced the latest inductees into its Hall of Fame.The group consists of Charlie Eppinger (St. John’s Shrewsbury), Kirk Fredericks (Lincoln-Sudbury and Wellesley), John O’Brien (Lynnfield) and Steve Wilson (Harwich and Monomoy).The annual MBCA Clinic and Convention is being held Friday and Saturday, January 26-27 at the Four Points Sheraton Hotel in Wakefield. he Hall of Banquet and Induction Ceremony will be held on Saturday, January 27 at the Four Points Sheraton Ballroom. Social Reception is at 5:30 p.m. and dinner is served at 6:30 p.m.Ticket information is available on the MBCA website at massbca.com. No tickets will be sold at the door.

UN warns food aid for 1.4 million refugees in Chad could end over limited funding

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Food assistance to 1.4 million refugees in Chad who fled the conflict in parts of the Sahel could end because of limited funding, the United Nations food agency warned Tuesday.Most of the refugees escaped the war in Sudan and crossed into Chad in the last six months in numbers not seen in the last 20 years, the U.N.’s World Food Program said in a statement. “This forgotten crisis has metastasized as the world’s eyes are on other emergencies … We cannot let the world stand and allow our life-saving operations grind to a halt in Chad,” said Pierre Honnorat, WFP’s country director in Chad.Sudan plunged into conflict in April when long-simmering tensions escalated between the country’s military and the rival Rapid Support Forces, resulting in the death of more than 5,000 people and displacement of at least 5.2 million people amid reports of mass killings, rapes, and widespread destruction, according to the U.N.Many of the displaced found their way to neighboring Ch...

NATO head says violence in Kosovo unacceptable while calling for constructive dialogue with Serbia

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 13:57:27 GMT

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday that the recent violent outbreaks in Kosovo were unacceptable and perpetrators must be brought to justice.“I count on all sides to reduce tensions and to refrain from escalatory actions,” he said during a visit to Serbia’s capital Belgrade, after his stops in Bosnia and Kosovo, on the second day of his trip in Western Balkans, Stoltenberg’s trip reflects Western concerns over the stability of the volatile Balkan region that went through a series of wars in the 1990s. Serbia and Kosovo witnessed a spike in tension following two violent incidents in May and September as the war raged in Ukraine. Western allies fear Russia could try to spur Balkan trouble to avert attention from its aggression on Ukraine.In May, Serb demonstrators in northern Kosovo clashed with NATO peacekeeping troops. In September, a Kosovo policeman and three Serb gunmen were killed in a shootout after about 30 masked men opene...