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Can Taylor Swift songs bring Congress together? One LA woman’s quest

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

A Taylor Swift fan most of her life, it’s never long after meeting someone for the first time that 21-year-old Los Angeles native Shaadi Ahmadzadeh launches into the question always on her mind: what’s your favorite Swift song?Now the UC Berkeley data science major is turning the passion she can’t stop gushing about into a vehicle for bridging political differences, and even saving lives.On the opening night of the Eras Tour’s six-show stop at SoFi Stadium, Ahmadzadeh celebrated her 21st birthday with friend Marianna Pecora — their first Swift concert.Wearing a “It’s been fun turning 21” shirt — a play on “All Too Well” lyrics — the pair belted out ballads next to strangers, sobbed out their private heartaches along with tens of thousands, danced to exhaustion.“It was just pure artistry and a magical atmosphere,” Ahmadzadeh said. “It was a life-changing, spiritual moment — I literally died and went to heaven and I’m still there.”Swift’s pure, emotionally powerful songwriting and the...

As prices rise, some restaurants see fewer customers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

Alejandro Martinez says sales at his Winter Springs restaurant, Stefano’s Trattoria, aren’t growing like they have since he bought the place in 2014.Since Easter, he said, they are either slightly down year-over-year or only slightly up, depending on the day, not at the 6% to 10% growth he’s seen in the past few years.And while his sales remain higher than in 2019 before the coronavirus pandemic transformed the restaurant industry, more expensive food costs and higher wages for employees have cut into profits. Martinez said after buying the restaurant he didn’t raise his menu prices for five years, but he has had to increase them three times since 2021 to cover higher costs.Restaurants across the country are continuing to raise prices and reporting fewer customers coming in the doors.In the National Restaurant Association’s June restaurant performance index, 57% of operators reported a decline in traffic from last June. This was the third straight month of decline, leading the assoc...

Mayo Clinic Minute: Building a back-to-school routine

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

DeeDee Stiepan | (TNS) Mayo Clinic News NetworkFor many kids, summer is a time to stay up late, sleep in and hang out with friends. Waking up for that first day of a new school year can be a shock if young children, teenagers, parents or caregivers have not come up with a routine.In this Mayo Clinic Minute, Dr. Stephen Whiteside, a Mayo Clinic child psychologist, offers some tips for getting into a back-to-school routine.Transitioning from a laid-back summer schedule to the structure of a new school year doesn’t have to be a rude awakening. Dr. Whiteside says developing routines for morning, bedtime and any other recurring event can make things run more smoothly at home and at school.“Routines are a natural part of life and just very straightforward, provide structure, help kids predict and expect what’s going to happen,” says Dr. Whiteside.One way to help make the transition a little smoother is to give your family time to ease into the new routine.“Ta...

Police investigation closes stretch of Bloor Street, affects subway service

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

A Toronto police investigation has closed a stretch of Bloor Street East in both directions between Broadview Avenue and Drumsnab Road, just west of Bayview Avenue. Police say northbound lanes of Bayview are closed at Rosedale Valley Road and the southbound lanes of Bayview are closed at the Don Valley Parkway (DVP) exit. Police are warning drivers to expect delays. The TTC says there’s currently no subway service between Broadview and St. George stations in connection to the same police probe. No further details were immediately available. More to come

Mexico investigates 4th killing at Tijuana hotel frequented by American accused of killing 3 women

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Mexican officials say they are investigating the death of a fourth woman at a Tijuana hotel frequented by a California man who is the subject of extradition proceedings to face charges in connection with the killings of at least three women in the border city across from San Diego.Former Baja California Attorney General Ricardo Iván Carpio Sánchez said the case shared similarities to the other three killings and authorities are seeing if there is any tie to Bryant Rivera. The resident of Los Angeles suburb Downey was arrested July 6 on a femicide charge in the strangulation death of Angela Carolina Acosta Flores, whose body was found in a hotel room in Tijuana on Jan. 25, 2022.Mexican officials have said once Rivera is extradited, they plan to present evidence to add charges for the deaths of two more women in Tijuana, including new evidence found when Rivera was arrested in California.The Associated Press sent an email and left a voice message with Rivera’s defense...

The origins of special counsels, their powers and what to expect in the Hunter Biden probe

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

The appointment of a special counsel to oversee the Justice Department’s probe of Hunter Biden is bringing renewed attention on the role such prosecutors have played in modern American history.On Friday, Attorney General Merrick Garland tapped David Weiss, the U.S. attorney in Delaware who has been probing the financial and business dealings of the president’s son, to oversee the department’s investigation. He said Weiss asked to be appointed to the position and told him that “in his judgment, his investigation has reached a stage at which he should continue his work,” now as special counsel.In January, Garland appointed Robert Hur, a former U.S. attorney in Maryland, to oversee the department’s investigation into how several batches of documents marked as classified ended up at Joe Biden’s Delaware home and at the offices of the president’s Washington think tank.And last year, Garland appointed former Justice Department public corruption prosecutor Jack Smith to lead in...

Man wanted for assault, threatening to kill woman and teenage girl

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

Toronto police are searching for a man wanted in the alleged assault of a woman and two incidents of the suspect threatening to kill the victim and a teenage girl.Police responded to a call for an assault in the Finch Avenue West and Islington Avenue area near Rexdale around 10 p.m. on July 26.The suspect allegedly assaulted and threatened to kill a woman and a teenage girl at their residence. The suspect and victims are known to each other, police said.Investigators issued an arrest warrant for the male suspect.On Wednesday, just before 5:30 p.m., police responded to a call at the same residence. It’s alleged the male suspect attended the victim’s residence and once again threatened to kill the victim.Authorities have identified the suspect as 38-year-old Franklyn Nelson of Pickering.Nelson is wanted on multiple charges, including two counts of assault, assault causing bodily harm, two counts of uttering death threats, two counts of assault/choking and criminal harassme...

New storm forecast increases risk for hurricane season in Atlantic Canada

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

The head of the Canadian Hurricane Centre says a new forecast that more storms than average are expected in the Atlantic Ocean this season increases the chances that one will hit Canada.Chris Fogarty says the primary reason for the new estimate from United States officials is higher than normal ocean temperatures.The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday that rising ocean temperatures and the slow arrival of the calming effects of El Niño have doubled the chances of an above-normal hurricane season.Fogarty says the warmer water could help storms keep their intensity over a longer period of time in Eastern Canada during the 2023 hurricane season, which officially runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.U.S. forecasters say there could be 14 to 21 named storms — an increase from the 12 to 17 forecast in May — and they predict six to 11 will become hurricanes.Fogarty says the U.S. estimate is a statistical outlook and forecasters can’t offer specific information on hurrican...

Denver house explodes and partially collapses, hospitalizing 1

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

DENVER (AP) — An explosion caused a multifamily house in Denver to partially collapse, sending one person to the hospital with minor injuries, authorities said.Natural gas was the suspected cause of the blast, the Denver Fire Department said Friday. Officials continued to investigate. The Thursday evening explosion didn’t trigger a fire but turned the building’s lawn and a chunk of the building into a rubble pile, said fire department spokesman John Chism. Responding firefighters had to crawl over a pile of beams and blown-out window frames, pink insulation and household items, fire department photos show. “It blew up and out, and then all we are left with is a pile of rubble and debris that hadn’t ignited because of how fast that explosion took place,” said Chism.One man caught in the collapse crawled down the stairs and then up and over the rubble, said Chism. Others escaped without serious injury, he said. People from the house and adjacent apartments were displaced b...

Texas questions rights of a fetus after a prison guard who had a stillborn baby sues

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:42:15 GMT

DALLAS (AP) — The state of Texas is questioning the legal rights of an “unborn child” in arguing against a lawsuit brought by a prison guard who says she had a stillborn baby because prison officials refused to let her leave work for more than two hours after she began feeling intense pains similar to contractions.The argument from the Texas attorney general’s office appears to be in tension with positions it has previously taken in defending abortion restrictions, contending all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court that “unborn children” should be recognized as people with legal rights. It also contrasts with statements by Texas’ Republican leaders, including Gov. Greg Abbott, who has touted the state’s abortion ban as protecting “every unborn child with a heartbeat.”The state attorney general’s office did not immediately respond to questions about its argument in a court filing that an “unborn child” may not have rights under the U.S. Constitution. In March...