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Thoughtful gift ideas for graduates at each stage

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

Graduation is an extra special milestone – the end of one phase of life, an accomplishment, and the precipice of an unknown future, all rolled into one. Loved ones know their graduates best and these gift suggestions will show your support and encouragement.A candy and cash lei is a fun graduation gift idea for young children. (Photo by Darleene Powells/MediaNews Group)Elementary and middle schoolConsider making a candy-and-cash lei. Flower lei are now ubiquitous at high school and college graduations, but the cost of fresh tropical flowers for such lei can make them less suitable for young children. DIY lei with candy, cash, satin ribbons, charms, or other age-appropriate items are much more fun for kids.Clear, poly plastic tubing that will hold your candy of choice can be difficult to find, but there are sellers on eBay who are reliable and won’t force you to buy 1,000 feet at a time. Clear gift cellophane and saran wrap can also work in a pinch. Any type of snack-size candy packa...

German railway union calls off planned 50-hour strike

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

The German railway union EVG has called off a 50-hour planned strike that was to occur from Sunday (14 May) to today (16 May). This announcement came after state train operator Deutsche Bahn took the matter before a court.Deutsche Bahn filed an urgent application with a Frankfurt-am-Main labour court on Saturday, arguing that the planned strike is disproportionate and harmful to non-involved parties.Deutsche Bahn released a statement after the hearing that the EVG ended the strike, and both parties agreed to continue negotiations.The EVG is negotiating for 230,000 workers including 180,000 at Deutsche Bahn. They are seeking a 12% increase in wages or an extra 650 euros per month.Deutsche Bahn offers 10% to workers with lower and middle-incomes and 8% to those who earn more, but will phase these increases in over time.

Single-family house sells for $1.8 million in Danville

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

1398 Brookside Drive – Google Street ViewA spacious house located in the 1300 block of Brookside Drive in Danville has new owners. The 2,308-square-foot property, built in 1966, was sold on April 20, 2023. The $1,775,000 purchase price works out to $769 per square foot. The property features four bedrooms, three baths, an attached garage, and two parking spaces. It sits on a 10,476-square-foot lot.Additional houses that have recently been sold close by include:A 2,431-square-foot home on the first block of Mustang Court in Danville sold in March 2023, for $1,845,000, a price per square foot of $759. The home has 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Harlan Drive, Danville, in August 2022, a 2,333-square-foot home was sold for $1,930,000, a price per square foot of $827. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In July 2022, a 2,453-square-foot home on Greenbrook Drive in Danville sold for $1,700,000, a price per square foot of $693. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. 

Reportan “pérdida de vidas a gran escala” en los campamentos y aldeas rohingya tras el ciclón Mocha

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

(CNN) — Se ha producido una “pérdida de vidas a gran escala” en los campamentos y pueblos rohingya cercanos a Sittwe, en el estado de Rakhine (Myanmar), tras el paso del ciclón Mocha el domingo, según la ONG Partners Relief & Development.Brad Hazlett, presidente de la ONG Partners Relief & Development, declaró por teléfono a CNN que una aldea en la que trabajaban desde hacía un año “quedó totalmente destruida por el ciclón y al menos 20 personas perdieron la vida allí”.El ciclón Mocha azota la costa de Bangladesh y MyanmarAñadió que las cifras de víctimas mortales compartidas en Internet varían significativamente y que su organización no podía dar un número exacto.“La red telefónica sigue siendo inestable, las carreteras están bloqueadas y al menos un puente de hormigón fue arrasado, por lo que es difícil confirmar las cifras”, declaró a CNN. “Hemos oído que muchas personas siguen desaparecidas o pueden estar bajo los refugios ...

CIA to Russians: Come spy for us

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

“Do you have information about the economy or the top leadership of the Russian Federation? Get in touch with us.”That’s the message the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is sending to Russians who would be willing to spy for the U.S.In a Russian-language video published on its Telegram channel — created for the occasion — overnight, the U.S. foreign intelligence service targets those who are fed up with life in President Vladimir Putin’s Russia.“Is this the life I dreamed of?” the video says, showing a man and a woman, both bureaucrats with piles of paper on their desks, disillusioned by life at home and at work, with emotional music playing in the background.The clip ends with both of them contacting the CIA on their smartphones.“The CIA wants to know the truth about #Russia, and we are looking for reliable people who know and can tell us that truth,” the agency said in a statement published with the video, urging Russians to “...

Hong Kong leader says China’s sentencing of US citizen exposes national security threats

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s leader on Tuesday said the sentencing on spying charges of a U.S. citizen in China, who was also a permanent resident of the semi-autonomous city, illustrated that the territory should “stay vigilant to national security risks hidden in society.” The government said mainland Chinese authorities had informed Hong Kong of the arrest of John Shing-Wan Leung in 2021. He was sentenced Monday to life in prison. Hong Kong’s government was prepared to provide assistance to anyone arrested by mainland authorities upon request but had not yet received any in Leung’s case, authorities said. Neither Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee nor the court in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou that tried Leung, 78, have released details of his alleged crime. Since taking office last year, Lee has taken a hard line toward any signs of dissent, backed up by the uncompromising attitude adopted by Chinese leaders from authoritarian Communist Party head Xi Jinping on ...

Stock market today: World shares mixed after China economic data weaker than expected

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

European shares were trading mostly higher after a mixed session in Asia following the release of data showing China’s economy is weaker than expected, with domestic demand failing to bounce back as much as hoped for after the pandemic. Benchmarks rose in Paris, London and Tokyo but fell in Shanghai and Sydney. U.S. futures edged lower and oil prices logged moderate gains.On Tuesday, the government will report how much sales at retailers across the U.S. grew last month.Germany’s DAX edged 0.1% higher to 15,928.83 and in London the FTSE 100 added 0.2% to 7,788.41. The CAC 40 in Paris shed 0.1% to 7,412.41. The future for the S&P 500 was unchanged while that for the Dow industrials fell 0.1%. China’s economic recovery after the pandemic faces pressure from sluggish consumer and export demand, a government official said Tuesday, with retail sales and other activity in April weaker than expected.Retail sales rose 18.4% over a year earlier, up 7.8 percentage points from March, ...

Trudeau heads to Asia for weeklong trip : In The News for May 16

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what’s on the radar of our editors for the morning of May 16 …What we are watching in Canada …Prime Minister Justin Trudeau left Monday evening for a weeklong trip to Asia, where he will make his first official visit to South Korea and attend the G7 leaders’ summit in Japan. The trip comes at a time when the world is collectively facing security threats and economic uncertainty magnified by climate change. The government plane left from Ottawa on Monday afternoon, but Trudeau was not on board. He first visited Edmonton to meet with members of the Canadian military who are helping fight wildfires in Alberta. Trudeau boarded for Seoul in Anchorage, Alaska, during a refuelling stop Monday evening. The prime minister is expected to be in Seoul from Tuesday to Thursday, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s visit to Ottawa last fall. Since t...

B.C. wildfires put all of Fort St. John on alert, nearby areas on evacuation order

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

Wildfires have prompted the City of Fort St. John, B.C., to tell all of its roughly 21,000 residents to get ready to leave on short notice, while the Peace River Regional District has issued an evacuation order for a large rural area to the north.The Stoddart Creek wildfire discovered on Saturday has grown to 130 square kilometres in size, and the BC Wildfire Service says it continues to spread.The nearby Red Creek fire measures about 29 square kilometres, and the service says human activity is the suspected cause of both out-of-control blazes.Doig River First Nation north of Fort St. John has issued an evacuation order, telling residents to leave right away — although its bulletin urges people to stay calm, saying the community is not in imminent danger and the order is a precaution.An unusual May heat wave has spurred rising wildfire risks in both B.C. and Alberta, with close to 40 communities breaking daily high temperature records on Sunday.Environment Canada heat warnings and a...

Justice Minister David Lametti set to reveal plans to reform bail system

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:28:58 GMT

OTTAWA — Justice Minister David Lametti is set to make an announcement this afternoon about how his government plans to reform Canada’s bail system, after months of calls for tougher laws from premiers, police and opposition. He is scheduled to hold a news conference with a number of cabinet colleagues, including Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino and Mental Health and Addictions Minister Carolyn Bennett.Proposed changes to the Criminal Code come amid pressure from the provinces and territories to reduce the number of repeat violent offenders who are granted bail. A number of high-profile cases have brought attention to the issue, including the recent stabbing deaths of a woman and her daughter in Edmonton, which police say were committed by a man who was on bail at the time.The federal Conservatives say that’s the result of what they call a “catch-and-release” system, and have been publicly calling for stronger laws. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms gu...