Two employees of a New Brighton auto-repair shop broke down the door of a burning house near their business Monday and rescued two French bulldogs trapped inside. “I’m really thankful,” said dog owner Eric Stephens. “I told them if they needed any cool dogs to hang out as mascots at their shop, they can use ours,” he said. Paul Hetland, 49, a service manager, and Justin Crow, 32, a technician, were working on a car in the Garage of New Brighton about 9:30 a.m. when they noticed that the back lot appeared hazy and foggy. “It was like a dense fog,” Crow said. “You couldn’t really smell it inside the shop yet, but when we walked outside, we could smell it was a fire.” The men thought one of the townhouses bordering the shop’s lot was on fire, so they went to take a look. They followed the smoke to 1278 Robin Lane, a single-family home, and saw fire in the upper attic window. A neighbor woman shouted to the men that there … [Read more...] about A burning house, a dog in the window and a heroic rescue by two New Brighton mechanics
U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, wife indicted on corruption charges. He was among first to endorse Trump.
SAN DIEGO — U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter and his wife were charged Tuesday with using more than $250,000 in campaign funds to finance family trips to Italy and Hawaii, golf outings, school tuition, theater tickets — even fast food purchases — and attempting to disguise the illegal spending in federal records, prosecutors said. A 48-page federal indictment depicts the couple as binge spenders who over eight years pocketed a steady stream of dollars intended for campaign purposes, while their household budget was awash in red ink. Prosecutors said the couple tried to conceal the spending, which ranged from the banal to lavish, by falsifying records. In March 2015, Hunter told his wife he wanted to buy “Hawaii shorts” but ran out of money, the indictment said. She told him he should buy them at a golf pro shop so they could later describe the purchase as “some (golf) balls for the wounded warriors,” according to court documents. “The Hunters … [Read more...] about U.S. Rep. Duncan Hunter, wife indicted on corruption charges. He was among first to endorse Trump.
St. Paul school board ‘pleased’ with superintendent after stormy first year
Superintendent Joe Gothard got a favorable performance review but no pay raise after his first year leading St. Paul Public Schools. “Overall, the board is pleased with the work of the superintendent and has confidence in his leadership,” school board chairwoman Zuki Ellis said. Gothard, whose salary is $232,000, does not have automatic pay raises in his three-year contract. He told board members during his review that he was not seeking a raise this year, citing the district’s financial woes. “He took it off the table and we honored that,” board member Jon Schumacher said. Among Gothard’s missteps last year, he opted not to call off school ahead of a midday snowstorm in January. Thirty buses crashed or got stuck in the snow that day and more than 300 students arrived home after 10 p.m., district officials said. Ellis said Tuesday that Gothard’s response to criticism that week “demonstrated his ability to accept responsibility and learn … [Read more...] about St. Paul school board ‘pleased’ with superintendent after stormy first year
Fed criticism drives dollar to eight-week low against yen
Neil Wilson, the chief market analyst at Capital.com, said in an email on Tuesday morning: "Trump's not thrilled with the Fed raising rates".At the Southampton fundraiser hosted by Howard Lorber Friday, President Trump lamented that his pick for Federal Reserve chair has raised interest rates.Trump and National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow have both called on Powell to ease off rate hikes to keep the booming economy growing and dismissed concerns about inflation. "I should be given some help by the Fed".Most analysts think that Trump's criticism will have little effect on the Fed's rate-hike plans, given the US central bank's legal independence.Recent presidents have largely avoided criticising the Fed, trying to preserve the bank's independence and its credibility with financial markets, foreign governments and the public.Trump selected Powell for the job previous year from a short list of several prominent central bankers, praising Powell for his "wisdom" and "leadership" … [Read more...] about Fed criticism drives dollar to eight-week low against yen
Buttler and Stokes battle back but India remain in control
But no side have made more to win in the fourth innings of a Test than the West Indies' 7-418 against Australia at St John's, Antigua, in 2003.Kohli hit 103 for his second hundred of the series - after 149 in the first test at Edgbaston - to go with his 97 in the first innings.After the third day of Trent Bridge Test against England, the talks of Pandya being compared with Indian legend Kapil Dev (the all-rounder who led India to their first ever CWC triumph in 1983) once again got some pace.Kohli was entirely unhurried over his 23rd Test century as he and Cheteshwar Pujara, with 72, batted the hosts into apparent oblivion.England will need to bat for more than two days to save the third Test after India declared with a lead of 520 at Trent Bridge.England's woes increased when wicket-keeper and leading batsman Jonny Bairstow left the field after failing to gather a swinging Anderson delivery.Buttler and Stokes did well to survive a few anxious moments even as the stand-in England … [Read more...] about Buttler and Stokes battle back but India remain in control
Air quality reaches hazardous levels in Spokane
Unsurprisingly, Metro Vancouver's air quality advisory remains in effect moving into the new week.Organizers said that the Tuxedo Junction concert, scheduled to take place at the Arbor Crest Wine Cellars Sunday, had been canceled due to the air quality.Air across the region is considered very unhealthy for everyone, according to the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency.Smoke originated from BC's 600-plus wildfires burning is making it's way out east, with Alberta and Saskatchewan issusing similar alerts.Smoke from B.C. wildfires can be seen more than one million kilometres away from Earth, and the province's communities are dealing with some of the worst air quality on the planet.Children, elderly folks and people with respiratory illness could experience scratchy throats, itchy eyes and coughs. The air quality level is expected to reach into unhealthy for sensitive groups.Wildfire smoke blankets downtown Vancouver on Monday morning.The air quality in parts of Seattle is now worse than … [Read more...] about Air quality reaches hazardous levels in Spokane
Trump’s clean energy plan lowers costs for all Americans: EPA’s Andrew Wheeler
The Trump administration signaled Monday it is intent on removing some Obama-era environmental rules by signing a proposal that would soften regulations on coal-burning power plants.The EPA must take comment on the proposal for the next 60 days, and environmental groups are sure to fight it.The Environmental Protection Agency called the regulations on coal power plants "overly prescriptive and burdensome" in the proposal to roll-back the former president's climate-change initiative.Trump, who is expected to tout the plan at a rally Tuesday night in West Virginia, loves what he has called "beautiful, clean coal" and has launched a widespread effort to save the energy source from disappearing from the US energy mix.Obama's plan was created to cut United States carbon dioxide emissions to 32 percent below 2005 levels by 2030. Republican attorneys general and coal industry groups filed lawsuits to block the plan, calling it an overreach of federal power, and in 2016 the Supreme Court voted … [Read more...] about Trump’s clean energy plan lowers costs for all Americans: EPA’s Andrew Wheeler
Daniel Murphy Reportedly Claimed Off Waivers
The Cardinals have claimed first baseman Matt Adams off waivers from the Nationals, the team announced Tuesday.So who was the mystery team who claimed Washington Nationals second baseman Daniel Murphy on waivers?Schwarber has hit two home runs in his last three games, but the Cubs have scored four runs - all on home runs - in their last four games, in which they were 0-for-17 with runners in scoring position.Cardinals infielder Matt Carpenter is clearly excited to have Adams back, as he tweeted that he is going to "bathe" Adams in his salsa. Murphy, 33, has only featured in 56 games this season due to injury, but he's now slashing.300/.341/.442 with six home runs, 29 RBIs and 17 runs scored. Washington is six and a half games out of a postseason position and is 3-7 in its last 10 games.The Cardinals drafted Adams in the 23rd round of the June 2009 First-Year Player Draft. During 486 games with St. Louis, Adams hit.271 with 56 home runs.Infielder Patrick Wisdom was optioned to the … [Read more...] about Daniel Murphy Reportedly Claimed Off Waivers
Google Redesigns Fit, Adds New Features
Google Fit is not a new feature in itself, but the company behind the health and fitness platform has made a decision to give it a pretty big update that also brings new features.The technology firm has announced a new version of its Google Fit app that works on smartphones and wearables.Google has begun rolling out what it says is the biggest update to Google Fit since its launch in 2014, taking the lid off a redesign of the Google Fit app for Android and the Fit section inside Wear OS. To give users incentive to get moving, the new Google Fit system pins achievements on points and minutes.Fit has got a little long in the tooth while competing platforms like Apple Health and Fitbit have been bulking up. Move Minutes are earned for any physical activity you partake in, including a brisk walk, jogging, yoga, etc.Google has worked with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and American Heart Association (AHA) to create its new metrics. Instead, the app has two main goals for you to … [Read more...] about Google Redesigns Fit, Adds New Features
Microsoft Store To Stop Accepting Windows 8 And Windows Phone 8 Apps
On Monday, Microsoft announced that it'll stop accepting new app submissions for Windows Phone 8.x or earlier on October 31, 2018. This means that from this date Microsoft Store will soon stop accepting new apps with Windows Phone 8.x or earlier or Windows 8/8.1 packages (XAP and APPX). Sadly, Windows 10 Mobile was a costly flop, and ultimately led to Microsoft's exit from the mobile market.Microsoft a year ago announced that it would not release any new features for Windows 10 Mobile, and HP has also discontinued the Elite X3, one of two Windows 10 phones still for sale on Microsoft's website. There are also new Insider test builds of its "Redstone 5" Windows client and Server and Patch Tuesday fixes for many Win 10 variants. Apparently, Microsoft will launch a major 3.0 update for Sticky Note on Windows 10 very soon, which will include a dark mode, improved performance and accessibility, as well as a new formatting bar.On July 1, 2023, the same will happen to devices running Windows … [Read more...] about Microsoft Store To Stop Accepting Windows 8 And Windows Phone 8 Apps