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Bridge: Sept. 25, 2023

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

“Avoidance” is declarer’s technique of preventing a “dangerous” defender — one who can make a damaging lead — from getting in.Today’s South opens 1NT, and North-South reach 3NT with a routine Stayman sequence. West leads a low heart, and East plays the ten. Declarer wins with the jack and knows that West is lurking with the A-Q and more hearts, and if East gets in, bad things may happen.South has eight top tricks: a heart in the bag, four clubs, a diamond and two spades. He needs a third spade and must set up dummy’s fourth spade without letting East win a trick.LUCKY LIESouth needs a lucky lie of the spades as well as correct play. At Trick Two he leads a spade, and when West follows with the four, South wins in dummy, returns a club to his hand and leads a second spade.If West plays the ten, declarer takes the king and leads a third spade to West. If West were to play the queen on the second (or first) spade lead, dummy would p...

Horoscopes Sept. 25, 2023: Will Smith, refuse to be caught up in someone else’s dreams

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Donald Glover Jr., 40; Catherine Zeta-Jones, 54; Will Smith, 55; Michael Douglas, 79.Happy Birthday: Take control; it’s up to you to start the ball rolling. Use your imagination and let your passion to succeed drive you to the finish line. Refuse to be caught up in someone else’s dreams. Think big, but don’t lose sight of taking a minimalist approach when making a move. Trust your instincts and enjoy the ride. Your numbers are 2, 8, 14, 26, 31, 33, 46.ARIES (March 21-April 19): You’ll resonate with people who are excited and ready to act. Do your part and you’ll gain respect from others. Set high standards and live up to your expectations, and something good will come your way. Romance looks promising. 4 starsTAURUS (April 20-May 20): Take care of yourself. Don’t let temptation turn into a costly affair. Put emotions aside and offer what’s tangible. It’s not up to you to save the world. Do your part, but n...

Ask Amy: When I heard the voicemail, I called back and told her we were done

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

Dear Amy: My 82-year-old mother has an undiagnosed mental illness, marked by narcissism, paranoia, delusions and abusive rages.Beginning in my teens (I’m in my 50s now), she has caused long periods of estrangement over perceived slights, so she missed my wedding and the births of my children.My father divorced her when I was 8 years old.And yet she also has better periods when she can be lovely and charming, and so whenever she called me to reconcile, I always did.Throughout the pandemic, I visited her regularly, took her to her many doctor’s appointments, and helped her through other major problems. I did this because she has no one else – literally zero friends or other family willing to talk with or help her.But then last year, because I failed to return her call during the single hour I was in church for a special Mother’s Day service (oh, the irony), she left me more than a half-dozen increasingly hostile and abusive voicemails.I called her back and told her that we were done.I...

Sale closed in San Jose: $1.7 million for a three-bedroom home

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

688 Los Huecos Drive – Google Street ViewA house built in 1968 has changed hands. The property located in the 600 block of Los Huecos Drive in San Jose was sold on Aug. 28, 2023. The purchase price was $1,651,000. This single-story house has three bedrooms and two baths. Inside, there is a fireplace. In addition, the home provides a two-car garage, granting ample space for parking and storage purposes.Additional houses have recently been sold nearby:In March 2023, a 1,843-square-foot home on Valley Glen Drive in San Jose sold for $1,700,000, a price per square foot of $922. The home has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.On Montalvo Drive, San Jose, in May 2023, a 2,088-square-foot home was sold for $1,540,000, a price per square foot of $738. The home has 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.A 1,503-square-foot home on the 600 block of Kiowa Circle in San Jose sold in October 2022, for $1,600,000, a price per square foot of $1,065. The home has 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. 

Harriette Cole: This macho guy is now being kind to me, and I’m suspicious

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

DEAR HARRIETTE: For most of my life, I have not gotten along with my brother. He always had to be the macho guy and have the last word.Related ArticlesAdvice | Harriette Cole: Should I tell my wife what my friend said about us? Advice | Harriette Cole: I didn’t mean to get the Airbnb host banned Advice | Harriette Cole: Is it a bad idea to hang out with this man so I can meet his friends? Advice | Harriette Cole: I abandoned my home, and now I’ve come back to a huge mess Advice | Harriette Cole: A random man was staring in my window, and I’m upset the police let him go I used to think that we would stop communicating entirely when our parents died. In the past year, though, things have changed a lot. When we talk, the conversations are pleasant. No longer am I the only one who calls; he calls me, too. It’s almost like he is another person.I am afraid to trust that the way he is be...

NYPD “Transparency” Site Leaves Out Misconduct Lawsuits Settled for Millions

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

Last year, a series of headlines in New York City buzzed with excitement about a cop with the street nickname of “Bullethead.” New York Police Department Sgt. David Grieco — his actual name — had reached a milestone: Police misconduct lawsuits naming him as a defendant had exceeded $1 million in settlement payouts. Since the raft of news stories, Grieco has been named in at least two additional suits, according to publicly available information as of July, and payouts in complaints naming him have now reached $1,099,825. In the 13 years it took for Grieco to be named in 48 suits alleging police misconduct, he’s been promoted twice. In 2016, he was elevated from officer to detective and, a year later, to sergeant. The New York Police Department’s officer profile database, meanwhile, lists no applicable entries for disciplinary history in Grieco’s profile. The NYPD launched the portal in 2021 after a federal appeals court issued a ruling allowing city officials to ...

Braves reach 100 wins again, beat Nationals 8-5 behind Strider to secure doubleheader split

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

Atlanta Braves' Orlando Arcia advances toward home base to score on a home run RBI hit in by Braves' Kevin Pillar during the fourth inning of the second game of a baseball doubleheader against the Washington Nationals, Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)(AP/Stephanie Scarbrough) Atlanta Braves' Orlando Arcia advances toward home base to score on a home run RBI hit in by Braves' Kevin Pillar during the fourth inning of the second game of a baseball doubleheader against the Washington Nationals, Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)(AP/Stephanie Scarbrough) WASHINGTON (AP) — Spencer Strider earned his major league-leading 19th win and the Atlanta Br...

National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day brings calls for regular testing, reduced stigma

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

The U.S. will observe National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on Wednesday. Health care workers in the District said it’s a chance to promote testing for men and continue efforts to eliminate the stigma linked to HIV.“For many over the course of this epidemic, there’s been the feeling that people with HIV are somehow the vector of this disease when actually, in this case, they’re the root for us to end this epidemic,” said Michael Kharfen, director of the division on policy and data in the federal government’s Health Resources and Services Administration’s HIV/AIDS Bureau.The day is especially significant in D.C., as the District has the most HIV cases per capita nationwide, according to Kharfen, at nearly three times the national rate. Baltimore and Prince George’s County in Maryland also have a high number of HIV diagnoses.Moreover, recent data reveals that 70% of all new HIV cases in the U.S. are among gay and bisexual men, even though these groups make up about 2% of the...

Muere bajo custodia el jefe de la mafia italiana ‘Diabolik’, quien había sido capturado después de casi 30 años prófugo, según informes italianos

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

(CNN) — Un jefe de la mafia italiana que pasó casi tres décadas evadiendo a las autoridades antes de ser arrestado en enero de este año murió mientras recibía tratamiento médico, según informes de medios de comunicación italianos.Matteo Messina Denaro, quien se cree que ordenó decenas de asesinatos relacionados con la mafia para el grupo criminal Cosa Nostra, murió en el hospital San Salvatore en L’Aquila, en el centro de Italia, donde había sido tratado por cáncer de colon, informó la cadena pública italiana RAI este lunes.Antes de su arresto en una clínica privada en Palermo en enero, el exjefe de la mafia siciliana estaba prófugo desde 1993 y era considerado por Europol uno de los hombres más buscados en Europa, dijo a CNN el fiscal Maurizio de Lucia en ese momento.Messina Denaro recibió varias condenas a cadena perpetua en rebeldía por sus numerosos crímenes, sobre todo en 1992 por su participación en los asesinatos de los fiscales antimafia Giovanni Falcone y Paolo ...

Sam Howell throws 4 interceptions and is sacked 9 times in the Commanders’ 37-3 loss to the Bills

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:50:00 GMT

LANDOVER, Md. (AP) — Washington Commanders quarterback Sam Howell put up some historic numbers on Sunday: His four-interception, nine-sack performance was the first in the NFL in 28 years.Facing a good Buffalo Bills defense while playing behind a shaky offensive line had something to do with that. So did just an all-around mediocre showing by Howell in his first loss as a starter in the pros.Wins and losses are not the best — nor the fairest — way to evaluate a QB, but after all of the praise Howell received before this disaster of a 41.5-rating game, he certainly deserved at least a share of the blame, and acknowledged as much, for the way things went awry in Washington’s 37-3 loss to Buffalo.“It starts with me,” Howell said no fewer than four times during his news conference. “But the good thing is: The sun’ll come up tomorrow.”He entered the rainy afternoon with a 95.0 rating this season, having thrown for 501 yards and three TDs with just one interception. He also owned victorie...