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Banff’s ‘low season’ deserves high praise for peak fun

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

When you look at Banff’s resume, it’s clear why the famed spot in Alberta, Canada spot draws huge crowds in the high summer season.History? Check. Banff National Park is Canada’s first national park and the third oldest national park in the world.Pedigree? Check. Banff is rich in Canadian history and is a famed UNESCO World Heritage Site.Good looks? Triple check. It’s home to soaring peaks, lush valleys and wildlife.Things to do? Check. Downtown Banff, tucked into the base of the Canadian Rockies, is filled with great restaurants, bars, shopping and all kinds of entertainment, and the surroundings offer a myriad of outdoor and indoor activities.Here’s the secret: Rather than plan a trip during that high season next summer, book for now. Because winter, Banff’s low season, may just be the best season of all.It’s not just that Banff is home to three unique ski areas (https://www.skibig3.com/), although knowing that you’ll almost never find a winding lift line at any of those spots cer...

Bright, active Chance also loves to read

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

Chance is a sweet and funny boy with a wonderful sense of humor. He is bright, talkative and outgoing. Chance loves to read but also enjoys playing outside. In the summer he loves to go to water parks or just swim in a backyard pool. He is also very happy just running in his backyard or playing video games inside.Chance had been in a therapeutic day school but this year he has transitioned into a mainstream public school. It has been a positive transition for him and his teachers report that he is doing very well both socially and in his academics. His teachers also state that Chance is very inquisitive and asks a lot of bright questions. His favorite subject is Math. Chance is a leader and does best with clear directives, structure, routine, and predictability in his daily life. He currently lives in a foster home setting where he has been for over four years. He has made great progress here.Chance would like a two-parent home, pet-free, with at least one mom where he would be the ...

Schoen: What is Kamala Harris’ role in 2024?

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

One of the worst-kept secrets ahead of the 2024 election is that, albeit for different reasons, both Democrats and Republicans are strategizing how they can best use Vice President Kamala Harris to mobilize their respective bases.Indeed, given President Biden’s age, and Harris’ poor polling numbers – just 29% of registered voters have a favorable opinion of the VP according to a recent NBC News poll – Republicans are framing a vote for Biden as a vote for Harris, with considerable success. Nearly three-quarters (72%) of registered voters agree with the statement, “A vote for Joe Biden is really a vote for Kamala Harris because he will likely not serve a full second term,” per Harvard/HarrisX polling.And while it remains to be seen whether or not this attack remains effective, Harris’ role as a GOP ‘boogeyman’ means that Democrats must be incredibly strategic in how they use her on the campaign trail if they hope to retain control of the White House. Put another way, Harris will be m...

Editorial: Let NH lead the way!

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

On Jan. 23, New Hampshire can send a message to the country. That’s when voters cast ballots in the presidential primary.President Biden is playing games and won’t be on the ballot, but all eyes will be on the Republican ticket. Former President Donald Trump will be up against rivals itching to push him off his nearly insurmountable perch.Maine, Colorado, and possibly Massachusetts, all wanting to bump Trump off ballots, need to back off and let the people decide who should remain in the race for the White House. It’s what the U.S. Supreme Court will rule on anyway.The GOP primary in the Granite State has a long track record of choosing deserving candidates, so the meddling state courts and secretaries of state (yes, you Maine) are the ones sullying our Democracy.It seems cliche, but the 2024 race is likely the most pivotal election since the end of World War II. Ukraine is under blistering attack, Hamas terrorists are vowing to keep on slaughtering, compelling Isr...

Best songs of ’23 from rising music stars

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

There’s a lot of stuff out there. A lot of killer stuff. But how about falling in love with five more artists?I know, I know, you still haven’t listened to those Lana Del Rey and Jon Batiste albums everybody is buzzing about (me neither). Skip ’em and start small. Here are five perfect songs, some might say 2023’s very best songs, from five artists on the verge of being the next big thing.“Nothing Matters,” The Last Dinner PartyRock is immortal! “Nothing Matters” sounds like the ’80s and early 2000s and today. It has this broad, grand, poppy vocal hook and this ugly, angular electric guitar. It’s punk rock prog or arty baroque pop or some weird, wonderful genre yet to be nailed down. And it’s also rock ‘n’ roll. And, and, and… it’s the first — the very first! — single by this British band. The debut album, “Prelude To Ecstasy,” is due in February. I fully expect it to be one of the best LPs of 2024.“Chosen to Deserve,” WednesdaySo country can still be honest, confessional, ugly, and...

It’s OK to coast now and rev up in new year

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

Q. I have a project due on Jan. 10. It’ll be intense, but right now, I just want to coast. Is that OK?A. It sounds like you’re asking me to give you permission to coast and to that, I say, “Yes!” It’s the time of year to wind down. If you’re not taking PTO, it’s a great opportunity while work is quiet to clean out that in-box, declutter, get organized…and then get ready to hit the ground running to crush that project right after the holiday. (If, however, you need to plan ahead then, yes, do that heavy lifting now so it’s go-time in early January. But if not and you will have enough time in the new year, then I stand by my original statement: It’s OK to coast. We need to unplug and decompress; if we don’t, then burnout can emerge.)Q. I have to submit my timesheets by year-end, but I’m new and no one has time apparently to help me figure out the system. Who should I approach? And should I be concerned that if no ...

The best TV for celebrating New Year’s Eve

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

Miley Cyrus is MIA this New Year’s Eve. That’s a shame for those of us enjoyed her bold, bawdy bashes for the past two years. If you want great music to celebrate this time around, your best bet is “Cynthia Erivo & Friends: A New Year’s Eve Celebration” (8 p.m. ET, PBS), a Kennedy Center event featuring her Broadway buddies Joaquina Kalukango and Ben Platt.If country is more your speed, there’s “New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash” (7:30 p.m., CBS) with a lineup that includes Thomas Rhett, Lainey Wilson and Lynyrd Skynyrd.If it’s giggles and glee you want, spend the evening with “New Year’s Eve Live With Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen” (8 p.m., CNN). The two remind me of the friendship between Will Truman and Jack McFarland on “Will & Grace,” especially when the bosses allow the pair to throw back a few shots. It’s unclear whether booze is on the menu this time around....

Dear Abby: Under his thumb & looking for help

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

Dear Abby: I have been married three years. The man I married is not the person I fell in love with. After our wedding, he demanded that I take his last name. I am proud of my last name, and I didn’t want to drop it. (If only that were the sole problem.) I am no longer allowed to go out to lunch with my friends or even to see my family unless it’s on one particular day. Abby, my family means a lot to me and my friends do, too.I don’t like being controlled. I have tried talking to him about it, but he blames everything on me. He is old-fashioned, so all my time “needs” to be here at home. I have children outside of this marriage, and my husband insists he comes first, no matter what. I do not feel that way. My children always come before anyone.How do I fix this? If I can’t resolve it, it means a DIVORCE. I don’t want that, but my children and my family matter, and I don’t believe a couple must spend every second together. Please give m...

After landmark legislation, Indiana Republican leadership call for short, ‘fine-tuning’ session

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Keep it short. That has been the directive from leadership in Indiana leading up to the 2024 legislative session.But with the approaching 2024 general election and following landmark conservative legislation in recent years, including a near-total ban on abortion, a wide expansion on school vouchers and a law restricting the use of students’ preferred pronouns in schools, that might not take place. It’s likely legislation on similar social issues will reach the floor again, even while leaders of the state’s Republican trifecta say they want a session of “fine-tuning” policy.“We’ll have a more limited and focused agenda,” House Speaker Todd Huston, a Republican, told reporters in November.Here is what is and isn’t expected this year.The session beginning Jan. 8 must adjourn by March 14 and will be closed to items with a fiscal impact. Indiana holds longer, budget-making sessions during odd years.The consistent top priority across the statehouse and pol...

Laws banning semi-automatic weapons and library censorship to take effect in Illinois

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:50:30 GMT

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — With the calendar-page turn to 2024 on Monday comes 320 new state laws that Illinois residents will need to navigate.Some will have a widespread effect, including a law banning semi-automatic rifles and another requiring paid time off. But others won’t have an immediate or noticeable impact, including a law that lets county governments consider a potential contractor’s participation in an approved apprenticeship program in determining the winning low bid for a project. One law that took effect in 2019 but is still impacting tens of thousands of workers is an increase in the minimum wage. It increases to $14 an hour on Jan. 1 for non-tipped workers and will reach $15 in a year.Here are some of the other major changes to Illinois state law as of New Year’s Day: BAN ON SEMI-AUTOMATIC WEAPONSThe U.S. Supreme Court has failed to take up the case of Illinois’ ban on the sale, possession or manufacture of automatic weapons like the type used...