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How to take a great holiday card photo with family

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

Greeting cards are among the first signs that the holiday season has arrived. Mailboxes are filled with cards and email inboxes have new messages popping up each day wishing others well. Many of these greetings feature family photos.A Shutterfly poll conducted by Ipsos in 2021 discovered that, while traditional holiday messages are by far the most popular missives at 63%, younger age groups show more interest in other types of cards, such as photo cards (between 34% and 38%  depending on age group). Forty-one percent of people polled prefer to receive photo cards. That means holiday well-wishers may want to brush up on their photography skills.Keep cards in the back of your mindWhile the Norman Rockwell-esque family tableau or a wintry Christmas scene is a go-to holiday card, any photo-worthy moment throughout the year can suffice. Keep a lookout for ideas while vacationing or enjoying time together as a family.Avoid busy printsStick to solid colors when posing for holiday photos; o...

Relearning office etiquette after working from home

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

Let’s face it. We all lost at least some of our office savvy during the pandemic.We were working in yoga pants, slippers, pajamas. We took the occasional — or daily — nap. We had nonstop access to the fridge and could turn off our cameras when we were eating (sometimes loudly).Now that most of us are back in the office at least part of the week, we’re realizing that some of our desk mates plum forgot how to act in public.Shouted cubicle conversations. Swearing. The absence of eye contact. Awkward small talk. Attire that’s way too casual, dirty dishes piled in the office sink.While most of us offered grace as we all returned, that time is over, said Juliet Mitchell, founder of the Life Etiquette Institute in St. Paul.We turned to career counselors, professors and etiquette pros to get some tips on office etiquette.Be personableRemember that a little eye contact, a quick hallway greeting or even a handshake go a long way toward re-establishing polite rapport.“B...

St. George, Utah lures history buffs, nature lovers & foodies

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

St. George, Utah sits at the intersection of national parks, mountains, deep lakes, outdoor recreation and Western history.With its mild climate, budding foodie culture and kicked back spirit, it’s a fun little city you’ve got to visit.Located in the Greater Zion Region (https://greaterzion.com), St. George serves as a perfect base camp. There’s lots of golf, endless hiking choices, and national and state parks galore.I headed to St. George recently, having zipped through on my way to other places in the past. This fast growing city has evolved over the years into a perfect centerpiece for the abundant sights of the area.I flew from Boston to St. George Airport with a quick stop in Salt Lake City. I could have opted to fly to Las Vegas and driven from there – they say the hour and a half drive features remarkable beauty and is an activity in itself. Renting a car here is a must; you’ll want to dash around to all the region has to offer (and parking was never an issue).The vibe of Th...

Seeking divorce when wife can’t be found

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

Q. My wife of five years moved out one day and didn’t tell me where she went. Her family is from Texas, so I have suspicions she is living there. We don’t have any children and the only property we own is the furniture in the apartment that we rent.Can I still get divorced if I don’t know where she is?A. You can get divorced in Massachusetts so long as the two of you lived here together for at least one year.  Or, if you didn’t live in Mass. for a full year, but the event which triggered the end of the marriage happened here, you can also get divorced here.  I would imagine that her leaving was the triggering event signifying the breakdown of the marriage from your perspective, so if you have not lived here for the year, you can list that as the event.You should try all options to locate her before filing your complaint for divorce.  I assume you have been unsuccessful reaching her by phone, but try again.  Also, if you know her family’s names and contact information, call them, sen...

Antoni: Why U.S. credit downgrade is a big deal

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

The world is waking up to a stark reality that could affect tens of millions of Americans: The federal government may be unable to pay its bills sooner rather than later.The financial situation is deteriorating so rapidly that the outlook on U.S. debt was downgraded a few days ago. That change was long overdue and highlights just how dangerous the situation is becoming for taxpayers and bondholders alike – including anyone with retirement funds.The Nationally Recognized Statistical Ratings Organization (NRSRO) Fitch downgraded U.S. debt in August of this year, citing the federal government’s completely unsustainable path of ever-growing deficits. The downgrade means that there is an increased likelihood of default, where bondholders don’t get paid what they were promised.While default usually means a borrower fails to make a payment to a lender by a promised date, governments can also implicitly default by inflating their currencies. Under the Biden administration, the dollar has lo...

Dear Abby: Son’s unstable ex tries blackmail

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

Dear Abby: My son, age 31, dated a woman for a month. On a couple of occasions, she got drunk and became very nasty. He decided to end the relationship and did it in person.Unfortunately, during their short time together, he divulged some personal issues he’s working on. She contacted him a few weeks after they broke up. When he didn’t respond, she contacted him again and threatened to make his personal issues public. What do you do in this situation? — Cautious Mom in New JerseyDear Mom: The healthiest thing for your son to do would be to continue ignoring the woman. There is nothing positive to be gained by allowing himself to be sucked into a contentious relationship with someone who may be unstable. The alternative would be to have his attorney write her a letter explaining that should she post anything on social media that could damage his reputation (and job, business, etc.), she might be liable for damages, legal fees and court costs.Dear Abby: My husband re...

41 workers in India are stuck in a tunnel for an 8th day. Officials consider alternate rescue plans

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

LUCKNOW, India (AP) — Officials trying to reach 41 workers who have been trapped in a collapsed tunnel in northern India for eight days were contemplating alternative rescue plans Sunday after snags with a drilling machine caused them to halt digging. A new drilling machine arrived at the accident site in Uttarakhand state on Saturday to replace one that was damaged while breaking through the rocks and debris. They had been using the drill to create a space to insert wide pipes through which the trapped workers could crawl to their freedom. Authorities have so far drilled 24 meters (79 feet) through rubble and debris, but it would require up to 60 meters (197 feet) to allow the workers to escape, said Devendra Patwal, a disaster management official. Officials on Sunday were considering new angles for extracting the workers. Deepa Gaur, a government spokesperson, said this included possibly using the new machine to drill from the top of the hill, under which the workers have been tra...

Sugar prices are rising worldwide after bad weather tied to El Nino damaged crops in Asia

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

Skyrocketing sugar prices left Ishaq Abdulraheem with few choices. Increasing the cost of bread would mean declining sales, so the Nigerian baker decided to cut his production by half.For scores of other bakers struggling to stay afloat while enduring higher costs for fuel and flour, the stratospheric sugar prices proved to be the last straw, and they closed for good. Sugar is needed to make bread, which is a staple for Nigeria’s 210 million people, and for many who are struggling to put food on the table, it offers a cheap source of calories. Surging sugar prices — an increase of 55% in two months — means fewer bakers and less bread.“It is a very serious situation,” Abdulraheem said.Sugar worldwide is trading at the highest prices since 2011, mainly due to lower global supplies after unusually dry weather damaged harvests in India and Thailand, the world’s second- and third-largest exporters. This is just the latest hit for developing nations already coping with shortag...

Ahead of Dutch elections, food banks highlight the cost-of-living crisis, a major campaign theme

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

VOORBURG, Netherlands (AP) — Cans of fish, jars of pasta sauce and bags of beans are stacked in blue crates. Meat, dairy and bread are kept cold in a huge freezer and a walk-in refrigerator in this affluent Dutch town. The supplies are on hand to feed the new poor in one of the richest nations in the world.Needy families are lining up for free handouts at food banks across the Netherlands, underscoring how poverty is taking root even in lower middle-class families and why tackling it has become a major theme in next Wednesday’s parliamentary election.If it gets any worse, “then it really becomes a scandal for society,” said Rob Kuipers, a 70-year-old retired senior civil servant who is the chairman of the local food bank in Leidschendam-Voorburg, within easy cycling distance of the parliament in The Hague.The cost-of-living crisis, a chronic shortage of social and affordable housing and limits on access to affordable healthcare have combined to become known by the catch-...

Argentines vote in election that could lead Trump-admiring populist to the presidency

Published Thu, 13 Feb 2025 11:35:11 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Voters in Argentina head to the polls Sunday in a presidential runoff election that will determine whether South America’s second-largest economy will take a rightward shift. Populist Javier Milei, an upstart candidate who got his start as a television talking head, has frequently been compared to former U.S. President Donald Trump. He faces Economy Minister Sergio Massa of the Peronist party, which has been a leading force in Argentine politics for decades.On Massa’s watch, inflation has soared to more than 140% and poverty has increased. Milei, a self-described anarcho-capitalist, proposes to slash the size of the state and rein in inflation, while Massa has warned people about the negative impacts of such policies. The highly polarizing election is forcing many to decide which of the two they consider to be the least bad option. “Whatever happens in this election will be incredible,” said Lucas Romero, director of local political consult...