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Bridge: Nov. 25, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

Unlucky Louie’s wife, Esther, had slightly rear-ended a car in front of her.“The damage was so light we didn’t even have our car repaired,” Louie told me disgustedly. “But the other driver went to one of those personal liability attorneys, alleging that he had been injured. Our insurance company settled rather than fight in court.”Insurance can be useful at bridge. A safety play is like an insurance policy: You pay a premium — you give up on taking the maximum number of tricks — but you are protected against a disastrous loss.LAST TRUMPAt today’s slam, declarer takes the king of diamonds and draws trumps. If he cashes the A-K of spades next, the 5-1 split dooms him to only 11 tricks.After South draws trumps, he should play safe by letting dummy’s ten of spades ride. When West wins and leads another diamond, South wins, takes the nine of spades, returns a club to his ace and runs the spades. He can pitch dummy’s low cl...

Word Game: Nov. 25, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

TODAY’S WORD — HOMICIDAL (HOMICIDAL: hom-ih-SYE-dul: Relating to, or tending toward, murder.)Average mark 33 wordsTime limit 45 minutesCan you find 45 or more words in HOMICIDAL? The list will be published Monday.YESTERDAY’S WORD — VORTEXES veer verse verso vertex vest veto vetoer vortex vote voter over overt reset rest rose rote rove terse tore tree trove erose ester ever evert exert exsert seer sere serve sever soever sore sort steer stereo store stove stroveTo purchase the Word Game book, visit WordGameBooks.com. Order it now for just $5 while supplies last!RULES OF THE GAME:1. Words must be of four or more letters.2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed.3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. For example, if “bake” is used, “baked” or “bakes” are not allowed, but “bake” and “baking” are admissible.4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are ...

Ask Amy: Now I’m expected to sew a custom quilt for a stranger as a gift

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

Dear Amy: A few years ago, I offered to make a T-shirt quilt as a graduation gift for a co-worker’s oldest son. She provided the materials, and I provided the skill and labor.Related ArticlesAdvice | Ask Amy: I heard my teen bragging about her trickery. I’m furious; my husband thinks it’s cute. Advice | Ask Amy: My boyfriend said his public insult was just a joke. Should I let it go? Advice | Ask Amy: This odd comment makes me wonder if my empty-nest parents are off the rails Advice | Ask Amy: Everyone was stunned when the other grandmother lashed out at me Advice | Ask Amy: We’re baffled by our sister’s behavior. Is a surprise visit in order? She and her son were thrilled with the quilt, and she mentioned that I would have two more to go down the road for her other two sons as they graduated.I was taken aback with this expectation, but didn’t say anything.I retired soon after and...

Missiles and Drones Among Weapons Stolen From U.S. in Iraq and Syria

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

U.S. military outposts in Iraq and Syria are plagued by thefts of weapons and equipment, according to exclusive documents obtained by The Intercept that show militias and criminal gangs are systematically targeting U.S. forces.Military investigations launched earlier this year found that “multiple sensitive weapons and equipment” — including guided missile launch systems as well as drones — have been stolen in Iraq. This follows hundreds of thousands of dollars in military gear that were purloined from U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria between 2020 and 2022, as reported earlier this year by The Intercept.America’s bases in Iraq and Syria ostensibly exist to conduct “counter-ISIS missions,” but experts say they are used primarily as a check against Iran. Since the October outbreak of the conflict between Israel and Hamas, these bases have come under regular rocket and drone attacks as part of an undeclared war between the U.S. and Iran and its surrogate militias.The U.S. has increasingly...

Ziegler surges from fifth to first with a near-flawless free skate to win the NHK Trophy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

OSAKA, Japan (AP) — Ava Marie Ziegler performed a near-flawless free skate Saturday to win the NHK Trophy and lead a U.S. 1-2 finish on the podium.Fifth after the short program, Ziegler landed all of her jumps cleanly to score 138.46 points in the free skate for her first title in the Grand Prix series and a personal best total of 200.50.Lindsay Thorngren, who led after the short program, fell on a planned triple salchow but was solid with all her other jumps and placed second with 198.73 points.Nina Pinzarrone of Belgium was third with 194.66, a result that allowed her to secure a place in the Dec. 7-10 Grand Prix Final at Beijing. South Korea’s Lee Hae-in was fourth with 188.95 points.Two-time world champion Kaori Sakamoto of Japan, Isabeau Levito of the United States and Loena Hendrickx of Belgium have already qualified for the GP Final.The NHK Trophy is the sixth and last event of the International Skating Union’s Grand Prix series, which leads in the Grand Prix Final.In i...

Lee leads the Australian PGA Championship by 3 shots from Hoshino of Japan

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Min Woo Lee extended his lead to three shots at the Australian PGA Championship after a 5-under 66 in overcast conditions Saturday to move to 17 under after three rounds.“It’s a course you can shoot low, so you’ll be aggressive no matter what,” Lee said. “I’m here because I played aggressively.”Rikuya Hoshino of Japan surged into second at 14 under after making six birdies on the back nine for a 64 on Saturday, moving one shot ahead of Curtis Luck (66) and three ahead of Adam Scott, who slipped to fourth place with a third-round 71.Marc Leishman (67) and Cam Davis (68) were in a group of four in seventh place at 9 under.No. 45-ranked Lee and Luck grew up in Western Australia and were regular rivals, but it’s been about a decade since they’ve both been in the leading group on the last day.The 27-year-old Luck, who won the U.S. Amateur and the Asia-Pacific Amateur in 2016 but has struggled for consistent results since turning pro, is lookin...

Identifican al matrimonio fallecido en la explosión de un vehículo en la frontera entre EE.UU. y Canadá. Esto sabemos de caso

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

(CNN) — Investigadores identificaron al matrimonio fallecido el miércoles en una explosión cerca de la frontera entre Estados Unidos y Canadá.Kurt P. Villani y su esposa Monica Villani, ambos de 53 años, murieron en el accidente de tráfico ocurrido en el lado estadounidense del paso fronterizo del Rainbow Bridge, según informó el Departamento de Policía de las cataratas del Niágara en un comunicado de prensa. La pareja vivía en Grand Island, Nueva York, dijo el Departamento de Policía de Nueva York.Los familiares de la pareja dieron las gracias a quienes les enviaron mensajes de apoyo y pidieron privacidad al público.“Nos gustaría extender nuestra sincera gratitud a todos los que extendieron sus oraciones, condolencias y buenos deseos”, dijeron los miembros de la familia en un comunicado emitido a través de la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado de Erie. “Estamos profundamente conmovidos. En este momento, estamos solicitando privacidad para que podamos comenzar e...

Oregon defeats Oregon State 31-7 for a spot in the Pac-12 title game as rivalry ends for now

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — The Oregon Ducks are relishing a second chance against Washington. Sixth-ranked Oregon secured a spot in the Pac-12 championship game with a 31-7 victory Friday night over No. 15 Oregon State in the final scheduled matchup between the in-state rivals.The Ducks (11-1, 8-1 Pac-12, No. 6 CFP) will face No. 4 Washington next Friday in Las Vegas, the last conference championship before 10 of the league’s teams bolt next season. The winner has a chance at earning a spot in the four-team College Football Playoff.It was Oregon’s sixth straight win since a 36-33 loss at Washington on Oct. 14. The rematch next week will mark the first meeting between the teams in the Pac-12 title game. “Obviously that’s exactly how we wanted it,” Oregon quarterback Bo Nix said about heading to the title game, “because of the circumstances, because we lost the first one.”Nix, among the Heisman Trophy favorites, completed 33 of 40 passes for 367 yards and two touchdow...

Russia barrages Kyiv with record number of drones

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

KYIV — In the largest aerial attack since its invasion started, Russia barraged Ukraine with 75 Shahed drones overnight, Ukrainian officials said on Saturday. Most of the drones were aimed at Kyiv and the region around the capital, the Ukrainian Air Force said in a statement.Ukrainian forces managed to shoot down all but one of the Shahed kamikaze drones, as well as an X-59 cruise missile over the Dnipro region, the Ukrainian air force said.The assault included the highest number of Russian drones to be deployed in one night since Moscow launched its all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The air attack lasted more than six hours, Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said in a statement. Anti-aircraft missiles, tactical aviation, mobile fire groups, and electronic warfare units were involved in repelling the air attack. No deaths were reported as a result of the barrage, but falling debris damaged buildings. In Kyiv, a fire broke out at a kindergarten, while windows were damaged in n...

Sweet 16: Special memories on Thanksgiving

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:36:00 GMT

Bishop Fenwick coach David Woods never expected to get star quarterback Bryce Leaman on the field after suffering a season-ending knee injury early in the season.The day before the Thanksgiving Day contest against Masconomet, Woods, the Leaman family and the team trainer discussed the option of padding his knee and protecting it so much that he could possibly make a cameo appearance in his final varsity game against Masconomet.“I’m just thinking, maybe he can go out, take a snap in shotgun and just hand the ball off. Just to get him on the field one last time,” Woods said. “During the pregame, he looked good so I thought maybe we could put him in shotgun and throw a pass.”Leaman did a little more than that. He started the game, played the first two series and one more in the fourth quarter. The quarterback with a torn ACL, MCL and PCL went on to complete 11-of-16 passes for 123 yards and cap off his high school career by throwing a back-shoulder fade to Kurtis Bruch for a touc...