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Design tips to separate remote ‘work’ from ‘home’

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

Cathy Hobbs | Tribune News ServiceAs home and work have converged for many, it can be challenging to discern how to separate the two. How do you avoid having home feel like “the office” while still creating an environment that feels like home? Where is the work-life balance?Here are some recommendations for designing an ideal blend of work and relaxation under the same roof.1. Create a separate area for work. Ideally, this should be a separate room. If you can’t, creating a work “zone” that is separate and distinct from other activities will help.2. Take frequent breaks during the day. Once in the morning, once around lunch and once before the end of the day is ideal.3. Spend some time outdoors. Taking time for a breath of fresh air will help instill a sense of calm.4. Infuse soothing colors to inspire serenity. Pure white, neutrals and soothing blues are a good place to start.5. Incorporate greenery and other natural elements. Trees and plants can go a long way in helping a space f...

Detention hearing for accused docs leaker Jack Teixeira canceled, court records show

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

A court hearing scheduled for Thursday to determine whether a 21-year-old Air National Guardsman accused of leaking highly sensitive government documents is to remain jailed while his case plays out was canceled, according to court records.An updated time for Jack Teixeira’s detention hearing in Worcester federal court was not immediately available. A new date will be posted to the case docket once it is rescheduled.Teixeira was slated to appear before Magistrate Judge David Hennessy at 3 p.m. in Worcester. He was last before the judge in April when Hennessy heard arguments from the federal government and defense attorneys but held off on making a decision on detention.Prosecutors say Teixeira, a low-ranking service member, used his top secret security clearance to illegally leak documents online on everything from United States special forces operations in Ukraine to U.S. spying efforts on allies.Teixeira has remained in the custody of the United States Marshals Service since his a...

Massachusetts SJC upholds ‘light’ cigarette conspiracy rulings against Philip Morris

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

The high court in Massachusetts upheld a $37 million judgment against cigarette manufacturer Philip Morris, ruling the company knew its so-called light smokes were no safer than regular ones, despite company advertising to the contrary.“Philip Morris represented that such products, including Marlboro Lights, delivered lower tar and nicotine and were a healthier alternative to regular cigarettes,” the court wrote in its unanimous decision.The plaintiff in the suit, Patricia Greene, was a woman who had been a pack-a-day smoker since 1971 who was able to quit smoking for a nine-month period toward the end of the decade and then relapsed and started smoking again. She switched from Marlboro Reds, her go-to brand since she started, to Marlboro Lights, trusting the advertisements she saw that promised less tar and less nicotine, or as she said, “less of the bad stuff.”In 2013, Greene was diagnosed with lung cancer. She got a lobectomy and began chemo but had to stop when that ...

Mets Notebook: Max Scherzer to rest ailing neck, Carlos Carrasco sharp in rehab outing

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

The Mets have gone through the wringer this season. The club has fallen three games below .500 (17-20) with injuries continuing to pile up.Max Scherzer is the latest victim of the injury bug. The 39-year-old was scratched from the Mets’ 7-6 loss to the Reds in Cincinnati on Tuesday due to neck spasms.“There’s really nothing you can do for it other than rest,” Scherzer said before Tuesday’s game. “It’s going to be a couple of days, but that’s the good news, that it’s only going to be a couple of days.”The neck spasms are nothing new for the three-time Cy Young award winner. He was scratched from Game 5 of the 2019 World Series due to the issue.“I get neck spasms from time to time,” Scherzer said. “I have to do a series of neck exercises in order to kind of keep this away and I’ve done a pretty good job of that. But come time to time, this can creep up on me and unfortunately, I ran into a bad time to ...

Dodgers’ Mookie Betts avoids ‘haunted’ Milwaukee hotel by staying in Airbnb

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

MILWAUKEE — While in Milwaukee, the Dodgers are staying at a local hotel known for stories of being haunted. But not Mookie Betts.Betts is staying with some friends who rented an Airbnb for the series “just in case” the ghost stories are true.“It was a good excuse (not to stay there),” Betts said.Betts said he doesn’t necessarily believe in ghosts. But he doesn’t want to find out the hard way that he’s wrong.“You can tell me what happened after,” he said. “I just don’t want to find out myself.”The Milwaukee hotel is one of two ‘haunted’ hotels that many MLB teams use. The other is in St. Petersburg, Florida, where the Dodgers will play the Tampa Bay Rays later this season. Betts said he has stayed at both before and never experienced anything out of the paranormal.“But I couldn’t sleep,” Betts said. “Every noise, I’d be like, ‘Is that something?’”Related ArticlesMLB | Mets Notebook: Max Scherzer to rest ailing neck, Carlos Carrasco sharp in rehab outing MLB | ...

Column: Why the Hollywood writers strike matters to audiences

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

Nina Metz | Chicago TribuneWhat is Hollywood without screenwriters? No characters to play. No scripts to shoot. That’s as fundamental as it gets.TV and film writers are represented by the Writers Guild of America. With the exception of a few highly paid names, many have seen their careers become untenable in recent years as streaming radically upended the financial model. The people who dream up the shows and movies that we so compulsively watch are struggling to earn a living doing it. As a result, the WGA went on strike last week after the studios rejected many of its contract proposals.That means no writing is being done for the foreseeable future. It’s unclear how long the strike will last. It could be days. It could be months. Late-night talk shows were the first to go dark, but other shows have also paused production or preproduction on their new seasons, including Netflix’s “Cobra Kai” and Showtime’s “Yellowjackets.”A new “Game of Thrones” spinoff for HBO has paused its write...

Migrants watch the clock in asylum-seeking limbo

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- The clock is running out for Title 42, a pandemic-era health order limiting foreign entry into the U.S. Now looming: a surge of migrants at the southern border who have their sights set on seeking asylum.FOX 5 peered through the sturdy pillars of the border wall on Wednesday, about 4 miles west of the San Ysidro Port of Entry, to get a closer look at the conditions these migrants are facing. DHS releases plan to manage migrants after Title 42 The consensus heard from families at border: fear and uncertainty as what comes next remains undetermined. One family -- a husband, wife and their one-year-old son -- traveled all the way from West Africa's Republic of Guinea. As they sat at the edge of the U.S., the father told FOX's Elizabeth Alvarez that their long journey has led to illness. "My child is really sick," Mamadou Yaya said. "I'm on the border to the United States. I came here to seek help. I don't want to lose him here."The worried parent told FOX 5 that his son...

Customer satisfaction with Air Canada, WestJet below average: Survey

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

MONTREAL — Canada’s two biggest airlines scored below average for customer satisfaction among major North American carriers, according to a new survey, part of a trend of growing passenger frustration across the industry.Conducted by J.D. Power, the poll found Air Canada and WestJet fell below the average customer satisfaction figure of 782 on a 1,000-point scale for economy class service. WestJet notched 777 to edge out Air Canada, which scored 765.Pricier fares, crowded planes and fewer flight options are behind the frustration — but demand remains strong nonetheless — said Michael Taylor, managing director of travel, hospitality and retail at the Michigan-based consumer analytics company.As a result, carriers yielded higher revenues this year after a prolonged industry slump prompted by the pandemic. Taylor said many are running at “peak efficiency,” though higher labour and fuel costs compared with 2019 have hampered profit margins, and capacity has not yet reached p...

S&P/TSX composite posts loss driven by energy and metals, U.S. markets mixed

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

TORONTO — Canada’s main stock index moved lower Wednesday, weighed down by losses in energy and metals, while U.S. markets were mixed on the heels of the latest data on inflation. Consumer prices in the U.S. rose in April, up 0.4 per cent on a monthly basis and 4.9 per cent year-over-year. The data showed some cooling in inflation in key areas including grocery prices and services, helping bolster market confidence that the Federal Reserve will hold its interest rate steady instead of hiking at its next meeting. But markets were mixed Wednesday despite the relatively positive reading. The S&P/TSX composite index was down 86.42 points at 20,499.31.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 30.48 points at 33,531.33.The S&P 500 index was up 18.47 points at 4,137.64,while the Nasdaq composite was up 126.89 points at 12,306.44.“There’s (these) opposing forces,” said Ashish Utarid, assistant vice-president of investment strategy at IG Wealth Management. “We’ve g...

Momentum on Texas gun bill stalls in GOP-led legislature

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:06:49 GMT

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Rare momentum in the Texas Capitol for a tougher gun law flickered out Wednesday after Republicans stalled a bill that would raise the purchase age for AR-style rifles, virtually assuring the GOP-controlled Legislature will in no major way restrict gun access after more mass shootings. The legislation — always a longshot at best — now has little chance of coming back after unexpectedly coming within reach of a full vote in the state House with the help of two Republicans, sending Texas’ powerful gun lobby rushing into action. The unusual forward progress in Texas of a proposal to restrict guns happened two days after a gunman near Dallas opened fire at an outdoor shopping mall with an AR-style rifle, killing eight people. But late Tuesday night, House Republicans let a deadline lapse that stops the bill from going any further. “Uvalde families didn’t fail. Texas politicians did,” tweeted Kimberly Mata Rubio, whose 10-year-old daughter Lexi was among the 19...