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Should you buy travel insurance for holiday travel?

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

By Amrita Jayakumar | NerdWalletHoliday travel can be taxing even without the added stress of disruptions such as cancellations, flight delays or lost bags.Last winter, Southwest Airlines’ holiday travel meltdown left millions of travelers stranded and angry. Travelers were still filing for compensation for ruined trips weeks later. Consumer complaints against U.S. airlines to the Department of Transportation in February 2023 increased sixfold compared with February 2019, forcing the agency to temporarily stop reporting more data as it processes complaints.Despite the chaos, holiday travel shows no signs of slowing down this year. About 50% of Americans plan to pay for flights or hotel stays this holiday season, according to a NerdWallet survey conducted by The Harris Poll in September among over 2,000 U.S. adults. They will be referred to as “2023 holiday travelers” going forward.More than a third of 2023 holiday travelers (35%) say they will keep their usual holiday travel p...

What I learned about modern romance from watching ABC’s ‘Golden Bachelor’

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

Yes, he is charming and handsome in a boyish way for a 72-year-old man.No, I would not go on national television to try to win his heart.But 22 single senior women had a different take.From as far east as New Jersey, as far south as Florida and as close to home as Sierra Madre and Downey, these women stepped up to stake their claim on the first-ever Golden Bachelor, Gerry Turner, star of ABC’s new addition to their reality dating franchise.A widower after a 43-year marriage, the retired restaurateur from Hudson Indiana, melts our hearts with his vulnerability as he talks about missing his wife and hopes for finding love again.I admit to being skeptical about the show while holding out hope that it would give a realistic view of later-life romance that might eschew the stereotypes. The debut episode began with Gerry putting in his hearing aids as he gets ready to meet the women vying for his attention.When two of these women, who were obviously deeply interested in Gerry, left the sh...

The 98.5 Toucher and Rich intrigue continues: Shertenlieb will no longer run show’s social media account

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

The speculation about Toucher & Rich’s future continued on Thursday after a major change to the 98.5 The Sports Hub radio show’s popular social media account.Two weeks after host Fred Toucher signed a multiyear contract with the Boston radio station, host Rich Shertenlieb announced that he will no longer run the Toucher & Rich account on X (formerly Twitter).This change also comes a couple weeks after the X account with nearly 150,000 followers had dropped Toucher’s name and left the account for only Shertenlieb (@heyrichhey). But now, the account’s handle is back to @touchernrich.“Hello, this is Rich. As of this post, I will no longer maintain and will not be communicating through this account. Please contact me and follow me at my personal X account at @HeyRichHey. Thanks! – Rich Shertenlieb,” the host posted from @touchernrich on Thursday.Shertenlieb then posted from his new personal account.“HEY GUYS HEY. Well look at that,...

Suspected Norovirus outbreak cuts MLB GM meetings short

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

Major League Baseball was forced to cut their annual GM meetings short on Wednesday when more than 10% of the executives in attendance fell ill at the Omni Montelucia Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona.The meetings – which serve as the unofficial kickoff to the offseason – began on Tuesday and were scheduled to conclude on Thursday morning, but several attendees were already sick on the first night. When more illnesses were reported on Wednesday afternoon, the league pulled the plug.What was originally thought to be food poisoning from Tuesday’s lunch buffet is now believed to be the highly contagious Norovirus, as evidenced by the fact that several of the afflicted hadn’t partaken in the meal.The Norovirus is primarily spread through direct contact, but also via contaminated food, water, and surfaces. Common symptoms are diarrhea, stomach pain, nausea and vomiting. Though nicknamed the “stomach flu,” it isn’t related to influenza viruses. If afflicted, the ...

Boston College and Virginia Tech renew old rivalry in big stakes game

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

The Boston College and Virginia Tech football programs have more in common than their past association with the Big East and as permanent crossover rivals in the old divisional structure of the ACC.Over the course of the 2023 season, the Eagles and the Hokies have been on the business end of season-altering encounters with No. 11 Louisville, another ACC refugee from the Big East.BC’s season hit its low point with a 56-28 loss at Louisville on Sept. 23. Since then, BC has won five straight games and has a winning record in the ACC.Virginia Tech endured a 34-3 beatdown by the host Cardinals last Saturday, the Hokies’ worst loss of the season. Virginia Tech must win two of the next three against BC, NC State and Virginia to secure bowl eligibility.BC (6-3, 3-2) will look to extended its win streak and enhance its bowl season prospects when it hosts Virginia Tech (4-5, 3-2) on Saturday (noon) at Alumni Stadium.“We knew we were a good team and we kind of stumbled out trying to find our i...

Jezebel, the sharp-edged feminist website, is shutting down after 16 years

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

By ALEXANDRA OLSON (AP Business Writer)NEW YORK (AP) — Jezebel, the sharp-edged feminist website founded at the height of blogosphere era, is shutting down after 16 years, its parent company announced Thursday.G/O Media said 23 staffers would be laid off, including Jezebel’s team, as part of a restructuring to cope with economic headwinds and a difficult digital advertising environment. The New York-based company also announced the departure of G/O Media editorial director Merrill Brown. In a memo to the company, G/0 Media CEO Jim Spanfeller said he made the “very, very difficult decision to suspend publication of Jezebel” after an unsuccessful search for a buyer for the website. Spanfeller praised Jezebel’s editorial team but said the company’s “business model and the audiences we serve across our network did not align with Jezebel’s.”Jezebel was launched in 2007 by Gawker Media with Anna Holmes as its first editor-in-chief. It ...

Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin won’t seek reelection, giving GOP a key pickup opportunity

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

By JOHN RABY and LEAH WILLINGHAM (Associated Press)CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia announced Thursday that he won’t seek reelection in 2024, giving Republicans a prime opportunity to pick up a seat in the heavily GOP state.Manchin, 76, said in a statement that he had made the decision “after months of deliberation and long conversations” with his family.“I believe in my heart of hearts that I have accomplished what I set out to do for West Virginia,” he said. “I have made one of the toughest decisions of my life and decided that I will not be running for re-election to the United States Senate, but what I will be doing is traveling the country and speaking out to see if there is an interest in creating a movement to mobilize the middle and bring Americans together.”His decision to retire severely hampers Democratic hopes of holding on to the coal country seat and marks the end of an era for West Vi...

Bruins notebook: Charlie McAvoy lost appeal, but appreciative of chance

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

Charlie McAvoy knows he screwed up. His hit on the Florida Panthers’ Oliver Ekman-Larson on Oct. 30, made in the heat of a 2-2 game he’d just tied up, was late and high and he understands there had to be consequences.But the Bruins’ defenseman appealed his four-game suspension because he felt it should have had a game lopped off of it. Commissioner Gary Bettman, who heard the appeal, did not agree and thus McAvoy was set to serve the fourth and final game of the suspension on Thursday.McAvoy spoke to reporters for the first time since the hit on Ekman-Larson on Thursday morning after the B’s morning skate at Warrior Ice Arena.“What we were hoping for was just to get it reduced. I understand the need for discipline there and take responsibility for my actions. I know I made a mistake on the play,” said McAvoy. “But really the way that we understood it, and sort of the way it was explained to us by (head of Player Safety) George (Parros) and Player Safety was t...

Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial will go on after lawyers seek early verdict ending case

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

By MICHAEL R. SISAK and JENNIFER PELTZ (Associated Press)NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s lawyers were thwarted Thursday in their longshot bid to put an immediate end to the New York civil fraud trial that threatens the former president’s real estate empire.The judge didn’t rule on the request, but he indicated that the trial will go on as scheduled Monday with Donald Trump Jr. returning to the stand as the first defense witness.Trump’s lawyers had asked Judge Arthur Engoron to cut the trial short and issue a verdict clearing Trump, his company and top executives including Trump Jr. of wrongdoing. They made the request at the halfway point in the trial of New York Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit, arguing that state lawyers had failed to prove their case. James alleges that Trump and other defendants duped banks, insurers and others by inflating his wealth on financial statements.Engoron said the defense’s arguments seeking what’s...

Widespread rainfall, mountain snow possible in San Diego County

Published Wed, 25 Dec 2024 17:01:32 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Take advantage of the warm, dry weather this weekend San Diegans as the forecast shows cooling, along with possible rainfall and snow come next week.The National Weather Service (NWS) said Santa Ana winds are expected to continue Thursday, peaking overnight. Wind data from the last 48 hours shows Boucher Hill on Palomar Mountain with the highest clocked speeds in the region at 50 mph. Winds at Sill Hill near Cuyamaca Rancho State Park slightly trailed at 46 mph. Did you see it? Venus and the crescent moon levitate over San Diego Before speeding up overnight, NWS said winds will decrease a bit Thursday afternoon with the dry air expected to stick around. Despite this, weather officials explained that circumstances will remain elevated to "near critical fire weather conditions" for inland areas Thursday.A weak onshore flow is expected to briefly return on Friday before a weak offshore flow returns for the weekend and into early Monday, NWS said. This means winds may b...