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Share the Spirit: How one Concord garden made a world of difference, and a reason to get out of bed

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

Walk inside the Bayberry Skilled Nursing and Healthcare Center and it looks and feels like any other nursing home.There’s a temperature check, a sign-in desk, a corkboard with activities and a handful of residents hanging out in the nearby dining room. It’s mostly quiet, aside from the television and some murmured conversations.But walk through the dining room, push open the exit door and there’s a whole new world outside.Residents Lillia Alvarez, from right, and Lynn Jaeger garden at the Bayberry Skilled Nursing & Healthcare Center in Concord, Calif., on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023.​ (Jane Tyska/Bay Area News Group) In a small courtyard, covered in warm sunlight, a handful of residents are laughing, talking and focused on their very important job: maintaining a vibrant garden full of flowers and strawberries, cherry tomatoes and bell peppers, and an array of other potted plants.Lynn Jaeger, 64, walked over to one of the plants, plucked a fresh basil leaf off and handed it to ...

Unique Bay Area Christmas display a symbol of neighborly good will to all

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

A beloved hillside Christmas display has returned for the 74th year in El Cerrito, welcoming families in an annual tradition and serving as an enduring testament to the vision of its creator – and the holiday spirit.The display, a broad nativity scene on Moeser Lane, began in 1949 when a Sikh immigrant named Sundar Shadi hung a humble star outside of his home during the Christmas season. In the following years, he added Wise Men constructed from plywood, then eventually animals made of chicken wire and plaster.Related ArticlesEntertainment | Political cartoons: Who’s naughty and who’s nice this Christmas? Entertainment | Holiday travel season off to a smooth start across the country Entertainment | 5 tips for tackling Disneyland during the busiest week of the year Entertainment | 10 Champagne alternatives, budget bubbles to toast in 2024 Entertainment | Emerging COVID variant is spreading ahead of...

Homeless housing projects in Berkeley, San Pablo move forward with state Homekey money

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

Two planned homeless housing projects are moving forward in the East Bay after millions in state grants were allocated toward putting a roof over the heads of almost a hundred unhoused residents.The state this week announced more than $30 million from its Homekey homeless housing program will go to the facilities expected to open in Berekely and San Pablo, as the Bay Area continues ramping up efforts to bring thousands of homeless people off the street. Both sites will offer social services and allow residents to stay permanently. In Berekely, more than $14 million will help buy the former Rodeway Inn motel at 1461 University Ave. and convert it to 42 studio apartments. The city has already been leasing the property to temporarily shelter local homeless people. Renovations are expected to start in the spring.It’s Berkeley’s second award from the Homekey program. In 2020, the city won $16 million to transform the former Golden Bear Inn on San Pablo Avenue into supportive ...

Rainfall forecasted mid-week, NWS

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

(KRON) – The Bay Area is forecasted to have rainy weather for the week of Christmas, according to the National Weather Service.The first round of rain is predicted for Wednesday through Thursday. The rain is predicted to be less than one inch in the Bay. However, the North Bay is forecasted to have 0.5-2 inches of rain. Coastal flood, hazardous beach advisories for Christmas The second round of rain is forecasted from late Thursday through Saturday. According to NWS, this system could range from one to three inches in the coastal ranges and 0.2-1 inches in the interior. For your safety, allow extra time for travel and leave space in between cars. Cleaning your gutters and storm drainers can also be helpful.

Santa Clara County crews battling 3-alarm fire in Los Altos

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

(BCN) -- Firefighters are trying to contain a three-alarm fire in Los Altos early Monday morning, according to the Santa Clara County Fire Department.The blaze occurred at a commercial structure on El Camino Real between North San Antonio Road and Sherwood Avenue, Santa Clara County fire officials said on social media at 5:40 a.m.Motorists are advised to avoid the area and use alternate routes.Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.

San Rafael fallen tree causes power outage, road closure Sunday night

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

(BCN) -- A fallen tree caused a power outage and road closure in San Rafael on Sunday night, according to police.Around 8:30 p.m. Sunday, a tree along Vineyard Drive fell onto power lines, police said. This knocked out power service in the immediate area of Vineyard Drive, Coleman Drive, and north into some parts of Terra Linda. The portion of Vineyard Drive between Coleman Drive and Prospect Drive was also shut down.According to San Rafael police, crews determined there was no fire danger and PG&E already assessed the situation.Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.

‘It’s complicated’: DC officials mark 50th anniversary of Home Rule Act, continue push for statehood

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

D.C. got a unique Christmas Eve surprise from President Richard Nixon a half century ago — the right to self-governance.It came after decades of failures for the city, between 1948 and 1964, as a handful of bills came to the floor of Congress only to fail passage.“After turning out by the thousands for the March on Washington to support Black voting rights across the country, they couldn’t vote in their home city,” the DC library notes in its commemoration of 50 years of home rule.D.C. leaders wrote to their “friend and ally” Martin Luther King, Jr. to support their cause, the library added.“King spent three days in D.C., meeting with community leaders and leading rallies in support of racial justice and D.C. Home Rule,” the commemoration said.Over the years that passed, leaders like former Mayor Marion Barry and activist Dick Gregory would be among those that pushed to increase self-governance until Congress finally passed the Home Rule Act...

Gift disappointment happens. Here’s what you should do to feel better about it

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

(CNN) — When Abby Eckel saw the small jewelry gift bag her husband gave her for her birthday, she thought she knew exactly what was inside — a ring with a morganite gemstone that she had requested. But when Eckel opened the package and saw a necklace instead, she couldn’t hide her disappointment.“It was like this inner turmoil and conversation I was having with myself of like, do I say something? Or should I just be happy with what I received?” Eckel recalled.Eckel knew she wouldn’t wear the necklace since she has specific preferences about her jewelry. But now her husband had given her something she didn’t love, and she felt guilty for being disappointed.For many people, this disappointment — followed by guilt — is natural after receiving a gift that just doesn’t feel like you. It could be that annual sweater from your parents that isn’t in your size, a T-shirt with a band logo on it that you loved as a teen (but not anymore), or a piece of silver jewelry when you only ever wear go...

DC police identify man struck, killed by car in Northeast

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

Police have identified a Northeast D.C. resident who was struck and killed after being hit by a vehicle Friday.Samuel Thorton, 34, was struck just after 10 p.m. on Dec. 22 while walking through an alley in the 1100 block of 5th Street Northeast, according to a news release.An investigation into Thorton’s death determined that he fell to the ground in the alley that evening, shortly before a driver pulled through the alley and unknowingly struck him with the vehicle.First responders responded to the scene of the collision and found Thorton suffering from his injuries. He was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash.D.C. police said the driver of the car is cooperating with detectives, as an investigation continues. The police department is asking anyone with information to call 202-727-9099 or text a tip to 50411.A map of where the deadly crash happened is below. Source

Pochettino unfazed by Chelsea disciplinary record. Club has more yellow cards than any other PL team

Published Tue, 17 Dec 2024 00:53:20 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino is defending his team’s unwelcome position as the Premier League side with the most yellow cards this season.Pochettino said Chelsea’s 56 bookings in 18 league games did not show a lack of discipline but rather his players’ desire to compete.“We are in a big club, you feel the pressure,” Pochettino said ahead of Chelsea’s next league game against Crystal Palace on Wednesday. “When you are frustrated, and you don’t have maybe the experience of other teams, you make a mistake.”The team collected five bookings during the 2-1 defeat to Wolves at Molineux on Sunday, among them Cole Palmer who will now miss the Palace game after accruing five for the campaign.Raheem Sterling also saw yellow for simulation when he sought a penalty in stoppage time.“Palmer is playing for us his first season as a regular. It’s normal. The players care, they want to win, they are frustrated,” Pochettino said. “It’s not discipline....