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Snoop Dogg clarifies the smoke he's giving up

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

Just last week Snoop Dogg announced he's giving up smoke.“I’m giving up smoke,” he posted to Instagram and X, formerly known as Twitter.“After much consideration and conversation with my family, I’ve decided to give up smoke," he explained.However, it isn't in the way we all thought.The Long Beach native, who is synonymous with indulging in cannabis, clarified exactly what he meant.On Monday morning, Snoop revealed the smoke he was referencing had to do with a fire pit. Turns out the Doggfather enjoys sitting next to an open fire without “coughing and his clothes smelling all sticky icky.”He explained it all in a video posted to Instagram.Solo StoveThe announcement was all to promote the Solo Stove, a smokeless fire pit brand.Snoop is the brand's official "smokesman."“I love a good fire outside but the smoke was too much," he said in a statement. "Solo Stove fixed fire and took out the smoke. They changed the game and now I’m excited to spread the love and stay warm w...

Meet Analog Immersion Painter Laurie Shapiro

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

In this age of ubiquitous so-called immersive art experiences, painter Laurie Shapiro wages a campaign for something more analog, deeply embodied, and quietly psychedelic (in a meditative sense). Through an inventive combination technique involving painting, screen-printing, sewing, and sculpture, Shapiro’s walk-in wonderlands rival the optical spectacle created by technology with their kaleidoscopic, jewel-like, and organic radiance—but hum with the promise of something more profound. Born with a condition that causes progressive hearing loss, Shapiro turned to amplified visual and energetic experiences, using paint, light, and color to manifest pure emotion and a comforting sense of wonderment. Often the site of music, dance, and other performance actions and activations, Shapiro’s environments are also the counterparts to more traditional paintings that narrate more direct encounters with the sublime and deepening connectivity with nature and one another.Laurie Shapiro: Alchemy T...

Jill On Money: The Fed’s last mile

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

Are we still talking about inflation? Yes, we are.When the government released the November Consumer Price Index (CPI), it showed progress. The headline CPI tumbled to an annualized pace of 3.2 percent, from 3.7% the month prior.Related ArticlesBusiness | Adult children discuss the trials of caring for their aging parents Business | More bars in top vacation spots serving up nonalcoholic drinks Business | Why some Gen Z savers and financial experts say to put down the apps and budget by hand Business | 6 ideas for a Wonka dream vacation this winter Business | The best airlines for 2023 holiday travel on points The core rate, which strips out food and energy, edged down to 4%, the smallest increase since September 2021. While those numbers are markedly better than the high print from June 2022 (9.1%), the rate of inflation has not yet returned to pre-pandemic levels.As a refresher, it was just about two y...

As holiday season gets underway, here’s how to protect yourself and your family from respiratory viruses

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

By Amanda Musa | CNNWith Thanksgiving just days away, people across the United States are finalizing travel plans or racing through grocery stores in search of the perfect turkey, but there’s another plan to consider ahead of the holiday season: how to stay healthy and avoid the mix of seasonal viruses in circulation.Flu cases continue to pick up in most parts of the country, particularly the South and the West, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.RELATED: Thanksgiving travel is back: Californians to see record-breaking traffic on freeways, at airportsCovid-19 and respiratory syncytial virus are also spreading as many Americans hit the road and take to the skies this week, noted Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, an infectious disease specialist at the University of California at San Francisco — and they’ll be touching common surfaces that may be contaminated and sharing air with infected people.“A lot of people are going to be traveling at record numbers for ...

San Jose performer makes a ‘Bee’ line to TheatreWorks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

While Mai Abe has always embraced the musical side of musical theater, it took a while for the San Jose resident to get comfortable with the theatrical portion. Once she did, she surprised herself by turning pro.Abe is making her regional debut as Marcy in TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s production of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” running Nov. 29-Dec. 24 at the Lucie Stern Theatre in Palo Alto. She auditioned with James Monroe Iglehart, a Tony Award-winning actor who made his Broadway debut in “Bee” and is acting as creative producer for TheatreWorks’ production.“I never thought TheatreWorks was in the cards for me,” Abe says. “I only started doing theater recently.“I’ve always been involved in music in some way,” says the music therapist. “I grew up playing piano and got an undergraduate degree in clarinet.”Abe’s passion for theater was muted early on by a lack of opportunity.“In the early 2000s, the demographics of Broadway weren’t the demographics you se...

Bay Area businessman arrested in Venezuela just days after Biden administration eases oil sanctions

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

An East Bay man’s family is pleading for his release after they say he was wrongfully arrested in Venezuela and held for tens of thousands of dollars in ransom just days after the Biden administration eased crippling oil sanctions on the socialist-run government.Savoi Wright’s Oct. 24 arrest, which had not been previously reported, has become the latest flashpoint in the tenuous relationship between the U.S. and Nicolás Maduro’s government that critics say should lead to a return to sanctions.But all Wright’s family wants is for the 38-year-old businessman to be returned home. They know precious little about the circumstances of his arrest. No criminal charges have been filed, he has not been allowed to see a lawyer and the Venezuelan government hasn’t said where he is being held.“It’s a nightmare. It’s like you’re watching a horror movie but you’re in it,” his mother, Erin Stewart, told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from her Oakland home.Wright joins at least ...

The five living former U.S. presidents and four former first ladies, and their ages

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

With the death Sunday of Rosalynn Carter at age 96, four former first ladies are living, as well as five former presidents.They are:• Donald Trump (77), Melania Trump (53)• Barack Obama (62), Michelle Obama (59)• George W. Bush (77), Laura Bush (77)• Bill Clinton (77), Hillary Rodham Clinton (76)• Jimmy Carter (99)Those who have died in recent years are:• George H.W. Bush, died in November 2018 at age 94, and Barbara Bush, died in April 2018 at age 92• Ronald Reagan, died in 2004 at age 93, and Nancy Reagan, died in 2016 at age 94• Gerald Ford, died in 2006 at age 93, and Betty Ford, died in 2011 at age 93

Two Fremont men stabbed, suspect arrested for attempted murder

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

(KRON) – A man accused of stabbing two men has been arrested, the Fremont Police Department announced Monday. Fremont police officers were dispatched to the 4100 block of Walnut Ave for the report of a stabbing on Nov. 17 at 4:47p.m.Upon arrival, officers located two male victims who sustained stab wounds. According to officers, they began providing medical aid to both victims before victims were transported to area hospitals.  Thieves break in Hayward auto dealership, $100K worth of cars stolen One victim (a 23-year-old male) remained in stable condition. However, the other victim (a 30-year-old male) was in critical condition.According to obtained surveillance footage of the incident and multiple witnesses, the suspect was identified as 28-year-old Fremont resident, Miguel Angel Villareal.Officers saturated the area to locate Villareal, police said. Fremont PD Crimes Against Person(s) detectives responded to investigate. After several hours, Villareal was located and t...

Hannes Strydom, a 1995 Rugby World Cup winner with South Africa, dies at 58 in a car crash

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Hannes Strydom, a player on South Africa’s revered 1995 Rugby World Cup-winning team, has died in a car crash, the South African Rugby Union said Monday. He was 58.Strydom was killed in the crash Sunday evening, the union said in a statement.Strydom was a lock who played 21 tests and 10 other games for South Africa from 1993-97.He is the fifth member of the 1995 Springboks to die relatively young. Flanker Ruben Kruger died of brain cancer in 2010 at 39, scrumhalf Joost van der Westhuizen died in 2017 at 45 after years battling motor neurone disease, and wings James Small and Chester Williams died within two months of each other in 2019, both from heart attacks. Small was 50 and Williams was 49.In 1995, South Africa was playing in its first Rugby World Cup after a sports ban because of apartheid when it won on home soil.“To lose yet another member of the iconic Bok squad from 1995 is a heavy blow to the rugby fraternity here in South Africa,” Sout...

DC United hires Ally Mackay as its new GM, tasked to hire new coach

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:23 GMT

D.C. United hires Nashville SC assistant general manager Ally MacKay to lead the soccer club as the Black and Red look to rebound after not making the MLS playoffs for a fourth consecutive season.Mackay becomes the youngest active general manager in Major League Soccer at 37 years old. He will also become the club’s chief soccer officer, taking over for Dave Kasper, whose been with the club for over 20 years.According to a news release, Mackay will report directly to ownership and be in charge of roster makeup, player recruitment and talent identification as well as the search for a new head coach.Mackay, originally from London, worked as a player agent for Stellar Group for five years before joining Nashville in 2019. The agency represents several notable players including former Real Madrid star Gareth Bale and English international Jordan Pickford.As an assistant general manager with Nashville, he helped construct its roster for its inaugural season in 2020 and assisted wit...