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Ruth Bancroft’s beautiful cactus garden gets surreal sculptures in Walnut Creek

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

Cacti are weird enough – bulbous, spiny and sprouting flowers and fruits where you’d least expect them.Take a historic cactus-and-succulents garden and add artwork — like a pregnant woman’s torso made of blue leaves, a motorcycle/spider hybrid and a hairy satyr taking a dirt bath — and you have the perfect mix of nature and surrealism in Walnut Creek where an outdoor exhibit, Sculpture in the Garden, has taken root in a famous botanic garden.The 2023 iteration of this event (now in its 29th year) at the Ruth Bancroft Garden and Nursery features 25 local artists and nearly 50 sculptures in media from ceramic to metal to mosaics. Opening night this past Saturday drew throngs who admired art strategically placed among serrated fronds and stalks that reached high into the sky like giant, flower-dripping beanstalks. There were plenty of picnic tables for sipping wine – aside from daily visiting hours, two other wine and art-appreciation events are happening on Jul...

Blanket of ash upends decades of goodwill in the refinery town of Martinez

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

Martinez has long been a refinery town. Generations have worked at the sprawling complex on the east side of the city that defines the skyline.For more than a century, to live in Martinez, a town of 36,000 sitting beside the bay, has been to co-exist with the silver smoke stacks of heavy industry. The risks go along with the fun runs the oil refinery hosts and its sponsorship of the Chamber of Commerce.But after the refinery dumped 20 tons of heavy-metal laden dust on surrounding neighborhoods in November, covering lawns and gardens with a fine white silt, some residents think that relationship has shifted. Perhaps for good.“I think it’s fair to say that there is a new relationship, and we’re basically having to reestablish that relationship,” said Brianne Zorn, who was sworn in as mayor in December. “We need to make sure they’re not just paying for our events but that they’re a partner in making sure Martinez is a healthy and safe place to live.”The shift in public perception...

French policeman left in a coma by German hooligans at 1998 World Cup to attend Germany vs. France

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — The French policeman who was left in a coma following a brutal beating from German soccer hooligans during the 1998 World Cup is to attend a friendly between the two nations in September.Daniel Nivel accepted an invitation to attend the match in Dortmund on Sept. 12, the German soccer federation said on Tuesday, almost 25 years to the day after the near-fatal attack.German chancellor Helmut Kohl called it “a national scandal” at the time.On June 21, 1998, a group of 30 German hooligans beat Nivel in Lens, leaving him in a coma for six weeks and with other injuries from which he never recovered. Nivel was paralyzed on one side of his body, lost his sense of smell and taste, and lost sight in one eye.“The attack on Daniel Nivel 25 years ago is one of the darkest chapters in German soccer history,” federation president Bernd Neuendorf said. “I am moved by Daniel Nivel’s courage to face life and the brave attitude of his wife Lorette.”Neuendorf said he was very pleased tha...

Justice Department says Hunter Biden strikes deal to resolve tax and weapons charges, will plead guilty to some offenses

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Justice Department says Hunter Biden strikes deal to resolve tax and weapons charges, will plead guilty to some offenses.Source

2 Canadian military members missing after helicopter crash

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — The Royal Canadian Air Force is searching for two missing members following the crash of a military helicopter operating in eastern Ontario early Tuesday morning.The Department of National Defence said Tuesday four of the Royal Canadian Air Force members were on board a CH-147 Chinook helicopter when the crash happened after midnight near the Ottawa River close to Petawawa, Ontario, about 160 kilometers (99 miles) northwest of Canada’s capital of Ottawa.The Department said they were on board as part of a training flight.Two of the crew were found by first responders and taken to a hospital in Pembroke, but the two others are still missing.The department said about 50 Canadian Armed Forces members are searching for the two on shore and in the water, assisted by an Ontario Provincial Police marine unit, Petawawa and Pembroke Fire Departments and several military rescue aircraft.The department is asking boaters to avoid the area near the military base of Garrison...

Justice Department charges President Joe Biden’s son Hunter with federal tax and weapons offenses

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Justice Department charges President Joe Biden’s son Hunter with federal tax and weapons offenses.Source

CNBC: la fecha del juicio de los documentos clasificados de Trump está fijada para el 14 de agosto

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

Un juez federal de Florida programó el martes el juicio penal del expresidente Donald Trump por su supuesta retención ilegal de documentos clasificados del gobierno para comenzar el 14 de agosto. Pero los expertos legales no esperan que el juicio comience tan temprano, dado el tiempo necesario para resolver los asuntos legales antes de que el jurado comience a escuchar el testimonio y se le presenten las pruebas. Trump, que busca la nominación presidencial republicana de 2024, fue acusado a principios de este mes de más de tres docenas de cargos penales relacionados con el mantenimiento de cientos de registros clasificados después de dejar la Casa Blanca en enero de 2021. Blindan Miami por la audiencia del expresidente Trump en corte Qué es un “arraignment” judicial, el mismo al que se presentó Trump en Miami Se ha declarado inocente en el caso. En su orden del martes, la jueza Aileen Cannon les dijo a los fiscales y abogados del...

Finland swears in a new government seen as its most right-wing in modern history

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

HELSINKI (AP) — Finland swore in a new coalition government on Tuesday that is seen as the most right-wing in the Nordic country’s modern history.The 19-member Cabinet of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, the leader of the conservative National Coalition Party, was approved by the Eduskunta legislature, after which President Sauli Niinistö appointed it.Following lengthy talks over seven weeks, the NCP, which won the most seats in the April 2 general election, announced a deal last Friday with three other parties to form a governing coalition that includes the far-right euro-skeptic Finns Party, which follows a largely nationalist and anti-immigration agenda.The two junior partners in the coalition are the Christian Democrats and the Swedish People’s Party of Finland.Due to the dominance of the two senior coalition partners, which are conservative and populist, Finnish media describe Orpo’s government as “national conservative” in nature. Political analysts say the new Cabinet is Finland’...

Lawyer Eastman faces a disciplinary hearing over a plot to keep Trump in power after his 2020 loss

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — An effort to disbar conservative attorney John Eastman, who devised ways to keep President Donald Trump in the White House after his defeat in the 2020 election, will begin Tuesday in Los Angeles.Eastman is expected to spend the day testifying before the State Bar of California in a proceeding that could result in him losing his license to practice law in the state. He faces 11 disciplinary charges stemming from his development of a dubious legal strategy that was aimed at helping Trump remain in power by disrupting the counting of state electoral votes.The State Bar’s counsel will seek Eastman’s disbarment during a hearing before the State Bar Court that’s expected to last at least eight days. If the court finds Eastman culpable of the alleged violations it can recommend a punishment such as suspending or revoking his law license. The California Supreme Court makes the final decision.Eastman is scheduled to testify in his own defense Tuesday. Th...

'It's quick and it's quiet': Advice from mom of 3-year-old drowning victim

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:45:08 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) — June 21 is the first day of summer, and it’s starting to feel more like it in Colorado as of late. During this busy pool season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said child drownings are the leading cause of unintentional death among children ages 1 to 4 years old. CPW: Boaters watch out for car in Arkansas River Experts said drowning deaths are 100% preventable.Child drownings by the numbers The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's latest data showed nearly 400 children under the age of 15 drown each year. According to No More Under, you're less likely, by 88%, to drown if you have strong swimming skills.The National Downing Prevention Alliance said that 88% of child drownings occur with at least one adult present. Mother raising awareness after drowning death of son One mother who lost her 3-year-old son to drowning is using her grief to save others. Chezik Tsunoda started an organization called No More Under which is dedicated to saving liv...