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Dear Abby: I had to get rid of my beautiful furnishings because of guests’ stupid comments

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

DEAR ABBY: How do I deal with guests and friends who make unfortunate comments about personal belongings in my home?Related ArticlesAdvice | Dear Abby: She’s trying to one-up me by being the fun aunt Advice | Dear Abby: I’m 20, he’s 46 and married, and my family isn’t being supportive Advice | Dear Abby: I feel bad about it, but I had to squash my husband’s dream Advice | Dear Abby: We’re nervous about telling our kids this family secret Advice | Dear Abby: The children’s impersonal fundraising requests annoy me For example, I have a favorite print of a woman seated at a table. A friend commented, “Oh, we used to call her Mrs. Potato Head.” About my beautiful handwoven table runner depicting sliced fruit, a guest said, “Those look like women’s private parts!” I also display a beautiful statue of the three Graces, which I inherited fr...

Montgomery County Fair returns for 74th year in Gaithersburg

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

toggle audio on and off change volume download audio WTOP's Jason Fraley previews the Montgomery County Fair (Part 1) $(function () { $('.wtop-audio-container .fa-play').on('click', function(){ var audio_filename = $('div.wtop-audio-file').data("mp3-url"); ga('send', 'event', 'Audio', 'play', audio_filename); }); }); For 74 years, it’s become a beloved summer tradition for folks in Gaithersburg, Maryland.The Montgomery County Agricultural Fair returns Friday, running Aug. 11 through Aug. 19.“The sights and sounds and smells of the fair are things that live with folks forever,” executive director Marty Svr...

Mets host the Braves in first of 4-game series

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

Atlanta Braves (72-41, first in the NL East) vs. New York Mets (52-62, fourth in the NL East)New York; Friday, 7:10 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Braves: Charlie Morton (10-10, 3.86 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 132 strikeouts); Mets: Tylor Megill (6-5, 5.45 ERA, 1.68 WHIP, 61 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Braves -175, Mets +148; over/under is 9 1/2 runsBOTTOM LINE: The New York Mets begin a four-game series at home against the Atlanta Braves on Friday.New York has a 52-62 record overall and a 28-24 record at home. The Mets have gone 23-9 in games when they did not allow a home run.Atlanta has a 72-41 record overall and a 35-21 record in road games. The Braves have a 31-13 record in games when they did not allow a home run.The teams meet Friday for the seventh time this season. The Braves lead the season series 5-1.TOP PERFORMERS: Francisco Lindor has 25 doubles, two triples, 22 home runs and 69 RBI while hitting .246 for the Mets. Pete Alonso is 12-for-37 with two doubles and five home r...

Diamondbacks host the Padres on home losing streak

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

San Diego Padres (55-60, fourth in the NL West) vs. Arizona Diamondbacks (57-58, third in the NL West)Phoenix; Friday, 9:40 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Padres: Blake Snell (8-8, 2.69 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 164 strikeouts); Diamondbacks: Ryne Nelson (6-6, 5.16 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 80 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Padres -163, Diamondbacks +138; over/under is 9 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Arizona Diamondbacks play the San Diego Padres looking to break a three-game home losing streak.Arizona has a 28-30 record at home and a 57-58 record overall. The Diamondbacks are 21-12 in games when they hit at least two home runs.San Diego has gone 25-32 in road games and 55-60 overall. The Padres have a 42-9 record in games when they out-hit their opponents.Friday’s game is the seventh time these teams match up this season. The Padres have a 4-2 advantage in the season series.TOP PERFORMERS: Christian Walker leads the Diamondbacks with 55 extra base hits (32 doubles and 23 home runs). Lourdes Gurriel...

Pirates host the Reds in first of 3-game series

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

Cincinnati Reds (60-57, second in the NL Central) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (52-63, fourth in the NL Central)Pittsburgh; Friday, 7:05 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Reds: Andrew Abbott (6-3, 2.93 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 74 strikeouts); Pirates: Johan Oviedo (6-11, 4.18 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 117 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Reds -119, Pirates -100; over/under is 9 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates host the Cincinnati Reds on Friday to open a three-game series.Pittsburgh is 52-63 overall and 28-30 in home games. The Pirates are 37-16 in games when they record eight or more hits.Cincinnati is 60-57 overall and 31-26 on the road. The Reds have a 42-25 record in games when they record at least eight hits.The matchup Friday is the eighth meeting between these teams this season. The Pirates hold a 5-2 advantage in the season series.TOP PERFORMERS: Andrew McCutchen has 14 doubles, 10 home runs and 30 RBI while hitting .260 for the Pirates. Bryan Reynolds is 14-for-38 with a double and three ho...

Dodgers try to keep home win streak going, host the Rockies

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

Colorado Rockies (45-70, fifth in the NL West) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (68-46, first in the NL West)Los Angeles; Friday, 10:10 p.m. EDTPITCHING PROBABLES: Rockies: Austin Gomber (9-8, 5.40 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 79 strikeouts); Dodgers: Lance Lynn (8-9, 6.11 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 157 strikeouts)FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK MLB LINE: Dodgers -327, Rockies +258; over/under is 9 runsBOTTOM LINE: The Los Angeles Dodgers will try to keep their four-game home win streak intact when they face the Colorado Rockies.Los Angeles has a 35-20 record in home games and a 68-46 record overall. The Dodgers have a 56-16 record in games when they scored at least five runs.Colorado is 20-40 on the road and 45-70 overall. The Rockies have the 10th-ranked team batting average in the NL at .249.The teams meet Friday for the seventh time this season. The Dodgers lead the season series 5-1.TOP PERFORMERS: Mookie Betts leads the Dodgers with 31 home runs while slugging .576. Freddie Freeman is 21-for-41 with eight doubles, two hom...

Gunmen ambush a bus carrying Syrian soldiers, killing 20 in the country’s east

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — Gunmen have ambushed a bus carrying Syrian soldiers in the country’s east, killing at least 20 and wounding others, opposition activists said Friday.The Thursday night attack was believed to be carried out by members of the Islamic State group whose sleeper cells in parts of Syria still carry deadly attacks despite their defeat in 2019.The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 23 Syrian soldiers were killed and 10 were wounded in the attack on a desert road near the eastern town of Mayadeen in Deir el-Zour province that borders Iraq.Another activist collective that covers news in eastern Syria said 20 soldiers were killed and others were wounded.Syrian state news agency SANA quoted an unnamed military official as saying that the attack occurred Thursday night, “killing and wounding a number of soldiers.” It gave no further details, nor a breakdown in the casualty numbers.IS controlled large parts of Syria and Iraq where they declared a caliphate in Jun...

UK economy grows 0.2 percent thanks to June surge

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

The U.K. economy grew surprisingly strongly in the second quarter of 2023, as a manufacturing rebound in June rescued a period that seemed doomed to contraction.Manufacturing output rose 2.4 percent in June, pushing up overall industrial output by 1.8 percent, thanks to receding energy prices and the ongoing process of supply chain repair after the pandemic. The rebound was in part due to a ‘catch-up’ effect after the coronation of King Charles III in May, and the accompanying bank holiday.The numbers are the latest sign of the economic resilience in Britain that has withstood an aggressive tightening of monetary policy by the Bank of England over the last 18 months. As such, the data make it easier for the Bank to keep on raising rates if it deems it necessary to bring down inflation, which remains well above target. The growth numbers are, however, of less direct importance for the Bank than figures for wage growth and inflation, which are due next week.The pound react...

Fear stalks Northern Irish police after catastrophic leak of personal data

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

DUBLIN — In normal societies, being publicly identified as a police officer is just part of the job. In Northern Ireland, despite a quarter century of relative peace, the disclosure could be a death sentence.For that reason thousands of police officers are today agonizing over their futures after a monumental data blunder saw the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) accidentally publish the names and professional details — including, most sensitively, the base, unit and duties — of every single officer and civilian employee in the force. The unprecedented breach — committed Tuesday, when the police force uploaded the wrong Excel spreadsheet to a Freedom of Information website — revealed details many officers had kept secret even from relatives and close friends. Under enormous pressure after the scale of the leak became clear, PSNI Chief Constable Simon Byrne resisted calls to resign during a face-to-face grilling Thursday with the Policing Board, a cross-community panel that o...

Maui residents had little warning before flames overtook their town. At least 55 people died

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:00 GMT

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Maui residents who made desperate escapes from oncoming flames, some on foot, asked why Hawaii’s famous emergency warning system didn’t alert them as fires raced toward their homes.Hawaii emergency management records show no indication that warning sirens were triggered before a devastating wildfire killed at least 55 people and wiped out a historic town, officials confirmed Thursday.Hawaii boasts what the state describes as the largest integrated outdoor all-hazard public safety warning system in the world, with about 400 sirens positioned across the island chain to alert people to various natural disasters and other threats. But many of Lahaina’s survivors said in interviews at evacuation centers that they didn’t hear any sirens and only realized they were in danger when they saw flames or heard explosions nearby.Thomas Leonard, a 70-year-old retired mailman from Lahaina, didn’t know about the fire until he smelled smoke. Power and c...