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Comic Zach Zimmerman probably shouldn’t have let his mom read parts of his memoir

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

When Zach Zimmerman was a boy, his father, a mechanic and assistant pastor at the local church, would preach at the dinner table, telling his son, “If you’re not saved, Zachary, you go to Hell when you die.”His mother shared those beliefs and routinely prepared a dinner table of southern dishes that, as Zimmerman writes, seemed to declare, “We’re all gonna die of heart attacks, so let’s do it as a family.”Related: Sign up for our free newsletter about books, authors, reading and moreFor Zimmerman, who grew up to be gay, atheist and vegetarian, childhood was a period filled with questions and self-doubt, causing pain and insecurity but also providing plenty of fodder for a career in comedy. Now Zimmerman, whose stand-up career has earned him plaudits in the New York Times, Vulture and USA Today, has written his first book, a collection of essays called, “Is It Hot in Here? Or Am I Suffering for All Eternity for the Sins I Committed on Earth?”There are humor pieces and essays about hi...

Red Sox end long stretch on sour note, falling to Orioles 6-2

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

They stumbled over the finish line, but the Red Sox will finally get a chance to catch their breath.The Red Sox wrapped up the longest stretch of games they’ll play all season on a sour note, losing Wednesday’s rubber game with the Baltimore Orioles 6-2. The club now enters its first off day after 19 straight games with a 13-13 record, good for last in the AL East but also only one game behind the Yankees for the last playoff spot pending Wednesday’s late Houston-Tampa Bay result.How should people feel about where the club is at?First, the positives. Coming into this week’s series in Baltimore the Red Sox had won three straight series, two of those against first-place clubs. More than half of their losses also came in a pair of sweeps against the Tampa Bay Rays and Pittsburgh Pirates, who entering Wednesday had the two best records in baseball and were a combined 36-12.Outside of those series the Red Sox are 13-6 and have shown they can compete with some of t...

3 Giants first-round draft scenarios; NFL-wide quarterback curiosity

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

Thursday night’s NFL Draft first round provides league-wide intrigue outside of the 31 players that will be picked.There is curiosity about whether the Baltimore Ravens’ Lamar Jackson contract standoff will be resolved and why a team like the Indianapolis Colts, who hold the No. 4 overall pick, isn’t making an 11th-hour play for the former MVP.A handful of less obvious teams have quarterback situations that warrant a second look, too.The San Francisco 49ers want to trade former No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance. The New England Patriots and Mac Jones don’t seem long for each other.The Miami Dolphins have to know they need more insurance than Mike White for Tua Tagovailoa, who admitted he considered retirement after last season’s concussions.And while the Washington Commanders don’t appear to be in the NFL Draft QB market with Jacoby Brissett and Sam Howell in the building, it’s hard to understand why not.The Giants, meanwhile, extended Daniel Jo...

Yankees’ bats break out to salvage series finale vs Twins in 12-6 win

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS — The Yankees only scored two runs in Tuesday’s loss to the Twins, yet Aaron Boone viewed the evening as a step forward amid his team’s offensive drought.A Minnesota error made one of those runs possible, but Boone came away pleased with the Yankees’ approach and aggression. On Wednesday morning, the manager hoped the previous night would serve as a stepping stone as the Yankees sought to hang the “crooked numbers” that Boone desperately craved.“When you’re going through a stretch where we haven’t swung the bats great, we gotta build on things like that,” Boone said before the Yanks’ series finale against the Twins. Hours later, the Yankees beat Minnesota, 12-6, after scoring five runs in the second inning and six in the fourth.The Yankees had some help to begin the second inning, as a hustle double turned into a man on third after a Twins throwing error. Torres then scored when ex-Yankee Joey Gallo couldn...

More oil and gas workers make the jump to clean energy

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

Stefanie Auld first noticed the trend just before COVID-19 hit in early 2020.That February, Auld, who helps oversee hiring for the Los Angeles-based green energy company Avantus, was at a conference in Austin, Texas for women who worked in renewable energy. She’d volunteered to conduct mock interviews and resume coaching, assuming she’d largely be helping others in clean energy who wanted to change positions or companies. Instead, she said, almost every woman who approached her was working in conventional energy but seeking advice on pivoting to a job in the renewables sector.It’s a trend that’s only expected to increase.With new local, state, federal and international mandates aimed at reducing carbon emissions, latest Department of Energy records show fossil fuel sectors continued to post job losses even as the pandemic eased. Petroleum lost 31,593 jobs from 2020 to 2021, for a 6.4% drop, while coal jobs dropped by 11.8%.At the same time, the energy sector overall grew faster than...

Montana transgender lawmaker barred by GOP from House floor

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Republicans in Montana barred transgender lawmaker Zooey Zephyr from participating on the House floor for the rest of the 2023 session after she refused to apologize for telling them last week that they would “see the blood on your hands” over votes to ban gender-affirming medical care for children.The punishment of the freshman lawmaker caps a weeklong standoff between House Republican leaders and Zephyr that began after she told colleagues last week, you will “see the blood on your hands” over votes to ban gender-affirming medical care for children.Zephyr will still be able to vote remotely under terms of the punishment, yet will be unable to discuss proposals and amendments under consideration with the 99 other members of the Montana House.In a defiant speech Wednesday she gave before her colleagues voted, Zephyr addressed House leaders directly and said she was taking a stand for the LGBTQ+ community, her constituents in Missoula and “democracy itself.”She a...

Biden bats away questions about age, polls; launches 2024 ad

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden rolled out the first ad of his 2024 reelection campaign on Wednesday, casting himself as a warrior in defense of freedom, but immediately found himself grappling with questions about his advanced age and droopy poll numbers. At an afternoon news conference with South Korea’s president, Biden swatted away questions about his 42% job approval rating in part by arguing that most politicians running for reelection end up in roughly the same boat. “I feel good, I feel excited about the prospects,” he said. “I think we’re on the verge of turning the corner in a way we haven’t in a long time.” As for his age — the president would be 86 when he left office if reelected — Biden said such numbers don’t even compute with him.“I can’t even guess how old I am,” he said. “I can’t even say the number, it doesn’t register with me. The only thing I can say is they’re going to see a race and they’re going to judge whether I hav...

Industrial and energy stocks drag down S&P/TSX composite, U.S. stock markets mixed

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

TORONTO — Canada’s main stock index was down at the market close on Wednesday, driven by drops in industrials and energy stocks, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.The S&P/TSX composite index was down 73.15 points at 20,366.72.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 228.96 points at 33,301.87. The S&P 500 index was down 15.64 points at 4,055.99, while the Nasdaq composite was up 55.19 points at 11,854.35.The Canadian dollar traded for 73.39 cents US compared with 73.41 cents US on Tuesday.The June crude contract was down US$2.77 at US$74.30 per barrel and the June natural gas contract was down 13 cents at US$2.31 per mmBTU.The June gold contract was down US$8.50 at US$1,996.00 an ounce and the July copper contract was down less than a penny at US$3.86 a pound.This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 26, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD=X)The Canadian Press

Ontario Science Centre employees ‘angry and confused’ by plan to move: union

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

The union representing about 400 employees at the Ontario Science Centre says the workers are “angry and confused” by the government’s plans to move the attraction to downtown Ontario Place.Premier Doug Ford said Tuesday that the employees are “excited” by the prospect, but the union says that’s not the case.The Ontario Public Service Employees’ Union says in a statement that moving the science centre from the current east Toronto site on a ravine to a pavilion on the Ontario Place grounds could mean a smaller, more crowded space, reducing exhibit capacity and leading to possible layoffs.They say most staff have worked at the science centre for more than 10 years and have built their lives in nearby neighbourhoods.RELATED:Reasons for Ontario Science Centre relocation versus renovation still not fully clearCommunity backlash to proposed Science Centre relocationThe union says where Ontario Place is located is a congested section of downtown, ...

Toronto man charged for confining woman, sexually assaulting her over year and a half

Published Mon, 16 Dec 2024 18:57:21 GMT

A Toronto man is facing over 40 charges after he allegedly forcibly confined a woman and sexually assaulted her multiple times over a year-and-a-half.Investigators said 29-year-old Dhrubo Hasan of Toronto was arrested last week on Friday, April 21.Hasan faces an abundance of charges, including six counts of assault and assault by choking, three counts of sexual assault, three counts of mischief under $5,000, nine counts of failing to comply, assault with a weapon, aggravated assault and three counts of forcible confinement, among others.The accused was slated to appear in court today.Police did not release any information about the woman involved.Investigators are concerned there may be more victims and are urging them to come forward.