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Beach days were back, parking lots were filling up again, and once-dark hotel rooms were beginning to glow orange with guests. And a little after 9 p.m. on a cool and starry Friday night, ice cream sounded good.

From a distance, it looked like a normal weekend indulgence, the cap to a postcard sunset, as families pressed close to the window of Twistee Treat in St. Pete Beach. They stood in a long, floodlit line that curled into the parking lot around the buildings big vanilla swirl.

Many did not, however, remain six feet apart. And it was hard to lick a soft-serve cone while wearing a mask.

Further along Gulf Boulevard, past dark stretches with lingering VACANCY signs, came swells of people strolling through propped-open doors of beach bars and restaurants, conversation spilling into the street. On patios, under string lights, couples and friends sat distanced from other tables and clinked celebratory beers.

Taking in scenes of Tampa Bay coming back to life on the first weekend most of Florida started to reopen, the notion that the U.S. remains in the clutch of a pandemic felt far away. Florida had just marked its deadliest week since the coronavirus first took hold here. Accordingly, many people stayed home, watching the world go by from the porch. For others, this 85-degree weekend with its newly-loosened rules felt more like a victory lap.

***

It was instinctive. When Lisa Lewis and Carenthia Prince met in Ybor City Friday night, they reached for a hug. The two friends pulled up short just before making contact.

Lewis, 38, from Gibsonton, and Prince, a 36-year-old who lives in Ybor, met up for dinner on 7th Avenue, where street segments were blocked off in one of Tampas Caf and Retail Zones. They wore masks and carried hand sanitizer, but said it felt great to be out.

Tables took up part of the roadway, and restaurant workers in masks spritzed chairs with cleaner across from parked police cruisers. A responsible patron checklist hung on poles at each block. Finally, storefronts were lighting up again. But Lewis was surprised to see so few masks.

I just wish they would be a little more cautious, she said.

To hug or not to hug differed by person. Some friends reunited in the streets with running embraces and cries of I missed you! Jennifer Cadry, 44, of Brandon, opted for air hugs. She lost her job as a bartender during the shutdown, and to pay the bills, Cadry fought her discomfort and signed up to drive for Uber Eats and shop for Instacart. To see restaurants and other businesses open was a balm.

As long as people are responsible and restaurants are sanitizing, it lowers the risk to the point that I feel comfortable being out, she said.

Ybors sights and the slice of normalcy they provided proved irresistible to some whod stayed indoors for weeks. Denise Vidro, 38, and Martin Torres, 46, had gotten fresh air from time to time on his motorcycle, but on Friday, they sat at Nicahabana and enjoyed a cigar and a cup of coffee.

Were always together, but we havent seen friends, Vidro said, as she looked over at a large group sitting outside Tequila Bar Taqueria, where there was a giant jug of hand sanitizer on the hostess stand. Watching them feels good. Its so good to see people again.

***

Saturday morning arrived with hot, blue skies and postcard-puffy clouds, almost like a personal invitation to step outside.

In Spring Hill, Bruce Gresh embraced the status quo. He relaxed. He watched the birds flit about his yard. He felt grateful to be safe.

In Seminole Heights, 72-year-old Sharlene Lindsey did the same. Her front porch was perfect for watching her younger neighbors walk and run by. She was content to stay put.

For many, Saturday came and went without a sense of urgency. To reemerge now felt like a needless risk. If they ventured out, some opted for masks, or made a quick stop for takeout. Others sought quiet spaces, like Lassing Park in St. Petersburg, so empty that pet owners could let their dogs off leash to wander.

A couple walked along the shore with an old-faced golden retriever, talking about whether their friend would be able to have a birthday dinner. Two people kayaked side by side in the bay. A duo pedaled a red tandem bike on the sidewalk.

A new mother held her baby while her husband carefully aimed a camera at them, holding a small bushel of sunflowers to use as a prop. Luis Gonzalez, 29, said he and Erica Gonzalez, 30, wanted to take photos to commemorate her first Mothers Day.

Their son Leo Gonzalez was born on February 3rd. A month later they started quarantining, weeks before the state made the order official.

The couple moved from New York last year to be closer to family. They were able to introduce Leo to family in the weeks before the coronavirus hit, but it was hard to not be able to share their baby with loved ones, who have only seen his round cheeks and wispy hair over video chat.

The goal was to be near family and start a family, Luis Gonzalez said. The one thing we had looked forward to had to be kind of taken away.

Having a newborn meant Erica was already being cautious, but now her biggest worry is that she or Luis could become sick, unable to care for Leo.

In the next few weeks, theyre thinking about expanding their quarantine circle a little wider, but arent in any rush to go out. These days, Luis has been working from home, in a desk pushed next to his sons crib.

***

Long before noon on Saturday, traffic on the Pinellas Bayway was backed up to the toll booth by Eckerd College. For those drivers, the slog to the Gulf was just beginning.

Theyd soon find Pass-a-Grille Beach packed to the brim. Literally.

Signs indicating the beach was full prevented drivers on Pass-a-Grille Way from turning toward the shore, while Pinellas County sheriffs cars lined Gulf Way. Deputies stood at each beach access point. No entry.

North and south along the shoreline, the beach faded into a sea of umbrellas along the dunes. People walked the wet sand and slept in the sun. Signs staked in the sand outlined the new BEACH RULES. Kids played in the 77-degree water.

Getting to the beach Saturday was a must for 18-year-old Olivia Manno. The Plant High senior who just finished online classes Friday said she came to the beach in a group of nine to celebrate a friends 18th birthday.

She normally goes to the beach twice a week. Its been 52 days since her last visit.

As a Floridian, its hard not to go, she said.

Nearby, Christine Valdes and her husband were enjoying lunch at the busy Paradise Grille beachside. Residents of St. Pete Beach, they rode their bikes south.

They said so long as they stuck to outdoor dining, they werent so concerned about contracting the virus.

Were not trying to go inside any of the restaurants, said Valdes, 55. Everybody seems to be respecting their distance.

Across the street, the famed Hurricane Seafood Restaurant seated patrons outdoors only. Servers delivered plates in blue gloves, bare-faced.

***

At Brooklyn South on Central Avenue in St. Petersburg, a sign on the door asked customers to limit themselves to only three or four inside at a time. And stop touching your face! The line edged out to the sidewalk, where a man lifted his mask to take a pull on his vape.

Its good to see you, a regular said to the guy behind the register.

Its good to be seen.

Picnic tables at Casita Taqueria on Central were crammed, a tight-knit queue pushing out the door. Friends shared baskets of chips under Corona-branded umbrellas. Out front, four teenage girls wrangled Coast bikes from the kiosk and set off.

Across the street, motorcyclists and dog-walkers stopped to pick up bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches and iced coffee from Bandit Coffee Co.s contactless station.

Elsewhere along the downtown corridor, St. Pete came to life in a patchwork. An OPEN flag hung outside one antique shop while others remained shuttered, yellow sheriffs warnings still posted in the windows. WELCOME BACK banners and spaced-out tables materialized next to eateries with cautious instructions taped to the door. A crystal shop was open, a rattan furniture shop was closed. A smoke shop was open, a vegan cafe was closed.

Masks were few. Sundresses and sunglasses were many. Along the waterfront parks, hammocks hung from palms. Joggers and sightseers paraded down the walkways, past a closed playground and empty pool. Were they keeping their distance? Many were. Others, it was hard to say. There was a feeling of sweet relief, as bicyclists pedaled along the water, handlebar streamers catching the breeze.

At many of Beach Drives upscale restaurants, servers wore black masks, leaning in to take orders. A downtown trolley passed, lit up with instruction: COVER UR FACE B4 U RIDE.

Next to an Italian ice cart was a sign for $1 masks.

***

Under normal circumstances, Regina Kaza, 27, of Tampa, and Chelsea Lettiero, 27, of Westchase, meet every other week for yoga and brunch. This time, it was just an iced coffee from Buddy Brew in Hyde Park and a perch on the fountain. But it was a pleasant reminder of routine.

Neither has been out much. Kaza isnt ready to go to a restaurant, but being outside where shes able to keep her distance is nice. Lettiero went to dinner at Mothers Restaurant this week.

I was hesitant to come out, Kaza said. I thought it would be busier.

All the tables in the Village Center were full, but were spaced apart. The Clark family dug into Bartaco takeout. It may not be the beach, 43-year-old April Clark said, but her kids needed to get off of their electronics.

This is a nice compromise.

At Armature Works, people sprawled in the Adirondack chairs across the lawn. And at International Plaza, thousands of people roamed the tile floors, about half in masks. More than 20 shoppers queued six feet apart outside Forever 21, mask required, to be one of ten people browsing its sprawling racks. Louis Vuitton had the same policy, while stores such as H&M, Victorias Secret and Gap stayed closed.

Kids held parents hands, and could only stare as they passed the once-energetic play area that now sat dormant.

Its great to see everybody back, said Max Moyer, 20, the owner of a shoe-cleaning business that sits between Morphe and Abercrombie Kids. But its different for sure.

***

For some, this weekend meant sanity. Sonia Hass got breakfast at Clear Sky Cafe in Dunedin. We arent being reckless but not living in fear, she said.

For others, it was ominous. Laura McCrary of Palm Harbor, logging onto Facebook and seeing the scene outside, simply felt sad. She feared the surge that might arise in a couple of weeks.

Stephanie Addis, 45, of St. Pete, tried to recreate her Friday tradition with her boyfriend, getting carryout pizza from Old Northeast Tavern. But after a few outings in a few days, the guilt grew. It felt wrong, she said.

Matt Cardillo of Tampa, watching it all play out online, tweeted: Its a party in the eye of a hurricane.

***

In the Sterling Ranch neighborhood of Brandon, Melissa Clarke was trying to decide what to order for takeout. She and her husband had been hoping for dinner from the Columbia Restaurant, but it wasnt open yet. She was content to wait.

Her 50-year-old husband is immunocompromised, she said, and hasnt left home in nearly two months. Clarke, 49, steps out only to drop off their dog at the vet and run curbside errands. They get groceries delivered. A few times a day, they go on a walk and say hello to neighbors from afar. When someone comes close, they cross the street.

Watching people rush back into the world left Clarke and her husband concerned: Will we lose more people than is necessary?

We understand that people are restless, she said, but to us it is life or death, and being a bit restless is worth saving lives.

She misses drinks at 7venth Sun Brewery in Seminole Heights. She hates that so many beloved places are struggling. But takeout was still on the menu.

We will give it more time, she said.

Staff writers Divya Kumar, Zachary T. Sampson and Emily Mahoney contributed to this report.

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Out and about in Tampa Bay on the first weekend of reopening - Tampa Bay Times

DENVILLE, NJ -- The Denville Police Department has issued an advisory alerting residents of coyote sightings in town. The advisory states that while "[t]here is no cause for alarm[,]...[residents should] be mindful of any small domestic pets that are let outside. It is good practice to always have your pet on a leash."

A fact sheet attached to the advisory listed the following precautions when coyotes might be near:

The advisory urges anyone with questions or concerns regarding coyotes to contact Denville Animal Control at 973-627-4900 ext. 265.

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Denville Police Department Warns of Coyotes Spotted in Town - TAPinto.net

Costa Mesa offers easy access to the beach towns of Huntington and Newport without the exorbitant home prices. But the city of approximately 115,000 is appealing in its own right, featuring craft breweries, live music venues, trendy retailers and mouth-watering restaurants.

Weekend trips to Los Angeles or San Diego are totally doable thanks to Costa Mesas central location and the fairgrounds play host to year-round events. If youre in the market for a single-family home or townhome in this far-from-sleepy suburb, consider one of these four new construction options.

Developer: Intracorp USA Location: 1651 Superior Avenue Priced from: $1,057,649

As the Talking Heads once sang, this must be The Place. The new urban community in Westside Costa Mesa offers a collection of 42 live/work detached homes with three bedrooms, two full baths and two half baths. Enjoy the 360 Sky Suites, measuring up to 819 square feet, equipped with shade trellises and plenty of space for alfresco dining or lounging. Theres a long list of neighborhood amenities, including a community garden, bocce ball court, shuffleboard court, open play lawn, tot lot, and group dining terraces with barbecues for summer grilling.

Developer: The Olson Company Location: 390 Ford Road Priced from: high-$600,000s

As the name implies, Westside Walk is within walking distance of the shops, restaurants and entertainment hotspots of Triangle Square. These contemporary townhomes boast up to three bedrooms, two full baths, two powder rooms and two-car garages with interior access. The 38 residences have yet to be released, so be sure to register online to receive community and grand opening news. When completed, the community will include a lively entertainment area with a fire pit lounge, ping pong tables and cornhole.

Developer: Meritage Homes Location: 699 West 17th Street Priced from: $834,990

The COVID-19 pandemic has made a dedicated workspace a must-have for homebuyers. Fortunately, 17 West The Gallery features townhomes with first-floor home offices, complete with a powder room and outdoor patio. Future residents will live just over a mile away from the beach, but when they want to enjoy the outdoors from the comfort of home, they can always catch some rays on the roof deck (as per plan). The included interior features optimize health and energy-efficiency, with fresh-air management systems, LED lighting, Energy Star appliances, low- to zero-VOC materials, and water-saving plumbing fixtures.

Developer: DeNova Homes Location: 946 Aurora Lane Priced from: $874,990

If a detached single-family home is more to your liking, youll want to browse the Spanish Revival, traditional and modern farmhouse-style residences at Elara. The three- to four-bedroom homes measure up to 2,401 square feet all forless than $1 million. The gourmet kitchens are kitted out with high-end Bertazzoni appliances, quartz slab countertops, shaker or wenge cabinets, under-cabinet lighting and storage pantries. In the private master retreats, expect large walk-in closets and ensuites with oversized showers featuring hand-laid subway tile walls. Just minutes away, youll find The LAB Anti-Mall, South Coast Plaza, The CAMP and the Orange County fairgrounds.

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4 new townhomes and singles for sale in Costa Mesa - Livabl

MUST SEE! 6000+ SqFt Custom home on 1.75 Acre lake lot! 4 bd, 6 bth, many luxury touches & upgrades throughout, including plaster walls, reclaimed white maple floors, reclaimed entry doors w/original bronze hardware, slate entry floor, massive curved stairs to upper level, 4 HVAC systems for zoned comfort, wine cellar/safe rm, 3 fireplaces, beveled glass doors at family & dining areas, Anderson windows, central vac, oversize 3 car garage. Main level includes: Vaulted great rm, office [custom shelving], family [built-ins], dining, & breakfast [atrium doors to deck] rms, kitchen [high end granite counters, Amish handcrafted cabinets, Garland 6 burner stove, island w/additional sink], laundry, 2 half baths, master suite [custom closet, bath, separate shower], & back staircase to upper level. Upper level offers: Loft, 3 bdrms, each w/private bath, abundant storage areas. Lower level walk out features: large fireplace, workshop area, rough in bath, & separate walk outs to patio or yard.

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50 of the Most Expensive Homes for Sale in the St. Louis Area - STLtoday.com

HALIFAX, N.S.

Here we grow again.

Halifax regional council will consider a motion at its virtual meeting Tuesday to convert the grass in the boulevards of some of its streets into a garden of flowers and plants.

Last October, council requested a staff report to focus on guidelines for boulevard gardens, with boulevards being defined as the area between the curb and the sidewalk that are typically planted with grass.

Right now, residents whose properties abut such boulevards are required to maintain any grass and clip it to a height of no greater than six inches.

Municipal staff reviewed nine other Canadian urban centres with boulevard garden policies for consideration in draft guidelines for HRM.

A meeting with HRM internal stakeholders led to a recommendation that the placement of boulevard gardens be addressed through street bylaw amendments and the adoption of an administrative order.

Additionally, a resident guide will be published with information for residents who wish to plant a boulevard garden abutting their property. The guidelines cover public safety and access to HRM rights-of-way, municipal operations including snow-clearing and street cleaning and maintenance and road and sidewalk repairs.

The boulevard gardens will not be permitted within medians or traffic islands, digging shall not extend deeper than 30 centimetres below grade and gardens must be a metre away from utility poles, fire hydrants, trees and bus shelters.

Further, gardens are not permitted where there is no sidewalk, permanent and temporary planters and irrigation will be prohibited and damage that may occur during road work, snow clearing or any other general maintenance may be reinstated with grass seed or sod. Damaged gardens will not be replaced by the municipality or any other contractor.

The list of prohibitions include areas with paid street parking and space adjacent to accessible parking spaces.

The boulevard garden shall not create a hazard to public users of the right of way, the staff report states.

The municipality would not allow trees, woody plants or climbing vines to be planted in boulevards and the maximum height for plants would be a metre, except for 0.6 metre within five metres of an intersection or marked crosswalk.

No plants will be permitted to overhang streets or sidewalks and plants must be trimmed if they do. If plants are deemed to be a visibility, mobility or safety concern, they may be trimmed or removed by staff.

Residents may want to consider planting annual or perennial plants which will thrive in the location, including a tolerance to drought and salt and exposure to sun, the staff report says.

Upon approval by council Tuesday, staff will prepare bylaw amendments to be brought back before council in approximately four months.

The residents guide will be published upon adoption of the boulevard garden policy and will be available in several languages.

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Time to grow that boulevard garden in HRM? - TheChronicleHerald.ca

Alec Garcia and 20 other freshmen stepped onto the baseball field at Grover Cleveland Charter High School in Reseda for the first time in June 2016. The grass was crunchy and yellow; the dirt, dangerous and unforgiving, chopped into uneven shards from the stampede of weekend soccer games.

But the freshman class was talented and the players were already anticipating a strong senior season, mentally circling March 2020.

9:16 AM, May. 09, 2020 An earlier version of this article said Erika Kerekes older son was valedictorian at his high school. He was salutatorian.

Since our freshman year, we were like, Man, when were seniors were going to be really good, Alec said.

Over the next four years, they played year-round and became family. Thanks to head coach Sid Lopez and a motivated group of parents, the quality of the field new sod, new bleachers, new clubhouse began to mirror that of the team. In two of the last three seasons, Cleveland advanced to the city semifinals. With 14 seniors this year, the Cavaliers had a realistic shot at the L.A. City Section title game, which was to be played at Dodger Stadium.

Alec, a three-year varsity player, had developed into one of the teams most reliable performers. He was a good student, with a 3.4 grade-point average in Clevelands demanding CORE magnet program, but he wasnt a slam-dunk prospect for a college scholarship. A strong spring could cement his future.

I dont want to say that I was riding on baseball for college, Alec said from his Encino home, but I put a lot of effort into [it], hoping that I could get a scholarship.

Column One

A showcase for compelling storytelling from the Los Angeles Times.

After L.A. Unified schools shut down, Alec improvised to stay in shape. I was trying to be optimistic and have hope that we would get back into things even if we came back in mid- to late May, he said, because my whole life has been school and baseball, you know? And not having either of them. His voice trails off.

These 14 young men have worked so hard for four years to be where they are, and they were in a great position to compete, Lopez said.

It was something that was taken away from them.

The coronavirus outbreak has disrupted the foundations of daily life. For the high school and college classes of 2020 and their families the catastrophe has left a large, empty space where signature coming-of-age moments should be.

Graduation speeches and senior projects; interviews and internships; grad nights and proms and spring sports banquets all gone, replaced by the monotonous limbo of self-isolation and a spooky uncertainty: What now? What next? When?

Seniors everywhere have lost their bearings.

For years, focusing on academics gave San Pedro High School senior Skye Carbajal a sense of control and comfort. Her life outside school had been turbulent. She was put in the foster system and placed with her grandmother, Liz McConnachie, in ninth grade and the classroom became her sanctuary.

Skyes senior-year schedule started at 7 a.m. and included Advanced Placement classes, college courses, violin lessons and volunteer work through her local Boys and Girls Club. She earned the second-highest GPA in her class and in the fall will attend Pomona College on a full ride. In her graduation speech, she planned to thank her grandmother, who was going to record it and listen to it every morning.

Weston Kerekes, a senior at Santa Monica High School, practices on his bass at home. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, his symphony orchestra will miss out on its planned European tour.

(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)

Weston Kerekes, a member of Santa Monica High Schools symphony orchestra, had been practicing the bass in preparation for a spring appearance at the Royal Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the Berliner Philharmonie in Berlin. The orchestra had been planning to perform Beethovens complete Fifth Symphony. Instead, Weston found himself sitting at home, teaching himself how to whittle and paint.

Though Weston, a leading contender for valedictorian, expressed a vague disappointment about not experiencing that kind of final kumbaya when were all getting together and being happy and whatever, he was calmly pragmatic about the sudden change in plans. In fact, hes quickly pivoted toward whats ahead: his freshman year at Yale.

My heads already there a little bit, so thats how Im dealing with not having all that finality.

Westons mother, Erika, had a different perspective and stands as a reminder that the sudden cancellation of senior-year rituals may hit parents harder than their children.

She lamented the lost rites, particularly because her older son a junior music major at Yale and former Santa Monica salutatorian got to have all of those experiences. It feels like theres just going to be a big hole in that photo album for Weston, she said.

Guadalupe Gomez is the mother of Culver City High School senior Diana Martinez, who turned a lifelong Lego fixation into an interest in engineering. Diana was scheduled to attend a robotics competition in Michigan at the end of April. It was canceled, as was the upcoming event she was most excited about her graduation ceremony

Dianas parents immigrated to the U.S. from Oaxaca, Mexico, and shes the first in the family to finish high school. We all worked very hard to get her where she is, said Gomez, speaking through an interpreter. And now this happens.

Diana and her family arent just disappointed, theyre worried. Diana was accepted into the mechanical engineering program at San Jose State. But when the shutdown started, her father, Arturo Martinez, a chef, lost his job, and Gomezs hours as a housekeeper were severely cut.

Were stumped, Gomez said. What are we supposed to do now? We dont really have the funds.

Dylan Schifrin, center, with parents Lissa Kapstrom and Will Schifrin, was set to stage a senior capstone musical he had written and composed at Yale. That production and his graduation has been canceled.

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

For high school seniors with college in their sights, the final events before graduation are supposed to be a reward for a 13-year grind. Theyre a reward for college seniors as well, but many of those students have been participating in another kind of ritual: the launch of their careers. Now, projects and plans have been thrown out the window, leaving soon-to-be graduates scrambling in place.

Dylan Schifrin, a music major at Yale, started writing and composing an original musical as a sophomore. He completed Y2K: A Survivalist Musical for his senior thesis in the fall and recruited close to 50 fellow students to volunteer as cast, crew and orchestra members in a production that was set to open on campus April 2 his 22nd birthday.

It was going to be my capstone experience, Schifrin said.

It also would have offered him an entree into the world of professional musical theater. Schifrin planned to invite industry contacts he knew, including Book of Mormon writer Robert Lopez, and recordings of the production would have provided samples to share with theaters in New York City, where he hoped to start a career.

The loss of both the production and graduation hit his parents particularly hard. Schifrin, an only child, has studied music since he was 4. His parents refinanced the mortgage on their Sherman Oaks home to help pay for his Ivy League education. Theyd booked their flights and hotel rooms for both events months ago.

It was heartbreaking for us, said Schifrins mother, Lissa Kapstrom. Its been a 22-year journey that weve been there for the whole time. This was supposed to be a culmination.

For Leticia Mejia, an immigrant from Honduras, her sons graduation would have looked different but been no less important.

Victor Rojas, who was born with brittle bone disease and has been in a wheelchair most of his life, started at Cal State Northridge in 2014. He almost came undone during his freshman year when his father, who had cancer, died of complications from a routine biopsy. Rojas was lost, attending classes but mentally checked out. I started partying; I started doing drugs, drinking, he said.

He was placed on academic probation and lost his financial aid but a family friend helped him get back on track. Rojas will complete his studies this month.

Mejia, who stopped her schooling after the sixth grade, had been planning to have a dress made in Honduras for the occasion. The family was going to celebrate at a restaurant, maybe Olive Garden, afterward.

Now the graduation has been postponed until at least late 2020. Mejia canceled the dress order. She still hopes to see Rojas graduate, though, and to enjoy a celebratory dinner even if its only at home.

He deserves it, she said.

Christine Tran, a first-generation college student at UCLA, was looking forward to a big graduation ceremony that would signal to her Vietnamese parents what she had achieved and let them know their sacrifices have mattered.

(Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

Christine Tran, a UCLA senior, was looking forward to graduation and certain traditions associated with it perhaps most significant, dipping her hand in the inverted fountain, a campus landmark. UCLA students are initiated at the fountain their freshman year and told not to touch it again before graduation, lest it add an extra quarter to their undergraduate careers.

But she also wanted to show her parents what she has accomplished and to let them know their sacrifices have mattered.

Seeing thousands of other students, Tran said, would signal something to them that this is a really big thing my daughter did, to graduate from here.

Her parents, who emigrated from Vietnam after the war, had been working as a carpenter and a seamstress in El Monte. Both of them lost their jobs after the pandemic started and the economy tanked. Now Tran, who works as a law clerk at UCLA, is the only income earner in her family of five. She had to double her weekly hours, from 10 to 20, and cut short work on her honors thesis about cultural perceptions around domestic violence.

Recently, Tran was offered a Fulbright fellowship to teach in Vietnam a dream job but now shes waiting to hear from a U.S.-based fellowship that would keep her closer to home.

Even if I do get these post-grad opportunities Ive been dreaming of, maybe I cant take them because I need to support my family first and it would feel selfish to just leave, she said.

The ending of the script we associate with hard work, personal sacrifices and fastidious planning has been rewritten.

Samir Al-Alami, a senior at UC Riverside, had already said his goodbyes to campus life. On March 6, the political science major got together with friends outside his apartment complex to play soccer and eat shish kebab. They were celebrating the end of winter quarter and bidding Al-Alami farewell before he headed to Washington, D.C., for the University of Californias UCDC program.

Hed carefully mapped out his undergraduate plans so he could spend his last quarter in Washington. He had an internship lined up with Rep. Mark Takano (D-Riverside) and hoped to build connections that he could parlay into a job in public policy after graduating. And Al-Alami, the son of Palestinian immigrants, was looking forward to fasting for Ramadan with a new community of Muslims.

But the University of California canceled Al-Alamis program 13 days before it was scheduled to start. He lost his internship. His last hope, a fellowship that would assign him to a local government job in Riverside, has put the review of applications on hold.

I really truly dont know what Im going to do, he said. Every single one of the plans I made and all of the backups have failed.

Alec Garcia had hoped his last season at Cleveland Charter High School would help him earn a baseball scholarship. He now plans to play junior college ball to catch the eye of a Division 1 school.

(Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

Alec Garcia continues to be reminded that his senior year didnt end the way he had imagined. At the moment, he is thinking about enrolling at Glendale Community College and playing baseball there to get the attention of a Division 1 university.

A few weeks ago, he received word that the school yearbook wanted a baseball team photo. But instead of a group shot on the field, this year, each player had to be photographed alone, at home, in uniform. That was just another time where it hit me that its over, and there might not be another chance for us to take pictures of the team, he said. Its really weird.

As Alec posed against a wall in his living room, he considered his shoulder-length hair, which he believed was inexorably linked to his teams success.

His hair was everything, said his mother, Geraldina Garcia. Hed say, Im winning, and I cannot cut it.

But her son was no longer winning his games. He was disoriented about the abrupt end of high school and his baseball family. His whole world has been turned upside down, said his father, Salvador Garcia. I think it was less about not playing baseball and more about belonging to a team. Whatever might have happened, he still treasured being part of a team.

After a burst of anger during a family dinner, Salvador Garcia spoke to his son, hoping to make some sense of a world that has been upended.

Because of the outbreak, Salvador Garcia explained, nothing would be the same going forward even if Alec were allowed to finish his senior year. I dont know if it gave him solace or some kind of warmth knowing that the change was going to happen anyway, but right after we finished talking, he cut his hair. He said, Im pumped. For that moment, he was happy.

That was the biggest heart-to-heart I had with my dad, Alec said. I was just thinking about my hair, and honestly, I had it for other people. It was annoying to wash it, and it took forever to dry, but people remembered me for the hair. So I kept it. Now I was going to do what was best for me. So that night I was like, Im going to buzz my hair.

During the Cleveland baseball teams Zoom meeting the next day, much of the discussion revolved around Garcias shorn locks. Soon after, many of his teammates followed suit, shaving their heads in solidarity. For that moment, Salvador Garcia said, they were a team again.

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For the class of 2020, all those once-in-a-lifetime moments are gone - Los Angeles Times

When she was young, Sheila Aadland couldnt understand why her sister loved gardening so much. Picking up a shovel and getting her hands dirty were the last things Aadland wanted to do.

That changed when she became the mother of two active boys. Gardening became her at-home project while her sons were at play. The kids were outside on the swings, and I had something to do, she said.

That urge to do something culminated in the creation of a garden in a St. Bonifacius backyard that stops first-time visitors in their tracks. Stretching 200 feet along a hillside, the garden is a lush retreat, with a waterfall that tumbles under a bridge through the garden toward a little pond.

The garden is a passion and an anchor for a family that until 1998 was accustomed to moving every few years. Sheila, a physical trainer, and her husband, David, a social worker, had built and sold three houses before they moved to St. Bonifacius. Their practice was to live in a new home, do the finishing work and landscaping themselves and then sell and move on to the next project. Then, attracted by the rolling hills around St. Bonifacius, they found the site for their long-term dream home and garden.

I never thought wed still be here after 21 years, Sheila said. But now I cant imagine leaving.

The St. Bonifacius lot was unusual from the start. Located on a cul-de-sac and naked of trees but covered in weeds, the property was shaped like a pie slice, narrow at the street and widening to a hilly backyard. David had always wanted a pond or water feature, his wife said, and this was the first lot where that made sense.

We took to it right away we loved how it banked up at the back, Sheila said.

Months of planning

The house was built in 1998. Sheila spent the next winter planning, studying books on garden design and plotting out where edging, the waterfall and decks at the back of the house would go. In the spring, even before sod was laid, the Aadlands hauled in 30 yards of wood mulch and spread it where the gardens would go.

Privet, lilacs, amur maples, arborvitae and other evergreens were planted to screen in the backyard and provide a background for the garden. I am the queen of screen! Sheila joked. As more homes were built around them, construction crews that unearthed boulders were happy to let her and the boys load their wheelbarrow and carry the rocks away.

Sheila used the rocks to edge the stream that tumbled down the hill and to add some hardscape to the new garden. When she planted, the plants were small so tiny that in the first year or two, some visitors burst out laughing when they saw a vast sea of mulch pocked by petite shrubs and perennials.

But Sheila had done her homework and knew how perennials multiplied and shrubs grew. The garden soon filled in.

Her plan was to create a garden that was balanced on either side of the stream, so that the plantings mirrored each other. Arborvitae, with their yearlong evergreen interest, provide background in some areas and accents in others. The bright green, fine-textured Holmstrup arborvitae is a screen, while two flashy Sunkist, with layered foliage that turns lemon and chartreuse, draw the eye on both sides of the garden. Smaller evergreens in different colors make the garden interesting even in winter. A favorite is the hardy and slow-growing birds nest spruce.

They are so beautiful with their horizontal branching, and I love the texture, Sheila said. The bunnies like to hang out there.

Tall plants like miscanthus grasses, hydrangeas, heliopsis and liatris are featured near the top of the slope, leading down to shorter perennials like sedums, coral bells and bergenia. Sheila said she adores a tough coral bells called Obsidian, with dark plum leaves that are almost black. The plants have thrived despite being near rock in full sun. But her favorite perennial in a garden that emphasizes texture and yearlong interest is bergenia, a decidedly unfashionable plant whose virtues many gardeners ignore. One of the common names for bergenia is pigsqueak, for the sound the leathery leaves make when rubbed together.

Sheila bought her first bergenia at a farmers market for $1.50. Now she has two masses of the perennial that are 3 or 4 feet across. The plants large, shiny green leaves and toughness delight her.

Theyre like an evergreen; as the snow is melting, theyre there, she said. Theyre such a great rock garden plant, just amazing. The leaves are chartreuse, sometimes with pink or purple. It looks like one big salad out there. And when the flowers come up, its like, whoa! What a surprise!

Pots of color

To ensure season-long color in the summer garden, Sheila puts pots of geraniums and coleus amid the evergreens and shrubs. I love the texture and color of coleus, she said. When the bunnies come and eat all the flowers, what can you do? I have a system; plants with texture and leaves are still there.

As the years have passed, nature has foiled her goal of having a garden that mirrors itself. Parts of the garden have grown shadier, and one side now flowers before the other. But Sheila said she appreciates that, because it extends the bloom time of perennials.

I think I love the garden because it evolves, it grows, and its renewal, she said. Its beauty and nature, and it provides habitat for birds and mice and squirrels and rabbits. Its life. Its where we raised our kids.

Both boys are adults now, and one grew up to be a professional organic gardener who has worked at farms around the world. A few years ago, the Aadlands converted one of their decks into a sunroom that overlooks the garden so it can be enjoyed year-round.

Sheila expects the garden to continue to be a focus as she and David, who built all the decks and patios and did much of the heavy work in the yard, approach retirement.

This is where we have our conversation, she said. It is the center of our lives.

Mary Jane Smetanka is a Minneapolis-based freelance writer, a Master Gardener and a Minnesota Tree Care Advisor.

View original post here:
Twin Cities garden is lush backyard oasis of 'beauty and nature' - Minneapolis Star Tribune

Tadhg MacCarthaigh 54%

Randal g 46%

KIERAN McCARTHY REPORTS

ON Sunday morning, only hours after the final whistle had sounded, Sean Collins was back out working on Tadhg MacCarthaighs field of dreams.

He wasnt resting on his laurels. The grass needed to be cut and Collins was up early to get the job done and dedication like this is one of the reasons why the clubs top-class sod at Aughaville was crowned Pitch Perfect champion last weekend.

Sean Collins has been a constant for the last 30 years, he has helped keep the pitch looking as good as it is, club chairman Kieran Daly said.

We have a lot of work done on the pitch over the years, the likes of Sean and all these fellas have kept it in good shape, so winning this is a great reward for them and all their hard work.

Out of 32 GAA clubs from both the Carbery and Beara divisions, only two were left standing in last Saturdays Pitch Perfect final Tadhg MacCarthaighs Aughaville and Randal gs impressive Ballinacarriga pitch.

This was always going to an epic decider to a competition (run on Twitter polls) that entertained for the past few weeks and we werent disappointed.

Both clubs impressed en route to the last four, and what was noticeable was Tadhg MacCarthaighs late surge in their quarter-final win against St Oliver Plunketts and also the semi-final against Bere Island. They were the comeback kings of Pitch Perfect so Randals would have known they needed to hold a healthy lead heading into the early hours.

Just after the halfway mark in the final, Randals were in command, leading 57% to 43%, but within hours it was level pegging, and all to play for as we headed in the business end and the final few hours of this battle.

After Randal g got Kerry TD Michael Healy-Rae onside, Tadhg MacCarthaigh responded with an endorsement from Pope Francis (not the real Pope, granted), as both clubs pulled out all the stops to get the upper-hand.

By the end, and at the 2am cut-off point on Sunday morning, it was Tadhg MacCarthaigh that came out on top, winning 54% to 46% after an incredible 4,109 votes were cast.

The winning pitch at Aughaville had hit all the right notes to win this Pitch Perfect final that had a bit of everything.

It was the players that drove this on, in fairness to them, club chairman Kieran Daly explained.

The likes of Mark ODriscoll, even though he is in Australia, was on the case, Colm ODriscoll was on to some fella in South Africa there wasnt a country that wasnt touched over the last few weeks!

It was great to see some of our ex-players get on board too, fellas in New York and London, and the community response was brilliant as well.

Daly himself joined Twitter last week so he could vote in the competition, and he heard similar stories all over the parish, as they came together to get Tadhg MacCarthaigh over the line.

Even Sean Collins was set up with a Twitter account, Daly laughed, and the further we progressed in the competition, the more people got behind us.

Its great recognition for everyone who has helped keep the pitch in good shape. Two years ago when we had the drought, we watered the pitch every couple of nights there was Liam ODriscoll, Michel ODonovan, Eoin Murphy, different fellas with a tractor and water tank.

We only have the one pitch so we have to mind it. In fairness, any time we ask any locals to help out, they do.

And while Tadhg MacCarthaighs Aughaville sod got the thumbs up in Pitch Perfect, Kieran Daly was keen to point out that there are plenty of excellent pitches in West Cork.

Like every other club, we have some very good people and we are lucky to have them, Daly said.

A lot of clubs invest money in their pitches, clubs could be spending anywhere between 3,000 and 10,000 a year to keep their pitches in good shape. You have to spend that money to keep the surface good, especially in recent seasons with more traffic and matches on the pitch.

Of all the pitches in West Cork, theres one that stands out for Daly.

We played in Bantrys new pitch and I think that when players get the chance to play on it, and more people see how good it is, everyone will realise its a savage pitch.

But, for now, Tadhg MacCarthaighs Aughaville has been chosen as West Corks best GAA pitch after an exciting few weeks that saw over 27,500 votes cast and all the great pitches in Carbery and Beara rightly lauded.

Lets hope its not the only West Cork final we have this year.

Subscribe to the Southern Star'sYouTube channel, like us onFacebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for all the latest news and sport from West Cork.

Originally posted here:
Tadhg MacCarthaigh's field of dreams hits all the right notes to win Pitch Perfect - Southern Star Newspaper

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA TV) - Despite more people staying home, plumbing issues can still happen.

The general manager of Loyal Plumbing, Jason White, says business has been about the same during the pandemic, and they're staying pretty busy.

According to White, they've seen more sewer lines getting clogged or broken, and the reason could be people are using their bathrooms and plumbing more often.

Now when workers do go into homes, they're taking extra precautions.

And due to social distancing, the staff started a program called "plumber in a pocket."

If someone doesn't feel comfortable having a tech in their home, they can set up a meeting through zoom, and a tech can walk them through the steps to diagnose problems and try to fix it.

"So that's had some good traction and good results. And it's kind of cost savings for people with the economy and stuff and some people wondering how they will get stuffed fixed. So it's been nice for them to have that," says White.

White says they do about two zoom calls a week and says most people don't want to mess with the plumbing themselves.

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Staff at Loyal Plumbing continue to get the job done during the pandemic - Kotatv

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Low Density Plumber Tape Market to Slip Due to Delays in Production Amidst Coronavirus Outbreak - Cole of Duty