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In a pandemic wedding trend, couples are turning to Zoom elopements, with just 2 people in love and an online officiant: ‘For us, it was perfect.’
The cake was from Costco, the food was Italian takeout, the venue was the couple’s Oak Park, Illinois, family room. Jessica and Jason Jaffrey got married on New Year’s Eve with no guests, other than her two school-age daughters from a previous marriage, and a close friend who agreed to officiate via Zoom. The 15-minute ceremony was followed by a Champagne toast and phone calls to family and friends. “It was really nice, I have to say,” said Jessica Jaffrey, 44, a women’s health nurse practitioner. “We could just enjoy each other and not have to worry about DJs, and food, and not saying 'hi’ to...
Chicago Tribune
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Feds charge Pennsylvania woman accused of stealing Pelosi’s laptop during Capitol riot
PHILADELPHIA — A Harrisburg woman charged in connection with the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol told her former romantic partner that she stole House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s laptop with the intent of selling the device to Russia’s foreign intelligence services, federal authorities said Monday. Riley June Williams, a 22-year-old employee of a home health care agency, was among dozens of people charged since Friday in the FBI’s nationwide hunt for insurrectionists that participated in the attack. Also charged Monday was a former Pennsylvania State Police cadet from Lehigh County, who surrendered...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
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Sacramento’s Dusty Baker remembers his old friend and manager Tommy Lasorda
Nothing delighted Tommy Lasorda more than people — Frank Sinatra, Don Rickles, sportswriters who rolled with his jovial or salty punches, right on down to the guy who parked cars. He also savored a plate or three of pasta. Lasorda would shovel in the eats before home games, sometimes in his long johns, then after, inviting all comers to dig in, napkins optional. His managerial office was equal parts lounge and buffet, the walls covered with portraits of presidents, comedians and athletes. And baseball. Lasorda lived for it, and he died a Dodger, of a heart attack on Thursday night. He was 93. ...
The Sacramento Bee
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Erika Ettin: 5 dating resolutions to make in 2021
It’s a new year — and after the many hardships of 2020, it’s a very welcomed one. While just writing out the numbers in 2021 feels like an instant mood booster, that doesn’t mean that we won’t repeat old patterns of making resolutions only to push them to the side with excuses before January ends. Many singles start the new year with the best intentions — you’re going to focus on dating, you’re finally going to sign up for a dating site, or you’re going to ask friends and family about potential matches — but then life gets in the way. And if you started 2020 believing it was finally “your year...
Tribune News Service
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Man posed as narcotics cop during rape at dating site meetup, Florida deputies say
ORLANDO, Fla. — A meetup at a Haines City motel arranged through an online dating site ended in a heinous attack by a knife-wielding man who posed as a narcotics agent, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. In a statement, PCSO spokeswoman Alicia Manautou said the attack occurred Tuesday at the Stay Plus Inn, which is on U.S. Highway 27. The victim called 911 to report that he had been raped and robbed there. The victim told detectives he had been talking to an unknown man, who deputies later identified as 37-year-old Thomas Lee Simmons of Winter Haven, through a dating site, which le...
Orlando Sentinel
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Erika Ettin: 7 things people write in dating profiles ... and what they actually mean by them
People write all kinds of things in their profiles because it’s what they think others want to hear. (Keyword: think) Let’s take a look at 7 of these generic lines and then define what they actually mean. 1. What you say: I’m just as comfortable in a little black dress (or tux) as I am in jeans and a T-shirt. What you’re trying to say: I can be ready for any occasion so you don’t think I can’t be your date to something important to you. What we know you really mean: Honestly, I’d rather be in my oversized sweatpants on the couch most nights (hello, this is 2020 standard attire anyway), but I d...
Tribune News Service
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Scott Fowler: Ric Flair remembers friend Kevin Greene and the times they wrestled in a Charlotte bar
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In 1996, Carolina Panthers star linebacker Kevin Greene and pro wrestler Ric Flair had some of the greatest wrestling matches you’ve never heard of at a now-shuttered Charlotte restaurant called SouthEnd Brewery. Greene died unexpectedly Monday at age 58. No cause of death has yet been announced. “We were close enough that he would come for Christmas dinner,” Flair said somberly when we talked Tuesday over the phone about Greene. The two men lived a block away for several years in the Piper Glen area of south Charlotte. All of Greene’s friends — and there were hundreds — have...
The Charlotte Observer
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My three book clubs: Feel-good romance balances out heavy reading
A vacation goes wrong — very, very, apocalyptically wrong. Children are sadistically beaten and sometimes raped and killed at a Florida reform school. A woman helps a dying friend and reflects on life and mortality. November was a month of books with heavy topics. But a light read found on a list of “15 feel-good books guaranteed to lift your spirits” helped lighten the load. 'Leave the World Behind' by Rumaan Alam What I thought — It’s sometimes the not knowing that makes things absolutely terrifying. A middle-class white couple on vacation with their two teens at a luxurious Airbnb in a remo...
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
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Romance book recommendations for a stressful season
During months of watching calming ASMR videos on YouTube, mindlessly staring at anything on TV that wasn’t the news, and listlessly reading older comfort reads on my library app while ignoring my to-be-read pile, some new romance books did provide bright spots of enjoyment. Here are a few of the highlights.“What You Wish For” by Katherine CenterSt. Martin’s Press. 320 pp. $28What You Wish For begins with a tragedy, as the man who runs the Galveston Island school where librarian Samantha Casey works dies unexpectedly. Max and his wife were beloved leaders of the school and were surrogate parent...
The Philadelphia Inquirer
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Ask Anna: Accidental boyfriends, helping friend get back in dating game and an awkward roommate situation
Dear Anna,There is a boy I’m seeing by accident. He wants to be with me, but the thing is, I am just not ready for this kind of serious commitment yet. What do I tell him? — Wishy-Washy WishesDear WWW,How do you start seeing someone “by accident” exactly? Did he slip and fall into your vagina? Is it a COVID situation? Like, you’re quarantining together and started banging?In any case, tell him exactly what you said above (minus any references to accidents). Tell him you like him but you’re not ready for a serious commitment. If he’s not cool with that, then I suggest you mosey along. But if yo...
Tribune News Service
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