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Bay Area birdwatching tips for newbies

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

So you want to try birdwatching, or as some of us call it, birding.Something about our feathered friends has grabbed your attention. A great-horned owl, perhaps, hooting outside your window after dusk. Or an American robin slurping worms from your lawn. Maybe you spied a group of birdwatchers at the park across the street, hot on the trail of a rare warbler and, well, you want in on the action.Could be you simply overheard the ongoing debate of birb, borb or floof. Translation: which bird is cute, which bird is round, which bird is fluffy? You will have opinions on this – I know I do.Or maybe you’ve had a “spark bird,” a creature so magnificent, it sparked your interest in birding.BirdNote, a popular radio show, provides wonderful two-minute stories on how birds capture our imaginations. When I was on the show, I told interviewer Mark Bramhill my spark bird was a Vermillion Flycatcher, a glorious ruby. It’s a shining jewel of plumage and attitude. This bird is a show-off...

Recipe: The Pie Hole’s Moe’s Pumpkin Pie

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

This pumpkin pie recipe hails from cookbook author Rebecca Grasley’s grandmother, Moe, who was famous for her pies. The Thanksgiving specialty has been served at The Pie Hole, Grasley’s Los Angeles-based pie shop enterprise, since the shop’s very beginning, she says.A customer once insisted that Grasley give him the recipe, claiming that it was the best pumpkin pie he’d ever eaten — he was the first of many guests to say that, Grasley recounts in her new cookbook, “Pie is Messy” (Ten Speed Press, $28) — and offered to pay $100,000. She refused, of course. But today, you can have it for the price of her new book — or a newspaper subscription.Moe’s Pumpkin PieMakes one 9-inch pieINGREDIENTS1½ cups pumpkin puree, homemade or canned1 cup sugar1 teaspoon kosher salt1½ teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg“Pie is Messy” (Ten Speed Press, 2023) 1½ cups whole milk4 eggs1½ teaspoons vanilla extract1/2 recipe Moe’s pie crustGrou...

Bay Area high school football: Where to find our complete Week 11 coverage

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

That’s a wrap for the high school football regular season.Week 11 made the schedule-makers look smart, and the matchups lived up to the hype as Campolindo, Live Oak and Leigh were among the teams that made thrilling rallies to secure league championships.The weekend also will be remembered for Mt. Diablo running back Herschel Turner breaking the North Coast Section regular-season rushing record and Pittsburg completing what coach Charlie Ramirez said is the first 10-0 regular season in program history.As always, the Bay Area News Group has you covered.If you have not already, please subscribe here for digital access all season long. Your contributions keep us going.Here is our complete Week 11 coverage.Enjoy.Roundup: Best of Week 11Results: Weekend scoreboard, how Top 25 faredPhotos: Our staff’s Week 11 imagesSaturday roundup: San Mateo wins Little Big GameThe best: Mt. Diablo RB breaks NCS rushing recordBig Little Game: Pitt routs Antioch, completes 10-0 regular seasonWhat a ...

1 gunshot victim in gravel condition, OPD investigates 

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

(KRON) – An Oakland shooting left one man in critical and grave condition on Saturday.The Oakland Police Department responded to a shooting in the 2600 block of Montana Street on Nov. 4 around 1:15 a.m.  2 robberies in downtown Walnut Creek, police ask for community assistance Upon arrival, officers located a male victim suffering from a single gunshot wound. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he is listed in critical and grave condition.This is an ongoing investigation.Anyone with information is asked to contact the Oakland Police Robbery Unit at (510) 238-3426.

Warplanes strike Gaza refugee camps as Israel rejects US push for a pause in fighting

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli warplanes struck two refugee camps in the Gaza Strip early Sunday, killing at least 53 people and wounding dozens, health officials said. The strikes came as Israel said it would press on with its offensive to crush the territory’s Hamas rulers, despite U.S. appeals for a pause to get aid to desperate civilians.Israel has rejected the idea of halting its offensive, even for brief humanitarian pauses proposed by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his current tour of the region. Gaza’s Health Ministry said more than 9,700 Palestinians have been killed in the territory in nearly a month of war, a number that is likely to rise as Israeli troops advance into dense, urban neighborhoods.Airstrikes hit the Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza overnight, killing at least 40 people and wounding 34 others, the Health Ministry said.An Associated Press reporter at a nearby hospital saw eight dead children, including a baby, who were broug...

'Strong' El Niño winter coming: Could Colorado see more snow?

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

(NEXSTAR) – In these uncertain times, we know at least one thing for sure: El Niño is here. There's 100% certainty El Niño will last through early winter, the Climate Prediction Center, a division of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, recently said, and a 90% or higher chance it lasts into spring. El Niño typically divides the country in half, but where the dividing line falls varies from year to year. The southern third to half of the United States, including California, is likely to be wetter during an El Niño winter. The Pacific Northwest and Ohio Valley are usually dry and warm. While El Niño's impacts are never a guarantee, the climate pattern tends to influence weather across the U.S. as it reaches peak strength in the winter. NOAA holiday season outlook: When will it feel like winter in Colorado? Does that mean El Niño will bring winter storms and feet of snow? Not everywhere and not necessarily, explains Michelle L'Heureux, a meteorologist with the ...

Zelenskyy: War with Russia is not a stalemate

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday rejected the premise that the war with Russia has reached a stalemate.“I believe that today, indeed, the situation is difficult, I don’t think this is a stalemate,” Zelenskyy told NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet The Press,” through a translator.. … “They thought that they would checkmate us, but this didn’t happen.”Zelenskyy’s comments contradict a top Ukrainian general, who told The Economist that “Just like in the First World War, we have reached the level of technology that puts us into a stalemate.”“There will most likely be no deep and beautiful breakthrough,” Gen. Valery Zaluzhnyy said.Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told POLITICO on Thursday that Zalzuhnyy’s words were “consistent with what we’ve been informed,” and “there was hope that they would make more gains” during Ukraine’s ongoing counteroffensive.But Zelenskyy pushed back on that in his wide-ranging interview...

Now that clocks are turned back, what time is sunset in San Diego?

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Daylight saving time has come to an end for another year, nudging our clocks back an hour as the winter months approach.While this gives us an "extra" hour to sleep initially, it also means that daylight hours will be shortened in the coming months. For those who work late, the sun may start setting before you leave the job site. This could mean evening errands, workouts, and gatherings will have to be done in the dark. Can you believe it? These five San Diego zip codes are among priciest for homebuyers Here's a breakdown of sunset times in San Diego, according to The Old Farmer's Almanac, as we look ahead to the first week after daylight saving time ends:Explainer: -- Civil Twilight refers to when the sun’s center is 6 degrees below the horizon.-- Nautical Twilight refers to when the sun’s center is 12 degrees below the horizon.-- Astronomical Twilight refers to when the sun’s center is 18 degrees below the horizon.Sunday, Nov. 5Sunset4:55 p.m.Civil Twilight Ends5:20...

Man killed in hit-and-run; police search for suspect

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- A pedestrian was fatally struck by a vehicle in the Lincoln Park neighborhood Saturday, authorities said.According to the San Diego Police Department, a man in his mid 50s was walking southbound in the northbound lane on the 300 block of 47th Street around 7:13 p.m. Arrest made in shooting at a Chula Vista mall At that same time, authorities said a white F-250 truck was reportedly driving northbound on 47th Street and collided with the pedestrian. The man, whose identity has not been released, was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead, SDPD confirmed. Can you believe it? These five San Diego zip codes are among priciest for homebuyers According to police, the truck fled the scene northbound on 47th Street. There is no further suspect information available at this time. SDPD's Traffic Division is investigating the fatal hit-and-run incident. Anyone with information related to the collision is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.

A woman and 3 children are killed by an Israeli airstrike in south Lebanon, local officials say

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 22:13:46 GMT

BEIRUT (AP) — Four civilians, three of them children, were killed by an Israeli airstrike in south Lebanon Sunday evening, a local civil defense official and Lebanese state-run media said.Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter, that one Israeli was also killed Sunday in a strike launched by the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. He did not specify whether the person was a civilian or a soldier.Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants and their allies along the tense Lebanon-Israel border have been clashing for almost a month since the start of the Hamas-Israel war. While clashes remain largely contained to areas near the border, they have increased in intensity as Israel continues its ground incursion into Gaza.Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that two civilian cars carrying members of the same family – one of them a local journalist – were driving between the towns of Ainata and Aitaroun Sunday e...