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The TikTok crowd is learning how to make small talk

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

Mobile devices and social media have created new ways for people to connect. But are they also undermining social skills?The Wall Street Journal reports that young people are increasingly finding themselves incapable of small talk and handling many in-person social interactions.And colleges are responding by offering remedial training in, you know, communicating with others."Everybody seems to have a theory about why many young adults have trouble with so-called soft skills, which include the art of persuasion and civil conversation," the Journal says."Blame smartphone addiction, Covid cocooning or helicopter parting. Regardless of the cause, a growing number of college professors in various disciplines around the U.S. are trying to keep professional chitchat from becoming a lost language." Why guys who post a lot on social media are seen as less manly Which is to say, young people have to be trained in subtle niceties such as eye contact and active listening.Claire Ralph, a Calte...

Collapsing building halts traffic in Riverside

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

Debris from a collapsing building has led to a traffic closure in Riverside Monday afternoon."Mission Inn Ave. is closed to through traffic b/w Park Ave & Commerce St. until further notice to clear debris from a nearby collapsing building," the city said on X, formerly Twitter. Riverside spokesperson Phil Pitchford said he was first alerted to the building damage at about 9:20 a.m.The building, a former soda works building at 2983 Mission Inn Ave., was damaged in a fire a few years ago, and it was further affected by the winds on Monday, which began at about 1:30 a.m., Pitchford said.While it's not a complete collapse, sections of the uninhabitated building are coming down.No injuries have been reported, and no estimated reopening time was provided."Please plan accordingly & use alternate routes," the city said.Nidia Becerra contributed to this report.

Emotional Oakland court hearing sees pleas for mercy from murder victim’s family, then a life sentence

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

OAKLAND — The family of a 75-year-old man who was murdered during a 2021 robbery attempt in Oakland used their right to speak in court to ask for mercy for the man who killed their loved one, and moved a judge to issue the minimum prison term allowable under state law.For Teaunte Bailey, 28, that meant a sentence of 25 years to life for the murder of 75-year-old Pak Ho, who Bailey punched in the head during a March 2021 robbery. Judge Scott Patton said he was prepared to sentence Bailey to 29 years to life, but changed his mind at the last minute after hearing from Ho’s family.“Today I extend my forgiveness to Mr. Bailey not because his actions can ever be justified or forgotten, but in the hope that he will embark on a journey of self-improvement and positive change,” Ho’s daughter, Connie Vong, said in the September sentencing hearing. “I wish for him to find the strength to forgive himself as well. May the same energy that once fueled his destr...

And the Boardwalk for the San Jose edition of Monopoly is…

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

The new San Jose edition of Monopoly was released Monday, and the most coveted spots on the board — what would normally be Boardwalk and Park Place — went to two local landmarks with more than 150 years of history between them: the Winchester Mystery House and Original Joe’s.Fittingly, the game  — which is now on sale for $39.95 on Amazon, at CVS and other retailers — was unveiled at the Winchester Mystery House, where Mr. Monopoly himself posed for photos with Original Joe’s co-owner Brad Rocca, Winchester Mystery House Executive Director Walter Magnuson and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, among others.“San Jose has so much history, so much to be proud of, so much to celebrate and this is just one more great opportunity to do that,” Mahan said. “I know we’re all very excited to see many of our local landmarks and local history and culture be memorialized on this game board for generations to come.”San Jose Mayor Matt Maha...

The six most expensive homes that reported sold in Oakland the week of Nov. 13

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

A house that sold for $1.3 million tops the list of the most expensive residential real estate sales in Oakland in the past week.In total, six residential real estate sales were recorded in the area during the past week, with an average price of $1.2 million. The average price per square foot ended up at $598.The prices in the list below concern real estate sales where the title was recorded during the week of Nov. 13 even if the property may have been sold earlier.6. $1.1 million, single-family house in the 2600 block of Ivy DriveThe property in the 2600 block of Ivy Drive in Oakland has new owners. The price was $1,065,000. The house was built in 1928 and has a living area of 2,551 square feet. The price per square foot is $417. The house features three bedrooms and two bathrooms.Ivy Drive5. $1.1 million, single-family residence in the 2500 block of Carmel StreetThe sale of the single-family house in the 2500 block of Carmel Street, Oakland, has been finalized. The price was $1,08...

Antioch has a new Peruvian restaurant, Abuelita’s House

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

Antioch has a new Peruvian restaurant, bringing dishes like lomo saltado, papa a la huancaina and alfajores to the city’s Rivertown district.Owned by Peruvian immigrants Ruth and Luis Caldas, Abuelita’s House specializes in Peruvian sandwiches and pastries, empanadas and custom cakes and is named after Ruth’s grandmother or abuelita. Luis says his favorite menu item is the pan con chicharrón ($11), a pork belly sandwich served on a fluffy bread roll.A case full of Peruvian-style desserts, including milhojas cakes and alfajores cookies are among the menu offerings at Abuela’s House, a new restaurant in Antioch. (Courtesy Ruth Zavaleta) The restaurant and its soft opening were recognized on Oct. 27, National Immigrants Day, when Antioch Mayor Lamar Thorpe celebrated the restaurant in an Instagram post. Related ArticlesRestaurants, Food and Drink | An alpine ski village in Oakland? This brewery has undergone a total transformation Restaurant...

Heavenly, Northstar opening days for 2023-24 season announced

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

(KRON) -- After being delayed due to unseasonably warm weather in the Lake Tahoe region, Heavenly Mountain Resort and Northstar California Resort have announced opening days for the 2023-24 ski season. Heavenly will open Tuesday, Nov. 21. Northstar will open on Thanksgiving Day -- Thurs. Nov. 23.Both resorts had originally been scheduled to open last Friday. Suspects kidnap Amazon delivery driver in San Ramon, force him to withdraw cash: police "Thanks to some cooler temperatures more conducive to snowmaking, our outstanding snowmaking teams were able to make enough snow to get us over the threshold necessary to welcome guests back for another exciting year," a spokesperson for Vail Resorts told KRON4. "The opening day footprint will be limited at both resorts, but it's always our priority to open as much terrain as we can, as quickly and safely as we can.""We're hoping Mother Nature will keep delivering cold and snow to allow us to make it happen!" they added.Kirkwood is still sc...

Live updates | WHO official says Gaza hospital situation ‘catastrophic’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

A top World Health Organization official described the hospital situation in Gaza as “catastrophic” on Monday, saying most are no longer functioning and what remains will likely be overwhelmed by thousands of births expected in the next month.The United Nations briefing came hours after a shell struck the second floor of a hospital in northern Gaza, killing 12 people, according to the Hamas-led Health Ministry and a medical worker. The ministry and the worker both blamed Israel, which denied shelling the hospital.Heavy fighting broke out around the Indonesian Hospital, which has housed thousands of patients and displaced people for weeks.The fighting came a day after the World Health Organization evacuated 31 premature babies from Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, the territory’s largest, where they were among more than 250 critically ill or wounded patients stranded there days after Israeli forces entered the compound.Israel says Hamas uses civilians and hospitals as shields, while crit...

Business Highlights: Turmoil at company behind ChatGPT; CEO of GM’s Cruise unit resigns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

___Company that created ChatGPT is thrown into turmoil after Microsoft hires its ousted CEOSAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The company that created ChatGPT is in turmoil after Microsoft hired its ousted CEO and many more employees threatened to follow him in a conflict that centered in part on the safest way to build artificial intelligence. The developments followed a weekend of drama that shocked the AI field and fueled speculation about the future of OpenAI. The startup’s new CEO vowed to investigate the firing of co-founder and CEO Sam Altman. He’s been instrumental in OpenAI’s transformation from a nonprofit research laboratory into a world-renowned commercial startup that inaugurated the era of generative artificial intelligence. Microsoft announced that Altman and OpenAI’s former president, Greg Brockman, would lead its new advanced AI research team.___Key Fed official sees possible ‘golden path’ toward lower inflation without a recessionWASHINGTON (AP) — Austan Goolsbee, president of t...

Titans hoping being home for stretch run helps salvage season

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:30:56 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The best thing the Tennessee Titans have going for them right now might be their schedule.They finally get to stay home for five of the seven games remaining where the Titans have been a completely different team, even if it’s still not enough to salvage this season.The Titans (3-7) have lost three straight, five of their past six and set a Tennessee-era mark for consecutive road losses at nine. They haven’t won away from Nashville in more than a year and lost their sixth straight road game this season, 34-14 in Jacksonville. Mike Vrabel, the AP NFL Coach of the Year for the 2021 season, said Monday he wishes they were winning. “I’m not going to compromise the things that I believe that are going to help us win and about the details and about the little things and not letting those slide and doing my best to hold everybody accountable, including myself, as we go through this,” Vrabel said. Vrabel had a winning record each of his first four s...