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Unlocked is a home tour series focused on how much people across the globe spend on their housing, what they get for the money and what they had to sacrifice to make it happen.

☆ Southwest's cancelation nightmare sends ripples across travel industry with rental car shortages, inflated flight prices, and ongoing delays
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Southwest canceled thousands more flights on Wednesday amid an ongoing wave of travel chaos. The airline's struggles have started spilling over into the travel industry as a whole. Stranded passengers are facing rental car shortages and ongoing delays. "The first thing JetBlue tells me is to cancel my travel," Rivera said. The JetBlue representative told her that displaced Southwest passengers have been snatching up available tickets, inadvertently displacing JetBlue passengers who need to rebook after their own delays or cancellations.

He voted against the Puerto Rico Status Act on the floor last week, calling for "letting a full and robust legislative process take place." One of the bill’s main negotiators, Rep. Nydia Velázquez, D-N.Y., the first Puerto Rican woman elected to Congress, is confident about more congressional hearings on Puerto Rico's territorial status in the new year. That’s intentional, said Resident Commissioner Jenniffer González-Colón, a Republican nonvoting member of Congress representing Puerto Rico who favors statehood and helped negotiate the Puerto Rico Status Act. What’s next for Puerto Rico’s territorial status? Excluding Puerto Rico’s territorial status also gives Wicker and others pause.

☆ In Texas, Nothing Says Christmas Like Tamales
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Elizabeth Findell | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

For Texas tamale purveyors such as Delia’s, it is crunchtime as demand for the traditional treat surges. SAN JUAN, Texas—Preorders for Christmas tamales begin in July at Delia’s, a South Texas chain with a fervent regional following. By mid-December, constables must be on hand to direct lines of cars stretching down the street to get into restaurants. On a recent morning at Delia’s San Juan location, Gabriel Murillo, an IT manager for the local school district, was picking up a cooler with more than a thousand tamales to be served at a holiday staff appreciation luncheon. Outside, two semitrailer trucks were loaded with boxes of online orders waiting to be shipped.

☆ Pelicans rest up in Mexico City as clean water push bears fruit
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Carlos Carrillo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY, Dec 16 (Reuters) - On the northern flank of the bustling hubbub of Mexico City, white American pelicans paddle on the waters of a lake after traveling thousands of miles from the United States and Canada to escape the bite of a northern winter. Part of migratory flocks that come to Mexico every year to feed and rest, the pelicans began stopping at the lake at Bosque San Juan de Aragon after the city and scientists a decade ago began creating nearby wetlands to revive the local environment. [1/7] A flock of white American pelicans rest during their winter migration from the United States and Canada, at the Bosque de San Juan de Aragon in Mexico City, Mexico December 14, 2022. REUTERS/Raquel Cunha 1 2 3 4 5Growing out of a initiative between the National Autonomous University of Mexico and the Mexico City government to clean up local water supply by creating a wetland in 2010, the cleaned up water refuge was designed to attract wild life. To visitors, it is a reminder that Mexico City has more to offer than building sites and traffic jams.

☆ Next winter storm brings threat of tornadoes, blizzard conditions and flooding early next week
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Allison Chinchar | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —Back-to-back-to-back systems will make their way across the United States over the next few days, with the last – and largest – storm bringing heavy rain, blizzard conditions and the potential for tornadoes. Along the coast, heavy rainfall and gusty winds will hammer the area with 1 to 2 inches of rainfall expected through Friday … before the main event arrives. Flash flooding, blizzard conditions and tornadoes possible next weekA blockbuster storm looks to be taking shape in the West for this weekend into early next week, threatening flash flooding, blizzard conditions and tornadoes. “As the system moves into the Plains early next week, a spring-like storm system develops,” Myers said. That threat is also increasing across the southern Plains and Gulf Coast region.

Courtesy Roberto’s Taco Shop; LLC Courtesy Roberto’s Taco Shop; LLCMore than 70 variations have been reported across the Southwest states and the majority are owned by people who originate from the same region in Mexico that the Robledos are from. Courtesy Roberto’s Taco Shop; LLC"At first, that’s all they sold," said Reynaldo Robledo, 57, the 12th of the Robledo children. Courtesy Roberto’s Taco Shop; LLCThe restaurant initially had six combination plates and four burrito types. Outside a Roberto's Taco Shop in Nevada in 2014, when the family was in town for the gala celebration of Roberto’s 50th anniversary. Courtesy Roberto’s Taco Shop; LLCThe senior Robledo died in 1999 and Dolores died in 2020.

☆ Federal control board supervising Puerto Rico’s finances has a new director
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A federal control board that supervises Puerto Rico’s finances announced a new executive director on Thursday after its last one stepped down in April following a historic debt restructuring for the U.S. territory. Robert Mujica, budget director for New York state, is expected to assume his new role in January. In 2017, Puerto Rico filed for the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history. So far, auditors are still reviewing Puerto Rico’s 2019 budget. Critics also have noted that the ongoing bankruptcy process has cost Puerto Rico around $1 billion in consultants, lawyers and other expenses, and that the board’s director earns $625,000 a year.

☆ Coors Light created a nail polish for drinkers to temperature check its beer
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Parija Kavilanz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

With the holiday party season already in full swing, Coors Light has invented a new way for beer drinkers to temperature check their glass of beer to avoid an unpleasant surprise. Coors Light debuts color changing nail polish to enable beer drinkers to temperature-check their glass of beer ina fun way. “We’ve brought our cold-activated technology to nail polish to ensure your pint of beer is just the right temp for drinking.”The company co-developed the $7 Chill polish with San Francisco-based nail polish brand Le Chat and launched it on Tuesday for sale on its website while supplies last. Coors Light, is targeting “any beer drinkers” who prefer cold to warm brew. After all, plenty of younger men wear nail polish today – thank you Harry Styles and Machine Gun Kelly, both of whom have their own nail polish brands.

Rep. Mike Levin is running against Republican Brian Maryott in California's 49th Congressional District. 2022 General EmbedsCalifornia's 49th Congressional District candidatesLevin is serving his second term in the House and sits on the Committee of Veterans Affairs, where he is vice chairman. This is his third time running for the 49th Congressional District seat. Voting history for California's 49th Congressional DistrictCalifornia's 49th Congressional District is located in northern San Diego County and includes the cities of Oceanside and Encinitas. Republican hybrid PAC Congressional Leadership Fund leads all spenders, with Democratic hybrid PAC House Majority PAC and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee so far placing second and third.

☆ DOJ plans to monitor elections in these 46 cities and counties to ensure voters aren't harassed
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Chelsey Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Justice Department plans to monitor polls in two dozen states across the country to ensure no one intimidates voters or otherwise meddles with Tuesday's midterm elections. The department's Civil Rights Division selected 64 jurisdictions in 24 states, including Alaska, Florida, Georgia and Nevada, for oversight in both the general election and early voting. The division routinely monitors elections in the field, starting in 1965 when Congress passed the Voting Rights Act. DOJ monitored polls in 18 states and 44 cities and counties in 2020, by comparison. Attorneys' Offices and the Office of Personnel Management will assist the DOJ Civil Rights Division in monitoring efforts and maintaining contact with state and local election officials.

The prosecutor assigned to investigate the killing of gay Puerto Rican rapper Kevin Fret in 2019 said this week that she was instructed to stop her probe and was never given an explanation. Betzaida Quiñones Rodríguez made the allegations in multiple local media outlets in Puerto Rico. She said the investigation was shut down just three months after Fret's death by order of Olga Castellón, who was the chief prosecutor at the Puerto Rico Justice Department at the time. Vázquez was Puerto Rico’s secretary of justice from 2017 to 2019, but later became the governor of Puerto Rico after embattled Gov. Quiñones Rodríguez is still the prosecutor in charge of investigating Fret's death as of Friday.

Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Navajo Nation in February, saying it could sue the government for an alleged failure to carry out its duties on behalf of the tribe. The Navajo Nation can access water from other sources, including the San Juan River, a tributary of the Colorado River, but the tribe says that is not enough. Many tribal members do not have access to running water and rely on wells and other localized water sources. In separate litigation the tribe has fought for access to the Little Colorado River, another tributary of the Colorado River. “Nothing in the supposed sources the court of appeals cited imposes any specific and affirmative duties on the federal government on behalf of the Navajo Nation with respect to the water of the Colorado River,” Prelogar wrote.

Biden to tout semiconductor bill with Democratic congressman in tight California racePresident Joe Biden on Friday is set to tour a southern California communications company that is expected to benefit from his legislative push to bolster American semiconductor manufacturing — and he’s taking a vulnerable Democratic congressman with him. Biden will be joined by Rep. Mike Levin for the visit to Carlsbad-headquartered Viasat as he looks to highlight the CHIPS and Science Act, a $280 billion legislative package, ahead of Tuesday’s midterm elections. The bill is one of the Biden administration’s most significant legislative achievements. Levin, a two-term congressman representing a San Diego-area district that was once a GOP stronghold, is locked in a tight race with former San Juan Capistrano Mayor Brian Maryott. Biden headlined a rally Thursday night in Oceanside, California, for Levin.

A former Miss Argentina and an ex-Miss Puerto Rico announced on Instagram over the weekend that they are married. The video included in their post features a montage of them traveling, their candlelit marriage proposal and a kiss outside a courthouse in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Varela, 26, and Valentín, 22, appear to have met last March, when they competed in the Miss Grand International beauty pageant in Thailand. !” And Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2017 Danna Hernández commented, “Beautiful couple congratulations and blessings on your marriage!!! Same-sex marriage has been legal in Puerto Rico since 2015 as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell v. Hodges.

☆ Democratic Rep. Mike Levin faces off against Republican Brian Maryott in California's 49th Congressional District election
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Hanna Kang | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rep. Mike Levin is running against Republican Brian Maryott in California's 49th Congressional District. California's 49th Congressional District candidatesLevin is serving his second term in the House and sits on the Committee of Veterans Affairs, where he is vice chairman. This is his third time running for the 49th Congressional District seat. Voting history for California's 49th Congressional DistrictCalifornia's 49th Congressional District is located in northern San Diego County and includes the cities of Oceanside and Encinitas. Republican hybrid PAC Congressional Leadership Fund leads all spenders, with Democratic hybrid PAC House Majority PAC and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee so far placing second and third.

☆ Authorities search for migrants missing after boat overturns in Puerto Rico bay
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Authorities on Wednesday searched for at least eight migrants believed to be missing in waters near the historic area of Puerto Rico’s capital. The U.S. Coast Guard said the people were apparently aboard a boat that capsized in San Juan Bay on Tuesday night, according to two survivors from the Dominican Republic who were rescued. The search comes amid a spike in human smuggling voyages departing from Haiti and the Dominican Republic as people flee poverty and violence. From October 2021 through September 2022, the U.S. Coast Guard detained at least 88 such voyages in waters near Puerto Rico and in the Mona Passage, which separates the U.S. territory from the island of Hispaniola, which is shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic. During that period, more than 1,700 Dominicans were detained, along with 444 Haitians and four Cubans.

☆ Five years after Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico's power grid is still costly and unreliable
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( Fred Imbert | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The state of Puerto Rico's power grid has been a sore spot for many island businesses and residents, leading to backlash against Luma Energy — the company brought in to operate and improve the grid after Hurricane Maria. Many businesses were forced to shut down for weeks after Hurricane Fiona hit. Luma Energy officially took over control of the island's power grid in June 2021 for the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, or PREPA. In July, about two months before Hurricane Fiona hit Puerto Rico, hundreds of residents marched to Gov. The company also said Oct. 10 that power had been restored to 99% of clients affected by Hurricane Fiona.

☆ World-renowned Puerto Rico telescope won't be rebuilt after collapse
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — The National Science Foundation announced Thursday that it will not rebuild a renowned radio telescope in Puerto Rico, which was one of the world’s largest until it collapsed nearly two years ago. Instead, the agency issued a solicitation for the creation of a $5 million education center at the site that would promote programs and partnerships related to science, technology, engineering and math. The decision was mourned by scientists around the world who used the telescope at the Arecibo Observatory for years to search for asteroids, planets and extraterrestrial life. The education component is very important,” said James Moore, assistant director for education and human resource directorate at NSF. He said by phone that one of the agency’s priorities is to make STEM more accessible and inclusive and that the proposed education center would fill that need.

☆ The world's busiest international flight route carried more than 3.2 million passengers in the last year. See which other routes made the top 10.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Stephen Jones | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Cairo International Airport, Egypt to Riyadh King Khalid International Airport, Saudi ArabiaSeats: 1,913,9918. Mumbai International Airport, India to Dubai International Airport, UAESeats: 1,977,5377. Orlando International Airport, USA to San Juan Luis Munoz Marin International Airport, Puerto RicoSeats: 2,099,2346. Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia to Singapore Changi AirportSeats: 2,443,176Dubai International Airport, UAE to London Heathrow Airport, UKSeats: 2,697,5933. Dubai International Airport, UAE to Riyadh King Khalid International Airport, Saudi ArabiaSeats: 3,191,0901.

☆ A Rafting Trip in Utah For Only the Lucky Few
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Brigid Mander | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

AS THE CURRENT of the upper San Juan River pushed past me, I balanced on a paddleboard wedged into a rock cluster on one of its banks. The green waters flowed down the same southeast Utah course they’d carved for millions of years, indifferent to my desire to stay put and contemplate the rock art—an array of handprints—on the cliff above. I’d almost missed this display, which my guidebook estimated to be about a thousand years old, give or take a century, its author noting that the handprints’ significance is unknown. As I took in the mysterious art, the only sounds were birdsong and river burbles, and soon, I gave in to the unrelenting downstream push of the water. I had to catch up with my friends Theresa and James and their 5-year-old daughter, Fiadh, on the sapphire-blue, 16-foot raft just downriver, not to mention the supplies we’d packed for our three-night voyage.

☆ All eyes are on DeSantis' relationship with Biden as Hurricane Ian approaches Florida. Here's how the previous 3 presidents worked (or didn't) with governors on disaster relief efforts.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Isabella Zavarise | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Governors usually work directly with the White House during disasters, relying on the government for federal resources. Here's a look at how the last three presidents handled disaster relief efforts and how Biden could address this crisis with DeSantis. However, on Tuesday evening, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tweeted that Biden and DeSantis had spoken to discuss steps the federal government is taking to help Florida. Here's how the last three presidents worked with governors in their disaster relief efforts. Biden declared a state of emergency as the storm approached, ordering federal assistance to supplement disaster response efforts.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A ship carrying much-needed diesel fuel has been unable to dock in hard-hit southern Puerto Rico since Sunday while it awaits federal authorization because of the Jones Act, a century-old shipping law. That means that a foreign ship with goods for Puerto Rico would first have to disembark in the mainland U.S. and change crews. Signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson two years after World War I ended, the Jones Act was passed as a protective measure against foreign competition. On Thursday, eight members of Congress called for the federal government to grant a one-year waiver from the Jones Act for storm-ravaged Puerto Rico. As of Monday morning, only 16% of power customers in Ponce had their electricity restored, according to the Puerto Rican government.

☆ Puerto Rican municipal workers pitch in as power outages persist
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Ivelisse Rivera | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Cars drive under a downed power pole in the aftermath of Hurricane Fiona in Santa Isabel, Puerto Rico September 21, 2022. She pointed to hurdles such as storm-damaged roads and factors beyond LUMA's control, such as the generation capacity of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA). POWER CRUNCHThe widespread outages have led to a cascade of energy problems for Puerto Rico. Health officials in Puerto Rico attributed 12 deaths to the storm in Puerto Rico. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Ivelisse Rivera in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Francis Bruhm, Project Manager for general contractor G&R Kelly, places sandbags around the doors of the Nova Scotia Power building before the arrival of Hurricane Fiona in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada September 23, 2022. It was due to make landfall in eastern Nova Scotia Saturday morning, but rain and wind had already started Friday night. Canadian authorities sent emergency alerts in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island, warning of severe flooding along shorelines and extremely dangerous waves. The storm could prove more ferocious than the benchmarks of Hurricane Juan in 2003 and Hurricane Dorian in 2019, Canadian Hurricane Centre meteorologist Bob Robichaud told a briefing. Trailing Fiona in the Caribbean is Tropical storm Ian, which is expected to become a hurricane on Sunday night.

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