A-Town Magazine
Steampunk festival creates an unlikely capital for Victorian style and sci-fi oddity in New Zealand
ŌAMARU, New Zealand | The woman in the pink frock coat announced herself as steam curled from a strange brass contraption on her back. “I am Lady Sarsaparilla Ovabyte, of the Coventry Ovabytes,” she said. “We are purveyors of fine cordials.” Her companion peered through glasses made from fused-together forks. “Captain Bob McSpoon, inventrepreneur,” he […]
Lawyers for Lively and Baldoni battle in a New York court despite settling claims weeks ago
NEW YORK | The legal battle between actors Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni isn’t quite over yet. Just a month ago, the two announced a settlement that avoided a trial over Lively’s claims that Baldoni led a campaign to smear her reputation after she accused him of sexually harassing her on the set of their […]
In farm country, an old American pickup truck becomes more than a workhorse
EFFINGHAM, Illinois | In Illinois farm country, there’s a 70-year-old pickup truck waiting on a fresh coat of canary yellow paint. It’s the first vehicle my dad learned to drive, as a young boy helping with farm chores during the day and adventuring with friends at night. At the time, the 1956 International Harvester S-130 […]
In a city with an iconic skyline, the Obama presidential museum aims to reshape Chicago architecture
CHICAGO | The granite monolith soars above a leafy stretch of Chicago’s South Side, a nearly windowless exterior more suited to a sci-fi film set than the state-of-the art presidential museum held within. Crews are putting the finishing touches on the Obama Presidential Center ahead of the official public opening on Juneteenth, more than a […]
A robot is helping an ailing couple stay in their home. Are more to come for an aging population?
DURHAM, N.H. | After outliving Booker T. Bones, their second service dog, Brenda and Brian Marquis still needed help with some of the more difficult parts of daily life. They found Robbie, a robot that rolls out of a hallway into their living room several times a day. “Do you want to exercise now? Please […]
Ayesha Curry’s Cast-Iron ‘Fruit Cake’ is foolproof when dessert time is tight
While I’m not sure how or when it started, there is no denying that I have an extremely mean sweet tooth. It shows up all the time in the way I cook savory food — but it goes bananas when I get to dessert. None of this means that I need my sweets to be […]
What to Stream: ‘Hoppers,’ ‘Love Island,’ Lizzo and Death Cab for Cutie albums
New albums from Lizzo and Death Cab for Cutie and the streaming service debut of animated hit “Hoppers” are some of the new television, films, music and games headed to a device near you. Also among the streaming offerings worth your time this week, as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: the new season […]
8 crested ibises released in Japanese town decades after extinction in Japan
TOKYO | Eight crested ibises were released into the wild in a north-central Japanese town, decades after the birds went extinct in the country. The endangered birds took off from each of their wooden cages at a ceremony Sunday in Hakui city in the Noto region, where they were last seen in the wild. Residents […]
A secret bunker, tunnel and a Star of David tell a story of Jewish resistance in a Polish town
BEDZIN, Poland | A secret bunker, an underground tunnel and an armband bearing the Star of David are among the rare findings in a house in southern Poland that was used by Jews, including young members of the resistance, to hide from the Nazis. “This armband is a witness, it’s like directly touching that evil […]
Young and unemployed? Remote work, not AI, may be the problem, study finds
WASHINGTON | The rise of remote work since the pandemic has made businesses more reluctant to hire young, inexperienced workers and is the key driver of higher unemployment rates for recent college graduates, a study released Monday has found. The study, by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, compared occupations that can be done […]