Author: NY TIMES

RALEIGH, N.C. — This column doesn’t do it justice. Not really. Not when a bounce here, a whistle there, a lucky break somewhere, anywhere could change the entire perception and narrative of this series, this team, this organization. When this team looks so strong at five-on-five, when the short-lived nature of special teams is the root cause of its current ills, when every game it plays — and every game it loses Not even when a damn game seems to be decided. That wasn’t the case when this team enjoyed the longest stretch of sustained success in franchise history.But we…

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“Gardening is what I love to do, so that is how I’m going to spend Mother’s Day,” said Emily Wehner, 30, whose husband plans to remove their two children, who are under the age of 4, from the home for at least several hours. Normally when she gardens, “the kids are running around, which means my brain is split.”Ms. Wehner, a photographer who lives in Indianapolis, has been preparing for the big day, growing seeds in her house, for the last six weeks. “I am so excited. You will see me out there even if it rains.”Other mothers feel the…

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Jim Simons, the prizewinning mathematician who abandoned a stellar academic career, then plunged into finance — a world he knew nothing about — and became one of the most successful Wall Street investors ever, died on Friday in his home in Manhattan. He was 86.His death was confirmed by his spokesman, Jonathan Gasthalter, who did not specify a cause.After publishing breakthrough studies in mathematics that would play a seminal role in quantum field theory, string theory and condensed matter physics, Mr. Simons decided to apply his genius to a more prosaic subject — making as much money as he could…

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Picture an opera made entirely of a mad scene, and you have “Foreign Experiences,” an installment in “Now Eleanor’s Idea,” Ashley’s tetralogy whose construction recalls another four-work saga, Wagner’s “Ring.” In “Experiences,” the protagonist, Don Jr., spirals in isolation after a move to California, and from his apartment he imagines paranoid adventures in esoterica, in search of truths about power and wealth. He comes to conclusions like, “‘If you have to ask, you can’t afford one,’ I always thought we ought to have that carved into that stupid mountain with the four guys’ heads.”Don Jr.’s thoughts come quickly; “Foreign Experiences,”…

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A White House spokesman on Friday defended the United States’ decision to oppose a U.N. resolution declaring support for Palestinian statehood, saying that such a measure should be negotiated in the Middle East.The United States was among a handful of holdouts as the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a resolution declaring that Palestinians qualify for full membership at the United Nations. The vote was widely seen as a rebuke of Israel and the United States as global outrage mounts over the Israel-Hamas war.John F. Kirby, a White House national security spokesman, said President Biden remained “fully and firmly committed”…

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People in Britain marveled at the unusual and spectacular sight of the northern lights on Friday night, the consequence of a severe solar storm that was brewing and was expected to continue over the coming days.The northern lights — also known as aurora borealis — usually don’t reach this far south. They are most often seen in higher latitudes closer to the North Pole. People in other European countries, including Denmark and Germany, also reported seeing the lights.Onlookers marveled at the sight, posting their surprise, delight and sometimes shock on social media. As one user wrote: “Aurora Borealis? At this…

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Miami Gardens, Florida— Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend is like a Super Bowl-level event in Miami – especially when it comes to food.Luxurious hospitality packages were created, award-winning chefs brought a flavor of South Florida to F1 over the weekend and VIPs flocked to the paddock. Over the years, the likes of the Williams sisters, David Beckham, Ed Sheeran, Michael Jordan and Paris Hilton have walked through the Hard Rock Stadium campus. About 242,000 people attended the inaugural Miami Grand Prix, but teams of restaurant chefs involved in the event had no idea what to expect when preparing meals on…

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When Youthforia, a young makeup line that once received a nearly half-a-million-dollar investment from one of the celebrity investors on “Shark Tank,” released its darkest foundation yet, a collective sigh among Black women could be heard across social media. In the past, beauty brands, including many industry heavy-hitters, have fumbled products for darker skin tones, and the quality of new complexion-matching cosmetics remains inconsistent.Golloria George, a dark-skinned beauty influencer who lives in Texas, was tipped off about the release by her followers, who tagged her on other reviews of the new shade, and she decided to buy the foundation. But…

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Ilon Specht, who rebelled against her patriarchal male colleagues at an advertising agency by writing a successful TV commercial for L’Oréal’s Preference hair color product that included a message of feminist empowerment that has endured for decades, died on April 20 at her son’s home in Barrington, R.I., near Providence. She was 81.Her son, Brady Case, said the cause was complications of endometrial cancer.It was 1973. Ms. Specht was a copywriter at the McCann-Erickson (now McCann) agency in Manhattan. L’Oréal was using Preference, a relatively new product, to challenge the market dominance of Clairol’s Nice ‘n Easy. The agency’s team…

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