Hollywood's largest and brightest stars are able to have a good time the most important evening of the yr within the film. Chanel organized on March 1, 2025 on the Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif.

All parents wish to protect their family. We want our kids to be healthy and revel in the activities and milestones of puberty. We long to become old with our partners and have a good time many more birthdays and holidays with our own parents.

This deep-rooted desire for safety and connection spurred lots of us to motion when the COVID-19 vaccine first became available greater than three years ago. After a 12 months marked by isolation and fear for the health of our family members, most Americans eagerly lined as much as get their first vaccinations.

Still, I fear that in 2024 we’ve got created a false sense of security. Seventy percent of Americans were fully vaccinated against COVID-19 in 2022, but only 22 percent received an updated vaccine last 12 months. An updated vaccine designed to assist your body produce antibodies against the most certainly strains of the virus currently circulating offers critical protection against serious illness, hospitalization and death. Unfortunately, our hospitals are already feeling the strain of declining vaccination rates. In 2024 alone, roughly 34,000 Americans have died from COVID-19, 1000’s more are hospitalized and tons of succumb weekly.

Like so many, I felt a wave of relief when my family accomplished our first vaccinations. We could finally enjoy life with a brand new sense of security.

Dangers from the coronavirus

That's why my family continues to get vaccinated yearly. My daughter is receiving her updated COVID-19 vaccine to reduce the chance of illness before her highschool homecoming dance. My wife, who has cancer, knows that a COVID-19 infection may cause serious complications. My elderly parents, each within the high-risk category, are receiving their vaccinations to guard their health. And since I travel incessantly for work, I get vaccinated to scale back the chance of bringing the virus home.

Yet nearly 80% of the general public doesn’t share our sense of urgency. Frankly, the medical and public health industries have struggled to effectively communicate the importance of annual COVID-19 vaccinations. Immunity weakens and the virus mutates; It's not a one-off scenario. For optimal protection from circulating exposures, people need annual updates.

Many people underestimate the hazards of not being vaccinated. Millions of Americans are at high risk, yet many don’t recognize themselves as such. About 7 in 10 adults have a risk factor for severe COVID-19 symptoms. Conditions similar to hypertension increase the chance fourfold, chronic lung disease increases it sixfold and diabetes triples it.

The most vital risk factor for poor COVID-19 outcomes stays age: adults aged 65 and older account for two-thirds of COVID-19 hospitalizations and greater than 81% of in-hospital deaths. What's concerning is that only about 40% of Americans on this age group received a COVID-19 vaccine last 12 months.

Time to act

Even healthy adults and kids can experience long-term symptoms from a COVID-19 infection. As a parent, that is one in all my biggest concerns. The risk of long-term symptoms, so-called long COVID, increases with every infection, even whether it is mild. About 7% of adults within the U.S. — nearly 18 million people — report persistent symptoms similar to shortness of breath, extreme fatigue and brain fog. While there isn’t any known cure for long COVID, recent studies suggest that vaccination can reduce the chance of developing these chronic symptoms by as much as 70%.

No one desires to miss work, school, or joyful moments due to a serious infection or persistent symptoms. We have already lost too many special occasions through the height of the pandemic. We all want to securely gather with our family members on Thanksgiving, go on the holiday we’ve got planned, and have a good time life's joyful moments, be it weddings or the enjoyment of the birth of a brand new baby. We wish to visit our family members in nursing homes without fear of triggering an outbreak. We wish to get along with our friends safely, and we are able to do this more safely if everyone seems to be vaccinated.

COVID-19 vaccines have been shown to significantly reduce the chance of hospitalization and death and have been safely administered to billions of individuals worldwide. As with any health suggestion, it’s comprehensible that individuals have questions on the COVID-19 vaccine – they usually should all the time seek the advice of their doctor or trusted healthcare provider. It's vital that we take our health seriously, seek answers, and have compassionate conversations about vaccinations.

Updated COVID-19 vaccines at the moment are available nationwide, and now’s the time to act. Let's prioritize our health, protect our family members and cherish the vital moments. Together we are able to meet this ongoing challenge with vigilance and care.

Originally published: October 22, 2024 at 4:30 am

Every September, evening temperatures begin to drop, highschool football games begin, pumpkins sprout in fields, and tens of 1000’s of individuals flock to California's beaches, lakes, rivers and streams to select up trash as a part of the state's largest annual volunteer event, California Coastal Cleanup Day.

The goal is to beautify the environment and reduce trash that may harm fish, birds, sea lions, dolphins and other wildlife. This yr's cleanup, which took place from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday, marked the fortieth anniversary of the event. The organization planned 761 cleanup sites within the Bay Area and across the state.

To participate next yr or for more information in regards to the event, visit coastalcleanupday.org

You can find the total story here.

Hundreds of spectators gathered at Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica Saturday morning to observe the annual World Dog Surfing Championships with some special guests…whales watching from a distance.

Twenty dogs competed in six categories. Some wore wetsuits. Others were more conspicuous. Some dogs flew in from other countries, like Cacau from Brazil and Coda from Japan. And Paco, who was born in Spain and now lives in San Mateo, took the surfboard to compete in the large dog heats.

The beach was so crowded that some spectators with cell phones blocked the view and a few skilled photographers needed to get wet to get their best shots.

Check the ultimate results Here.

Originally published: August 4, 2024 at 6:00 am

Thousands of festival-goers attended the fifth annual Lakefest at Lake Merritt in Oakland on Saturday.

The first summer festival of the yr celebrated community, culture and Juneteenth along Bellevue Avenue and the Lake Merritt Boat House car parking zone. The closed-off event featured artists, dancers, food vendors, a children's area, arts and crafts and other activities.

Last Wednesday night, lower than half a mile from this event, there was one other Juneteenth celebration on Grand Avenue, which was 15 people injured in shooting after a side show in the realm.

Have theme parks turn out to be subscription services?

It's been years since everyone who visits Disneyland or other parks simply bought their tickets at the doorway after they arrived. The parks have pushed their fans to purchase annual passes, and just about all of them now offer monthly payment plans.

The shift from day passes to passes has profound financial and operational implications for the industry, which got me wondering if we’d all be higher off if the parks eliminated annual passes and easily went back to day passes.

Given today's every day admission prices within the parks, that is unimaginable for a lot of fans. Disneyland charges nearly $200 for a day pass on peak days. But I believe that the dramatic increase in day pass and admission ticket prices, in addition to the event of paid skip-the-line services like Six Flags' Flash Pass and Disney Genie+, are direct consequences of the parks' success in selling annual passes.

Annual passes were originally an try to increase revenue per visitor by selling dearer passes. However, the result has been a decrease in revenue per visit as passholders visit more and so often displace day passholders. This results in parks attempting to increase their per capita revenue through higher day pass prices and better in-park surcharges.

The irony? These higher prices encourage more loyal visitors to purchase annual passes, perpetuating the vicious cycle. At the identical time, casual fans simply stop visiting Disneyland and other theme parks because they will now not afford them, and the parks are forced to depend on a limited variety of increasingly restless and dissatisfied passholders.

Imagine a “Dry 2025” – the industry equivalent of a “Dry January” – where as an alternative of giving up alcohol, parks gave up annual or season passes for a 12 months to see how much demand there really is for his or her parks at regular admission prices. I believe that parks would should quickly lower their every day pass prices to maintain their parks full. But their average revenue per visit would increase if annual passholders were now not in the combo.

More reasonably priced parks that make more cash for his or her owners? I'm in.

Unfortunately, I fear many parks won’t survive this modification. Without a base of annual passholders to sustain their attendance, too many parks lack the fresh attractions, efficient operations and well-supported customer support that day pass buyers would demand. Disney and Universal would do exactly fantastic, with their hotels and unique mental property that enables them to appeal to a worldwide audience. But everyone else?

My best experiences at recent parks outside of Disney and Universal have been at Silver Dollar City and Holiday World – parks which can be removed from major cities and have plentiful annual passholder populations. They have needed to make a living by selling every day tickets, which has resulted in a greater park experience.

Just as low cost streaming services have contributed to the decline in demand for movies and linear television, annual passes have given theme parks and their customers what’s now a nasty business.

The New York Empire State Tattoo Expo celebrated its tenth anniversary and took place May 10-12, 2024 on the New York Hilton Midtown.

Featuring over 500 artists, this gathering of elite international tattoo artists offers a singular experience of artistry, creativity and culture.

The Empire State ExpoWith its curated shows, live tattoos, seminars and workshops, it’s the premier event of the 12 months to fulfill among the world's most famous tattoo artists.