SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Authorities urged motorists to avoid California's scenic Highway 1 after a section of the coastal road collapsed during an Easter weekend storm, causing closures and stranding motorists near Big Sur, authorities said with.

The collapse occurred during heavy rain Saturday afternoon near the Rocky Creek Bridge about 17 miles south of Monterey, with chunks of asphalt falling from the south side of the two-lane road into the sea.

The highway was closed in both directions in the mountainous area of ​​California's central coast while engineers assessed the damage, the state Department of Transportation (Caltrans) said.

“We are working on a plan to evacuate motorists from the area,” the California Highway Patrol said Saturday.

By around noon Sunday, emergency crews had determined that the northbound lane was safe to travel in, and authorities began regularly escorting motorists through the damaged section. About 300 cars were waiting to head north as officials led the first convoy through the area, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Some stranded motorists slept in their cars overnight while others stayed at the nearby Big Sur Lodge, the newspaper said.

Caltrans spokesman Kevin Drabinski said regular convoys would continue moving in the coming days as crews secured the highway, which was already closed due to rocks and debris in the lanes. He urged people to avoid the area.

The closure of Rocky Creek on California Highway 1 occurs March 31, 2024 in Monterey County following heavy rainfall in the area.

Caltrans District 5 via AP

Road information and updates can also be found on Caltrans District 5's social media platforms: Twitter at @CaltransD5, Facebook at Caltrans Central Coast (District 5), and Instagram at Caltrans_D5.

The famous highway was frequently closed due to collapses, mudslides and rock falls during storms.

The slow-moving storm dropped heavy rain at lower elevations and more than a foot of snow at Sierra Nevada ski resorts around Lake Tahoe.

Ryan Kittell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the system was typical of March but was not an atmospheric river like many of the other storms that have hit the state in recent winters.

The storm left the Bay Area on Friday and “marched right up the California coast,” bringing most of the rainfall to the Los Angeles area, Kittell said.

The storm then parked over Southern California, where it was expected to last until Sunday night or into Monday. Showers and possible thunderstorms were possible in portions of Santa Barbara, Ventura and LA counties, with the possibility of lightning and damaging winds.

Bay City News contributed to this report

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Mookie Betts #50 of the Los Angeles Dodgers walks through the dugout before Game 2 of the National League Division Series against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on October 09, 2021 in San Francisco, California. (Getty Images)

(KTLA) — The Los Angeles Dodgers are in Milwaukee this week for a three-game series with the NL Central-leading Brewers, and while team unity is important during long road trips, one Dodger star is keeping his distance from the rest of the team “just in case.”

According to Orange County Register reporter Bill Plunkett, outfielder Mookie Betts rented an Airbnb with some friends while the rest of his Dodger teammates stayed in a legendary 130-year-old hotel in Milwaukee.

The reason, Betts said, is due to long-rumored reports of hauntings and other creepy happenings at the Pfister Hotel.

The Pfister Hotel is one of the most historic buildings in Milwaukee. The famed luxury hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has hosted billionaires, diplomats and more — it’s also rumored to be home to an intrepid spirit or two.

This is the lobby of the Pfister Hotel seen Tuesday, July 7, 2009, in Milwaukee. The Pfister is Milwaukee’s most regal address, having hosted every U.S. president since William McKinley and scores of celebrities. Today, it’s the place to stay for upscale business travelers and out-of-town visitors, including many Major League Baseball teams. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Betts, 30, who has stayed at the hotel in years past, said he opted for the modern setting instead of the historic grounds “just in case” rumors of the specters and spirits turned out to be true.

“You can tell me what happened after,” he joked with Plunkett. “I just don’t want to find out myself.”

An eight-year MLB veteran, Betts has stayed at his fair share of hotels, resorts and high-rises over the years, but the Pfister Hotel has affected his sleep schedule in recent stays.

“I couldn’t sleep,” Betts told the OC Register. “Every noise, I’d be like, ‘Is that something?’”

The Pfister Hotel has been the subject of haunting rumors for decades, and it’s one of the oldest hotels that MLB teams regularly visit for road trips. It’s led to many reports of strange and creepy occurrences from the players brave enough to stay overnight.

Michael Young, former seven-time MLB All Star and one-time Dodger, told ESPN the Magazine that he heard footsteps “stomping” around in his room. He recalled telling his ghostly visitor to “make yourself at home” but keep the noise down.

California’s Most Haunted: spook-tacular places to search for ghosts in the Golden State

Bryce Harper, a two-time National League MVP, said he had a strange experience when staying in the historic hotel, claiming that his clothes he had laid out the night before ended up on the floor and a table was moved across the room.

“I honestly thought there might be someone in my room. I had no idea what the hell just happened, so I actually looked around, and then I checked to see if the door was still latched, and it was,” Harper said. He told reporters that he thought he may have been the victim of a prank by one of his teammates.

In 2018, Cardinals players Carlos Martinez and Marcell Ozuna bunked up together after allegedly spotting one of the Pfister’s unaccounted for guests. Martinez, a pitcher, started the next day’s game against the Brewers and was hammered by Milwaukee’s batters and was pulled after giving up seven runs in only four innings.

So maybe Betts’ extra precautions aren’t that crazy, even if the change of venue simply promises a sounder sleep. If the Dodgers want to maintain their spot near the top of the National League, he and his teammates will probably need to be well-rested.

Let’s just hope Betts and his friends didn’t mistakenly book a stay at one of Airbnb’s most haunted hangouts.

The Dodgers dropped their first game of their series against the Brewers in Milwaukee, but were on their way to winning the second game on Tuesday. The series concludes Wednesday.

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News

From Katherine Donlevy

June 16, 2023 | 12:01 a.m

An ABC reporter admitted his bosses advised him not to perform live from downtown San Francisco on Wednesday because the area was “just too dangerous.”

Chief national correspondent Matt Gutman told viewers his crew had been instructed to film their 4am GMT segment of “Good Morning America” ​​in a different part of the city as they covered the shocking closure of Westfield Mall.

Although the mall — the latest in a string of Bay Area malls to close its doors — cited the drop in foot traffic as its reason for its closure, Gutman said the city’s rising crime rate could be to blame.

“The mayor notes that several crime indicators are actually flat or declining. But it’s worth noting that we’re not at Union Square or Westfield Mall this morning because we’ve been told it’s just too dangerous to be there at this time,” Gutman said.

Back in the studio, Michael Strahan said Gutman’s admission “says a lot.”

Matt Gutman, a reporter for ABC News, admitted he was advised not to perform live in downtown San Francisco for his feature Good Morning America due to rising crime. Fox News

San Francisco has seen a dramatic increase in violent crime and the ongoing fentanyl crisis over the past year.

According to police, robberies, arson, grand theft autos and homicides increased by over 5% in 2023 compared to the previous year.

Crime – which residents claim has turned the city into a “zombie apocalypse” – is largely responsible for the mass exodus of large corporations, including Old Navy and Nordstrom.

According to police, crime in San Francisco increased by over 5% in 2023 compared to the previous year.Fox News

A viral video from earlier this month showed that a whole section of the city’s commercial hub was completely deserted.

During the “GMA” segment, Gutman asked San Francisco Mayor London Breed if the city should be considered “dangerous,” but the Democrat explained that the news team was focused on the negative.

“Well, here’s the thing: San Francisco is a big city and it has challenges. But let’s go back a little. You’re talking about people leaving the city, but not people staying, expanding, and coming to San Francisco,” Breed said.

A number of Bay Area businesses have closed their doors due to rising violence in San Francisco. San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images

On the same day, Twitter CEO Elon Musk revealed that his employees “feel unsafe” when visiting the social media headquarters.

“[They’ve] The windows of their cars were smashed. Also, they received such a zero response from the police that they barely bother to report crimes because nothing is happening,” the billionaire tweeted.

However, crime rates could be far worse than statistics and reports suggest.

Car break-ins and thefts have plagued the city as employees in the area admitted they are afraid to come to work. Chin Hei Leung / SOPA Images / Sipa USA

“Crime is worse than the data shows,” San Francisco attorney general Charles Stimson told Fox News.

“People don’t report these crimes because if there’s a prosecutor who’s pro-criminal and doesn’t enforce the law, the cops aren’t going to go out and arrest someone if they know the case is undocumented.”

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Moving to a new house or apartment is a complicated process. To ensure your move goes smoothly, you need to start preparing weeks before the big day when you’ll have to juggle boxes, furniture, valuables, pets, children and whatever else will be transported to your new home.

While you can’t expect everything to go perfectly on moving day, you can avoid some disasters big enough to ruin the whole experience.

Read on to learn about some of the biggest moving day disasters and how you can prevent them from ruining your move. Contact us for more information Tips for moving on a budget and learn how to find free moving boxes.

1. Your hired movers don’t show up

You’ve packed all your boxes, prepared your furniture, and even asked friends or family to help you care for your kids and pets, but when your scheduled move time arrives, your movers are nowhere to be found and repeated calls to the company are lost unanswered.

If your mover doesn’t show up, there’s not much you can do other than try to hire a truck or van and move yourself, or reschedule your appointment.

Continue reading: How to find a trustworthy and reliable moving company

To avoid this disaster, hire your mover well in advance of your move, at least four weeks before a local move or eight weeks before a long-distance move. If you are planning to move during a busy time like summer or a holiday, book a move 12 weeks in advance.

Also, be sure to check out your mover before hiring them, and watch out for red flags like ridiculously low estimates or high down payments. Choose a mover with a physical address and, if possible, visit their location to assess the condition of their trucks and warehouse.

Continue reading: Best Movers of 2023

2. You cannot park your moving truck on your street

If you live in a dense metropolitan area like San Francisco, New York, or Boston, finding parking for a moving truck can be difficult, especially if you live on a one-way street. Imagine you’ve packed all your boxes and are ready to go, but the nearest parking spot for your truck is only a block away.

Prepare for moving day by applying for a special parking permit well in advance of your move, if your city offers one. If you don’t have a permit to move trucks, you may be able to apply for a no parking sign that will allow room for your truck on the day of the move.

Most cities offer you the option of reserving street space for your moving truck.

Mario Guti/Getty Images

If none of these solutions are available in your city, talk to your neighbors and regular parking garages on your street to see if you can come up with a plan to provide space for your truck.

3. Your belongings don’t fit in your moving truck

You’ve packed all the boxes and ready your furniture for removal, but halfway through packing you realize you underestimated the size of your move and rented an undersized truck. If you’re moving a short distance, you might be able to make two trips, but this will add significantly to your moving day. If you move over a long distance, you could get into a lot of trouble.

Avoid this moving day disaster by taking a proper inventory of all your belongings and choosing a truck big enough to haul everything in one trip. Online calculators can help estimate the correct truck size, as can a general rule of 150 to 200 cubic feet of truck space for each of your furnished rooms. If you’re between sizes, go for the larger truck.

Continue reading: This is how you determine the right size of rental truck for your move

4. You accepted the released value coverage and the movers broke valuable items

When it comes to insuring your belongings with a professional moving company, you generally have three options. The first, called “released value protection,” is usually free with most trusted movers. It agrees to compensate you in the event of damage by professional movers at a base rate for all your belongings – typically 60 cents a pound.

That means if movers break your laptop and it weighs 3 pounds, they’ll pay you $1.80. If you own something of value, think carefully about your other options before accepting Shared Value Coverage.

Most movers also offer ‘Full Value Protection’, which means movers will refund you 100% of the value of damaged items, but you will have to pay for coverage, typically 1% of the total value of your belongings. You must also make a careful inventory that includes the value of all your belongings.

Both forms of mover protection only protect against damage caused by the movers themselves. If you want additional protection from the elements, theft, or other disasters, you must purchase moving insurance with a separate insurance company.

Continue reading: What is moving insurance and do you need it?

5. Your furniture doesn’t match your new home

You’ve loaded all the boxes and furniture onto your truck and cruised in comfort to your new home, only to find your favorite sofa won’t fit up a spiral staircase or your bed frame won’t even fit through the front door.

Measure all of your large furniture before you start packing, and then, if possible, measure the stairs and doorways in your new home to make sure everything fits. If you’re moving a long distance, see if your property manager or real estate agent can get the measurements for you. For heavier items and furniture, make a plan for moving the items between your old and new space.

Augmented reality software like Magicplan can help you figure out where the bottlenecks might be in your new home and how to navigate through or around them.

Continue reading: How to lift heavy boxes and furniture

6. You forgot to set up the utilities in your new home

You have received the keys to your new apartment and handed in the first boxes when you suddenly realize that the light is not working. Worse still, neither the sinks nor the toilets. With no electricity or water, you may be spending your first night in a hotel rather than your new home.

Set up the utilities in your new home at least three weeks before you move in to ensure everything is up and running when you arrive. This includes gas and electricity, but be sure to check the water supply as well if your landlord doesn’t provide it. And don’t forget to choose an internet provider and setup the internet before moving day.

Continue reading: Take the stress out of moving into your first rental apartment

You can find more moving tips here: Learn how to pack a moving box properly and how to thoroughly clean your new house or apartment.

The post Transferring Day Disasters and Keep away from Them appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

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The Fed hiked interest rates again in May, raising borrowing costs to their highest level in 16 years. Although sellers are lowering their asking prices in many real estate markets, expensive mortgages across the country are forcing buyers to lower their expectations and look to cheaper cities for the right property.

How to Buy ChatGPT Stock: Your Guide to AI Investing in 2023
See: 3 things to do when your savings hit $50,000

But there is no such thing as the right property in the wrong neighborhood. If you only look at the costs, you might borrow money at 7% interest to finance the biggest mistake of your life.

Today’s bargain could be tomorrow’s bargain

It’s never a bad idea to shop downstairs in a burgeoning city. However, an affordable home in a run-down area can depreciate and be difficult to sell, even at a loss. When surrounding real estate falls in value, your property falls in value too, even if you take good care of it and do everything right.

This could result in you having a higher mortgage amount than the house is worth.

“What looks like a lot could end up costing you more in the long run,” said Carmelo Carrasco, founder of Axel Property Management, an interior designer and real estate agent with more than 26 years of property management and maintenance experience. “When deciding where to put down roots, always consider factors such as housing market stability, job opportunities and quality of life.”

In the wrong neighborhood, external factors can seal the fate of your home

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, when you buy property in a declining neighborhood, dynamics like these, which are beyond your control, can lower your home’s fair market value:

• The economy: Recessions hit neighborhoods that are already struggling particularly hard. The introduction of widespread unemployment can have a domino effect, lowering the market value of your home as surrounding homeowners lower their asking prices to get out before things get worse.

• Foreclosures and vacancies: When your affordable neighborhood degenerates into an undesirable neighborhood, foreclosures can leave surrounding homes vacant, unsold, and often in a state of neglect.

• Community appearance and quality of life: The aftermath of foreclosures and population decline triggers aesthetic degradations – vacant lots, garbage, broken vehicles, poorly maintained roads, roaming animals, closed shops, etc., which does nothing to cause bidding wars among buyers. The resulting depopulation shrinks the tax base and puts a strain on public services like the police, fire department and schools, further reducing the value of your property.

The story goes on

You lose more than just appreciation

The risk of flat or declining property values ​​is the number one concern when buying a home—but there’s even more at stake when it comes to buying a home.

Take our poll: Are you planning to buy or sell a home this year?

“Remember the old adage — you get what you pay for,” said Scott Ehrens, a Palm Springs real estate agent who broke the record for the highest price per square foot for a house on lease in California. “There’s a reason more expensive cities stay expensive. The quality of life, the natural beauty, the quality of the restaurants and entertainment, the schools, the culture – whatever is important to you is likely to be present to a greater extent in more expensive markets.”

You may never be able to afford property in the most expensive city centers, but there is a huge gap between this and the cheapest area you can afford.

“Think about what’s most important to you, and then look for the right city or community that can provide those things,” Carrasco said. “Look for stable housing, employment opportunities and a good quality of life.”

An underperforming job market could keep you stuck there

Carrasco mentioned employment opportunities. That’s because healthy cities have robust and dynamic cross-industry labor markets that attract young professionals looking not only for good jobs but also for job security.

On the other hand, unhealthy cities are characterized by greater competition among a higher percentage of unemployed workers vying for fewer vacancies in low-wage positions.

“Low-cost cities often lack diverse job markets and may offer limited job prospects, particularly in specialized industries,” said Richard Mews, CEO of Sell With Richard. “This can lead to lower salaries, limited career growth and fewer opportunities for career advancement.”

These dynamics make run-down neighborhoods more vulnerable to economic downturns. If you live there, you’ll likely work there, and when a recession hits, the next foreclosure sign could be in your backyard.

In low-cost neighborhoods, daily life tends to be more expensive

Although cheap cities offer a lower cost of living and cheaper accommodation, the daily routine can take more of a toll on your wallet and well-being over time.

“Choosing a lower-priced area, for example, could mean living far from amenities like grocery stores, schools and public transportation,” said Jennifer Spinelli, founder and CEO of Watson Buys. “This potentially means spending more time, money and effort getting to the places you need or want to visit.”

Dennis Shirshikov, growth leader at real estate investment site Awning.com and professor of finance, economics, and accounting at the City University of New York, has seen it.

“A client moved to a cheaper city and then found he had to travel long distances to work, which increased his daily stress and reduced his free time,” he said. “In the end, they decided to return to a more expensive city that offered a better work-life balance and a more vibrant community.”

Advice: Aim for fewer houses in better locations

A cheap city on the rise is very different from a cheap city that has seen better days. So at the end of the day, a smaller, cheaper home in a healthy neighborhood is almost always better than one that gets you more for less in a struggling community.

“Look at the local housing market to get a better sense of what’s available in terms of affordable housing,” Carrasco said. “Take some time to explore different neighborhoods and speak to experienced real estate agents who can provide insight into the area that interests you. This research can help you make an informed decision and avoid the potential regret that comes with choosing a location based solely on affordability. I believe it’s important to consider the bigger picture and all the factors that may affect your long-term happiness before settling in a city.”

More from GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 5 reasons to avoid moving to cheap cities

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Rain swept through San Diego early Thursday morning, threatening the most anticipated opening day in Padres history.

With more midday rain downtown in the forecast, the ball club proactively moved first place 5 1/2 hours — from 1:10 p.m. to 6:40 p.m. — to allow the rain clouds to clear and allow the water-soaked field to drain and dry.

If the game against the Colorado Rockies goes ahead as planned, the Padres’ 1975 home game will remain the only rain-soaked game in the franchise’s 55-year history.

In fact, the opening game of 1975 rained consecutive nights at San Diego Stadium.

It was mostly bad luck.

Rainfall was reported for six consecutive days from April 4 to 9, although records show rainfall was just two inches in April this year.

Almost half of the precipitation (0.93 inches) fell on the opening day and a significant amount (0.41 inches) the following day.

The San Diego Union reported that the pre-game celebrations were to include a softball game an hour before field one, pitting Eddie Feigner (The King) and his court against some “media celebrities.”

Padres owner Ray Kroc was scheduled to give a presentation, having saved baseball for the city a year earlier when he bought a franchise just before moving to Washington, DC

Mayor Pete Wilson should throw the first pitch.

Fireworks were to follow after the game.

After two rainstorms, the Padres decided to postpone the celebrations to the team’s home game against the Dodgers two weeks later.

The delays shattered the crowd.

The Padres originally expected up to 42,000 fans, and some at the ticket office thought a sell-out (47,634) was a possibility. The franchise’s single-game attendance record at the time was 44,504, set on May 25 last season against Cincinnati.

When the teams finally took the field two nights later, only 19,823 people walked through the turnstiles.

Those who showed up watched as Padre’s left-hander Randy Jones threw nine shutout innings.

They also saw San Francisco right-hander Jim Barr throw 10 shutout innings in the Giants’ 2-0 win.

Despite an extra inning, the game was over in 2 hours and 11 minutes.

With so few rain replays, members of the Padres Ground Crew — especially when the team was playing Mission Valley — have been known to struggle to cover the field.

In fact, the tarp pretty much came apart in their hands at one point when the crew tried to drag it across the field after years of rolling it up along the first base line in foul territory.

That wasn’t the most memorable incident, however.

In 1990, at what was then Jack Murphy Stadium, a family of skunks dispersed after ground crew interrupted them while unrolling the tarp, which seemed like a nice, dry place to settle.

The skunks were released along the San Diego River, although they always seemed to find their way back to the stadium.

No wonder they made themselves comfortable. The probability that the tarpaulin was touched was extremely small.

The Padres media guide lists 18 rains in franchise history, with up to 15 years between rains (1983 to 1998).

Only three regular season games have been rescheduled in the team’s 19-year history at Petco Park, the most recent being on May 7, 2017 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Two years earlier, an unprecedented summer storm forced the postponement of the July 19, 2015 game against the Rockies. This ended a nine-year stretch (770 games) without a rainout.

Before that, the Padres had just two rainouts from 1983 to 2006, covering a span of 1,802 games.

If it weren’t for Buzzie Bavasi, the Padres’ first president, the number of rains would be barely a dozen.

Bavasi believed doubleheaders drew more viewers, so he would announce a game in no time.

Six of the team’s rainouts came in the first four years of the franchise’s existence.

San Diego rains

According to the Padres media guide, there have been 18 rains in San Diego over the years:

April 27, 1970 – vs. Montreal Expos

April 14, 1971 – vs. Chicago Cubs

May 7, 1971 – vs. Cincinnati Reds

May 28, 1971 – vs. New York Mets

June 5, 1972 – vs. Pittsburgh Pirates

June 6, 1972 – against Pittsburgh Pirates

April 8, 1975 – vs. San Francisco Giants

April 9, 1975 – vs. San Francisco Giants

September 10, 1976 – vs. Houston Astros (DH)

May 8, 1977 – vs. Montreal Expos (DH)

April 15, 1978 – vs. San Francisco Giants

April 28, 1980 – vs. Atlanta Braves

April 29, 1980 – vs. Atlanta Braves

April 20, 1983 – vs. Atlanta Braves

May 12, 1998 – vs. New York Mets

April 4, 2006 – vs. San Francisco Giants

July 19, 2015 – vs. Colorado Rockies

May 7, 2017 – vs Los Angeles Dodgers

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Following devastating mass shootings in Texas and New York this month, San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler said Friday that he will remain off the field during the pregame national anthem moving forward.

Kapler, who has championed issues relating to race and social injustice, made his intentions known in an essay published on his personal website Friday and to media members before the Giants played on the road against the Cincinnati Reds.

“I just don’t plan on coming out for the anthem going forward, until I feel … better about the direction of our country,” Kapler said. “That will be the step. I don’t expect it to move the needle necessarily. It’s something that I feel strongly enough about to take that step.”

The action harkens back to former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who began to kneel during pregame national anthem in 2016 to draw attention to social injustices faced by the Black community.

Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since that 2016 season, although he did have a workout with the Las Vegas Raiders this week.

Kapler said he has struggled mentally and emotionally since Tuesday’s shooting at an Uvalde, Texas, elementary school that left 19 children and two teachers dead.

“I knew that I was not in my best space mentally and I knew that it was in connection with some of the hypocrisy of standing for the national anthem and how it coincided with the moment of silence and how those two things didn’t sync up Well for me,” Kapler said. “But I couldn’t make sense of it in real time, and it took me a couple of days to pull all of my thoughts together and to be able to articulate them clearly.”

Kapler’s decision follows the plea for better gun control measures from another San Francisco coach. The Golden State Warriors’ Steve Kerr, whose father was shot and killed in 1984, used his pregame media time Tuesday to insist the United States Senate do more about gun control.

On Friday, Kapler posted his essay titled “Home of the Brave?” to his lifestyle website, kaplifestyle.com.

“But I am not OK with the state of this country,” Kapler wrote, expressing disappointment that he did not offer any sort of protest for this week’s school shooting before Friday.

The post Giants supervisor Gabe Kapler to keep away from anthem transferring ahead | Sports activities appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

Following devastating mass shootings in Texas and New York this month, San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler said Friday that he will remain off the field during the pregame national anthem moving forward.

Kapler, who has championed issues relating to race and social injustice, made his intentions known in an essay published on his personal website Friday and to media members before the Giants played on the road against the Cincinnati Reds.

“I just don’t plan on coming out for the anthem going forward, until I feel … better about the direction of our country,” Kapler said. “That will be the step. I don’t expect it to move the needle necessarily. It’s something that I feel strongly enough about to take that step.”

The action harkens back to former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who began to kneel during pregame national anthem in 2016 to draw attention to social injustices faced by the Black community.

Kaepernick has not played in the NFL since that 2016 season, although he did have a workout with the Las Vegas Raiders this week.

Kapler said he has struggled mentally and emotionally since Tuesday’s shooting at an Uvalde, Texas, elementary school that left 19 children and two teachers dead.

“I knew that I was not in my best space mentally and I knew that it was in connection with some of the hypocrisy of standing for the national anthem and how it coincided with the moment of silence and how those two things didn’t sync up Well for me,” Kapler said. “But I couldn’t make sense of it in real time, and it took me a couple of days to pull all of my thoughts together and to be able to articulate them clearly.”

Kapler’s decision follows the plea for better gun control measures from another San Francisco coach. The Golden State Warriors’ Steve Kerr, whose father was shot and killed in 1984, used his pregame media time Tuesday to insist the United States Senate do more about gun control.

On Friday, Kapler posted his essay titled “Home of the Brave?” to his lifestyle website, kaplifestyle.com.

“But I am not OK with the state of this country,” Kapler wrote, expressing disappointment that he did not offer any sort of protest for this week’s school shooting before Friday.

The post Giants supervisor Gabe Kapler to keep away from anthem shifting ahead | Sports activities appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

Johnrob / iStock.com

At first glance, timely home maintenance may seem like a costly, never-ending cash leak that will leave your wallet dry. The following suggestions will help you keep your home repairs within your budget.

1. Keep tabs on your roof

Letting humidity or leaking go unaddressed can cause many problems, including mold, mildew, rot and electrical shorts. Inspect your roof and attic every six months to ensure everything looks good up there.

Professional roof inspection and minor repairs are valued at anywhere between $120 and $300. On the other hand, having to replace your roof can cost you $8,000, on average, and that’s without counting the hundreds of dollars — or even thousands — it would cost you to fix any resulting interior or property damage.

2. Take Care of Your Gutters

Keeping your gutter spotless is an easy — though labor-intensive — DIY fix. If it seems like too much work, a professional gutter inspection and cleaning starts at 80 cents per linear foot, on average. That’s a steal considering that replacing faulty gutters can cost up to $3,000 for an average-size home.

3. Take Care of Your Exterior Walls and Trim

Much like roof damage, exterior wall decay can cause mold, mildew and drafts. Keep an eye out for cracked, blistered siding or peeling paint and prevent foliage from touching your walls and trim.

If you choose to go the DIY route, your facade repairs can cost you up to $1,000. That may not be cheap, but it’s reasonable compared with the several thousand dollars you might spend to fix water damage, replace your entire siding, or cover energy waste charges caused by drafts.

4. Pay Close Attention to Your Windows and Doors

Doors and windows are essential to the safety of your home. Without proper maintenance, they can make it easier for burglars to break in. While a locksmith may charge you up to $150 to replace a lock or latch, doing it yourself can bring the cost down to as little as $30.

5. Keep Your Bathrooms Leak- and Mold-Free

Stay on top of faucet leaks and other issues in your bathrooms. The cost of new faucets can start at $30 per unit. Hiring a qualified plumber to take care of the replacement for you can cost between $100 and $575, which is still nothing compared to mold removal costs.

6. Keep an Eye on Your Laundry Room

Did you know that one of the biggest fire hazards in your home is in your laundry room? Prevent clogged dryer vents that can lead to tragedy by cleaning lint out of your dryer’s tray every time you use it. Additionally, make sure you clean the vent at least once a year. Doing so costs you nothing but a little time and can save your entire household.

7. Fix Your Garbage Disposal

Although the blades and the noise can make garbage disposal repair a bit intimidating for most, it’s often a quick fix you can take care of in less than 20 minutes. What’s more, even if the project ends up being more complex than you initially thought, you can probably replace the whole disposal yourself for as little as $75.

8. Keep Your Cabinet Doors Quiet

To prevent all the unnecessary noise and long-term harm of banging cabinet doors, use peel-and-stick drawer bumpers. You can get them online for cheap and place two on each door — one at the top and one at the bottom.

9. Sweep Your Chimney Regularly

Dirty chimneys are a fire hazard, generate high energy costs and can even cause carbon monoxide poisoning. So, if your fireplace emanates an unusual odor or is starting to present some buildup on its inner walls, it’s time to call a chimney sweep — or to get down to work. Hiring someone to clean your chimney for you has an average cost of $245, while buying a sweeping kit can cost up to $100.

10. Keep Your HVAC System Running Like Clockwork

If your HVAC system has seen better days, maybe it’s time to replace the filters. This will cost you about $15 and help you keep your house cool — or warm — more efficiently. Don’t wait until your system fully breaks to try and fix it, or you might end up having to spend thousands of dollars on replacing the whole thing.

11. Avoid clogs in your plumbing

If you perceive foul odors, your plumbing might need a little maintenance. If clogged, it could cause backups, slow-running drains or system failure. At the first sign of drainage problems, rent a sewer snake to clean all affected pipes. Don’t forget to clean your septic tank every three years. If you’d rather not do it yourself, you can hire an expert for about $300 — a bargain compared to replacing the entire system.

12. Fix Wallpaper Seams

Wallpaper seams can quickly fall apart as the paste wears down, but they can be fixed pretty much for free. Take a rag soaked in warm water and hold it over the affected area for a couple of minutes. Next, carefully open the seam so that you can squeeze some seam sealer or glue into it. Press it down with a roller and clean the excess sealer with a sponge.

13. Keep Your Decks Looking Good

Although built to withstand the elements, decks can deteriorate too. Keep an eye out for any missing screws, squeaky nails, unsteady railings or warped boards. You can make deck repair your next DIY project and take a piece-by-piece approach, repairing one element at a time. Before you know it, your deck will look as good as new.

Don’t Cut Corners in Home Repair

If you want to save some money and keep your home’s value high, don’t wait until the very last minute to repair your home’s natural wear and tear. There are numerous DIY repairs you can take care of yourself without breaking the bank. The measures mentioned above will help you avoid costly repairs in the future.

Information is accurate as of Oct. 19, 2021.

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Our in-house research team and on-site financial experts work together to create content that’s accurate, impartial, and up to date. We fact-check every single statistic, quote and fact using trusted primary resources to make sure the information we provide is correct. You can learn more about GOBankingRates’ processes and standards in our editorial policy.

About the Author

Daniela Rivera is a bilingual freelance content creator with an advertising and media background. She has a Communication Science degree and 10+ years of work experience as a copywriter. She specializes in generating engaging and creative concepts and texts for advertising, e-commerce, blogs, podcasts, and social media.

The post 13 Ideas To Keep away from Expensive Residence Repairs appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

The lawsuit also contradicts many of the accusations Tesla made against the DFEH. The EV maker said that, “at a time when manufacturing jobs are leaving California, the DFEH has decided to sue Tesla instead of constructively working with us.” Tesla said that was “both unfair and counterproductive, especially because the allegations focus on events from years ago.” The Californian agency has a very different story to tell.

According to the lawsuit, DFEH “attempted to resolve this matter without litigation.” The Californian agency said it “invited Tesla to participate in a mediation session with the department’s internal dispute resolution division on January 12 and 20, 2022, but Tesla refused to attend until February 8, 2022.”

On February 7, 2022, “Tesla announced the DFEH investigation for the first time during the three-year investigation in its Securities and Exchange Commission Form 10-K.” On February 8, “the parties were unable to resolve the administrative complaints at the mediation.”

On February 9, Tesla published a blog post complaining about the Californian agency, implying it could leave the state for good due to that. The DFEH lawsuit was filed on the same day. It states it happened on February 9, 2021, which was clearly a typo.

The way DFEH puts it, it seems Tesla did everything it could to have a legal battle while pretending it did not want it. Considering the DFEH would not lie about a mediation session, the behavior Tesla presented in this case looks not only elusive, but also incredibly unwise to put it in political terms.

Owen Diaz won a lawsuit against Tesla for racial harassment and discrimination. A San Francisco jury ruled he should receive $6.9 million for emotional distress and $130 million for punitive damages. Tesla is now fighting to reduce the punitive damages award in courts. Confronted with the Californian agency’s lawsuit, the court may decide it was a fair value. And Tesla may have to pay even more if the Superior Court of California decides the DFEH’s allegations are correct.

The cases would also not be from years ago, as Tesla said. The company stated the DFEH “has been asked on almost 50 occasions by individuals who believe they were discriminated against or harassed to investigate Tesla.” According to the EV maker, it would have concluded all investigations “without a finding of misconduct against Tesla.” The DFEH denies that.

In its lawsuit, it said that “after approximately three years of investigation, receiving hundreds of complaints from workers and serving many to Tesla, DFEH issued a cause finding on January 3, 2022.” In other words, the investigation started around 2019 and ended very recently.

Summing up, we’re talking about hundreds of complaints, of which only some may have been served to Tesla. That’s probably why the company concluded that they were only “almost 50” instead of way more than that.

It is not clear why DFEH served only a few to Tesla nor why it issued only one cause finding to deal with hundreds of complaints. Perhaps a single, more general one was all it took, but we’d need to confirm that with the DFEH. We have sent a few questions to the Californian agency. All we received back was a copy of the lawsuit.

It shows the DFEH seems to have had enough with Tesla’s behavior. It states that “Mr. Musk is infamous for taking positions that run counters to those of other car companies, technology companies, billionaires and workers.” It also notes that “Tesla’s brand, purportedly highlighting a socially conscious future, masks the reality of a company that profits from an army of production workers, many of whom are people of color, working under egregious conditions.”

A little further ahead, the lawsuit shows a pretty grim working environment in Fremont. The DFEH did not expose the identity of the workers that complained about racism there or identified the people that perpetrated the multiple racial insults. They are only identified as “DOES ONE through FIFTY,” meaning that the DFEH “will amend this complaint to allege their true names and capacities when the same are ascertained.”

The DFEH does not spare the details of what African American workers go through “throughout the day, every day” at Fremont. Some of them claim to hear racial insults 50 to 100 times a day.

They include “the n-word, ‘porch monkey,’ ‘monkey toes,’ ‘boy,’ ‘hood rats,’ and ‘horse hair.’” African American workers also heard insults in Spanish, such as “mayate” (equivalent to the n-word or to calling someone gay, depending on the context) and “negrita” (little black woman).

They also hear racist jokes such as “n-word out of the hood,” “from the ghetto,” “Tesla [was] hiring lazy coons,” and “go back to Africa.” DFEH also says that the factory is racially segregated, which allegedly causes areas with a majority of African American workers to be referred to as “porch monkey station,” “slaveship,” or “the plantation,” where the management would “crack the whip .”

The environment in Fremont is described as threatening to African Americans. They see “swastikas, ‘KKK,’ the n-word, and other racist writing” onto “walls of restrooms, restroom stalls, lunch tables, and even factory machinery.” “One Black worker observed ‘hang N[ ]’ penned next to a drawing of a noose in the breakroom restroom. This worker also saw ‘all monkeys work outside’ and ‘f[ ] N[ ]’ on the breakroom walls.”

Workers with Confederate flag tattoos allegedly exhibit them proudly to try to start a fight with African Americans. If any altercation emerges, the latter are punished more severely, which can include even terminations. The same would not happen to the employees provoking the African American workers.

The DFEH also accuses Tesla of employing African American people in “more physically demanding posts and the lowest-level contract roles.” Tesla would also pay them less and prevent them from “advancement opportunities.” There are reports of “only Black and/or African American workers cleaning the factory floor on their hands and knees,” something no other group of employees allegedly had to endure.

The Californian agency even traced a racial profile of Tesla workers. According to it, “Black and/or African American workers make up 0% of executives and about 3% of professionals at the Fremont plant.” On the other hand, “about 20% of the factory operatives, such as engine and other machine assemblers, are Black and/or African American.”

The issue is that the DFEH did not do its homework as it should. It also states in the lawsuit that “segregation at the Fremont factory, along with the absence of Black and/or African Americans in leadership roles, has left many complaints of rampant racism unchecked for years.” The Californian agency either completely forgot about Valerie Capers Workman, Tesla’s former vice president of people, or tried to exempt her from responsibility to reinforce the narrative that an African American executive could have prevented racism.

Workman is African American and she worked for Tesla for four years. She became the company’s vice president of people in July 2020. If she did not do anything about the “systematic racial discrimination and harassment” in her one year and seven months as the main human resources executive at the company, there are only two possible explanations for that: either Workman did not think there was anything wrong, or she could not do anything about it.

When Diaz won his lawsuit against Tesla on October 4, 2021, Workman’s email to employees ended up as a Tesla blog post as well. It is still online and states that she “strongly” believed that “these facts don’t justify the verdict reached by the jury in San Francisco.” Workman also said Diaz was not a Tesla employee – as if what happened to him inside Fremont was less severe due to being a contract worker – and that “he didn’t make any complaints about the n-word until after he was not hired full -time by Tesla – and after he hired an attorney.”

The DFEH lawsuit presents 13 causes of action against Tesla. Summing them up, they have to do with racial harassment, racial discrimination in the work environment (leading to worse employment conditions for African Americans), retaliation against those who complained, and fail to keep records of complaints.

The DFEH is asking Tesla to be judged by a jury. If convicted, the Californian agency wants the EV maker to pay:

1. Compensatory and punitive damages;
2. Economic damages and equitable relief (…);
3. Liquidated damages and penalties as required by law;
4. Injunctive relief;
5. Declaratory relief;
6. Prejudgment interest, as required by law;
7. Attorneys’ fees and costs to the Department of Fair Employment and Housing; other
8. Other relief the Court deems to be just and proper

That can represent a significant financial blow to Tesla, even worse than that caused by the Owen Diaz case. After all, we are now talking about “hundreds” of complaints with really serious reports of racial harassment and discrimination. That’s something Tesla and its investors have to worry about.

For us, what is more shocking is having to imagine anyone working every day in a hostile environment such as the one described by the DFEH lawsuit. If that is really how things are there, the quality problems Tesla vehicles suffer finally have a convincing – and pretty sad – explanation.

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