| Ideas on how to shop for family-friendly video games
With the success of Nintendo's Wii as a family console, Sony and Microsoft are offering packages this holiday season aimed at making their own platforms more family-friendly. Microsoft is offering a new Xbox 360 Arcade Console that includes five games, a wireless controller, a high-definition multimedia interface connection to enable high-def output and 256 Mb of memory to store games and entertainment content. The five games in the bundle include Pac-Man Championship Edition, Uno, Luxor 2, Boom Boom Rocket and Feeding Frenzy. Sony is repackaging it's older, but still popular, Playstation 2 console with the SingStar bundle as a low-cost alternative for families. The bundle features a white PS2 console, the SingStar game, a controller and two microphones. SingStar is a karaoke game similar to American Idol.
Local News
Amélie Guertin will be remembered as an energetic, unselfish girl who was a hard worker and never took no for an answer. When she was three or four years old she wanted a dog, but her parents said no. For the next two months she pretended she was a puppy; walking on four legs, panting, barking, rubbing her ear, said Am‚lie's mom Lynne with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face, "until we gave in and got her a dog." The dog, named Lady, would become one of many animals who would receive love and care from the Timmins girl affectionately known as "belle blonde." Dogs were her favourite animal, but she also liked reptiles, bugs and a gerbil named Speedy. "She used to feed grey jay birds at our cottage," said Lynne. "They would come right up and sit in her hand.
Big fish from a small port has Scots in sight
ESKIFJÖRDUR, population 972, is one of Iceland's major fishing towns inclusive of export harbour with direct sailing to Europe. It also markets a fine line in international footballers with ambitions of leading their country to the 2010 World Cup. One is Brondby's Stefan Gislason, another Eggert Jonsson of Hearts. The latter took his international bow aged 19 in Copenhagen's Parken Stadium last week, whilst back home the gathered residents in Eskifjördur's local tavern felt their Omega 3-filled hearts swell with pride. Two local boys in the same Iceland team was indeed cause to pour a Brennivin or two. .
Land of lakes
Thanks to its location far from Interstate highways and sizable cities, this little town in western Maine has stayed much the same for decades. The biggest news in the past couple of years has been about the expanded and relocated IGA supermarket, the addition of a Thai restaurant, and a new ski lodge at Saddleback Maine. The region known as Rangeley Lakes has 110 lakes, ponds, and streams, and it includes the small village of Oquossoc 7 miles west. Surrounded by mountains, the area is largely undeveloped, though more and more houses are being built along winding dirt roads in the woods. While Rangeley became legendary as a hunting and fishing mecca, now it attracts nature lovers year-round. RestIf you want to stay "downtown," you can't beat The Rangeley Inn and Motor Lodge (2443 Main St., 800-666-3687, rangeleyinn.com).
Third-party PS3 developers targeted as Sony halves fees
TOKYO - Sony has halved the fees it charges for a software development kit for the PlayStation 3 video game machine to encourage outside designers to make more games for the struggling console. Sony's gaming unit, Sony Computer Entertainment, said prices for the development package for the PlayStation 3 will be reduced to US$10,250 in North America, US$8,600 in Japan and US$11,250 in Europe. The move follows the price cuts on the PS3 around the world that the company announced last month in an attempt to woo buyers. Tokyo-based Sony will also strengthen backup support for making new games for the PS3 in an effort to make the machine more popular, it said in a statement. Although its predecessor the PlayStation 2 dominated the gaming market, the PS3 has struggled against the hit Wii console, the rival offering from Nintendo Co., which makes Pokemon and Super Mario games.
Realignment process begins
A NCHSAA realignment committee meeting is scheduled for Thursday. No action will be taken at this meeting, but the preliminary draft proposal for the realignment of high school conferences for the 2009-10 school year will be given to the committee. The draft should be posted on the NCHSAA Web site by Thursday afternoon. * Prep basketball South Rowan is at Salisbury for a varsity basketball doubleheader tonight. The girls game will start at 6 p.m. Both girls teams are still unbeaten. Salisbury is 3-0, while South is 1-0. Both boys teams are searching for their first win. Davie County is home against Surry Central. * Mooresville's boys team was down the last two years, but the Blue Devils could return to being a big factor in the NPC this season.
Monday Sports In Brief
COLLEGE FOOTBALL - The same day Texas A&M entrusted its program to one former NFL head coach, Georgia Tech decided to end the tenure of another.Coaches were coming and going around college football as each school searched for a winning formula. Georgia Tech fired Chan Gailey, the ex-Dallas Cowboys coach, while Texas A&M hired Mike Sherman, the ex-Green Bay Packers coach.Indiana gave interim coach Bill Lynch a four-year contract after he led the Hoosiers to their most successful season in 14 years. Duke fired Ted Roof, who went 2-3 as an interim coach in 2003 to earn the full-time job then won just four more games the next four seasons.At Southern Mississippi and Colorado State, two longtime, successful coaches were on their way out after disappointing years. Southern Miss’ Jeff Bower resigned after 14 straight winning seasons and 10 bowl invitations in 11 years.
Augusta Lynx Weekly
Augusta, GA - The Augusta Lynx took five out of a possible eight points this week and moved up three spots in the ECHL's South Division Standings to 4th place with four games this past week. The Lynx stayed perfect at home with a thrilling 4-3 win over the 1st place Texas Wildcatters this past Tuesday. That was followed by a three-game road trip to Mississippi to face the SeaWolves. The Lynx posted their first shutout of the year on Thursday, winning 4-0 as #35 JP Levasseur recorded his first pro shutout with 27 saves. Friday, the Lynx lost a lead with :04 seconds remaining in the 3rd period and fell in a shootout, 6-5. Saturday despite a 42-19 shots advantage, the Lynx fell 3-1 to Mississippi. #19 Aaron Slattengren and #9 Louis Goulet lead the team with 16 points a piece. The Lynx face-off in Pensacola against the Ice Pilots on Tuesday before returning home to face the Mississippi SeaWolves on Friday, November 30th.
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