Movie Review of "NOTES ON A SCANDAL" It's always a great pleasure to see two marvelous actors face off against each other. In "Notes On A Scandal," the filmmakers treat us to a double delight with England's Judi Dench versus Australia's Cate Blanchett, both nominated repeatedly for Oscars, and both having won for Best Supporting Actress (Dench for 1998's "Shakespeare in Love," and Blanchett for 2004's "The Aviator").  Mirroring the novel's device as a journal, ... [full story]

Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) recently earned nine awards for its color printers and multifunction products from two leading independent test and research organizations - bringing its total number of worldwide product awards this year to 208. In its 2007 Color Copier Guide, Better Buys for Business, a leading industry authority on office imaging equipment, awarded five top "Editor's Choice" designations to the Xerox WorkCentre™ 7132, WorkCentre 7655 and WorkCentre 7665 color multifunction systems, along with ... [full story]

If you are driving due west from Dodge City, which state will you first come to? In what state is the world-famous Waimea Canyon? What is the Loire Valley famous for? Answers to questions like these could earn area high school students a chance for a $20,000 college scholarship in the fifth annual AAA Travel High School Challenge. Teenagers around the country are getting ready to flex their travel and geography muscles to answer such ... [full story]

Just about every time I visit the grocery store, I am reminded this is the season of giving. Standing next to a big red kettle swinging from an old chain, a bell ringer from the Salvation Army wishes everyone a merry Christmas, even those who ignore his ringing entreaties to help. Charities excel in cajoling us into reaching into our wallets to help the less fortunate, whether it's families trapped in the Darfur chaos or ... [full story]

Total housing inventory levels fell 1% to 3.82 million existing homes for sale, representing a 7.3-month supply at the current sales pace Existing-home sales continued to recover last month following a rise in October, with the level of sales activity suggesting a turn in the market, according to the National Association of Realtors(R). Total existing-home sales -- including single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops -- rose 0.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate (1) of ... [full story]

The telephone excise tax has finally been disconnected. First imposed in 1898 to help fund the Spanish-American War, the 3% tax on long-distance calls may be refunded to small business owners, thanks to an IRS decision to follow the five federal appeals courts' holdings that the tax does not apply to long-distance service as it's billed  today. "Those interested in claiming the refund may either provide documentation on how much the tax cost them during ... [full story]

Oregon State Police announced that all lanes of Highway 97 north of Chiloquin near milepost 232 are closed following a non-injury crash involving an overturned tanker that occurred about 2:30 p.m. this afternoon. Oregon State Police (OSP) and Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) personnel are on scene. According to the OSP emergency report, it is unknown how long the highway will remain closed. Further details were not available. [full story]

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A Bend man was fatally injured Wednesday morning when he lost control of his pickup on an icy street corner in the Old Mill District and hit a curb.  Police say he got out of his vehicle, and was struck by another pickup that also slid on the same icy area. Bend Police officers and Bend Fire Department paramedics were called to the intersection of SW Bond Street and SW Scalehouse Loop about 7:49 a.m. ... [full story]

Tobacco-users visiting St. Charles Redmond and St. Charles Medical Center–Bend in the coming days will need to snuff that butt or spit out that chew before setting foot outside their personal vehicles. Beginning January 2, all Cascade Healthcare Community campuses are completely tobacco-free. No smoking areas of any kind will be provided, and tobacco use will only be permitted inside private vehicles. “As an organization focused on the health of our community, this is the ... [full story]