Outdoor debris burning within the City of Bend will open Sunday morning, April 1st.    Gary Marshall, City of Bend fire marshal said that regulations will allow outdoor burning of approved debris for 20 days within the month of April if weather conditions are favorable, as determined by the fire department and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.   Bend Fire and Rescue recommends that residents participate in the FireFree program beginning April 21st as an alternative ... [full story]

SANTA ANA, Calif - Officials in Orange County, Calif., have used electronic highway signs to alert residents of a water shortage emergency. "ORANGE COUNTY WATER EMERGENCY CONSERVE WATER," read the 35 signs usually reserved for abducted children or traffic problems, the Los Angeles Times reported. A week-long shutdown at a water treatment plant in Yorba Linda, Calif., was behind the shortage, and less obtrusive requests to conserve water were not getting results, water district officials ... [full story]

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas - U.S. Navy Capt. Lisa Nowak, the former astronaut charged with attempted kidnapping, has reported for duty at the Naval Air Station Corpus Christi in Texas. The Corpus Christi (Texas) Caller-Times reported it wasn't clear whether Nowak would work on the Texas base or telecommute as she develops curriculum for the Chief of Naval Air Training. "She checked in like anybody would check in for their first day of work," Chief of ... [full story]

BEND, Oregon — A citizen advisory group of about 30 community members will meet in Bend Wednesday, April 4, and on Monday, April 30 to discuss motorized vehicle access on the Deschutes National Forest.  The public is invited to attend. The group began meeting last December to assist federal managers with the implementation of a 2005 “Travel Management Rule” for the Deschutes and Ochoco National Forests, and the Crooked River National Grassland. Their most recent meetings occurred ... [full story]

A Berkeley, Calif., woman who considers herself an "old hippie" has headed to Iraq, where she hoped to be embedded with a U.S. Army unit as a blogger. Jane Stillwater, 64, was sponsored by The Lone Star Iconoclast, a liberal weekly newspaper near President George Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas, The San Francisco Chronicle reported. But as she boarded a plane Wednesday, she didn't know whether the military would find her a spot. "Oh, yeah, ... [full story]

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - Months of shaping the 2007 Indians reach a conclusion Friday. The team will play its final spring training game in Florida, then fly to Memphis for Saturday's first Civil Rights Game against St. Louis. An optional workout Sunday will be followed by Monday's Opening Day game against the White Sox in Chicago. "These guys have done a good job," Manager Eric Wedge said Thursday. "They've worked hard to get through some ... [full story]

A former top aide testified Thursday that U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was more involved than he has admitted in firing eight U.S. attorneys. Under questioning by U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., Kyle Sampson told the Judiciary Committee that he does not think Gonzales was accurate when he said he had not participated in the process, The New York Times reported. "I don't think it's accurate," Sampson repeated. "I think he's recently clarified it. But ... [full story]

Game: "MotorStorm" Publisher: Sony System: Sony PlayStation 3 Cost: $60 ESRB rating: T Review rating: 3 1/2 stars Facing souped-up competition from rival Nintendo and Microsoft consoles, Sony needs exclusive, killer titles to lure gamers to the PlayStation 3. Sony's off-road racing game, "MotorStorm," may do it. The game delivers more than enough high-speed, nail-biting controlled mayhem to satisfy any racing fan. This may very well be the dirtiest game ever created. Nearly every racing ... [full story]

Central Oregon Partnerships for Youth (COPY), a program of the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office, is offering a class to prepare volunteers to become mentors for children with an incarcerated parent. It is estimated that, on any given day, 350 kids in Deschutes County are dealing with the disruptive effects of parental incarceration. COPY aims to break this cycle by connecting these children with a safe and appropriate mentors. After initial training and background checks, volunteers ... [full story]

CINCINNATI - A Middletown, Ohio, man was being held on $5,500 bail on charges he tried to sell his toddler in a Walgreen's parking lot. Police said a witness claimed Jason W. McCarthy, 30, offered to sell her his 2-year-old son, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported. Police didn't say how much money McCarthy allegedly wanted for the child. McCarthy was charged with child endangering. He was also charged with loitering in the aid of a drug ... [full story]