Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

(CNN) When Buddy the Elf said the best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear, he clearly hadn't seen the holiday hotel room created in his honor.

Royal Park Hotel in Rochester, Mich., is offering a fully decked-out "Elf" suite for the holiday season. With 2020 being such a hard year, people need a way to celebrate safely said Royal Park Hotel spokesperson Sarah Osbourn.

"We thought it would be a really cool idea, especially with people not feeling safe this year, to offer a holiday experience in a suite for them, so they can still feel safe, still get into the holiday spirit and have something fun to do," Osbourn said.

Festive fun that's safe

The hotel suite offers an alternative to the crowded Christmas festivities that have either been canceled or severely altered this year in Rochester. The town has had to cancel their annual Christmas market, Kris Kringle Market and Caroling in the City.

Proceeds from the hotel suite will go toward funding The Big, Bright Light Show in downtown Rochester, Michigan.

Courtesy Steven Robert Photography/Royal Park Hotel

Guests get a fully immersive experience, including food inspired by Buddy's four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corn and syrup. Upon arrival, guests will receive maple toasty tarts, chocolate-covered marshmallow snowballs, elf munch, which is a Chex mix with tasty additions including chocolate and marshmallows, and candy canes.

The room itself is filled with movie references from the 2003 Christmas comedy "Elf," which stars Will Ferrell as Buddy the Elf. A prominent sign reading: "Santa I know him," hangs over the bed. The room's decor also includes more than 5,000 feet of handmade paper snowflake garland.

The hotel partnered with Maker's Mark, so in addition to a Buddy-themed tree, there's also a tree decorated with Maker's Mark paraphernalia.

One million glittering lights

For the past 15 years, buildings in downtown Rochester have been lit up in more than one million glittering lights. So many lights cost a lot of money to power, said Rochester Downtown Development Authority executive director Kristi Trevarrow, who says fundraising is a huge help.

The light show is also great for small businesses because it attracts visitors to the downtown area. Trevarrow has spoken to some business owners who have said that they make 30% to 40% of their annual revenue when the lights are on.

Although some of the town's holiday events won't be taking place this year, Trevarrow said the light display has not been affected by the pandemic. The lights will be on at various times throughout December and January.

Visitors pack downtown Rochester in 2018 to enjoy the festive lights.

Downtown Rochester

"They're on our main street so many people, for their comfort level, if they choose to not walk around, they can drive through and still enjoy the lights," Trevarrow said.

Osbourn said that the Buddy the Elf hotel room is almost sold out, and Trevarrow is hopeful that this partnership can continue in the future.

For "Elf" fans wishing to celebrate Christmas Buddy-style, the festive hotel room offers a holiday experience filled with plenty of Christmas cheer, paper snowflakes and candy canes for the whole family.

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'Elf' fans can stay in a hotel suite inspired by Buddy the Elf - CNN

Arrests

Jackson County

Martelle Towayne Conner, 50, Seymour, operating a vehicle while intoxicated, $355 bond, 8 p.m. Monday. Bond posted at 4:23 a.m. Tuesday.

Justin R. Burns, 38, Austin, possession of a schedule I, II, III, IV, V controlled substance, no bond, 1:31 p.m. Tuesday.

Fredy Jobany Mejia-Mejia, 30, Seymour, operating a vehicle while never having received a drivers license, 1:08 p.m. Tuesday. Released on his own recognizance, 1:14 p.m. Tuesday.

Seymour

Francisco Daniel Hernandez-Vazquez, 30, Seymour, operating a vehicle while intoxicated-endangerment, blood alcohol content 0.15% or greater, $705 bond, 3:47 a.m. Tuesday.

Anthony Ryan Loudermilk, 35, Seymour, criminal trespassing, $705 bond, 11:54 p.m. Monday.

Darin Keith Speckner, 47, Seymour, driving while suspended with a prior conviction within 10 years, no bond, 3:27 p.m. Monday.

Christopher Lee Tucker, 35, Seymour, possession of methamphetamine, no bond, 8:20 a.m. Monday.

Tyler Stephen Beatty, 46, Seymour, possession of paraphernalia, possession of methamphetamine, no bond, 7:25 a.m. Monday.

Incidents

Jackson County

Property damage wreck, 2100 block of East County Road 25N, Brownstown, 1:20 a.m. Tuesday.

Theft of items, 8000 block of North County Road 1110E, Seymour, 1:15 a.m. Tuesday.

Gunshot, 4700 block of West Columbus Pike, Freetown, 11:18 p.m. Monday.

Property damage wreck involving a semitrailer, 12200 block of East U.S. 50, Seymour, 6:07 p.m. Monday.

Arrest of a wanted person, 600 block of East Fourth Street, Seymour, 1:05 p.m. Monday.

Property damage wreck, 2200 block of West County Road 600N, Brownstown, 7:43 a.m. Monday.

Property damage wreck involving a vehicle hitting a deer, 1500 block of West County Road 100N, Brownstown, 7:32 a.m. Monday.

Property damage wreck involving a vehicle hitting a deer, 10500 block of North U.S. 31, Seymour, 6:26 a.m. Monday.

Medora

Possible family fight, first block of Perry Street, 6:28 p.m. Monday.

Theft of lights from a John Deere grader, 100 block of East Second Street, 10:33 a.m. Monday.

Seymour

Theft by a woman, Circle K, 719 N. Ewing St., 11:49 p.m. Monday.

Disorderly conduct involving three homeless adults refusing to leave a residence, 200 block of Marley Lane, 7:30 p.m. Monday.

Theft of items by two females, Walmart Supercenter, 1600 E. Tipton St., 7:21 p.m. Monday.

Agency assist request from the Jackson County Sheriffs Department, East Tipton and South Park streets, 6:06 p.m. Monday.

Parking problem involving a tan Nissan sport utility vehicle that has been parked in front of a residence for three days, 500 block of East Second Street, 3:43 p.m. Monday.

Woman complaining her stepdaughters mother keeps knocking on their door and wont leave, 1300 block of West Second Street, 3:23 p.m. Monday.

Disorderly conduct involving a fight between a mother and her daughter, 700 block of South Walnut Street, 2:56 p.m. Monday.

Traffic hazard involving a man in a gray Chevrolet Impala blocking traffic, West Sixth Street and Community Drive, 1:17 p.m. Monday.

Unconscious person, 100 block of Stevens Drive, 12:23 p.m. Monday.

Theft, 300 block of Tanger Boulevard, 9:49 a.m. Monday.

Suspicious activity, 1300 block of Jackson Park Place, 7:18 a.m. Monday.

Agency assist request from the Department of Child Services, 600 block of West Fourth Street, 3:04 a.m. Monday.

Suspicious navy blue van, 1700 block of South Walnut Street, 12:14 a.m. Monday.

North Vernon

Dispute in the parking lot of a store, 2200 block of North State Road 7, 8:57 p.m. Monday.

Possible burglary in progress, West College Street area, 8:09 p.m. Monday.

Property damage wreck, 1300 block of North State Street, 7:07 p.m. Monday.

Fraud reported at the police department, 101 N. Madison Ave., 11:25 a.m. Monday.

Jackson Superior Court I

Small claims

Mark E. Cunningham, 8305 W. Base Road, North Vernon, v. Brian Cain, 9829 E. County Road 340N, Seymour, seeking $6,000, filed Dec. 4.

ULFS, 6863 E. County Road 900N, Seymour, v. Troy Campbell and Cassie Linemier, 516 W. Second St., Seymour, seeking possession of premises, $3,574 in unpaid rent and damages to be determined, filed Dec. 2.

State Bank of Medora, 24 E. Main St., Medora, v. Ronald Stevens, 4976 Second St., Freetown, seeking $3,282.88, filed Dec. 2.

Jackson Superior Court II

Dissolutions

Sandra Howard v. Edward Howard, both of 8399 N. U.S. 31, Seymour, married May 12, 2003, separated November 2020, filed Dec. 3.

Katia Elliott, 520 S. Vine St., Seymour, v. Donald J. Elliott, 110 Kerry Hill Drive, Seymour, married Dec. 29, 2010, separated Nov. 10, 2020, filed Dec. 2.

Rhonda Miller v. Gerald L. Miller, both of 3809 E. U.S. 50, Seymour, married Jan. 5, 2018, not yet separated, filed Dec. 2.

Sallie Jacqueline Hare, 11976 E. County Road 1100N, Seymour, v. James Michael Hare Jr., 515 N. Ewing St., Seymour, married Sept. 22, 2007, separated October 2020, filed Dec. 1.

Stephanie Megan Beaty, 610 S. OBrien St., Seymour, v. Anthony Dewayne Beaty, 12850 N. U.S. 31, Edinburgh, married June 1, 1996, separated April 20, 2019, filed Nov. 23.

Noel Lopez, 6246 Northfield Drive, Apt. 236, Seymour, v. Jacob Lopez, 311 C St., Woodland, California, married March 31, 2018, separated Oct. 1, 2020, filed Nov. 2.

Building permits

Jackson County

Casey L. and Misty R. Wischmeier, 745 S. County Road 600E, Seymour, 1,200-square-foot lean-to addition to existing pole building at 745 S. County Road 600E, Seymour, $12,500 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 23.

Thomas H. and Janet K. Bolton, 5693 E. County Road 700S, Crothersville, 256-square-foot utility room addition at 5693 E. County Road 700S, Crothersville, $25,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 20.

Tony and Melanie Peters, 3703 S. State Road 39, Brownstown, 20,000-square-foot building, $400,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 20.

Ryan and Jamie Grinstead, 6171 N. County Road 100W, Seymour, 2,028-square-foot new home at 6171 N. County Road 100W, $284,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 16.

Joe Francis, 4827 W. Columbus Pike, Freetown, 3,000-square-foot pole building at 4827 W. Columbus Pike, Freetown, $30,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 13.

Zachariah Roach, 3966 E. County Road 900N, Seymour, 576-square-foot addition to home at 3966 E. County Road 900N, Seymour, $140,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 10.

Daniel Jonathan Towriss, 3029 N. County Road 1100W, Norman, four 962-square-foot cabins for recreational use only at 3029 N. County Road 1100W, Norman, $360,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 9.

Joseph L. and Lindsey Montgomery, 107 E. Harrison Drive, Seymour, 1,793-square-foot new home at 822 W. County Road 600N, Seymour, $345,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 6.

Glen D. and Ellen M. Prince, 110 W. Howard St., Crothersville, 1,200-square-foot pole building at 101 W. Howard St., Crothersville, $27,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 5.

Jonathan Paul Allen, 3411 W. Water St., Vallonia, 900-square-foot accessory building, no estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 2.

Thomas Hackman, 6077 S. State Road 135, Vallonia, 1,092-square-foot pole building at 6087 S. State Road 135, Vallonia, $54,000 estimated cost of construction, issued Nov. 2.

The rest is here:
On the record December 9 - Seymour Tribune

Lamp uses Lamps Plus designs, including a chandelier, ceiling fans, table lamps, sofas and patio furniture, throughout his home.

This Forrest lamp is awesome it looks like a forest tree trunk, perfect for my name, of course. The lamp and the wicker shade are definitely my style, Lamp said. You cant go wrong adding the Forrest lamp to your place.

Ive dreamed of having my own signature shoe, so having a Lamps Plus lamp with my name is right up there. Because a lamp is used almost daily, its crucial. After Ive protected our quarterback and opened holes for running backs with my fellow linemen during an exhausting game, I look forward to joining my girlfriend, Natosha, on our sofa. A properly lit home is everything, Lamp said.

Lamp has been a promotional partner of Lamps Plus since prior to his selection in the 2017 NFL Draft.

About Lamps Plus

Family-owned and operated, Lamps Plus is a leader in the retail lighting industry. Established in 1976 and headquartered in Los Angeles, the company is the nations largest specialty lighting retailer, operating a thriving e-commerce business, along with 36 stores in the western United States. Lamps Plus carries a full range of lighting and home furnishings, including exclusive patented designs and artisan-made customizable shades and lamps that offer comfort and value to help customers love their everyday spaces. To assist consumers, the companys American Lighting Association-trained staff provides expert advice.

The Lamps Plus family of websites includes:

Lamps Plus The nations largest specialty lighting retailer

Lamps Plus Pros Trade pricing for designers and builders

Lamps Plus Hospitality Contract lighting for hotels and resorts

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Introducing the Forrest Sequoia the First Forrest Lamp from NFL Standout Forrest Lamp and Lamps Plus - Furniture Today

Samsung delights in scoring splashy headlines at CES with its mammoth micro-LED displays, with the company springing a humongous 292-inch model of The Wall on CES attendees back in January. But while its earlier micro-LED panels arrived in modules that needed to be professionally assembled, its new 110-inch MicroLED TV will come ready to watch, right out of the (giant) box.

Slated to ship globally in the first quarter of 2021, the Samsung MicroLED TV is based on micro-LED display technology: self-emitting pixels that offer vivid colors and perfect blacks similar to OLED, because they can be turned on and off individually. Unlike the organic pixels in OLED panels, however, micro-LED panels are not susceptible to burn-in.

Samsung has been touting its micro-LED-based The Wall displays for a couple of years now, with the company offering sizes from a crazy-big 292-inch panel down to a more reasonable 75 inches.

Previous versions of Samsungs micro-LED displays have been saddled with a couple of key problems. For starters, due to the difficulties inherent in micro-LED manufacturing, the displays usually arrive in separate modules that must be assembled by a professional installer. Second, Samsungs micro-LED displays are prohibitively expensive (think six figures), which means theyve been aimed mainly at business and luxury customers.

Enter the 110-inch MicroLED, a TV that promises to fix the first problem with Samsungs micro-LED displays by eliminating the need to assemble multiple panels. Instead, the new TV comes as a complete, prefabricated unit, with Samsung boasting that it has developed a new production process to streamline micro-LED panel manufacturing. With this new set, youll need only to take it out of the box, plug it in, and turn it onalthough, given that were talking about a 110-inch TV, removing it from the box could prove to be quite the operation.

Whether the MicroLED TV addresses the second problem with Samsungs micro-LED displaysthe exorbitant price tagremains to be seen: Samsung has yet to reveal pricing. (Honestly, were not holding our breath for affordability.)

Samsung promises that the MicroLED will deliver stunning, bright, and vivid images, thanks to a new Micro AI Processor. Its worth noting, however, that this 110-inch TV is only capable of 4K maximum resolution, not 8K like Samsungs larger The Wall displays or its pricier LED-based QLED TVs.

The MicroLED will boast a near bezel-less display with a 99.99-percent screen-to-body ratio, Samsung says. In addition to watching one giant image, youll also be able to split the display into four 55-inch screens, ideal for NFL Sunday Ticket junkies.

Besides the images, Samsung says the TVs integrated Majestic Sound System with Object Tracking Sound Pro functionality can crank out realistic (if virtualized) 5.1-channel sound without the need for external speakers.

All very impressive, but weve yet to see (or hear) the 110-inch MicroLED in action, nor do we know how much Samsung plans to charge for its giant new set. Given that Samsungs 98-inch Q900 QLED TV, an 8K set based on traditional LED technology, goes for a breathtaking $60,000 (and that after a 40-percent discount), were steeling ourselves for the MicroLEDs eventual price tag.

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Samsungs 110-inch MicroLED TV brings The Wall to your living room - TechHive

A 1907 Craftsman-influenced brick house with six bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms, on a 0.21-acre lot

This property is on a main street in the historic center of a city of about 6,000, in West Virginias eastern panhandle. It is convenient to restaurants, antiques stores, a post office, a courthouse, an opera house, a furniture store and real estate offices, to name several local institutions and businesses. The Capital Beltway is about an hour southeast (add half an hour to get to the heart of Washington). Baltimore is between 60 and 90 minutes east.

The sellers have owned the house for 35 years and updated the kitchen and bathrooms in the last year. They have also refinished much of the extensive woodwork, replaced some of the rear windows, repointed some of the brick and resealed the roof.

Size: 2,997 square feet

Price per square foot: $130

Indoors: A front door framed in leaded glass opens to a large foyer with glass-front cabinets and wood columns that partition off the adjoining parlor to the right. That room has a brick fireplace with a pellet-stove insert and leaded-glass windows on either side. Facing the street is a pair of nine-over-nine windows with leaded glass on top and a wood bench below.

From the parlor, pocket doors open to a dining room with matching windows and bench, as well as a built-in china cabinet. Beyond it is the kitchen, which has new hardwood flooring, pale-yellow, Victorian-style vintage cabinets with new laminate countertops, and new cabinets built by the owner to match. The kitchen leads to an enclosed back porch addition, with a high ceiling and painted floorboards.

An elegant staircase winds upstairs from the foyer (a powder room is at the base). The second floor contains four bedrooms with hardwood floors, all about the same size. The first has an en suite bathroom with a walk-in shower with marble patterned tile and a stand-alone tub. Bedrooms two and three are connected and have access to a bathroom at the end, which also can be entered from the hall by users of bedroom four. That bathroom has a molded-plastic shower insert behind sliding closet doors.

Two additional bedrooms with dormer windows are on the third floor, on either side of the landing. There is also unfinished attic space under the gable, and an unfinished brick- and stone-walled walkout basement.

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$400,000 Homes in Georgia, Ohio and West Virginia - The New York Times

Rosewood Villais home to a variety of seniors, and accommodate a wide range of support needs. Some residents live independently, but Rosewood also offers care for those who require assistance, and those living with memory loss. Recently, the Rosewood Villa team went above and beyond their ongoing mission, when they provided the time and place for two people to find each otherand to find love.

Renee Lily took her time arriving in Bellingham. Her mother was born in Berlin, and Renee herself was born in Munich, in what was then West Germany. She was 18 months old when her family relocated to the United States, but her travels continued until she ultimately owned a used furniture store in Montana. She was there when the time came to finally make Bellingham her home. My kids moved here, and I knew it was close to the time that they would be getting married and having children, she says.

Bruce Likkel didnt have to travel quite as far. Born and raised in Lynden, hes been happy to make his life in and around the local area. If you ask him what he likes most about his home, theres no hesitation in his answer: How green it is, he says. He lists hunting, fishing and hiking as his favorite reasons to get out into nature. Like Renee, Bruce was also self-employed before they met. I owned a custom cabinet business, but closed shop at the start of the 2008 recession, he says.

As fate would have it, Bruce became disabled around the time he retired, and Renee experienced a massive stroke, and now uses a wheelchair to get around. Each of them recognized that they could use some help getting back up on their feet, both literally and figuratively. So despite the fact that they are only in their early 60s, they both moved into Rosewood within a few months of each other, and set about creating the next chapters of their lives.

And then, just like in a storybook romance, they began to catch each others eye. Down a hallway, or from across a room, they felt an attraction that has effortlessly developed into a relationship. As soon as they met, they started to spend time together during meals or while taking part in activities. I would sit down, and move the chair next to me out of the way so she had a place for her wheelchair, says Bruce. From there, they discovered how much they have in common, and how much they enjoy each others company.

Any time the subject of Rosewood comes up, Renee and Bruce both mention the activities offered. They rave about the activities director and the lineup of diversions offered. There are the bingo and movie nights one might expect to find in a group residence, but Bruce mentions other activities that not only pass the time, but help keep the residents sharp. A favorite is word games that are offered to everybody every morning. And now Renee and Bruce have become a part of the activities crew themselves, and spend time organizing a Bible study that takes place every other week.

Not only do they share each others values, but they also have much in common, which makes spending time together both easy and rewarding. We both love cooking, so we watch lots of cooking shows, and lots of renovation shows, Renee says. And if it seems like theyre getting pretty domestic with each other, youre certainly on the right track: Bruce and Renee are looking into sharing a space with each other. In addition to individual rooms, Rosewood offers larger suites, and the couple has got their eye on one of those for themselves.

Not only do they have a goal of moving in together, theyve also set a longer term goal to move out together. Once they have recovered enough from their physical setbacks, the two would love to make their own home together. Rosewood Executive Director Melinda Herrera says that she would love to see the couple doing well enough that they could move on. But its also clear that she, along with other staff and residents, would miss their presence.

Herrera explains that Renee has been through a divorce, and that Bruce has cared for a girlfriend during an illness, and that they could both use a little sweetness after those trials. Neither had known love like this before, she says.

She describes the couple as loving others, as well. We call them our troublemakers. Theyre our whippersnappers, Herrera says. Many of the residents here are old enough to be their parents, but they dont treat them that waythey see them more as neighbors. Theyre always looking out for each other, and for everyone around them.

Sponsored

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Two Residents of Rosewood Villa Find Love in an Unexpected Place - whatcomtalk.com

Just a year ago, Jeep had dispatched over its then all-new, gas-powered Gladiator Rubicon to us. Recently, we had the opportunity to test the diesel version of what is the only four-door 44 convertible in the market. Like to climb, trail and crawl, or haul tons of cargo, or go water fording? In an open-air vehicle? Then this should be your ride!

Under the hood of the body-on-frame 2021 Gladiator sits the optional 3.0-liter turbo-diesel V6 engine ($4,000), putting out 260 horsepower at 3,600 rpm and 442 pounds-feet of torque at 2,800 rpm. The go-anywhere capable vehicle, with high and low transfer case gears, is mated to a typical eight-speed auto gearbox.

Our test drive, the Overland, was a standout dual three-piece hardtop and a soft-top with removable doors, exposed hinges, fold-down windshield, front/rear hooks and tubular side steps. That this is a Jeep is even more apparent from the traditional seven-slot, keystone-shaped grille, flanked by rounded halogen headlights, square tail lamps, and a flat, clamshell hood reaching down to trapezoidal fender flares.

The 44 is designed for off-road conditions such as traction, ground clearance, maneuverability, articulation and water fording. Its skid plates will protect the front, transfer case and fuel tank.

The cabin sticks to the original Jeeps handy capability with 103 cubic feet of interior room. Storage cubicles are scattered throughout, including a bin under the rear seat floor, as are several 120-volt outlets. The instrument cluster is simply laid out with a rounded speedometer, tachometer and temperature, fuel, oil and volt gauges.

Also included are the dual AC, manual tilt/telescopic steering column, cloth seats, six-way manual driver and four-way front passenger seats, push-button start, 7-inch Uconnect touchscreen, leather steering wheel, lockable console/door armrest and a 5-foot cargo bed. A roll-up tonneau cover is available for $595.

Standard safety features are the dual front and side airbags, side curtain airbag, four-wheel anti-lock brakes, electronic stability, traction and trailer-sway control, anti-roll system, rearview camera, hill-start assist, tire pressure monitoring system and daytime running lights.

Except for its slightly loud road noise and engine, diehard Jeep aficionados will love the amazing talents of the rugged Gladiator. Simultaneously, the quintessential SUV with over seven decades of tradition is adept on neighborhood streets. Its off-road and on-road prowess makes the diesel version a remarkable and much-needed addition to the Jeep roster.

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GLADIATOR DIESEL IS A WELCOME ADDITION TO JEEP LINEUP - Osprey Observer

Staying connected with older adult friends and relatives can be difficult, but dont assume video chats are out of the question. For those who are hard of hearing, video can help them understand by reading your lips and expression.

Studies have shown that isolation and the absence of positive social relationships increases health risks for all of us, said John J. Wernert, M.D., MHA, psychiatrist and executive medical director of Norton Behavioral Medicine. For the older adults who are at especially high risk of severe complications from COVID-19, its important to remember that social distancing is really physical distancing. Staying connected without contact is vital.

If your friend or family member has a laptop, tablet or smartphone, you may want to arrange a contactless pickup to configure the device before returning it. Zoom, for instance, has become synonymous with video chatting during the pandemic, but it is far from the only option.

Rather than install new software and go through configurations, consider the video chat options that are available through a platform your friend or family member is already using.

Facebook Messenger, for instance, has Messenger Rooms that allow video calls. Create a room and invite people by emailing a link. They dont even need to have a Facebook account. Rooms also can be started from Facebook, Instagram or WhatsApp.

Skype has been around long enough that many may feel comfortable with it even if they havent used it in a while. Much like the Messenger Rooms, Skypes Meet Now feature allows users to invite others to a group video call whether they are in Skype already or not.

Remember the year dad went to Europe and you set him up with WhatsApp to stay in touch without running up big cell phone bills? In addition to creating Messenger Rooms from inside WhatsApp, the platform offers its own video group calling for up to eight participants. The WhatsApp mobile phone app is available through the App Store or Google Play.

FaceTime has a group video chat option, but its not as easy as some of the others that allow you to send a link. If your friend or family member isnt comfortable with more complicated instructions, set up the Group FaceTime call yourself and ring them in.

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Video chat options for staying connected are more than Zoom - Norton Healthcare

When hinges creak in doorless chambers and strange and frightening sounds echo through the halls Whenever candlelights flicker where the air is deathly still, that is the time when ghosts are present. If youre a Foolish mortal who loves all 999 Happy haunts from The Haunted Mansion, then youre definitely going to want to attend this sance in The Haunted Mansion: Call of the Spirits Game. Designed by Prospero Hall and released by FunkoGames, players will travel through the mansion trying to collect spirits from different groupings and have more of them than anyone else by the end of the game.

The game might come from Funko, but that doesnt mean it looks like Funko Pop! figures. The character artwork is very faithful to the classic Disney Parks attraction and the back of the package offers a glimpse of the fun in store.

A very nice touch, the underside of the lid becomes the stretching portrait room and the sides of the box are decked with portraits from the mansions gallery.

Even the backside of the gameboard is themed.

The colorful board splits the mansion into six rooms connected by a rotating endless hallway with Madame Leotas sance room in the center. In terms of moving your pawn, players only really move between the sance room and the endless hallway.

The pawns are modeled after the bat stanchions in the queue. Playable by up to 6 players, there are 6 colored pawns to chose from.

During each players turn, they can make three actions, which are listed on a handy reference card that each player receives with their pawn. The gameplay sounds a little complicated, but its not really once you get the swingof things.

It would be a pretty big deck of cards if there were 999, so the gamemakers have simplified it down to just 99. There are 7 types of ghosts in addition to stretching portraits and special ghosts in the deck of ghost cards. Heres what they mean by that, starting with the stretching portraits.

With 4 stretching room portraits in total, a player would need to collect 3 of each to get 15 points from the set at the end of the game. Have 1 of each of the 4 different portraits and you also get 18 points. Generally speaking, having 1 of each and several sets would be an easy way to get a lot of points.

The other sets are a little easier to earn points with. The paintings and artifacts, for example, give you 3 points for just 1 card and 12 for 3 cards. But the mansion is full of tricks. If the game ends and you had just two, you wouldnt get any points for your effort in this set.

As you can see, the artwork on these cards recreates memorable moments from the attraction in a fun way. Musician Ghosts is a set through which a player could try and get all of the singing busts.

The dancing ghosts pair up couples from the ballroom.

The ballroom ghosts feature other characters from that famous scene.

Tea party ghosts are having fun in the graveyard.

Groom ghosts have met their untimely end as a direct consequence of their marriage to the one and only Constance Hatchaway.

Grim grinning ghosts are the last themed collection with a few faces you may have seen jumping out at you from behind a tombstone.

Special ghosts come with extra rules for adding points at the end. In the Madame Leota card, theres an eyeball symbol, which references the Haunt Cards. What a perfect segue!

Haunt cards are bad and take away points from your final total, so you want to have little to no haunt cards by the end of the game. You receive them a variety of ways. Sometimes the instructions on a ghost card you pick up come with a requirement to draw a haunt card, or being in a room that is occupied by the hitchhiking ghosts is another way.

Thats right, this game has hitchhiking ghosts, so beware! The figure travels through the board as dictated by event cards, which are drawn at the start of each round. When youre trying to collect ghost cards from a room with the hitchhiking ghosts, you end up taking on more haunt cards. Also just stopping by their room will earn you at least one. These guys are bad news!

These are event cards. They tell you which way the hitchhiking ghosts move at the start of a round and which direction they go. When you set up the game, you find the Final Round card and shuffle it within the bottom 3 cards of the event deck, so you dont actually know the last turn is about to come. Otherwise youd have time to Make final arrangements and adjust your cards in advance of your last turn and that would just be unfair.

Since each player gets to make 3 actions during their turn, a floating candelabra helps keep track of whos turn is first on the next event. Its not hard to remember when its just 2 players, but if you had a big party, this would definitely come in handy.

You may have noticed one of the actions you can take in a turn is Duel. The way that works is if another player grabs a card you need, you could challenge them to a duel. There are two bidding dials with a rotating number between 0 and 3. Each player secretly moves the dial to the number of haunt cards they are willing to receive to take or keep possession of that card. Whoever picks the highest number wins, but in the event of a tie, the player who already had the card just keeps it.

At the start of each event, ghost cards are distributed around the board starting with the room the hitchhiking ghosts are in. The number of ghost cards varies depending on how many players are in the game. Its always the number of players +3, which is easy to remember. Then players use their turn by either staying where they are and spinning the endless hallway or moving around it until they reach the room they want to be in. Each action eats up one of your 3 allowances per event, so choose them wisely. Drawing a ghost card is considered an action, but hypothetically if you were already in a room with 3 cards, you could pick all 3 cards as your 3 actions.

To recap, youre trying to strategically collect ghost cards to get more points by the end of the game than any other player while also trying to avoid haunt cards and have the least amount of them in the end. It can feel a little overwhelming when youre first reading through the instructions, but by the end of the first event round, everyone will feel comfortable with the game play. Its a lot of fun for fans of Disneys The Haunted Mansionand players will want to Hurry back again and again for more.

Amazon.com: Funko Disney The Haunted Mansion Call of The Spirits Board Game

Alex has been blogging about Disney films since 2009 after a lifetime of fandom. He joined the Laughing Place team in 2014 and covers films across all of Disneys brands, including Star Wars, Marvel, and Fox, in addition to books, music, toys, consumer products, and food. You can hear his voice as a member of the Laughing Place Podcast and his face can be seen on Laughing Places YouTube channel where he unboxes stuff.

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Game Review: "The Haunted Mansion: Call of the Spirits" from Funko Games - LaughingPlace.com

[12/10/20 - 09:48 AM]Peacock Orders More Episodes of Timely and Topical Late-Night Series "The Amber Ruffin Show"The critically-acclaimed series is currently streaming on Peacock with brand new episodes dropping tomorrow, December 11 and next Friday, December 18.[via press release from Peacock]

PEACOCK ORDERS MORE EPISODES OF TIMELY AND TOPICAL LATE-NIGHT SERIES "THE AMBER RUFFIN SHOW"

Peacock has ordered 10 more episodes of the break-out late-night series, THE AMBER RUFFIN SHOW.

Watch/share Amber Ruffin's video announcement:

The critically-acclaimed series is currently streaming on Peacock with brand new episodes dropping tomorrow, December 11 and next Friday, December 18.

The show will return after the holidays with new episodes dropping every Friday beginning January 8, 2021.

"We are thrilled to get the chance to bring you more episodes, because each episode is a new opportunity to have another margarita," said Ruffin.

THE AMBER RUFFIN SHOW showcases Amber's signature smart and silly take on the week's news. No matter what's happening in the world, Amber responds to it with a charming mix of seriousness, nonsense, and evening gowns. THE AMBER RUFFIN SHOW is a topical late-night show with just the good parts - the comedy.

Emmy and WGA Award nominee Amber Ruffin is a writer and performer for NBC's "Late Night with Seth Meyers" and was the first African American female to write for a late-night network talk show in the U.S. She wrote and performed on Comedy Central's "Detroiters" and was a regular narrator on the cabler's "Drunk History." Ruffin was previously a performer at Boom Chicago in Amsterdam, the iO Theater and the Second City in Chicago. In addition, she was a writer/performer for the 2018 and 2019 Golden Globe Awards and has written for the series "A Black Lady Sketch Show."

THE AMBER RUFFIN SHOW writers room includes head writer Jenny Hagel ("Late Night with Seth Meyers"), as well as writers Demi Adejuyigbe ("The Good Place"), Shantira Jackson ("Busy Tonight"), Dewayne Perkins ("Brooklyn Nine-Nine") and Amber Ruffin.

Tarik Davis ("Page One") serves as the announcer for the series.

Amber Ruffin, Jenny Hagel, Seth Meyers and Mike Shoemaker serve as executive producers. The series is produced by Universal Television, a division of Universal Studio Group, and Sethmaker Shoemeyers Productions.

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Breaking News - Peacock Orders More Episodes of Timely and Topical Late-Night Series "The Amber Ruffin Show" - The Futon Critic