Free Republic

At 14, Justine Maxwell discovered Montrose and threw herself headlong into its unconventional, artistic underground. Though she came from the very representation of suburbia -- a two-story house in the Champions West subdivision with two parents, older siblings and pets -- and grew up with every creature comfort imaginable, a stint at summer camp changed everything. There, Maxwell met some street-savvy girls who showed her how to ride the bus and introduced her to the Montrose way of life. Everything about the famously eclectic neighborhood appealed to her -- the street kids who answered to no one, the wild hair...

You know you are in San Francisco when... Your co-worker tells you they have eight body piercings - and none are visible. When someone says "tenderloin" - you don't think steak. You think danger. You make well over $100,000 and you still can't find a nice place to live. You think anyone who drives a car to work is decadent. You keep a list of companies to boycott. Your plumber is gay and your barber/beautitian is straight. You would never dream of crossing a picket line. You take the bus and are shocked at two people carrying on a conversation...

Akron- Despite her small stature, Alice Jenkins was clearly the father figure to the six children of her partner, Mary Rowles. Rowles had adversarial relationships with the fathers of her children. But several now might seek custody of the children who have been removed from Rowles and Jenkins and placed in foster care. The women were each charged with five counts of child endangering for mistreating the boys. Jenkins also was charged with two counts of felonious assault for striking two boys with hammers and kicking another boy. Police said the boys, who were severely malnourished, were locked in a...

DETROIT -- In a rare move by one of the Big 3, Ford Motor Co. said Tuesday it was starting a U.S. advertising campaign that would pitch Jaguars to gay car buyers, noting the group's wealth and taste for luxury goods.

<p>In an unusual move for a U.S. automaker, Ford Motor Co.'s Jaguar brand is launching an advertising campaign targeting gay consumers, the company said Tuesday.</p> <p>The campaign germinated from a major internal study at Ford and Jaguar on how to reach gay consumers, which tend to be fairly affluent with a taste for luxury goods. Ford estimates there are some 14 million gay and lesbian consumers in the United States who wield $450 billion in purchasing power.</p>