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I guess you might consider this a "vanity" post, but didn't know where to post it. Myself and five other gals are going to New York City for five days in Nov. for sight-seeing, shopping, Broadway shows, etc. Has anyone here ever bought/used the New York Pass and/or hop-on hop-off bus pass? None of us have been to New York City before (at least not in the last 30 years) and wonder if this is something we should purchase ahead of time, or is it a big rip-off? Thanks for any help you can offer.

SAN DIEGO (AP) -- The California Supreme Court will not review a appeals court ruling that wiped out an $86 million judgment against coffee giant Starbucks over tip sharing at its stores in the state. . . . In 2008, a San Diego County Superior Court judge ordered Starbucks Corp. to pay millions in restitution to baristas who had to share their tips with supervisors. In June, the 4th District Court of Appeal reversed that ruling,

I had a girlfriend who once said, "If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'." We're talking about food, of course. Time is a commodity. Let's face it, we're all maxed out. Whether you're a working mother (who isn't), a single mother, a stay-at-home mom, or an empty-nester, we are all busy! Our busy schedules don't have to mean take-out or drive-thrus every night, though. Here are some tricks I've found that save time (and money!): 1. Since I don't grow my own vegetables, I have found that frozen or canned work just fine. 2. I don't make my own dough...

Several ways to get involved in national service:

A former exotic dancer who allegedly made about $80,000 in tips during one year is now facing multiple felony charges for failing to report the money as income. Stephanie Antes, 28, of Albertville, is charged with five felony counts and one gross misdemeanor count of failing to file and pay income taxes and filing a false income tax return, according to the Minnesota Department of Revenue. Antes worked as an exotic dancer and waitress at Rick's Cabaret in Minneapolis between 2004 and 2006. A tipster called the Department of Revenue to report that Antes had made around $80,000 per year...

Servers suffer as gratuities, and their incomes, plummet with the economyNobody is sitting at the rack at Mary’s Club on a Friday afternoon. The rack is the counter that lines the stage at Mary’s, an institution among Portland strip clubs, at 129 S.W. Broadway Ave. Customers who sit at the rack, up close to the dancers, are expected to tip dollar bills or more throughout the performances. In fact, there’s a sign in Mary’s Club that reads, “If you’re watching and not tipping, you’re stealing.” But it’s easier to watch and not tip from seats further back or at the...

When the rich get a sniffle, their doormen get pneumonia. Doormen say their tips are down drastically this holiday season as well-heeled residents deal with the stock market crash and waves of layoffs on Wall Street. "A lot of people who live here work in the banking industry and on Wall Street," said Luis Delgado, a doorman at a building in West End Ave. and W. 81st St. "They have been hit. Many faced layoffs." Delgado keeps careful track of who tips him and how much - for his finances, of course. Only 30 of the 90 names on his...

I heard this story and can't find it anywhere please fill in my blanks. " Sitting in a restaurant, the server, a young man wearing an Obama tie, the person dining told the young man - your tip because you are wearing an Obama tie and he believes in spreading the wealth - I'm going to take down and give it to the homeless man on the corner. Since you are voting for Obama you need to know that the money you earn is not yours and it needs to be spread to those that need it more." Was this...

New York's top restaurants plagued by tip trouble Seasoned travelers know that waiters in the United States expect tips of 15 to 20 percent -- $60 on a $300 dinner for two at one of New York's top restaurants. What is less well known is that the money doesn't all go to the waiters and more lowly staff. In lawsuits filed in the last three years, staff have accused dozens of New York restaurants, including many well-known ones, of stealing tips and cheating them out of wages. Among those named in the suits are celebrity haunt Pastis; three New York...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 7, 2008 – Iraqi citizens of Babil province yesterday led U.S. soldiers to the seizure of a huge amount of components suitable for the construction of deadly explosively formed penetrator-type bombs, military officials reported. Acting on a tip from local Iraqi citizens, the U.S. soldiers discovered more than 2,500 bomb-making components at three separate locations in an area southeast of Samrah Village in Babil province. Officials believe this discovery will significantly disrupt explosively formed projectiles attacks within central Iraq. U.S. soldiers found the cache after a group of local Iraqi citizens informed them of a suspected cache location...

Restaurants are feeling the pinch in two directions. With money tight, consumers are cutting back on how often they dine out. Meantime, food costs more. Way more. Egg prices have doubled in the last six months. Dairy, chicken, beer and bread crumb prices are all climbing higher. Even when the core commodity escapes the trend, packaged ingredients and other restaurant supplies are more expensive as the costs of transportation climb due to higher fuel prices. When people do go out, they are ordering less. "Appetizer sales are down. Dessert sales can almost disappear," says Dan Simons, principal at Vucurevich Simons...

College Knowledge Check List by: Deborah Lambert, March 21, 2008 Longtime radio talk show host Dennis Prager has some advice for aspiring college students and/or their parents. Before plunking down wads of cash for that life-changing campus experience, you might want to ask a few questions about prospective schools that include the following: 1. “Can one obtain a Bachelor of Arts degree at your college without having to read a single Shakespeare play, one Federalist paper or one book of the Bible?” 2. "Does the college allow military recruiters on its campus?" 3. "What is the ratio of Democrats to...

In a San Diego County class-action lawsuit, a judge ordered the coffee giant to pay back tips, with interest, that the company had handed over to shift supervisors. Some baristas (coffee servers) could receive more than $10,000, according to their attorney. The ruling was met with cheers by California baristas. "I'm stoked," said Leekeisha Smith, who makes coffee drinks in the Starbucks at Sunset Boulevard and La Brea Avenue in Los Angeles. "Wow. I'm just shocked that we'll get that [money] back." Smith, 23, said she found out about the lawsuit from a letter sent to employees. Starbucks Corp. said...

A Concerned Local Citizen pulls back part of an armchair revealing unknown bulk explosive inside the cushion, Dec. 4, in an insurgent safehouse in Arab Jabour. The building was destroyed by a joint direct attack ammunition bomb once it was found to be booby-trapped. Photo by Sgt. Kevin Stabinsky, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division Public Affairs. FORWARD OPERATING BASE KALSU — An insurgent safehouse in Arab Jabour was rendered useless, Dec. 4, by two joint direct attack ammunition bombs. Although dropped by an Air Force F-16 Falcon jet, the operation was a combined effort conducted on the ground...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7, 2007 – Decreased violence in Iraq is the result of ongoing U.S. surge operations and Iraqi citizens’ increasing willingness to confront al Qaeda insurgents, a senior U.S. military officer said here today. Army Lt. Gen. Carter F. Ham, the Joint Staff’s director for operations, provides an operational update during a news conference at the Pentagon, Nov. 7, 2007. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Molly A. Burgess, USN  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. “No matter how you categorize it, you cannot deny that multinational force operations against al Qaeda in Iraq have had significant effect,”...

HUSSEINIYAH, Iraq – A citizen of Husseiniyah led Coalition Forces to a building where explosively formed penetrators and improvised explosive devices were being constructed Oct. 31.Soldiers of Battery A, 2nd Battalion, 12th Field Artillery, 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, from Fort Lewis, Wash., discovered a large cache of explosives at the home, including about 10 fully assembled EFPs of various sizes including one 12-inch EFP – the largest found in Iraq – approximately 90 copper plates of various sizes, more than 200 pounds of C-4 explosive, other explosive materials including TNT and numerous other materials used in...

KHAN BANI SA’AD, Iraq – A concerned citizen led Coalition Forces to a largeweapons cache yesterday in a home in Sa’ada Village, Iraq.This cache is one of the largest discoveries of explosively formed penetratorsfound in at one location in Iraq. The find included more than 120 fully-assembled EFPs,more than 150 copper disks of four different sizes used in making EFPs (including 12-inch disks – one of the largest ever discovered in Iraq), 600-plus pounds of C4 andother explosive materials, 100 mortar rounds of various caliber, approximately 30107mm rockets, two mortar tubes and 20 claymore-type mines.“A find like this helps keep...

FORWARD OPERATING BASE HAMMER — After receiving tips, Coalition forces detained three people in Salman Pak, Oct. 11, during Operation Belleau Wood, a raid to find insurgents linked to al-Qaida cells operating in Iraq. Soldiers from Company A, 1st Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, detained the men after they were identified as al-Qaida members responsible for improvised explosive device placement along a road frequently used by the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division. The Soldiers also cleared 13 houses during their search. Maj. John Cushing, from Rochester, Mich., the 1-15th Inf. Regt. operations officer, believes the recent organization of concerned...

WASHINGTON, Sept. 27, 2007 – Iraqi citizens are helping coalition forces hunt down al Qaeda terrorists in a vast rural area south of Baghdad, a military commander said today. “As the summer went along, we started building the confidence of the people,” Army Lt. Col. Ken Adgie told online journalists and “bloggers” from Patrol Base Murray, which is situated beside the Tigris River in the mostly agricultural region of Arab Jabour. With its desolate location, rugged terrain, thick palm groves and almost-exclusively Sunni population, the region is a perfect breeding ground for terrorism, Adgie said. “There is no Iraqi army...

Country music star, Toby Keith, speaks on-air during an interview on Armed Forces Network Iraq’s Freedom Radio at the Combined Press Information Center Tuesday. Keith’s visit to Baghdad is part of his fifth United Service Organizations (USO) tour. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Carl N. Hudson, Combined Press Information Center. BAGHDAD — Country music star, Toby Keith, visited troops stationed in Baghdad Tuesday.Singing songs and playing guitar are a few things Keith, an Oklahoma native, does quite well. Visiting troops in combat is another activity he takes pride in.Keith’s visit to Baghdad is part of his fifth United Service Organizations...