Blackjack News Blog

Apple's iPhone setting the bar

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 14:27:01 +0000

Apple's iPhone goes on sale Friday to huge hoopla. But at $499 for the cheapest model, it's pricey. And critics already are pointing out its limitations.

Still, even if it doesn't quite live up to its considerable hype, the iPhone could change the landscape of the consumer cell phone market.

"It opens up a consumer's perception of what a smartphone can do for them," said Chris Hazelton, a senior analyst at IDC, a Massachusetts-based research firm.

Iowa Lottery discontinues five instant scratch games

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 14:27:01 +0000

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - The Iowa Lottery is ending five instant-scratch games.

The games include "Crazy Eights Bingo," "Wild Crossword Confetti," "Blackjack orange", "Fours Galore" and "Only at the Fair."

Players have until September 24th to claim prizes. They can go to the Iowa Lottery headquarters in Des Moines or 1 of the lottery's regional offices in Council Bluffs, Storm Lake, Mason City or Cedar Rapids.

IPhone's assault on batteries

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 14:27:01 +0000

Apple says the iPhone will offer up to eight hours of talk time -- and

offered a glimpse at which phones it considers competitors.

Nokia N95

It's a numbers game

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 14:27:01 +0000

The billboard stares at drivers headed west into Portland on I-84.

"Oden, honk once," half the sign says.

"Durant, honk twice," urges the other.

Jeff Haney on why the gaming world lost out when professional sports handicapper Fezzik decided that dealing with the message board critics wasnt worth the effort

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 14:27:01 +0000

"It's been my policy to view the Internet not as an 'information highway,' " a prescient Mike Royko once wrote, "but as an electronic asylum filled with babbling loonies."

It certainly seemed that way last week when Las Vegas professional gambler Fezzik shut down his eponymous sports betting Web site, citing his frustration with personal attacks on his online message board and a general preponderance of cyber-goofballs overrunning the site.

For more than three years, Fezzik's Place (fezziksplace.com) was a respected online gathering place for sports bettors and a daily habit for thousands of gambling enthusiasts.

Rolling the dice on health insurance

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 14:27:01 +0000

The city of Denton has decided for financial reasons to go with a self-funded health care plan for city employees beginning next year. It looks like a good financial bet so far — the city estimates it’ll save almost $1.5 million next year versus what it has been paying for traditional health insurance — but like all bets, it is not without risk. Health insurance — all insurance, really — is little more than a compl...

OBITUARIES: STOCKBRIDGE: 'Jimbo' Maness, ace driver, bowler

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 05:05:35 +0000

"Jimbo" Maness was a lucky gambler but took no chances when he was behind the wheel of his tanker truck hauling 7,500 gallons of jet fuel.

In a casino or on a gambling boat, he calculated the risks and would walk away from the blackjack table or roulette wheel a winner. On the road delivering jet fuel under contract with the military, he never took risks. He drove the legal limit —- time and speed —- and watched out for other vehicles that might endanger his load, said his wife, Michele A. Buchanan-Maness of Stockbridge.

He had a standard goodbye line for her. "Every time he left on a haul, he always told me, 'Honey, be sure and kiss me because I could blow up any minute,' " she said.

Seventh heaven

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 05:05:35 +0000

The good news is that they're getting married that day. The bad news is that they're missing a cousin's wedding on the same day.

Last year there was curiosity galore when the calendar hit the creepy 6/6/06. This year it's 7/7/07 that is getting all the attention.

At www.TheKnot.com, they're calling it the perfect storm of wedding dates. It falls on a Saturday, and the positive symbolism behind the number seven is too great for even non-superstitious couples to resist. The site claims that in Chinese culture, seven represents togetherness; in Japanese mythology there are seven lucky gods. And the lineup of three sevens only happens every 100 years.

Talk of the bay: You can try Venus on for size here soon

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 05:05:35 +0000

Venus, a major swimwear and sportswear mail-order house in Jacksonville, put the Tampa Bay area in its sights after deciding to add brick-and-mortar stores this year to its online and catalog operations. Venus opens a store (the company's third) in Tyrone Square Mall on Friday and is scouting for a spot in Tampa. The company plans to have 15 locations in Florida within five years. Founded by CEO Daryle Scott as a fitness-wear brand in 1982, the company expanded into full lines of its own mod...

Moody's smitten with Baycare

Moody's Investors Service likes Baycare Health System. The rating service recently affirmed the Tampa Bay area hospital group's Aa3 rating, indicating its debt is high-quality and low-risk. Despite declines in admissions, the seven-hospital system had an operating profit of $97.5-million last year on revenue of $1.8-billion, up from a profit of $77.7-million on revenue of $1.73-billion a year ago. And BayCare's cash balances exceed $1-billion for the first time. One stumbling block m...

Independence Day at Kentucky state parks

Sun, 24 Jun 2007 14:23:46 +0000

Many of Kentucky's state parks are featuring special activities in honor of the Fourth of July. And since the holiday falls on a Wednesday this year, some parks are celebrating the weekend before, some the weekend after, some on the actual day.

One of the parks celebrating Saturday is E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park in Louisville (502-429-7270). A Civil War encampment, a veterans' recognition ceremony, music by the Wulfe Bros., tethered balloon rides, BMX demonstrations and radio-controlled airplanes are among the activities. There will be a $5 parking fee.

Parks featuring fireworks on the Fourth include Kentucky Dam Village State Resort Park (Gilbertsville), Barren River Lake State Resort Park (Lucas), Buckhorn Lake State Resort Park (Buckhorn), Kenlake State Resort Park (Hardin) and Lake Barkley State Resort Park (Cadiz).

‘That's Dolly’