Fort Frances Times Online Edition - January 8, 2016

This robin was spotted in town this week. But while our milder than normal winter so far may have enticed it to hang around, the bird may regret its decision when a blast of Arctic air hits Borderland starting tomorrow.

The holiday break didn’t take any of the sharp edges off the best local female volleyballers right now.

How I Set Your Mother solidified its hold on first place in the Fort Frances Women’s Volleyball League last night by nabbing the maximum six points for the 10th time in 13 weeks as the circuit resumed after being off since Dec. 10.

The road to the NHL just became even more difficult for Fort Frances native Ryan Faragher.

Trying to find a spark in a season of underachievement, the Anaheim Ducks yesterday acquired Montreal Canadiens’ back-up goalie Dustin Tokarski in exchange for left-winger Max Friberg.

Volunteer Maxine Hayes double-checked the framing job she did on a portrait yesterday at the Fort Frances Museum. Museum staff and volunteers have been busy gathering and framing photos in anticipation of staging a new exhibit there that will focus on portraits of local residents—some dating back to the turn of the 20th century. The exhibit will be ready next week.

The winter air was filled with white last night—but Team White wasn’t able to fill the basket as much as they had hoped.

Josh Mastin netted a game-high 44 points to lead Team Black (5-0) to a 120-103 win over Team White (1-5) in the first of two games in the Fort Frances Men’s Basketball League on Tuesday night at J.W. Walker.

That was a close one.

With top scorers Aaron Bujold and Sekina Scheibler fouling out in the third quarter, the Muskie junior boys’ basketball team had to hang on for dear life yesterday to remain undefeated in NorWOSSA play this season.

But they prevailed 37-35 over the host Kenora Broncos.

The scoreboard said it was an easy night but the bodies of the Muskie girls’ hockey team told a different story when they woke up this morning.

“We’ve got quite a few bumps and bruises today,” noted head coach Todd Hamilton after his squad’s 13-1 romp over the host Sioux Lookout Warriors in NorWOSSA action last night.

Nolan Mann of the Fort Frances PeeWee ‘AA’ Canadians gave Owen Gouliquer of the Dryden Paperkings the see-you-later treatment as he burst off the boards during the first period of the host team’s 5-2 victory in the opening game of its home tournament this morning at the Ice For Kids Arena.

OTTAWA—The federal public safety minister says his officials have reminded airlines they don’t need to vet children against Canada’s “no-fly” list after a six-year-old was stopped by airport security.

The Associated Press LONDON British health officials say drinking any alcohol regularly increases the risk of cancer, and have issued tough new guidelines that could be hard to swallow in a nation where having a pint is a hallowed tradition.

KANSAS CITY, Mo.—If the Kansas City Chiefs believe in karma or coincidence or some sort of cosmic alignment, then they should be confident their 22-year drought without a playoff victory soon will come to an end.

Start with the fact they’re heading to Houston on Saturday to face the AFC South champion Texans.

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn.—The Minnesota Vikings head into the playoffs looking like a team on the rise, with a second-year head coach pushing the right buttons, a 23-year-old quarterback still figuring things out, and a young, fast, aggressive defence that only figures to get better in the coming seasons.

LOS ANGELES—Vincent Lecavalier and Luke Schenn stepped off a cross-country flight from Philadelphia and walked straight into the L.A. Kings’ lineup.

The duo’s long day ended with big third-period efforts from both veterans and another gritty win for their surging new team.

TAMPA, Fla. Whatever disparaging cliche you’ve heard about the lowly dime ‚Äî dime a dozen, nickel and dimed, dime’s worth of difference ‚Äî it’s not true of this dime.

No, this particular coin that went to auction Thursday evening in Tampa sold for just under $2 million.

The 1894-S dime was struck at the San Francisco Mint. Only 24 were made, and only nine likely still exist.

WASHINGTON A dummy U.S. Hellfire missile was mistakenly shipped from Europe to Cuba in 2014, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.

The inert missile did not contain any explosives, the Journal reported, but there are concerns that Cuba could share the technology with potential U.S. adversaries like North Korea or Russia.

PORTAGE, Mich. Someone is betting $40,026 on the life of a 73-year-old lottery winner in Michigan.

That was the highest bid Thursday in an online auction for a lottery prize that pays $1,000 a month, before taxes. But here’s the hitch: The money is paid only for as long as Donald Magett stays alive.

FAIRFAX, Va. President Barack Obama tore into the National Rifle Association on Thursday as he sought support for his actions on gun control, accusing the powerful lobby group of peddling an “imaginary fiction” that he said has distorted the national debate about gun violence.

KISSIMMEE, Fla.—Scientists have discovered five supersize stars in other galaxies on a par with the monstrous stellar system in our own Milky Way.

Eta Carinae is the brightest and most massive star system within 10,000 light-years of us.

The binary system outshines our own sun by five million times.

TORONTO—The discovery that a gene which turns some bacteria into antibiotic-resistant superbugs has been in Canada for at least five years has scientists wondering when it first emerged and how to stop its spread.

The MCR-1 gene makes E. coli and some other species of bacteria resistant to colistin—an antibiotic considered the drug of last resort for some diseases.

WASHINGTON Get ready for weather whiplash as powerful climatic forces elbow each other for starring roles in a weird winter show.

The spine-chilling polar vortex is taking centre stage in Europe and bringing persistent cold to much of North America ‚Äî except in Hollywood, where soggy El Nino won’t give up the spotlight.

Want a delicious new way to eat rice? As in, a way that doesn’t involve eating it from a little white takeout box?