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When Jennifer Austin met Molly in second grade, they quickly became best friends. They giggled through classes until the teacher separated them, inspiring them to come up with their own language. They shared sleepovers and went on each other’s family vacations. But they gradually drifted apart after Austin’s family moved to Germany before the girls started high school. Decades passed before they recently reconnected as grown women. Strong friendships really do stay for the long haul,” Austin, 51, said. “Even if there are pauses in between and they fade, that doesnt mean they completely dissolve or they go forgotten. Theyre always there kind of lingering like a little light in the back. Early friendships are some of the deepest: the schoolmates who shared bike rides and their favorite candy. The roommates who offered comfort after breakups. The ones who know us, sometimes better than we know ourselves. But as adults take on jobs and the responsibilities of homes and families, it can be challenging to stay connected with everyone we’ve loved. Technology plays a role, too. Loneliness has increased since the television was invented and intensified with the introduction of smartphones, according to psychologist Marisa Franco, a University of Maryland assistant clinical professor and author of Platonic, a book about the science of attachment. Once they’ve lost touch with friends, some people are reluctant to reach out, fearing rejection. But most of those on the receiving end appreciate the effort more than we expect, Franco said. People are delighted to hear from their old friends and open to connections, she said. Franco suggests reminiscing about a shared memory to span the time and distance. It can be something as simple as, “This pic came up and I just realized I wanted to check in on you, she said. Propose a meetup. If the friend lives far away, try scheduling a phone date to catch up. Below, six people who tried to rekindle lost friendships reflect on distance, loss, and reconnection. A missing piece Heather Robb and Laine DiPasquantonio were nearly inseparable in their 20s, when they both lived in Boston. They went to concerts and vacationed together. DiPasquantonio was there when Robb met her future husband and attended their wedding as a bridesmaid. But sometime after Robb married and DiPasquantonio moved to Colorado, their circle of friends scattered. They became busy raising children, juggling jobs, and caring for aging parents. Its terrible because you dont know its happening, Robb, 60, said in a joint interview. I think it was simply space and time. We were all in different cities, we were all in that busy time of toddlers. Years passed with occasional holiday cards and texts but few meaningful interactions. DiPasquantonio saw photos on social media of Robb skiing and traveling with other friends. I wasnt sure there was so much room for me, from a distance, she said. Aww, I feel badly about that, Robb replied. I would argue that’s the bad side of social media. The women found their way back to each other when Robb, president of Heather Robb Communications, had a business trip to Denver in April. She called to see if DiPasquantonio wanted to get dinner. I didnt know if she was going to be that happy to hear from me. I actually had some trepidation in reaching out,” Robb said. When she did, Robb learned her friend was about to undergo surgery for breast cancer. Instead of meeting for dinner, DiPasquantonio, a placement specialist at Harmony Senior Referrals, invited Robb to stay for the weekend. A mutual friend flew out to join them. I was so tickled that you called and wanted to get together. It was awesome, DiPasquantonio, 63, said during their interview. What took us so long, right? They’ve remained close since. It just feels so good. It feels like there was a missing piece, Robb said. Just do it Reyna Dominguez, 18, had the same best friend since first grade. But when Dominguez moved from Long Island to Brooklyn, her friend began college. Dominguez started working in a salon and their schedules didn’t align. About six months passed without communication. After graduating from cosmetology school, Dominguez texted her friend to share the news. I was a bit anxious that she was not going to respond. But she did, and I was so relieved and happy, Dominguez said. Now they’re in touch about once a month and planning to get together. Its important to stay in touch because sometimes I do get lonely, like I have no one to really talk to, Dominguez said. “But with her, she knows all about my life.” Dominguez encourages anyone considering reaching out to an old friend to go ahead. I say just do it. You have nothing to lose, she said. I guess the worst they could do is not respond to you, but I feel like youll still be happy with the thought, I tried. Staying close Andrew Snyders best friend since 5th grade lives a plane ride away, but that hasnt stopped them from keeping in touch. They call or email each other at least once a month and see each other several times per year. At key points in their lives, they’ve visited each others’ homes so when we talk about things, we actually can understand,” said Snyder, 50, who teaches philosophy and economics in New York City. Living in different cities means it requires work to stay connected, but it’s important to Snyder, who feels that friendships are thinning out as people spend more time looking at cellphone screens. Friendship and cooking your own food, and exercising and being outside, these are the things that used to be real life, and now I think theyre all fading, Snyder said. I dont think the real issue is time anymore. I think the real issue is a sense of overwhelm and a sense of depletion that we all feel. No regrets Kim Ventresca, 22, drifted from her best friend while attending college. She reached out a few times and they reconnected when the friend was having a rough time. But they stopped talking again when Ventresca was going through mental health and relationship challenges. Eventually, the other young woman told Ventresca she no longer wanted to be friends. Ive got some new friends now, and I feel like its probably better because some things happen for a reason, she said. Im hoping that shes alright and that she is doing OK. Ventresca, who works as a social media manager and receptionist in New Jersey, said she stll recommends reaching out to missed friends, even if it’s awkward. The worst thing that happens is you get ‘left on read’ or delivered or declined, she said. Secret language After Austin’s family moved to Germany, she didn’t see her childhood best friend again for 20 years, through a chance meeting on a New York City subway platform. They reconnected briefly, but contact lapsed again. Molly’s 2021 visit with one of her children to a college near Austin’s home provided another chance to restore the friendship. Theyve remained close since. Something at that point just shifted,” Austin, owner of KindPoint Communications, said. “Things really picked up and we just basically outright said, Lets just keep this momentum going. Lets not wait another 20 years.’ Cathy Bussewitz, The Associated Press Send your wellness questions and story ideas to cbussewitz@ap.org. Follow APs Be Well coverage, focusing on wellness, fitness, diet, and mental health at https://apnews.com/hub/be-well.
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E-Commerce
The Federal Aviation Administration said Sunday it is lifting all restrictions on commercial flights that were imposed at 40 major airports during the country’s longest government shutdown. Airlines can resume their regular flight schedules beginning Monday at 6 a.m. EST, the agency said. The announcement was made in a joint statement by Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford. Citing safety concerns as staffing shortages grew at air traffic control facilities during the shutdown, the FAA issued an unprecedented order to limit traffic in the skies. It had been in place since Nov. 7, affecting thousands of flights across the country. Impacted airports included large hubs in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Atlanta. The flight cuts started at 4% and later grew to 6% before the FAA on Friday rolled the restrictions back to 3%, citing continued improvements in air traffic controller staffing since the record 43-day shutdown ended on Nov. 12. The number of flights canceled this weekend was at its lowest point since the order took effect and was well below the 3% cuts the FAA was requiring for Saturday and Sunday. Data from aviation analytics firm Cirium showed that less than 1% of all flights were canceled this weekend. The flight tracking website FlightAware said 149 flights were cut Sunday and 315 were canceled on Saturday. The FAA statement said an agency safety team recommended the order be rescinded after detailed reviews of safety trends and the steady decline of staffing-trigger events in air traffic control facilities. The statement said the FAA is aware of reports of non-compliance by carriers over the course of the emergency order. The agency is reviewing and assessing enforcement options. It did not elaborate. Cancellations hit their highest point Nov. 9, when airlines cut more than 2,900 flights because of the FAA order, ongoing controller shortages and severe weather in parts of the country. Conditions began to improve throughout last week as more controllers returned to work amid news that Congress was close to a deal to end the shutdown. That progress also prompted the FAA to pause plans for further rate increases. The agency had initially aimed for a 10% reduction in flights. Duffy had said worrisome safety data showed the move was necessary to ease pressure on the aviation system and help manage worsening staffing shortages at air traffic control facilities as the shutdown entered its second month and flight disruptions began to pile up. Air traffic controllers were among the federal employees who had to continue working without pay throughout the shutdown. They missed two paychecks during the impasse. Duffy hasnt shared the specific safety data that prompted the cuts, but he cited reports during the shutdown of planes getting too close in the air, more runway incursions, and pilot concerns about controllers responses. Airline leaders have expressed optimism that operations would rebound in time for the Thanksgiving travel period after the FAA lifted its order. Rio Yamat and Josh Funk, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
President Donald Trump said House Republicans should vote to release the files in the Jeffrey Epstein case, a startling reversal after previously fighting the proposal as a growing number of those in his own party supported it. We have nothing to hide, and its time to move on from this Democrat Hoax perpetrated by Radical Left Lunatics in order to deflect from the Great Success of the Republican Party, Trump wrote on social media late Sunday after landing at Joint Base Andrews following a weekend in Florida. Trump’s statement followed a fierce fight within the GOP over the files, including an increasingly nasty split with Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who had long been one of his fiercest supporters. The presidents shift is an implicit acknowledgement that supporters of the measure have enough votes to pass it in the House, although it has an unclear future in the Senate. It is a rare example of Trump backtracking because of opposition within the GOP. In his return to office and in his second term as president, Trump has largely consolidated power in the Republican Party. I DONT CARE! Trump wrote in his social media post. All I do care about is that Republicans get BACK ON POINT. Lawmakers who support the bill have been predicting a big win in the House this week with a deluge of Republicans voting for it, bucking the GOP leadership and the president. In his opposition to the proposal, Trump even reached out to two of the Republican lawmakers who signed it. One, Colorado Rep. Lauren Boebert, met last week with administration officials in the White House Situation Room to discuss it. The bill would force the Justice Department to release all files and communications related to Epstein, as well as any information about the investigation into his death in federal prison. Information about Epsteins victims or ongoing federal investigations would be allowed to be redacted. There could be 100 or more votes from Republicans, said Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., among the lawmakers discussing the legislation on Sunday news show appearances. I’m hoping to get a veto-proof majority on this legislation when it comes up for a vote. Massie and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., introduced a discharge petition in July to force a vote on their bill. That is a rarely successful tool that allows a majority of members to bypass House leadership and force a floor vote. Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., had panned the discharge petition effort and sent members home early for their August recess when the GOP’s legislative agenda was upended in the clamoring for an Epstein vote. Democrats also contend the seating of Rep. Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz., was stalled to delay her becoming the 218th member to sign the petition and gain the threshold needed to force a vote. She became the 218th signature moments after taking the oath of office last week. Massie said Johnson, Trump and others who have been critical of his efforts would be taking a big loss this week. I’m not tired of winning yet, but we are winning, Massie said. The view from GOP leadership Johnson seems to expect the House will decisively back the Epstein bill. Well just get this done and move it on. Theres nothing to hide, adding that the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has been releasing far more information than the discharge petition, their little gambit. The vote comes at a time when new documents are raising fresh questions about Epstein and his associates, including a 2019 email that Epstein wrote to a journalist that said Trump knew about the girls. The White House has accused Democrats of selectively leaking the emails to smear the Republican president. Johnson said Trump has nothing to hide from this. Theyre doing this to go after President Trump on this theory that he has something to do with it. He does not, Johnson said. Trump’s association with Epstein is well-established and the president’s name was included in records that his own Justice Department released in February as part of an effort to satisfy public interest in information from the sex-trafficking investigation. Trump has never been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein and the mere inclusion of someones name in files from the investigation does not imply otherwise. Epstein, who killed himself in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial, also had many prominent acquaintances in political and celebrity circles besides Trump. Khanna voiced more modest expectations on the vote count than Massie. Still, Khanna said he was hoping for 40 or more Republicans to join the effort. I don’t even know how involved Trump was, Khanna said. There are a lot of other people involved who have to be held accountable. Khanna also asked Trump to meet with those who were abused. Some will be at the Capitol on Tuesday for a news conference, he said. Massie said Republican lawmakers who fear losing Trump’s endorsement because of how they vote will have a mark on their record, if they vote no, that could hurt their political prospects in the long term. The record of this vote will last longer than Donald Trump’s presidency,” Massie said. A MAGA split On the Republican side, three Republicans joined with Massie in signing the discharge petition: Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Boebert. Trump publicly called it quits with Greene last week and said he would endorse a challenger against her in 2026 if the right person runs. Greene attributed the fallout with Trump as unfortunately, it has all come down to the Epstein files. She said the country deserves transparency on the issue and that Trump’s criticism of her is confusing because the women she has talked to say he did nothing wrong. “I have no idea whats in the files. I cant even guess. But that is the questions everyone is asking, is, why fight this so hard? Greene said. Trumps feud with Greene escalated over the weekend, with Trump sending out one last social media post about her while still sitting in his helicopter on the White House lawn when he arrived home late Sunday, writing The fact is, nobody cares about this Traitor to our Country! Even if the bill passes the House, there is no guarantee that Senate Rpublicans will go along. Massie said he just hopes Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., will do the right thing. The pressure is going to be there if we get a big vote in the House,” Massie said, who thinks we could have a deluge of Republicans. Massie appeared on ABC’s This Week, Johnson was on Fox News Sunday, Khanna spoke on NBC’s Meet the Press and Greene was interviewed on CNN’s State of the Union. Kevin Freking and Chris Megerian, Associated Press Associated Press writer Michelle L. Price contributed to this report.
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E-Commerce
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