National Lifestyle

Hugging loved ones. Shaking hands. Going to school. Grabbing dinner at a restaurant. Visiting elderly family members. Most Americans didn’t know this week last year was their last chance at normalcy.

VANCOUVER — British Columbia's top doctor says a burning anxiety in the pit of her stomach had become her constant companion as China began reporting a few cases of an unusual pneumonia in Wuhan in December 2019. Dr.

Chris Harrison will not host the upcoming season of “The Bachelorette” following controversy over racially insensitive comments, and will instead be replaced with two former contestants, ABC Entertainment and Warner Horizon said in a statement.

NEW YORK — U.S. deaths from COVID-19 are falling again as the nation continues to recover from the devastating winter surge, a trend that experts are cautiously hopeful will accelerate as more vulnerable people are vaccinated.

WINNIPEG — Manitobans will soon be allowed to gather with friends on restaurant and pub patios under loosened COVID-19 rules.

COPENHAGEN — Norway’s 84-year-old King Harald V will remain on sick leave from his ceremonial duties until April 11 after successful leg surgery earlier this year, the palace said Friday.

NEW YORK — Former President Barack Obama reveals in an upcoming podcast with rocker Bruce Springsteen that he chose a career of public service in part due to his mother, an acknowledgement that lands in the middle of Women’s History Month.

LOS ANGELES — I have covered the Grammy Awards for the Associated Press for 15 years. But this strange year feels like the first time.

NEW YORK — Pedro Almodóvar exposed all his vulnerability in the semi-autobiographical film “Pain and Glory.

MINNEAPOLIS — A video taken by a camera-equipped drone buzzing through the nooks and crannies of a historic Minneapolis bowling alley has attracted hundreds of thousands of views online.