4+ min ago (612+ words) This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Audrey Serna, 33, who dropped out of college after two semesters. It has been edited for length and clarity. It was a horrible feeling to drop out of college when all of my peers chose that route. But I wouldn't have done anything differently. I withdrew from college after two semesters and started on an emotionally and financially draining career journey that I'm now grateful for. I felt like a total failure leaving school at 20 years old. I was working just to pay the bills " I held two jobs as a restaurant server and in retail, and in the back of my mind, I always had motivation to push myself to find a more stable career. I just didn't know how. Many companies rejected me right off the bat because I didn't…...

5+ min ago (450+ words) President Donald Trump sprung a fellow convicted fraudster from prison this week after the man had served less than two weeks of a seven-year sentence for a $1.6 billion Ponzi scheme. David Gentile first reported to prison on Nov. 14 following his sentencing in May for using funds controlled by his company GPB Capital to scam around 10,000 investors over a period of several years, the New York Times reports. He was freed Wednesday, after just 12 days behind bars. In securing Gentile's conviction last August, prosecutors had cited victim statements from more than 1,000 "hardworking, everyday people'among them veterans, farmers, teachers and nurseswho'd lost money as a result of his crimes. "I lost my whole life savings, one person claimed, adding they'd now found themselves "living from check to check. Trump's move on Gentile's case only commutes the former businessman's sentence, meaning the conviction…...

11+ min ago (707+ words) Republican-led committees in the Senate and the House say they will amplify their scrutiny of the Pentagon after a Washington Post report revealing that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave a spoken order to kill all crew members aboard a vessel suspected of smuggling drugs in the Caribbean Sea several weeks ago. The development is significant. Since President Donald Trump's return to the White House, the Republican majorities in Congress have shown considerable deference to his administration. After the publication of The Post's report Friday, Hegseth wrote on X that "these highly effective strikes are designed to be "lethal, kinetic strikes," adding: "Every trafficker we kill is affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization." "Our current operations in the Caribbean are lawful under both U.S. and international law, with all actions in compliance with the law of armed conflict " and approved by the…...

12+ min ago (536+ words) I was tired of spending money on souvenirs that made my children, ever so briefly, happy in the moment but ultimately created clutter and stress. Eventually, I found a solution. Now, there is one souvenir I look forward to getting on every trip that takes up no space in my suitcase: a recipe for a favorite local dish. At first, my kids were disappointed when I started saying "no" to their requests for souvenirs. To my children's dismay, many snow globes and miniature replicas of iconic buildings like the Eiffel Tower were left behind on store shelves. Slowly, my children came to accept that we would no longer buy these trinkets, and we stopped lingering at the gift shop at every attraction we visited. The time and money we saved allowed us to focus more on experiences while traveling. I…...

15+ min ago (343+ words) Sports betting writer Dylan Svoboda joins The Post's Bettor's Guide for his second season. Record aside, the Browns' defense is ridiculous." Cleveland throttled Geno Smith and the Raiders last week, and they're heading home, where they play best, on Sunday for a bout against the 49ers." It didn't go well last time Brock Purdy and Co. came to Cleveland in 2023." Purdy completed just 44.4 percent of his passes in that game,"which is"the lowest full-game rate of his career, for only 125 yards while getting sacked three times and intercepted once"during"the 19-17 loss. He'll come into this game having not looked his best against a much-worse Panthers defense on Monday night, throwing three picks." The Browns have been a different team at Huntington Bank Field, getting two of their three wins at home while keeping the rest of their games in…...

15+ min ago (343+ words) Sports betting writer Dylan Svoboda joins The Post's Bettor's Guide for his second season. Record aside, the Browns' defense is ridiculous." Cleveland throttled Geno Smith and the Raiders last week, and they're heading home, where they play best, on Sunday for a bout against the 49ers." It didn't go well last time Brock Purdy and Co. came to Cleveland in 2023." Purdy completed just 44.4 percent of his passes in that game,"which is"the lowest full-game rate of his career, for only 125 yards while getting sacked three times and intercepted once"during"the 19-17 loss. He'll come into this game having not looked his best against a much-worse Panthers defense on Monday night, throwing three picks." The Browns have been a different team at Huntington Bank Field, getting two of their three wins at home while keeping the rest of their games in…...

24+ min ago (238+ words) A national security attorney said a minor detail included in an announcement of a bipartisan investigation of the Trump administration represents a "thumb in the eye" to the president. In an article called "Congressional committees to scrutinize U.S. killing of boat strike survivors," the Washington Post reported, "In a rare split with the Trump administration, GOP-led panels in the House and Senate say they want a full accounting in the September military attack." It's that statement that stood out to national security attorney Mark S. Zaid, who flagged the quote on X and pointed out what might have been an insult to Hegseth and the Trump administration. "Don't let it slip by anyone that both the Senate and House Armed Services Committees " GOP & DEM " refer to the Pentagon using the correct name of Department of DEFENSE not War," the lawyer wrote, going…...

25+ min ago (607+ words) Take flight with the Jets An inside look at Sunday's Jets-Falcons NFL Week 13 matchup at MetLife Stadium: Falcons RB Bijan Robinson vs. the Jets defense It is no secret who the Falcons offense is going to run through. Robinson is one of the most explosive backs in the NFL. He has 853 rushing yards and 543 receiving yards this season, as well as six total touchdowns. The Jets defense knows he is capable of breaking a long one at any point if they do not tackle well. The Jets defense has shown vast improvement against the run recently. They allowed 98 yards rushing against the Ravens last week and 65 against the Patriots. Captain Kirk: Both teams are on their second quarterback of the season. While the Jets turned to Tyrod Taylor by choice, the Falcons have had to start Kirk Cousins after starter…...

27+ min ago (777+ words) Intimidating and charming, and often both at once, Tom Stoppard, whose death was announced on Saturday, was a treasured collaborator to the hundreds of actors, directors and producers who worked on his plays. Here, 13 of them (plus Mick Jagger) try to find words for the man who always had the right ones. The actress won her first Tony Award, in 1984, starring in the original Broadway production of Stoppard's "The Real Thing." He was the most elegant man, and I mean that in his thinking, in the way he smoked a cigarette, the way he tied a scarf around his neck, but also the way he thought. He was a giant and a genius. He wrote "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" in his 20s, and just to think of that premise is genius. And then "The Coast of Utopia" " God, I love…...

28+ min ago (1825+ words) When "Joker" was released in 2019, it grossed over $1 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing R-rated movie at the time, and its star, Joaquin Phoenix, won an Academy Award. Greenlighting a sequel was a no-brainer. However, "Joker: Folie " Deux," which was released in October 2024, made just a fifth of what its predecessor earned at the box office, joining a long list of films that " surprisingly " nobody wanted to see. Pixar had a similar problem this year. After a decade of domination, the animation juggernaut's grip on the box office has been slipping, and nothing made that clearer than the release of "Elio" in June. Though producers, directors, and cast members likely assumed the films on this list would be box-office smashes, many ended up losing tens of millions of dollars. Some lost hundreds of millions. Take a look at the films…...