JC Stroebel became something of a cult hero within the Timberwolves fan base during the playoff run from a couple of years ago. That’s when Stroebel and his good friend Jesse George started inking $20 tattoos with the namesake of Timberwolves big man Naz Reid.

Now the Timberwolves fan base is giving back to the man who started the movement.

After recent tests revealed that Strobel has a brain tumor the size of a golf ball, a GoFundMe page has been set up to help him and his family navigate the unforeseen circumstances. The online fundraiser has already amassed more than $44,000 with a growing list of donations.

“While the exact diagnosis and prognosis of the tumor type won’t be known until after surgery, it’s clear that our friends have a long road of uncertainty in the months ahead,” wrote good friend Kellyanne Anderson, who set up the GoFundMe page.

In a recent post on social media, Stroebel said he’s set to have surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester next week to remove a brain tumor, then will have to undergo chemotherapy and radiation in the aftermath.

“I’m kinda at a loss for words,” Stroebel wrote. “I know we’re gonna fight this and win.”

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Wearing secondhand skates purchased for the occasion, St. Paul’s next mayor completed puck-handling drills Tuesday at the downtown TRIA rink as she weighed joining the Northland Cup, the annual hockey game between employees of the city and Ramsey County.

Kaohly Her has plenty of experience as an ice skater and rollerblader, but the intensity of a hockey game — even one played as a friendly fundraiser to benefit victims of domestic violence — is an entirely different arena. The same could be said for a policymaker suddenly holding executive office in a city government spanning more than 3,000 employees and serving over 300,000 residents.

The city’s “strong mayor” system of governance leaves key decisions directly in Her’s hands. Rather than contribute to a collective body like the House, the former state representative will take center stage in the contact sport that is city politics: hiring and firing city leaders, wrestling the city council over budget matters and setting the municipal agenda at a tumultuous time for the city, state and nation as a whole.

As a result of the city’s transition to even-year elections in 2028, Her’s term will span three years, giving her especially little time to do all of the above and more.

Her, the city’s first Hmong mayor and its first female mayor, will be sworn in during an inauguration ceremony Jan. 2 at St. Catherine University. That same day, she’ll attend a private ceremony with her family and members of the city’s Hmong community, where Hmong leaders will lead her through their own cultural swearing-in of sorts.

Her’s transition team still is choosing the venue for an inaugural gala, Jan. 30. In the meantime, she’s been active, if not prolific, on social media, especially Facebook, where her “Kaohly Her For St. Paul Mayor” page reads like a roadmap through the city’s cultural organizations.

In one social media post, she’s lighting a giant Hanukkah menorah. In another, she’s visiting with the West Side Community Organization about air-quality concerns. In yet another, she’s congratulating Meg Luger-Nikolai for winning the DFL primary in House District 64A, the seat Her gave up just weeks ago.

“Today I spent time helping deliver groceries to families who are fearful of leaving their homes,” Her wrote Wednesday from her “MayorKaohlyHer” account on Instagram, in a caption beneath pictures of herself at a Latin grocery. “Less than a month ago … our friends at this Eastside Mercado were stopped by ICE and interrogated. They were targeted because of how they look.”

“Thankfully but sadly, they had passports on hand and ICE could not apprehend them,” she wrote. “Many people are looking to their elected officials to do something about the chaos this federal administration is inflicting on our communities, but in all honesty, there is not much we can. What we can do is show up in community and help those in need.”

Re-evaluating city programs

Her, who won 48% of the vote in the five-way mayoral race after ballot reallocation Nov. 4, unseated two-term incumbent Melvin Carter, the city’s first Black mayor, who in his first term eight years ago also was its youngest mayor and arguably its most progressive.

Will Her stay the course on Carter’s progressive agenda, refocus it or abandon it completely? That remains uncertain, perhaps even to her. At a time of rising property taxes, growing questions about neighborhood quality-of-life issues and vacant and foreclosed properties downtown, she’s promised to reevaluate potentially duplicative services, on top of rebuilding connections with key partners, including state lawmakers and the Ramsey County Board.

So far, she hasn’t indicated whether she’ll overhaul Carter’s slate of department directors or some of the mayor’s projects and Cabinet roles, though some turnover has long been in process. Current directors have been asked to stick around for now.

Her “extended an invitation to department directors to continue in their current positions into the new year,” said Matt Wagenius, her campaign and transition team spokesperson, in a written statement on Wednesday, “so they can continue getting to know one another, ensure continuity of service across the departments, and make a proper evaluation of whether they are a good fit in their current capacity for our new administration.”

Still, some department leaders already have left, and several positions have long been in a kind of semi-permanent transition.

Fire Chief Butch Inks retired from city employment this month, and some departments — such as the Office of Financial Empowerment, which Carter created in his first term, and the department of Human Rights and Equal Economic Opportunity — have been led by interim directors or co-directors for more than a year. Brooke Blakey recently stepped down as director of the city’s Office of Neighborhood Safety, another Carter innovation.

Her, who was Carter’s policy director in his first term, worked closely on establishing the city’s $15 minimum wage and college savings accounts for the city’s newborns, two initiatives she’ll now be in the position of reevaluating, alongside many others.

With regard to program priorities, Wagenius said Her received “detailed briefings from all 15 city departments as of late last week, and now she is in the evaluation phase. No decisions have been made regarding changes to existing programs.”

Hiring timeline

Applications closed Dec. 24 for a handful of positions internal to the mayor’s office, including associate of constituent services, policy aide, and the mayor’s scheduler and executive team coordinator.

Her spent two days last week at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., meeting with other mayors from across the country for a crash course in municipal leadership through the Bloomberg Center for Cities.

“We’ve been diving deep into case studies on building high-performing teams and modernizing organizational structures,” Her wrote Dec. 17 on Facebook. “I’m walking away with new tools for city management and a roadmap for fresh funding and foundation partnerships. I can’t wait to put these insights to work for Saint Paul!”

Her has also kept busy since Election Day visiting the city’s seven political wards, meeting with city council members and community leaders.

She toured Highland Park and Macalester-Groveland with Council Member Saura Jost, the Midway and surrounding areas with Council Member Molly Coleman and part of the East Side with an aide to Council Member Cheniqua Johnson, who is on family leave following the birth of her first child.

Among those she encountered during her Ward 7 tour were Latino business owners concerned about federal immigration enforcement operations scaring away their customers, shop owners worried about a state road construction project along Arcade Street, a church leader raising money for a community center, and nonprofits like St. Paul Urban Tennis, which has big plans for a former dumping ground.

In the final week of December, the new mayor will tour downtown, Grand Avenue, the West Side and surrounding areas with Council President Rebecca Noecker, and the Frogtown and Summit-University neighborhoods with Council Member Anika Bowie.

In the first week of January, Her will visit the East Side with Council Member Nelsie Yang and the North End and Como area with Council Vice President HwaJeong Kim.

The professional life of a mayor isn’t a clear-cut 9-to-5 job, and Her’s semi-social calendar already is filling up outside of business hours. The World Junior Ice Hockey Championship skates into downtown Dec. 26 to Jan. 5, bringing the best skaters under age 20 from 10 countries to Grand Casino Arena and the University of Minnesota along with 250,000 hockey fans, press and entourage.

On New Year’s Eve, as thousands of visitors exit the U.S. vs. Sweden game at Grand Casino Arena, Her plans to be there to greet them.

In a festive and early start to the new year, Visit St. Paul — the city’s tourism bureau — will drop a giant, disco-themed hockey puck in downtown Rice Park around 8 p.m., immediately followed by fireworks. It’s perhaps as fitting a metaphor as any for the optimism and concerns surrounding new beginnings and tumultuous times.

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By ADITHI RAMAKRISHNAN, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — People stop reading in adulthood for lots of reasons. But it’s never too late to turn the page on old habits and start again.

Curling up with a good book can reduce stress, increase creativity and boost empathy. A recent analysis of U.S. government data found that the percentage of Americans who read for pleasure during an average day has fallen to 16% in 2023 from 28% in 2004. That includes not just books but audiobooks, e-books and periodicals like magazines.

Some people say they’re fatigued from years of assigned reading in school. Others don’t have the time or would rather zone out by doom-scrolling on social media. And many just got out of the habit.

“It’s difficult for people who are really tired and busy to think about getting into reading if it’s not something they’re used to,” said Jacqueline Rammer, director of Menomonee Falls Public Library in Wisconsin.

For those looking to set reading goals or resolutions in 2026, here’s how to get back into the habit.

Choose the right book

When picking your next book, avoid dense nonfiction or a 500-page doorstop.

“Your first book should be something that you think will be joyful,” said Jocelyn Luizzi, a software engineer from Chicago who blogs about books.

Everyone’s taste is different, so get recommendations from a variety of places including friends, booksellers and online communities like BookTok.

Rammer and her staff ask library visitors: What was the last book, TV show or movie that you really enjoyed? Then, they look for similar genres or themes.

Many libraries offer access to a service called NoveList which suggests “read-alikes” for various books and authors.

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Set a reading routine

To create a habit that sticks, “start by scheduling reading into your day,” said Gloria Mark, an attention span expert with the University of California, Irvine. Read five pages during a lunch break or right before bed.

If you’re reading a physical book, Mark said to avoid distractions by keeping phones and laptops out of sight.

But experimenting with other formats can make reading more convenient. E-books are portable and audiobooks are a good candidate to accompany chores or the morning commute. You can likely access both for free by downloading an app called Libby and signing in with a library card.

Try to read in a quiet setting, but don’t be afraid to make it a social activity. Many cities in the U.S. and around the world host silent book clubs where people read their own books together in coffee shops and libraries.

Setting a reading goal for the year or joining a local library’s winter reading challenge can help with motivation — but if it feels like added pressure, don’t do it.

Shannon Whitehead Smith, a book blogger from the Atlanta area who also works in marketing, says scrolling through lists of other people’s reads on social media and trackers like StoryGraph encourages her to keep the habit.

“Seeing all these other people reading motivates me to put my phone down and pick up this book that’s sitting beside me,” she said.

Feel free to skip a read

If a book feels particularly sluggish, it’s OK to put it down and start another. Reading “shouldn’t feel like a burden,” said Jess Bone with University College London, who analyzed the survey data about American adults reading for pleasure.

Routine readers say the habit helps them stay curious and release the stress of the day. Rammer, the library director, reads mysteries rife with twists and turns, and romances that cycle through roller coasters of emotions.

Most of all, she likes books that end with a “happily ever after.”

“I think the guarantee of knowing that things are going to end up OK is really reassuring,” Rammer said.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

By Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times

LOS ANGELES — Even with inflation, endless air travel complaints and the recent flight cancellations caused by the government shutdown, millions of Americans, including me, will begin their holiday celebrations on a plane. And while some are already making their packing lists, I am more concerned about what I should watch. In addition to getting you where you want to go, those hours spent in uncomfortable seats — first at the gate and then on board — are a guilt-free opportunity to catch up on or revisit great shows and films.

In-flight viewing is a specific, and sometimes unintentionally communal, viewing experience; not everything works. Choose tearjerkers and musicals with care. Ugly crying over “The Notebook” or singing along with “Wicked” might feel great, but it can cause your fellow passengers unnecessary consternation and/or annoyance.

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If you are traveling with or seated near children, you should avoid hard-R-rated fare — as I discovered while briefly attempting to watch “Game of Thrones” while seated beside my then-young son, nudity and beheadings don’t need the sound on to be inappropriate.

Likewise, avoid anything that involves tragic or problematic air travel — catch up on the “Final Destination” franchise another time — and you also might want to skip full-attention-demanding subtitles. The perfect airplane watch allows you to immerse yourself while also remaining aware of what’s happening around you. (Including and especially requests from flight attendants.)

With all these considerations in mind, here are some suggestions.

Watch at the gate

Comedy series are best, for obvious mood-sweetening reasons (should delays occur), but also because the episodes are short and tend not to have dramatic moments that might keep you watching even after your group number has been called.

“Schitt’s Creek” (Amazon)

Each episode of this perfectly addictive series about a once-rich (and very dysfunctional) family that finds itself forced to start anew in a small town will make you laugh no matter how many times you’ve seen it.

“Derry Girls” (Netflix)

Those unfamiliar with the Northern Ireland accent may find it necessary to use subtitles, which I just cautioned against. But this show is worth breaking the rules for. Living through the Troubles in 1990s Derry, five Catholic school friends and their families cope hilariously with everyday issues, including school life under the redoubtable eye of Sister Michael (Siobhán McSweeney).

“New Girl” (Hulu)

The shenanigans of friends/roomies Jess (Zooey Deschanel), Nick (Jake Johnson), Schmidt (Max Greenfield), Winston (Lamorne Morris) and Cece (Hannah Simone) are always a delight.

“Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (Netflix)

Any time’s a good time to watch the greatest police comedy series since “Barney Miller.” Andy Samberg’s Jake Peralta heads a misfit but inevitably successful team of New York detectives, headed by the driest, wisest chief in TV history — Captain Holt, played by the late, great Andre Braugher.

“Abbott Elementary” (Hulu)

Celebrate the holidays with this quick-witted, revelatory and very sweet teacher-centric mockumentary-comedy created by and starring Quinta Brunson. Compared with classroom chaos, even the airport will seem like an oasis of tranquility.

“What We Do in the Shadows” (Hulu)

If you somehow missed this hilariously unique comedy-horror mockumentary about a group of vampires living in modern-day Staten Island, now is the time to rectify that.

Watch on domestic flights

All of the above comedy series work here as well — but movies are best, especially if you can time it so the film begins when altitude is achieved and ends as you’re returning your seat backs and tray tables to their full upright positions.

FILMS:

“The Da Vinci Code” (AMC+)

The perfect in-flight film, “The Da Vinci Code” offers something like cultural edification (the Louvre! The Knights Templar! Biblical history!) while not forcing you to think too much. A tour of Paris, great action sequences, the always endearing Tom Hanks and a literally beatific conclusion.

“Spy” (Amazon)

Melissa McCarthy is an everywoman intelligence agent who chooses to go into the field for the first time in this strangely unsung hero of modern comedy. Guaranteed to make you laugh even if you’re stuck in the middle seat. (Also set in Paris, it’s a perfect double feature with “The Da Vinci Code” for those five-hour flights.)

“Crazy Rich Asians” (Netflix)

Jon M. Chu’s glorious romantic comedy will transport you into a world far beyond the dreary confines of contemporary air travel and make you feel, if only for a moment, that you too are flying in a first-class compartment that contains an actual double bed.

“Iron Man” (Disney+)

Travel back in time to the moment when Robert Downey Jr. jump-started the Marvel Cinematic Universe and remind yourself why. It really is that good.

“Sense and Sensibility” (Amazon)

The exquisite nature of the performances, writing, direction, cinematography and score has made one of the best Jane Austen adaptations a go-to comfort film for when you’re feeling ill. Which is why it’s perfect while flying.

“Paddington” and/or “Paddington 2” (Netflix)

Come for the adorable bear (voiced by Ben Whishaw), stay for the adventure and sweet hijinks (and, in “Paddington 2,” Hugh Grant!). You will reach your destination feeling more kindly to your fellow travelers, which can only improve any trip.

“Edge of Tomorrow” (Netflix)

Tom Cruise teams up with Emily Blunt to battle an alien invasion, with some help from time travel. Classic dystopian thriller with several clever twists. If you’re feeling hot and cramped, just think of Cruise and Blunt in those super suits.

“The Martian” (Netflix)

Feel bad that your flight got delayed and you might not make your connection? A little time spent with Matt Damon’s astronaut, stranded for years on Mars, will put everything in perspective. At least you don’t have to figure out how to grow potatoes in hostile soil.

“Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” (Amazon)

The ultimate full-immersion movie sees four teenagers sucked into a survival adventure game in which their avatars are played by Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart and Karen Gillan.

“Skyfall” (Amazon)

Honestly, most Bond films are a good choice but Daniel Craig is my favorite Bond and “Skyfall” features a more-than-usual presence of M (Judi Dench). Also, the song.

“Knives Out” (Amazon)

A classic manor house mystery, which revived the genre when it became a hit in 2019, “Knives Out” is the ideal blend of mystery and wit, with a cast of characters to keep you company.

SHOWS:

“Hawkeye” (Disney+)

If you’re looking for a five-hour (or so) miniseries with plenty of Marvel action and a holiday theme, look no further. A year after the events of “Avengers: Endgame,” Hawkeye super fan Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld) teams up with her reluctant hero, Clint Barton (Jeremy Renner), to face down enemies new and old. Oh, and celebrate Christmas in New York.

“Black Mirror” (Netflix)

This sci-fi anthology series is perfect plane viewing because a.) It’s so very good and b.) Each episode is its own story, so you can construct however many hours you need (and, perhaps, catch up on a show so many people continue to talk about).

“Sherlock” (PBS)

Same principle — each episode is essentially a short film and you get to wallow in the wonder of Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock), Martin Freeman (Watson), Mark Gatiss (Mycroft) and all the rest as they solve crimes in modern twists on the classic tales.

Watch on international flights

For flights six hours and longer, you can hunker down and make your way through a film franchise or an entire season or seasons of a television series.

FILMS:

“The Lord of the Rings” trilogy (HBO Max)

Pick the director’s cut of all three and your journey through Middle-earth will take you almost 12 hours, which is about as long as it takes to fly from L.A. to New Zealand, where it was filmed.

“Hunger Games” (HBO Max)

The four films in which Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and friends attempt to wrest a shattered land from the tyranny of President Snow (Donald Sutherland) clock in at about nine hours total, which, with bathroom and meal breaks, should get you from L.A. to London or Paris.

“Mission Impossible” films (Amazon and other platforms)

Although they often include mishaps in the air, the fantastic (in both senses of the word) nature of “Mission: Impossible” makes these films an ideal high-altitude binge. From first to last, they run more than 18 hours, which is, quite frankly, far too many hours of consecutive movie viewing. But with plenty of installments to choose from, you can accept whichever assignments (and Cruise stunts) appeal to you.

“Harry Potter” (HBO Max)

However one feels about J.K. Rowling’s politics, this is a delightful film franchise that’s even longer than “Mission; Impossible” — about 20 hours. But you can start, and stop, the series wherever you want (though I would urge you not to skip the underrated “Order of the Phoenix”).

SHOWS:

“Black Doves” (Netflix)

Keira Knightley and Whishaw play highly unlikely but ruthlessly skilled mercenary spies who work for an ice-cold Sarah Lancashire. The six-hour-long series tells a complete tale (though Season 2 is in the works) and as the events take place in London as Christmas approaches, makes a fine holiday thriller.

“House”

Pick a season, any season (there are eight of them, with an average of 22 episodes each) and the wit, wisdom and scathing insanity of Dr. Gregory House (Hugh Laurie) and his team will carry you through to any destination. And unlike other medical shows, most of the ailments are so bizarre that you won’t have to worry if that cough or twinge is a sign that you’re getting one of them.

“The Durrells in Corfu” (PBS)

It’s 1935 and young widow Louisa Durrell (Keeley Hawes) decides that the answer to her financial straits is to move herself and her four children to the island of Corfu. Sweet and scenic hilarity ensues, and includes the young Josh O’Connor (“The Crown”) and Callum Woodhouse (“All Creatures Great and Small”) as two of Louisa’s sons. Four seasons, 26 episodes. You’re welcome.

“Call the Midwife” (Netflix)

Seasonal purists could just download the dozen or so Christmas episodes of this long-running and still-exceptional drama about a group of midwives working out of a convent in London’s East End. (Between the nuns and the babies, the specials are always wonderful.) But if you haven’t seen the series, best to start with Season 1 and keep going.

“Mare of Easttown” (HBO Max)

If you somehow missed Kate Winslet’s turn as a small-town Pennsylvania cop (with a great Delco accent) who is trying to solve a brutal murder, then this is your chance. If you didn’t, well, it’s time for an eight-hour rewatch in which you can use the time you spent wondering who dunit to admire all the terrific acting.

“Slow Horses” (Apple TV)

The butt-numbing hours will fly by like minutes when you immerse yourself in the TV adaptation of the first five of Mick Herron’s Slough House novels. Gary Oldman is having a blast as Jackson Lamb, the greasy, rumpled, sharp-tongued and strategically flatulent keeper of a den of MI5 misfits. Who somehow manage to save the day.

“The Crown” (Netflix)

Think your flight is long? Consider the reign of the late Queen Elizabeth, played over the course of six seasons by Claire Foy, Olivia Colman and Imelda Staunton. For a full immersive experience, it’s tough to beat the royal settings, period clothes and changing times. And with 60 hours at your fingertips, you can move through history without ever leaving your seat.

“30 Rock” (Hulu)

Tina Fey’s send-up of a fictional “Saturday Night Live”-type show, and satirical look at the television business in general, is just as biting and gimlet-eyed as it was when it premiered almost 20 years ago. It got better as it aged, so for purposes of downloading, look to Seasons 4 and 5.

“Parks and Recreation” (Peacock/Amazon)

Life is always better when you spend some time with Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler), Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman), April Ludgate (Aubrey Plaza) and the many fine public servants in Pawnee, Indiana’s city government. The mockumentary series found its feet in Season 2, so you might want to start there.

“The Wire” (HBO Max)

David Simon’s five-season Baltimore-based crime drama is definitely R-rated (thus breaking one of our earlier stated rules) but it is the show that is consistently listed as one of the best — if not the best — TV dramas ever. So if a long-haul flight demands that you binge, why not binge big?

©2025 Los Angeles Times. Visit latimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.