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The Olympian's O2Go Mobile for Thursday, Dec. 20, 2007

From the front page

'Juno' showcases Olympia musician
Kimya Dawson's stripped-down and quirky songs sound as if they were torn from a diary. How did the Olympia-based K Records artist wind up prominently featured on the soundtrack of "Juno"? Ellen Page, the star of the film, said Dawson's music seemed to be what the movie's main character, a deep-thinking pregnant teenager, would listen to.

Tumwater Wal-Mart clears hurdle
Wal-Mart cleared a major hurdle Wednesday in its proposal to build a 187,000-square-foot Supercenter on Littlerock Road Southwest. A Tumwater hearing examiner denied appeals filed about the project's environmental review and the city's site-plan approval.

More than 5,000 apply for area FEMA relief
As of Tuesday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has received 5,187 applications from flood victims in five of the counties eligible for individual aid: Thurston, Lewis, Grays Harbor, Mason and Pacific. Of the applications, 1,086 have been approved.

Payments vary for vets dealing with disability
Veterans coming home from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with debilitating mental ailments are discovering that their disability payments from the government vary widely depending on where they live, an exclusive McClatchy Newspapers analysis has found.

South Sound

Salvation Army helps 848 families
The Salvation Army, Olympia Corps, opened its annual Toy N' Joy Shop on Wednesday, and it will continue today for 578 prescreened South Sound families. The families can pick up gifts for their children, get a food basket and select a family toy. This week, The Salvation Army also distributed food, clothing and toys to 270 families that were adopted by local businesses or organizations.

Low-income health care advocate secures federal funding
Thurston County-based CHOICE Regional Health Network, which works to help low-income people get health care, has secured $286,889 in the federal budget bill on its way to President Bush for signing.

City of Olympia adds more online services
People now can register and pay for Olympia parks programs and see when facilities such as meeting rooms and picnic shelters are available, all on the city's Web site. People also can pay traffic tickets, read utility bills and make construction inspection requests on the Web site. Go to www.ci.olympia.wa.us to test out the new features.

State incomes the fastest-rising in nation
A day after Gov. Chris Gregoire said she was not fearful for the state's economy, her budget aides pointed to fresh U.S. Commerce Department data showing that Washington residents' incomes rose at the fastest rate in the country in recent months.

State helps students affected by flooding
Community college students affected by the recent flooding will get some tuition help for the next two quarters. The state board that runs community colleges approved up to $230,000 in tuition relief Wednesday.

Business

Gambling-ad suit costs companies
The three largest Internet companies - Microsoft Corp., Yahoo Inc. and Google Inc. - have agreed to pay a combined $31.5 million to settle federal civil allegations they took ads for illegal gambling, the U.S. Attorney for eastern Missouri said Wednesday.

Sports

Alexander's future with Seahawks is cloudy
While Shaun Alexander has been putting up the worst statistics of his career and looking like the poster boy for running backs who decline after the age of 30, the Seahawks aren't giving up on him yet. During his Wednesday news conference, Seahawks head coach Mike Holmgren continued to defend Alexander's play, saying injuries and poor blocking have been factors. But the statistics don't bode well for Alexander's future in Seattle. Alexander's base salary will bump up from $1.4 million this season to $4.475 million in 2008, according to the NFL Player Association's Web site. The salary will climb by more than $1 million per season in each of the following five years, so it's almost guaranteed he will either be cut or have his contract restructured in the near future.

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The Olympian - O2Go Mobile for Thursday, Dec. 20, 2007