Stephens designer shines
By SEAN SPOSITO of the Tribune’s staff
Beyond the rows of dental chairs and the sounds of drills and gargling, you can still smell fresh paint in Brad Russell’s newly opened 5,000-square-foot dental office.

Change is in the wind
McClatchy Newspapers
BAD AXE, Mich. - At a time when most people choose to avoid the harsh winter winds that roar past corn stubble and whip up billowing dust clouds over table-flat fields, farmers in the Thumb of Michigan now talk about catching the wind and all the money that comes with it.

Weak retail numbers dampen stock trading
NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks finished largely flat yesterday as investors returned from the Christmas holiday to news of weaker-than-expected retail sales. A jump in oil prices also concerned Wall Street.

Durable goods orders edge up in November
WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. factories saw orders for costly manufactured goods rise only marginally in November - falling short of expectations for a much bigger gain and underscoring the strains to the economy from housing and credit problems.

Sallie Mae to raise cash through stock sale
WASHINGTON (AP) - Student lender Sallie Mae said yesterday that it would sell $2.5 billion in stock and use most of the proceeds to settle contracts requiring the company to buy back stock at prices above current levels.

United cancels flights for fourth straight day
DENVER (AP) United Airlines, still recovering from weekend storms in the Midwest, canceled dozens more flights today as the second winter storm since Christmas threatened to pile 20 inches of new snow on Colorado.

Mint unveils next round of dollar coins
WASHINGTON (AP) - Coming soon on new presidential dollar coins - Old Hickory, Old Kinderhook, Old Man Eloquent and the Last of the Cocked Hats.

Iran, Malaysia team to develop gas fields
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran and Malaysia signed a $16 billion agreement to develop two Iranian gas fields, state-run television reported yesterday, describing the deal as the largest energy contract in Iran.

Feds ready for count of farmers
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - Just as the crush of Christmas cards and holiday packages in the mail dwindles, the U.S. Department of Agriculture is gearing up to send census forms to millions of farmers and ranchers nationwide.

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