(BPT) - Thanks to foreclosures and short sales, home buyers are snatching up great houses at reduced prices and remodeling to create stylish modern homes. Lucky for those buyers, many of today’s top trends are relatively easy to recreate, and will add re-sale value to their homes.

Need help finding which majors are offered at UC, CSU and California Community Colleges? Find information about a specific major, search for majors that may interest you, or find all of the majors offered at UC and CSU.

A Lodi woman was arrested at Kohl's department store on Wednesday after attempting to steal several items of children's clothing, said Sgt. Mike Oden of the Lodi Police Department.

The San Joaquin County Public Health Services Department is warning that using surma, kohl and kajal around the eyes can lead to lead poisoning and cause brain damage in young children.

Stockton Storm FC 04G Elite Win 2012 Under 9 Girls State Cup Soccer Championship

Holiday shoppers had three choices if they wanted to get their gifts early. Friday was Black Friday, in which stores offered goods that brought shoppers to the store before the sun rose. Saturday was Small-Business Saturday, which had great participation from Downtown Lodi merchants. Then there was Cyber Monday, where people could purchase discounted items, but only through the business' website.

Check the ads. Make your list. Ready the team. Black Friday is coming more quickly than ever, with many stores starting their sales on Thursday night. Eager shoppers looking to score a great deal may leave the Thanksgiving table for a quick nap before heading to the stores.

A letter writer complains that the ignorant Republicans in office rule his retirement ("A penny per stamp would provide peace of mind," Aug. 7). Since the Republicans are the minority in Congress, they can show up but now with a simple majority their vote is meaningless.

Between 8 a.m. Friday and 8 a.m. Monday, the Lodi Police Department received 489 calls for service. Below is a sample of those calls.

If you are looking for an inexpensive way to keep your kids cool for the remainder of the summer, try making homemade popsicles. You can:

On Monday morning, Lodi resident Morris McCoy got out of his car and straight into his new electric wheelchair that he received from a woman he has never met.

Two women were arrested Friday after police said they posed as nurses to gain access to the home of an elderly disabled man and then stole his credit cards.

It depends where you go in Lodi to see how crowded it is the day after Christmas.

For an inexpensive but orderly way to display Christmas cards that come in the mail, make your own holiday cardholder. All you need is a wooden shutter, some spray paint, poster board, hooks and a sawtooth picture hanger. For instructions on how to make it, visit http://www.thecouponboutique.com/frugal-decorating-with-courtney-diy-holiday-cardholder.html.

Set out your running shoes and travel coffee mugs. Black Friday sales are starting in a matter of hours. Are you ready?

Businesses throughout Lodi are gearing up for the holidays, but each is handling the anticipated rush of customers and commerce in a different way.

Someone rammed a stolen car into a window at Kohl's department store on Kettleman Lane and stole several cases of jewelry at about 5 a.m. Saturday, according to Lodi police.

Remember when you were a kid and Saturday came?  For me it meant up early with cold cereal and cartoons.  And not today's stilted animated crap or feel good, morally centered ones like Barney, Care Bears or Dora the Explorer, who's main goal is to sell merchandise and not entertain anyway.  Nope!  We're talking Looney Tunes with Bugs, Sylvester, Tweety, Porky Pig and my personal favorite Daffy Duck.  This was a time where no one was overly concerned if it was damaging to the childhood psyche if Elmer Fudd blew Daffy's beak off repeatedly with a shotgun.  But by 11:00 the TV was off and it was back to real life and chores. 

Katie Westerterp put on a dominating performance, winning four events for the Lodi Flames varsity girls in a 75.5-46.5 loss to the visiting Lincoln Trojans.

Tokay High School junior Amelia Seefeldt has a heart for people, travel and God. She’s decided to use her four years of high school to reach out and help as many people as possible, whether its working with local homeless through her church or traveling to other states or other countries. By selling her homemade necklaces and earrings, she is raising money to go to Japan this summer on her fourth mission trip. Here, Seefeldt talks about her beading fundraiser, Beads of Hope, and her passion for missions.