HFROM SNOW TO DOUGH

hFrom snow to dough
Bev Wagner of Faribault, Minn., puts some finishing touches on the Pillsbury Doughboy that she and her husband, Ray, sculpted out of snow. She said she got the idea from a photo on the Internet. It took the Wagners about three hours to create the 5-foot-tall snow sculpture.
Slow sales worry retailershoping for holiday boom
NEW YORK -- Retailers remained anxious Sunday, after the last full weekend of shopping before Christmas appeared robust but not spectacular, despite generous bargains for many goods. The retail industry -- which had an uneven start to the holiday season and has seen disappointing crowds at the malls since -- was hoping for a big sales bonanza. But with lean inventories and the final critical days still yet to come, stores are not panicking. Again, merchants are relying on procrastinators during the final days before Christmas and post-holiday sales -- expected to be boosted by the redemption of gift cards.
Arrested in sex assault
NEW YORK (AP) -- A man accused of sexually assaulting a woman while posing as a firefighter was charged with kidnapping, sexual abuse and other offenses, authorities said Sunday. Peter Braunstein, 42, also is charged with burglary and robbery in the Halloween attack, said Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau's spokeswoman Barbara Thompson. He faces a Tennessee charge of assaulting a police officer, as well. Braunstein, a former fashion writer, was arrested at the University of Memphis after a campus police officer confronted him Friday afternoon.
Sharon suffers stroke
JERUSALEM -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a mild stroke Sunday, but his condition quickly improved and his doctor said he was expected to be released from the hospital after a few days. Sharon aides said he was lucid and in control of the government. Sharon never lost consciousness, said Yuval Weiss, deputy director of Jerusalem's Hadassah Hospital. The premier was expected to be released after undergoing tests. Sharon's personal physician, Bolek Goldman, said the prime minister, who is 77 and extremely overweight, would be hospitalized "for a few days," although Weiss said Sharon would be discharged "shortly." Sharon was treated with blood thinners and had no problems with his motor skills, Goldman said.
Thieves' truck found
LONDON -- British police said Sunday they found a flatbed truck and crane that were apparently used in the theft of a $5.2 million Henry Moore sculpture from the artist's estate north of London. The truck and crane, discovered in the area Saturday night, were filmed by a security camera as they took the two-ton "Reclining Figure" bronze sculpture from the Henry Moore Foundation estate in the county of Hertfordshire, police said.
Deal on farm exports
HONG KONG -- WTO negotiators cut a last-minute deal Sunday on ending farm export subsidies and other trade barriers, claiming modest progress toward their goal of forging a global trade pact by late 2006. The agreement was a badly needed breakthrough for the World Trade Organization, whose credibility was on the line after devastating collapses of two of its last three key meetings.
Socialist candidate leads
COCHABAMBA, Bolivia -- Bolivia's Socialist presidential candidate Evo Morales, who has promised to become Washington's "nightmare," held an unexpectedly strong lead over his conservative rival in Sunday's election, according to two independent exit polls. The wide margin means Morales, a coca farmer who has said he will end a U.S.-backed anti-drug campaign aimed at eradicating the crop, will likely be declared president in January. Morales had 45 percent of the vote and former President Jorge Quiroga had 33 percent in an Equipso Mori poll.
Associated Press