Pick up your camera and start thinking images: a leaf falling softly from one of the Narrows Bridges, a sunrise over Mount Rainier, a trio of playful kittens on a farm in Orting.

And there will be a prize.

The Tacoma Regional Convention + Visitor Bureau has announced its 2011 Fall Photo Contest.

The contest is open to entries that include images of the people, places, art or nature in Tacoma and/or Pierce County. The contest runs through Nov. 21 and is open to amateurs and professionals alike.

According to the bureau, entries will be judged on creativity …

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And as far as consumer prices go here at home …

Although the activities should never be attempted simultaneously, the past two months have been relatively good for people who drive and for people who drink.

While overall prices in the Tacoma-Bremerton-Seattle area were up 0.8 percent in May and June, the cost of alcoholic beverages fell 0.8 percent and gasoline was down 1.4 percent.

So said the Bureau of Labor Statistics in its regular report, issued Friday.

On an annual basis, overall prices were up 3.2 percent, the Bureau said. This is the highest annualized level of inflation since …

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