Both of them are senior to me in rank and age, and they pooh-pooh the notion that anything but water vapor is being exhaled. Am I making something out of nothing, or should I be worried about this? -- CLEAN AIR

DEAR CLEAN AIR: You don't have anything to worry about, but your co-workers may. In 2009, the FDA announced the findings from a laboratory analysis that indicated that electronic cigarettes expose users to harmful chemical ingredients, including carcinogens. However, those elements were not detected in exhaled vapor.

DEAR ABBY: The woman who collaborated with me on this letter is in her 80s and lives at an assisted-living facility. I am a caregiver and a senior myself, and I have worked in this area for six years.

We read your column on the days I care for her. She loves it and responds verbally to all the letters. Many times the situations spark good conversation, even though her short-term memory is failing. Sometimes we end up howling with laughter. She's a delight and has the courage to still seek out relationships.

This is what she asked me to help her to communicate. -- KATE IN AUSTIN, TEXAS

DEAR ABBY: I have been in assisted living for seven years. There are times when it can be lonely and boring. I'd like to meet some men for companionship, conversation and perhaps romance. The men here act so much older than me. They don't start conversations. They stay in their rooms and watch TV and don't seem interested in conversations.

It's hard because my memory isn't what it used to be, but I do remember how nice it was to have male companionship. Do you have any ideas to make my life a little more interesting? -- LONELY WOMAN

DEAR LONELY: Start by making sure you participate in all the activities your assisted-living facility offers. Shared mealtimes and holiday celebrations also present opportunities to mingle.

The trick is to find something you have in common with these men -- sports, games, music, movies. Because long-term memory outlasts short-term memory, some of them might find it easier to discuss their youth than the present.

Encourage your caregiver, Kate, to take you places where you can meet other seniors. And while you're at it, why not invite some of the men to join you both during your Dear Abby sessions? It's a way to draw people out and get to know them better.

DEAR ABBY: After a six-month separation, my husband and I are reuniting. We were married for 22 years. I know for a fact he has dated and slept with several women. He's adamant that he used protection each time, but the idea of STDs has me preoccupied and worried. I have asked him to use protection with me until I get over my fear.

How long do most of today's STDs incubate, and what is a safe time to wait to remove the "rain gear"? -- LONGING FOR CONTACT

DEAR LONGING: Congratulations on your reunion. Rather than worry about this, ask your husband to schedule a doctor's appointment and be tested for any STD he might have contracted. Not all STDs have the same incubation period, but a blood test could resolve the issue and put your mind at ease.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby ator P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

For everything you need to know about wedding planning, order "How to Have a Lovely Wedding." Send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby, Wedding Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Shipping and handling are included in the price.)

(Reuters) - Shares in Barnes & Noble Inc soared 22 percent on Thursday after a report that Microsoft Corp is considering an offer to acquire the tablet and e-book business of B&N's Nook Media unit.

The technology website TechCrunch reported that Microsoft, which already owns a 17 percent stake in Nook Media, was proposing a $1 billion offer to buy all of Nook's digital assets.

The report also suggested that Nook would stop selling Android-based tablets entirely by the end of fiscal 2014 in favor of distributing content via other publishers' platforms.

A source familiar with the documents cited by TechCrunch confirmed their authenticity. The source said the documents dated from March, suggesting that any deal - if one is even pending - was not imminent.

It was not clear from the TechCrunch story whether Microsoft had formally made an offer to B&N or whether B&N had replied.

B&N and Microsoft declined to comment.

Microsoft acquired its stake in the Nook Media unit a little more than a year ago in a deal that valued the entire unit at $1.7 billion. In December the British publisher Pearson Plc bought a stake in the unit at a $1.8 billion valuation.

But Nook Media sales have disappointed since. Revenue dropped 26 percent in the most recent holiday quarter as Nook sold fewer digital readers and tablets and had to cut prices. Just this week B&N slashed the price of its best tablet by one-third as a special promotion for Mother's Day.

It was not immediately clear why Microsoft would want to buy Nook's digital assets, unless it wished to make a preemptive strike against Google and shift Nook away from the Android platform. There is already a Nook app for Windows 8 devices.

Microsoft's recent acquisitions - such as online chat service Skype and business networking site Yammer - have not been content-focused.

Barclays analyst Alan Rifkin, in a note to clients on Thursday, said a lower valuation for the Nook Media unit was appropriate and that $1 billion was even higher than he had modeled.

B&N shares rose 22 percent to $21.70 in afternoon trading. The stock last traded at those levels a year ago, around the time of the Microsoft investment.

The stock is heavily shorted, with almost 36 percent of its float sold short as of April 15. Short sellers borrow stocks and sell them, betting the price will fall. Where short interest is high, that can exacerbate a rally, as people rush in to cover their positions.

Credit Suisse, in a note to clients, said the suggested terms of the Microsoft offer implied that Barnes & Noble was worth about $27 per share.

COLLEGE BOOKSTORE CHAIN

Nook Media also includes a college bookstore chain, but the TechCrunch report suggested the Microsoft offer would include only the e-book, digital reader and tablet assets.

If Microsoft carves the college bookstore chain out of the Nook Media unit, and B&N takes back those stores, Credit Suisse said the valuation of B&N could rise even higher.

While the college bookstore chain has provided B&N with much needed cash, sales have been weak. In the first three quarters of the fiscal year, sales fell 0.3 percent, while operating profit fell 7 percent to $115.8 million.

The college textbook business is undergoing a transformation with the shift to digital, as publishers move away from large, heavy books that last for years to multiple packages with smaller bites of content.

Companies like News Corp and Apple have started to make plays on the digital textbook market as that shift accelerates.

COULD SPEED OTHER SALES

Earlier this year, B&N Chairman Leonard Riggio said he wanted to buy the company's chain of nearly 700 namesake bookstores. Selling off Nook could simplify that process, especially if it reunited Riggio with the college bookstore business, which he sold to B&N in 2009.

B&N first indicated it might spin off the Nook business in early 2012. The retailer has spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the unprofitable unit, trying to make its devices competitive against devices from Amazon, Apple and Google, among others.

The latest IDC market share data for tablets, released earlier this month, leaves B&N out of the industry's top five vendors, suggesting its share of the global market is negligible. Microsoft's new Surface tablets - the first of which hit the market last October - have only a 1.8 percent share.

B&N has typically launched a new edition of the Nook every year. But this year it simply updated its high-definition tablets by adding Google's app store, which a number of analysts saw as an easy way for the company to launch a "new" Nook.

One uncertainty in any Microsoft bid is how Liberty Media would respond. It holds preferred shares in B&N that, if converted, would represent 17 percent of the company. Liberty was not immediately available to comment.

One analyst following Barnes & Noble said a Microsoft deal, if it happens, would be dramatic but not necessarily surprising.

"We must be careful here because details are lacking, but with devices phasing out, we see sale of the digital assets as an effective sale of the entire Nook business, unless co-ownership or leasing of digital content is arranged," Stifel analyst David Schick said in a research note.

(Reporting by Phil Wahba and Ben Berkowitz; Additional reporting by Liana B. Baker and Bill Rigby; Editing by Alden Bentley, Theodore d'Afflisio and John Wallace)

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - EBay Inc pulled a listing on Wednesday for a Nike Inc t-shirt displaying the phrase "Boston Massacre," citing the online marketplace's policy against "offensive materials."

The t-shirt was listed for sale earlier this week on eBay and received bids of more than $150,000, according to bid history on the company's website.

The t-shirt refers to the rivalry between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox baseball teams and has images of red blood spattered on the word Boston.

In the wake of the Boston Marathon attack, Nike pulled all the shirts from stores, but a used one turned up on eBay.

An eBay spokeswoman said the shirt was removed because it violated a company policy that bans listings of items that promote or glorify hatred, violence, racial, sexual, or religious intolerance, or promote organizations with such views.

EBay will also remove listings that graphically portray graphic violence or victims of violence, unless they have substantial social, artistic, or political value, according to the policy.

A check on Wednesday afternoon by Reuters confirmed that the listing was taken down.

(Reporting by Alistair Barr; Editing by Nick Zieminski)

"Every little bit makes a difference" and the intensity doesn't matter just getting a minimum amount of exercise does, said Dr. Mathew Sorensen of the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle.

He led the study, which was to be discussed Friday at an American Urological Association conference in San Diego.

About 9 percent of people will get a kidney stone sometime in their life. The problem is a little more common in men, but incidence has risen 70 percent over the last 15 years, most rapidly among women.

Obesity raises the risk as do calcium supplements, which many women take after menopause. A government task force recently advised against supplements for healthy older women, saying that relatively low-dose calcium pills don't do much to keep bones strong but make kidney stones more likely.

The new research involved nearly 85,000 women 50 and older in the government-funded Women's Health Initiative study. All had an exam to measure weight and height so doctors could figure out their body mass index, a gauge of obesity. They also filled out annual surveys on what they ate, so researchers could take into account things known to lower the risk of kidney stones, such as drinking a lot of fluids and eating less salt or meat.

Participants said how much exercise they usually got and that was translated into "METs" a measure of how much effort an activity takes. For example, 10 METs per week is about 2 1/2 hours of walking at a moderate pace, four hours of light gardening or one hour of jogging.

After about eight years, 3 percent of the women had developed a kidney stone. Compared to women who got no leisure-time exercise, those who got up to 5 METs per week had a 16 percent lower risk for stones. The risk was 22 percent lower with 5 to 10 METs per week and 31 percent lower for 10 METs or more. Exercise beyond 10 METs added no additional benefit for kidney stone prevention. Exercise intensity didn't matter just how much women got each week.

"We're not asking people to run marathons. This is just a very mild to moderate additional amount of activity," Sorensen said.

Why might exercise help? It changes the way the body handles nutrients and fluids that affect stone formation. Exercisers sweat out salt and tend to retain calcium in their bones, rather than having these go into the kidneys and urine where stones form. They also tend to drink water and fluids afterwards, another plus for preventing stones.

"There's something about exercise itself that probably produces things in your urine that prevent stone formation," said one expert not involved in the work, Dr. Kevin McVary. He is chairman of urology at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine in Springfield, Ill., and a spokesman for the urology group. "It's not just being skinny or not being fat, it's something about the exercise that protects you."

Exercise is known to cut the risk of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure and other conditions that raise the risk of kidney stones. Next, researchers want to study men and younger women to see if exercise helps prevent kidney stones in them, too .

___

Marilynn Marchione can be followed at http://twitter.com/MMarchioneAP

The New Group's world premiere of this buoyant musical, with book and lyrics by Din, and music by Din and Paul Bogaev, opened Thursday night. Din lyrically imagines a failing Bombay film production company in 1957, Bunty Berman Productions, which must stumble farcically through a number of obstacles in hopes of making a successful new comeback movie.

TNG's founding artistic director Scott Elliott stages over-the-top action that segues seamlessly into sprightly, inventive dance sequences choreographed by Josh Prince, with a variety of diverse, clever songs moving the story along. From the exhilarating first number, "Bombay Opening," to the final sparkling reprise of the irrepressible theme song, "Let's Make a Movie," the accomplished ensemble sings and dances up a veritable monsoon. Cross-dressing surprises and zany plot twists add to the fun.

Unexpectedly, Din (author of "East is East" and the 2008 Olivier-winning "Rafta Rafta," both of which were also made into successful films) had to step into the title role of his new musical shortly after previews began, replacing actor Erick Avari after an injury.

Din's singing is a bit rough at times, but it well-suits his impressive portrayal of a robust, confident film producer/director whose oblivion to petty details like dead bodies is an integral part of his charm.

Long heralded as the toast of Bombay, Bunty has recently become more like burnt toast. Although he made important contributions to Hindi films, such as insisting that "clinging wet saris were here to stay," his recent movies have been described by the fickle critics as "stinkers" and he's now broke, with no more friends at the bank.

Raj Dhawan, (a scene-stealingly hilarious turn by Sorab Wadia), Bunty's old friend and now ungracefully aging studio star, has lost his box office appeal. Raj's once-fabled "hero looks" his soulful gazes into the eyes of his leading ladies have lost their mojo too.

Bunty primarily blames his writer, Nizwar, (a plucky performance by Sevan Greene, displaying resilience despite a steady stream of writer-as-idiot jokes.)

Stock characters who are given fresh bloom by Din's witty, affectionately mocking script include Dolly, Bunty's overlooked but loving secretary of 20 years (Gayton Scott, initially a stork who turns into a swan.) Scott expressively sings of her yearning for Bunty in the lovely ballad, "Can You See Me?"

Bunty's other supporters include a handsome but humble tea-boy (a boyishly appealing performance by Nick Choksi) who hopelessly loves beautiful, prima donna film star Shambervi (charmingly enacted by Lipica Shah). Shah exudes entitlement as Shambervi, giving a particularly strong rendition of "Shambervi's Lament," a bitter song about blind ambition and the price of fame.

Alok Tewari as feared gangster Shankar Dass leads a trio of unsavory, money-laundering and bumbling bad guys that the Marx brothers might have invented, including a petulantly menacing turn by Raja Burrows as his arrogant son.

Music director Boko Suzuki leads the small but mighty orchestra, and all the improbable events take place on a cleverly multi-level sound stage designed by Derek Lane, atmospherically lit by David Lander.

A rainbow array of saris, lavishly swirling dresses and embroidered coats, richly designed by William Ivey Long, enhance the air of Bollywood glitz. Silent black-and-white projections from old Hindi films reinforce how brilliantly Din's fond parody respects and continues this Indian cinematic tradition while very effectively spoofing it.

___

Online: http://www.thenewgroup.org

Dow Jones industrial futures are up 46 points to 15,090. The broader S&P futures have added 4 points to 1,628.60. Nasdaq futures are up 7.5 points to 2,965.50.

The Dow rose above 15,000 for the first time Tuesday and it's stayed there since. The Nasdaq is at 12-year highs. The S&P had risen every day since the beginning of the month until posting a 6-point loss Thursday.

On Friday, the dollar soared above 100 yen for the first time in more than four years.

The Treasury Department releases budget data at 2 p.m. Eastern on Friday and U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is speaking in Chicago.

He has been very "hand-sy" with me -- giving me massages, kissing my cheek -- and this all makes me very uncomfortable. I thought it was because he hasn't seen me in a while, but today as I was leaving to go to my mom's, he slapped my butt as I walked out the door. Now I'm scared. I spend a lot of the day at home with him alone. I don't want things to get out of hand. Any advice? -- WORRIED IN DELAWARE

DEAR WORRIED: Your father has lost three years with you. He may not realize that his "little girl" is no longer a child. That is why it is important that you tell him what he's doing makes you uncomfortable. You should also tell your mother and grandparents about what's happening and that it scares you. You do not have to tolerate unwanted contact, and if it persists, report it to a teacher or counselor at school or contact me again.

DEAR ABBY: I have a dilemma. I work in a small high school in a student support position. Girls come into my office who are pregnant and excited about it! Telling them congratulations for putting themselves in this position seems counterproductive, or like I am endorsing this choice. I don't!

No high school girls -- or boys, for that matter -- should put themselves in a position to be a parent when they themselves aren't fully grown and independent. I feel like saying, "You have ruined your life" instead, but I hold my tongue. What do you suggest? -- DON'T WANT TO ENCOURAGE THEM IN ILLINOIS

DEAR DON'T WANT TO ENCOURAGE: Your job is to support the students, not to condemn or endorse their predicament. Telling a pregnant girl she has ruined her life isn't helpful. What you need to do is encourage the girl to get a diploma while she can.

Too many girls fail to complete their high school education when they have a baby, and it impedes their ability to provide for themselves and their child because they are suited only for minimum-wage jobs. If you are enthusiastic about helping them, your positive attitude may be contagious and inspire them to succeed.

DEAR ABBY: I wrote you a short time ago about my marital problems, but I have to share this with you! My husband, who walked out on me, went to a counselor for a session. Then we went together, and he learned a few things about me and himself.

He is coming back, and we are going to work harder at our marriage. We both recognize there were places where we needed to work together more, that he doesn't need to be afraid to talk to me and I can be pretty understanding.

Thank you so much for being there, Abby. I know you always recommend talking to a counselor before doing anything rash, and you are so right. It made all the difference. -- GRATEFUL WIFE IN ARIZONA

DEAR GRATEFUL: I'm pleased counseling helped to open the clogged lines of communication between you and your husband. While it may seem expensive, it's far cheaper than a divorce can be, both emotionally and financially.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby ator P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

To receive a collection of Abby's most memorable -- and most frequently requested -- poems and essays, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby -- Keepers Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. Shipping and handling are included in the price.

Syria and its patron Iran hinted at possible retribution, though the rhetoric in official statements appeared relatively muted.

Despite new concerns about a regional war, Israeli officials signaled they will keep trying to block what they see as an effort by Iran to send sophisticated weapons to Lebanon's Hezbollah militia ahead of a possible collapse of Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.

Israel has repeatedly threatened to intervene in the Syrian civil war to stop the transfer of what it calls "game-changing" weapons to Hezbollah, a Syrian-backed group that battled Israel to a stalemate during a monthlong war in 2006.

Since carrying out a lone airstrike in January that reportedly destroyed a shipment of anti-aircraft missiles headed to Hezbollah, Israel had largely stayed on the sidelines. That changed over the weekend with a pair of airstrikes, including an attack near a sprawling military complex close to the Syrian capital of Damascus early Sunday that set off a series of powerful explosions.

The Israeli government and military refused to comment. But a senior Israeli official said both airstrikes targeted shipments of Fateh-110 missiles bound for Hezbollah. The Iranian-made guided missiles can fly deep into Israel and deliver powerful half-ton bombs with pinpoint accuracy. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing a covert military operation.

Syria's government called the attacks a "flagrant violation of international law" that has made the Middle East "more dangerous." It also claimed the Israeli strikes proved the Jewish state's links to rebel groups trying to overthrow Assad's regime.

Syria's information minister, Omran al-Zoubi, reading a Cabinet statement after an emergency government meeting, said Syria has the right and duty "to defend its people by all available means."

Israeli defense officials believe Assad has little desire to open a new front with Israel when he is preoccupied with the survival of his regime. More than 70,000 people have been killed since the uprising against Assad erupted in March 2011, and Israeli officials believe it is only a matter of time before Assad is toppled.

Still, Israel seemed to be taking the Syrian threats seriously. Israel's military deployed two batteries of its Iron Dome rocket defense system to the north of the country Sunday. It described the move as part of "ongoing situational assessments."

Israel says the Iron Dome shot down hundreds of incoming short-range rockets during eight days of fighting against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip last November. Hezbollah fired some 4,000 rockets into Israel during the 2006 war, and Israel believes the group now possesses tens of thousands of rockets and missiles.

The Iron Dome deployment followed a surprise Israeli drill last week in which several thousand reservists simulated conflict in the north. In another possible sign of concern, Israel closed the airspace over northern Israel to civilian flights on Sunday and tightened security at embassies overseas, Israeli media reported. Israeli officials would not confirm either measure.

Reflecting fears of ordinary Israelis, the country's postal service, which helps distribute government-issue gas masks, said demand jumped to four times the normal level Sunday.

Israel's deputy defense minister, Danny Danon, would neither confirm nor deny the airstrikes. He said, however, that Israel "is guarding its interests and will continue to do so in the future."

"Israel cannot allow weapons, dangerous weapons, to get into the hands of terror organizations," he told Army Radio.

Israeli defense officials have identified several strategic weapons that they say cannot be allowed to reach Hezbollah. They include Syrian chemical weapons, the Iranian Fateh-110s, long-range Scud missiles, Yakhont missiles capable of attacking naval ships from the coast, and Russian SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles. Israel's airstrike in January destroyed a shipment of SA-17s meant for Hezbollah, according to U.S. officials.

Israeli officials said Sunday they believe that Iran is stepping up its efforts to smuggle weapons through Syria to Hezbollah because of concerns that Assad's days are numbered.

They said the Fateh-110s reached Syria last week. Friday's airstrike struck a site at the Damascus airport where the missiles were being stored, while the second series of airstrikes early Sunday targeted the remnants of the shipment, which had been moved to three nearby locations, the officials said.

None of the Iranian missiles are believed to have reached Lebanon, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were discussing a classified intelligence assessment.

The attacks pose a dilemma for the embattled Assad regime.

If it fails to respond, it looks weak and opens the door to more airstrikes. But any military retaliation against Israel would risk dragging the Jewish state and its powerful army into a broader conflict. With few exceptions, Israel and Syria have not engaged in direct fighting in roughly 40 years.

The airstrikes come as Washington considers how to respond to indications the Syrian regime may have used chemical weapons in its civil war. President Barack Obama has described the use of such weapons as a "red line," and the administration is weighing its options.

The White House declined for a second day to comment directly on Israel's air strikes in Syria, but said Obama believes Israel, as a sovereign nation, has the right to defend itself against threats from Hezbollah.

"The Israelis are justifiably concerned about the threat posed by Hezbollah obtaining advanced weapons systems, including some long-range missiles," said White House spokesman Josh Earnest. He said the U.S. was in "close coordination" with Israel but would not elaborate.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague also seemed to back Israel, telling Sky News that "all countries have to look after their own national security."

Iran condemned the airstrikes, and a senior official hinted at possible retribution from Hezbollah.

Gen. Masoud Jazayeri, assistant to the Iranian chief of staff, told Iran's state-run Arabic-language Al-Alam TV that Tehran "will not allow the enemy (Israel) to harm the security of the region." He added that "the resistance will retaliate to the Israeli aggression against Syria." ''Resistance" is a term used for Hezbollah and the Palestinian Hamas, another anti-Israel militant group supported by Iran.

Iran has provided both financial and military support to Hezbollah for decades and has used Syria as a conduit for both. If Assad were to fall, that pipeline could be cut, dealing a serious blow to Hezbollah's ability to confront Israel.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke to Arab League Secretary-General Nabil ElAraby by telephone Sunday and both shared their "grave concern" over the air strikes, U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said.

Ban called on all sides "to exercise maximum calm and restraint, and to act with a sense of responsibility to prevent an escalation of what is already a devastating and highly dangerous conflict," Nesirky said.

Israel appears to be taking a calculated risk that its strikes will not invite retaliation from Syria, Hezbollah or even Iran.

But Salman Shaikh of the Brookings Doha Center in Qatar warned: "All this could lead us into a wider conflict."

___

Federman reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Ian Deitch and Diaa Hadid in Jerusalem and Bassem Mroue and Ryan Lucas in Beirut contributed to this story.

The National Association of Realtors said Thursday that its seasonally adjusted pending home sales index rose 5.2 percent to 104.8 in October. Excluding a few months when the index spiked because of a homebuyer tax credit, that is the highest level since March 2007.

The increase points to healthy sales increases of previously occupied homes in the months ahead. There's generally a one- to two-month lag between a signed contract and a completed sale.

The rise in sales adds to evidence of a steady housing recovery. Builders are more confident in sales and are starting construction on more homes. Home prices are rising on a consistent basis, which encourages more potential buyers to come off the sidelines and purchase homes. And more people may put their homes on the market if they gain confidence that they can sell at a good price.

The report is "another indicator suggesting that the recovery in housing has broadened and has sustained momentum," Michael Gapen, an economist at Barclays Capital, said in a note to clients.

Signed contracts jumped 15.6 percent in the Midwest and rose 5.5 percent in the South. But they fell 1.1 percent in the West and dipped 0.1 percent in the Northeast.

Superstorm Sandy lowered pending sales in the Northeast, the Realtors' group said. The West was hurt by low inventories of available homes.

Mortgage rates remained near record lows this week. The average rate on the 30-year loan was 3.32 percent, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said, just above 3.31 percent last week, which was the lowest on records dating to 1971.

A big reason for the rebound in housing is that the excess supply of homes that built up before the housing crisis has finally thinned out. The number of previously occupied homes available for sale has fallen to a 10-year low. The inventory of new homes is also near the lowest level since 1963.

At the same time, more people are looking to buy or rent a home after living with relatives or friends during and immediately after the Great Recession.

Those trends are also pushing up home sales and construction. Sales of previously occupied homes are near five-year highs, excluding temporary spikes in 2009 and 2010 when a homebuyer tax credit boosted purchases.

Builders, meanwhile, are more optimistic that the recovery will endure. A measure of their confidence rose to the highest level in six and a half years this month. And builders broke ground on new homes and apartments at the fastest pace in more than four years last month.

On Immigration, Passage Is Only the Beginning

Its finally coming. That immigration bill from the Gang of Eight should make its appearance soon and with it a chance of creating a path to citizenship for the estimated 11 million people who are in the country illegally.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has thrown his money and prestige behind the effort and momentum seems to be there. Even tea-party types such as Rand Paul are showing sympathy for the idea of a pathway.

But its worth remembering that in 1986, Congress passed comprehensive immigration reform and it didnt work very well. The Immigration and Reform Control Act of 1986, or the Simpson-Mazzoli bill, granted a kind of amnesty. But it didnt stem illegal immigration, of course.

This new Marco Rubio-blessed legislation may have momentum. But like all big shifts in policy, it could come with unintended consequences, too. Passage is just the beginning.

Matthew Coopermcooper@nationaljournal.com

KING AND THOMPSON FOLLOW MANCHIN, TOOMEYS LEAD. Following Wednesdays announcement of a bipartisan agreement on firearms background checks by Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Pat Toomey, R-Pa., Reps. Peter King, R-N.Y., and Mike Thompson, D-Calif., plan to introduce a corresponding bill in the House next week, Politico reports. King said Friday, Ive known Pat from the House. We started working with his office. Were going to introduce the bill, it will probably be Monday or Tuesday at the latest. Were also showing [it] to a number of possible other cosponsors.

GANG OF EIGHT SETTLES ON CUTOFF DATE. A comprehensive immigration-reform proposal from the Gang of Eight reportedly would bar any undocumented persons who arrived in the United States after Dec. 31, 2011, from applying for legal status, The New York Times reports. While Democratic members of the group pushed for a cutoff of Jan. 1, 2013, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., sought an earlier date.

SEBELIUS DISCUSSES CULTURE OF VIOLENCE. During testimony before the House Ways and Means Committee, where she was to defend her departments budget request, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius addressed the impact of violence on the nations children, The Washington Examiner reports. I think we have a culture of violence in this country that is alarming, it clearly has different impact on different people, but there's no question that it does have at minimum a desensitization for a lot of developing minds about what the impact of violence is and certainly for someone who is disturbed may have an even more frightening impact."

OBAMA GROUP RAISES MODEST $4.8 MILLION. Organizing for Action, the independent group made up of former Obama campaign staffers, raised just $4.8 million in the first quarter of 2013, the Associated Press reported. In an e-mail to supporters, the group which is pressuring lawmakers on gun and immigration legislation said that 109,000 people donated, with an average donation of $44.

McCOTTER SUES FORMER STAFFERS OVER PETITION SCANDAL. Former Rep. Thad McCotter, R-Mich., who resigned from Congress in 2012 after failing to secure the requisite signatures for a primary ballot slot, has filed a lawsuit against former deputy district director Don Yowchuang and former student intern Dillon Breen, alleging that the two purposefully submitted forged petitions in order to keep McCotter off the ballot. Yowchuang received probation after pleading no contest to forgery charges, while Breen was not criminally charged in the case.

HOW WASHINGTON RUINED GOVERNORS. It used to be governors cared more about problem solving than ideology. But across the full range of economic and cultural issues, Democratic and Republican state officials are pulling apart far more than they did as recently as two decades ago. On gun control, gay marriage, immigration, taxes, and participation in President Obama's health care law, among other issues, states that lean red and those that lean blue are diverging to an extent that is straining the boundaries of federalism, National Journal's Ronald Brownstein and Stephanie Czekalinski report.

COHEN SAYS LAUPER TWEET WAS A RUSE. Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., actually convened a press conference Friday to discuss his since-deleted tweet praising the pop star Cyndi Lauper as hot. His explanation: it was all a clever deception to get the press to draw attention to the Memphis music scene. Cohen said he learned his lesson when his recent tweets to a young model raised eyebrows (turns out the model was a long-lost daughter he had only become acquainted with recently).

First time I can remember having a joint Democrats and Republicans lunch since Ive been here. Sen. Bob Corker on Thursdays joint Senate lunch ()   

WHY DID THE NEANDERTHALS DISAPPEAR? DID HUMANS EAT THEM? For 200,000 years, Neanderthals ruled Europe and Asia. Then within 15,000 years of contact with modern humans, they were suddenly, and mysteriously, gone. What happened? Bones, teeth, and new DNA mapping technology are providing the answers. A deeper desperation is etched in their bones, Hall writes. These fractures wereclopmade by humans," said Antonio Rosas of the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Madrid, imitating the blow of a stone tool. Whether for food or rituals, humans cannibalized their close relatives. And as researchers piece together Neanderthal DNA, its increasingly apparent that Neanderthals were closer to humans than previously thought.

LASSOING AN ASTEROID. North Korea's threats toward the United States continue to be in the news, as the one-year anniversary of leader Kim Jong Uns ascension to power was celebrated. Conan OBrien mentioned the anniversary in regard to Kims lack of height. Meanwhile, Jay Leno looked at a new survey that says half of voters would vote for Ronald Reagan over Obama; The Daily Shows Jon Stewart was interested in the African-American vote in the 2012 election; and as NASA announced plans this week to lasso an asteroid close to the moon for study, Stephen Colbert was curious as to the purpose of the program.

CHINESE NEWS FALLS FOR SATIRE OF NORTH KOREA THREATENING MICROSOFT According to The New Yorkers Andy Borowitz, a potential North Korean nuclear-missile test (that evenwent awry this week thanks toWindows 8. A media outlet in China picked up the piecenot realizingthat The Borowitz Report is totally, hilariously fake. TheGuangdong-based 21st Century Business Herald, a daily with a circulation of 762,000,the news, unaware that it was picking up a satirical item from the noted humorist.

IMMIGRATION AND GUNS. This week will feature Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., touting immigration reform on no fewer than six Sunday shows. The week will also feature two other big newsmakers: Sens. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., and Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., architects of this weeks deal on background checks.

NBCs Meet the Press hosts Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.

CBSs Face the Nation hosts Rubio, Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., with her husband, Mark Kelly.

ABCs This Week hosts Rubio, Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va. and Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill.

Fox News Sunday hosts Rubio, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, and Senate Minority Whip John Cornyn

CNNs State of the Union hosts Rubio, Manchin, and Toomey

Bloombergs Capitol Gains hosts Fannie Mae CEO Tim Mayopoulos and AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka

C-SPANs Newsmakers features Rep. Buck McKeon, R-Calif.