News Headlines for Albany, Oregon

Lawn-chair balloonist flies from Oregon to Idaho (CNN.com)
BEND, Oregon (AP) -- Using his trusty BB gun to help him return to Earth, a 48-year-old gas station owner flew a lawn chair rigged with helium-filled balloons more than 200 miles across the Oregon desert Saturday, landing in a field in Idaho.

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Is the Oregon constitution ready for an update? (KMTR Eugene)
Some Oregon lawmakers think the state's constitution is due for a facelift.

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Lindsay Schnell: Rupp enjoys pro-Oregon crowd (Sports Illustrated)
EUGENE, Ore. -- When Galen Rupp's turn finally came Friday night at the Olympic Track and Field Trials, the Oregon native ruffled his blond hair, waved to his hometown crowd and proceeded to show why so much hype has surrounded him for so many years. Running in front of a record 20,936 at Hayward Field, Rupp finished second to Abdi Abdirahman in the 10,000, earning a spot on the Olympic Team. ...

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150 party balloons carry Oregon man toward Idaho (AP via Yahoo! News)
Riding a green lawn chair rigged with more than 150 giant party balloons, Kent Couch took off with the sun Saturday, hoping to ride the wind from his gas station in Central Oregon to Idaho.

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Oregon's payday lenders all but gone (The Oregonian)
Oregon's payday lending industry shrank dramatically in the year since the state cracked down on the short-term lenders' soaring interest rates.

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Man Flies Lawn Chair From Oregon To Idaho (NBC 5 Chicago)
An Oregon man touches down in a pasture in Cambridge, Idaho, some 235 miles from where he lifted off -- in a lawn chair.

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Man Flies Lawn Chair From Oregon To Idaho (Fox 12 Oregon)
BEND, Ore. -- Kent Couch is getting the last laugh. He's shown up all those people, including his wife, who thought he was crazy to tie helium balloons to a lawn chair in hopes of floating from central Oregon to Idaho.

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Man flies across Oregon in a balloon-rigged chair (Deseret Morning News)
A man flying across Oregon in a lawn chair rigged with a rainbow array of more than 150 helium-filled party balloons has reached his destination.

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Oregon Constitution may be updated (Salem Statesman Journal)
SALEM — State Rep. Chuck Riley said he was encouraged by the reaction to his proposal for an update of the Oregon Constitution, which has been amended about 300 times since it was written in 1857.

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Oregon man, 48, completes flight of fancy - in balloon powered lawn chair (The Canadian Press via Yahoo! Canada News)
CAMBRIDGE, Idaho - Using his trusty BB gun to help him return to Earth, a 48-year-old gas station owner flew a lawn chair rigged with helium-filled balloons more than 320-kilometres across the Oregon desert Saturday, landing in a field in Idaho.

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