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The housing recovery is well on its way, economists say, and Americans are becoming more comfortable spending on things like remodeling, moving, gardening and furniture. One economist expects increased housing wealth to boost consumer spending by $100 billion this year.

Over the past three decades, artist and sculptor Arthur Wood has turned his four-story home into a towering cathedral built out of salvaged junk. But after a fire in 2006, the New York City Department of Buildings determined that the Clinton Hill landmark was no longer a safe place to live.

When thousands of children partake in the annual festivities, they'll be rolling wooden eggs courtesy of Wells Wood Turning & Finishing. The business, tucked away in a small town in Maine, gets to work on the project in February and produces about 100,000 painted eggs.

During arguments this week at the Supreme Court over gay marriage, Justice Samuel Alito pointed out that the institution is "newer than cellphones or the Internet." That means the language used to describe same-sex relationships is new, too. And even linguists say they're still learning.

In Germany, a new political party has cropped up with one sole aim: doing away with the euro. Unlike past anti-euro parties in Europe, this one is no fringe group. NPR's Soraya Sarhaddi Nelson reports they are banking on German frustration over bailouts of eurozone countries to propel them into office in national elections this fall.

The killings of the Kaufman County district attorney and his wife come two months after an assistant district attorney for the same county was shot dead a block from his office. Police say they will "assume" the killings are linked "until it's proven otherwise."

About 60 dump trucks full of debris from the fallen World Trade Center will be sifted for human remains from the Sept. 11 attacks beginning Monday. More than 1,000 victims have yet to be identified.

Even without prisoners, Alcatraz remains one of the most infamous prisons in America. Five decades after it closed, it still captures the public's imagination. Those who stayed there, however, can tell you exactly what doing time on "The Rock" was like.

The government-funded plan could cost $3 billion, take 10 years and involve hundreds of scientists. The hope is the project can unlock the secrets of conditions such as Alzheimer's, schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease. But progress will likely be slow, and in the end, will it be worth the cost?

In the ongoing debate about the possible benefits of vitamin D supplements, a study suggests that the vitamin might indeed play a role in mildly reducing high blood pressure. The study was small and looked at just African-Americans, but the authors say the findings warrant further research.