New York  - These days it's hardly surprising to have a stranger knocking on your door to tell you how presidential candidate Barack Obama or John McCain is going to change the country and how important it is for you to vote.

In the current race to the White House, thousands of volunteers have fanned out across the country, sacrificing their weekends and devoting their spare time toward such door-to-door canvassing.

Two young professionals from New York, who asked not to be named, have travelled 160 kilometres to Philadelphia over several weekends to volunteer for Democrat Obama's campaign.

New York - Florida's Freedom Bank was the 17th US bank to be seized by regulators this year amid the widening credit crisis and worst housing slump since the Great Depression of the 1930s, reports said Saturday.

The state's Office of Financial Regulation on Friday closed the bank, which had 287 million dollars in assets and 254 million dollars in deposits, according to a statement from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC).

Freedom Bank was to be acquired by Fifth Third Bank of Grand Rapids, Michigan, which will buy 36 million dollars of assets. Fifth Third was to pay a premium of 1.16 per cent, about 2.9 million dollars, to assume the deposits, FDIC said.

New York, Nov 1: Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has maintained a comfortable lead over his rival John McCain, and continued to outpace him in swing states, most national surveys showed.

Gallup’s daily poll had Obama up, 50-45 percent. Rasmussen Reports’ daily tracking had him leading by 51-46 percent, a two-point rise since Wednesday.

But Fox News/Opinion Dynamics had Obama ahead by just 47-44 percent - far closer than his 9-point lead last week, The New York Post reported.

New York, Nov 1: Republican presidential candidate John McCain will take time out from his last minute swing state campaigning to make an ‘SNL’'' appearance where as his rival Barack Obama’s supporter Ben Affleck will do a satirical skit version of his “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” on “Saturday Night Live” this weekend.

The Arizona senator has described himself as “pretty good at stand up comedy” and may hope to show his less desperate - and more humorous - side in a last-minute appeal to the show’s newly re-ignited audience before voters head to the polls on November 4.

McCain will make his third appearance on the show Saturday, his spokesmen said on Friday.

New York, Nov 1: Rumours are rife that the U. S. Republican Party’s vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin has shed a few pounds.

According to a source, Plain’s weight has reduced ever since she started drinking Lean1 shakes, the New York Daily News reported.

It is said to be the same drink that former linebacker Bill Romanowski commented on his Web site as providing “an enhanced rate of fat loss”.

McCain’s campaign spokesmen, however, have not confirmed the story.

New York, Oct 31 : American actress Nicole Richie''s jewellery line ‘House of Harlow 1960’ is being auctioned on the Internet.

The "Simple Life" star''s jewellery line is being sold on the website ShopKitson. com and is said to be doing incredibly well.

"The line is selling incredibly well - well beyond our high expectations," the New York Daily News quoted Dean Khalil, vice president of Kitson L. A., as saying.

The items up for grabs have 16 offerings, including an "antigue" ring worth 12 dollars, black leather cuff worth 125 dollars, and the 28 dollars leather ''n'' gold starburst ring Richie donned last week, along with the majority of her collection.