Atlanta

This summer, hair weaves are taking a turn for the kinky, the curly and the wavy. Why is this news? When black women first started sewing hair onto their scalps during the 1990s en masse, the resulting shoulder-length bobs were as much about achieving a smooth texture as it was about having length. Fabulous hair was defined as long and straight. However, as more black women have come to terms with their natural curl pattern, store-bought tresses are trending toward the fuzzy rather than the flat-ironed.

ATLANTA - After blowing a six-run lead Wednesday night, Roy Halladay left the Phillies to tend to a personal family matter. The absence was planned before his outing. He is expected to rejoin the team Friday in Washington. Phillies assistant general manager Scott Proefrock said Halladay told both manager Charlie Manuel and pitching coach Rich Dubee on Tuesday he would need to leave. After addressing reporters late Wednesday night after the 15-13 loss, Halladay departed Turner Field with a small rolling suitcase.

There is unraveling. And there is undressing. In the dog days of August, with his team in need of a reason to believe, Giants ace Bill Swift has done both. Six days after being chased from his own park in the fifth inning of a 9-1 Atlanta win and pitching in the opener of this crucial three-game series against the Braves, Swift took a no-hitter and a one-run lead into the fourth inning at Fulton County Stadium last night, and stripped down faster than you can say Madonna. He allowed five runs on five hits in that inning, falling behind on virtually every batter he faced.

The U.S. Olympic Committee yesterday selected Atlanta as its candidate to host the 1996 Summer Olympics. Atlanta, making its initial bid to host an Olympiad, was chosen over Minneapolis-St. Paul in a silent vote by the USOC Executive Board. After receiving interest from 14 cities in January 1987, the USOC eventually narrowed the field to the two finalists before making its decision. Atlanta will join Toronto, Athens and Belgrade, Yugoslavia, as the only cities that have submitted bids to host the 1996 Games.

The headlines and constant chatter commanded everyone to pay attention to the Miami Marlins and Washington Nationals this winter. The teams were connected with every big-ticket item and ultimately landed such talent as Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle, Heath Bell, Gio Gonzalez, and Edwin Jackson. In Atlanta, the Braves did not add a single player to the 40-man roster from outside the organization. The only major-league free agent they signed was light-hitting infielder Jack Wilson, who was acquired at last year's waiver trade deadline.

Spirit Airlines said Wednesday it will begin seasonal non-stop daily flights between Atlantic City and Atlanta on May 17. The flight will continue from Atlanta to Dallas-Fort Worth, without changing aircraft. The Miramar, Fla.-based airline is offering introductory one-way fares of $28.79 from Atlantic City to Atlanta, through midnight Thursday, Feb. 2, for specific dates on its website, www.spirit.com . Spirit said it will resume daily nonstop flights through Sept.

There were teams lined up along the foul lines at the beginning and fireworks at the end, but it wasn't much like a playoff game at all. Turner Field was pockmarked with huge, unsightly patches of empty seats. The heroes were not superstars but a 29-year-old journeyman catcher and a 40-something Mexican League refugee. And there are played-out immune systems everywhere that can muster more resistance than the Houston Astros displayed. But the calendar said it was October, and the program said it was a National League division series, so the Braves quickly said goodbye to the befuddled Astros.

It all could have disintegrated right here. The Phillies, teetering on extinction's edge, might easily have come apart for good in the home of the Braves, land of the three-run homer. But something - perhaps Mariano Duncan's bad-boy collision at home plate, perhaps a recollection of their sweet May sweep here, most likely their manager's stern pregame words - infused the Phillies last night with a passion they had been missing. And on a night when Gregg Jefferies never even tossed a helmet, this reeling team salvaged some pride.

The champagne bottles were too thick for Mark Lemke's fat little hands. And even when he gripped them by their necks, he was too short to hoist them over taller heads and shower his teammates. So in the bubbling tumult that followed the Braves' fourth National League championship series victory of the '90s, Lemke improvised. The 5-foot-9 Atlanta second baseman, an impish grin on his stubbled face, simply held the champagne beneath their chins, the ascending spray finding its way into the noses and mouths of several surprised Braves.

For just a moment, Tom Glavine sounded a wistful note. "I know that my career isn't going to last forever," the Braves lefthander said. "I know this team's not going to stay together forever. You have to start wondering how many chances you're going to get at this and you want to start taking advantage of some of the ones you have left. " This, understand, is about as close as any of the Braves have come to acknowledging something more is at stake than just winning a World Series against the Yankees beginning tonight (Channel 10 8:05)

Spirit Airlines on Thursday resumed seasonal non-stop flights between Atlantic City and Atlanta and added a second daily non-stop from Atlantic City to Boston. Spirit, the only scheduled carrier operating from Atlantic City International airport, also flies from that airport to Chicago, Detroit, Myrtle Beach and several South Florida cities. The seasonal flights to Atlanta will end Nov. 7. The seasonal flights to Boston and Chicago will end Sept 4. – Paul Nussbaum

In the Phillies' seemingly interminable quest to score runs during the first three weeks of the season, the most conspicuous holes in the lineup were the ones where Jimmy Rollins and Placido Polanco used to hit. So, for all the negatives you could point to in a 6-4 win over the Chicago Cubs on Monday night, the lasting impression was left with two outs in the eighth inning, when Polanco laced a double to left field to send Juan Pierre and Rollins...

      Jordan Crawford equaled a season-high with 32 points, and John Wall had 14 points and 10 assists Wednesday night as the Wizards dealt a crippling blow to the Milwakee Bucks' attempt to make the final playff spot in the Eastern Conference with a 121-112 defeat in Washington. Milwaukee began the day 11/2 games behind the 76ers for eighth place in the East, but lost a game as the Sixers won in Cleveland. Monta Ellis had 31 points for Milwaukee, which has lost four of five.

THE METS are trying to send an early message in the NL East: This isn't the same team that finished last a year ago. The Braves are certainly taking note. Ike Davis hit a tiebreaking three-run homer and Dillon Gee pitched four-hit ball over seven innings, leading New York to another victory over host Atlanta, 6-1, Monday night. The Mets snapped the Braves' five-game winning streak and kept up their early dominance in the NL East rivalry, winning again after a three-game sweep of Atlanta in the Big Apple to start the season.

THE SEASON is off to an unexpected start for the New York Mets. They're the ones getting big hits while their opponents make the crucial mistakes. Daniel Murphy singled home the winning run in the ninth inning and the undefeated Mets took advantage of a throwing error by reliever Henry Rodriguez to beat the visiting Washington Nationals, 4-3, on Monday night. Kirk Nieuwenhuis hit his first major league homer for the Mets, who are 4-0 for the first time since 2007. After a surprising sweep of Atlanta, New York rallied from a three-run deficit before a crowd of 23,970.

      Tim Duncan had 10 points and 16 rebounds and the San Antonio Spurs won their ninth straight game, recovering to beat the Celtics, 87-86, in Boston on Wednesday night after blowing a 17-point, first-half lead. The loss kept the Celtics, who had won five straight, a game and a half ahead of the 76ers. Duncan also stopped Paul Pierce on the final play, forcing him into a fallaway jumper that bounced off the rim at the buzzer. Danny Green scored 14 points, and Gary Neal had 13, including a three-pointer with two minutes left that gave the Spurs the lead after Boston went on a 13-4 run to move in front.

Leila Denmark, 114, the world's oldest practicing physician when she retired at age 103, died Sunday in Athens, Ga. Dr. Denmark became the first resident physician at Henrietta Egleston Hospital for Children in Atlanta when it opened in 1928, said her grandson, Steven Hutcherson of Atlanta. She also admitted the first patient at the hospital, now part of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. She loved helping children, and it showed in the way she would turn to the next family waiting to see her, Hutcherson said.

When the 76ers schedule for this lockout-shortened season was released, the beginning and the end were eye-catching. The Sixers opened the season with five straight road games against Western Conference teams. They were the last team to play their home opener, and that was 11 days after the season began. The season will end on the road with five straight games and nine of the last 11 played in venues not called the Wells Fargo Center, where the Sixers have forged an 18-10 record.

JOE JOHNSON was exhausted by the time the Hawks and Utah Jazz had dragged each other into a fourth overtime - in Atlanta's third game in 3 nights, no less. "It was unbelievable," he said. "I just had to laugh it off. I've never played in a game like that. " Johnson scored 37 points, Josh Smith added 22 and the Hawks ended Utah's six-game winning streak with a 139-133 victory Sunday night in the NBA's first quadruple-overtime game since 1997. The four overtimes tied for the third-longest game in NBA history.

DeMar DeRozan scored 30 points before leaving with an injury, Andrea Bargnani had 21, and the Toronto Raptors routed the Knicks, 96-79, Friday night in Toronto, snapping New York's five-game winning streak. Gary Forbes scored 19 points and Jose Calderon had 10 assists as Toronto snapped a three-game skid and handed New York its first defeat under coach Mike Woodson.   Hawks 93, Nets 84 Josh Smith had 30 points and 12 rebounds to lead Atlanta over New Jersey in Atlanta.