Here's a homemade tomato ketchup recipe that uses roasted tomatoes for extra depth of flavor, as well as three kinds of vinegar: red wine, cider, and balsamic. If you've ever reduced balsamic vinegar to make a balsamic glaze, you know how syrupy and thick it becomes. That's the same thing happening here, only the complex flavors of the vinegar are melding with the roasted tomatoes to produce something truly amazing.
Halve the tomatoes, drizzle some olive oil over them and roast them on a baking pan (or two) for 20 minutes or until they're soft and wrinkled looking but not burnt.
Let the tomatoes cool for a few minutes, and then transfer them to a blender or food processor and puree until they're smooth. You'll likely have to work in small batches.
In a heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat, warm the sugar, keeping it moving with a wooden spoon, for about a minute.
Add the onion and garlic, the pureed roasted tomatoes (and the canned crushed tomatoes, if you're using them). Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes.
Add the three kinds of vinegar and continue to cook for another 20 minutes or until reduced by two-thirds. The ketchup should be well thickened by now. Remove from heat and season to taste with the cayenne pepper.
Strain the ketchup through a mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth and into a plastic container.
Cooling: Fill a large stockpot about halfway with a mixture of half ice, half water, and submerge the container in the ice bath to chill. The idea is for the ice-water level to come most of the way up the outside of the container, but don't let any water into the ketchup.
Stir the ketchup more or less constantly, until it the temperature reaches 70 F on an instant-read thermometer. Then remove the container from the ice bath, cover and transfer to the refrigerator where it will keep for about 10 days.
Note: You can substitute canned crushed tomatoes for some of the fresh tomatoes in this ketchup recipe, but it's best to use at least a couple of pounds of fresh tomatoes; the roasting process brings out the flavor.
If you want to substitute canned, keep in mind that one 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes is roughly equal to four large, ripe tomatoes.


1Land area, water area, population counts, and housing unit counts for the United States, Regions, and Divisions do not include Puerto Rico.
2State, District of Columbia, or Puerto Rico.
3Parish in Louisiana, Borough or Census Area in Alaska, and Municipio in Puerto Rico; in Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, and Virginia, one or more cities are independent of counties and are treated as statistical equivalents of counties; the entire District of Columbia, which has no counties, is treated as a county equivalent.


Funko started making cute, big-headed figures of comic book, TV, and movie characters in 1998. Due to the increasing popularity of their creations, the company became a recognized leader in the collectibles market. Today, Funko makes almost all types of licensed pop culture toys, from bobble heads to stylized vinyl figures and their adorable line, called "Dorbz".
Funko's Pop! Vinyl is the leading stylized vinyl collectible today, with millions of figures sold around the world. If you're a collector of Funko Pop figures, you'll find great deals and options on this page.
If you want to see our huge selection of Funko collectibles, visit our flagship store in Greenhills anytime soon. No time to drop by? Never worry, as Toyzone Xpress offers Funko toys online at competitive prices. This page is dedicated for enthusiasts and collectors who are looking for genuine toys for sale. Owning one of the hottest items in our inventory is just a few clicks away.
Fill your cart and enjoy shopping. We have a range of Funko products in stock, but we accept pre-orders as well. If the item you're looking for is currently not in our list, we'll source it for you and inform you once it's available.
Should you have any questions, call us at (+63) 908 879 7910.


text:
The Light Over London
by Julia Kelly Julia Kelly
Choose Expedited Shipping at checkout for delivery by Tuesday, February 7
26.0 In Stock
Reminiscent of Martha Hall Kelly's Lilac Girls and Kristin Hannah's The Nightingale, this sweeping, entrancing story is a must-read for fans of remarkable women rising to challenges they could never have predicted.
It's always been easier for Cara Hargraves to bury herself in the past than confront the present, which is why working with a gruff but brilliant antiques dealer is perfect. While clearing out an estate, she pries open an old tin that holds the relics of a lost relationship: among the treasures, a World War II-era diary and a photograph of a young woman in uniform. Eager to find the author of the hauntingly beautiful, unfinished diary, Cara digs into this soldier's life, but soon realizes she may not have been ready for the stark reality of wartime London she finds within the pages.
In 1941, nineteen-year-old Louise Keene's life had been decided for her—she'll wait at home in her Cornish village until her wealthy suitor returns from war to ask for her hand. But when Louise unexpectedly meets Flight Lieutenant Paul Bolton, a dashing RAF pilot stationed at a local base, everything changes. And changes again when Paul's unit is deployed without warning.
Desperate for a larger life, Louise joins the women's branch of the British Army in the anti-aircraft gun unit as a Gunner Girl. As bombs fall on London, she and the other Gunner Girls relish in their duties to be exact in their calculations, and quick in their identification of enemy planes during air raids. The only thing that gets Louise through those dark, bullet-filled nights is knowing she and Paul will be together when the war is over. But when a bundle of her letters to him are returned unanswered, she learns that wartime romance can have a much darker side.
Illuminating the story of these two women separated by generations and experience, Julia Kelly transports us to World War II London in this heartbreakingly beautiful novel through forgotten antique treasures, remembered triumphs, and fierce family ties.
Julia Kelly is the award-winning author of books about ordinary women and their extraordinary stories. In addition to writing, she's been an Emmy-nominated producer, journalist, marketing professional, and (for one summer) a tea waitress. Julia called Los Angeles, Iowa, and New York City home before settling in London. Readers can visit JuliaKellyWrites.com to learn more about all of her books and sign up for her newsletter so they never miss a new release.
Chapter 1: Cara 1 CARA
Barlow, Gloucestershire, England, September 2017
It was the discovery Cara loved most: digging through the forgotten, the memorialized, the tossed-aside, and the cherished. Uncovering the treasures and trinkets left behind and making sure they had the chance to tell their stories.
At Wilson's Antiques & Curiosities, it was her job to find out the where and when of every object that came through the shop's doors. But it was the why and the what that intrigued her most. When she answered those questions, she could give once-treasured possessions a new life with new owners.
When Cara couldn't unearth the history of a piece, she spun stories for herself. It was easier than thinking about her own mistakes and the regrets she carried. While she worked, she could escape into the comfort of someone else's life for a few hours.
Gravel crunched under her well-worn flats as she stopped to study the formidable house rising up before her. The Old Vicarage was a grand mansion of yellow Cotswold limestone, standing arrogantly against the dual ravages of weather and time, and punctuated by a pair of columns on either side of the white front door. A light wind rustled through the ivy that crept lazily between the first and second floors. Someone had pushed one of the third-story windows open, probably hoping to air out the house that had lain unoccupied since its owner had died almost six weeks ago.
The front door opened with a creak, and Cara's boss, Jock Wilson, stepped out with a blond woman in her early forties. Dressed in pale blue and white, all elegance and softness, the woman was a stark contrast to Jock's stiff tweed and polished leather brogues.
"Miss Hargraves, you're finally here," said Jock.
Cara glanced at the antique gold watch that Gran had given her upon her graduation from Barlow University years ago. It was nine o'clock on the dot, the exact time Jock had instructed her to arrive—unless she'd misread his email.
A flush of panic heated her cheeks. She couldn't have gotten the time wrong. She'd been so careful since her first day two months ago. She'd had to be. This job was her chance to start again.
"Mrs. Leithbridge, this is my assistant, Cara Hargraves." Jock's hand swept out as though Cara were an early-nineteenth-century Limoges teapot he was presenting at auction.
She swallowed around her worry and crossed her hands behind her, hoping the gesture conveyed both deference and regret. "My condolences for your loss, Mrs. Leithbridge."
The client gave her a minute, dismissive smile. "Thank you. Let's get on with it then. I have a tennis lesson this afternoon."
As the lady retreated through the front door, her high-heeled sandals clicking on the mosaic tile floor, Jock raised his brows to Cara as though to say, She's one of the types I warned you about.
"I can't imagine how I got the time wrong," Cara whispered in a rush as they followed their client.
"You weren't late, but you weren't early either," said Jock.
Her step hitched. "What?"
"Better to be early and sit in the car than to leave a client waiting. Now come on."
Cara forced her shoulders down and breathed deep to soothe the sting of her boss's prickliness.
Focus on the job. Show him what you know.
The air in the entryway was cool and stale. It might've been unsettling except she could almost hear the echoes of children long since grown scuffing the floors as they tore through the place in their eagerness to play outdoors. It wasn't hard to imagine past proud owners standing at the huge white door greeting friends with two kisses and a warm smile each.
This was someone's home, not just a job site, she reminded herself, taking in the pale green paneling that climbed up a third of the wall before giving way to a familiar wallpaper of bold acanthus leaves on a deep-blue background. Immediately, her mind zipped through the categorization Jock had taught her.
William Morris. British. Mid-1870s.
When she'd first started working at Wilson's as an eighteen-year-old student, she'd thought she would have a natural advantage having grown up surrounded by antiques in both her parents' and grandparents' homes. But Jock had been quick to show her just how little she'd known. Now that she was back more than a decade later, he'd made it clear that he expected her to become as knowledgeable as him in short order. That meant any time not spent visiting Gran in her nearby retirement village was taken up reading about the styles of furniture Cara would most likely encounter on the job. But, standing next to him on her first trip into a client's home, she'd known the Morris wallpaper without the crutch of her books, notes, and Google searches. She could do this.
"Your brother mentioned on the phone that your great-aunt was a collector," Jock said.
Mrs. Leithbridge lifted a shoulder. "Great-Aunt Lenora was a pack rat. The whole house is jammed with clutter."
"Miss Hargraves, do you see anything of interest in this room?" Jock offered Mrs. Leithbridge a strained smile. "Miss Hargraves is currently training after some time away from the antiques trade."
"I see," said Mrs. Leithbridge as though she couldn't have cared less.
Determined not to be intimidated by her boss or by their apathetic client, Cara's gaze settled on a small bench pushed against the wall next to the front door. Its finish was worn where countless people had paused to pull on wellies and clip on dog leashes over the years. It would've been unextraordinary except for its back and legs, which were carved in an intricate geometric pattern.
"That oak bench," she said, pointing.
"Movement?" Jock tossed back.
"Arts and Crafts, likely constructed in the later half of the mid-nineteenth century."
"American or British?"
She walked over to the piece and ran a hand over the back, feeling for the smooth joins that held it together without the aid of nails. "The wood is in good condition, but there are a few dings and nicks. The finish is only fair."
"And what of the country of origin, Miss Hargraves?" Jock pressed, his formality making her feel like she was back in grammar school.
She stared hard at the bench. It was likely British, but people traveled, and collectors bought from abroad.
"Without searching for a maker's mark, I can't be certain," she finally said.
"Are you sure you don't want to hazard a guess?" asked Jock.
Her boss gave a small nod. "Very good. Better to be right than to guess."
"This is all fascinating, I'm sure, but is it worth anything?" Mrs. Leithbridge asked.
"With the right buyer, everything has value, but let's hope for pieces that are in better condition," said Jock. "Perhaps you could show us the drawing room?"
"Through here," said Mrs. Leithbridge, guiding them with a flick of her hand.
Always start in the drawing room, Jock had said when briefing Cara yesterday. It's where people show off their best. And remember: F-S-P.
Those were the two governing principles of his business. Furniture, silver, paintings. Find, sell, profit. F-S-P.
Yet for Cara, there was more to it than that. When she'd been at university, Wilson's had been a haven of sorts, a place to lose herself in the past. As she'd methodically catalogued each item in the storeroom, she'd felt like participant, witness, and confessor to little slivers of other people's lives. Now, thirteen years later, she'd finally have the chance to glimpse a fuller picture of the connection between antique and owner.
Jock stopped short in the drawing room doorway, nearly causing Cara to crash into him. But then she saw why he was rooted to the spot. The room was packed with furniture, with only little walkways weaving across the huge handmade wool-and-silk rug. There were at least five sideboards dotting the space, including two pushed flush against the backs of a set of massive roll-top sofas. A Gothic-style grandfather clock ticked away in a corner, and paintings were hung in the Victorian style over nearly every inch of the oxblood-painted walls, while a mess of photographs, vases, candy dishes, and other curios covered almost every surface. Yet it was the wood-and-glass monster opposite the wide, tiled fireplace that caught Cara's attention.
"Is that—"
"A Collinson and Lock," Jock finished.
They approached the piece carefully, as though it were a skittish animal that might bolt at any moment. Gingerly, Cara grazed her fingers over the edge of the cornice punctuated by a white scroll pattern.
"It's rosewood, and the inlay is ivory. The crosshatching is there," she said, thankful she'd just read about the furniture-making firm of Collinson & Lock that weekend.
"Very good, Miss Hargraves. The glass-fronted doors are also a key feature of the makers. But we won't have confirmation until we find the stamp." He opened the central cabinet door and made a show of craning his neck to look inside. "Not here. Would you look underneath? My knees are aching today."
Jock's knees seemed to be acting up quite a bit since she'd rejoined him, meaning it'd been up to her to do the crouching and bending around the shop. Nevertheless, Cara knelt on the floor and twisted to look up at the unembellished base of the cabinet's lower level.
Shifting to pull her penlight out of her back pocket, she clicked it on and illuminated the words "Collinson & Lock."
"It's here," she announced, pulling her head free. "Serial number 4692."
"What is it?" Mrs. Leithbridge asked as Jock jotted the numbers down in a small leather-bound notebook he kept in his breast pocket.
"A very fine piece, and a good indication of your great-aunt's taste. Perhaps," said Jock, turning on his most brilliant smile, "you might consider rescheduling your tennis lesson. We have a great deal of work to do."
Later that afternoon, Cara and Jock were in the dining room sorting through the contents of the late Lenora Robinson's china when Cara's phone rang.
Jock, who had been examining an Adams sugar bowl they suspected was from the 1850s, shot her a glare. "Miss Hargraves, will you turn that infernal thing off?"
Her grip reflexively tightened around the heavy stack of eighteen dessert plates she'd been pulling out of the butler's pantry. "I'm so sorry."
She slowly made her way to the dining table to set the plates down as the phone rang again.
"Miss Hargraves," her boss said again, crossing his arms.
She ripped the phone out of her back pocket, her stomach sinking as she saw Simon's picture filling the screen.
"Are you going to answer it or simply stare?" Jock asked.
She cleared her throat. "It's my ex-husband."
"Then I suggest you take this very personal call somewhere else. Far away."
"Yes, of course." She hurried out and picked up the call as soon as she was in the corridor. "What is it, Simon?"
His voice, as polished as it was judgmental, filled her ear. "Why are you whispering?"
She strode up a narrow flight of stairs that must've once been for the servants of the house. "Because I'm at work."
"With the antique owner of the antique shop?" He snickered.
"Yes, and Jock needs me, so if you'd just tell me why you called..."
Glancing around for Mrs. Leithbridge, she slipped into the first room she came to, kicking up a cloud of dust that swirled in the light from a single window. When she shut the door, an old, battered armoire creaked open.
"Come now, it isn't like you're performing surgery," he said.
God forbid he think her job was important.
"You should go back into events," he continued, his tone overbearing and snobbish. "I'm sure your old boss could find a spot for you, or you could start your own consultancy. Then you could make real money."
Of course Simon didn't think working for Jock was good enough, and it grated on her that, even though they were divorced, he still felt his opinion should matter.
"Simon, I hated working events and I should've quit long before I did."
"And I suppose that's my fault," he said, his voice sharpening.
"Part of it is, actually."
All at once, Simon's self-righteous bluster left him. "I'm sorry, Cara. I ruined everything. I'm going to get help, I just..."
She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the wave of guilt to come. Only now it had been long enough that it didn't crash down on her but rather lapped at her feet. They'd been down this path before. He'd first promised her when she'd told him she wanted a divorce that he would seek help, but he'd never gone. It had taken her considerable time with her own therapist to understand that her shoulders weren't broad enough to carry the full weight of her husband's narcissism, insecurity, and addiction.
"Why did you call?" she asked.
He cleared his throat. "A bill was forwarded to me by mistake. It was for your parents' storage unit."
She slumped against the wall, the memory of the late-night phone call stealing her breath. It had been a police officer, telling her with clinical dryness that a drunk driver in a Range Rover had hit her parents on a one-track country lane. They were being medevaced to a hospital in Cumbria. She hadn't arrived in time to say goodbye.
"Apparently the annual fee was paid out of our joint account. Since we closed it, it came back declined," Simon continued, oblivious or uncaring as to how his words hit her.
"Please forward it to my new address. I'll take care of it," she said, her voice cracking a little.
"You should clear it out and sell the lot. They've been dead for almost two years, Cara. You need to stop wasting money on this."
His callous disregard for the way she chose to mourn her parents' deaths might've felt like a slap once. Now it just left her with a deep, soul-aching sadness. "Send me the bill. I'll handle it."
"I'm only trying to help," he said.
"No, Simon, you're not, and one day I hope you'll see that." She swiped to end the call. Her divorced friends had told her that there'd be times when she'd be so angry at her ex she'd want to rage, but all she felt was weary to the bone. She could hardly remember why she'd fallen in love with him all those years ago.
She tucked her phone away, determined to focus on whatever Jock threw at her, but before she could, a glint of gold from inside the partially open armoire caught her eye. She moved to shut the door that had fallen open, but hesitated. Great-Aunt Lenora had proven canny about hiding things away in nooks and crannies. Who knew what was squirreled away inside?
The old hinges creaked in protest as she opened the door wide. Compared to the clutter of the house, the shelves were disappointingly bare. The gold turned out to be a hand mirror with an elaborate fleur-de-lis back, and next to it lay an old Scrabble set that looked to be at least two dozen letters short.
Not feeling particularly hopeful, she turned her attention to the two drawers on the bottom. Nothing in the first but a couple of dead moths. But when she opened the second drawer, she saw a biscuit tin molded to look like a shelf of upright books. She'd seen tins like this full of buttons and other odds and ends in Gran's house when she was a child. If she had to hazard a guess, against Jock's wishes, she would've said it was from the 1940s, possibly the very early 1950s.
Kneeling on the floor, she slipped her short nails under the top to rock it back and forth. It was slow work but finally the thin metal gave way. Her heart kicked up a beat at what she saw. On top lay a small fat notebook bound in red-cloth-covered cardboard and held together by a band. When she tried to open it, the elastic disintegrated in her hands.
"Damn," she cursed softly. She should probably set the book aside, but the damage was already done.
The notebook's first page was blank, but the next was covered in looping script written in faded blue ink. The date at the top read "14 October 1940."
The bombs fell again yesterday night. I'd just gone to sleep when the explosions started. They sounded so close I thought the ceiling might fall in. Dad says the Germans dropped six bombs on RAF St. Eval. We don't know yet how much damage was done.
I suppose that's why I'm writing in this diary. Dad has been saying for ages that I ought to keep a record of this war and of what happens to me.
Just last week Mum was horrid about the idea, saying, "What's she going to write about? Her job at Mrs. Bakeford's shop?"
Well, something has happened and I have to write about it, even if it is simply to spite Mum.
It was a diary. A World War II diary. Cara skipped ahead a dozen or so pages.
For months I felt as though I didn't have anything to record in these pages. Everything stays the same here, but now things are different. Now it seems as though I can't stop writing.
Paul took me to the pictures in Newquay yesterday afternoon to see Freedom Radio. I told Mum I was helping Kate knit socks for the war effort, but instead I ran to the bus stop to wait for him. He was a perfect gentleman, buying my ticket and helping me to find my seat. We arrived at the theater just as the film was starting, and as soon as the title card came up, he took my hand and didn't let go the entire time. I don't think I paid attention to a thing Clive Brook and Diana Wynyard were saying on the screen!
Two days until I see Paul again.
I never thought I would be the type of girl to become all swoony over a man, but today at the shop I dropped a glass jar of boiled sweets. By some miracle it didn't break, but Mrs. Bakeford scolded me for having my head in the clouds. I wanted to tell her it wasn't my head but my heart.
With a smile, Cara flipped forward to a random section midway through.
I said goodbye to Paul this morning. He tried to talk me into staying in bed, but I told him that would be desertion.
Cara paged through the rest of the diary, looking to see how far it went. The writing stopped abruptly with a single line.
Everything is over. I thought I loved him.
Guilt tugged at her as she closed the cover, but sitting with her hand still touching the journal full of another woman's most intimate thoughts, she couldn't deny that she was curious. Who was Paul and what had happened? Why was everything over, seemingly in less than a year? And whose diary was this in the first place?
When she tipped the rest of the tin onto the floor, out tumbled a tiny compass with a bent edge, a locket, a photo, a few pieces of paper, and a scrap of cloth. The cloth was easy enough to identify: a man's handkerchief, plain and serviceable, with a "P" stitched in one corner. One of the papers was bright coral and dry with age. She flipped it over. A cinema ticket to the Paramount Theatre in Newquay dated 20 February 1941, the day before one of the diary entries she'd read.
She set the ticket aside and examined the other scraps of paper. A small flyer with a torn corner for some sort of Valentine's dance at the generically named Village Hall on the fourteenth of February. An unused tube ticket for the Central line.
She picked up the photo next. A woman wearing a uniform was looking over her shoulder, her hand raised to the cap that sat perched atop her swept-back, pageboy hairstyle. Her smile was bright and brilliant, as though the photographer had caught her in a moment of pure joy.
But that wasn't what made Cara pause. It was the uniform—she'd seen it before. Gran had been issued the same one when she'd joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service in 1943, and Cara recognized it from the two photographs Gran kept in her sitting room. One was a formal portrait taken on Iris Warren's first day of leave from the women's auxiliary branch of the army. In the other, she was lined up with four other uniformed girls, all linking arms and smiling.
"I met your granddad at a dance at the NAAFI," Gran had explained to her once. "Every few months, something official would be put on in the canteens with as good a band as they could scrape together, but more often we'd dance to music played on a gramophone. The Americans had brought the jitterbug with them, and we were all mad for it.
"Your granddad was an American GI, with his hair cut short and his sharp uniform. He did his best to woo me with chocolates and the promise of silk stockings."
But that was where Gran's reminiscences ended. The last time Cara had tried to ask about the war when she was just sixteen, Gran had abruptly clammed up and gone to lie down, claiming to have a migraine. Mum had scolded her, saying, "There are some things your gran doesn't want to talk about. Don't push her, Cara."
She traced her finger over the strong sweep of the woman's jaw before flipping the photograph over. On the back, in a different handwriting than the diary, someone had written "L.K. on the Embankment."
Setting the photo down, she picked up the simple gold heart locket and eased her thumbnail between the clasp to open it. One side was blank but the other held a tiny photograph of a dashing man in a fleece-collared bomber jacket with a pair of goggles perched on top of his head. A pilot.
"Miss Hargraves!" she heard Jock shout from somewhere downstairs.
Quickly, she gathered the things into the tin and rushed to find Jock in the study with Mrs. Leithbridge.
"What have you there?" he asked with a raised brow.
"I'm not entirely sure." She set the tin down on a table. "Mrs. Leithbridge, did your great-aunt serve in the ATS during the Second World War?"
The lady lifted her brows. "I don't know what the ATS is."
"It was the women's service that supported the army." When Jock looked over the top of his glasses, she added, "My gran served."
"Great-Aunt Lenora used to drone on about being a volunteer ambulance driver in London during the Blitz." Mrs. Leithbridge rose and click-clacked over to a desk near a pair of tall sash windows. Her hand wove through the air before plucking up one of the photographs that lined its edge. "Here."
There was no way the woman who stared out at Cara was the one in the ATS uniform. Even in black-and-white it was easy to see that Lenora Robinson, all sharp angles with high cheekbones and a thin, small nose, bore no resemblance to L.K. on the Embankment's youthful features and strong jaw.
Still, Mrs. Leithbridge's great-aunt shared a first initial with the inscription on the back of the photograph.
Cara opened the tin and pulled it out. "Are you sure this wasn't her? The back reads 'L.K.' Maybe it was taken before she was married. What was her maiden name?"
Mrs. Leithbridge barely glanced at the photo. "Great-Aunt Lenora never took her husband's name. Quite modern, really."
"Oh." Cara glanced at Jock. "There was a diary too."
"There's a market for World War Two paraphernalia and diaries, but since it doesn't appear that Mrs. Robinson wrote it, we'd have to authenticate it and identify the writer," said Jock.
"I have a broker coming to look at the house in two weeks. Everything that can't be sold will be cleared out by a junk-removal company," said Mrs. Leithbridge.
"But shouldn't we do something with it?" Cara asked, holding up the diary. "Perhaps return it to the woman who wrote it?"
"Where did you find it?" Jock asked.
"In an armoire in a small room off the back stairs."
"The box room?" Mrs. Leithbridge laughed. "No one's been in there for years. Throw it out."
"No!" Heat crept up Cara's neck as two pairs of eyes bored into her, but she refused to look away. She felt strangely protective of the diary, drawn in by the happiness and heartbreak she'd read, and was now more determined than ever to get the answers she needed from Gran about her history.
"I'd like to keep it and try to figure out who it belonged to." Cara paused. "If that's okay with you."
"I don't care," said Mrs. Leithbridge. "I'll be in the drawing room if you need me."
When they were alone, Jock pinned Cara with a stern glare. "Miss Hargraves, we do not argue with clients."
"She wanted to throw it away," Cara protested.
"And that's her right. Mrs. Leithbridge can haul all of this to the back garden and set fire to it if she likes, but I'd rather persuade her to sell it and earn my commission. It would be helpful if my assistant didn't scold her."
"Aren't you the least bit curious as to who wrote it?"
"Given that I'm working and using up my client's valuable time, I'm far more interested in this writing box," he said, gesturing to a Victorian lady's lap desk that lay open on a table. "Or any other number of things that will actually turn a profit. F-S-P, Miss Hargraves."
She squared her shoulders, but before she could say anything, Jock sighed, took off his glasses, and rubbed them on a handkerchief from his pocket. "If it'll stop you from looking at me like I'm a philistine trying to destroy history, you can take the diary home. Go put it away, but hurry back. This is proving to be a larger job than I expected."
Cara kept her head down as she rushed to her car, but she couldn't help the little smile that touched her lips. She and Gran would have quite a bit to talk about after work.
This reading group guide for The Light Over London includes an introduction, discussion questions, and ideas for enhancing your book club. The suggested questions are intended to help your reading group find new and interesting angles and topics for your discussion. We hope that these ideas will enrich your conversation and increase your enjoyment of the book
For Cara Hargraves, burying herself in her job working for an antiques dealer is an easy escape from the memories of a failed marriage and the tragic death of her parents. One day, while clearing out an estate, she finds a World War II–era diary and photograph of a young woman in uniform—the same uniform her grandmother wore during the war. With the help of her neighbor, Cara searches for the identity of this mysterious woman, all while exorcising the secrets of her family's past.
Author Julia Kelly weaves in the tale of Louise Keene, the author of the diary, as she falls in love with a dashing pilot before running away from her Cornish village to join the women's branch of the British Army during World War II. While Louise gains her independence and finds her place among her fellow gunner girls, she also discovers the darker side of wartime romance. The Light Over London is about two women who find themselves and fight to forge a better and brighter future.
Topics and Questions for Discussion
1. Although Louise's mother is proud of her flower garden in front of their house, Louise's father plants a vegetable garden there in case of rationing, which was "the first big battle of her parents' war within the war. . . . The argument was finally won one spring day when Louise had returned from a bicycle ride to find her father on his knees in the mud, ripping out just-flowering plants, while her mother stood in the front window, arms crossed and face pale" (page 23). What does this scene reveal about Louise's parents' relationship, and how they cope with living during wartime?
2. One of the main conflicts in the beginning of The Light Over London is that Louise is dissatisfied with life in her Cornwall village. Who in your group is from a smaller town? Discuss the differences between life in small town and a bigger city—both the pros and the cons.
3. When Cara first discovers the diary, Mrs. Leithbridge tells her to throw it away, but Cara fights to keep it. Why do you think she is so drawn to it initially?
4. Nicole, Cara's best friend, and Kate, Louise's cousin, have relatively minor roles, but they are important in the book. How do their characters drive the plots of the two sections forward?
5. "It seemed extraordinary to her that this man who belonged to a glamorous world so removed from her own had chosen her, a girl who'd hardly ever ventured out of Cornwall save the few times she'd visited her mother's sister in Bristol" (page 86). Discuss the power dynamics going on in Paul and Louise's relationship. What do you see as potentially harmful for each of them?
6. Discussing a passage in Louise's diary, Cara remarks, "Of course people slept together before they were married" (page 213). What are your perceptions of sexual ethics during World War II, and did reading The Light Over London change them?
7. What about Cara's relationship to Liam is different from her relationship to her ex-husband? How do you think her character has changed?
8. Paul makes the following argument to Louise: "If you ask me, they should've never started women's auxiliary branches. It's too dangerous, not to mention the distraction" (page 221). What does Paul mean by "distraction"? What modern-day arguments have you heard for keeping certain groups of people from serving in the military?
9. After Paul dies, Louise learns that he already had a wife when he married her. What do you think of Louise's response to this information? Did the revelations during her meeting with Lenora surprise you?
10. Paul's character is one that's easy to fall for (both as the protagonist and as the reader). Why? What about him makes it seem like a good decision for Louise to choose him?
11. In looking back at the scene where Paul and Louise first meet, can you find any hints of Paul's true character? Did you think anything about him was suspicious?
12. A major theme of this book is Louise's independence. Discuss her transformation as a character throughout. What surprised you?
13. How do Cara and Louise's stories mirror each other? How do they diverge?
Enhance Your Book Club
1. Cara's need to find the owner of Louise's diary is motivated by her desire to uncover her own family history. Look online for a basic family tree template, fill it out, and bring it back to the group—sharing what you know about your ancestry and the gaps that you found.
2. Have your group research the women who served in the British military during World War II. Bring your findings back and discuss what you discovered. Focus in on what many of these women did after serving.
3. A large part of Cara's job is assessing the value of antiques. Have a show-and-tell day in your book club where you each bring in a family heirloom. If any items have been appraised, share what they're worth and why. If any of your members are willing, bring items that haven't been appraised to an antiques expert and ask the expert to appraise them. If there's an appraisal cost, the whole group can chip in.
4. Host an authentic tea party, complete with English tea and biscuits. If you have time, put together an antiques version of "The Price Is Right." With the antiques that you had expertly appraised, have everyone guess how much the pieces are worth. The person who guesses correctly the most times wins a teapot.
Romance - Love and War
Women - Romantic Relationships
World War II - Historical Fiction
Prolific romance writer Kelly (The Look of Love) weaves an intricate, tender, and convincing tale of war and romance with skill and suspense. In 2017 London, assistant antique dealer Cara Hargraves discovers a WWII diary while preparing a manor house for an estate sale. Intrigued, Cara determines to identify the diarist and uncover her story. The diary's entries begin in 1940, written, as Cara discovers, by 19-year-old Cornwall shopgirl Louise Keene. As Cara recovers from a devastating divorce, she and her handsome neighbor Liam McGown, who works with Cara, learn much about the diary's author. Louise falls in love with dashing RAF pilot Paul Bolton, but her mother angrily disapproves, leading Louise to run away to London, join the British army, and become part of the female crew of an antiaircraft gun protecting London during the Blitz. Though Louise has a difficult personal life with Paul, she proves her independence and courage as a "gunner girl" shooting at German bombers. This is a bold story of a young woman's innocence and heartache, and her satisfying discovery of her worth and inner strength. (Jan.)
"The Light over London is a poignant reminder that there is no limit to what women can do. A nostalgic, engrossing read."
--Julia London
"Sweeping, stirring, and heartrending in all the best ways, this tale of one of WWII's courageous, colorful, and enigmatic Gunner Girls will take your breath away."
—Kristin Harmel
Deftly weaving together past and present, Kelly tells a fresh, heartfelt story of sisterhood and sacrifice, culminating in a gut-punch finish. Perfect for fans of The Alice Network.
–Michelle Gable
Kelly has crafted two convincing, conflicted heroines in Cara and Louise, and the resolution of Louise's romance is satisfyingly empowering. Hand this to fans of Jennifer Egan's Manhattan Beach (2017) and other tales of the vital roles played by women in wartime.
Julia London
When antiques dealer Cara Hargraves discovers a biscuit tin holding a locket, a photograph, and a diary dating back to World War II, she becomes determined to discover the identity of the smiling young woman in uniform.
Kelly (The Allure of Attraction, 2018, etc.) deftly balances intrigue with mystery and historical detail in her latest novel. As the chapters alternate between the present day and the war era, Cara unpacks mementos conjuring up the life of Louise Keene, a young woman chafing at the confines of Haybourne, her Cornish village. While her mother and Mrs. Moss may be convinced she'll marry Gary Moss someday—just as soon as the war ends and he returns home to run his father's small law firm—Louise herself has other plans. So when her beautiful, outgoing cousin, Kate, invites her to a dance, Louise pushes aside a self-deprecating glance in the mirror and musters up her courage. There, she meets the dashing Flight Lt. Paul Bolton, a man who captures her heart. Their whirlwind romance is thrown a curveball when Paul is suddenly deployed, and Louise sets off on an adventure, following him out of Haybourne. Eager to put herself and her mathematical skills to work, Louise enlists, joining the women's branch of the British army as a gunner girl, a member of an anti-aircraft unit that calculates the locations of enemy planes. Her correspondence with Paul becomes increasingly passionate, and they quickly marry during a rare leave. But a string of unanswered letters is only the first clue that Paul has secrets that will utterly upend Louise's life. Meanwhile, in the present, as recently divorced and romantically gun-shy Cara chases down the clues in the tin, she meets Liam McGown, her new, rather charmingly disheveled neighbor. A reader of medieval history, Liam chivalrously helps Cara on her quest, and love may be around the corner for the sleuths, too.
A charming imagining of the historical gunner girls.
"Kelly doesn't disappoint us–and readers will be engrossed in Louise's story of love and war juxtaposed with Cara's present discoveries...We root for both Louise and Cara, understanding their fears, hopes and chances."
BookTrib
"Historical fiction fans won't be able to wait to get their hands on Julia Kelly's The Light Over London....fans should bookmark [it.]"
"Readers who adore a richly detailed period piece will be immediately drawn in by the world of The Light Over London. Julia Kelly has delivered her most elegant effort yet: a deeply rewarding and moving novel."
Apple Best of the Month
A sweeping and beautifully written novel... an epic saga of love and friendship.
A heartbreaking romance that will grip you from the very beginning. Julia Kelly weaves a tender romantic story around a girl who fights war showing how strong even tender, romantic women can be. With a bit of mystery in the story, even mystery-readers will like it.
The Washington Book Review
--Apple Best of the Month
--BookTrib
--Popsugar
--Booklist
A sweeping and beautifully written novel… an epic saga of love and friendship.
--Women's World
--The Washington Book Review
Antiques dealer Cara finds a tin of letters and photographs from World War II that pose a mystery she feels compelled to investigate. Through the contents of the box, readers enter 1940s Great Britain and are privy to Louise Keene's life during that era. Louise is tested when she joins the women's army and is chosen as a new "gunner girl." Dangerous antiaircraft action during the Blitz bombings in London ensues and makes exciting reading. Kelly moves from historical romance (The Allure of Attraction; The Taste of Temptation) into mainstream fiction with this dual time-line story. Romance is not entirely forgotten while both heroines struggle with life's difficulties; however, the development of the main characters takes center stage. Cara gradually learns of Louise's life via the letters, detective work in the military files, and finally through a 94-year-old woman. Surprises involving a selfish mother, dashing RAF pilots, and a grandmother with a secret keep the guesses coming. VERDICT For fans of historical works by and about women.—Mary K. Bird-Guilliams, Chicago
Van Gogh Sketch -LG
SKETCHBOOK CREATE GREY
Flying Angels: A Novel
Three Sisters: A Novel
The Queen's Fortune: A Novel of Desiree, Napoleon, and the Dynasty That Outlasted the Empire
A sweeping novel about the extraordinary woman who captured Napoleon's heart, created a dynasty, and changed the course of history—from the New York Times bestselling author of The
Nelly Takes New York: A Little Girl's Adventures in the Big Apple
The Big Apple may be hiding in the place you least expect it in this spunky introduction to the best parts of New York.
Nelly lives in New York, the greatest city in the world.
Every morning, she
The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post
"This marvelous novel kept me up way past my bedtime. I just had to be there with the Post cereal heiress through every twist and turn."—Martha Hall Kelly, New York Times
A rich and sweeping novel of courage, duty, sacrifice, and love set during the French Revolution from New York Times bestselling author Allison Pataki and her brother Owen Pataki
Three years after
The Book of Summer
New York Times Bestselling Author of A Paris Apartment
The ocean, the wild roses on the dunes and the stunning Cliff House, perched atop a bluff in Sconset, Nantucket. Inside the faded pages of the
A Paris Apartment
Bienvenue à Paris!
When April Vogt's boss tells her about an apartment in the ninth arrondissement that has been discovered after being shuttered for the past seventy years, the Sotheby's
The Bookseller's Secret: A Novel of Nancy Mitford and WWII
"The Bookseller's Secret is a delight from start to finish, a literary feast any booklover will savor!" —Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Rose
The Lipstick Bureau: A Novel Inspired by True WWII Events
1944, Rome. Newlywed Niki Novotná is recruited by a new American spy agency to establish a secret branch in Italy's capital. One of the OSS's few female operatives abroad and
A Place Like Home: Short Stories
Celebrate life's journeys with the beloved author whose stories of life and love touched the world.
A Place Like Home is a spellbinding collection of short stories by internationally bestselling
The Naked Eye (Kendra Michaels Series #3)
The #1 New York Times bestselling author Iris Johansen and the Edgar Award-winning author Roy Johansen are back with a new a new novel in The Naked Eye featuring Kendra Michaels-hired gun for both
Live to See Tomorrow
Catherine Ling is one of the CIA's most prized operatives. Raised on the unforgiving streets of Hong Kong, she was pulled into the agency at the age of fourteen, already having accumulated more
Your Next Breath
Your Next Breath from New York Times best selling author Iris Johansen
Catherine Ling is one of the CIA's most prized operatives. Raised on the streets of Hong Kong, she was pulled into the agency at
Vendetta: A Novel
Blockbuster bestselling author Iris Johansen brings back fan favorite Catherine Ling—and introduces readers to a whole new world of danger, intrigue, and red-hot passion with Vendetta.
With his
On Ocean Boulevard
This "authentic, generous, and heartfelt" (Mary Kay Andrews, New York Times bestselling author) instant New York Times bestseller from the author of The Summer of Lost and Found recounts
A Lowcountry Christmas
A wounded warrior and his younger brother discover the true meaning of Christmas in this timeless story of family bonds.
As far as ten-year-old Miller McClellan is concerned, it's the worst

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Q: Downgrade from Evolution 3.16 to Evolution 3.12 I am using Ubuntu 15.04. I installed Gnome Evolution 3.16 by adding the Gnome PPA in my sources list. This worked briefly, but then Evolution stopped working with my Google Apps accounts (happened on two separate fresh installs, and worked fine initially, but stopped working after I restarted Evolution).
I have since removed Evolution 3.16 (used the Software center to uninstall), and also removed the PPA for Gnome from my sources. I have rebuilt the sources list (apt-get update... and done an autoclean and autoremove as well).
I am getting a number of dependencies unmet errors when I try and install the default Ubuntu tested version of Evolution (ver 3.12) now:

Depends: evolution-common(=3.12.11-0ubuntu3) but 3.12.11-0ubuntu3 is to be installed

Running the install from the terminal results in the following error (using sudo apt-get install evolution):

Some packages could not be installed. This may mean that you have
  requested an impossible situation or if you are using the unstable
  distribution that some required packages have not yet been created
  or been moved out of Incoming.
The following information may help to resolve the situation:
The following packages have unmet dependencies:
   evolution : Depends: evolution-data-server (< 3.13) but 3.16.0-fta1 is to be installed
Recommends: evolution-plugins but it is not going to be installed
Recommends: spamassassin but it is not going to be installed or bogofilter but it is not going to be installed
E: Unable to correct problems, you have held broken packages.

Any help would be appreciated.

A: *

*Add the PPAs again, and yes, I'am sure.

*sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade

*sudo apt-get install -f

*sudo apt-get install ppa-purge

*Use sudo ppa-purge <the_ppa>to remove the PPAs and to downgrade your GNOME environment

A: You have to add the ppa and purge it out
sudo apt-add repository ppa:gnome3-team/gnome3
Then Update the system
sudo apt-get update
then purge it off
ppa-purge ppa:gnome3-team/gnome3
You can try sudo apt-get install -f to try fixing stuffs

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Methods: Using data from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organiza
Posted on September 30, 2020 by mirn8161
Methods: Using data from the Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (2000-2009), we computed the survival to hospital discharge for neonates (age <= 30 days) supported with ECMO after stage 1 palliation for hypoplastic left heart syndrome. The factors associated with mortality were evaluated using multivariate logistic regression analysis.
Results: Among 738 neonates, the survival rate was 31%. The median age at cannulation was 7 days (interquartile range, 4-11). Black race (odds ratio [OR], 2.0; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.2-3.6), mechanical ventilation before ECMO(>15-131
hours: OR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1-2.4; > 131 hours: OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.3-2.9), use of positive end expiratory pressure (>6-8 cm H2O: OR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.1-2.7; >8 cm H2O: OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.2-3.1), and longer ECMO duration (per day, OR, 1.2; check details 95% CI, 1.1-1.3) Selleckchem PLX3397 increased mortality. ECMO support for failure to wean from cardiopulmonary bypass (OR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.02-2.4) also decreased survival. ECMO complications, including renal failure (OR, 1.9; 95% CI, 1.2-3.1), inotrope requirement (OR, 1.5; 95% CI, 1.1-2.1), myocardial stun (OR, 3.2; 95% CI, 1.3-7.7), metabolic acidosis (OR, 2.9; 95% CI, 1.3-6.7), and neurologic injury (OR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.1-2.6), during support also increased mortality.
Conclusions: Mortality for neonates with hypoplastic
left heart syndrome supported with ECMO after stage 1 palliation is high. Longer ventilation before cannulation, longer support duration, and ECMO CYTH4 complications increased mortality.
(J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2012; 144:1337-43)"
"Several studies have revealed the importance of brain imaging in term and preterm infants. The aim of this retrospective study was to review safety, handling, and image quality of MR brain imaging using a new 3 Tesla MR-compatible incubator.
Between 02/2011 and 05/2012 100 brain MRIs (84 infants, mean gestational age 32.2 +/- 4.7 weeks, mean postmenstrual age at imaging 40.6 +/- 3.4 weeks) were performed using a 3 Tesla MR-compatible incubator with dedicated, compatible head coil. Seventeen examinations (13 infants, mean gestational age 35.1 +/- 5.4 weeks, mean postmenstrual age at imaging 47.8 +/- 7.4 weeks) with a standard head coil served as a control. Image analysis was performed by a neuroradiologist and a pediatric radiologist in consensus.
All but two patients with known apnea were transferred to the MR unit and scanned without problems. Handling was easier and faster with the incubator; relevant motion artifacts (5.9 vs. 10.8 %) and the need for repetitive sedation (43.0 vs. 86.7 %) were reduced. Considering only images not impaired by motion artifacts, image quality (4.8 +/- 0.4 vs. 4.3 +/- 0.8, p = 0.047) and spatial resolution (4.7 +/- 0.4 vs. 4.2 +/- 0.6, p = 0.011) of T2-weighted images were scored significantly higher in patients imaged with the incubator. SNR increased significantly (171.6 +/- 54.5 vs.
A distinct genotype of Salmonella enterica var Typhimurium, ST313
A distinct genotype of Salmonella enterica var Typhimurium, ST313, has emerged as a new pathogenic clade in sub-Saharan Africa, and might have adapted to cause invasive disease in human beings. Multidrug-resistant ST313 has caused epidemics in several
African countries, and has driven the use of expensive antimicrobial drugs in the Vadimezan clinical trial poorest health services in the world. Studies of systemic cellular and humoral immune responses in adults infected with HIV have revealed key host immune defects contributing to invasive non-typhoidal salmonella disease. This emerging pathogen might therefore have adapted to occupy an ecological and immunological niche provided by HIV, malaria, and malnutrition in Africa. A good understanding of the epidemiology of this neglected disease will open new avenues for development and implementation of vaccine and public health strategies to prevent infections and interrupt transmission."
"Necroptosis was reported as one backup way of programmed cell death when apoptosis was blocked, and the receptor
interacting protein 1 was considered as the key necroptosis regulator protein. Here, we report the neuroprotective effects of curcumin which attenuates necroptosis. Primary cortical neurons were cultured and were injured by ferrous chloride, z.vad.fmk was applied to block apoptosis, curcumin Caspase Inhibitor VI datasheet was administrated to protect neurons, necrostatin-1 was applied to inhibit necroptosis if needed. Cell viability was measured by detecting lactate dehydrogenase activity in lysates of surviving cells, and assessed by cell counting kit-8. The expression of receptor interacting protein 1 was detected by immunoblot and immunofluorescence. Results showed that necroptosis mainly occurred in the concentrations of ferrous chloride ranging from 100 to 200 mu M, curcumin attenuated necroptosis in a dose-dependent manner. Furthermore, curcumin decreased expression of receptor interacting protein 1 in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Taken together, these findings suggest that curcumin protects against iron induced neurotoxicity in primary cortical neurons by attenuating necroptosis. Crown
Copyright (C) 2013 Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved."
"Reactive oxygen species (ROS), Carnitine palmitoyltransferase II including hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), are constantly generated as by-products of normal metabolic cellular pathways and can be overproduced in response to stress. In this study, we investigated ROS production and localization of H2O2 after salt (200 mM KCl) and osmotic (iso-osmotic sorbitol concentration) stress in the unicellular green alga Micrasterias. By means of the dye H(2)DCFDA and confocal laser scanning microscopy, most ROS production could be detected in KCl-treated cells when compared to sorbitol-exposed cells and controls. For ultrastructural detection of H2O2, CeCl3, which reacts with H2O2 and produces cerium perhydroxide deposits, has been used.
Thymic atrophy, lymphopenia, and dysregulated cytokine and chemok
Thymic atrophy, lymphopenia, and dysregulated cytokine and chemokine production were additional systemic manifestations associated with severe disease. Thus, airway macrophages play a critical role in limiting MM-102 manufacturer lung injury and associated disease caused by BJx109. Furthermore, the inability of PR8 to infect airway macrophages may be a critical
factor contributing to its virulence for mice."
"G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), also known as seven-transmembrane (7TM) receptors, are the largest family of membrane proteins in the human genome. As versatile signaling molecules, they mediate cellular responses to extracellular signals. Diffusible ligands like hormones and neurotransmitters bind to GPCRs to modulate GPCR
activity. An extraordinary and highly specialized GPCR is the photoreceptor rhodopsin which contains the chromophore retinal as its covalently bound selleck kinase inhibitor ligand. For receptor activation the configuration of retinal is altered by photon absorption. To date, rhodopsin is the only GPCR for which crystal structures of inactive, active and ligand-free conformations are known. Although the photochemical activation is unique to rhodopsin, many mechanistic insights from this receptor can be generalized for GPCRs. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved."
"Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) controllers maintain viremia at <2,000 RNA copies/ml without antiretroviral therapy. Viruses from controllers with chronic infection were shown to exhibit impaired replication capacities, in part associated with escape mutations from cytotoxic-T-lymphocyte (CTL) responses. In contrast, little is known about viruses during acute/early infection in individuals who subsequently become HIV controllers. Here, we examine the viral replication capacities,
HLA types, and virus sequences from 18 HIV-1 controllers identified during primary infection. gag-protease chimeric Miconazole viruses constructed using the earliest postinfection samples displayed significantly lower replication capacities than isolates from persons who failed to control viremia (P = 0.0003). Protective HLA class I alleles were not enriched in these early HIV controllers, but viral sequencing revealed a significantly higher prevalence of drug resistance mutations associated with impaired viral fitness in controllers than in noncontrollers (6/15 [40.0%] versus 10/80 [12.5%], P = 0.018). Moreover, of two HLA-B57-positive (B57(+)) controllers identified, both harbored, at the earliest time point tested, signature escape mutations within Gag that likewise impair viral replication capacity.
Nine to 11 weeks after diabetes induction, tactile allodynia was
Nine to 11 weeks after diabetes induction, tactile allodynia was observed in the streptozotocin-injected rats. On this condition, subcutaneous administration of PPG or HA reduced tactile allodynia in diabetic rats. Paradoxically, H2S levels were decreased selleck chemical in nerve sciatic, dorsal root ganglion and spinal cord, but not paw nor blood plasma, during diabetes-associated peripheral neuropathy development. Collectively, results suggest that H2S synthesized by CBS and CSE
participate in formalin-induced nociception in diabetic and non-diabetic rats, as well as; in tactile allodynia in streptozotocin-injected rats. In addition, data seems to indicate that diabetic rats are more sensible to H2S-induced hyperalgesia than normoglycemic rats. (C) 2013 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved."
"The baculovirus Autographa californica multicapsid
nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) initiates apoptosis in diverse insects through events triggered by virus DNA (vDNA) replication. To define the proapoptotic pathway and its role in antivirus defense, we investigated the link between the host's DNA damage response (DDR) and apoptosis. We report here that AcMNPV elicits a DDR in the model insect Drosophila melanogaster. Replication of vDNA activated DDR kinases, as evidenced by ATM-driven phosphorylation of the Drosophila histone H2AX find more homolog (H2Av), a critical regulator of the DDR. Ablation or inhibition of ATM repressed H2Av phosphorylation and blocked virus-induced apoptosis. The DDR kinase inhibitors caffeine and KU55933 also prevented virus-induced apoptosis in cells derived from the permissive AcMNPV host, Spodoptera frugiperda. This block occurred at a step upstream of virus-mediated
depletion of the cellular inhibitor-of-apoptosis protein, an event that initiates apoptosis in Spodoptera and Drosophila. Thus, the DDR is a conserved, proapoptotic response to baculovirus infection. DDR inhibition also repressed vDNA replication and reduced virus yields 100,000-fold, demonstrating that the DDR contributes to virus production, despite its recognized antivirus role. In contrast to virus-induced phosphorylation of Drosophila H2Av, AcMNPV blocked phosphorylation of the Spodoptera H2AX homolog (SfH2AX). Remarkably, SSR128129E AcMNPV also suppressed SfH2AX phosphorylation following pharmacologically induced DNA damage. These findings indicate that AcMNPV alters canonical DDR signaling in permissive cells. We conclude that AcMNPV triggers a proapoptotic DDR that is subsequently modified, presumably to stimulate vDNA replication. Thus, manipulation of the DDR to facilitate multiplication is an evolutionarily conserved strategy among DNA viruses of insects and mammals."
"In the adult rabbit and mouse retina, about 30% of the ON-OFF direction selective ganglion cells (DSGCs) are coupled via gap junctions.
"Soil microbes play an essential role in the environment b
"Soil microbes play an essential role in the environment by contributing to the release of key nutrients from primary minerals that are required not only for their own nutrition but also for that of plants. Although the
role of fungi in mineral weathering is beginning to be elucidated, the relative impact of bacteria Lonafarnib ic50 in this process and the molecular mechanisms involved remain poorly understood. Here, we discuss the ecological relevance of bacterial weathering, mainly in the soil and especially in acidic forest ecosystems, which strongly depend on mineral weathering for their sustainability. We also present highlights from recent studies showing molecular mechanisms JSH-23 cost and genetic determinants involved in the dissolution of complex minerals under aerobic conditions. Finally, we consider the potential applications of genomic resources to the study of bacterial weathering."
"We have investigated the effect of protein kinase Mzeta (PKM zeta) inhibition in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) upon the retention of a nonspatial learned active avoidance response and conditioned taste-aversion
(CTA) acquisition in rats. ZIP (10 nmol/mu L) injected into the BLA 24 h after training impaired retention of a learned avoidance-jumping response assessed 7 d later when compared with control groups injected with scrambled-ZIP. Nevertheless, a retraining session applied 24 h later indicated no differences between the groups. Additionally, CYTH4 a similar ZIP injection into the BLA during the conditioned stimulus-unconditioned stimulus (CS-US) interval attenuated CTA acquisition. These findings support the BLA PKMz role in various forms of memory."
"The aim of the study was to investigate a group of detained females with regard to aggression and psychopathology and to examine the relationship between
the two conditions. For this purpose, a representative sample of 216 detained adolescent females aged 12-18 (mean 15.5) was studied with a standard set of self-report instruments, while a subgroup of 73 parents was interviewed by telephone on the participants' externalizing psychopathology. Based on aggression items derived from the Conduct Disorder section of the Kiddie-SADS, the following three aggression subgroups were identified: (1) non-aggressive (NA; 41%), (2) mildly aggressive (MA; 39%), and (3) severely aggressive (SA; 20%). In addition to high levels of psychopathology for the group as a whole, differences were found between aggression groups, with the NA group demonstrating the lowest levels, the MA group intermediate levels, and the SA group the highest levels. These differences were most pronounced for externalizing psychopathology, and were also found for posttraumatic stress symptomatology (PTSS) and suicidality.
The impact of differential motor abilities of these muscle groups
The impact of differential motor abilities of these muscle groups on the execution of bimanual force control tasks in individuals with stroke is unknown. The primary purpose of this study was to determine the influence of task constraints on visually guided bimanual force control in chronic stroke. Stroke survivors and age-matched individuals performed bimanual isometric contractions for 20 s to match target submaximal force levels. Online visual feedback of the total force
(sum of the forces produced by both hands) was provided. The task constraints were manipulated by (a) finger extension, and (b) finger flexion (power grip). Force asymmetry PS-341 cost was indexed by the proportion of force contributed KU-60019 research buy by the paretic hand to the total force. The stroke group demonstrated task-specific asymmetry in bimanual force control. Specifically, the paretic hand contributed less force than the non-paretic hand in finger extension whereas this relationship was reversed in power grip. Importantly, regardless of the nature of the task, reduction
in motor impairments was associated with increased symmetry and coordination in bimanual tasks. Further, bimanual submaximal grip force control revealed asymmetry and coordination deficits that are not identified by investigating bimanual maximal force production alone. The motor control strategy adopted to optimize performance on bimanual tasks revealed the altered force production of the paretic hand due to the combined effect of extensor weakness and enhanced flexor bias
following stroke. Bimanual asymmetries in stroke survivors highlight the need for identifying and treating the task-specific impairments for maximizing motor recovery post stroke. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved."
"Long-term follow-ups on bladder cancer patients from highly industrialized areas are rare. Therefore, we present a follow-up Aldol condensation of bladder cancer patients from the greater area Lutherstadt Wittenberg, a center of the chemical industry of the former German Democratic Republic. Relapse-free survival times of 213 confirmed bladder cancer cases from the greater area Lutherstadt Wittenberg were collected between 2008 and 2009. Data on lifestyle and occupational exposure to potential carcinogens was recorded by questionnaire. Genotypes of N-acetyltransferase 2 (NAT2), glutathione S-transferase M1 (GSTM1), glutathione S-transferase T1 (GSTT1), rs710521, and rs9642880 were determined by standard methods. Cox models were used to evaluate differences in relapse-free survival. Clear differences in relapse-free survival could be observed for the number of relapses, multilocular tumor growth, and relapses with higher staging or grading than the primary tumor, as well as GSTT1. None of the other investigated polymorphisms showed significant impact on prognosis.
Conclusion: Lung ischemia-reperfusion causes more severe lung dam
Conclusion: Lung ischemia-reperfusion causes more severe lung damage in infants than in adults, probably because of the combination of low antioxidant capacity and overproduction of
reactive oxygen species in infants."
"White matter abnormalities have been detected using diffusion tensor imaging in a variety of locations in the brains of patients with schizophrenia. Studies that included first-episode patients report less severe or no abnormalities INK1197 but more pronounced deficits in chronic patients. Here, we investigated these abnormalities in a very large group of patients with schizophrenia who had both large ranges in age and in duration of illness. A highly reproducible diffusion tensor imaging tractography technique was used to quantify the fractional anisotropy of the genu and splenium SAHA HDAC of the corpus callosum as well as the bilateral pyramidal tracts.
We found a decline in fractional anisotropy that correlated with the duration of illness in the genu and splenium of the corpus callosum but not in the pyramidal tracts. The findings suggest that there are white matter tract-specific degenerative mechanisms that may be present at the point of illness onset and may progress throughout the illness. NeuroReport 19:1369-1372 (C) 2008 Wolters Kluwer Health \ Lippincott Williams & Wilkins."
"We assessed the relationship between changes in corticosterone concentrations and hearing in mice exposed to noise during the light (inactive) and dark (active) phases. Serum corticosterone concentrations and hearing levels were measured before, and 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10 days after, noise exposure between 8:00-11:00 h and 15:00-18:00 h. Serum corticosterone concentrations were significantly lower at 8:00-11:00 h than at 15:00-18:00 h and were significantly lower before than after noise exposure. In addition, serum corticosterone concentrations were significantly lower at 11:00 h after noise
exposure than at 18:00 h before noise exposure. Mice exposed to noise at 8:00-11:00 h showed significantly elevated threshold shifts after noise exposure than did mice exposed to noise at 15:00-18:00 h. Endogenous serum Phloretin corticosterone concentration has a significant effect on hearing after noise exposure. Noise exposure during the inactive phase of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis may be more harmful to the auditory system than noise exposure during the active phase of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. NeuroReport 19:1373-1376 (C) 2008 Wolters Kluwer Health \ Lippincott Williams & Wilkins."
"Objective: Expression profile analysis using endomyocardial biopsy specimens from patients with cardiomyopathies promises to improve the differential diagnosis of heart failure.
D1R/cAMP-mediated excitatory effects may influence the generation
D1R/cAMP-mediated excitatory effects may influence the generation of output signals
from MSNs by facilitating their transition from the quiescent down-state to the functionally active up-state. (C) 2010 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved."
"Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) populations were adversely affected by DDT and perhaps other contaminants in the United States and elsewhere. Reduced productivity, eggshell thinning, and high DDE concentrations in eggs were the signs associated with declining osprey populations in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The species was one of the first studied on a large scale to bring contaminant issues into focus. Although few quantitative population data were available prior to the 1960s, many osprey populations in North America Selleck CFTRinh-172 were studied during the 1960s and 1970s with much learned about basic
life history and biology. This article reviews the historical and current effects of contaminants on regional osprey populations. Breeding populations in many regions of North America showed post-DDT-era (1972) population increases of varying 3-MA in vivo magnitudes, with many populations now appearing to stabilize at much higher numbers than initially reported in the 1970s and 1980s. However, the magnitude of regional population increases in the United States between 1981 (first Nationwide Survey, 8,000 pairs), when some recovery had already occurred, 1994 (second survey, 14,200), and 2001 (third survey, 16,000-19,000), or any other years, is likely not
a simple response to the release from earlier contaminant effects, but a response to multi-factorial effects. This indirect ocontaminant effectso measurement comparing changes (i.e., recovery) in post-DDT-era population numbers over time is probably confounded by changing human attitudes toward birds of prey (shooting, destroying nests, etc.), changing habitats, changing fish populations, and perhaps competition from other species. The species' adaptation to newly created reservoirs and its increasing use of artificial nesting structures (power poles, nesting platforms, cell towers, channel markers, offshore duck blinds, etc.) are two important factors. The timing of the initial use of artificial nesting structures, which replaced declining numbers of suitable trees at many locations, varied regionally (much later in the western United Hydroxychloroquine in vivo States and Mexico). Because of the increasing use of artificial nesting structures, there may be more ospreys nesting in North America now than ever before. Now, with the impact of most legacy organic contaminants (DDT, other organochlorine [OC] pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls [PCB], polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins [PCDD], polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF]) greatly reduced or eliminated, and some osprey populations showing evidence of stabilizing, the species was proposed as a Worldwide Sentinel Species for evaluating emerging contaminants.
Coexpression of LF2 also specifically induces modification of Rta
Coexpression of LF2 also specifically induces modification of Rta by the small ubiquitin-like modifiers SUMO2 and SUMO3. We further demonstrate that LF2 overexpression blocks lytic activation in EBV-infected cells induced with Rta or Zta. Our results demonstrate
that LF2, a gene deleted from the EBV reference mTOR inhibitor strain B95-8, encodes a potent inhibitor of EBV replication, and they suggest that future studies of EBV replication need to account for the potential effects of LF2 on Rta activity."
"Morphology refers to the subcomponents of words such as roots and affixes. It is unclear whether morphological properties of words go beyond a relationship between form and meaning. Here, using event-related brain potentials, we compared orthographic priming (e.g. archer-arch), semantic priming (e.g. vault-arch) and morphological priming (e.g. archway-arch) in participants performing a lexical decision task. Relative to baseline (i.e. no priming, e.g. frog-arch), orthographic priming modulated brain potentials from 190-460 ms poststimulus onset and semantic
priming had a measurable effect only after 240 ms. Critically, morphological priming was well approximated by the cumulative effects of orthographic and semantic priming at all times.We conclude that morphological effects can 17-AAG ic50 be accounted for by the conjunction of orthography and semantics in a priming experiment."
"Latent membrane protein 2A (LMP2A) is a viral protein expressed during Ergoloid Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) latency in EBV-infected B cells both in cell culture and in vivo. LMP2A has important roles in modulating B-cell receptor signal transduction and provides survival and developmental signals to B cells in vivo. Although Lyn has been shown to be important in mediating LMP2A signaling, it is still unclear if Lyn is used preferentially or if LMP2A associates promiscuously with other Sire family kinase (SFK) members. To investigate the role of various SFKs in LMP2A signaling, we crossed LMP2A transgenic mice (TgE) with Lyn(-/-), Fyn(-/-), or
Blk(-/-) mice. TgE Lyn(-)/(-)mice had a larger immunoglobulin M (IgM)-positive B-cell population than TgE mice, suggesting that the absence of Lyn prevents LMP2A from delivering survival and developmental signals to the B cells. Both TgE Fyn(-/-)and TgE Blk(-/-)mice have an IgM-negative population of splenic B cells, similar to the TgE mice. LMP2A was also transiently transfected into the human EBV-negative B-cell line BJAB to determine which SFK members associate with LMP2A. Lyn was detected in LMP2A immunoprecipitates, whereas Fyn was not. Both Lyn and Fyn were able to bind to an LMP2A mutant which contained a sequence shown previously to bind tightly to the SH2 domain of multiple SFK members.
The role of the KKS in the development of diabetic nephropathy is
The role of the KKS in the development of diabetic nephropathy is controversial, with both adverse and protective effects see more of bradykinin and its receptors reported. The review examines the role of the KKS in pathways central to the development of diabetic retinopathy and compares this with reported actions of this system in diabetic nephropathy. The possibility of therapeutic intervention
targeting bradykinin and its receptors as treatment for diabetic microvascular conditions is considered."
"THIS ARTICLE EXTENSIVELY reviews the history, indications for bypass, choice of grafts, techniques, complications, and results after cerebral revascularization. The current role and future perspectives PF299804 of cerebral revascularization are discussed. The results of 295 direct revascularization procedures in 285 patients (130
tumors and 115 aneurysms from 1988 to 2006; 40 cases of ischemia from 1994 to 2006) and 26 pial synangiosis procedures (for moyamoya. syndrome in children from 1997 to 2007) have been summarized. Current operative techniques are illustrated with drawings and video clips."
"Nephrons possess a segmental organization where each segment is specialized for the secretion and reabsorption of particular solutes. The developmental control of nephron segment patterning remains one of the enigmas within the field of renal biology. Achieving an understanding of the mechanisms that direct nephron segmentation has the potential to shed light on the causes of kidney birth defects and renal diseases in humans. Researchers studying embryonic kidney development in zebrafish and Xenopus have recently demonstrated that the pronephric nephrons in these vertebrates are segmented in a similar fashion as their mammalian counterparts. Further, it has been shown
that retinoic Fenbendazole acid signaling establishes proximodistal segment identities in the zebrafish pronephros by modulating the expression of renal transcription factors and components of signaling pathways that are known to direct segment fates during mammalian nephrogenesis. These findings present the zebrafish model as an excellent genetic system in which to interrogate the conserved developmental pathways that control nephron segmentation in both lower vertebrates and mammals."
"In IgA nephropathy (IgAN), pathogenic IgA1 is likely derived from bone marrow (BM) cells and exhibits reduced O-galactosylation. Defective O-galactosylation may arise from the compromised expression or function of the enzyme beta-galactosyltransferase and/or its molecular chaperone (Cosmc).
Conclusions: The proposed model is suitable to empirically ve


18 April 2019, 02:43 Died on level 256 by Collios, Mintaj, Coll, Leluczo and Pekelicious.
17 April 2019, 22:13 Died on level 257 by a frazzlemaw.
9 April 2019, 10:40 Died on level 256 by Fialoo, Respect, Lecze Zioma, Leczem Ziomka and Bijezcluba.
31 March 2019, 01:36 Died on level 243 by a frazzlemaw.
29 March 2019, 04:27 Died on level 244 by Petro Sebastano, Cziro Da Marcia, Magejavel and a frazzlemaw.
24 March 2019, 20:54 Died on level 210 by Cziro Da Marcia, Fuxmeh, Death Bouth, Mr Of Heal and Catire.
24 March 2019, 07:56 Died on level 207 by Cziro Da Marcia and a frazzlemaw.
23 March 2019, 19:05 Died on level 193 by a frazzlemaw.
23 March 2019, 14:31 Died on level 192 by Maja Maja Puff, Maia Maja Puff and Musta.
20 March 2019, 16:12 Died on level 180 by a pooka.
20 March 2019, 13:47 Died on level 181 by a faun.


text:
Winter loaming....
Out of the flames came....
THE LITTLE STAUGHTON ASHES.....
During the inaugural match between the church and the village a bat being used by one of the church openers was punishing the village bowlers so much that it split, well cracked. Alternatively, it cracked because it was unaccustomed to the weight that fell on it as a runout was avoided.
Later that evening, at a gathering in the Crown, the general consensus was that the fixture should become an annual event and thoughts turned to a trophy. With a clarity of thought that is often associated with the mind freeing qualities of ale it became obvious that the'bat' should become the Ashes. The owner, Freddie (Pullen not Flintoff), generously agreed to the proposal, although then displayed a degree of sentimentality by delaying delivery for some weeks, rather like his bowling.
The urn was acquired and a magnificent wooden plinth was prepared by the craftsmen of Woodwork II, Bedford College.
Finally, the bat was ceremoniously burned a specially prepared fire so that nothing would contaminate the Hallowed Ashes.
The trophy was presented to the 2007 winning Captain, Tony Moss by Church Captain Bernard Hopperton with the words 'we'll be back..'
Such is the stuff of legends!
End of season 2007....
End of season celebrations in The Crown, with awards to Will Newell, Ben Thrasher and Gregson for best newcomers, Bob for best bowler, James (H) for best batter (being generous), and to Dad and Olly Middleton for best father son entertainment. Special award to Clive for alround contributions....Clive also unveiled for the first time the 'Little Staughton Ashes' to be contested each year between Village and Church sides (notes on this to follow). This year handed (grudgingly) by Church side captain Bernard Hopperton to Village captain and Master of Ceremonies Tony Moss. Special note of thanks to umpires Martin Banks and Roy Hopperton, fixtures secretary Jason Newell, all the ladies who have contributed to teas, and to Kevin and Maria at The Crown for cut price beer and fine food. All looking forward to successful season in 2008, pitch preparations already underway !....
End of season stats...
Some highlights from the rather complicated statistics...batting averages first (Jody 75 (3 innings), AT 43 (4 innings), Hoppy 40 (3 innings), Phil Wayles 35 (2 innings), Noel 30 (2 innings), Gregson 22 (2 innings).....Maya and Olly Middleton on 10, Olly Jordan wasn't out (35 runs in 2 innings). Bowling, John Cutts started his only match with 5 for 18 off 5 overs, Jeremy (last seasons bowling award) 3 for 55 off 11 overs, Bob 7 for 60 off 12 overs, Olly T 4 for 49 off 7 overs, Maya T 2 for 20 off 7 overs, Ben T 2 for 8 off 3 overs, Jody 5 for 6 off 5 overs, Olly Middleton 1 for 46 off 11 overs, and Richard Finch 2 for 20 off 3 overs. AT stumped 4, and everybody dropped catches..........must also add note to record crucial contributions from all players not mentioned here.
The World watches LSVCC.......
Church v. Village.....
Our President writes:
Our season draws to a close as hot summer days shorten to golden autumn evenings. The sun shone briefly and the light faded towards the end of the day. But it was a great for the village, an entertaining cricket match between the Church team captained by Bernard Hopperton and the Village team captained by Tony Moss. Additionally over 200 hundred balloons were released at tea time, as the finale to the fund raising for more children's play equipment. Thanks to Louise King for arranging and leading the work. After the game Mary Jordan conducted the first draw of the village 200 club. Results are published on the web and in the next newsletter.
The Church team won the toss and decided that they would field first. The village got off to a solid start as Jody Arch quickly assembled 30 runs and then retired. The first round father and son competition was engaged with Olly Middleton bowling and Dad Noel batting. Freddie Pullan had to face the demon very slow bowling of Dad Pete. Of course the biggest challenge was to Adrian who had to contend with daughter Maya batting, but he successfully missed a stumping chance. The main benefit of the innings was that the scoreboard kept ticking over. Alas wickets fell as well James Moss and Fred contributed a few runs before Noel came in. Noel played well even with his limping running! Maya was still stroking the ball around the field. Eventually Richard and Tony replaced Noel and Maya. Still the runs were being added. Kevin replaced Richard and Tony was dubiously run out (again), for Gregson to join the fray. Kevin saw the innings through with Ryan after Gregson succumbed. The bowling suffered a little as the batting was building a good score, but all contributed to a good match. A great innings with a target set of 136. Which would be challenging as the light was beginning to fade.
Time for tea, and time to thank the "Wonderful Tea Ladies" for providing savouries and cakes in the best of cricket traditions. All washed down with orange squash and local ale from The Crown.
The Village team took to the field and Church team led by Bernard and Clive started to bat. Bernard was bowled early on, but Clive provided dogged resistance, including breaking Freddie Pullan's bat! (we can burn the bat for an ashes trophy). Olly Feltz came in next and played a few good strokes and after Clive was bowled LBW, Olly Middleton was in. This spurred a change in bowling on came Dad Noel, who duly did the deed by getting his son out! Fortunately for the Village the scoreboard was not turning over too quickly, but a succession of wides and no balls proved the generosity of the Church team. Next Dad in was Peter Pullan, but unfortunately Fred could not follow Noel, and bowl him. Eventually Peter was out and in came one of the big guns Adrian. Adrian hit a few meaty blows and was soon joined at the wicket by James Hopperton. Expectations were high of quick runs being added. Then Adrian's son Olly came on to bowl his leg spin. An interesting contest was expected. However in his second over, Adrian hit a ball short and called for a quick run, but "Lead Boots" Hopperton had not moved very far from his crease. Alas Adrian was run out, much to the delight of Olly. The church tail did not wag for long after James was superbly caught and bowled by Jody. Mark and Michael did contribute a few more runs before the inevitable final wicket fell. The match end with a victory for the Village by over 50 runs
A resounding victory for the Village and commiserations to the Church team. Better luck next year.
We also gave a few over for the younger players at the end of each innings, which gives them a chance to experience the game.
Thanks got to the umpires, properly dressed and attired for the day, Martin Banks and Roy Hopperton - you must get some glue for your hat!
Thanks to Catherine and Alison for scoring, albeit quite tricky to keep the numbers on the board with the strong breeze!
After the match we retired to the Crown for pork rolls - Pig donated by Bernard and James -and cooked by Kevin and Maria who stayed open to serve the rolls and a few glasses of well earned beer. So started the inevitable stories and tales of heroics as befits such a sporting event.
A big thanks to all who turned out for the day - Attendance count was over 100 - who gave their support to the game and a successful afternoon's entertainment for the village.
Watch out for the cricket awards night date to be announced soon.
Posted by Thrashers at 12:13 pm No comments:
Little Staughton Tornados....
With four runs off two balls required to secure victory for Little Staughton, a nail biting finish to an enjoyable evening's cricket was guaranteed yesterday evening as LS took on the Tax enforcers!
Staughton's fielding was punctuated with some shining stars in the form of Bob's three well deserved wickets and some less commendable catching, which resulted in Middleton senior having three catches dropped (one by himself!).
With a creditable target of 94 to chase, Staughton's run rate was initially pedestrian until Ollie Jordan was able to punish some wayward balls and send fielders scurrying into the surrounding fields and hedges. The run rate required was challenging right up until the final delivery. Gregson was able to clinch the match for LS with some well placed boundary shots resulting in victory.
The evening was completed with our own Tornado fly past courtesy of Clive's son who is stationed at Marham.
Thank you all for an enjoyable and entertaining evening
Evening sunshine....
Once again clouds dispersed to reveal blue skies and warm summer evening. Another fine win for LSVCC against Aircraft Research Establishment, and as usual played in fine spirit. Alround good bowling performance, notably Maya, and top of the order batting (Jody, Adrian, James). Fielding sometimes sublime, often ridiculous...Tony once again look set for long innings, but let down by incorrect footwear. Marie out shopping right now for studs...
Global brand....
Pleased to see that LSVCC has global appeal....visits to blog from far and wide in UK, as well as Dublin, Amsterdam, Stockholm, Spain and New Zealand !
Baptist Chapel Match...
Prayers answered as sun came out to dry pitch, and good crowd gathered to watch evening spectacle.....16 overs a side finished with LSVCC win in last over. Played in good spirit, and good conditions...credit to Groundsman Ben T who also took a wicket in his first ever cricket match ! Notable fielding performance from Clive, which may have taken wind out of batting somewhat, but also very promising debut performance. Good knocks from Jody (stand in captain while Hoppy polishing combine...) and Phil W. Final runs from AT who it should be noted has only let through 1 bye in 2 matches while behind stumps. Performance of day from Bob, who bowled beautiful in swingers to top of off-stump. Finished off with beer, fish and chips in Crown to usual excellent standard..thanks again to Maria and Kevin, as I'm sure we will repeat !
Incidentally, visiting Professor from Hamburg thoroughly enjoyed experience, and thinking of setting up home team...pointed out to him that there has been cricket in Germany since middle of 19th century due to links with public schools. Also discovered that all cricket disbanded there at time of WW2 as was politically inappropriate to associate with English game....Now there is even a German Cricket Board !
Adrian/Jason/Tony
Just a note of thanks from the Baptist Chapel/C.Saunderson XI for the game on Friday evening. We all thought it was great fun and played in exactly the right spirit. A final over result in a close game was an excellent finish even if we were the losing side. Fish & Chips was a welcome addition and we're looking forward to repeating the occasion next year. If it's as close next year I won't bowl the final over a avoid going for a maximum over long on!
Well done to all involved.
Caleb.
Players ?.....
Have had a few people saying that they would like to play, but don't know about games. If there is anyone, young or old, who would like to play in LSVCC matches, practice in net, or get involved in other ways, please send email address and phone number to contacts on side panel. Only stipulation is that players should live in Little Staughton. There is a match this coming sunday, so let me know as soon as you can !
Primi Hastati...
For those who were asking....
Hastati: One of three categories of heavy infantryman in the Roman Legion of the mid-republican period (3rd and 2nd century BC). The Hastati were the youngest soldiers, and formed the front line of the legion. The standard legion contained ten maniples of Hastati, each numbering between 120 and 160 men. They were equipped with two Pila, the famous Gladius, and a long semi-cylindrical body shield, made of calfskin stretched over plywood. As the soldiers had to pay for their own armour, most made do with a simple bronze chest plate, while the wealthier soldiers had either a mail or scale cuirass. The Hastati were expected to take the first clash of battle and blunt the enemy attack before the second line, the Principes.
Grand Opening..
Clouds broke up for grand opening of LS sports pavilion by members of Pathfinders squadron 109 based at LS in WW2 (and from whom club motto has been borrowed http://www.wartimememories.co.uk/airfields/littlestaughton.html). Excellent turn out from villagers, and fine words from Chairman of PC Tony Moss. Big effort from many in village rewarded by new facility. Event celebrated with champagne and large spread. Many thanks to all ladies and gents who helped on the day particularly Mary, Marie, Julie, Julia, and Kanchan.
Onto the serious business of cricket game against Kimbolton. Despite plying the opposition with champagne, ale, and cakes, prior to start Kimbolton pulled off narrow victory against youngish LS side (age range 8 to ?). Highlights of the day included John Cutts '5-for', failing eyesight of one umpire (Martin Banks), Bob's spectacular catch, numerous spectacular dropped catches (Captain Hoppy leading by example here), father and daughter run out combination (Maya throw from boundary to dad behind stumps), Julia Harris's marvellous cakes at tea time, and Tony Moss's valiant attempt to hold up one end (golden duck). All retired to The Crown for sustenance. Other comments and memories welcome.
LSVCC v. Kimbolton Sunday 17th June
To be preceded by opening of new pavilion at noon, and followed in the evening by refreshments in The Crown. Cricket to start at 1:30, so assemble at 1pm.
James Hopperton (capt)
Adrian Thrasher(W)
Pete Pullan
Jeremy Jacobs
Phil Wayles
John Cutts
Maya Thrasher
Oliver Middleton
12th men
Freddie Pullen
Mark Christie
Olly Thrasher
Tom Lumley
Roy Hopperton
Captaincy debate....
I was impressed with Adrians approach last year. Strengths lie in blatant intimidation of opposition and umpires employed so successfully against LS CC. Weaknesses difficult to establish, perhaps a little too severe on injured team mates.
Tony of course adds that extra strategic dimension and given todays technology he could still captain on a "virtual" basis even while in Africa.
Given hoppys anorak approach this wouldn't be the case whilst on a combine.
Jasons too involved with property development whilst Ian Harris has yet to prove himself at the lowest level.
Jeremy will be applying his trade elsewhere if the MCC grapevine is to be believed
That leaves Roy Hopperton, Martin Banks and Pete Pullan and it's difficult to make a case for any of these without a huge stretch of ones imagination.
I have my supporters but I'll be spending more time with an extended family, which one remains to be seen.
To conclude I'd take Adrian as Captain with Tony offering added value governance from deep third man.
RF.
Fixtures for 2007 so far....
Please put these dates in diary. Lets also try and arrange some nets beforehand to loosen joints !
Kimbolton Sunday 17th June
HM tax Office Sunday 1st July
Great staughton Friday 13 July (7pm)
LS Church Invitation XI special fixture Sunday 2nd September
Finances...
Please find attached a financial statement on the expenditure for the Sports Pavilion.
There are a couple of points that I would like to bring to your attention.
There is an excess of expenditure over budget, but the budget numbers did not include VAT
The VAT return does mean that we have un-budgeted expenditure of nearly £400, although over 50% of this is for local council services (planning and building control)
We have received the payment from the Rural Grants
There is no further major work to be completed, at this stage. But there is still work to be completed, when funds permit. Mary Jordan is considering ways of raising further funding for the playing field, which will be a new source of funding.
Any other ideas, suggestions or thoughts will be gratefully received, can I suggest that you contact Mary in this instance.
Message from the President....
I am very pleased to advise that the Sports Pavilion erection has now been completed. But as with this type of project there is an amount of "post construction" work to be completed. In the short term we should consider:
provide a means of security/cover for the windows;
provide guttering and drainage (recommended by Hodgsons);
possibly provide solar security lights to deter;
clear away rubbish and tidy up the area around the base;
lay block paving to the front of the pavilion (we have been offered some FOC from Marshalls);
provide a ramp for disabled access;
arrange a formal opening of the pavilion
In the longer term - hopefully as capital development we could consider the provision of water and power supply.
Any suggestions or further ideas for development that I have omitted from the mail, then please do let me know. Or if anybody has any ready made solutions then it wouldbe good to hear of them.
Insurance cover has been arranged and the final payment made to Hodgsons, so the pavilion is ours.
I currently have the keys if anybody needs them, I will also lodge a set with Marion.
We do have a series of pictures that we should collate, not only for the feedback to the grant organisations but to act as record of achievement within the village.
Finally on behalf of the Parish Council and the village, I would like to thank you all for the tremendous effort and hard work that each of you has contributed to get where we are today. It is very much appreciated and has been fun as well.
We have started so now we need to continue and move forward
Little Staughton Parish Council
Odd one out ?....
Preparations for pavilion underway...
Hole dug, filled with hardcore and concrete ready for pavilion delivery and build on 22nd may. Planning permission secured, building regs tortuous....pitch looking excellent !!
Successful bid....
Full amount of money now raised from lottery and rural grants. Planning permission submitted, and order placed for pavilion as shown. hopefully build complete before season begins. Square looking in fair condition following cut, so nets going up this weekend hopefully. Time to dust off the kit !
Sports Pavilion update...
Good news received after Christmas that £10,000 awarded from a lottery fund towards this project ('Awards for All' scheme). Still need another £8-10,000 to commission build, but we are currently in negociation with Bedfordshire Rural Grants, and are hopeful of positive outcome in near future.
Snowy weather....