Chris
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missingintheslips.bsky.social
Chris
@missingintheslips.bsky.social
350 followers 1K following 3K posts
Trying to watch more cricket than I write about. 🏏 Seeing two books through the presses. One is about Nancy Sharp [https://tinyurl.com/2736jaw4]. C.L.R. James and John Arlott both get a mention in the other one [https://tinyurl.com/465bnwzv].
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missingintheslips.bsky.social
And now ESPNCricinfo reporting on an expanded WTC (yes!) reveals that the only reason this is happening is that a two-tier system would have required "India, England and Australia [to] support those in division two through a financial distribution, but those talks did not go far."
The famous "I'm shocked" image from Casablanca.
November 11, 2025 at 9:09 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
After a morning 5K race around the main town (village?) it was time change shirt. Now, with banana fronds swaying outside the window I am thinking that not only county cricket but also Caribbean Cricket Matters.🏝️🏏
The logo of County Cricket Matters and those three words on a dark blue T shirt being worn. The image of the wearer is completely cropped out and cannot be seen.
November 8, 2025 at 7:57 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
And again with alt text
this report has been commissioned by Norfolk County Council with part-funding from ENDURE, an Interreg Two Seas ERDF project. Our thanks to Alex Larter (Norfolk County Council) for overseeing the work. Our thanks also to the steering group who provided useful comment, discussion and support: Sarah Burston (Norfolk County Council); Mel Gillings (Norfolk County Council); Kevin Hart (Norfolk Wildlife Trust); Nik Khandpur (Norfolk Wildlife Trust) and Jonathan Preston (Norfolk Wildlife Trust). We are grateful to the following for useful discussion, for sharing information and views: Ermine Amies (Broadwater Road Group), Philip Amies (Broadwater Road Group), Sophie Barker (Norfolk Ornithologists Association), Hannah Borrett (Environment Agency), Andy Brown (Natural England), Robert Burton (Holme Parish Council), Tom Bolderstone (Natural England), Bernard Devereux (Holme Parish Council), Lynn Devereux (Holme Parish Council), Martin Crown (Holme Parish Council), Kellie Fisher (Environment Agency), Kevin Hart (Norfolk Wildlife Trust), Gary Hibberd (Norfolk Wildlife Trust), Estelle Hook (Norfolk Coast Partnership), Nik Khandpur (Norfolk Wildlife Trust), Neil Lawton (County Bird Recorder), Nick Morritt (Norfolk Wildlife Trust), David Moss (Hunstanton Golf Club), Keith Miller (National Trust), Verity Pitts (Dynamic Dunescapes, Natural England), Sue Rees (Natural England) and Helen Timson (Norfolk Coast Partnership).
November 7, 2025 at 5:27 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
And again
Crown plasticity enables trees to acclimate to competition and environmental stress, but how social strata and species-specific behavior modulate crown structure-secondary growth relationships remains poorly understood. We…tested three hypotheses in close-to-nature forests across wet (Germany) and dry (Spain) sites using terrestrial laser scanning and tree-ring width data of Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst.) and Silver fir (Abies alba Mill.) in Germany, and Stone pine (Pinus pinea L.) in Spain. We examined (HI) crown structure and radial growth are positively correlated and modulated by social strata and species-specific behavior; (HII) local competition and canopy space filling modulate the relationships across sites, (HIII) space-use efficiency varies across social strata and species behavior across sites. We observed that crown shape metrics and ring width variability were significantly correlated…modulated by species and social identity. Dominant and codominant trees showed stronger relationships, while suppressed trees exhibited greater crown plasticity, allowing adaptive responses to canopy gaps. Spruce and fir adjusted crown structure under suppression, while pines maintained static crowns, decoupling structure from growth. Crown-growth relationships were influenced by neighborhood competition and canopy space filling …Site-specific patterns emerged: wet sites had greater light competition, increasing canopy space filling and growth irregularity; dry sites were dominated by competition for water. Crown space-use efficiency also varied by species and social stratum. Dominant trees occupied more canopy space, but suppressed trees showed higher space-use efficiency especially…by maintaining plastic crowns and waiting for more favorable light conditions. Despite similar biomass investment, dominant spruce and fir had higher space-use but lower biomass-use efficiency, while suppressed trees invested biomass more efficiently, signaling growth potential….
November 7, 2025 at 10:28 AM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Here’s the alt text
Mixed forests are composed of tree species with often largely different size, structure, phenology and functioning of their canopies. These features control the growth rate and competitive success of the species in the stand. The degree of morphological and functional dissimilarity in the canopies of mixed forest species also determines whether complementarity in light use does occur or not. However, the study of functional differences among co-occurring tree species in mixed forests is still at its infancy, mostly because canopy access is inherently difficult. A number of partly competing functional classification systems for temperate and tropical trees have been proposed. A widely used approach focuses on the light requirement for regeneration and distinguishes between shade-tolerant species that can not only germinate and successfully survive in the shade but also grow there to maturity, and light-demanding species that can survive in the canopy shade as seedlings and saplings but need gaps to grow to full size (e.g. Liburnau 1908, Popma et al. 1992). Alternatively, tree species could be grouped according to the functional properties of adult instead of juvenile trees; relevant traits could be the within-canopy light gradient and the degree of morphological and functional differentiation between a tree's sun and shade canopy. The existence of a distinct shade canopy may be decisive in competitive interactions because it determines light transmissivity to the ground, and trees with a distinct shade canopy may be more productive than trees lacking typical shade leaves (Sims et al. 1994) as the former typically produce larger stand leaf areas (Ellenberg and Leuschner 2010). We argue that the capability of a tree to form a typical shade canopy does represent a key functional trait determining the life cycle, productivity, stress tolerance and successional status of a species.
November 7, 2025 at 10:25 AM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
What’s that saying? You can’t make this stuff up!
definitive romantic hero-villain. A monk renowned for his rigorous piety and righteousness, Ambrosio discovers the delights of forbidden sensuality in the person of Matilda, a practitioner of the black arts who has disguised herself as a monk. Previously Ambrosio's passionate nature has been governed by the austere isolation of monastic life; now, committed to the satisfaction of his lust, he pursues the innocent Antonia, murders her mother, and rapes and kills the girl amid the putrescent corpses in the vaults beneath the monastery. Having enlisted the diabolic aid of his concubine to further his schemes, the abbot's crimes deliver him into the hands of the Inquisition, and to escape from the doom of the auto-da-fé, he sells his soul to the devil. But as the price of his release he is now in the power of Satan, who carries him off to a remote mountain peak. There, after informing the hapless monk that the woman he had murdered was his mother and the girl he had raped and slain his sister, Satan casts him into the pit of Hell, speeding him en route with a gleeful and detailed description of the exquisite tortures ahead.
November 4, 2025 at 11:27 AM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Here’s some alt tex.
"I was 11 and 12. I really liked Charlie. Charlie Bronson was... he was a very disliked man in many corners. He was a guy that did mean things. But I liked Charlie. I got him a present one time. Which he received, and went straight to his trailer, and the whole crew was like, 'Aw, f He's just an unhappy guy. 'And I was like, 'It's OK.' And then about a half hour later, [| hear] 'Kurt, Charlie wants to see you.' Went over to Charlie's trailer, knocked on the door, I'm thinking, What the fuck did I do wrong? He opens the door, he looks at me, and he goes, 'U nobody's ever given me a present before, so thanks.' And he shuts the door. "My birthday comes up about two months later. He found out, I don't know how, and bought an [words obscured] skateboard. He got himself one, and we used to skateboard together [words missing] One day the first assistant comes to me and, he says, 'Kurt, you can't skate around nere. Insurance. They don't want you to do it.' I said, 'Oh, OK, sorry.' So then Charli esays to me a couple days later, 'Where's your skateboard?' I said, 'Well, they told me I couldn’t skate.' He said, 'Hey Kurt, grab your skateboard. And we go up to the president of MGM. F walks right by the secretary, opens the door, and says, 'This is Kurt, I got him a skateboard for his birthday. We're gonna be riding them all over the lot. Just want to let you know.' Turns around, walks out. That was that."
November 3, 2025 at 11:46 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
How's this AI thing working?
A pop up screen where the user has given thumbs down (in green) to the question 'Overall, how would you rate your chat experience?' The screen admits this is 'terrible'. The bot has replied 'Great! What went well/" and then offers various categories to choose from as well as a text box.
November 2, 2025 at 3:39 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Still sending shivers down English spines, it's Shane Warne on the left and Steve Waugh on the right. Imagine if the two of them had actually got on with each other?
October 31, 2025 at 7:32 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Update from a friend in PA about his parents and family in Jamaica. 🇯🇲
My family members in New York were able to contact neighbors and others from my community, and it seems that anyone without a concrete roof lost it during the hurricane. Other structures were torn away by the strong winds, older concrete structures were also seriously damaged, not just roofing but windows, panel and any forms of external attachments. We have Starlink satellite internet and a generator, but I still haven't been able to reach any of my immediate family. I know for a fact that they lost power on Monday before the hurricane made landfall, and I haven't heard anything from them since then. If our roof was actually torn off, there's a high possibility that we've lost everything and I don't even know it yet.
October 30, 2025 at 3:03 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
I know what they mean, but…
Keacy's achievements are, in fact, a source of immense pride and celebration for the St. Maarten cricket fraternity. In December 2024, Cricket St. Maarten honoured his contributions at an awards dinner, and a sign was placed next to Tackling Gas Station in Cole Bay, his birthplace, as a mark of his significant success.
October 26, 2025 at 8:10 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
And we discovered some reading material when we arrived.
The cover of the current Winair magazine. Keacy Carty is the feature article. He is “un icone du cricket”.
October 26, 2025 at 6:57 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
We have exchanged one beach for another.
October 26, 2025 at 6:54 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
The Grenada flight is boarding a couple of gates down and a canon of the Church in Trinidad and Tobago has said some kind things about this book, so it seems worth a read-post. www.bloomsbury.com/us/anglican-...
The cover of the just-published book, The Anglican Church in the Anglophone Caribbean: Historical and Cultural Perspectives.
October 26, 2025 at 12:22 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Effin birds’ saying it clearly: “Our expectations for you were low, but holy fuck”. The bird on a branch is looking up and to the viewer’s right.
October 22, 2025 at 2:20 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
With alt text
"So I think I'm killing it. I start to loosen up a bit realizing I have the chops to play with Miles! By the 4th song Miles starts doing something kind of odd. He would strut around th stage, and when he would pass by me, he would stop and point down. So I immediately lower my volume. Miles makes the rounds again, stopping at me and giving me the same signal this time pointing harder and following the downward point with a stern downward head nod. I'm like shit I just fucked up in front of miles twice, and now i'm getting nervou Miles continues like 5 or 6 times like this, each time pointing down harder, with more aggression and now more anger. At this point my bass is completely off. No volume as Miles kept telling me to turn it down. As he approaches me again, and gives me yet another point down, I just kind of snapped and yelled " MILES IM ALL THE WAY DOWN JUST TELL ME WHA YOU WANT!!" At that point he puts his arm around him, and with his raspy voice yells into his ear: "Check out my shoes mutha fuckaaaaaaa!!!!!"
October 22, 2025 at 1:45 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
It’s always fun when it’s this absurd.
The scorecard showing a DLS-adjusted required run rate of 158. All we need now is win probability.
October 21, 2025 at 5:36 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Janet and Michael from The Good Place
October 21, 2025 at 12:44 AM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Though I did think of this.
Nick Browne and Alastair Cook with the County Championship trophy at Taunton, where we had once again dashed the Cider Lads’ hopes.
October 20, 2025 at 10:01 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Janet and Michael from The Good Place
October 20, 2025 at 9:26 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Review of Night Watch by Kevin Young in the Oct 3, Times Literary Supplement.
[In the] intricate, contrastingly whole poem "Cormorant", for instance, Young's description is deepened by his language's music, and the result is a kicked-up, taut diction reminiscent of his long-time muse Gwendolyn Brooks: "an egret / in an oilslick, inelegant / pelican".
October 19, 2025 at 6:52 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
What we did a couple of weeks ago. Why not ski in the Caribbean? When you’re done you can hike and snorkel: three sports, one day.
October 16, 2025 at 10:08 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Now live in book form. Do please share this announcement widely and re-post it if you know anyone who might be interested. And ask your library to order a copy, if you’d be so kind. To clarify: Anglican means the church(es) that now constitute the CPWI. 🙏🏝️⚓️ www.bloomsbury.com/us/anglican-...
The cover of the just-published book, The Anglican Church in the Anglophone Caribbean: Historical and Cultural Perspectives.
October 16, 2025 at 9:29 PM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
Just two days ago I was reading an @nightwatchmanxi.bsky.social article about the history of the reverse sweep, and now here’s this about 1866 in The Call by Martin Flanagan. It’s a shot almost as old as overarm bowling. #cricket
Finally, Wills did what Grandfather hoped he would do. He produced the delivery that had terrified half the cricketers of Victoria and New South Wales, what is now called a 'bumper' but in those more gentlemanly days was always explained away as an accident caused by slippery fingers. The ball bounced halfway down the pitch and reared at Mullagh's head. As quick as a cat, Mullagh responded with the shot for which he was already famous in the district. He went down on one knee, slanting the bat in front of his face like a shield. Striking the bat, the ball skied over the wicketkeeper's head and hurried away to the long grass on the boundary. At the time, Wills stood in the middle of the pitch, chest heaving, hands on his hips, saying nothing, but afterwards he told Grandfather it was one of the best shots he had seen in a cricket field.
October 15, 2025 at 12:07 AM
missingintheslips.bsky.social
We are painting the library so very many books are now stored in a guest bedroom. But this one I just had an overpowering need to re-read. It really is terrific.
Front cover of The Call by Martin Flanagan. The cover photo is of an Aboriginal XI captained by Tom Wills.
October 13, 2025 at 10:09 PM