Homemade Bread Day Holiday Review

 

Homemade Bread Day is celebrated yearly on November 17.

Origin of Homemade Bread Day

It appears that this delicious day was begun by the National Homemade Bread committee based in Ann Arbor, MI. It has been observed annually since the 1980s and was founded as a way of bringing families together to bake. Sounds good to me, as I absolutely LOVE any kind of bread product ~ and homemade is the best. 

Many of the contributors here on Review This! agree that bread is a delicious delight and have reviewed their favorites. Check out a wide variety of bread products and recipes in this article. 

Specialty Breads

Raintree Annie brings us a recipe for Irish Soda Bread.

Sam Monaco reviews an Easy Pumpkin Spice Bread, quickly made from a mix.

Mary Beth Grander (MBG Photo) shares her favorite Banana Bread recipe.

And for a bread-related 'sweet treat', Sam Monaco gives us his fried dough recipe made in an Air Fryer.

Dieters Delight

Don't feel left out from enjoying bread products, Keto Fans. Margaret Schindel has reviewed some delicious breads that neatly meet your dietary requirements:

Here's her Keto bread mix review and her yeast bread recipe.

If 'muffins' are your bread of choice, Margaret shares her low-carb Cheddar corn dog muffins recipe for a delicious snack or meal. 

Needed and Necessary Bread Products for Your Homemade Bread Recipes

Dawn Rae reviewed a very helpful French Bread Pan

And for slicing that fresh-baked bread, here's Dawn's review of a very good bread knife.

Oh, and of course you need a pretty bread box to store your homemade breads.  Barbara (Brite-Ideas) reviews a super duper bread box that will be beautiful, as well as helpful, in your kitchen.

Extra Bread Hints

If you don't have time to prepare your yeast bread mix for baking, this frozen bread dough from your freezer will allow you to have fresh baked bread whenever you wish.

Summary

If you need more bread recipes, check out this bread cookbook found on Amazon. It should neatly solve all of your bread cravings! 

Bread Illustrated: A Step-By-Step Guide to Achieving Bakery-Quality Results At Home

Available on Amazon

More Recipe Reviews can be found here: ReviewThisRecipes.com 

Thought for the Day: Bread is a lot like the Sun. It rises in the Yeast and sets in the Waist.

*Homemade Bread Day Holiday reviewed by Wednesday Elf

 

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Being Dead is No Excuse – A Cookbook Review

 

The official Southern ladies guide to hosting the perfect funeral. 

The Southern Cookbook to Die For

Being Dead is No Excuse is a cookbook compiled by Gayden Metcalfe and Charlotte Hays filled with true Southern recipes for hosting an authentic Southern funeral.

Each chapter in the book includes those Southern-style recipes necessary if you plan to die tastefully (tongue-in-cheek pun here) any time soon. A definite 'must-have' cookbook throughout the Mississippi Delta where there is a strong sense of community, and being dead is no hindrance to belonging to it. 

At Southern funerals, everybody is obsessed with the notion that there won't be enough food and out-of-town guests will go away hungry (Sally Stephens is out of town, so who's going to bring stuffed eggs?). They don't want another death brought on by starvation!  At Delta funerals Campbell's cream-of-mushroom soup drenches fresh vegetables. If you wonder why this is so, you have to realize that it acts “As An Extender”. LOL.

The most humorous cookbook I have ever read, plus some fun recipes to try whether you are Southern or not. A Mississippi Delta funeral needs comfort foods, proper etiquette, and, of course, The Restorative Cocktail?  (What does one do when a family gets three sheets to the wind and eats the entire feast the night before a funeral?)

From the Southern-style Green-bean Casserole (like stuffed eggs and pimiento cheese, it's a standard at Delta Funerals – because we've been deprived of fat, salt, and sugar too long - think bacon drippings in the ingredients!) to Cheese Grits to Beef Tenderloin (or the alternative Pork Tenderloin), ham, and chicken, tons of Southern dishes make their way to the table. Don't forget the Homemade Vegetable Soup – a favorite comfort food served with corn bread. Or the Liketa Died Potatoes – a true Southern favorite (made with corn flakes, hash browns, cheddar cheese soup and sour cream). And, naturally, the funeral meal wouldn't be complete without Mary Mills Chocolate Sheet Cake. 

Summary

A girlfriend gifted me with this cookbook several years ago when I was living in the South, and just reading the chapters will have you laughing uproariously. And the recipes themselves are deliciously delightful. The perfect cookbook for a true Southern send-off! 

Being Dead is No Excuse Cookbook is available here on Amazon

*For more Cookbook Reviews, click here.

*Review of the cookbook Being Dead is No Excuse, written by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Book Review: Blessings of the Lost Girls by J.A. Jance

 A Brady and Walker Family Novel

Fans of author Judith (J.A.) Jance love her three popular series, one starring Joanna Brady, another J.P. Beaumont and the series with Ali Reynolds. She also wrote a short series (5 books) about the Walker Family featuring Native Americans from the Tohono O’Odham reservation in Arizona. 

In this review of her latest book, Blessings of the Lost Girls, Jance combines members of the Walker Family and characters from the Joanna Brady series in an exciting adventure that includes Joanna's daughter Jenny and Brandon Walker's son-in-law, Dan Pardee. 

Synopsis of Blessings of the Lost Girls

The story begins with a background of the serial killer who is the villain in the novel. 

Then we are introduced to Danial Pardee, a former member of the Shadow Wolves Border Patrol, who patrol the U.S./Mexico border along the Tohono O’Odham Nation Reservation in Arizona. Now he is a field officer in the newly formed MIP agency (Missing and Murdered Indigenous People), an agency under the Department of Interior. The main purpose of MIP is to investigate and put right how law enforcement agencies all over the country had dealt with both solved and unsolved cases involving the deaths and disappearances of Native American victims. 

A body is found in the desert on a ranch near Tucson consisting of nothing but burned bones.  It took nearly 3 years, but the bones are finally identified as those of Rosa Rios, a young woman of Apache descent who was a one-time rodeo star. Dan is called to investigate, as the victim was found in his territory. As it turns out, all reports each MIP investigator files are automatically shared with other MIP field agents, which soon leads to other agents contacting Dan with reports of similar cases involving young women of indigenous descent, each of whom had some connection to rodeos. Soon, the agency realizes that Rosa's death is connected to a serial killer.

Dan contacts Joanna Brady, Sheriff of Cochise County, Arizona where Rosa's body was found. Later, Joanna's daughter Jenny, currently a criminal justice major at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, becomes involved in the case due to having once met Rosa at a rodeo. 

Turns out, Jenny knows another girl who was once attacked at a rodeo by a man who matches the description of the killer they are looking for. And this girl happens to have saved a pair of eyeglasses which were knocked off the man during the attack. The girl never reported the attack at the time because her Morman family would not have approved of the boy she was dating, but finally agrees to turn in the glasses, from which fingerprints are obtained. 

Summary

Between Dan, Joanna and Jenny, and Dan's best friend, Brian Fellows, Sheriff of Pina County in Tucson, a case is put together and the serial killer is tracked down.

*Special Note: Throughout the novel, the author weaves in a few fascinating ancient legends from the (Papago) Tohono O’Odham (Desert People) where the basis of the story begins. The legends, plus the excellent writing of J.A. Jance, makes Blessings of the Lost Girls a very special story indeed. I highly recommend it.

Blessings of the Lost Girls, Book 20 of 20 in the Joanna Brady mystery series, is available in several formats on Amazon

Related Links:

• For more J.A. Jance reviews, click here.
• For More Book Reviews, check out ReviewThisBooks.com 

*Book Review written by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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The Bone Hacker by Kathy Reichs

The Bone Hacker is Kathy Reichs' latest book in her Temperance Brennan Series ~ Number 22 of 22. 

Synopsis of The Bone Hacker

Readers of earlier Temperance Brennan novels will be thrilled with The Bone Hacker, the latest book in the series.  

Temperance Brennan is a forensic anthropologist, dividing her time  between her headquarters in North Carolina and Montreal. 

As the story opens, Tempe is working in Montreal, Canada, where she shares an apartment with her significant other, Andrew Ryan, a lieutenant with the Quebec police working in homicide.

Tempe is called in to examine what is left of a person thought to have been struck by lightning during a storm. As she traces an unusual tattoo on the body, she discovers it is a symbol of a gang operating in the islands of Turks and Caicos. A call to the police department there brings a high-ranking officer to Montreal to meet with Tempe and persuade her to return to the islands to help with two sets of bones recently discovered and possibly connected to three young men – tourists – two of whom have disappeared without a trace in the past seven years. 

The case becomes much larger than Tempe expected and tantalizing leads begin to emerge.  At first it was thought that the gang violence in the islands was connected to these deaths, but Tempe is not so sure. As she discovers more evidence, it seems to point to something that will have global significance. 

Summary

As the story nears its climax, it becomes apparent that new technology may wreak worldwide havoc and Tempe herself becomes a target. A thriller with an exciting and surprising ending. 

The Bone Hacker is available here on Amazon

Links to more Kathy Reichs' reviews:

• The Bone Code
• Cold Cold Bones

Read More Book Reviews at

ReviewThisBooks.com

*Book Review written by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Dessert Reviews for National Dessert Day

National Dessert Day is celebrated each year on October 14th in the middle of National Dessert Month (October).  October is known as the month of sweets (think Halloween Candy!), so having a dessert month & day fits right in.

The contributors to Review This Reviews have written many reviews of various types of desserts, any one of which would be a tasty treat for after dinner, an after school snack or a bedtime snack. Whether you are partial to cakes, cupcakes, pies, cookies, or ice cream ~ or perhaps a taste of chocolate candy ~ you will find reviews of many special desserts and dessert days (some with recipes) as you read down the page.

Let Them Eat Cake!

The well-known French saying Let Them Eat Cake! can be taken to heart on many cake ~ and cupcake ~ days throughout the year.  The exact dates we love to celebrate particular kinds of cakes/cupcakes can be found in this fun review: Cakes and Cupcakes Special Days 

A recipe for very tasty Carrot Cake Cupcakes can be found here.

If regular cakes are not your 'thing', how about a tasty cheesecake recipe? 

Pies Galore!

If you prefer pie, there are many Pie Days to celebrate throughout the year, one of which may be your favorite.  Mine is chocolate, which does not appear to have it's own special day ~ but should! :) The list of many special pie days can be found in this review of National Pie Day celebrated on January 23rd. 

Another Pie review is for National Cherry Pie Day celebrated around President's Day each February. 

Or a favorite of mine, a Key-Lime Pie recipe.

Cookie Monster!

If 'cookies' are your thing, you are in exactly the right month, as October is National Cookie Month! 

If Brownies are your favorite type of cookie, here's a delicious recipe for celebrating National Brownie Day on December 8th. 

Chocoholics Rejoice!

If you love chocolate, you are in for a treat with this list of Chocolate Days in July!

Fruits for Dessert

If fruits are your preferred dessert of choice, check out Pineapple Day on June 27th.

There's also Watermelon Day on August 3rd. 

And Banana Day on April 20th

Plus, the ever popular Chocolate Covered Fruit recipes.

Keto-Friendly Desserts

And last, but certainly not least, before you despair because your dietary restrictions won't allow you celebrate National Dessert Day, here is a list of Keto-Friendly dessert recipes. 

Dessert Day Summary

One of my favorite online blogs is the website Dinner, Then Dessert, where you will find a whole bunch of yummy dessert recipes. Read the review of Dinner, Then Dessert here. 

Remember, calories don't count on Dessert Day, so indulge with your favorite choice.

A Delicious Dessert Cookbook
Found on Amazon

Happy Dessert Day!

October 14

*National Dessert Day review is written by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Cards Against Humanity Family Edition – Game Review

 Toy Review of the Game, Cards Against Humanity.

The Game

My son and family recently purchased a new family game called “Cards Against Humanity”. The name seemed a bit strange to me, but the game itself is more fun than a barrel of monkeys! I had never heard of it before, but I discovered later that it is well known by others in my family and a ball to play.

My son bought the family edition, which states that it is for ages 8 and up. After playing this game one time, I agree with the age range, as my 9-year-old grandson had no trouble reading the questions and following the rules just as well as his 14-year-old brother, mom, dad and grandma! 

Simple Rules

The game comes with 600 cards – a batch of black cards with questions, and a box full of white cards with answers. Both the questions and the answers are simple, sometimes silly, all the way to absurd … and all end up hilarious depending on the answer chosen for the question. 

Each player is dealt out 10 white 'answer' cards. Taking turns, one player reads a question from a black card and the other players choose one answer they consider the funniest from the 10 white cards in their hand. 

Personal examples of chosen answers
to questions in our family game

The question reader reads all the answers out loud, and then chooses their choice of the funniest answer. The owner of the chosen card gets a point. At the end of the game, the player with the most points is the winner. 

Each round, a replacement white card is dealt out, so that each player continues to hold 10 answer cards, and the next person becomes the question-reader. 

Really quite a simple game, and very funny. 

Summary

Similar to other games of this genre, Cards Against Humanity has a variety of expansion packs that can be purchased separately. They range in subject matter from Nostalgia (different decades) to Nerd to Dumb Jokes to Holidays and many more, up to a Nasty Bundle with words NOT appropriate for children, but funny as an adults-only party game. :) In other words, there is a subject for just about anyone!

This Family Edition of Cards Against Humanity is a fun, and funny, addition to our family's game cupboard. Kids get to engage in absurd wordplay with adults, and adults get to laugh at the silly answers.

Quick Links:

• Cards Against Humanity Family Edition is available on Amazon
• Cards Against Humanity Expansion Packs - large assortment in numerous categories here on Amazon

For more toys and games reviews, check out
ReviewThisToys.com 

*Family game reviewed by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Book Review of Relentless, a Dean Koontz Novel

 

Relentless, published in 2009, is a completely compelling suspense thriller that is fearless and funny.

Synopsis of 'Relentless'

Cullen Greenwich, known as “Cubby” is a successful and happy man. He is a bestselling novelist and knows how lucky he is to be making a living doing what he enjoys.  The love of his life is his wife, Penny, a children's book author and illustrator. Together, Penny & Cubby have a brilliant six-year-old son, Milo (affectionately called 'Spooky' for his genius abilities in math and science), and an unusual non-collie puppy Milo insisted on naming Lassie. 

Life in the  Greenwich household is happy and serene until Cubby receives a bad review on his otherwise well-received newest book. The bad review is penned by a much feared and seldom seen critic Shearman Waxx.  Cubby knows he should ignore the review, Penny & Milo know this; even Lassie knows. And he plans to do just that. Then he happens to learn where Shearman Waxx is taking his lunch and Cubby wants to just get a look at this mysterious recluse whose mere opinion seems to affect careers, and maybe even a life.

But Waxx isn't what anyone would expect and what seemed to be an innocent encounter turns into an escalating terror. It seems Waxx gives criticism but doesn't take it and he has ways of dealing with those who cross him. Soon Cubby and his family find themselves desperately struggling against a relentless sociopath and on the run for their lives.

Summary

In Relentless, Dean Koontz brings us another unforgettable tale involving evil, fate, and the power of love.  You will be cheering for Cubby, Penny, Milo and Lassie and their extended family and friends as they set out to free themselves from the force that is Shearman Waxx. 

Relentless, available on Amazon
in several formats

For Several More Dean Koontz Book Reviews, 

click here.

For More Book Reviews, check out 

ReviewThisBooks.com

*Book Review of Relentless written by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Review of the Zoomigurumi Crochet Craft Books Series

 As we crochet crafters know, Amigurumi is the Japanese art of crocheting small, stuffed yarn creatures. Zoomigurumi takes it one step further and concentrates on animals found in the wild or domesticated ones we have as pets. 

This series of twelve craft books features patterns for a wide variety of very cute and clever animals to crochet as huggable soft handmade toys. Each book in the series features from 12 to 15 animal patterns, each one by a different designer. The patterns range from beginner to advanced, so every crochet crafter can find one or more to fit their abilities. The series was produced by AmigurumiPatterns.net, a popular handicraft website. 

The List of the Zoomigurumi Craft Books

Book 1 of 12. Zoomigurumi. 12 designers have teamed up in this first Zoomigurumi craft book to give you patterns for a Baby Bear, a Pig, a Toucan, a Tiger and a Pony, a Monkey and Lil Quack the Duck, a Lemur, a Fox, Dakota the Dog and Eduardo the Donkey, a Moose, a cute Mouse and a Bunny. 

Book 2 of 12. Zoomigurumi 2. This volume has 15 cute and cuddly amigurumi animal patterns for a Turtle, a Cow, a Raccoon, a Beaver, a Kitten and a Dog, a Fox, an Elephant, a Bunny, a cute Skunk, two lovable Lambs, a Lion and a Tiger, Manfred the Mouse and Penny the Piglet. 

Book 3 of 12. Zoomigurumi 3.  This volume has 15 new Amigurumi animal patterns from 12 top designers. The patterns include Henry the Hippo, a darling Fawn, a Penguin, a Husky dog, a Duckling, a  Giant Panda, a Cow, a Hedgehog, a Fox, a cuddly Lamb, a Turtle, a pair of Kangaroos, a Red Panda, a Bird and a Reindeer.

Book 4 of 12. Zoomigurumi 4. This book has 15 new animal patterns created by 13 talented designers from all over the world. Create your very own kitten, dolphin. elephant, giraffe, orangutan, deer, seahorse, and an adorable bumblebee wearing sunglasses. The craft book also contains seven more animal patterns.

Book 5 of 12. Zoomigurumi 5.  Here we have 15 more cute Amigurumi animal patterns. My favorite is the Walrus. And the beautiful peacock on the cover is a darling pattern. There is also a camel to crochet, a flamingo, a rhino, a trout, and a teddy wearing a hoodie.

Book 6 of 12. Zoomigurumi 6. From the red panda on the cover to the owl in a sweater, to a sweet shark, a sloth and a swan, this book of 15 patterns will keep your crochet hook busy! Don't forget to check out the hummingbird, a panda, two dachshunds and Mortimer the Mammoth. 

Book 7 of 12. Zoomigurumi 7.  The mallard duck and babies on the cover will entice you to their patterns, plus some unusual ones such as a seagull, a Llama, a moose, a zebra, a stork, a pony and a chicken on a nest. 

Book 8 of 12. Zoomigurumi 8.  Come and crochet a parrot, a baby seal, a goat, a giraffe and a caterpiller. Don't forget the meerkat, the beaver and the raccoon. Such darling patterns from so many talented designers. 

Book 9 of 12. Zoomigurumi 9. Fifteen more adorable patterns from the friendly horse on the cover to an anglerfish, an otter with his seashell, a sheep, and even a Gecko. From patterns that are beginner-friendly to some suitable for advanced crocheters, they are all accompanied by easy-to-follow instructions and clear illustrations. 

Book 10 of 12. Zoomigurumi 10. The kangaroo and  her 'joey' on the cover will keep you from resting that crochet hook. The 'zoomies' in book 10 include a feisty crab, a bouncy kangaroo, a lively squirrel, and a dainty bunny, along with a gorilla, a badger, a koala and Andy Ant! 

Book 11 of 12. Zoomigurumi Endangered Animals. This is a special edition of the Zoomigurumi series featuring 15 of the wild animals on our planet that are threatened. Crochet a collection of these special animals, including a lovable giant panda, a precious monk seal, a gorgeous blue whale and a darling pangolin! There is also a mountain gorilla and her baby, a polar bear, and Cleo the Yellow-Crested Cockatoo

Book 12 of 12.  Zoomigurumi Favorites. This crochet pattern book completes the Zoomigurumi series with 30 of the best-loved patterns from the other books. With Zoomigurumi Favorites. your house may transform into an entire amigurumi zoo! 

The Zoomigurumi series of crochet craft pattern books are all available on Amazon. 

My Zoomis!

A few of my crocheted 'Zoomies'

Here are a few of the cute zoomigurumi animals I have crocheted from this Zoomigurumi series of crochet pattern books.  My favorites, to date, are the wonderful walrus and the Giant Panda Bear. They are currently available in my Etsy Store Coastal Crochet Crafts. I DO so love to crochet and finding these darling patterns was a true delight. 

Happy Crocheting! 

Links to more reviews of crochet craft books:

• A Review of the Crochet Book "Amigurumi Two"
• Easy Crochet Critters Pattern Book Review
• Modern Amigurumi for the Home Craft Book Review
• Adorable Amigurumi
• Funny Amigurumi
• Crobots - An Amigurumi Robots Crochet Craft Book Review

For More Book Reviews, check out ReviewThisBooks.com

For More Craft Reviews, check out ReviewThisCrafts.com 

*Review of the Zoomigurumi Series of crochet pattern books written by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Dark Angel by John Sandford – Book Review

Book #2 in the Letty Davenport Series

Readers of the book review of The Investigator here on ReviewThisReviews will remember who Letty Davenport is – the adopted daughter of Lucas Davenport from John Sandford's Prey novels. 

Now Letty returns in Dark Angel, Book 2 of 2 of what I suspect will be a continuing series. Fans of the Prey series starring Lucus will be delighted with the adventures of Letty Davenport.  As always, anything by John Sandford is an excellent read! 

Dark Angel Synopsis

In the first Letty Davenport novel, Letty proved herself as an investigator with incredible skills with firearms. Her actions drew the attention of several branches of the US government. Thus, the Department of Homeland Security and the NSA have now tasked her with infiltrating a hacker group intent on wreaking havoc. 

Letty and her reluctant partner from the NSA (Rod Baxter, a computer whiz) pose as free-spirited programmers for hire. They drive to Los Angeles, headquarters of the hacker group, and begin the process of getting accepted by the Ordinary People group in order to uncover their plans. 

Come to find out, the Ordinary People hacker group are not the real enemy. It seems the Russians have ulterior motives to eliminate the hacker group who have the ability to disrupt railway travel at a time when Russia is about to invade Ukraine. 

Summary

Letty and a couple friends from other government agencies become bodyguards to the Ordinary People group while the group works on the solution to hindering Russia's plans, thus putting their lives in grave danger. 

An exciting new Letty Davenport novel I highly recommend. 

Dark Angel is available in a variety of formats here on Amazon

For more book reviews of John Sandford books, click here.

For more Book Reviews in any genre, go to ReviewThisBooks.com

*Book Review of Dark Angel written by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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