Sign of hope at clogged Sainsbury's car park

New signs have been put up at Bath's main Sainsbury's store tohelp avoid car parking congestion.

The Green Park Station store is one of the first in the countryto install a hi-tech parking management system.

Two years ago the retail giant put in electronic sensors on eachof the 450 parking spaces at the outlet, which is one of the busiestin the country.

Now an electronic sign has been put in place to alert drivers toexactly how many spaces are available.

Sainsbury's put in similar technology at its Watford store latelast year.

The chain's car parks feasibility manager Gavin Clarke, said thenew sign was introduced to make life easier for …

The Joshua Tree

The Joshua Tree by L. Steven Rencher Frayer & Williams Publishing, May 2005 $18.95, ISBN 1-413-74183-5

The Joshua Tree reads like an epic. Set in the Bronx, New York, in 1972, it's the story of two teenagers, Joshua Peeler and Sarah Edwards, both 16.

Rencher writes an urban tale about …

Super 14: Blues beat Force 25-19 in opener

The Auckland Blues scored the first 17 points of the second half to overcome a six-point halftime deficit and beat the Western Force 25-19 Friday in the teams' opening Super 14 match.

Trailing 14-8 at halftime, the Blues scored three straight tries to open the second half, with Taniela Moa picking up a fourth for the Blues to give the visitors a bonus point.

A 60th-minute try to Force lock Tom Hockings gave the home side hope of a comeback, but the Blues held firm in the remaining 20 minutes.

The Blues, playing without All Blacks Rudi Wulf, Ali Williams, Jerome Kaino and Joe Rokocoko, started strongly and took a 3-0 lead in the 11th minute on a …

`Funny cake' looks like pie; no joke about taste

Funny, it doesn't look like a cake. In fact, the marvelousrecipe that follows is more like a pie. It starts with a crust;then a batter is poured in and topped with a chocolate sauce. Thesauce sinks down into the pie to create a rich layer next to thecrust. That's the funny part. There's nothing funny about theflavor however. That's delicious.

Here is my recipe for funny cake that I have in my collection.

FUNNY CAKE

1 (9-inch) deep-dish pie crust 1 1/4 cups flour1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 3/4 plus 2/3 cup sugar 1/4 cup shortening 1/2 cup milk2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided 1 …

Eva Longoria files for divorce from Tony Parker

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Less than four years after a storybook wedding in Paris, Eva Longoria filed court papers Wednesday to divorce basketball star Tony Parker, citing irreconcilable differences.

Parker, a three-time NBA All-Star with the San Antonio Spurs, made no hint as to what caused the split between him and the star of TV's "Desperate Housewives" during a brief meeting with a throng of reporters outside his team's locker room about an hour before a game.

"It's a difficult time right now for me and Eva," Parker said. "We got a joint statement and everything else is our private life."

Asked about speculation that Parker might have been involved with the wife of a former …

Human Rights Watch calls for release of 5 political activists in Syria

Syria should immediately and unconditionally release five political activists from detention, the New York-based Human Rights Watch said Monday.

Ahmad Tohme, Jaber al-Shoufi, Akram al-Bunni, Fidaa al-Hourani and Ali Abdullah were detained by Syrian authorities following a meeting of opposition groups in Damascus last week.

The Damascus-based Syrian Organization for Human Rights said Abdullah was detained Monday, while Hourani went to the state security's intelligence headquarters Sunday morning in the northern town of Hama after being summoned and has not been seen or heard of since then.

The other three activists were detained last week, the …

COASTER RIDE ENDS IN TRAGEDY

It was just a Saturday night out with the kids when a south suburban family trekked from their home in Dolton to Go Bananas, an indoor family entertainment center in northwest suburban Norridge.

The center's small roller coaster is a popular ride, and it caught the eye of the 3-year-old Dansby twins.

Then the unthinkable happened.

While on the ride, about 7 p.m., Jayson Dansby somehow freed himself from the safety bar and became wedged between two of the cars, according to Norridge Police Chief James Jobe. Jayson then fell about three or four feet from the moving roller coaster.

"For some reason, he crawled out from underneath the safety bar, and he fell …