google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday, May 23, 2011 Victor Barocas

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May 23, 2011

Monday, May 23, 2011 Victor Barocas

Theme: Colorful Language - A color idiom morphed with a phrase to give us three new comical idioms with criminal evidence.

20A. Evidence against an aristocrat? : BLUE BLOOD STAIN. Blue blood. Blood stain.

40A. Evidence against a gardener? : GREEN THUMB PRINT. Green thumb. Thumb print.

56A. Evidence against an Oscar attendee? : RED CARPET FIBER. Red carpet. Carpet fiber.

Argyle here on a colorful, musical Monday, a tick harder than usual. Victor's January offering was colorful, too. 2011/1/3

Across:

1. In the heavens : ABOVE

6. McCartney's instrument : BASS. and 18A. "All you need," in a Beatles song : LOVE. From Yellow Submarine. (2:59)

10. Predecessor of surrealism : DADA

14. Seedless type of orange : NAVEL

15. "There oughta be ___!" : A LAW

16. Password enterer : USER

17. Like the more serious larceny : GRAND

19. Farm structure : SILO

23. Immigrant's subj. : ESL. English as a Second Language.

24. Guitar neck features : FRETS. The ridges set across the fingerboard which help the fingers to shorten the strings at the correct points.

25. "Private Practice" network : ABC. A spin-off of Grey's Anatomy, it is a medical drama show.

28. Bluesman Mahal : TAJ. Henry Saint Clair Fredericks has two Grammy Awards. Fishing Blues clip.(1:03)

30. Resident since birth : NATIVE

34. Tombstone lawman : EARP. Wyatt.

36. Common mixer : SODA

39. Styles : MODES

43. To whom "I'll see you in my dreams" is sung : IRENE. Sung here by 69A. Seeger of the Weavers : PETE

44. Singer Diamond : NEIL. Singin' about that Kentucky Woman.(2:26)

45. Pout : MOUE. This little guy is quite expressive.

46. Opening word for Ali Baba : SESAME. Closing word, also. "Close Sesame" sealed the treasure cave back up.

48. Long sandwich : SUB

50. Ed.'s workload items : MSS. Manuscripts.

51. Smallest : LEAST

54. Enemy : FOE

62. Black-and-white treat : OREO

63. Suffix with soft or flat : WARE

64. Seuss environmentalist : LORAX. The good Doctor's tree defender. Image

66. Matter topper? : MIND. Mind over matter.

67. Part of NRA: Abbr. : ASSN.

68. Hardly hoi polloi : ELITE. This term is of Greek origin and a literal translation  is 'the many'.

70. Marvel Comics heroes : X-MEN

71. Hamlet's countrymen : DANES

Down:

1. Director Lee : ANG

2. Harpoon point : BARB

3. Racetrack shape : OVAL

4. Legal site : VENUE

5. Firstborn sibling : ELDEST

6. Fun time : BALL

7. Distant : ALOOF

8. Relish : SAVOR

9. "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" setting : SWEDEN

10. Wind-related desert event : DUST STORM

11. Where Siberia is : ASIA

12. Corned beef seller : DELI

13. Elvis's middle name : ARON

21. Fun time : BLAST

22. "Forever" post office product : STAMP

25. Sponsorship : AEGIS

26. Ballet rail : BARRE

27. Some Saskatchewanians : CREEs

29. Elton of England : JOHN

31. "Eat crow," e.g. : IDIOM

32. Evening star : VENUS

33. Politician Kefauver : ESTES. The Senator from 59D. TENN. Nashville's st.

35. Crime laws, as a unit : PENAL CODE

37. Scheduled to arrive : DUE

38. French friends : AMIS

41. Where Hercules slew a lion : NEMEA

42. Poker ploy : BLUFF

47. Q-Tip target : EARWAX

49. Didn't just simmer : BOILED

52. Cramp or twitch : SPASM

53. Of few words : TERSE

55. Deadly virus : EBOLA

56. Play boisterously : ROMP

57. Toledo's lake : ERIE

58. Minor collision damage : DENT

60. The Auld Sod : ERIN

61. Do a film critic's job : RATE

65. Crosses (out) : Xes


Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Here is a great photo of 15-year-old Argyle in 1960. He's a Freshman. Class of '63. Look at his socks!

83 comments:

Hahtoolah said...

Good Morning, Argyle and friends. (Love the photo of you, Argyle!).

I loved this Before and After Crime Scene. I did seem just a tad more challenging than our usual Monday fare, but the crime-themed clues made me smile.

My favorite clue was Matter Topper? = MIND.

I am sure the ENTs among us will let us know that one shouldn't insert a Q-tip into one's ear, not matter how much EAR WAX there may be.

Hot and steamy here already at this early hour.

Have a great week, everyone.

QOD: A great mind is one that can forget or look beyond itself. ~ William Hazlitt

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

This one felt pretty easy, but according to my time it wasn't exactly a speed run. I don't recall what held me up, though. I agree with Hahtool that MIND over matter was a great clue/answer combination.

I was also wondering who would be the first to object to the Q-TIP clue... ^_^

Dudley said...

Hello Puzzlers - Just right for a Monday. I did stumble a bit at the ERIN vs. EIRE possibility, but not much else.

Since we have Dr. Seuss in the puzzle today, it's worth mentioning that he (Theodore Geisel) was a native of the nearby city of Springfield, MA. A large collection of his work is on display in a superb gallery in Northampton, alongside Leonard Nimoy's photographic works.

thehondohurricane said...

Good day folks,

A pleasant Monday puzzle ramped up a notch or two in difficulty. Or maybe I made it more difficult due to incorrect fills. Had penalties before Penal Law, mope before moue, and ecoli instead of ebola. Oh well, the eraser got a workout.

Ditto Hahtool & Barry G on earwax/Q Tip comments.

Successful, but exhausting weekend. I have decreed today to be a day of rest for yours truly.

Dick said...

Good morning Argyle and all, a nice typical Monday until I hit the SE corner and my ego exploded. I had ecoli for ebola and edit for rate. This took forever to sort out as I did not know the Seuss environmentalist so I really struggled there. I finally tried ebola which got me 68A elite and the rest of that area fell.

My favorite clue/answer was Matter topper/mind.

Agree with the comments about the use (nonuse) of Q-tips.

I just got back from a week of back breaking work replacing a deck at my camp. Sure happy that is done and now I can sit on the deck the rest of the summer and watch it rain.

Hope you all have a great Monday.

Dr. Dad said...

Good morning. Hope everyone had a great weekend.

A sub eight minute puzzle. The usual Monday.

The Lorax and the Truffula Trees.

Dr. Seuss actually preferred the pronunciation "Soyce" (rhymnes with voice) over "Soose" as that would be it's pronunciation in German. He himself noted that it rhymed with "voice" and Alexander Liang (his collaborator on the Dartmouth Jack-O-Lantern) wrote of him:

"You’re wrong as the deuce
And you shouldn’t rejoice
If you’re calling him Seuss.
He pronounces it Soice."

Geisel switched to the anglicized pronunciation from German because it "evoked a figure advantageous for an author of children’s books to be associated with—Mother Goose" and because most people used this pronunciation.

While sleeping the average person inhales 40 bugs a year.

China claims the world's youngest parents. They were 8 and 9 years old.

A shark can not get cancer.

The only state capital without a McDonalds is Montpelier, Vermont.

Have a great Monday.

Mainiac said...

Morning Argyle, CC and All,

This was a good puzzle with a little more difficulty than a normal Monday for me. Wrote Barn instead of Silo which was a quick fix with perp help. The Idiom, Modes, Moue cross had me scratching my head for a bit. I finally threw the D in there and it all filled in. Lucky guess.

Great photo Argyle and another great write-up.

Yes its drizzly again today. Cool too. I did get a bike ride in yesterday and nearly froze in the 45 degree temps. Had a fire in the wood stove to take off the chill. Hopefully the prediction of warmer temps tomorrow will come true. Still supposed to rain. My feet are getting moldy.

Have a good one!

creature said...

Good Morning C.C., Argyle and all,

Fun write-up, Argyle. Thanks.
Love that cute pic of you. Those were the days-argyle socks and all.
Thanks. C.C.

Ditto: Q-tip.

Really enjoyed the upbeat tenor of the puzzle.Fresh fill and theme. Perps saved me with NEMEA,LORAX and X MAN, as these were not in my 'readily available' memory bank.

Thanks, Victor.

My thoughts are with the victims in Missouri.Hope Jeannie came out ok from the weather. Glad to hear from C.C. this A.M..

Have a nice day everyone.

HeartRx said...

Good Morning Argyle, C.C et al.

Thanks for the write-up Argyle, and great musical links to this Monday (?) puzzle. Like others, I thought it was a tad harder than the typical Monday offering. I stumbled at the crossing of EARWAX and X-MEN. Never heard of them - "g", yes. But what's an ear wag? My mind is still on weekend mode, I guess.

I wonder if 35D PENAL CODE was originally part of the theme unifier? It certainly is a unique entry. Other entries had me thinking, like LORAX, WARE and MOUE, but got them with a couple nudges from perps.

Overall, a nice nifty puzzle with another colorful theme. Thanks, Victor!

Anonymous said...

Very nice Monday puzzle - aside from generally, genially getting miffed to the reference to the use of Q-tips to clear earwax. As Hahtool points out - very dangerous. Even the Q-tip box cover states the prohibition explicitly.

The word 'Dada' has a meaning of respected/elder brother/ boss etc. in many languages - (the notorious) Dada Idi Amin (Uganda) , ... Nelson Mandela ( in 'Invictus', South Africa). and many Indian (languages - ) , Pakistani- Urdu and in Bengali - Bangladesh. It can also (be extended - ) to mean a crime Don, a hoodlum or a gangster.

Argyle, your blog was very interesting - Thank you. Most of the clues were somewhat self evident. Thank you for the musical links - and compared to your 'earlier' photograph - you haven't changed a bit - (still good looking- ).

Have a nice day and a great week, all.

Tinbeni said...

Argyle, Great write-up.
Appropriate socks ... lol!

If I ever thought about a "Wind-related desert event" sand-storm would precede DUST-STORM.

In my newspaper, 27-D was printed:
Some
Saskatchewania
ns
Soooo, I'm thinking; "What the hell is a "ns" ???
Perps got the CREE's.

Last to fall was the "M" in IDIOM ...
Looked at MSS (manuscripts) for Ed's workload item and figured I'd seen this abbr. in xwords, so WTF.

Seuss's LORAX was my (soon to be forgotten) learning moment.

Oh well, a FUN Monday.

Time for me to use a Q-Tip and dig out that EAR-WAX ...

Husker Gary said...

Yup, Argyle, this was harder than your average bear, er, Monday but fun as well!

Monday Musings
-Aloft? Nope, above.
-I have never played a stringed instrument without frets and don’t know if my ear would be up to it.
-We found out that one of Wyatt Earp’s boyhood homes was in Pella, Iowa and stands today nestled amid the tulips.
-I finally sussed MSS must be manuscripts after all the letters were in. Never seen that before.
-I tried to make BARB harder than it was.
-_ S _ _ gave USSR before ASIA. Duh!
-OMG, I had those socks too!
-Evening “star” Venus is a planet not a star (I know it’s just an idiom). I thought I would be first to say it just like the Hahtool was on earwax.
-BTW, stars twinkle (due to distance from us) and planets don’t! That’s how you can tell what you are looking at in the evening sky (Saturn tonight).

Husker Gary said...

p.s. As a sidebar to our non-rapture Saturday, does anyone remember a movie that contained a scene where several military bases are asked from Cheyenne Mountain if they are “still there” after a seemingly real nuclear attack?

Spitzboov said...

Good morning all. Argyle in his Argyles. Those were the days. Great blogging.

Easy peasy today. In addition to the 'colorful' theme 'clues' there was a plethora of legal fill: A LAW, VENUE, DUE, PENAL CODE, and GRAND. Also some circular fill with NATIVE / CREES and PETE singing to IRENE in his dreams. Thanks Argyle on MSS, manuscripts, but the perps were sufficient. No lookups needed.

Enjoy the day.

Tinbeni said...

Forgot to mention.

A few weeks ago there was a discussion about
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo."
If I remember correctly it is one of a 3-book series and it was pointed out back then that it was from SWEDEN.
So that was a gimmie.
Otherwise I would not have had a clue.

Ergo, some "learning moments" actually do stick.

Big Easy One said...

Factoid of the day: -

From a dear friend in Nu Awleens : Today marks the 77th Anniv. of the deaths of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. Bonnie Parker ( all of 4 feet 11 ... ) would have been 100, if alive today.They were hit with 167 rounds of ammo, on May 23, 1934. The movie 'Bonnie and Clyde', starring Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, was released in 1967, cost $ 2.4 million, made $ 70 million gross worldwide - and among the critics, ONLY Roger Ebert liked the movie, on the opening day...

More to the point, Gibsland, La. ( pop. 1201 ) celebrated its annual, 'Bonnie and Clyde' festival, on Saturday. It was a great success - broke all records - attendance 56,000+ !

If we could see her, in person, do you think we could have detected a (faint) glow on Hahtool's face ? (lol) ;-O

Dr. Dad said...

Husker Gary,

I don't rememer a movie involving Cheyenne Mountain but I do remember "The Day After" starring Jason Robards, John Lithgow, and Steve Guttenberg that centered around Lawrence, Kansas because of all the missile silos that are/were around there. John Lithgow asks at the end of the movie from the Lawrence University "Is anybody out there? Anyone at all?"

Sellers buyer said...

Husker Gary - Is the movie - Dr. Strangeglove (Peter Sellers ) ? Just a WAG.

Argyle said...

Husker Gary - Is the movie "War Games"?

Nobody wins.

Linda said...

Beginning with CC, Thank you all for your lovely well-wishes for enjoying/enduring 50 years of marriage (for, it is both as all you married folk know.) Heartrx: You must have chosen the right man. I have found that you must re-choose him often...as he does with me! I can honestly say that we are happier and more content with each other than at any other time in our 50 years...so all of you, hang in there!

Had a lovely celebration with friends and family...will post pix when the photog. gets them to me. BTW: We were cleaning the fellowship hall when 6PM Saturday came...and were wishing the Rapture would take place so someone else could do all the work! :)

Jimbo: Good to know you`re well!

Avg Joe said...

Thanks for the writeup, Argyle. And the socks are great.

The puzzle was a speed contest for me on the top half. The bottom slowed me down a lot, but still found it to be Monday fare. The theme was sorta clever. All told, no major stumbles and a finish w/o G.

On the movie Gary asked about, I'd vote for War Games too (With Matthew Broderick). I don't remember it well enough to be at all sure, but it rings the right bell.

Factoid Factorum said...

To those who wrote 'Ecoli' instead of 'Ebola' - just a gentle reminder - EColi is a bacteria, Ebola is a virus.

( To those who feel 'compelled' OR 'impelled' to be do 'something' about it - just take a course of Amoxicillin, anyway - whether it helps or not.... ) ;-D

BTW, they were known as Coli and Bola, before some smart alec decided to market them online ... (lol) ;-)

To those of us, with general eye problems, there is a cutesy article in the latest Reader's Digest - '15 things your opthalmologist or optometrist wont tell you ...' - worth a read.

Jazzbumpa said...

Hi gang -

War Games?

Fine, fun puzzle today. Creative theme, nice cross currents with a NATIVE IDIOM and PENAL CODE.

Inside earth's orbit is the VENUS VENUE.

Does this raise the BARRE for Monday puzzles?

Amanda took top spot overall at comp this week for her point solo.

Always fumble with ERIN/EIRE.

Got the LW's fave singer NIEL from the perp's and missed the clue! (DOH!)

ABOVE NAVEL ---- GRAND!

ABOVE BASS -- the rest of the band.

None of the orchestral strings have FRETS. It's all hand-ear coordination - in case you thought playing in tune was nothing to FRET about.

AEGIS is more protection than sponsorship. Was Tombstone under EARP'S AEGIS?

Is Claire one of the ELITE DANES?

Cheers!
JzB who is guilty of reckless Q-Tip use

carol said...

Hi all -
I really enjoyed this offering! Got caught in a few places, but it was easy to fix. I didn't know what a Lorax was, I didn't read that many Dr Seuss books.

Matter Topper really got me! When the perps filled it in, I had my V-8 moment.

50A was also arrived at with perps. I never would have known MSS was 'manuscripts'.

Mainiac: welcome to my weather...we are not called the 'web-foots' for no reason :) Lately, it is rare that we are rained on during our bike rides.

Argyle: Love your picture, what a cutie you were, SOX and all!!

So terrible about that tornado that struck Joplin! There seems to be a lot more weather related catastrophes this year.

carol said...

oops, I meant it is rare when we are NOT rained on.

windhover said...

Yes, I'm a cynic (but you knew that), but the prohibition is on the box to relieve them (J & J & others) of liability. They know damn well that's what most people buy and use them for, including this correspondent.

Avg Joe said...

WH, that's exactly right. As a corollary, years ago tile companies referred to the little thing that mounted on the wall of a shower enclosure as a "soap and grab". Then they started to get sued when people would yank them off the wall and fall down. So they changed the name to "soap and rag". A few years later they got rid of the "grab" portion entirely. We live in a litigious society.

Hands up for judicious use of Q-tips for their "intended" purpose.

Jerome said...

Beautiful Monday puzzle.

Want to write early week crossword puzzles? Study this one. There's a lot to learn here. To me, the most important being you don't have to cram a grid with four, five, six theme entries to be a pro. Being overly ambitious is often a rookie's quick and sure downfall.

Abejo said...

Good Morning, folks. Thank you Victor for a swell Monday puzzle. Just right in my opinion. Thank you Argyle, for your expertise and diligence. I still remember that GORP page you blogged. Great job. Great socks, too!

This puzzle was very doable. Got through it with no problems. Enjoyed the GREENTHUMBPRINT as I am a gardener.

Thought Distant/ALOOF was clever. made me think a little.

47D Q-Tip Target/EARWAX was very good and, I agree with the others that Q-Tips should not be inserted in ears. As a child I was always told that "you do not put anything in your ear smaller than your elbow."

As far as Sunday's puzzle went, it was a tough one. I worked on it off and on all day and could not finish without help, especially in the south.

I am sitting here in Canonsburg, PA, having fun.

Dick: Where is your camp? Mine is in Johnsonburg.

Abejo

Bill G. said...

Fun and quick! A good old folksong-type feeling with Pete Seeger of the Weavers and their hit, Goodnight Irene. At first I had SANDSTORM and ding instead of DENT. Ding seems more minor than dent to me. And yes, that's what I use Q-Tips for even with the cautions against it. I never had a problem.

Another athletic hero seems to be biting the dust. Lance Armstrong is innocent until proven guilty but there seems to be plenty of smoke pointing toward wrong-doing. Sad.

H Gary, was that movie War Games?

windhover said...

Yeah, but I was told "Don't take candy from strangers" too. But I like candy, and over the years I've met some beautiful strangers.
In either case, a little common sense will go a long way.

Clear Ayes said...

Good Morning All, Q-Tips to dry those "innie" NAVELs, and if we use them for ears, whose looking? My thought is that if a person is foolish enough to ignore excruciating pain and shove a Q-Tip through their eardrum, I can't feel too sympathetic. One caveat, I wouldn't let a child under ten years old see me Q-Tipping and get ideas of trying it him/herself.

It was fun to see 69A/PETE singing 43A/IRENE. The Weavers were a marvelous group and Pete was, at least in Argyle's video link, very limber.

I had more "breakdown spots" than usual for a Monday and had to get a push from perps. I didn't know that VENUE was a legal term, wanted BARN for SILO and MSS was pure perps.

I really went blank on IRENE. I could only think of this old song, I'll See You In My Dreams from 1925. No, I'm not quite that old, but my parents and uncle used to sing it, with my aunt playing piano (yeah, we were that kind of family).

Loved the socks, Argyle!

Anonymous said...

Good afternoon everyone.

Great write up, Argyle, as always. And thanks, C.C. for letting us see Argyle's socks. A cutie he was and is.

As I frequently say, I love Mondays because I can do them. But today I stared at IDIOM for the longest time trying to figure out what was wrong. And I used to be an English teacher!
And hand up for ecoli first. Maybe Factoid Factorum's hint will stick.

As most of us seem to be back, all is well. Hope your week is a good one.

Cheers

JD said...

Good morning Argyle (great picture), C.C. et al,

I always enjoy a Monday puzzle because from Thursday on, I struggle.Today's wasn't a speed run as there seemed to be a delay for many answers, even when I knew them, such as barre, frets, moue and venue.Aegis, nemea, terse and those unknown abbreviations got filled by perps.

I wanted shazam for sesame. We're more into x-men ; grand sons are always wearing super hero shirts.

Nice shout out to Irene, Dick's DW, whom, I'm sure helped with every bit of that deck project.

Loved info on Dr. Seuss.What a treasure he was to a generation (or more) of beginning readers.Here is his Lorax, not just for children.

Husker..twinkle,twinkle little star must be true.

Proud Bumpa, kudos to your beautiful granddaughter!

Seldom Seen said...

"One caveat, I wouldn't let a child under ten years old see me Q-Tipping and get ideas of trying it him/herself."

CA: Love your new slang "Q-Tipping"

Is that what we are calling it now? What's the big deal? Everybody does it! Whether they admit it or not. And, btw, it doesn't make you go blind..er..deaf.

You're right CA, I would just die if a 10 year ever caught me doing it!

Seldom Seen said...

I kept looking for some type of unifier referring to RGB.

Something like CRT or LCD. ABC was close but the wiki article states that CBS was first with the technology.

Liked the clue/fill EARWAX.

Husker Gary said...

Yes, the movie was War Games and here is The Scence where the computer learns and reteaches us that war is futile!

treefrog said...

Great photo Argyle! I just hope no one digs out my freshman pix!

Found the puzzle easy today. Loved the theme. I did know LORAX-lots of the Dr when my kids were young.

Finally had to turn on the sprinkler system. Now I'm sure a storm will come through and dump some rain.

Corps of Engineers is going to start a major flow out of Lost Creek Lake. Snowpack is high this year. Means lots of novice rafters/kyakers are going to be in trouble on the Rogue.

Have a great day everyone.

Lemonade714 said...

Dudley: My father was born in Springfiled, Mass. I never knew of Seuss rhyming with voice, and my mother was an Irene, so Pete Seeger sang in our home.

Love the Argyle, Argyle who ends up living in Argyle, wow.

next...

Lemonade714 said...

I thinking posting HS pics sounds like fun

Clear Ayes said...

High school photo? No problem
Front row middle
is me at 15. My best friend Mary Jane is directly behind me. We still correspond.

Seen, LOL, I thought of the DF connotations of"Q-Tipping" too, but I was thinking more along the lines of why parents lock the bedroom door on Sunday morning. I figured that most ten year olds (at least boys) are already familiar with your interpretation.

Bill G, GAH and I watched 60 Minutes last night. Olympic cycling champion Tyler Hamilton's interview discussing Lance Armstrong's drug use was compelling. It is still a wait and see situation. Sad, no matter how it turns out.

We've been checking the news about the Joplin MO tornado. It is an horrific sight. Be careful midwesterners, tornado season is just beginning.

HeartRx said...

I forgot to mention yesterday, it's good to see you turn blue, Avg Joe! And I really have to laugh at your avatar. (Is that aimed at us?)

Argyle, love the socks - you were / are such a cutie!

Argyle said...

Go ahead...sock it to me! It wasn't until the yearbook came out that I discovered I was wearing mismatched Argyles that day.

Jeannie said...

This one wasn’t too bad for a Monday. It always helps me when I get the theme though. Only unknowns were aegis and mss, but perps took care of those. I do have a problem with black/white treat as I think Oreos are brown/white. My favorite was “matter topper” –mind.

Drdad, you made me look to see if there is a Burger King in Montpelier. NOPE!!

Creature and JD thanks for your thoughts on us Minnesotan’s. I got a pretty good hail storm (no damage) but one of my co-workers who lives in Minneapolis was just clipped by the tornado. He said he has a couple of trees down and some siding damage on his house, but no one was injured. We were a little worried about him though, as he was about an hour late with no call to the boss.

Jayce said...

Hello everybody. Excellent puzzles yesterday and today. Excellent blogging here, too. Couldn't stop wanting HORN for Matter topper, and when the perps forced me to shift my mental gears I loved MIND as the answer.

So what SHOULD we clean our excess earwax out with? My wife's elbow doesn't work.

Wasn't Seuss Theodore Geisel's middle name? Did he and his family pronounce it Soice?

Nice to see the highschool pics.

Got relatives coming to stay with us on Wednesday, so I'm gonna go help DW clean the junk out of our guest room. A good excuse to throw an awful lot of stuff away. See y'all later.

Avg Joe said...

@Marti, No. The southern view of the equine is not aimed at anyone. It's merely a "Self-portrait" (or at least what I've been describe me as).

As for HS photos, I'm strongly opposed. Most of us were lucky to survive those years. I don't even want to remember what I looked like at that age.

Lemonade714 said...

CA, you hardly changed at all, very nice! AJ, with your avatar, I sense time would not have effected much, so post away, we can take it.

carol said...

Jazz, congratulations to Amanda, she must have inherited your musical talent.

Avg Joe, love that avatar...but I can't believe you are a horses 'petoot' :)

ps, I now have Goodnight Irene as my current 'earworm', sigh. Maybe a Q-tip would help.

Bill G. said...

Carol and others; I love 'Goodnight Irene' and the Weavers. However, as much as I love them, I've decided their version is a bit bland. I saw a version by Ry Cooder on YouTube that is more bluesy with lyrics that are a little more like the original. Also, it's a little in the zydeco style.

Jeannie said...

I meant to welcome our newest “bluebie” Avg Joe. Your avatar really cracks me up, and I love a guy with a sense of humor!

CA, what a pretty little lady. I am assuming you all had to wear uniforms to school.

Argyle, I thought those socks didn’t match!!

Here’s a brain teaser a co-worker sent me today. You have one 5 gallon bucket and one 3 gallon bucket. You need exactly 7 gallons of water. How would you go about it?

Splynter said...

Hi There ~!

No, not a speed run, and a well done puzzle for a Monday. 14-letter answers are hard to grid.

I was going to show you my pic at 15, but Picasa is not working.

Did you hear the one about the blonde and sex?

She said sex is better for women...
- go ahead, stick a Q-Tip in your ear - now, which one feels better?

Splynter

Avg Joe said...

Jeannie,

You would fill the 5 gallon bucket, then from that fill the 3 gallon bucket. Dump out the 3 gallon bucket, put the remaining 2 from the 5 gallon bucket it that, then refill the 5.

JD said...

CA, loved that picture. It seems you never went through that awkward stage. We are having our 50th HS reunion in Sept(all girls school) and suddenly everyone is e-mailing and sending yearbook pictures plus stories about things we never knew about.Fun to see others, but like Joe, I don't like seeing my picture.

Jeannie, funny how earthquakes don't scare me, but those tornados do. Glad you are safe.

Hahtoolah said...

Nice photo, Clear Ayes!

Big Easy: Whyever would you think I'd be all aglow over Bonnie and Clyde? I never saw the 1967 movie version of their escapades, but a new film about them is due out later this year.

Jeannie: I am glad you are safe. I hope CC and everyone else who might have been in the path of the tornado is okay as well.

Clear Ayes said...

Jeanne, glad you and others in your area are OK.

No uniforms, although it looks like it. The photo was taken at a school show. Our group was singing/dancing and putting on a little skit. (I guess our coach figured that if the audience didn't like one talent(?), they might appreciate another.) That's why the outfits were the same. There was a lot of theatrical makeup involved. All our eyes are nearly eye-shadowed and mascara-ed out of existence.

JD, LOL, my awkward stage with freckles, big teeth, straight as a stick hair and chubby knees lasted from about 10 through 13. The remaining vestige, which lasted throughout high school, was blushing red as a beet whenever a boy I liked talked to me.

fermatprime said...

Hello All!

Fun puzzle, Victor; splendid writ-up, Argyle! Love the mismatched sock pic too!

Re: ear wax. My late friend, the otolaryngologist, used the retracted end on a pen. My dad used a paperclip. I prefer a medium crochet hook (gasp)!

Favorite answer: MIND, also. No trouble with puzzle today. Yippee!

A writer to tvguide.com theorized that Bones was artificially inseminated by Booth because she wanted a child so bad. That sounds like a reasonable explanation to me!

Stieg Larsson's three novels were all published posthumously. A tragedy that he did not know that he would be the second best writer of same in 2008.

Avg Joe--love the avatar!

CA--Pretty picture!

Cheers!!

fermatprime said...

Jeannie: Fill up the 7 gal bucket and use it to fill the 3 gal bucket. Dump that and fill it up again from 7 gallon one. One remains in 7 gallon one.

carol said...

Maybe I don't understand the brain teaser but if you only need 7 gals of water...fill the 5 gal bucket and fill the 3 gal bucket to the 2 gal level..5 and 2 = 7. Some of the answers given blew me away (but I never was any good at math)

Bill G...thanks for the info on Ry Cooder, I'll look that up. I love Zydeco and Folk music...also 50's/60's rock 'n roll.

Jeannie said...

Carol, Avg Joe is correct. I think Fermatprime was also, she just typed 7 gallon bucket instead of 5 gallon bucket. It had to be exactly 7 gallons, that is why you couldn't just guess on the 2 gallon level on the 3 gallon bucket.

Next one:
What do the following words have in common?

assess, voodoo, banana, grammar, potato, dresser, revive, uneven.

Avg Joe said...

Jeannie:

All the words were misspelled by Dan Quayle at one time or another. :-)

Lemonade714 said...

palindromes plus 1

carol said...

Jeannie, I still don't get the bucket one :( Most buckets have gallon markings on them, which is what I was picturing.

Grumpy 1 said...

All words hava two letters that are repeated in the word.

Math nemesis said...

... To get 7 gallons of water ... with a 7 gallon bucket - fill up the 7 gallon bucket - dump the water out - OR drink it all up - and then fill up the 7 gallon bucket AGAIN - and Walla Walla - you have 7 gallons of (fresh) stuff ..... (lol ), ;-8, :-OO

(It takes a 'reel' mathematician to know one -).



Jeannie, seriously now, suppose, you have a 5 Gallon bucket and a 4 gallon bucket .... How would you get a total of 7 gallons ?

Hint: Re-iteration.

Bill G. said...

The hood of my car has been dirty each day. It's under the edge of the branches of a camellia bush. Barbara finally solved the mystery. She found a tiny hummingbird nest perched over the hood of my car with two baby hummingbirds peering out, very still and quiet. I could hear mommy or daddy squeaking nearby.

We often have trouble thinking of a place to go for lunch, so I made a list of favorite places. Today we picked a Cuban restaurant. Soup or salad, roast pork with grilled onions, rice with black beans and fried plantains, all for $8.99. We added Arnold Palmers and one flan. Great lunch!

Big Easy, again said...

Hahtool,

My sincere apologies for that comment on you, with the Bonnie and Clyde thing. I am well aware that you are some sort of Govt. lawyer, and you would never identify/ or relate to - with the criminal mind ... but since you are the only person, who hails from that state, I just used your name, as a cheap shot. The 'faint' glow, was supposed to have come from attending the ( Bonnie and Clyde - ) festival in Gibsland, La. and partaking of the libations. Unfortunately, I did not make that point clear in my original posting. On hindsight, which is always 20-20, I should have omitted that last paragraph altogether - because it was a lame joke to begin with.

Since I choose to be an Anon, I realize I have no business taking such liberties, ( with the established bloggers - ) and I profusely and sincerely apologize, once again.

Clear Ayes said...

Although, I really like Avg Joe's explanation better, I'm going with Lemonade on the palindromes + one letter at the beginning.

Carol, nope, picture Jeannie's old fashioned 5 gallon and 3 gallon oak buckets with no markings on them, instead of the newfangled plastic kind.

Lemonade, it was your idea. Where is your high school photo? What about anyone else?

fermatprime, LOL, crochet hook!!. Nervy, with a steady hand.

Math nemesis
1.dump out the 5 gallon and fill it from the 4 gallon. (4 & 0)
2. fill the 4 gallon (4 & 4)
3. pour from the 4 gallon to the top of the 5 gallon (5 & 3)
4. dump out the 5 gallon (0 & 3)
5. pour all from the 4 gallon into the 5 gallon (3 & 0)
fill the 4 gallon (3 & 4 = 7)

Is there a faster way?

Warren said...

Hi gang, I agree with the difficulty level for today also, but in the rush to finish the puzzle before my wife left for work I had put in IDIOT instead of IDIOM for 31D and didn't find the mistake until I got here.

Re:Blue Bloods? is anyone else a fan of the new Blue Bloods TV series?

Math nemisis, again said...

Clear Ayes - You are right - your solution is probably better than the one I originally thought of...

I had:

1. Fill up the 5 Gal. ( 5+0)
2. Pour the 5 G into the 4 G (1+4)
3. Empty the 4G (1+0)
4. Pour the 5 G into the 4G ( 0 +1)
5. Fill up the 5 G. ( 5 + 1 )
6. Pour the 5G onto the (partially filled - ) 4G ( 2 + 4 )
7. Empty the 4 G again ( 2 + 0 )
8. Pour the remaining 5 G into the 4G (0 + 2)
9. Fill up the 5 G ( 5 + 2 ).= 7

Yours is better and easier to understand.

( In riddles, the simpler solution is the preferred one, ....remember, KISS = Keep it simple, stupid)

BTW, since I am already on this page, may I humbly opine, that you look fabulous and very glamorous in your class picture - you should have gone on to Hollywood. No kidding.

carol said...

CA: thanks for the bucket explanation (I think :))
We have had our high school pictures on here before, but hey, it's been a long time so here is mine.

Math nemisis, Again ?? said...

Clear Ayes,

I suddenly realized, that IF the 4 Gallon drum is a PERFECT CYLINDER or a PERFECTLY SYMMETRICAL BARREL ...as most of the Drink concentrate containers are likely to be ....


then the problem becomes a One step process.

1. Fill up the 5 gallon and the 4 Gallon.
2. Now tip out the water from the 4 gallon drum, very slowly and carefully, JUST SO the inner edge of the water level is just touching the inside upper corner of the base circle of the cylinder.... and then stop ... you will now have exactly half i.e. 2 gallons in the 4 G...

... So, the total will be 7 gallons. ( 5 + 2 ).

Clear Ayes said...

Math nemisis, Ha, the old "perfect cylinder ploy" eh?

I rather liked my solution, but that's just because I poured out 10 gallons of water on the ground. It made a great mud wrestling pit!

I'm awful at anagrams, but I do like a good "two buckets of water" riddle.

Carol, cute photo, I'm jealous of your pageboy. That was the 'do back then!

Jeannie, make sure you have lots of emergency supplies saved up.....that we hope you won't have to use!

That's all for me today. I'm five and out. Have a nice evening everyone.

Hahtoolah said...

Big Easy: No harm, no foul.

Carol: Love the new avatar. I was never so together in high school. Photos from those years make me cringe.

Ok, I finally watched the season finale of the Mentalist this evening.

Bill G. said...

Carol and others, here's that Ry Cooder link. I really enjoy it. Goodnight Irene

I’ve seen this puzzle several times before, once I think, in one of the “Die Hard” movies. You have three unmarked containers; an eight-cup container, a five-cup container and a three-cup container. The largest container is full of water. How can you pour water back and forth between containers such that one of the containers has exactly four cups of water? (This one took me six pourings.)

Annette said...

Abejo, are you listening to any Perry Como there in Canonsburg? :) You might "Catch a Falling Star"!

Splynter, I'm not sure I agree about the Q-tip, but if you wear contacts (especially hard or gas permeable), taking them out at night and rubbing your eyes is pretty close...! I know, rubbing your eyes is a no-no, but it feels sooooo gooood!

Argyle said...

Stop wasting water! If you wanted 7 gallons, dump the 5 gallons in, fill it back up. Fill the 3 gallon pail with it and dump the 2 gallons that are left to make the 7 gallons.

Avg Joe said...

As the news from Joplin has unfolded today, it's gotten almost beyond belief. But in addition to having enormous loss of life and catastrophic damage, they've been pummeled all day long with more thunderstorms. It's still going on tonight.

Here is a good link for current weather radar focusing on that sector of the country, illustrating the continued showers. I sincerely hope they get a break soon.

Anonymous said...

argyle "dump the 5 gallons in". dump it in where? you don't have a third container. you only have two buckets and a supply of water.

Vidwan827 said...

Bill G. - I dont know how many steps it takes - but this seems kinda easy.

O.K. - Three containers A (8 Cups), B (5 Cups) and C ( 3 Cups).

Given: A (8 Cup) is full. B and C are empty. ( 8-0-0)

1. Pour A into B ( 5 Cuppa) ( 3-5-0)

2. Pour B into C ( 3 Cuppa) (3-2-3 )

3. Pour C into A ( 6-2-0 )

4. Pour B into C ( 6-0-2 )

5. Pour A into B ( 1-5-2 )

6. Pour B into C ( 1-4-3 )

Now, Cup B has 4 Cuppas.

And the two other cups have 4 cups between them - provided nobody drank any of the water ...

Now, if only we could make a themeless crossword puzzle out of this.

Argyle said...

Oh. I thought we were filling something that needed 7 gallons. But you say the idea is to have 7 gallons in the two buckets. Do'h!

Spitzboov said...

Avg Joe:

I use that link all the time. Another good one is intellicast.com which has national and regional displays. The radar map updates about every 15 minutes, and seems to be based on the NOAA doppler radar.

Unknown said...

What a fun Monday puzzle this was! I finished it hours ago, but have been busy all day.
Didn't y'all love the "blue blood stain"?
It's late so off to bed I go.

WikWak said...

Argyle -- From one member of the Class of '63 to another: If mismatched argyle socks was the biggest fashion faux pas you committed in high school, you had a stellar four years! The voice of experience speaks.

And am I the only one who thought CREE was both singular and plural? I don't recall ever seeing "Crees" anywhere in print before...