google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Wednesday May 28, 2008 Robert H. Wolfe

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May 28, 2008

Wednesday May 28, 2008 Robert H. Wolfe

Theme: PRISON TERMS

17A: Well-irrigated jail?: WATERING CAN

63A: Jail for cows?: DAIRY COOLER

11D: Maudlin jail?: HOKEY POKEY

29D: Soft-roofed jail?: FELT TIP PEN

And CELL, BRIG, what else? I've never heard of POKEY as a jail though.

Quite a few NO's in today's fills. NOOK, NO ANSWER, WELL NOW, NOYES and NONE. Are these somehow related to the theme? Would "Take NO Prisoners" be a better theme title?

I could not finish today's puzzle without Google's assistance. I simply forgot SENTA (34D: Actress Berger), and I had no idea who "Composer Dimitri" (41A: TIOMKIN) was. I did not know KEDGE, ALBERTO (45D: Writer Moravia) and NOYES, but I was able to weave their names together by the across clues.

But this puzzle makes me happy. I love these baseball nuggets:

30A: Dodger, in MLB jargon: NLER (National Leaguer)

8D: Smack: SOCK. Slug!

13D: Spring time: MAYS. "Say Hey Kid" Willie MAYS.

54D: Meet event: RACES

59D: Yankee, in MLB jargon: ALER (American Leaguer)

61D: Big times: ERAS. It's "Pitchers' stats (Earned Run Averages) to me.

65D: Not safe: OUT

ACROSS:

1A: "Sanford and Son" son: LAMONT. I can only remember FRED due to the Redd Foxx clue a few weeks ago. All these TV characters are killing me.

14A: Equal: ON A PAR

19A: Crucial fact: KEY. My mind wondered into a different direction. I was thinking of the cup size. It's a crucial fact to me.

24A: Threesome: TRIAD. I put in TRINE first.

36A: Harmonized: IN SYNC. 39A: So, we are here: WELL NOW. 4D: Not close-minded about: OPEN TO. And 26D: Carve toward the center: ARC IN. I just like these kind of fills, simple and elegant.

41A: Composer Dimitri: TIOMKIN. He was sure productive: It's a Wonderful Life, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, High Noon, etc. DIMITRI was clued as Composer Shostakovich on April 2.

43A: Art deco leader: ERTÉ (Romain de Tirtoff). ERTÉ is simply the French pronunciation of his initials R.T. This is his most famous Symphony in Black.

47A: Old-time newspaper section: ROTO. ENNUI! How about this ROTO-TILLER?

49A: Eric Clapton classic: LAYLA. Here is the song, just for you. I am not a Clapton fan.

51A: Squid squirts: INKS. I like the alliteration here, but I will probably yawn next time I see the identical clue. Please excite me with something new each day!

53A: Munchhausen, e. g.: BARON. I did not known him. Lois is probably familiar with the "Munchhausen Syndrome".

58A: Gawk: GAPE. And 71A: Gazes: STARES. And Here is SENTA (344D: Actress Berger).

DOWN:

5D: Thin wdt.: NAR (Narrow). Not a familiar abbreviation to me. Just found that NAR also stands for "National Association of Realtors".

6D: Singer Lopez: TRINI. Learned his name from doing crossword. Not familiar with his songs. I only like Peter, Paul and Mary's Lemon Tree & If I had a Hammer. I do like this Jenny (From the Block) Lopez.

7D: Impious: UNGODLY

9D: Bambi's aunt: ENA. Isn't ENA also a Spanish queen?

10D: Of kidney's: RENAL. Hmm, you've got to LEARN this RENAL. What an interesting anagram. Do you like HON QUIZ?

18D: Reply came there none: NO ANSWER. I don't get this clue. Sounds very strange to me.

23D: Proto- or ecto- add-on: PLASM. Hmm, someone gave me ECTOPLASM as an example of " ECTO" prefix last week. ENTO (inside) & ECTO (outside).

31D: Appeal: ENTREATY

37D: "The Highwayman" poet: NOYES (Alfred). I don't know him nor do I know his poem. But what a strange name, NO and YES? You just can't have your cake and eat it too!

40D: Spinks and Ames: LEONS. No, I know neither of them. I got LEONS from across clues. LEON Uris yes! This is my favorite LÉON.

45D: Writer Moravia: ALBERTO. No, a completely stranger to me. I only know ALBERTO Gonzales. Wikipedia says he wrote Sophia Loren's Two Women. it further states that his novels "explore matters of novels explore matters of modern sexuality, social alienation and existentialism". Isn't Kafka's "The TRIAL" (33D: Legal proceeding) also a work of existentialism?

50D: Cat or goat: ANGORA

52D: Small anchor: KEDGE. Unknown to me. I am very weak at all the nautical terms.

57D: Fivers: FINS. I know sawbuck is for 10, double sawbuck is for 20, half C is 50, what about 1 and 2 dollars then? And 1K? Good to see ONE (35A) and TEN (69A) in the same grid also.

Finally, 46A: Have a hero?: EAT. Here it is. Enjoy!

C.C.

PS: Drdad, have a safe trip to India. To Mark in Buenos Aires, can you tell me the name of your newspaper please? Does it carry Monday to Sunday TMS crossword puzzle or only weekdays'? Thank you.

58 comments:

  1. Hello cc and other DFs. This one was OK but I did not know 41A Dimitri and had to Google to get it. Neither did I know 45D but it filled from the perps. I liked this puzzle and I am sure Lois will love it with cc's definition of key fact as cup size and 24A threesome (TRIAD). Lois will be getting the skating film out again. I guess NLER and ALER clues were OK but not too crazy about the clue or the answer there.

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  2. Good morning everyone. I did not know a lot of the ones you mentioned CC., like kedge, Alberto or Noyes. I thought Munchhausen was a concentration camp! haha Wrong! I could not remember Sanford's son's name was Lamont. It's been too long.
    19A was a stretch CC, but it was funny! I had never actually seen any of Erte's work, that was a nice pic, and a great pic of "Jennifer". I didn't do too good on today's puzzle. Thanks for all the links.

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  3. Good morning CC and company,

    Not too bad today, though I could not remember Lamont for the life of me. It was right on the tip of my tongue!!! I had to laugh when I realized 11D was "hokey pokey" - everytime I pass the roundhouse (jail) w/my boyfriend, he always asks me what the building is because I, for whatever reason, have always called it the "pokey". He just laughs at me. Ever since NLER and ALER started showing up as answers, I've never really been a big fan of them. And, as CC mentioned, KEDGE, ALBERTO and NOYES were some new ones to me.

    Well, back to waiting for the HVAC repairman. It was horrible coming home to my house in 80+ degree weather and realize the AC is not functioning.

    Have a great day everyone!

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  4. Hi gang - Well, this certainly wasn't a walk-through; had no idea on some of the names.
    I thought "reply came there none" sounded like something Yoda would say. Stared at 'felttippen' for a bit before I broke it into 3 words.
    Also, I didn't care for both 'nler' and 'aler' in the same puzzle.
    Fortunately, your pics of Senta Berger and JLo made everything ok. I may need to go for a swim this morning...

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  5. Well, now!! Got it done, but I'm sure i'm not "on a par" with some.
    I thought the "jail" clues were really dumb even tho I did get them. And, I'm with you, I didn't like ALER last time it showed and I still don't. If you were to write the two words down and show them to a non-cruciverbalist sports writer I'd bet he/she would not get the connection.
    AND, what is (or was) the ROTO section in a newspaper?
    Never heard of it.
    C.C., Your take on 19a was hilarious!

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  6. mkat, I don't know how you get as warm as 80. The temp here at 5AM was all the up to 36!!
    I'm thinking "global warming" will kill all of us.

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  7. Bill, 'roto' is short for 'rotogravure', a printing process used to produce certain sections of the newspaper back in the day.

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  8. Thanks, Dennis. I've never heard the term before but it fell in place with other clues. I just didn't understand it.

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  9. Morning, folks!

    I managed to finished today's puzzle without help, but I got off to a rocky start. I just could not get a single answer in the NW corner at first. I remember watching "Sanford and Son" many years ago, but just could not pry the name of the son loose from my brain. Fortunately, the NE corner proved to be a breeze, and once I got 11D and figured out the theme I was able to get 17A, which gave me the letter I needed to get 1D, which gave me the first letter of 1A. And that was all I needed to jar LAMONT loose.

    After that, it was pretty much smooth sailing. I guessed 34D correctly after getting SE_TA from the cross-clues, simply because I know somebody named Senta and nothing else would make a recognizable name. I was sure that TIOMKIN for 41D just had to be wrong, but at the same time I was sure all the cross-clues were correct. What a name!

    All in all, today was a good day to know lots and lots of slang terms for jail. Which, fortunately, I do!

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  10. bill,

    Yesterday was horrible. When I got home from the office, my condo was 75+ degrees and the AC was not doing a darn thing. After taking the pup for a walk and playtime @ the dog park, the house was almost 80 degrees. Still, no AC. Ugh. This morning it's nice . . . but, still need the AC repaired. Argh.

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  11. mkat it must get awfully hot for the dog being in the house all day in that temperature.

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  12. Lamont, to Fred was always Dummy. I can see that as a clue sometime.

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  13. Katherine,
    You must be thinking of the Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp.

    Dennis,
    I thought you like balance. NLER & ALER look OK to me today.

    Barry,
    "All in all, today was a good day to know lots and lots of slang terms for jail. Which, fortunately, I do!" How come?

    Are there any other interesting jail slangs that I am not aware of? And how do you italicize the original comment in this Comment section?

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  14. Did not know KEDGE, ALBERTO, TIOMKIN or NOYES. Stumbled across the story behind LAYLA last night and looked up the sequel here. No happily ever afters here.

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  15. Mark in Buenos Aires my wife will be going to your area next Sunday and I was wondering if the weather is getting cold or is it just cool at this time of year.

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  16. Nice puzzle.... only one goober for me... the Dimitri clue...but I got it after I did the Hokeypokey
    :-)

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  17. NYTAnonimo that was a great link on LAYLA.

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  18. HIGHNOON is an answer in the NYT puzzle today. Turns out Dmitri TIOMKINwrote the theme song. Thought I had a link between two clues until I realized they were in different puzzles-LOL!

    Some other references to answers I didn't know:
    KEDGE
    NOYES
    ALBERTO Moravia aka Pincherle

    Enjoyed your writeup c.c..
    Glad you liked the Layla link Dick.

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  19. Good morning CC & Dfs: You're right,Dick...you nailed me again!!! A lot of good stuff in this puzzle. I love CC's 19A link... hilarious! Am so glad to be 'Damn good'! And the threesome (menage a trois) is here again for our enjoyment. I'm surprised to see you guys here so early w/the Senta and J Lo links. I thought we wouldn't be seeing you fellas for quite a while. Just a swim, Dennis? I thought Ham & ova together was funny. Laughed when 'well now' was followed by 'sore' later, which intersected Hokey Pokey. Loved that! I'm a real fan of the Hokey bird (Va Tech mom) and just enjoy the Pokey frequently (personality flaw). Then came'user', nook, and 'roto'(rooter). "Eureka" was perfect 'cause we all know what's coming then! Can you imagine whispering in your lover's ear, "Ohhhh, noyes, noyes! (37D) Poor guy! He must've been awfully confused as a lover!

    Dennis, love your Yoda comment. In sync now we are!

    Well, I'm going to go drop 52D and practice 11D. Anyone want to help me study 2D... by Braille? Eureka!!!

    OHHHH, CC: LOVE ERIC CLAPTON and 'Lay'la is one of my most favorite. Thank you for all the great links. You're a 'TEN'!

    Enjoy your day...liquid sunshine here.

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  20. Lois you could make something suggestive form a prayer book and I love it LOL.

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  21. And I bet I know what she's praying for, Dick.
    Hmmmmm......self-answering...

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  22. Great line Dennis apparently you are not hung over today

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  23. Good morning all! Guess its better late than never! I hated this one. Hated yesterday too! I did remember Lamont, and some of the others that you had trouble with, but had too many blanks every where else. I guess my brain works differently than most!

    I finished the outside of my fence yesterday and got bad burn on my back. Didn't know the UV index was an 11 (thought it only went to 10)..today is relaxation and manicure!

    Take care!

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  24. NYTanonimo,
    "Prisoners"? Is that what Pattie Boyd said in the movie?

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  25. Good morning! You put your left foot in, you put your left foot out, you put your left foot in and you shake it all about. You do the Hokey Pokey .........

    Not a bad puzzle today. Perps filled in ones I didn't know - kedge, dower, Noyes Senta (what a babe). I liked Dennis' answer to Dick regarding Lois' prayers. And that is true - she could find suggestive things in just about any book/writing. I had an anatomy course once and could assist her with her studies.
    Does "in sync" in the middle help to "anchor" the puzzle?
    Felt tip pen doesn't sound right for a soft-roofed jail because a roof is not just the tip, it's the whole top.
    Well, got to get ready for the 16-hour flight to Mumbai. I may check out doing the crossword online (C.C. - I bookmarked the link from yesterday) and also will check out the blog. Hope no one misses me when I'm gone. C.C. - thanks for the wishes.

    Dr. Dad

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  26. Dennis,
    What's your answer to Kit's comment yesterday? Are today's theme entries JAILS or PRISONS? There are some differences between them, right?

    Dr.Dad,
    For me, a fill has to be related to the theme to be called an anchor. "Times of India" newspaper carries the TMS puzzle as well. How long will be you there?

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  27. How come?

    Pure osmosis, I suppose. I read a lot, watch TV and movies, etc. You just pick things up. Jail, prison, the slammer, the big house, the clink, the pokey, the pen, the stir, the hoosegow, up the river, etc.

    And how do you italicize the original comment in this Comment section?

    I just use a little HTML. Nothing special - just the begin and end italics codes.

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  28. DrDad...and all... Did you know that Larry Laprise who wrote "The Hokey Pokey" died on April 4th. His family had a very hard time with his burial... you see they put his left foot in the casket first... that's when all the trouble started. :-)

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  29. Barry,
    Your "Fortunately" comment @6:47am made me think you might have worked inside a prison/jail. Thanks for the ECTOPLASM.

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  30. Not so hard today. However, I protest; cross WORD? Too many multiple word answeres and NLER & ALER? Come on!

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  31. This was a hard one for me today. Just finished it as I had to take a break to go to Granddaughters strings concert at school.

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  32. Hi Yall

    Like some of you, couldn't finish without some help. Had no trouble with "Tiomkin", "Senta" or "Trini"; But the "Jailhouse" clues left me somewhere in left field. Wanted to use "Bums" for Dodgers, but then couldn't think of a name for the Yankees.
    Enjoy all the comments; especially when Lois comes on the scene. She really adds a lot of spice. (With some help from the fellas

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  33. Dr. G,
    I guess I've been so heavily brainwashed by our editor in the past several months that I have no complaint about ALER and NLER at all today.

    Lois,
    Have you authored any book? What were you BA/MA theses?

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  34. Dick & Dennis: You guys are hilarious! Brought me to my knees.. which is one position I never pray in during a lightning storm.

    Drdad: You're ON...UP..Both? UPON?
    Study sessions will be a ball! You're quite a 'handy' guy! Thanks for the help in advance. Have a good trip and a good time. We will all miss you.

    Superfrey: That is soo funny! Guess Laprise is shaking it all about up there now!

    Kim: so glad you finished the fence. Was wondering. Guess the Tom Sawyer suggestion didn't work for you. Thought that was a good idea anyway.

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  35. DrDad,
    Have a safe trip! And.....DON'T DRINK THE WATER!!!

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  36. good morning c.c. and all,

    i liked today's puzzle, took me 30 minutes but i got it all. i smiled for you c.c. when i saw all the baseball clues .. not terribly baseball savvy here so had to take a few swings before those fell into place. loved that you called it 'prison terms' .. brilliant as usual.

    nytanonimo, interesting layla link, thanks. and yes c.c., love the coincidental 'prisoners' line.

    superfrey, HAHAHA!

    never heard of roto .. dennis you da bomb.

    was out of town a few days and did the puzzles online. not near as fun since i finish them faster that way. enough said.

    maybe i'm the only puzzle geek who hadn't seen this already but while on vacation i watched 'word play,' a documentary about the subculture of crossword puzzlers and the annual crossword tournament in connecticut hosted by will shortz. very entertaining. jon stewart, bill clinton and ken burns all appear .. and the quirky tournament entrants are at least as fun to watch.

    lois, i don't even need coffee in the morning after reading your comments. you da bomb too!

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  37. $1: Single
    $2: Deuce

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  38. Hi all, to quote 39A "Well now", what a funny puzzle! I liked the jailhouse clues...
    Superfrey: Loved your comment on the burial of poor Mr. Laprise LOL

    Lois: Your comment on "Noyes,Noyes" was too funny!!!! You are so good!

    DrDad: We will miss you! Please take care and do what Bill says - no water unless it's safely bottled.

    47A fooled me again, I know I have seen this before, but couldn't recall it..29D gave me fits until I figured out it was 3 words and then thought it was cute..not entirely accurate, but cute.

    C.C., I loved your 19A link, I saw it in "cartoon form" in an e-mail and it was very funny.

    What is 26D???? never heard the word.
    Well, I will "yearn" for some "ungodly" "big times" and then move into a "dairy cooler" to put out the fire :)

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  39. Carol: So, I've been told! CC's link about cup size...19A...Damn Good! makes it offical...in part anyhow.

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  40. Hi
    Mark in Buenos Aires.
    The newspaper is Buenos Aires Herald and the crossword is daily, a different type on Sundays however, but probably Tribune.
    It makes me laugh that there was recently some American English protesting in the letters page of the English English words and sports "who cares of the cricket scores!" MEEE
    However the important part of the newspaper is the crossword which is written in American English - why couldnt I get Esso? I was thinking of coal gas and the like not petrol!

    Bill the weather has turned cold about 6 celsius today, clearish skies but with showers forecast.

    Have fun to all.

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  41. Bill, the weather detail was for Dick - apologies, I had another grey moment.

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  42. Good morning eberyone! Not smooth sailing, but a very doable puzzle. LAMONT was late in coming and I had to check my spelling of TIOMKIN, bur actually knew him! C.C., regarding your comments on 19A, my dad always subscribed to the "anything over a mouthful was excess" philosophy, LOL! Can't say that I agreed with him, though. 18D is an odd construction. Once again, thanks for the awesome links. Dennis, liked your Yoda comment! C.C., there's SLAMMER, STIR, BRIG, CLINK, GAEL, etc. -- lot's of slang names. Carol, ARC IN as two words for 26D.

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  43. Lois,
    18D to my questions @9:13am??

    Melissa,
    I am so happy that you noticed the "Prison Terms".

    Mark,
    I've added your paper to the list. Thanks.

    Crockett1947,
    I've never heard of this "anything over a mouthful was excess" philosophy. C.C.

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  44. Crockett: Thanks so much! That made me slap my forehead. Funny how one can stare at something and just not see it!

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  45. CC: Is it the 10:52 question? No thesis in either program. BA didn't require it and MA had an option of taking extra classes to avoid it, so I did that.

    As for being an author? Not yet. I've started several books...1st title is: "That New Book" so that whenever anybody talks about it, it's easy to remember. 2nd Title: That Other New Book...same rationale. 3rd title: You Take The Stairs, I'll Take The Window...how NOT to deal with life's problems. They're all works in progress...just like me. I may need some divine intervention to finish any of them.

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  46. easy puzzle. Aler and nler a annoyed me.

    And how is a felt tip pen a soft roofed jail?
    is tip meaning roof in some English speaking area?

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  47. Lois,
    I just sprained my left ankle this afternoon hurrying downstairs. Need your book NOW!

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  48. And how is a felt tip pen a soft roofed jail?
    is tip meaning roof in some English speaking area?


    No, I think it just meant "tip" as in "uppermost part". Like the tip of the iceberg.

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  49. 47A I knew this one from Irving Berlin's "Easter Parade".
    'On the Avenue
    Fifth Avenue
    The photographers will snap us
    And you'll find that you're
    In the rotogravure

    Oh, I could write a sonnet about your Easter bonnet
    And of the girl I'm taking to the Easter parade'

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  50. CC: Let me find the medical section. Let's see...sprained LEFT ankle. Ah, here it is. It's under COW: MILK IT FOR ALL IT'S WORTH!!! Apply cold compress to swollen area, alternating on/off every 20 mins. Elevate foot, take
    2 aspirin every 4 hours, stay in bed. This is going to require meals, drinks, and all snacks to be served in bed until ...the 12th of Never, or until chaos is comnpletely obtained or until the swelling goes down. You decide. Then LIMP dramatically, groan loudly, cry whenever you're being observed, and always give deep heavy sighs, because you never know when somebody is listening. It's also very helpful to have a bell by your bed in case you need something. Use it freely. People may learn to hate you, but it's worth it. Besides, you'll pay more than your fair share when you're hale and hearty again, so rest, relas, and enjoy the attention.

    I'm sorry you got hurt. Hope this helps and that you mend ... sometime in the near future.

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  51. Lois is, of course, correct; I figured she was a student of anatomy. Just remember R.I.C.E. - Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation.
    I am surprised Lois didn't recommend keeping BOTH legs in the air...I'd think it would make the 'waiter' much more productive.

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  52. Lois,
    Finally I hear your response to my 53A comment! Thanks for the tips.

    Dennis,
    I wanted to say "J'accuse" as my left ankle is really 38A. But...

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  53. csw in bowling green KY

    The Daily News is an evening paper so I'm always late on the posts.

    Surprised no one has mentioned that one dollar is also referred to as a buck.

    Can't think of anything for $2.

    Two bits is a quarter. Old school cheer - 2 bits, 4 bits, 6 bits, a dollar, all for *** stand up and holler.

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  54. Remember this commercial about our heroes?

    http://youtube.com/watch?v=H6_3iR0cJZA

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  55. Dennis: You are soooo funny! I thought of suggesting to CC keeping BOTH legs UP, dont ya just know, but figured the 'waiter' might have misinterpreted the encouragement of being 'very productive' as 're-productive' and gotten a little excited. So, I decided not to suggest that. Also figured that the inevitable wetness (leakage or condensation) from the cold compress might have brought a negative factor into what should be (and always is for me) a very enjoyable event. So, I didn't do it. But, I did think about it. Almost did it. But...
    Just didn't want you to think I was overlooking an opportunity.

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  56. lois--you are doubtlessly the mistress of double entendre...mistress of gravitas and levitas (er levity?)...hated the felt tip gaffe today...and the Yodaspeak...but c.c. you must know that Noyes (do not read as no-yes! or as "Noise annoys"--say that fast 5 times) is francais...noyer=to drown and from there we get noies (drown) and the anglicized version noyes which also doubles as a cave where a person drown (pleasant thought that!)...tlot tlot,,,tlot tlot...how could we forget Alfred...it's always enero in puzzleland...how puzzling

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  57. Csw,
    Many solvers do come back and read previous day's comments every morning.

    Thomas,
    NOYER is walnut to me.

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