Theme: The Fab Four
17A: Cornpone: JOHNNYCAKE
66A: NYC street game: RINGO LEVIO
11D: Asian figwort trees: PAULOWNIAS
29D: D. C. neighborhood: GEORGETOWN
I recognized the PAULOWNIA tree when I saw the picture. I could almost smell its flowers and see my childhood. But too bad, I did not know its English name.
I am not fond of today's theme entries at all. They don't feel tight to me. And the word "Asian" should not have appeared in theme answer 11D or 38A: Asian nation (LAOS). Why not "China's neighbor"? ASIAN is an answer for 31D: From Tibet, for example.
Easier puzzle though. I was really hammered hard yesterday.
Across:
1A: Abrasive tool: RASP. Our editor likes to clue RASP as "Coarse file".
15A: Kukla's pal: OLLIE. Kukla, Fran & OLLIE.
16A: "Peter Pan" pet: NANA. She is a St. Bernard.
25A: New York City harbor entrance: NARROWS. See the red strait? Not a familiar name to me.
58A: Author of "Portnoy's Complaint": ROTH (Philip). No idea. Here is the book cover. Is it an interesting read?
65A: "Typee" sequel: OMOO. Its subtitle is "A Narrative of Adventures in the South Seas".
68A: Bryn __ College: MAWR. Edith Hamilton's alma mater. Kathrine Hepburn also attended this college. I love the letter she wrote to Spencer Tracy in her biography "Me, Stories of My Life". Very touching.
69A: "Lou Grant" star: ASNER (Ed). He also "kidnapped" Kunta Kinte in "Roots".
70A: "The __ on the Floss": MILL. George Eliot novel. I got it from the down clues. What is it about?
Down:
1D: Hindu prince: RAJA."British rule in India" (before 1947) is RAJ.
6D: San Francisco Bay island: ALCATRAZ. I love "The Rock". It's set on ALCATRAZ Island.
8D: "Blue Voyage" poet: AIKEN (Conrad). Unknown to me. "Blue Voyage" is a novel. I like these two lines from his "All Lovely Things":"All lovely things must have an ending /All lovely things must fade and die..."
10D: Ancient Greek poet: ANACREON. Unknown to me also. Wikipedia says he is a "lyrical poet" and notable for his "drinking songs and hymns". And his songs often celebrated "women, wine, and entertaining, and today can be considered eroticism". Very interesting information: Francis Scott Key modified Stafford Smith's melody of "To ANACREON in Heaven" for "The Star-Spangled Banner".
39D: Mediterranean coast: SEASHORE. Why "Mediterranean"?
45D: Tennis star of the '90s: SAMPRAS. He has won 14 Grand Slam singles title: 2 Austrian Open, 7 Wimbledon, 5 US Open. Roger Federer now has 13 singles titles: 3 Australia Open, 5 Wimbledon and 5 US Open.
54D: John Lennon kit: WOMAN. Here is the song.
60D: Sicilian resort town: ENNA. The volcano is ETNA, "I burn" in Greek.
C.C.
17A: Cornpone: JOHNNYCAKE
66A: NYC street game: RINGO LEVIO
11D: Asian figwort trees: PAULOWNIAS
29D: D. C. neighborhood: GEORGETOWN
I recognized the PAULOWNIA tree when I saw the picture. I could almost smell its flowers and see my childhood. But too bad, I did not know its English name.
I am not fond of today's theme entries at all. They don't feel tight to me. And the word "Asian" should not have appeared in theme answer 11D or 38A: Asian nation (LAOS). Why not "China's neighbor"? ASIAN is an answer for 31D: From Tibet, for example.
Easier puzzle though. I was really hammered hard yesterday.
Across:
1A: Abrasive tool: RASP. Our editor likes to clue RASP as "Coarse file".
15A: Kukla's pal: OLLIE. Kukla, Fran & OLLIE.
16A: "Peter Pan" pet: NANA. She is a St. Bernard.
25A: New York City harbor entrance: NARROWS. See the red strait? Not a familiar name to me.
58A: Author of "Portnoy's Complaint": ROTH (Philip). No idea. Here is the book cover. Is it an interesting read?
65A: "Typee" sequel: OMOO. Its subtitle is "A Narrative of Adventures in the South Seas".
68A: Bryn __ College: MAWR. Edith Hamilton's alma mater. Kathrine Hepburn also attended this college. I love the letter she wrote to Spencer Tracy in her biography "Me, Stories of My Life". Very touching.
69A: "Lou Grant" star: ASNER (Ed). He also "kidnapped" Kunta Kinte in "Roots".
70A: "The __ on the Floss": MILL. George Eliot novel. I got it from the down clues. What is it about?
Down:
1D: Hindu prince: RAJA."British rule in India" (before 1947) is RAJ.
6D: San Francisco Bay island: ALCATRAZ. I love "The Rock". It's set on ALCATRAZ Island.
8D: "Blue Voyage" poet: AIKEN (Conrad). Unknown to me. "Blue Voyage" is a novel. I like these two lines from his "All Lovely Things":"All lovely things must have an ending /All lovely things must fade and die..."
10D: Ancient Greek poet: ANACREON. Unknown to me also. Wikipedia says he is a "lyrical poet" and notable for his "drinking songs and hymns". And his songs often celebrated "women, wine, and entertaining, and today can be considered eroticism". Very interesting information: Francis Scott Key modified Stafford Smith's melody of "To ANACREON in Heaven" for "The Star-Spangled Banner".
39D: Mediterranean coast: SEASHORE. Why "Mediterranean"?
45D: Tennis star of the '90s: SAMPRAS. He has won 14 Grand Slam singles title: 2 Austrian Open, 7 Wimbledon, 5 US Open. Roger Federer now has 13 singles titles: 3 Australia Open, 5 Wimbledon and 5 US Open.
54D: John Lennon kit: WOMAN. Here is the song.
60D: Sicilian resort town: ENNA. The volcano is ETNA, "I burn" in Greek.
C.C.
53 comments:
Good morning, c.c. and gang - evidently, reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated. The Phillies games/World Series win turned my life upside down - a houseful every night, couple hours sleep every night, didn't get near a computer, and then unexpected weekend house guests (in-laws) since Friday night. The parade was one big party Friday, from 8 in the morning until the wee hours. The city absolutely exploded after 25 years without a championship. Oh, and then a casino trip last night after the Eagles win; another 4 hours of sleep.
Anyway, what's left of me is here.
And no, c.c., I'm not mad about the limit - but I do think it kills the back-and-forth that made the blog fun.
As to the puzzle, a bit slow in the NE, otherwise no problems.
Hope it's a good day where you are; it may be here, but I can't quite focus on it yet...
Dennis,
I am so happy to see you back. I was very worried about your silence.
Thejvn,
I would prefer solitude over a joyless, low-quality companionship.
Papajim,
Groucho-isms: "We were so hungry when we got to Moscow, soviet". I don't get it. Can you explain to me why you like it? Why isn't "soviet" capitalized?
Anonymous @ 12:39am,
Thanks for fascia.
Good morning CC, DFs and DFettes....First let me say welcome back Dennis we missed yoiur input and comments. More on the puzzle later.
Barry et al,
I don't understand the following clues/answers:
Early English? GOOGOO
Happy colleague?: DOC
Face extraction: ORE
Clear Ayes,
"When flesh is linked with eager flesh/And words run warm and full/I think that he is loneliest then/The captive in the skull". I need you to explain those 4 lines for me.
Kazie,
Can you translate for me "Par elle j'ai autant appris que j'ai versé de larmes/Si parfois je la répudie jamais elle ne désarme/Et si je préfère l'amour d'une autre courtisane/Elle sera à mon dernier jour ma dernière compagne"? I don't understand why he would want another coutesan.
Good morning CC etal,
Not too bad today - I agree, definitely easier than yesterday. I didn't pick up on the theme until I got here - probably would have helped me get "ringolevio" as I had never heard of it, but it sounds like a team version of hide-and-seek we used to play as kids. Didn't like "presaged" - I understand the word, but have never heard it used, so feel it's a little forced & crossword-ese.
I think that "aloe", "ass", "esau", "area", and "esp" are starting to get over-used. Only got "anacreon" & "paulownias" from the perps as they were unknown to me. I see "Ollie" & "Lyra" are back again.
Hope all have as pleasant a Monday as possible & that Dennis gets a chance to catch up on his sleep - Congrats on your Phillies!
I have a class in ten minutes so I'll be quick.
I googled "Cornpone" and found it was food so I I knew that the word after JOHNNY was CAKE. I then guess AIKEN and googled to see if I was right. I then googled "New York Harbour" and went to the wiki page which gave me NARROWS. This told me that 26D was RHO and not PHI: this gave me SOONER. Googling "Peter Pan dog" will give you NANA. I then googled ANACREON to see if it was right.
I forgot to google RINGO LEVIO to check to see if it was right: turns out it is but - what the Hell? - I've never heard of it before.
I knew C.C. was going to be upset by the clue for 38A but how about the clue for 54D: "1981 John Lennon hit". Should JOHN have been both a clue for 54D and an answer for 17A?
Good to see Dennis back from the dead. If Dennis read yesterday's blog then he knows he can answer any "crossword related question" and the whole post doesn't count. So, Dennis, just look for a question to answer and you can also throw in a comment to Lois while you're at it.
Martin
If the fills had not completed the NE corner I would not have got 11d as I never heard of the figwort tree although it looks like a tree I would like to have in my yard. I also never heard of 66a RINGOLEVIO and having put etna for 60d that section would not fill. Could someone tell me what ringolevio is?
Good morning. Welcome back Dennis. We missed you.
The only one I had real trouble with was 66A because I had Etna instead of Enna. But that didn't go with the "name" theme. Googled Ringo Levio to see what it was. Everything else was a "piece of cake." Then I realized the real theme of the puzzle.
I didn't know that Edith Hamilton (author of "Mythology") went to Bryn Mawr. Thanks, C.C.
Ever wonder if Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin survived when they escaped from Alcatraz?
Asian nation and then Asian for an answer. Then there is the crossing of Aye and Yeas. Area and spot are close to each other as well. The theme is Beatles names and we have a John Lennon clue (54D). Then, a simple rearranging of letters in the SE corner (sole and sloe).
Today is Sandwich Day in honor of John Montagu, the Earl of Sandwich, who created it.
It is also Plan Your Epitaph Day (dedicated to the proposition that a forgettable gravestone is a fate worse than death). Finally, it is Cliché Day. Remember, it's not over until the fat lady sings because there are plenty more fish in the ocean.
Ringo Levio is a type of "tag" game that was popular in Depression era NYC. More akin to a manhunt. Two sides are drawn up, roughly of even number. One side goes out. The other counts to some number like 300 and then goes looking for them.
Anyone on the pursuing side can catch anyone on the pursued side by grabbing hold of them and chanting "Ring-O-Levio 1-2-3" three times in a row. If the person pursued breaks free at any point during this brief recitation, the person is not caught. If caught, the pursuer takes the pursued to an area called the jail. Jail is any confined area, typically between two parked cars or bushes where members of the pursued team are accumulated. Any free member of the team that is out can at any time free all team members in jail by barging into the jail without being caught and shouting "Free all!" This means that all members of the team in jail are now free and have to be recaught. The game usually employs military strategy.
That is my second post.
CC:
Answer to your clue questions (IMHO):
Early English = "googoo" - babytalk
Happy colleague = "Doc" - Snow White & the 7 Dwarfs
Face extraction = "ore" - most mining efforts seem to start at the face of a mountain or incline before a mine shaft is sunk to get the rest.
Martin,
Yeah, the clue for WOMAN ("John Lennon hit" should indeed be reworded. "Pretty __" would be a great clue. Or "Lennon hit in 1981".
Dr. Dad,
Your 6:14am post regarding RINGO LEVIO does not count as one of the three, as it's a response to Dick's question.
Chris,
Thanks. Now I think I love the DOC clue.
Good Morning, C.C. and all.
My puzzle solving was relegated to the paper version today, as the Trib does not have today's puzzle on-line yet. Luckily it was an easy puzzle.
Like my cohorts, I had difficulties with the NE corner. The answers came through the fills, but I had never heard of ANACREON or PAULOWNIAS.
For some unexplainable reason, I put 'Rani' where RAJA belonged, but I found my error as soon as I filled in JOHNNYCAKE. The construction of AYE and YEAS,& SOLE and SLOE bugged me.
This was infinitely easier than yesterday's puzzle!
I need to get back into the traces. There's plenty of everyday chores that need to be done, as well as getting things ready for Thanksgiving. The trip through the cornfields this weekend was lovely. The colors were stunning, even those which were muted. It was relaxing to be able to ride along and chat, but now it's time to get back to work.
I hope you all have a good Monday!
@dennis- welcome back, brother! I figured the parade had something to do with your MIA status.
No puzzle online today, so everyone have fun and play nice with each other!!
@CC If you would like to see how crazy the English language is take a look at the NYTimes puzzle today.
Since this is my third post I will see you all tomorrow.
Et si je préfère l'amour d'une autre courtisane elle sera à mon dernier jour ma dernière compagne means "And if I prefer the love of another courtisane she will be to my last day my last companion" From the context it is clear that courtisane means "lover".
Wow. It seems I still remember my high school French. No, I don't speak it at home.
Martin (That's two!)
I forgot to say that I originally wrote ELF for 49A ("Long haired beast") but when I got PAULONIAS I changed that to ALF (which still made sense). That meant I had ELLA instead of ELSA and REFT instead of REST. I googled REFT and google asked me "Did you mean left?" I was using the Japanese language google page so it was a reasonable question for google to ask. Googling "Sciiaparelli" gave me ELSA so then I finally realised that 49A was ASS. They really need to use my "Part of T&A" clue because that's a clue I'd get right away.
Martin (That's three!)
Good morning CC & DF's: Easy puzzle and enjoyed the theme and all the links. Thanks, CC.
'Glad' to see 'sooner' any time. Am home today to 'atone' for my 'awesome' wkend which still pales in comparison to Dennis'. There is nothing 'sloe' about gin, I don't care what they say. That stuff is 'evil'. It 'leeks' into your system then 'swat's you when you're not lookin'. Maybe should have less than a 'kilo' next time.
Dennis: glad to see you back. You are one party animal! And I thought I burned the candle at both ends! I bow at your feet! Did you win at the casino? What's your game?
drdad: thank you for the kid's game rules. It's a citified Hide and Seek. Our OK rules were a little more DF...no surprise. Catching the 'cutie' first while the others were still hiding was what it was all about.
Enjoy your day.
c.c.,
"Par elle j'ai autant appris que
j'ai versé de larmes/
Through her I have learned as much as I have shed tears/
Si parfois je la répudie jamais elle ne désarme/
If at times I reject her, she never is disarmed/
Et si je préfère l'amour d'une autre courtisane
And if I prefer the love of another lover/
Elle sera à mon dernier jour ma dernière compagne
She will be my last companion until my dying day"
Thanks Martin, for doing part of this. I think what he's saying is, that solitude is his constant undying companion, no matter whther he chooses to take another (a real) lover at times along the way.
I found the puzzle fairly easy today too, except for the Ringolevio thing and 16A in the NE corner--I didn't know the names of 10 or 11D either.
Off for the day again now, so will check in later.
Morning, folks!
Running late this morning and didn't have much time for the puzzle. So I was glad that it was so easy and I was able to blaze through it in record time. Until, of course, it suddenly stopped being so easy...
I first got hung up in the NE region, where PAULOWNIAS crossed both NARROWS and SOONER. I was finally able to figure out SOONER and guessed that NARROWS could be the name of a harbor entrance, but PAULOWNIAS??? Never, ever heard of the word and have trouble even accepting that it is a real word and not just a jumble of random letters. I finally just accepted that it had to be right, and it was.
Next up was the SE corner where RINGOLEVIO crossed ENNA. I initially put in ETNA, thinking a town could have the same name as the volcano, but that gave me RITNOLEVIO. Which, of course, looked COMPLETELY wrong. Unfortunately, RINGOLEVIO looked almost as bad. I'd like to say I knew it had to be RINGOLEVIO because of the theme, but I didn't actually get the theme (or that there even was one). Finally, though, I figured that the name of a game was more likely to have RING than RINT and went with that guess.
The rest of the puzzle wasn't bad, but PAULOWNIAS and RINGOLEVIO were so damn obscure that the whole puzzle really sucked as far as I'm concerned. The fact that I managed to guess them correctly doesn't make me feel any better about the puzzle.
What can I say? I'm grouch on Monday mornings....
After the rigors of last week’s puzzles, today’s was a breeze! I only missed the “w” in PAULOWENIAS where I had an “e” instead. WHEH! I caught on to the theme very early on, helping me to fill in the GEORGE and RINGO parts.
I have never heard of the NYC street game RINGO LEVIO. There is a traditional Chicago street game that was played by flipping quarters at the crack between two sections of sidewalk, but I cannot recall its name!
AWESOME reminds me of my favorite quote from Kung Fu Panda, “There is no charge for awesomeness.” I have had the opportunity twice to use this at my current client’s site. LOL
Good morning, C.C and gang. Only one problem this morning; I'd never heard of ringolevio. I've never liked the Beatles and didn't pick up the four names until I read the blog.
Word of the day. KUNDALINI koon duh LEE nee(the oo in koon more like the oo in book) noun
Yogic energy held to be at the base of the spine until aroused and sent to the head to trigger enlightenment.
Susan is learning the breaths for awakening kundalini in her yoga class.
Dennis stores his 'kundalini' in a different location, but it still gets sent to the head upon arousal. Certainly does trigger enlightenment.
DFs/DFettes, thanks for the welcome back; I'm looking forward to the return of the rest of me.
c.c. hungry, so-vee(we)-et(ate). He quipped it on his show "You Bet Your Life". I just thought it was funny, but then again I probably was 8 years old.
Hello All!
Good to see you back Dennis!!!
Not too bad this morning, had a little trouble in NE like others.
Have a good Monday!
Good Morning All, This morning started out annoyingly enough...no online puzzle and our newspaper hasn't arrived yet.
Today and tomorrow will be busy days. Today is "set up the poll day" and tomorrow is the big one. I may get a chance to drop in again today, but tomorrow there won't be any time for blog posting. Well, maybe at 9:00 PM, we'll see.
C.C. "When flesh is linked with eager flesh/And words run warm and full/I think that he is loneliest then/The captive in the skull".
Okey Dokey, here goes. Mr. Nash is saying that even when people are in the midst of sexual intercourse and are whispering (or DF shouting!) sweet loving words, their internal human self is still always alone. There is no way that anybody can understand what goes on in another person's mind. We can try, we may come close, but it is impossible to make that perfect connection. For the subject in the poem, that understanding evokes the feeling of loneliness. It is a very solipsistic poem.
Solipsism in Philosophy
1. The theory that the self is the only thing that can be known and verified.
2. The theory or view that the self is the only reality.
Now for something completely different. Here is a nice little Amy Lowell poem about a long term relationship.
A Decade
When you came, you were like red wine
and honey,
And the taste of you burnt my mouth
with its sweetness.
Now you are like morning bread,
I hardly taste you at all for I know your savor,
But I am completely nourished.
- Amy Lowell
Good Morning, CC, here in the Pacific NW, Empress Tree is the common name for Paulownia. It is the perfect name for her in the early spring when she is in bloom.
Fragrant, big lilac trumpets with cinnamon colored velvet caps. The large heart shaped leaves emerge after the flowers. For all you Portland DF's and DFettes the is a big specimen in Columbia Park on the corner of N Lombard and N Woolsey. Unfortunately, to my eye she is an awkward looking tree out of bloom....but really must we have it all?!
Good morning cc,df's,ette's and all, fairly easy one today...except for a few like 10D,11D and 66A. They were arrived at by the crosses.
Dennis, a big welcome back!! We did miss you and your df'ness. Congrats on the Phillies BIG win! (ps, it's gooood to be enlightened)
Lois, so sorry your not well today! Hope you improve quickly. We'll need your input later, so take care of yourself, maybe a litte Kundalini will help. :)
Clear ayes, very nice Amy Lowell poem
Hi C.C. and gang. I have one up on all of you. Our illustrious Idaho Statesman published tomorrow's crossword (11/4) and I have it all done. Didn't realize it until I came to your blog and discovered unfamiliar answers. I haven't called them yet but I'm going to -- I'm sure they haven't even realized it. I love reading all about everyone -- This is my first time commenting and I'm a bit nervous. Hope I'm not making a big fool of myself. Good luck tomorrow.
Kittyb,
"I need to get back into the traces". Is "get back into the traces" an idiom? What does it mean?
Martin,
Reading how you make mistake every day brings me rare laughter now. Thank you.
Kazie,
I misunderstood "courtisane" as prostitute.
Clear Ayes,
Wow, my instinctive understanding of "When flesh is linked with eager flesh" was actually correct. Shocking! Shocking! FYI, this should be the last Monday Chicago Tribune has this delay problem. They've finally identified the cause and everything should be fine next Monday.
good morning c.c. and all,
nothing new to add about the puzzle. scratched around for paulownias, and never heard of ringolevio. ah, the charm of a theme.. teasing out the reluctant spots and watching them bloom.
i read claire bloom's 'leaving a doll's house' years ago and am always reminded of it when i see philip roth's name. artistic genius is so often comprised of one part df.
speaking of which .. evil, clod, and ass make their appearance on the right today. i would have liked if that three letter center word were fab, rather than zip, to match the theme.
liked the sean penn reference so soon after seeing him in san francisco. his new movie about harvey milk was screened a few nights ago in sf, and will be officially released next month to coincide with the 30-year anniversary of the milk and moscone assassinations. the infamous 'twinkie defense' was used in that trial.
@sherel: welcome. don't be nervous .. it's just us.
@c.c.: not shocking in the least.
hoping for a patriotic theme tomorrow.
Doesitinink,
"I have had the opportunity twice to use this at my current client’s site." What does it mean?
Ken & Dennis,
Awesome "kundalini" & "kundaline" response.
Papajim,
D'oh! What can I say? I am slow! I am glad I asked you the question, I would have never guessed "soviet" as "so we ate".
Dee,
Nice to see you again. Thanks for PAULOWNIA.
Sharel,
Welcome! Don't be nervous. I am not, why should you be?
Melissa,
"artistic genius is so often comprised of one part df." So true, think of Van Gogh and Mozart! You have such an eclectic taste in books/music. Great FAB idea, right in the middle.
@cc: I am a consultant and generally go to my client's site to perform my work. Recently I solved two problems with such brilliance that I assured the client that "there is no charge for awesomeness", meaning that I would charge my usual hourly rate even for brilliant work. Actually, the awesomeness in both instances came about by solving a problem in an area about which I knew nothing.
@Clear Ayes...very lovely sentiment in the poem by Amy Lowell. I know a few people, though far too few, who have that type of relationship with their mates.
Guday, all. I had problems with the NE corner, too. 10 & 11d were unknowns. Guessed at Nana 16a, figured out 25a "Narrows" from the Verrazano Narrows Bridge (1964) connecting Staten Island with Brooklyn. That gave me "rho", which led to "sooner" 35a, which gave me 10 and 11d. TOO MUCH INFO? Same with Etna instead of Enna and "ringolevio". Finally got that but now have a migraine. (Thanks Drdad for ringolevio explanation).
@ Clearayes. Lowell's third verse made me rather sad. "I hardly taste you at all for I know your savor." Then, "But I am completely nourished". It's like saying, I am complete just knowing how you feel(your savor) about me but I take that for granted. I no longer acknowledge (taste) you, but just knowing you're there "completes" me. That's solipsism, isn't it? Maybe, "Now for something completely different", isn't really all that different. IMHO
Maybe our friends in Florida can help me out here. I heard a rumor that the actor Herve Villechaize, who is a "little person" and played Tattoo on the TV show Fantasy Island has a new project somewhere in Fla. He is starting a resort strictly for dwarfs. Everything is scaled DOWN to make the visitors comfortable. Small chairs, small beds, lower sinks and stools and tubs. Everything is in miniature. And, all the rooms, every room is FREE. He calls it Herve's "Stay Free Mini Pads".
I must be off.
buckeye, that is interesting about Herve Villechaize excepting that he committed suicide in 1993. I think you meant it as a joke though.
8:44 today. I thought for a while I was doing the xword in some foreign language since so many words were complete gibberish (to me). PAULOWNIAS, NANA, ANACREON, RINGO LEVIO. WHEW!
And I guess I'm channelling kittyb today since I also put in RANI (who knows why?) and, of course, I had ETNA at first.
@c.c.: 70A: "The __ on the Floss": MILL. George Eliot novel. I got it from the down clues. What is it about?
This book is doubly intriguing: author George Eliot is actually a woman, and the Floss is a river (most people think the word refers to something about the mill, I think). I haven't read it, but you can see a plot summary here:
Mill on the Floss
@clear ayes: Here in Oregon we are entirely vote by mail so there no longer are local polling places, poll workers, etc. My wife and I dropped off our ballots at the drop box at the library last week, so all we have to do is turn on the TV Tuesday night.
It should be exciting--I can hardly remember an election with more interest, and I've been voting since the days you had to be 21 to vote (and go to a polling place).
c.c. If you would have seen/heard Groucho do this bit, you would have picked it up. He did it with a slight accent.
I heard the Earl of Sandwich wanted a food to eat with one hand so he could hold his billards cue with the other. Sounds dumb, but he WAS an Earl.
Completely missed the theme today, and me- a Beatle nut!
Carol. It was a joke and I thought something happened to him in the past. I Googled him and there was no mention of that or I would have amended the story to "The late Herve..." and that in his honor "...his small people friends". I don't consider this P.C., just bad editing on my part. Sorry.
IMBO
c.c.
The Mill on the Floss was required reading in high school English literature. It was a long time before I understood it. It was set in the English countryside in the 1860's and since it was all totally unfamiliar to me, I could not relate to any of it. The Floss is a river. The whole story is very sad and to this day I can't understand why it should be required reading of 15 year olds.
Buckeye, nothing to apologize for :)
I just wondered if you knew he was not with us anymore. I had to Google the info too, because I thought I remembered something about his death but was not sure. Wikipedia had the info.
G'day C.C. & all
It was pretty much a gimmie until I came to the finals... then it tightened up. Being west coast, I've never heard of ringo levio. And, even though I've been there, I wanted Etna rather than Enna and I thought 41 down was kind of weak. Only other problem was I misspelled Georgetown... don't ask! I got the blackout though and that's what counts.
@dennis - good to see you back.
c.c., when I referred to "getting back into the traces," I was referring to getting ready to go back to work. Oxen, horses, donkeys, dogs, and other animals are used to pull carts and farm implements. They are hooked into harnesses that have "traces" attached to them, so the driver can show them which way to turn. I'm sure Lois would be much better at explaining this. For me, it's a phrase learned from my mother (who doesn't ride or farm either).
I hope that was sufficient explanation.
embien, it's so reassuring when someone else has had the same response to a clue as I have. I can't tell you why RANI came to mind first. Perhaps we both read the first part of the clue and jumped ahead to familiar crosswordese. Luckily, this was an easy error to correct.
sharel in id, welcome to the group! No need to be nervous about posting here; it's just us chickens.
clear ayes, awesome explanation of the lines on loneliness! Good luck tomorrow at the polls.
papajim, thanks for explaining
so-vee-et to c.c. It helps when you hear it said with an Eastern European accent! *G*
Barry....I really enjoy your grouchy Monday mornings.
Carol! I missed your birthday!
:-( I'm so sorry. I hope you had a wonderful day, and that there are many more in store for you.
Good evening,
25A: New York City harbor entrance: NARROWS. Usually referred to as "The Narrows"
58A: Author of "Portnoy's Complaint": ROTH (Philip). No idea. Here is the book cover. Is it an interesting read? Yes, and I'm not saying anything more.
39D: Mediterranean coast: SEASHORE. Why "Mediterranean"? That would be to indicate it was a sea, like the Caspian, or North, or RED, etc..
Ain't NobodynHere But Us Chickens
Pattispa,
I guess "The MILL on the Floss" is not obscure if it's a required reading for high school students. I appreciate this kind of information as I've never attended school here.
Kittyb & Doesitinink et al,
"There is no charge for awesomeness", and there is really no price for awesomeness. I cannot express how appreciative I am for the awesomeness you've brought to this blog.
Argyle,
I thought a simple "Beach" is enough for SEASHORE. Well, you've got to give me several lines of your thoughts on "Portnoy's Complaint". I seem to remember things better if I read them here rather than from Wikipedia or other sources. What's the meaning of "You are a cool customer"? I don't understand the meaning of "cool customer".
Kazie et al,
Do you know what's the differences among "pottery", "porcelain" and "china"?
Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens Video
but I'll try to be a "cool customer" and explain Portnoy's Complaint and keep out of the woodshed.
I haven't read the book but I understand it is about a good Jewish boy looking for love(or at least sex) in all the wrong places, like the refrigerator. He once used a piece of liver as a masturbation aid(remember, you asked me). The book follows him into his twenties, by which time he was finding girls for his gratifications but he was not finding resolution between what he was suppose to be and what he was.
As to a cool customer, here he is.
c.c.,
I think pottery includes porcelain, something made of earthenware. I see pottery as pots and bowls, whereas porcelain is used in a more purely decorative style, but this is just my take on it.
China is finer, isn't it? Wiki doesn't help much, and I'm guessing a bit here.
c.c., thank you for the kind comment, but my contributions to your blog are minimal these days. We're both fortunate that so many well informed people have made your blog their home away from home.
Porcelain & Pottery definitions
And more. Be sure to scroll down.
Hello everyone! Went to Eugene for the weekend, and I'm still fighting the last remnants of jet-lag and getting back into the swing of normalcy (or what passes for same). Add the time change and I'm all out of sync.
RINGOLEVIO and PAULOWNIAS were new to me. I'm seeming to struggle through the puzzles lately. Need to get caught up on that sleep and get caught up on the puzzles.
Neat theme, C.C.! I also had RANI for 1D, but then changed it for JOHNNYCAKE.
Good Evening All, I finally got around to today's puzzle. I don't think there is anything left to say about PAULOWNIAS or RINGOLEVIO. I have added them to my "List of Words I Will Probably Never Use".
It looks like most of the blog weekday people are back from their weekend galavanting and it sounds like a good time was had by all. I mentioned last night that the Kenny Loggins concert was surprisingly roll and roll, and "jump up and clap" fun. His band guitarist is phenomenal.
Congratulations to Argyle for stepping up to the plate on "Portnoy's Complaint". You described it very well. I did read it when it was published in 1969. Nowadays, it wouldn't be considered as shocking as it was then. In 1969 it was banned in many cities and libraries. In 2008, we scarcely blink at the kind of sexual exploits that Portnoy described.
Lucky Oregonians who all got to Vote By Mail. Have fun tomorrow while you watch the rest of the country standing in line for hours. I have to be at our precinct at 6:00 AM and won't leave until 8:30 PM.
Be back on Wednesday, when my guy (I won't say who's my favorite) is the new President.
Finally finished our Sunday puzzle.
Glens Falls Post-Star, Nov. 2,2008
21*21, 74 blocks, 115 words
Theme: Mechanical
23A) U.S. capitalist and art patron - Armand Hammer
104A) Vodka drinks - screwdrivers
15D) Machine disrupter - monkey wrench
59D) Heavenly access: Genesis 28:11 - Jacob's ladder
12D) Bar orders - Rusty Nails
68D) Some ants - carpenters
Argyle: YOU are soooo cool! and the cool customer? the Fonz! Well done!
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