Theme: The More The Merrier
20A: Start of a Mae West witticism: TOO MUCH OF
37A: Part 2 of witticism: A GOOD THING CAN BE
52A: End of the witticism: WONDERFUL
Is "witticism" the same as "quip" or more sophisticated?
Not an inspired or inspiring puzzle to me. Quite boring in fact. With ADEPT crossing ADOPT, and STOOP (34D: Small porch) & SNOOP, ASSN & ASST all in one grid, the puzzle felt very hastily constructed and perfunctorily edited.
Bad clue for FOCI (54D: Central points) as POINT is an answer for 28D: Promontory, a word I've never heard before.
I am hoping for an interesting puzzle tomorrow. I don't want a hammer though.
Across:
1A: Easy dupes: SAPS. Why "Easy"? Is there any dupe that is hard to deceive? "Dupes" alone is sufficient.
16A: First name in jeans: LEVI. And DENIM (49A: Jeans material). Good pair. I am glad LEVI is not clued biblically ("Son of Jacob/Leah"). However, I wish THOU (35D: 10 c-notes) were clued as "Bible pronoun" or "__ shalt not...". Why? Because I have been living under the rock. Have never heard of a grand being called THOU before.
19A: "The Sea, the Sea" author Murdoch: IRIS. Knew "Author Murdoch". Not familiar with the book, Booker prize winner in 1978.
25A: Outpouring: SPATE
28A: Wall coatings: PLASTERS
33A: Whimper like a child: PULE. New word to me. Dictionary gives an example: "It becometh not such a gallant to whine and PULE. --- Barrow". Who is Barrow?
34A: Moe, Larry or Curly: STOOGE
40A: Bk. after Ezra: NEH. The answer always seems to be NEH when there are 3 blanks.
43A: Surveillance: STAKEOUT
45A: Steps over a fence: STILE. I don't know what's so special about this word. It keeps popping up in our puzzle.
58A: Myopic cartoon character: MAGOO. Have you seen this film?
59A: Hercules' captive: IOLE. New myth figure to me. What a sad read. Jealousy can be so poisonous. I was actually thinking of an animal, you know, those Twelve Labours of Hercules.
60A: Painter Magritte: RENE. The Belgian surrealist famous for "This is Not a Pipe".
61A: Ship's lowest deck: ORLOP. Would not have got this word without the neighboring fills. I have difficulty remembering this deck.
Down:
4D: City near Oakland: SAN MATEO. Quite a few famous people are from this city. I wonder what Barry Bonds is doing now. His #756 ball definitely deserves an ASTERISK (39D: Star-shaped figure").
6D: East on a map: RIGHT. Boy, I felt like an idiot. This answer did not come to me readily at all.
11D: Queen of the gods: HERA. Ah, the jealous wife of Zeus. I guess all women are jealous to some degree, but no one is as vindicative as HERA.
12D: "We try harder" company: AVIS. Nice change from the "Rara AVIS" clue.
13D: __ and shine!: RISE. Which DF meaning is true, #1 or #3?
22D: Trig. function: COSEC. I've never understood this sine & COSEC stuff.
26D: Sound of Washington: PUGET. Is PUGET Sound the most famous sound in America?
32D: Sorenstam or Garbo, e.g.: SWEDE. Ingrid/Ingmar Bergman too, so is Tiger Woods' wife. She is very pretty.
51D: Lowest pinochle card: NINE. No idea. I have "My Pet Goat" moment every time I see a card clue, totally freezing up.
58D: Bygone bird: MOA. It's too huge to be called a bird.
C.C.
20A: Start of a Mae West witticism: TOO MUCH OF
37A: Part 2 of witticism: A GOOD THING CAN BE
52A: End of the witticism: WONDERFUL
Is "witticism" the same as "quip" or more sophisticated?
Not an inspired or inspiring puzzle to me. Quite boring in fact. With ADEPT crossing ADOPT, and STOOP (34D: Small porch) & SNOOP, ASSN & ASST all in one grid, the puzzle felt very hastily constructed and perfunctorily edited.
Bad clue for FOCI (54D: Central points) as POINT is an answer for 28D: Promontory, a word I've never heard before.
I am hoping for an interesting puzzle tomorrow. I don't want a hammer though.
Across:
1A: Easy dupes: SAPS. Why "Easy"? Is there any dupe that is hard to deceive? "Dupes" alone is sufficient.
16A: First name in jeans: LEVI. And DENIM (49A: Jeans material). Good pair. I am glad LEVI is not clued biblically ("Son of Jacob/Leah"). However, I wish THOU (35D: 10 c-notes) were clued as "Bible pronoun" or "__ shalt not...". Why? Because I have been living under the rock. Have never heard of a grand being called THOU before.
19A: "The Sea, the Sea" author Murdoch: IRIS. Knew "Author Murdoch". Not familiar with the book, Booker prize winner in 1978.
25A: Outpouring: SPATE
28A: Wall coatings: PLASTERS
33A: Whimper like a child: PULE. New word to me. Dictionary gives an example: "It becometh not such a gallant to whine and PULE. --- Barrow". Who is Barrow?
34A: Moe, Larry or Curly: STOOGE
40A: Bk. after Ezra: NEH. The answer always seems to be NEH when there are 3 blanks.
43A: Surveillance: STAKEOUT
45A: Steps over a fence: STILE. I don't know what's so special about this word. It keeps popping up in our puzzle.
58A: Myopic cartoon character: MAGOO. Have you seen this film?
59A: Hercules' captive: IOLE. New myth figure to me. What a sad read. Jealousy can be so poisonous. I was actually thinking of an animal, you know, those Twelve Labours of Hercules.
60A: Painter Magritte: RENE. The Belgian surrealist famous for "This is Not a Pipe".
61A: Ship's lowest deck: ORLOP. Would not have got this word without the neighboring fills. I have difficulty remembering this deck.
Down:
4D: City near Oakland: SAN MATEO. Quite a few famous people are from this city. I wonder what Barry Bonds is doing now. His #756 ball definitely deserves an ASTERISK (39D: Star-shaped figure").
6D: East on a map: RIGHT. Boy, I felt like an idiot. This answer did not come to me readily at all.
11D: Queen of the gods: HERA. Ah, the jealous wife of Zeus. I guess all women are jealous to some degree, but no one is as vindicative as HERA.
12D: "We try harder" company: AVIS. Nice change from the "Rara AVIS" clue.
13D: __ and shine!: RISE. Which DF meaning is true, #1 or #3?
22D: Trig. function: COSEC. I've never understood this sine & COSEC stuff.
26D: Sound of Washington: PUGET. Is PUGET Sound the most famous sound in America?
32D: Sorenstam or Garbo, e.g.: SWEDE. Ingrid/Ingmar Bergman too, so is Tiger Woods' wife. She is very pretty.
51D: Lowest pinochle card: NINE. No idea. I have "My Pet Goat" moment every time I see a card clue, totally freezing up.
58D: Bygone bird: MOA. It's too huge to be called a bird.
C.C.
Good morning, c.c. and gang - surprising for a Thursday, this turned out to be another speed run, especially since I knew the quote. Under 5 minutes.
ReplyDeleteOn the heels of yesterday's question, what's the best Christmas (holiday) present you've ever gotten?
Today is National Roast Suckling Pig Day AND National Bake Cookies Day; lots of food-related celebrations this month.
Make it a great day wherever you are.
Not an inspired or inspiring puzzle to me. Quite boring in fact. With ADEPT crossing ADOPT, and STOOP (34D: Small porch) & SNOOP, ASSO & ASST all in one grid, the puzzle felt very hastily constructed and perfunctorily edited.
ReplyDeleteMissed those. I did notice AVIV and AVIS though. And LEVI and DENIM were arranged in opposite corners.
Martin
1A: Easy dupes: SAPS. Why "Easy"? Is there any dupe that is hard to deceive? "Dupes" alone is sufficient.
ReplyDeleteThere's an old saying "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."
Or as the current U.S. President once put it "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, you can't get fooled again." Exactly.
Martin
Dennis,
ReplyDeleteThe best Christmas gift I've received is an English-English dictionary. It forced me to think in English. I had been using English-Chinese dictionary before. How about you? Have you had suckling pig before?
Martin,
To me, "dupe" is an easily fooled person. So the word "Easy" in "Easy dupes" is redundant.
Barry,
"She gave the crank a heck of a yank, and Johnny Bobeck was meat!" What does it mean? Who is Johnny Bobeck?
Good morning CC and all. Like CC, Dennis and Martin I did not find anything too exciting about this puzzle. I was able to complete it non stop and the "witticism" was a gimme.
ReplyDeleteCC I was intrigued by your definitions of "Rise and Shine" and I hope you noticed how it reflected on yesterday's jerk and yank.
Mark (Buenos Aires),
ReplyDeleteOK, let me rephrase my question: Do you like unhooking American style bra then?
Bethann,
Interesting to learn that American Sign Language is regarded as a foreign language.
JD,
"C.C., were you just yanking my chain?" Why?
Barb B,
Banana Scrabble really sounds fun.
C.C., that's a great present, given the result.
ReplyDeleteHow about you? Have you had suckling pig before?
Once, years ago, but I was very drunk.
Regarding 13D, I'd have to go with #3.
Good morning CC:
ReplyDeleteTown near Oalkland is SAN MATEO, which makes "org" = ASSN (association).
Otherwise, I agree that it was pretty unremarkable today.
Hope all are well.
13 minutes 15 seconds. An improvement on yesterday: the only unknowns were NEH, ULAN and ORLOP. RIFER came from the perps. I wanted FEED or CRAM for SATE but I finally got that from the perps too.
ReplyDeleteI had to remind myself what cosecant meant. It is 1/sine. Okay, let's draw a right angle triangle.
r./|
./.|y
/__|
..x
From Pythagorean's theorem, r is the square root of the sum of the squares of x and y. Let 0 represent the Greek letter theta, which is what is usually used to represent the angle between x and r. Thus,
sin0=y/r
cos0=x/r
tan0=sin0/cos0=y/x
cot0=cos0/sin0=x/y
sec0=1/cos0=r/x
csc0=1/sin0=r/y
There you go!
Martin
Good morning. Dennis beat me again, dammit! I was under 6 minutes. Oh, well.
ReplyDeleteAnswer for Dennis' question is easy. It doesn't come under the tree in a gift-wrapped box. Every year the best present I get is being with my family and enjoying the true meaning of Christmas that sometimes gets forgotten. No - the true meaning doesn't involve a jolly old man in a red suit.
'Nuff of that mushy sentimentality. Levi and denim in the same puzzle. I thought pule was in an earlier puzzle (maybe not) but still never heard of that word. The stile (steps over the fence) is back and so is orlop. Stooges and MacGoo in the same puzzle also. I liked MacGoo. Jim Backus was also Thurston Howell, III on Gilligan's Island.
For eye related we have iris and ogle. Then there are court related things - sued, client, plea. Cosecant and foci - both math related.
Dennis found "Pig Day" and "Cookies Day". I didn't find anything else so I bid you adieu and hope you have a great Thursday.
Dick & Dr. Dad
ReplyDeleteIs Dennis correct? #3 for "Rain and Shine"? Have a wonderful vacation, Dick.
Chris,
I've corrected my SAN MATEO mistake, thanks. Where is your love? Why do you celebrate Christmas alone?
Dennis,
You have not answered my Christmas gift question. What's the best you've received?
Martin,
There I can't go. Hard to understand.
#3 gets my vote. From my point of view it is the most appealing. The other two wouldn't involve a partner, only me.
ReplyDeleteCC I go with number 3.
ReplyDeleteMartin,
ReplyDeleteThere I can't go. Hard to understand.
Last week I was looking at my "Writing up Research" textbook and I noticed that the chapter "Analyzing Data" had a short bit on statistics. I thought "Oh. My. God. I get to teach math!" So I spent a class talking about statistics. I think they understood. I mean, why wouldn't they?
Martin
CC:
ReplyDeleteAhhh - it's a long story. Suffice it to say that it's one thing to love, but an entirely different matter to be loved back, even after 6 years... (or 5 for ex 1 or 17 for ex 2). Thought I had found the real thing finally, but, well, not so much.
Life goes on and, for me, December 25 is just one day out of 365 this year.
Morning, folks!
ReplyDeleteOverall, a very easy puzzle for me today, especially since I actually knew the Mae West quote and recognized it after getting the first three or four letters of 20A (although I was momentarily held up toward the end due to the fact that I know that quote as "Too much of a good thing is wonderful" instead of "CAN BE").
The only potentially thorny spot was the SE corner, where ULAN crossed IOLE. IOLE was completely unknown to me, but once I had U_AN for 55D I was able to guess ULAN by making the association with Ulan Bator. I have no idea if ULAN-Ude and Ulan Bator are even in the same language, but it worked....
"She gave the crank a heck of a yank, and Johnny Bobeck was meat!" What does it mean? Who is Johnny Bobeck?
It's part of an old song I learned at Boy Scout camp many years ago about a Dutchman named Johnny Bobeck who invents a wonderful sausage machine that makes the finest sausages in the world (while all of his neighbors' cats and dogs are mysteriously disappearing). In the last verse of the song, the machine is broken and he climbs inside to fix it. unfortunately for him:
His wife was having a nightmare
And walking in her sleep.
She gave the crank a heck of a yank
And Johhny Bobeck was meat!
Good morning CC et al, Another easy one and enjoyable. I have a completely different view of 'plasters', as well as on 'beef', adept, plea, and kind. I know the quote for 'srs' and their 'rise'-ing 'bon'....not as good as I once was, but good once as I ever was. Tres Bon!
ReplyDeleteBest present ever? That's a hard one!
G'morning all,
ReplyDeleteI found this a pleasantly easy puzzle too. Except for PULE, which I didn't look up and had a brain fart with PAGET instead of PUGET, so I was stuck.
Why are the DF implications of expressions like "rise and shine" and masturbation always viewed from a male perspective? Where are the feminists?
Good Morning CC & Jeannie,
ReplyDelete12:01 for me today. Working around the quote I was able to get it by guessing after filling in the spaces around it.
the best gift was my MP3 player.
Hey Martin,
ReplyDeleteI think you will like this.
Pres. Bush Fool Me once.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKgPY1adc0A
I was always taught that a lady never discusses sex, masterbation, etc.
ReplyDeleteThat being said I like women who are comfortable in discussing the aforementioned subjects.
I can't remember any outstanding gifts at Christmas. I do always consider my year in France (1970)as my first real Christmas though. After growing up with it always in the heat of summer, that seemed more like the snowy cards we still sent to each other then--now they have more appropriate Oz themes on them.
ReplyDeleteBut the best Christmas ever was being with our new German family last year, visiting the Weihnachtsmärkte and experiencing everything with a big family gathering in the old world style.
I did eat suckling pig once at a pig roast held for the birthday of a Chinese friend when I was still in high school. It was delicious.
Doh! PULE and IOLE were also unknowns for me. I filled in ULAN only after I had U?AN.
ReplyDeleteMartin
mark - Buenos Aires
ReplyDeleteThanks to all who sent their best wishes yesterday.
My day is ruined, the paper reproduced yeaterdays crossword! so I had to resort to a sudoku for mental stimulation.
c.c. I think a good Yank can undo a British bra also, so my mother infers (there was a major US army base near to Stone England during WW2)
As for me, whatever design, its a joy to unhook.
"The rich girls use a brasierre, the poor girls use a string, but Dinah uses nothing at all, she lets them cuties swing" (Song sung in the bath after playing rugby)
C.C. I agree with what you said in your blog about this puzzle. I thought it was lame. As for your rise and shine question, in honor of maple syrup day yesterday, I am opting for #3. Talk about breakfast in bed!
ReplyDeleteBest Christmas present I ever got was a pair of downhill skis when I was sixteen.
Dennis, you must have been VERY drunk.
One year I got little else except a coloring book...not even any crayons!
ReplyDeleteEvery day for three or four days, I would pray that there would be crayons under the tree when I got up...one morning there WAS! Best gift I ever got!
Not being nautical...I had to google the "orlop" (lowest) deck on a ship. Just another reason to work puzzles...over the course of time it is much like a liberal arts education!
Hi everyone, Very easy one for me too...a few clues caused some head scratching, but the fills fixed that.
ReplyDeleteIt's snowing like crazy (again)! I was hoping to go biking outside but that's not going to happen! It really is beautiful though, it truly looks like we are inside a shaken snow-globe.:) They are playing "White Christmas" on the radio. I plugged in our tree and the lights on the mantle and buffet. Really looks festive.
I heard that is is also "Eat what's at the back of your frig" Day.
Jeannie, yes, very much so. I think it was then that I learned to love a light switch.
ReplyDeleteLois, not exactly a shocker.
C.C., I didn't answer my own question because I don't really have a favorite. I think my best Christmas present will be next week, actually being alive to celebrate Christmas at 65. No way I was supposed to live this long.
Not terribly difficult, but living in the SF Bay Area, saying that San Mateo is NEAR Oakland is entirely wrong unless you substantially expand the meaning of near. I couldn't get Alameda to fit, Berkeley fit but none of the letters worked. Better clue, a town near San Francisco which is AT LEAST on the same side of the bay, just down the peninsula.
ReplyDeleteOtherwise the rest, with the exception of PULE, which still didn't make sense even after I filled it in, was fairly easy.
The quote was pretty much a gimme.
Kathleen
Good morning C.C. & all - Eureka! I blacked this one out with one cup of coffee! For me, Thursday is usually a day of dread! I normally put off looking at the xw until everything is off my plate and I can deal with it. I stall through the comics, feed the birds, and do anything to avoid having my chops busted. But today's Olschwang offering was pleasant thanks to the identification of the quip's author. For me, it narrows the guesswork considerably and takes the drudge out of something that I'm supposed to be doing for fun. Thank you Mr. Olschwang.
ReplyDeleteAnother snow day here in 'O' so I'm off. At least it's a little warmer. I need a palm tree! Y'all have a nice day!
ttfn
Good Morning All, Today's puzzle wasn't much of a challenge. The only new word was IOLE, but got it from the perps.
ReplyDeleteMae West was quite the gal, but my money goes to Sophie Tucker who was an inspiration to Mae West and to Bette Midler who made "Soph" jokes a big part of her act.
C.C. . Who is Barrow? I'm surprised that Martin didn't give us a rundown on Isaac Barrow. Here's what Wikipedia has to say about him,
"Isaac Barrow (October 1630 – 4 May 1677) was an English scholar and mathematician who is generally given credit for his early role in the development of calculus; in particular, for the discovery of the fundamental theorem of calculus. His work centered on the properties of the tangent; Barrow was the first to calculate the tangents of the kappa curve. Isaac Newton was a student of Barrow's.
Also this - "He wrote with a sustained and somewhat stately eloquence, and with his blameless life and scrupulous conscientiousness was an impressive personage of the time."
Unlike Mae West and Sophie Tucker, he doesn't sound like he would have been much fun at a party.
Clear ayes, thanks for the Sophie Tucker clip! Great bawdy lady! Yes, I'd much rather be at a party with her and Mae than with some tiresome mathematician.
ReplyDeleteI do like a man with SOME brains though, someone who would not have to get naked to count to 21!
Hi Jeannie,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your "Yank" comments yesterday and I look forward to reading your future posts!
I am opting for #3. Talk about breakfast in bed!
ReplyDeleteWhat is #3?
13 Down Rise and Shine
ReplyDeleteI would choose # 3!
I need to buy some maple syrup!
Anon @11:33 AM
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=rise+and+shine
Good morning, everyone! No problems with this one today. The quip actually helped me to fill in some places. I was quite surprised that ORLOP came to mind so quickly for me.
ReplyDeleteI'll vote for #3. Didn't we just have a syrup day? Maybe Long Island Sound would be more familiar to the Easterners?
@barryg Gives a whole new meaning to "And here's Johnny!!"
@lois I thought it would be!
@carol Yes, isn't that snow pretty? I feel sorry for the kids and their parents with not knowing what to do about school.
Carol, Very funny, Dennis, Lois and Jeannie too.
ReplyDeleteKazie, I agree.
When I was 10 years old I saw Sonja Henie's (If you remember her, you really are old!) ice revue. I fell in love with ice skating and was taking lessons by December. For my Christmas gift, my mother made a short pink corduroy skating dress with lavender lining and panties. I'll never forget the thrill I had when I opened that package and saw the most beautiful gift I had ever received.
For Carl and others who are longing for a palm tree -
Trade Winds
In the harbor, in the island, in the Spanish Seas,
Are the tiny white houses and the orange trees,
And day-long, night-long, the cool and pleasant breeze
Of the steady Trade Winds blowing.
There is the red wine, the nutty Spanish ale,
The shuffle of the dancers, the old salt's tale,
The squeaking fiddle, and the soughing in the sail
Of the steady Trade Winds blowing.
And o' nights there's fire-flies and the yellow moon,
And in the ghostly palm-trees the sleepy tune
Of the quiet voice calling me, the long low croon
Of the steady Trade Winds blowing.
- John Masefield
Chris,
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that. I do believe true love exists in this world though.
Barry,
Google "Johnny Bobeck was meat" and see what comes up. Surprised?
Crockett et al,
I was wondering if you all knew the DF meaning of "Rise and Shine" before today.
Martin,
I've never worn a British style bra. I wonder how it is different from an American bra.
Agree with everyone – easy puzzle.
ReplyDeleteExcept that I got hung up on IOLE.
C.C. --
“Because I have been living under the rock. Have never heard of a grand being called THOU before.” I find that hysterically funny.
I think one of my best Christmas gifts came in Tulsa Okla.a very long time ago. I was divorced, working two full time jobs and barely making ends meet, both kids had moved out, and I felt very bah-humbug about Christmas. Why bother?
One night I got off work about 1 a.m., went home, and found a fully decorated tree in my living room. My daughter refused to let me drop out, and we had a very good Christmas.
Anonymous @ 10:43am,
ReplyDeleteI am very moved by your crayon story. Thanks for sharing.
Kathleen,
Good to see you on the blog.
Kazie,
"Where are the feminists?" Good question. Unfortunately I am not one, are you?
Jimbo & Calef,
Tell us about the best Christmas gifts you've received.
Clear Ayes,
ReplyDeleteThanks for Isaac Barrow. You are definitely a better researcher. I recognized "SOUGH" in your poem. It appeared in our puzzle before. Any feminist "Rise & Shine" comment?
Dennis,
What is the best Christmas gift you've given to your wife?
BarbB, now THAT'S a great Christmas story/present. Thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteC.C., what more could she want besides me?? Stop laughing.
A request for the 'anons' - why not use a name so we can answer your posts by name? Just a thought.
Good morning C.C. and all,
ReplyDeleteWOO-HOO! I knew that quote, so it was so much easier to get 'er done.Actually, as usual, I always have a few problems: spans did not sink in, nor did I know spate,pule, and neh.Guessed orlop (great illus. C.C.)Had planters instead of plasters, so had conec, not cosec, but never heard of either. Rifer, another unknown, came with fills.
I agree with Kathleen about San Mateo. There are so many other cities, like San Francisco, that are closer. Oakland is on the east side of the bay.
Barry, I always love reading anything you have to say, but today's song was the best! I marvel at your memory. Speaking of memory, did anyone read "Pickles" today? I'm almost there.
C.C., to answer your question. Me thinks you were trying to involve me in a little DF ball conversation.Why? and on to "rise and shine". I personally liked the cupcakes being frosted.
Martin, anon. beat me to Pres.Bush
trying to remember that old saying.I fully understand and sympathize with his forgetfulness.
about Hera: her jealousy had such dramatic consequences in so many of the tales.The ordeal of the Twelve Labors were imposed by her. Yet, it was the accomplishment of these labors that gave him his immortal fame.Heracles means "Hera's glory."
Best gift at C'mas: when I was around 7 or 8, my family did not have any extra money for C'mas. There was one giant box for the 4 of us girls. We opened it box by box and in the tiniest one was a note telling us that we were going camping and to get ready immediately. It was a glorious trip; it snowed a lot. We had no tent, only a huge tarp that fit over all 6 of our sleeping bags. We collected pine needles for a cushion under them and surrounded our bags with logs.Being the youngest, I loved it all. At home when the lights went off, I thought it was a game.
Puget Sound most famous?
ReplyDeleteI supose it depends on which side of the country you are from, but many would say the Long Island sound is the one that would first come to mind.
I thik the map c.c. provided is a little misleading. The area labled Puget Sound is more accurately Admaralty Inlet which connects the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the Puget Sound. Most here would identify the Puget Sound as as being further south towards Seattle and Tacoma.
A "sound" originally meant a body of water between an island and the mainland but it has evolved to mean any ocean inlet or deep bay.
By the way c.c. the Seattle times has indeed stoped printing the New York Times crossword puzzle on a daily basis. the New York Times and the Newsday puzzles are available on line however.
You also asked about the symbol on the tabard in an eralier puzzle. It looks to be a variation of the Jarusalem a.k.a. Crusaders cross. It is a larger cross surounded four smaller crosses. There are several interpretations of the symbolism but it was on the papal banner given to the knights on the first crusade.
Seattle John
c.c.,
ReplyDeleteI guess whether or not I'm a feminist depends on your definition. I like to think independently, play devil's advocate with normally accepted values, and can't really see why it has taken so long for women to begin to be accepted as first class citizens in so many parts of the world. Perhaps this is because men have been afraid that if their "better halves" ever got control, they'd be seen as inferior and be ousted from their accustomed superiority.
Many times religion is used as a justifying crutch for male dominance. I just keep thinking of all those (old?) men who wrote the rules in our Bible, the Koran or whatever other creeds are used, while denying education to the women who might have demanded a say in those rules if given an opportunity.
Until relatively recently, women were supposed to be subjected to their men's desires, regardless of their own wishes or needs. I'm glad to have come of age in the 1960's when this had changed.
6:24 today. No special reason for it taking so long to solve the puzzle. I just dawdled through it. Did not know IOLE, but easy from the crosses.
ReplyDeleteBe careful of that urban dictionary. People can put any old thing in there (and often do, especially sexual things). I am suspicious of any of the stuff in there.
Twelve inches of new snow here (west of Portland, OR), so 18" total. This is the second most snow I've had here (22 years at this house). I have a very steep driveway, so I'm definitely snowbound--no way in or out. I keep having to go outside and squeegee off the satellite dishes so I have TV and Internet. (Squeegee on a 20-foot long pole.)
@c.c.: did you get my email about Harbin? I didn't receive a response.
Barry, I learned the song as "Dunderbeck's Machine". Some of the words were different too, but the ultimate outcome for Dunderbeck, at the hands of his sleep-walking wife, was the same.
ReplyDeleteC.C. "Rise and Shine" in the DF sense was a new one to me. I think Sparky F., the #3 contributor, is an imaginative 18 year old who was doing a lot of wishful thinking.
The only "feminist" comment I can make is that, if he is getting most of the fun in that scenario, he can wash his own damn maple syrup dribbled sheets!
Kazie, Right on!
C.C.
ReplyDeleteI would have to say that the best Christmas gift I have received is the Messiah.
That answer doesn't fit the blog too well, but it is what I think.
Calef.
"Scan" is one of my pet peeves. The same words carries two opposite meanings.
ReplyDeleteIts original meaning was 'to examine closely'. A 'scanner' picks up every detail of what it scans. Now it also means 'to glance at or read hastily'.
I agree with the Oakland/San Mateo dicussions. Mapquest says it's a 31 mile drive. It's probably half that distance in a straight line, but there's a lot of water between them.
All in all, I think Mr. Olschwang could use a few months off.
Calef, the nice thing about this blog is that there are no wrong answers.
ReplyDeleteFinally finished! A lot of start and stop today. Other obligations had to take precedence over the xword.
ReplyDeleteBut, Mae Wests quote was something I'd heard, so that made the rest flow. PULE and ORLOP meant nothing to me, even after they were filled. Got IOLE 'cause I knew ULAN. Why did I know ULAN, one might ask? Beats the crap out of me, I just did! I know I've heard it somewhere but no idea where.
CY'all later
Dennis, look at it this way, at least you were subjected to a little suckling.
ReplyDeleteC.C.
ReplyDeleteAs an adult, I agree with Calef on the MESSIAH. Not only the best CHRISTmas present, but the most important event of all time.
As a young boy, I remember waking one morning to find a genuine "Buck Rogers" air rifle under the tree. A most exciting moment for me and a scary one for all the birds in the vicinity.
(But now I feed them rather than shoot them down).
good afternoon c.c. and all,
ReplyDeletefun quip today. decided to do all the downs first and got nearly all of it the first time through. spate, spans, spat and sate today. i always think of sate as merely satisfy .. not so much 'stuff to the gills,' but the 2nd entry on the online free dictionary says 'to satisfy to excess.' it does fit the theme, and is placed appropriately above wonderful. okay then.
best christmas gift ... hm. it's little things i guess. the traditions like mom's poundcake with sour cream cherry sauce. and sometimes big things .. like the year i got a piano.
So much for my good memory.
ReplyDeleteIt was a "Buck Jones" air rifle---Not "Buck Rogers".
I think his was "Ray Gun".
I never did learn to use one of them.
Hi C.C. and all,
ReplyDeleteIt's #3 for me too. I have also not wore a British bra. Lois and her hard one with Mae West in the same blog??? What is a respectable DF to do? Hope I don't get Caught One Handed
DF business out of the way. Today's puzzle easy but did not know pule or iole, got from the fills. C.C.'s ASSO had me confused at first because I couldn't find that in my answers.
Best Christmas present ever was a complete set of Bobbsy Twin books when I was in the 5th grade.
ReplyDeleteThe gift lasted a long time. I read them all several times.
Other than that, my brother got all the neat gifts I couldn't have because I was a girl. That's when I became a feminist.
Doreen
Clear ayes and Kazie, I do have to agree with both of you on the feminist issue.
ReplyDeleteMost of the countries have (and still do) hold women down, some more severely than others. India and the Arab countries especially. China didn't do so well in that area either. I am very glad to have been born here and in the time that I was.
I did suffer through lots of harassment on jobs and that was in a time when you couldn't do anything about it other than quit your job. The men were the bosses and the women did what they said. It was rare to find a woman in an administrative position but I did have that at the phone company, it's just that the Chief Operation was a barracuda!!!
To settle the uncertainty of some, bras are pretty much the same everywhere that I've been, including Britain. Though when I first came to the USA I was appalled at how unsexy they were here compared with Oz or Europe. They've since improved of course.
ReplyDeleteClear ayes, Doreen and Carol,
Thanks for your supporting comments. I think we've all (us women anyway) experienced male chauvinism in one form or another.
Guday, All. I, like Dennis, found this puzzle in under 5 minutes. It was in the Community Section today. Sometimes it's in Sports and other times in National. (There's only three sections in my hometown "rag"). It took longer to solve it, but no real problems.
ReplyDeleteKazie@ 1:35pm. Amen. Women still have a long way to go. I hope Mary Magdeline gets her due someday.
#3 BY FAR!!!!
Least known Sound in the U.S.A.?
Sound Judgment.
Chris in La. Look at all of the friends you've made here. Get back on the horse. Your luck will change.
Calef: Your opinion is just as valued as anyone's.
Oregon folks-stay warm and dry. My daughter in Seattle is snowed in , too.
My best Christmas gift - Timmy, my little stuffed Teddy Bear. I got him my second Christmas and he sits on the sofa in my den and watches TV with me every night. His original eyes are gone, there was a tear in his nose that leaked sawdust, and most of his mohair fur is worn away. My younger daughter (the one in Seattle) sewed brass eyes on him and sewed up his nose when she was about seven (30 yrs. ago). They're both holding up fine, thank you. He's a Goofy lookin' dude, but then so am I, and I still love him.
Dennis, I'm like you. I guess if we had known we were going to live this long we would have taken better care of ourselves.
However, very good news from my coroner today. Things have taken a turn for the better. "Better Living Through Chemistry". Yeah!
Jeannie; re; your downhill skis. I'm sure you have heard of Gold Medal skier Picabo Street. She just gave a huge donation to a Denver hospital and they're going to name a wing after her.
It's going to be called "Picabo, ICU".
I must be off!
Hey Buckeye, so very glad to hear the good news from your coroner! Check in here more often, we'll give you some good medicine and you won't have to bend over unless you want to. ;)
ReplyDelete@ Buckeye you are nuts!!
ReplyDelete# RichShif nice song.
I love the interesting twists this blog can take. I agree with Kazie and Carol about being subjected to sexism at one time or another.
ReplyDeleteI remember when, as a single mother who was grateful for a job that could support my daughter and myself, I overheard my postal supervisor laughing with one of the guys, "I wonder who she's ****ing". I was embarrassed and furious, but who could I complain to?...not the supervisor obviously. Over the years, I got a lot tougher skin and learned how to make a come-back to that kind of comment....."It won't ever be you, that's for sure!"
Hey, Buckeye, it's about time you quit worrying us and showed up. It sounds like your nonsense is "up with which we we will have to put". Happy day!
Buckeye...so good to hear from you. Jeannie has been battling frostbite, and you just warmed my heart to hear your heart is still ticking away and you are wittier than ever. Don't be a stranger, but continue to be stranger. It's part of your charm.
ReplyDeleteI know women are much better off than in the past, but we have a very long way to go. Wages for women are not equal to men's wages by any means.
ReplyDeleteAs for church - ha. The only evangelical church that allows women in leadership is the Quakers. Go figure. Graduation from seminary has put an interesting strain on my family. While they are proud of me for the accomplishment, it is against their religion (because I'm a woman) so they don't feel like they can attend the ceremony. My sister, God bless her, is going anyway, despite the disapproval of her family. As long as I understand that I sinned.
Life is strange.
Did you ever think we would elect a black man before we elect a woman?
I'm happy about Obama - but I have a feeling a woman president is very far into our future.
Barry,
ReplyDeleteGoogle "Johnny Bobeck was meat" and see what comes up. Surprised?
Ayup. Of course, the second link is my personal website. It helps, I suppose, that I've probably been misspelling the name of the title character all my life. A quick Google search turns up a host of other variations (including Johnny Rebek, Johnny Verbeck, Johnny Roebeck and Dunderback), but apparently I'm the only one on the planet who always thought the guy's name was Johnny Bobeck. Oh well...
Barry G and anyone else who can remember, wasn't there a guy years ago named Bobitt who lost his "meat" due to his wife and a very sharp kitchen knife?
ReplyDeleteTalk about a name matching the crime...!
I do believe that was #5 dang it.
Carol, John Wayne Bobbit is a name that's burned into my brain. Not a pleasant image.
ReplyDeleteBuckeye, ya old coot, glad to have you back among the living. And "Picabo, ICU" was absolutely priceless.
For you Buckeye:
ReplyDeleteTeddy Bear
C. J. Henck
My teddy bear was getting old
I showed him to my dad.
The threads that made his mouth were gone.
My teddy looked so sad.
His round dark eyes were crooked
His button nose hung down.
It made me cry to look at him,
My teddy, soft and brown.
A jagged hole showed stuffing
Poking through a long one side.
And I hugged him oh, so gently,
So it wouldn't get more wide.
When daddy showed my mommy,
She fixed him up like new.
His button nose was tight now,
His mouth was smiling, too.
His eyes were side by side again
Just like they used to be.
And when I sat and talked to him,
He could look right back at me.
She pushed the stuffing in again
Then sewed the hole with thread.
And when I went to sleep last night,
He was with me in my bed.
You know that someone loves you
By the little things they do.
At times like this, it means much more
Than saying, "I love you."
Ah, don't we all have a story? Barb B, yours is a real head shaker. I admire your stick-to-it-iveness, regardless of family disapproval.
ReplyDeleteI remember being impressed by both the book The Friendly Persuasion by Jessamyn West and the movie Friendly Persuasion with Gary Cooper and Dorothy McGuire. The Quaker husband and wife were truly respectful partners in their marriage.
It seems that giving your son the name "John Wayne" is not a good idea. Other than the famous Mr. Bobbitt, there are murderers John Wayne Gacy, John Wayne Blair, John Wayne Duvall and Australian John Wayne Glover (Kazie, I didn't want you to think Australians couldn't make the grade.) If you are superstitious, just giving your bouncing boy the middle name "Wayne" isn't wise either. There are lengthy lists of murderers and other felons on the internet who started off life with the middle name "Wayne".
C.C.: I agree that the Urban Dictionary is not a good one to rely upon. I have never heard of the expression, "Rise and shine," referring to masturbation and neither has my husband who was a Sgt. in the army. I hope you don't fall for that definition. It is not what most of us have in mind when we tell our kids to rise and shine. It means to get up from bed cheerfully.
ReplyDeleteTo Kazie: I am in absolute agreement with your comments on feminists. I consider myself to be one and am proud that both of my sons are too. And I am also an old fogy about the masturbation discussions.
And Doreen: my best Christmas present also was a complete set of the Bobbsey Twins, but I also got a whole box of Hershey bars. Spent that Christmas afternoon in bed reading and ate the whole box of chocolate!
Chris in LA: That's a pretty good way to spend Christmas.
Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to you all.
Like everyone else I thought this xword was easy. I couldn't do it until late because I owed my parents a visit.
ReplyDeleteMy best Christmas present after Jesus was the first Christmas after my divorce. I didn't have money for ornaments so my daughters and I made our own from cronstruction paper, glue and glitter. Then I found a cardboard chest filled with dress-up clothes at Penney's for 12 bucks. They played with those for years. Isn't it amazing that some of our best memories are of times when we didn't have lots of money:)
Carol, John Bobbit's wife, as I recall, threw his "meat" out the car window!!! That was some story. And I was cheering for her the whole time, but alas, they sewed it back on.
ReplyDeleteBarb, God bless your sister! We are all so proud of you. I constantly wonder about the "church laws" of our many religious sects. Usually the ones who preach the loudest about sinning are the ones who are living a life of deceit.
Did anyone celebrate by making cookies today...not computer cookies. I made "Scrumptious Squares", a very simple recipe using graham crackers, butter and br. sugar, choc chips (nuts are optional, C.C.)
Clear ayes, "Friendly Persuasion" was my favorite movie as a child. It also was my very 1st record album, such sweet music.
Yes, we all have our stories...here's a short one. My mom grew up dirt poor in KY and managed to put herself through college to get a teaching degree. I'm talking '53-56. For some reason she took a job in rural MI, didn't know a soul, took a bus there, lined up a room to rent and met my dad and the rest is history.
ReplyDeleteAfter she married '(60), she retired so to speak to raise children. No way was or is she a feminist, just knew she had to take care of herself as she did all those years growing up poor. When I graduated high school in 1980 my dad knew I would need a career (even then) and encouraged us gals (3) to get a higher education. We all did. With that said, I still like a man to open a door for me, I still like a man to "be a man", I still like a man to treat me like a woman. I like being feminine. I can't really relate to the feminist views spoken here. But maybe I need to thank you gals and just never realized it before. I know for a fact that my salary is very close to what the guys in my department are making. One thing I will note though, is that they don't know how to go through the fax machine and printer paperwork and disperse it, so I don't anymore either.
Thanks Buckeye,
ReplyDeleteI can always rely on your posts for a good laugh.
Jeannie,
I think you have proven yourself as a woman, by knowing you are as good or better than the men you work with at what you do. You shouldn't have to hide your abilities so as not to get stuck with doing those things for them all the time. Teach them how to do the faxing, printing and dispersing and make them do their own share.
As for equal pay, I was fortunate to be in a profession where there was no difference, teaching. But the glass ceiling is still to be broken in a lot of fields.
Barb,
I'm glad you had the tenacity to stick with your goals despite such criticism from your family. That's what I can't understand--they should all have been cheering you on instead of condemning what you were doing. Thank the Lord for your sister!
Kazie, I am not sure as to what you mean about "hiding" my abilities. Can you expand on that?
ReplyDeleteI have never faxed, printed or dispersed any paperwork for anyone. All I meant was, they will print stuff, not go through it, get faxes, never go through them, and it all piles up. Part of my genetic makeup being a home-economic teachers daughter is to sort and fold so to speak. I now print my stuff, and get up and get it right away. If other stuff is on the printer or fax, I ignore it if it has nothing to do with me.
Thank you all for the warm welcome. I hope things continue to improve.
ReplyDeleteBarb, I don't want to belabor a point or get too serious, but you have an uphill fight.
So many people take the Bible literally. They believe in justifying capital punishment by siting "An eye for and eye; a tooth for a tooth" (Exodus 21: 23-26), even though Jesus rejected that in St. Matthew 5: 37-40. They choose to quote the passes from the Bible they agree with and reject the others. The one many still believe in, but not as openly, is I Corinthians 14: 34,35.
"Let your women keep silent in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but THEY ARE COMMANDED to be under obedience, as also saith the law."
"And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in church".
Hopefully, strong women like yourself can make certain people change their attitudes towards this destructive belief. Good luck!
Oh Oh! I hear jangling. It's either Nurse Ratchet or the Ghost of Scrooge. Dear Lord, let it be Scrooge!!
IMBO
i always think of sate as merely satisfy .. not so much 'stuff to the gills,'
ReplyDeleteHmm. Good point. I would think that the recipient of a #3 would consider himself sated.
Most of the countries have (and still do) hold women down, some more severely than others. India and the Arab countries especially. China didn't do so well in that area either
It depends: whereas women have typically lacked political power or the right to education or gainful employment (although Asian counties would appear to have more female doctors than the West) women hold greater authority in the household in Asian countries -or at least the first wife does (in cultures where polygamy is condoned). Confuscious may have told his students that his wife was expected to honour him like an emperor but I doubt if he'd go out and play majong with the boys without getting his wife's permission first: in many Asian cultures men bring home the money and give it all to their wife and that's how a peaceful family life is assured.
In the West, things started out pretty well for women: in ancient times, a queen like Ishtar, apparently, could have her husband killed for not loving her enough. Whereas later semetic cultures would have a woman stoned to death for adultery, a queen back in those days could have a lover and have a son by him and he would still be considered legitamate. (King Gilgamesh, for example, was the son of the queen and one of her priests.) The traditions of ancient Sumer were carried on to Egypt where a man could become king by marrying the king's daughter (for example, Thutmose I became phraoh after marrying Queen Ahmose, supposedly the daughter of Ahmose I). Later, Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt, was able to maintain power in Egypt by "consumating a liaison" first with Caesar and then Marc Antony. Women weren't so bad off in Rome either for that matter: the word "romantic" was originally an adjective meaning "like a Roman".
Alas, after the fall of Rome, Europe descended into the Dark Ages which, let's face it, were bad for everyone but were probably worse for women than for men. To this day, it would seem that women have never gotten back the degree of authority that they once had.
Will the U.S. have a female president in 2016? I wouldn't be surprised to see an election with Condelessa Rice and Hillary Clinton as candidates. That's probably would it would take to guarantee a woman president. As for a black president, well, Colin Powell is probably kicking himself for not running back in 2000: he himself just probably didn't think it would ever happen.
Martin
See you all in 19 days. Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas.
ReplyDeleteMake that 10 days.
ReplyDeleteFor Barb B.:There are several "Evangelical" churches who place women in leadership roles...not just the Quakers...
ReplyDeleteI took your advice, C. C. and am posting under my name...
Linda,
ReplyDeleteWelcome! I've copied and pasted your post to Dec 19's Comments section so Barb B can see it.
How do you post a profile for this blog?
ReplyDeleteLOL @ Buckeye for his Picabo Street comment hilarious!
ReplyDeletethanx, how are u?
ReplyDelete