google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Tuesday January 27, 2009 Adele Mann

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Jan 27, 2009

Tuesday January 27, 2009 Adele Mann

Theme: SCHOOLS (36A: Educates)

17A: Winged Foot or Sawgrass: GOLF COURSE

53A: Sentence: PRISON TERM

11D: Big time for batters: MAJOR LEAGUE

25D: Kind of suit: CLASS ACTION

"School Subject" is probably a better theme title.

I can't believe I've never heard of Sawgrass GOLF COURSE before. It's PGA Tour's headquarters. But "Winged Foot" clue alone is enough for me. I remember Phil Mickelson's nightmarish collapse there in 2006 US Open. I would never understand why he decided to go with the driver on the last hole.

My favorite US Open is 2002 Bethpage Black. Brutal weather, brutal rough, brutally entertaining, esp with Sergio Garcia's endless whining. Lots of fans cheered for Phil, but Tiger never relented his lead. I hope the drama repeats this year.

I just don't feel "Sentence" is synonymous with PRISON TERM, do you? I wonder if the constructor thought of CREDIT CRUNCH for the theme answer. Fannie Mae is asking for another $16 billion aid from the government now, Freddie Mac wants an additional $35 billion. Plus the $700 billion for the Wall Street bailout, and the $825 billion stimulus package Obama is asking. We are talking about real money, right?

Across:

1A: Org. of Wie and Webb: LPGA. Followed both Michelle Wie and Karrie Webb for a few holes at the US Open last year. Karrie Webb is in Golf HOF. Very nice person. She seldom smiles though.

10A: City on the Irtysh River: OMSK. Here is the map again. This has become a gimme for me. The city on the URAL River (14A: Caspian feeder) is called ORSK. I can't find a map. But it's there.

16A: Okinawa city: NAHA. Got it from down fills. Can never remember this city name. Okinawa belongs to those Blue Zones, where you will find lots of centenarians living a happy & healthy life. Loma Linda, CA is also in the Blue Zones, so is Sardinia, Italy. See their secret. Nuts, ah, nuts, I love nuts.

33A: Singer Janis: IAN. Here is her "At Seventeen". I googled her name.

34A: Sherwood or Epping: FOREST. Know Robin Hood's Sherwood FOREST. Have never heard of Epping FOREST. What is it famous for?

38A: One-time link: AT A. One AT A time.

45A: Coach Rockne: KNUTE. Of Notre Dame. I bought a Sports Illustrated for Kids once (simply because Babe Ruth is on the cover) and read a brief bio of KNUTE Rockne. He died in a plane crash. So did golfer Payne Stewart and Baseball HOFer Roberto Clemente. Very sad. Flying can be so risky.

49A: Of plants: BOTANIC. What is "Of animals" then? I am drawing a blank here.

58A: Stop up: CLOG. Have never heard of "Stop up" before. Strange "up" phrase.

60A: Abbr. on folk music: TRAD. Traditional?

Down:

4D: Nobel and Noyes: ALFREDS. ALFRED Noyes is the guy who wrote "The Highwayman". No-yes is pronounced the same as "Noise". I wonder if anyone is named Yes-no.

9D: Trademark refrigerant: FREON. I can never remember this product. Can I find it in our refrigerator?

10D: Streaking: ON A TEAR. I like this clue and the answer.

13D: Economist Marx: KARL. Weird to see him clued as an "Economist", though he really was one. These are the pictures that used to adorn our school walls: Chairman Mao, Lenin, Starlin, Engels and Marx, the so called "Fathers of Communism".

22D: Preminger and Graham: OTTOS. Know Preminger, not Graham.

26D: Second brightest star: CANOPUS. No idea. It's indeed brighter than the other stars. The brightest is Sirius. Both ending in letters "us", have to be rooted in Greek then, masculine form.

33D: Lemieux milieu: ICE. I suppose "Lemieux milieu" sounds better than "Crosby milieu".

36D: Lazy lady?: SUSAN. Good clue. The "Smart guy?" would be ALEC.

42D: Orange-red food dye: ANNATTO. New word to me. Dictionary says ANNATTO is "a yellowish-red dyestuff obtained from the seed aril of ANNATTO shrub (also called lipstick tree), used especially to dye fabric and to color food products such as margarine and cheese."

44D: Court decision: DECREE. Paul McCartney can now marry his girlfriend, who has just received her divorce DECREE.

45D: "Show Boat" composer: KERN (Jerome). Got him this time.

49D: Beer choice: BOCK. Absolutely no idea. Feel so full just looking at the picture. So dark. I don't drink beer.

50D: Stew pot: OLLA. I've never seen a "Stew pot" OLLA before. To me, OLLA is this kind of Indian pottery. Very beautiful!

C.C.

58 comments:

Dennis said...

Good morning, C.C. and gang - almost a repeat of yesterday in terms of simplicity. Got both 'canopus' and 'annatto' from the perps. And 'prison term' for 'sentence'? Not necessarily. A sentence could be probation, community service, etc.

Today is Chocolate Cake Day - hey, a license to indulge!

Today's Words of Wisdom: "Don't worry about avoiding temptation. As you grow older, it will avoid you." -- Winston Churchill

Zhouqin (C.C.) Burnikel said...

Dennis,
What is "Of animals" (49A)? I've been bothered by this. Aren't you worried about temptations then?

KittyB,
Is BAR the same as those vertical bar lines?

Barry,
I want "Number of sides on a cube" for SIX.

Zhouqin (C.C.) Burnikel said...

Dick,
I think I've been Americanized. I love Christmas more than I do Chinese Spring Festival. Gifts probably?

Democrat,
Glenn Beck's contract with CNN was canceled, his program is OFF. If you are born in the Year of Dog, you are trustworthy and can keep others' secret. You should find those who are born in the year of Horse/Tiger/Rabbit as your SPOUSE. Alyssa Milano is a Rat.

Lois,
Holy hotwick! You are a musical teacher? No wonder you love bars so much.

Zhouqin (C.C.) Burnikel said...

Linda,
Thanks. I have a good friend who keeps telling me I will go to hell if I don't believe in Jesus Christ. She and her husband are both Lutherans.

Kazie & Ink,
Re: PTOMAINE/Psychology. Are these silent P words normally rooted in Greek? What is "period costume"? Which period?

Thea et al,
I made a mistake yesterday. I gave you Years of Tiger yesterday. Years of the Ox are: 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997 and 2009.

Dick said...

Good morning, CC and all..Nice easy one again today. I did not know "annatto" or "canopus" but got them from the fills. NE corner took some time to complete and did not reveal itself until I "got on a tear". I had to guess "naha" and guessed correctly.

I have several errands to do this morning so I will check in later.

Hope you all have a great Tuesday.

Zhouqin (C.C.) Burnikel said...

Embien,
"Gung Hay Fat Choy" is Cantonese. "Gong Xi Fa Cai" is Mandarin Chinese. My husband can't remember either of the phrases. He got up yesterday morning and told me "Fat Choy". I thought he was saying "Fat Chow" and was confused, as Chow Chin (C.C.) is the Cantonese spelling of my Mandarin name Zhouqin.

Dennis said...

C.C., I believe most refrigerators now have an ozone-friendly refrigerant, as opposed to freon.

Zoologic would be 'of animals'.

Naha brought back some memories - we stopped there on the way to Vietnam, left most of our personal belongings/uniforms there for storage. Thought at the time that there was something very ominous about that.

lois said...

Good morning CC et al, Another breeze through today. 10D got me expecting naked or prank and loved 'goons' &'prison term' in with the school theme. How so appropriate since a few of our students are now up on murder charges. 26D, bar, old, fly,ply,go off,& dud made me think of Dennis' Words of wisdom.

Enjoy your day.

Anonymous said...

Good morning C.C.

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Was it yesterday?

I asked every jock I know to tell me what a Nittany is. They didn't know either. Eventually, after serious research and calling a buddy who attended Penn State I found out - Nittany is the name of a nearby mountain range.

Who will retire first - Joe Paterno or Bobby Bowden?

Hayrake

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

Bit of a challenge today, but definitely doable with no major fouls. The theme eluded me, however, because I was thinking the theme answers needed to be uniform in terms of where the theme was placed (first word of the phrase as opposed to last word). I couldn't figure out what COURSE, ACTION, TERM and LEAGUE all had in common...

Unknowns today were NAHA, ANNATTO and BOCK. I was familiar with CANOPUS, but didn't know it was the "Second brightest star" (in the night sky as seen from Earth, I'm assuming, and not in the entire universe). I also had never heard of either Winged Foot or Sawgrass, so it took a lot of perps to get GOLF COURSE.

The NE corner caused me the most grief, since (a) I didn't know NAHA, (b) OMSK didn't spring immediately to mind and (c) I couldn't believe that 21A was really HOOT OWL. I mean, I know owls hoot, but there isn't really a bird called a HOOT OWL, is there? Or is that just a colloquialism like "moo cow"?

One thing I learned from today's puzzle was that Freon (capital F) is a trademarked term. I always just assumed it was a generic name of a type of gas, like chlorine gas. Live and learn...

Barry,
I want "Number of sides on a cube" for SIX.


Yeah, I agree that would be more accurate. But it would also be too easy, and the constructor obviously wanted to make it a little more obscure. I can live with it.

NYTAnonimo said...

Looks like we have another new constructor or pseudonym.

I did not know Janis IAN or Wie and Webb. Did not know CANOPUS from the southern skies either and had never heard of ANNATTO. So didn't get through it as fast as some of you.

In regards to your friend "who keeps telling me I will go to hell if I don't believe in Jesus Christ." Tell her to read Karen Armstrong's latest bestseller "The Bible". A reviewer for the book notes "she also examines some 2,000 years of biblical interpretation by bishops and rabbis, scholars and mystics, pietists and critics, thus opening up a myriad of exegetical approaches and dispelling any fundamentalist notion that only one view can be correct."

Hope everyone has a great day.

Col_Gopinath said...

Hi CC and gang,
I am in Bangalore, India, found the website of the paper and aced the crossword without googling. Otherwise our newspaper here is publishing the crossword of Oct 08!!!
Ciao

Anonymous said...

16:14 today

It was a little easier for me either my mind is working or the puzzle are getting easier.

10 Streaking. I wanted nude. I was thinking of Will Ferrell in Old School.

9D: Trademark refrigerant: FREON. I can never remember this product. Can I find it in our refrigerator?


Review this diagram:

http://www.madehow.com/images/hpm_0000_0001_0_img0159.jpg

CC,

So Alyssa and I are not a match? It's just as well she doesn't know I exist! You are correct I was born in the year of the dog.

Smooth Jazz for a snowy Tuesday...........

Candy Dulfer For the Love of You.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5nh2ygdYqKE

kazie said...

G'day all.
Well my brain must be having a vacation today. I couldn't get around all those sporting and music clues without feeling daunted. I g'ed 45A, 48A, 42A and 45A, though I should have got that last one. For 23A I wanted some sort of -gress for the longest time, until I got 25D. I did know BOCK, my husband's preferred brew.

I think 53A is o.k. as an example of what a sentence might be--a prison term is a sentence, though all sentences are not necessarily prison terms.

c.c.,
I don't know about the Greek question, but I think your assumption is correct. "Period costume" can be whatever period is relevant to the occasion. In my post yesterday, it would refer to what sailors wore in the period when those tall ships were in use. The Mutiny on the Bounty was in 1789.

Anonymous said...

What did you guys fill in for 51 down as well as 59 across?

Anonymous said...

Hey Everyone, don't worry about that last post, I guess SSTS is a valid abbreviation. I kept attempting to fit SSJS in and getting PELJS instead of PELTS. Have a good week!

KittyB said...

Good Morning, C.C. and all.

C.C. Usually when we refer to a "bar" or a "measure" we are speaking of the music between two bar lines. The bar lines help us to organize the music into groups of beats, so that we can put the appropriate emphasis on the notes.
In the 4/4 meter, the note on count one receives the most emphasis. Count three is also emphasized, but not as much as the first beat or count.

Each time signature (like 4/4) has it's own pattern of emphasized notes, but they all emphasize the first beat or note the most. (For those of you who are saying "With the exception of syncopation..." we can address syncopation another day.)

Lois....I bow down before you, chagrined at my failure to recognize that you are a music teacher. I don't know how I could have missed that. My apologies. I loved your comment from yesterday! Shall we go from bar to bar together?? *G*

Promise Me This.. I totally agree that BAR and MEASURE are interchangeable here. That thought flitted through my mind, but I figured that might have been something peculiar to my area.

Grilled Mojo marinated lamb loin over wilted spinach with sweet potatoes!! Holy Cow! What an amazing meal. Were you cooking for a special occasion, or do you always cook like that?

Kip...I loved yesterday's post on greens. I'll have to share it with my husband, who would like more greens.

I'll have to file away the washing machine technique for cleaning greens, too! What amazing things we learn here.

Clear ayes, I loved your poetry selection from yesterday. Now that we are down to two, we frequently work together to prepare meals, and clean up. It's a great time to touch base.

g8trmom, I'm glad to see that your husband is healing. Our best wishes for his continued recuperation, and your good health.

Unfortunately, my birth year is the year of the rat, and my husband razzes me about it all the time.

I'm not crazy for "difficult concern" as the definition for onus, but I suppose it works.

Have a great Tuesday!

Anonymous said...

For those interested in cooking kale, here is an excellent one that my husband makes often. (Sorry, I posted it on the Silks answers by not looking.)
Kale Soup
Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray

2 tablespoons (2 turns around the pan) extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium white waxy potatoes, like yukon gold, peeled and diced
2 medium onions, chopped
4 to 6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 bay leaves, fresh or dried
1 pound kale, coarsely chopped
Coarse salt and pepper
1 (15-ounce) can garbanzos (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
I can diced tomatoes
1 pound diced chourico, casing removed (or 1 lb. hamburger or ground turkey)
1 quart chicken broth

Heat oil in a deep pot over medium high heat. Add potatoes and onions, cover and cook 5 minutes,
stirring occasionally.

Add garlic, bay leaves, and kale to the pot. Cover pot and wilt greens 2 minutes. Season with salt and
pepper. Add beans, tomatoes, meat, and broth to the pot and bring soup to a full boil. Reduce heat
back to medium and cook to 10 minutes longer or until potatoes are tender.

Serve soup with hunks of crusty bread and butter.

Yield: 4 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Linda said...

My Dear CC: I`m, sorry your friend is so blunt...I wish he/she had said,"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved AND THY HOUSE(emphasis mine)" This is probably a subject for private E-mail and it`s the last I`ll say unless you make further comment...but, there are many great religions and leaders who spoke much truth and most of them claimed to be "a Way to God." But as I studied, I found that Yeshua (Jesus)is the only One who said, "I am THE (emphasis mine) Way.......no man cometh to the Father but by ME (emphasis mine).St. John 14:6.
I`m a logical person and I decided that, just in case He IS THE WAY, one nano-second after I die, it will be too late to change my mind.
That was the beginning of my faith...A good book to read (because it rocks the boat of so much of man`s traditions about God)
is "The Shack". My favorite line is (Jesus speaking) "I did not come to make mankind 'Christian`...I came to make them children of God". Chow Chin, only you can decide if that`s what you want...and then, only you can decide what to believe. I was glad to share what I sincerely
believe with you. Forgive your friend...he/she means well...I just wish they were showing you more of the love of the ONE they believe in.

maria said...

Hi, c.c. and all

I am spooked , after correcting here and there i end up with 5A as HOOFF is that so ?

But then what do i know, i' m italian
lol

Dennis said...

Maria, it's "go off".

Anonymous said...

For 11D I would have liked to see "SHOW" in the clue. Maybe, Show time for batters or Big show for batters.

Frey said...

A quick puzzle...
@MARIA... 5D is GOONS and 5A is GOOFF.

Never heard of Annatto...

CC... with regard to religion... you might find some of the writings of Joseph Campbell interesting. The Power of Myth.. I think is one of his books. He spent his life researching, evaluating and comparing the various mythologies which man has believed. Interesting reading. Enough said :-)

And yes Joe Paterno should retire... spend his time as a grandfather and let younger people make their mark.

Anonymous said...

Maria: It is GO OFF for explode and GOONS for thugs. Took me a while too, and I'm not Italian.

Auntie Naomi said...

Good Morning C.C. and All,

This one took me 14:20.

Golf might be fun to play, but I can think of few things more boring than watching it on TV. Last year around the time of the Stanley Cup playoffs, Tiger Woods was asked who he thought would win. He said that he didn't care, that "nobody watches hockey anymore". What a jerk! Mike Milbury, former defenseman for the Boston Bruins, had some choice words for him.

The bailout stuff makes me want to puke. I say we add up all that money and distribute it among the taxpayers.

I am ambivalent about the clue, but you gotta love STREAKERS. They make life more interesting.

Alyssa Milano must be the prettiest rat there ever was.

C.C., if I may be so blunt, I think you need a new friend. All that fire-and-brimstone stuff is "psychic terrorism".
Speaking of fire, it sounds like your husband is playing with it.

Lois, for some kids school is the prison sentence. No doubt those kids think it is the teachers who are the goons.

Kitty B., no it was just for Rich and me. About three oçlock I got the idea for the lamb and ran off the BJ's wholesale club. I decided on the sweet potatoes and spinach while there.
I didn't much care for the ONUS clue, either.

Sallie, thanks for the Kale Soup recipe. Chorizo is another item that is easily available here in SoFL. Publix supermarkets carry about a half dozen kinds. You can get their own or others from Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Colombia, etc.

Dennis, funny Churchill quote. Kind of depressing, though.

carol said...

Good morning C.C. and all,
pretty easy one today, and again a different constructor. I did get snagged by 17A as I had never heard of either of those clues, had no idea they were golf courses. Got most of the problems solved by the crosses and perps, so I now have another puzzle to put in my "no Google" folder.

It is snowing here again, and while it is pretty, it sure messes up any plans for going out. I am trying to send it to Lois, but it isn't working ;)

Clear ayes, re yesterday's comment on lutefisk...yes, my grandmother was born and raised in Sweden. She was always telling us she would prepare lutefisk for us, but my folks somehow prevented that! I only found out many years later how awful that stuff smells. Still don't know how anyone can eat anything that smells putrid.

maria said...

Dennis, Frey and Sallie,
thanks for coming to the rescue
now every thing makes sense I' ll try to remember that baseball scores are not " ruds " but runs

Now i can go on happily the rest of the day
off to the gym

DoesItinInk said...

This was a relatively easy puzzle except for 33D “Lemieux milieu”. Never having heard of Mario Lemieux, I assumed the clue to be a misprint for “Le mieux milieu” which means “the best group” in French. But what does that have to do with ICE? So confusing to a sports know-nothing like me.

CANOPUS in Argos is the name of Doris Lessing’s science fiction series that began with the book Shikasta. Strange to think of Doris Lessing writing sci-fi, but she said that she wanted to reach a wider audience that might otherwise not read her books. I have all five volumes, but they remain unread. I just can not get beyond the sci-fi label. Likely my loss.

After a number of crossword puzzles clued on Lawrence Durrell and his Alexandrian quartet, I am now reading the first of the series Justine. It is definitely a challenging read, but one that will be made easier after Friday when I will have more time to read as I will be unemployed at that time.

Clear Ayes said...

Good Morning All, What a nice puzzle until the SE stopped me. I should have remembered AGAR and SORA, but didn't. I looked at -RAD for a long time and wound up going through the letters of the alphabet until "T" finally made sense. I definitely didn't know ANNATTO and finally had to "G" it.

Golf Addicted Husband's favorite pro is Phil Mickelson. Whenever Phil blows it, G.A.H. mopes around for a couple of hours.

JD asked me to link this yesterday, but I didn't read my email until too late. So even though it isn't Spouses Day, you'll be humming If You Want To Be Happy for the rest of today.

Joseph Campbell is very interesting, as is Man And His Symbols by Carl Jung. I try to keep in mind that we have a wide spectrum here, from evangelicals to atheists. Here's an interesting 2005 breakdown on world religions.

RE: Temptations, I have more than enough "stuff" to last me, so I don't covet things other people have. I definitely know that if I drink too much I will get a headache, so I don't do that. I quit smoking years ago and have no desire to go back. At 66 years old, I don't want any man other than my husband to see me naked (Yikes!), so infidelity is out. The only big temptation left is chocolate cake and I haven't quite overcome that one.

kazie said...

Doesitinink,
Sorry to read of your job loss. It's a good time to be retired, I guess.

PromiseMeThis,
I loved the streakers! Surprising to see a couple of females among them.

g8rmomx2 said...

Hi c.c. and everyone:

Pretty simple puzzle today! As Dennis said I got both canopus and annatto from the perps.

Kasie, Carol, Sallie, Kittyb: Thanks to all of you for your kind thoughts and to everyone else that I thanked previously.

Wolfman: Live and learn. I did not know pigtails were braided. However, when my girls were growing up I often put their hair in two ponytails, but not braided. If you google pigtails, many pictures come up that are not braided, and in Wikipedia I found this: In some regional usages of English, pigtails are considered synonymous with a symmetric pair of hair bunches, regardless of whether each "bunch" is braided or left loose. Anyway, that is what I always called them, but I do see that the original term as you said meant that they were braided.

Crockett1947 said...

Good morning, everyone. Forgot OMSK, did not know RENEES, CANOPUS and ANNATTO.

Like carol said, snowing once more here in PDX. It's supposed to be gone by this evening, but it's still falling and still below freezing. I'll bet the school officials are going nuts trying to decide what to do. All schools opened on time but the buses were on snow routes "as a precaution."

Have a fantastic Tuesday!!

Anonymous said...

C.C.
When water wil not GO DOWN the drain, the drain is STOPPED UP. This may be a way to remember it, although it is not a true explaination.
Calef.

Dennis said...

Just saw that John Updike died; a very big loss.

JD said...

Good morning C.C. and all,

Thanks Clear ayes for the link.

C.C., I thought the Venn diagram of the Blue Zones was very interesting.Also, I was not familiar with the name Jan Ian, just the voice.. nice to put the 2 together. I'm finding that I'm doing quite a bit of that on this blog.
I,ve come to the conclusion that I am not patient and "G" sooner than I should. Today I only looked up canopus and annatto, but probably could have stuck with it and filled them with perps. I remembered freon because each summer we needed to have some put in our car so the air conditioner would work.I spent lots of thinking time on 24D, 17A, and sora. Should I know that bird? I thought of rail, coot, duck...etc.

Promise, Now those are the streakers I remember! Cute clip!

Doesitinink, think of all the things you've been meaning to do and didn't have time.This is a scary time. So sorry.

Clear Ayes said...

I was sorry to hear about the death of John Updike. I have read several of his novels, but not enough. Not surprisingly, as is often the case with gifted writers, he was also a poet. I found this quote of his from The Witches of Eastwick, "We all dream, and we all stand aghast at the mouth of the caves of our deaths; and this is our way in. Into the nether world." It gives some insight to this poem -

Tossing and Turning

The spirit has infinite facets, but the body
confiningly few sides.
There is the left,
the right, the back, the belly, and tempting
in-betweens, northeasts and northwests,
that tip the heart and soon pinch circulation
in one or another arm.
Yet we turn each time
with fresh hope, believing that sleep
will visit us here, descending like an angel
down the angle our flesh’s sextant sets,
tilted toward that unreachable star
hung in the night between our eyebrows, whence
dreams and good luck flow.
Uncross
your ankles. Unclench your philosophy.
This bed was invented by others; know we go
to sleep less to rest than to participate
in the twists of another world.
This churning is our journey.
It ends,
can only end, around a corner
we do not know
we are turning.

Lemonade714 said...

Otto Graham was a quarterback for the Cleveland Browns when they began play in the old American Football conference after WWII. He was the winningest quarterback in the history of profootball

lois said...

CC: LOL You cracked me up. Holy Hotwick AND Holy Hot Fingers! I teach high school by day, piano by afternoons (but only as a hobby) and by night I go from bar to bar. Always have music tones in my ears (bell, keys, clinking of glass) and a song in my heart.

KittyB: You are the resident music teacher here, not I. I will always defer to you. Going from bar to bar with you would be a thrill! I'd love to do it. Email me. Yours didn't work for me.

Promise: You are sooo right about some kids viewing school as prison. They let it be known too...and it's always the teacher's fault. Nanny-cams would prove otherwise. But honestly, the majority of kids I know would renew your faith in the young.

G8rmom: I too wish your husband a speedy recovery. He's lucky to have you.

Carol: Maybe if you pulled a 'Dennis' out in the front yard, the snow would head this way.

Dennis: that is so sad about John Updike. It is a great loss. Thanks for the news.

WM said...

C.C. Thank you for the correction on the Year of the Ox dates. I thought I was year of the Ox and was confused.

Bit of a head scratching puzzle that I worked by jumping around until I had enough letters to make a good guess. Went to One-Across to confirm a few guesses and fill in a few holes.

Dennis...love your words of wisdom today and can definitely get on board with the chocolate cake idea.

g8rmomx2...I think the pigtail thing works either way. There is so much variation in word useage in this country, which makes it such an interesting language, that if you grew up using pigtail for unbraided gathering of hair...then it is correct. I sometime just have to look things up to see whether it agrees with what I think I know. This blog is so interesting because I keep learning things I never knew(or occasionally forgot). So much collective knowledge.

carol said...

Lois (at 1:32) LOL, if I "pulled a Dennis in my front yard" the snow wouldn't be the only thing that would head your way!!!

Clear Ayes said...

Buckeye, Just in case you stumble over here from the Barry Silk postings...TMS daily puzzle. BTW, I'm still laughing.

Auntie Naomi said...

It is so nice of you to share poems with us, ClearEyes. I passed yesterday's on to my in-laws, who are coming tomorrow. Sunday evening we had a conversation about doing dishes because our dishwasher had been broken since Christmas day. Although the repairman was due back on Monday, I had no confidence that the thing would be fixed. Marney said not to worry, that her and Bob do the dishes together all the time. She replied saying that she enjoyed the poem.

Lois, I did not mean to suggest that I have no faith in young people. I did say some kids. Many kids are terrific. Not to mention that, generally speaking, they are much better looking than the rest of us.

g8trmomx2, I have been remiss in not joining others in wishing your husband a speedy recovery. It sounds like his prognosis is good. May the two of you have many happy times ahead. :)

DoesItInk, I hope fate has something good in store for you. Sometimes things that seem so bad turn out to best thing that could have happened. The Cubanos down here have a saying, "No Hay Mal Que Por Bien No Venga", which means that "there is nothing bad out of which something good does not come."

WM said...

Doesltinlnk:
PromiseMeThis makes a good point with that terrific quote. Take time now think about what you would most like to do if you had the choice. Pursue that goal. I am a person who switched jobs all the time because I got bored or fed up. I realize things are tough right now and nothing we can say is hugely helpful...but think outside the box and re-invent yourself in the image you most like. Best of luck that your "time off" will be short.

Barry G. said...

One thing to remember about Chinese zodiacal years is that the Chinese New year does not start on January 1 and, in fact, moves around a bit every year (although it's always in either January or February, I believe). That's because it's based on the lunar calendar.

This has relevance if your birthday is toward the beginning of the year. My son was born on January 31, 2005, and was technically born in the year of the Monkey since the new year (the year of the Chicken) didn't begin until sometime in February that year. He's very proud to be a monkey (Curious George is his favorite cartoon), but he'll have to get used to going through life being told by Chinese restaurant place mats that he is "really" a chicken...

g8rmomx2 said...

Hi c.c. and all:

Lois and Promisemethis: Thanks for the thoughts. He is doing remarkably well for such a short time.

Wolfman: I agree with you that I too learn something on this blog daily. For instance I had no idea that pigtails were actually braids until you told me.

Auntie Naomi said...

re: A pen name for the constructor

Anagram's for 'Adele Mann' are:
Named Lane
Named Lean
Named Elan

Are there any XW constructors that go by any of those names?

WM said...

Uh...g8rmomx2...its actually Wolf Mom...Wolf is my last name and I am definitely a mom. My youngest daughter gave me the wolf_mom as an email address. Sorry

Auntie Naomi said...

hehehe

Thanks for the belly laugh.

Auntie Naomi said...

... for your pleasure, amusement or edification - the Wolfman.

Anonymous said...

doesitinink: I join in wishing you the best in job search if that is what you will be doing. And agree it's a good time to do all the things you want to do. I decided to quit teaching after about 35 years and hired a consultant. (Then became director of volunteers for the Denver Symphony – about the same pay.) But I could have saved my money and read "What Color Is Your Parachute". Same basic advice.

Jeannie said...

Jeannie checking in here really late...did the puzzle but got "hung up" on some and I didn't really want to look those up. I guess it just wasn't that important to me.

Month end to me means tying up loose ends and doing the accounting for my dept. I am happy to still have a job and doesitinink, my heart is out to you. I have a friend that just got laid off after 26 year of service, and is still kind of shell shocked. It's been her only job since high school!

Hey, I think we all need some chocolate cake. Clearayes...you got us covered? I am not a baker.

Jeannie said...

Sallie...the director of volunteers for the Denver Symphony; and you get paid? I love the Minneapolis Orchestra. I try to catch something they are playing in the TWC and surrounding areas about once every other month.

Martin said...

Yesterday, 15 minutes 43 seconds. Today, 18 minutes 12 seconds. Yesterday I only had seven unknowns but today there were too many to count: the worst was ANNATTO for which I had no idea and simply typed the letters A, N and T until the letters turned black. That's cheating, isn't it?

I wanted BREW for "Beer choice". I won't tell you what came to mind when I read "Ready and willing partner" except to say that ABLE was a dispointing fill.

I watched American Idol last week and one of the contestants said that he liked studying physics and Chinese and downloading videos from youtube. Ryan Seacrest described him as a "NERD". Excuse me? Does everybody who fits that profile qualify as a NERD?

I just did a google search and found out that the Jewish New Year is on Sept. 18th this year. Two weeks later, Chinese people celebrate their Mid Autumn Festival, which is actually in the middle of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar. Does that mean that the Jewish New Year also corresponds to the beginning of the eighth month of the Chinese calendar? The Jewish festival passover starts on the 9th of April this year and that would be the middle of the seventh month on the Jewish calendar (and the third month of the Chinese calendar). Here's a lunar/solar conversion calendar.

Martin

Martin said...

Linda,

The idea that you should believe in God JUST IN CASE it is true is known as "Pascal's Wager". Pascal is known to solvers here because PASCAL'S TRIANGLE was once a theme fill. How ironic that a mathematician would base his faith on what he considered the probability of God's existance to be.

Martin

Martin said...

I should probably say I'm not Jewish: I googled the date of the Jewish New Year because the Chinese New Year was two days ago.

I did the Wednesday puzzle already: 17 minutes, 43 seconds. I got the theme early and that helped.

Martin

WM said...

PromiseMeThis...Thanks for the Wolfman/Journey link...I'm old enough to remember when that was cool and Wolfman was groovey!

JesseU said...

I take objection to "botanic"... I think botanical is better

snatchbeast said...

The main reason I know of "olla" is from these crosswords. Earthenware pot/vessel/cookware, etc.

I wanted nude for streaking, just like democrat.

And CC, I wouldn't worry too much about Hell. As long as you don't believe in Hell either I think you're safe. I feel safe, at least.