google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday January 4, 2010 Gail Grabowski

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Jan 4, 2010

Monday January 4, 2010 Gail Grabowski

Theme: "There Oughta be a __"

17A: *Sound and practical judgment: COMMON SENSE.

36A: *Cops' sickout: BLUE FLU.

58A: *Karate and aikido: MARTIAL ARTS.

11D: *Iced tea garnish: LEMON PEEL.

31D: *Analytical write-up: CASE STUDY.

And tying them all together: 59D: A kind of it begins the answers to starred clues: LAW. Quite a heavy theme for a Monday. The puzzle theme concept is quite similar to Jack McInturff's "Rule" puzzle we had last March.

Argyle here. "COMMON SENSE" is on Jazzbumpa's required reading list. COMMON LAW is the system of laws originated and developed in England and based on court decisions, on the doctrines implicit in those decisions, and on customs and usages rather than on codified written laws.

"BLUE FLU", so called from the officers' blue uniforms. Called the Taylor Law in NY, many police departments are prohibited from going on strike, so they call in sick en masse. BLUE LAWS are statutes regulating work, commerce, and amusements on Sundays. According to Snopes article they were not related to the color blue.

"MARTIAL ARTS" encompass fighting without the use of weapons. MARTIAL LAW is enforced by a military force(and they will use weapons.)

"LEMON PEEL" A bit inaccuracy there; all the pictures of iced tea show a lemon slice. If you want a peel, get a mixed drink. LEMON LAWS force a dealer to take back a car if it proves to be defective.

"CASE STUDY" Pretty much what the clue said. CASE LAW is law established by judicial decisions. Often CASE LAW citings are interpretations of a law not covered by statue.

Phew! Time for a musical interlude. 1A: Bluegrass instrument: BANJO "Fireball Mail"

Across:

6A: Tearoom biscuit: SCONE.

14A: WWII threat: U-BOAT.

16A: Outback sprinter: EMU. Average cruising speed is around 45 kph.

19A: Trio in a nursery rhyme tub: MEN. And who do you think they be? The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker.

21A: Honshu metropolis: OSAKA. Osaka is on the island of Honshu. (Japan)

22A: Half-baked twice?: DONE. but baking 46D: It might be half-baked: IDEA. twice won't make it better.

23A: 1970s Mary Tyler Moore costar: ED ASNER. Full name in both clue and answer.

25A: E-mails: SENDS.

26A: Pigeon patter: COOS. and 61A: Clay pigeon sport: SKEET.

27A: Ready in the keg: ON TAP.

32A: Food preparers' headgear: HAIR NETS. Plural prepairers.

35A: Letters before a 15-Across: AKA. (Also Known As).

40A: Quit worrying: REST EASY.

42A: Barely passing grade: D-PLUS.

45A: Place to fish from: PIER.

47A: Fiery felony: ARSON. This is an easy Monday clue.

49A: Like some lettuce: RED LEAF.

53A: Present, as one's case: STATE. A law tie-in?

55A: Pirates roam them: SEAS. They were lawless.

60A: One on foot, in signs: PED.

65A: Garden intruders: WEEDS.

Down:

1D: Tampa NFLers: BUCS Football.

2D: Dry as __: A BONE.

4D: Crowd to capacity: JAMPACK.

5D: Nebraska native: OTO. Also, Otoe.

8D: Sound like a pig: OINK.

12D: Modify: AMEND.

13D: Mojave hills: DUNES. Mojave desert.

18D: Verboten act: NO-NO.

22D: University VIP: DEAN.

24D: Protein-rich legume: SOY BEAN.

25D: German dessert: STRUDEL.

29D: It’s two more than an eagle: PAR. Golf.

30D: 1950s White House nickname: IKE. Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower, our 34th President.

32D: "You, over there!": "HEY!".

33D: Capote, familiarly: TRU.

38D: Purpose: USE.

41D: Homer chronicled its destruction: TROY.

43D: Event for special customers: PRESALE.

48D: More boorish: RUDER.

49D: Lenders' charges: RATES.

50D: Lofty lair: AERIE.

54D: Peach or beech: TREE. Good rhyme.

58D: Flavor-enhancing additive: MSG. Monosodium glutamate.

Answer grid,

Argyle

77 comments:

  1. Morning, all!

    I'd just like to say how wonderful it is to be back at work after a 2-week vacation. Ayup, that's what I'd like to say....

    Nice puzzle today. I'll just echo Argyle comment about LEMON PEEL being a garnish for iced tea. I suspected that's what the clue wanted, but I resisted the last four letters until the bitter end hoping to be proved wrong. The sad thing is that there was no need to clue it that way. Ah well...

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  2. Argyle,
    Totally agree with you and Barry G on LEMON PEEL. Nice observation on the tie-in STATE clue, but I am not really fond of the "case" and CASE duplication. Otherwise, a wonderful puzzle and wonderful blogging. Awesome explanation on those theme answers.

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  3. HELLO ALL:

    Back to normal; CASE LAW often interprets statutes, since our lawmakers are not always precise in their language. STARE DECISIS is the principal by which judges are obligated to follow earlier decisons.

    Have a wonderful week

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  4. Good Morning Argyle and All,

    A steady cruise this morning finishing with no help. Besides Lemon Peel, I didn't agree with D-Plus as a barely passing grade. D-minus was squeaking by in my school days.

    Finally stopped snowing and now its warm enough to rain.

    Have a great day!

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  5. Morning, All. I've been in remote patagonia for the past several weeks and haven't had computer access. I'm in Buenos Aries for a few more days before returning to the daily puzzles again. Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and all the best for 2010.

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  6. Hahtool,
    I am so happy to hear from you again. Was just asking Clear Ayes/Kazie if you had any traveling plan for the holidays. Happy New Year! And I look forward to your return.

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  7. Good morning Argyle and All, a typical Monday solve. Non stop fills and a little bit boring, but maybe I needed this one after all of the crashes and burns of last week.

    I guess I did not have much of a problem with 11D, lemon peel. As soon as I saw the clue I saw the lemon in the tea although it was not the peel it was enough to give an easy fill.

    Another cold day here with the high in the low 20’s and medium winds. BRRRR!

    Hope you all have a great Monday and a great New Year!!

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  8. Good morning,
    Thanks, Argyle, for the explanations of all the LAW theme clues. I would never have gotten the theme without 59D. I liked the novel clue "half-baked twice" for done.

    Enjoy the day!

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  9. Good morning all

    An easy Monday puzzle. Fills came quickly.

    14A: had abomb briefly until UBOAT loomed.

    STRUDEL: Always thought it was Austrian. Read years ago that the concept was brought by the Turks when attacking Vienna in the 1600's. Possible a 'cousin' of baklava?

    TROY: could have been clued as a city south of Argyle:-)

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  10. Nice and easy today, though I'd not heard of BLUE FLU/LAW, OTO or BUCS, and I wondered about 29D--does that mean that an eagle is two under PAR? They all fell in with perps though, so no worries.

    The lemon peel clue didn't bother me because I always have black tea with milk, so hadn't really thought about what it looks like with lemon in it. I thought of TWIST at first but it wouldn't fit, so I waited for some perps to see where it would go. If I drink other kinds of tea, I wouldn't want to change their flavor with lemon.

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  11. Usual easy Monday puzzle. 11 minutes. No help.

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  12. Love the folksy, unpretentious tone in this blog.

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  13. Good Morning All, A very nice Monday theme that is tied to the LAW, just enough to make it interesting, but not too easy.

    Nice information on Stare Decisis, Lemonade714. Just enough to help us understand, but not TOO lawyerly for us non-attorneys.

    Silly me, but all I could think of for "Bluegrass instument" was FIDDLE, MANDOLIN, DULCIMER...D'oh! All too long. When in doubt, try to have some COMMON SENSE, so I went to the Downs and figured it out pretty quickly.

    Whenever I see "Pirates roaming the SEAS", I think of With Cat-Like Tread from The Pirates of Penzance. Such a funny song, with the pirates singing at the top of their lungs. This one has the bonus of a mighty sexy Kevin Kline as The Pirate King.

    Glad to see Hahtool checking in. I think she did say she was headed for Patagonia a while back. I forgot...such a noodlehead!

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  14. Hi C.C., Argyle, et al.

    Kind of tough for a Monday, I think. It took me awhile to figure out the "half-baked twice?" clue. Very clever.

    I had the same hesitation with LEMON PEEL and DPLUS. For the latter, how about a clue like "Ample sample" (for bra cup size)?

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  15. Isaac Newton on Google logo with dropping Apple. Today is birthday of Newton.

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  16. First one I've done in several days. I'm wearing one of those wrist braces, so writing is not quite so painful, but it is slow. Even slower to type.

    Easy puzzle. I got into trouble in SE by confidently writing in "self defense" at 58A. Perps showed me the error of my ways.

    My favorite clue was "half-baked twice." A "half-baked" idea twice might qualify it as "done" as in "over and done with."

    I don't like lemon peel or slice or wedge in my tea at a restaurant because I saw a piece (on 20/20, I think) about it being one of the nastiest things a restaurant does. I always ask for "no lemon, please" in my iced tea, but I know they just take it out with their (dirty?) fingers and serve the tea.

    It has been mid-20ºs here for a few days. I haven't had to get out; hubby went to the store for me yesterday.

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  17. nice puzzle today It was easy for a change of pace or I seemed to know more correct answers w/o getting stuck.

    Fun Facts:

    The Bible, the world’s best-selling book, is also the world’s most shoplifted book.

    The animal responsible for the most human deaths worldwide is the mosquito.

    The word “pornography” comes from the Greek meaning the “writings of prostitutes.”

    To quote Johnny Carson, "I did not know that!?!?!"

    And Finally......

    The name for Oz in “The Wizard of Oz” was thought up when the creator, Frank Baum, looked at his filing cabinet and saw A-N, and O-Z, hence “Oz.”

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  18. Hi Argyle, C.C. and friends:

    Really easy one today. Don't know how long it took me but I enjoyed it.

    Blue Laws are fun to read about and some were in force in grocery stores as late as the 60's and maybe early 70's. No fresh meat could be purchased, only 'cured' meats. Beer and wine fell under those laws. Liquor stores (in Oregon) were closed. I am sure there were many more examples but that is all I can conjure up.

    Remember when ALL department stores closed at 5:30 on weekdays (except Friday, when they were open until 9:00)? They were never open on Sunday
    Some stores had 'Friday Surprise' sales where I swear women would be crushed grabbing stuff off tables and fighting over things. Ah, the good ol' days :)

    I love a slice of lemon in my iced tea but do not put anything in my hot tea.
    I have never been served a glass of iced tea with a garnish of lemon peel.

    I have heard of what DCannon said about restaurants and lemon peels/slices. One of those things that 'make you go YUK'!

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  19. Well this one was certainly easy for me. Since I do the across clues first I had boat for pier. But the perps helped straighten that out. My favorite clue today was pigeon patter: coos. Not much more to comment on the puzzle. Still very, very cold here (something below zero) just trying to keep warm.

    Democrat thanks for the interesting facts.

    Counselor, thank you for the legalize….

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  20. About time someone takes up the slacks on Fun Fact.

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  21. Nice to be back (out of the hospital again--pneumonia). For the first time today I was able to complete a puzzle with no help. You guys are awesome teachers.

    Doreen

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  22. Doreen,

    Good to see you back and out of the hospital. Hope the recovery goes quickly.

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  23. Hi gang -

    Doreen - welcome back. Keep safe the rest of the winter.

    Anon - we are unpretentious folk.

    Argyle - especially great, albeit unpretentious, job today.

    DCannon - one more reason not to watch 20/20.

    I think "The Wizard of An" would have been much less fun.

    Heavy themage today, sure, but still a rather bland puzzle. Maybe the sparkle comes from more difficult/clever cluing. This one was workman-like, with no glaring flaws, but still a bit short on the fun factor.

    Guess I'm just PICKY.

    I am no fan of country music, but I do appreciate some fine BANJO pickin'.

    Well DUTY calls. I want COOS, not a D PLUS from the LW, so it's back to the chores.

    Cheers!
    JzB the hard working* trombonist

    *kinda, sorta

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  24. Good morning Argyle, CC, et al., Great job, Argyle. Thank you for the bluegrass link. Love that stuff!

    Fun puzzle and felt as tho' it was singing my song...banjo and all... esp with Fireball 'Males' -like the Beefeaters and Bobbies in London, not to mention even a mime dressed as a knight in silver armor (wait for it...) giving a whole new dimension to 'silent knight'... and oh, what a knight! I'll share a fun photo as soon as I can. CA, I know why you were jealous now. I'd go back in a heartbeat. Carol, you listening?

    I gotta go. Barry G...LOL at your post.

    I'm terribly sad about Dan Naddor. My most heartfelt sympathies to his family and friends, esp Jerome.

    TTYL

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  25. C.C., haven't been on this site for over a year. Saw some familiar names: Argyle, Clear Ayes, Barry G., Lois. Lots of new ones, at least new to me. But where is Dennis? I remember his post always being first.

    Best wishes to all for the new year. Hoping and praying this one will be better than 2009, but afraid to dream.

    Kit

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  26. Kit,
    Dennis is on vacation, lolling in the sun somewhere out of internet reach, I think.

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  27. Let us all hope that restaurant workers wash their hands often. After all, the chefs, cooks and wait staff are all in the kitchen with their bare hands on a lot of food.

    Maybe a few bacteria is a good thing. Did anyone read a news article about how Norway is giving patients fewer antibiotics and not scrubbing away every speck of dust. Their hospital infection rates are going way down. Aparently the little bugs aren't mutating with as much enthusiasm any more and are easier to kill when the need is really there.

    Anon@11:46 @ Kit, Dennis will be back soon with amazing and (I'm sure, sometimes unbelievable) Fun Facts and WOW's.

    Lois, tell all, or at least as much as can be written on a semi-family-friendly blog.

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  28. Good afternoon, everyone!

    Argyle, nice write-up on the first Monday puzzle of the new decade. I think I could tell from your writing that you weren't overly impressed with anything except the theme answers. Same here.

    @spitzboov I also thought we might have a bomb lurking there, but the perps gave me UBOAT fairly quickly.

    @kazie Yes, an eagle is -2, and a double eagle is -3. Not many of the latter on scorecards.

    @jimmyb ROFLOL

    @dcannon and doreen Hope you both feel better soon!

    @lois Glad to see you back on this side of the pond. Sound like you had a loverly time!

    @kit Dennis is in Florida, where it is unseasonably cool, probably much to his chagrin.

    @jeannie Good to see you back on the blog. Everything copacetic?

    Have a great 4th!

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  29. Good afternoon all.

    There is not much to say about today's puzzle. Straight forward and pretty easy. I was on a speed run at 2AM this morning.

    There is a pretty interesting photo
    at: http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod.
    Check it out if you have a chance.

    eddyB

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  30. A good Monday puzzle, and thanks for all the explanations Argyle. This time I got all the theme answers and then had to look at the LAW to figure out what it all meant. Funny how some days the theme helps you finish the puzzle, others the finished puzzle lets you understand the theme.

    I am in total agreement on the LEMON PEEL. I like a "twist" in my vodka martini, but never see anything but a wedge or slice in tea. However, the bartenders are getting lazy and grabbing that wedge for martinis now, and it reallllllly annoys me. Never would that have happened when I bartended.

    Dick, I have no sympathy for your weather woes. We woke to -20 this am.

    I have had quite the day. Had to have the dead car towed (it actually went dead Christmas day, but didn't want to deal with it until we returned home) as well as someone out to thaw the frozen water line. Thankfully we didn't have anything burst, and it only affected the laundry room (shucks, I couldn't do laundry this weekend). Had a sleepless night worrying about it as well as waking with the migraine coming on. Thank goodness for great meds!

    RedState, I don't know whether it is sad or hopeful that people steal bibles.

    Doreen, welcome home. I hope the recovery keeps going forward.

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  31. @eddyb Thanks for sharing the photo. Yes, that is amazing!

    @kq BRRRRRRRRRRRRRR I hope you day improves tremendously.

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  32. Quick hi...easy puzzle no problems,and agree with Argyle on LEMON PEEL...in ice tea...EWWWW! And I would definitely never try to mix lemon in tea with milk as the citric acid would curdle the milk. I wouldn't worry terribly about asking for no lemon or lemon on the side in a decent restaurant. They don't pre-fill random glasses with lemon slices in case someone wants iced tea...I would be more concerned about all the fast food joints and places where you serve your own drinks that have lemon wedges sitting in tubs by the tea...now THAT is icky making. Most decent restaurants have pretty good kitchen practices or they wouldn't stay in business. I also like CA' info on the Norway trials...makes a lot of sense. Too much disinfectant mutates bugs.

    Just a good, pretty straightforward Monday puzzle...still messing around with Sunday's so didn't read the blog...

    Argyle, great write up, you are definitely getting very good at this...:o)

    Cold clear and still no rain in sight. I hope something starts happening or we are in for a very dry and dangerous summer.

    Take care all.

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  33. KQ: Is that before or after the wind chill factor...????!!!

    Our office temp was 69 this morning and we were all complaining! And yes, the temp in South Florida is expected to be near freezing tonight, before wind chill, I think. Sorry, Dennis! No sunning on the beach, riding wave runners, eating at outdoor cafes, etc. for you this week.

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  34. Lois my friend, yes, I am listening! I will get a passport this afternoon..:)
    How about an ocean voyage instead of flying??? I dislike the thought of wearing adult diapers for the last hour of the flight :)


    CA...I agree with you on the sterilization of EVERYTHING. Too many antibacterial products used and although some are practical, most are not. Doctors that prescribe them for every little thing are doing their patients no favors. When a dire infection sneaks its way into you, antibiotics will not work nearly as well.

    As for having Lois 'tell all'...LOL, I cannot imagine that even SHE could put it into words suitable for this blog.
    You know our Lois! Love 'em and leave 'em.

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  35. Regarding lemon in iced tea, I've taken to ordering Arnold Palmers, half iced tea and half lemonade. I like the sweet, lemony taste better than straight tea.

    ~ Bill

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  36. Annette -before wind chill, however, it thankfully is a sunny not windy day. For some reason, it didn't seem terribly cold today. Interesting as I just returned from San Diego, so you would think I would feel even colder. Maybe its all the other bad stuff that makes that dim in comparison.

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  37. @CA, et al, about the germ theory. I, too, believe we may sterilize ourselves out of existence. However, it is the "ewwwww" factor for me, not a rational decision.

    Maybe I sould drink only hot tea - I take milk with it.

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  38. C.A. -

    Norway also has the world's lowest murder rate. What we have here is a complex plot for aged Norwegians to eventually take over the world.

    As this will take some time, they are also busy contaminating everyone else's lemons.

    I was going to make a comment about when our office temp was 69, but thought better of it.

    Cheers!
    JzB the relatively cool trombonist

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  39. Nice easy puzzle after Saturday's disaster.

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  40. DCannon, I understand completely. Everyone has their own "ick" line that they don't want crossed. Eating and/or drinking at any restaurant is always a leap of faith.

    Jazzbumpa, Nwahaha....and I thought it was those diabolical Swedes. Isn't that right PJB?

    Speaking of the Scandanavians, GAH and I are headed over to the Norwegian/Swedish cousins' house for dinner this evening. We'll all be plotting after the herring and potatoes, and of course we'll be sorting out a mountain of lemons after that.

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  41. Hello All--A straightforward, easy Monday puzzle. No Google help for me, but loved the apple falling from the tree when I called up the Internet today.

    Argyle: Thanks for the law lesson in language we can all understand.

    Lois, Good to see you back, and Hatool, what a spectacular sounding trip you've had.

    Doreen, heal fast and keep healthy the rest of 2010.

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  42. Hi Argyle, C.C. & gang, we also started out with a-bomb but quickly changed it to u-boat after non of the perp's fit. We easily finished it before my wife left for work.

    I was very sad to hear of Dan Naddor's passing, we'll miss his puzzles sorely I'm certain but it appears that he had some more in the puzzle pipeline? We'll have to wait and see.

    Here's an inside view of a U-Boat

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  43. Clear Ayes, I don't think I have much of an 'ick' line. I drink tap water, eat confidently at restaurants, occasionally eat something I dropped on the floor and I sit on relatively clean and dry public toilets seats when necessary. I don't use hand sanitizers. I try to catch indoor spiders alive and move them outside if possible.

    ~ Bill G.

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  44. Good evening Argyle, CC and all,

    Welcome back Lois,Hahtool and Kit.

    Doreen,stay warm. Have you ever had a pneumonia shot? I'm wondering if they really work.

    Thanks for FF's, RSDem.

    KQ, I cannot imagine a -20!!!

    Carol, I agree with you on the over use of anti bacterial products, esp. the hand soap.The studies I've read say that we should be exposed to a certain amt. of bacteria.

    After reading about blue laws on Wiki-p, I see that many states still do not allow car sales on Sunday.Does that have any logic to any of you?

    Very enjoyable c/w. Unfortunately,we are as dry as a bone in CA. Paused when filling in D plus.Laughed at "verboten act."

    Take care of that arm, DCannon.

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  45. Bill G. -

    You are my hero, but not my roll model. I don't think we'll be shaking hands any time soon.

    Cheers!
    JzB the clean-hands trombonist

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  46. @JD, we are not allowed to sell cars on Sunday in Pennsylvania on Sunday. Blue laws is a bunch of sh**. Everyone goes out of state and still spends their money.

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  47. Go Broncos or Go Horned Frogs.........both undefeated, I think I will go for the animal I like......

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  48. Jazz, I wash my hand with soap and water but think sanitizer is overkill. I might use it if you lend me your trombone mouthpiece though. :>)

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  49. DCannon - Hope your arm heals quickly..no fun to be in pain.

    Doreen - Stay well now :)

    Hatool - sounds like you are in a very pretty place.

    Bill G - I admire your 'spartan' attitude towards the fight against germs/bacteria but even I will use antibacterial wipes on grocery shopping carts. I usually just wash my hand a LOT. Reasonable precaution is just that.

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  50. Look germs and bacteria are overrated. Just wash with regular soap and water. Don't get nuts and for god sake don't request an antibiotic when ever you feel a little "cold" coming on. Fevers are different however.....

    enough said by so many........

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  51. Jazzbumpa: LOL - I must be slipping. I didn't even realize what temp. I'd written. I was still cringing from listening to the guy reading the 4 inch tall, paper thermostat trying to decide what to call it, because "It's less than 70, but not 68 or 69. The bar's UNDER the 70, but really close..."

    All we knew or cared about was that it was cold sitting there all day, and I was tempted to put on gloves while I typed!

    I think he's a frustrated weatherman wanna-be.

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  52. I am checking in because I'm tired of being a lurker all these long months. This is my first attempt at entering the Crossword Corner community, or of being any sort of blogger, and I feel a bit intimidated.

    Dan Naddor's death and the genuine feeling of loss which I felt made me realize how fond I have become of the great group of people I eavesdrop upon daily, and the joy I feel when I solve the daily puzzle.

    So I plan to add my smartass two cents every once in a while. And I sure don't want to be Anon.

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  53. Good Lord! I've messed up already!

    Meant to use MPK as my ID on the blog, and it ended up with my whole enormous complete full name.

    Quelle domage!

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  54. Welcome aboard Mary Patricia Kelly - aka MPK

    Looking forward to your erudite musings.

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  55. MPK, I'm a relative newcomer but welcome. I look forward to hearing from you. Much better than anon. for sure.

    ~ Bill G.

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  56. Wow! Replies from two of my very favorite folks in the space of a nanosecond!. Do I feel hugged or what!!!!

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  57. MPK, welcome. It is about time you chimed in. Don't ever feel nervous about speaking your mind. We love to hear from everyone.

    BillG, I am with you totally on the germ thing. I do lots of hand washing, but no antibacterial stuff.

    I remember years ago seeing Kevin Kline speaking about having his third child. They asked him how he was different with #3. His answer: With the first if the pacifier dropped I sterilized it. With the second I ran it under the faucet. With the third I let the dog lick it. Who knows, the third may be the healthiest.

    Warren, the Chicago Field Museum has a U-boat that you can walk through. The films that go with the exhibit are awesome. The film showing them getting it in the museum is almost better. Worth a trip to see IMO.

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  58. KQ said: "BillG, I am with you totally on the germ thing. I do lots of hand washing, but no antibacterial stuff."

    I was amazed to hear several of the intelligent women of "The View" say that they were proud of having learned the ability to squat above a toilet seat without actually sitting on it. I'm sure that it is fairly common but it seems to be a case of where the 'ick' factor overrides common sense and scientific evidence.

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  59. Hey MPK, I've got to ask how I was able to become one of your favorite folks? Looking for an ego massage I guess. :>)

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  60. Bill G. and KQ -

    I'm not sure of the protocol, but both of you have addressed issues in which I am truly interested. I am not sure if they should be discussed on this forum, or if I could email either/both of you about them.

    ?????

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  61. Good evening everyone.
    DCannon, my DH & I sat at the counter of one of our favorite diners, and I watched them, ungloved, put lemon in everyone's water glasses. I don't like lemon slices either, especially since I watched that.
    Glad you're improved enough to do some typing.

    Welcome back, Doreen. Glad you're on the mend.

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  62. MPK - Welcome! Glad you want to join this wonderful bunch of bloggers! We always welcome GOOD smart-assed remarks (anons being the exception(s)..their remarks are usually just asinine)

    KQ (9:51) LOL on the Kevin Kline info. Ain't it the truth?!

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  63. Hello and Welcome Mary Patricia Kelly,
    I'm not going to make the same mistake I made yesterday with Susie. I had to sing her a song, and I don't know any songs right off that would be suitable for Mary Patricia Kelly. Well, there was that Del Shannon tune "Hats off to Larry", and the B side was "Kelly", which is why I named my son that, but that's another story, and anyway, you look much too young in your profile picture to remember that. So I'd better just be on my best behavior and say again, welcome. Tell us about yourself.

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  64. I would rather a waitress (who has washed her hands) put lemon in my water than require waitresses to wear gloves. Reused gloves can be dirty too. If I went to a restaurant where the waitpeople had to wear latex gloves, I would switch restaurants.

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  65. MPK -

    Welcome. Come on in, the blogging's fine.

    Bill G. -

    You can use my mouthpiece, but only if you'll lend me your chapstick.

    Annette -

    I wanted to be a numerologist, but it was too cold.

    Cheers!
    JzB the lippy trombonist

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  66. That squatting technique was drilled into us by our mothers. I'm not sure if it was "crabs" or what we were going to get from a public restroom.My mom was so serious about it...kind of like those bomb drills under the desks.Life was scary, but we drank out of the hose, and rarely wore shoes.

    Welcome mpk; you are one of us already!

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  67. I can not believe that I have heard from so many of my blog idols in such a short span of time. WOW.

    And thank you all.

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  68. JD said: "That squatting technique was drilled into us by our mothers. I'm not sure if it was "crabs" or what we were going to get from a public restroom.My mom was so serious about it...kind of like those bomb drills under the desks.Life was scary, but we drank out of the hose, and rarely wore shoes."

    Right. But how many of you got "crabs" or anything else? But, you still do it. My wife doesn't do it, don't know about my daughter. My son has stopped up our toilet several times because he uses pounds of toilet paper. WTF?

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  69. There are other things you can get from sitting on a public toilet besides germs. Small children leave pin worms (sometimes grown-ups do too) and any human can deposit scabies. Scabies is a perfectly horrible parasite which causes you agony from itching...and it can spread all over you!
    If you must sit, line it with paper or a paper seat cover they may provide. Just don`t do what my sister did and "catch" it in the waist of your slacks and parade out with it showing!

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  70. Well, dinner is over, the lemons are sorted, sliced, ready to ship out to your local Applebee's, and the Norwegians are set to take over the world. Their neighbors, the Swedes (don't forget my heritage) are their right hand people and usually cousins.

    I do use the paper potty sheets in the ladies rooms (if I didn't sit, I'd fall over) and use sanitizer wipes on shopping cart bars. Other than that, general soap and water handwashing. When we eat out, I throw caution to the winds and trust that the prep people are just washed their hands too. Que sera, sera.

    Hi MPK, if Windhover is on his best behavior, you are in the catbird seat!

    Take care of yourselves, DCannon, Dot, Fermatprime, EddyB and all.

    Hope things are going better, Jeannie.

    Lots of night owls here tonight.

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  71. Anon said: Scabies is a perfectly horrible parasite which causes you agony from itching...and it can spread all over you!

    Yeah, it sounds dreadful. I've never gotten it and neither has anyone else I know. Why do so many of us worry about what might happen so infreguently?

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  72. Come back, Mary Patricia,
    First you were Mary Patricia Kelly, then MPK, now only M. What's next, n? You're slipping away.

    CA:
    Thanks again, darlin'. I'm working on your song.
    I'm off to bed, but like PJB waiting for his trains, I often have to tend the wood stove in the small hours, and it's 13 degrees here tonight. I may check back in to see if MPK went back down the rabbit hole with Alice and Susie.

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  73. Susie,
    Please come back. All is forgiven. It's gonna be a damn good decade here on the blog, and you have naming rights. Seriously

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  74. I saw someone named the previous decade the Oh-Oh decade.

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  75. I never use the potty seat covers, and have never caught anything on any of three continents. I usually don't use hand sanitizer either. One exception, when I had a cold recently, I used it all the time to avoid infecting anyone else.

    Welcome back Doreen--glad to hear you're on the mend. May it continue.

    Welcome to our pack, mpk. I notice your signature has diminished with each post--don't let that continue, or we'll lose you!

    I always get back here too late at night to hope many will see my post, but that's what I get for falling asleep in front of the movie I was watching. Good night all!

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  76. the over use of antibacterial soaps can cause skin to become dry and cracked to where you have to re moisturize with lotion which I hate because I have never found one that wasn't too oily or greasy or had a fragrance.

    My thanks to all who liked the fun facts. Dennis will return soon and he will carry on but I thought we could all use something to make us laugh or go hmmm I figured lets start off the new decade laughing.

    To the blogger who mentioned stealing the Bible, if it turns the persons life around I guess it isn't a bad thing if they offer some money to the Gideons to buy more Bibles. My family used to own a motel and the one thing that was always replaced in the room was the Bible.

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  77. BillG, again, the post limit is still 5, not 9.

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