Theme: Rotogravure Easter connection. Did you find you picture in the Rotogravure wearing your Easter bonnet in the Easter Parade?
17A Hockey attempt that only the goalie is allowed to try to stop: PENALTY SHOT
29A Overall perspective: BIG PICTURE
47A Crisp cookie: GINGER SNAP
59A Narrow victory, or a feature of 17-, 29- and 47-Across: PHOTO FINISH. The finish of the above three entries is a synonym of PHOTO.
Argyle here. My take on the theme is that it is a little weak. Dictionary.com does show SNAP as a noun, a shortened version of SNAPSHOT but the same could be said about SHOT. Oh well, it's only a Monday and I hope every one is OK after the shaking they got.
Across:
1A Noun followers, often: VERBS
6A Marinara sauce brand: PREGO
11A Was introduced to: MET
14A Tusk material: IVORY
15A "The Ant and the Grasshopper" author: AESOP. Fable.
16A Lennon's widow: ONO
19A Eerie: ODD. Not a good pairing.
20A Ancient Athens foe: SPARTA
21A On the ocean: ASEA
22A Windpipe: TRACHEA
25A Stormy day topper: RAIN HAT. Or bonnet.
28A __-Rooter: ROTO
31A Punk rock offshoot: EMO. Songs of teenage angst?
32A Firefighter's tool: HOSE
33A Hannah Montana's channel, in TV listings: DIS. The Disney Channel.
34A Buzzing instrument: KAZOO
36A Aliens, briefly: ETS
38A Stretchy synthetic: LYCRA. And 53A Waterproof fabric: GORETEX.
42A Rise and fall: BOB
44A __-bitsy: ITSY
46A Trendy: HIP
51A Five-time A.L. batting champ Boggs: WADE
52A 1955 Platters hit: "ONLY YOU". Clip.
55A Daybreak: DAWN
56A Become extinct: DIE OUT
58A Have a balance: OWE
64A "That __ close!": WAS
66A Like some barrels: OAKEN
66A Gymnast Comaneci: NADIA. She was the first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10 in an Olympic gymnastic event(1976 Summer Olympics). She married Bart Conner, also a gymnast, and have a son named Dylan Paul Conner, and are living in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
67A Manhattan-based paper: Abbr.: NYT. New York Times.
68A Feather: PLUME
69A Involuntary contraction: SPASM
Down:
1D Celebrity, briefly: VIP
2D Adam's partner: EVE
3D Harry's pal Weasley: RON. Harry Potter of Hogwarts.
4D "Donnie __": Johnny Depp film: BRASCO. A 1997 film loosely based on the real-life events of Joseph D. Pistone, an FBI agent who successfully infiltrated the Bonanno crime family. DVD cover.
5D Graceful woman: SYLPH. Originally referring to any race of spirits inhabiting the air, described as being mortal but lacking a soul. Paracelsus' word seems to be an arbitrary coinage, but perhaps it holds a suggestion of L. sylva and Gk. nymph. The meaning "slender, graceful girl" first recorded 1838, on the notion of "light, airy movements." Online Etymology Dictionary
6D Worker's reward: PAY RAISE
7D Take it easy: REST
8D F's musical equivalent: E SHARP Is this a good clue?
9D Sticky stuff: GOO
10D Choose (to): OPT
11D __ pork: Chinese dish served with thin pancakes: MOO SHU
12D Win the love of: ENDEAR
13D So far: TO DATE
18D Workout regimen: TAE BO. The name Tae Bo is a portmanteau of tae kwon do and boxing. Developed by Billy Blanks, Tae-Bo is a trademark of Billy Blanks Enterprises.
21D Nervous: ANTSY
22D Wearying journey: TREK
23D Italia's capital: ROMA. When in Italia, spell it as the Romans do.
24D From __: completely: A TO Z
26D Lend a hand: AID
27D How a persona non grata might be greeted: ICILY
30D Arrive: GET IN
32D Balderdash: HOOEY
35D Delivery doc: OB/GYN
37D Beginning phase: STAGE ONE
39D Online dialogue: CHAT
40D Perform in a rodeo, e.g.: RIDE
41D High point: APEX
43D 62-Down sib: BRO. And 62D 43-Down sib: SIS.
45D Mad magazine specialty: SPOOF
47D Drop: GO DOWN
48D Kind of: IN A WAY
49D L.A. Dodgers' division: NL WEST
50D Puzzle with number squares: SUDOKU
51D Moist towelette: WET-NAP. Another Trademark.
54D Dig sites: RUINS
57D Discussion point: ITEM
59D Rice Krispies sound: POP. Also Crackle and Snap.
60D Holbrook of "Into the Wild": HAL. Emmy and Tony Award winning actor who is one of the great craftsman of stage and screen. He is best known for his performance as Mark Twain.
61D Nev. neighbor: IDA. Idaho (northern neighbor)
63D Cast party braggart, perhaps: HAM
Answer grid.
17A Hockey attempt that only the goalie is allowed to try to stop: PENALTY SHOT
29A Overall perspective: BIG PICTURE
47A Crisp cookie: GINGER SNAP
59A Narrow victory, or a feature of 17-, 29- and 47-Across: PHOTO FINISH. The finish of the above three entries is a synonym of PHOTO.
Argyle here. My take on the theme is that it is a little weak. Dictionary.com does show SNAP as a noun, a shortened version of SNAPSHOT but the same could be said about SHOT. Oh well, it's only a Monday and I hope every one is OK after the shaking they got.
Across:
1A Noun followers, often: VERBS
6A Marinara sauce brand: PREGO
11A Was introduced to: MET
14A Tusk material: IVORY
15A "The Ant and the Grasshopper" author: AESOP. Fable.
16A Lennon's widow: ONO
19A Eerie: ODD. Not a good pairing.
20A Ancient Athens foe: SPARTA
21A On the ocean: ASEA
22A Windpipe: TRACHEA
25A Stormy day topper: RAIN HAT. Or bonnet.
28A __-Rooter: ROTO
31A Punk rock offshoot: EMO. Songs of teenage angst?
32A Firefighter's tool: HOSE
33A Hannah Montana's channel, in TV listings: DIS. The Disney Channel.
34A Buzzing instrument: KAZOO
36A Aliens, briefly: ETS
38A Stretchy synthetic: LYCRA. And 53A Waterproof fabric: GORETEX.
42A Rise and fall: BOB
44A __-bitsy: ITSY
46A Trendy: HIP
51A Five-time A.L. batting champ Boggs: WADE
52A 1955 Platters hit: "ONLY YOU". Clip.
55A Daybreak: DAWN
56A Become extinct: DIE OUT
58A Have a balance: OWE
64A "That __ close!": WAS
66A Like some barrels: OAKEN
66A Gymnast Comaneci: NADIA. She was the first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of 10 in an Olympic gymnastic event(1976 Summer Olympics). She married Bart Conner, also a gymnast, and have a son named Dylan Paul Conner, and are living in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
67A Manhattan-based paper: Abbr.: NYT. New York Times.
68A Feather: PLUME
69A Involuntary contraction: SPASM
Down:
1D Celebrity, briefly: VIP
2D Adam's partner: EVE
3D Harry's pal Weasley: RON. Harry Potter of Hogwarts.
4D "Donnie __": Johnny Depp film: BRASCO. A 1997 film loosely based on the real-life events of Joseph D. Pistone, an FBI agent who successfully infiltrated the Bonanno crime family. DVD cover.
5D Graceful woman: SYLPH. Originally referring to any race of spirits inhabiting the air, described as being mortal but lacking a soul. Paracelsus' word seems to be an arbitrary coinage, but perhaps it holds a suggestion of L. sylva and Gk. nymph. The meaning "slender, graceful girl" first recorded 1838, on the notion of "light, airy movements." Online Etymology Dictionary
6D Worker's reward: PAY RAISE
7D Take it easy: REST
8D F's musical equivalent: E SHARP Is this a good clue?
9D Sticky stuff: GOO
10D Choose (to): OPT
11D __ pork: Chinese dish served with thin pancakes: MOO SHU
12D Win the love of: ENDEAR
13D So far: TO DATE
18D Workout regimen: TAE BO. The name Tae Bo is a portmanteau of tae kwon do and boxing. Developed by Billy Blanks, Tae-Bo is a trademark of Billy Blanks Enterprises.
21D Nervous: ANTSY
22D Wearying journey: TREK
23D Italia's capital: ROMA. When in Italia, spell it as the Romans do.
24D From __: completely: A TO Z
26D Lend a hand: AID
27D How a persona non grata might be greeted: ICILY
30D Arrive: GET IN
32D Balderdash: HOOEY
35D Delivery doc: OB/GYN
37D Beginning phase: STAGE ONE
39D Online dialogue: CHAT
40D Perform in a rodeo, e.g.: RIDE
41D High point: APEX
43D 62-Down sib: BRO. And 62D 43-Down sib: SIS.
45D Mad magazine specialty: SPOOF
47D Drop: GO DOWN
48D Kind of: IN A WAY
49D L.A. Dodgers' division: NL WEST
50D Puzzle with number squares: SUDOKU
51D Moist towelette: WET-NAP. Another Trademark.
54D Dig sites: RUINS
57D Discussion point: ITEM
59D Rice Krispies sound: POP. Also Crackle and Snap.
60D Holbrook of "Into the Wild": HAL. Emmy and Tony Award winning actor who is one of the great craftsman of stage and screen. He is best known for his performance as Mark Twain.
61D Nev. neighbor: IDA. Idaho (northern neighbor)
63D Cast party braggart, perhaps: HAM
Answer grid.
Argyle
50 comments:
Good morning, C.C., Argyle and all,
This was a typical Monday puzzle without many challenges and with an easy theme; entertaining, however, which is the constructor's goal, I assume. My only unknowns were Ron and Brasco, show business clues, which are my bete noir.
Good job, Argyle, and thanks for the Rich Norris interview, C.C.
Have a good day and week.
Good Morning, CC and all. A good Monday puzzle. Not much to comment on, though.
I was not familiar with the term Emo, but the perps filled in those three boxes.
My favorite clue was Stormy Day Topper = RAIN HAT.
Hope everyone had a good holiday.
QOD: No one ever gossips about the virtues of others. ~ Bertrand Russell
Good morning:
I understand many have the day off, and certainly today's puzzle will not take up much of the day. While the themeage was not great, the fill included many new words, just not much to comment on.
Hard to believe it has been almost 34 years since Montreal and Nadia's TEN , not to be confused with Dudley's 10 . And who does not love a good KAZOO .
Enjoy spring and I hope all is well with all of you and all the mising ones.
Kazoo: The etymology dictionary gives the origin as an earlier word "bazoo", meaning "mouth" or "trumpet" in the sense of a loud boastful noise, not the musical instrument. Bazoo, in turn comes from Dutch "bazuin", which is also "trumpet". Interestingly, the root word also gives us "bazooka", so next time someone is said to be shooting off their mouth, you'll know why. In England, a kazoo was formerly called a Timmy Talker, and in France, a mirliton.
Good morning Argyle and all.
Agree on the theme. Hardly noticed it.
Pretty much a meat and potatoes puzzle today. Not hard. Did not get 'delivery doc' clue right away because I was thinking of Fedex or UPS; abbreviation for the bill of lading document or some such. Then say OBGYN, my d'uh moment.
KAZOO - Used to live a mile away from the factory in a town named after EVE's place.
Today is Dyngus Day. Go out and kiss a Polish person.
Na zdrowie. Vivat
G'morning all, and to Argyle, nice, concise blog suiting to this Monday one.
No real problems, but as noted above, I too hardly noted the theme connections. I looked at them once before I had the unifier and then forgot to affirm the relationship when I did get it.
Like Hahtool, I had no idea about EMO, but as with several others today, perp help and haste to be done prevented my going back and looking at its clue. One was E-SHARP--I got the sharp after SH appeared, but waited to see what would be above it, then forgot to look when PREGO fell.
One amusing moment in the SW--I had GOD -WN and was wondering what God had to do with falling until the d'uh hit me.
G'day Arygle, nice write-up.
Hahtool: EMO was new to me also, I'll google later.
Any puzzle with Kazoo, Hooey and Mooshu is OK to me.
The syn.fabric, Lycra and Goretex mini-theme was better than the main one.
Also liked 5D, SYLPH, graceful woman.
I have complimented many just that way.
Funny thing is about half of them gave me a look like they wanted to slap me.
The others I probably wanted to date.
Having a vocabulary is very sexy to me.
Good morning everyone.
tfrank: The clue "Harry's pal Weasley"
refers to the Harry Potter books, not show business. I've read and loved them all (the books, I mean).
Gorgeous day in Naples.
Cheers
Good Morning All, This was a nice way to start the week. I thought TRACHEA and GORETEX were pretty grown-up words for a Monday.
It was an easy theme today and I liked Argyle's "Rotogravure" title, especially with the 67A addition of NYT. I think it was the Times that had a big section with lots of photos of the "socially significant".
I misread 25A as "Storm day trooper" and couldn't figure out what the heck it was until I had filled in the perps.
"Donnie BRASCO" is one of GAH's favorite movies, not so much because of Johnny Depp, but because it co-stars Al Pacino. "Scent Of A Woman" is probably GAH's favorite movie.
I guess I'll have to pay more attention when I get those little towelette packages in restaurants and on planes. I'd never noticed WET-NAP before.
Blog talks now orbit around BillG?
Hi Argyle, C.C. and everyone -
Typical Monday...not too many bumps in the road to completion. I had no idea what the punk rock offshoot was (still don't) :)
4D was solved by the perps as were 18D (TAEBO??), 8D (I have zero musical knowledge) and 51D WETNAP(??). I keep a container of moist towelettes in the car but the brand name is WetOnes. What does 'wetnap' mean??? I've heard the word wet used with an occurrence while sleeping, hmmmm.
Carol:
Wet Nap is probably a take off on "Wet Napkin."
Good morning.I'm Polish, but had never heard of Dyngus Day, probably, 'cause I grew up in N E Mpls in the 50's. My wife is 100% Finnish, so we needed to adopt our girls years ago. I claim incompatible species! Worked out great.
Good morning, everyone!
All, can always rely on you for the word origins. Thanks!
Doug, funny comment.
Hope everyone has an outrageous Monday!!
Good day, C.C., Argyle and friends.
Yes, this was good Monday fare and fun and fast to complete; in my book there is no such thing as a bad xwd.
I'm even getting the hang of sports clues, Wade Boggs slipped right out of my memory bank onto the fill and even L.A. Dodger's division didn't cause consternation. That's a milestone for me!
I love the word "sylph" with its hidden suggestions. And the spelling of sudoku usually eludes me by transposing the "o" and "u".
I agree, wetnap is likely an abbreviation of wet napkin.
I hope you have a marvelous Monday!
Emo probably derives from emotion. My students referred to them (The fans of the music are often called emos) as "weak goths." Lots of black in clothing and makeup and scarring from scratching or cutting on the wrists. Basically, a lot of hooey!!
Easy Monday, as usual. No problems. 10 minutes.
Yesterday it was Andy Capp and covens. Today it is Adam@Home and the Kazoo. Tomorrow?
Am a little tired of seeing EMO as an answer.
Links are down so I did Merl's last night.
Sallie @ 10:40,
Thanks for the correction. I had read Argyle's blog before I posted but forgot the clue. I confess I was in a hurry to be the earliest poster for the first time ever.
Fun fill- SYLPH, KAZOO, OBGYN, PLUME, HOOEY, SUDOKU, and SPOOF.
O Boy!- PREGO, ONO, ROTO, EMO, KAZOO, TAEBO, BRO, and GOO.
Oddities- In PHOTOFINISH there's SHOT, SHOOT, and F-STOP.
In PENALTYSHOT there's SNAP and LENS.
In BIGPICTURE there's an EPIC!
Fun crossings- GORETEX, WETNAP. DIEOUT, RUINS.
Strange- "Any puzzle with Kazoo, Hooey and Mooshu is OK by me." Tinbeni at Crossword Corner.
"... a lame Monday puzzle." Tinbeni at LA Crossword Confidetial. Must be two Tinbeni's.
More of a theme than the theme:
Trademarks!
Wet-Nap®
Gore-Tex®
Lycra®
Prego®
Roto-Rooter®
Tae Bo®
Snap! Crackle! and Pop!®
The Sudoku name is registered as a trademark in Japan but isn't trademarked in the US.
Jerome
Same Tinbeni
When I found these blogs I realized I needed all the help I could get to become better at solving these things.
Both have their place.
Here I get every clue, many with explanations and interesting detail.
There, Rex etal are more critical on a technical level but they have an interesting crowd also. (Not as lively as here).
I also comment as Tinbeni at the Rex does the NYT.
In about 5 or 6 months I believe I have improved by about 50%.
Crossword Puzzles are a lot more fun now as a morning hobby.
Jerome, he just slipped, that's all. He meant to use 'Entropy' on the other blog.
Both sets of comments are way more interesting than the puzzles them selves. Some time I'll just read what you have to say.
Good Afternoon Argyle, CC and All,
Finished this one pretty quickly with no red letter help at #2's Ortho appointment this AM. I thought this was a "themeless" Monday until I read Argyle's write up.
Off to P&R.
10 & a Wake up.
Anon:
I comment over on the other practically every day.
Always as myself.
Always 'only' Tinbeni.
The song “Easter Parade” always brings a tear to my eye from one of the most touching moments I’ve ever had. I was 8 when we went to visit my grandmother in the nursing home just before Easter. One of the other residents had just received an Easter bonnet. The nurse helped the woman put it on, then wheeled her up and down the hall while everybody sang “Easter Parade”. The woman just beamed! You could tell it was bringing back to memories of her youth. I still cry every time I hear “…in her Easter bonnet…” – even right now!
C.C.: To answer your question from over the weekend, there are plenty of palm trees everywhere down here, and you’ll often see coconuts in people’s yards that have fallen, but I’ve never seen a grove of them. Lemonade714, are you aware of any? I’m still trying to get over how many varieties of palm trees there are!
Tinbeni: Possibly those women weren’t familiar with the word SYLPH and thought it was somehow related to syphilis…
Carol: “Wetnap” is a term for wet napkins. I’m thinking originally it was a brand or company name that has since become a term for them in general, much the way Kleenex is often used when referring to any brand of tissues.
@Tinbeni, Do NOT feed the troll.
Wonder what cruciverb.com excuse
will be this time.
(The "almost" troll, even tho I don`t write vitriol) found it funny/ironic that an anon advised another anon not to feed the trolls.
Always enjoy Mon-Wed...not so frustrating...altho a little challenge (Thurs.-Sun)is welcome most weeks .
Was Mr. Nador a bit defensive about the difficulty level @ the end of the week or just weary of trying to please everyone?
ARBAON
Two things:
(1) It was Rich Norris the LAT Crossword editor. And I agree, the increasing difficulty through the week is actually well balanced.
(2) The Anon comment "NOT to feed the Troll" was directed to me.
Also want to thank BillG, Sallie, Jeannie, Windhover and Mary who all emailed me last week.
It was great corresponding with each of you.
ARBAON your explanation made sense as to why you didn't.
I've done the LAT puzzles on the LAT site, the Chicago Tribune site and on cruciverb. Any one is fine with me, it is just what you get used to. I do prefer cruciverb, when it is working, simply because it is usually available several hours earlier than the other sites.
Here's a question for Crockett and anyone else who dislikes the LAT online puzzle site. What is it specifically that you don't like?
Clear Ayes asked: "Here's a question for Crockett and anyone else who dislikes the LAT online puzzle site. What is it specifically that you don't like?"
Unlike the across-lite, entering letters into the grid on the LAT site doesn't recognize the letters that are already there. And I don't have good results saving and printing. With across-lite, I can save and return later, and if I want to print, I can easily get the grid and the clues to print completely -- not so with the LAT site. The earlier availability is also a big plus for me.
C.C., Argyle and folk,
I experimented today and started with the bottom first. It popped in the SE first and then counter clockwise after that. Tomorrow, I think I'll take it from the top as usual.
I wanted Donnie Darko rather than Donnie Brasco...big difference and only 5 letters. Wiahfull thinking, I guess. I watched DDarko with my daughter a few years ago and I will say it is disturbing, though I have the same to say about DBrasco.
The photo theme seemed apt for spring time with my childhood memories of hoping for a warm, sunny day on Easter so I could wear my bonnet, new dress and the prized new white patent leather shoes...couldn't wear them in the rain, wish they'd been 'goretex', LSS, we'd get our pictures taken when we were all dolled up! Fun, Fun!
DONNIE BRASCO
DONNIE DARKO
I've written my allotment for the week, I'll bet!
A great week to all and positive thoughts to my friend who's family is in the midst of the earth quake. No water, no phones 'til this morning.
Frenchie
Hello All, A quick puzzle today, with no outside help. I like to get at least one or two puzzles a week that come together for me. I do like the challenge of a harder puzzle as the week goes on, but I also like to feel smart on Monday and Tuesday!
My favorite answers today were Bob, for Rise and Fall, Owe, for Have a Balance, and Stormy day topper for Rainhat.
Amo and Brasco were unknowns for me as well, but were easily found as the grid filled in. My one erasure was Paycheck for Pay raise.
It rained hard here most of the afternoon and night. so much for the planned Easter Egg hunts and parading in one's finery. If it didn't happen in the morning, it was rained out.
Frenchie, Patent leather shoes were something to admire when I was growing up. Mine were usually black, but could NOT be worn during bad weather! They had to last the whole season!
This is the third time I've written this comment, that is, if I can remember what I've said.
What I said earlier doesn't really matter now since it's just about what you all have written about the theme, etc. It was a great writeup, Argyle. I don't know how you ever figured out what the theme was, it was so obscure.
Nice Monday puzzle, though.
Crockett, you mentioned saving and retrieving your puzzles on Cruciverb. I have (I thought) saved a couple and I can't seem to retrieve them. What's the combination? Also, I haven't been able to figure out how you get the red letters. Can you enlighten me? Maybe email would be best?
Dodo
C.C. I really liked your interview with Rich Norris. I think he does a great job of balancing the difficulty of the puzzles through the week. You have a great talent for getting an interesting and useful interview! dodo
Like Clear Ayes, I can use the LAT site just as well for crosswords as Across Lite. One thing I don't like about Across Lite is its way of showing you that you made a mistake by putting in a black triangle when you change an answer. Worse yet if you get totally stumped and want a letter solved, it advertises that with the dreaded red triangle.
I am perfectly happy with the increasing difficulty of puzzles Monday through Saturday. What makes a puzzle hard yet fun for me is when I finally figure out a cleverly-clued word from the crosses and smack myself in the head feeling silly for not getting it sooner. Or when I use red-letter help and smack myself in the head saying "OK Mr. Constructor, you got me that time" because I realize he put one over on me. When I don't have much fun is when the answers are just obscure words or people crossing with more obscure words. I think last Saturday's puzzle fell into the second category for me.
For Dodo: re 'red' letters?
If you go online to the LAT puzzle in regular mode any thing you type that is incorrect will appear in the color red.
That's my method for Friday & Saturday puzzles and when ever I get stuck on one.
Crockett, thanks for the explanation. I have never Saved a puzzle to complete later, so any difficulty on that score didn't occur to me. Our computer is on most of the time, so I just minimize it if I can't finish at one sitting.
No problem with the southwest earthquake here. It sounds like the epicenter wasn't heavily populated, so that is a relief.
As Chickie mentioned, we had a chilly wet Easter, so most of the fun and games took place inside. Still, a great visit and lots of laughs.
Good evening Argyle, CC and all,
Couldn't grasp the theme, but enjoyed the puzzle. Lots of good words. I print out M-W, but need the red letter help later in the week.
The spelling of a few words were my only problems. The perps fixed sylph and goretex, but I asked a 6th grader how to spell sudoku (Like Lucina,I transpose it, because I pronounce it suduko). The kids were filling in a Greek map with ancient city-states (Sparta). They were so impressed that they could answer that clue.
Argyle, enjoyed your trademark list.Want to add Goo Gone?
Lemonade, got a kick out of the Kazoo choir...really bad. Truman loves playing the kazoo although his tunes are limited.
Hi all, checking in late as when I take a day off (last Friday) it's really hard to catch up when you have 150+ e-mails to sypher through and all the rest that is thrown in your face. It didn't help that my Easter get together turned into somewhat of a party and I didn't clean the kitchen up last night. The food was fantastic, but I didn't realize I had so many pots and pans! My guests didn't leave until after 8pm. The weather was fabulous (high sixties, and sunny) so we sat out on the patio most of the day, and out came the blender. The rest they say, is history.
Not too much to say about the puzzle as I breezed through it in about 20 min between washing and drying dishes. Favorite clue was "rise and fall" - bob. I knew a Bob once, he didn't "endear" me.
His loss.
Where is Dennis?
Like Clear Ayes, I can use the LAT site just as well for crosswords as Across Lite. One thing I don't like about Across Lite is its way of showing you that you made a mistake by putting in a black triangle when you change an answer. Worse yet if you get totally stumped and want a letter solved, it advertises that with the dreaded red triangle.
I am perfectly happy with the increasing difficulty of puzzles Monday through Saturday. What makes a puzzle hard yet fun for me is when I finally figure out a cleverly-clued word from the crosses and smack myself in the head feeling silly for not getting it sooner. Or when I use red-letter help and smack myself in the head saying "OK Mr. Constructor, you got me that time" because I realize he put one over on me. When I don't have much fun is when the answers are just obscure words or people crossing with more obscure words. I think last Saturday's puzzle fell into the second category for me.
Guess I'm lucky because I get to do the puzzle in the newspaper every day (Phila. Inquirer). Have been having internet problems on and off for weeks so I'm glad to be here when I can.
As I remember from music lessons as a kid, D sharp is the same as F flat. (Every Good Boy Does Fine) Does anyone know if that is right?
Mama Ruth asked: "As I remember from music lessons as a kid, D sharp is the same as F flat. (Every Good Boy Does Fine) Does anyone know if that is right?"
Close. D sharp is the same as E flat.
Was 'F' by itself really enough to indicate a "musical equivalent"?
F's musical equivalent: E-sharp.
I have made mistakes on the Cruciverb puzzle and all I get is the same red square. No triangle of any kind.
Blogger Frenchie said...
@CHICKIE, so true! How about white ankle socks with the lace around the tops??? Loved those!
@Mamma Ruth, at the parochial school I attended while growing up we were taught, 'every good boy deserves favor.' Hmmm, Catholic school, boys deserve favor??? That just can't be good given the delicate nature of the priest/altar boy bailliwick.
@LUCINA,"I'm even getting the hang of sports clues, Wade Boggs slipped right out of my memory bank onto the fill and even L.A. Dodger's division didn't cause consternation. That's a milestone for me!" I follow sports
sporadically...with the exception of FL Gator Football!!! Can't miss that! However, my husband and my son are huge fans of most sports. I must get sports trivia by osmosis from TV when they are watching a game or hearing them discuss it. Perhaps one of those brain techniques from Lemonade714's recent link concerning, 'brain freeze' which went on to list many forms of brain what not.BRAIN BLAST and by the way definition 1 !!! Never 2!!!!!!!
@ Jeannie, I bet you cringe when you fill in 'Prego.' I haven't seen a spaghetti sauce recipe from you. Do you have one to share? Mine has been so dull lately!
SPATS ON FIGURE SKATES?
SPATS ON FIGURE SKATES?
Hi everybody... Did the puzzle and really enjoyed it, I'll read and write later. I'm curious if the covers on the skates or what they use to cover them would be considered spats...anyone have any info. on this?
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