Theme: AFTERLIFE (62A. Spiritual existence, and where the ends of 17-, 23-, 39- and 49-Across can go) - Life can precede the end of each theme answer.
17A. Hunk: DREAMBOAT. Lifeboat. Ah, Daniel Craig, my dreamboat. Jeannie does not seem to be attracted to him.
23A. Upstages a performer, e.g.: CRAMPS ONE'S STYLE. Lifestyle. I thought "cramp one's style" just means "restrict your style".
39A. Becomes less leery: LOWERS ONE'S GUARD. Lifeguard. More familiar with "let one's guard down".
49A. Gets a single, double, triple and homer in one game: HITS FOR THE CYCLE. Life Cycle. Gimme. If a player hits the above in the exact order, then it's a natural cycle.
Jack also gives us two more baseball references:
2D. Boot in the field: ERROR
18D. N.L.'s Pujols and A.L.'s Mauer in 2009: MVPS. Mauer is with the Twins. Pjulos is my husband's favorite current player.
Very nice three 15-word grid spanner theme entries. AFTER LIFE is a great unifier too. To borrow Spitzboov, Bravo Zulu, Jack!
Across:
5. Muslim journey: HADJ. Or HAJJ.
9. Dig deep: PROBE. Alliteration.
14. First name in mystery: ERLE. Erle Stanley Gardner.
15. '50s Hungarian premier Nagy: IMRE. Pronounced like EEM-ruh. Thanks again for Inogolo, Lucina. What does dtr mean, by the way?
16. Kind of police gun that doesn't use bullets: RADAR. Nailed it.
19. Thus follower: AND SO
20. It's charged: ION
21. One of a Latin trio: VICI. Caesar's boast: Veni, vidi, Vici.
22. Called, old-style: DIALED
26. 33-time Rose Bowl sch.: USC (University of Southern California)
27. You, to Yves: TOI. Alliteration.
28. Campus home for some: FRAT
31. "Whoops": UH -OH
34. Pat, for one: NFLER. Oh, Pat here refers to New England Patriots then. Home team for the handsome Joshua.
44. Jam causes: LOGS
45. Beautician's supply: DYE
58. '50s-'60s TV Earp portrayer: O'BRIAN (Hugh). Not familiar with this guy. Wikipedia says he married for the first time in 2006, at the age 81. Sweet!
59. Congo river: UELE (WEY-luh). I forgot. UELE is on the upper right corner, to the south west of The Sudan. I saw Ebola too.
60. Fireplace shelf: HOB
61. "Bye Bye Bye" singers: N'SYNC. Here is the clip. The song was very popular around the time I left China.
64. Do a winter airport maintenance job: DEICE
65. Knock for a loop: STUN
66. "A Jug of Wine ..." poet: OMAR. "... a Loaf of Bread, and Thou Beside me ...". So romantic.
67. Tossed in a chip: ANTED
68. Nile biters: ASPS. Nice play on "Nail biters". Thought of Gunghy and his pet snakes. I can't breathe picturing a 7-foot (50 lbs) boa coiling around him.
69. Baltic dweller: LETT. People of Latvia.
Down:
1. Doc: MEDIC
3. Actress Verdugo: ELENA
4. Crumpets' partner: TEA. Have not had crumpets for eons.
5. Flower used in herbal teas: HIBISCUS. I've never had hibiscus tea. Not fond of TEA/teas duplication. So close together.
6. It began as Standard Oil of Indiana: AMOCO
7. Bathtub feature: DRAIN
8. Deep black: JET
9. Applauding: PRAISING
10. Attacked on foot: RAN AT
11. "Strange to say ...": ODDLY
12. Swiss city on the Rhine: BASEL (BAH-zuhl). See the map. The name escaped me also. So similar to basil in spelling.
13. Eat away at: ERODE
22. Brit. military award: DSO (Distinguished Service Order)
24. Deadens: MUTES
25. Old knockout cause: ETHER
28. Showman Ziegfeld: FLO. The name just flowed to me.
29. Hold up: ROB
32. Firefighter, at times: HOSER
17A. Hunk: DREAMBOAT. Lifeboat. Ah, Daniel Craig, my dreamboat. Jeannie does not seem to be attracted to him.
23A. Upstages a performer, e.g.: CRAMPS ONE'S STYLE. Lifestyle. I thought "cramp one's style" just means "restrict your style".
39A. Becomes less leery: LOWERS ONE'S GUARD. Lifeguard. More familiar with "let one's guard down".
49A. Gets a single, double, triple and homer in one game: HITS FOR THE CYCLE. Life Cycle. Gimme. If a player hits the above in the exact order, then it's a natural cycle.
Jack also gives us two more baseball references:
2D. Boot in the field: ERROR
18D. N.L.'s Pujols and A.L.'s Mauer in 2009: MVPS. Mauer is with the Twins. Pjulos is my husband's favorite current player.
Very nice three 15-word grid spanner theme entries. AFTER LIFE is a great unifier too. To borrow Spitzboov, Bravo Zulu, Jack!
Across:
5. Muslim journey: HADJ. Or HAJJ.
9. Dig deep: PROBE. Alliteration.
14. First name in mystery: ERLE. Erle Stanley Gardner.
15. '50s Hungarian premier Nagy: IMRE. Pronounced like EEM-ruh. Thanks again for Inogolo, Lucina. What does dtr mean, by the way?
16. Kind of police gun that doesn't use bullets: RADAR. Nailed it.
19. Thus follower: AND SO
20. It's charged: ION
21. One of a Latin trio: VICI. Caesar's boast: Veni, vidi, Vici.
22. Called, old-style: DIALED
26. 33-time Rose Bowl sch.: USC (University of Southern California)
27. You, to Yves: TOI. Alliteration.
28. Campus home for some: FRAT
31. "Whoops": UH -OH
34. Pat, for one: NFLER. Oh, Pat here refers to New England Patriots then. Home team for the handsome Joshua.
44. Jam causes: LOGS
45. Beautician's supply: DYE
58. '50s-'60s TV Earp portrayer: O'BRIAN (Hugh). Not familiar with this guy. Wikipedia says he married for the first time in 2006, at the age 81. Sweet!
59. Congo river: UELE (WEY-luh). I forgot. UELE is on the upper right corner, to the south west of The Sudan. I saw Ebola too.
60. Fireplace shelf: HOB
61. "Bye Bye Bye" singers: N'SYNC. Here is the clip. The song was very popular around the time I left China.
64. Do a winter airport maintenance job: DEICE
65. Knock for a loop: STUN
66. "A Jug of Wine ..." poet: OMAR. "... a Loaf of Bread, and Thou Beside me ...". So romantic.
67. Tossed in a chip: ANTED
68. Nile biters: ASPS. Nice play on "Nail biters". Thought of Gunghy and his pet snakes. I can't breathe picturing a 7-foot (50 lbs) boa coiling around him.
69. Baltic dweller: LETT. People of Latvia.
Down:
1. Doc: MEDIC
3. Actress Verdugo: ELENA
4. Crumpets' partner: TEA. Have not had crumpets for eons.
5. Flower used in herbal teas: HIBISCUS. I've never had hibiscus tea. Not fond of TEA/teas duplication. So close together.
6. It began as Standard Oil of Indiana: AMOCO
7. Bathtub feature: DRAIN
8. Deep black: JET
9. Applauding: PRAISING
10. Attacked on foot: RAN AT
11. "Strange to say ...": ODDLY
12. Swiss city on the Rhine: BASEL (BAH-zuhl). See the map. The name escaped me also. So similar to basil in spelling.
13. Eat away at: ERODE
22. Brit. military award: DSO (Distinguished Service Order)
24. Deadens: MUTES
25. Old knockout cause: ETHER
28. Showman Ziegfeld: FLO. The name just flowed to me.
29. Hold up: ROB
32. Firefighter, at times: HOSER
35. To the nth degree: FULLY
36. Mekong River dweller: LAO
37. Work measure: ERG
38. Tobacco and Abbey: Abbr.: RDS. I've never heard of Tobacco Road. It's in North Carolina, referring to the tobacco-producing area.
40. Embarrassed: RED-FACED
41. 1980 erupter: ST. HELENS. Two nice consecutive long entries.
46. Over there, poetically: YON
48. One serving well: ACER. Tennis serve.
49. Civic engineer?: HONDA. Great clue.
50. "Peer Gynt" playwright: IBSEN
51. "Have a little": TRY IT
52. "__ You Went Away": 1944 Best Picture nominee: SINCE. Here is a poster. New to me also. Saw Shirley Temple's name.
53. The great horned owl has prominent ones on its ears: TUFTS. Stumper. He seems irked. What's the matter, pal?
54. Excited: HET UP
55. Add one's two cents, with "in": CHIME
56. Dieter's catchword: LO-FAT
57. "Questions for the Movie Answer Man" author: EBERT (Roger)
62. Comparison words: AS A
63. Online yuk: LOL
Answer grid.
Several weeks ago, Dennis mentioned a long word meaning "forgetting about words". Does anyone still remember how that word is spelled? It's been bothering me.
C.C.
PS: NY Times is running Dan Naddor's last puzzle today.
66 comments:
Good morning CC and All, a very interesting puzzle this morning. I flew through the top half filling as fast as I could write then I hit the lower half and the fills stopped quickly. I had an especially difficult time in the SE section as I had brain freeze trying to remember cycle for the end of 49A. Finally the brain awoke and I got cycle, this allowed me to get chime, Lofat and guessed Ebert.
My favorite clue/answer today was civic engineer/Honda. After life was my ta da moment this morning. Where is Carol’s V8 can when you need it? Also, I thought Pat for one/NFLER was a groaner, as I kept trying to enter someone’s name like Nixon. Once I started looking at the down clues that area fell quickly.
Hope you all have a great Thursday
Morning, all!
Yep, Joshua is definitely a Pats fan. We've watched all the games together since he was born, in fact.
Not being a huge baseball fan, HIT FOR THE CYCLE was most definitely not a gimme for me today. And I never did figure out what ERROR has to do with "Boot in the field," although I'm assuming it also has something to do with baseball.
I initially put HYACINTH for 5D and eventually changed it to HYBISCUS. That gave me YMRE for 15A, which seemed like a perfectly cromulent name for somebody from Hungary. It was only at the very end, when I didn't get the "tada!" that I tried changing the Y to I. Had I been solving on paper, I never would have realized my mistake.
Just wondering here, but can LOFAT really be considered a catchword? Wouldn't it be considered catch words?
Oh -- and I've been officially been offered three months transition (a.k.a. "knowledge dump") with a retention bonus (a.k.a. severance pay) if I stay the full three months. Better than nothing, and it gives me a little time to brush up my skills and look for another job.
Good Morning, CC and all. Man, did I struggle with this one today! I finally got the first 4 theme clues, but still stared at the few letters in the "hint" of AFTER LIFE before it dawned on me.
Would a Firefighter really liked to be referred to as a HOSER? Seems a bit rude.
My favorite clues today were: Old Knockout Cause = ETHER
Civil Engineer = HONDA
Called, Old Style = DIALED
We've seen Elena Verdugo's name in puzzles before.
Peer Gynt Suite was composed by Grieg. I didn't realize that it was based on an IBSEN work.
IMRE Nagy was executed for his role in the 1956 Hungarian uprising.
QOD: Easy reading is damn hard writing. ~ Nathaniel Hawthorne
Hi gang -
Good news, Barry!
I woke up around 6 AM, and couldn't go back to sleep, so I slogged my way through this puzzle. Yes, LO FAT s/b 2 words. Careless error. CRAMPS ONES STYLE doesn't seem right either, though that's about how I feel.
IMRE NAGY (rhymes with HADJ) was a popular Hungarian Prime Minister from 1953-55. Though a devout Marxist, he fell out of favor with the Soviet overlords. After the revolution in '56, he was made PM again, by popular acclaim. When the Russkies attacked, he sought refuge in the Yugoslav embassy. He was guaranteed safe passage, but was arrested when he tried to leave the country. Krushchev had him executed after a secret trial in 1958. Thank you Wikipedia.
That's all for now.
Cheers!
JzB the not quite NSYNC trombonist
Good morning, C.C. and all,
This was definitely a harder puzzle; my solve time was almost double that for this week's earlier tests. I had the most trouble with the East central section because of difficulty with nfler, guard, rds, Mekong dweller and nth degree. BTW, C.C., "Tobacco Road" was a famous novel by Erskine Caldwell, later made into a movie.
I also thought the theme clue was awkwardly phrased; perhaps "follow" would have been better than "go". Favorite clue was Civic engineer. All in all, it was an excellent puzzle and a fun solve.
Have a great Thursday.
Good Morning CC and All,
An enjoyable puzzle for me with snags here and there. I liked but groaned when Honda filled in. Wrote Tazer instead of Radar and wanted something "soccerish" for 2D. Also wrote Twice instead of Since for 52D which had me wanting Batting something or other for 49A. Ok, Ok...I screwed this one up wicked!
Glad to hear you've got a few months reprieve Barry. If things continue the way "They" are talking, the job market should be getting better. I'm with you and Joshua, Go Pats! Not real sure of some of the trades recently, I think they need more depth on the O and D lines.
Starting to get some of the road jobs completed in Town. Paving has started on the second one. Had one person remark that "this must be what be what it's like to drive around Baghdad". Knowing this person never served our country in the military and is an incessant whiner I had to bite my tongue. But it did remind me to think of our men and women serving us overseas. Hats off to all of them!
Have a great Thursday All!
I think because LOFAT is actually a made up word, not the same as LOW FAT, the constructor is safe calling it a catchword. We are creating new "words" all of the time.
HUGH O'BRIAN was one of the strong rugged types of early television, along with ROBERT STACK, JAMES GARNER and so many more. They were all tall men who photographed well, anything more was a bonus. His version of Wyatt earp seemed silly to me as a small child, as he refused to shoot his gun.
The puzzle was fine, but you all have hit all the highlights already, though the use of VICI, which is same number of letters as therest of Caeser's comment was tricky also.
Well Barry, glad to hear you got to where you need to be.
It seems things are looking up fpr the CC group
Interestingly, (or not)both HUGH O'Brian and ELENA VERDUGO who was great in Marcu Welby, M.D., are still chugging along in the middle 80's.
39A Should be "LowerS Ones Guard"
Drew
FYI, guys, the NYTimes is running a terrific Dan Naddor puzzle today!
Drew,
I've corrected the error. Thanks.
Anonymous @7:12am,
Dan's wife alerted me about his NYT puzzle several days ago. I completely forgot about it. Thanks for the reminder. I think this is last NYT.
HI all,
Like the rest of you, I hit several snags here. I had to google the heck out of the whole south end. I thought the top would be harder than it turned out to be when I started, and didn't have to look anything up until the bottom. Lots of WAGS though for the sports references and names. Lots of d'ohs too.
BASEL is the German spelling, the French is Basle. It's right in the NW corner of Switzerland, where Germany and France meet. I had a nasty experience with our DKW there. A gas station attendant put dieseline in it insead of regular gas, and we were on the Autobahn before it sputtered to a halt. It ran like a lawnmower, on gas and oil, and I guess he was confused, knowing there was something strange about it. The canton police rescued us though, but we lost a day's travel waiting to have the engine cleaned out.
BG,
Good news about the job. Having your deadline will make your efforts more dedicated than if you had just been "looking" casually. I hope you find something within that time.
Enjoyed all your comments, and thought you'd like to know that "Tobacco Road" is a well-known 1932 novel by Erskine Caldwell about Georgia sharecroppers.
Good morning all
Not a difficult puzzle, but took a little while for some of the crosses to make themselves known. IMRE was a gimme. LETT was the 4th 4-letter choice after Finn, Pole and Dane. Liked the theme words. I believe TOI is only correctly used in certain familiar idiom. Kazie?
Didn't like HETUP either.
Barry G: Glad you have negotiated a more ordered egress. Good hunting!
Jazzb: Thanks for the kocsonya recipe.
Have a good day.
Is "thus and so" really all that common of a phrase? Or some regional, or age-specific reference? I drew a total blank on that one... Anyone else get stuck on TASER instead of RADAR at first? The NW corner took a long time for me last night. BASEL didn't help, either. With hindsight, it was a nice placement of that answer in the puzzle geographically (per Kazie's location comment), even if that placement most likely was inadvertent.
Good Morning All, I had no idea what HITS FOR THE CYCLE meant, but there it was and I had to believe it.
MVPS Pujols and Mauer were new to me, as was IMRE Nagy. We're learning here.
I had the same problem as Hahtool with HOSER, but I guess if a fireman operates the hose, he is a HOSER.
Al, "Anyone else get stuck on TASER instead of RADAR at first?" Absolutely!
This puzzle was definitely a picket fence for a while. I forgot to check the lower SE side for a theme clue, but since 62A AFTER LIFE was part of the pickets, it wouldn't have helped until later anyway.
When I finally did get AFTER LIFE, there was a very nice AHA! moment as the rest of the theme answers made sense.
After last night's Scandinavian comments, up pops IBSEN. That sort of thing happens a lot around here.
Dodo, As Karin P pointed out Ezra Pound was a nutcase anti-Semite, who supported Mussolini, was charged with treason and spent time in a mental hospital. (Being talented doesn't mean you are a nice person.)
CC: Lethonomia is the inability to recall the right name. Lethologica is the inability to remember the right word.
Dorm for Frat, Taser for Radar and Numbs for Mutes had me confused for awhile.
Gd Mrng, Tobacco Road was a hit song for the British group, The Nashville Teens.
I had trouble all over the place and wasn’t having any fun so I gave up and came here. I don’t understand “boot in the field” –error. I assume it has to do with baseball but I have never heard that term. I also didn’t like “excited”- het up. I can honestly say I have never said I was all “het up” about something. Thus and so was a reach as well. I also had to hit the g-spot for Isben. All and all it wasn’t a good day for me.
BarryG, that is good news for you. It sure beats no benefits and no severance pay as you thought in the beginning.
Today is Nurses Day. Robin, thank you for all you do.
Enjoy your day. It is chilly and overcast here in MN.
C.C. Being a huge baseball fan, HITS FOR THE CYCLE, ERROR and MVPS could not be entered fast enough.
A Florida Marlin did it the other day (5/2/10) leaving only the San Diego Padres as the only team that has not had a player do it.
Al; Yup, with that Philly Fan running on the field the other night, being TASERed seemed to be the thing before Radar finally emerged.
Liked the theme and the reveal clue.
NFLER (today) and the related ALER, NLER, NBAER or other sport'ER' are lame every time.
UELE & IMRE were both via perps and learning moments. Always a plus.
"Boots" comes from the literal observation of an infielder going for a ground ball and kicking it before he get his glove on the ball. It now means messing up any play, and making an error; but if you have seen some one let his feet get to the ball before his glove, you will never forget the term. My anti-lethologic explanation.
My mother was a nurse, and so are many cousins; yes thank you all you little Florence Nightingales (whose birthday will be next Wednesday). Robin okay?
Hi all,
Dick, I was right on your wave length this morning, I put NIXON in for 34A..when I saw the real answer, I didn't think it was right...couldn't figure why Pat would have any connection...Pat who??? Obviously I don't follow football.
I read 49D as CIVIL engineer so there went another dent in my V-8 can.
66A - I got it right away, but the answer bothered me because it was just the poet's first name. It seems in these cases the last name is always used. Just a thought.
16A - I put TASER in so that stopped my progress in that corner because I didn't know 12D and 11D just would not pop into my head. sigh.
2D - That is just goofy....what the heck does 'boot in the field' mean??
I thought it was some military phrase. Guess I get a boot in the butt for my ignorance.. sigh again.
Spitz,
Yes--only used with people one is on a first name basis with. the verb 'tutoyer' means to call someone 'tu', 'vouvoyer' is the counterpart for 'vous'.
Al,
Not sure about your Basel reference--it's in the NE on the puzzle grid, and in the NW of Switzerland. Mirror image?
Hello Puzzlers - Hand up for TASER, DULLS for MUTES, for never having heard of hitting for a cycle, for disliking boot in the field, for failing to make the Pat connection even though Gilette Stadium is an hour away. (Incidentally, the only football game of any kind I ever saw was there. It rained fiercely, and my soggy seat was so far up the stands that it wasn't possible to see the football. People pay for this?!?)
HOSER came to me obliquely. We country dwellers have to go to the fire station on late-winter Saturday mornings to sign for brush burning permits. The exit door has the following gag stuck to it, in long-ago DYMO label: "In case of fire, pull hose".
@Kazie, my bad. I couldn't tell east from west this morning, totally disoriented. It even took me a while to clear my head enough to get what you meant. Good thing I'm not a pilot...
A catchword can be a phrase.
BillG, from yesterday. I don't eat fish. Besides the fact that they're homely, I will not eat anything that breathes out of the side of its head.
Stallone's a DREAMBOAT... if you want to DATE RAMBO.
Good morning, C.C. and Co. I did not like this puzzle. Sorry, Jack. Another hand up for taser. But I knew Basel, remembered it from Heidi, of all things. In fact, I got the whole thing w/o lookups, but with help from perps. The last letter I put it was the o in logs! But not only did I dislike all those er's that Tenbeni mentioned but I agreed with Hahtool re: hoser and I have always hated acer!I have never heard anyone say Pete Sampras, or whoever, was a real acer! Also, I thought the theme was poorly clued. And I'm getting really, really tired of baseball clues, even when I know the answer. On the whole, I'm with Jeannie: not fun! There! Off my chest!
Barry, I'm so glad for you. There may be a silver lining after all! And of course you have darling Joshua! What a sweetie pie!
I used to love Wyatt Earp; in fact I sang my first baby to sleep to the theme song! Lemonade, are you sure O'Brian was tall? I always liked him a lot but I feel I have seen photos of him that don't support that. He later went on the stage and did a lot of Shakespeare, I remember reading.
What a lot of Old West series there were in those days! There aren't any now that I can think of. It's all crime and police procedure now and some not very well-written sitcoms. It's fun to watch the old ones on DVD.
Good day, C.C. and all.
Yowza! Was this a challenge or what? Not that it was difficult, but like some of you, baseball is not something I can be excited about. However, it was great fun to suss this out since some fills jumped out easily. Erle, meet, medic, ion, even Hadj is now more common in xwds.
Fav clues:
civic engineer: Honda
old knockout caause: ether
called, old style: dialed
And the many nostalgic references: O'brian, Elena Verdugo (glad to know she is still with us) Hal Holbrook.
Love Omar Khayyam and Henrik Ibsen as well as Grieg's music.
C.C.:
I'm so glad you are enjoying Inogolo; it's a great tool. I abbreviate daughter to "dtr" just to shorten it. We had a lovely dinner last night.
BarryG:
Great news about your job. I hope you find something equal or better.
Jazz:
Don't know if you read my late post yesterday. Many prayers for your stepson.
Hooray for nurses everywhere!
I hope you are all having a stupendous Thursday!
Oops. NO! Baseball is something I CANNOT be excited about. Big error previously.
Morning all.
Divided attention caused some of the same errors. So much for multi-
tasking.
Am thinking that the Sharks losing
tonight isn't a bad thing. The Chi/
Van series is going some time to finish.
Use the same dictionary as Argyle.
Usually go there first.
Hope they decide to defend the Cup
on Sf Bay. No word yet that I can tell.
eddyB
C.C., Argyle and Folk:
I hope this is effective, no matter how little, to help limit the oil spill quantity.
THERE'S MORE THAN ONE WAY TO SKIN A CAT
I hope to write more when I finish the puzzle.
Frenchy
dodo: Just think of ACER as the genus of maple trees, which I consider very beautiful and is on the Canadian flag.
Didn't we have something on jump roping a while back. Check this out: Jump Rope Dance (Make sure you hit the 'play' button.) I think they are called the Kings Firecrackers
Impressive jump-roping, Spitzboov!
I, too, must raise a hand for TASER (must be subliminal from the recent baseball game where the young man was tased). I really wanted NIXON, even though I knew that ERG and RDS had to be correct. Not fond of NFLER.
Spitzboov -
I never expected a köszönöm for the Kocsonya recipe.
SzÃvesen!
Thanks for the kind word, good wishes and prayers for my stepson Tom. He just returned from Afghanistan in December, and got reassigned from VA to FLA.
This unexpected deployment has turned life upside down for Tom and his family. His wife Beth - generally pretty stoic - said she went through the 7 stages of grief in about an hour and a half.
They'll be visiting here the first week end in May for Samantha's birthday party - a chance to touch base with everyone all at once.
You're a great bunch of people and a fine group of friends.
Cheers!
JzB the PRAISING trombonist
Happy 6th of May. That may not have much significance to any of you, but it is a hallmark anniversary for me. On May 6th, 2009 I had a mammogram that started me on the fast track to being diagnosed with high Stage 2 breast cancer. This morning, on May 6, 2010, I had the last of a 33 day series of radiation treatments and my darling doctor told me, "Have a nice life."
In the past year, I have had six chemotherapy treatments over four months, in October a modified radical mastectomy to my right breast, then four more chemotherapy treatments over three months, lost all my hair twice and have finally finished up with radiation therapy. Strange as it seems, it has been a truly fascinating and rewarding learning experience, but now I'm ready to go on with the rest of my life.
I debated about mentioning this on the blog, but there are some of you who have known about it and I wanted to thank you for your kindness, first of all to C.C., who has been supportive, considerate and encouraging. Two of our blog wise guys, Dennis and Windhover, are extraordinarily thoughtful softies at heart and first-class gentlemen (don't tell them I said so). The California Coven, WM, JD, Chickie plus Carol, who gave me a hug over more than one glass of wine and made me laugh countless times have been great friends. Ladies, party coming up soon!
Why didn't I say anything earlier? I'll be truthful and say that cancer has a tendency to be a downer (ya think?) and I didn't want to bring that vibe to the blog. Other than that (truthful again) you may have noticed that I don't have a religious bent and although I respect the fact that for many of you prayer is an integral part of your life, expressions of faith on my behalf are not something I am very comfortable with. I do however, believe in laughing with my friends, in not saying "Why me?", in thinking that whatever will be will be and trying to always look on the bright side of life. If you want to have a "oh my goodness" post, that's fine and then we can move on.
To all of you, I thank you for giving me a great hobby and outlet to keep coming back to when I wasn't feeling particularly well. Even though this challenging period of my life is mostly over, I will still be here, probably as much as ever. GAH and I are saving the celebratory dinner and rather ritzy bottle of wine for Mother's Day with the family, because I have chorus practice tonight and I'm perfectly happy to be doing the things I always love to do.
I've seen quite a few over the past year, so to all nurses everywhere, you are the absolute BEST!
Clear Ayes: Thank you for sharing your story. I am so glad to hear that you are doing well. You are very strong.
JazzB: My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family as well as your son Tom makes another trek to Afghanistan.
CA - my friend, I am so glad to hear your long, tough road is at last coming to an end. I applaud your positive attitude through it all, and will happily join you in a glass of whatever when we can get together again. I hope it will be soon. You are a wonderful example to all of us who have or might face something this terrifying.
This JAM SESSION is for all you DREAMBOATS (non-gender specific) here, and most especially Clear Ayes.
C.A. You have been so consistently up-beat and positive I never would have guessed you were dealing with anything so heavy. You're my role model.
At the link, it looks like Dave Caparone is playing my King.
Cheers!
JzB a SORT-of trombonist
CA
glad you are healed.
Hugh O'Brian was 6'1" is that tall enouhg?
CA:
Here's a toast to you! You certainly are a brave woman; I never would have guessed you were walking that rough road. My hero, too, for your positive attitude and continuing to do the things you love.
Clear Ayes -
You are one classy broad! I can imagine how tough it was to go through your ordeal of the last year without sharing, especially since you know how much support you would have readily received here. I have the utmost admiration for your selflessness that allowed the group's energies to be directed elsewhere in the form of prayers, thoughts, etc. when others' crises were made known. Congratulations on your excellent prognosis. You've certainly demonstrated the importance of attitude when dealing with these issues. Hope you have one hell of a Mother's Day!
CA, I am in absolute awe of you. We are having our wine and dine group tonight, and I will celebrate for you. I will toast to a remarkable lady with a wonderful wit and amazing courage.
To the absolute classiest woman I have never met, the ever thoughtful and tres diplomatic ClearAyes, I raise my hand in salute. And tonight i'll raise a glass of an expensive Belgian Abbey Ale I've saved for months for just the right occasion. You're the finest, dear, and the Irish and I will celebrate both your coming out and the start of the rest of your life in our most liberal and decadent fashion. Here's to you and GAH. Thanks for everything.
CA: My hat is off to a brave lady...
I`m am so thankful your ordeal is so close to resolved. We didn`t always agree on issues but you were ever gracious and warm. My very best to you and GAH.
Clear Ayes,
Congratulations on the completion of your cancer treatments. I admire your courage and dignity in facing all you have had to endure this past year.
Not too bad for a Thursday. 22 minutes. No errors. Nice to see Elena Verdugo in another puzzle. As a long-time Universal classic horror movie fan, I've long since lost track of how many times I've seen House of Frankenstein (1944), in which she played the gypsy girl Ilonka, who unwittingly and tragically falls in love with Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr. as the Wolfman). She's still alive, by the way (born in 1926).
Clear Ayes- I'm with windhover on this one, except I've no Belgian ale. But I'm going to raise a cold Bud your way and toast the human spirit. And perhaps by celebrating your grace I can find a little for myself.
Hello all.
CA. The first drink of Macallan tonight is for you.
Will buy a round if the warlocks
are invited this time.
The Bones episode tonight is about Wiccas.
Time for a hockey game.
eddyB 24tg
Hello All--I had my post all ready and it disappeared into limbo. I'll just have to raise my hand with everyone else as I put in taser and also clapping in the NE corner and so you can guess the rest. This was the last area to fall.
I thought Civic Engineer for Honda, was an excellent clue and also the clue for Ether, Old knockout cause.
Barry, good news.
Tobacco Road was also a movie, very funny in places, but sad because of the proverty it portrayed. They were deep south, poor people. I think the Het up phrase most likely is regional in origin, probably from the deep south.
CA, Kuddos for letting everyone know about your battle these past few months. We certainly will have to get together and toast you with a glass of something special.
I'm so glad that you have finally finished your last treatment.
CA, Congratulations on completing your ordeal! It is good that you shared the news. That will be an encouragement to anyone else who may, either for themselves or for a loved one, have to go through the same kind of situation.
Re. the puzzle. I had the same kind of problems as have been mentioned, except, I never read 'Civic" correctly, until I came here. I thought it was Civil and didn't get the connection. Duh!
Dot
For anonymous @7:44: How incredibly boorish, insensitive and downright rude. Go find a puzzle blog with which you can relate. You certainly don`t fit with this one!
The rude comment was removed...thanks to whomever did so...
Clearayes, I actually shed some tears today at work when I read your "revalation". I had no idea that you were going through such angst. I for one have always put you in my "top ten" to read on the blog. You and I have been here damned near from the start. For what you went through and continued to "smile" through it has made me try to follow in your footsteps. It's a hard road to folllow.
In your name I just signed up for a walk for a Breast Cancer Awareness fund on Mother's Day. Since I can't see my Mom that day I am doing this walk to raise money for everyone fighting this diseaase.
I am so happy that you fought it and came clear today. May 6th is a good day! Crying once again...tears of joy of course!
Back from the dead. The past couple days have been most eventful and a lot of fun, but too painful to recount until my head feels better.
ARBAON, you're welcome; it was my pleasure, believe me.
Clear Ayes, you are the personification of dignity, grace and class. I couldn't be happier that you've come out the other end of this so successfully. In spite of what you said about me.
I'm gonna go pass out for a while.
As a left coaster, most of what I would comment on the puzzle has usually already been said by the time I get up, do the puzzle, go to work, and come to the blog. So my only comment today is that I remember my grandmother using HET UP, "thus" AND SO, and CHIME in. Thanks Jack McInturff for a trip down "Memory Lane"!
Dot-Your late night comment last night about Syttende Mai celebration with lutefisk, lefse, and rommegrot had me salivating (okay, hold the lutefisk). My mother is 110% Norwegian, and those foods were staples in our home, along with fruktsuppe (fruit soup), risengrot (rice pudding), and for special occasions, a Kransekake (a marzipan tower "cake"). If you go to the celebration in Stoughton, WI, enjoy!
Clearayes, I haven't known you very long, but long enough to appreciate your upbeat and diplomatic posts. Now I know you for the exemplary person you are in other ways, too. I nominate you for the American Cancer Society Poster Hero(ine).Or how about governor?
Good night, all.
Clear Ayes, congratulations on a clear signal on your breast cancer. I had it in 1991, and truly believe it's over. Your contributions to this blog while going through all that are truly exemplary. Glad you continued to do the things you love to do. I know it helped.
Jazzbumpa, Yes, best wishes for your stepson. It's hard not to get political on this blog with the way our soldiers are treated.
Here's to Clear Ayes and Tom.
CA, I thought about you most of the day and so admire your never-ending optimistic attitude. You always do look on the bright side of life.I'm proud to be your friend.
OK, the puzzle. Not too much jumped out at me; my Magic Rub got quite a workout.Like xtulmkr, this xtchr had dorm for frat, numbs for mutes, and I was way off with old style..thinking it was a font I didn't know.I needed a case of V8's, especially when a 6th grader gave me the phrase "hits for a cycle"! I was sure there had to be a "ones" in that phrase.
I think I've been asped!
Clear Ayes: I'm so happy for you! I'd never have guessed you were going through this the past year. Now I have even more respect and admiration for your spirit! I want to say something incredibly profound and wonderful for you, but it's all been said already. The only thing I can come up with is: Best wishes for continued good health and healing! Celebrate and enjoy life!
Barry G: That's great news about your deal. Even if you don't start the search until the 3 months are up, it still gives you time to breath and put out feelers.
Dick: I tried to put in Pat Nixon first too.
JD: I was trying to put ONES in the middle of that phrase too.
Dudley: That sign reminds me of a very appropriate one I have by my front door: "Ring bell. If no answer, pull weeds." I've got to stop answering the door, because I hate weeding and need help!
The fish were calling, but not biting. Still 2 feet of snow at the lake and about 1/2 is covered in ice.
Lots of hands up, but I can't believe no one else went for Pat BOONE . About a 15 minute fill with the last letter the O in LOGS. I wanted an E! As usual, those @#!%*@! names were the most hateful part, but perps got me through them unSCATHEd.
Hand up, too, for Barry and CA. I doubt I could improve on the eloquent congratulations already posted.
CC - Next time you are in a authentic Mexican restaurant, ask if they have Jamaica (Pronounced Ha-MY-ka). It's a sweet drink brewed from Jamaica (hibiscus) flowers. The dried flowers are sold in the local markets here in Cen. Cal., or you can by a powdered imitation that reminds me of Kool-aid. The real stuff is one of my favorites.
Ca,
What a tremendous ordeal to have kept quiet about for so long. You are truly amazing to have been so upbeat through it all. It's wonderful that you have been given a clean bill of health to continue on with your life now. Congratulations, and I wish you the best of everything that life can offer.
Oops, "buy a powdered imitation".
Mainiac - Thanks for your post. My son has been in Afghanistan for 5 days now. If you want that whiner quieted, I'm available.
Also, I liked HOSER. Our neighbors with the ACER leaf use it as slang: "Don't be a hoser, eh!"
I'm not sure I understand the NYT correctly: The current puzzle in today's paper is only available online via subscription, right?
Or, you can wait 6 weeks and it will appear online as a syndicated puzzle?
So, my options for doing Dan's last NYT puzzle are to pay, or wait, right?
Or, if I'd read the blog earlier, I could have contacted my niece living in NYC and asked her to scan and email it to me...?
Thanks,
Annette
CA, everybody else has said what I feel better than I could. I hope I can do as well when I come face-to-face with my possible end in sight. It's good to have met you.
~ Bill Graham
@Annette - Buy today's NY Times newspaper. Or wait for 6-weeks for the syndication.
Clear Ayes: My sincerest admiration, best wishes, and support as well. I had my own run-in with the Big C almost ten years ago, but fortunately, surgery was all I required, and I've had no recurrence. Any way you cut it, though, it's a daunting thing to deal with, and you've done so with style and grace.
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