Theme: STOCK SPLIT - Each of the five theme answers have the word STOCK wrapped around them.
18A. Hurricane zone: STORM TRACK. No hurricane, but we do have a TROPICAL DEPRESSION bringing us flooding by the time you all are reading this; eerie.
20A. Unflappable: STEADY AS A ROCK. Steady enough ladies? IMAGE .
33A. "Time out!": STOP THE CLOCK. I remember this SHOW better. My mother was on the radio with Bud Collyer during the 1939 .World’s Fair. Which is ironic because we have 45A. 1970 World's Fair site: OSAKA. All you missed is HERE .
42A. Dismay at the dealer: STICKER SHOCK. It is not just cars, but many BILLS .
56A. Sprinter's device: STARTING BLOCK. Okay I ran out of ideas.
60A. Sign of corporate success, and a literal hint to the puzzle theme found in 18-, 20-, 33-, 42- and 56-Across: STOCK SPLIT - this is when the shares of a publicly traded company become so expensive, the company splits the shares to lower the price, so instead of one $100.00 share, you would have 2 $50.00 shares.
Happy Wednesday, and Happy Birthday to my number two son; what a great present, a Dan Naddor, with six theme related answers and 69 letters of themeage.
For all you newbies, Dan will always be very special to us, both for his wit and his courage. And of course his prolific puzzle publications.
He really loved to trick so many ways, with the most common the run on answer, where if you see a partial fill, you will think you made a mistake because the letters cannot be in the same word; today’s examples:
24A. __ in November: N AS. This has nothing to do with the rapper, just the letter that begins the word.
28A. Alternatively: IF NOT. Yes, F and N can be next to each other.
50A. Polite oater response: YES'M. I was an extra once in a movie starring JOHNNY CRAWFORD , and Victoria PRINCIPAL .
66A. Prayer opening: O LORD. Reminds me of this MOVIE .
1D. Appends: ADDS ON. Not to be confused with this PENDS .
9D. Not digressing: ON TOPIC. This is so big in classrooms these days, I am told; the kids must stay on topic; not me, I am afraid, I love digressing. Last evening, we had someone come in for an interview…
48D. Oregon State's conf.: PAC TEN. Off to a great start with Oregon, Stanford and USC all playing well and UCLA stunning Texas. OSU (the one in Oregon) did not do so well on the blue turf, though.
52D. He rid Ire. of snakes, as the legend goes: ST PAT. Notice how Dan just tells you it is an abbreviation by referencing IRE.
56D_ speak: SO TO. I thought of sotto voce.
Anyway, time to tackle the rest of the puzzle; sorry I am being so long winded, but Dan stokes me.
Across:
1. Hitchcock's wife and collaborator: ALMA. Man what a way to start, I did not recall this Mrs. H. . I think I will read the book their daughter wrote.
5. Floater with a ladder: RAFT. The miracles of technology; right GEORGE .
9. Garnish on a toothpick: OLIVE. Does everybody use Vodka now for their DRINK .
14. Radio tuner: DIAL. No soap, I had trouble with this one; I guess it was too easy.
15. Peace Prize city: OSLO. For our Norwegian members, a reminder plug.
16. Kind of spray: NASAL. Also my ex-girlfriend, ick.
17. Ringing sound: DONG. A very versatile WORD .
22. Playful swimmer: OTTER. Ah the MEMORIES .
23. Craft: SHIP.
25. Bodybuilder's pride: ABS. What you think LADIES ?
37. TV ad-skipping aid: TIVO.
40. "M*A*S*H" role: RADAR.
41. Palo __, Calif.: ALTO. Home of Stanford (PAC TEN) and the last Super Bowl the Dolphins played, and the only one with Dan Marino. We were there, sad.
46. Hearth burn consequence: ASH. Did you read it as "Heart burn"? I did not not get this clue, and all I could think of was THIS BURN .
47. Jacuzzi, e.g.: SPA. Like Kleenex and Jello, a product name that became the product. Did you know it was the name of the family who invented it?
54. Destroyer destroyer: U-BOAT. Really fun clue, and fine FILM .
62. Con: ANTI.
63. Supple: LITHE. Like THESE .
64. Cornerstone word: ANNO. In the cement in the corner of the building, the YEAR it was built, part of the never ending Latin lesson of CW, which includes 39D. By way of: VIA.
65. Spotted: SEEN. I was thinking Leopards.
67. Ball holders: TEES. Geez, this and DONG in one puzzle.
68. Coastal raptors: ERNS. This bird has flown through often lately.
Down:
2. Ray of "GoodFellas": LIOTTA. I have seen this Movie 35 times, as one of the Lufthansa Gang became a client.
3. Some Musée d'Orsay works: MANETS. Love pretty PICTURES .
4. Pool problem: ALGAE. Our problem is the sumbitch Iguana who sneaks out to poop in de pool.
5. Optimistic: ROSY. “If we could all wear green glasses, it would not be so hard to see the grass would always be greener in our own back yard.”
6. "The Thin Man" pooch: ASTA. A true Hollywood STAR .
7. Dentist's suggestion: FLOSS. My cousin flosses so much, she always has some hanging off of her.
8. Holy scroll: TORAH. Tonight is the last night of Sukkhot. Happy Holiday.
10. Prix de __ de Triomphe: annual horse race: L'ARC. Now this is deceptive, most of us would get Arc de Triomphe right away, but make it a horse race, and the puzzle becomes a horse race.
11. Writer Dinesen: ISAK. I never heard of this woman (yes, woman) but h=she has some great QUOTES .
12. Shop cleaner, briefly: VAC.
13. Caribou kin: ELK. Hmm, are they YUMMY ?
19. Diagnostic proc.: MRI. Another clue abbr.
21. "Shoot!": DRAT. One of my favorite words, another of those Brit words that hides the blasphemy WORDS .
26. Drag: BORE. You like THIS .
27. Joust verbally: SPAR.
29. Strong criticism: FLAK. I like it, and don’t give me any….
30. Mardi Gras city's Amtrak code: NOL. I do not think anyone memorizes Amtrak codes. But the airport there is MSY; know why?
31. Trick-or-treat mo.: OCT. Another abbr.
32. Bout stopper, for short: TKO.
33. Wallop: SOCK. This fists in nicely in a puzzle filled with STOCK.
34. NFL scores: TDS.
35. "That's a riot—not": HA HA. Go ahead and Google derisive laughter, my my.
36. Cupid, to the Greeks: EROS.
37. General associated with chicken: TSO. Time to LEARN .
38. "__ a date!": IT’S. Maybe save your LIFE .
43. Negotiated white water, perhaps: KAYAKED.
44. Thick-bodied fish: CHUB. Talk about live and LEARN MORE.
47. One vis-à-vis two: SOONER. Less? Normal? Some hidden FRENCH .
49. Diet doctor: ATKINS.
51. Med. drama sets: ERS. Ah yes, another GEORGE .
53. Pooh's creator: MILNE.
55. Unimpressed: BLASE. You get TWO .
57. Freq. test giver: TCHR. Another abbr., but really?
58. Prime-time time: NINE.
59. Pontiac muscle cars: GTOS. Dennis, is this REAL .
60. Road warning: SLO.
61. Up to, in ads: TIL.
Way too much, but like the puzzle, I rambled. So hello and see you all later.
Answer grid.
Lemonade
18A. Hurricane zone: STORM TRACK. No hurricane, but we do have a TROPICAL DEPRESSION bringing us flooding by the time you all are reading this; eerie.
20A. Unflappable: STEADY AS A ROCK. Steady enough ladies? IMAGE .
33A. "Time out!": STOP THE CLOCK. I remember this SHOW better. My mother was on the radio with Bud Collyer during the 1939 .World’s Fair. Which is ironic because we have 45A. 1970 World's Fair site: OSAKA. All you missed is HERE .
42A. Dismay at the dealer: STICKER SHOCK. It is not just cars, but many BILLS .
56A. Sprinter's device: STARTING BLOCK. Okay I ran out of ideas.
60A. Sign of corporate success, and a literal hint to the puzzle theme found in 18-, 20-, 33-, 42- and 56-Across: STOCK SPLIT - this is when the shares of a publicly traded company become so expensive, the company splits the shares to lower the price, so instead of one $100.00 share, you would have 2 $50.00 shares.
Happy Wednesday, and Happy Birthday to my number two son; what a great present, a Dan Naddor, with six theme related answers and 69 letters of themeage.
For all you newbies, Dan will always be very special to us, both for his wit and his courage. And of course his prolific puzzle publications.
He really loved to trick so many ways, with the most common the run on answer, where if you see a partial fill, you will think you made a mistake because the letters cannot be in the same word; today’s examples:
24A. __ in November: N AS. This has nothing to do with the rapper, just the letter that begins the word.
28A. Alternatively: IF NOT. Yes, F and N can be next to each other.
50A. Polite oater response: YES'M. I was an extra once in a movie starring JOHNNY CRAWFORD , and Victoria PRINCIPAL .
66A. Prayer opening: O LORD. Reminds me of this MOVIE .
1D. Appends: ADDS ON. Not to be confused with this PENDS .
9D. Not digressing: ON TOPIC. This is so big in classrooms these days, I am told; the kids must stay on topic; not me, I am afraid, I love digressing. Last evening, we had someone come in for an interview…
48D. Oregon State's conf.: PAC TEN. Off to a great start with Oregon, Stanford and USC all playing well and UCLA stunning Texas. OSU (the one in Oregon) did not do so well on the blue turf, though.
52D. He rid Ire. of snakes, as the legend goes: ST PAT. Notice how Dan just tells you it is an abbreviation by referencing IRE.
56D_ speak: SO TO. I thought of sotto voce.
Anyway, time to tackle the rest of the puzzle; sorry I am being so long winded, but Dan stokes me.
Across:
1. Hitchcock's wife and collaborator: ALMA. Man what a way to start, I did not recall this Mrs. H. . I think I will read the book their daughter wrote.
5. Floater with a ladder: RAFT. The miracles of technology; right GEORGE .
9. Garnish on a toothpick: OLIVE. Does everybody use Vodka now for their DRINK .
14. Radio tuner: DIAL. No soap, I had trouble with this one; I guess it was too easy.
15. Peace Prize city: OSLO. For our Norwegian members, a reminder plug.
16. Kind of spray: NASAL. Also my ex-girlfriend, ick.
17. Ringing sound: DONG. A very versatile WORD .
22. Playful swimmer: OTTER. Ah the MEMORIES .
23. Craft: SHIP.
25. Bodybuilder's pride: ABS. What you think LADIES ?
37. TV ad-skipping aid: TIVO.
40. "M*A*S*H" role: RADAR.
41. Palo __, Calif.: ALTO. Home of Stanford (PAC TEN) and the last Super Bowl the Dolphins played, and the only one with Dan Marino. We were there, sad.
46. Hearth burn consequence: ASH. Did you read it as "Heart burn"? I did not not get this clue, and all I could think of was THIS BURN .
47. Jacuzzi, e.g.: SPA. Like Kleenex and Jello, a product name that became the product. Did you know it was the name of the family who invented it?
54. Destroyer destroyer: U-BOAT. Really fun clue, and fine FILM .
62. Con: ANTI.
63. Supple: LITHE. Like THESE .
64. Cornerstone word: ANNO. In the cement in the corner of the building, the YEAR it was built, part of the never ending Latin lesson of CW, which includes 39D. By way of: VIA.
65. Spotted: SEEN. I was thinking Leopards.
67. Ball holders: TEES. Geez, this and DONG in one puzzle.
68. Coastal raptors: ERNS. This bird has flown through often lately.
Down:
2. Ray of "GoodFellas": LIOTTA. I have seen this Movie 35 times, as one of the Lufthansa Gang became a client.
3. Some Musée d'Orsay works: MANETS. Love pretty PICTURES .
4. Pool problem: ALGAE. Our problem is the sumbitch Iguana who sneaks out to poop in de pool.
5. Optimistic: ROSY. “If we could all wear green glasses, it would not be so hard to see the grass would always be greener in our own back yard.”
6. "The Thin Man" pooch: ASTA. A true Hollywood STAR .
7. Dentist's suggestion: FLOSS. My cousin flosses so much, she always has some hanging off of her.
8. Holy scroll: TORAH. Tonight is the last night of Sukkhot. Happy Holiday.
10. Prix de __ de Triomphe: annual horse race: L'ARC. Now this is deceptive, most of us would get Arc de Triomphe right away, but make it a horse race, and the puzzle becomes a horse race.
11. Writer Dinesen: ISAK. I never heard of this woman (yes, woman) but h=she has some great QUOTES .
12. Shop cleaner, briefly: VAC.
13. Caribou kin: ELK. Hmm, are they YUMMY ?
19. Diagnostic proc.: MRI. Another clue abbr.
21. "Shoot!": DRAT. One of my favorite words, another of those Brit words that hides the blasphemy WORDS .
26. Drag: BORE. You like THIS .
27. Joust verbally: SPAR.
29. Strong criticism: FLAK. I like it, and don’t give me any….
30. Mardi Gras city's Amtrak code: NOL. I do not think anyone memorizes Amtrak codes. But the airport there is MSY; know why?
31. Trick-or-treat mo.: OCT. Another abbr.
32. Bout stopper, for short: TKO.
33. Wallop: SOCK. This fists in nicely in a puzzle filled with STOCK.
34. NFL scores: TDS.
35. "That's a riot—not": HA HA. Go ahead and Google derisive laughter, my my.
36. Cupid, to the Greeks: EROS.
37. General associated with chicken: TSO. Time to LEARN .
38. "__ a date!": IT’S. Maybe save your LIFE .
43. Negotiated white water, perhaps: KAYAKED.
44. Thick-bodied fish: CHUB. Talk about live and LEARN MORE.
47. One vis-à-vis two: SOONER. Less? Normal? Some hidden FRENCH .
49. Diet doctor: ATKINS.
51. Med. drama sets: ERS. Ah yes, another GEORGE .
53. Pooh's creator: MILNE.
55. Unimpressed: BLASE. You get TWO .
57. Freq. test giver: TCHR. Another abbr., but really?
58. Prime-time time: NINE.
59. Pontiac muscle cars: GTOS. Dennis, is this REAL .
60. Road warning: SLO.
61. Up to, in ads: TIL.
Way too much, but like the puzzle, I rambled. So hello and see you all later.
Answer grid.
Lemonade
101 comments:
Good morning, Lemonade, C.C. and gang - how nice to have one of Dan's puzzles on hump day! This one was more like a Monday-Tuesday level in terms of simplicity, but the theme was clever and the clues were mostly fresh. Had a couple unknowns at the crossing of 1A and 3D, but it seemed like 'Manets' was the most likely answer, which gave me 'Alma'.
It's always nice to see GTO clued - I'd love to own another one some day. I guess 'Tchr' is an ok abbreviation for teacher, but I don't know if I've seen it before. Favorite clue was 'Hearth burn consequence'.
Lemonade, great job on the blog; very informative as always. I swear, you must be getting a kickback from YouTube; it's gonna take me an hour to go through them all. You'll have to re-link the GTO one - I couldn't get it to work.
Today is Confucius Day. Try a fortune cookie.
Couldn't find enough good questions yet, so......Did You Know?:
- Thermometers were invented in the sixteenth century.
- The most common birthday in the United States is October 5th.
- Tom Cruise attended a seminary to become a Catholic priest.
Morning, all!
Things started off a bit on the slow side today when I had no idea regarding ALMA and erroneously put in KNOB instead of DIAL for 14A. Once I got that resolved, however, the rest of the puzzle went by pretty quickly until I hit the whole SLO/TIL/SOTO/TCHR section in the SW corner. A lot of ugly fill there. Not enough to ruin the solving experience for me, but still pretty unpleasant to run into...
Good Morning, Lemonade, CC and all. Glad you had electricity long enough to complete your wonderful commentary this morning. How ironic to have a Hurricane clue today. Glad that this remained "only" tropical depression #16 for you and others in STORM TRACK.
I loved seeing Dan Naddor, but this was quite different from his usual fare. I didn't catch the STOCK SPLIT until after I had completed the puzzle and went back to search the theme clues.
I had On Point instead of ON TOPIC for Not Digressing.
Isak Dinesen's birth name was Karen Blixen. She wrote "Out of Africa."
In her honor, here is today's QOD: God made the world round so we would never be able to see too far down the road. ~ Isak Dinesen.
Why is the New Orleans Airport code MSY? The airport was originally named Moisant Field after John Moisant, and early aviator. It was later renamed to the Louis Armstrong International Airport, but the original code stuck.
As you noted, the last day of Sukkot, immediately followed by Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah. Chag Sameach, Lemonade.
Good morning Lemonade, CC, et al., So bitter sweet to see Dan Naddor's puzzle here. Love his style. But reading the comments was just as much fun. Outstanding job, Lemonade. I almost fell off my chair w/the Rug burn clip. Dang, that's funny! And I want one of those heat sensitive cameras. Thank you for all the effort and fun links. I wouldn't mind having abs like that, but looking at those doesn't give me warm fuzzies. Makes me cringe b/c of the shaving they have to do actually. Give me a male w/some hair any day. Now we can talk warm fuzzies.
Started getting excited w/PAC TEN and when Sooner showed up, I went over the edge. Oh yeah! Good stuff for sure! OU (Ok) rules!
Intersting Did you knows, Dennis. Oct 5? You just missed it. Interesting to think of Tom Cruise as a priest. Catholicism to Scientology? Is he conflicted?
Enjoy your day.
Sorry about that:
Dennis, is this REAL .
Lois, what exactly would you do with a heat-sensitive camera??
I was disappointed to read that I'm not your type -- I've got about 7 hairs on my chest.
Love, love, love your blog, L714.
Morning All,
Not much time to post but I was totally enthused when I saw it was a Naddor Wednesday. I'll be back later to go through Lemonade's write-up. That Goat was wild!
Hello everyone!
Nice work Lemonade!
Another great puzzle from the late Dan Naddor. This one caused no problems.
The '85 Firebird was a great muscle car from Pontiac with smashing good looks. After I got fibromyalgia, it was two hard for me to get in and out of it. Also. the manual transmission was difficult to cope with. I sure miss that car!
ClearAyes, you were right, of course, Have had raging insomnia since that 17 hour sleep!
I take melatonin and 100 mg. trazedone. I think that I am immune to the latter after several years.
I read yesterday's 110 or so blog entries. It amazes me that many people do not read the previous entries! Other than that phenomenon the blog was a whole lot of fun. I only had one answer to Dennis's quiz. Being a mathematician, the 1,000 answer was immediately obvious.
I had a honeycomb in the fridge that fell off of a tree branch due to big winds. After awhile it turned black. Huh?
It was 110 degrees in Northridge Monday. The humidity was very high also. (My house is not air-conditioned. Just my bedroom is. At night it sucks up all the heat from the rest of the house. Quite unpleasant!)
Have a wonderful hump day!
Good morning all. Great commentary, Lemonade. "Oh Brother" is one of my favorites.
Just a bit more difficult than Tuesday's, but still relatively easy. No lookups needed. Did not really suss out the theme, but noticed they all seemed to end in a CK. One pass and a little crisscrossing and it was done. Never saw TCHR before. Got LIOTTA from the perps. ALMA was a WAG. Thought of 'char' before CHUB became obvious.
The Peace Prize is the only Nobel award given out in OSLO; the rest are presented in Stockholm.
Re: 'Das Boot" Great link, Lemonade. Boot is pronounced the same as 'boat' in English. Many people want to pronounce it as the 'boot' in footwear.
Have a good day. Be safe in FL.
This was a nice Wednesday puzzle surprise. My only hangup was ON TOPIC and STORM TRACK. I had it all filled in, but not knowing LARC or ISAK at all, I started to question whether TRACK was right, as all the other answers ended in OCK. Of course I had to come here to confirm I was right, never looking at the beginning STO. Confusing yes. But good puzzle anyway.
Off to get someone to come in and do a fix up project on the house. My DH is not handy, but he can get a few things done when needed, but not when he is in San Diego. He thinks I should feel sorry for him in the heat, but we have had such a cool fall I do not pity him in the least.
Have a great day all.
Good Morning C.C.,Lemonade and all,
I knew this was a special puzzle, when I started working it.
The theme is great! It took me a bit to get it- I guess the 'split' was sooo long- my eyes finally got the message-'left'- 'right'.
Overall,it felt lively and fresh. Perps were a help with names and 'sooner'.My not being able to access Lemonade's links this a.m. and in spite of my trusty dictionary's 3 entirely diff. entries for vis a vis, I still don't get it. Unless it refers to 'time'- as 'earlier'. If this is wrong, could someone explain?
Lemonade- I have to address your blog later. Our server{we're in the sticks] has slowed down our service. It won't pull up those links readily enough to be feasible this a.m.. I'm going to daughter's this afternoon to see a granddaughter play in a field hockey game and will be able to access from her house later.
I'm looking forward to it. Thanks.
Have a nice day everyone.
Hi Gang, the puzzle was pretty easy but Lemonade's write-up was fabulous. That took me longer and I can't imagine how you do all this so early in the day or do you get the puzzle early? I enjoyed Beat The Clock (what a time capsule), vis'-a-vis' and I ain't eatin' nothin' with eyeballs! I have seen programs on the Food Channel about real Asian cooking. Oh my!
Yesterday our friend Dennis supplied a lovely link to CHESTY and I'll not request any links for DONG or BALL HOLDER!
I had SHI_ and could not get off Craft as a verb but got there and had another fill to show my frustration. I loved the Supple/LITHE young ladies. I have had many of these gymnasts in class and for a man who bending over can be an adventure, the pictures they show me are amazing.
I of course am a Philistine and have no idea where Musee d'Orsay is but surmise it is French and a museum and the works were either MANET or MONET. I hate when people tell me something is art because they say so!
Dennis, Galileo's liquid thermometer of the 1600's went down in hot weather and up in cold weather. We made them in my physics classes to show gaseous expansion of air! I was ready for trivia today but those were pleasant too!
I am making a space presentation today to 250 kids who are K - 5 (not ELHI) and then will play golf on this beautiful day!
Great puzzle and a great blog, Lemonade, thanks! Especially for the BORE link--I'm going to have to watch that show.
I actually was on Dan's wavelength all the way through this one. Got the 'ck' ending connection right away and the 'st' shortly after, so that by the time I got the unifier it was obvious. Only misstep was having to change DRAW to DRAT.
Fermatprime,
I wonder if yoga relaxation techniques would help. Have you ever tried that, or have you ever done yoga? I rarely have a problem sleeping, but when I'm pent up about something and need to, I can make myself relax that way. When I took yoga classes I would often drift off while in the relaxed mode.
Thanks Lemonade for your analysis and links.
Had to scratch a little to find something to say, which is rare for me. However, your comment about the trade-name Jacuzzi becoming the common name for the item, together with the clue to VAC, brought up a point.
In the UK, "HOOVER" has been the common name for a vacuum-cleaner since its first introduction. Maybe because of it word-form, it has become both a noun and verb THAT CONJUGATES.
Thus:
" Are you done hoovering those carpets, love? "
"Yes, I hoovered them all, Mum, but I think we need a new one. I saw some nice cheap hoovers in the Co-op last week".
However, I have yet to see a back-form, as we did with LASER -> LASE a fortnight (=2 weeks) or so back. Thus, a HOOVER has not become someone or something that HOOVES. It may BEHOOVE us to know that. Any more, anyone??
One of my favorite translatlantic quips:
American Wife: "Honey, the vacuum cleaner is broken".
Brit Husband (in his best American accent): "Oh no, not again, darling, that SUCKS!" (or not, as the case may be).
One more trivia: Given the horse-racing tie-in with the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe" (sounds so much better in French, just like "Chateau-neuf du Pape" - the Pope's new castle..), I'd like to point out that a HA-HA is the name for a "drop -fence" on country estates in Brit-land. They provide uninterrupted views, but are best known as a feature of cross-country horse races or "Trials". The name is reputedly based on the exclamation heard upon encountering one. I am sure if horses could speak, they would say something stronger than DRAT.
FInally, talking of "Drat", it's hard to forget the original Wacky Races:
Dick Dastardly: "Drat, and double drat!"
Mutley: (hard to transliterate but distinctive, wheezy laugh, followed by incomprehensible curse).
Can you name all the original characters? Here is some help:
Wacky Races
Husker,
The Musée d'Orsay is on the Quai d'Orsay in Paris. It is located in a building which started life as a railway station, but which after a few decades of disuse was revamped as a museum. That in itself is worth seeing! It houses the artworks post 1850, which is where the Louvre leaves off. So a lot of Impressionists are represented there, including both Manet and Monet.
KQ,
I feel for you in the fix-up mode. We just had our water heater replaced yesterday after discovering a leak in the old one, which was as old as our house, only 13! Being told we did well because they usually only last 12 years, did not ease the STICKER SHOCK one bit!
ps I knew there was something to append to our recent discussion of teacher performance pay and I wanted to mention it yesterday but forgot.
The LA Times published scores of all underperforming teachers in LA as judged by their students' standardized scores and it is postulated by some that this humiliation may have been a factor in a teacher in a gang-ridden school commiting suicide. My God!
Good Morning Lemonade, C.C. et al.
Oh my - a Dan Naddor AND a great write-up from Lemonade. Watta Wednesday !
My DH lived in NO for many years, and I asked him this morning if he knew what MSY stood for - he immediately said "Moisant". Interesting, the bits of trivia you pick up from living in different places.
I loved the link for OLORD - that is a great movie, that everyone should see. But when I saw the ans, I immediately thought of this song.
Have a great day everyone!
Reacting to the suicide report, I have to say that one great fault of people judging teachers here is the mindset that education is an industry. However, if a worker in a factory turns out a lousy product, the fault could be poor quality materials as much as the worker's incompetence. But that is never considered in education: many students start out with such handicaps, social or otherwise, that teachers cannot always be held accountable for poor results.
I just watched the video on the site I linked in my 9:04 post, and it gives a wonderful history of the building as well as a good educational look at its present contents. Enough to inspire even the least artistic among us. It's best to pause it until the feed catches up, however, since it's jerky otherwise.
Isak Denesen was the nom de plume of Danish writer, Karen Blixen. Her best known work was "Out of Africa," a story of her life on a coffee plantation in Kenya. A movie, based on this book, was made in 1985, starring Meryl Streep, Robert Redford and Klaus Maria Brandauer.
Just a quick thought as I wait for the dermatologists.
I am not a teacher, never have been, and my closest relation with any connection is my mother-in-law, a retired teacher. I am convinced that the primary ailment of our education system is lousy parenting. There are poor teachers, there are poor bus drivers, there are poor farmers. But a teacher can not make a poorly prepared, undisciplined, and uncared for child a good student. That it happens occasionally is only the exception that proves the rule.
The socioeconomics of our society since about 1970 (both parents working) is a culprit here, as is television. But whatever the cause, even great teachers rarely overcome poor parenting.
I took the "one vis-avis two" to mean "first one and then, two."
In Education, getting of track was often called "bird-walking."
I`ve heard that George Raft had rubber leg bones. And technically the dial is not the tuner...it`s the printed range of stations through you tune with the knob...which I thought was the answer.
Hope you haven`t floated away, Lemonade. Doesn`t look so bad where we are. Enjoyed your links especially the George Clooney one. Who`d a thunk he`d still be gorgeous as a depression era hill-william!
I`ve heard (folk-lore) that conceptions rise in cold weather. Count three months from October 5th, ( that`s how you figure the time of conception) and you get January 5th. The lore seems to be valid.
"Polite oater response" made be think of the incomparable Gary Cooper.
A medical note; Strict adherence to the Atkins diet produces ketosis, a sort of induced diabetes, if you will...not good for kidneys at all! So don`t "do" Atkins for a prolonged length of time.
Wal Mart has been wonderful for investors because of stock splitting. Mr.Sam is probably rolling in his grave over many of their labor practices today, though.
It’s been a while since we’ve seen a Dan Naddor puzzle. One can only wonder how many there are left. I caught onto the theme when I got “sticker shock”, which coincidentally is what I have been experiencing as I am looking to buy a 4wd before winter. I admit I did have to hit the g-spot for Isak Dinesen. I love those quotes you linked counselor. I read hearth burn as heart burn too, and for the life of me couldn’t come up with a three letter answer. I got anno and NOL via the perps. I can honestly say I don’t know one train station hub’s name. I didn’t like Slo as a road warning; slow perhaps but slo? I spent many a summer’s day on a “floatie” raft which is what we used to call them. I have to admit that I chuckled when I saw dong and ball holders….but then along came “chub”!!
Windhover, both of my parents worked. My brother is a nuclear physicist, one sister is the quality control manager for Gerber, my other sister is a teacher. I think we all turned out pretty good.
Excellent write up counselor, but I can’t access youtube from work so couldn’t open most of the links. I will have to check it out when I get home. Everyone enjoy your day! It’ s a beautiful fall MN day here. Sunny and 70; might have to take a walk during my lunch hour.
I've never seen a Hitchcock flick. Is it true that he always had his wife Alma do a quick, two or three second cameo in his films? Also, I'm a big fan of Pacino, but I don't watch gangster movies. Was he as great in "Goodfellas" as I've heard?
Good Morning All, Thanks for all the good links Lemonade. A day with two George Clooneys has got to be a good one.
I was pretty much on Dan Naddor's wavelength today. I never have anything but good things to say about his theme entries. Todays were clever and just right for a Wednesday.
The only place I had problems were with those sticky little abbreviations like (24A) NAS (what the heck is a NAS?). I also filled in (30D) with the airport code MSY. My understanding of "D'oh" is the Merriam Webster definition. Wikipedia says that the origin is Homer Simpson's "annoyed grunt" (usually at a foolish blunder).
So "D'oh!" to both of my time consumers at (24A) and (30D).
I've never seen TEACHER abbreviated as (57D)TCHR, but I've never been a teacher. How about you classroom folks?
Y'ESM, Lois, I like a guy with a some fuzz on his chest. GAH can keep me cozy and warm on a January morning.
Husker Gary, "I hate when people tell me something is art because they say so!"....just like poetry. LOL, you are an independent kind of guy. Any artistic endeavor is art because YOU say so. The only comments I would make are don't settle for the easiest examples to look at, or read and to pay attention to people who have made it their lives work to produce or write about art We can always learn more about any topic. (LOL, I'm afraid it may be almost too late for me and Science, although I do try...honest, I do.)
HeartRx, thanks for Janis. Loved her.
CA said sticky little abbreviations like (24A) NAS (what the heck is a NAS?).
The fill is N AS (in November). November is 'n' in the phonetic alphabet that pilots and the military use. I use it myself when spelling out a word on the phone that may be difficult to understand to the receiving party. Hope this helps
Good day, Lemonade, C.C. and cyber friends.
It's such fun to do a Dan Naddor puzzle even though this was a tad easier than his weekend ones.
Once I had the theme with STEADYASAROCK and STOPTHECLOCK, it helped that CK was an ending since I filled FLAP instead of FLAK.
You early birds beat me to ISAK Dinesan whose writings I learned to admire in a world Literature class. She and Colette were my favorites from the reading list.
Had fits in the SW corner because I couldn't reconcile myself to TCHR and really wanted LIMBER or AGILE for supple.
Thank you Lemonade for the wonderful blog especially explanations for N AS, SO TO, and L'ARC. Sometimes I forget to separate words and they make no sense.
My computer is running very slowly today so I'll have to check the links later. From all the remarks they must be good.
I'm surprised about Oct. 5 being the most common bday. In my family September and May have big numbers. In fact all of my paternal(4) aunts and my dad were born in May. We do have several in October, come to think of it.
But then the family is so large that their birthdays spread across the calendar.
You all have a wonderful Wednesday!
Goodfellas starred Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci.
There are F-bombs all through the Goodfellas link plus graphic violence, so be careful when and where you open it.
Yes Jerome, Pacino is great in Goodfellas. His best scene is when discovers that the wizard is actually a nervous old man standing behind a curtain.
Lemonade, Outstanding write-up.
Being a Dan Naddor, I searched out the theme reveal and got by that pesky SW corner quickly, O'LORD!
Theme was anything but BLASE.
Since I solved from the bottom up, STORM TRACK was the last to fall.
Was watching the Weather to see if Nicole (#16) deserved a supply trip. Nope, looks to be just a few days of rain here in Tampa Bay.
Stared at NAS until I realized it was N,AS in November.
Thought it was funny that yesterday we had Chesty, today we have DONG and ABS. Makes me wonder what body part we get tomorrow.
@SEEN (not heard) Congrats on the "Walk-off" clinch.
Silly Jerome@10.49!
Yes, Spitzboov I did finally get N AS in November, but it was a decidedly "D'oh!" moment.
I've posted this one before, but since (11D)ISAK Dineson was featured in the Academy Award Winning movie, "Out of Africa", here's A.E. Houseman's poem. Of course the poem was very effective in the movie, with Meryl Streep playing the Blixon/Dineson part and reciting the poem at Denys Finch Hatton's gravesite. She gives a lovely reading.
TO AN ATHLETE DYING YOUNG
The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.
To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.
Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields where glory does not stay
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.
Eyes the shady night has shut
Cannot see the record cut,
And silence sounds no worse than cheers
After earth has stopped the ears:
Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.
So set, before its echoes fade,
The fleet foot on the sill of shade,
And hold to the low lintel up
The still-defended challenge-cup.
And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls
The garland briefer than a girl's.
- A.E. Houseman
(Iambic tetrameter, rhyming couples and a lyric elegy to boot.)
Very very nice puzzle Dan Naddor (R.I.P)... Very very nice blog Lemonade - your link ups took an hour, but most of them were worth it !!
I particularly liked Isak Dinesens quotes - boy she was a dedicated feminist - more power to her !
I was a little worried when I saw the constructors name, but it was a Wed. puzzle - so I needn't have worried.
Fermatprime - I know you are a very learned person, so please excuse me for pointing this out ...
'I had a honeycomb in the fridge that fell off a tree branch due to big winds. After awhile it turned black ...' ... (Huh ?).
Took me awhile to figure that out... maybe punctuation or breaking up the sentence would help. Somehow, my mind was just not working right, and I kept thinking ... what good would a fridge do up there ... and did you have a very long extension cord ?
Good afternoon all,
Didn't get to the puzzle until late, DRAT having to actually work.
I was having a rough go of it and then I finally woke up and made it through. Started in the SW corner and with a few fills got the theme and from there the puzzle went.
The SE corner was tough though. Not being a college sport fan I missed 48D and 47D didn't make much sense either.
I was left on 44D/46A - I kept reading "Heart burn" - it wasn't until I read the answer that I realized it was "Hearth burn" and made a lot more sense.
Overall, not bad after the warmup. Have a nice day all.
I'm curious. Does anyone ever know what nice cuppa is talking about??
I don't get the clue/answer for 5 Across. I don't typically think of rafts as having ladders...or is there a different relation? Thanks
Fermatprime - Regarding your sleeplessness - or insomnia ... I have 5 anesthesiologists in the immediate family - and 3 nurses - and one of them swears by the drug 'Ambien'.... or even 'Lunestra'.
They 'appears' to work wonders - BUT they are highly ADDICTIVE. ( Ask your doc....), or an APNEA specialist.
I have never had to deal with insominia, but I find that some things make very sleepy...
(1) Hot ( temperature wise - ) Rice congee ( thin rice gruel, with a drop of soy sauce).
(2) Drinking warm milk with arrow root extract and psyllium.
(3) (trying to - ) read Jean Paul Satre'.
I hope you get some relief from whatever your health person recommends.
When I checked who today's constructor was, I did a little "happy dance" for Dan Naddor. I think when Rich runs out of Dan's puzzles, he should start over, re-publishing the oldest ones. Do you think anyone would mind?
Spitzboov, thanks for taking the explanation one step further, saying that "N AS in November" was from the phonetic alphabet used by the military. Would you tell me what is used for the letter H? I was trying to read something off to someone on the phone yesterday, and the only hard-H word I could think of to help me enunciate it for them was HAROLD.
Dennis: to answer your earlier question about that special camera, I would point and shoot and use that info to hire the hottest guy for a pool boy toy in the summer and a warming device/toy in the winter. As for you not being my type? I never said that a hairy chest was the ONLY kind of male I liked. They're just the only ones who give me warm fuzzies. Those w/ little chest hair and big guns give me explosive tingles all over my body. Oh yeah, baby, you qualify! Never think even for a nanosecond that you don't.
Billy Bob,
Indeed yes. A lot of it rings true for me, and what doesn't is a learning experience. Aren't you curious about language in all its forms? That is why we do XW's after all. To me a lot of the sports references are much stranger and more useless than what he talks about.
It might seem strange that I'm sticking up for him after I chewed him out the first day for being pissed off, but his posts are informative and erudite as well as frequently being amusing. Just hang in there and try having a nice hot cuppa to calm yourself down so you can appreciate a voice from the other side of the pond.
H for 'Hotel', Hilton, Hanoi ?
I was thinking of Dennis' Oct 5th birthday popularity, and I am reminded of a Math puzzle ( yes, groan ).
This is a puzzle in 'simultaneous equations' via-a-vis or a-la Rene Descartes.
If a mother's age ( in years )plus 4 times her child's age is equal to 17, and further, the mother's age minus 8 times her child's age is equal to 26....
The question is what are the child's parents doing about right now ?
Using basic algebra, if the mother's age is x (years) and the child's age is y years, we get 2 equations -
x + 4y = 17 ... and
x - 8y = 26
solving for x and y, we get x = the mother's age = 20 years .... and y = the child's age = (- 0.75) years.
0.75 years = 9 months ... the negative sign indicates that the child has 'not yet been born', and based on the time for normal human gestation, we may also make an inference that the child, in fact, is just being 'conceived'... at this time.
So, to answer the question - you can take a wild guess as to what the parents of the child are upto at this moment.
Liked the southeast corner for obvious reasons.
Hated the southwest corner: SLO, TIL, SOTO and TCHR. Seriously?
Liked the water sub-theme: RAFT, OTTER, SHIP, SPA, UBOAT, ERNS, ALGAE, KAYAKED...
Tinbeni: Thanks...more to come...
@anon 11:59, if your read the comments you might see Jeannie's reference to spending many a summer day aboard a "floatie" raft. Those types of rafts are suspended in the middle of the lake and kids dive off them and use a ladder to climb back up to repeat the fun. Maybe it's a midwestern thing...
Windhover: well said and spot on in my book about the education mess. As a teacher, and to use that one serious bone in my body for just a second, I am vehemently opposed to merit pay based on student scores. There are just too many variables that I can not control and am sick of being held accountable for them w/out the score-based pay in the balance. I'm lucky b/c I have the best of the best students who have great p's and are intrinsically motivated and yet I still can't control the environment enough to take either the credit for their success or the blame for their failure. I fully agree w/WH that the home is the primary force behind success in school and in life period.
Swim raft, found in ponds, lakes, rivers and streams but not in backyard pools.
@ Annette
H << >> Hotel
Just read the late comments from yesterday. Lively discussions.
ARBAON: I saw that ABC news poll about Bible knowledge and almost fell on the floor laughing when the highest average score went to Atheists & Agnostics (22 out of 32) and the Evangelicals (sp?) averaged 17.
Hahtool: I think I would have had the same reaction to that campaign slogan. (Like Jerome said, it sucks!). If the job isn't done, why send that person back to office.
What amazes me is when, during election season, someone says "I have a plan to reduce unemployment." or "I have a plan to balance the budget." ... then they never give out ANY details in "their plan."
Windhover and Lois: Well said. I totally agree with both of your comments 100%
Seen: Well in the space of under an hour, first my local kids, the Tampa Bay Rays (aka 1B) then my life long faves, the NY Yankees (aka 1A) won and made the playoffs. The AL East Title will take some more time.
(Can't see how I can lose either way).
Lois, I was kind of taken aback by WH’s claim about “failure” in the classroom having to do with two parents working. Both of mine did and we all turned out fine. The difference being that they were very involved in our lives both in school and out of school. I just didn’t like the generalization. I also agree that your pay shouldn’t be measured by your students test scores. That’s absurd.
Good morning Lemonade, C.C. et al,
a cooler day expected in our area, only 83 @10:45.Much better. Hope our Floridians are staying dry...no high ground there.
So enjoyed Dan's puzzle, although the SW corner slowed me down.Didn't get the theme until reading Lemonade's fantastic write up.Enjoyed all the links except for the babes with abs; I don't find that attractive.
The def. of dong sure explains why many Vietnamese use it for a middle name..maybe for good fortune?
Funny, when I finally filled in O Lord, I thought of Deliverance. Such a scary movie!
Argyle, thanks for the picture of the swim raft. I DID read Jeannie's remarks but "floatie" means nothing unless you've seen one.
and lastly, I was so upset for the family of the tchr(?) who took his life because of the testing scores. I agree with Lois that there are too many variables to base a teacher's worth on those scores.Have these people not been in a classroom where we may have 35 kids with multiple problems and IQs? Lois was right on.
Billy Bob...often. He can be a kidder as well as tossing some interesting tidbits out there.
Fermatprime, very often those who suffer from other chronic illness get little relief from milder insomnia treatments. I've found that for two or three post chemo days, my brain is jumping around constantly. I have an Ambien prescription and use it sparingly. I have been warned.
Just curious, since you are a Californian, have you asked your doctor about getting a medical marijuana card? I haven't yet, but I'm about to ask him what his thoughts are about it. Luckily, there are plenty of cookie recipes out there, so it doesn't have to be smoked.
Non-Californians, we do have medical access with doctor and state approval. I expect this last topic to open a whole new passel of opinions!
Oh, now I get it...a religious knowledge quiz. Here's a link for anyone who'd like to read the ABC article and which contains another link to Pew's "Religious Knowledge Quiz. Windhover caught on last night and wasn't surprised that the Nones made it their business to learn about what they would choose to disbelieve. Smart guy.
I know this isn't a sports blog, so my apologies in advance. Forgive me for the adrealine has not stopped coarsing through my veins, but...
What is it about sports that evokes so much passion, emotion, togetherness, fanaticism(FAN)?
Why have human beings, since the beginning of time partipated and enjoyed athletic competiton? Think Olympics, The Colisuem in Rome, The World Cup, etc.?
The scene last night was electric. If we could harness that energy we would have no worry about fossil fuels. Only one other thing causes so much increased heart rate, pupil dialation and breathlessness to me but at least I have no problem falling asleep after it! I tossed and turned for hours last night after that game.
Jeannie: you are absolutely right. I agreed w/WH on the 'uncared for child' from any parents. I took a poll of my kids one time some years ago and found that the majority of those kids' parents both worked. I was relieved to find that having both parents working is not necessarily a reason for failure in school. It's beyond that and much deeper. Communication is the basis for all good relationships and those families had it - communication on many levels. You hit it on the head when you said that your p's were involved in your life in and out of school. There are so many variables but you got the main one IMHO. Good job! Love your spunk.
Annette: I also thought about Dan Naddor's puzzles starting over when they run out. I wouldn't mind a bit. I can't remember who I am w/out checking my ID ever so often so each of those puzzles would surely be brand new again. I think it's a great idea.
To continue...
Ken Burns said last night on PBS:
"Baseball reflects who we are as a community, as a country. It reflects the sentimental values we hold dear and its the greatest game that has ever been invented. It has rhythm, it is like breathing."
I remember another quote..."Sometimes baseball leads America. Sometimes baseball follows America. But, baseball always reflects America."
Do you remember what told us that it was o.k. to resume living and laughing and cheering in September of 2001. The President throwing out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium. Jor Torre said "tonight, we are all Yankees" So true... and I hate the Yankees. But who didn't cheer for them in 2001.
How did New Orleans heal after Katrina? The Saints. Their first Monday Night Football game back at a renovated Superdome was one of the greatest nights in New Orleans history. Not to mention their Super Bowl win last year....
Last part of rant....
I know its jsut a game but...
My fondest memories of my grandpa are of us in the garden talking about his favorite player(Ted Williams) and whether or not my favorite player(Ken Griffey Jr.) would ever be as good. I thought of him last night as I tossed and turned and thought of how he'd be smiling right now.
As I was high fiving everyone around me I didn't notice if anyone was white or black, christian or muslim, republican or democrat, rich or poor. Again I ask: Why do sports do this to human beings?
O.K. I'm done.
Good Day, Friends,
Lately I've been having a hard time thinking of comments to make. Probably it's because I'm usually blogging later which precludes my coming up with anything new.
I agree today with everything that's been said so far. I usually expect a little more difficult puzzle on Wednesday, but I'm certainly not complaining!
Husker, I think that database re: teacher effectiveness being made public is terrible! They could have at least emailed or snail mailed the answers to requests rather than publish them openly. It seems very unfair. I support parents' being aware of the kind of teachers their children are exposed to but there are other ways of handling that. Besides, teaching "to the test" is a questionable practice!
CA, Loved your Houseman. He's a favorite of mine. I'm surprised that quite a few didn't recognize Dinesen since the movie about her was well received. She made the best of a pretty tragic life!
Later, dodo
CA: Thanks for that link.
That was the poll ARBAON was talking about.
Windhover (who told us why he didn't see it) caught on to the gist quickly.
It is why "informed voters" (informed people) watch, search out, real information from many sources ...
SEEN: The real beauty of baseball is your team can lose 69 times and you still make the "Playoffs."
Think about it. Everyday, for over 2 months, you picked up the newspaper and read about a loss.
It is a beautiful thing.
Sports, in a way, measure Man's accomplishments.
Then I read the comics, do the crossword.
Finally, I read the Front Page ... see our failures.
Dodo:
Looks and sounds to me as though you're doing great, late or not. I always enjoy your comments. They're always relevant and to the point (he said redundantly).
Greetings everybody. Wonderful writeup and comments today; thank you all. So many Youtube links! S'gonna take all day to watch 'em all!
I enjoyed the puzzle. Same comments and observations that yawl had. Once I got the theme it was easy for me to stick (haha) an ST in front of and a CK at the end of those fills, which, as many of you observed, helped the solve process along.
Agree entirely about your comments on evaluating, and paying, teachers based on the students' test scores. Not being a teacher, even I, as an engineer, can tell that is a totally meaningless way to measure performance.
Wow, I miss the most common birth day by 3 days.
One o'clock is SOONER than two o'clock. Oklahomans would SOONER be elsewhere.
Clear Ayes, thanks for the rhyming, rhythmic poem today :)
Ciao!
Dodo, I redundantly echo, repeat, confirm, bolster, support, and agree with what windhover@2:12 said.
And with what windhover@10:24 said, too.
Well heck, you ALL make excellent points.
hi yall, c.c. thank you soooo much for this blog! I read last nite's & smiled when I saw CA & lemonade welcomed me. I enjoyed the puzzle.Hell Ilove all puzzles! From Dan to Peter Gordon. And I love me some MERL! You too Jerome! Sorry for all the !'s. Lemon,Great writeup.
hi yall, c.c. thank you soooo much for this blog! I read last nite's & smiled when I saw CA & lemonade welcomed me. I enjoyed the puzzle.Hell Ilove all puzzles! From Dan to Peter Gordon. And I love me some MERL! You too Jerome! Sorry for all the !'s. Lemon,Great writeup.
I just finished my presentation to a K - 5 (mostly Hispanic) group of kids about space and it went very well for 25 minutes. I had 'em but then I turned it over to the classroom teachers for an alka-seltzer rocket activity and I found out how little they were prepared but I'm happy with how it went. As years go by, kids know less and less about space but are always interested - especially going to the bathroom in the weightlessness of orbit.
Here in Fremont, NE we have a wonderful home for kids with bad or no parents called The Fremont Masonic Home for Children. Those people work wonders with kids and then, "We have to put them right back in the same sewer from which they came."
I still think that within a building, two teachers working with identical kids can be evaluated on effectiveness and principals in general should be reforming or eliminating bad teachers instead of having to do other bureaucratic nonsense. I've had some good ones!!
American schools do very well when you think we take every kid at every level of every ethnicity with every handicap and try to make them learners. In Japan a high stakes test tells you very early whether you are going to wear a white or blue collar at the Honda factory.
Irrespective, the LA Times had no right to print names in my opinion.
Hi all.
Will also miss Dan's puzzles when they run out. Hope that Rich will
rerun some of them. That will be one petition that I will sign.
Expected selected reading of comments when they are a very high
count.
One more day of 90+ temps and it should be over. I need to get one
of those big, round thermo meters
so I don't have to go outside.
Please send some of the East Coast
rain out West. We need about an inch.
Take care.
man I messed up. That last anon was supposed to say "cajun rox" Sorry it ran twice
WH: Being an outdoor guy, I`ll bet the dermatologist got out the old freezing stuff, huh? Being a half-time Florida gal, I have to get that checked (and usually,some places frozen) every six months...
To repeat a comment posted here several days ago...often,not even adults do their best if there are no consequences. When there are no consequences at home and the parents are at odds with teachers in general...(making any consequences at school hard to administer) very few students are self-motivated enough to do their best.
To add a little controversy,
there are cultures who consider it against their culture to do well in school. I have seen that first hand many, many times.
One very bright child said to a teacher, "You know what you could do to get me to behave and do my best? Give me your undivided attention for as long as possible, at least once a week." That teacher gave up half a planning period and did just that. The child was a new person. You spell love to a child (or anyone for that matter) as T-I-M-E.
Hi gang -
Fun puzzle form Dan, and a great write-up, Lemonade, with a plethora of links.
The theme baffled me, until I fond the unifier. STORM TRACK looks odd with all the -OCK theme words.
Post dieting, lots of people regain all the weight - ATKINS ADDS ON.
O LORD, no Martini OLIVE tonight - must go to rehearsal. I won't have a martini if I'm driving anywhere.
That's all I got.
Cheers!
JzB the hairy Hungarian trombonist
There are many countries where kids of all creeds and ability are accepted into public schools. The US is not the only place where it's possible.
True, some of these separate them into differing programs according to their ability or lack of it, but if they bloom later there are always opportunities to move sideways into other programs. I'm thinking of Germany's Gymnasien, Volksschulen and Gesamtschulen, the first for the most academically minded.
But we delude our kids into believing they are all 4-year college material, until they burn out and lose interest. Some kids would be better served if allowed to finish high school a bit sooner, and graduate at a lower level. Then they could finish their studies at a tech school of their choosing, rather than being labeled "dropouts" because they can't make the grade at the narrow offerings in high schools, and then having no further options until getting the GED. So many of the options they would benefit from have been cut from the poorer and rural schools where they would be most appropriate.
One of our main problems is trying to be all things to all kids in an overly homogeneous way, with no breadth of choices to allow for individual differences.
And yes, it's easy for teachers to become disenchanted with the hopelessness of the present situation, as well as the lack of appreciation or respect they receive.
My opinion on the current state of education in our country is that it has everything to do with the changing and changed societal attitudes.
In 1959 when I started teaching, all parents had high expectations for their students, cooperated, disciplined, encouraged and otherwise supported their children's educational endeavors.
Disciplinary problems were minimal and I can tell you that with 54 fifth and sixth graders, it was like conducting an orchestra. Everyone had a schedule, duties and responsibilities and they were all carried out seamlessly.
When I retired the scene was chaotic, 360 degrees from that long ago time. How many times did I hear parents react to helping their children read with "That's not my job, it's the teacher's"; moreover, most parents refuse to discipline their children or require them to to homework. If they do, it's a minority and they are the successful students.
In all the reports this week I have not heard one word about parent involvement and student responsibility. It's all on the teachers. I'm glad I retired but sad for those who are still in the trenches.
Kazie and Clear Ayes:
Thanks for your kind words of support. They were much appreciated.
NC
Billy Boy:
Sorry for the slow response - I have been watching my soccer team - Tottenham Hotspur - win their first game in the European Champions League for 48 years. Definitely worth the wait (they beat FC Twente of Holland 4-1). Was that comprehensible?
And you didn't like my joke about the vacuum cleaner that sucks?
NC
Hola Everyone, It wasn't until I completed the puzzle today that I realized this was a Dan Naddor. I have to agree with everyone else in the fact that this was a bit easier than most of his offerings, but very enjoyable.
I'm afraid I didn't get the theme until the very last. I was looking for something to do with ST and CK. Thanks Lemonade for the great writeup. I haven't had a chance to watch all the links, but will go back later.
The one link I did see, but did not like was the girly ABS. Some of those children were a bit young to be working on those muscle builders.
Jeannie, I agree with you on the point where both parents work, but their children turn out great. It is the time spent in connecting with your children that makes the difference.
CA, thank you for the Houseman poem today. It was best enjoyed read aloud.
During renovation, The Musee d'Orsay has sent a collection of 100 works to the De Young museum in San Francisco. It will be the only showing of these impressive Post Impressionist works outside of France. If you are anywhere near the San Francisco bay area a trip to the De Young would be well worth your while.
Annette, How about halo, hero and house. Sometimes when you are trying to think of something on the spur of the moment nothing will come to mind!
Seen, A quote by JFK put our sports love into very cryptic words. "We are inclined that if we watch a football or baseball game we have taken part in it."
How true.
About right for Wednesday. Took 19 minutes.
Back from a very full day; the next couple will be monsoon-filled.
seen, congratulations on the Reds' win -- a very exciting finish. I have a feeling we'll be making a bet soon. What's nice is that both teams are filled with class individuals so that we don't have to, as Seinfeld said, just "root for the laundry".
Lois, I'm relieved. Thought I was gonna have to get plugs.
chest plugs? ewwwww!
Jayce: that's b/c Oklahomans are on the fast track...sooner born, sooner bred, and when I die, I'll be sooner dead...but what do you mean Oklahomans would sooner be elsewhere...unless you mean being on another side of heaven, maybe the lower 40 with the cowboys and me...now that's sooner fine!
Rene Descartes 101: I love that math problem. Got any more?
Dennis: I got your plugs right here. No worries.
Good evening, Lemonade, C.C. and all.
Rainy day here - lovely weather for ducks . . and Okeechobee lake of course, rain, rain, rain.
I don't mind the rain, especially when i have a good puzzle to sink my teeth into, so to speak.
Lemonade, most entertaining write up .
The rug burn, hmm lmao.
If it ever stops raining, i need to go Whole Foods and get me a DATE or two . .
Hahtool, today i got into your african Safari (so to speak) enjoyed all the pics, ( love Africa ) and entertained myself with your restaurant blog and the books, and i agree with your view on things, if i may say so.
Dennis, a belated Happy B' Day !
Oh, Drat , i left the risotto on the stove . . .
Monday was L.A.'s hottest day in history. It's still hot, but not quite as hot. Everyone is complaining, but I like it.
I don't understand the answer SOONER to 47. down, "vis-a-vis". I speak French, so I know what "vis-a-vis" means. Could somebody please help me see the connection.
Happily retired teacher here.
Doreen
Doreen one o'clock, as it relates to two o'clock, is sooner.
I still maintain our schools are the most diverse in the world but another point was made that struck another chord with me. When I was in school (here we go!) there was an industrial track, a business track and a college track. Not everyone needed to conjugate French verbs, learn the distribution law of math or try to figure out what the hell Hamlet was so confused about. Some of those switched tracks later and here in Nebraska (and the country) is Metro Community College where kids are learning skills that someone will hire them to actually use. An M.B.A. grad and an attitude that someone should jump out with a $100,000 job is in for a long winter.
If all the schools around the world are so damned great, where are there Nobel prize winners and why is there standard of living and GDP not near ours?
Clear Ayes, your 1:30p comment tried to start a conversation as did my rant. Both fell flat. Alas, we are discussing education...again. What is the world coming to when education is more important than pot and baseball?
So, here is my medical marijuana input: I was asked by a family member to obtain some. Long story short, I was able to. She was fighting breast cancer and was not eating and not sleeping well. It helped immensly. Ten years later, she is on vacation playing golf. If you're in California and can get it, try it. If it doesn't help or if you don't like the side effects, then stop.
Tinbeni: I forgot to congratulate you and your teams. I hope to see you in the world series
If not Tinbeni, then C.C. and KQ and all the other Twins fans out there.
Dennis: Only one of us two can join the party....who will it be?
5 and out...i got my moneys worth today.
Check the other standards of living: France is rated #1 for health care, Australia #1 for education. Their lifespans are longer, infant death rates lower. You check the lists for yourself.
Hi gang, very late to the party...lots of yard work to catch up on after days of disgusting humidity which is unusual for western Oregon.
OK....so nice to have a Dan Naddor puzzle, so sorry he has left us. I am in the group that would be happy to have them all repeated and had to agree and laugh with Lois when she said she couldn't remember who she is without checking her ID. Hell, I don't know what I had for lunch yesterday!
Vidwan at 8:27am, LOL on the fridge in the trees...still smiling at that one.
To all of you wonderful teachers (and WH) - I agree with all of you. I feel so sad for some children today. There should be a test to pass before one becomes a parent. Unfortunately it(parenting) is just sliding downhill in lots of parts of our country. Parent involvement is the only way our children will achieve. In the 50's, if the teacher disciplined a child in the classroom (and they DID), the child was sent home with a note and were more than likely disciplined AGAIN. Those days are LONG GONE, and parents seem to be so eager to sue everyone within 50 miles of the child. Sigh.
Had to laugh at Oct 5th being the most common birthday...guess some people were really, really celebrating "Happy New Year". Lots of bubbly and whooops.
carol, I was acknowledged to be a New Year's Eve 'mistake'; birthday's almost exactly 270 days from then.
Dennis, I would hardly call you a 'mistake' :) Thank Zeus your parents enjoyed the moment....we are all better for it.
To make a comment on the medical marijuana...to all who need it, please try it. I am very thankful that I do not. I know there are some abuses with that law, at least in Oregon, but I think it's silly to get ones panties in a twist over it.
IMO I just wish we would legalize all these drugs, tax them and stop the huge waste of funds in the 'war on drugs'. What a joke that is!!!
Clear Ayes - Speaking from some personal experience, its been my personal experience that Marijuana does not necessarily make you sleepy ...
but it does increase your appetite substantially, ...
it eases up on symptoms of nausea ...
and, if anything it muddles up your mind, JUST ENOUGH, that even insomnia can be interesting, and somewhat of a pleasure.
It is also NOT addictive, and is relatively very easy to grow - it is not called 'weed' without a reason.
Unfortunately, the best drug for insomnia was Qualuude - what lemonade 714 took his avatar from ( 'lemons' and '714') ... unfortunately Qualuude is the ONLY drug banned by the FDA ... not because it was not 'effective'
-- because it was very effective !
--- but, because the drug was abused 3 times more often than its legitimate use. Oh well...
Seen, thank god! I wish I were a baseball person, so I could offer an opinion for you. Whoever you are for, I'll be for! I watched Ken Burns historical "Baseball" in the 1990's and then "Top of the Tenth" last night. Really interesting stuff. We're looking forward to the rest of the series. I was pretty sure a lot of people would have opinions on pot....medical or otherwise, but what do I know? Maybe fermatprime will chime in tomorrow.
We do have a lot passionate dedicated teachers, retired and otherwise....(calm down Husker Gary and Kazie) and they all have opinions. Thank god for that too. It is never dull around here.
Cajunrox, nice to see you again. You seem so enthusiastic. Go blue with a profile, so you won't have to be bothered with being anonymous.
Carol, LOL, I thought the same thing about New Year's Eve and the next October 5th. I think with human gestation at around 280 days, the key holiday would more likely be Thanksgiving. Gotta work off those excess calories somehow...and I thought everybody was just taking an after dinner nap.
CA, I am all for the legalization of pot even though it will create a few problems, but so does alcohol.I've always felt we could do better things than to jail someone for having an ounce of marijuana in their possession. It is outrageous that people who have been given a medical prescription have to find a source and pay such a high price.Who benefits? I think Mexico.
Hello all:
Just home from work, and I had time to read all your posts, and thank you all for the kind words; we must do this again soon.
Vidwan827, I am so glad "most" of my links were worth reading; which failed to make the grade? 827 is my birthday, by the by.
Please do not get used to AMBIEN or any other awful artificial sleep inducing drug. I have seen many who had their lives unravel, both because they forgot to go to bed and the Ambien make them do stupid things, and because you need to always keep taking more and more.
Ahhhhhhhhh, Janis Joplin and Quaaludes in the same comments section.
Were there too many typos in my write up?
The TS was mostly off shore, so we all are fine.
Nite
Kazie, I'll call a truce but when I see Americans flocking to Paris for health care and Australia to get M.B.A.'s, I am unconvinced. France in fact is in turmoil as they are cutting back their unsupportable welfare state.
Statistics are amazing and to use a word from our puzzle today - lithe!
Have a nice night my friend!
I have to teach tomorrow but Ah'll be bahck!
Lemonade, Annette, Maria, Tinbini, and any others in the way of Nicole. I hope all you got was a spot of rain and no further damage.
Great write-up Lemonade, but when I went to look at one of your links this morning, it completely shut down my computer, so I was scared to look at your other links once I got my computer up and running again.
Hand up for repeats of Dan Naddor puzzles. I read good novels over again so why not a good puzzle.
Thanks, Maria.
Cajun Rox. Welcome, chere. Turn blue and join the fun.
Welcome to you, too, Nick. We can use a few more legal minds here, if for on other reason than to convince the populous that all attorneys aren't evil.
I think that link sank everyones browser, yes sir.
Clearayes, as you know I have a very good friend that is suffering from liver cancer. In the State of MN we can't get a prescription for medicinal marijuana. I encourage you to do so as it is legal in your state. We (supporters at large) were able to procure some for John and he is much more contforable, and can eat better following his treatments.
Go for it; If it is legal in your state. It makes John feel much, much better.
Fermatprime, you might want to check that out as well. In my past experience, and yes I do have some, you eat everything in sight, and go to sleep.
H.
We are fine; what link ?
chere I would turn blue but right now I'M TOO GREEN! but I will persevere or preserve figs! To the ladies here,I admire all of you, To the men, "a true example of what "gentlemen " really means"
Medical marijuana is on the ballot here in AZ for November. Thank you all for your comments on that subject as I have been having a difficult time deciding how to vote.
Good night!
It has been my belief that most of the posts this late aren't read, or if they are read, aren't responded to. But I'm awake and in the mood to type, so here goes. As a retired teacher, I have really enjoyed the discussion about education. Lots of good points made. But what to do to solve the problems? If you were a principal or administrator trying to evaluate me as a math teacher, what would you look for? What would be your criteria as to whether or not I would get tenure?
The problem is, as many of you have pointed out, even if I was a good teacher, that doesn't guarantee my students would be successful. It's a complicated problem.
Tinbeni oops! I toasted before sundown but, I was really nervous about posting. I saw the puzzle had my name ROCK here & another one i solve. So I did a happy dance.Love yall
Sorry, but I'm doing one of my biggest pet peeves, posting comments before reading all the existing comments first...and I typed them hours ago, but got called away. Anyway, here's a few things I wanted to say:
Thanks, Spitzboov! Now why didn’t I think of Hotel…
Concerning yesterday’s ABC news poll from ARBAON, I agree with Windhover that you need to know enough about a subject to decide it’s not for you.
I fully agree with what Lois said about merit raises for teachers. You stated it very well! I also believe it’s due to the parents taking an interest in their children’s lives, although there are exceptions who manage to find the drive to succeed on their own, or through a teacher that showed an interest.
Hahtool: I didn’t realize the slogan was for someone seeking re-election. I thought it was a newcomer saying that the present administration hadn’t gotten the job done, which wasn’t the greatest slogan, but not so bad. But it is lousy coming from the current office holder.
Thanks for your concern. Luckily, we didn't get as much rain as expected from T.S. Nicole. I did accumulate a bit of water in buckets from my dining room ceiling, but it held up.
In hurricane Wilma, I'd had quite a bit of water damage, and had seen neighbors whose ceiling's had caved in, so today was pretty tense for me, as Hahtool can imagine!
I'd brought a friend home at lunch to check on the buckets. He helped distract me and put the rain completely out of my mind! ;-)
You go girl ANNETTE not letting any storm rain on your parade!
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