Theme: Wacky Business Slogans. In each theme answer (all phrasal verbs in *ing + adv format), a pun is made about a type of business or job activity. No unifier clue.
17. "So I hear your job as exercise class instructor is __": WORKING OUT.
29. "So I hear your job as a burlesque dancer is __": TAKING OFF.
46. "So I hear your trash removal business is __": PICKING UP.
62. "So I hear your scuba diving business is __": GOING UNDER.
This was kind of fun. I couldn't find one, but there must be a name for these, right? I hear running your muffler business is exhausting. I hear the awning business is kind of shady. I hear the window business is kind of a pain. I hear that sod farm salesmen are easy to get a lawn with.
And the rest:
ACROSS:
1. Thread bearer: SPOOL.
6. Classic name in shoes: MCAN. Thom. Now owned by CVS/Caremark but sold at Kmart (which is owned by Sears) and Wal-mart.
10. Dressed: CLAD. Past participle of clothe.
14. Aquarium concern: ALGAE.
15. Fabled craft: ARGO. Jason and the Argonauts.
16. Old: YORE. Related word: year.
19. Word with belly or blast: BEER. Cerveza, (spanish for beer), sounds so much more refined, doesn't it?
20. "Forget it, comrade!": NYET.
21. Ancient Andean: INCA. From Quechea: "lord, king." Technically, only of the high Inca, but it was used widely for "man of royal blood."
22. Davenport shopper, probably: IOWAN. Right across the river from Moline, Illinois. There are also cities named "Couch" in TX, FL, WV, and MO.
23. Artist Magritte: RENE. Surrealist.
25. Branch honcho: Abbr.: MGR. Manager, as in a bank.
26. Pops (out): FLIES. Baseball?
35. Choice: SELECT. Used in the sense of "quality" (select cuts of meat), not the sense of "option" as it appears, because that would have to be "selection".
37. Big, outmoded piece of equipment: DINOSAUR.
38. Paris pronoun: TOI. You.
39. Accountant, at times: AUDITOR. From Latin, "a hearer", related to audience, "a hearing". Auditing was formerly done and vouched for orally.
41. Airport safety org.: TSA. Transportation Security Administration.
42. Carousing: ON A SPREE. Likely from French esprit, lively.
44. Shiny fabric: SATEEN.
48. Revenge seekers in a 1984 film: NERDS.
49. Dollar sign shape: ESS.
50. Baltic resident: LETT. Of Latvia. The other Baltic states are Lithuania and Estonia.
52. Early afternoon hr.: ONE PM.
55. Disease attacker: DRUG.
57. Helps out: AIDS.
61. Demagogue's delivery: RANT.
64. Wine region south of the Matterhorn: ASTI.
65. "Got it, Daddy-o!": I DIG. Peter, Paul, and Mary.
66. Party person: GUEST.
67. DEA agent: NARC. Because NARCO was too long an abbreviation for narcotics agent.
68. Frosty's button: NOSE. With a corncob pipe and a button nose...
69. Honshu city: OSAKA.
DOWN:
1. Felled, in a way: SAWN.
2. Queen sacrifice in chess, e.g.: PLOY.
3. Shrek or Fiona: OGRE.
4. Yellow ribbon site of song: OAK TREE. Obligatory link.
5. Island welcome: LEI.
6. Lodestone: MAGNET. From Greek Magnes lithos (Magnesian stone). Magnesia, region of Thessaly where magnetized ore was obtained.
7. Hook nemesis, for short: CROC. Characters in Peter Pan.
8. Monterrey water: AGUA. Spanish.
9. "__ a chance!": NOT.
10. Bionic beings: CYBORGS. Portmanteau of "cybernetic organism" could explain how this is possible.
11. MGM co-founder: LOEW. Marcus. On November 3, 2010, MGM filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
12. Field of expertise: AREA.
13. "Coming Home" actor: DERN. Bruce. OK, now I recognize who this is.... He always seemed to play the nut-job character.
18. "Delta of Venus" author: NIN. Angela Anaïs Juana Antolina Rosa Edelmira Nin y Culmell
22. "Everybody is __, only on different subjects": Will Rogers: IGNORANT. I never read a Will Rogers quote I didn't like.
24. Watching "Avatar," say: ESCAPISM. The blue guy (Sam Worthington) without makeup.
25. Cretan king of myth: MINOS.
26. SLR setting: F-STOP. Single Lens Reflex (camera). The F-number indicates "speed". The larger the number, the longer you need for exposure. An F number twice as large as another one takes four times as long to get enough light.
27. Téa of "Spanglish": LEONI.
28. Of a pelvic bone: ILIAC.
30. Gascony good-bye: ADIEU. Gascony, France.
31. Caboodle partner: KIT. The whole thing, tools and possessions. Likely why we have the word "oodles".
32. Lash LaRue film, e.g.: OATER. Alfred (Lash) Larue, a Western film star in the 40s and 50s. He was very skilled with a bull whip, thus "Lash".
33. Joined by melting: FUSED. Parts is parts, Wendy's commercial. Fused at about :23 in.
34. Artist __ Hals: FRANS. Dutch Golden Age painter, mostly portraits.
36. Parts of directions: TURNS. Google maps makes a funny at the driving directions for step 17 of this route. You need to scroll down to see it.
40. MBA, for one: DEG. Master of Business degree.
43. One looking askance: SKEPTIC. "Skeptic does not mean him who doubts, but him who investigates or researches as opposed to him who asserts and thinks that he has found." [Miguel de Unamuno, "Essays and Soliloquies," 1924]
45. Lockjaw: TETANUS. More properly, trismus, which can be caused by tetanus, but also by MDMA, Meth, Ritalin, radiation therapy, infection, anesthesia, needle prick, several other diseases and drugs.
47. Drop dramatically: PLUNGE. Like a neckline.
51. Breakfast fare: EGG. Only humans habitually eat specifically designated foods at different times of the day.
52. Algerian port: ORAN. Across from Spain.
53. Apollo 13 gp.: NASA. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
54. __'acte: ENTR. Between the acts, as during a play. Could be an intermission or just an interlude piece of music.
55. Bygone bird: DODO. Another shout-out to our bloggers?
56. Teddy Roosevelt biographer: RIIS. Jacob. A Danish American social reformer, muckraking journalist, and documentary photographer. Was dedicated to helping the impoverished in NY City.
58. "I have an __!": IDEA.
59. Student's spot: DESK.
60. Arg. miss: SRTA. Argentina, senorita.
62. Cry while showing one's cards: GIN. Rummy.
63. Actor Tognazzi: UGO. I'm not sure a crossword answer gets any more obscure than this, an Italian actor. The only movie I recognized was La cage aux folles, but he was in a lot of films.
Answer Grid.
Al
17. "So I hear your job as exercise class instructor is __": WORKING OUT.
29. "So I hear your job as a burlesque dancer is __": TAKING OFF.
46. "So I hear your trash removal business is __": PICKING UP.
62. "So I hear your scuba diving business is __": GOING UNDER.
This was kind of fun. I couldn't find one, but there must be a name for these, right? I hear running your muffler business is exhausting. I hear the awning business is kind of shady. I hear the window business is kind of a pain. I hear that sod farm salesmen are easy to get a lawn with.
And the rest:
ACROSS:
1. Thread bearer: SPOOL.
6. Classic name in shoes: MCAN. Thom. Now owned by CVS/Caremark but sold at Kmart (which is owned by Sears) and Wal-mart.
10. Dressed: CLAD. Past participle of clothe.
14. Aquarium concern: ALGAE.
15. Fabled craft: ARGO. Jason and the Argonauts.
16. Old: YORE. Related word: year.
19. Word with belly or blast: BEER. Cerveza, (spanish for beer), sounds so much more refined, doesn't it?
20. "Forget it, comrade!": NYET.
21. Ancient Andean: INCA. From Quechea: "lord, king." Technically, only of the high Inca, but it was used widely for "man of royal blood."
22. Davenport shopper, probably: IOWAN. Right across the river from Moline, Illinois. There are also cities named "Couch" in TX, FL, WV, and MO.
23. Artist Magritte: RENE. Surrealist.
25. Branch honcho: Abbr.: MGR. Manager, as in a bank.
26. Pops (out): FLIES. Baseball?
35. Choice: SELECT. Used in the sense of "quality" (select cuts of meat), not the sense of "option" as it appears, because that would have to be "selection".
37. Big, outmoded piece of equipment: DINOSAUR.
38. Paris pronoun: TOI. You.
39. Accountant, at times: AUDITOR. From Latin, "a hearer", related to audience, "a hearing". Auditing was formerly done and vouched for orally.
41. Airport safety org.: TSA. Transportation Security Administration.
42. Carousing: ON A SPREE. Likely from French esprit, lively.
44. Shiny fabric: SATEEN.
48. Revenge seekers in a 1984 film: NERDS.
49. Dollar sign shape: ESS.
50. Baltic resident: LETT. Of Latvia. The other Baltic states are Lithuania and Estonia.
52. Early afternoon hr.: ONE PM.
55. Disease attacker: DRUG.
57. Helps out: AIDS.
61. Demagogue's delivery: RANT.
64. Wine region south of the Matterhorn: ASTI.
65. "Got it, Daddy-o!": I DIG. Peter, Paul, and Mary.
66. Party person: GUEST.
67. DEA agent: NARC. Because NARCO was too long an abbreviation for narcotics agent.
68. Frosty's button: NOSE. With a corncob pipe and a button nose...
69. Honshu city: OSAKA.
DOWN:
1. Felled, in a way: SAWN.
2. Queen sacrifice in chess, e.g.: PLOY.
3. Shrek or Fiona: OGRE.
4. Yellow ribbon site of song: OAK TREE. Obligatory link.
5. Island welcome: LEI.
6. Lodestone: MAGNET. From Greek Magnes lithos (Magnesian stone). Magnesia, region of Thessaly where magnetized ore was obtained.
7. Hook nemesis, for short: CROC. Characters in Peter Pan.
8. Monterrey water: AGUA. Spanish.
9. "__ a chance!": NOT.
10. Bionic beings: CYBORGS. Portmanteau of "cybernetic organism" could explain how this is possible.
11. MGM co-founder: LOEW. Marcus. On November 3, 2010, MGM filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
12. Field of expertise: AREA.
13. "Coming Home" actor: DERN. Bruce. OK, now I recognize who this is.... He always seemed to play the nut-job character.
18. "Delta of Venus" author: NIN. Angela Anaïs Juana Antolina Rosa Edelmira Nin y Culmell
22. "Everybody is __, only on different subjects": Will Rogers: IGNORANT. I never read a Will Rogers quote I didn't like.
24. Watching "Avatar," say: ESCAPISM. The blue guy (Sam Worthington) without makeup.
25. Cretan king of myth: MINOS.
26. SLR setting: F-STOP. Single Lens Reflex (camera). The F-number indicates "speed". The larger the number, the longer you need for exposure. An F number twice as large as another one takes four times as long to get enough light.
27. Téa of "Spanglish": LEONI.
28. Of a pelvic bone: ILIAC.
30. Gascony good-bye: ADIEU. Gascony, France.
31. Caboodle partner: KIT. The whole thing, tools and possessions. Likely why we have the word "oodles".
32. Lash LaRue film, e.g.: OATER. Alfred (Lash) Larue, a Western film star in the 40s and 50s. He was very skilled with a bull whip, thus "Lash".
33. Joined by melting: FUSED. Parts is parts, Wendy's commercial. Fused at about :23 in.
34. Artist __ Hals: FRANS. Dutch Golden Age painter, mostly portraits.
36. Parts of directions: TURNS. Google maps makes a funny at the driving directions for step 17 of this route. You need to scroll down to see it.
40. MBA, for one: DEG. Master of Business degree.
43. One looking askance: SKEPTIC. "Skeptic does not mean him who doubts, but him who investigates or researches as opposed to him who asserts and thinks that he has found." [Miguel de Unamuno, "Essays and Soliloquies," 1924]
45. Lockjaw: TETANUS. More properly, trismus, which can be caused by tetanus, but also by MDMA, Meth, Ritalin, radiation therapy, infection, anesthesia, needle prick, several other diseases and drugs.
47. Drop dramatically: PLUNGE. Like a neckline.
51. Breakfast fare: EGG. Only humans habitually eat specifically designated foods at different times of the day.
52. Algerian port: ORAN. Across from Spain.
53. Apollo 13 gp.: NASA. National Aeronautics and Space Administration
54. __'acte: ENTR. Between the acts, as during a play. Could be an intermission or just an interlude piece of music.
55. Bygone bird: DODO. Another shout-out to our bloggers?
56. Teddy Roosevelt biographer: RIIS. Jacob. A Danish American social reformer, muckraking journalist, and documentary photographer. Was dedicated to helping the impoverished in NY City.
58. "I have an __!": IDEA.
59. Student's spot: DESK.
60. Arg. miss: SRTA. Argentina, senorita.
62. Cry while showing one's cards: GIN. Rummy.
63. Actor Tognazzi: UGO. I'm not sure a crossword answer gets any more obscure than this, an Italian actor. The only movie I recognized was La cage aux folles, but he was in a lot of films.
Answer Grid.
Al
61 comments:
Good morning, Al, C.C. and gang - this was more like it -- got through unaided, but hardly a breeze. And Pancho came up with a fun theme for this one.
I went through the top section pretty smoothly, then ran into problems in the middle, so I went to the bottom and filled that section in. Between the top and bottom, that gave me enough perps to finally finish it. I really got a kick out of this one; very enjoyable.
Al, great job with the blog. Fun links, especially the Google Maps instruction. Hand up for trying to go the 'option' route with 35A, 'Choice'.
Today is National Fritters Day. Yes, that's right - not a day to fritter away.
I'll resist the urge to ask customers coming into the store today, "Do these look low to you?".
Morning, all!
I love me a good pun, so this theme was right up my alley. I struggled a bit on account of putting MIDAS instead of MINOS, but that got resolved pretty quickly and the rest was pretty smooth. UGO was a complete unknown, but the perps took care of him (her?) in short order.
The only other minor hangup was my inability to see that "choice" was being used as an adjective instead of a noun. As a result, I resisted putting in SELECT until I had the very last letter via the perps. And then the light bulb finally went off. Well played, sir!
This was a pretty easy puzzle for a Thursday. I liked the punny job descriptions.
I also liked seeing Field of Expertise = AREA and the Will Rogers quote about everyone being IGNORANT, but on different subjects in the same puzzle. Does this mean we have a field of expertise in an area of ignorance?!
Burlesque is a current movie staring Cher and Christina Aguilera. That girl can sing! No one takes their clothes off, however.
SAWN seems like a very strange word. Has anyone here ever used it?
Anais Nin is know for very sexual and erotic writings.
QOD: Age does not protect you from love. But love, to some extent, protects you from age. ~ Anais Nin
Al, Wonderful, wonderful write-up!
OK, I clicked the LEONI link and found "AwfulPlasticSurgery.com" ... WTF? Wanted an earlier photo of her.
Now this was PERFECT!
Great themes ... the first was SOOOO easy since I had just returned from WORKING OUT!
(Hey, I slept in until almost 3:50am this morning).
Throw in that former profession, AUDITOR.
This is getting better!
NOSE for Frosty's button was a WAG.
Making a snowman isn't a biggie "thing to do" here in Tampa Bay.
Though at 42 degrees when I awoke I started to wonder ... could it snow here today?
Plus there was the conumdrum of "putting on more clothing" ... something I abhor.
Then there is that ESCAPISM ... AVATAR.
Though I must confess, I DO-NOT "watch it" ...
Hell, I DRINK it!
Especially at my nightly Sunset "toast!"
Now cerveza may sound more refined than BEER but what can I say, Dos Equis, XX, is the biggest seller in Mexico.
C'mon, that is definitely a ladies quaff.
(oops, I digressed into chromosome science,
my bad!)
Plus if you want to be "more refined" I would suggest AVATAR.
Maybe a little Pinch, Argyle's OBAN or eddy's McCallan.
Hey, that reminds me ... I do have Holiday shopping left to do.
Time to get that assorted case of ... something.
Yeah, that's the ticket!
Happy Thursday, continued Happy Hanukah and hey there:
Thanks Al, a very nice write up. I loved the theme, though I felt bad for the scuba business. I also will always have a soft spot for Mr. Harrison, as our very first LA Times constructor. I appreciate the ARGO references, and it was nice to see a shout out to our own exotic bird, DODO. Like the rest of this week, it was easy, with RIIS my only unknown, easily filled. I personally will never forget (H)UGO TOGNAZZI after watching him in the two LA CAGE AUX FOLLE movies. The American version with Robin Williams was fun, but I enjoyed the original.
I liked your creative Wendy’s link, which leads to this famous PROTEST , kids can have fun, which I recommend for all of you today. Ta.
Good Morning C.C.,Al and all,
Thanks for the write-up,Al. Loved the google map funny. Very pleasant.
The puzzle was a delight. I got the top half and the theme came right away.Filled them all in and then slowed down. Cyborgs was new to me; no one else has mentioned it, but then I do have my own way of being special.
Dennis, haven't you heard the term "flatter than a fritter"? I think that's the opposite of Jcup.
Have you ever heard the song:'Do you ____ hang low, do they wobble to and fro,can you tie 'em in a knot ,can you tie 'em in a bow? can you sling 'em over your shoulder like a continental soldier? Do your____ hang low?
We always sang "ears". I don't know the inspiration.
Have a nice day everyone.
Good Day Folks,
Al, thank you for the informative write-up and for including Tony Orlando and Dawn. They were always a favorite.
This was a fun puzzle with a lot unique clues. The north and south were easy solves, but the central was a grind thanks to my own ignorance. For 22D, I initially entered agreeing and FAA for 41A. After correcting the miscues, it came down to 38A-Paris pronoun and 28D. The o in Toi & Leoni was a wag. One of these days I may take a French I class.
Like some others, select was an issue, but it fit and I couldn't think of another option.
Davenport shopper was a nice clue. Of course I started thinking of me buying a sofa to park my arthritic body on.
Enjoy your Thursday. Supposed to be colder than a witches t... in Ct for the next few days. At least the lower temps should help control the sagging of any body parts.
Thanks Al
Hahtool. I first thought, but haven't you heard of a 'sawn-off' shotgun?' Then I checked, and I see that sawn-off is UK&C, and you guys say "sawed-off". Sounds strange to my ear, sort of.....
NC
Al
It's a pity Miguel de Unamuno did not attend our local grammar school. Or maybe him have a bad translator....
NC
Good Morning Al, C.C. et al.
Very informative and fun write-up, Al. Thanks for the musical interludes and fun at google maps !
I had fun with this puzzle. In fact, I did the same thing Creature did - filled in all the theme answers first. Was that "cheating"?
In the mid-west, I had to solve both ways to fill in the section. Biggest mistake was putting ESCAPIng instead of the ISM ending. But eventually perps cleared up the mess. Well, it still looks a mess, what with all the eraser crumbs, but at least I got 'er done.
Thanks for the dinner idea, Dennis - I think I'll make corn fritters - yum!
Have a great day everyone!
Yes, I agree with all the above: this was a fun puzzle and just the right level of Thursday difficulty. I had a few problems but was able to solve without help in about 25 minutes. All my snowmen had carrots for noses so that was the last to fall, especially since I didn't know RIIS. All in all a fun puzzle. Good job on the blog.
Dennis, given that your store seems to be successful I recommend continuing to resist the urge. Otherwise you may be attempting to blog from some unfavorable location where WiFi is not readily available.
Good morning Al, CC and all, this puzzle was pretty much in line for a Thursday. Al, as usual, today’s write-up was informative. Like Dennis I had no problems with the upper and lower half, but struggled in the center section. The theme answers fell quickly as soon as I got working out and going under.
Fortunately fstop finally came to mind and this got me started in the center section. I tried to insert ditto machine for 37A, but it would not fit. Finally, the light came on and dinosaur arose from the dark recess of my mind. I had no clue as to Ugo Tognazzi was/is and also did not know Riis. Hell, I don't even know American actors/actresses.
I liked this puzzle overall and particularly like the center section as it made me think.
Hope you all have a great Thursday.
Great Blogging, Al!
I'm back, briefly. the son and d-i-l spent last night in Madison with friends, so I have time to comment today. I've done the last three puzzles early in the day too, but never got to the computer until too late to bother.
Today I enjoyed the theme and had no difficulty really, besides having to WAG a few. Started thinking of sofas for Davenport, but then the ---AN gave it to me.
NC,
I'm wondering if the grammar wasn't perhaps correct, 'him' being the object of the verb in its clause, but the 'who' being the subject of the relative clauses. I agree it sounds a bit odd though.
I also feel 'sawed' sounds wrong and I prefer 'sawn', but it gets a red wriggly line here as I type.
Enjoy the day all of you! Winter has finally hit here, with a dusting of snow and temperature of 20F this morning.
MH, so I guess you're saying that changing it to, "Do these feel low to you" is out of the question?
Yeah, probably, but I guess it would depend on who is being asked. It would also depend on your style of underwear ;-)
I don't know about you but, at 64, I don't think I'm much "lower" than I was at 24, 34, or 44. I think this sag stuff is some sort of myth. I still experience "shrinkage" when I get cold (ref Seinfeld episode), so I KNOW the muscles are still working down there in the nether regions.
Amen, my brother.
Good morning Al, CC et al.
On the first glance at the clues I thought this would be tough. There were several names that didn't immediately ring any bells and a lot of clues that just didn't evoke an immediate response. The theme turned out to be so obvious that those answers seeded the rest of the puzzle. Usually, it;s the other way around. The west coast central was the last to fall. I had MOI instead of TOI which kept me from seeing FSTOP. I finally teased out the entries and completed correctly with no lookups. The "N" at the crossing of RENE and NIN was a wag, but there didn't seem to be anything else that made sense. RIIS and DERN filled from the crosses.
SAWN wasn't a problem at all. My last house up north had rough sawn cedar siding. I had the same concern with SELECT as most of the rest of you but finally started thinking about meat cuts.
"Pops out"... OK, I wanted something more exotic/erotic than a fly ball... I guess I was still thinking about those "J's" from yesterday.
In keeping with the theme, I'll be "moving on". Have a great day!
Business in the bakery is rising.
Prostitution is going down.
His job in the mortuary was the living end.
I hear the brake pad business is slowing down.
Thanks, Al. Morning C.C. and gang.
Not much time to comment. I thought this was a very easy Thursday puzzle. Easy theme, too. The only two I didn't know were RIIS and UGO and they came with perps. Got the TaDa! and it was all good.
We are expecting a delivery, the result of yesterday's "out and about." We bought new family room chairs and there was a mixup on one of them. For the second day in a row, we have to wait around for a delivery.
The temperature was 37 when I woke up and it is supposed to get to upper 60s/lower 70s today. Quite pleasant until the weekend.
Have a great day and don't get saggy.
I think the sagging song fits boobs better than balls. Just saying...
Not sure what happened to the TEA LEONI link on the main page, but here is the page it was taken from.
I had no difficulty with this puzzle (14 minutes).
Jacob Riis was a muckraking journalist of the early 20th century who is best known for his expose of life in New York City's tenements, "How the Other Half Lives" (1890).
I'm always amused by the use of "dinosaur" to describe something big, outmoded, and ultimately unsuccessful. In their various types, dinosaurs dominated the planet (land, sea, and air) for almost 200 million years. Upright bipeds even sort of like us go back no more than 5 million years, bipeds just like us probably no more than 250,000 years. Biological hubris if you ask me.
Hello, Al, C.C. and everyone.
Thanks for the great blogging, Al and fun clips.
This was fun! I'm with you, Barry G.; I love puns!
It was fun teasing them out especially the WORKINGOUT one which I do regularly in an effort to avoid sagging.
Davenport shopper, IOWAN was cute.
Fav, though, was thread bearer, SPOOL.
Nice shout out to our own dear DODO and Tinbeni, I thought of you at AUDITOR.
Well done, Pancho.
Have a terrific Thursdy all!
Greetings all from subville! I had to do this in ink because he has no freaking pencils in his desk but I seemed to steam right through. Al's write-up also brightned up my morning where there was only a half up of coffee left for me - AARRGGHH!
Musings
-I liked thread bear
-I was trying to get sofa in the Davenport clue and it reminded me of the funniest skit on Saturday night in years Sofa King. I laugh out loud every time I see it!!
-Looked for MOI for pronoun
-Forgot Tetanus had 3 syllables. Does anyone pronounce the first T in DENTIST?
Oops kids coming in!
I haven't tried the puzzle yet. I'm going to be out of touch for much of the rest of the day. The power company is shutting down our electricity for maintenance on the poles. No computer, no TV, no microwave. Aargh!
So I printed it out and will tackle it the old-fashioned way that many of you still prefer. We'll see how I do.
Good afternoon everyone.
Have to mention Yale's drinking song, at least the last two verses:
We're poor little lambs who have lost our way
Baa, baa, baa
We're little black sheep who have gone astray
Baa, baa, baa
Gentleman songsters off on a spree
Doomed from here to eternity
Lord have mercy on such as we
Baa, baa, baa
That's a spree song that's been an earworm for years taught by my late 1st husband who went to Princeton.
Cheers
Good Morning All, I don't have puzzle time this morning. Twenty of my closest friends are going to our favorite area inn for brunch and our annual Secret Sister Reveal party. This is our third year and it gets more raucous and sillier every time....right up my alley.
I'll check in later after all the good food the inn hostess serves a few tasty mimosas.
I probably need the rest after yesteday's discussions. Oh yes... I will be tattling to (I mean telling) the ladies.
See you all later.
I found this to be somewhat of a slog. I liked the punnie’s but thought this had somewhat of an international flair. Paris pronoun–Toi, Baltic resident –Lett, Honshu City-Osaka, Monterrey water-augu, Gascony goodbye-adieu, Arg miss-Srta, and Forget it comrade –nyet. Nyet?? I didn’t know Riis, Leoni or Rene but with some red-letter help and a couple WAG’s I was able to ferret those out. I didn’t like 35-A as Choice and Select are two very different grades of beef. It goes prime, choice, and then select.
The best part of the puzzle was your write up Al, and thank God for Cyborgs!
So, windhover, I hear your farm business has... growing pains.
So, C.C., I hear your blog gig is... posting a profit. And Pancho's crossword job is... filling his pockets.
Less filling-
MINOS- What Bob Hope said his best feature is.
CYBORGS- Young, bionic tennis players.
Anais is a Nincompoop.
If you're TAKING OFF, then GO, FAT FINK!
In PICKING UP, there's a PIG PUN. ICK!
I hear, Dennis, that the nickname you're GOING UNDER is NUDE GRINGO.
@Creature: We sang that song for years and years at Scout camp and it was always "ears" -- never anything else.
This didn't really seem like a Thursday puzzle; finished in about 10 minutes without help; loved the punny answers!
Hi all.
Happy that Ugo was filled in by As.
No idea.
Fast, fun and easy for a Thursday.
Did it while watching hockey from
Canada. Ford ad cited mileage in terms of liters/km.
Pizzelle time if Trader Joe's has
black walNUTS. Also, crab cake time. Dungeness is $2.99/lb.
Oh, thanks for the reminder. Have to go to CVS for another bottle.
Take care.
Hello everybody. I really liked the puns and humor in the puzzle today, but did not much like so many foreign words. Al, your writeup was top-notch, thank you!
Small things that briefly tripped me up included not knowing what particular French pronoun was expected until getting all the crosses, and putting in DORM instead of DESK for 59D. I quickly fixed that and finished the puzzle in a very un-Thursday-like but fun-filled 15 minutes.
Woke up to temperatures of around 25F the last couple of mornings. Brrrr!
This blog rocks! Best wishes to you all.
I found another
J Cup
Had to post twice.
I found the puzzle to be an easy fill. The puns were quick to fall and the few unknowns (obscure actors/artists and French) were filled by the perps. Quick but enjoyable.
Al, these last few weeks I have been immersed in several books on skepticism regarding belief in God, especially Christianity. The Miguel de Unamuno quote was timely. Thanks.
Also, regarding Google maps directions, I am always skeptical.
Hi eveyone, This was fun and on a Thursday no less!!! Thanks Pancho :)
Al, great write up.
I had a few that gave me problems but they were easily solved by the perps. I like puns more than play-on-word clue/answers.
Dennis and MH....what a touchy/feely subject. I would advise against the physical approach as to the location of those 'brains' of yours. Some people might get the wrong idea :0
CA: your brunch sounds like a lot of fun...wish I could join you.
With a name like Anais, what would you expect his topics to be??
Jeannie, great catch on the foreign language subtheme! I just fill them in, cosmopolitan person that I am (LOL) and didn't give a second thought.
Also, never thought of meat for 35A, choice, SELECT, thinking more of elite. As in "some specific product available in SELECT stores."
Isn't Anais Nin a woman?
Yes, Anais Nin is/was a woman (February 21, 1903 – January 14, 1977). Her book, Delta of Venus, was actually quite good.
Hi gang -
Great puzzle, great write-up, great comments -- fun, fun, fun.
By a seriously odd coincidence, the last thing I did before going to bed last night was stumble across the Pancho Harrison puzzle I blogged
back in the summer. So when I saw his name on today's, I knew we were in for a treat. This outing is less outrageously punny that the earlier one, but I laughed aloud at TAKING OFF!
PLUNGED made me think of the stock market - though not this week, if you're staying abreast. Anyway, Al had a better idea.
Symmetries:
BEER RANT reminds me of my dad. RIP, Pop.
When going undercover, how is a NARC CLAD?
Barney - Purple DINOSAUR ON A SPREE.
AVATAR is a deep movie, not IGNORANT ESCAPISM.
You might believe in bionic beings; I'm a CYBORG SKEPTIC.
Is viewing NSFW stuff on your lunch hour a DESK PLOY?
I thought Shreck + Fiona was a clever OGRE IDEA.
If you scroll through the Magritte pix, and aren't too distracted by the nudes, you might get subliminal advertising for Travelers Insurance. Who LETT RENE do that?
Loved the red head protest - especially when the bald guy started leading the chants.
ADIEU and Cheers!
JzB who is ready for some GIN
Puzzle much easier than I thought it would be - did not complete however ;-(
hahtool, (Happy Channukkah ! ) thanks for your input on many, many things - but when you wrote that the Burlesque girls don't take off their clothes - that was a REAL spoiler - I guess I'll wait until the local public library gets hold of some copies.
Marge, the Interloper,
Would you please show some respect to the blue Marge and change your name or whatever black alias name you've been using?
Good evening all.
Great puzzle, great write up, AL.
To whoever wondered about what car to get (I'm too lazy to look it up), I would like to iterate that the Ford Fusion Hybrid is the best car I have ever had. And today's Consumer Reports says that 89% would buy it again. And we get fantastic mileage. If we drive carefully and not pedal to the metal we can get 46 mpg. It averages 37 including highway driving. It's smooth and quiet and comfortable, even with 5 adults in it.
Cheers
Lucina and Hahtool, thanks for letting me know Anais was a female. I really should have looked that up before making my comment.
I have had no luck getting our paper to list the constructor, so I have no clue who does the puzzle until I get here. Jazz's post made me realize how badly I would like the anticipation. Pancho, if you read these, I WANT YOU BACK!!!! How about a Sat. or Sun. puzzle??
Midas was my only screw-up. Had me looking at DIDOSTAT for 37A. I was trying to invent hard answers. I was so on Pancho's wavelength that I did this in under 10 minutes. Naturally for me, the RENE/NIN cross was my last fill. I wouldn't call it a WAG, but it was a definite "What else can it be?"
Yes for pronouncing the T in dentist and rough sawn lumber. I taught for 32 years in Madera which is Spanish for wood. It was founded pre-1900 as the terminal for several flumes. My last school was built on the site of the last lumberyard which had closed pre-WW2. Sometimes on foggy damp winter days (A multiple redundancy for central valley winters) you could still smell the sawdust moldering in the ground.
After Al's problem with the image, I had to google
Tea; I was thinking of Tia. Oh well, sometimes my inability to remember names yields a plus.
When I first found this blog, and was whining and whinging for the first time about the name, I claimed to suffer from prosopagnosia, the inability to recognize a face. I do know what a face is, which evidently true prosopagnesiacs can't process. I just can't keep a link between name and face. Evidently shrinks don't recognize this as a syndrome, one website even described it as pure laziness and lack of caring. This hurt until I watch my mother completely lose the ability after a stroke. Shows what they don't know.
Don't know where that came from, but it sure was cathartic.
Al, I wrote a long time back that I wasn't going to commend the bloggers any more because it was always so well done, but something in yours today really made me appreciate what you did. Thank you.
Dennis, I finally get reamed by the trolls last night and it's gone before I get to enjoy it. What's up with that?
Well, if I have any hope to disappear for a few days, I need to wax and tune my skis. We've already got more snow than Colorado did last winter when I went back there, with 5 of the next 7 days calling for precipitation. YEA!! or YAY!!
Hey gang -
Before dinner, I had my first martini in who-knows-how-long - maybe October. Then we had Gorton's battered fish filets and pierogi for dinner. LOVED it! If anyone ever doubted that I come from good, solid peasant stock, you can now be disabused of that mistaken notion.
Anyway, it occurred to me that at least those battered filets were finally able to get out of an abusive relationship.
I suppose they were cod-dependent.
Cheers!
JzB the fishy trombonist
Carol, with a name like Anais, male or female, I laughed out loud at your comment. Hey we all have one.
Gunghy, I forgot where your mountain cabin is. What kind of skis do you have? I grew up skiing in No. Michigan usually at Boyne Mountain. Unfortunately the skiing in Minnesota isn't the best. I usually take a trip or two to Ironwood, MI which is about a 5 hour drive and ski Indianhead. I also cross country ski which is very doable around here.
Lucina, I was making a comment re: Al's take on the clueing for choice/select/meat. I didn't catch your take on it. Good one.
Clearayes, how did your brunch go?
What exactly does the "secret sister reveal"?
Jeannie, have you ever been here? It's one scary jump site.
Jeannie:The "secret sister" is one who does nice things for you all year ie: remember your birthday etc. At the "reveal", you get to find out who she is/was. Sororities, women`s clubs, faculties and other women`s groups often do it. We would draw names in December for the coming year or some do it when the new officers are installed. It`s fun!
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=[62240+Upper+Deer+Creek+Ln,+Shaver+Lake,+CA+93664&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl
Jeanne,
My Cabin is at Huntington Lake, CA (Named for the same Real Estate Tycoon who self-named Huntington Beach. Southern Calif.-Edison was founded partly to power his electric railroad that used to run all through LA.) I ski at China Peak.
Come on out. It's 1:45 from my house, 0:10 from my cabin and Costco sells a 4 pack of tickets for $159. It's also 5 hours to Tahoe and 23 miles to Mammoth (but there's no pass, so it takes over 7 hours. I've never been as a result.)
Skiers: There's an open invite if you get near here.
Gunghy, you never did tell me what skis you own/use....and don't tempt me as 41 degrees is a lot nicer than the temps I am used to skiing in. I had no idea that Cali-fornica had so much snow.
Anon, having never belonged to such a group I had no idea. I guess my "reveal sister" has to be my best friend Mary. She covers all those bases and has done so for the last 20+ years. I am assuming this has to do with the Red hat society which I believe CA claimed to be a part of. From what I understand they are a fun bunch to be around and ralley around each other. Seems to me that they were a great help to my friend CA when she was in need. I may join in a few years. I am told I look good in a red hat.
Jeanne,
I don't know why google map decided to change the URL, It worked when I previewed. Here is (I hope)
Huntington.
My everyday skis are K2 Apache Recons. If there is more than an inch or two of powder, I prefer my Pontoons, also by K2. There is a demo day on the 11th, and the nice thing about single life is that I don't have to explain to anyone if I find something even better. So who knows by Xmas.
Hola Everyone, After the first two theme answers filled in I blithly went on to fill in the other two, but I didn't follow the ing theme, so put in Under Water for the scuba diving business. That was soon fixed when nothing else seemed to fit in that SE section. I corrected that and finally finished with just one lookup. I can never remember Loew's name. I should be ashamed of myself as we have had this enough in recent crosswords.
A fun puzzle today, and for me a bit easier than some Thursday puzzles have been of late.
Thanks, Al for a great writeup.
Davenport, Iowa is a city we've vistited several times. My husband's grandparents landed near Davenport/Moline area when they came up the Mississippi after coming across from Germany. We've visited court houses, libraries, and cemetaries looking for information on his family.
CA, I hope you had a wing-ding time with your group today. What did you tell everyone about this blog and it's members? Or won't you tell?
Gunghy, I'll be damned...I am a K-2 ski owner, and have been since 1974. Isn't it ironic to meet someone on a crossword blog that shares the same interests? BTW, that link to Huntington brings up an address to Sierra CA. Is that right? Next question...do you happen to ice fish? I don't mean do you put fish on ice.
Jeannie, you hit number five...time to stop hitting on Gunghy. I think you both have e-mail addresses right? Keep in mind, this is a CROSSWORD BLOG, not your personal "hit on" site.
We finally got our electricity back. I went car shopping this afternoon and then tutored algebra by candlight. Then spent two boring hours sitting in the dark. Finally, we took my son out for a birthday dinner.
I did do the puzzle on paper and was very pleased with myself since I completed it correctly. Pleased, not smug. I loved the clue for IOWAN.
Jeanne,
I don't understand where the Sierra comes from. It is Lakeshore, CA. (One of 2) It is in the Sierra National Forest about 60 miles NE of Fresno.
Anon, Jeanne does not list her email to protect her from trolls. And if she does chose to 'hit on me', I would prefer it to be private so as not to provide your overactive imagination any more titillation.
Chickie:
If you're still up and reading, I can never remember LOEW's name either and I'm good with names. It's such an usual spelling.
Good night eveeryone!
Jeannie, just got back from chorus practice...yes, it was a busy day.
Our group brunch was our Red Hat get-together this month. Anon@8:06 described the "Secret Sister" thing perfectly. We have done it for the past three years and fortunately, everyone has a great memory for when the birthdays, anniversaries, etc. are, so nobody has been disappointed or had their feelings hurt by not getting a little gift (never more than $10) a few times a year or a card.
As you said, my group of women have been absolutely wonderful to me and GAH during hospital stays and more difficult treatment. Ya can't have too many friends.
Never did get back to the puzzle today, but I am home all day tomorrow and will get at it early.
Jeannie,
We used to do a Secret Santa thing at the school I taught at for the last couple of weeks before Christmas. On the last day before the break, we'd have a small party at the end of the day to give a small gift to our secret pal, and find out who the Santa was.
evening, all,
ooooooo, exotic! I like that. Much better than extinct! Thanks Lemon.
Haven't read all the comments yet, and it's late. Good puzzle, though, and I loved the shout out.
See you tomorrow!
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