google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Saturday February 12, 2011 Barry Silk

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Feb 12, 2011

Saturday February 12, 2011 Barry Silk

Theme: None

Total words: 68

Total blocks: 27

Barry frames this themeless with eight 9s, six of which are stacked in the upper left & lower right, crossed by another triple columns of Down 8s.

Let's look at his marquee answers:

1A. Breakfast-on-the-run choice for some : COLD PIZZA. Has to be his seed entry. Fantastic answer. Two Zs in action.

15A. Work on a table : OPERATION. For doctors/nurses.

17A. Driven to have : DEAD SET ON

53A. Sitcom array : ONE LINERS. Or Jazzbumpa's blog array. Full of zingers.

57A. Boarded en masse : PILED INTO

59A. Up-and-down time? : SKI SEASON. Tricky clue: "Up-and-down". Maybe HeartRx/Gunghy nailed it.

11D. Album before "Help!" : BEATLES VI. Got via crosses.

30D. Strawberry dessert : SHORTCAKE. Sweet!

How long do you normally spend on a Saturday puzzle? I always punt after 30 minutes. Forgive me, Father, for I always cheat!

Across:

10. Put to shame : ABASH. See this word in "unabashed" form more often.

16. Martinique volcano : PELEE.Not familiar with Mount Pelée. Wikipedia says it's French for "Bald Mountain".

18. Not as bright : PALER. We also have 36D. Having a better chance of recognizing : NEARER TO. Two ER adjective suffixes in this grid.

19. Structural opening? : INFRA. Only know the noun infrastructure.

20. When parents may need to call their kids : MEAL TIME

22. Four-time Daytona 500 champ Yarborough : CALE. Tell us more about him, eddyB!

23. Resident on the Arno : PISAN. We often see ARNO clued as "Pisa's river" or "Florence's river".

25. Sediment : LEES

26. Hot feeling : IRE

27. Corporeal : BODILY

28. Fluid dynamics phenomenon : EDDY. Hey, another shout-out to eddyB. Can't believe your Eros & Eons mix-up on Thursday.

29. Makes privy to : LETS IN ON

31. Arcade game nos. : PTS (Points)

33. Parades : SASHAYS. Lucina has not used this word for some time.

34. Croat's neighbor : SLOVENE. Of Slovenia.

38. München-to-Wien heading : OST. German for "east". München = Munich. Wien= Vienna. I drew a blank.

39. Designer of Dulles Airport's main terminal : SAARINEN (Eero). First time we see his surname in a grid.

40. Service expert : ACER. Tennis.

43. Meat garnishes : ASPICS

45. GPS determination : LAT (Latitude)

46. Encircled : GIRT

47. Busy : IN USE. As in restroom.

48. Entangle : MIRE

49. Knighted son of King Ban : LANCELOT. Wow, I never know Lancelot's father was a king.

51. Speleologist : CAVER. Speleology is the study of caves. I only know spelunk/spelunking.

52. Words after follow or blow : A LEAD. Didn't come to me quickly.

56. Like some investments : RISKY

58. Colorado's __ Park : ESTES

Down:

1. Will supplements : CODICILS. Complete stranger to me. Looks like it's related to code.

2. Place to set up camp : OPEN AREA

3. Ads, perhaps : LEAFLETS

4. Titled rapper : DR. DRE. First time we have his full name.

5. "El Condor __": Simon & Garfunkel song : PASA. Here is a clip. Boomer loves Simon & Garfunkel. He just bowled another 300 this week.

6. Mineral suffix : ITE. As in hematite.

7. ZENMED target : ZIT. Was ignorant of the brand ZENMED. Manufactured by whom?

8. Enhances the details : ZOOMS IN

9. Temper : ANNEAL

10. Range, e.g.: Abbr. : APPL (Appliance)

12. Teamed up : ALLIED

13. Looked : SEEMED

14. Joan of Arc's crime : HERESY

21. Wherever : ANY PLACE

23. Clipped style : PONYTAIL. Like this. Was thinking of JFK's clipped accent. Not hairstyle.

24. Lifetime exchange for many : I DOs

27. Fairness obstacle : BIAS

32. Rocky crests : TORS. Classic crosswordese.

34. Je ne __ quoi : SAIS

35. Invigorates : ENLIVENS

37. Begins : ENTERS ON

39. It means "traveling companion" in Russian : SPUTNIK. I am quite fond of Obama's "Sputnik moment". You? 

40. Blazing : AGLARE

41. Tadalafil brand : CIALIS. Don't know the meaning of "Tadalafil".

42. __ Evans, Chubby Checker's birth name : ERNEST. New trivia to me.

44. Peepers : SNOOPS

48. Crosswords in the 1920s, e.g. : MANIA. This is true.

50. Slow Churned ice cream : EDY'S

51. Fungi ending : CIDE. Eww!

54. "The Book of __": 2010 Denzel Washington film : ELI. Have you seen the movie? Good?

55. "__ Troyens": Berlioz opera : LES. Wikipedia says Les Troyens = The Trojans.


C.C.

60 comments:

  1. Morning C.C. and week end warriors:

    I love Barry Silk themeless because they make me feels both stupid and smart. I always begin Saturday doing the first 20 or so across clues. This left me with two answers filled in – MEAL TIME and CALE, which was pretty discouraging. Then there was the CODICIL gimme, and I was off, filling in bits and pieces. Slowed myself down not paying attention to the clue “Croat's neighbor” and wondering why SLOVENIA did not fit. I really must read more carefully. I really liked seeing SAARINEN as an answer, not a clue. I have a friend with Rosacea so I had heard of ZENMED . I have seen the name Tadalafil in the CIALIS magazine ads; it is the generic name of the product, like Sildenfil which is Viagra. Anyway, Saturdays generally are between 15 minutes, to 30 minutes; this one was 18 and change.

    I have traveled to Martinique and it is a beautiful little island, with lots of Parisian clothes for sale, and the volcano Mt. Pelee. The locals love to tell the story of when the volcano erupted, everyone in the city of St. Pierre (30,000) died from the volcano, except Louis-Auguste Cyparis who survived because he was underground in a dungeon like jail for being drunk and disorderly. The punch line, only the town drunk survived. I believe there were two other residents on outskirts of town who also made it, but the story is better without them.

    Thanks C.C., I did not know about Lancelot either.

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  2. Hi C. C., Barry and all, and thanks!!

    Lemonade--how do you work these monsters so fast?

    I immediately put in codicil. The rest was mostly slow going, as per usual on Saturday. COLD PIZZA was favorite clue. Had to really go back in time for that one!

    Can't wait for new mattress to arrive. However, they did not send me an email in return. Perhaps I can call them over the weekend?

    I watched the Book of Eli, C. C. Although am not religious, I thought it was pretty good. Hard to believe he was blind those 30 years, though.

    Back to watching Fringe. Pregnancy storyline ridiculous, IMHO.

    Bye for now!

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  3. Not Quite Morning here. I was so tired earlier I went to bed at 8 PM and woke up three hours later...not a good pattern. But while I was/am waiting to get sleepy again, I finished off Saturday's puzzle. I should say, it finished me!

    BEATLES VI?...Huh?...we have 17 Beatles CD's, but not that one. Not knowing 25A LEES (I had SILT) or 28A EDDY probably didn't help. I knew DR DRE though..go figure.

    I totally messed up the SW because I had AFLAME (so close), didn't know Tadalafil made CIALIS , or that Chubby Checker's real name is ERNEST.

    I was so glad to see your comment on bunting after 30 minutes, C.C. I gave it close to 40 and folded my tent. Congratulations to Boomer on another 300...very impressive!

    Almost 12:30 AM, so I think I'll give some sleep another try. See you all later.

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  4. Twenty-four minutes and change; it seemed as if Mr Silk and I were on the same wavelength today. After what seems like years of seeing "EERO" clued in puzzles, what a treat to finally see "SAARINEN." I have always just liked the way the name looks and sounds.

    Lancelot's family relationship was new to me too. I always knew he was Sir Lancelot, but no more than that. Can't believe I haven't seen the Book of Eli--it must be the only Denzel Washington movie I have not seen. Must remedy that soon.

    The second I saw "Temper" as a clue, I started looking for words dealing with cooling hot metal, feeling quite smug--and STILL had to wait for perps to help with ANNEAL, which is a word I know very well. V-8 can, please?

    How cool to see SASHAYS; love that word.

    Happy weekend, all. It's supposed to get warm enough to melt some of the 20+ inches of snow still on the ground here. Moose the Dog is tired of the little trenches he's made in the back yard and wants his running room back.

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  5. Yes, C.C. I did nail 59A. We are smack in the middle of it right now. Great clue! Thanks for the interesting write up, and especially the link to S&G. Love that song!

    I usually don’t publish my time on crosswords, but you asked today. For a Saturday, this one was fairly easy for me, and I finished in under 20 min. The long fills were quite ”gettable”, and helped with the more obscure clues.

    I liked 40A “Service expert” for ACER. 44D “Peepers” for SNOOPS had me going. I was thinking of eyes (as in, “Jeepers, creepers, where’d ya get those peepers?”), and just couldn’t shove myself out of that rut until I got some of the perps.

    BTW, congrats to Boomer on another 300. No “Bowler’s challenges” or “Bowler’s headaches” for him, huh?

    Have a great Saturday everyone!

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  6. Good Morning C.C. and all,

    As usual, a great write-up. I have not seen the movie, but that's not unusual for me. There's not any near me and my TV watching is sporatic. Thanks for the link on PONYTAIL; I was thinking 'clipped' as in 'cut' and I couldn't see the connection.
    Yeah to Boomer!

    As far as time is concerned, I don't time myself. Often , I fix a snack during it, let the dogs in and out, replenish my DCs , especially on the weekends or hard ones on Thursday and Fridays, or when DH wants to chat.

    Loved todays' Barry Silk! I filled in faster than nomally and perps were very much my friends. Same wavelength.

    Have a nice day everyone.

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  7. A mostly fun Saturday silky. Thanks for the fine commentary, C.C. and congrats to Boomer on the 300 score.
    I don't usually time myself, but I'm guessing it was >40 minutes.

    The bottom half seemed tougher than the top. Guesses included ZIT,EDYS, and SPUTNIK. I was pleased to see EDDY as a fluid mechanics term. OST threw me a little because I wanted the equivalent of ESE, but then decided the constructor felt that Vienna was due East of Munich; ergo, OST. SKI SEASON was the last to fall after MANIA was clear.

    Enjoying our sojourn in SW Florida. Grumpy and Sallie really live in a nice area. So lush and pleasant.

    Wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's day next Monday.

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  8. Hi-Ho!

    Was NOT on Barry's wavelength. When I switched to red letters, I had to take out half of what I already had. I must have been in an alternate universe.

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  9. This one beat me all upside the head, but I somehow managed to finish, with only 3 or 4 Googles.

    Surprised everyone like cold pizza so much. When I finally got that, it was the biggest groaner of the week for me. Who the heck eats pizza for breakfast? Guess I hang with a very different crowd.

    Confidently filled in "anywhere" for 21D, "Wherever," and "united" for 12D, "Teamed up," and wasted much time trying to make them fit. Also stupidly filled in "roman" for the Arno river clue, even though I've been to Florence (and Rome) and should know better (well, Florentine just didn't fit!).

    Oh, and "loc" instead of "lat." Lots of "Doh!" moments this morning!

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  10. Good morning, C.C. and gang - always love a Silky Saturday, even if it makes my brain hurt, trying to stay on his wave length. This was not one of my better efforts; maybe because I didn't sleep much, thinking about work (I might've mentioned this before, but I'm working seven days a week now until I find a manager candidate I like), and I blanked on many clues.

    Didn't help that, even though I dredged up 'Codicils' from the nether regions, I fought the NW for a while after going with 'Cold pasta' for 1A. Other mistakes included 'girt' for 'Encircled' and 'Slovena' for 'Croat's neighbor'. Not a Beatles fan, so I needed perp help for that one, as well as several others. And trying to outthink Barry, for 'Fungi ending', I was looking for something that would go after 'fun guy'. One of those days. On the DF front, enjoyed seeing 'Cialis' and the Trojans reference in the puzzle.

    Denny, I agree to a point about cold pizza; but for me it was not unusual back in my bachelor days to grab whatever I found in the refrigerator on the way out the door (or occasionally, waking up on the floor after a party and having pizza laying nearby). Doesn't have quite the same appeal now, however.

    Have an outstanding weekend; do something fun -- always remember, the clock's running.

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  11. Morning, all!

    This one looked very intimidating at first glance, but I was able to chip away at it steadily and finish unassisted. I had a lot of false starts (GPS for LAT, AFLAME for AGLARE), there were some complete unknowns (OST, ERNEST), there were plenty of obscure clues ("ZENMED target," "Tadalafil brand") and I always have trouble spelling SAARINEN. And yet, as I said, it all eventually fell into place with multiple passes.

    Overall, it took me twice as long to do this one as a typical Monday or Tuesday effort, which feels about right. Due to other time commitments in my life (wife, kid, job, etc.), I really hate puzzles that take me 30 minutes or more to accomplish...

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  12. Hi There ~!

    It's a Saturday Silk ~! Figured I was in for a challenge, and I, too, will "punt" at 30mins, and go to red-letter to see if I made a mistake - and I had...

    For the GPS clue I had ETA, ETD, then LOC, and that helped with ENLIVENS, but I was thinking that recognizable could mean "BE OPEN TO", but also figured that OPEN AREA was already in the puzzle, so...the switch...oh well.

    Yeah, Dennis, I remember those days, too - and I still like cold pizza; the congealing of the oils make it that much tastier - but iced coffee? Bleccchh ~!~

    New one for INFRA - structural, as in civil engineering; water, electric, sewage, transportation - always thought I would make a good engineer - I see so much wasted funds trying to put "Band-Aids" on bigger problems....who knows, I am 'close' to the industry....

    Busy weekend, and looking forward to some melting snow, too ~!

    Splynter

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  13. In a 1984 article, the sociologist Michael Mann introduced the term "Infrastructural Power”, referring to the development of power in human societies. See? You can find any word on the internest at least once…

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  14. Oops, forgot to add congrats to Boomer, I once started a game with 7 strikes, but I was so nervous I was lucky I did not hurt myself in the 8th.

    I have a cousin who insists we have pizza when she visits, just so she can it for breakfast the next two days, no leftovers for me.

    I agree the BEATLES VI is the least memorable album.

    Have to choose between watching the champions tour golfers in Boca, or the Renaissance fair in Deerfield. Ta Ta

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  15. In my own mind, TOR is somewhat more than crosswordese although perhaps not part of normal conversation.

    Here are two references to High Tor, the 1st a play based on an outcrop location in the Hudson Palisades, the 2nd an environment management area near Rochester, NY.

    High Tor 1

    High Tor 2

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  16. Here is My Effort. Puzzle had a certain je ne sais quoi about it (hey, somebody was going to say it!)

    Got it all but Musings-

    -Need a better eraser as you can see!
    -COCOPUFFS on the run slowed me
    -Roman Numeral for Beatles? Don’t remember
    -Girt?
    -Speology had to mean Spelunker had to mean a CAVER
    -Codicils was my toehold
    -Clipped Style – STACCATO? Not even close.
    -All over Sputnik! I have addressed you fellow bloggers as Sputniks. Sputnik scared our country into more money for science and math.
    -I was more in Barry’s time zone than you Speedy Gonzales’s
    -Love to SASHAY myself on occasion
    -Thought Up and Down session might be SEESAWING
    -50F today and 60F very soon! Winter, where is thy sting?
    -Is anyone else having to login a lot lately to post?

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  17. Hey Husker, SE corner needs more erasing, LOL !

    I was having trouble signing in because I had disabled cookies in "preferences" on Safari. But once I allowed them, it lets me sign in with no problem now.

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  18. Good day, Solvers!

    C.C., great job, thank you.

    Seeing Barry Silk's name fires my jets so I SASHAYED (thanks for the reminder, C.C) through this in forty minutes, time out to make coffee, drink it slowly, etc.

    Thanks to watching crime shows on TV, I knew CODICIL (heirs challenging it) and doing the crosses along with the downs helped me complete this Silky.

    Bumps on the silk road were indecision about PELLE, PELEE, SEARINEN not SAARINEN. Otherwise, smooth solving. I thought APPL meant APPALACHIAN; oh, well.

    No COLDPIZZA for me but my grand daughter likes it.

    Great clue:
    work on a table, OPERATION

    Congratulations, Boomer!

    Have a super Saturday, everyone!

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  19. Hello Puzzlers - I did well with our Saturday Silkie, at least by my relaxed standards. Needed 40 minutes without coffee. I had hoped for an honest no-peeky, but the NE was bare, and I had no knowledge of a Beatles album ending in VI - hence Goog. That (plus a quick confirmation of Joan's bogus crime) finished the fill.

    Resisted SLOVENE for the longest time, thought ENTERS ON looked fishy, and had to confirm speliologist and spelunker were the same thing. AFLAME looked better than AGLARE but not for long.

    I am very sick of snow. Two weeks of clearing roofs will do that.

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  20. C.C., you asked how long. About 30 minutes also but with red-letter help. As you know, I don't much enjoy the themeless Saturday puzzles but I do them anyway to have a bit more to contribute. AGLARE? Hmmph! SASHAY, good one. Congratulations Boomer!

    Re. Saarinen and Dulles airport. I used to live about a half-hour away in Falls Church. When Dulles airport was first being built, a college buddy of mine and I went out for a look see. We saw a very long ladder going up through a hole between the roof and a support column. We climbed up and ran around the roof. We are probably the only people you will ever hear about who ran around the roof of Dulles airport.

    The neighbor's dog barks constantly whenever it is put outside in their yard. Last night they must have gone out and the dog was barking straight through until after 12:30am. I am going to have a visit with them soon. I hope it stays friendly.

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  21. It took me less than 5 minutes... It was very easy...

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  22. ...... to realize there was no way in hell I was gonna finish this Silky before I turn gray... So I cheated .. there I said it

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  23. Good morning C.C. and all.

    I had about half filled in when I was compelled to turn on red letters. It looked like it was bleeding to death! Many entries I was "sure of" were wrong, including "silt" for LEES, "chicks" for SNOOPS, and "PikeS" for ESTES. Other sundry misspellings and typos and I almost DNF, but I persevered and finally got the TaDa! I can't really take much credit, as red letter help was on all the way through.

    I make a mean homemade pizza and always save a piece to have for breakfast, but I do nuke it first. Don't like it cold. I wanted COLDcereal at 1A, but it wouldn't fit.

    After several days of single digit and teen temps, we got up to 69 yesterday.

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  24. Oh, yes, it took me 35 min. 15 sec. with help!

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  25. Lemonade's "both stupid and smart" line pretty much sums it up for me.

    C.C. - Lovely write up, as usual. This one took me 38 minutes (pencil and paper) but my average is 44 on Saturdays this year. I tend to get lost without a theme to guide me. My main problems today were staying too long with AFLAME (instead of AGLARE), MURKY (instead of RISKY) and SKI LESSON (instead of SKI SEASON).

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  26. We saw "The Book of ELI", but if I'm to see bleak and colorless cinematography to depict a grim future, I prefer "The Road".

    I have had left-over PIZZA for breakfast, but not COLD. I always have time for a 30 second zap.

    LANCELOT came easily. How could we forget Sir Thomas Malory's immortal "Morte D'Artur" lines, "Merlyn wente ouer the see vnto the land of Benwyck there as kynge Ban was kynge that had grete warre ageynst kynge Claudas. And Merlyn spake with kynge Bans wyf a fair lady and a good. And her name was Elayne. And there he sawe yonge Launcelot". LOL, I didn't read it in Olde English, I found a modern English version after I read "The Once and Future King" and got interested in Arthurian legend.

    "Je ne SAIS quoi" means a certain indefinable something in English. Today's puzzle should be a direct translation, "I don't know....What?"

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  27. Hi all.

    Too tired and sore from all of the walking that I did yesterday. Had a hot shower and Tylenol and had a "nap" at 8:30. Woke up about 4:40

    The 18th sure looks different in person. Had a $9 hamburg for lunch.
    Great golf and not so great golf by the Ams. Wore a khaki hat and a light green sweater in case the camera on 18 caught me.


    Eros/Enos both CW101. As I noted to Dennis: a Freudian Slip. Was
    funny to me.

    Cale born 2 months before me. We kind of grew up together.

    Take care. Wil be taking more Tylenol.

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  28. My subject and predicate do not agree; 'normally' is missing its 'R'- wha' happened? I must need to wake up more, before posting. Beg your pardon.

    My rambling about timing myself..
    I had no idea when I got to your blog, asking for a time. Also, I don't think I want to enter that arena; at least, not yet. It would change my whole approach. I work in ink on paper- no red letters.

    Dodo, hope you got my message yesterday; otherwise, I will try again on Monday.

    SOME interesting links in the posts.Thanks.

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  29. Hello everybody. Been working a lot, but not nearly as much as you, Dennis. 7 days a week? Holy cow. I guess that's part of being the owner/boss.

    Good puzzle today. Can't believe I only had to googoolala once, for Chubby Checker's name. Took about an hour of chipping away little by little, but it did finally all come into place.

    I don't particularly care for entries that are adjectives ending in ER, such as PALER and NEARER TO. Had SERBIAN instead of SLOVENE for way too long, and CHICKS instead of SNOOPS.

    Best wishes to you all.

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  30. C.C. from last night - Thanks for letting me know that the CV Archive glitch isn't just me. Out of curiosity, are you at all ALLIED with that site?

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  31. Good afternoon everyone.

    I got 20 correct answers, 2 incorrect ones, and decided to come here. It took me about 45 minutes to accomplish all that. Would have gotten a few more, but I gave up too soon. But it's not worth the time to get 22 rather than 20. You can tell I am an accomplished crossworder.

    It's only 61° on our lanai, so I am surprised that Spitzboov thinks it's nice here in Naples. Supposed to get to more SW FL temps Wed.& Thurs. though.

    Thanks for the write up, C.C., and congrats to Boomer.

    Off to get a valentine present for DH.

    Cheers

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  32. 1920s crossword MANIA-

    In 1924 two young publishing tyros named Dick and Max paid three editors the whopping sum of twenty five bucks apiece to put together a book of crosswords. They knew nothing about puzzles, but it seemed the public was starting to like them. Prepublishing orders amounted to only eight hundred copies. They felt doomed to absolute failure. Surprise, surprise. When finally printed four hundred thousand copies of the book were sold!

    You know the rest of the story of Dick Simon and Max Schuster.

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  33. Good Afternoon, folks! Missed blogging on yesterday for two reasons.
    1. I was pretty busy all day.
    2. I could not finish the puzzle. It was tough.

    Congrats to Barry Silk for a great Saturday puzzle. It was not easy, but I did finally get it, chipping away all day long. Great write-up and posting, C.C. Thank you.

    The first word I answered was 24D. I put VOWS. Well, after a while I changed that to IDOS.

    HERESY came easy for Joan of Arc. That helped in the NE.

    CODICILS came easy for the NW.

    SHORTCAKE came easy for the SW.

    Nothing came easy for the SE. That was my last to crack.

    I also enjoyed SAARINEN. Having entered EERO, and the other one for years.

    I thought ANNEAL was a good answer. Something you don't think of usually.

    Looking forward to tomorrow. Will probably do it on the airplane. Off to the banquet in Alexandria, VA, tonight.

    Abejo

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  34. Marti – Thanks for the reply, do I still have mistakes I didn’t get erased? Would not surprise me! Could you see my COCOPUFFS? I don’t ask that question of just anyone.

    CA – OMG, what unforgettable language is that?

    Boomer – my bowling 300 took a lot more than 10 frames! At least the alleys don’t have cigarette smoke any more.

    Son of Musings
    -Ernest Evans rode “The Twist” about as far as Billy Ray rode “Friends in Low Places” and The Baja Men rode “Who Let the Dogs Out?” OHW’s all of them.
    -AGLARE is the price you have to pay for huge stacks. I’ll complain when I do better but still…
    -Just got back from seeing Tangled with grandkids. Very enjoyable for a 64 year old and a 64 month old. Disney has another princess for the parades!
    -ONELINERS turned out to be my V8 moment! I was thinking of ENTOURAGE.

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  35. Did you know:

    If you buy an espresso to go in California, you are not charged sales tax. Otherwise, you are charged the tax.

    If you buy a cold sandwich at Subway, no tax. A hot sandwich is taxed.

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  36. Bill G, eat a gelato inside a restaurant in Italy it costs a 1/2 Euro more than eating it at the tables on the street. I thought the proprietor in Sienna was just being friendly inviting us to sit down in his establishment. Not so much!

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  37. Abejo:
    Be careful on the plane. I'm told they frown on that these days. ;-}

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  38. Lucina, Hand up for “Work on a table” for OPERATION !
    Zcarguy…envy your time of 5 min…for about 2 secs. Cheating is OK, long as you “get ‘er done”!!
    CA, had to Laugh Out Loud at your comment about “I don’t know…What?”
    eddyB: NVU !!
    Jerome, thanks for the shout out to Dick and Max – we puzzlers owe them a great deal.
    Husker Gary, yep. PILEDoNTO should be PILED IN TO, and SKI SEASON (not SKI lesson). I did notice the COcoPuffs…good answer! But what was going on with 13D? I loved looking at this, because it gives me more insight into how other people solve these things. Thanks for posting it!

    WH, he meant the CROSSWORD…. (Jeez, you guys!!)

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  39. Alfred, Lord Tennyson wrote "Idylls of the King", 12 narrative poems about King Arthur and his court.

    It was never a good idea to love LANCELOT. Elaine, the "lily maid of Astolat" died of unrequited love for him. At the other end of the scale, his affair with Queen Guinevere was bad news too.

    "The Lady of Shalott" didn't fare well from her encounter with Lancelot either. It's 19 verses (but a quick read). Here's the poem if you want to read the whole sad story.

    Husker Gary, they weren't as picky about spelling and grammar in the 15th century as we would like to believe we are now.

    I think it was Garth Brooks who frequented low places. Billy Ray's heart was achy-breaky. LOL, Don't tell anybody I know these things.

    WH, no Tadalafil products needed there.

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  40. Marti, thanks for the corrections. Will I never I outgrow the need for women to clean up after me?

    13D was PEERED before SEEMED appeared!

    CA, you're right of course, I meant Achy Breaky Heart. Not only did he not have another hit, I don't think he minded living off his daughter's income and not sure if he did all that swell a job of parenting.

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  41. Clear Ayes- you're always one step ahead of me. Four days ago I sat down and read "The Road". Couldn't put it down. Great read. Pulitzer Prize winner, too. I wasn't a fan of "No Country For Old Men" though. But all in all, Cormac McCarthy is a wonderful writer.

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  42. I decided to head out for a short drive in the new Camry to get a double espresso (to go). I turned on the FM radio and came across Prairie Home Companion, one of my favorite shows. I never remember or make the effort to listen to it unless I'm driving in the car on the weekend. So now I'm listening to it on the computer while I type. I assume it's a favorite among you Minnesotans. Good stuff.

    ~ Bill

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  43. Dear C.C., Argyle and folk,

    4 starters, Barry has hit 'dead set on,' once again! Thanks, Barry!

    @WH & Abejo, Ha, ha, ha!!!!!!!

    1. Many I know enjoy cold pizza 4 breakfast. COLD PIZZA It's not just for 23a. PISAN's anymore!

    2 Many words I didn't know: LEES, OST, ACER,GIRT, TORS,
    I would have known 1d. codicils if I'd read the word 'wills' correctly.

    9d. ANNEALS/ Temper, good one!

    28a edy, 50d. eddy. Clechos, mais, non?


    I'm (50%) out.

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  44. FYI,(While I've written this before, it's still cool.)
    36d. Having a better chance of recognizing/ NEARER TO. 'Nearer, My God, to Thee'. is recorded as the last song played before the Titanic fully sank. The Unfinished Trip
    This is a quote:
    "The forward Well Deck is awash. By 2:00 am water is now only 10 feet below the Promenade Deck. At about this time, Hartley chooses the band's final piece 'Nearer, My God, to Thee'. Hartley had always said it would be the hymn he would select for his own funeral. With more than 1,500 still on board, and just 47 positions available in Collapsible "D", Lightoller instructs the crew to lock arms and form a circle around the boat, permitting only women and children to pass through the circle. At 2:05 am, "D" begins its downward journey with 44 people out of a rated capacity of 47."

    Happy Valentine's Day all and...I'm 100% out.

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  45. ???My links don't work??? HHmmm...

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  46. Jerome, I read "The Road" a few years ago. GAH took it over, but accidentally left it on a train in Sweden. I hope whoever found it didn't get too depressed. I didn't read "No Country For Old Men", but I thought the movie was great....if you didn't mind the "everybody is at the hands of fate" theme. I've got an older McCarthy to read, "Blood Meridian", but haven't gotten to it yet. It is supposed to be his best.

    Frenchie, is this the Unfinished Trip link you were trying for? A very sad fate indeed.

    Our fate tonight is to go to our local annual firemen fund raiser, "Sweetheart Dinner Dance". It's fun and gets many husbands off the Valentine hook..."I took you out for dinner and dancing!"

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  47. ClearAyes, Lucky you! I wish I had a "date" tonight...DH is out of town on business for the next two weeks, so he will miss being here on V.D. BUT, he did send me a beautiful bouquet of roses, so I guess he is exonerated!

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  48. FYI, tadalafil is the generic name for the brand name Cialis. Pharmaceuticals also have a chemical name. An analogy would be: hydrogen dioxide, water and Perrier.

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  49. Be careful on the plane. I'm told they frown on that these days. ;-}

    Dammit, when did that start??

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  50. HeartRx - Hiya neighbor. You mentioned Safari this morning. Are you happy with that as your browser?

    Anybody else?

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  51. Dudley re Safari:

    Very satisfied with Safari. Extremely robust and fast. Only a couple crashes in the last two years. No known virus issues.

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  52. Dudley, I'm very happy using Safari as a browser. I use FireFox also (especially for this blog) but I prefer Safari in general.

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  53. If you use the iPhone, your browser is by default Safari. Works for me.

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  54. Well, while we seldom diaagree, CA, I did not enjoy No Country for Old Men either the book or the movie, and thought Tommy Lee Jones, who is one of my favorite actors, did nothing in the film. Well okay, he frowned.

    I think the airlines frown, Dennis, if you block the aisle. They need the staff out selling.

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  55. Marti, I have my cookies setting ON (my cookies AND my cocopuffs in one day!) but hope I can post without issue tomorrow.

    I will bid all of you participating in the discussion of the 6 mile high club, bonne nuit!

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  56. The mile high club? I heard there were extra charges for that!

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  57. Thanks for the Safari comments. I'm thinking of making the switch since having gotten the iPhone, whose Safari mobile browser has worked smoothly.

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  58. Good evening all. Busy day today so didn't get to the puzzle until now. I tried my darndest to create a new puzzle. 1a CROISSANT, confirmed with the obvious 1d CODICILS and shortly thereafter REST AREA fell into place. That left me staring at an entry starting with OE and one starting with DS. Time to throw out the croissant and start over.

    I kept picking away and finally got it all except the long entries in the SE. I finally gave up and here as the missing entries weren't somrthing that could be Googled. Silky, ya got me on this one, but I enjoyed it, anyway.

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  59. @CA, yes, thank you so much! so true!
    @lemonade714, I agree with you on "No Country For Old Men."
    @HeartRX, Peter and I, too, will be apart for V.D. (our first apart in our 36 yrs. tog.) We went out for a lovely dinner tonight...roses; maybe Monday...hope they're red!

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  60. Cruciverb Archives are working again. Huzzah!

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