Theme: Get Real! 62A. "We're on to you!" (and a hint to how this puzzle's other four longest answers were created): DROP THE ACT. Each of the four central theme answers are in the language phrases with the word ACT removed to reveal a new, and witty phrase.
17A. Free garden supply?: COMPACTED SOIL. COMPED meaning given as complimentary item.
24A. Cost at a Walmart competitor?: TARGET PRACTICE. Target is catching Walmart.
38A. Become more forgiving?: LACTOSE INTOLERANCE. Being milk intolerant, this is my favorite, as the original phrase and the new are both very positive.
50A. Pessimistic brat?: NEGATIVE IMPACT. These on the other hand are quite negative.
Hey all, it is I, Lemonade, so it must be Friday, and we have another seemingly easy Friday, that does have some very tricky clues and a very fun letter removal theme, so on with Mr. Peluso's masterpiece.
Across:
1. South American plain: CAMPO. Okay, again with a difficult start; my Spanish is not great, but I believe this means field. or country (like Casa de Campo- country house) and not Plain which is a flat field mostly devoid of trees. Ah well, I am probably wrong again.
6. Fifth pillar of Islam: HADJ. Okay, the end of our lesson for the week in the religion, HADJ (or HAJJ) is the pilgrimage; the other four are: (1) the shahada (creed), (2) salat (daily prayers), (3) sawm (fasting during Ramadan ), (4) ( zakat alms giving) ).
10. Back country transports, briefly: ATVS. All Terrain Vehicles. Lots of acronyms.
14. Poppy product: OPIUM. Mini-clecho: 15. Bean product?: IDEA. Not a green one, but your head.
16. Antihero?: GOAT. This meaning comes from the old Hebrew tradition of send out a goat to take on the sins of the people, the SCAPE GOAT.
19. Tahoe bar, say: AXLE. The Chevrolet SUV, not the beautiful city on the lake.
20. Cheese from Veneto: ASIAGO. Cheeses like wines have regions, you can read this LINK .
21. Cognac designation: VSOP. I am not sure if this was intention but Cognac is a region as well, and it is graded as Very Special Old Pale.
23. It may follow sex: ISM. A cigarette? A loud scream, oh, I see....sexism.
27. Main response?: AYE SIR. The main, meaning the sea, the bounding main.
29. Feminine principle: YIN. After Al's explanation, you are supposed to know this.
30. Bass, e.g.: ALE. The beer reference so I do not feel lonely.
31. Boomers are swelling its ranks: AARP. The old reference so I don't get uppity.
34. Vast expanse: OCEAN. Danny?
42. Only brother not in any Marx Brothers films: GUMMO. He was born MILTON .
43. Foreign minister under Meir: EBAN. Abba Eban, a very fascinating and intelligent man that I had the pleasure of meeting when he was here appearing on a locally produced Israeli TV show.
44. Comic Margaret: CHO. The Kontroversial, Korean Komedienne, watch unless you are AFRAID .
45. Petting zoo chorus: AWS. How cute!
47. Metaphorical hiding place: CLOSET. Where we have our skeletons, and our gay people; it must be crowded in theirs.
54. Palme __: Cannes award: D'OR. Of gold, in French.
55. Words of agreement: NOR I. I kept seeing seaweed.
56. Super Bowl party array: SALSAS. The Tijuana place next tome has 23 salsa for your burrito, some will curl your eyebrows.
60. Work: OPUS.
64. Sci-fi shots: ZAPS.
65. Shekels: GELT. More Yiddish, as well as the currency of old Israel. Money honey.
66. Hartford-based insurance giant: AETNA. Hartford is the Insurance Capital .
67. Harper's Bazaar artist: ERTE. Romain de Tirtoff .
68. The same, to Alain: EGAL. French lesson, not only the same as Equal, it is the root word.
69. Discomfiting look: SNEER. I already did my Snidely Whiplash, so use your imagination.
DOWN:
1. First name in soft drinks?: COCA. Coca Cola, first name, get it!!!!!
2. Mil. addresses: APOS. Army Post Office.
3. "La Bohème" role: MIMI. My grandmother was called that from the French mémé.
4. Leave the larva stage PUPATE. really, sounds like fun.
5. James Bond and JFK have worn them: OMEGAS. The watch.
6. __ Honor: HIS. Speaking of sexism, why HIS?
7. "... and gentle as __": Matthew: A DOVE.
8. Jefferson, notably: DEIST. A practical form of Christianity, devoid of miracles.
9. Heap: JALOPY. They are uncertain where this word comes from, but it means an old, badly maintained car.
10. Turkish title: AGA. And a cooker in England, where are you our limey friend?
11. Destructive, as a relationship: TOXIC. Man, we have all been in those with beautiful but bad for us partners.
12. Sibelius's "__ Triste": VALSE. This was a work written by the most famous Finnish composer, for a play written by his brother; truly awesome MUSIC ; I think the title means Sad Waltz, in French.
13. Keep from flowing: STEM. Stem the tide boys!
18. Gray painted by Basil Hallward DORIAN. The only novel written by Oscar Wilde, ever published, not a color of paint, but the central character. A truly well thought out and frightening book and movie.
22. Conviction, maybe: PRIOR. In TV cop talk, how many priors?
25. Fireplace insert: GRATE. Gitta out the logs someplace.
26. Old empire builder: INCA.
27. Winningest manager in Expos history: ALOU. Felipe, the oldest of the three brothers, who all played in the same outfield for one game with the San Fransisco Giants; because the Montreal Expos do not exist any more, Felipe will keep his record.
28. Polite rural reply: YES'M.
30. Subj. for solvers: ALG. Al Gebra, or old math friend.
32. Steal from: ROB. I won't quibble, but there is a big difference in the law, as robbery requires the use of force in confrontation.
33. Not quite win: PLACE. Horse racing, Win, Place and Show. I like this clue, both for me and my degenerate friends.
35. Confer ending: ENCE. Conference.
36. Vier times zwei: ACHT. Four times two = eight, German lesson.
37. Paleo- opposite: NEO. Neo mean new, Paleo ancient, prehistoric, both from Greek roots.
39. Slate, e.g., for short: E-MAG. I learned from the puzzles, I have never seen this online publication.
40. Hoover, for one: IOWAN. Herbert Hoover the 31st president and the one who presided over the beginning of the depression. Other famous Iowans include Johnny Carson (who moved to Nebraska) Marion Morrison, better known as John Wayne, and sadly a transplanted Chicago boy whose family moved to Waterloo, named John Wayne Gacy, who became known as the Killer Clown. A presidential hopeful recently opened her campaign in Waterloo, Iowa because it was the home of that great American, John Wayne, but she had the wrong one. It may be her Waterloo.
41. Join: ENLIST.
46. Stuffy type: STODGE. I guess one who acts stodgy would be, but eh.
48. Midwestern natives: OMAHAS. This references the Native American Tribe, not Omahans, I think; HG, help.
49. It may be vented: SPLEEN. I have had this also in previous blogging days.
50. Without face value: NO PAR. Corporations determine a basic value for each share of stock, which would be the minimum they would pay to redeem shares.
51. Blow: ERUPT. Like a volcano, or that prom night zit coming up. It surely blows to have a pimple at the prom.
52. Thrift store abbr.: IRREG. Irregular.
53. One of two in Mozart's string quintets: VIOLA. Do any of you Ryders play Viola or Cello?
54. Drop off: DOZE. Hey, WAKE UP, I am doing my best.
57. Bloat, maybe: SATE. When I was little my parents hid the Halloween candy on the sun porch so my brothers and I would not eat it too quickly. On the morning of the 31st when they went to get it, there was a mouse in the bag, his stomach five times bigger than he was; he was dead, but he had a big smile. He was sated and bloated.
58. Promgoer's concern: ACNE.
59. Have the lead: STAR. Not first dog, but the lead in a play or show.
61. Captain's hdg.: SSE. An attempt to make random letters sound good.
63. Scandalous '80s initials: PTL. Praise the Lord, and pass the mascara. The televison ministry of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker. Did not end so well for them, but my work is ending well, as we have conquered another puzzle, one with deception, wit and I am telling the truth, NO ACT here either. Enjoy your holidays and Happy Birthday USA, and many more.
Lemonade
Note from C.C.:
Here are a few sweet photos from Don "Hard G". He and his beautiful wife Barbara adopted two Havanese (Pansie & Cosmos) from puppy mills earlier this year after their dog Violet passed away.
96 comments:
Morning, all!
Typically rough Friday puzzle. I finally got the theme, but still had a devil of a time figuring out were to put the ACT in the theme answers. COMPACTED SOIL is not a phrase that easily springs to mind...
Lots of missteps today. Started out with LLANO (which is, in fact, the Spanish word for "plain") instead of CAMPO (which is actually Spanish for "field"). Also felt pretty confident about BAA for 45A instead of AWS. And then there was Gentle as A LAMB instead of A DOVE...
Overall, though, a really nice and fun puzzle with lots of interesting clues. Definitely challenging, but that's fine for a Friday. And it helped that I actually knew some of the obscure stuff like GUMMO, DORIAN, HADJ, VALSE, etc.
Good Morning, Lemonade and friends. Youch! This was definitely a Friday puzzle. After the first pass, I slowly began to fill in the top half, but the bottom half was very slow to come to me.
Like Barry G, I wanted Gentle as a Lamb, but I remembered that the cognac designation was VSOP. Still it too a second pass for the DOVE to fly into my head.
There were a lot of misleads in this puzzle, some new and some we've seen before. I guess if bologna can have a first name, COCA and be a soda's first name.
I liked the Bean Product = IDEA even that that has appeared before.
In honor of 18-Down, here is today's QOD: The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. ~ Oscar Wilde, from The Picture of Dorian Gray
Hi, all!
Decided to stay up late and blog, instead of doing so at a ridiculously late hour. Puzzle was far harder than those before it this week. You got me, Mike! Nice work, Lemonade.
Favorites answers: IDEA and DEIST.
Never wondered before why VALSE triste was written by a Finn. It doesn't seem to have much in common with his other works, now that I think of it. (MHO.)
Beddy bye time! Happy weekend, all!
PS. I too am lactose intolerant. Even with pills after whey drink (for protein, etc.) I sometimes have GERD. Choking down Alka Seltzer is no fun.
Good Morning Lemonade, C.C. et al.
Wonderful pics of the puppies, Don G! C.C., thanks for sharing with us.
Splendid write-up, Lemonade. I just had to chuckle at your comment about the "It can follow sex" answer. I was thinking the exact same thing when I did the puzzle. But I came up with ISt instead of ISM.
I also wanted "llano" instead of CAMPO. Once I got that all straight via perps, I got going again, but stalled in the middle. Then I slid down to 68A where I entered "meme" instead of EGAL. Ugh, what a mess.
....Time passes
....and eventually I got it done! I had no patience to figure out where to stuff my ACT, so I just came here. Thanks again, Lemonade!
Stay safe on the roads this weekend, everyone!
Lemonade: Loved how you worked your leftist politics into the write-up.
Gee, Anon 6:40, how can you tell I am left-handed from the blog? I know, don't feed the trolls.
Very cute doggies, DG, love them in good health.
I happen to think that particular entry comment is one of Lemonade's best: informative & witty.
anon@6:40, it's very much a left-leaning group of posters here. You can either ignore that fact, or move on. I've chosen to ignore it because the blog is so enjoyable otherwise.
Hello Puzzlers - What Hahtool said.
Two words popped out from some unknown place, CAMPO and EBAN. I don't really know either one, but at the time I just knew, y'know?
Thanks Lemonade for figuring it all out. How interesting that you know about AGA Cookers - after all, they're not well known here, compared with England. I visited the foundry in Coalbrookdale where AGA parts are cast, and the factory somewhere in Shropshire where they are built. Now if only I could afford one...
Good morning all. TOUGH puzzle today. Got er done, but HTG in Oregon and Maine. Didn't know Gummo or Valse. Still didn't get the axle clue until I came here. I also couldn't figure out where the ACT had been removed in the 2nd and 3rd theme answers, but had them filled correctly nonetheless.
Yes, Lemon. The Omahas answer would refer to the tribe. Residents of the namesake city are Omahans.
BTW, you might want to revisit the definition of Deist. It's not nearly as specific as you've described.
Tough one. An hour in, and only got the top half done. That being about my limit for such an enjoyable yet, let's be frank, unproductive activity (okay, we do learn stuff, but other than that...), I gave up.
Lemonade, I'm guessing your 'left-wing' sin was to point out that Michelle Bachmann made a mistake.
It doesn't take much to get a right-winger's hackles up.
(In my best Dennis voice)-
Guys, drop the political crap. C.C. does not want it here.
Lemon, very nice blog. Your gentle humor and tolerant attitude and bonhomie is generously sprinkled in your commentary. Even without having seen your picture, I can well imagine what you must look like.
Your pol. philosophy kinda 'peeps' through in your writing - and it does NOT bother me, one bit. I admire you tremendously - and if there is one person I would wished to have met in 'real' life ( like Marti met Dudley, the other day - ) - for me, it would be you.
As for politics, as you know, we may pride ourselves on our ego, and our MENSA scores, and our mastery in English - but in the political process, we are a tiny, tiny minuscule minority and our effect in national politics, is less than a drop in the bucket. So, to the Anon, get over it - neither you, nor I or anybody on this blog is going to make one iota of a difference, in the contest, next year or in the future. If any political shades of opinions manage to creep into our writings, shrug if off, like water off a duck's back, and move on. Its not worth getting all upset about. Move on, to the more important, and relevant parts of your real life.
The only thing entertaining about today's puzzle was Lemonade's comments.
Llano was my first ans. & even tho that was incorrect the rest of the puzzle went south after that. Let's see...south Am., Islamic, Italian, Jewish, French, Asian, etc. The foreign references completely did me in.
Lemonade Admirer:
As a once and future offender, I say to you,
Very well said.
As a present offender, I say,
In the case of Bachmann, left or right make no difference. She's a poseur and a nut case, and if she were on "our" side, I'd say the same.
AND, for anyone to say this is a left wing blog is just foolishness. There are a few of us, relatively equal in number, on each "side"; the great majority are apolitical (here at least) and the blog leader has never endorsed any point of view.
So as Admirer said, give it up.
Baling hay today, so out of here for the day or longer. Have at me at your pleasure.
What a surprise, my first entry was VSOP.
YES'M, That 2nd cup of coffee was better.
I think Leon Russell said it best when he comments on left and right in Magic Mirror. It's at 3:34.
Can somebody please other than Barry G lead off the day? Dennis, please come back!!
Abba Eban, may have been an Israeli,(and at and during difficult times), but he had the Class ( and the accent - ) of an old time British diplomat.
Madame Cho, on the other hand survives because of her shock, shtock and shtick values. She implicitly denigrates her Korean peoples who are universally admired for their hard work, respectful nature. gentle behavior and obsequious attitude. I know, we all have to make a buck, in whatever legal manner, we can, - but what a way to make a living....
Barry G's posts are fine - he just needs to update the decades-old avatar.
Good Morning All, An OMEGA watch looks like a real bargain when compared to a Rolex, but I'll stick with my $20 Timex. I'm the only one in my family who has a watch. GAH asks me what time it is, and daughter, S-I-L and grandkids check their cell phones.
Liked the cross of AYE SIR and YES'M and loved seeing 42A)GUMMO Marx.
Lots of perp help here... PAMPA didn't work at 1A, The Down perps convinced me that it had to be previously unknown CAMPO. I can only count to three in German, so I couldn't multiply to 36D)ACHT. I tried to fit VACUUM at 40D. It didn't fit and I should have known better anyway. I've never heard of anyone being called a 46D)STODGE.
The theme phrases came fairly easily. It took me a while to figure out where to fit each ACT, but it finally all came together. I often have a hard time with late week themes, so I'm always ridiculously pleased with myself when I get them. My favorite phrase was L(ACT)OSE INTOLERANT.
I come to the blog to learn and boy did I learn. Never caught the Wayne comment - thanks Lemonade
I don't get Anon 6:40, it was in the news (I got it from Letterman) so Lemon didn't make it up, but whatever.
Thanks Ave Joe, now thats some one I'd love to meet,
pictures please!!!!!!
Commenting on today's puzzle is going to spotlight some of our restricted subjects.
I thought Lemonade trod lightly and amusingly through what could have been a crossword minefield. Good work, Lemonade.
...but I agree with Avg Joe@8:11. Here's Wikipedia's take on DEIST/Deism.
Xword muse@9:24, are you kidding? "he may have been an Israeli..", your comment about EBAN's class and diplomacy. Do Israelis generally lack these skills? Referring to Koreans' "hard work, respectful nature, gentle behavior and obsequious attitude." is stereotypical and is precisely why it is one of the subjects Ms CHO covers in her ACT. Obsequious wouldn't usually be thought of as a compliment.
Love Him Or Hate Him catagory: (I know where I stand.) Windhover is this blog's Admiral Farragut, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!".
Good morning all,
Hats off to all who finished this xwd without help. Looked up a few, wagged some, perped a lot, and still DNF after a thoughtful amount of time in the closet.I stared at 50A and 62A for the longest time, each with 7 letters filled, but still couldn't finish.
Thanks for your fun and informative write up, Lemonade.What's with all of those cranky anons?!?
Glad I wasn't the only one who thought of pampa at 1st.
Nor I ? I do not see that as words of agreement.
Don G's puppies are adorable; so nice to have 2. Most dogs seem happier with a pal..as do we.
Lucina, have a great week.
DNF for me. Too many "no idea", "never heard of" clues and wrong guesses to get more than half out today. I even got the French one wrong--had MEME for EGAL. I did get two theme answers: TARGET PRICE and LOSE INTOLERANCE. But would never have got the theme itself. For the first one I had DAMPED SOIL with SODA for 1D. I at first wanted LLANO for CAMPO too, and tried ONEIDA for OMAHAS.
I'm getting busy on the next newsletter I have to publish, so didn't really have time to spend. But I also had no clue and couldn't be bothered. Sorry, but these are getting progressively harder all week lately, with few exceptions, and when I have no time, I give up.
Don't get me started on Bachman!
Hey guys, just passing through and saw the 'conversation' this morning.
Bottom line is this: the blog is what it is, it's what C.C. envisioned, and she's done a masterful job of shaping it to that vision. Should you not care for it, why not take the vitriol somewhere else where perhaps they may give a rat's ass about your opinion? This blog is designed to make everyone feel comfortable by keeping it politics- and religion-free. The DF stuff, well, we slip it in now and then. The talk, that is.
Windhover is this blog's Admiral Farragut, "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!".
I'll settle for being the Captain of the Good Ship Lollipop, in hopes of, well, never mind...
Have a wonderful 4th weekend; do something fun, and FLY THE FLAG!
Isn't that what I said, Cap'n? About CC AND the blog?
Barry G's posts are fine - he just needs to update the decades-old avatar.
Tell you what -- you post under your own name instead of sniping under the cowardly "anonymous" banner, and I'll consider updating my avatar. Anonymous posters post anonymously because they don't want anybody to know who they really are. Perhaps I post using an 8-year old picture of myself because I like the way I look in that picture and don't want people to know what I "really" look like now?
Put up or shut up. Actually, please just shut up about it.
Fun facts:
Mike Peluso was a language teacher, so you will gets lots of foreign phrases. You might want to read his interview. In the comments section that day, our fearless leader responded to the suggestion that she construct a puzzle, saying, "Linda,
Ha ha, I know my limit. I can hardly solve a puzzle."
For you newbies and fairly newbies, the puzzle and comments that day are a good example of the banter Dennis misses.
A reminder of many who have come before you
Good Day C.C., Lemon and all,
Tops! Lemon, thanks.
Put this tough one up and made some important calls, some opened up, then quickie snack, and on….
50A was the stymie; I kept doubting myself and undoing some good stuff. Finally, after filling it in , I got that it was IMP that was altered. Whew.
Same problems and thoughts as others , so will only say: Ditto on above.
You know, Mike, I knew I was in for it when I saw you listed next to Friday. Thanks for your IMPishness.
Love Don’s dear dogs. I agree wholeheartedly, JD; they need pals. In fact, all critters need a pal. Noah had it right.
Some great posts today; am really enjoying; course, I do every day.
Have a nice day everyone.
Kazie said "don't get me started on Bachman!"
Isn't that precisely what Lemonade did with his write-up.
It IS C.C.'s blog and SHE did endorse L714's comment @712a.
The disclaimer above the box where I type this comment then seems to be window dressing.
I really enjoy this blog and will continue to do so but the political banter(left and right) seems to detract from the main purpose of the blog.
Just like what follows sex; it is hard to stop once it gets started. So, why encourage it?
Good day, all. Great write up Lemonade. Most of the misdirections that slowed me have been covered already.
I had to think about how NOR I indicates agreement, but reasoned that if someone said "I don't like that color" and I responded "NOR I", I would be agreeing with that person.
Why HIS ad 6d? Because 'her' wouldn't fit and YIN had to be balanced with a masculine term.
Use of that poppy product may lead to altered bean products. No comment about how the antihero might come into play at that point.
No problem figuring out were the ACT had been removed, although I didn't realize that was the gimmick until all had been filled and I got to the unifier.
I probably lean much further right than most on here, but I found nothing offensive in Lemonades remarks.
you're right about llano...if i were to say me voy al campo, it would mean that i'm going out to the boonies...
Sorry, WH, didn't mean to repeat you. Someone told me I should look in, and I just skimmed the comments to get a flavor, then posted. I defer to your Admiralship, being a mere lolli....er, Captain.
Dennis, no problem,
But the rank was CA's idea. Before I choose, I've got to ask: which one gets the pirate wenches, and which one is stuck with the cabin boys?
I'm not very nautical, but I know what "Any port in a storm" means. If I wanted to be politically snide, I'd say, so did Larry Craig. But I don't.
Oops, damn near ran through the fence. Gotta go.
I will never, ever, even if I lived for an epoch, understand why anyone at any time in any place in any venue would respond to an anonymous post. It doesn't matter how vile and evil and brainless and pathetic that post is, there is never one single solitary word worth wasting on an anon. I come here to have fun. Today that fun has been ruined because a pathetic brat got under some of your skins and you didn't have the maturity and wisdom to simply shake your head, move on and forget about it. Somewhere an anon is laughing their ass off over having made you the fool.
DNF
Which I don't understand because Lemon said this was "an easy Friday."
GUMMO, VALSE, MIMI all learning moments.
COCA crossing OPIUM. hmmm ...
Yeah, I put in 'cig' and 'clog' in the NE.
Love seeing all the SPLEEN(s) being vented ...
Oh well, Cheers to all at Sunset !
Hello everybody. This was a tough puzzle today but I feel good that I solved all of it without having to look anything up. Even so, until coming here I didn't know WHY what I filled in was actually correct, such as GOAT. I mean, I knew it had to be GOAT because nothing else would go in there, but I didn't know whjat it meant until coming here.
Hands up for wanting LLANO and then PAMPA for 1A. CAMPO didn't occur to me until the perps forced it.
Had HAJJ in there for a long time until I got all the other perps for _EIST (not JURIST!) and realized it was HADJ.
Had the same reaction to STODGE as Lemonade did.
Had IST for 23A and STET for 13D until I came here and saw the error of my ways.
And yes, wanted MEME for "The same, to Alain."
At least VALSE Triste was a gimme :)
Jayce,
Are you a fan of all classical music, or Valsa Triste in particular?
Tinman,
My comment about "easy" was comparing it to other Friday puzzles, not to earlier week efforts. The theme was gettable, there were many tricky clues and a few obscure ones, but there also were many short, straight forward clues and no impossible crossing of two total obscurities. The perps always steered me in the right direction. Finally, there was no totally obscure reference, like some Fridays have. I do not mean it was a speed run by any means, but by chiping away, it was doable, which to me is an easy Friday.
What Tinbeni said. This one was a tough one for me. There were too many foreign words for my taste. I also hate it when I can’t get 1-A right off the bat. Campo, Gelt, Valse ??? Favorite clue was “main response”- aye sir. I did enjoy your write up MFCounselor and found it ironic that you would mention a pimple for 51-D and acne showed up at 58-D. Oh and I wanted “ahh” for it may follow sex :) Oh well, it is Friday after all. Everyone enjoy your nice long weekend. I know I will!
Today is: Creative Ice Cream Flavor Day – what would yours be?
It seems that yesterday's Anon was right and a nude avatar was all that was needed to get Dennis to check in. Always happy to see you, Captain.
@12:14, so, by responding to Anons, which has to include the elusive "black" names, Lemonade, Barry G., and I (and maybe a few others?) have been made fools and didn't have the maturity and wisdom to simply shake our heads and move on. Worst of all, it has ruined your fun. Gee Jerome, why don't you name names and say what you think? Ease up fella, we're supposed to be friends here.
Lemonade, I am a fan of classical music in general, but I am far from an expert in it. There is much of it I like and much of it I don't like, and I tend to know nothing at all about the stuff I don't like or am not familiar with. I do love Valse Triste and some of Sibelius's other works, but am not very knowledgable about him or most of his works.
I also like other kinds of music as well, ranging from some rock, through bluegrass, some zydeco, dixieland, Dave Brubeck-style jazz, to some Big Band stuff. Hmm, I just noticed these are all instrumental; I confess I tend to not care much for vocal music, except for a very few operas and oratorios that I like, and the aforementioned rock.
As for feeling good about having solved the puzzle today without having to look anything up, I should probably say I filled it all in, not solved it, since I had IST and STET which are incorrect. I had filled in every box with a letter, but failed to "solve" those two entries.
Jeannie, it may not be very creative, but I would likely want to combine chocolate, coffee, vanilla, and maybe hazelnut into ice cream. I have to give credit to Ben and Jerry's Cherry Garcia for having a creative name as well as creative taste. What would you do?
LOL, I just got the weird idea that something like shrimp and okra would be creative for ice cream, but nobody would want to eat it :) Something with ginger in it would be good, though, I imagine.
DNF...but I thank Lemonade and the other bloggers for helping me see my way through the days my brain does not kick in...
Lemonade...Since my father was a High School Music teacher I played both Viola and Cello...wanted the Cello but had to start with the Viola because there were no cellos available for me...as my father pointed out, they are strung exactly the same way and so, the transition from one to the other would be easier. The Violin and Bass Viol are also a matching pair in the way they are strung. By college I finally put all the musical things aside in favor of the art, which had been my intention all along...just random info.
Fermatprime, I see a sorta kinda similarity between his Valse Triste and his Swan of Tuonela ...
And with that I have burned up my 5 posts for the day. Here's wishing you all a super dee duper weekend, filled with family, fireworks, fun, and flavorful ice cream.
Just saying, there is a huge tourny this week in Los Gatos
and Campo di Bocce in Livermore.
Worth a visit.
A riddle:
At a musical recital five students (John, Kate, Larry, Mary and Nick) performed five musical pieces. Two by Bach, two by Mozart and one by Vivaldi. There were three violinists and two pianists. Each student performed only one piece, and played only one instrument. Find the order of the students, their respective instruments and the composer, with the following conditions:
1.The composers were not played consecutively. Vivaldi was played last and Mozart was played first.
2.There was one piano piece that was played between two violin pieces, and two violin pieces between the first and the last piano piece.
3.There were no piano pieces by Mozart.
4.Kate played third.
5.Nick played the piano, and immediately followed John who played a piece by Mozart.
6.Mary did not play a piece by Vivaldi.
I enjoyed the puzzle and the writeup. Lots of clever cluing and enjoyable links.
The men (women?) in black seem to be extra mouthy today. Maybe a little pentagonal blue pill would stiffen up their backbones and encourage them to go blue. Or maybe not. Oops, there I go being foolish again.
Say, I'm finding it's hard to type when I'm canted over to one side like this. :>)
Say, Jeannie has been giving us some fun puzzles other than the CW variety, so here's a cute little one for her (and everybody else of course.)
Three men, Mr. White, Mr. Brown and Mr. Green, were in the habit of meeting in a local doughnut shop every morning for coffee and doughnuts. One morning Mr. White remarked, "Hey, will you look at that. We're each wearing a colored baseball cap today; one white cap, one brown cap and one green cap. But interestingly, no one is wearing a cap of the color that matches his name.”
At this, the guy wearing the green cap says, "Oh you dingbat, that's just a coincidence. Be quiet and eat your doughnut."
The question is, what color cap is each man wearing?
Mr. White is wearing brown
Mr. Brown is wearing green
Mr. Green is wearing white?
Drop the Act!?
Not fair, I'm gonna sue.
Jeannie, that didn't take long.
Is Mary playing a piece by Bach on the violin?
Welcome new blue! I grew up in Falls Church, Virginia.
Awlwrighty then. It's time for some tuneagement.
First, in light of the celebratory weekend, this offering by Ray Charles should be a good fit.
And second, since it's hotter than the hinges of hell here in NE, This tune seems like a good selection for the day. Crank it up!!
In sympathy with Barry G, I've changed my avatar. Why don't we all?
Kazie,
Damn, darlin', that is fine. No wonder that Wisconsin dude chased you around Europe.
HOla Everyone, A DNF for me today. I started out pretty well and had almost the whole top half done correctly. Then I shot myself in the foot(several times) in the bottom half.
I had Toil for Work instead of Opus, Snacks instead of Salsas, I See for Nor I, and I tried Date and Limo for Acne. I actually wore the paper out erasing all my wrong answers.
I did learn that Campo is used for SA Plain, and Slate is an E-Mag.
But my laugh out loud moment came when I realized that OME GAS was an Omega watch! I just absolutely could not see that. I had it in, but pondered the word for soooo long.
Don G. Thank you for sharing the pictures of you and your wife with your two adoptees. They are so cute.
I'm with you, kazie and Barry G.
Greetings puzzlers,
Yeah,yeah, I I swore off Friday puzzles but I can't resist giving them a try, and this one was worth it. I kind of liked this Peluso Puzzle, although I would never have grokked the theme without Lemonade's find commentary!
I have to call it DNF because I finally had to get out my Roget and G-ed The Marx bros. I had Zeppo instead of Gummo and it really messed up the WCentral. Was Zeppo ever in a movie? I don't even remember seeing a picture of him. I was enamoured of Harpo and Chico. Appreciation of Groucho came later.
Maybe more after I read the posts.
Ferma, All them far northern Europeans are genetically depressed, so why not write a triste valse?
Anon,6:40, Maybe the reason this blog is so "enjoyable" is because it IS 'left leaning'! Sorry, C.C., couldn't resist the obvious.
Lemon:
I was just toying with you.
Plus, I'm well aware of the escalating difficulty level through the week.
(Part of the FUN-Factor of doing x-words).
I really DO appreciate the "time and effort" that goes into every puzzle's write-up by each days Contributor.
(Surmise, it's probably also a lot of fun and has made them even better puzzle solvers).
dodo:
I'm neither 'left-wing' or 'right-wing' ... more
'middle-of-the-bird.'
(Hope that doesn't get me a Contempt charge). lol
kazie:
Avatar informed me "He's not going anywhere!"
Hmmm, and now IT IS a time for a Pinch.
Cheers !!!
Thanks WH,
In all fairness, it was a wedding photo taken in 1972, so a bit more than ten years ago. But I see the real me every time I look in the mirror, so why not remember the good old days when I'm here?
Jayce,
You cut a fine leg there yourself!
Bill G @2:05,
Are you feeling like those people in that new ad on TV? Like most ads, I haven't taken enough notice to remember what it's for, but they walk around leaning over to one side or the other. I'm more interested in how they do it, with their feet turned to the ground too.
Those are some fine photos Kazie and Jayce!
WM, I think your new avatar is splendid. Your paintings prove you to be a visionary artist. I couldn't help thinking of Fleetwood Mac's World Turning.
:o), my older grandson is Lindsey, although he goes by his middle name. My daughter had quite a crush on Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham.
Avg Joe, thanks for Ray Charles and Janis Joplin.
Bill G. funny stuff
Jeannie, Pistachio Praline Fudge Swirl
Dodo, it was the opposite with me. I loved Groucho first because he was on TV when I was a kid. I came to appreciate the brothers and the movies later on. As one of them far northern European types, I'll have to work on being more depressed. :o)
Have a wonderful 4th everyone. What a country!!
Carol, where are you? I'm hoping to see that you are still who you said you were; etc. Seriously.
Kazie, absolutely dynamite!
Jayce, I would have been praying for a call from you. And a Yalie, besides. Where is home?
CA, you sure did bring Dennis to the fold. Wish I had some great younger photos to post.Basically a friend took a picture in her shop and put it on my computer, and I figure it will be there for the duration.
Thank you, Barry G. for saving me from having to write all the hangups I had in this puzzle. You have summed it up perfectly! And don't change a thing. Your avatar is great. I, myself, have much better pix of me from 40 or so years ago, but it took me a whole year to change my avatar and I'm not taking a chance!
Welcome, Jaded Prole. I checked your blog and read the horrifying experience of those poor people in Libby, Montana. One question, though: Why do you say that Medicare is a 'single payer' plan?
I've been on Medicare for 20 years and in that time many different insurance companies have been payers. Medicare is wonderful but IMHO the best thing that could happen would be a single payer plan.
Dudley,anybody who reads English novels probably knows about Agas! Pick up an Angela Thirkell or a Barbara Pym and you'll surely find some refence to them. How do they ciffer from American gas ranges?
Mr. Tin, you could never be contemptible!
Ahhhh, it worked :)
Creature, I am still here, just juggling my profile and staying blue...but temporarily put in a younger version of Joe and me. This was taken a few weeks after we were married. You can tell by the hair styles, what 'era' that was, LOL.
@Tinman, I bet that guy won't show that bird for a long time! Six days in jail & a fine!
Carol,
I can barely see it. I tried to bring up on your profile, but its all shut down.
I'm reduced to a magnifying glass and that's just not satisfactory.
Wow..is that an oxymoron? hmmm..not quite..
Don't take that photo down until you get your profile up and running again.
From what I can tell, the pic is so cute of you babes.
Where's your Email? the same?
Carol,
You both look very attractive. It was a long hair era wasn't it? only thing stops me from still wearing mine long is how long it would take to "do" it every day. Somehow straight unstyled hair doesn't flatter at our age.
Dodo,
Just hold down the control key and the shift key while clicking on the + key until you get it as big as it will go. You may have to search around for the right avatar, or else just take a closer look at all of them. When done, do the same thing without the shift, and the minus kicks into action until you get back to where you want it.
CA: :o)
Sorry, that was meant for Creature, or anyone else who needs a bigger font on their screen.
Creature: I fixed it and Kazie is right, hold the control and shift keys and the plus and ouch, there we are bigger and bigger.
OK folks. This is a limited time offer. The avatar is an actual photo of me taken a couple of weeks ago while out standing in my field. I won't leave it up for very long, cuz I think the southside view of the equine is more accurate. But for a day or two I'll reveal my actual image.
Now, on more interesting matters, I'll share some of my evening listening. In a tip of the hat to C.C.'s puzzle yesterday (and a tie in to my earlier post of R.C.) here's a duet tune from Genius Loves Company, You Don't Know Me. Featuring Diana Krall
You all are pretty entertaining, so I will play too.
When I began practicing law, people used to unabashedly ask me if I was old enough to have graduated law school, so I grew a beard. They stopped asking, until one day, I shaved it off, but nobody ever asked again. Now I am asked about my grandchildren, when I am with my sons. Tempus fugit, and I do mean fugit.
Nothing to say about puzzle other than it was hard to concentrate on. IDK I guess Friday evening my brains switch was in the off position.
Enjoyed the write up Lemonade. Especially 23 Across.
Enjoy the 3 day weekend everyone! :-)
WM, great to see you, as always. Thank you for the Viola Cello information, did you find one easier than the other? Read any good mysteries lately? With all of my eye problems, I have taken to browsing the Large Print section in the library and I am having a great time.
Wowzer guys! I zoomed out and couldn't zip back.LOL!This is why my avatar hasn't changed for 2 yrs.
Loved all of the new pictures, and Barry, I love yours just the way it is.CA, I'm proud of you for luring Dennis back with your "bottoms up" photo.BTW, lots to chew on in that deism article. I did like Lemonade's take ...no miracles.
Well C.C., I'm late yo home plate, as usual. It took me a LONG time to somewhat finish Don's AMAZING xwd. What a special gift!Loved your new pictures too.
OK, I'll play, but like Avg Joe, a limited time only. This one was probably late 1978. I know because I'm wearing my new(then) London "Tube" tee shirt. Long hair....golly, I wish I could grow it like that now! That's five, I'm gone.
OK, I'll play along too. My new photo, if it shows up, is from about 1985. The good-looking one is my daughter.
My grandson was nice enough to accompany me for a quick run to the supermarket and for the daily macchiato so I took him to a very imaginative local school playground. A good time was had by all though the weather is a little warmer than I like it. Still balmy compared to some others, I know.
Thanks, Kazie- this is fantastic!
You're gorgeous!
Carol, you all are adorable little kids. How long now? I've forgotten your anniversary.
Avg Joe, you're not so bad yourself. I sure like this avatar the best- it's as if we're talking to each other- at least in my mind's eye.
Love the R.C. link and of course, J.J. I play her tapes so loud, I'm the one who's blasting at the stoplights.
Lemon, you're a cutie, too.But, you know, you've aged well. It's in the genes- that's what my Gmom used to say.
CA, WOW! Glad you kept your shirt on here, though I think Dennis might camp out on the blog, anyway. A Beauty!
Must try to nap for a little while.
So, good night, you beautiful people.
Tinman:
I just finished tomorrow's Saturday Silkie, and i believe it was the fastest I have ever done one of his, so maybe blogging does help solving, though it took me five minutes to put anything in. I think I have more patience, and will work backwards, and not give in to googling, now.
Overall, I am much, much more aware of themes and how the different constructors build their grids; they all have their prejudices.
Another Friday done, some lively discussion, games and kind words. Thank you for all of it, and C.C. for creating our corner.
Lemonade...I guess I liked the Cello ever so much better...more cache carrying it around. The viola is a lovely instrument but the cello was my favorite...As far as books go I haven't had as much chance to read lately as I would like...balancing time between family things and painting...but a wonderful series of books by Arianna Franklin is available...the very first is called Mistress of the Art of Death set in Medieval Cambridge England during the time that the Cambridge Jews are under the protection of King Henry II (Peter O'Toole in the Lion in Winter, I believe...lol) The "detective" is a young prodigy from the University of Salerno named Adelia...well written and historically detailed...good read.
Evening Lemonade, CC and all you bloggers,
I came to the blog looking for those last few answers, mainly in the south and spent way more than a few minutes reading Lemon's great explanations and such a lively discussion. Fun pictures too.
Although Jeannie's Mary played a Bach piano piece, this Mary actually plays the viola! I took it up as an adult, following my kids through the Suzuki program. Now I play in two community orchestras which I enjoy thoroughly.
Here's a very scenic slide show from MSNBC on America the Beautiful. Enjoy.
This is from the St. Paul Pioneer Press Bulletin Board. I'm sending it in because Dennis is no longer telling us what each day is.
July is Anti-Boredom Month and Hot Dog Month. National Farriers Week this year is the 10th through the 16th.
"July 1 is Canada Day. July 2 is UFO Day. July 3 is Disobedience Day. July 4th is Independence Day. July 5 is Work-a-holics Day. July 6 is Fried Chicken Day. July 7 is Strawberry Sundae Day. July 8 is Video Games Day. July 9 is Sugar Cookie Day. July 10 is Teddy Bear Picnic Day. July 11 is Cheer Up the Lonely Day. July 12 is Pecan Pie Day. July 13 is Fool's Paradise Day. July 14 is Pandemonium Day. July 15 brings Cow Appreciation Day and the full moon. (This is the 'Buck Moon,' as antlers start to appear on the whitetail bucks.) July 16 is Juggling Day. July 17 is Wrong Way Corrigan Day. July 18 is Hug Your Kid Day. July 19 is Flitch Day. [Cf. http://tinyurl.com/flitch.] July 19 is Get Out of the Dog House Day. July 20 is Ugly Truck Contest Day. July 21 is Tug of War Tournament Day. July 22 is Rat Catchers Day and Hammock Day. July 23 is Vanilla Ice Cream Day. July 24 is Day of the Cowboy. July 25 is Threading the Needle Day. July 26 is All or Nothing Day. July 27 is Korean War Veterans Armistice Day. July 28 is Drive Thru Appreciation Day. July 29 is Lumberjack Day. July 30 is Father-in-Law Day. July 31 is Mutt's Day.'
Dodo - Within recent years the AGA-Rayburn company has added ordinary gas ranges to their product line, but the traditional style is a heat storage device. A central fire heats up the whole massive cast iron structure, and keeps it warmed up 24/7. It's like a brick oven in that regard. There are 2, 3, or 4 ovens, and two flat "hobs". Each oven or hob is kept at some stable temperature, according to its distance from the fire.
The best thing about AGAs is that they are coated in colored vitreous enamel, and they are gorgeous.
You guys are old.
You have probably never heard this.
Seen:
I have sons 24 and 22; the youngest plays in a band which does gigs around orlando, and also just got back from Bonaroo. I like music and still do little music law. I am old but I have heard the Counting Crows.
Nice pic Grumps.
Thanks WM,
Peace out
Sallie, what's a 'flitch'?
Lemonade, If your boys are still in their 20s,you can't be all that old! Old is when you have grandkids 31 and 26. And I was 30 before my girls were born. I'll never see great grands the way things are going!
Hello, everyone! I just wanted to pop in and greet you because I'll be gone for the week. Am still working on the puzzle haphazardly 'cuz it's been busy here.
Happy Independence Day to everyone!
Don't hate me 'cause I'm beautiful.
Happy Birthday America pt.1
BillG, You look like a movie star. Dear picture with your daughter.
Looks as if we were posting at the same time
Dudley, I have seen the AGA and they are indeed beautiful.
Speaking of beauty {er, handsome}, your pic would definitely be an improvement over that copper pot in your avatar. By the way , I have one from my Gmom, that looks quite similar. Is there a story behind it? Please forgive, if I have missed it.Also, enjoyed the pics with Marti and your plane.
Let the River Run a good one!
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