Theme: None
Words: 68
Blocks: 33
Another Brad Wilber in the month of October (the 8th), this one with the lowest word count I think I have had for a Saturday, and four "cheater" squares, a term I am not thrilled about; it refers to the black squares in the two corners and the symmetrical ones above 36D, and below 13D. This grid, with its "plus" pattern has spawned some interesting non-Saturday themes - specifically, one where the theme tie-in was Plus Sign, and Positive - I just can't remember who it was - my guess is yesterday's constructor, John Lampkin. Anyway, Brad's puzzle was pretty smooth today, just a few changes and one or two learning moments - or maybe I am just getting better at Saturdays....
ONWARD ~!
ACROSS:
1. In secret : ON THE QT - nice - starting with a "Q" in an abbreviation, QT meaning "quiet", and discussed here
8. Picks up slowly : GLEANS
14. Staunch : TRUE BLUE
15. Tank top? : TURRET - didn't fool me
16. Divine dinner : AMBROSIA - had _ _ _ ROAST to start, but wasn't working
17. Bergman of film : INGMAR
18. Pricey order from a butcher : LOIN
19. Caldecott Medal winner __ Jack Keats : EZRA
21. Tropical cousin of the raccoon : COATI - Image
22. Capital of Lithuania? : ELL - Capital letter of Lithuania. Put this in right away, then thought it might be a reference to the "money" capital of the country, but nope, I was spot-on
23. 1971 Matthau film directed by Jack Lemmon : KOTCH - more here
25. "__War": Shatner series : TEK - never watched it; but I am a huge TREKKIE
26. One involved in litigation : SUER
28. Hard times : MISFORTUNE - meh, this doesn't quite fit, like "I fell on hard times, I fell on misfortune"....meh
30. Parenthetical passage : ASIDE - I like saying the word PA-ren-THEH-ti-cal
32. Sommelier, often : POURER - Sommelier, a wine specialist at a restaurant
33. Pitchman's pitches : SPIELS
35. Became less ardent : COOLED
36. Aesop character, usually : ANIMAL
37. Skunk cabbage and jack-in-the-pulpit, e.g. : ARUMs - I could not figure out exactly what the correlation of these words were; they are all plants, that much I know....
38. Much-devalued holding, in modern lingo : TOXIC ASSET - sub-prime mortgage homes are a pretty good example that I can think of....
40. Yorkshire river : AIRE - Map (boy was this HARD to find ~!)
44. Rule, in Rouen : LOI - Ah, French, my guess is it's "LAW"
45. Overpromoted : HYPED
46. Common URL finish : COM - as in "Dot Com"
47. Cub Scouts pack leader : AKELA - this was new to me
49. Stem-to-branch angle : AXIL
51. Radiohead frontman Yorke : THOM - Cool video
52. Eat one's words : RECANT
54. Pervasiveness : UBIQUITY - I like using "Ubiquitous", so this one came to me easy
56. '90s Seattle-born music style : GRUNGE - Not a fan of the style, but I did love Nirvana
57. Lively musical passages : ALLEGROs
58. Regard : ESTEEM
59. Plays for a fool : LEADS ON
DOWN:
1. Ornamental gilded bronze : ORMOLU - a WAG from knowing OROBLU, and this is what the clue is referring
2. Developed, in a way : NUBILE - oh, this is developed
3. Fork-tailed bird : TERN
4. Original network of "Fraggle Rock" : HBO - I remember when HBO was "exotic"
5. Unnamed alternative : ELSE
6. Radio game show with a panel of gifted children : QUIZ KIDS
7. Apricot-like shade : TEAROSE
8. Hatchback with a TSI engine : GTI
9. Home of counterculture? : LUNCHROOM
10. Logical term : ERGO
11. Sculptor's framework : ARMATURE - also in Stop-motion animation
12. Put in order : NEATENED
13. Person in a picket line : STRIKER
14. Raconteur's repertoire : TALES
20. Justice Dept. bureau : ATF - Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
24. Lame excuse : COP OUT
27. "Spider-Man" director Sam : RAIMI
28. Female poet known to friends as "Vincent" : MILLAY
29. Oral Roberts University site : TULSA
31. Dramatic transformation : SEA CHANGE
33. Plays for a fool : SNOOKERS - I have yet to play a game of Snooker
34. Halle Berry's hairstyle : PIXIE CUT - not a fan of Halle, but this style does look good
35. Like a good witness : CREDIBLE
36. Not in custody : AT LARGE
37. Like some spore reproduction : ASEXUAL
39. Place for a rest cure : SPA
41. Suzuki of the Mariners : ICHIRO - I defer to our baseball expert, C.C. (From C.C.: My first-ever baseball card is Ichiro's rookie card.)
42. Act the cheerleader : ROOT ON
43. Winged statuettes : EMMYs
48. Swim meet division : LANE
50. Reader's Digest co-founder Wallace : LILA
51. Harbor vessels : TUGS
53. President pro __ : TEM
55. Logical letters : QED - and wrapping it up with another "Q" abbreviation ~!
Answer grid.
Splynter
Notes from C.C.:
1) Happy 86th birthday to our witty and caring Dodo (L-R back row: Chickie, Clear Ayes, Garlic Gal; Front: JD, Lucina, Dodo). The photo is from their June 23, 2011 gathering.
2) To regular posters: If you want to be included in our blog photo archive, please send me your picture(s) at this address: crosswordc@gmail.com. We'd love to "see" you.
Words: 68
Blocks: 33
Another Brad Wilber in the month of October (the 8th), this one with the lowest word count I think I have had for a Saturday, and four "cheater" squares, a term I am not thrilled about; it refers to the black squares in the two corners and the symmetrical ones above 36D, and below 13D. This grid, with its "plus" pattern has spawned some interesting non-Saturday themes - specifically, one where the theme tie-in was Plus Sign, and Positive - I just can't remember who it was - my guess is yesterday's constructor, John Lampkin. Anyway, Brad's puzzle was pretty smooth today, just a few changes and one or two learning moments - or maybe I am just getting better at Saturdays....
ONWARD ~!
ACROSS:
1. In secret : ON THE QT - nice - starting with a "Q" in an abbreviation, QT meaning "quiet", and discussed here
8. Picks up slowly : GLEANS
14. Staunch : TRUE BLUE
15. Tank top? : TURRET - didn't fool me
16. Divine dinner : AMBROSIA - had _ _ _ ROAST to start, but wasn't working
17. Bergman of film : INGMAR
18. Pricey order from a butcher : LOIN
19. Caldecott Medal winner __ Jack Keats : EZRA
21. Tropical cousin of the raccoon : COATI - Image
22. Capital of Lithuania? : ELL - Capital letter of Lithuania. Put this in right away, then thought it might be a reference to the "money" capital of the country, but nope, I was spot-on
23. 1971 Matthau film directed by Jack Lemmon : KOTCH - more here
25. "__War": Shatner series : TEK - never watched it; but I am a huge TREKKIE
26. One involved in litigation : SUER
28. Hard times : MISFORTUNE - meh, this doesn't quite fit, like "I fell on hard times, I fell on misfortune"....meh
30. Parenthetical passage : ASIDE - I like saying the word PA-ren-THEH-ti-cal
32. Sommelier, often : POURER - Sommelier, a wine specialist at a restaurant
33. Pitchman's pitches : SPIELS
35. Became less ardent : COOLED
36. Aesop character, usually : ANIMAL
37. Skunk cabbage and jack-in-the-pulpit, e.g. : ARUMs - I could not figure out exactly what the correlation of these words were; they are all plants, that much I know....
38. Much-devalued holding, in modern lingo : TOXIC ASSET - sub-prime mortgage homes are a pretty good example that I can think of....
40. Yorkshire river : AIRE - Map (boy was this HARD to find ~!)
44. Rule, in Rouen : LOI - Ah, French, my guess is it's "LAW"
45. Overpromoted : HYPED
46. Common URL finish : COM - as in "Dot Com"
47. Cub Scouts pack leader : AKELA - this was new to me
49. Stem-to-branch angle : AXIL
51. Radiohead frontman Yorke : THOM - Cool video
52. Eat one's words : RECANT
54. Pervasiveness : UBIQUITY - I like using "Ubiquitous", so this one came to me easy
56. '90s Seattle-born music style : GRUNGE - Not a fan of the style, but I did love Nirvana
57. Lively musical passages : ALLEGROs
58. Regard : ESTEEM
59. Plays for a fool : LEADS ON
DOWN:
1. Ornamental gilded bronze : ORMOLU - a WAG from knowing OROBLU, and this is what the clue is referring
2. Developed, in a way : NUBILE - oh, this is developed
3. Fork-tailed bird : TERN
4. Original network of "Fraggle Rock" : HBO - I remember when HBO was "exotic"
5. Unnamed alternative : ELSE
6. Radio game show with a panel of gifted children : QUIZ KIDS
7. Apricot-like shade : TEAROSE
8. Hatchback with a TSI engine : GTI
9. Home of counterculture? : LUNCHROOM
10. Logical term : ERGO
11. Sculptor's framework : ARMATURE - also in Stop-motion animation
12. Put in order : NEATENED
13. Person in a picket line : STRIKER
14. Raconteur's repertoire : TALES
20. Justice Dept. bureau : ATF - Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
24. Lame excuse : COP OUT
27. "Spider-Man" director Sam : RAIMI
28. Female poet known to friends as "Vincent" : MILLAY
29. Oral Roberts University site : TULSA
31. Dramatic transformation : SEA CHANGE
33. Plays for a fool : SNOOKERS - I have yet to play a game of Snooker
34. Halle Berry's hairstyle : PIXIE CUT - not a fan of Halle, but this style does look good
35. Like a good witness : CREDIBLE
36. Not in custody : AT LARGE
37. Like some spore reproduction : ASEXUAL
39. Place for a rest cure : SPA
41. Suzuki of the Mariners : ICHIRO - I defer to our baseball expert, C.C. (From C.C.: My first-ever baseball card is Ichiro's rookie card.)
42. Act the cheerleader : ROOT ON
43. Winged statuettes : EMMYs
48. Swim meet division : LANE
50. Reader's Digest co-founder Wallace : LILA
51. Harbor vessels : TUGS
53. President pro __ : TEM
55. Logical letters : QED - and wrapping it up with another "Q" abbreviation ~!
Answer grid.
Splynter
Notes from C.C.:
1) Happy 86th birthday to our witty and caring Dodo (L-R back row: Chickie, Clear Ayes, Garlic Gal; Front: JD, Lucina, Dodo). The photo is from their June 23, 2011 gathering.
2) To regular posters: If you want to be included in our blog photo archive, please send me your picture(s) at this address: crosswordc@gmail.com. We'd love to "see" you.
54 comments:
Morning, all!
Definitely a challenge today. Unknowns included LILA, KOTCH, EZRA, ARUMS, AIRE, THOM and QUIZ KIDS. The crossing of KOTCH and QUIZ KIDS was especially nasty, although with enough perps I was finally able to guess QUIZ KIDS and hope for the best with KOTCH.
Everything else came slowly, but surely. Emphasis on slowly.
Splynter, you made it sound too easy. I thought it was tough -- took the full 30 minutes.
I found the south easier than the north, perhaps because I live in Texas. The only fill I was absolutely sure about: TOXICASSET, MILLAY, STRIKER and ALLEGROS. Luckily for me, I was able to build on those and finally work my way north. EZRA was the last to fall.
Thanx, BW for a fine Saturday effort. And thanx, Splynter for your write-up and links.
Good Morning Ya'll,
Very slow brain this morning. KOTCH, for example. AKELA....did anyone get this one??? If so, how? Had to use the solve letter at least 5 times today..not a great way to start the day!
Good morning Splynter, C.C. et al.
I absolutely loved that SNL clip of William Shatner. Hilarious!
I don't like calling those extra black squares “cheater” squares. I think I read somewhere that Rich likes to refer to them as “helper” squares, because they are usually added to a grid to “help” the constructor get more sparkling fill. In today’s puzzle, they did an admirable job!
I thought LUNCHROOM for “Home of counterculture?” was great, as was NUBILE for “Developed in a way”.
AKELA clued as “Cub Scouts pack leader” threw me off track. I had finally associated that name with “The Jungle Book” character, or Mowgli’s friend!! But it did eventually emerge after I finally thought of AT LARGE, PIXIE CUT and SNOOKERS…
Not too many other hiccups, but needed heavy perpage to get EZRA and THOM, RAIMI and (of course) ICHIRO.
Good morning Splynter and all. Splynter, get thee to a pool parlor and play a few games of snooker. You will be hooked. The smaller pockets, larger table and rounded corners are far more difficult, but more satisfying. (Disclaimer, I have only played about 4 games since my misspent youth).
The puzzle was a slog for me. Started in the NE and worked around clockwise Could not get the NW without googling for Kotch, Ezra and a confirmation on Quiz Kids. All told a little too obscure for me, but it did not feel like a waste of time.
Go Big Red!! Can't figure out why Nebraska is favored by 4 over Michigan State. Should be the other way around IMO.
Hello Puzzlers -
Technical DNF today. I needed too much red letter help, but I have an excuse: there is haste in the air because of the oncoming snowstorm. Way too early, most of my leaves are still up in the trees!
So mostly What Barry Said.
Was a little foggy after staying up way too late for the Cards WS game and post game show. Go David Freese!! So slogged through. Ormolu was a word I had never even heard of after filling it in from other directions.
The blue eraser on my Staples postscript pencil works great! I needed it today! ERGO not ORGO, ELSE not NONE, QUIZKIDS not WHIZKIDS, INGMAR not INGRID, SUER not SUEE, NUBILE not MATURE, et al. Nicely done Brad!
Musings
-Missed one cell, the L on ELL and ORMOLU – whatever that is! I guessed an R.
-Lemon and Matthau were a great team, from The Fortune Cookie to Grumpy Old Men
-George Burns made great ASIDEs about Gracie on their shows.
-I saw a billboard in K.C. once for a huge furniture store that read, “Our delivery trucks are ubiquitous!” Hmm… casting pearls before swine or brilliant?
-I’ve dealt with teenage angst all my life. Janis Ian’s haunting At Seventeen said it better than GRUNGE.
-Man, Splynter, she is NUBILE!
-My ARMATUREs were in the physics lab
-Funny line about asexual reproduction!
-HBD, Dodo and what a lovely picture of all you lovely ladies! Lunch is on me if I’m invited next time!
Ezra Jack Keats will always be, for me, memorable because of the lovely quietude of his work in the children's book The Snowy Day,.
This puzzle took me a bit of a while. KOTCH, TEK, ARUMS, and a little stumble in Allegro v. addagio gave me a moment in the SE. Haven't had music instruction for about eleventy years.
No snow here in NEO, but a heavy frost last night. I am afraid to look at my herb garden today. I was hoping to keep my chives and parsley a while longer.
Good day folks,
What Dudley said, especially the coming storm. Most of our leaves have yet to turn.
Snowblower started and the shovel is in place. Life is good!
This was a great puzzle. I try to read the paper and complete my puzzle during breakfast in the coffee shop.It took only 20 min. so I didn't have to finish at home.
Fun links, Splynter. Husker Gary, inre ASEXUAL reproduction.ROTFL
AKELA was a gimme from my son's Cub Scout days. Their oath says, "A Cub Scout follows AKELA."
QUIZ KIDS was a walk down Memory Lane when we gathered round to watch the radio. Really, we actually watched the radio. Do you remember The Shadow Knows, Fibber Magee and Molly, Milton Berle in the Texaco Star Theater, Bell Telephone Radio Hour, etc?
Yesterday's Eurika jokes were from a generation before ours. We didn't tell them. We only heard them from our parents.
Snow canceled my LEAF PEEPING trip through the Pa. Poconons and the Endless Mtns. on the way to see my sister. After this the leaves will be ruined.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DODO!!!
And a great day to all the rest of our Saturday gang. Thanks for the write up and links, Splynter.
This one had just enough fill that I was sure about to let me fill the unknowns, but there were also those entries that I thought I was sure of that had to be changed: noGO/ERGO, INGrid/INGMAR, faUna/ARUMS, nor/QED, but somehow it all straightened out in the end.
Congratulations to St. Louis. I'm sure my Uncle Ewell is looking down and smiling. He dearly loved his Cardinals.
Fun puzzle, lots of work, but my favorite part was the reappearance of ICHIRO, because id reminded me of the July 30, 2011 comment of our own Marti.
"Thanks for the nice write-up, Splynter! I Learned stuff today that I will probably forget even before I finish this post.
I was missing the second "I" in ICH_RO to complete this one. You know - that "I" that crossed "T_R"...? Having no idea who he was, or what the name for shooting sport was, or where Soissons was (but it sounded French), it was a complete WAG that got it done."
cool, huh
Brad Wilber is also the constructor of the Newsweek Saturday Stumper today. I've got to try it.
*NewsDAY, not Newsweek.
Hello.
Whatta you know. Four in a row on the road.
The rather large lady sang in StL
last night.
Nebraska at Happy Valley on Nov 12th. Joe needs one more to be Div 1winningest coach.
Very happy this AM.
We have had Akela many times before.
Take care. eddy
Hey Hondo, can I, um, borrow your snowblower? :-)
What do you know? A Saturday puzzle I could solve and even enjoyed. I was a Cub Scout and had no trouble with Akela. I watched The Quiz Kids on early TV. I especially remember the math whiz, Joel Kupperman, now a professor of Philosophy at the University of Connecticut.
Yellowrocks, yes, I remember 'watching' the radio. Green Arrow, Jack Benny, Amos and Andy. I even watched the test pattern when we first got a TV and it wasn't quite time for Howdy Doody.
Husker Gary, I love 'At Seventeen'!
Congratulations to St. Louis. Maybe next year the Dodgers will have a new owner and be competitive.
Good morning Splynter and all.
Tough one today. Fill was slow in coming and had to resort to red letter help on TEAROSE. Then I got ON THE QT! Couldn't suss KOTCH either. I was lucky with quite a few WAGS: SEA CHANGE, GRUNGE, LOI, ARMATURE, ARUM, AIRE, and EZRA. There was some great fill: TOXIC ASSET, and MISFORTUNE; and some stinky fill: NEATENED and ELL. I had Ingrid before INGMAR, and whiz before QUIZ. New word - ORMOLU. Liked the clues for TURRET and POURER. Somehow the 59a/42d cross, ……on/……on, didn't seem kosher, especially since 'on' is pronounced as a separate word in both clues.
TUG - cognate 'Zug' in German, While both can mean 'pull', in English it's use is in TUGboat, while in German, Zug means 'train'. A German tugboat is a 'Schlepper', We are familiar with the Yiddish offshoot (think Woody Allen) - which means a servant who carries things, and sometimes is used pejoratively.
Always thought NUBILE carried the connotaion of recently "Developed" rather than well "Developed". Often with the visual image of "She's 13, going on 19." And, although girls usually seem to develop earlier than boys, I doubt that there is much etymological connection between NUBILE and PUERILE.
Re the puzzle, spent way too much time trying to come up with an Aesop character that ended in ___XL.
I was an alternate once (in case of a now-show) and my high school Chemistry teacher's daughter was Ruthie Duskin, aregular.
I've got nothing add. DNF for me. No where near anybody's wavelength!
BUT...I do want to wish Dodo a Happy Happy Birthday! Doin' a Happy Birthday ♪♫•*¨*•..•*¨*•♫♪.¸.•´☆`•.♪♫•*¨*•♫♪ Dance for YOU!! XO
Yellowrocks, I remember watching the radio quite well -- it was a floor-model Philco with automobile style pushbuttons, umpteen vacuum tubes inside, and came with a sheet of peel-off call letters so each pushbutton could be labeled. We used to turn off the lights and "watch" by the glow coming from all those tubes.
We listened to Mister Keene, Tracer of Lost Persons; Mr. and Mrs. North; Dragnet and Mister District Attorney. Hmmmm, those radio shows were heavy on "misters".
Less of a challenge for me than yesterday's - I'm starting to see how different strokes suit different folks.
I was delighted with my sub-30 minute time until I read @desper-otto's comment and find that it's a poor showing :)
Loved LUNCHROOM and NUBILE, and although I knew ORMOLU I never actually knew what it was until today.
AKELA was a gimme as I was a Cub Scout in the UK about a million years ago "Dib dib dib - Akela, we will do our best". That was in Leeds, Yorkshire which is on the River AIRE, so a twofer for me today.
I had ARMAlite before I realized that sculptors probably don't use high-velocity sniper rifles around the studio all that often.
@Steve
Aha, another ex-Brit. My recollection was something like Akela shouting "dyb dyb dyb" [Do Your Best] and our response "dob dob dob, Akela we will Do Our Best".
We pronounced the word as "Ar-kay-la", but in California I have only heard "U-kee-la". I don't know if Kipling provided a pronunciation guide.
NC
@Steve
You probably also remember "AMBROSIA Creamed RIce" - a childhood staple. That is my mnemonic for "food of the gods".
NC
@Nice Cuppa - Ambrosia Creamed Rice. I do remember, primarily because I hated the stuff and refused to have anything to do with it.
My mum eventually decided this wasn't a battle worth fighting and we got Heinz Treacle Pudding out of a tin, with Birds Instant Custard out of a packet. That was my kind of ambrosia!
@Nice Cuppa - if you've not read "Toast" by Nigel Slater do yourself a big favor and order a copy from Amazon.
Hello everybody. I had a real hard time with this one, which I expected to have. Worked and savored my way through it; I don't keep track of how long it takes me and I don't try for speed. I think I spent about 2 hours on the puzzle today, some of it enjoyable and some of it frustrating.
Technical DNF, because I had to look up EZRA and ORMOLU. I knew 3D had to be either TERN or KITE, but I couldn't figure out which because I had such a hard time in that NW corner. Wanted WHIZ KIDS which stymied me in that area as well.
Oddly, I knew KOTCH just from the T in ATE. Although I was a cub scout I did not remember AKELA and looked it up after completing the puzzle just to see what the heck it was. Man oh man I don't remember any of that cub scout and boy scout stuff! Probably because I hated being in the scouts.
Altogether a good, hard, fair, challenging puzzle today.
Dodo, happy birthday!
Hi Everyone ~~
This was my toughest puzzle in a long time. There was SO much I didn't know! I finally started to look stuff up ( I hate to do that) and then finally got so frustrated I decided to let Splynter explain it all to me. Thanks, Splynter ... another great job on a tough Saturday. Now it all makes sense ... sort of . ;-) My erasable ink eraser got a real workout, since I DID try!
Yikes! Just lost power for a few minutes! Heavy snow on the tree branches and wires! I guess I'd better stop for now to get this in ~~
Happy Birthday Dodo!!
Radio fans, thanks for the memories. I loved most of what you mentioned. I forgot Dragnet. My favorite is still,"The Shadow knows what evil dwells in the hearts of men, mwhahaha." The sound effects were marvelous. Sometimes the imagination in hearing radio was more vivid than the actual sight on TV.
Around here the modern ambrosia is a concoction of whipped cream, marshmallows, clementine or manadrin orange segments, pineapple, coconut , and maybe pecans. If ambrosia be the food of the gods, my husband called B&B, Benedictine and Brandy, the nectar of the gods.
We have almost 6 inches of snow so far. The power flickering off and on shuts down the computer and causes the TVs to constantly reboot. I have turned up the heat just in case we are withour power for many hours tonight.
I forgot: Happy Birthday to Dodo. Hope you have a great day. Great picture of you all.
Yellowrocks and LaLaLinda and anyone else NW of I95: Hope you all get by this too early snow storm OK. We're NW of the predicted track, so there are no Watches or Warnings for our area. Good luck, Arglye, Dudley, HeartRx and others.
Storm
Happy, happiest of birthdays, Dodo! Would have posted earlier had I known. I hope you have a spectacular time today.
Hello, all. Very late to this party as my plate is full, to quote last week's entry.
The bottom filled easily enough as I sashayed through it with nary a bump except 33D had started with SHEAK___ but soon changed to SNOOKERS. Otherwise sailed right along on Brad Wilber's wave length.
Then the top stopped me cold as I had WHIZKIKDS and INGRID Bergman. Finally resorted to Google for KOTCH, EZRA, HBO and ORMOLU.
Slapped myself silly with the V8 can when finished!
So impressive to see Brad's stacks of full words and only two phrases in them. Well done!
I'll have to read your comments later and hope everyone is having a very special Saturday, especially you, Dodo!
Thanks Spitzboov. We're coping so far, rapid accumulation in the 4 inch range, trees drooping everywhere. Way too early for this sh&/:!
Yes! Our home was definitely a radio watching culture and to this day my hearing is immediately tuned in to the spoken word.
AKELA is familiar to me because as eddy said, it has appeared many times in cws.
Good Afternoon All, I'm coming down with a sneezles cold. I think we are having another house looker tomorrow. Yesterday's liked the house, but couldn't figure out where they could put a big workshop. (It's two acres, for cryin' out loud!) I wish we had been there to point out a few possible sites. But it is considered bad etiquette to hang around when an agent is showing a house...Ridiculous. We're the ones who really know all the answers.
Anyway, no time for puzzles. But a very happy birthday to Dodo, who neither looks or acts her age. She definitely knows how to enjoy life!
My sympathy and amazement to all the East Coasters who are enduring this early snow storm. I hope it isn't a portent of a difficult winter to come.
I forgot to wish you a happy birthday, DoDo!! I hope you had a good one, or are planning a nice evening out tonight!!
We are going to a housewarming party tonight. Hah! In the snow and cold, how warm can a house be?? Maybe I should bring them some firewood...
Dudley, you can borrow my snow blower any time. All you have to do is clear my driveway first, so you get it out of the garage, heh heh...
I had a little radio on the dresser by my bed which I listened to when mother gave piano lessons in the living room. SKY King and Gangbusters are two I listened to in addition to those named.
Mother made "ambrosia" with a big can of fruit cocktail, plus chopped up orange sections, bananas, and shredded coconut. Still a family favorite. An alternative was chopped fresh peaches, strawberries and bananas.
I don't wanna talk about how I did on the puzzle. Only to say that I did get ormolu but spelled it with an "A" instead of the second "O". Oh well, yesterday was a good day and Monday's only two days away.
-PK
Just checked Home Depot, Lowes and Sunshine Ace Hardware. Not a snow blower to be found. Not that I'm likely to need one in Naples...
Had to attend a conference this morning so didn't get to the puzzle until just now, and had to cheat a bit to get it done. Ingmar Bergman and Ambrosia got me started, and I also figured that since 'Vincent' was a 'she' it had to be Edna St. Vincent Millay. And I used to live in Tulsa, so knew where Oral Roberts University was. But never heard of Akela, scotched 'Kotch' and had trouble with lots of other stuff. Still, a great way to relax after a busy Saturday morning, so thanks Mr. Wilber and Splynter.
My heart goes out to everybody with snow coming down. Makes me feel more than a bit guilty about our lovely sunny day here in California.
Liked the way NUBILE has all the letters in BLUE NILE.
Not so likeable-
Thanks for the AMBROSIA, SIR OBAMA.
And for taking me AS I AM, BRO! By the way, Biden, sometimes he IS A RAMBO.
DoDo many many happy returns of the day.
I loved the radio, of course we did not have a tv and when we finally did get one, it seemed like test patterns, bowling and charades was all there was.
Happy birthday to you, Dodo!
We couldn't be much further from the snow, but I've had several momentary power outages all day. We have been experiencing pretty heavy rains throughout the day, although none coinciding with the power outages.
Hi friends,
I won't get any stars for today's 'sikvubg;' because I mostly didn't. Except fior 'Kotch' I was doing okay through 'Misfortune'. I knew the A.T.F. but wasn't sure of the sequence. Eventually I remembered the movie, so that was one smack with the V8 can. The bottom half had me jumping all over the place, getting one or two now and then so I finally got most of them from Mr. G., or at least with his help! I did know allegro,esteem ,grunge, apiels, cooled, wagged Aire,but it was patch, patch, patch for the rest~
Thank you for your warm birthday wishes!. It's been a good day and tomorrow the San Rafael family will come to take me to a fancy lunch. The local ones invited me to dinner tomorrow night, but I begged off until a later date. Too much for one day. More birth days, more fun!
Thanks for your compliment, CA. I'll keep up as long as I can!
Way too long. Pretend it's two comments, OK?
Dear Dodo -
Happy birthday! Here's a little note for an insignificant present from me. Your post isn't too long. It's just right. How do you count? If you look at your post, isn't it exactly 20 lines on type in its final form? If not, something must be off at your end. It looks perfect to me.
Dudley,
Snowblower available. We'll work out the detail$!
Also be glad to give you the number of my plowing service if you're in the area.
Seriously, hope you get through this without too much distress.
LaLinda,
Our power went out about 3:30, back on at 7:45. Who knows for how long.
Hope you folks are OK and with power. This sounds like another Irene mess,
Dodo, I hope your day was better than we had in the N.E....
Tried to go to a housewarming party, but had to follow a snowplow going 20 mph all the way. When we turned onto the Side road, there were trees bending down that we had to skirt, power lines drooping over the top of the car, and 1/2 mi from my friend's house, there was a huge tree down in the road...so, we had to turn around and go home. To no power...cooked baked potatoes in the fireplace, salad and New Orleans style boiled shrimp that DH had made for the housewarming...It's all good!!!
HeartRx, that sounds like the scene here. Too bad about your party. I'm glad you are home safely, even without power.
We have 14 inches or so of snow. There are trees and power lines down all over the place. Our county was the hardest hit in NJ. Although this county has a tremendous amount of power failures, the lights are still on right here. I hope everyone make it safely through the night.
Happy Birthday, Dodo. I love your sweet spirit.
Hello.
That's #5. Who are these guys?
Paterno #1. Maybe he will retire already.
12 inches on the ground in Johnstown, PA.
It will be nothing but ice back there.
Take care. eddy
Just starting to accumulate here in Argyle but my sister in Hillsdale had 14" when last I heard from her at 8:00.
update from Hillsdale:
10:30 P.M. Still snowing...
Must be she still has power. Knock on wood.
Almost didn't make it to the birthday party. Hope your day was delightful; weather couldn't have been more perfect.I second CA's comments. You are a very young 86 and I'm proud to be your friend. Looking forward to getting together again.
Like Garlic Gal I was not on Mr. Wilbur's wavelength, and many of those words are not in my vocabulary.And no time to spend in Google Land.
Nance, I also have fond memories of Ezra J. Keats bookThe Snowy Day. I bet the east coasters aren't too excited about their snowy day. Dick had to get his plow out.
leaf peeping
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