google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Friday Nov 25, 2011 Stephen Edward Anderson

Gary's Blog Map

Nov 25, 2011

Friday Nov 25, 2011 Stephen Edward Anderson

Theme: PI Day - PI is inserted in each common phrase.

17A. Field operation run by idiots? : STUPID FARM. Stud farm. Funny clue.

23A. Track meet category for joggers? : LOPING DIVISION Long division.

36A. Views from Hamilton? : BERMUDA OPINIONS. Bermuda onions.

49A. Hook on a raft? : FLOATING PIRATE. Floating rate. The interest rate that changes periodically.

59A. Obsessive cleaners? : WIPING NUTS. Wing nuts.

Three in singular form, two in plural. Nice set. You don't want 4 in singular form, and 1 in plural. No odd man out!

Heavy themage (63 squares). The fill is rather clean. Only wish there's a PIS somewhere to unify the theme, to give a rationale/climax for the letter addition gimmick. March 14 will be a perfect day to run this puzzle also.

C.C. again, giving Lemonade a much-needed break for the holiday. I think this is Stephen Edward Anderson's LA Times debut. Congrats!

Across:

1. Sonar pulses : PINGS. Any Ping in your bag, Husker Gary?

6. Subj. for Aristotle : RHET. OK, rhetoric.

10. Staff note : MEMO

14. Gridiron strategy : SNEAK. Football just does not appeal to me.

15. First name in design : EERO (Saarinen)

16. Like much lore : ORAL

19. Diamond homecomings? : RUNS. Diamond = Baseball in late week puzzles.

20. Thrice, in Rx's : TER. Marti is the authority on this clue.

21. Do the honors : POUR. Boomer poured himself some Scotch yesterday, then he said "I'm grateful I can pig out today".

22. Hallmark : BADGE

27. To __ : A TEE

28. Thick : MIDST

29. Stone measuring 5.5 to 6.5 on the Mohs scale : OPAL. Please give stone measuring 10 to your girlfriend/wife.

32. Dojo discipline : JUDO. Ju = Soft/Gentle. Do = Chinese "Dao" = Way

33. Gaelic John : IAN. Ian = John.

41. __ alai : JAI

42. Appoint : NAME

43. Be intimate with : KNOW

44. Scrabble 10-pointer : Z-TILE. I bet Jerome beats everyone in Scrabble.

46. Liqueur flavoring : SLOE

54. Reunion attendees : AUNTS

55. Face-saver of a kind : ALOE. Nice clue.

56. Italian counterpart of the BBC : RAI. No idea. This is the most beautiful RAI (Aishwarya) in the world.

58. Sitter's concern : BRAT

62. Jay with jokes : LENO

63. Ecua. rejoined it in 2007 : OPEC. Hey, they just had a meeting on Wednesday.

64. Alternate version, in scores : OSSIA. Got me, Jazzbumpa. Rooted in "O sia" (let it be), says Dictionary.com

65. Petrol pick : ESSO

66. Slog (through), as tedious text : WADE. "Slog" again. I need to take WADE seriously.

67. Sharp : NATTY

Down:

1. Soft "Yoo-hoo!" : PSST

2. Chip maker : INTEL. Crunchy and fat-free.

3. Surgery opening? : NEURO. Neurosurgery.

4. Disparity : GAP

5. "Never mind" : SKIP IT

6. Place of cover : REFUGE. Can you believe people lie when applying Refugee Visa to the US?

7. Learned : HEARD

8. Bark up the wrong tree : ERR

9. Cartoon cat : TOM

10. Quagmire : MORASS

11. Learning : ERUDITION

12. Juicy fruit : MANGO. Try Whole Foods for SweeTango, Jayce. Or next year. These apples are available for a very short period of time each season. For a limited quantity only. Very precious.

13. '80s-'90s NFL commentator Merlin : OLSEN. His name escaped me again.

18. Cooked : DONE

22. Try to buy : BID ON

24. Date source : PALM. Have you had Medjool dates? So sweet.

25. Groggy words, perhaps : I'M UP. Oh, in bed.

26. Part of an old boast : VIDI (I saw). "Veni, vidi, vici".

29. Vb. target : OBJ. Verb/object.

30. Princess's nighttime problem : PEA

31. Casa Grande residents : ARIZONANS. We have quite a few Arizonans on our blog.

32. Sixpack with no special qualities? : JOE. Joe Sixpack. Disparaging term, no?

34. Yucatán year : ANO

35. Sydney is its cap. : NSW. New South Wales, where Kazie is from.

37. Pecks and feet, e.g. : UNITS

38. Flamboyant surrealist : DALI

39. "Yes!" : AMEN

40. Its headquarters are in Delft : IKEA. Did not know this trivia.

45. Body work? : TATTOO. Any body work, Tinbeni/Ant? You both sound pretty bad.

46. Do some film editing : SPLICE

47. Griffin's rear : LION. Looks majestic!

48. Old trail terminus : OREGON

49. Jean de La Fontaine story : FABLE. French fabulist. "A hungry stomach can not hear". He said.

50. Attracts : LURES. Ah, the macaroni, Dennis!

51. Rubbernecked : GAPED

52. Word on a coin : TRUST. In God we Trust.

53. Weird Al Yankovic song parody : EAT IT. I'm not linking. He's too weird for me.

57. "Indeed!" : I SAY

59. Flabbergast : WOW

60. Type of beer orig. brewed in England : IPA. India Pale Ale.

61. Ultra-secretive gp. : NSA (National Security Agency)

Answer grid.

If you're not happy with the new format of LA Times on-line crossword, please click the Feedback button under the puzzle and voice your opinion. You can also click here or here (Chicago Tribute) to solve the puzzle in old format.

C.C.

56 comments:

  1. Morning, all!

    This one very nearly kicked my butt. I picked my way through most of it leaving lots of white spaces despite multiple passes. I have never heard of CASE GRANDE and was looking for something Spanish. OSSIA and RAI were completely unknown as well. I also didn't associate "Hamilton" with BERMUDA, so that slowed me down as well. And, while I know what FABLES are, I had no idea who this Jean de la Fontain character was.

    Or, to put it into context, it was a bit of a "slog" but I was able to WADE through it and get it done in the end...

    ReplyDelete
  2. tough one good for a friday though it was a letter fill for me most of the answers took a while to process (must of had too much food yesterday.) a lot of theese were head slappers when i did process them. Knew Olsen out right. remembered that Jean de la Fontain was an author and slapped my head when I filled in the other clues. enjoy the weekend and have fun shopping.

    ReplyDelete
  3. CC, thanx for explaining IPA. Never heard of it. Theme was cute. Got it at LOPING DIVISION and was able to go back up and complete STUPID FARM.

    Like Barry, RAI and OSSIA were also unknowns. But it was a good challenge for a Friday, ISAY.

    ReplyDelete
  4. WOW, what a work-out.

    After PINGS, MEMO, OPAL & LENO; I was going nowhere fast with the across clues.
    Swithched to the DOWNS and got some traction until I was DONE.
    (Classic case of over-thinking some clues).

    Had alums before AUNTS, Oh hell, I had a lot of write-overs.
    IKEA clue was pretty obscure.

    But any puzzle with MOR-ASS is OK by me.

    Nope, No TATTOO's. If you do that, you can't give blood for an ANO.

    Husker, I hope you get a chance to put a ball on A-TEE.

    Cheers to all at Sunset, I'll POUR.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Good Morning, C.C. and friends. This must be Friday, because this was a toughie for me. I didn't get the theme until after I had completed the puzzle and poured over the clues. It was the LOPING DIVISION finally gave me the PI.

    We have left over PI from yesterday ~ both pecan and pumpkin.

    Is ESSO still sold in the US?

    QOD: About the time we can make the ends meet, somebody moves the ends. ~ Herbert Hoover

    ReplyDelete
  6. Exxon in the US; Esso elsewhere.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I feel a bit 28 Across clue..But I still don't get "OSSIA" .. Felt that the theme on this one was really forced.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Good morning C.C. et al.

    Nice to see you today C.C.! I bet Lemon appreciates the holiday break. I had so many missteps at first, I thought it would be a DNF:

    PINGS, not blips. RHEToric, not philosophy. MEMO, not clef. EERO, not Yves.

    But finally some headway: TER. Even though the correct abbr. on an Rx would be “t.i.d.” (ter in die), not TER, I have seen this mistake often enough in puzzles to know what they were going for…

    The downs got me onto the right path, and once I fixed all the initial goofs, I saw STUPID FARM, and knew what the theme was going to be. Slow going in the south until ARIZONANS appeared, and made a solid trunk to keep me on the right path in that area.

    Finally finished with no lookups or help, so it’s all good. Fun theme, and nice fill made this a really enjoyable run.

    If you are shopping today, be careful of all the crazies out there!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Same here for me. I slogged all the way through, but never hit a sweet spot. Didn't much care for Joe Sixpack, but I guess it comes with the territory. Like Kermit almost said, it ain't easy bein' Joe.

    Off to Farmageddon this morning. Go Big Red!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good morning CC and Friday folks, all. Lots of false starts on this one,, but it finally fell after much bouncing from pillar to post and back again.

    The theme showed up with the FLOATING PIRATE. I went back, paired up the missing letter anywhere I had a P or an I in a theme entry, and was able to see the changed phrases.

    Never heard of RAI. I thought it might be something like ITA or INA, but Wierd Al's parody finally came to mind, TRUST and I SAY were solid, so that one and OSSIA filled themselves. Now if I can just remember them the next time...

    Now where's that last slice of pecan pie hiding?

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi There ~!

    There's always room for PI ~!!!

    Cute idea, but I got "slogged" by STUPID_ _ _ _ for too long - all the rest were filled in, so I had the gimmick, but....and I shoulda known TOM, one of my favorite cartoons growing up.

    Hand up for ALUMS before AUNTS, and meh on Joe Sixpack.

    Busy week for you, C.C. - I am good to go on Saturday ~!

    Splynter

    ReplyDelete
  12. HeartRx:
    On a prescription, t.i.d. means three times a day. (As you noted).
    It is an abbreviation for "ter in die" which in Latin means three times a day.

    The clue ONLY asked for the "Thrice" part ... that "T" in the "t.i.d."

    Ergo, TER is correct or Rich Norris is wrong.

    ReplyDelete
  13. BarryG, Casa Grande is a small city in Arizona near the I-10/I-8 split, and it's also a national monument containing some pueblo ruins located just a few miles outside the city. I'd post a link if I knew how to do that in a blog. (Help, anyone?)

    I tried to overthink the cw clue, looking for the name of an ancient pueblo people like the Hohokam or Anasazi (both names too short) before realizing that the answer was more straightforward.

    ReplyDelete
  14. What a fun 3.14 puzzle! Slept late today with all that tryptophan plus it was 70°F yesterday (record high) and I ran around like crazy outside with grandkids! My daughter got a 46” TV at Target at 6 am this morning for $299. Anyone else a BF shopper?

    Musings
    -My bag is full of Taylor Burners, C.C. Maybe Tin would consider a PING tattoo.
    -Husker game at 11 am today precludes golfing. It’s too early and with short days, also too late!
    -No ESSO here, is there Phillips 66 back east?
    -Non edible chip
    -TOM is never getting Jerry and Sylvester is never getting Tweety
    -I thought Vb. target was an ACE serve
    -Carol Burnett made big splash in Princess and the Pea
    -Sydney, AUStralia lingered for a second before Canberra came to mind

    ReplyDelete
  15. I am really impressed by all you folks who finished this. I guess My brain was still floating in turkey gravy or something. It was a real slog and still DNF. Oh well, Onward!

    ReplyDelete
  16. That very first answer, PINGS, kind of ruins the theme, doesn't it?

    ReplyDelete
  17. Greetings, Puzzlers. C.C., how nice to "see" you again!

    WOW! This beat me up in the SE. I would say that RAI and OSSIA are terribly obscure. And I never saw much of weird Al to know his parodies.

    However, ARIZONANS was a bright spot as Casa Grande is not far and we frequently meet there with friends who drive up from Tucson.

    And yesterday I won one game of two in Scrabble so ZTILE came easily.

    This past week in Jeopardy! an answer was IPA, India Pale Ale.

    I saw the PI commonality but it didn't help in the last one.

    A great challenge from Mr. Anderson.

    Happy Friday, everyone!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Hello Puzzlers -

    What Barry said, and then what Marti said. There was a lot of white to deal with after multiple passes.

    IPA appeared a few months ago, I think. A local brewer expained to me that India Pale Ale was a recipe that could be brewed in England, put in barrels, and shipped all the way to India without refrigeration - in the days of sailing ships, of course.

    Still groggy from yesterday. No BF shopping for me, thank you very much. That stuff is just nuts.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Good morning, folks. Quite a puzzle, Stephen. Enjoyed it after I had finished. Tough getting through it, though. Thank you, C.C., for the write-up.

    Got FLOATING PIRATE, then WIPING NUTS, then STUPID FARM. The rest came later.

    Had ADJ first, then OBJ appeared.

    Had I SEE, NATTE, and OSSIE. So, that whole corner was wrong. I understand I SAY and NATTY. I do not get OSSIAN. From the comments, it sounds like no one else got it either. As the day progresses. . . . . . .

    Had Z CUBE first, then Z TILE became apparent.

    Thought ERUDUTION was a great word.

    We are heading back to Illinois today. Had a great Thanksgiving in Ohio.

    Any thoughts on how. NY newspapers carry this crossword?

    Abejo

    ReplyDelete
  20. My family went out last night at 9:00 PM and shopped until the sun came up. I slept peacefully until 7:30AM.

    Abejo

    ReplyDelete
  21. I just looked up OSSIA. It is a musical term that provides for an alternate version of the musical score, at the option of the conductor. OK..I will try to remember that, especially when I am playing my tuba.

    Abejo

    ReplyDelete
  22. A QUAGMIRE many find themselves in after yesterday's feast is that suddenly there is MORASS to deal with.

    Abejo, it sounds like you spent Thankgiving near me. I solve the puzzles in the DDN.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Abejo:
    Just out of curiosity, did you find any real bargains in your shopping?

    The phenomenon of BF is puzzling to me. Yesterday we passed a mall where people had been camping, in tents and with generators, for two days. The line extended far beyond the Best Buy store. I can't imagine what they might have been looking for.

    My shopping starts in September and I'm now finished except for a few stocking stuffer items.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Good morning C.C. and all,

    It was obvious to me at the get-go that this would be a DNF in places. That SE corner was beyond my usual WAGS. Had to go back and forth SEVERAL times, and pretty much laughed my way thru.Loved the clue "diamond homecomings" AFTER it filled.Then there was "wiping nuts". Golly Gee, if you don't know your fairy tales, this was pretty DF.

    a nice shout out to our esteemed Oregonians: Carol, Crockett, and MBee's mom- Barb.

    I still remember my first date shake in Palm Springs, very long ago. Loved it..but still can't eat a date..so yukky looking.

    Off to meet some old friends for lunch..I am so not hungry.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Good morning from sunny California where rain was predicted yesterday, Thanksgiving Day, and didn't happen. One more small thing to be thankful for--in addition to a fun puzzle and write-up this morning (thanks CC).

    Since I got Bermuda oPINions and loPINg division first, I assumed that the theme involved PIN rather than Pi. That threw me off since I knew Floating pirates had to be right. As a result got Stupid but not Farm, etc. etc.

    Always a surprise how the post-turkey brain works. Got Merlin Olsen even though I know zip about football. But of course thought the "scores" with alternate versions were sports scores rather than music scores.

    Sound like everybody had a lovely Thanksgiving--including us. Supplemented our store-bought turkey dinner with some home-made sides, and the family was totally happy!

    ReplyDelete
  26. C.C.: Thanks for setting me on the right path. I detoured to the STUPID FARM early with blips, phil, and clef.

    After struggling, I got BERMUDA ONION and PIRATE and the NE corner and a few other scattered stuff. Complete quagmire for me.

    Why I keep trying to do Fridays shows how NUTS I must be.

    I can't imagine any material thing that could make me venture out on Black Friday. I hate to shop! For anything. I told a guy that once and he stared at me and said, "Where were you when I was looking?" Another guy said, "Are you sure you're a woman?"

    - PK

    ReplyDelete
  27. Good day folks,

    I've been back and forth with today's puzzle since daybreak and finished it a few minutes ago. i was sure when I started, this was going to be a DNF, but it's a messy complete. I went all over the globe on this one, from N to S to W to E and back again.

    Remembering Alexander Hamilton was born in Bermuda gave me the initial foothold for the S and a lot of the Central. Loping Division helped in the the N.

    But like others, I had no idea if I nailed it or not because of so many obscure clues which I did not know or wasn't sure of.. Rai, Ossia, Rhet, IPA, NSA, Ter, NSW, and Joe. I never noticed the PI constant, but frankly I don't think it would have helped much if I had.

    Back to watching Husker's home team vs Iowa. HG, how do the Big Red fans feel about not playing Oklahoma annually?

    ReplyDelete
  28. Tinbeni, thank you for clearing up that little nit for me! Of course Rich would never be wrong - I'm always the one who is...

    ReplyDelete
  29. Good afternoon to all and thanks for the write-up C.C. Got another late start today the grands{7 of the 9] went home about an hour ago. The wife and three of the daughters went on their black Fri rampage while I stayed home with them even though that is tough much easier than shopping. Nice Fri puzzle and hope everyone is enjoying the holiday. We went out for a great dinner yesterday,I had a steak because I'm not a big fan of turkey. One of our best T-day dinners so far. Have a great weekend all, RJW

    ReplyDelete
  30. Hello everybody.

    Disparaging term, yes.

    Nice hard puzzle today, but I found yesterday's to be much harder. I guess the Mohs scale of xword puzzle hardness depends a lot on one's individual upbringing, interests, and experiences. Much more of today's material was in my wheelhouse than yesterday's.

    Even so, I got off to a false start with OLEG for the designer, then, like HeartRx, I wanted YVES as my 2nd choice.

    Sure didn't know IKEA's hq are in Delft; I thought it is a Swedish company. Another crease in my brain now.

    I think the "ju" in "judo" is the same character as "ro" in Chinese, meanng, as C.C. said, soft/gentle.

    Yes, I do believe people lie on their visa applications. I won't go into a rant here, though.

    Had to pay a speeding ticket in Casa Grande a few years ago. That downgrade on the interstate from Flagstaff to Phoenix is awfully easy to speed on!

    Gonna have leftover roast duck for late lunch today. DW is out doorbusting at the moment; actually, more than the moment, she's been out there for hours now. Man, what stamina she has!

    Best wishes to you all.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Ooops, I screwed up. It wasn't Casa Grande where I paid that speeding ticket. It was Camp Verde. On I-17. Don't know why I got those two places mixed up. Maybe I remember Casa Grande for some other reason. hehe

    ReplyDelete
  32. Another hard puzzle for me but I got it done.

    C.C. and Jayce, I don't think of Joe Six pack as an especially disparaging term. I think it refers to a unremarkable, middle class working stiff who drinks beer and probably watches too much TV. Of course, maybe you're right in that they would be offended to be called Joe Six pack.

    Desper-otto, if you want to add a link to your post, do this. Go to the Crossword Corner green starting page. Look at the column on the right-hand side. Go about halfway down the page until you come to Olio. Click on 'Create comment links.' At the very top of that page, find a line in black, boldface type. Copy that and paste it into your post where ever you choose to put it. Highlight the words 'Link text' and replace them with whatever you want to call your link. Go to whatever to want to include as the link, highlight the address (URL) and copy it. Highlight the word URL in apostrophes in that boldface line (but don't highlight the apostrophes) and replace it with the URL you saved from your link. Then go to Preview and see it everything worked OK. If not, write back.

    ReplyDelete
  33. Please go back to the old format.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Nice debut, Mr. Anderson! I like how new constructors seem to find original twists for cluing what might be "old standards" in the fill.

    Nice write up, C.C!

    Ah - food! Medjool DATES - knockout recipe for canapes - get a pack of medjool dates, slit each date and remove the stone, replace the stone with a small stick of hard cheese (Parmesan, preferably, or Asiago, Fontina, something like that) - wrap with half a strip of bacon (applewood smoked is best), secure with a cocktail stick and bake in a 425 oven for 25 minutes. Serve hot. You won't believe the sweet/smokey/cheesy wonderfulness. Recipe courtesy AOC restaurant in Los Angeles.

    @Dudley - spot on with the IPA explanation. For the brewers, IPA has a higher alcohol content and more hops than a standard ale - the "hoppiness" keeps the flavor during the long "Passage to India".

    Passage To India trivia - The expression "Posh" is an acronym for "Port Out, Starboard Home" - the well-to-do could book a cabin on the desirable "shady" side of the vessel - the port side on the outbound, the starboard side on the way home. Being this was an expensive option, the acronym became an adjective to describe the wealthy upper or upper-middle classes - you were posh if you could afford the best.

    Now where's that cold turkey sandwich?

    ReplyDelete
  35. Any body work, Tinbeni/Ant? You both sound pretty bad.

    Egad! I don't know if I should be flattered or embarrassed. How do I sound bad? Let me count the ways...

    The GAP Band You Dropped a Bomb on Me (5:42) Tin, this video is bogged down in MORASS just for you, you fellow baddie!

    White LION When the Children Cry (3:56) Their requisite 80s hair band ballad.

    Our "unofficial" theme song, ARIZONA (2:53), by Mark Lindsay (even though it's about a girl, and not our state). Check out those back-up singers!

    Oh, and no ink here, but I did have a new bumper put on my truck. Does that count?

    ReplyDelete
  36. C.C., thanks for the time; with my youngest in town for the first time in months, I did not get home until almost 5:00AM (no BF sales, just visiting) so my write up would have been problematic. The puzzle was fun, and I know how hard it is to have your nits unpicked, but keep trying martin.

    off for more relaxation and fun
    no shopping?

    ReplyDelete
  37. Thanx, BillG. Now lets see if I'm smart enough to follow the directions...
    Casa Grande

    What looks like a pile of mud under that flat roof is the great house -- casa grande.

    Wow, I think I did it!

    ReplyDelete
  38. Hondo, The Husker/Sooner games were some of the greatest in college football history (the '71 game is among the best 5 games ever). Barry Switzer broke our hearts more than once. The entrance of Texas into the Big 12 killed that coference with Longhorn arrogance and everyone is jumping ship now.

    Huskers are doing great today because we have never gotten beaten by an immobile, slow quarterback. Looks like a 9 - 3 season and a mid level bowl game.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Steve, I often heard and always enjoyed that explanation about the origin of POSH. However, it's nothing but a clever story according to Snopes.com.

    Congratulations, desper-otto, it looks like we did it! Good link too.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Hi All ~~

    Nice to be "seeing" you lately, C.C. You've been busy!

    I didn't expect to be able to finish the puzzle today ... I worked at it off and on throughout the day. I finally needed to look up 60D -- IPA and somehow that led me to getting the whole SE area that was giving me so much trouble.

    There were a lot of "never-heard-ofs" for me but most filled in with perps: RHET, RAI, OSSIA, NSW. Like others, I caught the theme with LOPING DIVISION and it helped to try to fit the PI into the other theme answers.

    Hondo ~~ thanks for explaining the Bermuda-Hamilton connection. It filled in but I had no idea. I still don't get 47D: Griffin's rear-LION.

    Lots of fun cluing today ... even though it took quite a while, I really enjoyed this puzzle!

    ReplyDelete
  41. Hello.

    Funny what some people remember and
    others haven't heard about at all.
    In the late 60s, the Giants used to have Spring training in Casa
    Grande. A whole complex was built
    including a golf course. I remember the 620 yd par 5. Was very happy leaving the green with a 7 or 8.

    Printer carriage not working. Time for a new one anyway.

    Daisy is busy chasing squirrels in the back yard.

    take care. eddy

    ReplyDelete
  42. I'll weigh in on the Joe Sixpack controversy, since I believe myself to be eminently qualified to comment on same (Joe really is my name, for anyone that doubts it).

    The term Average Joe has never been used in a pejorative sense in my experience. It may not be much of a compliment, but at worst it just means that a person is common. Perhaps no redeeming virtues, but no condemning ones either. Joe Sixpack can be synonymous, but it is occasionally used as a derogative and a synonym for lowlife. The latter is the exception, not the rule. So I guess the answer to the question posed is: "Maybe".

    NU took the Corn Bowl trophy in good form this afternoon. Our guests from Iowa were on excellent behavior, as were the children of the corn. Not a cross word was heard. Take note, Badgers.

    Looks like the LSU has Arkansas on the ropes at this writing. I hope they get the BCS mess straightened out this year. (As if).

    ReplyDelete
  43. @LaLaLinda,

    I was baffled by the 'Griffin's rear' too until 'lion' fell into place.

    However, the Wiki explanation makes it sound as though the lion is more than just the griffin's rear:

    The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Greek: γρύφων, grýphōn, or γρύπων, grýpōn, early form γρύψ, grýps; Latin: gryphus) is a legendary creature with the body of a lion and the head and wings of an eagle. As the lion was traditionally considered the king of the beasts and the eagle was the king of the birds, the griffin was thought to be an especially powerful and majestic creature.

    ReplyDelete
  44. Hamilton is evidently a town and a harbor in Bermuda.

    -PK

    ReplyDelete
  45. La Linda,

    The back half of a griffen is in the form of a lion. If I remember correctly the front half is some kind of bird.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Apparently, AGITA (a general feeling of discomfort in the pit of one's stomach) comes from the Latin "agere" meaning "to drive." Thus we get "agitation," which loosely translated means: to drive away; or alternately: to drive to drink.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Ah ... now it all makes sense. Thanks Misty and Hondo for your explanations of 'Griffin's rear.' The creature you described is the picture that C.C. linked in write-up. I just didn't realize that Griffin was the name. Now if I can just remember this for the future!

    ReplyDelete
  48. For my beer brewing sons, and general edification, the history pf the IPA is quite interesting. Hoist one for us!

    ReplyDelete
  49. Congrats Desper-otto! good link!

    Bill, you are a nice man.

    La La Linda, I usually need more than a definition to remember words. If you are a Harry Potter fan, you may remember that he was a Gryffindor. The gargoyle guarding the Hogwarts headmaster's office is depicted in the movie as a half-phoenix, half-lion griffin.

    There are a number of different types of griffins-
    The snake-griffin has a lion’s body, a snake’s head and a bird’s legs.

    The Hypogriffin or Hypogriff is a mix of a griffin and a horse.

    The hippogryph is the result of the breeding of a male gryphon and a filly. It has the head, wings and front legs of a gryphon, and the back and hind legs of a horse. It was in the legends of Charlemagne as a mount for some of the knights.

    ReplyDelete
  50. Hi gang -

    Woked the top half this a.m. before we went to T-town, and he bottom half this evening, back at home.

    Tough puzzle. Good theme, though i must admit to having too much pie these holidays.

    C.C. - I don't recall ever seeing OSSIA, so this baffled me. Got most of it from the perps.

    Happy weekend everyone. I'm tired and heading for bed.

    Going to the MI - OSU game with my son-in-law tomorrow.

    Cheers!
    JzB

    ReplyDelete
  51. To Lucina:

    My wife, 2 daughters, ex-wife, and her daughter went Black Friday shopping. I slept. I have no idea if they got any good deals. I suspect they do it for the excitement.

    To Seen:

    We were in Springboro, just south of Dayton. I could not believe that the local papers there had the same crossword as Chicago and Los Angeles. As I said, I wonder how many papers carry this puzzle?

    Abejo

    ReplyDelete
  52. Abejo: I think we may have passed each other in traffic! My aunt and uncle have ten acres in Springboro with a nice pond. My nephews and I fished there today. Nice weather.

    There is a small airstrip in Springboro but other than name it has nothing to do with the Wright brothers. All development, experimentation and production happened north, in Dayton.

    ReplyDelete
  53. JzB: This joke might not work after tommorow, so:

    A man dressed in scarlet and gray walks into an Ann Arbor bar with a small dog under his arm. He asks the bartender "Hey, can I leave my dog here while I go to the OSU/UM game?"

    "A dog in my bar? No way."

    "But he's a special dog. He'll watch the game with you. And when OSU scores, he will walk up and down the bar on his hind legs. When Michigan scores, he will walk up and down the bar on his front legs. If Ohio State wins, he will do back flips all the way down the bar and back."

    "wow" the bartender says. "What does he do when Michigan wins?"

    "I don't know" say the Buckeye. "He's only seven years old."

    ReplyDelete
  54. @Seen - love the joke.

    @Bill G - Now then, snopes.com is a great place to go when I want to debunk someone else's stories, not a favorite when mine are debunked. I read the POSH entry there and there's a lot of holes I could poke in their argument against (and they don't come up with a believable alternative either) so I'm sticking to my version.

    I also predate snopes.com by some 40 years, so I claim seniority (and being older and wiser). There, I'm done :)

    ReplyDelete

For custom-made birthday, anniversary or special occasion puzzles from C.C., please email crosswordc@gmail.com

Her book "Sip & Solve Easy Mini Crosswords" is available on Amazon.

Please click on Comments Section Abbrs for some blog-specific terms.

Please limit your posts to 5 per day and cap each post length at about 20 lines in Preview mode.

No politics, no religion and no personal attacks.