Theme: None
Words: 72
Blocks: 33
Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to all ~!! This is not Jack FROST nipping at your nose, but Jack McInturff nipping at your noggin - or is that egg-nog doing that???
I just checked to see when we last saw Jack McInturff, and he gave us our Thanksgiving Eve puzzle, too - now he is here with our Christmas Eve puzzle, and I do believe it is his first Saturday puzzle, tho he has given us Sundays before. I have to admit, this was the first time I went to Google to find an answer because I got stuck in the NE corner, and it was due to my mistake of thinking SGTS was the E-7 rank; more at 10D....
Anyway, this one was tough, and I cheated, but what can I say....triple 9's and 8's in a pinwheel fashion, with those frustrating one word clues, and some deception as well. I do like the early morning brain battle.
Onward ~!
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen ~!
Comet, Cupid, Donder, and Blitzen ~!
ACROSS:
1. Totally : STONE COLD
10. Rigs on the road : SEMIs
15. Annual All-American Soap Box Derby site : AKRON, OHIO - I knew this answer, but couldn't recall the city, so I put in OHIO, and waited....
16. Old French capital? : FRANC - how funny is this??? I was stuck on SOU and ECU for so long from doing crosswords, that FRANC totally eluded me until I changed my 10D answer
17. One may be marching : BRASS BAND
18. Keyboardist who founded Return to Forever : COREA - did not know this; I am sure JazzB was "HIP" to him; a little clip for you
19. Rembrandt van __ : RYN - I WAGed at RIN, should have known it was a "Y"; also 32A. Rug with a long pile : RYA - standard in crosswordese
20. Certain protests : SIT-INs - or bed-ins, as done by our last clue/answer
22. "Friends" actress, familiarly : JENnifer Aniston, my personal fave from a show I did NOT watch
23. Spread __ : EAGLE
26. Pmt.-lowering option : RE-FInance
27. Lacking a partner : ODD - as in socks, not people....ah.
28. Blessed event? : SNEEZE - by not reading this as Bless -ED, I was able to nail it
30. Italy's Como, per esempio : LAGO - Italian for Lake
33. Fancy layer : GILT - UGH ~! This one stumped me, and had to go letter cycling before the "G" made sense in both across and down....
35. "__ out!" : YER - not GET, which also has the central "E"
36. Giant in a 2000 merger : AOL - America On Line, did not know this (From C.C.: The AOL./Time Warner merge. Debacle.)
37. 1980s Screen Actors Guild president : ED ASNER - boy this guy gets around in crosswords, doesn't he!?!? Such user/solver-friendly letters, and his 'full' name
40. "The Complaint of Peace" essayist, 1521 : ERASMUS
42. Eastern Med. country : LEBanon
43. Ophelia's niece, in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" : EVA
44. TV Stone Age pet : DINO - the Flintstones "dog", so to speak
45. Court figs. : D.A.s - District Attorneys, part of the LAW side of LAW & ORDER, a favorite TV show of mine
46. Lacking : SANS - French, 'without'
48. Town across the Connecticut River from Springfield, Mass. : AGAWAM - map
52. Ring support : OLE - AH ~!! The cry from the crowd ~!! The ring being the bullfight
53. Baker's meas. : TSPs
55. Puck's eatery : SPAGO - not in my wheelhouse - this place
56. Veep before LBJ : RMN - A WAG, tho I knew he was in politics for a long time, Richard Milhous Nixon
57. Candy heart phrase : BE MINE - I tried being cute with "I LOVE U"
59. Gnarly : RAD - Helps to have a teenager in one's life for this kind of language - in my case it was my generation that typically found "cool" things to be Gnarly, and RAD - but I never said either word unless I was trying to be sarcastic - think Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
60. Big name in insurance : AETNA
62. One of two in a historic 1869 Utah meeting : IRON HORSE - Dah ~!!! I knew it was the two trains meeting at Promontory Summit, but STEAM TRAIN didn't fit, nor LOCOMOTIVE
65. "Sharky's Machine" author : DIEHL - this guy; WAGed the "H"
66. Classroom concern : TARDINESS
67. Wee hr. : ONE A.M. - I am DONE at UPS as of 9am this morning - spent all week getting up at 12 midnight for a ONE A.M. shift, getting out at 9-10am. How about you Dennis? Are you 0 & 1 w/u now?
68. Deliberate : SLEEP ON IT - De-li-BER-ate, as in a jury, not De-LIB'rate, as in an intentional act
DOWN:
1. Buffalo skaters : SABRES - Hockey Hockey Hockey ~!! My Rangers beat their Winter Classic rivals the Philadelphia Flyers, once again, this time 4-2. The outdoor game is a week from Monday, and New Year's Eve is an alumni (there's some CW for you) game of the retired types - should be a lot of fun, yes eddyB ~?
2. "Tumbleweeds" cartoonist : T.K. RYAN - good way to get a four-consonant word in the grid, with T-K-R-Y - this guy and his strip
3. Fruit in a knock-knock joke : ORANGE - OK, OK, I wanted Banana, and you get 'em both~!
4. Negatives : Nos
5. Cannes duo : ENS - ah, not the French number, but the two "N"s in the word caNNes
6. Picnic trash : COBS - Corn centers, leftover
7. 2011 Canadian Open champ Sean : O'HAIR - golf, this guy
8. Architectural support : LINTEL - A steel L-bar that spans a masonry opening over a window or door, e.g., and carries the weight of the load above; also decorative, as in this instance
9. "Chariots of Fire" executive producer : DODI FAYED - more famous for his romantic link and death with Princess Diana
10. E-7 Army personnel : SFCs - the killer for me, a Sergeant First Class - my friend Jim is in the Army, has about 6 years left, and the last I heard, he was an E-6, and deployed to Afghanistan; I wonder if he got holiday leave....
11. Ranch closing? : ERO - Ranchero
12. Mint family herb : MARJORAM
13. "Help me" : I NEED YOU - too long to fit on a candy heart ???
14. Checkout counter newspaper fodder : SCANDALS - Aww, I wanted UFO IS GOD, or something much more investigative - I was looking for that scene from MiB where they "check the hot sheets", the supermarket tabloids
21. Gulf of Guinea country : NIGERIA
24. Staying power : LEGS - ah, yes to say "it has legs" means it (or they) will last - all I want for Christmas is these two hot legs
25. Web issues : EZINES - hey, I don't mind the E- or A- words, but I am getting tired of all the I- things you can buy these days; I am getting rid of my i P.O.S. for Christmas
29. Raise : ELEVATE
31. Asian swingers : ORANGs - Primates, but I thought they didn't do much in the trees
34. Sends : TRANSMITS
37. Poe poem written at the time of the California Gold Rush : EL DORADO - here
38. Cardplayer's request : DEAL ME IN
39. Type of ballot : ABSENTEE
41. Suds source : SOAP - not FOAM, and not BEER
47. Cochlea shape : SPIRAL
49. Underground home : WARREN
50. Two-time U.S. Open champ : AGASSI - tennis
51. Unassuming : MODEST
54. Nighttime disturbance, at times : SNORE
57. Healer : BALM
58. Cologne conclusion : ENDE - more French, I believe (C.C.: German for "end".)
61. New Deal home loan gp. : NHA - Here's a great site that lists all of them, I think
63. Trendy : HIP
64. "Double Fantasy" artist : ONO - not a fan
Answer grid.
I have one last 2-hour shift at UPS at 7am today, sorting overnight Air packages, and then I am back to my regular schedule on Tuesday
- yea ~~!!!!
Splynter
Words: 72
Blocks: 33
Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas to all ~!! This is not Jack FROST nipping at your nose, but Jack McInturff nipping at your noggin - or is that egg-nog doing that???
I just checked to see when we last saw Jack McInturff, and he gave us our Thanksgiving Eve puzzle, too - now he is here with our Christmas Eve puzzle, and I do believe it is his first Saturday puzzle, tho he has given us Sundays before. I have to admit, this was the first time I went to Google to find an answer because I got stuck in the NE corner, and it was due to my mistake of thinking SGTS was the E-7 rank; more at 10D....
Anyway, this one was tough, and I cheated, but what can I say....triple 9's and 8's in a pinwheel fashion, with those frustrating one word clues, and some deception as well. I do like the early morning brain battle.
Onward ~!
Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen ~!
Comet, Cupid, Donder, and Blitzen ~!
ACROSS:
1. Totally : STONE COLD
10. Rigs on the road : SEMIs
15. Annual All-American Soap Box Derby site : AKRON, OHIO - I knew this answer, but couldn't recall the city, so I put in OHIO, and waited....
16. Old French capital? : FRANC - how funny is this??? I was stuck on SOU and ECU for so long from doing crosswords, that FRANC totally eluded me until I changed my 10D answer
17. One may be marching : BRASS BAND
18. Keyboardist who founded Return to Forever : COREA - did not know this; I am sure JazzB was "HIP" to him; a little clip for you
19. Rembrandt van __ : RYN - I WAGed at RIN, should have known it was a "Y"; also 32A. Rug with a long pile : RYA - standard in crosswordese
20. Certain protests : SIT-INs - or bed-ins, as done by our last clue/answer
22. "Friends" actress, familiarly : JENnifer Aniston, my personal fave from a show I did NOT watch
23. Spread __ : EAGLE
26. Pmt.-lowering option : RE-FInance
27. Lacking a partner : ODD - as in socks, not people....ah.
28. Blessed event? : SNEEZE - by not reading this as Bless -ED, I was able to nail it
30. Italy's Como, per esempio : LAGO - Italian for Lake
33. Fancy layer : GILT - UGH ~! This one stumped me, and had to go letter cycling before the "G" made sense in both across and down....
35. "__ out!" : YER - not GET, which also has the central "E"
36. Giant in a 2000 merger : AOL - America On Line, did not know this (From C.C.: The AOL./Time Warner merge. Debacle.)
37. 1980s Screen Actors Guild president : ED ASNER - boy this guy gets around in crosswords, doesn't he!?!? Such user/solver-friendly letters, and his 'full' name
40. "The Complaint of Peace" essayist, 1521 : ERASMUS
42. Eastern Med. country : LEBanon
43. Ophelia's niece, in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" : EVA
44. TV Stone Age pet : DINO - the Flintstones "dog", so to speak
45. Court figs. : D.A.s - District Attorneys, part of the LAW side of LAW & ORDER, a favorite TV show of mine
46. Lacking : SANS - French, 'without'
48. Town across the Connecticut River from Springfield, Mass. : AGAWAM - map
52. Ring support : OLE - AH ~!! The cry from the crowd ~!! The ring being the bullfight
53. Baker's meas. : TSPs
55. Puck's eatery : SPAGO - not in my wheelhouse - this place
56. Veep before LBJ : RMN - A WAG, tho I knew he was in politics for a long time, Richard Milhous Nixon
57. Candy heart phrase : BE MINE - I tried being cute with "I LOVE U"
59. Gnarly : RAD - Helps to have a teenager in one's life for this kind of language - in my case it was my generation that typically found "cool" things to be Gnarly, and RAD - but I never said either word unless I was trying to be sarcastic - think Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
60. Big name in insurance : AETNA
62. One of two in a historic 1869 Utah meeting : IRON HORSE - Dah ~!!! I knew it was the two trains meeting at Promontory Summit, but STEAM TRAIN didn't fit, nor LOCOMOTIVE
65. "Sharky's Machine" author : DIEHL - this guy; WAGed the "H"
66. Classroom concern : TARDINESS
67. Wee hr. : ONE A.M. - I am DONE at UPS as of 9am this morning - spent all week getting up at 12 midnight for a ONE A.M. shift, getting out at 9-10am. How about you Dennis? Are you 0 & 1 w/u now?
68. Deliberate : SLEEP ON IT - De-li-BER-ate, as in a jury, not De-LIB'rate, as in an intentional act
DOWN:
1. Buffalo skaters : SABRES - Hockey Hockey Hockey ~!! My Rangers beat their Winter Classic rivals the Philadelphia Flyers, once again, this time 4-2. The outdoor game is a week from Monday, and New Year's Eve is an alumni (there's some CW for you) game of the retired types - should be a lot of fun, yes eddyB ~?
2. "Tumbleweeds" cartoonist : T.K. RYAN - good way to get a four-consonant word in the grid, with T-K-R-Y - this guy and his strip
3. Fruit in a knock-knock joke : ORANGE - OK, OK, I wanted Banana, and you get 'em both~!
4. Negatives : Nos
5. Cannes duo : ENS - ah, not the French number, but the two "N"s in the word caNNes
6. Picnic trash : COBS - Corn centers, leftover
7. 2011 Canadian Open champ Sean : O'HAIR - golf, this guy
8. Architectural support : LINTEL - A steel L-bar that spans a masonry opening over a window or door, e.g., and carries the weight of the load above; also decorative, as in this instance
9. "Chariots of Fire" executive producer : DODI FAYED - more famous for his romantic link and death with Princess Diana
10. E-7 Army personnel : SFCs - the killer for me, a Sergeant First Class - my friend Jim is in the Army, has about 6 years left, and the last I heard, he was an E-6, and deployed to Afghanistan; I wonder if he got holiday leave....
11. Ranch closing? : ERO - Ranchero
12. Mint family herb : MARJORAM
13. "Help me" : I NEED YOU - too long to fit on a candy heart ???
14. Checkout counter newspaper fodder : SCANDALS - Aww, I wanted UFO IS GOD, or something much more investigative - I was looking for that scene from MiB where they "check the hot sheets", the supermarket tabloids
21. Gulf of Guinea country : NIGERIA
24. Staying power : LEGS - ah, yes to say "it has legs" means it (or they) will last - all I want for Christmas is these two hot legs
25. Web issues : EZINES - hey, I don't mind the E- or A- words, but I am getting tired of all the I- things you can buy these days; I am getting rid of my i P.O.S. for Christmas
29. Raise : ELEVATE
31. Asian swingers : ORANGs - Primates, but I thought they didn't do much in the trees
34. Sends : TRANSMITS
37. Poe poem written at the time of the California Gold Rush : EL DORADO - here
38. Cardplayer's request : DEAL ME IN
39. Type of ballot : ABSENTEE
41. Suds source : SOAP - not FOAM, and not BEER
47. Cochlea shape : SPIRAL
49. Underground home : WARREN
50. Two-time U.S. Open champ : AGASSI - tennis
51. Unassuming : MODEST
54. Nighttime disturbance, at times : SNORE
57. Healer : BALM
58. Cologne conclusion : ENDE - more French, I believe (C.C.: German for "end".)
61. New Deal home loan gp. : NHA - Here's a great site that lists all of them, I think
63. Trendy : HIP
64. "Double Fantasy" artist : ONO - not a fan
Answer grid.
I have one last 2-hour shift at UPS at 7am today, sorting overnight Air packages, and then I am back to my regular schedule on Tuesday
- yea ~~!!!!
Splynter
51 comments:
Morning, all!
This one was... rough. Lots of unknowns today, including T.K. RYAN, OHAIR, DIEHL and SPAGO. I've heard of AGAWAM, being from Massachusetts and all, but couldn't get it from the clue. Similarly, I've heard of DODI FAYED from his connection to Princess DI, but had no idea he was an executive producer of "Chariots of Fire."
Two WAGs got the job done today. The Y in RYN/T.K. RYAN and the H in DIEHL/NHA. Didn't feel too good about those, but I did manage to finish unassisted, so there's that.
Hope everybody celebrating ha a wonderful Christmas Eve! I've got gingerbread men cookies to bake this afternoon with my son and then I have to cook the family feast this evening...
Good morning, Splynter, C.C. and gang - this one handed me my lunch this morning - needed perping almost from the start.
T,K. Ryan was an unknown, marjoram popped out of the deep recesses, didn't know Dodi Fayed was involved with Chariots of Fire, sure as hell didn't know the town across from Springfield Mass (are you kidding me?), couldn't remember who wrote Sharky's Machine, never heard of Sean O'Hair. Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln....
Actually enjoyed the puzzle because of the challenge, and because the perps got me through it, and of course, as always, loved Splynter's take on it.
Hope it's a stress-free, outstanding day for everyone, especially those of our group going through difficult times. You're in our thoughts.
Good morning Splynter, C.C. et al.
I thought I wasn’t going to finish this one, but things started falling into place little by little. I also didn’t know about DODI FAYED’s involvement in Chariots of Fire, but perps demanded his name.
Spiraling triples of 9s and 8s didn’t seem too daunting for a Saturday at first. But I think triple stacks of 15 are actually easier. Once you get an answer, you have a lot more of the puzzle filled in with that arrangement. In this one, each section had to be tackled separately. So, a fine job, Mr. McInturff!
I’m making Beef Wellington for dinner this Christmas Eve, with pecan pie for dessert. So it’s off to the kitchen for me!
Good day folks,
Other than the NE corner, I had to google something or two in each of the other corners. Marjoram, Iron Horse, Diehl. Rya, Corea, SFS's, & Cochlea shape were all Huh's.
Agawam was a gimmee. it's only a short distance from where we reside.
But Mr G , perps, and a WAG or two were the order of the day. Still, I found this puzzle enjoyable to work through, even though I consider it a DNF .
I'll be posting on an itinerant schedule for a while because of "stuff". We are fine, its just January is building up to be a zoo with things we have to do be fore the 25th. That's when we leave for our Hawaiian cruise.
Seasonal greetings to those who celebrate from a Connecticut Yankee.
Barry, I'll trade you some of my wife's cookies for some gingerbread men.
Happy Birthday to Fermatprime. Merry Christmas to all who celebrate it.
I will be baking and cooking all AM. My sister is coming for lunch at noon and another sister, a little later. We'll go to a restaurant for an early Christmas Eve dinner before church services. Early tomorrow we're off to my son's. So I'll check back in on Monday.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Nice. doable but challenging puzzle
I find it interesting that some people have trouble with certain clues that i find easy and i have have trouble with clues others find simple. Growing up Tumbleweeds was one of my favorite comicstrips. so of course TKRYAN came easy had trouble with AGAWAM even though i have been there a few times I always though it was just part of springfield.
Need to make some chocolate chip cookie dough and prepare for a Hannukah party for tonight. then prep up a potato dish for my Mother inlaws annual chistmas day dinner I am just wondering will I get my usual chinese brunch this year.
Agawam, even smaller than Natick!
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Jack, for an interesting, but tough, puzzle. it is Saturday, so that is what I expected. To me it was easier than Thursday and Friday. Thank you, Splynter, for the write-up.
Got through this with deep thinking in the NE, SE, and SW. The NW was the bear.
Had GRAPES for a while, then ORANGE appeared after I finally got EAGLE. Thank goodness I got BRASS BAND and AKRON OHIO right off the bat.
SNEEZE took a while, but appeared. Good clue/answer. I think we have had that before.
Did not LAGO. It was a wag. I still have problems with foreign languages.
No idea what EZINES means.
Enjoyed IRON HORSE in the SE corner. Took me a while. I was trying to think of the name of a railroad. Several perps fixed it.
I could not sleep so I got up at 3:30 AM to start this thing. It is now 7:30. Off and on for four hours. I think I will go back to bed.
See you tomorrow. Merry Christmas!
Abejo
Couldn't quite get there today. The H in Diehl/NHA was an R in my wag. I'm very familiar with the more modern FHA, and have seen NRA clued as a new deal agency so many times in crossword puzzles that I refused to go of the H.
Oh well, the rest was brutal, but doable. Corea, IronHorse, Warren, Ono and Lintel were my gimmees. That bought me a lot of real estate and helped perp everything else correctly.
Have a great weekend all, whether you celebrate or not. We're off to our daughters house, so I'll be off line since I only own a stupid phone.
Hello Puzzlers -
Really thought I wasn't going to finish this one, but bit by bit the frost melted. Way too many unknowns, thus What Barry Said.
I was in AGAWAM a few days ago getting a fresh supply of additives for my diesel fuel. It's not a particularly lovely town, has no cohesive town center, and is kind of a bee-otch to navigate in. The local amusement park, Riverside, was bought up by the Six Flags juggernaut. Particularly irksome to me is that the local privately owned airport, Bowles Field, was closed and turned into an industrial park. All in all I can't imagine why anyone outside of this area would ever have heard of Agawam.
I enjoy the phony credits at the end of the Car Talk radio program, particularly ERASMUS B. Dragon.
Good morning, all. Great blog, Splynter, and great puzzle, Jack.
Lots of unknowns in this one, but most had known perps that bailed me out. Yup, Avg Joe, that 'H' was an 'R' in my puzzle, too, until I finally decided DIEHL looked somewhat familiar.
Burrow looked good for that underground home, which led to AGAbAM and SPuGO, and kept me from seeing TARDINESS AND SLEEP ON IT. Hot instead of HIP and not knowing ENDE, even with the EN contributed to the problem, too. I finally applied a few doses of Liquid Paper to the offending entries, TARDINESS emerged, SLEEP ON IT came next and finally the rabbit coame out of his WARREN.
Definitely a feeling of accomplishment when this one was done. Tip of the hat to Jack for a great Christmas eve present.
Merry Christmas or Holiday Greetings of your choice and a special hug to Creature.
Big DNF for me today. The northwest has been my nemesis all week. I got AKRONOHIO and BRASSBAND just fine, but I couldn't turn S_ON_C_L_ into anything. I missed the ENS, never heard of TKRYAN or OHAIR (though I had wagged the O) and didn't know DODIFAYED, so I was STONECOLD done for.
Dudley, you're right. I've never heard of AGAWAM. Based on your description, it's not even a nice place to visit. I did manage to get it, though, when TARDINESS and SLEEPONIT turned my BURROW into a WARREN.
Turned out to be too tough for me, but I enjoyed the battle. Thanks Mr. McInturff.
Happy holiday, all.
Hi all,
Lots to like in today's puzzle, even though it was a DNF. Snookered, as usual, on two "n"s in Cannes. Didn't know RYA. Knew Como as the lake George Clooney lives on but not how to say "lake" in Italian. (He's worth $160M so he can afford to.) Loved the ring support clue for OLE.
Thanks for all the great links, Splynter. I took the pedestrian figure down from the Google map and went for a stroll thru AGAWAM. Then finally found out who Wolfgang Puck is and probably gained 5lbs. watching a couple of cooking demos. (Knew SPAGO but not the "puck" reference.)
Hope this Jingles your Bells!
RAP
Len, I absolutely despise RAP music. But, I found myself listening to Trey Songz and Flo Rida's entire video. They just seemed to be having so much fun, it was infectious. Thanks for sharing and opening up my heart a little to a genre that I usually "don't get" !!
A letter, a letter, my kingdom for a letter. The G in aGawam (hats off to anyone who knew that) was unknown and I couldn’t get to oranGs as I wanted the Tokyo Giants (_ _ a n _ s) for swingers. Great time was had by me anyway, Jack!
Musings
-Didn’t know that I knew – WARREN, MARJORAM, SPAGO, DODIFAYED
-Yes, they even cheat at the Soap Box Derby
-My brother’s stories of driving a semi were incredible. You can get anything you want at a truck stop (and some things you don’t want)
-My Swiss roots are next to Beautiful Lago Konstanz (Lake Constance) in Eastern Switzerland. Tin?
-AETNA with all those lovely 1 point Scrabble letters
-Omaha has cracked down on tardiness and truancy with great results
-I wanted OLIVE instead of ORANGE
-I have a NIGERIAN drum given to me by one of my last students
-I love the rhythms Marti, but the violence and misogyny in some rap are horrible
@HeartRx
I had you in mind when I posted it.
There's probably no greater high in life than to produce in someone else the reaction you just described.
Cheers!
I wonder if eddyB will know Agawam. Riverside Park Speedway was in Agawam. For a short track(a fifth mile originally, later a ¼), it gained national fame for NASCAR Modified racing. Still no reason to know it was across the Connecticut River from Springfield, MA.
Fun blog, fun people.
Does Dennis ever sleep?
Aha!
Len is Homelandish Security!
Len, I loved Jingle Rap! Thanks for posting.
Len: "music" ok, rhythm excellent...but why the hand to crotch over and over?
Hello and happy Christmas Eve all, especially Splynter who does yoeman duty on blogging.
Yowza! I can't believe I finished a Jack McInturff in under one hour today! Only look up was DIEHL and many WAGS.
AGAWAM? Really? WARREN and MODEST finished that one for me and I flirted with FOAM before SOAP.
LAGO is also Spanish for lake so I took a chance on it.
TARDINESS is a big concern for me especially because the bus arrives ten minutes after class starts.
Thank you, Jack McInturff for the gift of a fine puzzle today.
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Last year's Xmas present finally proved it's worth! My year-old extra wide monitor and Splynter's link actually showed both Agawam and Natick at the same time on 2 different Google Map zoom levels.
And then it dawned on me that I may actually have been there, or at least seen an arrowed road sign to Agawam during an early '80's visit to Springfield's Basketball HOF.
Merry Christmas from Greg Lake.
Rembrandt's last name is also spelled RIJN Pretty hard to fit 4 letters into a 3 letter space.
Hi Everyone ~~
I thought this was challenging but a bit easier than a typical Saturday ... maybe a present from Jack McInturff! Thanks for a great write-up and for explaining the two squares I didn't get, Splynter ... the Y in RYN and the E in ERAMUS. Perps were a big help today as well as a few good guesses.
~~ I did know Agawam. In the 70s I used to go to the car races there that Argyle mentioned and linked. It wasn't exactly something I looked forward to doing, but my then husband was a driver so I would grin and bear it. Ah ... fun times . ;-) I also remember going there as a kid when it was Riverside Amusement Park. It's not far from here in CT.
~~ I really liked a lot of the cluing in this puzzle ... those for ORANGE, SNEEZE and SLEEP ON IT to name a few.
~~ Busy day ahead ... I'd better get to it.
~~ My best wishes for merry, happy, joyous, blessed and safe Holidays to all the wonderful people here at the Corner. A special thanks to you C.C. for making it all possible!
Hi Splyter! My brother is a UPS driver in the UK - you sort 'em, he'll get 'em there.
We had AGASSI's wife the other day, I wonder if she brags she won five US Opens and he "only" managed two?
Lovely brain-awakening Saturday. Personal Natick at DIEHL and NHA; tried T and being honest gave myself a DNF when that wasn't right.
Echoing CC's "debacle" about the AOL/Time Warner merger - I worked for a Time Warner division at the time, and watched my stock options and my 401K disappear with a sound like yesterday's "PFFT". That was 11 years ago and I'm still trying to make up for the damage.
A wonderful, joyful and peaceful holiday to you all. @Dennis - just 1 w/u left!
I like all kinds of music, but metal is my first love. Here is a really funny video mashing metal with A Charlie Brown Christmas (2:24). You may want to turn down your speakers, but you should at least check it out. Hilarious!
You know I love live music! Here's George Winston - nailing Guarldi's Skating (2:48).
And, what?! No Chick COREA yet? God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (4:44).
Hopefully, you all got a chance to check out my link to the Xmas lights synchronized to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra yesterday. Here's the official video (3:42) for the song.
No Dominick today. Three times is enough, doncha think? Happy Christmas Eve!
I first tried SITSIN not SITINS, grammarian that I am ... technically ..
GET before YER here, too, ILOVEU is often ILUVU on the sweets, but I tried it anyway before getting BEMINE. Liked SNEEZE for blessed event. Tried STAHL v. DIEHL for a "dunno". SPAGO = yum-o. NoCal had PosTrio for a while ...
RANCH--ERO was in NYT miss there, grand slam here.
Got most of it, getting better. O golf and a tennis player in one puzzle - fair and balanced just like Fox News [eye-roll]
Will wait for tomorrow for tomorrow's, did in local paper today (I think it's the right one)
Fröhliche Weihnachten (Eve) Alles
Great link, Avg Joe! Thanks!
A lot of interplay between those progressive supergroups back then...ELP, Yes, Asia, King Crimson, GTR, etc...
And I loved them all!
Is it true the today ' s constructor is over 80 years young? Great puzzle. Loved the Ring Support.
Anonymous @11:12. Maybe the rappers thought the title was "Jingle BALLS"
Splynter: Thank you for explaining my
INK BLOT.
What a mess, though kinda sexy.
Never did come off my "Underground home" being a CAVERN.
Never heard of AGAWAM. Then again, they've probably never heard of me. Oh well ...
A Very Merry Christmas EVE toast to one-and-all at Sunset.
Merry Christmas, everyone! Wishing you all feel the excitement and cheer of this holy time of year.
I bit off more than I could chew today, trying to catch up on the last 4 days of puzzles all in one morning. That effort, plus going back and reading the blogs of the last 4 days, has exhausted me. Well worth the time, though.
All 4 puzzles defeated me, though I came closer to finishing today's than any of the others. John Lampkin's whomped me stone cold, but his usually do.
Appreciative hugs for you all, and hearty handshakes if you prefer.
Happy holidays, y'all! Thanks Splynter, for the blog and for all those Xmas cheer packages you helped on their way!
I plugged in ORANGE right away since I figured the position was more likely to be a vowel. Had to have Splynter tell me the ST on the top line. Still don't get it.
I actually met TKRYAN at a function where he was featured speaker. Didn't help. Name escaped me.
I watched Sean OHAIR win the 2011 Canadian Open--surprise, surprise! No one expected him to.
Knew Agassi, Lago, Spago, proud to say. Even got Eramus and RMN. But wanted Iron RAILS. And most of the southwest remained blank.
Went to lunch with my son's family today and received a nice new outfit which I like. That will be my Christmas until next Wednesday when I go with two brother and their wives to meet my third brother and spouse who I haven't seen since 2005.
My air force son finally got a leave starting the 29th so I'll spend time with his family at my older son's house with one of my daughters present on the 30th. All of my kids have obligations with in-laws so I'm usually alone on the holidays. It's sorta okay. At least I don't cook and gain weight on leftovers.
With military budget cuts, many former jobs at my son's base are being emptied. I'm wondering what happens to the economy, if all these military people are dumped into the already suffering job market?
Merry Xmas!
Creature, you're in my thoughts and prayers!
- PK
chapstick52:
LOL! Very funny.
ant:
I love the TranSiberian Orchestra! My sister treated me to their live ooncert when I was in Charlotte a few years ago.
Thank you for posting. Not a big fan of metallica, punk et al but it's nice others enjoy it.
We continued with our lunch adventures even though it's Christmas eve. We went to the bank to make a deposit that seemed to want us to provide positive ID. Then off to a new local Mexican grill. We split a pork salad, shrimp taco, rice, beans and a flan for dessert. Now I need a nap.
Happy Christmas to all and birthday good wishes to those who deserve it. It's nice to have this group of friends to talk with. It means a lot to me.
Thanks Bill G., I'll take that to heart 'cause I'm stuck with a Dec. 27 birthday. You could say it was poor planning on the folks' part, but then family folklore has it that there was no actual planning involved!
Husker:
My Swiss roots is Wilderswil.
(On my father's side).
A tiny town outside of Interlaken, which is located between Lake Brienz and Lake Thun.
The village is situated at the foot of the mountains Eiger, Mönch, and Jungfrau.
Good afternoon all...and
Happy Birthday Fermaprime.
Happy Hannukah to all who are celebrating.
Have to say that I had ALL of the problems everyone else had, but I just cheated my way thru the top, and thanked my lucky stars that the DOWNS worked for me the rest of the way.Saturdays are always rough, but I hate to miss new words and the information you all provide.
"blessed event" was my favorite clue today.
Welcome to all the new bloggers we've had this year. So glad you have decided to stay and chat.
Merry Christmas Eve everyone.
I ditto the thanks to C.C. for creating this blog that so many of us enjoy.
As to the puzzle, DNF. Hardly even started; had too much to do.
Even though I hardly ever cook anymore,(DH does it) I am making oyster stew for tonight. A tradition from my family.
So goodnight and
Cheers
Hola Everyone, A DNF for me today. Agawam? I'm sure everyone has been there at least once in their lifetime!
I wanted to make sure I wished Fermatprime a Happy Birthday, even though it is a day early.
My granddaughter would agree with you in that a Christmas birthday is a bit hard to take, as she hardly ever gets a "party" of her own now that she is no longer little. Her birthday was yesterday.
Thanks Splynter for filling in the blanks for me.
Husker, our family roots are from Richterswil, in Caton Zurich, Switzerland. How many others from our blog trace their roots back to that small country in the Alps?
Happy Holidays to everyone of you here on the blog. I hope 2012 brings good health and happiness to all.
Hello.
Arg. Close but no cigar. Never made to Agawam. Did make it to Lime Rock a few times.
Sply. Jan 2nd is marked on the
calender. Classics are always fun.
Rt ear says it is 102.7. Back to bed.
eddy
Merry Christmas to all. Been reading this blog for about 1 and a half years right after I got both knees replaced. You guys are the best!!
I had one line who came over from the Canton of Bern, Switzerland around 1710. Settled in Lancaster Co., PA.
Had several lines come over about that time, but don't know where they originated for sure.
- PK-
Add another to the ones that trace their ancestry to Switzerland. My 6th great grandfather came from Runenburg, Canton Basel around 1720, also settling in Lancaster County, PA
Well, the gingerbread cookies came out nice and the neighbors appreciated the care packages we made up for them. And my Christmas feast (consisting of a seafood linguini with shrimp, scallops, tomatoes, portabello mushrooms, scallions, butter, garlic and Grand Marnier) went over very well with the family.
Now, everybody is gone, my little guy is sound asleep, the stocking has been stuffed, and it's just about time for Santa to hit the sack. HO HO HO!
Found on a blog called Glad Rags.
What if there were no hypothetical questions?
- I planted some bird seed. A bird came up. Now I don't know what to feed it.
- I had amnesia once -- or twice.
- I went to San Francisco. I found someone's heart.
- Protons have mass? I didn't even know they were Catholic.
- All I ask is a chance to prove that money can't make me happy.
- I'd give my right arm to be ambidextrous.
- What is a "free" gift? Aren't all gifts free?
- They told me I was gullible ... and I believed them.
- Teach a child to be polite and courteous in the home and, when he grows up, he'll never be able to get onto a freeway.
- Experience is the thing you have left when everything else is gone.
- One nice thing about egotists: They don't talk about other people.
I didn't care much for this one. This was one of my sleepy days anyway, and there wasn't a single "gimme" to start me. In despair, I googled and got DODI FAYED, and that was sufficient to get me on a roll -- for a while. I finally finished (altho it's technically a DNF). I think what I liked least about this was the lack of cleverness in the clueing. It made me yearn for a themed puzzle.
But Merry Christmas anyway!
AGAWAM with a couple of letters was easy because there is a golf course AGAWAM HUNT CLUB, and if it's in golf, I've probably heard of it
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