google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Sunday Dec 18, 2011 Jim Holland

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Dec 18, 2011

Sunday Dec 18, 2011 Jim Holland

(Please click here to solve the LA Times Daily Crossword in old format.)

Theme: "E-Tails" - A well-known surname in the pattern of *E replaces the * part of each common phrase.

23A. Hockey legend makes a particular fashion statement? : HOWE DOES THIS LOOK. How does this look? "Mr Hockey"Gordie Howe.

32A. New England senator's winter tools? : SNOWE SHOVELS. Snow shovels. Senator Olympia Snowe (Maine). The only girl in the theme set. She's spunky.

48A. Author Thomas blows a tune? : WOLFE WHISTLES. Wolf whistles. Thomas Wolfe.

65A. Author Graham's lament? : IT'S NOT EASY BEING GREENE. It's Not Easy Being Green. BBC Two program. An unknown grid-spanner to me. Graham Greene.

88A. Writer Oscar's groupies? : THE WILDE BUNCH. The Wild Bunch. Oscar Wilde.

102A. Routines that crack up patriot Thomas? : PAINE KILLERS. Paine killers. Thomas Paine.

116A. Maintain vital info on actor Rob? : KEEP A LOWE PROFILE. Keep a low profile. Rob Lowe.

Very tight and consistent theme. Quite a range of names: politician, writers, actor, etc.

Do you have the feeling that constructor Jim Holland is fun to be around? I like today's clues a lot. The non-theme fill is really lively also. Here are my favorite:

91A. Seductive greeting on the docks : HI SAILOR. Did you get such greeting in your Navy days, Spitzboov/eddy?

6D. Frat social : BEER BASH

Across:

1. Grades : MARKS

6. X3 and Z4 : BMWs. Stumper for me.

10. Pumped (up) : AMPED

15. Ripe, so to speak : GAMY. I've never used "ripe" to describe meat.

19. Ecuadoran province named for a metal : EL ORO. Literally "the gold".

20. Cream's Clapton : ERIC

21. New York restaurateur : SARDI. Of Sardi's.

22. An orchestra tunes to one : OBOE. I think Jazzbumpa explained this before.

26. Adds (up) : TOTS

27. Beatles title critter : THE WALRUS. "I am The Walrus".

28. One may be chartered : BOAT

29. Water holder : LEVEE

30. Rhein tributary : AARE

31. Two-bagger: Abbr. : DBL (Double). To answer your question, Hondo, I thought Cuddyer would be with Twins forever also. But money and pride matter more to players and their agents.

35. Olympics chant : USA USA

37. "Well played" : NICE ONE. Nice.

38. Pampering place : SPA

41. Hist. majors' degrees : BAs

42. Business abbr. : INC

44. Provençal capers spread : TAPENADE. Any secret recipe, Steve?

53. Guitar great Paul : LES

54. Concert beginning? : DIS. Disconcert.

55. According to : AS PER

56. Connect (with) : LIAISE

57. Car roofs with removable panels : T-TOPS

59. Deportment : MIEN. Learned this from doing Xword.

60. "So-so" reactions : EHs

62. Wyoming hrs. : MST

63. Mumbai nurse : AMAH. I only know the "nanny" meaning.

73. Cyberseller's site : EBAY

74. Workers' rights assurance, in ads : EEO. Or EOE.

75. Bill dispenser : ATM

76. Sharp relative : FLAT

77. Put up : BUILT

80. Talk show host spanning five decades : CAVETT (Dick)

83. Mel of many voices : BLANC

84. Fido's response : ARF

85. In back : AFT

94. Caviar, e.g. : ROE. So what's your favorite bread spread?

95. Like USN volunteers : ENL (Enlisted)

96. Narc's org. : DEA

97. Most idiotic : INANEST. Looks like "in a nest".

100. Works with dough : KNEADS

106. Stand beverage : ADE

107. Quarterback Tony : ROMO. Good golfer also.

111. One way to think : ALOUD

112. "Say Anything ..." actress Skye : IONE. Daughter of Donovan.

113. Final, maybe : ESSAY EXAM. We did not have a specific essay exam. It's always the final part of Chinese literature exam.

115. Split apart : REND

119. Jazz combo : TRIO

120. Established fact : GIVEN

121. Bit of Realtor slang : RELO. Why is "Realtor" capitalized?

122. Coupe alternative : SEDAN

123. Pre-wedding party : STAG. Splynter probably will get a few booty dancers.

124. Hägar's hound : SNERT. "Hägar the Horrible". Created by DIK (14D. Cartoonist Browne)
Hey, Browne is another E ending name.

125. Formerly, once : ERST

126. Low Hold 'em pair : TREYS

Down:

1. Bombay-born conductor : MEHTA (Zubin). Wiki said he's Music Director for Life of Israel Philharmonic.

2. Pacific greeting : ALOHA. Hi there, JD.

3. Oarsman : ROWER

4. Mardi Gras parade group : KREWE. Pronounced as "crew". Got me again, Hahtool!

5. Scotch partner : SODA

7. Enterprise helmsman : MR SULU. "Star Trek".

8. It's good to keep them about you : WITS. "Keep your wits about you" is a new phrase to me also.

9. It may be elem. : SCH

10. Part of ASAP : AS SOON

11. Zambia neighbor : MALAWI

12. Take under one's wing : PROTECT

13. Old Tokyo Bay capital : EDO

15. Had one's revenge : GOT EVEN

16. Overhead : ABOVE

17. __ 6 : MOTEL

18. Okays : YESES

24. "A stitch in time ...," e.g. : OLD SAW

25. Mideast "son of" : IBN. Arabic.

29. Texas flag symbol : LONE STAR

32. Big bag carrier : SANTA. I bet Argyle did not nail this.

33. Ball-balancing performer : SEAL. Not Heidi Klum's Seal.

34. Cross one's fingers : HOPE. For Creature, Lemonade, Clear Ayes, Southern Belle, etc, for a healthy and happy 2012.

35. Prefix with mensch : UBER. Ubermensch. Superman.

36. Enthusiastic acceptance, in Acapulco : SI, SI

38. Eastern guru : SWAMI

39. Assume : POSIT

40. Barre des Écrins range : ALPES. Barre des Écrins is a mountain in the French Alps. Also unknown to me.

43. Surmount : CLIMB OVER

45. Fuss : ADO

46. Guacamole, for one : DIP.

47. Ogee shape : ESS

49. Aromatic herb : FENNEL

50. Rick's love : ILSA. "Casablanca".

51. Caesar's being : ESSE

52. "Contact" acronym : SETI

58. Bad thing to catch : THE FLU

60. Hr. affected by delays : ETA

61. "Yo!" : HEY

63. Rep. with a cut : AGT

64. Vegas's __ Grand : MGM

66. Put one's hands on : OBTAINED

67. Cainites, e.g. : SECT

68. Listless assent, perhaps : YEAH

69. S.F. Giants' league : NATL (National). Giants are the 2010 World Series champs. Look forward to Ant's Haiku.

70. Spiral-horned antelope : ELAND

71. '30s V.P. John __ Garner : NANCE. Can never remember his name.

72. __ Sketch : ETCH A

77. "Phooey!" : BAH

78. Mentalist Geller : URI

79. Conditions : IFs

81. Furry Endor dwellers : EWOKS. "Star Wars".

82. Yours, in Tours : TIEN. Mine is "mien", right?

83. Oil meas. : BBLS

86. Criticism : FLAK

87. Nobelist Morrison : TONI

89. Cell user's problem : DEAD SPOT

90. Make lovable : ENDEAR

92. Canine also called a Hokkaido : AINU DOG. I'm aware of Ainu the Japanese aborigine. Not the dog.

93. Come out of the bullpen : RELIEVE

98. Sewing pattern : SLOPER. New word to me. Bill's Barbara knows.

99. Flat fee payer : TENANT. Flat = apartment.

101. Stands by an artist : EASELS

102. Romeo and Juliet, e.g. : PARTS. Nice clue.

103. Warn : ALERT

104. Ancient Samos' region : IONIA

105. Seminary subj. : REL

107. Send (to) for help : REFER

108. Rust, say : OXIDE

109. Asia's __ Peninsula : MALAY. Many Malaysians speak Cantonese.

110. Dark clouds and such : OMENS

113. Pitcher with a big mouth : EWER. Fun clue. Made me think of Curt Schilling, who is what the clue says. Sorry, LaLaLinda.

114. Baseball's "Walking Man" Eddie : YOST. He drew lots of walks, hence the nickname.

116. Metric wts. : KGs

117. Beethoven's A? : EIN. The article A.

118. Pacific st. : ORE (Oregon). "St." can be a tricky clue at times, an abbreviation for saint, state or street.

Answer grid.

C.C.

58 comments:

HeartRx said...

Good morning C.C. et al.

Thanks for write-up and explanation of all those baseball references, C.C. !! I agree that the theme was really tight, so once I got a few perps on the theme entries it was pretty easy to suss the entire saying. My favorite was IT’S NOT EASY BEING GREENE. I think that came from a song done by Kermit the Frog on Sesame Street.

I had several missteps on this puzzle that slowed me down:
Restaurateur Toots Shorr instead of SARDI, ole ole instead of USA USA, EOE instead of EEO, Carson instead of CAVETT, think ahead instead of ALOUD and GMs instead of KGs. But those all were quickly corrected by checking the perps.

Zubin MEHTA is an outstanding conductor, and I have a copy of the 2007 Vienna New Year’s concert that he conducted. But Zubin is such a nice juicy crossword name, I was surprised to see his last name in this puzzle, instead. Lots of other nice fill that C.C. already mentioned made this a really fun puzzle that I was sorry to put down after it was finished.

Have a relaxing Sunday, everyone!

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

Mostly a straightforward solve today, especially after I got the theme.

The extreme north caused me some grief because neither SARDI nor SNOWE were names I was familiar with, and MALAWI and I aren't exactly on familiar terms either.

Down in the south, today's WTF moment came with SLOPER. I also struggled with AINU DOG for the same reason that C.C. mentioned.

Oh -- and I also briefly struggled with "two-bagger" as DBL. I wasn't thinking baseball and was instead thinking of a girl so ugly you need to put a bag over your head in case the one on her head falls off. Wait, did I really just type that?

2 Bag Krewe said...

So what's your favorite bread spread?

I like makin' it rain for them booty dancers!

Mary K. McGraw said...

FYI: Realtor is a copyrighted word for members of National Association of Realtors and really should be shown as: REALTOR®. Otherwise a person selling real estate is a real estate agent.

Hahtoolah said...

Good Morning, C.C. and friends. This was a fun puzzle. When I first saw the title, I was afraid we would be seeing a lot of the dreaded E as in Electronic answers like e-mags, etc. Glad to see it was well know people whose surnames end in E.

Mardi Gras Parade Group = Krewe was a gimme.

My favorite clue was Stands by an Artist = EASELS.

I didn't realize that Dick Cavett was on TV for so long.

I saw an opera a few years ago while in Vienna that METAH Zubin conducted.

QOD: I think that people want peace so much that one of these days government had better get out of their way and let them have it. ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

Dudley said...

Hello Puzzlers -

Straightforward solve today, a clean nicely-designed grid. Struggled at IONE crossing SLOPER, and AINU DOG. I dislike the verb LIAISE, but that's not the constructor's fault.

Did most of the puzzle while watching SNL last night, and it just happened that George Takei (MR SULU) appeared in a commercial while I was filling in the name.

I enjoyed Zubin Mehta's Vienna concert, it left me with the impression that he's a fun-loving guy with a good sense of humor.

Middletown Bomber said...

loved the theme. Easy puzzle for a sunday solve. In the old days they often Nannies were often called nurses so Amah is interchangeable took a few seconds to recall Snert tried to fit in kvack but it came to me after a few seconds on the conductor started with Muti but did not have enough letters then I recalled that he was italian not indian mehta came soon after.


Mary FYI: the word realtor (its not a real word think i.e. syfy cloo, and froot) is not protected by copywrite. If it is written in ALL CAPITAL letters then it is protected by registered trademark thus the circle r symbol is correct. Written any other way is just bad grammar.

desper-otto said...

My KEGPARTY turned into a BEERBASH. Other than that misstep my grid is pretty clean this morning. The O in the IONE/SLOPER cross was a total WAG, though.

CC, your MIEN (vs TIEN) comment brought a smile. With all the baseball fill I thought maybe you had a hand in writing this puzzle. I was RELIEVEd that all those entrys were palpably perpable.

Oh, and I have never, ever heard anybody say INANEST aloud. DAMNEDEST and INSANEST, yes, INANEST, no.

Abejo said...

Good morning, folks. Thank you, Jim Holland, for a real good Sunday puzzle. Enjoyed it. Thank you, C.C., for the review.

Could not get started at all up north. Started somewhere in the middle.

THE WILDE BUNCH was my first theme answer. That helped with the rest.

My biggest goof for a while was having PITCHES instead of RELIEVE and STITCH instead of SLOPER. The fact they were right next to each other really gave me a bad area. Finally got SNERT GIVEN, and IONE . Then fixed my errors.

Had SUMS instead of TOTS. Not sure the clue for TOTS was real good. Adds (up) ????

Anyhow, it was all fun and now I am busy for the rest of my day.

Got back to Chicago yesterday and there was snow covering everything. I guess we have had it easy thus far.

See you tomorrow.

Abejo

Abejo said...

C.C.: Gamy means smelly, or strong.

Abejo

Spitzboov said...

Good morning C.C. and all

Fairly easy one today. The theme was straightforward, but still fun to fill in. Liked WOLFE WHISTLES. MALAY was a WAG. EIN and ÜBER were gimmes. Liked the clueing for TENANT. Never got a "HI SAILOR" per se, but when in uniform ashore, definitely got more attention. On a ship, the OVERHEAD is the ceiling.

My favorite bread spread is probably a good liverwurst. Pâté de foie gras works, too.

Lucina, I learned long ago to always try to look at late night posts from the previous day, mainly because of the time difference between the two coasts. So I'm glad you posted and am sure that the late posts will be read by many here.

JD said...

Good morning C.C. and all,

Sundays take a long time, and I was up way too early. On these long ones, I always see how much I have learned (lots of regulars today: edo, eland, ess, esse, ewer, and eland), and, of course, how much knowledge I'm still lacking.

After making one complete round, I looked to see where I could get a foothold.It's not easy being green did it for me. Loved Wolfe whistles too, but favorite was bad thing to catch-the flu.

Have to admit, I had a few holes here 'n there, so thanks, C.C. for completing my puzzle.

fav. bread spread= peanut butter. As a kid it was cinnamon and sugar on toast.

Barry-2 bagger= funny.

Scotch and Soda, an oldie, but a goodie

Tinbeni said...

C.C. Great write-up & links.
I esp. liked the AINU DOG.
What a great looking pooch.

Note to Constructors:
SCOTCH doesn't EVER have a partner.
Not SODA. Not ice. Not water. Not anything.
The only acceptable word-association is NEAT.
PERIOD !!!

Really enjoyed the themes.
Like Hahtool; when I saw the title was expecting the ebooks, ezine, "ewords".
THE WILDE BUNCH got an actual "out-loud laugh."

Tampa Bay's Gasparilla celebration also has a slew of KREWE's.

Today is a FUN Sunday ... the Buc's already lost last night.

Cheers to all at Sunset.

SouthernBelle said...

Mornin' to all,

Hands up for SLOPER !!

HeartRx said...

Tinbeni, duly noted...

Tinbeni said...

JD:
The above statement notwithstanding.
Thanks for THAT tune.

So I guess a clue "Kingston Trio" hit ... with the entire answer being "Scotch and Soda" would be OK.


HeartRx:
I'm sure "real" Bourbon folks feel the same way. lol

Barry G.:
re: The "Two-bagger" comment.
Was that speaking from experience?

LaLaLinda said...

Hi All ~~

For some reason this was tougher for me than a usual Sunday. I did finish but with a few things I didn't recognize ... KREWE, SLOPER, IBN to name a few. Thanks, C.C. for explaining it all ~ lots of information in your write-up! And as for 113D - 'Pitcher with a big mouth' - when I read the clue, my husband said "Curt Shilling" and I said "Josh Beckett" so no apology necessary. ;-) I also thought of the Red Sox on 93D - 'Come out of the bullpen' - RELIEVER ... I hope the Sox figure it out soon!

~~ Like Abejo, I think of GAMY as smelly ... feet or B.O., maybe.

~~ I actually remembered TOTS from a discussion here a while back.

~~ Dudley ~ I, too, watched SNL last night. I thought Jimmy Fallon did a great job and I love Michael Buble! I've been playing his Christmas CD all week.

~ A lot of fun cluing in this puzzle ~ I enjoyed it!

Off to do more Christmas-y stuff!

eddyB said...

Hello.

Mostly wore civies when ashore in Boston. Sailors would always forget to change their shoes.
Once in Baltimore, I was sitting alone in a bar and this lady came up and said ...

Sharks took the division lead last night. Kings get a new coach on
Tues. Sutter used to coach the Sharks. Montreal looking for a coach.

What Tin said about Scotch.

JD. Nice thoughts and cute photos.
The sleeping dog and raccoon was my
favorite. Thanks.

eddy

confused old lady said...

2 Bag Krewe said in answer to
So what's your favorite bread spread?

I like makin' it rain for them booty dancers!

I don't know what that means. Is it as dirty as it sounds?

Anony-Mouse said...

Mumbai nurse - Amah ?

A nurse in most of India, is called an 'Ayah' or 'Aayah'. Amah is probably used further east, like Malaysia, Singapore and the far East, and of course, China.

In India, Amah would sound suspiciously like a corruption of the word, 'mother', and no (biological - ) mother would allow it to be used, and would be understandably indignant if said so, by her child.


Mary K. McGraw - Even if the word 'REALTOR' was copyrighted or registered, if the word has used in the common lexicon, and everyday usage, often enough, it becomes generic, and loses the protection of 'unique use'. This has been conclusively decided by most courts, especially the federal ones, and there are enough precedents.

Think of 'Champagne' - a bubbly wine once reserved for the bubbly wine from THAT province in France ... Penicillin, Amoxicillin, Xerox ( instead of 'copy'), Crisco ( for shortening - ) etc.

Dudley said...

Scotch tape, Kleenex....

Steve said...

Really nice puzzle - no "oh no" moments with the theme entries and some learning moments in the theme.

Super write-up, CC. Wasn't Kermit's song the long crossing theme answer? A little more well-known than a program(me) on BBC2?

Tapenade secret - use roasted garlic cloves rather than raw - takes the edge off and you get a nice sweet, nutty taste rather than a raw garlic bop over the head.

I learned to windsurf on Lake Malawi. My instructions were "Crocodile that way, Hippo that way. No fall off". I kept very dry that morning.

@Anony-mouse - for some reason that escapes me, California is the only "Champagne" that gets away with using the word. Try it anywhere else in the world and you will get sued. That's why you'll see "Methode Champenoise" on most other sparklies made in the traditional manner.

Why does the composer come from Bombay, and the nurse from Mumbai?

Happy Sunday, y'all

Avg Joe said...

Fun puzzle, clever puns and lots of learning moments, both solving and in reading the write-up. Did not know of Ainu, but they do look a lot like an Akita. Had never heard liaise used in that sense. I even learned that not only is it Ione Skye, not vice versa, but that Donovan is her father.

On the Realtor(R) topic, it may be true that it's crept into the language, but NAR has always put up a strong fight on that front and they do still hold the registration on the trademark. They often have campaigns to point out that not every real estate agent and broker is a Realtor. But regardless, capitalizing it in the clue is more accurate than not doing so.

chapstick52 said...

I have sewn for over 50 years and have never heard the term sloper!! CC-- loved mien as French for mine!

Anony-Mouse said...

Steve - the foodie, ( meant in a complimentary, friendly manner - ).

New York state probably makes as much champagne as Calif. ( but I could be wrong - ). In fact the original court case of copyright/trademark infringement of champagne, in U. S. Federal District Court, in 1973, involved the French government Vs. The Taylor Wine Co. from upstate NY. The court decided in favor of the defendants and was upheld on appeal. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case. Thus, no problems in USA, or Canada.

In Europe itself, ( with the prevailing narrow-minded political mindset - ) however, every city, district, area, back alley and province has staked out its 'dominions' in everything from wine and cheese to all sorts of cloth, fiber and even Art !! If they hope, by these restrictions to monopolize the product, they haven't yet understood the creativeness of the manufacturers, elsewhere in the world....

A company, out of Illinois, has now found out a way with recombinant DNA to actually cultivate 'Truffles'. Once commercially viable, this will "crush" the European market and bring it to its knees, - copyright or no copyright !!

Anony-Mouse said...

I'm really sorry for the length of the preceding post.

Steve, again - Why Bombay composer and Mumbai nurse ?

Aside, from not being able to enter Mr. Holland's mindset, ( the ONLY thing I can think of is - ) Mr. Zubin Mehta, left India a long time ago, prob. in the early 1950's, , he studied in Switz. and England, and is probably the ONLY western music conductor/composer from India. Thus/Therefore the original name of Bombay may have been appropriate.

Mr. Mehta was born a Parsi/Parsee - the 14th cent. refugees, to India, from Iran, of the Zoroastrian faith. Thus his unique first name, Zubin. Parsi's are generally 'true' Caucasians, and are fair of color, eyes, and have overwhelmingly inculcated western habits and cultures. Mr. Mehta, ironically, 'looks' like an Indian ( albeit light brown skinned - ), and has an 'Hindu' last name. The word 'Mehta' is a fairly common surname in Punjab or Gujrat, - it originally meant a respectable profession, like a teacher or a petty accountant, and 99 % of them are NOT Parsis. Go figure.

Anonymous said...

:yawn:

windhover said...

Anony-mouse, (my friend),
This is one of those issues where there are differing opinions.
A couple of examples:
As far as I know, all French champagne is still cave aged, not in refrigerated metal caves, but actual underground caves, and the various substitutes from around the world are not. I've visited and tasted champagne in these caves (no mean feat for a poor farmer) and I don't believe the imposters deserve to be labeled as such, whether it's legal or not.
A better example: Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, produced in a small, distinct region in Northern Italy, and very closely controlled. It's produced from the milk of cows that are grazing mixed pastures, and only during the lush part of the grazing system. The cows are never fed fermented forages (silage). Similar cheeses are produced in Wisconsin and Argentina. I've eaten all three, and only the Parma variety is deserving of the name.
Here in Kentucky, we have bourbon. Tennessee whiskey is great stuff, but it is not bourbon.
As for GMO foods and recombinant hormones; just one more thing God will not forgive us for.

Steve said...

@Anony-mouse and @Windhover - thanks for the follow-up and education.

I was lucky enough to make a few trips to Mumbai when I was doing some work with Star TV, an amazing city and a great experience. I re-read "Midnight's Children" with a new perspective, and when "Slumdog Millionaire" was released, a lot of it seemed very familiar (good and bad)

Anonymous said...

Hi all, Thanks C.C.

Hard puzzle for me, though I was proud of what I got: MEHTA for one.

Hands up for being a seamstress who never heard of SLOPER. Could it be an embroidery term in cross-stitch? Half an X would slope? I never think of embroidery as "sewing", only as "stitching".

Went to see my grandsons (11 and 5) in Willie Wonka last night. The 11-yr-old did well with a small solo singing part. The 5-yr.-old was a very exuberant grinning oompah loompah with green hair. Fun to watch. Couldn't understand much of the words. Kids are so cute, didn't care.

- PK

Jayce said...

Hello everybody. I liked today's puzzle a lot, and as HeartRx so eloquently said, I felt a little sad at putting it down after finishing it.

I immediately knew SNOWE from the mention in the clue of "New England Senator" and "winter." From the realization at that point that maybe the theme was people's last names that end in E, it helped a lot in filling the other theme entries. I went asdray a little bit in expecting each answer to start with the person's name, so I tried real hard to start 116A with LOWE. It was a lot of fun.

Unknowns to me were (and quite likely will be again tomorrow) SLOPER and KREWE. Like C.C., I know of the Ainu people, but not of a dog so named.

My almost-Natick spot was the cross of ELORO with KREWE.

Good question, Steve: why Mumbai in one clue and Bombay in another clue? Could it be that when Zubin Mehta was born, it was called Bombay? By the way, I agree he is among the finest of orchestra conductors.

confused old lady, yes it does sound dirty.

Jayce said...

A weird thought just entered my mind as I pondered Ione Skye. Ignoring the perhaps incorrect spelling, "tien" is "sky" in Chinese. For that matter, "mien" are noodles, as in chow mien (fried noodles).

Another trivial factoid from the mind of Minolta, er, Jayce.

Anony-Mouse, I enjoy reading what you have to say. So erudite!

Jayce said...

Lucina, it is never too late to join the party. Along with Spitzboov, and probably numerous others, I saw your post late last night. The party never ends; it just takes a recess and resumes the next day.

Anony-Mouse said...

Windhover ( first - ) - Thank you for your compliments. I am really done for the day - but I could not resist. I neither have the passion for European food, nor ( I think - ) the funds to indulge in them. The last time I was in Paris, 2002, we ate at a Chinese rest. - the food was spicy, and the waiters and proprietor were very polite and appreciative - a rarity in France - we ate there for 8 days, every day.

Steve - at a risk of making this our personal blog - I have not read 'Midnight's Children', and somewhat worried about an ( Ex- ?) Muslim Indian expat who un-necessarily denigrates his own faith. ( Salman Rushdie = Suleiman Rasheed ? ). For the most accurate and noteworthy book on Indian independence and the 'partition', do consider reading 'Freedom at midnight', by Larry Collins and Dom. Lapierre ( 1975) -a best seller, and deservedly so.

Lucina said...

Good day, C.C. and all. I also thank you, C.C., for the sports explanations as it's definitely my weakness.

Thank you, spitzboov, for that acknowledgement. I really liked yesterday's puzzle and wanted to comment on it so I'm glad I did so.

Today's was slow for me because the granddaughters were here and the toddler requires constant vigilance.

I finished after Church and breakfast and had some confusion of my own making as I was sitting in a dimly lit area and misread some clues. With a better look I corrected some silly errors, but had to look up Hokkaido as I don't recall seeing that before.

flat fee payer, TENANT, was cute.

Quite a bit of learning today not only from the puzzle but from the posters. Thank you all.

I also HOPE for good health in 2012 for all of you but especially our ailing friends here at the Corner.

Everyone, I HOPE you are having an UBER Sunday!

Anonymous said...

Sewed most of my life and never heard of "sloper."

According to Wiki, et al, these are those patterns designed for the individual with their measurements. They can be used over and over because they are the basic pattern for almost any blouse, skirt, dress, etc. I had to make one with my bodice measurements in Home Ec in high school, but the teacher just called it a "bodice pattern."

aka DAFFY DILL

Bill G. said...

I enjoyed the puzzle. Lots of clever clues. I wasn't excited about the theme though. I guess I've gotten jaded with so many clever themes in many different puzzles. This theme seemed perfectly OK but not especially clever.

I grew up in Falls Church, Virginia. My father took me to some Washington Senator's ball games (First in war, first in peace and last in the American League) and I became a fan of Eddie Yost. There wasn't too much else to get excited about year after year in old Griffith Stadium.

C.C., I don't have a favorite bread spread but I do have a least favorite. It would be Marmite, a British creation. I ordered a jar and tried it once. Then it went right to the rubbish bin.

Regarding copyrighted terms: Years ago I heard about a guy employed by the Roquefort cheese people to taste Roquefort salad dressings and hassle the companies that made it with some blue cheese instead of real Roquefort cheese. A British acquaintence of mine complained about using the term Cheddar when talking about a sharp US cheese. She said that real Cheddar cheese could only came from Cheddar, England.

I'd like to echo Lucina's good health wishes for everyboy.

Hahtoolah said...

Bill G: I hope you good wishes extend to every girl as well! LOL!

Steve said...

@Anony-mouse - thanks for the recommendation, just ordered the book from Amazon

Bill G. said...

Rats! I hate when that happens!

Anony-Mouse said...

Steve, again - If you're into historical accounts, really read 'The reason why' @ 1953 - the story of the fatal charge of the Light Brigade, by Dame Cecil Woodham-Smith ( 1896 -1977). I have over 12,000 books, and yet I found time to read this book, 3 times.

No doubt, you must have also read Antonia Fraser.

len said...

Hi all,
Really like doing these kinds of crosswords, but I forgot about the title and completely missed the fact that all the names ended in E. What would I do without this blog!
Didn't want to say anything yesterday since y'all seemed to be having so much fun with the last meal deal, but don't plan on having that last request filled in Texas. They have stopped the practice of special last meal requests for prisoners. Your last day, you eat what all the other prisoners are eating that day. According to the Houston Chronicle account, the practice goes back to Old Europe, where it was thought that giving the condemned a feast before offing him might propitiate his soon-to-be ghost, so this decision on the part of Texas may come back to haunt them.

chapstick52 said...

Anny-mouse--love all your info and recommendations. Those who yawn should go take a nap.

Avg Joe said...

I'd like to echo what chapstick just said, Anony Mouse. The info you bring may only appeal to a portion of the population here, but it's always topical per the conversation du jour and never forced on anyone that doesn't care to know.

In the words of Buddy Holly, Rave On.

Anonymous said...

Hands up for what Chapstick and AvgJoe said! All the different personalities, perspectives and information keep a lot of us coming back. Never know what will go on at the old blog on any given day. Some people just get bored too easily.

Thanks y'all for the comfort and joy on days it was needed!

-PK

Relatively Speaking said...

If my theory of relativity is proven successful, Germany will claim me as a German and France will declare that I am a citizen of the world. If my theory should prove to be untrue, then France will say I am a German, and Germany will say I am a Jew. ~ Albert Einstein, 1918.

Anonymous said...

@Hahtool, you comment about typos shouldn't have typos also! LOL!

Hahtoolah said...

Anon: I guess both of ou compute s a e missing the lette "r" LOL!

Bill G. said...

Christmas riddles from my brother. Some of them are even good!

1. Where does Christmas come before Easter?
2. What's in December that isn't in any other month?
3. On what side of the house do pine trees grow best?
4. What does a cat get when it crosses the desert?
5. What kind of dance would a snow man go to?
6. Which burns longer – a red Christmas candle or a green one?
7. What two things does Santa never eat before breakfast?
8. How many pieces of candy can you put in an empty stocking?
9. What is an elf's favorite dessert?
10. When is a Christmas cake like a cold windowpane?
11. What can Santa take up the chimney down, but not down the chimney, up?
12. Why does Santa wear red mittens?
13. What state does Santa visit that's high in the middle and round on both ends?
14. How is Santa's sleigh like a track team?
15. What does Santa have all over his workshop?

ARBAON: said...

The ones I know;
1. In the dictionary
3. The outside
8. One, after that, it isn`t empty
13. Ohio

Buddy said...

8. Syrup!

Buddy said...

Dumb! Dumb! Me!

9. Syrup!

Chris said...

Do you know where I can find the Los Angeles Times Sunday Puzzler by Merl Reagle?? My paper doesn't have the puzzle you are showing today.

Bill G. said...

Chris, you can find it on the LA Times homepage under Crosswords and then Sunday crossword. Also, on Cruciverb in AcrossLite format.

len said...

Hi again,

Since everybody is recommending books today, I am going to recommend Graham Greene's novel about Haiti, The Comedians. It's a great read and, even today, surprisingly timely, even though it was set during the Papa Doc Duvalier dictatorship. The movie, which starred Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, Alec Guinness, Peter Ustinov and James Earl Jones, is also well worth seeing. To whet your appetite, watch The Making of The Comedians, a 10 minute doc on YouTube. There is also the Voodoo tie-in, which was discussed recently. (Much of the movie was shot in Dahomey.) The title is used in the sense that we are all rather comical actors, performing our roles on the stage of life.

LaLaLinda said...

#4 ~~ Sandy Claws! >^:^<

Dudley said...

2 - the letter D

5 - a snow ball

10 - when it's frosted

Hahtoolah said...

11. An Umbrella

12. To keep his hands warm.