Theme: None
Words: 72
Blocks: 30
Well, this is my first chance to blog a Gail Grabowski grid, and I was challenged, but not frustrated today. I checked, and Ms. G's last LAT Saturday was way back on 8-8-09.
One spanner, possibly the seed entry;
36A. One who makes you sweat : PERSONAL TRAINER - go on, get DF ~!
with a very symmetrical arrangement of unique crossword answers surrounding it;
30A. Sources of legumes? : PEASHOOTERS
39A. Gotten out of control : GONE HAYWIRE
6D. Designation on a driver's license, perhaps : ORGAN DONOR - not me
29D. Some messengers : ERRAND BOYS
- and my personal favorite clue/answer for the day -
20. Stock holder : CATTLE CAR - so misled by the idea of an investor - Image #1, #2,#3
And so, ONward ~!!
ACROSS:
1. Gift giver's request, perhaps : PUT IT ON
8. Pop choices : RC COLAS - Formerly NEHI - I did not know this, it's in the opening sequence
15. Hematite or limonite : IRON ORE
16. Roadside come-on : EAT HERE - Billboard did not fit
17. Italian town where Napoleon defeated the Austrians : MARENGO - map; there seems to be a bigger story regarding his horse
18. Rubber of myth : ALADDIN - I had ALI BABA - didn't he "rub" a magic lamp, too~!?
19. Loss of the ability to read : ALEXIA - pretty name for a girl, no ~!?
20. Mil. rank : CPL - corporal
21. Puckered, say : AGED - meh, just OK with this clue/ans
22. Party lines? : CONGAS - a dance in a line, so I am not sure the "?" is needed, for a Saturday
24. Code subject : DRESS - Dress Code
25. Fit : ABLE
28. 2000 Gere title role : Dr. T - never heard of it; this movie; sounds like a total "chick flick"
29. It's quite a stretch : EON - Fresh for our CW staple
33. Where a mask may be worn : SPA - thought I was clever with "BED"
38. Reg. : STandarD
40. Couples can break it : PAR - Fred Couples, golfer
41. Preserve, in a way : CAN - not ICE; sorry, Tin, that's foul play
42. Work : OPUS
43. Menu fowl : CAPON - Yikes ~!! I did not know THIS
46. Martin who won an Oscar for his 1994 Lugosi portrayal : LANDAU
48. They never get off the ground : EMUs - another fresh clue for a CW staple
49. Show : AIR
50. Like some cat collars : BELLED - can be hysterical; just go to YouTube; also considered to be an Aesop fable
54. "You're better off not knowing" : DON'T ASK
56. Sites of some clashes : BORDERS - Wars would have been better in the clue
57. Performer : ARTISTE
58. Tricking, in a way : LYING TO
59. Uses as a basis : RESTS ON
60. Dangerous fliers : TSE-TSEs
DOWN:
1. Bedsheet material : PIMA - Had Silk, thought it might be a subtle shout-out to our usual Saturday guy, Barry C. said guess
2. Magnitogorsk's river : URAL - Sounds Russian? River? Four letters?
3. Flew : TORE
4. More than, with "of" : IN EXCESS - not this INXS
5. "Pagliacci" clown : TONIO - I like this story
7. Start of colonialism? : NEO - Neo-colonialism. Not sure about this; I had "CEE", the letter 'c' at the front, which requires the "?"; otherwise, I don't see the point of "?"
8. Gets from the field : REAPS
9. One may be close : CALL
10. Letters in the Loop : CTA - Chicago Transit Authority, the "Loop" being the EL-evated train there
11. "Shoot!" : OH DARN
12. Shelf : LEDGE
13. One of the fire signs : ARIES
14. Ships : SENDS - You Pea ESS = UPS~!!!
23. [I've heard that one too often] : GROAN - Punny
24. "If I __ so myself ..." : DO SAY
25. BlackBerry buys : APPs
26. It might be pickled : BEET
27. Pig product : LARD
31. Two-time Masters champ : HOGAN - another golf reference, Ben Hogan
32. Peck of TV's "10 Things I Hate About You" : ETHAN
33. Small cut : SNIP
34. Arequipa's land : PERU
35. Combative deity : ARES - Aries and Ares
37. "Might want to rethink that" : I WOULDN'T
40. It's usually a little sticky : POST-IT - those little yellow squares on the fridge
43. Shingle material : CEDAR - siding and roofing
44. Strong emozione : AMORE - that's Italian for emotion, right?
45. Equivocates : PUNTS - huh? [ah - from Dictionary.com; "if they ask for sales figures, you'll have to punt" - I guess....]
46. Compare : LIKEN
47. High home : AERIE - Aries, Ares, and Aeries
49. In the matter of : AS TO
51. Staying power : LEGS - now, you know me, I prefer these legs
52. "Symphony in Black" artist : ERTE
53. Brit. decorations : DSOs - Distinguished Service "Ordres" - more HERE
55. Long-eared critter : ASS
56. Deli order : B.L.T. - Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato
Answer grid.
Splynter
Words: 72
Blocks: 30
Well, this is my first chance to blog a Gail Grabowski grid, and I was challenged, but not frustrated today. I checked, and Ms. G's last LAT Saturday was way back on 8-8-09.
One spanner, possibly the seed entry;
36A. One who makes you sweat : PERSONAL TRAINER - go on, get DF ~!
with a very symmetrical arrangement of unique crossword answers surrounding it;
30A. Sources of legumes? : PEASHOOTERS
39A. Gotten out of control : GONE HAYWIRE
6D. Designation on a driver's license, perhaps : ORGAN DONOR - not me
29D. Some messengers : ERRAND BOYS
- and my personal favorite clue/answer for the day -
20. Stock holder : CATTLE CAR - so misled by the idea of an investor - Image #1, #2,#3
And so, ONward ~!!
ACROSS:
1. Gift giver's request, perhaps : PUT IT ON
8. Pop choices : RC COLAS - Formerly NEHI - I did not know this, it's in the opening sequence
15. Hematite or limonite : IRON ORE
16. Roadside come-on : EAT HERE - Billboard did not fit
17. Italian town where Napoleon defeated the Austrians : MARENGO - map; there seems to be a bigger story regarding his horse
18. Rubber of myth : ALADDIN - I had ALI BABA - didn't he "rub" a magic lamp, too~!?
19. Loss of the ability to read : ALEXIA - pretty name for a girl, no ~!?
20. Mil. rank : CPL - corporal
21. Puckered, say : AGED - meh, just OK with this clue/ans
22. Party lines? : CONGAS - a dance in a line, so I am not sure the "?" is needed, for a Saturday
24. Code subject : DRESS - Dress Code
25. Fit : ABLE
28. 2000 Gere title role : Dr. T - never heard of it; this movie; sounds like a total "chick flick"
29. It's quite a stretch : EON - Fresh for our CW staple
33. Where a mask may be worn : SPA - thought I was clever with "BED"
38. Reg. : STandarD
40. Couples can break it : PAR - Fred Couples, golfer
41. Preserve, in a way : CAN - not ICE; sorry, Tin, that's foul play
42. Work : OPUS
43. Menu fowl : CAPON - Yikes ~!! I did not know THIS
46. Martin who won an Oscar for his 1994 Lugosi portrayal : LANDAU
48. They never get off the ground : EMUs - another fresh clue for a CW staple
49. Show : AIR
50. Like some cat collars : BELLED - can be hysterical; just go to YouTube; also considered to be an Aesop fable
54. "You're better off not knowing" : DON'T ASK
56. Sites of some clashes : BORDERS - Wars would have been better in the clue
57. Performer : ARTISTE
58. Tricking, in a way : LYING TO
59. Uses as a basis : RESTS ON
60. Dangerous fliers : TSE-TSEs
DOWN:
1. Bedsheet material : PIMA - Had Silk, thought it might be a subtle shout-out to our usual Saturday guy, Barry C. said guess
2. Magnitogorsk's river : URAL - Sounds Russian? River? Four letters?
3. Flew : TORE
4. More than, with "of" : IN EXCESS - not this INXS
5. "Pagliacci" clown : TONIO - I like this story
7. Start of colonialism? : NEO - Neo-colonialism. Not sure about this; I had "CEE", the letter 'c' at the front, which requires the "?"; otherwise, I don't see the point of "?"
8. Gets from the field : REAPS
9. One may be close : CALL
10. Letters in the Loop : CTA - Chicago Transit Authority, the "Loop" being the EL-evated train there
11. "Shoot!" : OH DARN
12. Shelf : LEDGE
13. One of the fire signs : ARIES
14. Ships : SENDS - You Pea ESS = UPS~!!!
23. [I've heard that one too often] : GROAN - Punny
24. "If I __ so myself ..." : DO SAY
25. BlackBerry buys : APPs
26. It might be pickled : BEET
27. Pig product : LARD
31. Two-time Masters champ : HOGAN - another golf reference, Ben Hogan
32. Peck of TV's "10 Things I Hate About You" : ETHAN
33. Small cut : SNIP
34. Arequipa's land : PERU
35. Combative deity : ARES - Aries and Ares
37. "Might want to rethink that" : I WOULDN'T
40. It's usually a little sticky : POST-IT - those little yellow squares on the fridge
43. Shingle material : CEDAR - siding and roofing
44. Strong emozione : AMORE - that's Italian for emotion, right?
45. Equivocates : PUNTS - huh? [ah - from Dictionary.com; "if they ask for sales figures, you'll have to punt" - I guess....]
46. Compare : LIKEN
47. High home : AERIE - Aries, Ares, and Aeries
49. In the matter of : AS TO
51. Staying power : LEGS - now, you know me, I prefer these legs
52. "Symphony in Black" artist : ERTE
53. Brit. decorations : DSOs - Distinguished Service "Ordres" - more HERE
55. Long-eared critter : ASS
56. Deli order : B.L.T. - Bacon, Lettuce, Tomato
Answer grid.
Splynter
Morning, all!
ReplyDeleteVery enjoyable puzzle today. Definitely a challenge, but a fun one. And no, I'm not going to apologize for stating my honest opinion about yesterday's puzzle...
Almost turfed it in the NE. Like Splynter, I initially had SILK for 1D and didn't want to let it go. I forgot that URAL was a river as well as a mountain range and just plain didn't know ALEXIA and MARENGO. Once I finally let go of SILK and (barely) remembered PIMA, I was able to make some WAGs and get the job done up there.
I loved Martin LANDAU in "Ed Wood" (and many other roles as well).
I'm not sure I've ever seen TSETSE flies referred to as simply TSETSEs before, but it was still easy to get.
"Stock holder" was a brilliant clue for CATTLE CAR. Also loved the clues for EON, CONGA, PAR, EMUS and CTA. I never know whether to thank the constructor or the editor for gems like these, but I do appreciate them!
Good morning,
ReplyDeleteNothing to say about the puzzle. Since it's the weekend, I won't see this one till Monday night.
But I thought some of you who expressed concern yesterday might be interested in knowing that Creature, who lives close to some of the devastated areas in Indiana, is OK. We exchanged emails last night.
She has been unable to post since the format change, for some reason. BTW, if you think the new version sucks on your PC, you should see the mobile version. It blows. (SNL)
If someone will link to an address for filing complaints, I'll write one in the spleen-venting style I usually reserve for cowardous anons.
Hello Saturday soldiers!
ReplyDeleteI really liked this puzzle. At first I feared a dreaded DNF, but it all finally fell into place.
I must have been on Splynter's wavelength. I, too, started with SILK/PIMA and ALIBABA/ALADDIN. My BELLED started life as VELCRO. And as usual, I learned quite a bit from the write-up. Enjoyed the evolution of the cattle car and that fire-breathing UPS van.
And just what are "fire signs", anyway? And why is Aries one of 'em?
Been solving crosswords puzzles for years TSETSEs used to be a staple answer you used to see it in every puzzle almost every day so thank you gail for the plast from the past. otherwise the puzzle was a good challenge for a saturday.
ReplyDeleteGood morning Splynter, C.C. et al.
ReplyDeleteFun puzzle from Gail today, and a sparkly write-up, as always Splynter! I laughed out loud at your CATTLE CAR links. And I think your link at 51D probably does have staying power…
You already mentioned some of my favorite clues/answers. “They never get off the ground” for EMUS was brilliant. Party lines/CONGAS, Couples can break it/PAR and Sources of legumes/PEA SHOOTERS were all great.
Yesterday some people got hung up on the ADORE entry. So today we have AMORE!
Learning moments: ALEXIA, MARENGO and the source of the term “BELL the cat”.
ALLADIN for ALADDIN(18a) stopped up the northeast corner. I swore it looked right to me!
ReplyDeleteCreature says she isn't able to get the post to work this morning. Anyone else with this trouble, email me.
Good day folks,
ReplyDeleteRarely am I able to take on a Saturday puzzle, but I sure am glad this was one of those occasions. It was an enjoyable challenge with a lot of clever cluing. Technically it a DNF because I had to google MARENGO & TONIO.
Wanted TRY it on for 1A, but URAL & PIMA got me to PUT. Still think TRY more appropriate.
18A ALADDIN, 30A PEASHOOTERS, 20D & CATTLE CAR were my favorites.
I did struggle for sometime, but when PERSONAL TRAINER & GONE HAYWIRE appeared, they gave me the foothold I needed.
Wife's in Fla for a few days with some high school classmates so I'm dog sitting and enjoying the bachelor time. Dinner with a couple of sports card competitors tonight. Should be lots of laughs.
"Talk" to you Monday. Enjoy the weekend.
Good morning! Great puzzle, Gail, and great blog, Splynter. Love that chopped P-800 with the flame job and mag wheels.
ReplyDeleteHand up for starting with silk. IRON ORE worked with it, so I held on for awhile, but PUT IT ON emerged and I was able to 'cotten' to the change to PIMA.
Misread 'Rubber of myth' as Robber, but the perps gave me ALADDIN anyway. Lots of good clues, but I was mostly on the right wavelength and didn't get stumped anywhere.
Really great, fresh puzzle. My fave for this week. Thanks for all the great info, Splynter. Nehi/RCCOLA, bell the cat, funhy cattle car pix.
ReplyDeleteThe reference to fire sign is from astrology.
Link astrology
Pagliacci is one of my favorite operas, especially with the lead (not Tonio)sung by Pavrotti.
In 7D I thought the ? was becasue it was not asking for the actual start of colonialism, bur for the prefix NEO.
We often read about border CLASHES in Korea.
I loved pickled eggs, hard boiled eggs soaked in the pickled beet solution. They are served in bars and homes in PA. I knew they were PA Dutch, but was surprised to learned they are also served in British pubs. They are good with beer.
YR, thanks for the fire sign link. I knew there were signs of the Zodiac, but I've never been into astrology, and didn't know there were also groupings of signs. I guess that could have been the inspiration for the movie "The Fifth Element."
ReplyDeleteIt's also interesting that we've got ARIES and ARES in the same puzzle.
We once had a cat that loved to stalk birds in our yard. The solution? We BELLED the cat's collar. That worked for about a day until the cat figured out how to turn the collar so the bell was on top and wouldn't ring when he was stalking. If we made it loose enough so that it would slide back around he would work it over his head and take it off. Dumb animal? Not that one.
ReplyDeleteHello Puzzlers -
ReplyDeleteToday's solving pattern was as random as raindrops hitting the sidewalk. Struggled to get a toe hold in each quadrant, made some bad guesses, but got there eventually.
Never heard of ALEXIA, but it made sense to substitute the prefix on Dyslexia, and that worked. Feeling smug about getting GONE HAYWIRE from just the Y. Only knew PIMA because of its frequent use in L. L. Bean catalogs.
Appreciated the fresher clue for EON!
What Dudley said for me, right down to the L.L. Bean mention. A very intimidating puzzle and every bit as difficult as a Silkie...but also as solvable. Had to fight for every fill. It took a lot of wags and too many erasures, but it all came together in the end. NW was the last to fall, and I didn't even think of silk for sheets. All's well that ends well.
ReplyDeleteA wonderful puzzle, requiring an open, flexible mind. Very enjoyable, although I had similar troubles in the NW corner as Barry G had in the NE corner; one of us must be on the wrong side of the world.
ReplyDeleteVoting for "Rubber of myth" as the favorite clue of the day. For some rason or other, I was really "on" for the tricky clues, and got most of them immediately. Factual stuff was a little harder, URAL being the last to fall pp thank you, perps.
I thumb down for the new format; "Preview" doesn't work worth cr*p. Make that 2 thumbs down.
Good morning everyone:
ReplyDeleteGreat puzzle, GG, and terrific write-up, Splynter, as usual.
I found the puzzle challenging but had no write-overs nor any help. It was a tad easier than a normal Sarurday. Loved the clues for cattle car, emus, pea shooters, etc.
It is supposed to be 49 degrees today; seems more like April than March. At least the kids got one snow day and some super sledding conditions, short-lived as they were.
Have a great Saturday.
BTW, I am an Aries but had no idea about being a Fire Sign. But, then again, I've never been into astrology.
ReplyDeleteThanks for a great Saturday, Gail! There were nice backdoors for things I didn’t know, fun cluing, learning and linguistic challenges. Great write-up too Splynter, esp. RC link.
ReplyDeleteMusings
-Richard Simmons is fun as a PERSONAL TRAINER but…
-She chased him around the church and caught him by the ORGAN
-A CattleMAN was holding my stock first
-On Friday night we stayed in a hotel across the street from The Lincoln Massage School. They probably have RUBBER ROOMS.
-My sister’s DYSLEXIA sometimes made her enter $7.98 as $8.97.
-Party Lines? How you doin’? No. Political hot air? No. It’s “Look Ma, I’m dancin’, I’m dancin’”
-APPS are astounding and very entertaining while wife is shopping or between games at State Tournament!
-3M makes POST-ITS 15 miles ESE of here
-An ERTE work and not his name? Wow!
-How ‘bout these LEGS
Good morning everyone. Thanks for the write-up, Splynter, and getting it going.
ReplyDeleteGreat little puzzle today from Gail. The top came fairly quickly; the bottom a little longer. Lots of good fill using ordinary words. Did not know MARENGO, so it was a WAG. Loved the clueing for PAR, ALADDIN, and CONGAS. Here is a link to a depiction of Rembrandt's Balaam's ASS. A little sports, a little celestial, a little mythical, and some geography; what could be better? A good Saturday offering.
DR T - Aboard ship, we knew a DRT as a Dead Reckoning Tracer, (A mechanical table-top plotter)
Have a great day.
I usually don't enjoy Saturday's themeless puzzles but this one seemed more pleasant to me. I solved it OK with a minimum of red-letter help.
ReplyDeleteBecause astrology has been mentioned several times, I thought some of you might enjoy this decoding challenge.
A little cryptoquip for your decoding pleasure:
M QSK’O IVAMVEV MK PUOHSASCF; M’L P UPCMOOPHMBU PKQ YV’HV URVJOMNPA.
~ PHOTBH N. NAPHRV
Saturday, went straight to red letter. I was surprised by how much white space there was after the first pass, i usually guess but this had me stumped. Still, one red letter at a time, i found discovering the answers very enjoyable.
ReplyDeleteI must go back & finish reading about Napoleon. ( i am never going back to reading about Capons!)
Late last night i posted "amazing crossword secrets" link, i do not know if it wound up in the Spam filter, or some one did me a kindness to my reputation. Argyle, did you save me from embarrassment?
Anyway, i am off to do MArti's conundrum on printout in ink, (i get the feeling i am going to wish for those red letters.)
Husker Gary@9:37
ReplyDeleteI forgot to say i had never seen a youtube video without audio before, but halfway thru i forgot about everything but legs!
(i think i will watch that one again...)
I thought at first this was going to be a NEGS for me (Never even got started)! Thankfully LANDAU finally got me going and I filled in the bottom and then the NE--mainly because I figured out ALADDIN. But then got stuck and had to cheat. Part of my problem was the same on Barry G., Mike, and Splynter had as a result of SILK in place of PIMA. But I did get MARENGO not because I know anything about Napoleon, but because I used to make Chicken Marengo many moons ago (with CAPONS?).
ReplyDeleteSo, a fun, if tough, Saturday morning--many thanks, Gail, and many thanks Splynter! Great to hear from Windhover that Creature is okay.
Have a great weekend, everybody!
Bill G:
ReplyDeleteI was just about to say that I firmly believe that astrology is pure bunk, but that's only because I'm a Cancer and we're naturally skeptical. But then I decided to try your cryptogram first. Imagine my surprise! It's nice to know that Arthur C. Clarke and I have the same sense of humor...
Knew that I knew PIMA, but also knew I couldn't remember it. Guessed the M and A correctly so finished w/o G. Maybe somehow I can associate Fine cotton/linen with Pima county in Arizona, where Tucson is located -- probably not. Had a slow down in the NE where, like @Argyle, had ALlaDIN before ALADDIN.
ReplyDeleteI'm an Aquarius, which is a fire sign. Makes about as much sense as the rest of Astrology.
Seems that most folks here think that astrology is a buch of Taurus
ReplyDeleteI'll jump on the bandwagon saying that astrology is hokum. The only time I ever found it the least bit interesting was back in 1977 when a very attractive young woman in a bar asked: "What's your sign?"
ReplyDeleteHello.
ReplyDeleteLoved the conundrum. Clue errors
.. etal
Loved today's Pearls Before Swine.
Yest samwitch so big, I could only eat half.
Finished Book #3. Now, time for the DVD.
eddy
Hola Everyone A DNF for me today. My first pass netted only a few words. I skipped all over the puzzle and put in a few words here and there. Finally gave up and had Splynter's great writeup to fill in the rest.
ReplyDeleteI GROANed when I filled in the rest of CONgaS. I wasn't thinking out of the box today.
The legumes (snap peas) in my garden come in pods, not pea shooters. What was I thinking?
I'm glad to hear that Creature and Winhover are ok. The devastation on the TV news is unbelievable. One family lost their house for the second time. They had only been in the new one for a few months. So sad.
Marty, I just printed out your Gawd-awful puzzle. I am looking forward to the fun.
Have a great weekend, everyone. We are having real spring-like weather.
Son of Musings
ReplyDelete-Bill – great inspiration for Marti’s clever effort. Astrology (PUOHSASCF) is just another fruitless enterprise for weak mind to make sense of the world and I enjoyed solving your cryptogram.
-Dave – I thought the sound was just off on my computer but you are right, it’s a great video by itself. Hey, a silent movie won the Oscar!
-Doesn’t every family/workplace have someone who upsets people but no one wants to put the “bell on the cat”? Subtlety is lost on them and the direct approach is sometimes necessary.
-A twist on the Aladdin fable is an old Twilight Zone episode where a man wished for and was granted eternal life and then, full of hubris, committed a crime and got sentenced to life in prison.
-Border clashes conjure up images of Ciudad Juarez to me.
-Sounds like you’re better Joe and have your mind on your libido or at least memories of same!
Off to the Y.
Hello everybody. Good to know you folks who live in the central US are all right.
ReplyDeleteI liked this puzzle a lot, but simply could not figure out MARENGO, ALEXIA, and PIMA. Some awesome fill, such as GONE HAYWIRE and CATTLE CAR. Excellent cluing, too. As always, "Couples" fooled me.
Splynter, very much enjoyed your comments and links. Thank you.
Now I'm going to do Marti's Gawd-awful puzzle.
Best wishes to you all.
Barry G. Thanks for the hint to Bill G.'s cryptogram! i usually do not even try because i am so bad at them, but with the Authors name, i copy/pasted the quote into an email msg in caps, and then 1 by 1 replaced known letters with lower case corrections. i might try more of these!
ReplyDeleteI am a Libra, and i have always believed horoscopes to be right 50% of the time. When they say i am going to lose money, they are right. And when they say i am coming into money, they are wrong...
But seriously, i send my daughter in College her Horoscope every day because it is usually just a dose of common sense. For instance:
Libra(Oct.24-Nov.21) When it comes to creating a happy life for yourself, there are only two choices: Spend time doing what you love to do, or find a way to love what you happen to be doing.
(you could print that any day of the week and it would still make sense)
CrossEyedDave, well said about horoscopes. By pure coincidence, mine are right about half the time too. Or is it coincidence? I'm a Libra too! Mwa ha ha.
ReplyDeleteHappy 106th birthday to Zhou YouGuang, the inventor of the Chinese pinyin spelling system.
ReplyDeleteFun puzzle Marti. Laughed the whole way thru -- but you forgot my favorite, eatat.
ReplyDeleteThink I'll have SHIRRed eggS tomorrow morning. (Have heard of but have never seen this word and didn't know how to spell it.)
good evening all!
ReplyDeletefun puzzle and as usual a great write up! i saw INXS in concert in 1987 and loved it - will never forget Michael Hutchence in red leather pants...
favorite clue ever: it's a little sticky! hilarious!
normal run through for a saturday, was surprised i had more than 15 answered after my first read. enjoyed the NE and was grateful for the occasional easy answers. finally slogged thru the NW with the same hang ups as everyone else.
@Rube - aquarius is "the water bearer" but is actually an air sign. my hubby would tell you that's where i get my occasional air-headed-ness!
on to play with Marti's gift - pretty excited for it! thanx!!
have a wonderful evening...
t.
ps - i still say ick to the format. not sure why we are stuck with these "improvements" that no one likes.
anybody have DUKE (as in Ellington) instead of ERTE?
ReplyDeleteGood night all.
ReplyDeleteSplynter, your cattle car links were wonderful. Thoroughly enjoyed them. Thank you. As was the rest of your write up.
Good evening, folks. Thank you, Gail, for a tough Saturday puzzle. At least the NW corner. thank you, Splynter, for the write-up.
ReplyDeleteWell, I got through most of this with some problems, but did get it all done, except for the NW corner.
I had SILK for 1D. Never heard of PIMA. Had CEE for 7D. I knew I had a problem, but could not think of any other answer for 7D. Now that I see it is NEO, not sure how that fits with a question mark. I believe someone earlier made that same observation. There is a town near me named MARENGO. I could not relate that to 17A. That corner was a bust.
The rest of the puzzle I liked. A few write-overs, but got them all. Had not seen TSE TSES for a while, or any variation thereof. It's like an old friend coming back.
Thought PEA SHOOTERS was clever.
I was in Evanston all day so I never got into the puzzle until I got home this evening.
See you tomorrow. Really looking forward to Sunday's puzzle.
Abejo
With the fill I already had, and the emphasis as indicated, I entered "It's usually a little sticky" as PaSTIe.
ReplyDeleteBtw, I'm looking for an ORGAN DONOR. Where is Dennis, anyway? If he's not around, any PEA SHOOTER will do. Inquire within.
DeeF,
ReplyDeleteLooking for a liver, or maybe a kidney?
Thanks for the cryptogram, Bill G. It was easier than the puzzle. Tough puzzle today, giving me problems everywhere, but managed to finish.
ReplyDeleteAs a Chicagoan, I loved the CTA reference. I seem to detect an East Coast bias in the puzzles. Whenever I try to remember MTA or other NYC references, I always think of http://bigthink.com/ideas/21121
windhover, re: DeeF's request, try 'upright' or 'pipe'.
ReplyDelete