Theme: An Exercise - XXXXL, four phrases hiding an XL in the middle. First, the unifier.
62A. Size whose letters are hidden in the answers to starred clues : EXTRA LARGE
Then two across and two down.
17A. *Magnifying glass, e.g. : CONVEX LENS
38A. *Benefit of an unsuccessful stock trade, at filing time : TAX LOSS
11D. *From the library of, in Latin : EX LIBRIS
37D. *Construction worker's meal : BOX LUNCH
Argyle here. A sizable exercise for a Monday but very doable. Geoffrey debut was back in February. This grid is more of a pinwheel layout; 10's and 8's w/ a 7 letter center.
Across:
1. Dr. Frankenstein's helper : IGOR. Let's go, indeed.
5. Use a loom : WEAVE
10. Diner handout : MENU
14. Factual : TRUE
15. Big name in kitchen foil : ALCOA
16. Wood choppers : AXES. George Washington did not have wood choppers.
19. Honorary law degs. : LLD's. Doctor of Laws.
20. Ad __ committee : HOC
21. Seamen's agreements : AYEs
22. Bigfoot cousin : YETI
24. Chris who won 18 Grand Slam singles titles : EVERT. Wow! Wooden rackets and no grunts.
26. Not a risky wager : SAFE BET
29. Absolute ruler : DESPOT
31. Parade percussion instrument : BASS DRUM. XL bass drum.
32. Art aficionado's hangout : MUSEUM
34. Filly's father : SIRE
35. Old CIA rival : KGB
41. Michael Douglas, to Kirk : SON. At a black tie affair, Image.
42. Winged archer : EROS
44. Dry red wine : CLARET
46. Cotton, wool, etc. : TEXTILES
49. The Okefenokee and others : SWAMPS. Geography lesson.
53. Popular painkiller : TYLENOL
54. African virus : EBOLA
55. Part of USC: Abbr. : UNIV. University of Southern California.
56. Liquidate : SELL
59. Put the cuffs on : NAB
60. Band of outlaws : GANG
65. Walk to and fro : PACE
66. Paper purchases : REAMS
67. Transfer from pitcher to glass : POUR
68. Humorist Mort : SAHL. Still going, web site.
69. Span. girls : SRTA's. (Señoritas)
70. Golfer's pocketful : TEEs
Down:
1. Made you scratch : ITCHED
2. Phonograph record feature : GROOVE. How many grooves on a record?
3. Pound segments : OUNCES
4. Test, as an engine : REV
5. Like fake fruit : WAXY
6. Glamour rival : ELLE. (magazines)
7. High cards : ACES
8. Otto __ Bismarck : VON. Wiki article.
9. Piece-of-cake school courses : EASY A's
10. Ice-creamy drinks : MALTEDS. Haven't had one in years; I'll take care of that today.
12. Homer's neighbor : NED
13. Navy ship letters : USS
18. Enjoy Red Lobster, say : EAT OUT
23. Abysmal grades : EFs. Is it better to drop a course and get an I(Incomplete) rather than an F?
25. Turning speed: Abbr. : RPM. (revolutions per minute)
26. South Pacific island nation : SAMOA
27. Continental coin : EURO
28. Feds under Ness : T-MEN
30. Airport safety org. : TSA. (transportation security administration)
31. Chicago cagers : BULLS
33. Perform at the top of one's game : EXCEL
35. Etta of old comics : KETT 36. Writer Zane : GREY 40. "Black Beauty" author Anna : SEWELL 43. Manager Casey : STENGEL. A string of old proper names.
39. Next yr.'s alums : SR's
45. Filing aid : TAB
47. Ristorante suffix : INI. Menu offerings ending in INI? Not that many, really.
48. Aficionados : LOVERS. Of an object, not each other.
50. President with a doctrine : MONROE. An attempt to keep the Old World out of the New World.
51. Bubonic __ : PLAGUE
52. Curved swords : SABERS
56. ER doc's "Right away!" : "STAT!"
57. Columnist Bombeck : ERMA
58. Girl : LASS
60. Loc.-finding tool : GPS. (global positioning system)
61. Little battery : AAA
63. Gen-__: boomer's kid, probably : Xer
64. Spot-on : APT
Looking back over the puzzle now, it seems a little dated.
Argyle
Note from C.C.:
Note from C.C.:
Today is Argyle's 300th LA Times write-up for us. Off the blog, he's my trusted sounding board for theme ideas and always gives me constructive feedback and advice on various issues. Thanks for being there, Santa!
77 comments:
Morning, all!
Pleasant Monday outing. Didn't notice the theme until the end, but that was OK. Didn't know SEWELL and had trouble parsing the clue for TAX LOSS, but the perps took care of both of those in short order. Also hesitated a bit at MALTEDS, since I wasn't aware that MALTED was a stand-alone word (as opposed to, say MALTED milkshake).
Good Morning, Argyle and friends. This was probably the easiest puzzle I've done in a long time. I never even had to read some of the clues as the answer had already been filled in.
My favorite clue was Diner Hangout = MENU.
Congratulations, Argyle on your 300th commentary posting! We look forward to your insight on Mondays and Tuesdays.
For a brief time, NOAA had Tropical Storm Debby headed my way, but then it decided not to turn. I hope all in the Florida panhandle and vicinity are safe.
QOD: Quotation, n: The act of repeating erroneously the words of another. ~ Ambrose Bierce
Well here we go again Monday it is and a very easy fun work from Mr. Lewis whose debut on a Monday in February was the Irish counties one. A minimum of three letter fill with lots of stacks was nice. The proper names could be a challenge to a very young solver. As always well dissected by Mr. Monday, Argyle.
So in the world of HUH? You all may recall on Thursday Miss marti told us about the goddess Leucothea, of whom I had no knowledge. Ahead to Saturday, I am offered a free book to read on my kindle, Earthly Delights by Corinna Chapman. Never heard of her either, but since the book was free and the font large enough to see, I began reading. Lo and behold, the protagonist lives in Melbourne, Australia in a complex where each apartment is named for a pagan goddess, and her best friend lives in….yes, Leucothea. She says she is the goddess of witches, but I have resisted the temptation to look. Ever heard the name Kz?
Cute.
I had a question mark after INI. I guess, to me, INI is just an Italian ending for diminutive male noun. Nothing particularly restauarantish. Maybe restaurants are the only place some people see Italian words. But, isn't music common, also?
Good Monday, all-in-all.
Congrats, Argyle, on your 300th commentary for this blog. I look forward to reading you on Mon. and Tue.
I liked seeing SIRE above SON, EBOLA crossing PLAGUE and SRTAS meeting LASS.
I'm a fan of Louis L'Amour. His westerns are much more realistic than Zane Grey's.
I haven't eaten at Red Lobster for years. Our local one cranks up the tunes so loudly that I can't converse with someone who is sitting elbow to elbow with me, forget someone across the table.
I have never ordered a MALTED milkshake. It sounds so stiff. I simply say MALTED. YUM.
Nice start to my week--not too hard for me today! My only erasure was having EBOLI before EBOLA. Many of the down clues went unread.
Lemonade,
No, I haven't heard of it. But then I don't know much about Melbourne, Greek myths or recent Oz literature.
One more week and the year is half over. Enjoy it everyone!
An easy Monday speed run for me. when I got to the theme clue one quick look back at the theme answers and I saw XL and had the answer that also gave me the X for tax loss and Sewell.
Hahtoolah: for 10a I had Diner Handout not Diner Hangout.
It is the one thing about these speed runs I do not like as I do not get a chance to read all of the clues so when I read the blog I need to go back and look at the puzzle for the clues I did not need to solve. Enjoy Monday all I am in silent mode as my wife has both my phone and hers.
For INI I thought of common types of pasta, although I know they are not all featured in ristorantes. Cappellini, ditalini, rotini, fettucini, spaghettini, but not linguinE.
I see that lunch box and BOX LUNCH can be synonyms. I think of BOX LUNCHes as those prepared by caterers for bus trips, hikers, business meetings, etc.
How about the big fight at OKLAHOMA's box lunch social! I tried to find it on youtube without success.
The video of Chris Evert and Tracy Austin focuses on Tracy. Was that on purpose?
The options for inserting videos is limited, controlled by the blogger site. I picked this particular one because it was short, had Chrissie in it, and showed how things were not so long ago. Still, it did make me feel old.
Good morning Argyle, C.C. et al.
Congrats on your 300 milestone, Argyle! I always look forward to your take on Mon-Tue puzzles, and usually find myself nodding in agreement over all of your comments. As I was doing this puzzle, it seemed there were a lot of references to old names, so I chuckled when I read your last line.
I really enjoyed this offering by Mr. Lewis, and tried not to speed through it too quickly. With all the X's, it must have been difficult to get good fill, but he did a great job.
Like YR, I was thinking of different types of pasta ending in "ini", and thought the construction workers would use lunch boxes, instead of having a BOX LUNCH. Still, a fun easy Monday!
Have a great day, everyone!
WEES for me as I got a late start. In the corporate world we often order BOX LUNCHes for working meetings.
Congrats to Argyle!
2012 is almost 1/2 way through already? My goodness how time flies. It wouldn't be so bad if my age didn't change with it.
Have a great week everybody!
Argyle: Congrats on your 300. Now you and Boomer can compare notes.
Husker (from yesterday): Well I brought the pairs (yup, they were Avatar) in from the Ark.
Geez, it is amazing how 11.39 inches of rain can put a bit of a 'downer' on a Sunday.
Geoffrey: Thank you for a FUN Monday.
A 'toast' to all at Sunset.
Yesterdays toast was at Rainset. And then it rained ALL NIGHT!
Hi There~!
Congratulations on 300, Argyle ~!
Splnyter
Hello, Argyle, and congratulations on your 300th blog! I know I certainly rely on your Monday-Tuesday effort. Thank you.
Hello, GANG. I really sashayed through this like one fleeing the PLAGUE. It was not only EASY but fun as well and I immediately found my GROOVE.
INI just emerged but when I saw it thought of panini.
Every Thursday, if possible, I take my granddaughter to a different MUSEUM during summer. Many of them are free on that day.
I hope you all have an excellent day!
How many grooves on a record? Two.
Hi All ~~
A quick and easy Monday puzzle ... I enjoyed it. I didn't pick up on the theme until the unifier and by that time all my 'XL's had been filled in. My only pauses were at SEWELL and EXLIBRIS. I guess this was a bit "dated" but then, so am I. ;-)
Congratulations, Argyle on #300. I always enjoy and learn from your write-ups. Many thanks also for all you do for this blog. Fishing me (and others) out of the spam filter - just one of the many extra services you provide! :-)
Rainy and stormy here today. Lots of lightning - I was afraid we might lose power ... still may, I suppose. I'd better get this in while I can.
Enjoy the day!
We have a winner on how many grooves are on a record but because it's an anon, they forfeit the prize, my worn-out "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida".
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Geoff, for a great Monday puzzle. Thank, Argyle, for the great write-up.
First, congratulations to Argyle on number 300. You are Mr. Steady!
Got the entire NW corner easily and worked my way across and down.
Now I know what EX LIBRIS means.
Caught the theme after I was done. Very clever.
Perps for EBOLA and SEWELL.
We just had CLARET the other day.
Could not download this to my IPad this morning. Had it printed from the hotel desk from the Chicago Tribune site. Worked with a pen at the hotel. We are going through West Virginia now. Could not access the site for quite a while. Now I am in.
Fun puzzle. See you tomorrow.
Abejo
Good morning:
A nice, easy-breezy Monday offering. Thanks Mr. Lewis and thanks to Argyle for every one of those 300 postings. Congrats on that milestone!
Happy Monday everyone.
Good morning Argyle, C.C. et al,
Congrats and a big thanks, Argyle, for every one of those 300 write-ups.Enjoyed both of today's videos. We used to tape all those tennis matches~ enjoyed all the players of that era.Our wooden racquets are hanging up in the garage.
This was the easiest Monday ever with the exception of _ett/_GB; a fun run.Did the abc's to get it.
Lucina, great idea!How old is she? We've got the "putt-putt" golf thing going.
I know this will upset most of you but I must point out that "USC" also refers, and more properly, to The University of South Carolina. The University of South Carolina existed well before California even became a state! For the purposes of this puzzle, this fact does not change the answer, just the educated understanding of how to arrive at that answer.
On a less contentious note, several years ago I wanted to purchase an embosser for my books. They wanted an extra $25 to change the stock " From the Library of" to "Ex Libris". I now wish I had paid the extra money.
Hi Band of Outlaws,
An EASY A today. Lots of familiarity, which is the flip side of not much freshness.
An LP has one groove.
More IGOR.
Beautiful day here, and not too hot. IMBO.
Cool regards!
JzB
Thank you Mr. Lewis, for a wonderful puzzle - easy, as it may have been, it does satisfy and give confidence to a certain group of 'challenged' people. like Moi... and keeps us hooked, for the rest of the week. Thank you again, and Thank you Mr. Norris and Madame Lewis, and thank you , Mondays.
Thank you Argyle, and congratulations on the 300th anniversary ... couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
I got 'Textiles', ... but aren't the cotton and wool etc., - fibres ? I thought textiles are what they were made into .... I mean, after spinning and weaving (?) I mean, you cant 'wear' plain cotton bolls,.... ( unless you're a supermodel, I guess ). Anyway.
ALT QOD: I can turn a towel into a beach towel just by bringing it to the beach. I can do a similar thing with a bum. - Demetri Martin. (sic).
No comment.
Have a nice week, you all.
Like Jazzbumpa, I also thought that the LP had only one groove, ... unless it has another one., ... 'just for show'.
If an LP is 15" in outer diameter, and the outermost groove is 0.25" from the outer edge, and the innermost groove circle, is 4" in diam. and the recording has a average 'density' of 188 grooves per linear inch (across - ) , and moves at 33.33 rpm, and the sound 'squiggles' deviations are plus/minus 2.2 % from the center line of the groove - what distance does the stylus travel, during the playing of the entire record ?
To be correct - 'approximating to a straight line - '.
Good afternoon to all and happy Mon. Wow almost 13inches of rain here yesterday. The sun came out then we just had another small shower. Fun Mon. puzzle and congrats to you Argyle hope for many more postings. Liked the baseball clue as I have a ball with Stengals autograph on it that was given to me by my father. Have a great day to all.RJW.
I love a Monday speed run--many thanks, Geoffrey! And Argyle, those 300 commentaries are amazing and wonderful! Many thanks for all your cool information and advice over time!
My heart goes out to all of you with severe weather--my relatives in Texas have been battered two weeks in a row now. Hope things lighten up soon and that everybody will get to enjoy a lovely summer after all.
I assume the second groove is on the B side.
Argyle,
I forgot to congratulate your achieving 300 blogs. It's a wonderful milestone to have reached, and represents great perseverance and dedication. We all appreciate it!
JD@10:23
She is 15.
The younger one, 2 1/2 years, received golf clubs from her Dad, who is an avid golfer!
Argyle:
300 hundred, awesome, and another perefect game.
Last simple question for Kz, do you hear a significant difference in accents for the different parts of Oz? If so (and I assume so) how is someone to classify these differences?
Just curious, I keep hearing John Newcombe say Melbourne, though I know he is from Sydney.
COTTON can refer to the fibers in the boll, the plant itself, the crop, thread, cloth, and/or garment. WOOL also can be the raw fiber, the thread, cloth, and/or garment.
When speaking of 2 grooves for LP's isn't there one on the front and one on the back?
Lucina @ June 25, 2012 9:29 AM: What a fascinating idea. A great learning experience for both of you. Where do you live? Here in Chicago we have a lot of great museums. I need to make the rounds - it's been awhile since I've been to any of them.
Chin @ 10:23 am: I've got an embosser as well. Even though it's in English I love it. I recommend one to all home librarians.
Hola Everyone, An easy run today, except for the NE corner. I've never watched the Simpsons, and was looking for something more exotic than LLD's for Honorary law deg. I filled in everything else but had Sure bet instead of Safe bet for Not a risky wager, so the eraser had a workout in that corner.
I thought that the crossing of Plague and Ebola was interesting.
Congratulations, Argyle on your 300th post.
I'm in awe of all of the rain some of you have received. I can't imagine that much coming down in such a short period. I hope everyone avoided damage from the weather and rain.
We've had unusually cool weather for the start of summer. It has been great for us as we've worked outside for the whole weekend and finally have our paint mess all cleaned up. The deck tables and chairs are all uncovered and washed, and the umbrellas are up and it's only June!
Lucina, what a great idea for you and your granddaughter.
Until the fall of 1908 Victor records were single-sided: one groove. The earlier wax cylinders were one groove, also.
I didn't qualify the question so I still count Anon as the first correct responder.
Interesting message board discussing early recordings: Link.
Groovy!
Mari@12:34
I live in Scottsdale, AZ and we are surrounded by MUSEUMS not only here but in Phoenix and the surrounding cities. That provides many opportunities for us on Thursdays.
One of my and her favorites is the MIM (Musical Instrument Museum) and though not ever free, it is relatively inexpensive and takes many trips to see all of it as there are instruments from every part of the world, literally.
You are so lucky! Chicago has some fabulous museums although I've only been to the Field. It's on my bucket list to take my granddaughter there to visit.
If those of you with 10 or more inches of rain would please pack up about half of those inches and ship it to Colorado, we in Colorado would surely appreciate it. The state is literally on fire with at least 9 fires currently being fought. One of those fires, the Waldo Canyon fire is nearly in my back yard on the West Side of Colorado Springs!
Congrats to Argyle on his 300...I've loved reading this blog...thanks for being there.
Hello Puzzlers -
Easy Monday sailing, just the thing after a day of rigorous travel.
Handing out lots of EURO coins and notes in Galway and the Aran Islands at the moment. Intend to give away more in exchange for some pints to soothe the weary bits.
P. S. Meant to congratulate Argyle on the milestone!
Geoffrey, thanks for the fun puzzle. I had a little trouble with EXLIBRIS intersecting with LLDS and USS (instead of USN). That seemed kind of tough for me for a Monday but it all worked out OK. Also, thank you to Argyle for all that you contribute to this blog.
Many of you seemed to enjoy the homophone puzzle a week or so ago. I made up a new one. The other ones I had found online but these are original. Since I will probably include them in my newspaper column, I would appreciate any helpful comments.
Each answer is a pair of homophones, which are words that sound alike but are spelled differently. You are given two clues: One would precede one of the homophones, the other would follow the other. For example, given the words "hay" and "jumper," the answer would be "bale" as in "hay bale" and "bail" as in "bail jumper." (There are a couple of plurals and multiword clues also.)
soothing/away; sun's/hell; just/carts; bread/off; international/suitcase; Douglas/bearing; long/chalk; silver/out; Stop__!/book; sympathetic/habit; Just a ___/__, that was close!; horse/greens
Puzzle a little dated... probably why I did so well. (That and it's Monday)
Argyle, how many years does it take to write-up 300 puzzle? Thanks for your dedication! I've always wondered how early in AM does one have to get up to do puzzle and write-up? Probably can do with one hand tied behind your back by now.
Anony-Mouse,I laughed when I read QOD.
Argyle, noticed Sahl still tells one-liners. Newer comedians seem to tell stories, although I think Bill Cosby may have started that trend.
I have 50+ old 45 records. My sister and I pooled our allowances weekly to get the newest release. My kids bought me a record player on EBAY for Christmas.
I forgot to mention Argyle's Spartan effort in attaining the 300.
Kudos, my friend.
Cheers!
JzB
Ach -
Now I have a groove on my back side.
JzB
I was a Small when we got married but good eating and bad habits have led me to the land of XL. Gloriosky, Sandy! Congrats on CCC, Argyle!
Musings
-I have started fires and projected images with 3” CONVEX LENSes but the big attraction was my 14” concave mirror that focused so much light that wood would burst into flame instantly. We also cooked hot dogs when we used it as a solar hot dog cooker
-How many choices were on the MENU in My Cousin Vinny?
-In some parts of this country one may AXE a tree or AXE a question.
-The GANGs in Westside Story wouldn’t have any chance against street gangs today.
-Our annuity is saving REAMS of paper by sending us the stuff nobody reads online instead of a 500 pg tome!
-This iconic songs starts with the sound of an engine REVing
-Easy A’s for jocks didn’t always work out that way for us academics
-The profligacy of some nations is making other regretting being in the EURO system
-Tin, glad your “loved ones” are safe!
Argyle, you are truly a blog treasure! Fine soothing puzzle.
Lemonade: You mentioned being able to read the font on your Kindle. You probably know you can enlarge the type on Kindle. I don't know what the newer ones have, but mine has a button marked with a big A-little A to the right of the long bar. Once enlarged every new purchase is in that size on mine. I've got it jacked up pretty big. Sure is a blessing.
Question for Californians: do any of you have lightening bugs/fireflies in your area? My nephew brought his wife to our mid-continent state. She had lived only in Hawaii and S. California. She was so surprised to learn that fireflies were not just fiction. We were surprised she'd never seen our evening twinklers. We thought everyone had them.
Addendum, yesterday I tried a great new way to cook sweet corn that is FABULOUS and easy!
1. Put the entire ear, husk and all just as you got it at the sweet corn stand, in the microwave for 4 minutes/ear
2. Take out the hot ear with a hot pad and place on a cutting board
3. Cut the butt end of the ear off entirely at the end of the cob
4. Hold the ear by the silk end (with a hot pad) and with a little shaking a some squeezing a perfect, roasted ear will slide out sans silk and ready to eat. SLICK!
Lucina @ 12:59 pm: My bucket list contains the many Smithsonian buildings in DC!
23D EFS- I came close one memorable time. I took my first college class, Chemistry, in summer school. Calculators were the newest thing and only "rich" students had them. They finished test extremely quickly and we were graded on the curve. Two weeks into 6 week course, I withdrew. Administrative secretary told me I would never be a nurse if I couldn't pass chemistry.
I've been a registered nurse for 36+ years. My daughter ended up getting her BS in Chemistry and is now 3 years into getting her doctorate in Pharm-Tox!
HG, Microwave corn sound like something I'll try. Sometimes soak husk and all in water and then grill outside. Sounds better to stay in air-conditioning and use microwave today. Temp 101 degrees yesterday and not much cooler today!
Tax loss, liquidate, safe bet ... Is Mr. Lewis an investor?
I learned it is TYLENOL, not mylanta.
Argyle, 300 thanks to you.
Boomer, may you score many more 300's.
Barry G, may your Chrysler 300 continue to give you many more years of service and pleasure.
Go Thermopylae!
Husker Gary ~~ On the menu in "My Cousin Vinny" ~ three items : BREAKFAST LUNCH DINNER! Love it! (I'll have the grits)
Husker Gary @ 2:29 pm: Based on your comment regarding easy A's, I think you and I could have been in the same gym class!
soothing balms/bombs away
Bill G:
Here's what I have, in addition to Anon @ 4:03.
Sun's rays/raise hell
Just deserts/desserts carts
Bread pudding/putting off (not convinced on this one)
Douglas Child/child bearing
Long queue/cue chalk
Silver ware/ wear out
Just a few/phew, that was close
Horse collared/collard greens
Still pondering over the others.
Musings 3
-Video of cooking sweet corn in mircowave. It is clean and easy!!
-Mari, the class where the jocks got EASY A’s was something called Health and Hygiene. Not one question on the test was in the lectures or notes, all the athletes got A’s, the rest of us got C’s and we never saw the tests again.
-Linda, I’ve never had grits but how to cook them was a big part of the movie.
-My best friend in high school had a 409 in a blue super sport Impala where I went 140+ mph with him on a school day. Yikes. He wound up flying helicopters in Vietnam.
- Douglas FIR/FUR bearing and still thinking
Hi all,
I didn't think this was as easy as a usual Monday puzzle, I see most of you do. I guess it's my age. Ha!
I think my problem today was I tried to make it harder than it was. When I filled in a wrong answer and finally got the right one, I thought, gee, that was easy. Oh well!
On 31A I knew it was probably a drum but not sure which one. My son used to play drum in a DRUM AND BUGLE CORP. He was gone most weekends all summer which was nice. He isn't very tall and the drum was almost higher than he was.
I couldn't remember ebola, and needed the perps for convex lens. I liked Zane Grey ok, my Dad had some of those. He liked western stories as much as I do.
My HD and I just finished a book by Michael McGarrity called HARD COUNTRY. It was about settling New Mexico from after the Civil War to 1919. It was very good. We've read other books by him, he lives in Santa Fe.
We still need rain here, but it's flooding in Northern Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Have a good evening all.
I mean my DH not HD. Sorry.
Marge
Bread DOUGHS/DOZE off
stop HIM/HYMN book
2 to go!
Geez, you guys are even gooder than I thought!
The Stanley cup passed through Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach today. I wasn't in the right place at the right time. Oh well, off for a cold espresso drink.
Marge, have you read Louis L'Amour's westerns? I love them. This author won many awards.
Out of character for him, he wrote Walking Drum, one of my all time favorites. It is an adventure story set in the 12th century, about which most of us know very little. The tale encompassed caravans, slave galleys, Moorish Spain, Persia, and Constantinople, among many other exotic sites. It was well researched, entertaining, and enlightening.
I must check into Michael Garrity’s Hard Country.
My new avatar is Kenny, my grandson, 14, on his graduation from middle school. At the ceremony he played trumpet in the brass ensemble and in the band. Theirs is the best middle school band I have ever heard. BTW, my ex was an accomplished band teacher and I have attended many fine performances. This band also has made recordings. I can't wait to hear them in high school.
Hi all, really enjoy this blog! I have been reading for months. Thank you to all who contribute. I have found I am doing much better at solving than I did before I started following the blog. Sure hope everyone has a good week.
Mickey
Yellowrocks: Grandkids are great, aren't they. Kenny sounds especially nice. Yes, I've read and enjoyed Louis L'Amour. Which were your favorite westerns? Maybe I could get one or two for my Nook.
"Down The Long Hills" is the best book Louis L`Amour ever wrote, IMHO.
Yellowrock,
Yes, I've read Louis L'amour but not lately. I like him too.
PK-Yes we have lightning bugs in Wisc. Also we had them in other places I've lived-Kansas and Indiana. I don't remember any in New Mexico.
Good night all!
Marge
I like all the L'amour novels. Hondo might be a good way to start.
If you read the Sackett series try to read them in chronological order rather than in the order they were written.
international loch/lock suitcase?
international PACT/PACKED suitcase
the last one? Got no clue!
Just finished mowing and trimming the lawn and need a shower!
A violin and a donkey perform a duet.
Musical donkey
Greetings!
Nice puzzle! Thanks to Geoff and Argyle and
congratulations to Santa!
Still struggling with tingling sensation. (Does anyone read late Sunday blog?)
Had 2 hour deep cleaning at holistic dentist this afternoon. Do not really want to eat again! (That was only for lower teeth!)
Fell asleep reading the blog!
Cheers!
PK:
I have it set on a large font, which makes life easier.
Welcome momnature and mickey, go blue, its suits you.
PK@2:32
There are no lightning bugs in Arizona either. On my first trip to North Carolina, I was fascinated with them!
Fermatprime wrote: "Still struggling with tingling sensation. (Does anyone read late Sunday blog?)"
Yes, I read it. I've never had a serious case of tingling so I had nothing to contribute. Being on the west coast, I read late and sometimes post late but like most others I've noticed, I seldom respond to late night posts.
Thanks to Argyle for his many contributions.
chin @ 10:23a: I was thinking the same thing re: 55a. Back in the DF days, someone here would have mentioned that those two college's mascots are the Trojans and the Gamecocks. Glad we got that covered...
Lemonade,
Sorry for the late reaction. First, the only distinction between Oz accents is that people from the rural areas tend to speak more slowly. Amazing really when you consider that the country is about the same size as the lower 48 here. There may be some local colloquialisms, but pronunciation differences are pretty much nonexistent.
As for John Newcombe, although he was born in Sydney, he may have lived in Melbourne for a longer time, but I really don't know. I found out he has a tennis ranch in Texas, so I guess it really doesn't matter where he's from now.
Perhaps I should add that the only linguistic differences of note are the affected accents of those, who are not too proud of their Aussie accents, trying to sound more educated and British--the so called international accent.
The shop owner where I take my car for repairs is originally from Iraq but he spent several years in New Zealand where, he told me, he learned English. He speaks clearly and articulately with a noticeable, but not obstructive, accent.
As an ESL teacher I am always curious about how foreigners learn English and the degree of clarity.
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