Theme: Going in circles.
Extremely elegant puzzle, but I wonder how many will catch on to the nuances here?
18. Congregational divide : CHURCH AISLE.
24. "Inside the NBA" analyst Barkley, familiarly : SIR CHARLES.
40. Fix-it guide : REPAIR CHECKLIST.
52. Wooly garment : MOHAIR COAT.
And the unifier:
63. Office purchase, and in a way, what can be seen in this puzzle's sequence of circles : SWIVEL CHAIR.
At first, I thought it was just anagrams of the word CHAIR. "Ah, but look closer Grasshopper, and you will see that the 'chair' swivels one letter at a time":
r - chai
ir - cha
air - ch
hair - c
And did I mention? It is a pangram, to boot! Fantastic execution! And very timely, because I am in the process of re-doing my office, complete with new office chairs...
Marti here, to look at the rest of the entries with you.
Across:
1. Browns' org. : NFL. National Football League. Or "Cle," on scoreboards.
4. Twine material : SISAL
9. Come-ons : LURES
14. SS supplement, for some : IRA. Individual Retirement Account.
15. Golfer who was #1 when she retired in 2010 : OCHOA . Mexican-born Lorena OCHOA Reyes, who was the top women's golfer from 2007-2010. She won her first state event at the age of five! (How's that make you feel, HG?)
16. Missouri's ___ Mountains : OZARK . Map.
17. TUMS target : GAS . I wanted "acid," but it wouldn't fit.
20. Modern address starter : HTTP . Hypertext transfer protocol. Who comes up with these names, anyway?
22. Spirited mount : STEED
23. Do a hatchet job : HEW
28. Burning rubber sound : SQUEAL
30. Decorous : PROPER
34. Green hole : CUP . The hole on the green that OCHOA hits more often, with less strokes, than I!
35. Wings it, musically : VAMPS . Trust me, I read more about VAMP than I ever care to remember while looking this one up. So let's just go to an example. 4:21
39. Heavenly bear : URSA. Major or minor?
44. Like many eBay items : USED
45. Tuscany city : SIENA. Another map.
46. Hum attachment? : VEE . This vehicle.
47. Fable messages : MORALS
50. Manually : BY HAND
56. He voiced Elmer : MEL. Blanc. The man of a thousand voices.
59. Sweethearts maker : NECCO . New England Confectionery Company.
60. Leap in a tutu : JETE
67. Fish lacking pelvic fins : EEL. It does, however, have a dorsal fin.
68. Aptly named bug spray : REPEL. Never heard of the brand, so this was a WAG.
69. New product div. : R AND D. Research and Development. Also abbreviated R&D, RND or simply R-D.
70. Holiday tuber : YAM. It's getting to be that time of year.
71. Surrogate : PROXY . This evening, we spotted a small kitten in our yard that had a collar. It ran right up to us and mewled loudly. Unfortunately, there was no ID tag on the collar, so we took her in, gave her food & water, a litter box, and a pillow for a bed out in the Florida room. I put up posters with her picture throughout the neighborhood. But I think I have become her surrogate mother. Tomorrow I will call the animal control officer and the local pet shelter to see if anyone has reported a missing cat. Anyone have any other ideas of how I can find her owners?
72. Out of port : AT SEA
Down:
1. Soon to happen : NIGH
2. Its name usually has only two or three letters : FRAT . Alpha Tau Omega, or Delta Phi, for example. Not to be confused with 37 Down. Part of PBK : PHI . Phi Beta Kappa, the honor society.
3. DaVinci masterpiece, with "The" : LAST SUPPER. I used to take my lunch and sit on the bench in front of it when I worked in Milan.
4. Humanities maj. : SOC. Sociology.
5. Einstein's "I" : ICH . German.
6. Complaint about a library volume? : SHUSH . Fun clue. I was thinking in terms of books as volumes, not sound.
7. Primary artery : AORTA
8. One working on a punch, perhaps : LACER . Well I guess if you have to include a word like "lacer", then at least the clue can be fun! It refers to the one with the pint of vodka, spiking the punch at the senior prom. Sound like anyone you know??
9. Dump truck adjunct : LOADER . Or the one who gets 11 Down?
10. Israeli arms expert ___ Gal : UZI . Israel...arms...has to be UZI, right?
11. Diaper woe : RASH .
12. Gardner who invented cases : ERLE . We know him from his "Perry Mason" series.
13. Depict unfairly : SKEW . Did I ever tell you about the course I took in college, called "Lying With Statistics"? It gave me a permanently skeptical view of anything published with graphs...
19. Common menu option : HELP
21. À la mode serving : PIE
25. Sitarist Shankar : RAVI
26. Woodwind instr. : CLAR. inet. I totally missed the abbr. of "instr." and automatically filled in "oboe" at first.
27. Franklin's genre : SOUL. Aretha, not Benjamin!
28. Rugby tussle : SCRUM . Don't ask me how I knew this, but it filled automatically.
29. Mexican cheese : QUESO
31. Magnum, for one : PRIVATE EYE . '80's TV show called "Magnum, P.I."
32. Krupp Works city : ESSEN. Not to be confused with the coffeemaker family "Krups."
33. Did Ebert's job : RATED . Formerly partnered with Siskal, in a show where they reviewed movies and gave them either a thumbs up or a thumbs down. "Two Thumbs Up" would indicate a real "must-see."
36. Roast hosts, for short : MCS . Master of Ceremony(s). Masters of Ceremony. Master of Ceremonies. Let's just go with "emcees," OK?
38. Understand : SEE. See?
41. First family member? : ADAM . (Because Barack, Michelle, Malia or Sasha wouldn't fit.)
42. "Mad Money" channel : CNBC . Never saw it. Know it from crosswords.
43. Put on the canvas : KAYO. K-O, or "knock-out," in boxing.
48. Desolate : LONELY.
49. Poet Silverstein : SHEL. "Uncle Shelby" to his fans. I miss ClearAyes, so here's one of his poems in her memory.
There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.
Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.
Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.
51. Pilgrimage to Mecca : HAJ
53. Ghana's capital : ACCRA. Another map.
54. Apple messaging tool : iCHAT
55. Horses with interspersed colored and white hairs : ROANS.
56. Amt. you don't expect to pay : MSRP. Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price.
57. Wide-mouthed pourer : EWER.
58. Slimming choice, briefly : LIPO . I'll go with Windhover's method, thank you.
61. Marsh duck : TEAL . Lovely!
62. Sailor's patron : ELMO . "St. Elmo's Fire" is a weather phenomenon in highly charged atmospheres. It would appear as a luminous glow on the ends of the ship's masts, and was regarded by sailors with religious awe.
64. Plague : VEX
65. Ending with fluor- : IDE
66. Nutritional stat : RDA . Recommended Dietary Allowance replaced the older term "Recommended Daily Allowance."
That's all for now. 'Til next week!
Hugs,
Marti
Late addition: Anyone know whose cat this is?
Morning, all!
ReplyDeletePretty smooth sailing today. The theme did absolutely nothing for me, since my puzzle had no circles and I had no idea what the theme answer was referring to as a result.
OCHOA was a total unknown (despite the fact that I've probably seen the name before) and I always thought SCRUM was more like a huddle than a tussle based on its use in business as a "quick meeting to discuss status". Obviously, however, I know nothing about rugby.
Other than that, though, no problems.
More real ducks but you are not cooking them this week. Love anagrams, pangrams and a few grams of gold. Talked to an attorney in Accra yesterday. Happy Thursday
ReplyDeleteLoved this puzzle. There were a few unknowns for me today. I had no idea NECCO made SWEETHEARTS. Not liking any kind of cheese QUESO was a total unknown and JETE seemed new to me although I've probably seen it before. These were all sorted out with perps. As for the theme I caught on to it right away, although I didn't notice the letters in CHAIR swiveling one at a time I thought they were just anagrams of the word CHAIR. Nice write-up Marti as usual. Have a great day everyone. I'm off to do some hoisting.
ReplyDelete"Remember how I found you there Alone in your electric chair"
ReplyDeleteHowdy folks,
ReplyDeleteEasy go today with only one slip up that was quickly corrected. For 16D I entered OSAGE, but the perps got me to OZARK .
Before he was SIR CHARLES, either at Auburn or his early days in the NBA, Mr Barkley was called THE ROUND MOUND OF REBOUND. It was appropriate. And Marti, have you seen his golf swing. UGLY.
VAMPS & JETE arrived via perps and until I logged on here, wasn't sure if they were correct or not. Otherwise, a non eventful success.
Good morning everyone. Tough sledding this morning. DNF, FIW. Did get the theme, and it helped. Even saw the progression. But the final cell was the O in SOC and OCHOA, and I could not come up with it. Filled in I and ran with it. Oy!
ReplyDeleteBut it was challenging and fun, so by no means a wasted effort. Thought of this TUNE to go with the theme.
Great puzzle Rich. I didn't have circles either, and never understood the theme hint. What circles ? But all in all, a very good challenge, and I enjoyed the cluing.
ReplyDeleteAs well, thank you Marti. I always enjoy your write up. Now I understand 63A clue. Good luck with your kitty.
Argyle, you may be right.
Marti: Nice write-up & links.
ReplyDeleteNot a fan of Crossword Puzzles with "circles" in the grid.
Generally, the pay-off isn't worth the gimmick. Just like todays offering. IMHO.
Caught on to the CHAIR being SWIVELed in the circles right off the bat.
Well lah-di-dah, big-whoop!
Hondo: Yup, "Round-Mound-of-Rebound" wouldn't fit. So SIR CHARLES it is. lol
Cheers!
Oh yea, 63A Office purchase...Circles.. Hmmm, circles ~ orbs ~ rings ~ office purchase and rings... hmmm three ring binders ?.... Maybe "Binders full of women" ? No, too long
ReplyDeleteMarti, If the cat has a collar, there's a reasonable chance it's been microchipped. Your vet should be able to do a quick scan and make that determination. Hope that works.
ReplyDeleteFabulous, Rich! All I had to do was figure out what a LACER was (I looked at it a long time) and I was golden.
ReplyDeleteMusings
-45°F, 35 mph winds and 90% chance of rain. Even I ain’t teein’ it up.
-In the church of my youth people knew the side of the AISLE and what seat everyone used. Woe unto him who violated that protocol!
-The Browns are horrible and still fetched over a billion dollars when sold this week
-Marti, she could have beaten me even from the blues!
-Prilosec eliminated my purchases of TUMS. I’m gastronomically bullet proof now!
-Ain’t it amazin’ that we now accept the HTTP convention of no spaces like crosswordcorner
-Assigning a job to Mr. Downs – “Hugh, you hew.”
-Remember this SNL skit where the piano player has to VAMP because Kristin Wiig can’t get started
-Punny MORALS
-The da Vinci Code’s connection to ,The Last Supper was intriguing but sure got our pastors undies in a bunch
-SKEW? There are lies, damn lies and statistics
-Are Ben and Aretha related? Hmm…
Nice puzzle today, but I was expecting the circled letters to come together and spell out a phrase.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know SISAL or OCHOA.
My favorite clues were:
- Complaint about a library volume? SHUSH
43D: Put on the canvas: KAYO (threw me off because I usually see it as "KO"
Favorite word? SCRUM
What is a RANDD? (just joking)
Super busy at work lately. We had internal auditors and a site visit from a major client. I hope things are back to normal today.
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Rich Mausser, for a swell puzzle. Thank you, Marti, for the very good write-up. Enjoyed the Dave Brubeck number.
ReplyDeleteI wanted NFL for 1A, but held off until I had a Down word. Took me a while to get that, but finally I was able to enter NFL.
CHURCH AISLE was easy, after I tried to get CENTER AISLE for a while.
LACER was clever. I thought of a guy using a leather punch to make holes in shoes for LACING. Hey, it worked.
VAMPS was anew word to me in this context. I did enjoy Marti's explanation and the Dave Brubeck number.
I did not catch the theme. I used my IPad this morning and no circles. That's OK. I got through it just fine.
One of my favorites. UZI.
I use a REPAIR CHECK LIST, and other Check lists. I seem to forget if I do not write it down. Must be the aging process.
Big day today. Lots to do, from my Check Lists.
See you tomorrow.
Abejo
Totally missed the "swiveling" letters (though no circles on my online puzzle) so thanks for that. Got "DD" first and thought that had to be wrong but then got RANDD. Nice Thursday puzzle: tricky enough to feel like you accomplished something but not so hard that you got bogged down. 8:44.
ReplyDeleteArgyle @ 6:51, great Billy Joel song! TTP caught it.
ReplyDeleteAvg. Joe @ 8:10, thanks for the suggestion. I am bringing her in this afternoon to see if she has been spayed / microchipped.
Good morning everyone. Nice breezy writeup as usual, Marti. Thanks for explaining the nuances of the theme.
ReplyDeleteThe quick brown fox just came over to greet the lazy dog. Pangram? sentence.
All the circles made it harder to see what I was doing, but eventually I got the theme. Got the circle part after entering the last theme phrase. Didn't get the swivelling part until reading Marti's erudite analysis. I agree about the fantastic execution. Had to Google QUESO to check the spelling. Saw where the NYS Ag Comm. had to put the kibosh on some queso cheese in NYC due to Listeria contamination a few months ago. Did not know what a RAND D was but the tomato can told me it was R AND D. As I said before, any cw with VEX is a good lusty puzzle.
Hope you have a good day.
Liked the binders of women!
ReplyDeleteI too put oboe Tough one for me. Enjoyed write up Marti. Good luck with kitten.
Good morning, Marti, C.C. and friends.
ReplyDeleteThis one took me longer than a typical Thursday. I got hung up with the sports terms NHL, SIR CHARLES, OCHOA, SCRUM, etc.
Marti, it sounds like that kitten has found its owner. Is it an orange tabby, by chance? A young girl knocked on our door last evening looking for her lost kitten.
I did enjoy your LOADER v RASH comparison. Regarding SKEWed statistics, my high school math teacher told us that figures don't lie, but liars do figure.
I wasn't able to see SIENA on my browser.
I've never heard of a Florida room. I assume it must be on the sunny side of the house.
Husker, before I realized that you were starting every muse with a hyphen, I thought Nebraska was in the deep freeze with -45 degree temps.
Great puzzle and write-up! My last fill was the "N" at 59 because I kept thinking it was about art deco. "Lodely" is a strange word. I was thinking more geographically for desolate.
ReplyDeleteI wasted a lot of time trying to come up with the Obama family's dog name.
37D: PBK - peanut butter & what? You may have guessed I don't own this key.
I also wasted time trying to figure out how to cram Annikka Sorenstam into 15A before I remembered OCHOA quit to spend more time with a new husband.
I have ICHAT on my computer but don't have a clue how to use it. Anyone out there use this? Is it like SKYPE?
Check to see if cat has a micro chip embedded.
ReplyDeletePK, It's Pabst Blue Keg on tap.
ReplyDeleteFrom personal experience, don't try to turn on your side when sleeping in a recliner!
Thank you Mr. Mausser for a very challenging puzzle ... and thank you, Marti for your funny, witty, clarifying blog. I gave up, after some effort ... I could have understood Schrodinger's cat a little better. It was either a question of endless, mindless Googling or - I just used your cheat sheet. I actually 'solved' only 'half' the puzzle .... just the 'Acrosses' ... then the 'Downs' suddenly became quite evident and enjoyable. ;-)
ReplyDelete1.As for the ownership, of your wayward kitty ... may I suggest, that you obtain a small mirror and carefully look inside....
2. MC - why not 'Mistress' of ceremonies ?
3. I wanted to fit in 'Losers' for the Browns, but wouldn't fit. As Husker Gary says, if Bill Haslan can pay a billion dollars for 70% of a team of overpaid, overweight cretins, ... there is too much money floating around.
4. Finally, I always thought 'anagrams' had to have some meaning .... it has to be a legitimate, recognizable word ... this swivelling effect is just a 'Jumble'. Please correct me, if I have misinterpreted the word 'anagram'.
5. Still no sign of Hahtoolah ?
Have a nice week, you all.
Hi there~!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the flowing write-up Marti, and I loved the drum solo from that clip - I'm always looking for new ideas, when I showed my buddy Mike the drumming video I made, he never heard of someone playing the UNDERside of a cymbal - and there's Joe doing it in the video~!
I got the gimmick, even without the circles, very clever. Funny you should mention Delta Phi; I was briefly a member in 1989.
I mis-read the clue as "WITH a punch", figured it was shoe lace holes, and so LACER was OK with me....
Splynter
This is the 1st time that a puzzle theme helped me finish a puzzle when i had no idea what the theme was! It certainly had me spinning around!
ReplyDeleteNote: this song is from the movie Uptown Girls. It is rare that i like a song the 1st time i hear it, but this was one of them. (actually the whole movie soundtrack is great.)
Obligatory St. Elmo's fire reference.
Actually, St. Elmo's fire is ball lightning which caused the ships masts to have an eerie glow, or aura. But when i saw this, i realized how dangerous a job refueling jets can be!!!
Marti: Ask the kitty and it will say, "I`ve found my owners!"
ReplyDeleteI used my iPad for the puzzle this morning, since it is Thursday. I found the circles distracting in words with only a few letters.
ReplyDeleteI did the south half, but red letters helped above.
Marti, your write up was great!
Sounds like my wind of yesterday is making its way across the prairie to Husker's area.
I am off to be a paper pusher at the local flu shot clinic, or people pusher--many always want to get to the front of the line.
Beautiful day in MT,
Montana
Good morning, all. Great MC analysis, Marti. I just saw CHAIR anagrams.
ReplyDeleteI sashayed right through most of this like a STEED with a burr. However, I started with REPAIR CATOLOGUE which fit perfectly but the perps demanded CHECKLIST.
Pure WAGS on NECCO and RANDD.
SCRUM? No idea.
Wonderful puzzle, than you, Rich Mausser.
Back to bed for me.
You all have a delightful Thursday!
Thought IZY Gal, short for Israel, his first name.
ReplyDeleteGreetings!
ReplyDeleteFine puzzle, Rich! Wonderful write-up, Marti! (You have exceeded yourself!) Poem is an old friend.
Relatively easy. OCHOA, NECCO from perps.
Slept 2.5 hours and can't get back to sleep.
Did puzzle from cruciverb. Saved mulling over theme.
Cheers!
Anonymouse @ 9:36, #4. You're right, anagrams are actual words that are made by changing around the letters in another word. I'm not sure what you would call these - scrambled eggs?
ReplyDeleteGreat Thursday puzzle despite "One working on a punch, perhaps: LACER," which is kind of weak.
ReplyDeleteGood morning:
ReplyDeleteI had trouble early on because of putting center aisle instead of church aisle and scrim before scrum; I really thought the word was scrim. Also, for some strange reason, I resisted filling in nigh because I thought it was spelled neigh. Funny how our brains can fool us sometimes.
In any case, thanks, Rich Mausser, for a Thursday challenge, and thanks, Marti, for your usual precise and informative write-up. Good luck with the kitty.
A beautiful fall day today but the rains are coming tomorrow. Can't complain as we had a great summer and fall; I just hope we have another mild winter.
Have a super Thursday.
I enjoyed this puzzle and Marti's always witty write up. I had only one snag which I saved for last, the R in FRAT/IRA. After going through the ABC's I felt dense. DUH!
ReplyDeleteI had no circles. I got the scrambled spelling of CHAIR very quickly, but not it's orderly progression. Very clever. It must have been difficult to construct.
SHEL Silverstein is one of my favorites. Thanks for the poem.
OCHOA was the only unknown, but solid perps got it. I liked LACER, KAYO, and SHUSH.
These puzzles and blogs excite my curiosity daily. I am always enticed to learn more. Did you know that St. Elmo's fire is more akin to the lighted neon in signs than to lightning?
Link Scientific American
Marti,
ReplyDeletePut up a $1000 reward and I bet you'll set a world record for finding a kitten's owner..!
A perfect Thursday puzzle where it's tough to get started, but slowly, slowly, it begins to fill in--with lots of patience, offering some fun surprises on the way. So many thanks, Rich M.. And Marti, your write-up was illuminating. I also think it was sweet to add an Uncle Shelby poem in honor of Clear Ayes.
ReplyDeleteI do have a nit, however. I've taught in four universities over a 40 year career, always in Humanities Schools, and Sociology was always taught in the Social Sciences--not in the Humanities. Maybe there are weird exceptions, so I won't push it. But I thought this was closer to wrong than misleading.
Anyway, I still loved the puzzle, and wish you all a great Thursday!
morning all -
ReplyDeletefun puzzle today, as always.
SHEL has been my favorite poet for as long as i can remember.
i love queso fresco. here in the OZARK's all the "mexican" restaurants serve QUESO dip that the locals love, but i find disgusting.
marti, post something on your local craigslist.org (i can't link because it keeps going to my local page, not the national one). there is also petfinder. it's amazing how far pets can travel on their own. i once found a dog 6 miles from his home. years ago i found an ugly little tortie kitten that no one would claim. she wouldn't leave my house and insisted she was mine. she ended up being the best cat ever. so glad she was so persistent!
have a good day everyone! here's hoping for a cardinals vs tigers series!
t.
Greetings to all!
ReplyDeleteI thought the orderly progression of "chair" letters was both amazing and brilliant! Thank you Rich Mausser for a delightful Thursday puzzle!
Marti @10:23, how about "musical chairs"?
Enjoy the day!
Argyle: big chuckle about PBK and recliner deportment! I'm enough better that I've actually been able to sleep a few hours in my bed the last two nights before I wake up coughing and adjourn to the chair. If I could drink beer, I'd probably feel better fast.
ReplyDeleteRules of the scrum
ReplyDeleteWhat a scrum looks like...
To make a long story short, a method of restarting a game like a scrummage sale! ( come to think of it, they do look like a bunch of shoppers at a Macys sale.)
Marti, re: your new furry bundle of joy... a picture is worth a thousand words...(pls post one)
My favorite vamp...Cher!
My 1st thought on 8D, one working on a punch, had me imagining a little old lady making shoes with an awl... ( i guess they don't do that anymore.) So Spiking the punch seems a good alternative (?)
Thanks for all the tips on finding the kitty's owners. I have pretty much covered all the bases. I just got back from the vet, and they told me she has been spayed (what a relief!) and tattooed. But it was just a mark to note where where was spayed. No microchip or other ID. So we'll just have to wait and see if anyone claims her.
ReplyDeleteI just posted a picture of her...in the event that we end up keeping her, what would be a good name?
Sorry - the picture is at the bottom of my write-up today...
ReplyDeleteNo circles here, so I was looking for something with a CH as a theme. That sure slowed down MOHAIR COAT.
ReplyDeleteThe lack of circles really cut down on the enjoyment for me. Looking for the theme after I'm done just isn't the same.
So, Barry, is this what your business meetings are like? In rugby, the ball must keep moving. When the ball is tied up, the scrum decides which team gets the ball.
Lemonade, did the attorney have several million he needed to slip into the states?
Did anyone else immediately think of Tinbeni when LACER came up?
HeartRx, Are you sure it is a female? Those big front paws remind me of a male. Funny thing about cats, if it "talks" a lot,,, its a male. (female cats do not have a lot to say...)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, i am terrible at names, my 1st (all black cat) was named "tiger" (go figure) but for some reason,,, when i look at that picture,,, the word "biscuit" comes to mind...?
Name of kitty ?
ReplyDeleteElmo ( if ticklish - ) or ClearAyes (if 'she' inspires you to poetry - ).
Yellow Rocks ( and Hugs - ) thank you for the Sci.Am. article. Now, I understand. I have several light bulbs made in China, and elsewhere, with a cross, or some other religious symbols and letters - where the filament is not incandescent (glows, with heat ) but there is a discharge around the filament. The bulbs are over 15 years old, and are in very good shape. I think its St. Elmo's fire or similar. Unfortunately the wattage is very low - good enough for a dim night light - but they consume only 4 Watts of power. Some of them have 2 parallel pairs of filaments, so the emission fluctuates - you can see a 'cross' in one sec. and then 'INRI' the next second, and so on, but no physical wear and tear on / in the bulb. Since no heat is generated, these should be close to 90 percent energy efficient.
A small nit - an 'IRA' is a individually funded, tax deferred investment. An SS supplement would be an entirely govt. funded, welfare, 'gift' - like supplementary Social Security - which is based only on need, like 'welfare', and is irrespective of the person having contributed anything to the Soc. Sec. fund in the first place.
Thank you Marti, for your response.
Heart Rx - We once adopted a stray cat and called her Moocher. The name stuck.
ReplyDeleteAnother name we always liked was Muusche Blitz or cat's lightning
Marti, she looks kinda spicey. How 'bout Cumina (because she's the color of cumin).
ReplyDeleteCaramel?
ReplyDeleteHow about something to do with October?
ReplyDeletePumpkin (color)
Weenie (halloween)
Spook
I enjoyed the puzzle and the writeup. Thanks Rich and Marti. The puzzle and this blog may turn out to be the best part of my day.
ReplyDeleteYesterday, driving back from my bike ride at the beach, I noticed my temperature gauge was climbing higher than usual. I took the car by my trusty mechanic. I just got a call and it needs a new hose (that runs through the throttle body) and a new freeze plug. The repair bill is $602. Aargh.
They say bad things come in threes. Being a math/science person, I don't believe it for a minute. But first we lost EddyB, then Clear Ayes. Now, a woman who I knew only online from South Pasadena. She was intelligent, kind, thoughtful and a good online friend. I just found out she recently had a heart attack. While recuperating in the hospital, she contracted pneumonia and passed away yesterday. Needless to say, I'm feeling kind of down about all of this. The car just takes some money to make it right. There is no way to make the loss of these online friends feel OK. Sad times.
Although MEL (56A) Blanc did most of the WB cartoon voices, Elmer Fudd was not done by him but by Arthur Q. Bryan who also did many radio voices before TV took over. Females were usually voiced by June Foray.
ReplyDeleteHEY !!!
ReplyDeleteI know that cat.
That's HeartRx/Marti's cat.
Named: LOKI ... for "Little Orange Kitty"
Yeah ... that's LOKI ...
Grungy: Moi? A LACER?
I would never waste my time (or Avatar) spiking punch.
(I may be the "Otis Campbell" of the Blog, but I have my "standards" ... they're low, of course, but at least I have them! lol)
Bill G. My condolences on the loss of your friend. How sad!
ReplyDeleteAnony-Mouse, I originally had the same thoughts as you about IRA and so it took me long to fill in the R. I look at it differently now. It supplements (adds to) the Social Security money in your bank account. My IRA is totally for the future, so I didn't look at it that way. I reinvest my mandatory withdrawals.
AA, what's the news on Casey? Did you like The Print Maker's Daughter? As I said yesterday, I am enjoying the book you recommended.
Marti, cute kittie!
ksquare, you are right that Arthur Bryan was the original Elmer Fudd voice, but Mel Blanc also did Fudd at times.
ReplyDeleteAnd CED, thanks for posting the link to the rugby scrum. As you said, a picture is worth a thousand words! In doing more research, I found all kinds of terms like "scrummage", "scrim" and "scrimmage" which all seem to be related somehow. I think I knew the term "scrum" from watching rugby with my friends in Europe. They had to explain nearly everything that was going on to me!
My post vanished after I hit Publish, so I'll try again.
ReplyDeleteBill G - So sorry about your friend.
Marti - Peaches. She looks like peaches and cream to me.
Spook is cute, too, but sounds masculine to me.
Wiki agrees with Marti about Arthur Bryan and Mel Blanc:
ReplyDeleteFudd was originally voiced by radio actor Arthur Q. Bryan, but twice in Bryan's lifetime the voice was provided by the versatile Mel Blanc: once, in The Scarlet Pumpernickel (1950), only a single line was needed, and bringing in Bryan was not cost effective; in What's Opera, Doc?, Elmer's furious scream "SMOG!" was dubbed by Mel Blanc, although Bryan had voiced the rest of the part.
Montana, some of your wind has blown my way also. My neighborhood was a copper and gold splendor yesterday. Today those gold bits are being flung wide. My yard man picked up leaves yesterday. Today the yard is well covered again.
ReplyDeleteCED: The shoe-stitching film is fascinating. On a trip I took to San Antonio we took a tour through the shoe factory there and watched Latino women making shoes and purses. They were so skilled. I bought a purse which I carried ten years.
Marti: Maybe someone gifted you with that kitty. We used to have that happen a lot on dark nights. Or he didn't like where he was and has adopted you. We had one kitten show up who had crawled up into the cowling of our daughters' car at college and ridden for three hours to our house.
I kinda like DO's line of thought for the cat's name, but considering how she arrived, I'm thinking Cinnamon might be a better fit.
ReplyDeleteI think this link, in T.S. Elliot's own voice is most appropriate for my dilemma today!
ReplyDeleteOona or Tess, she looks more like a Tess.
ReplyDeleteMichael
Good afternoon late to the party today. What Tinbeni said about the puzzle, not a fan of the circle thing.
ReplyDeleteMarti, what a cote kitten, I suggest Pumpkin,but Tinbeni's was good too.
Have a great day to all RJW
How on earth did Rich think of that theme, then execute it so well? and thanks, Marti, for your enlightening write-up.
ReplyDeleteI'm also thinking you just got a new cat. You could go with the PB theme and call her Peanut Butter.
LACER sounded to me like the shoe making thing too, Abejo and Splynter.
Guess what? that kneecap they said was fractured, then said nope, no fracture? well, a new X-ray shows the fracture all right. Kind of a relief; I was still having quite a bit of pain, and feeling like a wimp. Now I feel validated! (fist pump here)
It doesn't look good for Irish Miss, my wife and the Yankees. I guess they'll have to join the Dodgers in waiting until next year.
ReplyDeleteHeartRx - Ginger
ReplyDeleteminimarti?
ReplyDeleteI think Tinbeni's Loki is just right, a cute name for a cute
ReplyDeleteLittle Orange Kitty.
So many cute names!! But I really have to find her "real" owners. I put her on Craig's list, and linked it to Facebook as well.
ReplyDeleteThe clock is now ticking. If no owner comes forward, I will be faced with the difficult task of choosing a name from among the many wonderful suggestions today!
Jazz: Congrats to your Tigers.
ReplyDelete[grrrrrrrrr!]
HeartRx:
Considering where you first mentioned her in your write-up ...
PROXY
might be another suggestion.
[tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock ... I need a name!]
How about Tiger ? Seems prophetic.
ReplyDeleteJust stirring the pot...
Beurre Noisette
ReplyDeleteIf Kitty is indeed a female, I would be very careful with Tinbeni's suggestion of Loki. In Norse mythology, Loki or Loptr is a god or jötunn (or both). Loki is the son of Fárbauti and Laufey, and the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. Something to think about.
ReplyDeleteThe suggestion was an acronym:
ReplyDeleteL ittle
O range
KI tty
Ergo, not the norse loki (small letters) god of mischief.
Though kittens do get into mischief sometimes.
TBBT went back to their original theme and the show was funny tonight.
Coincidence ????
Marti: ask the cat. Run the names by her/him and if you get a response on one more than another, that's the winner. If he/she doesn't like a name he'll never come to it.
ReplyDeleteDon't you have other cats? How are they responding to the new one? Nothing more jealous than some cats.
PK, this little kitty will come running no matter what I call her! She is the friendliest little thing ever.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I have two other (old) cats...they are not taking kindly to this usurper of their territory. So, it is a watch and wait game. Keep the new kitty on the other side of the floor-length glass door, and let them "see" each other for a while. We'll see how it goes.
BTW, DH did not take kindly to a new kitty,either. But she jumped up onto his lap and started licking his chin. He is starting to melt...
Marti, it's hard to imagine anybody being able to resist the loveability of an affectionate little kitten.
ReplyDelete