google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Tuesday, May 21, 2013 Gareth Bain

Gary's Blog Map

May 21, 2013

Tuesday, May 21, 2013 Gareth Bain

Theme: Olive Garden - because they have the Never Ending Pasta Bowl. The endings of the themes are types of pasta, as the unifier in the SE reveals.

18A. *Sculling competition craft : RACING SHELL

28A. *"Support our troops" symbol : YELLOW RIBBON

47A. *Convenient neckwear : CLIP-ON BOWTIE

62A. *Disorder on the court : TENNIS ELBOW

55D. Food found in the shapes at the ends of the answers to starred clues : PASTA

A hungry Argyle here. I'll cut my comments short so I can get to breakfast. Eggs and spaghetti.

Across:

1. Co. with brown trucks : UPS. A Splynter shout out, first thing.

4. Eat with relish : SAVOR. Savor the flavor.

9. Brand-new barker : PUPPY. Aah!

14. Vietnamese holiday : TET

15. Yale or Root : ELIHU. Elihu Root was Secretary of State, 1905 – 1909.

16. Be in harmony : AGREE

17. Fiancé's last words? : "I DO"

20. "Toreador Song" opera : "CARMEN". 22. Cheers for Escamillo in 20-Across : OLÉs The glamorous toreador.


23. Zing : PEP

24. Annual fact book : ALMANAC

26. __ of office : OATH

33. Singer Guthrie : ARLO

36. Historic women's gp. : DAR. (Daughters of the American Revolution)

37. Comic actor Dudley : MOORE

38. Middling mark : CEE

39. New Jersey port with a bridge to Staten Island : BAYONNE

 

42. Slipshod : LAX

43. "Speak of the __!" : DEVIL

45. Prefix with -lithic : NEO. Neolithic, the last phase of the Stone Age.

46. Liquefy : MELT

51. Without repetition : ONCE

52. Develop stage fright, say : TENSE UP

56. "Me time" resort : SPA

59. Lady of Lisbon : DONA

61. Freeport's "Grand" island : BAHAMA


65. "Pygmalion" playwright's initials : GBS. George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)

66. Els with tees : ERNIE. Bert is his caddie.

67. Big name in metal wrap : ALCOA

68. Permit : LET

69. Buddies, in slang : PEEPS. Your people, your posse.

70. British comedian Gervais : RICKY


71. History chapter : ERA

Down:

1. Seat of New York's Oneida County : UTICA. An area well known to some of our solvers.

2. Sewing machine lever : PEDAL

3. Thunder source : STORM

4. Cool and collected : SERENE

5. Hawkeye Pierce portrayer : ALAN ALDA. M*A*S*H

6. London's Old __ : VIC. (theatre)

7. Buckeye State : OHIO

8. Get close to "Empty" : RUN LOW

9. Fritter away the hours : PASS TIME

10. "Blech!" : "UGH!"

11. GRE practice : PREP. (Graduate Record Examinations)

12. One-named soccer immortal : PELE

13. Website with restaurant reviews : YELP. And more. LINK

19. Transmission choice : GEAR. This had me looking for a type of transmission, not just one gear.

21. BLT dressing : MAYO

25. Medium for some animators : CLAY. Claymation they call it.

27. "Game of Thrones" network : HBO

29. Maine campus town : ORONO

30. Tree trunk : BOLE

31. Like Sabin's polio vaccine : ORAL

32. Bank teller's cry : "NEXT!"

33. Outlet letters : AC/DC. Not both on the same outlet, I hope.

34. Lively dance : REEL

35. First name in jeans : LEVI

39. Brownies with brown sugar in place of chocolate : BLONDIES. Guess what? It's safe to google 'blondies image'.

40. Pond critter : NEWT. Needed perps to decide which critter it would be.

41. Small laptop : NOTEBOOK

44. Much-hyped NASDAQ event for Facebook : IPO. (initial public offering)

46. Fry basket material : MESH

48. Cpls. and sgts. : NCO's

49. Remain close to : BE NEAR

50. Sort of : IN A WAY

53. Soaring hunter : EAGLE

54. "Raw" pigment : UMBER. As opposed to 'burnt'?

56. Staircase part : STEP

57. Famille patriarch : PÈRE. in France.

58. Writing sister of Emily and Charlotte : ANNE

60. "That's __ need!" : ALL I

63. __ in the bud : NIP

64. Send covertly, as a dupe email : BCC. The original recipient won't see a copy has been sent.


Argyle


67 comments:

  1. Morning, all!

    Very smooth solve today. BAYONNE was new to me, but everything else went down with no fuss or muss. I'm not familiar with RIBBON pasta, but didn't need to know it to get that particular theme answer.

    [readdruc]

    ReplyDelete
  2. Happy Tuesday everyone!

    Nice, efficient lunchtime Tip-toe through the Tue-lips today….

    Only temporary setbacks, such as Cayman for Bahama and Stutter for Tense Up….

    Ah, yes, pasta – a definite staple from the bachelor’s cookbook (I made spaghetti the other night)….

    Speaking of bachelors, here’s a homage montage to 63D….

    And a tip o’ the tam to 8D….

    Regarding the moderation discussion yesterday, maybe one of the Corner’s Crossword Constructors will one day include an homage of different sort with the following clue:
    “Anon Adjective” (6 letters)….

    Is it considered a personal attack if you know not to whom you speak…? Just askin’….

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hello everyone,

    Gloomy, muggy (ugh) day in CT. Too early for the three H's, but they are here.

    Nice, fun puzzle from Gareth today. Not a speed run though because of the NE corner and some issues in the South. In the NE. 11D PREP, 13D YELP & 23A PEP were answers I didn't feel comfortable with them, but they seemed to make sense, so I moved on.

    I messed myself up in the South by entering Nassau before BAHAMA. It made for a slow go, but ONCE i made the correction, the rest fell into place quickly.

    Nice theme today, but the murkiness won't make me go looking for PASTA anytime soon.

    Terrible news from Oklahoma. Hope the loss of life does not increase any further. These tornado's are becoming too darn frequent.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Good morning, folks. Thank you,Gareth Bain, for a very good puzzle. Thank you, Argyle, for a swell review.

    Got started in the NW. It was pretty easy up there. I wrote in PEDAL for 2D. However, as I remember, my mother's sewing machine had a treadle. That would not fit, so I used PEDAL.

    UTICA reminded me of Utica Club, pretty lousy beer.

    Of course I wrote COAL for 25D, thinking of charcoal for sketching. CLAY won the day.

    Not sure I ever heard of PEEPS for buddies. Must be a local jargon somewhere.

    Have a few CLIP ON BOW TIEs. Have many tie bow ties.

    Theme was swell. I enjoy pasta once in a while. I think it is good for you.

    TTP: Caught your comment late last night on the intersection in Wheaton. Very good. I sent you a note last night.

    Lost another pocket knife at the airport in Nashville. However, I was able to mail it to myself. My sister took care of that since she had a later flight. We will see if it shows up. Case knife. Made in Bradford,PA.

    Now that I am back home, I have to get caught up.

    See you tomorrow.

    Abejo

    (slaier)

    ReplyDelete
  5. If you can't see my picture of the Bayonne bridge, please let me know.

    ReplyDelete
  6. The universe is wishing us bon voyage with PERE today and ICI, EURO, and LYON yesterday. Off to Paris and then Lyons to visit our son. Life is good!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi All ~~

    This was really fast today ~ hardly had time to glug my coffee in between writing in answers. Nice early week stroll - thanks, Gareth.

    Fun write-up, Argyle - hope you enjoyed your breakfast. :-) I always like your theme "creations" - the Olive Garden thing for this one was is great!

    I, like Barry, am unfamiliar with RIBBON pasta and YELP was an unknown. I did pause at 11D - GRE practice, because I was thinking of a particular test like SAT / PSAT but other than that, smooth sailing!

    Liked 'Brand-new barker' - PUPPY.

    Thoughts and prayers to all those affected in Oklahoma.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Good morning!

    I didn't find this one to be easy. Doable, but not easy. I remember something about the Old Bailey, but not VIC. I dredged up BAYONNE from some dark recess. Do you suppose their female athletes are the BAYONNEttes?

    My first exposure to the Toreador Song was the soundtrack from Carmen Jones..."stand up and fight like hell!"

    Hard to believe, but that Facebook IPO was more than a year ago! I must've been having fun.

    Hondo, one tornado is "too darn frequent" if it happens to you.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Utica Club had some great commercials for a while. LINK

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good morning, gang - this was definitely one of my favorite Tuesday puzzles because of the excellent cluing. Plus, how can anything be bad that has pasta in it (plus a good DF crossing)?

    My only real pause was with Old VIC - needed the perps. YELP threw me a bit, because I thought it was for retail stores since mine were on it. Favorite clue was "Disorder on the court"; if it wasn't for "on", I'd still be looking. Nicely done puzzle, as always, Gareth.

    In a turnabout of my usual trick, my wife came home late Friday afternoon and said, "pack a bag - we're taking a mini-vacation". She had booked us for three nights in Key Largo, where we got to play with dolphins for a couple days. Couldn't talk my way into swimming with the semi-wild ones this time; the lawyers have cracked down on novices mingling with them. I'm in awe of those animals and their intelligence; next time around, I am definitely going to be a dolphin trainer. Or maybe a dolphin.

    Evidently had very heavy rains here in Boca yesterday (8" or so; we got home late last night just as a lightning strike knocked everything out) with more coming, but my thoughts are with the folks in OK and surrounds who just got hammered by that string of tornadoes. I can't imagine contending with that, and the helplessness you must feel when you see one approaching. At least here there's significant warning and plenty of time to make tracks.

    Hope it's a bearable Tuesday for everyone.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Hi everybody. This was a nice and easy Tuesday level puzzle. I liked 66A: Els with Tees: ERNIE, and 17A: Fiance's last words? I DO.

    I didn't know ELIHU or BOLE, but now I do.

    HG: Oh great keeper of the map, do we have any friends in OK? Prayers to all.

    ReplyDelete
  12. D-Otto @ 7:27 am Yesterday: Regarding the statue of Ceres, yes! "She" is very Art Deco. In fact the whole building is. It's petty cool inside.

    TTP @ 9:34 am: Regarding the stop sign, that is too funny! I grew up on Collage Avenue across from the Metra train station, so I should have recognized it. Good eye! My father was a Wheaton cop for 30 years.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Good morning everyone.

    All the PASTA shapes are available in the many Italian restaurants in UTICA, visible ½ mile down the hill outside my window as I type this. Had some UTICA Club last night while playing bridge. I enjoyed it because I was a guest in someone else's house.
    ELIHU Root had a home in Clinton, NY about 10 miles SW of UTICA. He was the US co-author of the Boundary Waters Treaty with Canada, still an important document in jointly managing (by the two countries) the Great Lakes and other boundary rivers and streams.
    The solve went well and I enjoyed another of Gareth's puzzles.

    Have a good day.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I just checked the last version of the map and we don't have anyone showing on it in OK. My son is in Little Rock though, and there's a warning that one might head there today, so I'm keeping an ear on the news today.

    I certainly can't imagine dealing with all that devastation. Those children lost is another travesty. If they can't build basements economically on the bedrock there, they should erect storm shelters with very thick sturdy concrete walls at least in schools.

    I thoroughly enjoyed the puzzle today, with the only challenge in the NE corner, like others. I started thinking the racing vessel might be SCULL, since sculling is what they are doing. I guess it didn't strike me that it would be repeating what is in the clue. Suffice it to say that WAGs and perps helped no less than usual today.

    PEEPS annoys me, as I always think of those insanely unhealthy looking Easter chicks.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Cute puzzle - lots more material in the PASTA shapes category: radiatore (look like little radiators), farfalle (Italians call BOWTIEs butterflies), orecchiete (little ears), gemelli (twins), and on and on. For Fridays

    ELIHU Root was born in Clinton, NY, a few miles from UTICA, and home of Hamilton College, his alma mater. What is amazing is that, despite being a Nobel Peace Prize winner, and Secretary of State, he always came home to manage the family Arboretum, now part of the college, called the Root Glen, a naturalized park. He worked on hybridizing spring bulbs, also. And he was handsome.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Hello Puzzlers -

    Smooth going today, no speed bumps.

    Stage Fright happened to me once in high school - I was alone on stage singing a number, in a show I'd done the night before, when right in the middle I forgot the words. That's a tense moment, let me tell you.

    Big day here in Mass! We finally get to benefit from the work of Ed the Enthusiastic Blaster. Our new cellar is being dug today.

    Cheers All

    ReplyDelete
  17. Nice and fun puzzle, Thank you Gareth Bain. I got the theme and all. Thank you, Argyle, for your swell commentary. But I can't find your picture on the Bayonne bridge, no matter how hard I try. Are you the red haired lumberjack in shorts, by the railing ?

    Is there a Bayonne pasta ? Must have missed that one at the supermarket.

    Dudley wrote ... 'Big day here in Mass !' - I was wondering what Ed the Blaster was doing at the church .... maybe an explosive sermon ?

    Mari, I loved the pic of the faceless Ceres. Thats simply wonderful. So your father was a Wheaton cop - did he roundup any Wheaton terriers ? ;-) The terrier breed "most likely to be stolen", per the A.K.C. My niece, who lives in Chicago, lives in a high rise behind the bldg. with a lighted Tiara or a birthday cake, on the top floor. Its S.E. of the Sears building.

    The shares of Facebook, have tanked - now below their IPO value. Not good news.

    Have a nice day, you all.

    P.S. Has Hahtoolah dropped out ?

    ReplyDelete
  18. Nice Tuesday Mr. Bain!
    Am I the only one with no idea what "BLONDIES" are? New to me. A tongue-in-cheek reference I fail to grasp?
    Off to SUDOKU then start the day.

    theySpasMoney Hmmm...

    ReplyDelete
  19. Not so easy Tuesday for me. I usually find Mr Bain's offerings just a bit crunchy for me, and this was no different. Lots of unknowns, but I still managed to finish. It just took more time than usual.

    ookerie- captcha word- anything to do with the Addams Family?

    ReplyDelete
  20. Good morning all ! Thank you Gareth and thank you Argyle.

    I wasn't very awake when I did this puzzle and at 8D I thought got rather than get and thus RAN instead of RUN. Should have checked the cross. Know Elihu. Mark me 0 for 2 this week.

    Had 2 other mess ups, but corrected those.

    At 39D I had all the common letters for BLINTZES rather than BLONDIES. Since I have only heard and read the word blintz and didn't know what it was, I put it in there for a few. CLIP ON BOW TIE and TENNIS ELBOW and DONA made me see BLONDIES. I searched both a few minutes ago and now know what they look like.

    At 54D fit in OCHRE but crossing TENSEUP and BAHAMA gave me UMBER.

    In reading Argyle's write up, I see now that there were some clues and answers I never saw. CLAY for instance.

    New word for me is BOLE. Never heard of it before. But just because I have never heard of it before does not mean I am judging the puzzle good or bad.

    I thought this was a fun puzzle and I enjoyed it.

    ReplyDelete
  21. Good morning Argyle, C.C. et al.

    Wow, I can see the BAYONNE Bridge from here! Oh, wait - that's just the picture you linked. Never mind!

    Fun puzzle, and fun write-up today. I loved the clip from Carmen. Interestingly, the opera was written in French, not Spanish, and the word "Ole" never appears in the lyrics.

    I must be totally weird. I don't like chocolate, so BLONDIES would be my dessert of choice. But, I hardly ever eat dessert, either! (Give me some salt & vinegar potato chips, and I'm in heaven.)

    I didn't even look for the theme while solving, and almost missed the PASTA reveal because it was almost totally filled by perps. GBS made me check the crossings, and there it was!

    Have a great day, everyone!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Abejo, thanks. I did not appreciate the fact that so many of the western burbs have streets that are same named as the Chicago streets. Knew some of them, but not that there were so many.

    Mari, I thought you might know that area a bit more than Abejo. Perhaps you mentioned College Ave before. I remember you mentioning COD.

    I've driven down E Harrison to get to the DuPage Medical Group offices many times. Just about where College Ave turns into Pennsylvania Ave. Good Italian place a block down and across the street. Barone's of Glen Ellyn. YELP gives it 4 stars.

    I have younger friends that are the children of a retired Wheaton cop. The last name was Stack. Your dad probably knows him.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Good Morning:

    Another clever and fun gem from Mr. Bain. Good cluing and lots of fresh fill made this a pleasure to solve. Puppy/yelp stuck out. Learning moment was tree trunk=bole; never heard that word before.

    So, thanks, Gareth, for keeping us happy and challenged and thanks, Argyle, for keeping us informed and amused. Hope you enjoyed your spaghetti and eggs.

    Thoughts and prayers to all those affected by the devastation in Oklahoma.

    Have a good day. BTW, Cruciverb is still down. Aargh!

    ReplyDelete
  24. Thanks GB, entertaining as always, you too Argyle. It is getting harder to deal with he constant bad news in our world.

    Fermat, thank you fo r educating me on the Sajak sponsored link; the puzzle let me complete it and offered a free trial.

    Busy day, be well all.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Not a Tuesday speed run, but a very fun puzzle, Gareth--many thanks! I couldn't imagine what the theme was going to be until I got to the reveal. A little suspense is always nice. And fun expo, Argyle.

    I now get the TEE in the ERNIE answer (golf) but still don't get the ELS. Probably just me, but would love to understand better.

    Never had BLONDIES and now that I'm pre-diabetic, probably never will. But at least I learned a new word.

    My goodness, those Oklahoma tornadoes are too horrible for words. I lived in Tulsa for four years early in my career, and could not believe my first tornado, even though my home was spared. My heart goes out to all the devastated families there.

    Have a good Tuesday, everybody.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Misty, Ernie ELS is a pro golfer.

    Before I forget again, best wishes to Sallie and YR with your personal battles.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Musings
    -Wanting to keep NINE in my court took me awhile but the AHA moment was great
    -I always thought that Tony Orlando’s man was coming home from prison to see the YELLOW RIBBONS but am happy to see it denote the joy for returning servicemen
    -“I used to work on the railroad pulling ties”. Then my idiot friend would pull the CLIP ON TIE off my shirt.
    -My new barker did not work for a carnival or call Bob dad.
    -Dudley was the perfect Arthur. Russell Brand? UGH!!
    -Marti, did you ever TENSE UP over a putt?
    -Grandma’s sewing machine PEDAL required foot power, not AC
    -My LOW FUEL indicator light/tone means I have about 45 miles left yet
    -Our lab power sources had an AC/DC option
    -When the iMac finally dies, we’re getting an iBook
    -Alas, Mari, our map is sans Sooners. When I heard the story of the frantic grandfather being asked to leave the grade school area while they were looking for his granddaughter in the twisted wreckage, I had to leave the room. I can’t imagine…
    -Amen, Kazie!
    -What was Horton the Elephant’s OATH to Mayzie?

    ReplyDelete
  28. Hello, people.

    This was a fun puzzle from Gareth Bain. It amazes me that he knows such fine details about our culture, being in faraway South Africa. He must be an avid reader. Books or the internet.

    I sashayed right through it while the coffee perked and loved some of the cluing:

    brand new barker, PUPPY
    eat with relish, SAVOR
    middling mark, CEE
    disorder on the court, TENNIS ELBOW

    Misty:
    ERNIE Els is a golfer and tees are a reference to the golf supports.

    Oh, drat! I had written AMBER and failed to change it!!

    Thanks, Argyle. The BAYONNE bridge appeared clearly.

    Prayers for those in the path of the tornadoes. Terrible devastation.

    I hope your Tuesday weather is less eventful, everyone!

    ReplyDelete
  29. CED - unfortunately the Qatari censors have blocked your first link to the DF pasta shapes. I can only imagine....

    ReplyDelete
  30. CED, I don't know how you continuously do it, but the pasta link was outstanding -- I'll be visiting my local supermarkets with the Pasta Boobs picture and asking why they don't carry them.

    Was sad to see that both Monday Mornings and Southland were canceled; I thought they were pretty good, especially Monday Mornings with Sanjay Gupta behind it. There is, however, a new seven-part nature series just starting on the Discovery Channel called North America that looks pretty good.

    Lucina, I forgot that Gareth was from South Africa. You're right, that makes the breadth of his knowledge even more impressive.

    ReplyDelete
  31. HG, one of the best tips I ever got for putting was to line up the shot, practice the stroke (how far back to bring the putter), then address the ball, and close my eyes when actually making the stroke.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Hi Y'all! My Air Force son lives in a suburb of Oklahoma City, as I said yesterday, which no one seems to have read. I talked to him before the Moore incident when they had the first tornado and they were all right. I haven't heard from them since Moore was destroyed. My kids live on the north side of OKC so I think they are all right, but the AF base is closer to Moore. OKC has a great warning system, but this one seems to have caught them by surprise.

    My daughter was headed north from OKC along the path of the storms Sunday night with my granddaughter. She drove in pouring rain/wind and was scared enough to get off the highway and find shelter. She never thinks to check the weather report before starting off.

    I was denied access to the blog last night and then
    read Argyles' explanation. Am I also blocked from
    everybody elses' screens during the daytime?

    ReplyDelete
  33. PK,
    Were you blocked from making a comment on the blog last night or you could not even access the whole blog? Could you read the blog main writeup and others' comments?

    ReplyDelete
  34. Dennis @ 12:21 - I knew Monday Mornings was iffy to be renewed but didn't know it was cancelled. What a shame. Ditto for Southland but at least that had a 5 year run.

    PK - Please keep us informed about your family members.

    AnnieB - In case you missed my latish post yesterday, I suggested that you check out Freihofersrun.com.

    HeartRx - I wish you used that same putting tip when you play WWF! (-;

    ReplyDelete
  35. Great puzzle! Always enjoy Gareth's efforts. Thanks, Argyle for the expo & links!

    Lemonade, from yesterday: I've seen books of very easy crossword puzzles by Pat Sajak on the newstands, but haven't bought them.

    ReplyDelete
  36. C.C., I had access to the blog & comments last night, but when I tried to post my very profound (er, ahem) ramblings, I got a message that I was denied access to postings. It's okay! I understand the problems with the snarkies and would prefer not to see hate mail. I just wondered if I'm blocked daytime.

    ReplyDelete
  37. PK,
    Nope. The daytime format is the same as before. I apologize for the inconveniences cause by our experiments with the Comments set-up.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Many thanks, Desper-otto and Lucina! It all makes sense now. Ernie ELS comes up in crossword puzzles every now and then, doesn't he? I'll have to remember this one for future reference.

    ReplyDelete
  39. CED @ 1015. I thought those two guys were flossing.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Irish Miss: I just had an email from my AF son in OKC. He said his family is okay. The devastation was about 5 miles from them on Sunday and 35 miles away on Monday. He said they are watching storm clouds again today. Hopefully, they won't get battered three days in a row. Sunday he and his wife and four sons huddled in their concrete over steel carpeted underground storm shelter with special weather radio and iPad to monitor the situation.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Hola Everyone, A quick, easy solve today. I didn't get the theme until the unifier went in. That helped with the last theme answer of Tennis Elbow. Clever theme today. Bayonne was an unknown, but perps solved that.

    Pasta is a favorite at our house, but we have to go easy as DH is diabetic. Pasta is high carb and not on our every day diet.

    We've gone from 90 degree weather yesterday to barely 70's today. Our poor garden doesn't know what to expect and neither do we!

    But any weather is so much better than the tornados in Oklahoma. Such tragic results. Thoughts and prayers for people who are dealing with the aftermath.

    Have a terrific Tuesday everyone.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Hi gang -

    Bit of struggle today. Filled in ELLA for DONA and never check the perps. Completely missed NCOS and BE NEAR, without even reading the clues. D'OH!

    North central was slow to develop, but after I sussed ELIHU it all filled in.

    Enjoyed the PASTA, though.

    Terrible tragedy in OK. Very sad.

    JzB

    ReplyDelete
  43. PK, that's good news. Glad you know that they're OK.

    HeartRx, you wouldn't believe the mental image I got from your sensual putting description.

    ReplyDelete
  44. I get bole and burl mixed up. I have purched burls which grow on boles when we have gone to the redwood forest near our home. The burl will sprout small redwood growth when placed in a bowl of water. Bole was my learning moment for today.

    Thanks to everyone who sent congrats to our granson yesterday. the thoughts are much appreciated. Sallie, I do read the late night posts most days so I saw your post.

    ReplyDelete
  45. That was a very pleasant Tuesday solve. Thanks Gareth and Argyle.

    Barbara is home. She is on a knee-flexing machine that automatically and quietly flexes her knee up to about 65 degrees so far. There have been lots of little and big problems to solve but we're managing OK so far. They gave her some blood-thinning medicine that she has to inject herself in the stomach with. The needle is very tiny. The physical therapist is supposed to make her first home visit this afternoon while I have tutoring.

    Once again, thank you all for your good wishes.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Drat! I'm sorry that Monday Mornings was cancelled! It was enjoyable.

    PK:
    So glad to know your family is well. I was under the impression that all buildings in the Midwest had shelters, but that seems not to be the case. So tragic.

    ReplyDelete
  47. PK,
    You can post tonight. Also, your post 4:55 pm yesterday about your Air Force son was NOT blocked. They were on the blog and read. Everything posted on the Comments section is read.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Did y'all see Dorothy ans Toto crawl out the rubble? news clip

    I like this lady when she responds to the stupid question by saying, "I KNOW EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED". Then she scolds them when they stand by watching her struggle to free the dog, "HELP ME!!{you idiots]"

    p.s. why is my screen suddenly so blurry?

    ReplyDelete
  49. PK - Thanks for the update on your son and his family. Glad to hear they are okay.

    Bill G. - happy to hear that Barbara and you are managing; I'm sure it's not easy but day by day, it will get better.

    We are under a severe thunderstorm warning until 9:00 pm.

    ReplyDelete
  50. Irish Miss: A lot of our favorite TV shows are reaching their season finale. I feel like I'm saying goodbye to some good friends!

    I see The Killing will be back in early June. I wonder how they're going to work it.

    ReplyDelete
  51. Not Dudley Moore, that film clip demonstrates why I have very little respect for so-called television news "reporters," almost all of whom cannot conduct even a simple interview in a way that reveals truly newsworthy or useful information. "How does it feel to ... ?" is a lame, inane question, and grotesquely overused. It feels BAD, idiot! Help me get my dog loose, idiot! Don't put words in my mouth, idiot! I didn't say that, idiot!

    ReplyDelete
  52. Great news video about the woman and her dog!

    I like Russell Brand but it was madness to think anybody could redo the part of Dudley Moore in Arthur. It was a one-of-a-kind character.

    Another good dog video. A perfect dog?

    Irish Miss, yes we are managing OK. She can move only very slowly with the aid of a walker. She'll try a cane when she's more mobile. There's a lot of little (and big) stuff that needs doing. I realize how much she did of the day-to-day stuff that now falls to me.

    She hasn't had any appetite but I've just had a request for a Subway Tuna sandwich. I guess that's a good sign. So I must be off.

    ReplyDelete
  53. Mari @ 3:53 - I feel the exact same way. I really miss our favorites but I plan on catching up on missed movies via Netflix or On Demand. How The Killing develops should be interesting; I just hope it is good.

    Bill G. @ 4:00 - Loved the Perfect Dog clip! Don't worry about the little or big stuff-it'll all still be there when you have the time and inclination to deal with it.

    My captcha is quite fitting: rtsgDog!

    ReplyDelete
  54. Irish Miss @ 1:01, I might as well, judging by my track record with you!

    d-otto, ummm...maybe I phrased that wrong?

    Bill G., I bet Barbara is so glad you are there for her! But, at least from now on she will be getting better, rather than worse, day by day!

    PK, so glad to hear your family is OK. What horrible devastation!

    ReplyDelete
  55. Mari @ 3:52,

    I would think your dad knows/knew him. Although he retired probably 15 years ago so...

    Also, you should try Barone's if you like Italian.

    I've never been to Alfie's. What's it all about ?

    ReplyDelete
  56. Hi, all!

    Was ready to write at 3:30 AM but was too tired to move! Now my reminiscences of the puzzle are very vague. But, as always, Gareth's puzzles are wonderful and Argyle's write-ups superb!

    Favorite answer: PUPPY.

    Can't eat pasta unless it is gluten-free, and then, have to really go easy on carbohydrates. Sob.

    PK: Happy that your family is OK.

    YR: Hope you can blog again soon! Miss your erudite language and other contributions!

    Am really bummed about Monday Mornings. A pay-cable channel should adopt it.

    Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  57. Mari, thank you for answering my question on WheatEn terriers. Actually they are originally, Irish imports, and are very expensive. My neighbor paid $2200 for his pup. But I miswrote, when I said that they were the most popular dogs stolen. The AKC says, in 2010, the actual dog breeds, most stolen, were Yorkshire terriers, toy Poms, Maltese and Boston Bulldogs - in that order. And some Am. and Staf. Pit Bulls, German Sheps., and Rott.s - all for dog fighting or 'bait', thereof. Very Sad.

    I'm sure your dad had good reasons to check Mr. Belushi's police records. Just like IRS Agents and auditors have very detailed and strict controls on whose tax records they may examine, the same very strict and rigid rules apply to peace officers, and others. In Ohio, it is a first degree felony for anyone to examine someone else's police records, without strict, "due probable", cause. Two years ago, the mayor of a nearby city, ( who was a shoo-in to be re-elected - ) and his police chief, were both incarcerated for looking up his political opponent's police records. And the police chief of my next`door city was indicted, last month, for a similar favor he did for another politico. ( an act he allegedly did, about 6 years ago -). The statute of limitations, for this, is apparently, 15 years.

    I love Chicago, and I think it is far more 'livable' than Manhattan or NYC. I really miss the downtown atmosphere, and especially Indian restaurants on Devon Street. (sigh.) Lucky you.

    ReplyDelete
  58. H.G. We got a call from the college softball coach tonight wanting to talk to Nicole and is coming over tomorrow to watch her play and to meet with us. Just wish her arm was 100 percent.

    Not one Dudley Moore link today?
    Arthur

    ReplyDelete
  59. Things are going OK with the ice machine, the walker, the knee flexer, etc.

    I don't know why this just occurred to me but it did. When Barbara and I were first getting married, we were traveling back and forth between where we went to college, Cornell, where she lived, Long Island, and where we settled, Manhattan Beach in southern California. We noticed a difference in airports. It seemed like the people in the New York airports were generally stressed and looked mostly unhappy. At LAX, most of the people were wearing sporty casual clothes and looked hopeful, happy and excited to meet somebody. I'm sure it was an overgeneralization but it seemed true to us. I wonder if it still would seem to be the case?

    Here is a nice airport video. Airport dogs.

    ReplyDelete
  60. Barbara and I are thinking of buying this place and having a Crossword Corner BBQ. Are you in? New house?

    ReplyDelete
  61. Count me in, Bill. I'll bring salad. LOL

    ReplyDelete
  62. Ill bring my roller skates...how else does one get from room to room?

    ReplyDelete

For custom-made birthday, anniversary or special occasion puzzles from C.C., please email crosswordc@gmail.com

Her book "Sip & Solve Easy Mini Crosswords" is available on Amazon.

Please click on Comments Section Abbrs for some blog-specific terms.

Please limit your posts to 5 per day and cap each post length at about 20 lines in Preview mode.

No politics, no religion and no personal attacks.