google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Saturday, Jun 1st, 2013, Barry C. Silk

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Jun 1, 2013

Saturday, Jun 1st, 2013, Barry C. Silk

Theme: Saturday Silkie

Words: 70 (missing Q)

Blocks: 33

   This was one of those deceptive grids with the double 10-letter answers hiding inside of the edges of the puzzle and in the downs through the middle.  I must admit, I had to Google to get a hold in the NW.  Yesterday it was 86° on Long Island - UPS was brutal, as well as doing construction outdoors that afternoon; then staying out late for a BBQ at Mike's made it hard for me to see some of the more obvious answers....oh well.  One from each section:

17. Cesar Millan, e.g. : PET TRAINER - DAH~!!! I had PETT----, and figured it was Petty 'something', and finally caved in to looking this guy up

57. Dunkin' Donuts order : ONION BAGEL - Fridays at UPS they get a platter of bagels for the drivers - so I conveniently punch out in the office and swipe me an everything bagel with cream cheese

10. Desert plant named for a Biblical spy : JOSHUA TREE - Music link #1; a commentary on the album, and I like what Bono has to say at 1:51 - and the song itself

27. Top-10 Lady Gaga hit from "The Fame Monster" album : BAD ROMANCE - Music link #2 - but from her debut album "The Fame"

6. Noble : ARISTOCRAT - which is mirrored by 29D. Dude who totally lurks in the bushes : CREEPAZOID - which to me seems WAY out of Mr. Silk's regular fill

 onwurd....

ACROSS:

1. Org. concerned with neglect : SPCA - Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals - I got this, and always makes me feel good going in

5. Rivera specialty : SAVES - Baseball for C.C. - Mariano, and I will leave it to her for the details (From C.C.: Greatest closer ever!  He's the only one who still wears #42 jersey.)



10. Group led by a council of 12 Masters : JEDI - It wasn't until I had the "I" that the V-8 can came sailing across the room....

14. Dart : FLIT - wasn't sure, but I filled it in right away

15. Restrict : CRAMP - and clecho 45A. Restricts : STEMS

16. Team members : OXEN - D'oh~!! I put in an "S" at the end, since, well, it's plural, right~!!?!?

19. Kebab need : SPIT

20. Child care option : DAY NURSERY

21. "Too great a burden to bear": M.L. King Jr. : HATE - Total WAG

22. Spends time at home : BATS - more baseball, but this one didn't fool me

23. Synthetic rubber used in footballs : BUTYL

24. Spoiler of a perfect GPA : ONE B

28. Northwestern winter fruit : BOSC PEAR - I WAGed "SNOW", since I am from the NorthEAST....

31. Foot-related : PODAL

33. Acoustically, it affects treble but not bass : CARPETING

36. Indian clay oven : TANDOOR

38. Officer Poncherello portrayer of '70s-'80s TV : ESTRADA - I grew up with "CHiPs"

39. Programs with previews : SHAREWARE

41. Lay into : SET AT

42. Wade Boggs book subtitled "My Favorite Chicken Recipes" : FOWL TIPS - HAR-HAR~!  It is quite funny, actually - and more baseball - C.C., have you heard this story? (From C.C.: What story? Boggs ate chicken before every single game.) (From Splynter: that's the one~!)

44. Alarm sounds : EEKS

47. Shell with fish, perhaps : TACO - oh, now I get it

49. Mother of Hephaestus : HERA

50. Rhythmic fitness routine : JAZZERCISE

56. 10- or 13-digit ID : ISBN - Not SSN, and not your cell phone #, either

58. TVA product : ELECtricity

59. Had to accept the loss : ATE IT

60. Ticket word : LOGE - dah~!  Not TIER

61. Skate on thin ice : DARE

62. Square figures : NERDS

63. Native to : FROM

DOWN:

1. Its HQ was once destroyed as the result of an earthquake : SFPD - The San Francisco Police Department, in the "great" one of 1906

2. Bargaining focus : PLEA

3. Map listing : CITY

4. Fax abbr. : ATTN

5. Ancient amulet : SCARAB

7. Genus of butterfly that includes the Red Admiral : VANESSA - John Lampkin nailed this one

8. Urgent care abbr. : EMERgency

9. Active : SPRY

11. One likely to vote by absentee ballot : EXPATRIATE

12. Krishna, for one : DEITY

13. Surveillance product, briefly : INTELligence

18. Difficulty : RUB - Shakespeare appears later, too; "Aye, there's the RUB"

23. Sugar sources : BEETS

24. Goes (for) : OPTS

25. Ham kin : NOAH - Son and father

26. 1925 Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist : EDNA FERBER - full name for Saturday

30. Ltr. extender : PPS - post-post script

32. Former MGM parent : LOEWS

34. Flickertail St. : N. DAKota - More here

35. Heaters : GATS - Guns, in slang; funny, but I was thinking "fastball"

37. Wide-faced bird : OWL

40. More chic : RITZIER

43. Essences : SCENTS

45. Backed (away) : SHIED

46. Magnetic induction unit : TESLA

48. "... the inconstant moon ... that monthly changes in her circled __": Juliet : ORB

50. Actress Cusack : JOAN

51. Initial payment : ANTE

52. Baby elephant : CALF

53. Classic name heard in the 1962 hit "Monster Mash" : IGOR - I'll leave music #3 to you~!

54. Utah lily : SEGO

55. I, O or U : ELEMent - Iodine, Oxygen, and Uranium

Splynter

50 comments:

  1. Happy Silkie everyone!

    Only semi-happy for Da Doc, however. Was FINALLY able to fill from the East to the South, roughly Michigan to Texas. The remaining grid looked like the Great White North, until switching over to Basic Level turned what was filled into the Red Sea. So I ended up getting a mere four of the ten long letter answers….

    I’m most disappointed by not grokking any of the three baseball-related clues. For example, in my misguided head, Chita Rivera’s specialty was Salsa. I attribute it to being an EXPAT and therefore not being able to attend any ball games this year….

    Also let down by the SPCA / SFPD crossing non-answers, both of which should’ve been in my wheelhouse….

    The infamous Close-but-no-Cigar category also included FLEE for FLIT, STOPS for STEMS, A BEE for ONE B, and FREAKAZOID for CREEPAZOID….

    Does this classify as one of those “careful what you wish for, it may come true” situations…?

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  2. Good morning everyone.

    A Silky treat today. Moderately difficult but eventually prevailed. WAGS included BOSC PEAR and VANESSA. Many good clues but I especially liked the ones for BATS, ELEMent, and NERDS. Luckily I seemed to be closer to Barry's wavelength today, and enjoyed the solve.

    Have a great day.

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  3. Rivera = mural. This was a confident fill LOL. Will they chip it off the wall at the Detroit Institute of Arts to pay the city's debt?

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  4. Morning, all!

    I like Mr. Silk's puzzles in general, but after struggling through his Saturday NYT puzzle this morning and then doing this one, I think I sprained a muscle in my brain somewhere...

    NW was definitely the last to fall for me. And I was so proud of myself for actually knowing that Cesar Millan was a DOG TRAINER, too... Had no clue who RIVERA was and could only think of Chita or Geraldo. Definitely not up on my butterfly genera, and figured that 15A could either be CRIMP or CRAMP. Finally guessed VANESSA and SAVES, although it could have just as easily been LINESSA and SALES.

    I've often hear the term ex-pat before, but always assumed it stood for EX-PATRIOT. But that didn't fit. Live and learn moment of the day!

    [nomatted]

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  5. Whew! Got it, but it was a battle. Typical Silkie.

    I think Cesar Millan would take issue with being called a PET TRAINER: "I rehabilitate dogs. I train people." He stopped whispering last year.

    I thought Rivera was a talk show host, so the "V" in SAVES/VANESSA was my final fill, a total wag.

    JOSHUA TREE was slow in appearing. I was trying to manufacture a desert plant with CALEB in its name. Wrong spy.

    I confused Wade Boggs with Hale Boggs, the politician. Didn't matter. That book title was totally perped.

    Having worked in the "awl patch", EXPATRIATE came easily. So did LOEWS. They were the majority stock holder in the company I worked for.

    Hot and muggy, and it's only 7:30. This must be Texas.

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  6. Good morning Splynter, C.C. et al.

    Thanks for the write-up, Splynter. Really interesting links for JOSHUA TREE. We went to see U2 3D when it came out, and I have been a long time fan.

    I thought the crossing of BAD ROMANCE and FOWL TIPS was particularly nasty. But it was actually the crossing of SHAREWARE with NOAH that did me in. I had PeDAL instead of PODAL and couldn't figure out how NeAH was related to ham? It finally dawned on me that we were talking about the Biblical Ham, and gave the V-8 can a huge dent!

    Off to dig in the garden while it is still relatively cool out. Have a great day, everyone!

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  7. A Saturday Silkie...Whoopee Doo

    After the first pass I had solved ESTRADA, PPS, NDAK, JAZZERCISE (wife attends a local class), JOAN & SAVES.

    Then I chose to re-introduce my self to MR G. My chances of completing this w/o assistance were nil. I don't recall exactly, but I think I needed help 5 times. Lots of lucky wags. Ham/NOAH was terrific.

    I eventually remembered EDNA FERBER. I read So Big at Wilbraham in 195?. I enjoyed the book, not the movie.

    My Dunkin orders are Medium Black & a donut or two. Drives my cardiologist nuts. With the hot weather here, I change to Med Black Iced with caramel & mocha, but no baked treats.

    Even though I'm a sports enthusiast, I don't like sport books, but I did know the title of Boggs book.

    Thus ends a week of too many DNF'.

    Back to making $ tomorrow.... I hope. Talk to you on Monday.

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  8. Good morning, folks. Thank you, Barry Silk, for an excellent puzzle. Thank you, Splynter, for the fine review.

    Of course, I got started very slowly. Picked up a word here and there. Lots of white.

    Got ONE B for 24A. PEDAL, which Infixed later. That gave me ED for 26D. Easily got ELEC for 58A. DARE followed. With all that I wagged EDNA FERBER. That is what really got me started.

    SPCA and FLIT were easy for the NW, along with SFPD, CITY, and ATTN. That corner worked. DAY NURSERY became obvious.

    JOSHUA TREE worked once I had the TREE and the OS.

    One word at a time.

    Only took me two hours. Now off to working outside in Johnsonburg. Got a groundhog in my front yard. So, I will be filling in the holes and trying to get him.

    See you tomorrow.

    Abejo

    (ysterseh)

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  9. OK got it all

    50A glad it wasn't prancerise!! lol

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  10. cArPeting just escaped me in this wonderful puzzle and so I took two bad cells and ATE IT (Around here we say, “Cowboy up!”). It seems I had to start over in each corner but it was delightful torture! These themeless monsters can certainly tolerate CREEPAZOID.

    Musings
    -Caesar Milan - “I train people and rehabilitate dogs”. He’s amazing
    -I love baseball, but I first thought of DANCE for this RIVERA
    -If something doesn’t STEM the horrible tornadoes, OK will blow away
    -It’s called DAY CARE in our town
    -I had a semester where that ONE B helped my GPA
    -I only knew TANDOOR from daughter’s talking about this
    -4-letter mother of mythology, who ya gonna call? HERA
    -I wonder if Mr. Silk has a book of puzzles with an ISBN
    -In Fremont, Urgent Care is an alternative to the EMER room across the street
    -I don’t spend a lotta cents on my SCENTS
    -What movie had a password of JOSHUA as a key element?

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  11. Good morning, everyone! Terrific Saturday Silkie – tough but ultimately doable. Just the way I like ‘em. Great write-up Splynter, especially the musical links. Since you mentioned it, here’s # 3 Monster Mash (3:04).

    After striking out in the North, I headed South for another bottoms-up solve. JAZZERCISE was a gimme, since I go to a lunch-hour class twice a week. Hand up for misspelling EXPATRIATE at first. Shell with Fish, Perhaps = TACO was a fun bit of misdirection. Don’t think I’ve ever seen CREEPAZOID in a puzzle before.

    Are there any other Arrested Development fans on the blog? I’m watching the recently-released episodes on Netflix. After a little bit of an uneven start, I think they caught the lightening in a bottle again.

    Hope you have a great weekend, all!

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  12. Good morning:

    I really enjoy Silkie's puzzles because they are so challenging at first or second passes, but little by little, you chip away and, voila, you're home free. Well, not always! Today was a DNF for me because of podal, tandoor, Shareware area. I had podia and wanted tangine for the longest time. Never heard of Shareware.

    Anyway, It was a fun Saturday solve, so thanks, Barry, and thanks, Splynter, for a neat expo. Great clues for Noah and Taco.

    Another day of 90's temps, possible T-storms later and definite T-storms tomorrow. Cooler forecast for Monday on through the week.

    I plan on watching Lincoln tonight; it's two and one half hours long, so that should keep me out of trouble for a while!

    Happy Saturday.

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  13. My first google in a while, CREEPAZOID did not compute and did not understand Flickertail Street. Ah well.

    Rabbit, Rabbit.

    Thanks for turning on the light Splynter



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  14. Hi Everyone ~~

    This was a challenging, but enjoyable Saturday Silkie for me today. I'm always happy to get the NW corner right off the bat and SPCA and SFPD came easily.

    I did have to hop around - kept getting stuck in various spots, but as usual with Silkies, things started falling into place.

    ~ At 5A - Rivera specialty - I didn't hesitate. He had one of his SAVES last night against the Red Sox. I do like him - just not when the Yankees beat my Sox. :-\ I liked 22A - Spends time at home - BATS -can't believe I puzzled over it at first!

    ~ Lots of good guesses and perp help got it done without any look-ups - that's what I like about Barry Silk's puzzles. Fun to see the unexpected CREEPAZOID.

    ~ A great write-up, Splynter ~ I always love your comments.

    ~ Off to my brother's for our postponed Memorial Day cook-out. Last week it was too cold and rainy. Today it's in the 90s - ugh - but it's sunny!

    Enjoy the weekend ~~

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  15. without mr.google impossible for me.
    Doral

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  16. I was already apprehensive after seeing ominous hints on the blog last night that a dreaded Silkie was coming our way today. I've lowered my expectations to much that I was actually pretty happy to get the lower east corner--thanks to JOAN Cusack and to TACO. But that was pretty much it before the cheating began.

    I had ONE B and PODAL and so figured the Pulitzer winner was going to be an ED. But of course I played around with EDWARD and EDGAR forever before I finally got EDNA Ferber. My feminist friends would not be proud of me.

    I have to admit the HAM KIN clue was really clever and had to smile when I finally got NOAH.

    But the NW was impossible because I wanted to put NANNY into the child care option (even though I used only DAY CARE CENTERS and never had a NANNY for my baby when he was little).

    Had OWL but erased it because I misspelled the across TANDURI.

    Finally, Mr. Silk, what were you thinking with CREEPAZOID? Never heard of such a dude.

    Have a great weekend, everybody, and a wonderful June, for that matter!

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  17. Hi Y'all! This Silkie was easier and more enjoyable for me than his usually are. The northwest was hard to start for me and finally resorted to a red-letter alphabet run. As soon as I had SP, I was off and running. Finished in just under 36 minutes.

    A few perps gave me the long ones. Only had D & F to give me EDNA FERBER. Loved her books.

    HAM gave me fits. Bacon & prosciutto didn't fit. Care didn't have enough letters, oh NURSERY.

    I recently read a book with EXPATRIATEs used a lot and had been watching HGTV's House Hunters International where the word was bandied about so this came rapidly.

    On the other hand, I didn't understand why I, O or U was ELEM until Splynter explained it. Duh entry for the day. Great as usual, Splynter!

    Hope we have no big storms for a few days. I need some sleep.

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  18. Hi stalwart Silkie solvers!
    Thank you Splynter, I think you are brave to blog on Saturdays. Great job!
    Java Mama,I too go to Jazzercise. Must email my instructor to tell her about the puzzle.
    Hand up for EXPATRIoT.
    Just read an article about funky shops in Joshua Tree.
    Husker G: War Games?
    I watched that movie many times.
    Well, off to chores.
    Have a great day all.

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  19. Why is it that whenever I do a Saturday Silkie, I feel like Sheldon going up against Will Wheaton? Oh Well, at least I didn't bet on it...

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  20. Whew. Major workout today. DNF by one letter, the O in PODAL/NOAH. I had PeDAL. Wondered the same thing as Marti. I had several lookups, including VANESSA, TANDOOR, HERA,and FOWL TIPS.
    ESTRADA was my first fill. Wanted ATIT, then BUSY for 9D. My Rivera thought was Geraldo. My thought for 46D was either TESLA or GAUSS- once I had HERA, the choise was easy.
    CREEPAZOID?????

    I watched an old (1999) episode of Family Guy last night- the family's destination was the Twinkee factory in NATICK.

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  21. Hello, weekend warriors. Great expo, as usual, Splynter.

    WEES. Silky smooth? Not a chance! Although Erik ESRADA and JOSHUA TREE started me and I fanned out FROM there. Having traveled through the Mohave Desert dozens of times I am very familiar with those plants.

    Next came the bottom and I had a hard time understanding why ONION BAGEL would be from a doughnut shop. The CREEP- part was there so it was just a matter of filling the ending. CREEPAZOID? Explain yourself, Mr. Silk, please.

    My first Pulitzer winner was FITZGERALD but nothing worked so I erased and started over. SHAREWARE killed me though I even wagged BAD ROMANCE.

    Thank you Barry for a challenging but doable puzzle and Splynter for knowing what it means!

    Have a delightful Saturday, everyone!

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  22. New here so asking a dumb question most likely. . .is there a reason that ONION BAGEL is highlighted in the puzzle example and the letter A in yellow?

    I just do the puzzle for fun but know there is much to learn about them!

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  23. I thought this was very difficult.. So I am in awe of all who can finish with out help..

    On a personal note.. Please keep the families of the firefighters who lost their lives in houston in your thoughts.


    I taught Anne Sullivan and knew her family well. Very sad such brave individuals

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  24. Anon@1:30

    It doesn't mean anything. It's just the last place highlighted before the screen capture of the grid.

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  25. Hi everybody. Wow! This is one of the hardest puzzles (for me) that I can remember. I'm sure I would have thrown in the towel (and V-8 can) somewhere along the way but I would rather finish than give up so I turned on red letters. Some of the clues seemed diabolical. I wonder how many were Rich's?

    How can Mariano Rivera be so dominant with basically just one pitch? And, since he is so dominant, why don't all the other closers develop that pitch too?

    I never had a bagel until my freshman year at Cornell. One of the jewish dormmates got a care package from home and shared. I like bagels and lox pretty well but as just a bread type, I don't think a bagel can compare to a real buttermilk biscuit or cornbread or spoonbread or ... I know, I know..., if you were brought up on bagels, then you will probably disagree.

    Remember, I before E (except after C) unless you commit a feisty heist on a weird beige foreign neighbor.

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  26. Klily, I must have missed something. Who is Anne Sullivan that you say you taught?

    All these tragedies are hard to take coming so close together. I've had to quit watching the national news and weather channels during my meals, because my food doesn't digest well--sits in a lump in my stomach. Two hours later I can watch some of it for a little while.

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  27. Hello everybody. Whee-ooo, what a brain-wrinkler! I liked it. Like Lucina, knowing ESTRADA and JOSHUATREE got me started. Until then, it was the usual despair at leaving so much whiteness. I did have to look up the name of the Wade Boggs book and who Cesar Millan is, but other than that I was able to eke it out chip by chip.

    WEES in so many ways. Like Splynter, I had PETT and wanted petty or petti something. Like 61Rampy, I waited for a perp to decide between TESLA or Gauss. When I got ON___BAGEL I kept thinking, "On what kind of bagel?"

    Love love loved CREEPAZOID! But like Doha Doc I filled FREAKAZOID first.

    And finally, WBS re Geraldo Rivera. Tabloid journalism didn't fit, though.

    Best wishes to you all this fine first day of Johnny. (Ref. TTP's May 30, 2013,3:38 PM post.)

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  28. Very Googly and DNF.

    I have this picture of an annoying elf asking, "Who was Zeus's wife?" "Hera!" "Who was the Queen of Goddesses?" "Hera!!" "Who was Hephaistos' mom? "Hera!" "Who competed for the golden apple?" "Hera!" What is the answer to every ancient Greek question?" "HERA!" "Hahaha."

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  29. thanks for doing this!

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  30. Jayce @ 2:04, very funny! And a happy first day of Johnny to you, as well!

    Sfingi, "Hera, hera!"

    I wonder if CREEPAZOID had its origin with this movie?

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  31. HeartRx, so there really is a movie called Creepazoids! Wow, a 2.8 out of 10 rating. I guess, as the reviewer said, "As far as corridors and men running back and forth are concerned, it's a masterpiece."

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  32. It appears that the first use of CREEPAZOID was from a 1990 book by Gloria Nagy titled "A House in the Hamptons". She uses the word to describe a caretaker.

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  33. -Yeah, Pas, it was War Games and is one of my favs too although the technology that was so cutting edge then, seems so passé now! The password of JOSHUA seemed to be all that saved the world from a MAD (Mutual Assured Destruction) fate
    -We are punting a wedding ceremony and going to the reception in about two hours with gift in hand.
    -It is very windy and cold here but the golf weather should pick up after the weekend.

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  34. Since I always seem to be a day late and a dollar short....

    We finally finished watching the National Spelling Bee. I managed to spell only one word correctly, and I've forgotten what it was, but its origin was Choctaw. Those contest words are cruel and unusual punishment and should be stricken from the language. I also took Pas de Chat's spelling test (from 5/30). That was tough! I tied with Lucina.

    Jayce, first day of Johnny. Cute!

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  35. This was a challenging and fun puzzle. Thanks Barry S. Great expo, Splynter.Thanks for explaining ELEM.I blew it with PODAL instead of PEDAL and missing NOAH and SHAREWARE. GRR! JOSHUA TREE was my first entry.
    There are bagels and then there are bagels.I would not go to Dunkin Donuts for bagels. Even in the NY area you must pick your shop. They must be very fresh. I cannot imagine mailing them. Best with smoked salmon, cream cheese and capers.
    My new computer is arriving in a week or so.
    I run
    Noted the great puzzles by Jerome,Marti, CC and Don.





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  36. I decided to head off to the supermarket to lay in some provisions for Barbara even though she doesn't have much of an appetite. I talked Jordan into coming with me. He wrote the shopping list on his 3DS (a little video game player) and he accompanied me around the store pushing a junior-sized shopping cart. I told him he could pick out of couple of things he wanted. It went pretty well for a grandpa/grandson outing. We found some nice-looking cherries, some Valencia oranges and two colors of Peonies. I think I'll go eat some of the stuff we bought plus some chile rellenos leftovers for lunch.

    I had a buddy who tried Viagra. He had trouble swallowing the pill and it got lodged in his throat for a while. He woke up the next morning with a stiff neck.

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  37. It's good to see you again, yellowrocks.

    I can't use my sink so the dishes are piling up until my SIL arrives this afternoon to install the new disposal. My elderly dishwasher now requires all dishes to be scraped of all bits of food,crumbs, etc. When new it scrubbed everything but that feature no longer functions.

    desper-otto
    I feel honored to be in your company of spellers though I should not have missed the two. Pure carelessness. You?

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  38. BillG: Too funny about the little blue pill.

    I had a strange episode yesterday. I keep cash to pay my yardman because he loses or launders checks. I went to the bank drive-thru and gave them a $300 check for cash plus a deposit. When the pneumatic capsule came back, there was no deposit slip and only $290. I counted it twice then called the teller and told her. She was slightly snotty and told me she'd have to count her drawer and needed me to send back the cash. I did.

    Sometime later I got my deposit slip and the cash back. I also had a very snotty voice telling me that she had counted the drawer and I DID have $300 in the envelope. Well, I sure did have $300 when I counted. However, nothing will ever convince me that I didn't catch her trying for a nice $10 commission.

    I've gone through there many times and never counted the cash. I did this time because there were three new young people in there that acted like they weren't sure what they were doing. OR maybe they did! If you could skim a little off every cash out transaction, you might get a good bonus.
    If she hadn't immediately gone from polite to snotty, I'd have thought it was an honest error.

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  39. Are any of you experiencing the 17-year onslaught of cicadas? I remember their molted exoskeletons being underfoot and their incessant buzz back in Virginia years ago.

    Lucina, it sounds like it's about time for a new dishwasher. Old ones get like that and a well-designed new one will do a much better job I'm guessing. Ours does a pretty good job though our hard water leaves the glasses less than spotless.

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  40. I believe I may have gained some insight into students with very creative minds and great verbal skills who cannot write. Using a tablet blocks my flow of thought. Touch typing frees me to concentrate on content over getting the words down. The ability to quickly revise and edit allows me to write whatever occurs to me and then expertly revise and reorganize it. Although I was a pretty good writer all along,
    word processing and effortless editing has greatly improved my skill. Autistic children have found that typing opens up a whole new world of expression. Maybe bright students who are poor writers writers should concentrate on learning word processing.
    You cannot shut me up for long. LOL

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  41. I thought this was fairly easy for a Sat. except Creepazoid.. Really Mr Silk ???

    Been having raccoons the past few nights tipping over my trash cans and rummaging through them. Never, ever had a problem with them before. After today's game ( they won 5 to 0 by the way ) I visited a friend who owns several horses. Needless to say, I put a special treat in each trash can for them tonight. Don't know if it will deter them in the future but at least I'll get a chuckle out of it for the moment.

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  42. For Sue Grafton fans, W is for Wasted is being released September 10th. I have read every one of her alphabet books and while some are better than others, there was only one that I really didn't like; I think it was N is for Noose.

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  43. A good 'un for Saturday. It's always nice to end the week on a tough CW that caves to persistence. I had to put this aside for a while until my old brain could refresh itself enough to decide what three letters I needed to place in front of NURSERY. Lacking those letters, I couldn't complete the MW corner for the longest time. I knew Cesar but couldn't tell if his TRAINER title should be preceded by DOG or PET.

    Finally! For no other reason than my steady stare and no more prompting than my intense desire, the key word just popped into my noggin. DAY! It became DAY NURSERY, and the whole corner fell into place.

    Ah, my friends, what a good feeling...!

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  44. Klilly @ 1:34 - Sincere condolences on the loss of your former student and the other brave souls who perished in that terrible fire. God be with the families.

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  45. Gee Manac, swell! I said this was a really hard puzzle for me and you say that it was fairly easy for a Saturday. THANKS A LOT! I hope the racoons steal all of your lousy trash!

    Were you a fan of All in the Family? I'll miss Edith. Goodbye Jean Stapleton. Here is a series of favorite clips. Classic Dingbat scenes.

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  46. BiilG:
    No doubt you are right about my dishwasher but I have too many other priorities as long as it still washes.

    We have that problem with hard water, too, so a 1/4 cup of LimeGone in every load helps relieve that.

    The disposal was installed in 30 minutes by my talented SIL.

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  47. Irish: I have all of Sue Grafton's books too. Looks like she may complete the alphabet after all. There was a hiatus of a few years when I thought she wouldn't. Good reads usually.

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  48. Thank you Argyle for the answer to my question at 1:30!

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  49. It gets asked once in a while. I like to leave it dead center or the lower right. That's just me.

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

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