google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Wenesday, June 19, 2013 Gareth Bain

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Jun 19, 2013

Wenesday, June 19, 2013 Gareth Bain

Theme: WEIRD TALES - The first word of each two-word theme answer is an anagram of TALES.  Weird is used to indicate that the letters of TALES have been morphed into some strange new form - a typical trick often used in crossword clues where a verb is used to indicate that the letters have been mixed, altered, or otherwise tampered with.

17A. Get closer to home? : STEAL THIRD.  Our first WEIRD TALE, and a bit of baseball, too.

25A. Electrical device named for its inventor : TESLA COILThis plaything, invented by Nikola TESLA looks like it belongs on The Forbidden Planet.  Tesla was a brilliant engineer and inventor, and might have been a bit Weird, even without the COIL.

36A. Chestnut : STALE JOKE.  I googled "world's oldest joke" and actually came up with it

51A. Dress pants shade : SLATE GRAY.  Perfect with a classic navy blue blazer

And the unifier, 62 A. Classic horror magazine, and a literal hint to the beginning of 17-, 25-, 36-, and 51-Across : WEIRD TALES.



Hi gang, JzB here.  Just home from rehearsal and ready to see what sort of adventure Gareth will lead us on today.

Across:

1. Fictional circumnavigator Phileas : FOGG.  "Around the World in 80 Days."

5. Like weather that makes hair frizz : MUGGY.  Hot and damp.

10. European auto : SAAB.  AUDI and MERC fit.

14. Beach bird : GULL.  Here in the Great Lakes region, we see them in grocery store parking lots.

15. Cool place to live? : IGLOO.  An ice house

16. Et __ : ALIA.  And others, in Latin.  But Kazie et alia knew that.

19. Kitten's plaything : YARN.  I'm not a cat lover, but I've heard such TALES.

20. Fortuneteller's card : TAROT.  Perhaps a tool for divination, or to focus your psychic energies.

21. Near-failing grades : DEES

23. Lo mein additive : MSGMonoSodium Glutamate, used a flavor enhancer, and abundant in Chinese cooking - at least in North America. Back in China, probaly not.  C.C. ? (From C.C.: Widely used in China too. Never gave me headache.)

24. Less valid, excusewise : LAMER.  Less LAME.  Awkward looking and sounding word. 

27. "South Park" baby brother : IKE.  Never watched it, but I still know that Kenny dies.

28. __-wop : DOO.   Easier to show than tell.




30. With 38-Down, "People's Court" rival : JUDGE. And  38 D. See 30-Across : JUDY.  Never watched either of them. 

31. Sacred Hindu work : VEDA.  These revealed texts are the oldest Hindu scriptures and the oldest known Sanskrit literature.

33. Space station for about 15 years : MIR.  Soviet and later Russian long term research station.

35. Approaches evening : LATENS.  Perfectly valid but WEIRD looking word.

39. Spreading Indian tree : BANYAN


42. Puddle gunk : MUD

43. Teen safety org. : SADD.  Students Against Destructive Decisions.

47. Great Lakes natives : ERIES.  Native Americans and eponyms for a Great Lake.

48. Brief swim : DIP

50. Scand. land : NOR.  Time for a rhyme.  Neither SWE NOR FIN worked.  Note Abr. in Cl & Ans.

55. Like Oreos dropped in milk : SOGGY.

57. Eldest March sister, in a 19th-century novel : MEG.  "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott

58. Wonka's creator : DAHL. Roald. This British writer and fighter pilot was born in Wales to parents from NOR.

59. Big cheese : NABOB.  Originally a provincial governor of the Mogul empire in India.  Later a person of wealth or prominence.  Later still, members of the press corps out of favor with Spiro T Agnew, erstwhile V.P. and convicted criminal.  The phrase was used by Agnew but coined by William Safire. 

60. Big cheese in Holland : EDAM.  Why do we never get Stilton NOR Limburger?  At least we got a clecho!

65. Taj Mahal city : AGRA. Why do we never get Hyderabad NOR Bangalore?

66. Cousin of "ish" : KINDA. Sorta, more or less.

67. Artist Chagall : MARC.


68. Use a sickle : REAP

69. One going behind your back : SNEAK.  A bold or careless SNEAK might go in front of your back.

70. Naysayer : ANTI.  AKA: Nattering nabob of negativism.

Down:

 1. NFL three-pointers : FGSNational (American) Football League, and Field Goals.  Points earned by kicking the ball through the uprights.

2. DVD extra : OUT TAKE.  Scenes cut from the movie. 

3. Shone brightly : GLEAMEDLike this.

4. Blinding light : GLARELike this.

5. Item in a dugout : MITT.  Fielder's glove - more baseball!

6. "Disgusting!" : UGH.  Tigers lost tonight.  Down three in the ninth inning, one out, two on, Miggy hit into a double play.

7. Soar effortlessly : GLIDELike a goose on the wing.

8. Gets with a tusk : GORES.  Pierces or stabs with a horn or tusk.  Not something we need to see. 

9. High-range song, in more ways than one : YODEL.  High register notes from the Swiss Alps.





10. "Incidentally ..." : SAY.  Oh, BTW  .  .  .

11. Pie order : A LA MODE.  Served with a scoop of ice cream.

12. Libra, for one : AIR SIGN. From the Zodiac.  There are three each of air, earth, fire and water signs.

13. "Manic Monday" band : BANGLESVery 80's.

18. Fauntleroy's title : LORD.  From the children's novel by English  author Frances Hodgson Burnett. It was originally published as a serial in the St. Nicholas Magazine between November 1885 and October 1886.

22. White co-worker : SAJAK.  Vanna and Pat

24. Actress Tyler : LIV.  Arwen.


25. Work up a sweat : TOIL.  Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble.

26. Affected preciousness, with "the" : CUTES.  I can see this, but I've never heard it.

29. Muscat's sultanate : OMAN.  Neighbor of Yemen and Saudi Arabia.

32. Hitherto : AS YET.  Up to now.

34. Sleep stage letters : REMRapid Eye Movement, the dreaming stage.

35. Wine city near Sacramento : LODI.  Can anyone in the coven give us the LODI lowdown?

37. Used a stun gun on : TASED.  But, really, bro - don't.

39. Sully : BESMEAR.  As one's reputation.

40. TV news exec Roone : ARLEDGE.  For good or for ill, he gave us Monday Night Football.

41. Horseshoe Falls river : NIAGARA.  On the Canadian side.

44. Luanda native : ANGOLAN.  Luanda is Angola's chief seaport and administrative center.

45. Bespectacled cartoon canine who was once a CEO : DOGBERT. From Dilbert.

46. Oenophile's "sec" : DRY.  Related to the Latin, Spanish an Portuguese words for DRY.

49. Test for jrs. : PSAT.  Pre-SAT.  College admission exam with close to zero correlation with success. Scam? You decide.  Originally it meant "Scholastic Aptitude Test, " later, "Scholastic Assessment Test."  Later still it was announced, quite appropriately, that it stands for nothing.

52. Rubbernecks : GAWKS.  Here, it is a verb, not a plural noun.

53. Deutschland river : RHEIN.

54. Flared dress : A-LINE.


56. "The Audacity of Hope" author : OBAMA.  He went on to a more frustrating career.

59. Third-least populous U.S. state : N. DAK.  Neighbor of Saskatchewan and Alberta.

61. "Do I have to draw you a __?" : MAP.  Really, they're side by side, just to the north.

63. Old vitamin bottle no. : RDARecommended Daily Allowance.

64. Poli __ : SCI.   Political Science.

Quite a journey.  We circumnavigated the globe, had some sports, saw some sights and visited some exotic places.  Hope you enjoyed the journey.

Cool regards!
JzB



Notes from C.C.:

Jazzbumpa (Ron) and his wife Gloria drove down to Florida and visited his stepson Tom and family last month. Below are some pictures. Tom is with the Air Force. Longtime regulars probably remember the tough time for Ron's family when Tom was deployed in Afghanistan.

  
 Lauren -  Here we are with her in costume before her dance recital.

Lauren Dancing - This is her lyrical dance.


Officer Josh -  Gloria's dad was a policeman. We took his hat to Josh, who was quite delighted to have it.


Please click here for more pictures.

57 comments:

  1. Fun puzzle. Great write up. It is 6:44 a.m. EST. Where is everyone?

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  2. Morning, all!

    Could have done without CUTES or BESMEAR (really wanted BESMIRCH), but overall it was an interesting solve. A bit on the crunchy side in spots, but no lookups or red-letter help required. Took awhile to figure out what type of sign LIBRA was and what base was being stolen (I originally had STEAL A BASE), but once I got the perps sorted out things clicked nicely.

    In other news, after two days of catching (and releasing) something like 30-40 sunfish, I finally caught a couple of good-sized catfish yesterday that we'll be having for dinner tonight...

    [cialsdh]

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  3. Good Morning, JazzBumpa and friends. Interesting puzzle. I was not familiar with the "Classic" horror magazine, however, so the unifier didn't really help.

    My favorite place was Cool Place to Live = IGLOO.

    I liked seeing GLEANED next to GLARE.

    It is always hot and MUGGY where i live.

    Nice shout-out to our very own JUDY!

    There have been three industrial accidents in less than a week in southern Louisiana. No one was killed in yesterday's explosion, fortunately.

    QOD: Do you wish people to think well of you? Don’t speak well of yourself. ~ Blaise Bascal (June 19, 1623 ~ Aug. 19, 1662)

    [eabofpl]

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  4. I enjoy the crossword corner as much as solving the puzzle, I open it immediately upon finishing the grid. Also extremely helpful in educating when stumped.



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  5. Good morning!

    Can't say that I've ever seen a goose glide. I always see 'em flapping, flapping, flapping. Now buzzards, on the other hand....

    WBS about CUTES and BESMEAR. I actually wrote in BESMIRC, and then ran out of space. And, yes, my SAY started out as BTW. Didn't last.

    Loved the tree photos, JzB. The only ones I've seen up close and personal are the General Sherman and the drive-thru redwood. Impressive!

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  6. Happy hump day everyone,

    This was no easy ride for Hondo today, but in the end we got her done except for one letter. Filled in Madd for 43A never having heard of SADD. I did question Cutem, but CUTES never entered my thought process. So, two in a row DNF's.

    I did pick up on the constructors "theme" but it was of little help in a couple of places. Besides my aforementioned error, Bespear looked odd, but it took a while before I changed Peg to Meg.For 31A, I waffled between Veda and ZEDA. It was decided by the flip of a coin.

    Got STEALTHIRD early on and the took care of the NW. Everything else was an effort. If there was a mag called WEIRD TALES, it never got into my library.

    Jazz, nice pix, you have a handsome family.

    [kendivei]

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  7. Happy Wednesday and a wonderful, fun puzzle presented perfectly. Gareth is one of my favorites and he never ceases to amazes me with his knowledge of US esoteric clues/fill like STEAL THIRD. For a vet from RSA he keeps you guessing without bamboozling US with cricket terms.

    JzB thanks, I wanted BESMIRCH too but not you or Gareth

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  8. Good morning everyone.

    Got through the whole puzzle without noticing what the theme might be. Then looked back and saw they were all anagrams of TESLA. Cool. Had 'gapes' before GAWKS and 'steal a base' before STEAL THIRD. So I did need a little white gunk today, but no searches were used. Thought a white co-worker was an odd clue, but SAJAK came easily and then it made sense.
    Did not know about the Zodiac grouping. Thanks JazzB.
    Nice offering, Gareth.

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  9. After a rough Monday (manic?),and a smooth Tuesday, today was a pleasure as I zipped right through it.
    I was looking for LEAST somewhere in the puzzle, but failed to see it.
    Good job, Gareth!

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  10. Good Morning Everybody! Happy Wednesday! I thought my 14 year old kitty Ozzy was headed for a one way ride, but alas - she just had tummy cramps. (Her vet found a tumor on her colon last week, and I was really scared for her Monday night, but she's her chipper old self today.)

    I liked this puzzle, even though I didn't catch the anagrams. DH loves movies and reads a lot of spooky movie magazines, but I've never herd of WEIRD TALES.

    Hate to be a 70-A, but BESMEAR?

    PS: I wanted HUMID for MUGGY (5-A)and SWE for NOR (50-A).

    Have a Great Day!

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  11. Hands up for humid instead of muggy and audi instead of saab. After the slow start, the rest was smooth sailing. Took awhile for the theme as I was looking at the tails of the theme clues instead of the heads...the homophones in my head....

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  12. Good morning. 25:48 here with two slowdows. GLIDE GORES and YODEL told me the correct response was MUGGY rather than humid. In South Central, had to change GApeS to GAWKS and spell RHine RHEIN.

    Was uncertain about AIR part of the horoscope SIGNs, but the perps were solid. Same with VEDA.

    Didn't think about the theme answer until needing to resolve first word of 'dress pants shade.' Then looked at other theme answers and saw anagrams. Easy from there to enter the surname of Fred Flinstone's boss.

    TESLA coil, because VandeGraff machine would not fit. Inside and self deprecating joke. (Corner regulars might recall my lapse, esp Husker Gary and Desper-Otto.)

    Great puzzle Gareth !

    And great write up JzB. Finished the puzzle a couple of hours ago and have been reading and linking ever since. Perfect 'show' for Doo Wop. I watched Judge Judy yesterday. It was the episode where she yelled at someone. Thanks for the link to '10 most magnificent trees.' Now I understand AIR.

    Running late. Will have to read other comments later. See ya = CYA ?

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  13. Three quickies in a row so far this week. Late week puzzles probably will be a bear.
    We had DAHL and ARLEDGE just the other day.
    The only use of CUTES I am familiar with is "a case of the cutes."
    Link case of the cutes
    Sometimes BESMEAR is more on the mark than besmirch. Alan spilled the spaghetti sauce all over the kitchen table and the floor while I was upstairs. He was so proud that he cleaned it up. I didn't have the heart to tell him that he unintentionally missed about 10% of it. The table and the floor were still somewhat BESMEARED, with the emphasis on SMEAR.
    Jazz, I enjoyed your stale joke clip.
    Here it has been 80 degrees and MUGGY, whether rainy or clear. I turn on the air for an hour at a time to clear out the humidity. I could never live in the south.
    Nice family pics, Jazz.

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  14. That audacity of hope author spoke to a crowd of 200,000 in Berlin. Today the President Of The United States will speak at the same venue to a crowd of 6,000.

    Hope springs eternal?

    [mypubi]

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  15. Good morning, gang - my solving experience was a bit different; I made it all the way to the bottom before coming to a screeching halt. Without thinking much about the clue, I confidently put in RHINE for 53D. That, coupled with the fact that I didn't know WEIRD TALES, left me with either GAWKS or GAPES for 52D. Finally saw KINDA, and that finally forced me to see RHEIN. Loved the cluing in this one; nicely done, as always with Gareth.

    Jazz, nice write-up and pics.

    Off for a swim -- 90s and very humid today. Hope it's a Happy Hump for everyone.

    Anyone heard from Windy?

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  16. Good morning, folks. Thank you, Gareth Bain, for an excellent puzzle. Thank you, Jazzbumpa, for a great review.

    Got started in the NW with FGS, GULL, and GLARE. TAROT appeared, then STEAL THIRD. So, I had a good start.

    STALE JOKE gave me the theme. Anagram of those five letters.

    ERIES was easy. Sometimes it is spelled ERIEZ. TASED fixed that dilemma. I grew up with that word, ERIEZ.

    Had MARK for a while for the author Chagall. SCI looked better than SKI. So, I changed that to MARC.

    I wanted UTAH for 59D. Held off until I had a perp. SNEAK gave me DAK. NABOB gave me the N DAK.

    I also spelled RHEIN as RHINE at first. Two I's and two N's next to each other looked odd, so I wrote RHEIN. KINDA appeared.

    Steak Fry tonight at the Commandery. Looking forward to that.

    Off to New Orleans on Saturday. Church Mission Trip to Camp Restore for a week.

    See you tomorrow.

    Abejo

    (perioli)

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  17. JzB: Great family photos. Forgot to mention on my first pass.

    Abejo

    (roxiati)
    (hnowshed)

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  18. I always like Gareth Bain puzzles and this one was no exception. Not a speed run, but still a lot of fun. So many thanks, Gareth, and you too, JazzB. Loved your caption to the WEIRD TALES cover! And that's a very CUTE family you have!

    JUDGE JUDY--now that was one tough lady. My husband loves watching both "Jeopardy" and "Wheel of Fortune" every night. That's a good thing because ALEX TREBEK and PAT SAJAK seem to be becoming crossword regulars. And VANNA WHITE never changes in either elegance or charm.

    Mari, glad Ozzy is okay.

    Have a great Wednesday, everybody!

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  19. Thank you Gareth Bain, for a challenging puzzle. I finished it. Enjoyed it.

    Thank you JazzB for a very nice commentary. Lovely family pictures. Best wishes for the future.

    Thank you, very kindly, C.C., for your wise, sagacious and very helpful advice. I am having serious problems with my computer, due to a virulent virus, and will have to consult a professional. I just hope the cure is not more expensive than the cost of the entire computer.

    The banyan tree is also a 'sacred' tree in Buddhist philosophy as Gautama Buddha is said to have done his meditations under a banyan tree.

    Have a nice day, you all.

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  20. Hi gang -

    Thanks for all the nice comments on the write up and the fam.

    I have to admit I am very blessed.

    Gareth's puzzles are always a joy, and great fun to blog.

    Have great day everyone.

    Cool regards!
    JzB

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  21. Good Morning:

    This puzzle caused more write-overs than I have ever had:
    Audi/Saab, Erne/gull, glinted/gleamed, humid/muggy, gapes/gawks. Learning moments: air sign, Veda, and Bangles.

    While it was a tad more difficult than a usual Wednesday, I finished w/o help thanks to perps. Clever theme and execution, Gareth, and neat expo, JazzB, to go along with the great pictures.

    Mari, have you watched this past Sunday's episode of The Killing? The "red herrings" are just beginning!

    Have a wonderful Wednesday.

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  22. BTW, Mari, glad little Ozzy is better. Meow, Meow!

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  23. For all 'Cat lovers', everywhere....

    Cat Statue

    Enjoy.

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  24. YR, are you being DF with those quickies? So far as living in the south is concerned, set the thermostat at 75 and let 'er rip. Expensive, but comfortable. Just don't go outside.

    Unfortunately, I had to go outside. I had to make a 50 mile trip to the county seat to see the Social Security folks. I took along a printout from their own website to show them that what they said was impossible, is indeed doable. And, tada, I got 'em to do it! Mission accomplished.

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  25. Shot a 78 (38/40), best AS YET, and then got to work this fun puzzle. I got the theme in the rearview mirror and not the windshield.

    Musings
    -The risk/reward for STEALing THIRD usually precludes its execution
    -It’s June 19 and we’ve had scant MUGGY weather, uh, yet
    -Billy sang and mixed all those parts – GREAT!
    -I’m a big JUDGE JUDY (highest rated afternoon show on TV) fan. She tolerates no LAME excuses. Defendant – “No Judge Judy, I did not bring that receipt to court.” Judy – “Where’d you think you were going today, the beach?”
    -Okay, that Chagall is art because someone says it is?
    -My favorite song with YODELing
    -Vanna’s had some work, and she’s still lookin’ good. SAJAK’s skill seems to be blandness.
    -Is the second A in NIAGARA pronounced as little as the middle T in dentist.
    -Need a job? Hello, N DAK
    -Great pix Jazz!
    -I remember, TTP.
    -What great movie/novel had four Cardinals getting killed using the signs of earth, fire, air and water respectively.

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  26. Some YODELling Starts @ 1:48.


    JazzB - Nice family pix. Thanks for sharing.

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  27. The "Kitten's plaything" finally came through to me and broke the log jam of the NE corner. It was the word needed to pin down all the others in the corner.

    Old puzzle hands will know this sometimes happens when six or so crossing words have multiple possible answers, answers of the right length and equally accurate response to the clues. That's when you can't pin any down until--all of a sudden-- you recognize the right one, Bam!, because it yields multiple answers.

    For me today that word was YARN.

    I enjoyed this for a light workout, and for seeing how many double letters Mr Bain could include. For a while before hitting on YARN I thought maybe the double letter motif would confirm SAAB for me as the "European auto." But that would mean giving up ALII, another double letter answer. In the end of course ALII had to give way to ALIA, so SAAB was right. But there was no way to be sure until the true key emerged-- in the form of...
    YARN!

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  28. HG
    Angels & Demons

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  29. Husker, amazing coincidence? Slim Whitman died today. I wasn't familiar with his version of I Remember You, just the Frank Ifield recording from 1962. It sounds like Slim used the same arrangement. RIP, Slim.

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  30. DNF...

    I thought i had it when the theme with all its anagrams appeared, but the SW corner stopped me cold. It may have been because I thought the teen safety org. was D.A.R.E., but knew Poli*** probably was not "wog." I hesitated at 50A between Nor & Swe, & had no idea what an Oenophile was.

    Well, in retrospect, I can't blame myself for not knowing "nabob," & for a while it had me bouncing between North & South Dakota. Luanda native did not help at all...

    It has been a long time since I dropped an Oreo in milk, so soggy did not come to mind. The one thing I thought I should know was 45D Bespectacled cartoon canine who was once a CEO, what was his name,,, gosh I was losing Oreo's in milk when I last watched him. I think it was Mr. Know It All.

    No, it wasn't Mr Know It All, but I watched it anyway thinking it might show a way to deal with some of our snarky Anons, only to be rewarded with the worst pun of all time.

    Mr. Peabody (& Sherman,) that was it! (except peabody didn't fit with weird tales.) but this clip does. Tune in @ 2:40 to see the most fiendish torture device ever invented, & stay till the end to find out the only thing that ever scared Edgar Allen Poe!

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  31. Hola Everyone, Finished this one up in record time. For some reason I was on Gareth Bain's wavelength today. That isn't always the case! I even got the theme today. Anagrams are not my favorite, but the word literal clued me in.

    I thought the Cutes was rather lame. I've not heard that expression before and wanted Cutie. That wouldn't fit and I knew that all the surrounding words were correct.

    I Had never heard of the Weird Tales Magazine. Not my cup of tea.

    I'm off to a meeting this afternoon, so will sign off here.

    Great pictures, JzB. Thanks for sharing.

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  32. Husker, that 78 (38/40) was shot on a Golf Course of what, 5300 yards?

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  33. I enjoyed the puzzle and writeup. Thanks Gareth and JzB.

    I thought Banyan trees were Hawaiian. I remember my father coming home from a business trip and telling me about them.

    I've had Stilton often but never limburger.

    Judge Judy is too curt and unpleasant for me. I do like Judge Marilyn Millian on People's Court. Pretty and smart.

    Animal Tracks slide show.

    The Dodgers are playing the Yankees in a doubleheader today. I want the Dodgers to win but Barbara grew up on Long Island as is a Yankees fan. So if the Dodgers win and she's unhappy, I still come out on the losing end.

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  34. D/O @12:00 Parse it as you like. HA HA.
    Actually today the temp was in the high 70s, clear and dry, the most comfortable day we have had in a while. I enjoyed sitting on the patio to do my paper work.
    Glad you won with Social Security. A while back we had a big hoopty-doo with them. They told us they could have not made the mistake they did because it was against regulations. After multiple calls they had to admit that someone there didn't follow regs. We won..

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  35. Irish Miss: DH and I watched The Killing last night. I'm really liking this season. It seems like there are more characters. There are a lot of mini-stories developing. It will be interesting to see them all merge.

    I really like Holder. He cracked me up with his knowledge of rabbits.

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  36. Misty and Irish Miss: Thanks for your well wishes for Ozzy. She still has a tumor on her colon, but she seems to be feeling much better than she was on Monday. DH and I got her a year before we got married, so she really means a lot to us.

    Great pictures JzB. I like the one with the policeman's cap.

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  37. I've always liked Slim Whitman though it wasn't cool to own up to it.

    I enjoy that German yodeling video. That female yodeler is pretty but there is something a little creepy about her appearance while she's doing her thing. It doesn't make sense to me but there it is.

    Oops. I forgot the link in my link. Here it is. Animal Tracks slide show.

    I'm off for a short bike ride and some lunch. Then I'll suffer through some more of the Dodgers ineptitude.

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  38. Mari @ 3:08 - I agree with everything you said about this season and Holder and the rabbit lesson. But Bullet one-upped him with her remark and where she learned it! Funny. I really dislike Holder's partner.

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  39. Clever theme! Got BANGLES 100% from perps. And though I've never heard the expression "the CUTES", I rather like it.

    Great photos, JazzB. Aren't grandchildren the greatest?

    Enjoy the day!

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  40. Irish Miss: I agree about Holder's partner! So many nick names this time around: Bullet, Goldie, Twitch, etc.

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  41. Hi gang, Nice puzzle Gareth, thanks JzB.
    Never got the theme 'til I came here.
    BillG nice picture of you and Barbara
    JazzB, Nice pix of the family.
    No nits Mon-Wed.

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  42. Spitz, I enjoyed the YODELING, etc in your video. I found this in the comments (their caps)

    THIS WAS DONE IN FRIBORG, GERMANY IN THE BLACK FOREST BUT MANY OF THE SINGERS ARE AUS DER SWITZERLAND!!

    The stringed instrument in the opening had Appenzeller on it and my family name is from Appenzellerland in eastern Switzerland.

    Yes it was Angels and Demons where attempts were made to kill Cardinals in conclave by each of the four “elements”.

    Yeah, Otto, quite a coincidence. Like Bill, I liked Slim too but wouldn’t own up to it. Also, I never admitted to my mother that I loved big band music. What an idiot! I’ll take some In The Mood anytime.

    Off to barbecue!

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  43. Good afternoon Bumpa, C.C., and all,

    This did not seem like a Wed. as I was able to (almost) fill Gareth's puzzle quickly. Am not so savvy on anagrams, so filled the "downs" after coming to a halt at coil. Learned that a stale joke is/was called a chestnut?

    Left out the D at the sadD/ Dry crossing, so DNF.I SHOULD have known what an oenophile was!!

    That looks like the Banyan tree in Lahaina, Maui. It was planted sometime in the 1800's and was brought over from India for or by the missionaries.Each evening 100's of birds chirp among its branches as the sun goes down.

    JzBumpa, loved the sweet pictures.
    Thanks for the write up.

    Mari, glad little old Ozzy is OK.




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  44. HG re: FRIBORG - I'm not so sure the commenter is correct. There is a Fribourg ~ 20 miles SW of Berne in die Schweiz. Also the MC's intonations are Swiss dialect or Swiss German. JMHO.

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  45. Cool info Spitz! Still, I prefer to remain neutral ;-)





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  46. DO speaking of people dying today....add Tony (James G.) Soprano to the list


    The puzzle was good

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  47. Hi, all!

    Sad to report that one of my favorite actors, James Gandolfini, is dead of a massive heart attack in Italy.

    Puzzle a little sticky for me today. But good one, Gareth. Super write-up, Jazzbumpa. Very thorough!

    Anyone read my comment late last night?

    Cheers!

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  48. Spitzboov, I agree with you on this one. I think the commenter was mistaken. I drove down to Freiburg im Breisgau in the Schwarzwald two or three times while in Karlsruhe. It was a beautiful drive.

    More often, I would just drive down to Freudenstadt and back on a Saturday or Sunday for the day, and took some of the newbies at different times. If you got some of the newbies "out on the economy" and showed them the beauty of where we were stationed they didn't become barracks rats.

    I have both of those places annotated in my Michelin guide.

    I also drove the Romantic Road while there.

    I wonder if there is an equivalent Navy phrase for barracks rats.

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  49. I sometimes mention the weather when it's nice. I just got back from a short bike ride along the ocean and the weather today wasn't just nice, it was spectacularly good! The word "muggy" made me look up the humidity; the temperature was in the low 70s, the humidity at about 45 percent with completely blue skies and just a zephyr of a sea breeze.

    FP, yes I'm up late as you are and read your comment.


    Damn Yankees!

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  50. Ah, Bill, that wasn't nice! Go Yankees!

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  51. Hawks and Bruins is proving to be a pretty good series.

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  52. The bad news here is that you all failed. 26 down is cutey which I got. 43 across is yadd [youths against drunk driving]. Sorry- better luck next time .Ciao.

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  53. The good news is today is Juneteenth !

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  54. Good evening folks. I am really late to the blog today but I just had to comment on the 10 most unusual trees that were linked.

    Tree #8, "The Circus Trees" just happen to be here in Gilroy, down the street from me! They truly are magnificent and would have been bull dozed had it not been for Michael Bonfante and his vision to save them. It's quite a story. www.gilroygardens.org

    Enjoyed the puzzle and the photos Jzb.

    Good night. Sleep tight!

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