google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Wednesday, September 25, 2013 Mangesh 'Mumbaikar' Ghogre

Gary's Blog Map

Sep 25, 2013

Wednesday, September 25, 2013 Mangesh 'Mumbaikar' Ghogre

Theme: Three's company - each of the three theme answers has a abbreviation for a type of business embedded therein. This puzzle has 16 rows and 14 columns with a left to right mirror symmetry. Our norm is 15*15 with 180 degree rotational symmetry.

19A. Animation pioneer : WALT DISNEY.  He had more nominations and won more Oscars than anyone else in history - 59 nominations leading to 22 awards. Mr Crowe of 37A didn't do quite so well.

27A. Warren Harding's successor : CALVIN COOLIDGE. I don't believe he was nominated for any Academy Awards, making him the odd man out here. Serious-looking chap too.


37A. 1999, 2000 and 2001 Best Actor nominee (he won once) : RUSSELL CROWE. He was nominated for The Insider and A Beautiful Mind and won for Gladiator in 2000.

55A. Company's main activity, and a hint to a different three-letter abbreviation hidden in 19-, 27- and 37-Across : CORE BUSINESS

Hello to everyone and hello to Wednesday already - time does fly when you're having fun. Steve here with this pretty fun puzzle from Mangesh. I like how the abbreviations for the different types of business all split on the 2-1 letter count in the "core" of each name.

(One common benefit of the Limited Company, the Incorporation and the Limited Liability Company is the fact that the personal assets of company officers are protected from claims by creditors and by lawsuits.)

Now that we're done with the corporate law lesson, let's see what else we're working with.

I had a couple of do-overs on the way - nothing too tragic but enough to keep me thinking. All good stuff.

Across:

1. Pizza Quick sauce brand : RAGU. Food! Well, almost! If you have a Trader Joe's near you, try their pizza dough for an even quicker pizza experience, it's really good.

5. Boxer's weapon : FIST

9. Frankly declare : AVOW. Had my first misstep here with AVER. I'll remember not to jump to conclusions next time.

13. Parade instrument : HORN.  I don't know how anyone manages to walk with these things, let alone play them too.


14. "The Andy Griffith Show" tyke : OPIE

15. Olin of "The Reader" : LENA. Perps all the way. I even had to look up to see if this was a movie, TV show or book reference. (It was a movie).

16. Cheers for a torero : OLES. We've had quite a few of these recently.

17. Like a blue moon : RARE. Didn't we have one last month? A blue moon is the second moon in a single month, and so named because the symbol was colored blue in the Farmer's Almanac (the first moon was colored red).

18. Overcast, in London : GREY. I can never remember which is which now as GRAY/GREY both look fine to me. So I wait for the cross to help me out.

22. Too scrupulous for : ABOVE

24. Peasant dress : FROCK

32. Jacuzzi effect : EDDY

33. 50+ group : AARP

34. Score after deuce : AD IN. This is a tennis term for those who've not come across this bit of crossword-ese before and it's shorthand for Advantage, Server.

35. Line on a map : STREET

43. Japanese fish dish : SUSHI. Food! I had sushi for lunch yesterday, one of two puzzle-coincidences for me today.

44. Battery post : ANODE

46. "Dear" one? : ABBY

47. __ qua non : SINE

51. Duds : TOGS. This has cropped up a couple of times recently, too, no?

52. Cry of pain : YIPE

53. Eat too much of, briefly : O.D. ON. I could easily overdose on sushi.

54. Poems of praise : ODES

58. Coyote's coat : FUR I see a lot of coyotes when I go hiking around LA. They're shifty-looking buggers.

59. Bridge player's blunder : RENEGE. You must follow suit in bridge if you can. Failing to do so is a renege, and you are penalized for this heinous crime.

60. Work on a garden row : HOE. I like the row/hoe rhyme

62. Garden pest : ANT

63. Low points on graphs : MINIMA. Nice word!

64. Benelux locale: Abbr. : EUR. The country grouping of Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg in Europe.

65. Billboard fillers : ADS

66. Lacking a musical key : ATONAL. Me, singing. I confine exercising my pipes to the shower to spare the rest of the world considerable anguish.

67. Souse's woe : DT'S. The bad thing about getting delerium tremens is that your hands shake so badly the only way to get a drink is to swig it straight out of the bottle until things calm down and you can pour into a glass again.
       
Down:

1. Frat letter : RHO

2. Longtime ISP : AOL. Calling your Internet Service Provider America On-Line seems quaint now. My first ISP was Compuserve - my email address was 35678-1931@compuserve.com - not exactly the easiest thing for people to remember.

3. Got tiresome : GREW OLD

4. Not in the know : UNSAVVY

5. Old West defense : FORT

6. High-tech release of 2010 : iPAD

7. Voice-activated app for 6-Down : SIRI. Quibble - Siri is on the iPhone, unless she's hiding somewhere very remote on my iPad. I've got the iPad right here and I can't find her.

8. Football supporters : TEES. I looked quizzically at this then remembered - kicking tees.


9. African country that was a French colony : ALGERIA

10. "Well, that's weird" : VERY ODD

11. With 12-Down, sign with an arrow : ONE

12. See 11-Down : WAY

20. Island ring : LEI

21. Patriots' org. : N.F.L. The New England Patriots of the National Football League. They probably have quite a supply of 8D's

22. Serving success : ACE. Two tennis references today.

23. Horrible : BAD

25. Modern film effects, briefly : C.G.I. or Computer-Generated Imagery. It doesn't seem to be given the period-abbreviation treatment in most of the industry literature that I see.

26. Understanding : KEN

28. __ the Great: boy detective : NATE. The junior Sherlock Holmes with his dog, Sludge.


29. Rob Reiner's dad : CARL

30. Hershiser of ESPN : OREL

31. Oil bloc : OPEC. The Organization of Petroleum-Exporting Countries. I wonder why no abbreviation indication in the clue?

35. FICA benefit : S.S.I.

36. La-la lead-in : TRA

37. Ruddy, as a complexion : RUBICUND. Great word - I want to find someone ruddy tomorrow so I can compliment them on their complexion - or is it not a compliment?

38. Places to plug in mice : USB PORTS. Because "funny-looking 9-pin socket all the way in back of my desktop computer" doesn't fit

39. More reserved : SHYER

40. En pointe : ON TOE. Ballet. I've never seen this translated in the ballet sense though.

41. Place to store cords : WOODSHED. Very nice. A cord of wood, given that it's properly and tidily arranged, occupies 126 cubic feet, and that's a pretty big pile.


42. Beats by a whisker : EDGES OUT

43. For instance : SAY

45. Slalom curve : ESS

47. "Fine" : SO BE IT

48. Words accompanying a shrug : I DUNNO. My last misstep - I had I GUESS first as I had the I and the U

49. Like much metered parking : NOSE IN. Took my a while to see that it wasn't NO SEIN because I had NO idea what that was all about.

50. Head-scratcher : ENIGMA

56. Columnist Bombeck : ERMA

57. Country singer McCoy : NEAL

58. SFO overseer : F.A.A. The Federal Aviation Authority oversees San Francisco International airport. My second puzzle co-incidence as I was in and out of SFO yesterday, and for the first time in memory there was no inbound delay due to fog or air traffic congestion, and no delay leaving to go home. I got upgraded to First both ways, so a happy travel day for me. I ♥ United Airlines (sometimes).

61. Hesitant sounds : ERS

Good luck to Oracle Racing Team USA in the down-to-the-wire America's Cup race today. A pretty amazing comeback whichever way today's race goes.

There it is, as the chef who rolled a chicken salad in a tortilla said - "it's a wrap"

Steve

1) Note from C.C.:

For those of you who do not use Across Lite, please click here for the Chronicle puzzle George Barany and Alex Vratsanos made last Friday. He had quite a few links there. Just click on here (A PDF file created from Across Lite). There is another special puzzle he and a friend created for a speical event last Friday. Click here, you can solve interactively too.

2) Note from today's constructor Mongesh:
Rich said in his acceptance mail ... "It's a nice, tight theme and a really 
clean, fun grid". I added the word Mumbaikar to my byline  to pay a 
tribute to my city Mumbai which has been with my  crossword journey
and has given me so much.



87 comments:

  1. Good Wednesday morning, all.

    Is anyone else starting to tire of the Geico "Hump Day" commercial? But it's "Friday" for me as I will get the next four days off. Woo hoo!

    Steve, I also got hung up on 9A, fell for the change-up, and struck out on "aver". This made for nonsensical 11D-12D combinations ("ray" ena, ene"), along with 18A's "grey"? "gray"?

    I never got it until I turned on the red-letter reveal, at which point I said, "oh yeah,THAT other word." Quite sneaky, but fun, nonetheless.

    New words for me were "minima" and "rubicund". Could Opie Taylor (Ron Howard) be described as rubicund?

    Have a good one, y'all.
    Burrito34

    ReplyDelete
  2. Morning, all!

    The top half of this one was really easy for a Wednesday. And then I hit a wall down south where I nearly crashed and burned.

    Had JOHN instead of ABBY at 46A, which really held me up for awhile. Neither MINIMA nor RENEGE were exactly in my wheelhouse, although I have heard of both. No idea who NEAL McCOY is/was. Wanted HANK there. Also had no idea what/where BENELUX was.

    I did finally change JOHN to ABBY and that got the ball rolling for me, and I eventually got the job done unassisted.

    I agree with Steve, btw, that SIRI was misclued. I guess Rich isn't very tech Savvy.

    [IlvToWb]
    [drsself]

    ReplyDelete
  3. Good Morning, Steve and friends. Interesting theme. The names came easily, but untangling the theme too some thought.

    Hand up for Aver before AVOW.

    I also really wanted Tuba instead of the HORN.

    My favorite clue was "Dear" One = ABBY. I had almost forgotten about all the advice Dear Abby provided.

    I have an iPAD, but as Steve pointed out, it is san SIRI. (Have you gotten accustomed to the new iOS 7?)

    Thanks for the word on the Trader Joe's pizza dough, Steve. A TJ is scheduled to open at the end of October about a half a mile from my house.

    Happy Anniversary, Anonymous T. Congratulations on 25 years. I hope you and your wife are doing something special to mark this event.

    QOD: Deep breaths are very helpful at shallow parties. ~ Barbara Walters (Sept. 25, 1929)

    [pushbi]

    ReplyDelete
  4. Good morning, gang - this was a fun Wednesday run, especially the theme; very clever.

    As with Steve, it took me forever to see NOSE IN, and RUBICUND was new to my vocabulary. I avoided an ink blot with a 46A 'dear john' only because I glanced at the 43D perp and didn't see any way a 'J' would work. Otherwise, a straightforward solve with no hint as to the theme until the end. Oh, and I actually contemplated MORE BUSINESS for the unifier until CORE came to mind.

    Steve, great job as always, but one correction: USB ports, unlike serial and parallel ports, aren't pinned port; they're more like a 'tab into slot' connection.

    Have a great day; still lotsa storms rumbling through our area, which make for good reading days.

    ReplyDelete
  5. GRR day all,

    I did not enjoy today's puzzle at all, but I will still admit to admiring Mumbaikar for putting in the effort to construct the puzzle. I've said often, constructing a crossword can't be easy.

    That said, I finished, but with one error, so another DNF. HAD A boy in 40A instead of ABBY.

    Like Steve, I kept wondering what No Sein was, Can't ever recall hearing NOSE IN to describe metered parking, but at times it is applicable.

    I struggled with IPAD & SIRI. Needed perp help. Got to get educated about all today's techie stuff.

    I think CORE BUSINESS describes the type of business a company conducts, not how it is organized. Selling shoes is the core biz, LLC, INC, etc describes the ownership.

    On a different note.... seems like the squirrels in Ct. have disappeared. We live in a heavily wooded area and squirrels were part of the landscape. They are 100% gone. I'm aware of other areas in the state where this has happened too. Anyone else ever experience this phenomenon?

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hello Puzzlers -

    Zoomed through, slowed down a tad around Rubicund, a word I've probably never seen before. I wonder if the "Mumbaikar" in the constructor's name is a nickname or some such.

    Morning, Steve, I agree that coyotes do have a sinister way about them. We have lots around here - they're more often heard than seen, and that's eerie enough for me.

    Nose in parking is common enough, but in Australia I noticed that angled parking is arranged so that you back into your space instead. I gather it makes rejoining the flow that much easier. There is much to like about Oz. Another Aussie thing I like: public school uniforms. Kids are dressed alike, there is none of this nonsense of competing with your classmates' clothes.

    G'Day All!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I did well on the puzzle. I am on my way to Cavin Coolidge's boyhood home.

    Later if I have Internet access,

    Montana

    ReplyDelete
  8. I also thought the use of the three three letter abbreviations was well done. Fun to see Mangesh again, though this was really easy for a Wednesday.

    Marti you out there?

    Happy Anniversary AT

    ReplyDelete
  9. Is this LA Times forum or Professor George Barany's forum?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Good morning!

    Steve I was right with you on AVER/AVOW, NO SEIN, and my first ISP was also Compuserve. When the internet appeared, I wondered why anybody needed it.

    ERMA still gets a lot of play in CW's, even though she died 17 years ago. I wonder if ABBY's fame will endure that long.

    Hondo, I think your squirrels may have moved to SE Texas. We put bird seed in the squirrel feeders down here. They really love sunflower seeds.

    Congrats, Anonymous-T.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Montana, let me know if you are going to get any closer to SW corner of VT. It's pretty close to Irish Miss and myself.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Greetings!

    Nice work, Mangesh and Steve!

    Hand up for AVer, AVOW. Eventually got it all cleared up!

    Off to dentist today. Aargh!

    Anybody watch S.H.I.E.L.D?

    Cheers!

    Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Steve, thank you for a great blog. Thank you Mangesh, for an enjoyable puzzle. Rubicund is my new word for the day. Have to be really careful on the last letter ...

    My IPad had to load IOS7 .... And I hate it. The apps gave me all sorts of problems. Why can't they resolve all these issues BEFORE they issue the new updates ???

    I also hate SIRI, and try to avoid her like the plague. You could call me a prude, but I am averse to talking with strange women, while not fully dressed .....

    Dudley, a Mumbaikar , is like a 'New Yorker' ... From Mumbai (Bombay) - which is where Mr. Ghogre' is from. The suffix -kar, ..... coincidentally, as similar, phonetically to, the English, -ker,...... used in Marathi, the dominant language in the city, indicates origin, as 'of' or 'from', especially, when used as a last name. The word, itself, mumbaikar, I believe, is of more recent origin, developed in the last 20 years.

    Have a nice day, you all.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I forgot to add,

    Congratulations, and happy Anniversary , Anonymous T.


    I would have added more, but remember, somebody like the NSA may be listening, and you may hear some flying noises overhead ... In Houston. Lol.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hand up here too for AVER and NO SEIN before light dawned. I was also thinking CO instead of INC for the theme connection in 27A, until rereading the clue that said they were 3-letter abbreviations. I also was unaware of MINIMA or NEAL, so was unsure whether to speell NEAL or NEIL. Otherwise it was still easier than Monday this week.

    Burrito,
    There isn't an ad on TV that I'm not tired of! One of my faves to hate is the Rosetta Stone one where the lady says "...being dropped in a foreign country to your own resources...". Couldn't they have corrected it to "and left to your own resources"? I keep wanting to tell them to learn their won language first!

    ReplyDelete
  16. A young girl, with a lisp, was going through a physical exam.

    The pediatrician, who was examining her, with a stethoscope, commanded,"Now, ..... big breaths ..."

    The girl replied," Oh Yeth, and I am only thixteen".

    ReplyDelete
  17. I also forgot to add, congratulations and Happy Anniversary, Anon-T; that's quite a feat anymore.

    Vidwan, I'm just the opposite regarding the 'fully dressed' part...

    ReplyDelete
  18. Good morning, folks. Thank you, Mangesh Mumbaikar Ghogre, for a swell puzzle. Thank you, Steve, for the very fine review.

    Got started with AOL and then put in COLT for 5D. I had OPIE and WALT DISNEY first, so COLT looked logical. Fixed that later to FORT.

    LENA Olin was easy. She is a crossword staple. Her and Ken Olin. Even though I learned from this crossword blog that they are not related.

    CALVIN COOLIDGE was easy. After that entry is when I noticed the puzzle had an odd shape and grid. I have learned that you can vary a little bit in constructing these puzzles.

    CORE BUSINESS fell together and then I looked for the theme and found it. LTD, INC, and LLC. Clever, not me the constructor.

    As others, RUBICUND is a new word for me. After I is there. Ruddy.

    As others, it took me a minute to see NOSE IN. Had the letters but could not figure it out right away.

    Had WOOD PILE for a while. Fixed that to SHED with perps.

    Not a SUSHI fan at all.

    Well, I am heading to Erie tonight to be near my best friend of 60 years who is having open heart surgery tomorrow. I will be with his family as we all hope and pray for success.

    See you tomorrow, from Erie, if I can get the puzzle.

    Abejo

    (ltigad)
    (iesustu)

    ReplyDelete
  19. Siri is on the newest iPAD so you must be on an older model :-)

    Carmen

    ReplyDelete
  20. Happy Anniversary Anonymous T.

    Algeria has given me an earworm all morning.
    See the market place in old Algiers. Send me photographs and souvenirs.
    Link Dean Martin

    I like this punny verse. Just find yourself a drunk with a large rubicund nose and nothing you say near him can be disclosed.

    Sir Rubicund Naso by Samuell Taylor Coleridge
    A COURT ALDERMAN AND WHISPERER OF SECRETS
    Speak out, Sir! you're safe, for so ruddy your nose
    That, talk where you will, 'tis all under the Rose.

    Under the rose meaning: in secret; privately; in a manner that forbids disclosure; - the rose being among the ancients the symbol of secrecy, and hung up at entertainments as a token that nothing there said was to be divulged. Reminds me of “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.”

    ReplyDelete
  21. Good morning everybody. Pretty much WBS this morning (MINIMA, RENEGE, BENELUX)

    There were some catchy clues though. I liked 41D: Place to store cords. This threw me off because DH and I had friends over last weekend and during our pre-visit cleaning rampage I was trying to wind up and hide electrical cords. Never saw the WOOD SHED coming.

    Hope everybody has a wonderful day!

    ReplyDelete
  22. I looked for a bigger theme after the reveal but found the three letter acronyms hiding there. I had rubiCund/Corebusiness and since I didn’t (don’t) know RUBIMUND so… Of course, Calvin famously said “The business of America is business”

    Musings
    -What TV series had This Big RAGU?
    -Is playing a flute in a marching band sort of useless?
    -Dear Abby and her twin sister “Ann Landers” dispensed a lotta common sense from their Jewish upbringing in Sioux City, IA
    -My Dad’s drinking GREW OLD but after he survived the DT’S he came out great on the other side
    -When that ONE WAY arrow points in the opposite direction you are driving…
    -I remember Rob directing When Harry Met Sally and having his mother deliver the classic line, “I’ll have what she’s having”
    -I have 7 devices in my USB hub
    -Kids coming in and so it’s a wrap from here too for awhile. Read ya later.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Have not seen ad in for a while. One of my favorites as I play tennis...

    I alway try to visit all presidential home and or birthplaces.

    I finally visited Lincoln's birthplace this summer. I was always going to stop when I drove from Texas to New York many times. It was so worth it. I love national historical sites

    .

    ReplyDelete
  24. I just finished reading yesterday's posts, and this is my two bits .

    C.E.D. - you have been a great asset to this blog !

    I admire your posts and have learnt a lot from them.

    They have tickled my fancy and whetted my curiosity.

    If you posted something inappropriate, it is the onus of the curious to click off, and move on.

    To censor your posts, or even self censor them would be inappropriate and even defeating. Beauty, wonderment, awe, inspiration is always in the eye of the beholder.

    May you live long and prosper.

    May the force be with you.

    Thank you for all the time, effort and dedication you devote to your craft for our benefit.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Good morning Steve, C.C. et al.

    Happy 25th anniversary, Anonymous T! That is quite a milestone, and I hope you are doing something really special with your DW today!
    ¸¸¸.•*¨*♫♥♫¸¸¸.•*¨*♫♥♫¸¸¸.•*¨*♫♥♫¸¸¸.•*¨*♫♥♫

    Fun fun fun today - both the puzzle and your ever-witty write-up, Steve! I can't believe you remembered your old Compuserve email address. I have a hard enough time remembering my current one...and don't even get me started on passwords and PINs!!

    I noticed the odd symmetry for this puzzle right away, but didn't notice that it was 14 x 16 until you pointed it out. RUBICUND seems to be the word of the day. I must have seen it at some point or other, but now it is etched in my brain.

    Lemonade - present and accounted for! (Really busy at work today, so I'm late to the party.)

    Have a great day, everyone.

    ReplyDelete
  26. CED Admirer @ 9:06 well said.

    Thanks CED, for all you do for us.

    Nate the Great was a popular children's book when I was teaching. The secret to getting boys to read is to find subject matter that interests them.

    Come to think of it, although the squirrels and chipmunks here are usually very active in September, I haven't seen many of either.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Hi Y'all: Good puzzle, Mangesh! Enjoyed your expo, Steve! Found the "cores" all right after the reveal.

    Rubicund: root word "ruby" red.

    Anon T: Very happy 25th anniversary! Thank you for your concern for my welfare last night.

    Hondo & YR: if D.O. is right and your squirrels have moved to Texas, maybe they know something you don't -- bad winter coming? Or maybe with the big blow last spring, they all got shook out of the trees and are still running.

    I have stuff I need to do today and I'm so stiff from my yard work yesterday, I am moving mighty slow.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Thank you Mongesh. Enjoyed your puzzle. 21:07, and perhaps half of that was solving the south central area. I liked that the clues and answers were straightforward and that as I solved from top to bottom, it got a bit harder. It was almost as if the top half was a warmup for the bottom.

    I had all but the C and D in RUBICUND, and I know I have read the word before.

    Thank you Steve for the fun writeup. I too, am ATONAL but since I work from home and it's just me and the boy (my avatar), I can stretch the old pipes anytime a favorite song plays.

    I thought of Abejo and his tuba for parade instrument.

    Husker Gary, it took awhile to pull that one up in the memory banks, but the answer would be Laverne and Shirley.

    ReplyDelete
  29. I didn't notice the odd size, because the New Mexican squished and stretched it to a square. Back when I was constructing puzzles for a Masonic magazine, I wanted them to be the shape of a lodge room -- an "oblong square," in Mason-speak -- and so made the grids 9x13 or 13x9. I felt frustrated when the editor resized them to perfect squares, with narrow letter cells.

    Hand up for TUBA.
    Liked the paired words: IPAD/SIRI, ONE/WAY, ACE/ADIN (they didn't adjoin, but were across from each other), ERMA/ABBY, HOE/ANT (clued with garden), places to plug in mice/place to store cords (nice misdirection), NEAL/ATONAL.

    Abby's daughter carries on, and her column, Annie's Mailbox, and the bridge column share the same page as the crossword.

    Patriot's org. I expected DAR or VFW, but when I got N__, I was scared it was going to be NRA.

    ReplyDelete

  30. Anon at 8:27 -- Following your theme, here's another one:

    This young guy took his blind date to an amusement park. They went for a ride on the Ferris wheel. After the ride, she seemed bored.

    “What would you like to do next?” he asked. “I want to get weighed,” she said. So the young man took her to the weight guesser. “One twelve,” said the man at the scale, and he was absolutely correct.

    Next they rode the roller coaster. After that, he bought her some popcorn and cotton candy, then asked her what else she wanted to do. “I want to get weighed,” she said again.

    “I really latched onto a winner tonight,” thought the young man, and, using the excuse that he had developed a headache, he took the girl home.

    The girl’s mother was surprised to see her home so early, and asked, “What’s wrong, dear? Didn’t you have a nice time tonight?”

    “Wousy,” replied the girl.

    ReplyDelete
  31. -Kids are working on homework and so I’ll finish up
    -AT, congrats on your anniversary. I hope you gave your lovely bride some very nice silver token. The days are long and the years are short
    -Daytime TV ads are the worst as they advertise adult diapers, catheters, emergency response devices, Viagra, reverse mortgages…. Hmmm… is there a pattern there ;-)
    -Omaha has some “BACK IN” parking on busy streets and I don’t know how you do that safely
    -It seems to me that the thixteen year old girl had a lisping problem with her hearing as the doctor spoke clearly
    -I love uniforms in school but don’t see it happening here
    -SIRI is the only reason I would update my phone. I’d love to message “hands free”
    -CED, I didn’t not go to your link yesterday as per your advice but correctly surmised what it was due to the lovely misses’ self inspection and the harshness of the word. When I post something wrong or inappropriate, I just hit the garbage can under that post, edit and repost. You probably knew that but thought I’d throw that out there. A 15 year-old boy just taught me something today about my phone so…
    -Right about LaVerne and Shirley TTP. However the years were not kind to The Big Ragu!

    ReplyDelete
  32. Vidwan 8:08 - Thanks for clarifying that detail.

    Montana -
    You've chosen a terrific spell of weather for motoring around Vermont!

    ReplyDelete
  33. Happy Anniversary AnonymousT (do you have any idea how hard it is to find an Anniversary cake with "anonymous" on it?)

    Trader Joe's sells pizza dough? ( I must check this out.) I just found out that my kids raving about my pizza had nothing to do with the dough, but the fact they hate pizza sauce & prefer my paper thin slices of Tomato with a chiffonade of Basil & mozzarella. (Bummer!)

    4D not in the know = unsavvy (I looked at those twin V's for the longest time...)

    I got the theme of todays puzzle, & its hidden 3 letters, but a big DNF in the South as I did not get the reveal. I just read yesterdays late posts & was aghast! (I have no time to try & puzzle out the rest of this puzzle!)

    Cont...

    ReplyDelete
  34. Good morning everybody.

    As usual for me this was a DNF. But I did get 22 correct answers! Whoopy.

    It was fun when the few I knew popped up. But the rest was too much for me.
    I do have one nit: I don't think FROCK is a good match with peasant dress. The dictionary I use, The New Oxford English Dictionary, has a great deal to say about FROCK, but nothing that lines up with peasant dress.

    I have only 3 more chemo sessions, thank heavens. Each is three weeks apart.

    Cheers

    ReplyDelete
  35. Good Morning:

    A very nice Wednesday offering from Mangesh. Didn't get the theme until the unifier but then picked out the 3 letters immediately.

    Only iffy choice was Neal or Neil, but chose correctly. Rubicund is a word I've seen but didn't know the meaning. OTOH, minima was totally new to me.

    Thanks, Mangesh, and thanks to our resident "Leprechaun" aka Steve for his witty, wonderful write-ups.

    I got my flu shot yesterday and my arm Is still sore.

    Mari, did you watch Chicago Fire last night? I watched it and DVRed Person of Interest. Let me know your thoughts on CF.

    Anon T - Congratulations to you and your wife on your 25 th anniversary. Hope you can do something special.

    Hatoolah - Just loved the QOD.

    Enjoy this beautiful Fall day.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Love the blog!

    grEy : England
    grAy : America

    is what I always learned

    ReplyDelete
  37. I had SANGUINE for 37D, until the crosses forced it to RUBICUND. New word for me! Otherwise, no problemo today.

    ReplyDelete
  38. G'Morning All:

    My client canceled today's work, so I had time to play with Mangesh's puzzle. The top 1/2 was cake, but it turned very Wednesday in the south. RUBICUND - I had to look that one up after the letters fell (YR, your imagery helped). RENEGE / NEAL was the crux of my DNF.

    Like Marti - 41d was my fav as I've been dealing with too many computer cords too (anyone need a SCSI connector? CED? :-).

    Klilly - I hoped you enjoyed SPI (my boyhood town) and the Lincoln Pres. Library. It's too cool. Did anyone take you out for a horseshoe at D'Arcy's (yummy!)?

    Steve - Siri is on the iPAD 3 - press and hold the "home" button for a second or three. Or, don't bother - she never understands me :-) 1st ISP was Prodigy - pure IP connection no "portal" junk.

    Thanks all for the anniversary wishes. Life is in the way today, so celebration will probably be just a SUSHI dinner, but we, well DW, is thinking of a cruise. "A Supposedly Fun thing..."*

    YR - Did Zealot arrive yet?

    Cheers! -T

    *Essay by David Foster Wallace on cruises "A Supposedly Fun Thing I Will Never Do Again"." With Carnival's issues, I'm not sure I wanna do that. I DUNNO.

    ReplyDelete
  39. Anon @11:01 - The funniest thing I've read on the topic:

    Gray is a color, Grey is a colour.... Cheers, -T

    ReplyDelete
  40. School uniforms are mandatory in the Louisiana public schools. Occasionally, a parent who home schools a child will call the Department of Educational and ask whether or not his/her home-schooled child must wear a uniform.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Dear Pas De Chat,

    I am so sorry, I did not mean to offend anyone. I was rushing to post as I had things to do. I did not see the chaos I created until I got back to the Blog this AM. If I had known I would have deleted my post immediately. But the damage is done, & it doesn't make sense if I delete it now.

    The only reason I post at all is to provide a little sillyness & fun so that newbies don't get scared off by all the geniuses that can complete every puzzle without learning something. My only intent at posting all the 23down links was to express my obsession with cheese. It truly was after the fact that I noticed this word (that I thought was some Yiddish slang) & Googled it to find out what it meant. Unfortunately I went to Goggle images 1st, & was shocked by what came up, so I posted a warning & thought that was the end of it.

    It was not intentional, & yes, I am that stupid... I sincerely apologize.

    In my defense, The pic I posted (to me) does not seem offensive. But the warning turned out to be. I am so sorry if I caused anyone to Google that word.

    But it turns out, it is a word, it is in the dictionary as a noun of Greek origin, & I guess we will never see it in a crossword if Rich is editing. (I wonder what the clue would have been...)

    But some things are best left to words, & not images.

    Pas, I have enjoyed your posts from the beginning, & would gladly never post again if that is what it takes for you to come back to the Blog.

    ReplyDelete
  42. Sallie, congratulations on getting close to the finish line. I know that's not an easy journey. Please be sure to keep us up to date.

    ReplyDelete
  43. I have been reading your blog for over 2 years. Love the people! If I was on I would put attached puzzle on. I wonder if you would. I want to know if there are others who use cursive to solve, I don't print nicely.

    (From C.C.: Click here to see Janis's completed grid.)

    ReplyDelete
  44. Well, I had to look at the calendar when I started this puzzle because I could've sworn it was a Friday or a Saturday. Had only TUBA in the top third (wrong, of course) and no other prospects. But the middle filled in quickly, even got CALVIN COOLIDGE from perps and after that it was all fun. So many thanks, Mumbaikar, and you too, Steve for the great WRAP!

    However, here's my worry. I'm not a sportie, so sports clues are always nearly impossible for me. And I'm also not a techie. So I see a future when more I PAD, AOL, SIRI, USB PORTS and similar stuff--together with a bunch of sports clues--will make puzzling even tougher for me. Wish I could just read a sports book and a tech book to get the word gist I need, but it just doesn't work that way, I guess.

    Actually, I got all the tech stuff and messed up only on RUBYCUND--hey, RUBY is red, isn't it?

    Happy Anniversary, Anonymous T.

    Have a great Wednesday, everybody!

    ReplyDelete
  45. Happy 25th Anniversary, Anonymous -T
    Steve: Thank you for a wonderful write-up & links.

    Fell into the 'I Guess' before I DUNNO trap ... but that helped my Ink Blot.

    CED Please keep up your 'links' ... they always make me smile.

    It's raining "dogs-and-cats" here today ... which is OK with me since I'm on 'needles-and-pins' waiting to see today's FINAL America's Cup race.
    Should be an exciting 25 minutes (NBCSN at 4:15 pm).

    Cheers !!!

    ReplyDelete
  46. Have not seen ad in for a while. One of my favorites as I play tennis...

    I alway try to visit all presidential home and or birthplaces.

    I finally visited Lincoln's birthplace this summer. I was always going to stop when I drove from Texas to New York many times. It was so worth it. I love national historical sites

    .

    ReplyDelete
  47. Janis R @ 11:24 - Your cursive would make Mr. Palmer proud as a peacock. Well done! (Thank you, CC, for posting the grid,)

    Misty, would you email me, please.

    ReplyDelete
  48. re: Pass the Cat's ultimatum

    Didn't Husker give us all great advice the other day? Don't make a mountain out of a molehill...

    Link 1

    Link 2

    Link 3

    Link 4

    ReplyDelete
  49. Hello, friends!

    Thank you, Steve, for all your insight.

    A fairly easy sashay and romp today as my pencil almost flew across the grid though I did wait for perps after AV__. LENA and GREY filled it for me when ONE WAY emerged.

    Wasn't sure about CALVIN COOLIDGE until the picket fence could be completed.

    The bottom slowed me a little but with a WAG on the C of RUBICUND it was finished. New word for me, RUBICUND.

    Many OLES to you, Mangesh, thank you.

    Have a fine Wednesday, everyone!

    ReplyDelete
  50. Rubicund, minima, so be it, on toe, nose in. !??!?
    You can kiss my "pack animal"
    Sheesh.

    ReplyDelete
  51. Full disclosure - I didn't notice the unusual grid, it was C.C. that added the edit and made me look smart!

    @Anon 11:01 - awesome! Now I'll be able to keep it straight, thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  52. Speaking of CORE BUSINESS, I wonder how Dennis' franchise is going.

    ReplyDelete
  53. Congratulations, anonymous T, on your anniversary! How very special to reach that milestone.

    ReplyDelete
  54. Hi folks...Namaste from Mumbai!

    Am so glad to read your comments..most are positive. Its always fun to see when others enjoy your work...

    Thanks CC for your support as always.

    And Before i log off, wish to recognize the guidance/help of Jeff Chen ..for this puzzle.

    Mangesh

    ReplyDelete
  55. Great puzzle, Mangesh and a great write-up, Steve. A pretty quick run for a Wednesday.

    One nit, Steve. I learned the other day (from Tom Skilling, our Chicago weather legend) that the traditional definition of a blue moon is the third of four full moons in a season (from solstice to equinox or vice versa). More recently the defintion was erroneously changed to the second full moon in month. Trivial but true.

    I'll go back to lurking now. Thanks for all the interesting banter.

    ReplyDelete
  56. Never mind about the blue; where did you find that beautiful white sand in your avatar? Not around Chicago, is it?

    ReplyDelete
  57. Happy A, Anon T!

    My iPad is a 2, so that explains my missing virtual person.

    Karl thanks for the correction/clarification. If anyone is interested in the full "blue moon" story, this is a pretty comprehensive expo.

    ReplyDelete
  58. Husker Gary, we had the same observations about the thixteen year old's hearing. I read the joke and wondered if the doc had a list as well. Also, you might say that The Big Ragoo made a big boo boo ?

    Desper-otto, I feed the squirrels bird seed and suet all winter. It's not intentional. The rest of the year they are on their own.

    Anonymous T,
    Congratulations. Happy Anniversary. A special day indeed. Late to wed, ours is next year. I've already started looking for banquet places. It's going to cost me big bucks by the time it's over.

    I think KLILY was talking about Lincoln's birthplace. Kentucky. It would be out of the way to go from Texas to New York via Illinois.

    But, you brought up the horseshoe, and that's another sandwich on my bucket list. I've seen it on a FOODTV or TRAVEL CHANNEL type of show.

    Here's a nice reference of different sandwiches. I just had a Primanti Bros in Pittsburgh last month. Sandwiches I notice that they have neither a Peanut Butter and Banana, nor a Tomato and Mayo sandwich. mmm, look at that Italian Beef !

    Hmmm, maybe I could have the anniversary party in a park and have Italian Beef sandwiches catered in...

    ReplyDelete
  59. Argyle - Keen observation. That is not Chicago sand. Are you a geologist?

    That sand is in the greenside bunker on the par 5, 18th hole of Pebble Beach where I chipped in for a birdie! Thanks for asking.

    BTW - I only see some of the avatars. Not mine, not yours. Probably corporate security. Ssshhh...

    ReplyDelete
  60. TTP, I love the list of sandwiches with photos. The Reuben does it for me!

    A question for constructors: When a puzzle shows up on Rich's desk that uses a non-traditional grid, does it automatically have one strike against it? I would guess it would pass muster if it were a really special puzzle that needed an unusual grid. While I enjoyed this puzzle, it didn't seem unusual in any way except for the grid. What are the guidelines? What about grids that aren't symmetrical at all? Has Rich ever published one like that?

    ReplyDelete
  61. Wantitump @11:58, Link 3 made me chuckle. For overreact I say "use an elephant gun to kill a fly."

    My mom used to use "once in a blue moon," meaning very rarely.

    One of my sisters adds baked beans to a ham (or other lunch meat) and cheese sandwich.
    The horseshoe sandwich doesn't turn me on. I like falafel which has chick peas, veggies, and tahini served in a pita.

    Anonymous T, I put myself on a waiting list for a digital copy of Zealot. I read so many books, I stopped buying print books years ago due to lack of space and the cost. I have continued that with Kindle books supplemented by a few print library books. I make out fine. Buying books or ebooks would cost me many hundreds of dollars a year. The Zealot list is looong.
    I enjoyed the National Geographic animal pictures, the hummingbird article and the hummingbird moth article. Thanks. I hope that by telling you how much we like these things you all will be encouraged to keep it up.

    ReplyDelete
  62. OwenKL:

    Where are you from, or Whence Came You?

    Abejo

    (provsp)

    ReplyDelete
  63. TTP:

    I thought of me too, but I checked some crossword first and realized it was not me with my big horn.

    Abejo

    (ruatedj)

    ReplyDelete
  64. Easy, but fun today.

    Like Sallie, I thought FROCK referred to any dress, generically, especially for women, but for men too as in FROCK coat.

    This was one of the few times I found the theme letters *before* reading the blog. Hurrah for me!

    ReplyDelete
  65. anon@12:13, I need to hire him for my staff; admirable technique.

    ReplyDelete
  66. WOW ... It doesn't get any better than that!!!

    Congratulations Oracle Team USA !!!

    I think I'll "toast" them tonight at Sunset.
    Cheers!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm toasting the team! I was lucky to see the second race yesterday in San Francisco - I was on the edge of my seat today in LA

      Delete
  67. WOW INDEED!! I have become a fan of America's Cup racing! Very exciting.

    Does anybody know where I can find a easy-to-understand explanation of the science and technology built into those amazing boats? I would love to understand them better.

    I'm off for a short bike ride along that same ocean in absolutely beautiful weather here (75 F) and then maybe I'll go on a short ride with Jordan or replay the race for him. The last time he was over here, he seemed interested.

    ReplyDelete
  68. Bill G
    Just google "AC72" and that will take you to numerous sites about these amazing 72 foot Catamarams.

    BTW ... I think I'll also "toast" the New Zealanders for an exciting competition.

    Cheers to everyone!!!

    ReplyDelete
  69. Well, it appears I'm being kidnapped.
    I have a bag packed for me for destination unknown. House-sitter friend just showed up. Will be back on the blog sometime from somewhere.

    ReplyDelete
  70. Dennis - The new full-service rendition? Customer-service at the CIA is 4 & 1/2 Stars.... -T

    ReplyDelete
  71. One of the clues on Jeopardy tonight was the movie, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. It was my first date movie ever and with a guy I had being dying to go out with named George. My pesky little brother on his arrival yelled, "Johnny's here!" and George didn't speak to me the whole night or ever ask me out again. Brothers!

    ReplyDelete
  72. Tin, thanks for the AC72 link. I found several articles that helped me understand what's going on a little better.

    "It's hard to explain puns to kleptomaniacs because they take things literally."

    ReplyDelete
  73. Hola Everyone, I'm late to the blog today. A meeting this morning, and chores this afternoon kept me busy. WEES on the puzzle.

    I agree, I can't find Siri on my I-pad, but that is the only thing that would fit.

    I had to look up Rubicund. Had to laugh when the sentence used was, "Santa has rubicund cheeks."

    Congratulations Anonymous-T. I hope you have something special planned to celebrate.

    Have a wonderful evening, everyone.

    ReplyDelete
  74. Dennis, I hope your double secret birthday trip is special!

    ReplyDelete
  75. Happy Anniversary, Anonymous T. May you celebrate 25 more!
    I am on an escorted bus tour of New England to see the autumn leaves. We have been far enough north to see all but oak trees in fall attire.
    I had to pay $10 for my Monday post on the blog. Internet was not free at the Omni Parker Hotel in Boston, but I didn't know that until checkout. I have paid attention since. I am now at a ski resort in the Okemo Mountains of Vermont and it has free Internet.
    Have any of you toured the Castle in the Clouds? Absolutely fascinating place. Lots of history.

    Argyle, I looked at a map and we don't really get too close to NY. Maybe my next trip to CT I can visit with some of you anew or again. With two grandsons in CT, I'll be back.

    Later or next time I have Internet access,

    Montana

    ReplyDelete
  76. "Are you a geologist?" No, Karl but I have spent some time in bunkers.

    ReplyDelete
  77. Montana: I am so glad you got to see Castle in the Clouds. It is one of my favorite places.

    Dudley: James Carville will be the "Not My Job" guest on Wait, Wait ... I can hardly Wait, Wait, til tomorrow night!

    ReplyDelete
  78. Montana,

    You are in my backyard. The foliage isn't at peak right now but the maples in the bog are ablaze in red ( sorry about the A word ). Castle in the Clouds Has a very interesting history and some great views of Lake Winnipesaukee and the Presidential Range.
    I've also skied at Okemo.

    Glad to hear you are enjoying our part of the woods. There is so much to see.

    ReplyDelete
  79. Happy Wednesday everybody!

    Late to the show today due to moving issues. WEES about TUBA/HORN, AVER/AVOW, GREY/GRAY, and JOHN/ABBY....

    Anon T, congrats. Did you give your DW anything AGgie? Also, thanks for the linking tips....

    Got to watch the final America's Cup race today. My friend Norbert was having WAY too much fun on the podium as the commodore of the Golden Gate Yacht Club....

    ReplyDelete
  80. G'Eve All:

    Thanks again for all the Happy 25th Anniversary wishes. I'm a lucky guy.

    Alas, not even a SUSHI dinner, just the corner cantina for cocktails and conversation. Kids & all that... Any advice on the cruise idea?

    YR - I'll send you the book when I finsh so you don't have to wait so long :-) We do have too many books around here, but I like seeing the spine on the shelf - it reminds me, oh yeah, that idea.

    TTP - of course Kentucky - V8 smack! Klilly did say birthplace (not home town or even New Salem). No horseshoe opportunity though. BTW, the Amtrack will take you right into SPI from CHI (foks take it to catch the Cubs now & again). The sandwich wiki said horseshoe was USA. Nope, just SPI. (and, yes, D'Arcy's has been on a few of the Food/Travel TV shows).

    S.H.I.E.L.D - eldest daughter had that on today. A Marvel TV show - this I gotta see...

    Hahtoolah - I didn't get to see WWDTM when they were in Houston, but I do lurk on Peter's tweets, I can't wait to hear the Crazy Cajun! Carville is fun & smart.

    Manac & Montana - DW & I went to VT a few years ago for 20th. Foliage is incredible! We still order maple syrup from Sugarbush Farms. Liquid gold.

    And Pas - if you're lurking, chime in. CED was on best behavior today :-)

    Cheers! -T

    ReplyDelete
  81. Vegas Doc:

    No, nothing Aggie. As D-O might say, "you're not from around these parts..."

    DW was a NYC baby (then LA) and I was SPI kid. We met in Shreveport, LA, when to school in Ruston, then Norman, OK (BOOMER!) for grad work. D-O, we got to Texas as fast as we could! :-)

    So the link tips make sense? It's hard to show it without escape characters.

    Cheers, -T

    ReplyDelete
  82. Bill G. - You have mentioned how boring David Lettermen's Top Ten list can be. Well, tonight's was hilarious. He had Soprano Renee Fleming doing opera lyrics to pop culture references. Terrific. Hope you saw it.

    I also hope that a a sincere apology for an unintended gaffe, no matter how offensive, be accepted with the same humility and graciousness with which it was extended.

    ReplyDelete
  83. Irish Miss, thanks for the heads up about Letterman. And that other comment was very thoughtful.

    I think we're due for another treat tomorrow!

    ReplyDelete
  84. Yellowrocks, thought of your funny story when we watched "Jeopardy" tonight.

    Pas, we miss you.

    Irish Miss, I really like our "Cozy Corner."

    ReplyDelete
  85. C.C.
    Thank you for all the extra puzzles. I'm really enjoying them!

    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.