Theme: Tasty - The word SWEET may be placed in front of the last word of the four theme entries to create a new phrase.
20A. Hopes that weren't meant to be : BROKEN DREAMS. Sweet Dreams, a song by Jewel Clip.(4:59)
31A. Concern before changing lanes : BLIND SPOT. Sweet spot, often spoken of as the best place on bat, club, racket, etc. to strike a ball.
40A. Locker room motivator : PEP TALK. Sweet talk, Sweet Nothin's by Brenda Lee Clip.(2:30)
49A. Kids' game with a quickly passed object : HOT POTATO. Sweet potato, may not have another one until next Thanksgiving.
56A. Jackie Gleason catchphrase, and a hint to the ends of 20-, 31-, 40- and 49-Across : "HOW SWEET IT IS!"
Argyle here. Interesting. Nice triple columns on either side. Seareeferd will be happy there is less foreign words today.
Across:
1. Run-down area : SLUM
5. French message-carrying boat : AVISO. We've seen this before.
10. Castle trench : MOAT
14. __ Cod : CAPE
15. Toy blocks : LEGOs
16. "Bus Stop" dramatist : INGE. The 1956 film is only loosely based upon the play.
17. Military assistant : AIDE. (aide-de-camp)
18. Many, many centuries : AEONs
19. In a little while : SOON
23. Jacob's twin : ESAU
24. Dethrones : OUSTs
28. One of Scrooge's four visitors : GHOST
35. Predatory bird : RAPTOR
37. College URL ending : .EDU
38. Nautical opening? : AERO
39. Bird: Pref. : AVI
43. Be in the wrong : ERR
44. __ de soie: silk cloth : PEAU. (literally: skin(pelt) of silk)
46. PBS underwriter : NEA. (Public Broadcasting Service/National Endowment for the Arts)
47. Lassie chaser : LADDIE
52. Goads : PRODS
53. PGA great Sam : SNEAD
54. "__ Grit": John Wayne classic : TRUE
63. Service station job : LUBE
66. Dressy footwear : HEELS
67. Partner of Roy or Chip : DALE. 'Queen of the West' and Chip'n'Dale, Disney chipmunks.
68. Swedish furniture giant : IKEA
69. Lift up : EXALT
70. Ultimatum ending : ELSE
71. Property document : DEED
72. Greenhorns : TYROs
73. In fighting trim : LEAN
Down:
1. Union underminer : SCAB
2. Hibernation site : LAIR
3. Fancy hairstyle : UPDO
4. Most submissive : MEEKEST
5. Ex of Rod Stewart : ALANA
6. Beetle with four wheels, slangily : VEEDUB. (VW,shortened)
7. Movie lab helper : IGOR. Bit of misdirection.
8. Sound measure : SONE
9. Mount near Olympus : OSSA
10. Pageant title since 1952 : MISS USA. Miss Connecticut Erin Brady.
11. Singer Yoko : ONO
12. Gone by : AGO
13. Low card in a royal flush : TEN. An ace-high straight flush is the highest-ranking standard poker hand.
21. Prevent legally : ESTOP
22. Trendy, '60s-style : MOD
25. Muscle beach swimwear : SPEEDO
26. Steaming hot : TORRID. Coincidence it follows the above; I think not.
27. Retail outlets : STOREs
28. Board meeting displays : GRAPHs
29. Be dressed in : HAVE ON
30. Sleep-inducing drug : OPIATE
32. Put on the attack : LET AT
33. Actress Lupino : IDA
34. Void partner : NULL
36. Apartment payment : RENT
41. Veggie on a vine : PEA
42. Shot, as an engine : KAPUT
45. In front : UP AHEAD
48. Hanukkah spinning toy : DREIDEL
50. "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" constable : ODO. Odo and Quark
51. Verdi opera based on a Shakespeare play : OTELLO
55. Enjoys a siesta : RESTS
57. Sharpen : WHET
58. Like centerfolds : SEXY
59. Be dressed in : WEAR
60. Story : TALE
61. Ingrid's "Casablanca" role : ILSA
62. Espied : SEEN
63. Hinged cover : LID
64. Don Ho's strings : UKE
65. Bonnet-dwelling insect? : BEE
Argyle
On the highway of BROKEN DREAMS
ReplyDeleteThere are off-ramps to routes of moon beams.
They're not easily noticed,
Or assumed to be bogus,
But they still can be found in SWEET DREAMS.
We each have our personal BLIND SPOT,
Something good, that we're fearful is not.
Like, "I can't hold a note,
So I sing like a goat!"
When your talent is really your SWEET SPOT!
My writing is my HOT POTATO.
Building words upon words as with LEGO.
But I know they'll come tumbling,
I'll sound bumbling and stumbling;
Still I am what I yam, SWEET POTATO!
[DNF today: ALANA/AVISO/OSSA. Had to look up OSSA, and then just WAGed the A in AVISO as a possible conjugate to Advise for message. Everything else went very easy, though. Thought I had spotted the theme with BROKEN and BLIND for handicaps, but HOT didn't fit, so I needed the reveal to let me know I was looking at the wrong end of the horse.]
ReplyDeleteI'm certainly bumbling today! I totally overlooked one theme entry! Guess I need to compose one more verse.
I'll keep this short and SWEET. Thanks to C.C. and the regulars on this blog for creating such a welcoming atmosphere. If you still have an appetite for another puzzle after conquering that of Jack McInturff, please try Joust in Time for a Happy New Year! by Martin Ashwood-Smith. The puzzle is themeless and features a quadruple stack. Hope you like it, and others at our crossword website.
ReplyDeleteSome days I write poemS, some days one poem of several stanzas. Since today seems to be the latter, please insert this between the 2nd and 3rd stanzas above.
ReplyDeleteWe each of us sometime need a PEP TALK
An assurance we belong in our flock.
A friendly pat on the back
So we know we're on track;
"We like you" is the sweetest of SWEET TALK!
Morning, all!
ReplyDeleteVery smooth puzzle today. AVISO and PEAU were potential stumbling blocks, but AVISO is old-timey crosswordese that I've seen enough to guess (despite the fact that it's usually clued as "dispatch boat" and I never knew it was French) and the perps for PEAU were rock solid. As a lifelong Trekkie/Trekker, ODO was a big fat gimme for me.
Hope everybody has a safe and happy New Years Eve!
Good Morning, Argyle and friends. Fun Tuesday puzzle. I stumbled a bit with the French Message-Carrying Boat. If it had appeared before, I had forgotten.
ReplyDeleteAnnie Lennox's version of Sweet Dreams
Have a safe and Happy New Year.
QOD: I wouldn’t mind turning into a vermilion goldfish. ~ Henri Matisse (Dec. 31, 1869 ~ Nov. 3, 1954)
[22423985]
Hello Puzzlers -
ReplyDeleteWhat Hahtoolah said. I can't recall seeing Aviso before, that one was all perps. Otherwise, a smooth and easygoing Jack Mac Tuesday.
Hand up for knowing Odo, the shape shifter from DS9 portrayed by Rene Auberjonois. I probably spent too many hours glued to the tube, but hey, space fiction is irresistible.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteI'm a little late getting here -- had to read the late (after 2PM) entries from yesterday to find out who Seareeferd was.
Only a couple of write-overs on this one HONE/WHET and I misspelled DREIDEL (LE). I get ALANA and IVANA (Trump) confused, but LEGOS straightened me out. I remembered AVISO from past cw's. And no, I didn't get the theme. I thought the great one's catchphrase was "Straight to the moon, Alice!"
Actually C.C. used AVISO in a collaboration with Don Hard G. clued as French. A solid Tuesday, no nits. Good to wsee you Susan
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteGood day and Happy New Year To All,
This one had me going for quite a bit and I thought unless I lucked out, I was looking at another DNF. I lucked out. The North Central was a big quagmire for me.
VEEDUB was a complete unknown and my wife drives one. AEONS stumped me too. A eon or Eons would seem more appropriate.
PEAU was all perps. Ditto for DREIDEL & SPEEDO.
As is my norm, had no idea what the theme was. Thank you Argyle for the enlightenment.
Youngest son and his current lady gave us a generous gift certificate to a local seafood restaurant for Xmas. We plan on using it today for our NEW YEARS meal this afternoon.
The odds are pretty looong on my seeing the ball come down in Times Square this evening. Most likely I will be ZZZZZZing.
HG, hope the Huskers end their season on a positive note. MY U got their butts kicked by Louisville.
"Talk" to you next year.
Good morning everybody! I had quite a few write overs today, as I didn't know
ReplyDeleteAVISO, ALANA, SNEAD or PEAU. It didn't help that I misspelled DREIDLE and ILSA either.
Some cute clues here included:
- 47-A Lassie chaser: LADIE
- 65-D Bonnet dwelling insect: BEE
It's cold in Chicago and were expecting 5" - 7" of snow for the New Year. (Yuck!)
I hope you all have a healthy and happy New Year! Here's to more great puzzles in 2014!
Like Barry, frequently I have seen AVISO, clued as "dispatch boat", in X-words. I like the clue, "message carrying boat" better. I have read that is sometimes written as ADVISO
ReplyDeleteMount OSSA seems to be another crossword favorite along with IDA. For a clecho they could have been clued as Greek Mountains.
Gleason catch phrase was almost the last to fall, but I know it well.
Hand up for looking for the theme in the first word instead of the last word.
AEONS and EONS seem to be used interchangeably.
Happy New Year
Desper-Otto @ 7:11 am: I agree with you - I thought the catchphrase was "To the Moon!"
ReplyDeleteI was done in by AVISO and OSSA.
ReplyDeleteArgyle: Wonderful write-up & links.
ReplyDeleteOnly 'needed' every-single-perp to get ALANA, Rod Stewart's Ex. (and Rachel wouldn't fit).
LET AT for "Put on the attack" seemed weak, completely made-up.
(LE TAT, for French skin art, makes more sense).
Well I've already celebrated New Year's in ...
Aulkland @6:00 am (my time)
Sydney @8:00 am
by the time Tokyo @10:00 am
and Fremantle rolls around @11:00 am ... I'll be done.
Plus, you couldn't get me out of Villa Incognito on "Amateur Night" ...
Happy New Year !!!
Cheers!!!
I have never, ever heard a VW referred to as a"Veedub" before and I've been around a long time. A "Bug" or a "Punchbug" or a "Herbie", but "Veedub"? Gimme a break!
ReplyDeleteI guess, “Bang, zoom to the Moon Alice” wasn’t going to work on this fun puzzle
ReplyDeleteMusings
-It’ll take a lotta SWEET TALK to get out of those “that’s when the fight started” scenarios
-I was usually the one who held the HOT POTATO in a meeting and said what needed to be said
-Look who has a modern MOAT
-Wanna find that lost LEGO? Go barefoot
-Five NFL coaches were OUSTED yesterday on what has become known annually as Black Monday
-Cattle PROD humor
-Many modern cars have sealed joints that don’t need a LUBE job
-Is anyone going to go see this movie about two guys trying to get back into fighting trim?
-Washington University is known as U-DUB
--Silly Coasters song about trying trying to get a woman’s DEED to her ranch
-A friend once said of looking at SEXY women, “My wife doesn’t care where I WHET my appetite as long as I eat at home.” That’s when…
-Name the song with this lyric: “UP AHEAD in the distance, I saw a shimmering light. My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim, I had to stop for the night”
-Off to print out George’s puzzle
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteJack Mac gave us a "sweet" and clever ending to 2013. A tad chewy but nothing perps couldn't resolve. Thanks, Jack, and thanks, Argyle, for an informative expo.
Mari, I'm surprised you are working on New Year's Eve.
Hatoolah, did you read my question yesterday about John Besh?
Owen, you ended the year on a high note.
A safe and happy last day of of the year to all.
-Thanks for the good wishes Hondo. I’m getting used to all the good football being south of the Mason-Dixon Line and having the Huskers being mediocre. At least they had their turn at bat when they were the best team in America for a decade or two. It’s also hard to imagine that The U and Texas are so bad when they are located where all the good high school players are.
ReplyDelete-As that great Hispanic troubadour Jose Feliciano sang in the more obscure second line of his biggest hit, “Próspero año y felicidad” to all my amigos and amigas.
Irish Miss: I was unfamiliar with the name John Besh, but I looked him up and have eaten at his restaurants.
ReplyDeleteHave a good New Year's Eve everyone!
ReplyDeleteI had a DNF yesterday with 2 squares WAGed incorrectly. Today I did poorly. I won't list all the clues I didn't get.
I hope the rest of the week, I can do better.
Thanks again, Argyle, for the links under the big white spaces (iPad) so we can see what others are watching.
Beautiful weather in Denver,
Montana
I am a bit new to the crossword world and I always wonder why one letter is highlighted in the solution--in today's it was the 2nd "e" in "deed" for 71 across. I hope the answer isn't too obvious!
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed this puzzle and got the theme halfway through. Last to fall was AVISO VEEDUB cross for the TADA.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Tinbeni about the PUT ON THE ATTACK= LET AT clue.
I was slowed down by thinking of LASSIE the dog. Loved the actual answer of LADDIE.
Also enjoyed the PARTNER OF ROY OR CHIP clue. Interesting contrast of DALEs!
Husker Gary @9:28am - Hotel California by the Eagles. We had an Eagles tribute group in concert at the park last summer. Good times.
Happy New Year's Eve to all. Hopefully no BROKEN DREAMS but only SWEET DREAMS!!
DH is shoveling snow and then getting reading to watch the World Jr. Hockey game - Canada vs. USA. We will see!
ReplyDeleteHusker, it's gonna be easier to get out of 2013, than it is to get out of that song.
ReplyDeleteDGBlake, that square is where the cursor just happened to be when the screen-shot was snapped. It doesn't signify anything.
Thank you Jack McInturff for a fun puzzle. Thank you Argyle for an excellent review.
ReplyDeleteThis was a typical Tuesday level puzzle for me, just a bit longer than Monday.
I’m not a Trekkie, so I didn’t know ODO, but the perps did. The same for PEAU. Remembered the AEONS / EONS trap, and the number of spaces directed me there. I agree with Tin about LET AT.
I wanted “How sweet it is!” for Gleason’s catchphrase, but it didn’t fit, so I knew that wasn’t it. (Gosh, how many catchphrases did he have?) Waited for a few perps and got that one too. I understood the theme when I got that one, but didn’t need it for the theme answers.
Happy New Year, everyone!
Jackie Gleason who moved to Inverrary here in South Florida after he began doing his variety show in Miami, used "To the Moon" in his role as Ralph Kramden on the Honeymooners. If you recall, that show started as skits on his original variety hour. He used "And away we go" as he sashayed off the stage after the opening monologue in his Variety Show filmed in Miami which ran from 1966 through 1970. That show featured various characters, such as Gleason the bartender interacting with Frank Fontaine as Crazy Guggenheim. It also had the June Taylor dancers.
ReplyDeleteI recently realized TRUE Grit is also a novel. As usual, I liked it even better than the movie.
ReplyDeleteI thought Beetle at 6D should be VEEDUBYA instead of VEEDUB. I let it stand and looked it up afterwards. VEEDUB is used in names of some VW dealerships and parts stores.
Link VEEDUB
For LET AT I thought of LET ME AT ‘EM, a little messy, but not too bad.
I like winter most of the time, but as we approach single digits and zero temps, not so much.
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Jack McInturff, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Argyle, for the fine review.
ReplyDeleteThe entire North fell easily. Needed a couple perps for ALANA. New most of it. VEEDUB was interesting. Had it all but the D. Then I thought a little- - - V Double U. VW. Aha, VEEDUB. Then BROKEN DREAMS made sense. OK.
AVISO I sort of remembered. A few perps verified that.
PEAU was in outer space. Perped it all the way.
ODO was an unknown. I was never a Star Trek person. But, three perps and I had it.
Jackie Gleason phrase was easy. He was one of my all-time favorites as a youth. Loved the Honeymooners. was also great in "The Hustler."
Theme made sense.
It is cold here, as Mari said. 6 degrees when I started today.
Off to a gathering tonight with some Commandery friends.
See you tomorrow. Happy New Year's Eve!
Abejo
(45 58869943)
Hi Y'all! Great puzzle, Jack Mac! Great expo, Argyle!
ReplyDeleteLoved the music links! I don't think I ever heard Jewell's lullabye before. Annie Lennox's name was not familiar but the song was the first one that went through my mind at the phrase "Sweet Dreams". Such a compelling beat. Patsy Cline's "Sweet Dreams" is another very moving favorite. I wept hearing Reba McIntire sing it a capella in concert many years ago.
ODO? Never watched either "Star Trek" or Jackie Gleason. I don't think they were on the two or three channels we had on the farm.
"Roamin' in the Gloamin" was dated 1911, the year my mother was born. 102 year old song! I can remember her singing the title but don't remember any other part. We have such eclectic taste on this blog.
Didn't know AVISO (perps). I spelled DREIDEL right the first time! Usually takes several attempts.
Happy New Year! "See" you next year!
Greetings, friends!
ReplyDeleteWEES. I can't believe 29 comments already! This was a speedy sashay with perps filling what I didn't know, ODO, PEAU, and VEEDUB. Really? Also a shout to me. Since my last name is a common word it often appears in puzzles.
AVISO is also Spanish so it's easy to recall and as YR said, AEONS is a variant of eon.
INGE or Agee? That always gives me pause.
Well, the parties are over and it's time to put away the decorations for another year.
Have a superb Tuesday, everyone!
Nice and easy except for natticks at AVISO/ALANA and DREIDEL/DALE. I guessed the wrong crossing letter in each case, so technically a DNF, I guess.
ReplyDeleteOh well...
Vee Dub is something I've heard a lot but never saw it written before, so that took me a while too. Certainly a reasonable shortening of the double-u, like the shortened Merc for Mercedes--or is it Mercury? Depends where you come from probably, or maybe what you aspire to drive.
Until I saw the reveal I thought the theme was Dating. As in, Broken Date, Blind Date and Hot Date! Maybe we'll see this one in a different form another day!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the write-up as always!
Hello, all!
ReplyDeleteWEES...l had to stop and think about AVISO, but it did fall into place without any problem. I wasn't crazy about LET AT, and probably would have clued it as: "___, c'est moi" (Supposed declaration of Louis XIV). It would be parsed as L'ETAT in that case. And VEE DUB? Never heard anyone call it that.
OTOH, I did like the SWEET theme, even though I also wanted "To the moon, Alice!"
Tonight we will make a rare appearance at a party, but it is only one block away and we are walking. I just hope I can keep my eyes open past 9:00 !!
Warti, you party animal you; just imagine you are in the Alps.
ReplyDeleteHappy @014 to you and all
SWEET puzzle, Jack, except for AVISO which was an unknown and left me with a single letter mistake. Nice expo, Argyle. Great limericks this morning, Owen.
ReplyDeleteNever heard of VEEDUB or ODO but they fell into place anyway. And also struggled with the spelling of DREIDEL before I got it.
I love crossword puzzle strolls down memory lane. Ah, Roy Rogers and DALE Evans, what a SWEET couple. And Lemonade, thanks for filling out the history of Jackie Gleason's shows. They sure were fun, weren't they?
We're going to watch some New Year's Eve specials on TV tonight. And I'm going to actually watch some morning TV tomorrow to catch the Pasadena Rose Parade. Was able to make a backstage visit to the warehouse one year, after I first came to California, to see how they assemble the floats. I've never forgotten those flowers--brilliant!
Have a wonderful New Year's Eve, everybody, and make healthy and productive resolutions for 2014!
Buckeye Bob, I don't understand your paragraph about Gleason -- the answer was "How sweet it is!" And it did fit.
ReplyDeleteAfter our recent discussion of Ralph Bellamy, I decided to re-watch The Winds Of War on NetFlix. Just finished it up yesterday. I was hoping NetFlix would also have War and Remembrance. Nope. Now I need another epic miniseries to watch. Any suggestions?
No ball-dropping for me tonight. I've learned from experience that the new year always arrives right on time, even without my assistance. Here's wishing all you cornerites the best in the coming year.
What a great mind set for ending the year and starting the new year with sweet things - sweet dreams and sweet memories! I have a favor to ask and I know it has been posted before, but I don't know how to look for it - could someone please tell me what to do to be able to use my Christmas gift Ipad Air to work the crossword puzzles. I would be ever grateful. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteGood morning all,
ReplyDeleteI had the same problem as most of you- the ossa, sone, aviso crossing. Knowing Alana didn't much help. But most everything else was perpable. Have to go back to see why tyros are greenhorns.Seeing veedub written out was very strange to me too, Kazie.
Had to laugh at the clue for blind spot.Recently renewed my license before my 70th. I studied that little booklet like it was a midterm exam.
Be safe tonight.It will be nice to reminisce all the positive things that happened in 2013.
Happy 2014 everybody. Now make wise choices. LOL
ReplyDeleteI have a '72 VeeDub and refer to it as just that. We also call our BMW's Beemers and of course the MG's "those dopey British cars" (Not quite so catchy.)
I zipped through the puzzle this a.m. and even got the theme. Woo Hoo!
And thank you, George Barany for occasionally linking puzzles. They are always a fun solve.
Hasta aviso...oops, there I go mixing my language knowledge, or lack there of!
See ya'll next year.
@ d-o 11:38 a.m.
ReplyDeleteThat's because my fingers weren't connected to my brain when I typed it! (Is there a name for typing what you read instead of what you meant?)
I meant to say:
I wanted “And away we go!” for Gleason’s catchphrase, but it didn’t fit, so I knew that wasn’t it.
Hi JD! Happy New Year. Coffee sometime in enero, okey dokey? The rest of you are invited, too!
ReplyDeleteHi gang -
ReplyDeleteAVISO + VEEDUB = natick
So I end the year with a DNF.
Still a good puzzle.
Prelim to tomorrow's Wings - Leafs outdoor classic in Ann Arbor, today there are two Wings-Leafs alum games at Comerica Park. Half time in the first game (Yep - 2 period games) Wings up 3-2.
Everyone seems to be having a great time. Oldest player is Red Berenson at 74.
Cool regards!
JzB
Garlic Gal, always ready to enjoy a coffee clatch with you and Chickie. Jayce, any time good for you? Jill, you too.Any others in our area?Ms Bee?
ReplyDeleteI got VEEDUB from the perps but after coming here I Googled it and it seems that most of the references were to an Austin VW Dealer. A little obscure by my reckoning.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year to all.
WEES about Peau and Dreidel.
ReplyDeleteLike several, I'd never seen VeeDub spelled out, but have heard the term most of my life. V-Dubya, just as often.
Aviso crawled out of the grey matter. Not an everyday word, but seen often enough in puzzles to recall.
Since no one has linked Patsy yet: Sweet Dreams
ReplyDeleteAVISO, as I mentioned is also a Spanish word. If you receive "un AVISO" you have received a message as in e-mail.
Possibly that might help to remember it, you who are unfamiliar with it.
Veedub is familiar to me, as is j-dubs for Jehovahs Witnesses, and Dubya for ex-president Bush. Can't recall if I've ever seen it written out before, but then I've never seen a poor grade marked on a paper as DEE, or the middle of sushi as ESS.
ReplyDeleteCanadianEh!
ReplyDeleteI see your avatar everyday in my hometown park.
I live 30 miles from Canada.
Radio station even gives weather report in C° in addition to F° for the many Canadian listeners.
Have a good evening!
Montana
JazzB,
ReplyDeleteBerensen plating age age 74! Has he elbowed anyone into the seats yet?
Happy new year greetings to you all!
ReplyDeletePrairie Woman,
ReplyDeleteA few regulars here have iPad (Dudley, Marti, Montana & Abejo). If you leave your email address, they might be able to help you.
Good Afternoon Santa Baby, CC, et al. What another fun puzzle! And thank you, Santa darlin', for the links, esp SPEEDO! I don't care how he likes it but Yeah, I'll have that one stirred not shakin'. Eye candy for sure!
ReplyDeleteAnd thank you, Santa SWEETie, for the theme, which I would never have gotten. Must be my anal glaucoma acting up. That's an occupational hazzard not a genetic defect. It too shall pass, like most of my students...with PEP TALKS & more so PRODS! NEA, SEXY WEAR EDU TEN ERR NULL GRAPHS AIDE OPIATE and TRUE are all reminders of the holidays ending SOON. One of these days, Alice....I'll hang up my CAPE and be somewhere ELSE! One of my kids gave me a really pretty DREIDEL this season. IDA given him an EXALTed grade but he's already off the GRAPHS. MEEKEST kid too. A real SWEET one. Those kinds will remind me ohh, HOW SWEET IT IS/was..at times.
JD: LOL hope your studying paid off. You did pass, right?
Jayce: thank you for the kind words.
HG: Loved the cattle prod humor - and all That's when the fight started jokes previously. Funny stuff!
Happy New Year to all.
Prairie Woman, I also received a new iPad Air for Christmas! You should go to the App Store and look for Crossword Light (free) or Crosswords Classic ($9.95) by Stand Alone, Inc. If you email me, I can give you complete instructions for browsing to the LA Times daily crossword.
ReplyDeleteMarti
Lemony @ 11:24, if I imagine I am in the Alps, then I am afraid I will have to be in bed by 6:30 PM today…
ReplyDelete(^0^)
We drove our 1965 Bug up until two years ago (bought new for $1900). I've never uttered the term VEEDUB but I've certainly heard it often enough; more than TEC or ELHI. :>)
ReplyDeleteOur alma mater (Cornell) doesn't show up in Bowl games but I'm enjoying UCLA vs Virginia Tech so far, UCLA being one of our local athletic powerhouses.
Avg Joe, I LOVE Patsy Cline!
I took my $10 worth of lottery tickets to the liquor store. The payouts had been up in the tens of millions. I won one dollar. It's going to take me a long time to get rich at that rate.
I hope you all have a very happy New Year.
Thanks Montana. Americans and Canadians have a lot of things in common but it can be surprising what things are different. I'm glad to add an "international" flavour to the corner. (And I had to fight spellcheck to get that u to stay in flavour! LOL!)
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks to Chickie from yesterday for the suggestion about the PD James book, Death Comes to Pemberley. I will get it when the local library opens after New Years.
Hi all!
ReplyDeleteHOW SWEET IT IS to end the year with this puzzle! Thanks Jack. And thanks Argyle for the writeup.
My hold-up on a speed run (not something I normally do) was the South Central. My Centerfold (58d) was nude in 66a pumpS. It seemed to go so well until I hit the long 56a... Harney Harr,,, oh, to heck with it. 1/2 a pen's ink splilled down there trying to get a SEXY centerfold in HEELS.
HG - Hotel California - The Eagles. '77?
Learning moment from the puzzle AVISO and PEOU. I've never heard of the latter. Other leanring moments - Barry G & Dudley are fellow trekkies. It was spoken: And the geek shall inherit the Earth.
I've gotta close up at work. I'll catch up later tonight.
Cheers, -T
'Tis midnight in Glasgow. "Auld Lang Syne" performed excellently on traditional Scottish bagpipes. Accompanied by some nice shots of Scotland. Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteLINK
Prairie woman @11:53
ReplyDeleteI am having the same problem using DW,s iPad.
Try GAMES.LATIMES.COM for a usable, if not clunky version.
Prairie Woman - you're in good hands, getting help from HeartRx (Marti). Being from Massachusetts, she is very clever. :-)
ReplyDeleteI use the $10 software from StandAlone Software. It's been a solid application, and the user interface is cleaner than others I've tried. As you will find, you have to grab each day's puzzle from Cruciverb.com, the only digital outlet that has been authorized by the LA Times. The good thing about this arrangement is that the puzzle is available early - 10:00 PM the day before the publication date, in our time zone. The bad thing is that Cruciverb sometimes has glitches, and about once a month the current puzzle doesn't appear on time. This usually lasts just a day, sometimes two.
All in all, it's worthwhile. Welcome aboard, and enjoy the iPad Air! I gotta get me one of those...
Ready to check out for New Year's celebrations...
ReplyDeleteOther musings (sorry HG for stealing that)...
65d I read as Botnet dweller insect... Russian Hacker didn't fit. Insect finally let it BEE.
Who else wanted a HOTPOTATOe after watching Dan Quayle in the 90's?
.EDU is being targeted over the holidays for ID theft while everyone's out.
47a was my fav c/a. Too cute.
RickC - "Dates" was way outside the box :-) I like it - hot. Even hot PEPper is yummy (right Lucina?)
Tin - yes, I don't party with amateurs either. I go to the after-after parties.
OK, as a little Catholic boy, I'd have never know what a DREIDEL was if not for South Park . Warning CA (Rated Crass - Crass Advisory).
I won't say how cold it is here, but D-O knows. For us, it's cold.
Fireworks are already going off. -T wants a nap before going out with DW tonight.
Cheers, -T
No amateur night for this household either. And probably no seeing the new year in. It'll get here, I'm sure.
ReplyDeleteDespite that curmudgeonly attitude, I'd extend a Skol! to all the board residents, and to Tin, an " Ear!"
Happy New Year!
Hola Everyone, A rather easy puzzle for the most part. The perps really helped fill in some of the words that I always have trouble with. I did finish without help, but not after wondering if what I had put down was really correct. Alana crossing Aviso, left a blank for a very long time.
ReplyDeleteVeedub was not within my knowledge of the Beetle. My daughter and granddaughter both drive one, and I've never heard that term before. We just call them Bugs.
Aviso we may have had before, but it sure doesn't stick in my head for long. Tyros is another no-stickum word. Maybe after I've seen them a dozen more times they'll come more easily.
Owen, I never cease to wonder at your ability with words. Today's renderings were especially enjoyable.
We're off for Chinese Food tonight, then watching TV from NY to see the ball drop in Times Square. We really like to stay in on this last evening of the year.
Have a wonderful New Year everyone.
A nice (sweet!) Xword for the ultimate day...
ReplyDeleteThanks to all who wished a Happy 2014. I just stopped by to pay my respects to my fellow pzl-junkies, and to wish all, in the words of the old poem I've been studying,
"Glæd Geol
Gesælig Niw Gear!"
~ Kf
We'll be watching the Stanford team in the Rose Bowl tomorrow. They've done remarkably well these past two years. It is always fun to root for a local team.
ReplyDeleteWe are closing out 2013 with the driest year ever on record. There has been little rain in our whole region this past year, and now we are looking at maybe drought conditions. Hopefully that weather pattern will change in the new year.
Garlic Gal and JD--coffee anytime you're ready. Woo Hoo!
Happy New Year, everyone -- may it be the best one yet!
ReplyDeleteYes, very Happy New Year wishes. Prosperous would be OK too...
ReplyDeleteThat was quite a football game. I hope the Rose Bowl game will be half as good.
Argyle, I enjoyed your Scotland/bagpipes link. I liked it even better once I discovered I could get rid of the annoying advertising banner by clicking on a tiny spot in the upper-right corner. My ancestors on my father's side came from Scotland. We visited there once and enjoyed it very much.
did the puzzle late last night before any comments could be posted. Just now getting to read postings, but wanted to wish everyone the best New Year ever! May you realize all your hopes and SWEET DREAMS.
ReplyDeleteWe watched the ball drop in Times Square (okay, we watched it on TV) so it's officially 2014 in our book.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year, dear C.C., and all you wonderful regulars on the Cozy Corner. May we all have a wonderful 2014!