google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Sunday January 5, 2014 Joel D. Lafargue

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Jan 5, 2014

Sunday January 5, 2014 Joel D. Lafargue

Theme:  "Name Game" - Name can follow the first word in each theme entry.

24A. 1983 novel partly set in a graveyard : PET SEMATARY. Pet name. The novel is by Stephen King. Cemetery is purposely misspelled. Read here (the fourth one).


45A. Classic detective played by William Powell : NICK CHARLES. Nickname. Asta!

54A. Bibliophile's prize : FIRST EDITION. First name. I had the first edition of "The Godfather" once. Alas, it's not worth much.

75A. Simple to operate : USER- FRIENDLY. Username.

86A. Office staple :  FILE CABINET. File name.

107A. Any top-25 NFL career scoring leader : PLACE KICKER. Place name.

38D. Cheating deterrent : CODE OF HONOR. Code name. 

41D. A 36-Across may be one : TRADE SECRET. Trade name.  And 36A. Proprietary formula, perhaps : RECIPE

This is a classic 8-themer design: 6 Across, 2 Down. Though often the first theme entry starts or ends at the grid edge rather than in the middle.
I think crossword answers often reflect the interests & background of the constructor. How old do you think Joel D. Lafargue is? 

Simple theme, a few tricky spots for me.

Across:

1. Pacific island nation : FIJI. Vijay Singh is the Big Fijian.

5. Eastern teachers : LAMAS

10. __ bar : SNACK

15. Frequent autograph signer : IDOL

19. Quaint plaint : EGAD

20. Man with memorable thumbs : EBERT (Roger)

21. Really cold : POLAR. I don't remembering a colder winter. The highs today is 8 below. Tomorrow is worse.

22. Extra : MORE

23. Singular : LONE

26. Bakery buys : BUNS

27. Arboreal rodents : TREE RATS

29. From square one : ANEW

30. Tap : SPIGOT

32. Steams (up) : FOGS

33. Cannes conclusion : FINIS

35. Baffled "Jeopardy!" contestant's effort : STAB. Take a stab.

39. Salon treatments : MANIS. And 112. Salon treatment : PEDI. Hi there Lucina and Dudley? :-)

40. Frankie Valli singing style : FALSETTO

44. Bonding agent : EPOXY

47. Needing training : RAW

48. Sourdough's strike : LODE. I suppose those sourdough guys invented the sourdough bread.

49. Item sold in a kit : MODEL

50. Ohio pro : CAV (Cavaliers)

51. Letter successor, to a large degree : EMAIL

53. Non-metallic rocks : ICE. Fun clue.

58. "Spamalot" co-creator : IDLE (Eric)

59. 2000 film set in a confectionery : CHOCOLAT. With Juliette Binoche. Love her. "Damage" is one of my favorites. "Damaged people are dangerous..."

61. __ exam : ORAL

62. Fitting to the max : APTEST

64. Cold, in Calais : FROID. We all know sang-froid (cold blood). Cool!

65. Stupefies : DAZES

67. DeMille specialties : EPICS

68. Taken as __: in its entirety : A WHOLE. A rare 6-letter partial.

70. Secret rival? : SURE. Deodorants. Not familiar with SURE.

71. Greatly disliked thing : ANATHEMA

74. Engage in braggadocio : CROW

79. Rip off : COP

80. Salon dye : HENNA

82. Back in time : AGO

83. Least quantity : MINIM. I always use "Minimum".

84. Actor's accessory : PROP

85. That, in Toledo : ESO

90. French peninsular city : BREST. We've seen LAIT clued as "Brest milk?" before.

91. It won't hold water : STRAINER. Another great clue.

93. Horse features : MANES. Have any of you used Mane 'n Tail shampoo? They were originally for horses. My hair grows like weeds. I hope to gallop someday.




94. Marks common in stories : QUOTES

95. Landings: Abbr. : ARRS

96. Muffet fare : CURDS

97. Bedroom community, briefly : BURB

98. Joe or java : COFFEE

101. Major affair : GALA

102. He played Arnold Vinick on "The West Wing" : ALAN ALDA. Full name.

106. Diva's moment : ARIA

111. Transmission speed unit : BAUD. Wiki said "the baud unit is named after Émile Baudot, the inventor of the Baudot code for telegraphy". Learning moment for me also.

113. One often turned on : LIGHT. Great clue.

114. Top-tier invitees : A-LIST

115. Gospel writer : LUKE

116. What one star may mean : POOR

117. Nods, often : YESES

118. Freebies on pillows : MINTS

119. Fall locale : EDEN. Biblical fall.

Down:

1. Pool surface : FELT

2. "M*A*S*H" mess server : IGOR. Is this a gimme to you? Totally stranger to me.

3. Boy's mother : JANE. Boy is Tarzan's son? Wiki said the boy is called Jack (ape name Korak).

4. Parisian obsession : IDEE FIXE

5. Classic French firearms company : LEPAGE. Also a learning moment to me.

6. Does lookout duty for, say : ABETS

7. Subway Series team : METS. And Yankees of course.

8. MGM motto word : ARS.  "Ars gratia artis" (art for art's sake)

9. Multi-office rental: Abbr. : STE. Never saw "Suite" abbreviated this way.

10. __ rice : SPANISH

11. Staff figures : NOTES

12. What there oughta be : A LAW

13. Jam ingredient? : CAR. Nailed it.

14. Mrs. Blake Carrington on "Dynasty" : KRYSTLE. Another stranger to me. Played by Linda Evans.


15. Drink : IMBIBE

16. Henning of magic : DOUG

17. "Deal __ Deal" : OR NO

18. For fear that : LEST

25. More than excited : MANIC

28. Like challah dough : ROPY.  I had some nova lox yesterday. It's smoked. Lox itself is not smoked, isn't it, Lemonade/Hahtoola?

31. No longer in : PASSE

33. Diamond side : FACET

34. Trimming tape : INKLE. I forgot. We had this before.


35. Cannon barrage : SALVO

36. Thing of the past : RELIC

37. Significant period : EPOCH

39. Center : MIDST

40. Weak : FRAIL

42. Call before the game? : TAILS. Oh, heads or tails.

43. Immature hooter : OWLET. It still amuses me that Rich won't allow HOOTERS in a grid.

45. Org. headquartered near Colorado's Cheyenne Mountain : NORAD. Needed crossing help.

46. Assume the role of : ACT AS

49. Surroundings : MILIEU

52. Author Albom : MITCH. He wrote "Tuesdays with Morrie".

54. Blockhead : FOOL

55. Leveling machine : DOZER

56. High dudgeon : IRE

57. Flamethrower compound : NAPALM. "I love the smell of napalm in the morning".

60. Broken nursery rhyme item : CROWN. Jack and Jill.

63. "Bummer" : PITY

65. Red pig : DUROC. Alien to me as well. I wonder if Windhover raises these pigs. This one has an incredibly long body.



66. Bit of setter speech : ARF

67. Say "Enough!" : END IT

68. Liniment targets : ACHES

69. Grab forcefully : WREST

70. "Like a Rock" singer : SEGER (Bob). So, what's your favorite song of 2013? I really loved Lana Del Rey's "Young & Beautiful".  Give Lorde's  "Royals" a try. Like it?

71. Frank and Rice : ANNES

72. Seuss' Thidwick, e.g. : MOOSE

73. Date bk. listings : APPTS

76. Quarterly report line : SALES

77. "Yes, it does bother me!" : I MIND. Not an objection I use.

78. Some, in Stuttgart : EINES

81. In flames : AFIRE

84. Likely : PROBABLE

87. As an answer : IN REPLY

88. Charms : AMULETS

89. Israeli prime minister before Sharon : BARAK (Ehud)

90. Expend, as fuel : BURN

92. Cool and Lam detective series pen name : A A FAIR. Erle Stanley Gardner's pseudonym. Read more  here.

94. Milk buys : QUARTS

96. Buried treasure : CACHE

97. Consecrated : BLEST

98. Smythe's comics barfly : CAPP (Andy). Reg Smythe is the cartoonist. Another unknown figure to me.

99. Oft-twisted treat : OREO

100. Generic pet name : FIDO

101. Jokes : GAGS

102. Related : AKIN

103. Praise highly : LAUD

104. Blue Devils' home : DUKE. Coach K.

105. Arabian Peninsula port : ADEN

108. Invention: LIE

109. Seuss' Sam-__ : I AM

110. MDX ÷ X : CLI. 151.



Husker Gary's Crossword Corner map is now linked under Olio in our blog front page. If you want to be on the map, please contact Gary (gschlapfer@gmail.com).

C.C.


67 comments:

OwenKL said...

A PET NAME's a name for your cat, or Poe's raven.
A NICK NAME's a name for a cut made while shavin'.
The FIRST NAME was Adam, or maybe Jehovah.
Your USER NAME's what you give the narcs pulling you over.
A FILE NAME is what you call your nail smoother.
A PLACE NAME's betwixt a win, show, or loser.
A CODE NAME is just for dots and dashes to utter.
A TRADE NAME is one that can switch with another.
(After writing this poem, I should use a pen name,
Just like convicts in prison, to cover my shame!)

OwenKL said...

I'm a little late posting a poem today. I read an article last night (sorry I can't link to it, it's on a members only site) about January 29 being National Puzzle Day, which linked to the ACPT, Puzzle Museum and a jigsaw puzzle site, and by the time I finished a 300-piece jigsaw on my netbook screen, it was 2 am, and well past time to start on the LAT!

Al Cyone said...

A surprisingly smooth solve (given all those empty Sunday boxes!). Had MAMA before JANE (good clue!), EGGY before ROPY. "Non-metallic rocks" was another good clue though LIE as an "invention" seemed a bit off (i.e. I didn't get it right away). The only real unknowns were DUROC and INKLE. I was also glad to see my high-school French put to good use.

[20:57]

Dudley said...

Hello Puzzlers -

Filling in this grid was like pulling a pint: start down the side, reach the bottom, then gradually go to the top.

No major logjams, just a few speed bumps such as Salad bar crossing Steamed rice. Lots of unknowns that got perped, such as Krystle (never watched that show), and Igor. Hand up for forgetting inkle. Never met a dog named Fido.

Morning, C.C., you remembered! For newcomers: in 2012 I opted to get a man's pedicure, then tried publicly prodding Husker Gary to give it a try. Now, I'm not one you'd call a metrosexual, but the experience was nice. I was motivated by trouble with one particular toe. C.C. is firmly of the opinion that an able-bodied man should trim his own tootsies.

kjinkc said...

Owen - you may not like your poem, but I got a chuckle out of it.

I once had an address that included the abbr of STE. It was at Mailboxes Etc for use while I was overseas and it was incognito. This is how a lot of bogus businesses operate.

I solved on Mensa site and thought the theme was name gaffs...so that made solving a bit tricky, but still managed to finish. Struggled with 'pool surface', but finally realized it was the game of pool, not a swimming pool.

I love music, but I can't say that I have a favorie from '13. I do like many pop artists such as Adele, Train, MB20, Bruno Mars, and more, but none of these had a hit this year. Here's one I did like: Waiting for Superman

Al Cyone said...

Okay, I just read C.C.'s write-up and have to say that IGOR, LEPAGE, and A A FAIR were also unknowns. In fact, the latter was one of those answers that I never even saw: it was all perps.

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

Pretty smooth Sunday solve, although I didn't notice the theme until after coming here. Didn't like STE, but I've learned to just roll my eyes at stuff like that and keep non going...

I thought AAFAIR and DUROC were complete outliers in this one. The only reason I got the former was because it was just in a NYT puzzle. The second was all via the perps. INKLE would have been another complete unknown, but I did remember seeing it in another puzzle relatively recently.

Back to the illegible captchas for me, today. Oh well, it was nice while it lasted...

[And, after failing a few times, I'm back to having numbers!]

kjinkc said...

Here's another tidbit I was thinking about to fit with today's 57D: Napalm

Hahtoolah said...

Good Morning, C.C. and friends. I didn't care much for today's theme, but I found lots of fun clues.

Hand up for wanting my Challah to be Eggy instead of ROPY.

Lox

I wanted to Sourdoughs to strike Gold in stead of the LODE.

I liked seeing Eric IDLE, who might be the IDOL signing autographs.

How appropriate to have POLAR and FROID on a day when temperatures across the country are so cold.

Ariel Sharon suffered his stroke 8 years ago yesterday (Jan 4, 2008). He will probably not survive the week.

NORAD also tracts Santa Clause.

I was also amused by the crossing of LAUD and BAUD, which share all but one letter.

Stay warm and save!

QOD: The real hero is always a hero by mistake; he dreams of being an honest coward like everybody else. ~ Umberto Eco (Jan. 5, 1932)

[99945459]

HeartRx said...

Good morning C.C. et al.

I really need to pay attention to the titles on Sunday puzzles. I stared at the grid after finishing and for the life of me, I couldn't see the theme. Thank you for explaining it all so succinctly, C.C.!!

Hahtoolah, I was amused by the intersection of CROW and CROWN for the same reason.

It was so cold yesterday that one of the pipes burst in a storage area in the cellar. I shut off the supply to that area, but today I have the lovely task of finding out what the damages are...

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

I didn't get a lot of enjoyment from this one. It solved quickly enough, but it didn't "sparkle" for me. The inclusion of NICK CHARLES and A.A. FAIR make me think Mr. Lafargue is probably 60-ish.

The cold snap up north reminds me of the winters of my ute. We could always expect a week in January when the daily highs would be sub-zero. The coldest I ever remember was -40 (don't know if that was Fahrenheit or Celsius :) ). My walk to school was only five blocks, but I got a severe "ice cream headache" in block four and had to duck into a church to warm up. Fortunately, lightning did not strike.

Chocolat reminds me of Lena Olin rather than Juliette Binoche.

My first modem was only 300 baud and we'd "go to the cups" -- remember that? I thought I was in heaven when I got my 9600 baud Universal Robotics.

We've got quite an extensive PET SEMATARY in our woodlot. There must be at least 10 cats and one rabbit -- Waldo. There are piles of river stones for markers.

Avg Joe said...

Looks like I've got company today. The puzzle was very pleasant to solve and had lots of good fill, but the theme was entirely "meh". Couldn't figure out what the gimmick was at all, but it didn't slow the solve.

Ste is very common for office addresses. Basically the commercial counterpart to "Apt" and done to save space when filling out forms. I'd guess that at least 1/3 of my clients have an address with "Ste" in it.

Duroc filled with only the D. We only had Chester Whites when I was a kid, but a lot of farmers raised Durocs. The only completely red hog I've ever heard of.

From what I can gather, we are near the W edge of the polar blast. Woke up to 35* yesterday and it dropped throughout the day to 11* when I went to bed. Woke up to 3* this morning, and it's now 1*. I've experienced -35* once, -30* a few times and had a solid month of sub zero temps back in 83, so this won't be that bad. But it still bone chilling and highly dangerous. Be careful out there folks.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

The theme may be on the bland side, but the cluing is first rate. It wasn't until I finished and went back through the long answers that I caught on to the "name" part of the title.

Tin won't like 53A, but I do!

Thanks, Joel D., for a nice Sunday offering and thanks, CC, for your concise expo.

Bright sunshine and cold, but not frigid.

Have a great day.

TTP said...

Good morning all.

Thank you Joel Lafargue and thank you as well CC. 1 hour, 30 minutes, and 5 seconds.

I always have unknowns, and rely on perps to complete the grid. AA FAIR and DUROC fit that bill today. Knew of the book, but didn't recall how to misspell cemetery.

D-O, What does "go to the cups" mean ? Also, wouldn't that have been US Robotics ?

O'Hare airport is open but all flights have been suspended. 1200 flights today have already been cancelled.

Was going to wait until it stopped snowing before I started with the snow blower, but it's not supposed to stop.

See all y'all later n'at ! And as Hahtolah said, "Stay warm and save!" :>)

Anonymous said...

Slow and steady, it finally filled in. WEES about not getting the theme until everything was filled in-- but got the "aha" just before hitting the blog. Wanted Space bar instead of Snack bar- with 3 letters right and not knowing Krystle, it took awhile to correct.

desper-otto said...

TTP, you're right, it was US Robotics. So soon we forget… Old timey modems had only an acoustic connection to the phone system. See photo. You'd literally phone the person you wanted to share a file with, and then you'd both "go to the cups."

Lucina said...

Hello, Puzzlers!

Thank you, C.C. and Joel Lafargue and thanks for the shout out, C.C. I had a MANI-PEDI on Friday.

WEES. This was slow sashay and I didn't find a foothold until somewhere in the middle then spread out from there. Mostly it was straightforward with only a few tricky misdirections such as TAILS and GALA. Still I had a major DNF with SOLE instead of LONE. Drat!

INKLE is new to me as is A.A. FAIR though ARRS helped to complete it.

Must run now.

Have a safe and warm Sunday, everyone! 70s here.

Husker Gary said...

All right, I got 100% on the puzzle but didn’t get the theme until C.C. showed me. Oh well, it was a fun run Joel, even with APTIST ;-)

Musings
-C’mon you all know this NAME GAME
-A proposal I support to take points away from the PLACE KICKER
-There is a definite CODE OF HONOR on the golf course
-Ten TRADE SECRETS we wish we knew?
-Movie popcorn costs 10¢ to make but at the SNACK BAR sells for more per ounce than filet mignon and water is more expensive than gasoline
-We faucet, we do not SPIGOT and we have never INKLED
-About a half hour into Jersey Boys this FALSETTO hit (4:10) rocks the house (this guy’s no Frankie Valli but still…)
-Forget EPOXY, Gorilla Glue bonds anything to anything!
-DAZED football players aren’t put back in so fast anymore, despite their pleas
-One star is the state fair equivalent of a white ribbon
-C.C. will appreciate that I initially had FIRST (base) for diamond side
-Hooters is joined by Tilted Kilt and Twin Peaks around here
-Still trimmin’ my own Dudley. I can’t have our moderator questioning my manhood ;-)!

desper-otto said...

Husker, those restaurants look like prime territory for Dennis' side business. And you call yours a "Dudley?" Cute!

OwenKL said...

Dialect Quiz -- the one we saw last week excited a lot of comment, so I guarantee this one you'll enjoy even more! It's basically the same test, but far more accurate!

Dennis said...

desper-otto, I agree -- sounds like an 'investigative' road trip is in order. Besides, I always wondered what was under kilts...

Gary, great idea with trimming the 'Dudley'; you know what they say: the more you trim, the bigger everything else looks.

desper-otto said...

OwenKL, are you sure this isn't the same test as last week? Still put me in the Madison/Rockford area. Interesting, though, when I chose to see the least likely matches, Houston came up. I now live just northeast of there. Giss I jist nevuh learnt to tawk suhthen.

Dudley said...

Husker - I see your point, but then if you had the same shapely, adorable, invitingly clad 22-year old pedicurist that I had, all manliness suspicions would evaporate.

mtnest995 said...

No real problems except Duroc - a total unknown to me. I confidently wrote in secret for 36a and then realized that wouldn't work when I got to 41d. The theme eluded me until CC explained it. Thanks.

Really loved the southeast corner with the crossings of laud/baud, Duke/Luke, and Aden/Eden. Very clever.

I don't think today's NFL offerings will come close to yesterday's for excitement, but they'll remind me how cold it is elsewhere. Please stay warm and safe if you're in the midst of the freeze.

Husker Gary said...

Musings 3
-OMG, maybe I should have inserted “toenails,” between “own” and “Dudley”. Dang noun of direct address! What a hoot, you can’t get anything past the syntax sentinels here!
-Dudley, I had one of those shapely 22-year-olds cut my hair at a Sport Clips once and I might as well have been a sheep she was shearing for all the attention she showed in a customer who reflected her disinterest in her minim tip. It was nothing like this advertising picture but then I don’t look like those guys but I would have tipped a whole lot better. I eventually saw where things were going and watched the TV in silence.

PK said...

Hi Y'all! This puzzle was interesting but not USER FRIENDLY. I tried the top tiers at 12:30 a.m. and got nothing on the first pass, so turned the computer off (which I have never ever done before) and went to bed. Got up later and worked it bit by bit. I filled each square correctly, but didn't understand a lot of what I had. I love red-letters. Didn't "get" the theme until C.C. explained it. Thanks!

I thought BAUD was someone who worked in the red-light district.

I wanted USAFA or U.S. Olympic Training Center for the near Cheyenne Mountain org. There is also a zoo there, I think.

I did know KRYSTLE but tried several different spellings. Hey, I even got JANE. Never heard the kid called anything but ''Boy" and I had a big fat book of Tarzan stories 60 years ago.

You'll need heated goggles to sit outside in a stadium to watch football this weather or your eyeballs will freeze.

My Challah was a "braid" at first.

Anonymous said...

Lord Dudley Morel.

Hmmmm. Sounds like a character from Downton Abbey.

Bill G. said...

Good puzzle. Thanks Joel and CC.

Since my back doesn't bend like it used to, a pedicure makes the process a lot easier than tackling it myself.

Owen, I'm not sure what test you took but this is the exact same one that I posted last week. It's surprising how accurate it is.

I went into a Hooters once and enjoyed it. The waitress was cute, attentive and made enjoyable conversation.

I get a package of Nova Lox at the supermarket and like the product. It's different, milder and less smoky than similar packages of smoked salmon. Whatever it is, I like it.

Big Easy said...

Baud rate, I never used 300. 1200 baud was the lowest I remember that the MSI order entry machines (anybody remember them BEFORE they has bar-code scanners) used.

Inkle? Frankie Valli falsetto, more like soprano. Furoc? Lafarge? Complete unknowns. Andy Capp was removed from our local paper after people compared this perpetual bum on the English dole to some of our many locals.

Dudley said...

Husker - I gotta agree with you there. Haircut places feel more like assembly lines to me. There isn't much opportunity for witty repartee. According to my limited experience, the pedi process is much more leisurely, about an hour as I recall (and is correspondingly expensive); in that setting you're more likely to get the cutie's personal attention.

So, even now, I dare you! :-)

Marti - not the wine cellar, I hope!

Spitzboov said...

Good afternoon everyone.

WEES. No serious issues. Ended up in the middle. Never heard of a DUROC pig before. But there were ample perps to assist with the unknowns.
IGOR was a gimme. He was a minor MASH character who worked the chow line and did other menial 'Army' duties. I remember the scene where Hawkeye went spazzo with the food quality and Igor's eyes about popped out of his head.
CHOCOLAT is one of my favorite movies, too.

HeartRx said...

Dudley - thankfully, no! The only damage was to some stored fiberboard. Ironically, exactly below the break is where we store all the empty kitty litter buckets. Needless to say, they got a good workout!

HG - I use Gorilla Glue for just about everything. But the first time I used it, I forgot to put on gloves and my hands were black for a week no matter how much I scrubbed them.

Lucina said...

It is now very common to see men at the salon where I go for a mani/pedi; Friday there was a man/woman couple and one single man.

The leg/foot massage is ahhh, so nice.

Hahtoolah said...

Desper-Otto : read all the questions and answers to Owen's "more accurate" quiz and you will see how it differs from that one that was in the New Yorker.

Abejo said...

Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, Joel Lafargue, for a swell puzzle. Thank you, C.C., for the fine review.

I had to do this on the IPad, my Sunday paper never arrived until about 11:30. Mucho Snow, By the way, Snow in Iran is called Barf. We always had fun with that word over there. It did snow (barf) a lot in the winter. There were guys that would shovel your roof for you. They were called Barfees.

Anyhow, to the puzzle. I went through it many times, getting a few more words with each pass. I never caught on to the theme, nor did I look for it.

A A FAIR was easy. I had read several of his books as a teenager. Also the Erle Stanley Gardner Perry Mason books as well.

PET SEMATARY had me scratching my head. All the perps verified it so I let it stand. I am a spelling freak.

Wanted ANDY for 98D. CAPP won out after a perp or two.

BAUD was easy. I do remember the modems like D-O displayed. I believe we used on on an old FAX machine we had in California. That was some machine. It had a spinning drum on which you clipped a piece of paper. A needle slowly worked its way along the paper and made an ink spot where the distant end told it to. The result was a FAX, albeit a little skewed. It also sent one in the same fashion. It was not USER FRIENDLY (75A).

Took me forever to remember BARAK. I had the B and nothing else for a while. Finally got it.

I enjoyed this puzzle very much. As I said I did not look for the theme. I was having fun and success in filling it in. My last fill was ROPY and FOGS. Kept replacing letters until it worked.

See you tomorrow. Supposed to get really cold.

Abejo

(cognitive rhcuppl)

Anonymous said...

Sourdough - it's the other way around: the prospectors had sourdough with them, and ultimately got the nickname from it.

OwenKL said...

desper-otto and Bill G.: I don't know how you connected to last week's dialect quiz, or especially how you got that location, d-o.

Hahtoolah: thanks for backing me up that this quiz was different, it just started the same! Bill's was from the DARE project, IIRC, while the one I linked to just went up today at the New Yorker.

Lemonade714 said...

I found this to contain more crunch than most Sundays, but then maybe it is me. Sorry about the ridiculous cold most of you are facing.

Speaking of facing,HG you Nebraskans seem to have the breast of it when it comes to restaurants.

I did both tests and they were both not accurate for me.

Do DUROC pigs rock?

desper-otto said...

OwenKl, if I just read the link, it would say I'm from Worcester, MA. I wouldn't get to actually answer any of the questions, and yes, some of those answers were hilarious. But if I clicked on the link at the top of your link (Is that a link-link?), I'd wind up at the same quiz that BillG posted earlier. I do this find this thing we call English very interesting. Anybody here familiar with Robert McNeil's (the guy from the McNeil/Lehrer report) book about English?

Yellowrocks said...

Happy Sunday. Are you staying warm? I stayed home this AM because of the predicted freezing rain, but the rain didn't start until after it warmed up. Now the rain will change to ice this evening with another dive to zero temps tomorrow evening.
I liked this puzzle. I forgot to look for the theme. When CC explained it, I found it just average, but the clues were fun. I was caught up in doubts and rushed to see the solution.
AAFAIR was unknown. Somehow -E-AGE prompted LEPAGE.I doubted STE for suite, but it is correct.
I think of I MIND as an answer to a rude question. Someone acts offensive and asks,"Do you mind?" Yes, I mind.
Hand up for EGGY before ROPY.
I took the quiz last time and my three dots landed almost on top of each other, about 30 miles east of here. No New JOISEY for us. I couldn't take this one because I had to subscribe to the site.

Spitzboov said...

I did both tests and found them essentially the same. Even the 'heat' maps showing the common areas of pronunciation are the same. JMHO.
What say you who posted the earlier link, Bill G?

desper-otto said...

Oops! That should have been Robert MAcNeil. Oops-Oops! -- now I think I've over-posted.

Jayce said...

Hello everybody. I hope nobody underestimates how dangerous these low temperatures are.

I enjoyed the puzzle today. Fun cluing and nifty fill. I had to resort to red letters to get the A in AA FAIRS and ARRS. Even then I didn't understand what the heck arrs were.

I have never used MINIM as an abbreviation; always just min, as in min/max.

I'm with desper-otto in thinking that Mr. Lafargue is probably 60-ish, for the same reasons.

We call our magnetometers Fido. Actually QFidoes, as in "QuakeFinder dogs," the QF also serving double duty as an abbr for for QuakeFinder.

Best wishes to you all.

TTP said...

All these hours later, finally done cleaning my drive, as well as a neighbors. Also made some paths through the front yard to get to the front door and bird (squirrel) feeder, and then in the back yard so the boy can do his business without freezing his you-know-what off as he squats.

I did Bill's dialect test last week. It spotted me in Pittsburgh, Philly and Patterson, NJ. I understand the Pittsburgh connection, but not the other two.

I just saw some questions and answers for Owen's today, but no evaluation. It just said Worcester Mass at the end.

Would you say cellar or basement ? I always thought that was a regional answer. Truck versus pickup ? Maybe those are too interchangeable to be area specific dialects ?



buckeye bob said...

Jayce --

ARRS = arrivals

OwenKL said...

Ahh, d-o, you found the problem! The page I sent you to was not interactive, but did have a link in the map caption to the original quiz that this one was a parody of!! Shouts & Murmurs is the New Yorker humor feature! It was weekly in the magazine, now daily on-line. S&M alternates between the funniest satire in print, and s*** so droll I can't even stand to read it. Kind of like MAD magazine for the literate! If the 8th question doesn't mention me here in New Mexico, you've got the wrong page! (And quit with the spoilers, guys.)

Yellowrocks said...

Owen, your quiz was not interactive, and I couldn't find the link. but finally I did read all the choices. Fun.
BTW, all my doubts on today's puzzle did pan out so I finised unassisted.

PK said...

TTP: I sure hope that "boy" doing his business out in the cold is your dog/cat and not your son!

I paid my yard man an extra amount today to scoop my drive and porch just because it was so cold. He seemed to appreciate it. Man, he was moving fast in an effort to be warm in the 15* weather. I was wearing a cap in the house because my head and ears were cold, hot house flower that I am.

Manac said...

Well, I did my good deed for the year this weekend. I brought my SIL three truck loads of fire wood because she burned thru a years worth that I gave her this fall. Can't blame her, It has been cold and getting it for nothing from me ( cept gas $) its cheaper than oil. Funny... she's the one that told her sister not to marry me ( I wasn't good enough for her )

Scott, Thank you for that. It brought a smile to my face. My Shepherd's name was Annie as a matter of fact.

TTP said...

PK, ha ha ! Yes, that is my boy featured in my avatar. I think I'm spoiling him.

Husker Gary said...

-Well we have three new additions (and counting) to the map today.
-Going along with one thread here today, any comment on this article on canine urination preferences?
-Manac, what does your SIL think of you now?
-I’m still cold from watching the Packer game today. There have been some great wildcard games.
-Could you imagine overtime in that game, which almost came to pass?

TTP said...

Manac,

At least it was only your SIL that said you weren't good enough for her. In my case, it was most of her family. Well, maybe not most of them. Just the ones that met me. A quarter century later...

Condolences to my Bengal and Packer friends.



tawnya said...

hi all!

just wanted to say hi again, i still lurk almost daily, but usually from my phone with no way to easily comment. big "thanks!" for putting me on the map! it was exciting to see my name :)

just adopted a three-legged golden retriever named Trace. we want to change the spelling to Tres but don't think the local people would know how to say it...not enough hispanic influence in missouri.

glad to see all is well in the blogging world - keep up the good work, CC! i love checking in on everyone and reading about the answers i either wag'd or perp'd in.

i've had enough of winter...

t.

TTP said...

I understand and agree with the concept, but I think you might need a wheelbarrow. Plan and Prepare - Go Bag

Manac said...

Husker,
Your answer

Manac said...

Tawnya,
Anyone who would adopt a dog no matter what is tops on my list. Thanks for chiming in. ( there are others who have gone over to the dark side... (Cats) )

CrossEyedDave said...

yes,

what

Manac

said

Bill G. said...

Spitz, yes I thought they were the same basic test though you arrived there with different starting web sites maybe. Also, some of the questions are different each time.

TTP, I have said both cellar and basement. A pickup is a special kind of truck. I would probably say either one for a pickup truck.

That was quite a game by a quarterback I had never heard of. I need to get out more.

Sunday Morning was enjoyable as always. What an unusual couple; Carville and Matalin, a great remembrance of Phil Everly and a segment on the oddly secretive Tootsie Roll company.

Sallie said...

Hi all










Cheers

Husker Gary said...

Manac, If that's the answer I'm not sure what my question was:-)

Irish Miss said...

Cruciverb is down. What can say, other than ACK!

BarbieMom said...

Finished late again. I worked the puzzle while watching Downton Abbey. I never did get the theme even though I got the answers. Desperato, I have that book "The Story of English". There was a documentary made from it in the early 80's. Good reading. Two new words, inkle and duroc.

PK said...

Husker, IMHO someone sure has a lot of spare time on their hand to research such an earthshaking subject as how dogs line up to do their business. What type of personality takes the opportunity of having to walk the dog to turn it into scientific research? How do you even compute the magnetic field lines, etc.? How do you juggle your scientific data and a pooper bag at the same time?

Dudley said...

Irish Miss - just discovered that! Here we go again!

I wish I knew what disease it is that confusticates Cruciverb. And how to fix it.

Bill G. said...

Speaking of Cruciverb, I used to be able to download a puzzle in Across Lite format and solve it at my leisure. I don't see how to do that now. Is there still a way, say with the CrosSynergy puzzles?

I don't have to tell you it goes without saying there are some things better left unsaid. I think that speaks for itself. The less said about it the better.

Lucina said...

Since I had company for dinner, watching the game was a requirement. Some things I learned:

The playing field is warmed by underground pipes!
In the post game comments I heard the name CAM Newburg at least five times. Thanks to a recent crossword puzzle (was it yesterday's?) I recognized it and hope to remember it. Maybe.

kjinkc said...

Lucina - I think you might mean Cam Newton who is the quarterback for the Carolina Panthers.