Theme: "Age Isn't Everything" - AGE is removed from each familiar phrase.
25A. Plight when the caterer cancels? : HOST CRISIS. Hostage crisis.
27A. Kit with a parachute? : BAILOUT PACK. Bailout package.
45A. River project evaluation? : DAM ASSESSMENT. Damage assessment.
82A. Psychiatrist who falls asleep during sessions? : SHRINK PROBLEM. Shrinkage problem.
97A. Pedicured tootsy on a video-sharing website? : YOUTUBE FOOT. YouTube footage.
103A. Course for new cattle farmers? : STEER CLASS. Steerage class.
35D. Scenes of Oscar Madison's room? : RECORDED MESS. Recorded message.
40D. Cleaning out a clothes closet? : GARB DISPOSAL. Garbage disposal.
I
normally don't touch letter addition/deletion/altercation theme type as
I'm awful making sense of those wacky phrases. I do know, however, it's
harder to delete than to add.
Have you all read this article about our 100-year-old constructor Bernice Gordon? Very nicely written.
Scroll down a bit: "...Bernice's themes and puzzles are almost always straightforward, not at
all gimmicky or tricky," said Rich Norris, puzzle editor at the Los
Angeles Times. "Yet there's an elegance in her simplicity. She finds
relationships among words that are so obvious when you first see them
that you wonder why you've never seen this before."
I
thought of Gail when I read Rich's comment. She's not going to shock
and awe you, but there's an elegance & beauty in Gail's simplicity,
often the result of hard work.
Across:
1. Reach across : SPAN
5. Scraps : SPATS
10. Resort city along the Roaring Fork River : ASPEN
15. Harbor vessel : SCOW
19. Hokkaido native : AINU. Here they're in their traditional Ainu dress.
20. Words to a hopeful traveler : HOP IN
21. Make a point : SCORE. Nice clue.
22. Asian beef center : KOBE
23. Current designation : AC/DC
24. Down East university town : ORONO. University of Maine.
30. One who shouldn't be looking : PEEKER
31. Fangorn Forest denizens : ENTs
32. Publicized : AIRED
34. Words on jackets : BLURBS. So I read "What Falls Away". I guess we all have a cross to bear.
38. Strays on the range : DOGIES
41. Western formation : BUTTE
43. Most conceited : VAINEST
44. Spat end : ULA. Spatula. And 75A. Front end? : IER. Frontier. 63D. Super finish? : IOR. Superior. Necessary evils.
49. Round fig. : CIR. OK, circle.
50. Multipurpose : VERSATILE
52. Boss of Tammany Hall : TWEED. Was he as important as this book suggests?
53. Programmer's output : CODE
54. Held in check : AT BAY
55. Rare indication?: RED. Meat.
56. Appears to be : SEEMS
57. Crowd, supposedly : THREE
58. Woman's title : LADY
59. "Doctor Who" creatures : ETs
60. Rickman role in Harry Potter films : SNAPE. He was in "Love Actually" also.
61. Surrounded by : AMIDST
62. "If only!" : I WISH
64. "Ocean's Eleven" job : HEIST
65. Recurring sequence : CYCLE
66. Tapered-top piece : BISHOP. I don't get this clue. What is "Tapered-top"?
68. Exhilarating : HEADY
69. Contemporary of Bela and Boris : LON (Chaney)
70. Gathering dust : IDLE
73. Stock phrase : AT PAR
74. Shooting Starr : BELLE. I only know Annie Oakley.
76. Tutorial features : DEMOS
77. Soak up : BLOT
78. Folksy accounts : TALES
79. Broadway designer's jobs : STAGE SETS. Nice fill.
81. They, in Calais : ILS
85. Sault-Marie link : STE
86. Santa portrayer in "Elf" : ED ASNER. Super crossword-friendly name.
88. Woman "in my dreams," in song : IRENE. Oh, "Goodnight, Irene".
89. Commonly sculpted figures : TORSOS
91. Went wild on the drums, maybe : SOLOED
92. Diminishes : WANES
94. Nora was his mistress : ASTA
95. Get the factory going again : RE-OPEN
107. Spin-off starring Valerie Harper : RHODA
108. Arctic sight : FLOE
109. Stroked tools : OARS
110. Arena for MacArthur : KOREA. Korea War is heavily covered in Chinese history books.
111. Doughnut-shaped : TORIC
112. Do nothing : LAZE
113. Kindergarten handful : BRAT
114. Manner : STYLE
115. Tried to wake, in a way : SHOOK
116. Seeing things : EYES. Indeed, eyes see things. Great clue.
Down:
1. 9-3 automaker : SAAB
2. Type type : PICA
3. "__ quote:" : AND I
4. Cell centers : NUCLEI
5. Gives an earful : SHOUTS AT
6. New York and Los Angeles : PORTS. Where the Saturday Stud & Monarch Steve I of Studio City live.
7. Per : A POP
8. Turner on stage : TINA
9. Treaded transports : SNO-CATS
10. Grate refuse : ASH
11. Sharpshooter's tool : SCOPE
12. Sat : POSED
13. "Symphony in Black" artist : ERTE
14. Strip around a collar : NECKBAND. Never wore one.
15. Downhill course : SKI RUN
16. NYSE listings : COs
17. It's a cinch in Sapporo : OBI
18. Jazz guitarist Montgomery : WES
26. Kindled anew : RE-LIT
28. Eventually : ONE DAY
29. Popular beach toy : KITE
33. Quit worrying : REST EASY. Sometimes you just can't.
36. They're rarely hits : B SIDES
37. Bourbon __ : STREET
38. 2001 British Open winner David : DUVAL. His only major. He always seems so distant. Probably the sunglasses.
39. Jazz singer Adams who collaborated with Tears for Fears : OLETA. Nope. No memory of her.
41. Barn dance seating : BALES
42. Like many auction items : USED. Argyle likes to visit those auction events.
43. Winning signs : VEEs
46. Gaiety : MIRTH
47. Won every game : SWEPT
48. Internet __: fast-spreading item : MEME. I don't find those Ryan Gosling "Hey Girl" meme funny. You?
51. "Come again?" : SAY WHAT
53. Spicy pods : CHILIES. I imagine Lucina puts chiles in everything she cooks. How about you, spicy or mild?
56. Cutting : SNIDE
57. HBO competitor : TMC
59. Mentalist's claim : ESP
60. Mukluk material : SEALSKIN. See here.
61. Author Rand : AYN
64. Hunt of "Cast Away" : HELEN
65. Pinkish shade : CORAL
66. Treats carefully : BABIES
67. "I suppose that's okay" : IT'LL DO. Very good.
68. Prefix with pad : HELI
69. Leave alone : LET BE
71. Game rarely won : LOTTO
72. Fussy twosome? : ESSES. Two letter S in "Fussy".
74. Mystery writer Nevada : BARR. Needed crossing help.
75. "Help __ the way" : IS ON
76. Reduce in rank : DEMOTE
78. Waterfront area : THE DOCKS. Pricey area.
80. Recoups : GETS BACK
82. Villainous look : SNEER
83. Victimize, with "on" : PREY
84. Honeymoon destinations : RESORTS
87. Most angry : SOREST
90. Fund-raising event : RAFFLE
92. Worn down : WEARY
93. First name in nature photography : ANSEL (Adams). Or John (Lampkin).
94. Speaker's output : AUDIO
96. Conspiracy : PLOT
98. "Could be a problem" : UH OH
99. Mower maker : TORO
100. Big name in skin care : OLAY. Discovered Simple last year. Love their toner.
101. Trickle : OOZE
102. Driving aids : TEES
103. Blubber : SOB
104. Car wash challenge : TAR
105. Notable time : ERA
106. MS. enclosure : SAE (Self-Addressed Envelope)
Happy 75th Birthday to dear Keith Fowler! You can read more about Keith here. He even lived in Stratford-upon-Avon for sometime. Keith said:
"My branch of the family is not known for longevity, so it will be an enormous leap for me to reach 75 this coming Sunday--Feb 23 at 7:19 pm PST!
At that day/time I will be two years older than any recorded Fowler
(of the Shryvenham to London to NY to CT to TN to CA tribe of Fowlers)
ever got to be.
My mom (actually a Hocking) reached 73, and my dad's grandfather hit
that number too. while a great many folk live much longer, it just
feels mighty strange to me, like teetering on a very high pole, or maybe
soloing for the first time, and very slowly."
 |
| Keith Fowler |
Also, if you are going to New York for the ACPT (American Crossword
Puzzle Tournament), say hello to George Barany, who will be there competing. Maybe Rich Norris and Patti Varol will be there too, both are fast solvers. (Added later: George will be judging!)
Also, don't miss the Friday night Cru Dinner. Marti can tell you how friendly Mike Alpern is.
Also, don't miss the Friday night Cru Dinner. Marti can tell you how friendly Mike Alpern is.
C.C.
55 comments:
Good morning C.C. et al.
Happy birthday Keith Fowler! You’re only on the 55th anniversary of your 20th birthday, so you still have another 20 before your reach 75!! ¸¸¸.•*¨*♫♥♫¸¸¸.•*¨*♫♥♫¸¸¸.•*¨*♫♥♫¸¸¸.•*¨*♫♥♫
It took me a while to catch on to the theme, but when I came to DAM ASSESSMENT it hit me like a ton of bricks. Nice write-up, C.C. I love that Seinfeld YOU TUBE FOOTage.
To answer your question at 66-A, the Bishop is the piece in the game of chess that has a tapered top, in the style of a mitre hat.
I didn’t know OLETA, either, but perps filled her in. Oh, and hand up for spicy!
Have a lovely day, everyone!
Long time constructors are skipping ACPT, thanks to Rex Parker.
Morning, all (and Happy Birthday, Keith)!
Fun puzzle overall. Got the theme early on, but it didn't really help me all that much with theme answers except to provide some nice AHA moments along the way.
Almost turfed it in two spots today. One was up in the NE where I had RIFLE instead of SCOPE and couldn't make sense of anything else up there as a result. I've heard of ASPEN, but not the Roaring fork River. And I was thinking of pointy things for 21A (tried TAPER at first, but it didn't fit with RIFLE or SCOPE). Also tried LEERER instead of PEEKER due to the aforementioned RIFLE. I finally just took RIFLE out and stared at the blank space for awhile until everything suddenly fell into place.
The other spot was the crossing of BARR and BELLE, both unknown to me. I would cry foul, but upon a little reflection I realized that while there could be people with the last name CARR, DARR, FARR, GARR, etc., BELLE was probably the only viable option for a first name with the letters _ELLE. Fortunately, I was right!
Good morning!
I almost turfed it up top. I thought ASPEN and PEEKERS were probably correct, but I couldn't figure out the downs. I thought maybe you could SCALE a point, like a mountain climber. Later, after seeing the theme, I got HOST CRISIS and then that whole area came together.
I see that Marti has already addressed the bishop's pointy head.
Happy birthnight, Keith! I used to think 75 was really old. Not anymore!
Fun theme once I got it (I forgot Sunday has a title, so getting the gimmick took me awhile), but still a DNF. It was after 6 before I finished it, so a bit late for any poetry today.
I had DOGGIE in for 38a early, but was pretty sure the plural was DOGGIES, not DOGGYS, so abandoned it when I couldn't get anything crossing it. ♪ ♫ Yippy-ki-yi-yay, git along little doggies! ♩ ♬
NNW, WNW & WSW all escaped me. I finally had to push the reveal button on SNoCaTS, which also revealed ORONo, & aIRED (ORONO I didn't recall, but the other two I should have figured out). Knew I didn't have a chance on 38d, so did reveal on that for DUVAL. With that, the log jam was broken of not having enough perps to guess GARB DISPOSAL or anything else crossing it. Never heard of OLETA Adams. Mental blocks were wanting a troop transport for SNOCATS and a clothing style for BISHOP.
This puzzle moved along steadily for me and was solved in large blocks, but it took more thought than this Saturday'S Silkie. I was two thirds done before I sussed the theme.
BISHOP had me going. I had B--HOP, before I saw it. _H_DOCKS also had me going until I realized that it had to be THE.
Boss TWEED is still a symbol of corruption in these parts and is frequently recalled in articles about today's corrupt politicians. He headed Tammany Hall, the Democratic political machine in NYC. His reign was marked by graft, political patronage, and voter fraud.
I knew of BELLE Starr, an educated, cultured, stylish woman who fell in with bad associates and was married successively to several men who were or became outlaws. In the end she ran a service for rustlers, bootleggers and horse thieves.
Nevada BARR was all perps, but on reading about her, I realize that I have read at least one of her Pigeon Series novels.
OLETA was all perps.
Nevada Barr -- her female amateur sleuth, Anna Pigeon, is a park ranger, and each novel takes place in a different national park. I read the first few until one involving spelunking, which I shuddered at and left off, but my LW is still following them (she has a thing for female writers/'tecs).
Not really a Spoiler: in one novel, Anna finds the killer injured in the wilderness and about to be savaged by a cougar. She's faced with the ethical decision of rescuing him for trial, or letting nature take its course -- and his life. The book ends there! Arggh! I guess it's left up to the reader to decide how it ends, since it's never mentioned in the following books!
Re: DOGIES vs. DOGGIES.
This is another clear, lovely, warm, 47°+ day. Yay! Spring jacket weather.I am looking forward to taking a ride this afternoon, but the deep freeze and snow are returning this week.
This afternoon I am taking one of our square dance students to a beginners’ dance. It is always thrilling for the students to actually dance instead of just having lessons. It reminds me of when my oldest son read his first book independently. He exclaimed, “I can read!” I told him he had been reading all along in school. He said that wasn’t really reading. That was just class.
A very happy birthday to Keith. I rwally enhjoy your posts.
Barry- there are four STARRS, Ringo, Bart, Blaze and BELLE the stripper. Blaze's real middle name was Belle. She was Gov. Earl Long's girlfriend.
Big Easy, you forgot Kay Starr. Wheel of Fortune 1952 3:03. Boy, she could really belt 'em out!
This one was a challenge, starting with the (relatively) vast expanse of a Sunday puzzle. But, just like shoveling my too-long driveway, small bites are the key.
I had three of the theme answers without figuring out the theme but then it hit me (with, I think, STEERAGE). In the end I was looking at CRISIS without HOST and YOUTUBE without FOOT. What looks obvious when completed can be surprisingly elusive. I had SIGHT before SCOPE and SCORE came late (I kept thinking of making a physical "point"; e.g. as with an awl).
I'd never heard of OLETA or BARR.
It got up to 54° yesterday here in the beautiful mid-Hudson valley, the "warmest" it's been since December 23rd. But, as Yellowrocks noted, the cold weather returns tomorrow.
[26:27]
This for me was an ideal Sunday puzzle with a cute but discernible theme and the perfect symmetry of first word, last word.
Nevada Barr is very popular in Florida though I believe she has ties in MINNESOTA
My only nit would be SPATS which was tricky and SpatULA.
Hi Everyone ~~
Looking back at my completed puzzle, I don't know why I had so much trouble. I just couldn't get started no matter how I moved around the grid. Just as I was getting frustrated, the SE corner began to fill in when I got YOUTUBEFOOT. I even picked up the theme at this point. Sheesh. ;-)
Lots of things tripped me up ~ Tapered top piece, Fussy twosome, to name just a couple. I also resisted THE DOCKS because I didn't understand the need for "THE." After reading C.C.'s illuminating write-up, I saw that it's an actual name. Thanks for all the info, C.C. I learned a lot today.
As I was filling in SHRINK (age) problem I immediately thought of George ~ enjoyed the link.
Thanks for the challenge, Gail - a clever theme. I really had to work at this. I agree with Yellowrocks - tougher than yesterday's Silkie.
Happy Birthday, Keith ~ a handsome, interesting guy. I hope you have a wonderful day!
Good morning, all.
Thank you, C.C. for good write-up and Gail for the puzzle, which I liked a lot.
Happy Birthday, Mr. Fowler. After reading the write-up, I'll go on the search for some videos. My DH collects Shakespeare videos and yours sound so interesting.
My favorite clue is 82A re the sleeping psychiatrist. My least favorite and, I think, misleading, is 97A. I think it should be a plural clue, since a tootsie is only one toe, not a whole foot's worth! That was the last corner to reveal itself, thanks to RAFFLE and the excellent 116 A clue for EYES.
All that rain and snow if filling up the river with both water and debris.
Cheers,
Oops..."IS" filling the river. There's no IF about it.
Another 'sharpshooter' with a double R last name, Candy Barr. Prudes need not look. Link
Argyle, I do believe those are 45's.
Good Morning:
A little crunchier than a typical Sunday but finished w/o help, after a fashion. It took a while before I caught the theme, which was then helpful with the rest of the solve.
Nice job, Gail, and great expo, CC.
I was up until 2:00 am watching the Olympic ice skating exhibition. Their grace and elegance and musical interpretation is so beautiful, it brings tears to your eyes.
I guess today is the last day of our mild weather
reprieve. Oh well, winter has to end sooner or later.
Happy Sunday to all.
Oh dear, I'm so sorry, Keith! Very Happy Birthday Wishes on your 75th! I hope you have a wonderful, fun-filled day.
Thanks for the b'day message, C.C.! And thank you, everyone, for the cheerful greetings.
I see now that there's more to crosswording than the puzzles!
Happy birthday, Keith!
I read your post last night, saw your new screen name and your new avatar, but wondered What’s this about? Today they make much more sense. (OK, I can be slow on the uptake sometimes!)
When I saw your new screen name, all I could think is “Keith must be feeling his age today”.
When I saw your new avatar, I just scratched my head and thought “What does Keith have to do with Interstate 75?”
Now that C.C. recognizes your birthday, it all makes sense to me! And the avatar is very clever!
I hope you enjoy your special day!
Quick hello to clarify my upcoming trip to New York for the ACPT. I'm not very competitive when it comes to solving and was just planning to hang out and schmooze, but then Will Shortz recruited me to be a judge. I'm not really sure what that will entail, but was told that it's a lot of work. Sounds like fun, and I definitely look forward to meeting some of you there. Meanwhile, everal others from our Minnesota constructor crowd will be there too, and (unlike me) actually competing.
We Canadians are overjoyed at our Olympic gold in men's hockey. Everyone was up early to watch.
I love this quote from Jim Litke, national sports columnist for The Associated Press.
"Canada, where every kid who straps on a pair of skates loves the game so madly that it's hard to imagine almost anything else mattering that much for the rest of your life."
Now that the closing ceremony is over, I can do the puzzle.
Good afternoon everyone.
Happy Birthday to Keith Fowler. Thanks to C.C. for posting the very interesting link.
Was debating playing hooky on today's puzzle, but when I saw it was by Gail G., well, it was like a moth being drawn to the flame.
Very enjoyable; not so hard today. Sussed the age drop after about the 4th theme fill. Very clever. Completed the solve without any searches; perps were ample and apt. New learnings were SNAPE and MEME. Others have answered the BISHOP question.
ANSEL - We have an ANSEL Adams print in our living room; - Moon over Half Dome.
Thank you for the Sunday challenge, Gail. Thank you for the fine review, C.C.
This was an excellent Sunday puzzle, with a clever theme. I always find puzzles that drop letters from a word harder than ones that add letters, but I got it.
I eventually got the puzzle filled in, but no ta-da. I re-read my Across and Down answers looking for typos, but found none. On my second review pass, I changed SKOW / KOS (huh?) to SCOW / COS. Now 16D made sense but still no ta-da.
Stuck for any more corrections, I finally turned on red letter help and saw had 1 letter wrong. I changed POP IN / SPOUTS AT (which did make sense to me) to HOP IN / SHOUTS AT (which made even more sense) and finally ta-da!
The movie Cast Away is one of my favorites. When life seems overwhelming or impossible, remember this quote:
“And I know what I have to do now. I gotta keep breathing. Because tomorrow the sun will rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?” - Tom Hanks as Chuck Noland in the movie Cast Away.
I often post late because of sleeping in or church on Sunday but not today. Gail’s amazing tour de force teased and almost stumped me but I broke through in each corner for a wonderful “happy ending”. DAMageASSESSMENT gave me the Rosetta stone.
Musings
-I’ll call 911 for ya, but if I don’t know ya, I ain’t sayin’ HOP IN
-A SCORE in hockey seems to require too much luck all this in front of the net
-A last episode of the season will be AIRED tonight on PBS. Who will LADY Mary pick?
-QB’s today must be more VERSATILE than years ago
-Omaha’s Boss Tweed was Tom Dennison
-If you want to see the Source CODE for this site, hit Ctrl + Alt + U. How ‘bout dat?
-If you fought Mike Tyson, how long do you think you could hold him AT BAY?
-A big difference between these two Ocean’s 11. The first had Joey BISHOP.
-Bela, Boris and LON really got trapped in type casting
-Most car salesmen get a DEMO as part of employment
-A hit of my ute that is mostly a mostly a drum SOLO
-A SKI RUN at 80 mph? Yikes!
-My sister still BABIES her 21-year-old son. Guess where he still lives.
Happy Birthday to our local thespian, Keith. I live near I-80 and I-29. I look like one and act like the other.
Three birthday thoughts from the Bard:
"With MIRTH and laughter let old wrinkles come." – Merchant of Venice
"... there was a star danced, and under that was I born." – Much Ado About Nothing (like my postings)
"To me, fair friend, you never can be old, For as you were when first your eye I eye’d, Such seems your beauty still." – From one of Bill’s lyrical poems
And a less gentle comment on age and aging from Macbeth
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.
So we’d all better enjoy the time we get!
Good morning all,
First, a VERY happy 75th to Keith.When one lives to be older than all of his/her family members, every day there after is a gift. Both my parents and one older sister died in their early 60's, so I feel blessed.
Gail's CW surprised me as I could never get onto her wavelength, and I had no inkling of her clever theme.I look forward to her work.Sunday I use red letters and it was so discouraging. My 1st 2 or 3 choices in so many were red-red-red. I'm sure glad there is not a BEEP.
Have to admit that it was fun even though it was a DNF.Afterwards,I got carried away with watching videos of my favorite nature photographer afterward, Thomas Mangelson.If I can get just one great shot while in Yellowstone this week, I'll be overjoyed.
Have a lovely Sunday. It's family day at our house.
This one was tougher than usual for a Sunday for me. Took all the way around the edges to get the first theme answer, steer class. That helped a great deal with the others. All in all, a fun outing.
And a very appropriate theme for your birthday, Keith. Age isn't everything. Happy birthday to you, despite your misgivings about it.
Happy Birthday Keith,
I can't decide which cake is more appropriate, this one, or something a little more subdued...
I am always surprised by some of the things I learn on the Blog.
Argyle, your Candy Barr post made me do a little research (lots of fun!) which made me discover this little ditty that I had never heard before.
Her Wiki Profile is an interesting story...
CC - I'm surprised you didn't call out STAGESETS. You're usually such a stickler for clean theme usAGE throughout the whole grid!
I always look forward to Gail's puzzles. I enjoyed the cluing such as "I suppose that's OK", "One who shouldn't be looking" and others but I was underwhelmed by the theme. After dropping "age", the resulting words didn't seem very clever or interesting. Now that I've read CC's review and lots of comments, I like this puzzle better than I did at first while working on it.
Heh heh; after Argyle's warning that prudes shouldn't look, it's hard to imagine who wouldn't take a peek.
Which reminds me. My bike rack is made by the 'Hollywood' company. On the straps that connect it to the car trunk are the words "Hollywood Racks." It always makes me think of Jayne Mansfield. Now I can be reminded of Candy Barr too.
Hey Keith, I hope you have a really swell birthday!
Hi Y'all! Gail grabbed me by the owski again! The DAM broke and let me IN ON the theme early. I wish I could drop my "age" to when everything was more functional.
Happy birthday, Keith! May your day be joyous!
(I don't want to outlive my family members who were in their late 80's & 90's and very decrepit in mind and body.)
This puzzle was a real challenge to fill. I kept trying to figure out if SEAL SKIN, REST EASY & STAGE SETS were part of the theme, the later had the 'age' in it.
This had "scraps" as being SPATS, then "spat end" wasn't "kiss and make up" but ULA. Meh! Front end and super end? Groan!
Not "voyeur" but PEEKER. Never heard of AINU or ILS.
I knew BELLE. She visited relatives in my home town county and her gang robbed our bank. (In an age before my time.)
I also knew Nevada BARR. I've read & enjoyed her books. I didn't like the cave one either nor one which deviated from the Pigeon series.
IrishMiss: I loved the skating also. I like exhibition skating better than competition.
I thought NBC's coverage of the skating was MEAN. Tantalize us all evening with a couple skating performances then make us wait through all the stuff I don't want to see. When they finally put it on, I'm too sleepy to enjoy it. Why can't they do it normally and give a time for specific events? I read a book with the picture on and sound off until skating came on.
I watched some of the other events briefly, but timed competitions with one participant don't seem like races to me. The only thing that seems interesting to me me about bobsled is watching those big muscley bodies cram themselves into that little sled.
Hello, Weekend Worders!
Right on, C.C., with the -AGEing theme. I don't put CHILIES in everything but just a few chile flakes in some recipes such as stew, soup, etc, greatly amp up the flavor. Eggs also benefit from chile flakes.
This grid from Gail stumped me in many places though the entire middle filled easily but I had a hard time giving up DREGS, DRONED AT and EACH so that slowed the whole top section. Once I erased it and restarted, SPATS, HOP IN and SHOUTS AT took over and PORTS finished it.
Also, as someone mentioned, FOOT seemed out of place as a "tootsie" is usually one toe. But with erasing and a fresh start, it was done.
Happy birthday, Keith! I hope you are having a very special day. Yes, I also once thought 75 was old.
Today on Sunday Morning a case was made for the use of "I" and "me" which I really appreciated and hope people listen to. Their misuse is one of my pet peeves.
Enjoy your Sunday, everyone!
Happy Sunday everybody!
And HBD to a spring chicken, Keith...!
Eventually got the theme at STEERage CLASS. Lots o' write-overs, like SNAKE for SNAPE, MERRY for MIRTH, LOLL for LAZE, and DATA for CODE....
Is SHOUTS AT like a Shout Out...?
Speaking of which, and I'm s-t-r-e-t-c-h-I-n-g here, does the clue for 45A combined with the answer for 78D constitute a CSO...?
WES Montgomery was a great guitarist, influencing, among others, George Benson....
Is mystery writer Nevada related to domestic goddess Roseanne...?
I was on the STAGE crew for our class production of Guys and Dolls....
78D (singl.) out....
Hard work today even though I figured out the "AGE" theme early. Smiled at OBI and PEEKER, and had V8 moments realizing DRIVING AIDS were about golf not cars and WORDS ON JACKETS were about books not clothes!
My first fill for STRIP AROUND A COLLAR was DIRTRING. Remember those old WHISK commercials?
Favourites today: SCORE, WINNING SIGNS=VEES and WON EVERY GAME=SWEPT.
HBD Keith.
More TV tonight with Downton.
Hello everybody. I liked this puzzle; enough challenge to keep me busy for a while on this fine Sunday morning, yet emminently doable. Seeing it was constructed by Gail Grabowski enhanced my feelings of anticipation.
C.C., thank you for calling our attention to that article about Bernice Gordon. Well written indeed! Very inspirational.
Keith Fowler, oh ye of magnificent forehead, may you enjoy many more years! I very much enjoy reading what you have to say here on the blog.
Best wishes to you all.
A later posting to add more thanks to the many friends who sent afternoon birthday greetings. I feel greatly flattered-- from my "magnificent forehead" to my "spring chicken" nature.
A special thank you to CEDave who takes, er-- correction!-- BRINGS the cake(s)!
My wife took us to see "American Hustle." I enjoyed it thoroughly. Fine script, direction, and acting--and many neat metaphors for the delusions we live by.
Wes montgomery full concert 1:18:22
Hmm,, so what's funny about missing age...
Some facts about age:
#1
#2
#3
#4
& finally #5 (I may have posted this before, but at my age you don't expect me to remember, do you?)
What was 16d New York Stock Exchange listings: COS ? Cosines? Commanding Officers? Bill Cosby?
Swamp cat and Ol' Man Keith Fowler; thank you so much for your comments to me Saturday! They really meant a lot to me!
If you're going to start quoting Trekkie limericks, you can't miss this one!
Greetings!
Am falling asleep as I write, so will be brief. Lacking sleep last few days. Got to swim today. Heater had not come on for a few days evidently. If it's not one thing, it's another. Had to swim rapidly due to the sub-fibromyalgia temp.
Thanks Gail and CC. I too had trouble with SkOW. But in the end, no cheats. Cute theme.
Have a great remainder of the birthday, Keith! The Wiki article very impressive. May you have many, many more birthdays! (I turned 75 on Christmas Day. Hadn't thought that I was going to make it. Not from a long-lived family either.)
Cheers!
OwenKL @ 6:01 PM --
16D NYSE listings: COS = companies
Continuing with Starr's...my offering is Bart (played "a little" with the Green Bay Packers & Dick, former major league pitcher for the St Louis Browns and others. In either 1950 or '51 he was the only Brown pitcher with a winning record for the season.
No puzzle time today, had to go to visit son in Newburyport, Ma today and recover wife's cell phone that she left in his car on Thursday. "Looong" round trip, but Riley and Dorey had a few hours to romp around. Riley is now out cold for the night.
So what new hell do we meet next door? The contractors finished their job of painting the kitchen. One of them told DH that he had accidentally knocked over one of the security cameras and broke it. OK, so DH repaired the broken camera…but when we went in today to remove the tarps they had put in place over the stove, we found the ceramic cooktop smashed into pieces. After looking all over the web for a replacement, we finally found one for $800. I could buy a new stove for that much!!! OK, so, calm down, contact the contractor and see what he will do for me?? How to approach him??
The Chicago way
HeartRx @7:57
Contact the Manufacturer, A replacement glass top, installed yourself, may not be as expensive as you think.
Some how to videos
Ditto
HeartRx @7:57
Sorry, but I disagree with CED.
I say:
1. Take some photos to document the damage, showing the tarps.
2. Contact the contractor and tell him what you found today, and explain politely and logically why you think it is his responsibility. He should have insurance to cover this. If not, he should accept responsibility for his guys anyway.
3. If all that fails, then follow CED's advice and chalk it up as a lesson learned.
Just my opinion.
Not a regular contributor here, I just had to chime in. I enjoyed this solve immensely; it had exactly the right amount of difficulty (a lot...but not ridiculous). It took quite a while to get the "trick" of the theme, and till you have that, the going can be rather sticky.
Mistakes didn't help: I had bEaTEASe instead of RESTEASY, which created a big detour around that area. And My mukluks were first amde out of dEerSKIN, then bEArSKIN, till I traded them in for those comfy SEALSKIN ones.
Gail Grabowski = Good = my captcha's first word.
Hello Puzzlers -
Yep, late again. Busy day. There have been a lot of those.
What Spitz said hours ago: I caught on to the theme after about the fourth answer. Smooth and elegant puzzle!
HBTY Keith Fowler, you interesting guy you.
Marti, sorry to hear about that stove. Believe me I know how frustrating contractors can be.
Gee, I was expecting a bit more of a nail-biter from Downton. About the only loose end I recall is Edith's plan for re-assigning custody. Plus, I'm getting tired of every American being portrayed as insufferable and unmannerly. Even progressive persons can be polite!
Dudley:
Yes, what a surprise! No cliff hanger but there are some loose ends to pick up next season: who will be Mary's choice? will we ever discover what happened to Sir Michael? and will Barrow eventually fall on his own petard?
Marti:
If they placed the tarp over the stove it should have been part of the clean up to remove it. The fact that they didn't smacks of possible guilt and avoidance. You should ask about that and it all sounds very incompetent. Good luck dealing with them!
I guess it's a good thing I'm not one of those people who gets upset when I know something about the outcome of a TV show or movie. I'm actually pleased there isn't a cliffhanger. I've never liked those. In my mind, a story should have a satisfying conclusion; or in the case of a TV show with next season to come, a satisfying intermediate pause. Now what should I spill about tomorrow's puzzle? Hmm...
Have a great day, Keith! Hopelessly late to the party but I hope you enjoy your birthday month!
CC - thanks for the expo, I missed a couple today!
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