Theme: Woof! - Stereotypical dog names found at the back of the entries.
20A. Phrase on a treasure map : X MARKS THE SPOT. "SEE SPOT RUN."
31A. Luxury SUV since 1970 : RANGE ROVER. "Red Rover, Red Rover, let Susie come over."
41A. Sophocles tragedy : OEDIPUS REX. Rex the Wonder Dog
53A. One of the things little boys are made of, and a hint to 20-, 31- and 41-Across : PUPPY DOG TAILS
Argyle here. Heel! Mr. Morris made an appearance here back in '09. Glad he made it back.
Across:
1. JFK announcements : ETAs
5. Athletic shoe brand : PUMA
9. __ Haute, Indiana : TERRE
14. Red dessert wine : PORT
15. A party to : IN ON
16. Advil competitor : ALEVE
17. Two-toned treat : OREO
18. Bibliography, e.g. : LIST. Hand up for reading it as Biography. No excuse.
19. Washer cycle : RINSE
23. Sycophant : YES MAN
24. Captain of industry : TITAN. Titans are a mythological race of giants.
26. Novelist Deighton : LEN
28. Sinking ship deserter : RAT
29. Illuminated : LIT
36. Hard-to-hit tennis server : ACER
37. Black wood : EBONY
38. Vigor's partner : VIM
39. Locale : PLACE
40. Criminal, to a cop : PERP
43. Giant Mel enshrined in Cooperstown : OTT
44. NBC late-night comedy hit : SNL
45. Pull : TUG
46. First film to win the Oscar for Best Animated Feature : "SHREK"
48. "Take care of yourself!" : "BE SAFE!"
57. Take as one's own : ADOPT
59. Desert tableland : MESA
60. Pirate booty : LOOT
61. Confused struggle : MELEE
62. Cool and collected : CALM
63. Blackthorn fruit : SLOE
64. Message limited to 140 characters : TWEET
65. Lotion additive : ALOE
66. __-de-camp : AIDE
Down:
1. Glue for a model kit : EPOXY
2. Mel, "The Velvet Fog" : TORME
3. Fields of study : AREAS
4. Nor'easter, for one : STORM
5. Light lager : PILSNER
6. Part of BTU : UNIT. (British thermal unit)
7. Dance wildly : MOSH
8. Bet all players must make : ANTE
9. Fossil-preserving spot : TAR PIT
10. "The Waste Land" poet : ELIOT
11. Budget vehicle : RENTAL CAR
12. Natl. park campers : RVs. (recreational vehicle)
13. Wide shoe size : EEE
21. Actress Cuoco of "The Big Bang Theory" : KALEY. Penny, on TBBT.
22. Guide for the Magi : STAR
25. Female relative : NIECE
27. Best-seller list entry : NOVEL
28. Make payment : REMIT
30. "Jurassic Park" predator, for short : T-REX. A little puppy repeat.
31. Auto loan default consequence : REPO
32. Helps, as a 40-Across : ABETs. ...and you don't need to ante.
33. Santa's home : NORTH POLE. Warmer than here.
34. Econ. statistic : GNP. (Gross National Product)
35. YouTube clip, for short : VID
36. Pacino and Capone : ALs
39. Washington's __ Sound : PUGET
41. Peeling potatoes in the mil., perhaps : ON KP
42. Darts, commonly : PUB GAME
44. Seven-person combo : SEPTET
47. Indian currency : RUPEE
49. Tostitos dip : SALSA
50. Garlic mayonnaise : AIOLI. Do we know it now?
51. Monsoon aftermath : FLOOD
52. Makeup maven Lauder : ESTÉE
54. Gym site, briefly : YMCA
55. Negotiation goal : DEAL
56. Northern European capital : OSLO
57. Qty. : AMT. (amount)
58. Beads on the grass : DEW
Argyle
Notes from C.C.:
1) Happy Birthday to Santa's favorite naughty girl Lois, whose appearances on the blog always brighten up my day. Windhover, do you have a picture of you & Lois? I found none in our Blog Picture Archive.
2) Happy Birthday to Awol as well! Haven't heard much from you for quite some time. Hope all's well.
 |
| Awol |
3) Glitch continues with Mensa. Please click Merriam-Webster site or Yahoo Game (Thanks, Old Sage). Both have the same format as Mensa.
60 comments:
Is anyone having trouble getting the crossword?
I have tried the LATimes and also the Chicago Tribune, but all I get is an advertisement that loops without end.
I also tried Mensa, again, and again it is not working.
Not very Mensa-esque.
LEN's home is spotless, not even dust specks.
Credit his dogs, SPOT, ROVER, and REX,
And Len wisely entrusting
The dogs with the dusting.
They do it with PUPPY DOG TAILS when they flex!
I named my dog RENTAL CAR, because he tried harder
To do what dogs do, but better or larger.
He became quite renowned,
He chased buses: Greyhound --
The tabloid had "Car Chases Dog!" as a starter!
I brought the wrong license to the lake in the woods.
Even NORTH POLE, my dog, knew that was no good.
So I tied a line to my gun-sight,
For dinner had trout that night --
I'm sure my fishing rifle and hunting Pole understood!
Try Merriam-Webster site Argyle linked yesterday. They have the same format as Mensa.
Morning, all!
Haven't been able to get the puzzle at the Mensa site since Saturday. The Chicago Tribune site works for me, but I have to sit through a loud, long and annoying advert first (no looping for me, fortunately).
Today's puzzle was pretty innocuous. Nothing to complain about, nothing really memorable. I winced a bit at the cluing of ACER, but that was really it.
More snow on the way tonight. Yay.
As you can tell from today's limericks, I expected the two longest down entries to be part of the theme. I had a pretty smooth time of it. I expected the BTU one to be an abbreviation, so had BRIT. before UNIT; and CO-OPT before ADOPT.
11D I wanted a budget (sic) vehicle to be Rent-A-Wreck, but that was 1 letter too long, and I didn't remember them as shortening it to Rent-A-Reck. Are they still around?
Anon: Since I learned about it right here, I've gotten the puzzle in Across Lite from the Cruciverb site, and use the others as back-ups.
"Try Merriam-Webster site Argyle linked yesterday. They have the same format as Mensa."
" Since I learned about it right here, I've gotten the puzzle in Across Lite from the Cruciverb site, and use the others as back-ups."
Thank you both very much.
Good day folks,
I've been using Merriam-Webster site for well over a year and have never had a problem.
Even though I'm a "dog person", the theme never came to mind. No big surprise. Riley is ticked off because he wasn't included!
Today's puzzle came close to being a DNF. Could't recall if it was PUMA or, maybe, Pima and the U & I both made sense for 6D . The coin flip came up tails so the U was my wag..
Everything else was filled without any major issues.
Whoopee doo! Another 3" to 5" has already begun.
This stuff is no longer picturesque.
Good morning, all!
Yes, Argyle, I remembered AIOLI -- even how to spell it! You can teach an old dog...
DW has been appointed by the court as the "Personal Representative" of her dad's estate. Or as the court abbreviates it, PERP. I've always suspected.
RANGE ROVER may be a "luxury SUV", but it usually comes up near the tail end of the rankings.
I remember TERRE Haute from the old days of the Columbia Record Club. Remember them? Six albums for $1.87 and you've gotta buy X more at regular price during the coming year.
HBD, Lois. May you enjoy something "spicy" today.
Good puzzle for a Tuesday used the Webster site it is a little slower than mensa, but does not have the same glitch as La. Times or Chicago tribune, so it works well with my solving style. I have seen Robert E. Lee puzzles before as he contributes to USA Today on a frequent basis. next up for me 3 inches of snow to shovel.
Good morning everybody. A pretty straight forward puzzle today. I wanted NIKE or AVIA for PUMA at 5A, but had no other hangups.
How are you all doing with your snow? In Chicago we got another 4-6" yesterday. I'm running out of places to put it when I shovel my driveway. I sure hope we're nearing the end of this winter.
Have a great week.
Thank you for the puzzle, Robert. Thank you for the fine review, Argyle.
This was another easy-peasy puzzle today. It was not quite a speed run for me, but faster than my usual Tuesday time. Again, it was over too soon.
I didn’t get the theme until I read Argyle’s review, but then I didn’t spend much time looking for it. I didn’t need the theme to get the theme answers.
There were a number of clues / answers I didn’t see until I read Argyle’s review.
Hand up for budget car = RENT-A-WRECK, but it wouldn’t fit. I had to ponder that a little until I got it. Owen, they do have a website, so it appears they are still in business, although I never see any advertising. Maybe that's because of where they are located.
Hand up for AVIA before PUMA, but the perps took care of that.
Happy birthday to Lois and AWOL!
When we were first married, we couldn't have a dog where we were living, so when we adopted a cat, we called it Rover.
I found this puzzle more Mondayish than yesterday's. Very easy for me, other than figuring out the spelling of KALEY. It seems all those actors other than Jim Parsons have difficult names to remember.
I can never figure out why both our sons don't like the show. Anyone else have that problem with their gen-Xers? I wonder if their age is so close to the characters, they're afraid to be associated with the nerdishness.
Hi Everyone ~~
This went quickly with no slow-downs except for one write-over: before perps I had 'Be Well' before BE SAFE but that was easily resolved.
I kept glancing at the longer answers to try to catch the theme but didn't have it until the unifier. I guess there's no way to fit in a 'Fido." Fun to solve ~ Thanks Robert E. Lee Morris!
Thanks for the write-up, Argyle. Not only is it colder here than the NORTH POLE but I think we must have more snow ~ I'm watching it fall once again.
Happy Birthday, Lois ~ Have a wonderful day ~ hope you'll stop in today!
Happy Birthday, Awol ~ enjoy your day!
Musings
-Robert E. Lee has risen again with this just right Tuesday exercise
-OMG, Argyle, that Patty Page song is now a museum piece!
-I imagine that today OEDIPUS would be conflicted on Valentines and Mother’s Day
-Constructing a to-form bibliography could make some kids look at a trade school
-True friends don’t desert your ship when it’s sinking
-Hilarious SNL send up of EBONY and Ivory
-Famous PERP walks
-TUG and his famous son
-Churchill’s admonition for Londoners to KEEP CALM during the bombings of WWII are now a catch phrase for these modern t-shirts
-What could possibly go wrong in a MOSH PIt?
-Kaley is now Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting
-Don’t we all remember the T-REX in Jurassic Park?
-HBD AWOL and Lois!
-Name this funniest movie of all time with this scene of sniffing model kit glue
Good morning everyone.
Happy Birthday Lois.
Happy Birthday AWOL.
No real issues. Went clockwise today skipping the N Center. Waited for the perps to get MOSH. RECOGNIZED THAT BUDGET IS THE FIRM; not an ixpensive car. We have REX intersecting REX.
Read recently that the Romans, for much of their history, considered 'rex' (king) a pejorative term, since they considered themselves to be a republic.
Liked seeing KALEY. I think she has lots of talent; she seems to get frequent commercial gigs.
Several gimme's: ESTEE, OSLO, PUGET, OREO, among others.
Have a great day.
http://games.yahoo.com/game/la-times-daily-crossword-yap.html
To those having trouble with web sites, I have found this site to be very reliable. You can work puzzle on site or print off a copy for later.
Old Sage in Virginia Beach
Hello Puzzlers -
A simple Tuesday solve, no speed bumps anywhere. Entirely by chance, I was watching a TBBT re-run while filling in Kaley. One minor nit: Epoxy is an unlikely adhesive for any model kit, particularly plastic models which use solvent - which leads to abusers sniffing the stuff the way Lloyd Bridges did in "Airplane". There ya go, Husker!
More snow. Mari, I truly sympathize with your driveway predicament. I have snow piled up as high as my bucket loader can reach.
Good morning all,
a terrific Tuesday puzzle, and I also think it was a tad easier than Monday's. Last to fill was tarpit/rat...loved it.Never saw the theme until filling in puppy dog tails.Cute
Didn't know tweets had a limit.
Happy Happy birthday Lois ♪♩♬♫•*¨*•.❤.•*¨*•♫♪•.¸¸.•´♫♪♩♬*¨*` You are one of a kind and we miss you. Hey! Only one semester left!!
Musings 2
-Of course you’re right Dudley. The city where I student taught in ’68 had a drug store that couldn’t figure out why they had so many model kits sitting around and no glue. Hmmm…
-La La, the Flight Dynamics Officer (FDO) on a NASA launch is called FIDO
-Otto, I joined that record club and it took forever to get out (fine print, what fine print?)
-I remember sturdy, boxy RANGE ROVERS on Sunday night TV with this famous passenger
-BTW, if you are looking for more difficult puzzles to print out or do online, I’d highly recommend the George Barany and Friends smorgasbord we see linked here from time to time. Tony the Tiger’s assessment works for me!
-Just when you think TV is a giant cesspool, TBBT, Modern Family and Downton Abbey save the day
-DOWNTOWN alert! Let’s see the hands of anyone who thinks Bates didn’t do it. I wonder if he’ll get away with it.
-46°F and climbing to 60°F today – FORE!
Always like a dog-themed anything. Nicely done puzzle. KALEY Kuoco is a hoot! Several airport references today: ETA, RENTAL CAR, ALEVE. (Was that last one just because flying is such a heachade these days?)
Around here, only doctors drive Range Rovers. I imagine that will change as more people start spending their oil money. HG, we never missed Wild Kingdom on Sunday nights! That is Marlon Perkins, right?
Getting seriously sick of snow, but I get equally tired of the filthy, salty slush when it melts.
Pretty much a speed run today. Smooth puzzle.
D-O - Yes I remember Columbia Records.... built up a nice collection due to their offers!
Thanks Argyle, as always for the nice write-up.
Spot...
Rover...
Rex...
Puppy Dogs Tail...
HBD Lois!
Have you had enough snow?
I HAVE!!!
Today I did the across and then the down clues and I was done. Nice easy puzzle.
I can sympathize with Hondo, Mari and all the others who have had it with winter, the cold and the snow. I am in central PA and this has been the second snowiest winter since 1908 according to the local NWS office. It ceased being fun long before Punxutawney Phil saw his shadow.
I'm looking forward to the time when I can walk on a nice warm sunny beach.
Good Morning:
Thanks from all the dog lovers, Mr. Morris, for a fun romp. Didn't catch the theme until the unifier. Good expo, Argyle.
Expecting more snow later today but nothing major. Warmer temps on the way.
Gary, a belated Happy Anniversary to you and Joanne; hope you celebrated in style!
Happy Birthday to Lois and Awol; hope you have a fun day.
Enjoy!
Good morning everyone.
Thank you Argyle and Mr. Morris for a thought-provoking puzzle and great write up.
Didn't get all the answers. Have heard of a MOSH pit, but never thought of it as a dance. Also don't know actors' names. And I misspelled
niece, so I had a couple of holes in the finished product. Love the theme though, as I am a "dog person".
Happy birthday to Lois (how is it going?) and AWOL, and others I have missed because of just lurking.
Cheers
Warmest greetings, friends! Be safe in the snow.
Argyle, I wondered what your theme would be when I saw the DOGs in the grid. ADOPT fits the theme, too, and how I wish those adopters would clean up after their pets. That is so irresponsible to allow them to poop on the grass. But I digress.
Coincidentally, today's newspaper's lead article is about the stray DOGS in Sochi.
An easy romp today as you have all mentioned. A post-it with AIOLI written on it hangs beside my computer. When I originally learned it, I had trouble spelling it. Now I even cook with it. Great stuff.
Thank you, Robert, for a nice sashay.
Happy birthday, Lois! I know you'll be up to something!
Happy birthday, AWOL!
You all have a safe and joyful Tuesday!
A delightful treat for a dog-lover like me. Many thanks, Robert, and my dachshunds, Dusty and Misty Jr., thank you too!
I initially thought this was going to be an X-themed puzzle so was surprised at first by RANGE ROVER and then went back to expecting the X-theme when OEDIPUS REX fell into place. So I didn't really suss the PUPPY dog theme until the end.
Happy Birthday, Lois and AWOL. Hope your day is lovely.
Have a great Tuesday, everybody!
I enjoyed the puzzle once I found a source late last night.
Happy birthday Lois! How the weather back in Virginia?
Gary wrote, "TBBT, Modern Family and Downton Abbey save the day." Now if you will consider adding in "Foyle's War, we will be in 100-percent agreement."
Re; 54 down: We want the Village People
Lois,
How could I have forgotten? Have a wonderful happy birthday today!
Since this was a Doggone day, Try clicking on this:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/lJ7AfSO2fKs
(maybe someone will make this clickable... I don't know how)
Don
Hola Everyone, An easy, quick, solve today. I think it was more of a Monday puzzle than yesterday's from C.C. Some answers were filled in before I even read the clues.
I did get the theme, but only after the unifier was in and I looked back at the ends of the long answers.
I thought the clue for Budget Vehicle was fun, but Mosh was uncertain. I didn't know it was a dance.
Take care in the snow areas of our country. I know that you are all getting sick of the shoveling, cold, and ice. Stay warm.
HBD to Lois. Have a wonderful day.
Have a great day everyone.
lets try that again:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJ7AfSO2fKs
Dog link
Greetings!
Fun puzzle, Robert! Amusing expo, Argyle!
Nice theme! No problems (except scratched head at MOSH).
Another doctor's appt. today. Such fun.
Happy, happy birthday to Lois and Awol!
Cheers!
(CC: I am getting exponentially worse at these scribly captchas. Can't we just have numbers all of the time?)
Fermat: Thank you.
Here is another:
www.andiesisle.com/GoD_and_DoG.html
Hi gang -
Mix of good stuff and Meh! today.
I'm surprised by the REX-REX cross.
PERP has another meaning, I see.
Now I know AIOLI, but not how it's spelt.
Bright and sunny here today; temp up in the 30's for the first time in weeks. We got another 3 inches or so very quickly last night. Nasty drive home.
Only 45 day till the Mud Hens' season opener.
Cool regards!
JzB
Happy Tuesday everybody!
Agree that today's puzzle was easier than yesterday - finished in Monday time....
All-Time favorite beer is PILSNER Urquell, the worlds first pilsner beer (from Pilsen, Czechoslovakia....)
Speaking of PUB GAMES, finally got around to hanging the dart board in the game room over the weekend, as well as purchasing a couple of new cue sticks....
Hands up for getting lured into the Columbia Record Club years ago. Still have several LPs from that membership....
Someone once told me that PORT wine will cure a cold. Sounds like an excuse to get LIT (not that there's anything wrong with that....)
Finally, HBD to Lois and AWOL...!
I came across "Notting Hill" on cable. I had forgotten how really enjoyable it is, right up there with "Love Actually" and "Sleepless in Seattle." It's warm, romantic, intelligent and witty.
Goats just wanna have fun too.
After I walked dogs at the shelter and then walked my dog in the neighborhood, I came here for a dog-gone puzzle theme! Thanks you very much, Mr. Morris! A fine review, Argyle.
No problems today. It was easier than yesterdays for me. Nothing to say that hasn't been said already.
Our precipitation yesterday was liquid so we didn't have to shovel snow this morning. Temp is in the 50's so snow is melting--yeah!
Happy birthday to Lois and AWOL! May they be wonderful days. And belated Happy Birthday and Happy Anniversary to those I missed last week.
Have a great day.
Pat
I agree that this was easier than yesterday's, but I'd rather believe we are all just getting that much smarter - and quicker.
Strange that OEDIPUS REX has taken over as our modern title of choice for Sophocles' tragedy. There were indeed Roman imitations of the play that used the Latin "REX" in the title. But the original title is "Oedipus [Oidipous] Tyrannos." It is more accurate, not just because it is Greek, but because the appellation "Tyrant" conveys a technical challenge to Oedipus' legitimacy as a ruler. I guess the Greeks thought one shouldn't be king-- no matter how clever in outfoxing the Sphinx-- if one beds his own mom.
BillG:
Have you seen While You Were Sleeping which stars Sandra Bullock and Bill Pullmam. That is also delightful.
Here is the answer I received when I asked the Mensa site Online Support about the crossword puzzle. We'll see.
MatthewN: The L.A. Time crossword puzzle is missing the updates that are required to show dates later than the 15th of Feb. We are aware of the issue and working to get this resolved. We should have this resolved early tomorrow.
Musings 3
-My streak of months of consecutivity for playing golf goes on as I played golf on a beautiful February day today.
-Thanks for the Happy Anniversary wishes Irish. Yesterday marked the completion of the 47th year Joann has tolerated me. We celebrated with left over pizza and watching HGTV after I subbed.
-Qli, yes, Marlin stayed in the RANGE ROVER while Jim went out and wrestled the 14’ long anaconda on Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom. Was I out of town when this became an $80,000 luxury vehicle and not a sturdy, boxy quasi-truck for traversing Africa?
-Ferm, the squiggly captchas are sometimes tough but at least they are not case sensitive
-More Downton, my mother had a sister who “went away” like Lady Edith in the 1940’s. Grandma told mom it was a boy, it had red hair and we will never speak of it again.
Husker Gary @5:20
Super congrats on your anniversary. Wow! 47 years!
I am impressed. We just made 18 years this time around, but I doubt we'll ever catch up...
HG, Congrats on 47 years. Hope you folks have many more .
Happy birthday Lois & AWOL. Enjoy your cake.
Husker Gary,
Belated congratulations on your 47th anniversary! You and Joann share a remarkable achievement!
Happy birthday, lois and awol!
Busier Gary at 5:20 my mom just recently revealed to me she helped deliver a few of those babies as a nurse after ww2. She wasn't comfortable talking about it even after 70 years have gone past because she felt it her duty to keep quite about it.
Good Evening Santa Darlin', CC, et al., Thank you all so very much for the Happy Birthday wishes and JD's singing. You're in fine voice, JD, crystal clear tonight, esp when you said 'just one more semester!" Truer words were never spoken..unless they fire my hind parts first, which is always a possiblity. They are tricky here! Southern hospitality maybe?
I did enjoy my cake today, thank you Hondo...beefcake that is. Santa Baby? I have something new to add to my list of wants and desires (or just plain wanton desires)for this year. I'm sure you can fill the bill or make an equitable substitution. With you, satisfaction is guaranteed! You are the best, Santa Baby!
Thank you all again for the kind words and attention. I will rejoin you soon.
Happy 47th Anniversary, H.Gary. What a remarkable accomplishment! I wish you many, many more. Cheers to you tonight!
Thank you RELM and thank you Argyle.
Happy Birthday to AWOL and Lois and Happy Anniversary to Gary and Joanne.
It seems like it was only last year at this same time we saying the same.
Do tell, Lois. I'm all ears...which you may grab if you like. You know which birthday I have coming up; Jeannie's favorite number.
Fun, easy puzzle today. Any blanks left on my first pass were filled with the PERPs.
I had NIKE before PUMA. Smiled at another baseball clue today.
We even had two CSOs to Tinbeni (PORT and PILSNER).
We don't want to see any more NOR'EASTERs!
I forgot to send greetings.
Happy Birthday to AWOL and Lois and Happy Anniversary to Gary and Joanne.
Why yes, Santa Darlin', I do remember Jeannie's favorite number. She used to wait to be that particular numbered comment each night. Hilarious!!!! And she made it most of the time too. And that is your special number this year! We'll have to sing 69 times, toast 69 times, and drink 69 drinks! I'm sure there are 69 other things we can think of to celebrate your very very special day. Maybe we ought to get started. Practice, practice, practice! I do appreciate perfection...or close to it. Happy Early Birthday, Santa Baby.
Hi Everyone...
WEES - easy as getting LIT on PILSNER (BTW, where is Tin?). My only write-over was going back to add the E and shift-a-bit the DIP (I guess that was me) in OEDIPUSREX.
Hand up for Columbia Record House - I guess that's the only reason I've heard of TERRE Haute. Being a bit younger, I got the tapes and later CDs.
Is the first syllable of Sycophant pronounced like the 1st syllable of psychopath? I'd like to use the word, but I've only read it.
Argyle - NO I haven't learned AIOLI - all I can remember is it was the word I was supposed to remember the last time - a STORM of vowels and a consonant thrown in for good measure.
Is AIOLI a pasty-spread like hummus? We had a slew of hummi(?) and pestos in Cairo and one was a white garlicky thing that was very good on pita bread.
HBD Lois! You crack me up. HBD aptronymly-named AWOL! Third BD today is DW's. For the next six months, I'm married to an older woman - oh, yeah....
HG - congrats on 47th!
Cheers, -T
Lucina, yes I've seen it and liked it a lot.
Gary, congratulations! That's quite a nice achievement.
The whole 69 thing is whatever. How juvenile! Really?
I believe I purchased at least 6 or 9 albums above my break even point through the columbia/bmc music clubs.
There was a movie or tv show that had the line: 'the last time someone performed a 69 was in 1969.' True?
In honor of Lois, I give you Jeannie's favorite album.
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