google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday, April 20, 2015 C.C. Burnikel

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Apr 20, 2015

Monday, April 20, 2015 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Three's a ..., you know.

59A. Conforms, or what each last word of 16-, 27- and 44-Across literally does : FOLLOWS THE CROWD

27A. Automatic setting for highway driving : CRUISE CONTROL. Crowd Control. "Turn on the water hoses, boys." ~ Chief Wiggum.

16A. Unnamed news supplier : ANONYMOUS SOURCE. Crowdsource. A rather new term for gathering information from social media. The idea is as old as thumbs up/thumbs down in the Colosseum.

44A. Christmas display : NATIVITY SCENE. Crowd Scene. Time was the movies used tons of extras for crowd scenes; it is done (might say overdone) by CGI now.

Argyle here with our hostess with the mostess. Two grid spanners plus two other long theme entries, plus two longish columns.

Across:

1. Hackneyed : TRITE

6. Work out ahead of time : PLAN

10. Lily of France garment : BRA. Founded in 1915 and now part of Fruit of the Loom. Today's website.

13. Prepared potatoes, as for hash browns : RICED

14. Boxcar hopper : HOBO. Are they still around?

15. Campus courtyard : QUAD. Shortened quadrangle.

19. ID theft target : SSN. (Social Security number)

20. Used a bench : SAT

21. Injector for severe allergic reactions : EPIPEN. Yup, the bees and wasps are waking up.

22. Slice opposite, in golf : HOOK

24. Snappy dresser : FOP

26. Actress Aniston, in tabloids : JEN

33. Nabokov nymphet : LOLITA

35. Cold draft server : PUB

36. Weed whacker : HOE

37. Wipe off the board : ERASE

38. Tidal retreat : EBB

39. Take control of : SEIZE

41. Rm. coolers : ACs

42. Lao Tzu's "path" : TAO

43. Puts a gloss on, as shoes : SHINES

48. Country singer McGraw : TIM

49. Jamaican music : SKA

50. Annual spelling bee airer : ESPN

53. Understood by only a few : ARCANE

56. Portfolio part, briefly : IRA

58. Exceedingly : TOO

63. Seatback airline feature : TRAY

64. Otherworldly glow : AURA

65. Actress Zellweger : RENEE

66. "The Fountainhead" author Rand : AYN

67. Blue books? : SMUT

68. Pretty pitchers : EWERS

Down:

1. Dumpster fill : TRASH

2. Classic Unilever laundry soap : RINSO

3. Religious rebel : ICONOCLAST

4. Bowling pin count : TEN

5. Frozen custard brand : EDY'S

6. Instagram uploads : PHOTOS

7. Soul singer Rawls : LOU

8. Crunched muscles : ABs

9. Bit of cosmetic surgery : NOSE JOB. Rhinoplasty.

10. Dinner table faux pas : BURP

11. Kentucky Derby, e.g. : RACE. 141th Kentucky Derby is on May 2, 2015.

12. Yemen's Gulf of __ : ADEN

15. One of five in a maternity ward delivery : QUINT. One of a quintuplet.

17. Criminal group : MAFIA

18. Ready for business : OPEN

23. Singer Kristofferson : KRIS

25. Auto parts chain : PEP BOYS

28. Sport-__: off-road vehicle : UTE. "utility"

29. Chicago ballplayer : CUB

30. Fake diamond : RHINESTONE. Neither Tim nor Kris sang "Rhinestone Cowboy". Aren't you lucky?

31. Move like honey : OOZE

32. Dregs : LEES

33. Low in fat : LEAN

34. Aquatic predator : ORCA

38. Grab a bite : EAT

39. "__ Loves You": Beatles : SHE

40. One, in Dresden : EINE

42. "Used to be ... " : "TIME WAS .."

43. Frighten : SCARE

45. Sicily's country : ITALY

46. Sicily's wine : VINO

47. Headgear on the slopes : SKI HAT. This brings up the question; Did Marti ever ski in Sicily?

51. Strength : POWER

52. Botanical connecting points : NODES

53. Mennen lotion : AFTA

54. One of the Gilmore girls : RORY. No idea.

55. Kilted family : CLAN

57. Land measure : ACRE

60. Total amount : SUM

61. Capote nickname : TRU. Short for Truman.

62. Opposite of fast fwd. : REW. "TIME WAS .."


Argyle


49 comments:

  1. Morning, all!

    A smooth Monday puzzle from our fearless leader. What's not to like?

    Actually, I was all prepared to complain about TUB being clued as something that serves cold drafts, but when I didn't get the *TADA* at the end I went back and finally realized that the auto parts chain was actually PEP BOYS and not PET BOYS. Oops. I guess my brain was thinking of the 80s rock group the Pet Shop Boys or something. Stupid brain...

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  2. Sunday C.C. and Don Hard G present a really creative challenging NYT and today a munchy Monday from her alone.

    EPIPEN ICONOCLAST RHINESTONE NOSE JOB all squeezed into a Monday, but supported by getable perps. A wonderful example of how to start the work week.

    A shout out to the past with LOLITA and the present with SKI HAT.

    Thanks

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  3. Good morning!

    Nothing too difficult in this one, as it should be on a Monday. I managed to go wrong in a couple of places, but the perps quickly decided otherwise:

    I didn't know that Lily of France was a brand. Thought she might be a religious figure who wore an ALB. Not!

    With the SSN such a major target for identity theft, why did Medicare and the Military decide it should be used for their IDs as well? I carry a Medicare card with the number blacked out.

    I also keep an EPIPEN in the house. So far, I've never had to use it. Fingers crossed...

    No, of course I didn't get the theme until the reveal. Interesting comment about crowd sourcing, Argyle.

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  4. Good Morning.

    Thanks, C.C. for CRUISE CONTROL on Monday. Everything fell pretty smoothly.

    Ah, the CUBs: should be called the Heartbreakers. My son-in-law is all over the fact that it will only take two more years to rebuild. Ah, such optimism! I used to live on that street also.

    I'm with Desper-otto on SSN's. The government says Never carry your SS card, then, always carry your Medicare card. Therein lies the rub of Federal bureaucracy. Not much common sense to be found.

    Thanks, Argyle, for taking us through.

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  5. Well, Barry G. may be satisfied with PUB for "cold draft server" - certainly better than TUB -- but Wikipedia (sorry!) says, "beer in the UK is usually served at cellar temperature (between 50–57°F)." That nit aside, a fun puzzle today. Thanks C.C. and Argyle!

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  6. What a wonderful atticism.

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  7. Looks like we ANONS are out in full force today. Thanks for the shout out!

    Chicago ballplayer: CUB got me thinking - what is a singular White Sox player called? A Sock?

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  8. Pubs in the good old USA serve cold draft beer.

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  9. ARCANE & ICONOCLAST on a Monday no less! Good words that made me think twice before I filled. I even got a CUB reference today.

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  10. Anon… it all depends on what part of town your from. I call them a SOX player…. but I'm from the North Side.

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  11. what is a singular White Sox player called?
    As a Red Sox fan, I've had to deal with this conundrum. While it's humorous, it doesn't make sense to call him a White Sock; presumably he wears two. So if one has to shorten "White Sox player", go with "White Sox". E.g., "he became a White Sox in 2004, after five years as a Brave."

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  12. Good morning all,

    what a nice start to the week, iconoclasts and rhinestones! Unfortunately I started off wit2205h tired instead of trite, but filling in riced gave me ii...not workable.The rest was smooth sailing, although I AGAIN have to thank Argyle for explaining the theme.

    I'm wondering if our Truman will be a Tru one of days... No nicknames yet.

    I'm assuming that Marti has skied in Italy. TBA??

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  13. It's a really nice blog yous gots here. Be a shame if somtin' waz to happens to it Python MOFIA SCENE.

    What fun to wake on a day off and get a C.C. puzzle right up my alley. ITALY next to VINO! (I FaceTimed my brother stationed in Italy - he said there's a PUB with hundreds of wine taps and you can get a bottle or jug to go. He was nursing a bottle the size of his head when we talked).

    W/OS - net before SUM and Jlo before JEN. O/W smooth sailing.

    Fav - Blue Book == SMUT. I also liked that SAT wasn't clued as a test (that's so TRITE).

    WEES - some fun words that weren't forced.

    Re: SSN / ID theft - SSN's are easy for database designers to have a unique primary key. The problem is they don't encrypt the database properly (they shouldn't use SSN as the key anyway). Healthcare providers are the low-hanging targets because IT is underfunded in that sector. If you notice the last 3 major breaches were all healthcare facilities near military facilities. An ANONYMOUS SOURCE says it's the Chinese.

    M. Defarge - CUBs and Astro's are my teams. I've had a lifetime of disapointment :-)

    Cheers, -T

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  14. Ah the nit wars continue; is 50–57°F warm?

    I too have an Epipen which thankfully has been used as a paperweight....

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  15. That weird placement of 2205 was my non alien #. It backfired!

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  16. I know it's not considered fashionable but 57°F is about 24°F too warm for me.

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  17. Good Morning:

    What better way to start the week; a fun puzzle from CC and a fun expo from Argyle. Thanks to you both.

    Needed the reveal to catch the theme but smooth sailing throughout. Liked the fresh and impressive fill: iconoclast, rhinestone, Epipen, Pep Boys, etc.

    Very dreary day here with winds that just won't quit. Oh well, at least the white stuff is gone.

    Have a great day.

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  18. "Puzzling thoughts":

    Thanks C.C. and Argyle for a nice start to the week; almost a pangram (I think just G and X were missing) and though it solved quickly I still had to think about my answers

    Gotta love PEP BOYS. Back as a kid, growing up in SC Pennsylvania, PEP BOYS was a fixture in our town for tire sales and minor car repair/auto parts. And given that their original name was: The Pep Boys: Manny Moe and Jack ... !!

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  19. Hello Puzzlers -

    Easy enough Monday effort, but still there was room to learn something: apparently I never knew the definition of Iconoclast. I first met the word as a kid, and estimated its meaning from limited context, and got it all wrong. Oops! Thanks C.C. for helping me learn my language.

    I don't understand the demand for ice cold beer. The low temperature minimizes whatever flavor is in the brew. Granted, on a blistering summer day it's nice to have a cold drink, but beer has more uses than that. It's become common for American bars to keep beer mugs in the fridge or even the freezer; I ask for a room temperature mug in such places.

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  20. What a nice Monday exercise by our lovely hostess!

    Musings
    -I use CRUISE CONTROL constantly but my MIL refuses to ever use hers
    -They guarantee you can remain an ANONYMOUS SOURCE
    -CROWD SCENE participants that don’t need coffee breaks or earn overtime
    -We were trained on the use of an EPIPEN (especially for kids with peanut allergies) but I’m not sure I could do it
    -The USSR did SEIZE a lot of territory after WWII into their “sphere of influence”
    -ICONOCLAST Dorothy Parker’s 1958 review of LOLITA, "Lolita is without merit, except as SMUT. On that count, it is highly exciting.” Hey, that’s three puzzle words in one fell swoop!
    -My ABS have healed to where I can now swing a golf club!
    -Sitcom RHINOPLASTY (:48)
    -Rhinestone Cowboy : Broadway = Do You Know The Way To San Jose? : Hollywood
    -After having been to Sea World over 40 times, I was interested in their TV ad last night about how their ORCAS are thriving in captivity. This site doesn’t see it that way.

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  21. Am I correct in saying this was just an X short of a pangram too? I found it to be a great Monday puzzle, with some original clueing and yet easy fill with an obvious theme. Just right to begin the week! I think RORY may have been my only true unknown, but perps took care of that in a jiffy.

    Enjoy your day everyone!

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  22. Nice puzzle for a Monday, C.C. Hadn't heard about Crowd Source, so thanks, Argyle, for the info.

    Have a good week everyone!

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  23. WBS, I put in a tentative T for Tap & would have left petboys if not for tub.

    Anon@6:58, what is that crowd scene from?

    The many faces of Rory Gilmore.


    Hey! I'm famous!

    Cruise Control is such a unitasker...
    Actually I use my cruise control most to get past the 25mph speed trap on the way to the Supermarket.

    Nativity Scene....

    Follow the crowd?

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  24. I love getting a C.C. puzzle on a Monday morning--a terrific start to the week. And this one was a lot of fun, with lots of interesting items. Many thanks, C.C.! And you too, Argyle.

    Never heard of Lily of France so that was a total surprise to me. And, my goodness, how feelings about Nabokov's LOLITA have changed over the years--from thinking of it as clever and funny to a much darker and more troublesome sense of it.

    Have a great week, everybody!

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  25. I enjoyed the puzzle. Regarding the theme, would any of you have gotten it without the reveal? I hadn't gotten to the reveal and I couldn't see any connection among SOURCE, CONTROL and SCENE. You?

    We were taking a train trip to Scotland and I wandered through the dining car with some sandwiches and beverages. I asked for a beer. They handed me a can right from the shelf.

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  26. Bill G - No. I saw SOURCE and CONTROL and thought about CVS (the SOURCE-code CONTROL system, not the pharmacy) but thought C.C. isn't that nerdy...

    Re: my favorite thing on a TRAY...

    American beer is tastless and needs to be cold. When I was in Scotland, I had hand-drawn brew from the celler in a 200yro PUB and it was flavourful at that temp. The Bruces have the final word Python @ Hollywood Bowl. (MA only).

    Don't get me wrong, I like a cold Lite beer after POWERing though a day, but good beer needs to be ~65F to really taste/smell it.

    Sat I missd there's an H in WHIZ, and there's another one in RHINESTONE today. It must be some sort of PLAN / plot. An H uprising!

    HG - I forgot about that NOSE JOB SCENE. Thanks.

    CED - you never fail to amuse.

    Cheers, -T

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  27. Hello, friends!

    WEES. My feelings exactly! A fun puzzle from C.C. and a wonderful way to start the week. No ordinary, TRITE fill here. I loved seeing ICONOCLAST, RHINESTONE, and EPIPEN, too. I guess I could get rid of the latter; I've had it since my 37 year old was a child!
    Luckily, never had to use it.

    Lilyette is my choice of BRA. They are comfortable and pretty.

    Tata for now. Have a marvelous day, everyone!

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  28. Lucina, good to see you also.
    Iconoclast

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  29. Wonderfully fun and clever puzzle. Terrific fill. Didn't know RORY at all, but as others have said, the perps revealed it. I'll forget her in 10 minutes.

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  30. Another easy, fast Monday filler. Didn't get theme until reveal. WEES to ICONOCLAST, RHINESTONE, EPIPEN. Ripped right through. No learning or AHA moments.

    I'm always surprised when popular iconic TV characters are unknown to many on the blog. The "Gilmore Girls" was an extremely well received CW network show, and I never missed an episode. Then I realize that the majority of solid shows on this channel are geared to the younger generation. In fact, most of my favorite viewing pleasures i.e. Arrow, Supernatural, Flash, 100, 12 Monkeys, Helix, et al, are demographically screened towards the "under 30" crowd. Don't know why, but I relate better to "Gossip Girl" than to "Golden Girls". Would rather listen to Adam Lambert than Tony Bennett. Age is just a number. The day my interests are "age appropriate", stick a fork in me...I'M DONE.

    For the pro tennis lovers out there: Did anyone really think that #1 Djokovic wouldn't win the Monte Carlo Open? I was hoping that he and Nadal would have at it. Rafa better do something to improve his game. He's already up to #3. He's still my favorite, though.

    Baseball is at full steam. Go Yankees and Rays. Watched A-Rod homer. Guess he CAN do some damage without drugs. Evan Longoria is the cutest, most talented Tampa player. He really earns his salary. Can't believe I'm commenting on sports. Hanging out with my hubby is worth something, after all.

    So, nothing else of interest to dwell on. Now to fire up my DVR and watch MAD MEN and OUTLANDER, among others I need to catch up on. Too many shows, not enough time. O.K., I'll admit it. I'm a TV junkie.

    Until tomorrow, then...

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  31. A nice Monday puzzle. I did this for the first time on the LAT using my tablet...it was awkward.. Pen and paper would have worked better.

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  32. Weak theme. Crowd source??? Crowd scene. Got em early but weak. Rinso, trite... good monday clues. Riced, desprate? Breezed through but rather lame puzzle. Have a good week.

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  33. coneryo - Go back two days and see what CED said to Mr. Actuary. Age is just a number.

    Re: RORY - my girls love Gilmore. I've seen a few. The dialogue is quick and smart. Youngest is NextFlixing (is that a word yet?) all the episodes. C, -T

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  34. I don't know if she's an ICONOCLAST but whenever her and Don G. team up
    C.C. AIN'T SOLO... like today.

    We've got Plumber Joe, Average Joe, and G.I. Joe. now because of his NOSE JOB we've got SNOB JOE.

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  35. Nice Monday puzzle, C.C.!! I don't have much time lately (we are redoing our kitchen), so it is nice to have a quick diversion on a Monday.

    We spent the weekend in Providence, and saw Shen Yun on Saturday. I was expecting more of a Cirque de Soleil, so it was a bit disappointing. But still very entertaining.

    Argyle, I have skied in Italy (Dolomites), but never in Sicily. It looks a bit tame for the crowd I ski with, anyway. ;-)

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  36. RORY who? Calhoun? (I forgot already.)

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  37. Do you make home fries with riced potatoes? Aren't they almost like mashed potatoes? Our favorite diner makes delicious home fries with chunks of cooked potatoes which they brown. I always order mine fried with onions .
    At home, I "bake" potatoes in the microwave and refrigerate them. Then I slice or cube the baked potatoes and brown them with onions. Left over oven baked potatoes make even better home fries. Riced? Not for me.

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  38. Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, C.C., for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Argyle, for a fine review.

    This is my first puzzle in a few days. Was too busy over the long weekend to work 2 and 3 hour puzzles. That is what it takes me on Fri, Sat, and Sun. I guess I am slow.

    This puzzle was fine. Great theme. It all fell together.

    Dudley, I am in your camp. I do not care for ice-cold beer. I like mine just cooled a little. I keep mine on the basement floor, so the concrete acts like a heat sink and draws the temperature of the beer down to probably 60 degrees. Just perfect. I also ask for a room temperature glass in a bar. My current beer of choice in Illinois is Shiner Bock. In Pennsylvania it is Yuengling.

    PEP Boys is quite an auto store. Been around for a long time. They are Manny, Moe, and Jack, from Philadelphia.

    When Koreans BURP at the table, it is considered a compliment to the cook. Maybe other orientals as well, not sure. I used to work with a gang of Koreans.

    I do not need an EPIPEN. Thank goodness. However, my brother-in-law does. He is very allergic to bee and hornet stings.

    Spent most of this day at the Friendship Park Conservatory in Des Plaines, IL. Volunteering in the greenhouse. You cannot believe that place. Huge! Going back in a few days to plant more seedlings.

    See you tomorrow.

    Abejo

    ( )

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  39. Truman Capote's actual nickname was bulldog. Started as a child.

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  40. I'm late to the puzzle party but just had to say how much I enjoyed this one! Monday-easy in the outcome, but some new and unknown fills to make it fun. Took me longer than usual, but thinking through things like iconoclast and nose job made it worth the effort.

    And Argyle, thanks for telling us what it all meant!

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  41. Abejo @ 3:53

    I'm sure you know this, but Shiner Bock is from Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner Texas. It's pretty good; along the lines of Yuengling. One of the three lager beers I like, including Samuel Adams.

    I confess that I am a "beer snob", and anymore, the big brews such as Miller, Miller Lite, Coors and Bud/Bud Light just don't get it done. They taste, to me, too thin and watery.

    I have come to like a lot of the Craft Brews. That industry has certainly changed over the past decade or so. Seems like there is a craft beer brewery in nearly every major city.

    It used to be you couldn't get a beer with more than 3-4% ABV (alcohol by volume). Some of the IPA's and Belgian-style craft ales are pushing 9-10%. I could always "hold my beer", but now I find that 1 or 2 of the craft beers are just right. I think the catch-phrase "tastes great; less filling" needs updated!

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  42. Late. But I enjoyed this puzzle a lot. I rarely forget to check the byline, but today was one of those days. So it was a very pleasant surprise to learn it was a C.C. Masterpiece. Needed the reveal to get the theme, but that's why it's there. No dreck, no trite clueing. Excellent outing. Thanks C.C. and Argyle.

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  43. Abejo & C. Moe...

    There's something to thank Jimmy Carter for. He signed HR 1337 (I love that, it's leet and yummy) that brought American beer back to life. I home-brewed (until I had kids and no time) and made some serious stout (ABV >8%) that could take on anything in the market. Funny re: Shiner, I've got a 6-pack I will partake of later [BURP]. TRU dat.

    Cheers, -T

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  44. Greetings!

    Thanks, CC and Santa! Fun puzzle.

    Nothing much to say lately!

    Cheers!

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  45. Member, SOA Society of Actuaries, againApril 20, 2015 at 9:59 PM

    Anon-T at 2:31 p.m. telling Coneyro to go back 2 days and read what CED told Mr. Actuary. Age is only a number.

    Well, Mr. Actuary is still here, and what I recollect CED said to me, was - (sic),

    "While I'm physically approaching 60, Mentally (sic) I am close to 12 ...
    Factor that asshole ..."

    (You can go back to Sat., April 18, 11.05 p.m. and look up the record.)

    First of all I was only giving my personal opinion on a subject that I am an admitted expert on, having pssed 9 exams ( one more to go - ) and having a very responsible and well paying job - top 10th percentile. The opinion was given stoically on the expected lifetimes of all humans, people on this blog, without the slightest degree of callousness.

    And, CED, of all people - calls me an asshole ??
    Because I am telling the truth ? or because the state of dying is so grisly ? I was so shocked that a person like CED should use such an obscenity that I did not even bother to respond...

    Here I am trying to give a careful intellectual analysis and have to respond to language of the gutters ? Does that make any sense ?

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  46. OK - I'll go...

    Mr Actuary. The blog lost a good friend in Dodo on Sat and I think (not to speak for him) that's why CED made the comment.

    All of us Cornerites like to think, hence the playing of puzzles. The maths aren't that hard to see where you're going. I'm glad that we have folks like you that adjust the market for life insurance policies and the like, but to point it out on a day of grief is, well, tacky.

    To be perfectly honest, I am interested in the numbers / data and would love to push this through an analytic engine (I'm playing with one now (know Splunk?)).

    Go blue or provide an email addr and we can take this off-blog.

    And now for another ARCANE profession (I'm on Python CRUISE CONTROL today).

    Cheers, -T

    ReplyDelete

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