google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Saturday, Jun 6th, 2015, Pawel Fludzinski

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Jun 6, 2015

Saturday, Jun 6th, 2015, Pawel Fludzinski

Theme: None

Words: 72 (missing Q,X,Z)

Blocks: 32

  I was about to throw in the towel on this one, as the north refused to turn any color other than white....so I cheated; I changed to red-letter and discovered I had the wrong "Arabic word".  Figures.  But it at least gave me a chance to rethink the NE, and then it was a matter of Wild-Ass Guessing to get the NW to cooperate.  All in all, I thought the puzzle was a good challenge, though the proper names did throw a bit of a fun sponge into the mix.  I finished at exactly my personal allotted time, too.  Paired 9- and 10-letter corners, and two 11-letter spanners;

33. Quadrennial winter event since 1976 : PARALYMPICS - made me change some DOWN answers when "-LYMPICS" seemed more logical; more from the Wiki


40. Metaphorical target of a fruitless pursuit : SHINY OBJECT - the more I looked, the more it seems this is less of a "pursuit" and more of distraction; the reference is more like the phrase "curiosity killed the cat"; see the psychology here

o-n-
       Ooooh~!  Shiny~!













ACROSS:

1. "... and hid his face __ a crowd of stars": Yeats : AMID - starting off with a relatively vague quotation seems cruel and unusual

5. Farrier's tool : RASP - I know what a farrier does, but anvil and hammer didn't fit; SNIP did, tho


9. Word derived from the Aramaic for "my father" : ABBOT - dah~!  I figured it might be RABBI - and the "BB"s were right, but only one in the correct location - what is that, 20% or 40%, D-Otto~?

14. Whirl : PIROUETTE - thankfully, the letters the perps filled in made the spelling of this easier - I had --R-UE--E

16. Place, as cloth before surgery : DRAPE - I did consider this at first, but this is a really round-about clue for a 5-letter word

17. Talk big : BLOW SMOKE

18. Zealand natives : DANES - I tried MAORI

19. "Candy-colored clown" in Roy Orbison's "In Dreams," with "the" : SANDMAN

20. Butler, e.g. : SERVANT - the household position - not the character from Gone With The Wind

22. Cézanne's "Boy in __ Vest" : A RED - um, sure, OK


24. Isn't quite neutral : LEANS - different from yesterday's definition

25. Business : AFFAIR

29. Manchego sources : EWES - I was 100% positive about "WIRY", so this made for a sensible WAG

31. Copacetic : A-OK

35. "Piano is not my forte," e.g. : PUN - har-har

36. Orgs. with class issues? : PTAs

37. Command ender : EER - commandeer

38. Meter starter : PERI - I had PEDO-, and that was definitely 50% right; perimeter

39. Wi-Fi relative : LAN

44. Wapiti : ELK - knew this from doing crosswords

45. Dick Grayson, to Bruce Wayne : WARD - I grew up with the 60's campy version, but I did like the re-makes with Christian Bale; well, the first two

46. Sites of some runners : AISLES - I did consider SLEIGHS, but it didn't fit

47. Goaded, with "on" : EGGED - had it, changed it to URged, changed it back

49. '60s-'70s Japanese leader : SATO - perps

51. Prepare for baking : PRE-HEAT

53. Jeopardize : IMPERIL

58. Nirvana attainer : ARHAT - straight up definition; new word to me

59. Ace : HOLE-IN-ONE

61. Blue books? : PORNO - if this is the case, I like my entertainment to be "navy"

62. Opening numbers? : AREA CODES - very good; should have figured it out sooner

63. Indo-__ languages : ARYAN

64. Pastoral poem : IDYL

65. Indianapolis-to-Springfield direction : WEST - were you shocked to see FOUR letters in the answer~?  Narrowed down the choices, tho


DOWN:       

1. They may include yrs. and models : APBs - took too long to make the connection, but I was thinking about cars.  An "All Points Bulletin" - although I think a "BOLO" is more appropriate - "Be On the Look Out for a 2000 Dodge Status, license plate XYZ-1234~!"

2. "__ 18": Uris novel : MILA - I have seen this before, but my head was stuck on "Stalag 17" - both are stories of people and their Nazi Germany foes

3. Food Network's "__ Chef America" : IRON

4. Columnist Maureen : DOWD - 50% perps, 50% WAG

5. Emulate Liz Taylor ... regularly : REMARRY - Ironic that DIVORCE fit, too

6. Square things : ATONE - ah, the verb, not the adjective

7. NASDAQ unit : STK - meh.

8. Pepper trio? : PEES - PePPer

9. Deal with : ADDRESS

10. Price support? : BRAVA - the only thing that makes sense is this person; "BRAVO~!" for females

11. Stereotypical slipper? : BANANA PEEL

12. Like some software : OPEN SOURCE

13. Measuring device : TEST

15. FedEx competitor : US MAIL - OK, I did a UPS shout-out last week

21. What a conductor may conduct: Abbr. : ELECtricity - I wanted "ORCH"

23. "We'll see" : DEPENDS

25. Brandy flavor : APPLE

26. A virus may cause one : FATAL ERROR - in the world of computers

27. Walt Disney Concert Hall architect : FRANK GEHRY - I am familiar with this name, so the spelling did not bother me

28. Small power sources : AAs - batteries

30. Like an Irish wolfhound's coat : WIRY

32. Furrows : KNITS - think eyebrows

34. Israel's Iron Lady : MEIR

38. Retirement outfit? : PJs - good clue; I was in "IRA" mode

40. Smitten with : SWEET ON - I am still smitten by the blue-eyed girl; some day....

41. Words with baby or bad day : HAD A - I regularly have the "bad day" version - hopefully the "baby" part is in my future

42. Breakfast choice : OATMEAL

43. "Ed Wood," e.g. : BIOPIC

48. Kofi Annan's birthplace : GHANA

50. 1976 Spingarn Medal recipient : AILEY - never heard of this award, nor this person

51. Literary sobriquet : PAPA - that author dude, uh, what's his name, Ernest

52. Golden Triangle native : THAI

54. "There are liars ... __ to beat the honest men": "Macbeth" : ENOW - poetic "enough"

55. Tormented : RODE

56. Supermodel Sastre : INÉS - hey, two birds with one stone - her image and her legs - or is that one bird with two stones~?

ooh~! shiny~!

57. "__ we forget" : LEST

60. Chicago airport code : ORD - O'Hare, which was originally Orchard Field Airport; now I can see where they get code

Splynter

49 comments:

OwenKL said...

I can hardly believe it! Finished a Saturday without needing red letters or look-ups! Yippee! Pretty much all the same mistakes as Splynter. Took several passes, and a lot of perp help (particularly for correcting spelling errors).

Copacetic-- my dad used this term, and I wondered into my 30s what things being right had to do with a diarrhea medicine.

A programmer wanting a game of pure terror
Used OPEN SOURCE code from a dark-net file sharer.
His goal he surpassed:
Any spell that was cast
Would invoke the dreaded Blue-Screen FATAL ERROR!

A Dust Devil out WEST had a yen to be more,
The stage was a dream that he could not ignore.
To be in a play
He studied ballet,
But all he could do was PIROUETTE 'cross the floor!

Lemonade714 said...

DOWD and FRANK GEHRY were too much for me but it has been a while since I could do Saturday easily. I think I am only in tune with the Silkies. Business:AFFAIR also was elusive.

ABBA is Hebrew for father

Thanks Splynter for your work and Ines

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

Like Splynter, I nearly threw in the towel on this one and was just about to come here to post a snarky Thumper reference when things suddenly started clicking in the NW and SE regions (which at that point were mostly vast seas of whiteness).

Down in the SE, I didn't know INES at all, but I was eventually able to guess at AILEY and pulled ORD out of the ether. That, plus the guess that RODE might possibly be somehow a synonym for "tormented" was ENOW to get me through that area.

Up in the NW, which was the last area to fall, I think it was when I finally figured out SANDMAN that got me going. Man, what a tortured clue! I guess it wouldn't be Saturday if the clue simply said, "Legendary figure who helps you sleep" or something. But, still... Once I got that, I was able to guess/remember DOWD and hat finally released the mental block on MILA (which I knew, but just couldn't remember up front for some reason).

The rest of the puzzle was mostly hard, but doable. Needed all the perps for FRANK GEHRY (although I was able to guess the FRANK bit after getting FR). I realized that "Zealand natives" didn't refer to Maoris, but had no idea who originally settled New Zealand and where the original Zealand was. TEST for a "measuring device"? SATO? GHANA? On the plus side, I figured out the trick in the clue for BRAVA right up front, but it still took awhile to figure out the actual answer (I was thinking along the lines of podium or riser).

Ah well, at least I finished it unassisted in the end, unlike yesterday's effort. Of course, it helps immensely that I have a little extra time on Saturday mornings. Had I tried to do this in 10 minutes like yesterday I probably would have had the same result...

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

The east was pretty easy, but the WEST was a bear. Hand up for URGED (60%) -- and that RABBI would be 20%, Splynter, I'll accept your 50% PEDO. My STK began life as SHR and ARYAN as ASIAN. I confidently entered OLYMPICS until AOS made no sense. My very last fill was the H at the crossing of ARHAT and GEHRY -- no vowel looked promising, so I WAGged the H. GEHRY looked and sounded somewhat familiar, but I still thought ARHAT was likely to be wrong. Whew! Almost got me, Pawel. Maybe next time.

Big Easy said...

A vowel! My kingdom for a vowel! Last fill was the cross of SATO and AILEY, both unknowns and this Saturday I guessed it correctly. Whew!

Talk about a white sea on the first pass. I thought my chances of finishing this one about the same as spelling Pawel Fludzinski in a Spelling bee.

Unknowns- INES, AILEY, SATO, ARHAT, Manchego, Copacetic, DANES, ABBOT, ORD
WAGS- A RED, SANDMAN, RASP, PORNO, ENOW

Maureen DOWD- typical champagne socialist; do as I say, not as I do.

I wanted WILD GOOSE for SHINY OBJECT but it wouldn't fit. I originally wrote MAORI, then thought KIWIS, before I noticed that there was no NEW before Zealand. Butler?- I was thinking of Rhett. Price? I was thinking Vincent, not Leontyne but I guessed BRAVA was the feminine for BRAVO. Tried ALTI for PERImeter, GRAY before wiry, and URGED before EGGED.

HOLE-IN-ONE- let me congratulate my son-in-law who WON the Champions Tour Principal Charity Classis Pro-am this Wednesday being paired with Tommy Armour III, two scratch golfers, his business partner. They shot 23 under. Larry, a 16 handicapper, made an Eagle from off the green and two birdies, all three for net 1's. His team each got over $1000 of freebies for the win.

inanehiker said...

This felt like a Silkie - at first nothing was filling but persistence paid off. I few helps-- I had just visited my son down at Keesler AFB in Biloxi and the museum we visited was also designed by FRANK GEHRY. They had just opened an exhibit Katrina + 10- 10 years after the hurricane hit there. He has very unusual shapes for his buildings. http://www.azahner.com/portfolio/ohr-okeefe-museum
Also tripped up with Zealand - not noticing it didn't have the "New" and was going to put Maori but it wasn't plural so confidently put KIWIS. Wrong! Then thought Zealand must be in the Netherlands, but that is Zeeland. So perps to the rescue!
Thanks for the write-up Splynter and puzzle Pawel

Barry G. said...

From Wikipedia:

Dutch explorer Abel Tasman sighted New Zealand in 1642 and called it Staten Landt, supposing it was connected to a landmass of the same name at the southern tip of South America. In 1645 Dutch cartographers renamed the land Nova Zeelandia after the Dutch province of Zeeland. British explorer James Cook subsequently anglicised the name to New Zealand.

HowardW said...

Very strange -- after yesterday's slow solve, this one went very quickly, much faster than usual for a Saturday, and faster even than Thursday's. Don't understand why; there were very few "gimme"s. Somehow, once there were a few known letters, each answer fell into place.

Liked PIROUETTE (just because it's a pretty word), "Copacetic" (same reason), "Price support?", "Ace". Not happy with the clue for SHINY OBJECT - it would be a great clue for WILD GOOSE, but (as previously said) SHINY OBJECT is a distraction, not a fruitless pursuit. Unknowns included INES, SATO (but easy to guess), ARHAT. Like others, almost put MAORI before noticing it wasn't New Zealand.

Splynter, thanks for the write-up and especially ORD's origin. One of those things I'd always wondered about but never remembered to look up.

BobB said...

My sources say the 1976 Springarn winner was Hank Arron. Ailey was 1977.

Anonymous said...

"Piano is not my forte," e.g. : PUN"

Would someone please explain this?

Research Guy said...

Springarn Medal Winners

1965 Leontyne Price
1975 Henry Aaron
1976 Alvin AILEY, Jr.
1977 Alex Haley

Reference Guy said...

"The word piano is a shortened form of pianoforte, the Italian term for the instrument . . . ". - Wikipedia

Java Mama said...

Good morning, everyone! Thanks, Pawel, for a challenging but enjoyable Saturday puzzle. Great expo, Splynter. I got a kick out of your choice of SHINY OBJECTs.

Finally had to resort to red letters to complete the Southeast, and to come up with the “H” in the crossing of ARHAT and GEHRY (whose name I knew but was doubtful about the spelling). Really liked the cluing for BRAVA and REMARRY. I know Abba is Hebrew for Father, but still took way too long to come up with ABBOT at 9A.

We are cat-sitting Daughter and SIL’s two critters while they’re away for a couple weeks. For the most part they get along with our two “resident” cats, but occasionally (for instance, this morning) it’s like having a cat rodeo in the house.

Enjoy your weekend!

Research Guy said...

I should have gone to the source: Springarn Medal Winners

1975: NO AWARD GIVEN
1976: Hank Aaron
1977: Alvin AILEY
1977: Alex Haley

Time to fix the Wikipedia article . . .

CrossEyedDave said...

Hmm, I never got to the downs. After a sea of white the last across made me give up.
I could not help thinking, "WHAT? THERE IS A SPRINGFIELD IN EVERY FREAKIN' STATE!" to realize that it could only have been East or west...

Besides, I am still working on this puzzle?

Sorry I missed yest. I was getting an epidural for Sciatica.

Belated Happy Anniversary Misty!

Husker Gary said...

Musings
- Like Big Easy, _ILEY/S_TO coin flip went to the letter A.
-Worst part of this puzzle was running out of squares to fill.
-My friend’s son’s trade on Facebook.
-YAWEH gave way to ABBOT
-Any Roy Orbison song is a gimme for me
-No one BUTTLES better than this guy!
-Some AFFAIRS are monkey Business
-I’ve heard Copacetic in old TCM movies
-Schools are now very dependent on the Local Aren Network, uh, working
-In 1997 many Manhattanites were afraid they were going to lose their iconic 212 AREA CODE for the dreaded new 646
-DOWD is fun to read no matter which way you LEAN
-Too many TESTS reveal what you have memorized and not what you have learned
-I could conduct ELEC by playing golf in today’s thunderstorm
-I’ve had their OATMEAL at all times of the day
-What is the length of a rectangle whose PERIMETER is 30’ and width is 6’ (Couldn’t resist it)
-Can you name the movie with this fabulous PTA scene about “Blue literature”

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

This certainly wasn't a stroll in the park but I finished w/o help in approximately the normal Saturday time. Liked some of the cluing/answers but not shiny object. Have never heard of the Springarn Awards.

Today and tomorrow are supposed to be picture-perfect, weather-wise, then some more rain. What a strange spring we've had, but no complaints considering what hardships other areas have endured.

Thanks, Pawel and Splynter, for a challenging and rewarding Saturday outing.

Have a great day.

Anonymous said...

With all of your obscure knowledge I'm genuinely shocked you've never heard of Alvin Ailey. Astounded even.

Bill G. said...

I'm not a fan of Saturday puzzles but I disliked this one less than most. Thanks Mr. Fludzinski and Splynter.

I wonder who designated Inés Sastre as a supermodel? Does she choose that for herself? Is it from her agent? Are there any "just models" anymore?

Gary, is it 9 inches? Why couldn't you resist it?

"Piano is not my forte." I liked it. Barbara saw another one. "An opinion without 3.14 is just an onion."

Did you hear about a piece of a shattered bat that flew into the stands in Boston and badly injured a lady? I'm continually amazed that the powers that be haven't outlawed maple bats and required batters to use the old ash bats that didn't shatter. Batters these days don't out perform the pre-maple batters and the shattered maple bats are much more dangerous than the older ash bats that just cracked when they broke.

Math Guy said...

It's not nine inches, it's nine feet.

Ev. said...

Nice shoutout to D-Day: June 6, 1944. 57-down, "LEST we forget."

Jayce said...

Well, this is one of those puzzles that finally make sense after solving it. My reaction to many of the answers was "Oh jeez." It would have been impossible for me to have finished it without turning on red letters (which, among other things showed me that PEDO and MAORI were wrong) and looking things up (which got me FRANK GEHRY and SANDMAN, among others). At least I knew DRAPE, WARD, MEIR, SATO, DOWD, and LEST right off the bat. Hard, but fair, puzzle.

Anonymous T said...

Hi All:

Boy do I get dumb on a Sat...

3&4d I knew; that gave me WAG at 1a. 41d, 57d and 60d is all I got. Jeesh... At least I'll be flying into ORD Thrus to see my bro & sis (and RUSH w/ 'em).

HG - DOWD is 'thinker' - she's not the typical op-ed writerr spewing talking points; so I agree w/ you. 9' & FlashDance?

I love the word Copacetuc - AOK is OK, 'cuz 'fine', 'serene', or' chillaxed' didn't fit. I'm sure Villa Incognito is chill; Tin?

I'll play again Monday when I'm smart again.

Cheers, -T

Anonymous T said...

Doh - Thanks Splynter. Your writeup is the only reason I try to play a Sat. C, -T

Anonymous said...

Pack rats collect shiny objects. It is a fruitless pursuit. They are known to "trade" an object they are taking back to their nest in exchange for another object that catches their eye. There was an anecdote about two nickels being left where a dime had been.

OwenKL said...

CED: You could try KID'S PUN WILL FAZE.

"Piano is not my forte" is more of a Tom Swifty than a PUN, but that wouldn't fit.

Argyle said...

Roy Orbison - In Dreams (w/Lyrics)(2:52)

Anonymous said...

After completing the fill for 19a, I would have bet the farm that Splynter would have included this advice for us: 19a Hint: Enter SANDMAN.

Glad I didn't bet though. Now I can bet the farm on whatever horse Hot Brown/Crab Cake recommends for today's Belmont.

Spitzboov said...

Good afternoon everyone.

I sometimes forego the Saturday puzzle, but since it was by Pawel, I had to attempt it. I'm glad I did. A magnificent, bright puzzle. No dross. PIROUETTE F\for whirl, HOLE-IN-ONE for ace, BANANA PEEL for the slipper; 3 PEES in pepper; it doesn't get much better than that.
NW was last. Wanted SERVANT at first, but couldn't get much else to go with it. For Aramaic word, wanted something that started with 'a'. Thought of Allah and Abba. 16a, DRAPE clinched it and ABBOT seemed like it could start more down words.
Zealand turned out to be a triple misdirection. I didn't bite on Maori, but tried for Dutch. Both 5 letters. Nope; nada. Then, at the end, I finally remembered that Zealand is one of Denmark's major islands. I think Copenhagen is on it. And voilà, it was done.

HeartRx said...

Interesting to have The Boy In A RED Vest used for the clue/answer at 22-Across. I happened to see the painting in Zurich, and later heard that it had been stolen. Fortunately, it was finally recovered in 2012 in Serbia. He painted four versions of it around the period 1888-1890:

Boy in a Red Waistcoat


Boy in a Red Vest

Boy in a Red Vest 4

And the one that was stolen but recovered:
Boy in a Red Vest

miss Beckley said...

Piano in music language means softly and forte means loudly. Hence the pun. I think. I was in high school band playing a flute pretty badly, so I think I recall that. Today was weird, because I solved it with no problem at all! Surprised and pleased the H*** out of me. Yesterday was another matter, however. As for a ten minute time limit -- Holy Moly!

Anonymous T said...

Anon@1:12:

This is the SANDMAN that comes to mind. Billy Wagner could throw a wicked sinker and 102 mph fastball. I was not happy to see him go.

Baseball fans - what do you think of Minute Maid park getting rid of Tal's Hill after the '15 season? I think it's what makes our park unique, like the Cubs w/ ivy or BoSox w/ the Green Monster - we have Tal's Hill.

Cheers, -T

Ol' Man Keith said...

Dag Rabbit!
Almost had this one dead to rights, except I couldn't crack the NE until I was willing to look up BANANA PEEL. I thought of a BANANA early on, but couldn't fit the one word alone. I came back later with EEL in place and foolishly turned that into HEEL. The corner was further bollixed because I tried KIWIS, MAORI, even DUTCH FOR 18A.
ABBOT was tricky too. I figured we were looking for something an "A" and some "Bs" because so many mid-east languages use phonemes like BABA and ABBOO or ABABOU to indicate the "old man." But I didn't get that until my BANANA PEEL cheat told me where the second "B" should go.
Anyway, it was a slow but fun pursuit...

SwampCat said...


AnonT, interesting you think of Maureen Doud as a "thinker". Maybe she is. I've always assumed she just likes to pick on all sides equally. But as HG said, she sure is fun to read!

Splynter, the write up was fun, too!

Disabled List said...

Sorry T, Enter SANDMAN belongs solely to Mariano Rivera. Reference here. I personally always liked Trevor Hoffman's Hell's Bells. I wasn't aware of John Smoltz's Dancing Queen, although I love it!

As to Tal's Hill, I'm glad they are getting rid of it. It probably represents the dumbest flair-for-the-sake-of-flair design element of any ballpark in baseball. With the slope and a freakin' flag pole?!?! in the field of play it was a torn ACL and/or concussion waiting to happen. They fences were insanely too far back(436ft.). The new distance(409ft) will still be among the biggest outfield and has obvious commercial associations. But like almost all decisions, it has serious monetary positives to come. More seats, more bars and more restaurants means more money and probably a better 'fan experience'. I know my favorite center fielders are happy to see it go. As for novelties, you still have that train, don't you?

Ol' Man Keith said...

Most curious error.
I wasn't sure what the Springarn medal was and confused it in my mind with the Pritzker Prize. That's why on my first pass I entered GEHRY for 50D instead of AILEY. As if that weren't strange enough (given that GEHRY's name showed up elsewhere in today's pzl), I realized when I finally hit on AILEY that I should really have remembered the 1976 Springarn. Years ago I booked Alvin AILEY's troupe into my theater and, as it came back to me, he won the Springarn the next year.

AnonymousPVX said...

As a previous poster said, this puzzle was Silkie-esque. (Boy I hope that word never makes a grid!)

That is, super tough BUT solvable.

This is the type of puzzle that feels like an accomplishment when it is solved. Tada!

Now, for the Preakness. See you Monday.

Anonymous T said...

DL@2:12 - Here's what we lose in baseball when Tal's Hill goes away (look for Berkman's catch - I love how he just smiles). I can appreciate the concern for players, but no one has been hurt (yet). I can't find the video of my fav Tal's Hill catch, but here's the WaPost talking to Pence about his outstanding catch against the flag pole.

SwampCat - Ok, maybe 'thinker' is a bit strong - DOWD does 'pick on both sides' which is why I'll read her over others. She's typically middle-of-the-road and has salient points even when/if I disagree with her conclusion. Entertaining? Yes. Predictable? Sometimes.

Cheers, -T

Jazzbumpa said...

Hi gang -

My first attempt at a Saturday in a very long time, and a miserable flop on my part.

I worked this puzzle like the Tigers play baseball - nothing was right. Had to throw in a whole linen closet full of towels.

Verlander is on a rehab assignment in Toledo and is starting tonight for the Mud Hens. I think he's on an 80 pitch limit. Rondon should also be in for a couple of innings.

Martinez and Avila might be back soon, also.

Cool regards!
JzB

Beach Bum said...

I started out pretty well on this one; the top and center fell pretty quickly. Then ... lotsa white space. I managed to get a foothold in the SW and that's when I realized I was going to ultimately DNF due to FRANKGE_RY crossing AR_AT. No amount of running the alphabet was gonna help me there, and I consider a guess the same as a non-solve. So I managed to complete it anyway, but it kinda takes the joy out of solving when you already know it's a lost cause.

Dudley said...

Hello Puzzlers -

Late to the party. Did this tricky PawPuzz back in the wee hours, and definitely had to work at it. Wasn't fooled by old versus new Zealand, but couldn't remember which country has the old one. Teased out the right answers bit by bit, but that Gehry cross with Arhat just looked wrong. Technical DNF because of that one square.

Howdy Splynter, ORD is just one of a bunch of peculiar-looking airport identifiers. The committees in charge of those things try to make obvious choices, but since the codes have global reach, there can be conflicts with foreign airports. It gets even more tricky when the alphanumeric codes - generally only used with small airports, at least in America - come into play.

CrossEyedDave said...

Hmm,

I tried to do the puzzle, & gave up.

I read the Write Up, I read the Blog...

I tried to memorize some of the longest answers...

I tried to do the puzzle AGAIN on the Mensa site with red letters on...



I still could not figure out the SW corner...

(Sigh...)

Irish Miss said...

Congratulations, American Pharoah!

SwampCat said...


Yay! Triple Crown! What a race!

Anon T, yes...she's entertaining! And she makes ME think.

Owen, did I mention that I LOVED today's poetic offering?

Opera fan said...

Even though I am an opera fan I did not price support until I finally got the v

Fyi there is also an opera singer named Margaret price. I guess callas support or Fleming support would have been too obvious

Husker Gary said...

-Bill, I said I can’t resist it because I love area/perimeter problems and most of my students did not and so I thought I would throw one in while risking the enmity of our little group. ;-)
-BTW, that PTA scene was from Field of Dreams where the Amy Madigan character is defending a book written by an invented character named Terrance Mann played by James Earl Jones. The character was really defending J.D. Salinger’s Catcher In The Rye which was under attack in many schools at the time. The Mann character had to be invented so the actual and reclusive Salinger wouldn’t sue as he threatened to do if his name was used in the movie.

Bill G. said...

Yes, I like problems or puzzles like that too.

We just had a little earthquake. It shook the upstairs a bit, nothing serious. My wife didn't feel it downstairs.

Steve Lewis said...

Arhat is not a word in my vocabulary, but it was my second choice after Arrat. Otherwise I eased my way through this one, an hour or so later.

Bill G. said...

I enjoyed this a lot! Animals who think they are puppies