Theme:
3D. Singer whose last name is Pig Latin for a slang word for "money" : ANITA O'DAY. The crosses filled most of entry for me, but it took me the longest time for the penny to dop - I was trying to figure out the slang word DANITAO and why I'd never heard of it. Then I saw "last name" in the clue and D'OH! - "dough". Cool clue.
7D. Toyota Center team : HOUSTON ROCKETS. I know only a few any of the sponsored arenas beyond the ones in my own city, but a few crosses and I can usually get the team pretty quickly. I know that the baseball Houston Astros play at Minute Maid Park, but that's because I was at a hotel last year two steps from the stadium and I could see it from my room.
14D. Activity for some ex-presidents : LECTURE CIRCUIT. I'm sure they're all tremendously interesting.
34D. London locale that's a music industry eponym : ABBEY ROAD. I've done the famous "Beatles Walk" on the pedestrian crossing outside the studio, but, (of course) when I was younger and lived a mere two miles away I was way too cool for school to do that. Ah, the ignorance of youth! Here's a setup shot:
and the reveal:
23D. Appears unexpectedly, and a hint to this puzzle's circles : CROPS UP.
Nice one from C.C. - some great long downs and two sets of double-stacked 9's in the acrosses. Both ANITA O'DAY and LECTURE CIRCUIT are first-timers to appear in the LAT, you can't get much fresher than that. However - one quibble. If I were to ask a farmer what crop he was growing, I'd be happy to hear RICE, CORN and RYE, but if I was told OAT I'd wonder how many milli-ounces of yield was expected. However, I tend to forgive quibbles about circle entries (cirquibs?) because they don't affect the clue or the answer.
Let's see what else catches the rye - I mean eye:
Across:
1. Detergent with Oxi Booster : ERA. If you say so. I'm not brand-conscious with laundry detergent, I get whatever is discounted at Ralph's when I need some.
4. DVD precursor : VHS
7. Scout, to Tonto : HORSE
12. "Face the Nation" group : PANEL
15. "My mom's gonna kill me!" : I AM SO DEAD. Fun entry.
17. Uncle relative? : I GIVE
18. Golden Globe, e.g. : STATUETTE. Awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for excellence in film and TV.
19. Nail care target : CUTICLE
21. Congressional period : SESSION
22. Vocal quartet member : ALTO
23. Use WhatsApp, say : CHAT
24. Junior nav. officer : ENS. Naval Ensign, from the old French "enseigne". Also the flag flown from the stern of a ship.
25. Long time follower : AGO
27. Manipulator : USER
29. Cut : LOP
31. Roll of dough : WAD
32. Popular weekend destination for many Northern Californians : RENO. Across the border in Nevada. Gamblin' an' boozin' an' such.
33. Deceitful : SNEAKY
37. Remove : ERASE
39. Drop (out) : OPT
41. Russian lettuce? : RUBLE
42. Fog machine substance : DRY ICE. Carbon Dioxide cooled to around -110F.
No self-respecting 70's rock band would be seen dead on stage without it. Here's Led Zeppelin rocking the CO2.
44. Average : SO-SO
46. Ballerina's hairdo : BUN
47. Prohibit : NIX, Funny, I used Pig Latin "ixnay" in the blog last week.
48. Offensive to some, for short : UN-PC. People get offended by MacBooks? Oh - wait. Not politically-correct.
49. Rescue squad initials : EMS
50. ___ Fridays : TGI
53. Speak harshly : RASP
55. ''Fine by me'' : OKAY
57. Salon piece : ARTICLE. Wig? Toupée? Oh - "salon" in the literary gathering sense.
59. Swallowed one's pride : ATE CROW
62. Chinese cooking staple : PEANUT OIL
64. "__ were the days" : THOSE
65. Not working : AT LEISURE
66. "Lone Survivor" military group : SEALS. From the movie adaptation of the book by Marcus Luttrell. Many current and ex-members of the elite forces are upset by the proliferation of "insider" books being published as they feel it damages the esprit de corps without which the units could not function.
67. Speak, old-style : SAY'ST,
A Midsummer Night's Dream, I, iii William Shakespeare
68. Not strict : LAX
69. One of two in Pompeii : DOT. I missed this until the write-up - the crosses filled it in for me. Funny clue - two dots over two "i"s.
Down:
1. "Paradise Lost," e.g. : EPIC
2. Marinara brand : RAGU. I never buy it, it takes about 60 seconds to make your own. A can of San Marzano tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, chilli pepper, salt, dried oregano, give it a whizz with your stick blender and bingo! Cleanup takes 20 seconds. No-brainer.
4. Workshop gadget : VISE. Spelt VICE in England. This bilingual thing is tough.
5. Derby or boater : HAT
6. Huge success : SMASH
8. Laudatory verses : ODES. Sometimes written on Grecian urns. No?
9. Tighten, as laces : RETIE
10. Kept quiet : SAT ON
11. Paradises : EDENS
13. Really bad : EVIL
16. Good buys : STEALS
20. Get rid of : LOSE
25. Knocked out : AWED
26. "Tootsie" actress : GARR. Thank you, crosses.
28. Co-producer of the art rock album "High Life" : ENO. Busy chap, Brian.
30. Little, in Marseille : PEU. Stumped me for a moment - not petit/petite? Ah - a small amount, un peu. You can also have "un petit peu" if you're going extra-small.
35. "America's Got Talent" judge Heidi : KLUM. One of my friends sometimes handles security for her. He says she's completely down-to-earth. Here she is wearing a body-paint swimsuit for "Sports Illustrated".
36. Deep desires : YENS
38. Lust, e.g. : SIN
40. Weigh station unit : TON
43. Praises : EXALTS
45. Pick out of a crowd : SPOT
50. Spanish appetizers : TAPAS. They were originally simple slices of bread you put over your wine glass to keep the flies out, then the bars started dressing 'em up with a smear of this and that. "Tapa" means "cover".
51. Actress Scacchi : GRETA
52. Birthplace of the violin : ITALY
54. Peninsular capital : SEOUL
56. Icy Hot target : ACHE
58. Supermodel Sastre : INES. Crosses. I'm not too up on my supermodels, although Heidi Klum is in my "known" category.
59. Longtime teammate of Derek : ALEX. I tried A-ROD first. Gong! Wrong!
60. Nobel Peace Center locale : OSLO
61. From Green Bay to St. Paul : WEST
63. Often rolled-over item : IRA
Here's the grid, with the circles for those of you who didn't get them:
Have a great day. I'm going to "The Happiest Place on Earth" today (Disneyland, not my kitchen!) with my daughter who is visiting from London.
Steve
3D. Singer whose last name is Pig Latin for a slang word for "money" : ANITA O'DAY. The crosses filled most of entry for me, but it took me the longest time for the penny to dop - I was trying to figure out the slang word DANITAO and why I'd never heard of it. Then I saw "last name" in the clue and D'OH! - "dough". Cool clue.
7D. Toyota Center team : HOUSTON ROCKETS. I know only a few any of the sponsored arenas beyond the ones in my own city, but a few crosses and I can usually get the team pretty quickly. I know that the baseball Houston Astros play at Minute Maid Park, but that's because I was at a hotel last year two steps from the stadium and I could see it from my room.
14D. Activity for some ex-presidents : LECTURE CIRCUIT. I'm sure they're all tremendously interesting.
34D. London locale that's a music industry eponym : ABBEY ROAD. I've done the famous "Beatles Walk" on the pedestrian crossing outside the studio, but, (of course) when I was younger and lived a mere two miles away I was way too cool for school to do that. Ah, the ignorance of youth! Here's a setup shot:
and the reveal:
23D. Appears unexpectedly, and a hint to this puzzle's circles : CROPS UP.
Nice one from C.C. - some great long downs and two sets of double-stacked 9's in the acrosses. Both ANITA O'DAY and LECTURE CIRCUIT are first-timers to appear in the LAT, you can't get much fresher than that. However - one quibble. If I were to ask a farmer what crop he was growing, I'd be happy to hear RICE, CORN and RYE, but if I was told OAT I'd wonder how many milli-ounces of yield was expected. However, I tend to forgive quibbles about circle entries (cirquibs?) because they don't affect the clue or the answer.
Let's see what else catches the rye - I mean eye:
Across:
1. Detergent with Oxi Booster : ERA. If you say so. I'm not brand-conscious with laundry detergent, I get whatever is discounted at Ralph's when I need some.
4. DVD precursor : VHS
7. Scout, to Tonto : HORSE
12. "Face the Nation" group : PANEL
15. "My mom's gonna kill me!" : I AM SO DEAD. Fun entry.
17. Uncle relative? : I GIVE
18. Golden Globe, e.g. : STATUETTE. Awarded by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for excellence in film and TV.
21. Congressional period : SESSION
22. Vocal quartet member : ALTO
23. Use WhatsApp, say : CHAT
24. Junior nav. officer : ENS. Naval Ensign, from the old French "enseigne". Also the flag flown from the stern of a ship.
25. Long time follower : AGO
27. Manipulator : USER
29. Cut : LOP
31. Roll of dough : WAD
32. Popular weekend destination for many Northern Californians : RENO. Across the border in Nevada. Gamblin' an' boozin' an' such.
33. Deceitful : SNEAKY
37. Remove : ERASE
39. Drop (out) : OPT
41. Russian lettuce? : RUBLE
42. Fog machine substance : DRY ICE. Carbon Dioxide cooled to around -110F.
No self-respecting 70's rock band would be seen dead on stage without it. Here's Led Zeppelin rocking the CO2.
46. Ballerina's hairdo : BUN
47. Prohibit : NIX, Funny, I used Pig Latin "ixnay" in the blog last week.
48. Offensive to some, for short : UN-PC. People get offended by MacBooks? Oh - wait. Not politically-correct.
49. Rescue squad initials : EMS
50. ___ Fridays : TGI
53. Speak harshly : RASP
55. ''Fine by me'' : OKAY
57. Salon piece : ARTICLE. Wig? Toupée? Oh - "salon" in the literary gathering sense.
59. Swallowed one's pride : ATE CROW
62. Chinese cooking staple : PEANUT OIL
64. "__ were the days" : THOSE
65. Not working : AT LEISURE
66. "Lone Survivor" military group : SEALS. From the movie adaptation of the book by Marcus Luttrell. Many current and ex-members of the elite forces are upset by the proliferation of "insider" books being published as they feel it damages the esprit de corps without which the units could not function.
67. Speak, old-style : SAY'ST,
Quince: What say'st thou, bully Bottom?
A Midsummer Night's Dream, I, iii William Shakespeare
68. Not strict : LAX
69. One of two in Pompeii : DOT. I missed this until the write-up - the crosses filled it in for me. Funny clue - two dots over two "i"s.
Down:
1. "Paradise Lost," e.g. : EPIC
2. Marinara brand : RAGU. I never buy it, it takes about 60 seconds to make your own. A can of San Marzano tomatoes, olive oil, garlic, chilli pepper, salt, dried oregano, give it a whizz with your stick blender and bingo! Cleanup takes 20 seconds. No-brainer.
4. Workshop gadget : VISE. Spelt VICE in England. This bilingual thing is tough.
5. Derby or boater : HAT
6. Huge success : SMASH
8. Laudatory verses : ODES. Sometimes written on Grecian urns. No?
9. Tighten, as laces : RETIE
10. Kept quiet : SAT ON
11. Paradises : EDENS
13. Really bad : EVIL
16. Good buys : STEALS
20. Get rid of : LOSE
25. Knocked out : AWED
26. "Tootsie" actress : GARR. Thank you, crosses.
28. Co-producer of the art rock album "High Life" : ENO. Busy chap, Brian.
30. Little, in Marseille : PEU. Stumped me for a moment - not petit/petite? Ah - a small amount, un peu. You can also have "un petit peu" if you're going extra-small.
35. "America's Got Talent" judge Heidi : KLUM. One of my friends sometimes handles security for her. He says she's completely down-to-earth. Here she is wearing a body-paint swimsuit for "Sports Illustrated".
36. Deep desires : YENS
38. Lust, e.g. : SIN
40. Weigh station unit : TON
43. Praises : EXALTS
45. Pick out of a crowd : SPOT
50. Spanish appetizers : TAPAS. They were originally simple slices of bread you put over your wine glass to keep the flies out, then the bars started dressing 'em up with a smear of this and that. "Tapa" means "cover".
51. Actress Scacchi : GRETA
52. Birthplace of the violin : ITALY
54. Peninsular capital : SEOUL
56. Icy Hot target : ACHE
58. Supermodel Sastre : INES. Crosses. I'm not too up on my supermodels, although Heidi Klum is in my "known" category.
59. Longtime teammate of Derek : ALEX. I tried A-ROD first. Gong! Wrong!
60. Nobel Peace Center locale : OSLO
61. From Green Bay to St. Paul : WEST
63. Often rolled-over item : IRA
Here's the grid, with the circles for those of you who didn't get them:
Have a great day. I'm going to "The Happiest Place on Earth" today (Disneyland, not my kitchen!) with my daughter who is visiting from London.
Steve
39 comments:
Greetings!
Thanks, CC and Steve!
Great work!
Perped INES.
Otherwise OK. No circles.
NYT almost impossible for me.
iPhone has crapped out. Apple Store in mall tomorrow.
Cheers!
Morning, all!
CC does love her circles, doesn't she? Couldn't figure out the theme without them, sadly. I was trying to find the word CROP going up in all the long vertical answers, but that didn't help any.
I found the NYT puzzle nearly impossible as well, fermatprime, until I finally decided to use the "check all answers" feature and discovered that half of the answers that I knew had to be right were, in fact, wrong. That clued me into the fact that something strange was going on, and it didn't take me too long after that to figure out that the trick was. Had I not checked, though, I doubt I ever would have finished.
My take on the theme: what you reap, you shall sow. We have another impressive grid from our prolific leader, C.C. who just bubbles over with themes and countless puzzles.
Thanks, Steve, for adding to the fun and especially for the recap on TAPAS.
I filled this from the bottom up and saw the CROPS going UP. CSO to our Texas contingent at HOUSTONROCKETS which took me a while to recall. GRETA and INES were unknowns but Heidi KLUM is often in the news. I don't watch AGT so don't know her from that.
I hope your day is terrific, everyone!
Interesting puzzle and write up. Missed the the S in INES. For some reason I couldn't come up with SAY_T. An ABC run would have solved it. CROP CIRCLES, how cute!
Though usually termed OATS, I have seen OAT (without the S) used to describe a crop. "Oat is a cool season, annual grass species that can grow between 24-60" tall."
Happy belated birthday, Kazie.
Abejo, your brother's family is in my thoughts.
Bill G. and Barbara, my thoughts are with you at this difficult time. Barbara is lucky to have your TLC, Bill.
Doctor's visit today will tell whether Alan's two month long Staph infection is completely gone. Thankfully it is not Mersa. Also we will hear the result of his abnormal back and knee Xrays. Sorry I have been too distracted to post much.
Steve: Good Job on the write-up & links.
C.C. Thank You for a FUN Thursday puzzle that my "perps" came to the rescue.
Needed ESP to get GRETA and INES, who were "total-unknowns" to me.
I guess if you are going to have a SIN in the grid ... Lust is my favorite.
A "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset.
Cheers!
Good Morning:
Another clever challenge from our CC. No real stumbling blocks due to strong perps. I think Ines was the only unknown.
Nice job, CC, and Thanks to our tour guide, Steve. Have fun today and say hi to Mickey! 🐭
Hang in there, Bill G. YR, I hope Alan gets some answers and gets back on track soon.
Have a great day.
Yeah, I could look at EYR and see ABBEY ROAD, or not! A fabulous puzzle theme and fill. I always learn from Steve’s write-up.
Musings
-Me too, Steve, on ODAY. I even thought the first name might be ANI for a while.
-They’re not on a CIRCUIT per se, but Clinton gets $200,00 and Bush $150,000 to LECTURE
-Pols can get back their talking points in two heartbeats while facing the PANEL
-The newest “I GIVE” is to do this -TAP OUT
-A Big Mac in Moscow costs about 94₽ (RUBLES)
-I have AWED many a JH kid, with $5 worth of DRY ICE
-We had a great show but SOSO food at this Steak House in Omaha
-Dang! SAY_T/INE_ got me. I’ll EAT (present tense, I know) CROW and take one bad cell
-Many a country road has been used for a trucker to duck a Weigh Station (Chicken Coop in CB parlance)
-What “Big Brother” uses to SPOT YOU even in a crowd
-An ODE to YENS using my Natick word
Thou art but young, thou SAY’ST,
And love’s delight thou weigh’st not.
Oh! take time while thou may’st,
Lest, when thou would’st, thou may’st not.
If love shall then assail thee,
A double, double anguish will torment thee.
And thou wilt wish, but wishes all will fail thee.
Oh! me that I were young again! And so repent thee.
Good morning all. Thank you CC for another clever and challenging puzzle. You too Steve, thanks. I always look forward to your "take" on the puzzles Steve. I see your nit with OAT in that the other three are mass nouns. However, if we see CROPS as contracted CROP IS UP... (broken ground ?) then... Also, thanks for getting the Led out !
Started in the SE and filled the stairs all the way up to the NW. Saw the "circles" clue, so opened the puzzle at the Chicago Tribune website. LECTURE CIRCUIT went in with the clue. Saw RICE going up. "Ma, the rice crop is up !"
That SW corner was the toughest area for me today. Mostly because I entered TAcoS before TAPAS, and AROD befor ALEX. PEANUT OIL forced both to change. Thanks for the 'splainin' of TAPAS. I knew what they were, but not why they were. GRETA and INES were unknowns.
Liked a lot of clues. Among them, "Speak harshly" for RASP, and "One of two in Pompeii."Had norm for "average" before SOSO, but knew it was wrong as I was filling in HOUSTON ROCKETS. Good misdirection ? "Salon piece " for ARTICLE.
Some associations ? LOSE & I GIVE with RENO, CHAT and SESSION, KLUM and SEAL. Dustin Hoffman's Tootsie looked so much like 80's Houston's mayor Kathryn Whitmire that many thought his cross dressing appearance was modeled after her.
ANITA O'DAY was another learning moment. Had to look her up just now. "She changed her surname from Colton to O'Day, pig Latin for "dough," slang for money." (Wiki). At 59, I have no desire to learn pig Latin. Always thought it was stooopid.
NIX. GIs said MOX NIX, very heavy on the X, instead of softer macht nichts. Your dialect / enunciation may vary.
YR--Thanks!
I had several unknowns here, but happily it all came together fairly well with lots of perp help. I also enjoyed Steve's reveal, as always, and C.C. is becoming even more prolific as time goes by. I was surprised it wasn't trickier for a Thursday, knowing how hers usually are for me towards the end of the week. Good thing, with a busy day ahead.
BTW Steve,
I also struggle frequently with that bilingual aspect of English.
Hello Puzzlers -
Not much struggle, but hand up for being confused at the Pig Latin clue/answer. I always enjoy themes like this where the direction of the theme answers matches the unifier clue, if that makes any sense. Thanks for a nice Thursday, C.C.!
Morning, Steve, I'm willing to set aside all sense of dignity and have myself photographed crossing Abbey Road. Your post about tomato sauce reminds me that not only am I in awe of folks who know how to cook well, I especially admire those who can do it fast. Lacking kitchen confidence as I do, everything is slower for me.
"Puzzling Thoughts":
Today's HAIKU: (might have to think about this one!)
EMS? OKAY!
Do we think Jenny ATE CROW
Comin thro' the RYE?
Unlike Lucina, I solved today's from left to right top to bottom - should've checked a few perps before committing two answers as I had TEXT before CHAT in 23a and AROD before ALEX in 59d.
C.C. Crop Circles; good one YR!!
I pencilled in AUTO TECHNICIAN for 7d but quickly knew that INHC was not a crop or grain, and of course, HORSE was the obvious answer to 7a. I've come to realize that later in the week, as the puzzles get harder, your first guess answer is not always correct.
Very clever clue for 3d - possibly my favorite. Thanks CC and Steve for an enjoyable puzzle and recap.
Good morning everyone.
Finally got the CROPS UP theme. Well done. I, too, had Arod before ALEX. Clue was clear; first name: first name. Did not know GRETA, but everything else fell into place; perp interaction was good. Favorite clue was for DOT.
ENS - I was one once. Junior officers include ENS, Lt(jg), and Lt. The most junior officer in the wardroom is sometimes nicknamed "George". Don't know what they do with co-ed crews.
Re: petit PEU - something like a wee bit.
Huge rush today, made a big commitment in time.
So i promised myself,
No Facebook, no YouTube, & no crossword today.
(Hmm, with my luck, I just know CC will publish today, I just know it...)
Open the paper, skip the news,straight to the funnies, &
Ack! Wouldn't you know it!
Luckily I had my rant all picked out! I know what I am going to do,
I am going to cheat! that'l serve CC for overpublishing...
(In the end I realized) Aw Phoey! I am just cheating myself...
Fun puzzle, did it fast!
CC, your puzzles are cropping up like weeds!
Aliens watch Simpsons?
Hmm, the things I do when I have so little time....
Sorry Steve, I read the write up really really fast...
& HG, I couldn't wait for that 1st link to load, will go back tomorrow...
No time, gotta go!
Fun challenge from our leader today! Alas, a DNF for me because of INES and SAYST. I also had lots of write-overs but worked all of them out eventually...except for poor INES . Thanks for 'splaining it all. Steve.
Hi Gang -
Nice offering from CC
SW corner was last to fall.
Quick in and out today, Gotta run.
Coincidentally, I just checked out this Anita O'Day vid a couple of days ago. Great song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbwZ_dLgvR0
Cool regards1
JzB
Hi Y'all! Great puzzle, C.C.! Great expo, Steve!
After all the hail storms going through, I'm afraid to call my farmer to see if my CROPS are UP or beat into the ground. I've had to "harvest" insurance the last two years. CROPS puzzle was very APT for this time of year. Waves of storms going thru kept me awake two nights this week. Got up at 2:30 p.m. yesterday from a nap in time to hear my roof pounded while the yard was completely covered with pea-sized ice. By the time, I got dressed the sun was shining, ice gone. My BFF lives an hour northeast of me and said they had the same pea-hail with lots of branches down on a nearby golf course plus a big tree fell over blocking the main road just shortly after the school bus went by.
HOUSTON ROCKETS: just watched Golden State beat them out of the playoffs by about 30 points, turned off the TV and started the puzzle last night. Another eerily APT clue.
Re yesterday: I can't believe you guys don't remember the GOGO dancers in cages in the DISCO era. Maybe it was before you were born. I had some GOGO boots even. Also I knew INIGO Jones but didn't know why so waited for perps.
BillG: praying for good news for Barbara. Old age is so humiliating! Your hassle reminded me: When we were cleaning out my MIL's house of four generations of occupants, my young son found a short copper or brass tube with one flared end in the back of a drawer. He thought it was a whistle and had it in his mouth blowing through it. His dad came in and jerked it out. He said it was a catheter a hired man had had to use to "make water" because of VD scarring 50 years earlier -- carried it around in his pocket. That was the only time I've ever seen a kid rush in to voluntarily wash his own mouth out with soap.
PK, your stories are often so funny. Laughed out loud. You should submit that to Reader's Digest. I have a sense they would publish that one, and send you a hundie.
Another nice puzzle from C.C. More difficult, especially in the SW corner with the proper names.... INES and GRETA. Thanks, C.C.
Nice write-up, Steve. Enjoy DL with your daughter!
C.C. produced a really challenging but ultimately doable Thursday puzzle also very enjoyable. Steve's explanation filled in a lot that I hadn't gotten when filling out the puzzle. As usual I used the MENSA site, so there were no circles, so I didn't get the theme.
Perps were the key to filling in a number of the harder entries (For me at least). Most notably were: ANITAODAY, INES, UNPC, ARTICLE and DOT. I also had VCR before VHS and YELL before RASP.
It's amazing that three Thursday's in a row were successfully completed with no cheats or help. Is it possible to do the same tomorrow, we'll see.
I'm wondering if the offer to buyout the Tribune Newspapers by Gannett will affect the LA Times Crossword? The buyout would include the LA Times, Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun and eight other major newspapers. It could result in a lot of downsizing at the acquired papers and the insertion of a lot of USA Today content thereby giving them more of the McPaper look of many Gannett papers. Their stated goal is cost-savings and consolidation. Consolidation is not always a good thing.
On that cheery note, I hope everyone has a great day.
VICE instead of VISE, and DROPSIN instead of CROPSUP slowed me down, but eventually got 'er done. Fun CW, thanx, C.C. Terrific write-up, too, thanx, Steve.
There is nothing more fun that opening the paper and seeing a C.C. puzzle with rings all over. But since it's Thursday I figured it was going to be tough, and I did almost despair over the SW corner since I didn't know either of the women's names. (Thank goodness I knew Terri GARR and Heide KLUM). But then somehow it still all fell into place and I got the WHOLE THING! Yay! Thank you, C.C., and you too, Steve, for explaining O'DAY and SALON to me (I was thinking beauty parlor, of course).
Lots of fun! I even got both the Sudoku and the Kenken, making this a great Thursday morning!
Have a good one, everybody!
We never get a SOSO puzzle from C.C. Fun cropped up today. Thanks also to Steve.
(Yes I would have wanted Vice if the S had not already been in place.)
I am AT LEISURE today and went to the Mensa site - No circles! Oh well, I was half finished by then and waited to come here for the theme.
Nice misdirection with the Uncle at 17A.
Best wishes to those dealing with illness in the family - Bill G. YR
PK - LOL!
Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, C.C., for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Steve, for a fine review.
Got through this easier than I thought I would. Theme was good. I have circles in my newspaper, so all the crops appeared.
Tried VCR until VHS won that fight.
Liked your marinara recipe, Steve.
ANITA O'DAY is new to me.
SEOUL reminded me of where my brother's sister-in-law was from that died Saturday. Thanks for your thoughts, Yellowrocks.
Never knew that PEANUT OIL was a big item for Chinese cooking. Do they grow peanuts in China?
I have to run. See you tomorrow.
Abejo
( )
oc4beach:
The Arizona Republic newspaper is owned by Gannett and it offers the LAT puzzle daily and a copy of USA Today as well though only Sunday's issue has that particular puzzle which is now edited by Fred Piscop.
Today's puzzle,was a bit tougher as is to be expected, but still 4 in a row. This cannot last.
I picked up on the SALON clue as the e-mag, plus already had cuticle earlier.
Hola Everyone, Same problems, nits, and comments as those made by others. This is what happens when you are late to the blog and in doing the puzzle.
I've been so busy this week that all I've managed is to get the puzzle done--sometimes after dinner.
I didn't get the theme until I read Steve's great writeup. C.C. never ceases to amaze me with her command of our language and the idioms, people and teams here in the US and elsewhere. She has a trap for a mind and nothing every escapes her notice!!
Have a great day, everyone. Hopefully those who are dealing with illness and woes will have a better week coming up.
You know you are getting old when your "children" start to have the maladies of the elderly, such as arthritis and a compression fracture of a lumbar vertebra. Alan needs further tests to see how to deal with this. Actually, many times I feel younger than Alan when using the exercise bike and walking rings around him doing laps in the gym, but I have slowed down quite a bit in the last 10 years. Both my sons are starting to gray.
I remember my sons' generation of cousins at family reunions as energetic, playful little cubs. I was amazed when all of them became teens. Then they all married and had children. Now their children, in turn, are almost finished with high school or are in college. Kenny has signed up for Villanova. I was surprised that Kenny was not impressed by the Wildcats' Final Four championship which they won in the last four seconds. I was impressed.
Barry: Re NYT. I figured that up and down changes were going on rather quickly. I too used the check feature. However, got frustrated and quit.
Best thoughts to Barbara and Alan.
Nice neat pzl from our own C.C.!
Only slightly daunting. No mystery answers, but in several places perps were needed to zero in on the right response.
Well, let me admit I was thrown just a little, just a tad, by STATUETTE because my definition limits the word to a small likeness of "an animal or human figure." A globe, no matter how golden, doesn't exactly measure up. But I see that there are looser definitions to be found on line, so I GIVE up!
IrishMiss & Misty:
It looks like I'll be joining you in the pokey! They found me and threatened with I'm not sure what!
YR: Oh poor Alan! Which lumbar vertebra? Such pain! As I have shared before, I had a compression fracture of the 3rd lumbar vertebra in 1995. Nerve damage with vertebra fracture can cause some freaky side effects. Alan isn't still riding the exercise bike with that, is he? Will pray for both of you.
I know what you mean about being surprised when your kids get old. My oldest turned 50 last summer and it was a traumatic milestone for both of us. She's a lot more active than I am, however.
Houston Ricketts cause thats what they looked like they had last night! GS Warriors SMASHed them with a VISE. In this EPIC series with out MVP Curry Houston had no chance for the STATUETTE given at the end of the season. So they are KNOCKED OUT of the NBA series.
YR, your experience with our children getting older is exactly my own! I'm shocked that both my sons are ..well...bald! One shaves his head, one has a slight fringe. What happened to my tow-headed tikes? They are middle-aged. What does that make me?
I have watched the eras of my family with such interest . My kids as teens....then married....then parents. Now my oldest granddaughter is in college. What's next?
Sunrise , sunset...swiftly flow the years......
Life is good....
Did surprisingly well for a Thursday. Misspelled INES with a Z, had HOTICE before DRYICE , and AROD before ALEX. I thought RASP was more of a gravelly tone to the voice, not always harsh. Several rub-outs, but thought it was a fine Thursday puzzle.
My oldest son Ivan will turn 50 in January. I still have vivid memories of pushing him in his stroller. The days go slow, but the years go fast.
Lucina @ 4:12 - I can't think of better cell mates than you and Misty! And I'm sure CED will send us a cake with something inside to aid our escape! 🎂 🔪 😇
Hi All:
Late to the party - packing for tomorrow's trip. I get to see my Brother (the one that just returned from duty in Africa). Last I saw him was two years AGO! If you don't hear from me until Thursday, well, we're in Pop's yard on our nth beer.
Thanks C.C. for a fun, relatively quick, puzzle. You always use fun words for us to CHAT about. Tip'o'the HAT. I enjoyed the CROPSUP (and that helped w/ 3d).
Thank you Steve for the expo - always a treat. Next time you're across the street from Minute Maid (which is near Toyota Center) drop me a line & I'll buy you a pint.
WEES: re: the SW being the hardest nut to crack due to THOSE names! I finally FIW where HG et.al. did. I had SAYes[t] until the CIRCUIT completed but I left in the E.
WOs: Hand-up for Arod b/f ALEX & VIcE; and the aforementioned SAYes
ESPs: 3d & 35d.
Fav: With last night's TON of SOSO basketball, HOUSTON ROCKETS is right out...
So, um, OKAY, I'll go w/ ITALY and the DOTs in c/a for Pompeii.
The misdirection at 57a (ARTICLE) was cute too. I was mentally rummaging through my mom's old hair salon for a piece of something...
Another fun coincidence (or is it?.../cue creepy music) is RUBLE xing YENS - a WAD of international currency.
PK - LOL
Lucina - No, not you too!
40 broken-English phishes were reported to us today. They read, "We are writing you about fact, despite previous reminder, there remain [...] USD 8021,44 in respect of the invoice." Don't the phishers know we use a decimal in USD $$? :-).
Fortunately our software stopped the malware in the attachment from running on the one (there's always one) machine of the USER who opened the attachment. He will be UN-PC tomorrow :-)
What Chickie said - I hope all y'all have a better week health wise with you and yours. And, Chickie, I'm proof, it's never too late to post.
Well, tomorrow is Friday, so TGI!
Cheers, -T
IrishMiss:
Okay, it looks like you're the brains of this operation (to quote from oh, so many movies I've seen). Obviously it will be a companionable way to sit out the sentence climaxed by our great escape with tools provided inside said cake. LOL
Talk about getting old! I just saw my six year old granddaughter performing with her kindergarten class. They do grow up so fast.
I also missed INES/SAYST as I never heard of the supermodel. I WAGed INEi/SAYiT.
My version had no circles. Any idea where to find the versions with the circles on line?
But I am proud that I figured out the theme and nailed all four crops! Fun theme, CC!
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