Theme: Old McDonald. The theme entries have a farm animal "split" out at the start and finish of the phrase.
18A. *Steinbeck novel set in Monterey : CANNERY ROW. Cow. Beautiful part of the state, although it wouldn't have looked quite so charming in Steinbeck's time. The locals seemed friendly though.
23A. *Starter : HORS D'OEUVRE. Horse. Pedantically speaking (who, me?) one of a number of appetizers before the meal, not a starter.
35A. *China server : GRAVY BOAT. Goat. Many gravy boats are quite startling examples of kitsch. This, one, for example. Do a Google search and see what you think of the man-eating tiger variations.
52A. *Refinery job : PIPE FITTING. Pig. "Red sky at night, the refinery's alight". Refineries have lots of pipes which require fitting, I guess.
58A. Wall Street announcement ... or a hint to the circled letters : STOCK SPLIT.
G'day! Neat enough theme from Gareth. He likes to toss a couple of African references into his puzzles - we've got CAIRO and AFRICA (and African in the CAIRO clue) so check that box.
MEGS/SHO/RDS/SEPT/SAE/CRT/SSN/SGT/SLC/PMS/GPO felt like a lot of abbreviations - probably no more than the norm, it just felt like a couple too many.
Let's see what else we've got.
Across:
1. Teeth setting : GUMS
5. Parts of gigs : MEGS. Lots of bytes. When I started out in the computer industry, an IBM mainframe disk drive had a capacity of around 320Mb and cost somewhere north of $100,000. The solid-state disk that I put in my laptop has a capacity of two terabytes (almost 7,000 times as much) and cost less than $900.
9. Golf club part : SHAFT. I'd like to see a tournament where the pros use old-style clubs with hickory shafts, and persimmon heads on the woods.
14. Parrier's tool : EPÉE
15. Rent-a-car choice : AVIS
16. African city that hosts an annual international film festival : CAIRO
17. Lacks being : ISN'T
20. "Homeland" airer, briefly : SHO. Showtime on pay TV.
21. GPS options : RDS.
22. Stick homes : NESTS
27. "__ the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" : IT'S
29. Stumped : AT A LOSS
30. Viennese "a" : EIN
31. Ale serving : MUG
32. "Git!" : SHOO
33. Story __ : ARC
34. Michaelmas mo. : SEPT. September 29th is the feast day of St. Michael and all Angels in the Christian calendar. Michael is top banana in the angel organization.
39. Guy friends : BROS
42. Like a few hours after midnight : WEE
43. Wait patiently : BIDE
46. Dark side : YIN. Best clue/answer of the day, in my ever-so-humble opinion.
47. Bill encl. : S.A.E. Your paper bills usually come with a self-addressed envelope for your payment.
48. Texas home of Hardin-Simmons University : ABILENE. Ah yes, that famous educational heavyweight institution. Home of the fearsome sporting Cowboys (and Cowgirls).
51. All Hallows' __ : EVE
54. "Four Quartets" poet : ELIOT. I find TSE's poetry to be a bit of a slog, to be honest.
56. Obsolescent PC component : CRT. The now-defunct cathode ray tube in the display.
57. With respect to : FOR. Really? I can't think of a sentence where I could interchange "with respect to" and "for" and have it sound correct. Anyone else?
60. Poke fun at : GIBE
61. New Orleans feature : LEVÉE. That e-acute is getting a workout today. You drive Chevys to levées, per Don Mclean
62. Self-defense spray : MACE. I carry a little can with me when I go hiking very early in the morning on a couple of my routes - there are two mountain lions who've staked a claim to the territory. They lie low during the day and hunt at night. I'm not sure how much use it would be, but it makes me feel better. This is the one who hunts near the Hollywood sign.
63. Skin : PELT
64. Salad green : CRESS
65. Rigel or Arcturus : STAR
66. Some lyric works : ODES
Down:
1. Tea ceremony participant : GEISHA
2. Results : UPSHOTS
3. Hanukkah symbol : MENORAH
4. Solidified, as plans : SET
5. Modern shortcuts : MACROS. Computer lingo.
6. Gets around : EVADES
7. "Never needs sharpening" brand : GINSU. I can never remember this, it's always crosses for me.
8. Tax form no. : S.S.N.
9. Project at the theater : SCREEN. The verb, not the noun form of "project".
10. "Airplane!" actor Robert : HAYS
11. Advertiser's purchase : AIRTIME
12. Become covered with rime : FROST UP. In Tennyson's Rime of the Ancient Mariner, did you know he tried out for a goalkeeper job but wasn't very good?
13. Drag behind : TOW
19. Physicist Fermi : ENRICO. He created the world's first nuclear reactor, poetically named "Chicago Pile 1".
24. Arduous jobs : SLOGS
25. Way out : DOOR
26. Action word : VERB
28. Cpl.'s superior : SGT.
33. Word to a captain : AYE
34. Support for the circus? : STILT
36. Is in store : AWAITS
37. Ford, but not Lincoln : VEEP. No "familiarly"?
38. Slightly : A BIT
39. Sports schedule advantage : BYE
40. Rosie, notably : RIVETER. If it's not going to be SPOKESCOW, it's going to be this.
41. Bob Marley song with the lyric "Let's get together and feel all right" : ONE LOVE
44. Put on a pedestal : DEIFIED
45. Raise up : ENNOBLE
47. Bike wheel parts : SPOKES. Not on this bike:
48. Where the Zambezi flows : AFRICA
49. Caustic : BITTER
50. "Snowy" birds : EGRETS
53. Showiness : ÉCLAT
55. Gets done in a bakery : ICES
58. Utah metropolis, initially : S.L.C.
59. The U.K.'s Pitt the Elder and Pitt the Younger : P.M.'S. Prime Ministers in the 1700's.
60. Mail hub: Abbr. : G.P.O. General Post Office. This is my local post office. I'm not sure what the turrets are for!
And ... here's the grid.
Steve
18A. *Steinbeck novel set in Monterey : CANNERY ROW. Cow. Beautiful part of the state, although it wouldn't have looked quite so charming in Steinbeck's time. The locals seemed friendly though.
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23A. *Starter : HORS D'OEUVRE. Horse. Pedantically speaking (who, me?) one of a number of appetizers before the meal, not a starter.
35A. *China server : GRAVY BOAT. Goat. Many gravy boats are quite startling examples of kitsch. This, one, for example. Do a Google search and see what you think of the man-eating tiger variations.
52A. *Refinery job : PIPE FITTING. Pig. "Red sky at night, the refinery's alight". Refineries have lots of pipes which require fitting, I guess.
58A. Wall Street announcement ... or a hint to the circled letters : STOCK SPLIT.
G'day! Neat enough theme from Gareth. He likes to toss a couple of African references into his puzzles - we've got CAIRO and AFRICA (and African in the CAIRO clue) so check that box.
MEGS/SHO/RDS/SEPT/SAE/CRT/SSN/SGT/SLC/PMS/GPO felt like a lot of abbreviations - probably no more than the norm, it just felt like a couple too many.
Let's see what else we've got.
Across:
1. Teeth setting : GUMS
5. Parts of gigs : MEGS. Lots of bytes. When I started out in the computer industry, an IBM mainframe disk drive had a capacity of around 320Mb and cost somewhere north of $100,000. The solid-state disk that I put in my laptop has a capacity of two terabytes (almost 7,000 times as much) and cost less than $900.
9. Golf club part : SHAFT. I'd like to see a tournament where the pros use old-style clubs with hickory shafts, and persimmon heads on the woods.
14. Parrier's tool : EPÉE
15. Rent-a-car choice : AVIS
16. African city that hosts an annual international film festival : CAIRO
17. Lacks being : ISN'T
20. "Homeland" airer, briefly : SHO. Showtime on pay TV.
21. GPS options : RDS.
22. Stick homes : NESTS
27. "__ the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" : IT'S
29. Stumped : AT A LOSS
30. Viennese "a" : EIN
31. Ale serving : MUG
32. "Git!" : SHOO
33. Story __ : ARC
34. Michaelmas mo. : SEPT. September 29th is the feast day of St. Michael and all Angels in the Christian calendar. Michael is top banana in the angel organization.
39. Guy friends : BROS
42. Like a few hours after midnight : WEE
43. Wait patiently : BIDE
46. Dark side : YIN. Best clue/answer of the day, in my ever-so-humble opinion.
47. Bill encl. : S.A.E. Your paper bills usually come with a self-addressed envelope for your payment.
48. Texas home of Hardin-Simmons University : ABILENE. Ah yes, that famous educational heavyweight institution. Home of the fearsome sporting Cowboys (and Cowgirls).
51. All Hallows' __ : EVE
54. "Four Quartets" poet : ELIOT. I find TSE's poetry to be a bit of a slog, to be honest.
56. Obsolescent PC component : CRT. The now-defunct cathode ray tube in the display.
57. With respect to : FOR. Really? I can't think of a sentence where I could interchange "with respect to" and "for" and have it sound correct. Anyone else?
60. Poke fun at : GIBE
61. New Orleans feature : LEVÉE. That e-acute is getting a workout today. You drive Chevys to levées, per Don Mclean
62. Self-defense spray : MACE. I carry a little can with me when I go hiking very early in the morning on a couple of my routes - there are two mountain lions who've staked a claim to the territory. They lie low during the day and hunt at night. I'm not sure how much use it would be, but it makes me feel better. This is the one who hunts near the Hollywood sign.
63. Skin : PELT
64. Salad green : CRESS
65. Rigel or Arcturus : STAR
66. Some lyric works : ODES
Down:
1. Tea ceremony participant : GEISHA
2. Results : UPSHOTS
3. Hanukkah symbol : MENORAH
4. Solidified, as plans : SET
5. Modern shortcuts : MACROS. Computer lingo.
6. Gets around : EVADES
7. "Never needs sharpening" brand : GINSU. I can never remember this, it's always crosses for me.
8. Tax form no. : S.S.N.
9. Project at the theater : SCREEN. The verb, not the noun form of "project".
10. "Airplane!" actor Robert : HAYS
11. Advertiser's purchase : AIRTIME
12. Become covered with rime : FROST UP. In Tennyson's Rime of the Ancient Mariner, did you know he tried out for a goalkeeper job but wasn't very good?
"IT is the ancient Mariner
and he stoppeth one of three"
13. Drag behind : TOW
19. Physicist Fermi : ENRICO. He created the world's first nuclear reactor, poetically named "Chicago Pile 1".
24. Arduous jobs : SLOGS
25. Way out : DOOR
26. Action word : VERB
28. Cpl.'s superior : SGT.
33. Word to a captain : AYE
34. Support for the circus? : STILT
36. Is in store : AWAITS
37. Ford, but not Lincoln : VEEP. No "familiarly"?
38. Slightly : A BIT
39. Sports schedule advantage : BYE
40. Rosie, notably : RIVETER. If it's not going to be SPOKESCOW, it's going to be this.
41. Bob Marley song with the lyric "Let's get together and feel all right" : ONE LOVE
44. Put on a pedestal : DEIFIED
45. Raise up : ENNOBLE
47. Bike wheel parts : SPOKES. Not on this bike:
48. Where the Zambezi flows : AFRICA
49. Caustic : BITTER
50. "Snowy" birds : EGRETS
53. Showiness : ÉCLAT
55. Gets done in a bakery : ICES
58. Utah metropolis, initially : S.L.C.
59. The U.K.'s Pitt the Elder and Pitt the Younger : P.M.'S. Prime Ministers in the 1700's.
And ... here's the grid.
Steve
Notes from C.C.:
1) The fifth Minnesota Crossword Tournament will be held at the Landmark Center in St. Paul on June 12th, 2016 Sunday. Please click here for more details. Here is the direct registration link. Entry fee is only $20 per person.
Don G and I teamed up again this year. Other contributors (all LAT/NYT constructors) include George Barany, Victor Barocas (also our editor), Tom Pepper, Andrea Carla Michaels, David Liben-Lowell, Michael David, Johanna Fenimore, Andrew J Ries and our own Jeffrey Wechsler, who is flying from New Jersey to volunteer for the event.
2) Peg Slay (C6D6 Peg on our blog) and I made today's WSJ "Play Ball" puzzle. You can click here to print out the PDF file.
1) The fifth Minnesota Crossword Tournament will be held at the Landmark Center in St. Paul on June 12th, 2016 Sunday. Please click here for more details. Here is the direct registration link. Entry fee is only $20 per person.
Don G and I teamed up again this year. Other contributors (all LAT/NYT constructors) include George Barany, Victor Barocas (also our editor), Tom Pepper, Andrea Carla Michaels, David Liben-Lowell, Michael David, Johanna Fenimore, Andrew J Ries and our own Jeffrey Wechsler, who is flying from New Jersey to volunteer for the event.
2) Peg Slay (C6D6 Peg on our blog) and I made today's WSJ "Play Ball" puzzle. You can click here to print out the PDF file.
Congratulations
to Peg on her WSJ debut! She's so talented & fast-thinking. I'm
inspired by her attention to details & intuition as well. Thank you
for a wonderful collaborative experience, Peg!
 |
| Peg & her husband Steve |
ReplyDeleteThank you Gareth and thank you Steve.
Started in the SW to bisect the puzzle on the diagonal. First fill was SLC and second was STOCK SPLIT. Didn't have the circles. The certain clues had asterisks, but I didn't pay attention to those either. Got on a roll quickly and didn't want to slow down. It was all over way too early.
The name “Hardin” comes up a lot in connection to Texas universities....
BTW, it was James G and Mary Hardin. No relation as far as I can tell to John Wesley Hardin, whose father was John G.
"And, with respect to item # 4 in this litany of petitions..."
"And, for item # 4 in this litany of petitions..."
I agree about the YIN clue being the best of the day. I got the Y only from BYE and briefly wondered why "Dark side = YIN." Then the penny dropped.
I noticed a dog walker carrying what appeared to be a tall aerosol can. It was Wasp spray. It claims to shoot a stream out to 20 feet. There have been 2 pit bulls attacks against other dogs this year. Not sure how effective that would be on a mountain lion. Like mace, probably better than nothing.
{A, A, B, B.}
ReplyDeleteThere once was a COW in LOVE with a HORSE,
A crime against nature, but hard to enforce!
They were wed by a GOAT
Who wore a frock coat,
But then the STOCK SPLIT, and got a divorce!
The General Post Office has capable bots
Who sort the mail right, with very few knots.
But bots are challengers
For swimsuit calendars,
As opposed to the human U.P.S. HOTS!
There once was a sailor from ABILENE
Who never before had an ocean seen.
"I'd sailed only a GRAVY
BOAT, 'fore the Navy,
But it sure looked more fun on the TV SCREEN!
Rosie preceded her career as a RIVETER
By first becoming a union PIPE FITTER.
But some thought her plumbing
Was too unbecoming,
Though they liked the way the coveralls fit her!
FIR! Lots of stumbles, but all corrected by perps before the bell! Without the circles or reveal, I wouldn't have guessed the theme, but either one alone would have sufficed! Both was maybe overkill.
ReplyDeleteI once had a friend who, when asked his age, always put on an Irish accent and replied "I'm as old as me GUMS, and a wee bit older than me teeth!"
You have no idea how difficult it is to write a poem about a HORSE without echoing the catchiest theme song in TV history!
Owen poem one is one of your best. Thanks for the continuing efforts.
ReplyDeleteHarden-Simmons has been in the news and does have both Dan Blocker and Fess Parker as alumni. They also do well in small college sports.
Since Gareth is a veterinarian, the theme was very amusing.
Steve, I agree there were many short fill and while the African/ Africa dupe should not be there it might not be Gareth who wrote the clue.
In South Florida many menus refer to the appetizers as "starters" so that did not slow me down.
C.C. soon we will need to list those you have not collaborated with. Congratulations on the WSJ Peg.
Almost to the holiday weekend, enjoy.
Morning, all!
ReplyDeleteBit of a SLOG for me today, I must admit. The lack of circles didn't help, but it also probably didn't hurt any and I was actually able to go back after getting the theme reveal and locate the STOCK all on my own.
I agree that seeing AFRICA in both a clue and an answer was a bit odd.
Thank heavens I finally taught myself how to spell HORS D'OEUVRE! It helps immensely to know that it's literally French for "outside the work". Then I just have to remember the French words for "outside" and "work".
It somehow managed to hit close to 90 yesterday, after weeks of cool weather. The weather forecast for today states a high of only 74, but the actual description says "highs in the mid 80s", so I'm not sure what to expect...
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteTeeth setting = BITE. Parts of gigs = SETS. And I was off and stumbling this morning. Hooray for Wite-Out! Still, I finished in good time. I was thinking JIBE ("to agree") rather than GIBE ("poke fun at") -- learning moment. Thanks, Gareth.
"If it's not going to be SPOKESCOW..." Steve, has there ever been a Rosie the cow????
I stumbled out the gate in the NW and never got is. I knew GEISHA but I misread Parrier as 'Farrier' and thinking of shoeing a horse, EPEE never even entered my mind, especially after I misspelled MENORAH as 'MINORAH'. But GUMS was so obvious. Doh! I was thinking GEAR. The rest was smooth sailing.
ReplyDeleteC.C.- It's nice to see the DOW up over 350 points and see your name on page B6. Let's hope it's not a harbinger for a 350 point drop today.
Steve- not cougars of the four-legged species around here; just the bipedal cougars.
Gareth- I 'hate' you but keep up the challenges because you always seem to stump me on something simple.
On the easy side for a Thursday.
ReplyDeleteRe: "57[A]. With respect to : FOR. Really? I can't think of a sentence where I could interchange "with respect to" and "for" and have it sound correct. Anyone else?"
ReplyDelete"I came for dinner." /// "I came with respect to dinner."
"I am here for my root canal." /// "I am here with respect to my root canal."
Slightly awkward, but do-able.
I believe the "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" was written by Samuel Taylor Coleridge and not Tennyson.
ReplyDelete"MEGS/SHO/RDS/SEPT/SAE/CRT/SSN/SGT/SLC/PMS/GPO felt like a lot of abbreviations...."
ReplyDelete--I agree.
"With respect to" is not a good clue for "for". I understand it, but I can't consider it a good clue.
The circles seemed unnecessary today.
Still don't understand 33A. Story arc. Got it with perps.
ReplyDeleteIf you are going to have an "Ear-Worm" rolling around your brain ...
ReplyDeleteWell Bob Marley's ONE LOVE is OK FOR me.
Gareth: Thank You for a FUN Thursday puzzle. Enjoyed the STOCK-SPLIT theme.
Cheers!
Never could make sense of Don McLean's lines about the levee, then it occurred that a levee is also a reception or party given in the morning, now I wonder if that's what he's talking about.
ReplyDeleteHi Y'all! I usually am on Gareth's wave-length so this was an easier than usual Thurs. but difficult. Did the puzzle on Mensa then had to go to the LAT link for circles. Though it was amusing. Thanks, Gareth & Steve.
ReplyDeleteThought when I had HORS, it would be HORSe racing which goes with a "starter" very well. This is that season. I will never remember how to spell HORS D'OEUVRE if I live to be 90.
The last fill: MACROS/MEGS cross took a red-letter run for the "M" since I'm mega-illiterate in computerese. I though GIGS was a musical job booking. My granddaughter went "pro" as a jazz musician for a paid gig instead of to her prom. The three old guys she plays sax with gave her $10. She was as thrilled as if it had been $500. (Okay, maybe she'd have been more thrilled if it were more.)
ICES again! This is chilling.
Didn't know HAYS or Marley's song. ESP
Hardin-Simmons U. was a gimmee. I lived a year near Abilene, Texas, and spent all my recreational time in that town.
Congratulations, Peg & C.C. on your collaboration. C.C., you must be almost a full-time constructor -- so prolific!
Awake all night with storms going through. Ready to sleep, but I hear thunder again. My larder is almost bare, I had to order a pizza last night. Hope we get a dry day so I can grocery shop. Can't complain though since we didn't get blown away.
BIDE and AWAITS describe my hesitations at certain fill. But I loved seeing ENNOBLE, DEIFIED, and ECLAT. Then I was certain GINSU was spelled with a Z but the S prevailed and EAST OF EDEN fit as well as CANNERY ROW so that held up my progress for a while. Thanks to my trusty eraser, all was corrected.
ReplyDeleteAnd I spelled HORS D'OEUVRE right! Shout out to my late aunt Angela who was a RIVETER.
Had no idea about ABILENE or Texas Hardin-Simmons U but with three letters in, it was easy to guess. As for GIBE, that was one of my hesitations and I chose the wrong one, jibe. Drat! It's a BITTER truth.
Knowing that Gareth is a vet made the STOCK round up very amusing.
Will someone please explain how BYE is a schedule advantage in sports. TIA Saying BYE to the opponent?
Thank you, Gareth and Steve with respect to the good entertainment today!
Have a lovely day, everyone!
Ooops! Dropped two final "T's" on "thought" above. Well, at least the result wasn't off-color.
ReplyDeleteNow raining hard. The state dept. of ag has released a statement that there is no area of drought in our state. There is also no way my farmers can get in the wet fields to plant corn or soybeans. I keep telling guys they need to look into aerial seeding. I just get groans.
Hello Puzzlers -
ReplyDeleteEasy romp today. I was a bit surprised when the letters O-U-E showed up in a row, but it made sense when it became apparent we were headed for French. Not as much fun as horse duver, though :-) !
My dad was at the University of Chicago at the same time as Enrico Fermi and the rest of that bunch. He told me he used to skate under the stadium bleachers, until quite suddenly the area was off limits because of something called an atomic pile.
Morning, Steve, I gather you did not photograph the surprised-looking lion.
Wow, two clangers today. Thank you @D-O for pointing out that the spokescow is not Rosie, and @Anon the correct author of the poem. Now I'll go and fire my editor.
ReplyDeleteGood morning everyone.
ReplyDeleteSteve makes a good point. Lots of abbreviations. On the other hand the stock split schtick made filling in some of the circles easy and sped the solve along. The UPSHOT was a relatively easy solve for a Thursday. Always want to spell GINSU with a z.
ENRICO - re: pile. I think it is French for reactor. Also their word for battery.
STAR - A gimme. Rigel is in Orion; Arcturus is in Boötes. Arcturus and Spica in Virgo can be found by following the ARC southward from the handle of the big dipper.
Lucina, big sports fan here to explain BYE. Top-seeded teams (or individuals) in a tournament may be given a pass (a BYE), and not have to participate in first-round play. That's one match they don't have to win.
ReplyDeleteA bit of a struggle today, but it is a Thursday, and being the mediocre CWer that I am, it is usually the day of the week my struggles begin. When I was younger, I could do Monday through Saturday, though Saturday took a bit longer. In my seventies now, and Thursday is when my struggles now begin. Dang! Anyway, had a couple of errors like EXIT instead of DOOR, but eventually got 'er done. Thanx for the challenge, Gareth, and thanx for the terrific write-up, Steve!! Owen, A, C, B, B. I agree that your first was the funniest. I love your daily limericks. Please don't take offence when I rate one a "C"; remember, I can't do them at all!! But you did, at one point, ask for ratings, there there ya go.
ReplyDeleteGood morning, folks. Thank you, Gareth Bain, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Steve, for a fine review.
ReplyDeleteGood "Blondie" comic strip today in the Chicago Tribune. Crossword theme.
Got through the puzzle a little easier than most Thursdays for me. Got the theme after a while. My paper, the Trib, had the circles.
Quite a few inkblots for me, however, as I worked through it. Spelled HORS D OEUVRE wrong the first pass. GINSU fixed that. Tried KEG for 31A. MUG appeared later. Tried FROSTED for 12D. FROST UP came with SEPT. Tried PIPE FITTERS for 52A. PIPE FITTING came with some vertical perps. Tried PEEL for 63A. PELT appeared after a bit. Tried WMS (Williams) for 59D. PMS appeared with STOCK SPLIT. OK, enough about my ink wastage.
Had GEISHA the other day.
Was not sure of the spelling for RIVETER, so held off until I had ELIOT. Saved a little ink.
I also cannot figure out Story ARC for 33A. Got it with perps. Any help?
I have my Crossing Guard luncheon in one hour. Have to get ready. See you tomorrow.
Abejo
Hi Gang -
ReplyDeleteLucina - Sometimes a sports tournament has an odd number of participants, so the top seed sits out the first round while the others fight it out. This is called a BYE. Also in the NFL each team gets a BYE week in the middle 2/3 of the season. This isn't an advantage per se, but it does offer a chance to rest and recuperate.
Owen - your stock split lim is magnificent!
Bob N - A story arc is the unfolding of the plot across episodes or chapters, depending on the medium.
Of course I had SETS as parts of gig, and so was AT A LOSS for quite some time. Completing the N Central was the last part of this SLOG. COW gave me the animal part of the theme, and that helped. The very clever STOCK SPLIT came later.
HORS Whattevah . . . The spelling is completely baffling.
Tough Thus, but a fair challenge. Nicely done Gareth
Thanks for the exposition, Steve. Were you thinking of Elsie the COW?
Cool regards!
JzB
Puzzle was alright, but Owen's limericks are terrific!
ReplyDeletea DNF for me...could not reason ANY letter to complete FOR crossing ENNOBLE. Enjoyed the puzzle Gareth, although I never got the theme. Thanks Steve for the write up.
ReplyDeleteNot on Gareth's wavelength today. Way too many misdirections, to wit: 1a Teeth setting = edge, of course. Parts of gigs (musical term that I usually associate with Jazz)= jams, of course. 60 a/d jIBE or GIBE? Really wanted APO going down, but what the heck is aIBE? Thought both forms of Gibe were spelled with a J but went with G because GPO looked better than JPO. Tada! Well done, Gareth, you almost got me. Clever puzzle that was a lot of fun to solve. Steve, shake off those two clangers. This was a wise and witty expo, as we have come to expect from you. The only way to never make a mistake is to never do anything. You, on the other hand, are putting your efforts out there every week in front of a very erudite and discerning audience. You always do a darn good job of it. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteOwen, todays limericks were all good, but that first one is a gem. Thank you.
There's some kind of big bright light in the sky around here. Think I'll call 911.
Cya!
According to my fish wrap:
ReplyDeleteIn 1971, Don McClean recorded his song "American Pie" at The Record Plant in NYC. It was released the following November by United Artists Records.
Coinky dinky.
Forgot to add:
ReplyDeleteOn this date in 1971...
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteThis was a DNF due to megs/macro crossing. I couldn't get beyond thinking gigs were entertainment related and wasn't familiar with macros being shortcuts. I thought some of the cluing was a bit odd, With respect to=for, being one. As others have mentioned, Ginsu and hors doeuvres were a challenge. I found this more difficult than usual for a Thursday, but maybe that's just me.
Thank you, Gareth, for the mental workout and thanks, Steve, for the guided tour. I thought of you this morning when the newscaster showed a young man who had climbed up and was standing on top of the Hollywood sign. The men in blue were waiting for his descent!
PK, I thought of you every time the weather report showed those horrifie tornados. Glad to hear you're safe and sound but sorry to hear that you're allergic to lobster. Can't even imagine not being able to enjoy one of my favorite foods. ACK!
Owen and Spitz from yesterday: According to Mr. G., Eire is pronounced "Air a". Learning moment for me as I've always thought it was "Ire."
Congrats to Peg and CC on the WSJ publication! (I wonder when CC sleeps!)
I'm a little grouchy today because the newspaper cancellation fiasco continues. After another round on the phone yesterday, I finally got them to stop delivery but, so far, the charge to my credit card has not been removed. Adding to that frustration, I received my bed sheets order from Macy's and they are the wrong color. Oh well, into one's life a little rain must fall! End of rant.
Have a great day.
Or: Once in awhile one gets 'Covrred with RIME'
DeleteThank you, desper-otto and JazzB. Now that makes sense. I find many sports terms baffling.
ReplyDeleteIrish Miss:
I feel your pain! It's so frustrating to have one's order mixed up. Are you going to keep the sheets?
Owen:
I failed to mention how witty your limericks are today, especially the first! A+
Fun puzzle today byGareth! Thanks for the journey. Last to fall was the SE, with GPO and GIBE.
ReplyDeleteThanks Steve, for a great write-up!
On the WSJ puzzle, I commend C.C. for all of her hard work, selflessness, and inspiration. Thank you so much C.C. for all you do for all the rest of us! You're the best!
I had a hard time with this one, as I would expect from it being a Gareth Bain work and it being a Thursday, but I just couldn't particularly like it. Maybe it's because I felt some of the clues were just weird and there were so many 3-letter abbreviations.
ReplyDeleteOwen, a terrific limerick today.
Steve, I would not want a man-eating tiger gravy boat on my table. Ugly, man!
Best wishes to you all.
Well, I really enjoyed working on this puzzle and hoped against hope that I got the whole thing--but 'twas not to be. I too figured a gig was a musical event and so went with SEGS (thinking of 'segments'). Of course SACROS made no sense at all for "Modern shortcuts" but computers didn't occur to me. I also goofed on "Dark side" by putting SIN instead of YIN. Guess that was my Catholic upbringing kicking in, and since I would never have gotten BYE, there I was.
ReplyDeleteBut I still got lots of stuff like CANNERY ROW and ELIOT, of course. And MENORAH, and all the theme answers and the cute animal theme. So, many thanks, Gareth, and you too, Steve, for your always great write-up.
So sorry to hear about all the frustrations, Irish Miss. Some days are just like that, aren't they? Hang in there.
Congratulations, Peg!
Have a great Thursday, everybody!
The puzzle lost out to 18 holes with my soon-to-be 14-yr-old grandson who is now hitting the ball about as far as I am. What a glorious time! I finished the puzzle just now and it was fun but we are off for a drive through the Fremont State Lakes to see all the tin cans people are going to be living in over Memorial Day. Will read you wit and wisdom later.
ReplyDeleteLucina @ 11:31 - I really don't want to keep the sheets as they are gray (sort of blah) as opposed to the pretty, soft shade of green that I wanted. I don't know if I clicked on the wrong color when I placed the order, or if they made an error. It really doesn't matter but I don't relish the thought of a trip to Macy's to return or exchange them.
ReplyDeleteUpdate: As the credit from the newspaper was still absent from my credit card statement, I called them to inquire why. The answer: Refunds are processed only on Wednesdays and since today is Thursday, my refund will be made NEXT Wednesday. I was too exasperated to point out that I cancelled yesterday which was Wednesday and was told it would be processed that afternoon. The cynic in me thinks this is just an intentional delay to hang onto my $100.00 for 7 more days.
Thanks for the commiseration, Misty. You, too, Lucina.
Tough but worth it.
ReplyDeleteSo many of today's answers could have been other fills of equal length, so this depended greatly on perps. My only cheat was to look up 5A, MEGS, to confirm it after the fact, as "Parts of gigs" could have been SETS or several other shorties. After that I stayed true to the hunt, and kept my solving true and pure.
Lots of spelling-bee words, not that we haven't seen them before, but that their exact letters challenge us-- like GIBE for JIBE, HORS D'OEUVRE, and how many Ns in ENNOBLE or Ts in RIVETER? And I never remember which is dark between the YIN and the YAN(G).
A strange echo popped into my brain. When I filled the letters GPO, I recalled instantly a certain General Post Office of historic significance. When we were in Dublin I had to visit the GPO on O'Connell Street. It still boasts the original Georgian facade although most of the rest was burned to the ground during the 1916 Easter Rebellion.
The "echo" I mentioned above was of an old record I had of a play by the great Sean O'Casey (either The Plough and the Stars or Shadow of a Gunman), in which a character is describing the rebellion as it takes place. Looking out his window, he sees the Fenian boyos with arms and grenades all gathering at the main door: "Here's twenty more," he says, "and there must be a hundred coming over the bridge, and now a couple dozen on horseback. --
Sure, they're not all lining up to buy stamps."
Got CRT and MACROS, but somehow got caught up on MEGS. Didn't make the connection between "gigs" and gigabytes.
ReplyDeleteAgnes: Maybe one consolation is that you won't know what color those sheets are if you are asleep. I know the frustration though. Three of the four orders I've made lately have been an unwearable size and I can't figure how to mail them back. I console myself that the rescue mission to which I will probably donate them has been asking for these items. However, they've been sending me letters wondering why I haven't made my annual monetary donation.
ReplyDeleteI managed to get four hours of sleep before hail began pounding my roof again. We've had wave after wave of storms again today. We are now having our third session of hail, rain & lots of thunder since noon. Weather men have shown tornados on radar and a possible one touched down where it did no damage. Tornado sirens went off once which always speeds the ol' heart rate -- as near to cardio as I get anymore. One good thing, on TV my former home county didn't show any storms where they had the funeral of my DIL's 99 1/2-yr-old grandmother. RIP sweet lady! She was saintly enough to maybe part the storms, I thought.
A Story ARC is used mostly in TV to describe the plot when it extends over several episodes. Also in books, movies, anytime the plot is not contained in the one episode/book/film, whatever.
ReplyDeleteKind of a crunchy Thursday but it all came together.
@Ol' Man Keith - my paternal grandfather was one of the "boyos' shooting holes in the Post Office in Dublin. When things got a little too hot for his liking he disappeared to England, eventually becoming an Alderman in the city of Warrington, near Liverpool. He passed away in the 1930's and I came across a digitized copy of his obituary in the Catholic "Universe" newspaper a couple of years ago. I was highly amused to read that in 1915 he joined up to fight with the fledgling RAF - of course he was nowhere near the Air Force, he was fighting the British for Irish independence, but of course back in those days fact-checking was a little harder.
ReplyDeleteSteve,
ReplyDeleteAll things Irish have taken on a new significance for me. For my b'day, my wife gave me the DNA spit test - and I turn out to be over half Irish! I've always fancied Ireland and the Irish, and have visited several times, both the Free state and Ulster. But (a big BUT) our "official"family tree (the one passed down to me) told me I was teddibly English--family from Cornwall and Derbyshire, to be exact.
But now that science has proved that wrong, I can only speculate where some Leprechaunish genes managed to fool the marriage records! Anyway, glad to know your ancestor was active in the "troubles." As for me, I look forward to some hearty celebrating next St. Pat's Day!
OMK - Your post jarred my memory of the exchange between one of my nieces and her 3rd grade teacher, Sister so and so. It was St. Patrick's Day and the good sister was asking the children about their heritage. My niece politely and proudly said, "Sister, I am half Lebanese and half Leprechaun! ☘
ReplyDeleteHi all!
ReplyDeleteA long day just finished up. If you read the paper and know me, you know why.
I did the puzzle while waiting on MEGS coming from CAIRO, you know, in AFRICA. C.C. & Peg - I started yours but the gigs were done - so far so fun.
Gareth you got me again. Not only did I have to look up how to spell 23a, but I J/G'd too! Enjoyed it and caught the theme w/ only 18a and nailed 58a early on. Been to CANNERY ROW; cool history and cool tech (for the day) to can the sardines coming in at all times of day.
Steve - Back-to-back dinggers w/ JzB! (even w/ the 'clangers.'). Thanks mate. Look out for all three types of Cougars. [UofH are the Cougars too].
I didn't read past 11a w/r/t the Blog today (FOR can't go there w/o being Clangy) but I'll catch up tomorrow.
IM - Me too on ire pronunciation. FOR your sheets, ISNT life a bugger? [nope, FOR doesn't work there either]
OKL A++ on #1; second + for Puzzlepropos-ness.
I hope a ride the GRAVY BOAT soon; work will be bumpy for a spell.
Cheers, -T
Anonymous -T: there have been 2 Tony C.s in the news --
ReplyDeleteAirport Director at Bangor (Maine) International Airport
Resources Industry Network (RIN) chairman for Queensland, Australia
Which one was you?
Well we're one year away from the famous TinyC bearing in Boston Aug 2nd I think, 1967. Reason won the pennant anyway. Yep TINSU wasn't getting it and then I recalled that ubiquitous advert. I had thought of MEGS and MACROS finally said in. Kudo's to Owen on those limericks.
ReplyDeleteI think it's EIRland. Thursday is a good level for me.
Once again, no circles in my puzzle. But after I set it aside after completion, I am happy to say I came back and got all four "stock splits"!
ReplyDeleteIt's always a pleasure to have a good theme during the week and not just on Sunday!