Theme: THREE LITTLE LETTERS. Each theme entry begins with a three letter combination that is repeated, in order, at the end of the entry. The closest I could come to a theme song is Three Little Words, Eight Little Letters. Sometimes you just have to make do. Take three minutes to give it a listen.
Hi Gang, JzB here, as you have probably already guessed. The Three Little words in the song are: "I love you." A bit of trivia I picked up researching this post is that it was also the name of a 1950 movie about Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. the guys who wrote the song. Ironically, they didn't like each other very much. My last blog also involved letters in threes. Maybe this is my new assignment. Let's delve into the theme.
17 A. *Process of electron gain or loss : IONIZATION. Chemistry or Physics? Either way, I get a charge out of it. Yes, I'm positive!
24 A. *Beneficial substance in berries : ANTIOXIDANT. Chemistry or Biology? Oxidation is a process that might or might not involve IONIZATION. Either way, an ANTIOXIDANT protects something else from being oxidized by getting oxidized itself. Greater love no molecule hath!
34 A. *Eating : INGESTING. Taking something, such as an ANTIOXIDANT into the body, by swallowing or absorption. Yet another physical process.
48. A *London subway system, with "the" : UNDERGROUND. Here we have a place about which I know very little. Maybe Steve can help. It is the main setting of Neil Gaiman's strange novel Neverwhere, in which people lost from normal society find an existence in an alternate reality.
57 A. Each answer to a starred clue begins and ends with identical ones : THREESOMES. A group of three people or things doing something together. What they are doing here is acting as bookends. What else can we find?
Across
1. Chickens (out) : WIMPS. Usually a noun, but one may WIMP out, so OK.
6. Lay eyes on : ESPY. This word, ultimately of germanic origin, comes to us via Old French. I remember my college German Professor remarking that Old French was Latin spoken badly by Germans. Compare to "spy."
10. Judge's setting : BAIL. Not a location, but a quantity of money set by the judge, paid to assure that an accused person does not run off.
14. Like kindling when lit : AFIRE. Flaming A-word.
15. Advil target : ACHE. Analgesic for pain relief.
16. Insulate, as a jacket : LINE. Install a layer of lining for added warmth.
19. Killer whale : ORCA. Aquatic predator.
20. Cereal with lemony lemon and orangey orange flavors : TRIX. As I recall, they're for kids.
21. Falling-out : RIFT. Can't we all just get along?
22. Bryn Mawr undergrads : WOMEN. This is a women's liberal arts college named for the Pennsylvania town in which it is located. The name means "Large hill" in Welsh.
23. Have a bawl : SOB. "Clever clue," he cried.
26. Lacking the skill : UNABLE. We all have our limits.
28. Not as much : LESS SO.
29. Katy who voiced Smurfette in "The Smurfs" : PERRY. I did not know that.
30. "Jeopardy!" creator Griffin : MERV. Nor that.
33. Takes off the shelf : USES. If one is able.
37. At the center of : AMID. Surrounded.
40. Compete in a sack : RACE. The infamous sack race.
41. Lets up : EASES.
45. Asian rice porridge : CONGEE. Never heard of it. Is it congealed?
47. Show up : ARRIVE. Make an appearance.
52. Bus. card info : TELephone number.
53. Highly recommends : TOUTS.
54. "Monday Night Countdown" airer : ESPN. All sports, all the time TV network.
55. Cruciverbalist Reagle of "Wordplay" : MERL. We all knew this - right? What you might not have known is that he retained all rights to his puzzles, and was thus able to make a living exclusively from puzzle construction. Sadly, he passed away in August, 2015 from a sudden onset of pancreatitis.
56. Danish shoe company : ECCO. A family-owned company founded in 1963. They opened their first retail outlet in 1982. Products, now including other leather goods, are sold in 14,000 sales points in 88 countries.
59. Big bunch : SLEW. Derived from the Irish word sluagh, mid 19th century.
60. Golf game spoiler : RAIN. Baseball, too.
61. Sailor's "Halt!" : AVAST.
62. Gull relative : TERN. Shore birds.
63. Start of a preschool song : ABCD. Four little letters? Probably not. Nor this one, I'm guessing.
64. __-Bismol : PEPTO. Pink stuff for an upset tummy.
Down
1. Watches late TV until a teen comes home, say : WAITS UP. Probably impatiently.
39. Ambien, vis-à-vis sleep : INDUCER. It aids in falling asleep, but not in staying there. But still can cause residual drowsiness the following morning.
That wraps up another Wednesday. Hope all your letters are lining up.
Cool Regards!
JzB
Note from C.C.:
Down
1. Watches late TV until a teen comes home, say : WAITS UP. Probably impatiently.
2. "From my perspective ... " : I FOR ONE.
3. Hotel room amenity : MINIBAR. Contains small, overpriced liquor bottles.
4. Amount to pay in Calais : PRIX. The French price.
5. "__ who?" : SEZ. Users of American slang, that's who.
6. Absorb the loss : EAT IT. More American slang, for taking a financial loss.
7. "The Martian" genre : SCI-FI. Science fiction.
8. Snapchat upload : PHOTO. Pictures.
9. Nikkei index currency : YEN. Japanese money
10. Diabetic's concern : BLOOD SUGAR. The amount of glucose present in the blood stream. Values outside the normal range can indicate a medical condition.
11. High behind a front, e.g. : AIR MASS. A body of air with horizontally uniform temperature, humidity and pressure.
12. Holy smoke : INCENSE. A substance burned for it's sweet aroma. As the clue indicates, it is often associated with solemn religious ceremonies.
13. Campsite shelters : LEAN-TOS. Simple structures composed of a slanted roof-wall, with or without 2 side walls. The fourth side is open, generally oriented away from the prevailing winds.
18. Former Education secretary Duncan : ARNE. Does anybody remember this man who served from 2009 through 2015? Does anyone know for sure which name goes first or last? It goes like this: ARNE Duncan.
22. Golfer Michelle : WIE. [b 1989] She announced she was turning pro a week before her 16th birthday, and joined the PGA tour in 2009. Here are some highlights from last year.
24. Kirk __, first movie Superman : ALYN. He appeared in serialized Superman movies in 1948 and 1950.
25. Last Super Bowl won by the Giants : XLVI. The game was played on Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Eli Manning was the MVP as the Giants beat the Patriots 21-17.
27. Capital of Barbados : BRIDGETOWN. Located at the southwest corner of this island nation. I had no clear idea of where Barbados is. It is the eastward-most of any island in that part of the world.
30. "Tell __ story" : ME A. Once upon a time . . .
31. PC key : ESCape.
32. MapQuest output: Abbr. : RTE. Way Frm Pt A to Pt B.
35. Oldest Brady boy : GREG. Played by Barry Williams
36. Geeky sort : NERD.
37. Most severe : ACUTEST. In this sense, experienced to an extreme degree. Is this word the awkwardest?
38. Accessory for Mr. Peanut : MONOCLE.
39. Ambien, vis-à-vis sleep : INDUCER. It aids in falling asleep, but not in staying there. But still can cause residual drowsiness the following morning.
42. Webpage index : SITE MAP.
43. "Into Thin Air" peak : EVEREST. Book and movie of the same name that attempt to recreate the disastrous events of a climb that occurred on May 10, 1966.
44. Does business with : SELLS TO. Or buys from.
46. Workplaces for LPNs : ERS. Licensed Practical nurses and Emergency Rooms.
47. Green Gables girl : ANNE. An 11-year-old orphan girl mistakenly sent to Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert, a brother and sister team who were expecting a boy to help on their Prince Edward Island Farm, in Lucy Montgomery's 1908 novel. The story has been adapted many times into movies and plays.
49. Post-op therapy : REHAB.
50. "Hamlet" courtier : OSRIC. A superficial, shallow and insincere plotter.
51. Flip over : UPEND.
55. Bit of chess action : MOVE. Almost - but not quite - always involves a single piece at a time.
57. __-la-la : TRA. Sing-song syllables.
58. Con man's target : SAP. An easy mark.
58. Con man's target : SAP. An easy mark.
That wraps up another Wednesday. Hope all your letters are lining up.
Cool Regards!
JzB
Note from C.C.:
1) Happy Birthday to dear Irish Miss, our loving & witty Agnes, who cares a lot about everyone on our little corner.
2) Happy Birthday also to Abejo (Bradley), who's always busy volunteering for various causes. Abejo is Persian for "beer". Bradley worked in Iran for a few years.
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| Eileen (sister of Agnes) & Agnes |
2) Happy Birthday also to Abejo (Bradley), who's always busy volunteering for various causes. Abejo is Persian for "beer". Bradley worked in Iran for a few years.
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Bradley and his Tuba, Church Fat Tuesday Event
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Greetings!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mark and Jazzbumpa!
Very nice theme!
Needed perp help with PERRY, CONGEE, AIR MASS, ALYN, SLVI, BRIDGETOWN AND OSRIC. A bit difficult for a Wednesday, I thought.
Happy Birthday to Irish Miss and Brad!
Have a great day!
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteNeeded Wite-Out in the NE and SW this morning. The judge wasn't setting [sic] on a BANC. And when looking for a 4-letter shoe company, second letter being C, I immediately inked in MCAN -- D'oh! All's well that ends well, I suppose.
Warning -- nerdy chemistry stuff ahead. ANTIOXIDANT evokes the use of Zinc Anodes as a form of "cathodic protection." Zinc ingots are attached to the bottom of floating drilling rigs. The ingots get "eaten" instead of the steel of the hull.
TRIX reminds me of a dumb joke which ends with, "Silly rabbi, kicks are for Trids!"
Happy Birthday, Agnes (IM) and Bradley (Abejo). Agnes, you've had quite a week!
Tough one for a Wednesday. The theme words were easy and after IONIZATION and ANTIOXIDANT, I was thinking 'Chemical' puzzle, not THREESOMES. I FOR ONE had some trouble in the NW with LESS SO (nobody says that), TRIX, PRIX & PERRY were WAGs. ALYN was a total unknown. OSRIC was perped.
ReplyDeleteMy final WAG was the cross of the unknown CONGEE with the Emergency Room. OR or ER. BRIDGETOWN was new to me but easy to guess from the available perps.
OXIDATION=lose electrons REDUCTION=gain electrons So an ANTIOXIDANT is really REDUCTION; oh, that can't be. That would mean 'Weight Loss'. So I guess that's why they don't call them 'Reducers' in the commercials.
Good Morning!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mark, for a fine Wednesday offering. I am the chief non-science person in this house, yet IONIZATION and ANTIOXIDANT rolled right out of my brain. It didn't provide much in the way of solving the theme, but it did in terms of crosses. Nice.
JazzB, thank you for a very detailed tour of today's opus. Nice info and links.
Irish Miss, well, you certainly are having a BIG week! Happy Birthday!
Abejo, Enjoy your Happy Day! I see you were at the end of the line for instruments in grade school. YEARS ago on Sesame Street Yo Yo Ma said it's important to get to the head of the line or you'll end up with a cello instead of a violin. ;^) So it was with my grandson, our cello player.
Even if it's raining where you are, have a sunny day!
Crunchy until I got going. Then three quarters of it was not that difficult. I got the bottom half first, so the reveal helped with the first two theme answers. NW was a bear with three unknowns intersecting, ALYN, PERRY, ARNE. It took many perps to dredge up BRIDGETOWN. BANC before BAIL. JzB, excellent expo.
ReplyDeleteWith CON I thought of CONGEE, somehow, but doubted it for quite a while. I dislike almost every type of porridge, including oatmeal. I like oatmeal in cookies and used oatmeal on Monday in making a pear crumble dessert which everyone at the dance loved.
Sleep inducers do not work for me. I can't sleep on a plane. If I get a little drowsy, someone walking up and down the isle always bumps me and I am wide awake.
Happy birthday, Abejo. I admire all your charitable activities and your boundless energy.
Happy birthday, sweet Agnes. You are becoming quite the puzzle constructor. Thank you for your supportive blogging.
Good morning all!
ReplyDeleteThanks Mark for a crunchy, clever puzzle! Like Big Easy, I thought it was a 'Chemical' theme until I got INGESTING, which made me think "hmm... maybe not." When I got UNDERGROUND, I finally saw the three letter combos at the beginning and end of the previous theme fills. Lots of nice long fills throughout and plenty of perps for me today.
Thanks JzB for your informative write up. I always enjoy the detailed tour you give!
My perps were: IONIZATION, PERRY, CONGEE, MERL, ALYN, ARNE, YEN and XLVI
I have a pair of ECCO clogs that my Mom bought for me years ago. So comfy and great to wear when I was on my feet all day working at the library. They are expensive- most of their shoes are over $100 but are so well made. Mine are still in great shape over 10 years later.
Speaking of the library: "Into Thin Air" was always very popular at our branch. I still haven't read this story about EVEREST.
I hadn't thought about Mapquest in years. In fact, I wondered if it's still used and found this article "For every 20 smartphone users who have Google maps, one has MapQuest's mobile app". I remember printing out their RTEs often and having a bunch of paper maps spread around the car :)
Sunny today- yay! But rain tonight and tomorrow with dropping temps. However, our weekend forecast looks to be wonderful.
Happy Birthday to Irish Miss and Abejo! Wishing you both a wonderful day! Great pictures, btw :)
Have a great day everyone!
Happy Birthday Irish Miss and Abejo ... My first Sunset Toast is to you two!
ReplyDeleteJazz: Wonderful write-up explaining my D-N-F Ink Blot.
The "West Coast" of the puzzle just wasn't on my "wave-length."
From BRIDGE TOWN over was filled in correctly. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.
BunnyM: When I read Into Thin Air I completed it in one sitting.
Just couldn't put it down ... and Yeah! I cried at the end ...
Hope everyone has a wonderful Hump Day.
Cheers!
Jazz, it was probably a typo ... but ...
ReplyDeleteInto Thin Air is about the May 1996 disaster.
(Not 1966)
ReplyDeleteGood day all. Thank you Mark and Jazzbumpa.
Happy Birthday wishes for both Irish Miss and Abejo !
Well nuts ! Was glad I worked my way out of the BRIDGElaWN mess. Bridgelawn sounds like the name of a neighborhood in Chicago, straddling Bridgeview and Oak Lawn.
Didn't get the TADA because of ACUTiST. Silly hasty mistake. I know the superlative ending is normally EST, and the ending for follower or practitioner of something is IST. Personally, I would say more acute for the comparative form, and most acute for the superlative form. ACUTER and ACUTEST just don't roll off the tongue for me.
I thought the London Subway System was called "The Tube."
16A: Insulate, as a jacket: LINE. Tank-type water heaters typically have a thin glass lining that insulates the metal tank from the water. Typically, they also have a sacrificial anode rod made of magnesium, aluminum, or an aluminum / zinc alloy for the same reason D-O mentioned.
JzB, those of us in Chicagoland remember Arne Duncan.
Good Morning everyone.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthdays to Irish Miss and Abejo,, I always look forward to your presence here.
Liked the 3 ltr fore 'n' aft theme to the puzzle. Knowing 2 or 3 letters on one end seconded as fill for the other end. I wonder if this puzzle was test solved to give it the right difficulty balance. Did not remember BRIDGETOWN at first but when the B from UNABLE landed, Bridgetown welled up from the depths of memory. Also had co-eds before WOMEN.
AVAST - Never heard it much; but one time in making a pier approach against a high wind, as we came within a few feet of of our mooring point, the captain began ordering 'AVAST' to the pusher tugs, but in the high wind nobody could hear him. Sigh. More work for the deck crew in painting out all the scrapes.
Hi Y'all! Difficult puzzle but kept plugging in letters here & there. Tada! Thanks, Mark & Jzb.
ReplyDeleteWEES except for all the chemical stuff. Read the reveal and took awhile to study out what he meant. Oh yeah, it sure does! Clever!
Happy birthday, Agnes & Abejo! I enjoy your posts.
Musings
ReplyDelete-Who got the theme?
-Pole vaulters must commit. They can’t WIMP out once they start down the runway
-AMID a SLEW of outrage at a too low BAIL, this judge changed
-My GI doc told me NO on taking nsaids like Advil after my operation
-Reality soon smacks kids who are UNABLE to adequately read or do math
-ERS or ORS did not help with the last letter of CONGEE (E sounded better)
-Some coaches don’t EASE UP when they are way ahead late in the game. Bad karma!
-My comments TOUTING the hotel we used last month
-ESPN also does the Scripps Spelling Bee
-Hotels frown on taking a Snickers from the MINIBAR and replacing it with a cheaper one
-A big Canadian AIR MASS is welcome here in July
-I swore off Ambien after the nightmares it INDUCED
-Because it’s there, I guess
-Police pull stings at liquor outlets to see who a clerk SELLS TO
-Happy Birthday to Agnes and Bradley! Do a lot of people call your instrument a tuba?
good morning all and a special HBDTY to Agnes and Bradley.
ReplyDeleteSussing the creative them was fun and it had a lot of new sparkly fill. I thought this was a challenge for a Wednesday puzzle. CONGEE is not a term that I have heard before, though we do eat many variations of KHAO TOM that Oo makes; all perps.
I enjoyed Bridgetown, Barabados when we visited there. We asked the taxi driver to take us to the best restaurant in town. We felt very comfortable as did the birds that came and sat on our table while we ate. They seemed particularly fond of the peas.
Nice reference to Merl Reagle.
Thanks Mark and Ron.
Hi gang -
ReplyDeleteTimbeni -Yes, that was a typo. I always proof read the entire write up at least twice before posting. You wouldn't believe the typos I make - quantity and variety. That one slipped past me.
HBD to our birthday kids.
Cool regards!
JzB
There were times when I used something from the minibar and replaced it with the exact same thing. No prob. These days you are billed for it immediately and returning it later does no good. I have learned to plan ahead and buy in advance. No room for impulse. Buying in the store is less expensive, anyway.
ReplyDeleteGood Morning:
ReplyDeleteI found this to be a tad crunchier than usual for a Wednesday and that could be because I had zero clue about the theme until filling in the reveal. Ionization and Antioxidant are not your garden-variety CW answers, so I was in the dark for quite awhile. Hand up for Coeds/Women but Arne was a gimme because he was on TV a lot and he always struck me as condescending and pompous. Osric appears often enough that I remember him but I never heard of Mr. Alyn. Congee is also familiar but I didn't know it was a porridge.
Thanks, Mark, for a mid-week challenge and interesting theme and thanks, JazB, for the equally interesting and informative write-up.
Thank you all for the birthday sentiments and kind words. This has been a special week, thanks to our very own CC's generous spirit and guidance. Thank you, CC.
Very Happy Birthday wishes to my fellow celebrant, Abejo! ���������� Hope you have a wonderful day.
Have a great day.
I'm using a new browser which might explain why my emojis showed up as ???????
ReplyDeleteLet's try again. 🎂🎁🎈🍾🎉
Much better, Abejo! Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteOh well, two out of three Wags ain't bad....
ReplyDeleteThreesome?
HBD Irish Miss!
HBD Abejo!
Earlier to the party today. Enjoyed this puzzle and write-up - thanks Mark and JazzB.
ReplyDeleteThe NE was the last to fall partly because I insisted on spelling INCENSE the Canadian way with two Cs. Will I never learn?!
Perps corrected Bridgeport to BRIDGETOWN. Our Air Canada flight touched down there on flights to and from St. Lucia.
Perps were also needed for ARNE and ALYN.
I noted ESPY and ESPN.
Did Katy PERRY ROAR when she voiced Smurfette?
We have SCI FI today, not PSI PHI.
Like Superbowl XLVI, the Final Four and National Championship basketball games were played at Lucas Oil Stadium last weekend.
I associated CONGEE with eel and was confused until I googled and found all these references to Eel porridge. I'm not sure that my stomach could face that in the morning.
LOL HG re Canadian AIR MASS in July.
I mentioned recently that CBC has a new series called ANNE which is about Anne of Green Gables. They have added scenes that are not in the book but are true to the story and bring out some of the possible stark background of Anne's life. Worth watching if you can find it on Netflix in May.
Happy Birthday to Agnes and Bradley.
Have a great day everyone.
L.A. Timeso paper edition still has "ATTENTION" in the line for the "by" line. This has been going on for several days. Anyone have any idea why?
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday, Agnes and Bradley! I hope you celebrate in style.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jzb, for telling us about science processes which, of course, went right over my head. However, I knew ARNE, BRYN MAWR, MERV, ECCO($$$) and CONGEE. I've seen that porridge in other puzzles but didn't realize exactly what it is. In the 70s I watched The College Bowl and learned the names of many colleges including BRYN MAWR. It was hosted by Betty White's late husband, Allen Ludden. MERL Reagle was a given.
As for Super Bowl XLVI, that was completely perped but I WAGGED ESPN.
This was an entertaining romp, thanks to Mark MacLacln. And many thanks, again, to Jazzbumpa, for you witty commentary.
Have a joyful day, everyone!
Inexcusable typos. I'll try again. Thanks to Mark MacLaclan and to JZB for your witty commentary.
ReplyDeleteCED ~ Thank you for always finding the "purr-fect" birthday cake!
ReplyDeleteGood morning all,
ReplyDeleteA crunchy start for me, but luckily I knew all but 2 of those 9 names which aided me with those bookends. Never did get the theme. How very clever, Mark!
A very happy birthday to Irish Miss and Abejo. Thanks for posting pictures, Bumpa. Sweet one of you and your sister, Agnes.
It pays in the long run to purchase well made shoes like Ecco. I buy mostly Clarks, but recently tried Cobb Hill. I can comfortably take long walks in them without donning my sneakers.
Wishing you all springtime weather. Is anyone else transfixed on April the giraffe?
Hello Puzzlers -
ReplyDeleteToday's was another of those themes that leave me amazed at what constructors can come up with. Nicely done!
Thanks JzB, I hope you'll someday get a chance to ride around London on the Tube. At some of the stations you'll be treated to the famous "Mind the gap!" warning. Worth a Google, I'd say...
HBTY IM and Abejo.
I remember my first day caddying in a drenching rain for 18 holes. I loved that$5.00 regardless. Puddles on the green make for a DNF.
ReplyDeleteIF OR ONE??? Then it hit me.
HBDs. I enjoyed the write-up today.
Who can recommend a good place for congee in Natick?
ReplyDeleteWell, this was a Wednesday toughie for me, but I'm glad I stuck with it, and in the end got it with only one small cheat. Many thanks, Mark, although, sadly, your name wasn't on the puzzle in the LA Times this morning--a problem we've now had every day this week. Ol' Man Keith got in touch with the Times yesterday to ask them to fix it, but no result this morning. I just e-mailed them at calendar@latimes.com myself to ask them to please fix this dumb problem. We folks on the blog love learning who our constructors are going to be, so thank goodness, we can at least find this out when we come on the blog.
ReplyDeleteMary Keller, if you feel up to it, please send the newspaper a message at calendar@latimes.com also.
Jazz B, I just loved the Mr. Peanut over-the-decades images--delightful.
How exciting that you also have a birthday on this great week for you, Irish Miss! And I hope you have a wonderful birthday too, Abejo.
Have a great day, everyone!
Fellow logophiles, I just now came across this interesting article.This kind of thing fascinates me.
ReplyDeletefor logophiles only
Happy B'Day to Agnes! and to Bradley!
ReplyDeleteNo answer yet regarding the LA Times' screw-ups, why it is that the editors don't account for the printing of "ATTENTION!" instead of a proper credit line. Today they're dissing Mark MacLachlan, a very clever creator.
I needed a little more time on this one, but patience paid off. Ta-DAH! I confess I started with OOH instead of TRA at 57D and (my fave) NO MEN instead of WOMEN at 22A ("Bryn Mawr undergrads").
YR, I was tapping my toe to an Alison Krauss album while reading your linked article. I guess that makes this logophile logarithmic.
ReplyDeleteI'll join with Misty in asking others to join in asking the LA Times to fix their problem with their crossword credit line.
ReplyDeletePlease, everybody who can spare a minute, please email or phone the Times to draw their attention to the problem (the problem of printing the word "ATTENTION!" instead of the proper credit).
This is the third day in a row they have dropped the ball, so somebody at the paper isn't taking heed!
CED, "threesome" quote - lol. Thank you for taking the time posting amusing links every day.
ReplyDeleteCongee, never heard of it or remember it as being a c|w answer - will google. Mcan before Ecco; remembered Arne Duncan as he was tout-ed as a progressive nominee for Secretary of Education at the time.
Happy Birthday to Irish Miss and Abejo! Hope it was special for both of you.
I got the solve but the puzzle was a joyless slog. Clueing was arcane at times, see 24D. At tleast the theme/gimmick didn't interfere with the solve, always a plus.
ReplyDeleteAlso, this seemed more like a Friday puzzle.
Desper-Otto, Alison Krauss is a big favorite, which album?
ReplyDeleteTook me a minute to understand the theme, but liked it when I got it. Cool puzzle.
ReplyDeleteHappy birthday wishes to you both, Agnes and Bradley.
Jazz @10:17
ReplyDelete... TIMBENI ??? Another typo???
It has always been TINBENI ... LOL
Ahh, the "Sun is over the yardarm" ...
Cheers!
Very nice puzzle today. I had to use accrosses and downs, but that's Wednesday for me anyway. I liked the theme, but no help because I had done them all when I saw the reveal.
ReplyDeleteMisty, what was the Natick that you looked up. PRIX? I started slow but I guess I warmed up, the next thing I knew there was no white. I just had to change ORS to ERS.
ReplyDeleteMichelle WIE was a teenage phenom, who could drive 260 yards. They set her up in a male/female match. Her parents pocketing the money.
The classy Wie then said Enough with the freak show, went off to college and is a credit to LPGA and the game of golf.
The video is recent because she finally dumped an odd, hunched over putting style for the erect posture of this video.
Btw. Masters starts tomorrow. I'm a Justin Speith fan. High winds tomorrow, anything can happen. Hatton could win(Europeans are very strong this year)
WC living up to his reputation for boring posts
Where's the poetry?
PS. I'd rate the puzzle B+ for Wednesday difficulty and cluing
Husker Gary @ 0959:
ReplyDeleteCurious about your question to Abejo. It is a tuba - I'm trying to imagine what else it would be called. Slightly different in other languages, though German & French retain "tuba"; Italian could be bombardon or (a stretch) cimbasso.
HBD irish Miss - you're delightful. And Abejo - keep on blown', my tuba brother.
Wilbur, I'm embarrassed to say I had to look up BAIL. It was the word "setting" that confused me, and kept me thinking of something like a legal BENCH. I worried about OR and ER too, but luckily put in the two EEs.
ReplyDeleteWell, it could have been a Sousaphone, a tuba adapted to make it easier to carry and play in a marching band. It's not but that's what I thought might have been implied by the question.
ReplyDeleteI guess I wasn't in a crossword puzzle frame of mind today. I had problems all over. Oh, well, there's always tomorrow. Thank you, Mark M. for the challenge. Many thanks, Jzb, for explaining where I went wrong.
ReplyDeleteHappiest of birthdays, Irish Miss and Abejo. I hope it's been a great day for each of you.
A thunderstorm has rolled through, dropping the temp almost 20*. Looks like a couple more will visit us tonight, then cooler tomorrow. It's spring, it's what we expect.
Good evening.
Pat
Hi All!
ReplyDeleteThank you Mark for a fun Wednesday. Unlike others I found it fairly easy for a Wed until I got to the SW. FIW. Creative theme ta'boot!
Thanks JzB for the expo. LOL Simpson's "I, FOR ONE."
WO: staySUP @1d
ESPs: ALRY, ORSIC, ECCO, and CON_EE. I guessed L for BRIDLE TOWN. Bzzt.
Fav: Shout-out to MERL
Happy Birthday IM & Abejo! Hope y'all had a great day!
Cheers, -T
Happy birthday to Irish Miss and Abejo! What a nice birthday present to have 2 of your puzzles published this week, Agnes!
ReplyDeleteSteady, mildly crunchy puzzle which of course needed the theme answer to figure out the theme!
Our new paper delivery person again was late so needed to read it tonight and do the puzzle after dinner! My mind is definitely more fried at night!
Cold rainy day - felt more like early March! But I was encouraged that the vote yesterday in our city went to support a second high school- our 1 high school has been way too crowded for years! I was afraid the people who vote down anything that might cost them money would prevail. Excited for the generation coming up!
FWIW, the problem with the cwd's attribution seems to be only with the print edition of the LA Times -- I access the e-version on line, and Mark MacLachlan's name is right there today.
ReplyDeleteRachel Maddow just now showed the six stenographers who were recording the 15 hour filibuster speech. They were using machines, but Rachel called them stenographers.
ReplyDeleteLet it go YR :-)
ReplyDeleteLink to Wordplay I shoulda linked.
In other news...
'Stros 3-0! Bottom of the 13th, down by one, two on, two out 3-2 ptich...
WALK OFF! 5-3 win. Cheers, -T
Good evening, folks. Thank you, Mark MacLachlan, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Jazzbumpa, for a fine review.
ReplyDeleteFirst, and foremost, thank you all for the kind Birthday wishes. I echo that to my Birthday partner, Irish Miss.
Madame DeFarge: You are 100 Percent correct on why I play the tuba. However, I am glad it worked out that way. I cannot imagine playing anything else. I love it.
My birthday went like this: Got up at 6:00 AM. Crossing Guard at 8:00 AM, in the rain. Church service at the Victory Centre (nursing home) in Bartlett for the residents there at 10:00 AM. Shopped at the supermarket for tonight's Commandery dinner 11:00-12:00. Cooked Commandery dinner all afternoon (pot roast). Went to Commandery and Cryptic Council meeting at 6:00 PM. Ate dinner and conferred Council Degrees 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM. Cleaned up and got home at 11:00 PM. Daughter brought me a couple six packs for my Birthday. I am having a couple now. It is midnight and I will be going to bed in about 5 minutes. Starts all over tomorrow morning at 6:00 AM.
As far as the puzzle, I got it over the day inn bits and pieces. Really liked it. The theme was excellent.
Couple tough words: CONGEE, PERRY, BRIDGETOWN.
Thank you, C.C., for all your hard work, continuously!
See you tomorrow.
Abejo
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So, I called MIL to see if she watched the game. Nope, she forgot. But she beat me on the puzzle. AND then she laughed at my BRIDLE TOWN error. I tried to 'splain... Some towns are one-horse and, presumably, some have more than one BRIDLE, hence...
ReplyDeleteHey, at least I didn't havta WO aLot to get SLEW :-)
Thanks again Mark.
Abejo - sounds like you had a great, if not busy, BDay. I really hope to have your energy one day! Cheers, -T
YR & AnonT:
ReplyDeleteI saw those six stenographers and noted that is what they were called.
Yeah, you're right, I knew it was a tuba. I meant to ask if anyone confuses his tuba with an over-the-shoulder sousaphone. It's kinda like bison and buffalo.
ReplyDeleteHG @ 0916: It does sort of resemble a Sousaphone (also a form of tuba) in that the bell points forward. In the early days of recording, the equipment couldn't pick up the sound of the string bass very well, so most recordings used tuba, and they made these with the bell aimed forward to enhance and clarify the recorded sound. They're even called recording basses. They were also used in concert bands and even the occasional orchestra, though then and now most concert tubas' bells point up.
ReplyDeleteIt's actually only 3:36pm here - part of why I don't post much. enjoying the "Wordplay" links; thanks, all.
ReplyDelete