google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Sunday June 18, 2017 Gail Grabowski

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Jun 18, 2017

Sunday June 18, 2017 Gail Grabowski

Theme: "Pop Culture"- DAD spans across each theme entry.

23A. Brand created in Toronto in 1904 : CANADA DRY. Now owned by Dr. Pepper.

25A. 23-Across buyer : SODA DRINKER. Pepsi in our household.

42A. School social worker's concern : CHILD ADVOCACY

89A. Alert precipitated by heavy rain : FLOOD ADVISORY. I sure don't miss the rainy season in Guangzhou. Rains every day.

108A. Audio system connector : IPOD ADAPTER. I've hit Stop Download on a few podcasts.

110A. Annual Silver State celebration : NEVADA DAY. Google shows it's October 27 this year. That's Boomer's birthday.

32D. Newspaper revenue source : CLASSIFIED AD

38D. Gorilla Glue, for one : WOOD ADHESIVE. Our fridge handle was broken a while ago. Fixed with Super Glue. Amazing.

Reveal entry:

111. Today's honoree, found in this puzzle's eight longest answers : DAD

Happy Father's Day to all the fathers on our blog!

Gail's puzzle is a nice sequel to Bruce Haight's Mother's Day puzzle. Classic Gail design: Six theme entries Across. Two Downs.

I mentioned this before, Gail and Bruce Venzke name their puzzle GAB if Gail's name comes up first, e.g., Gail comes up with the theme. They name their puzzle BAG if Bruce's name comes up first.

They seem to collaborate only on weekday puzzles. All Gail's Sundays have been solos.


Across:

1. Physics calculation : MASS

5. They may be broken on purpose : LAWS. Thought of EGGS first.

9. "You gotta be kidding me!" : AW MAN

14. Aussie bedrolls : SWAGS. This is new to me.

19. Comics pooch : ODIE . "Garfield".

20. Put in other words, say : EDIT. Gail is a total pro. Her puzzles won't need much editing from Rich.

21. British county : SHIRE

22. Garlicky mayo : AIOLI. Looks similar to Steve's mayo.


27. Bank protection : LEVEE. Riverbank.

28. Country : RURAL. Adjective "Country".

29. Web search tool : ENGINE

30. Cleared out : VACATED

33. British peers : EARLS

34. Some basilica singers : ALTI.  Altos is more common. 

35. "How about that!" : I'LL BE

36. Kin of -trix : ENNE

37. "The Dark Mirror" antagonist, e.g. : EVIL TWIN. Never heard of the movie.


41. Infamous 1974 bank robbers: Abbr. : SLA. Symbionese Liberation Army

47. Plastic __ Band : ONO

48. Hypotheticals : IFs

49. Noisy disturbance : TUMULT.  We also have 55. Inner turmoil : ANGST. This Chinese character means "serene"/"quiet".

50. Fence material? : LOOT. Great clue.

51. "I'm getting to it" : SOON

52. Curious to a fault : NOSY

54. Galileo's birthplace : PISA. Gary & Joann were there.

55. Partner of 46-Down : AAH. And 46. Partner of 55-Across : OOH
 
56. Talk show medium : AM RADIO

59. Cat Nation people : ERIES

61. Industry heavyweights : TITANS. Tech-driven, these days.

63. Airport sign : ARRIVALS

64. Flutter : FLAP

66. Colorful appetizer platter items : VEGGIES. Here in our local flea markets, the veggies stands are mostly operated by Hmong people. I'm so happy to get veggies like water spinach & Daikon radishes.

68. "The Call of the Wild" ride : SLED

69. Outdoor party focal point : TAILGATE. Hi there BlueHen.


72. Run off : ESCAPE

74. "Swing Shift" Oscar nominee : LAHTI. I sure need Christine in the clue.

77. Free sample constraint : ONE EACH

78. Farm denizen : ANT. Ant farm.

79. Exiled Shah Mohammad __ Pahlavi : REZA. I only know him as the Shah.


81. Press Secretary Spicer : SEAN. Sorry you did not get to meet the Pope.

82. Taylor's husband between Wilding and Fisher : TODD

83. City near Tulsa : ENID

85. Still developing : UNRIPE

87. Return ID : SSN. Tax return.


88. Former "How Do Your Children Grow?" PBS host LeShan : EDA

92. Follower's suffix : ITE. Not IST.

93. Getting into the wrong business? : MEDDLING. Russia!


95. Duncan of the Obama Cabinet : ARNE

96. They're on the house : EAVES. Another great clue.

98. Sandberg in Cooperstown : RYNE. Iconic picture. Quite a few names in this puzzle.


99. Biker's headgear, perhaps : DORAG

101. Weeds out : FILTERS

103. Confirm, as a password : RE-TYPE

106. Descriptor in lotion commercials : SILKY. Or a smooth Saturday LAT Barry-style.

107. Wrangler material : DENIM

114. Goes for the lure : BITES. You won't believe the fishing stuff in our Fleet Farm. So many lakes here. Did you use to fish in your Wisconsin puddles when you were a kid, D-Otto?

115. Espresso order : LATTE

116. "Agreed!" : AMEN

117. Whittle : PARE

118. Aromatherapy choice : SCENT. I wish Dr Teal's has non-scented Epsom Salt.


119. Far-reaching : BROAD

120. Put to sleep, perhaps : BORE

121. Some emailed files : PDFs
  
Down:

1. Comfy footwear : MOC. Moccasins.

2. Crown-installing org. : ADA

3. Sloth, e.g. : SIN
 
4. Aquanaut's habitat : SEA LAB

5. Time off : LEAVE

6. Tacked on : ADDED

7. Power conduit : WIRE

8. Squalid quarters : STY

9. Gave one's word : ASSURED

10. Fingerprint pattern : WHORL

11. Big name in auto maintenance : MIDAS. Do you have ABRA in your area? They fixed our back bumper. So pleased with their service. Midas overcharges.


12. Word near Kazakhstan, on maps : ARAL


13. Composer Rorem : NED

14. Holy : SAINTLY

15. Improvise : WING IT

16. Golfer Isao : AOKI. Never saw him in person. We go to 3M Championship every year. Free admission, thanks to 3M.

17. Secluded spot : GLEN

18. Many a retired racehorse : SIRE

24. Get a hint of : DETECT
 
26. Piece of the past : RELIC

28. Charged : RAN AT

30. Brand measured in drops : VISINE. We also have 45. Brand with a spokesstork who sounds like Groucho : VLASIC. Sparkly fill, though nothing beats these pickles. CrossEyedDave's favorites. He probably likes the spicy version.



31. Completely behind : ALL FOR

33. Run over : END LATE
 
34. Online icon : AVATAR

36. Difficult to find : ELUSIVE

37. Start to tour? : ECO. Eco-tour.

39. How sun-dried tomatoes are packed : IN OIL

40. "Tut-tut" evokers : NO NOs

43. Military drill syllable : HUP

44. "You've found the right person" : I'M IT
 
51. File command option : SAVE AS. Another great fill.

53. Cried out : YELLED
 
57. __ Butterworth : MRS

58. Streamlet : RILL

60. Trilogy, often : SAGA. We also have  104. Many a Charlton Heston movie : EPIC

62. Meeting staple : AGENDA

63. Bad-mouth : ASPERSE. Never used the verb. Only the noun "Aspersion".

65. Campaign funding org. : PAC

67. Bringing home : EARNING

69. Clan symbol : TOTEM

70. Battery pole : ANODE

71. Mr. Right : THE ONE

73. Opera star Pinza : EZIO ."South Pacific". I talk like Bloody Mary.


75. Culinary guard in ancient Rome : TASTER

76. Landscape artist George : INNESS. Unfamiliar to me.  Here is his "Delaware Water Gap".


78. Samaritan's offering : AID

80. National Humor Mo. : APR

84. Creamy quaff : NOG

85. Factor in tanning : UV RAY

86. It's usually down for the night : EYELID. Ah, I was not thinking of my own face.

89. Go by quickly : FLY PAST

90. Like some index cards : LINED

91. Claret or burgundy : DARK RED

94. England's first poet laureate : DRYDEN. I need "John" in the clue.

97. Bank offering for smartphones : ATM APP. Is this a thing? Does it help you find ATMs?

99. Word of agreement : DITTO

100. "All the Love" singer Adams : OLETA. Forgot. We had her before.


101. Flu symptom : FEVER

102. Fatuous : INANE

103. Messy meal : RIBS
 
105. Haul : TOTE

106. Yard or boom : SPAR

107. How-to presentation : DEMO

109. NATO member since 2009 : ALB. OK, Albania.

110. Collar : NAB

112. Boxer's comment : ARF

113. No denial? : YES.  Ah, yes!

C.C.


30 comments:

OwenKL said...

WM = Waltzing Matilda

DNF¡ I even had ALB and LATTE in, but took them out because there was no way SPAR fit that clue! But the NE was my real Waterloo. I had ALTo with no suspicion it was wrong, and maRE as a WAG when STUD didn't work. Had MAKE DO > WING IT, but erased that early. Never heard of AIOLI, couldn't remember AOKI except that my initials were in the center, and GLEN just didn't occur to me. And SWAG? Sang WM, but came up blank. Looked up the lyrics to WM, still blank. Googled, and found that Aussie for bedroll is MATILDA! SWAGS are hobo's bindles. After perps filled in SWAGS, I looked it up again, and found something carried in a SWAG included "rolled up bedding", which my search for "bedroll" had skipped over!

{C.}

The labels got switched, no one knows how or why.
The "VISINE" washed brine on his brain thru his EYE!
Worse, the user related,
His whole colon dilated
When the "VLASIC-juice" tonic's effects went awry!

fermatprime said...

Hi everyone!

Thanks to Gail and CC, two powerhouse crossword composers!

Had a bit of a struggle. Did not know INNESS or OLETA. Eventually plowed through w/o cheats. Had to sing waltzing Matilda in my head at one point!

Hope to see you all tomorrow!

Argyle said...

Once a jolly SWAGman camped by a billabong,
Under the shade of a Coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil,
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

As per usual I failed to get the theme. I went wrong in several areas along the way. Remembered that Sandberg had a weird first name -- tried TRIS, then OREL, before RYNE showed up. I was breaking VOWS rather than LAWS. Misunderstood the '-trix' clue; was looking for a prefix like "execu" rather than a synonym. The NE was the last area to come together. Thanx, Gail. Nice try, C.C., but I will not rise to your "puddle" bait.

BobB said...

My wife is a caterer, aioli was a given. Once I got ipod adapter it finished easily.

TTP said...

Good morning all. Thank you Gail and CC.

Happy Fathers Day !

Woke up after 1 AM with leg cramps again, and couldn't get back to sleep. Did most of the puzzle then, but soon got back to sleep. Finished a few minutes ago.

Saw DAD early in the solve, and placing DAD helped speed up a few of the theme answers.

There were a few names that I had to think about to recall, and a few that needed perp help.

Waltzing Matilda couldn't have helped me get SWAGS because I can't bring the song to mind, but the perps filled it in.

Houston has a rainy season too CC. Well, not really a rainy season, as much as a wet season. I recall that during the summers, the humidity seemed to climb towards 100 % every day by noon or 1 PM, and then it would rain hard for five or ten minutes. Then the humidity would drop a bit, but it would be really muggy as temps drove towards the 90's and 100's by late afternoon. Repeat daily for three months. I dunno, maybe these are just the romantic remembrances of my time there.



Maripro said...

Thanks Gail and C.C. When I saw the title and filled in "Canada Dry" right away, I thought "Aha! It's going to be about sodas." And the next themer confirmed it. Wrong! Gail's theme proved to be much more apt, especially since it's Father's Day.

I too, prefer Claussen's pickles.

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there.

Bluehen said...

This was a pretty typical GG Sunday offering completed in pretty typical Sunday time. No groaners, no nits, some toughies that were perpable, and some learning moments. Beautifully done, thank you Gail. Excellent expo, CC, and thanks for the shoutout. Your comment about the rainy season in Guangzhou reminds me of how I described the weather in 'nam to the folks back home: "During the dry season, it rains every day. During the wet season, it rains ALL day."

Happy Father's Day to all deserving. Porterhouse steaks tonight, quickly seared after last nights cookout, seasoned and bagged overnight and sous vided today. Sautéed criminis, baked potatoes, and Caesar salad complete the meal with strawberry shortcake for desert. Can't wait.

Cya!

Big Easy said...

The DAD connection was easy to spot today but I found it tougher than usual for a Sunday. I spent the most time in the EAST with false starts leading to dead ends. STUD to SIRE, I misspelled AOKI and AIOLI, didn't know SWAG until 'Waltzing Matilda came to mind. I thought a SWAGman was a bandit or hobo. OwenKL- that was the last area I completed. ATM APP, SLED, EVIL TWIN, LAHTI, and INNESS or OLETA (same as fermatprime) were an unknowns. I filled SELECTS for FILTERS and BURY for BORE before I had to backtrack. It didn't help that I misread " 'Call of Wild' 'Ride' as 'ROLE' ", and couldn't think of a name that started 'SLE' and SLIM wouldn't work. Jack London is laughing at me right now.

Food TASTER- almost as dangerous as being the Vice-whatever #2 in N. Korea. That's the world's most dangerous job.
ATM APP- if it doesn't dispense money, what good it it? I deposit checks using the bank's APP.

CANADA DRY- I always thought of it was a brand of mixers, not just SODA. Filling the SODA was easy on DAD's day; the DRINKER part was just hard to fill. I drink Tonic Water (with gin & lime) whenever I get leg cramps; tonic water by itself is too nasty to swallow.
"Gorilla Glue"- many types, not just WOOD ADHESIVE
IPOD ADAPTER- I thought they had bluetooth. New to me.
'Bank protection'- LEVEE- that's wrong. The levees actually harm the banks because they don't allow silt to overflow during flood cycles. Levees are built to 'temporarily' protect people and buildings, not river banks.

Thank you, C.C. and all the writers for tireless unappreciated work.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

Gail's puzzles are always fun whether she goes solo or teams up with Bruce. Canada Dry + Soda Drinker + Pop Culture = Dad theme on Fathers Day. Didn't remember Oleta but Lahti was a gimme as I remember her well from "Swing Shift." I think that's the first time I ever saw her in a movie and she made quite an impression on me. Needed perps for Inness and a few others but, overall, no real problems.

Thanks, Gail, for a nice, mellow Sunday offering and thanks, CC, for your down-home expo. With your amazing command of written English, I can't imagine you sounding like Bloody Mary. But, then again, I know nothing about speaking a second language challenges.

Bluehen, if you were closer geographically, you might have a gate-crasher at the delicious feast tonight! Sounds yummy!

Pepsi is my favorite but I keep ginger ale (Canada Dry) on hand for the rare upset tummy.

Claussen pickles are my favorite, too, but the last few jars have been disappointing. It may be just me, but I find the outer rind (skin) extremely tough and the spears are very uneven in size and shape, with several broken pieces. Maybe I should try the halves or whole ones and make my own spears. This prompts my oft-repeated lament: Nothing tastes as good as it used to. I can't remember the last time I had a pork chop that tasted like a pork chop or a tomato that tasted like a tomato. And whatever did they do to Thomas's English Muffins? You might as well eat a piece of cardboard. End of rant.

Happy Fathers Day to all you Dads!

Have a great day.

MJ said...

Happy Father's Day to all the dads and good day to all!

Such a delightful puzzle from Gail today. Some favorite cluing was "Put in other words" for EDIT and "They're on the house" for EAVES. And though I may have seen them before, I needed all perps for George INNESS, RYNE Sandberg, and OLETA Adams today. SWAGS was a learning moment. Thanks, C.C., for the thorough write-up. I agree that Claussen pickle are tasty, but like the pickles our local Costco sells even better. Can't remember the brand, and rarely buy them as it's such a large container.

Enjoy the day!

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-As my lovely bride would say, “The theme was right in front of you and you didn’t see it?”
-CLASSIFIED ADS in particular and Newspapers in general are fading from the scene
-Your MASS is the same here, on the Moon and on Mars. Now weight is another matter
-I compose my “Musings” in Word and ALWAYS have to EDIT/RE-TYPE after a preview post
-I think most know what word SHIRE REEVE (keeper of the county) became in modern language
-My wife’s TWIN is very different but not EVIL
-Quick, name a Plastic ONO Band song
-Sorry C.C., that character does not seem serene to me
-Haute TAIL GATING cuisine at Omaha’s College World Series
-FREE SAMPLE – Have you ever “grazed” at Costco?
-Colleges keep raising tuition and can’t PARE any admin. even though they outnumber instructional staff
-SEA LAB in the LA Cwd twice in a week…
-No matter what happens here, 15 yards will be tacked on
-A teacher’s meeting that RUNS OVER 4 pm is not a wise use of time
-After you’ve made a template, SAVE AS is a great option!
-FLY PAST – “Really, you say I taught 42 years?”
-Yes, C.C., we have been to PISA and no thought of Bloody Mary occurred to me or Joann when we visited with you in Minneapolis.

Bill V. said...

I had fun with this one. Thanks for the Happy FD wishes.

Bluehen said...

IM, you would be as welcome as the flowers in May, as would any of the fellow bloggers. I like nothing more than a party.

The Delaware Water Gap is a very picturesque area. BH and I spent a week there the end of April at a resort in Shawnee-On-Delaware. Great location in general, close to the Poconos, DWG, waterfalls, the Appalachian Trail, etc.. The condo complex was located in a clearing in the woods, so there wasn't much to see when there, but we made up for that by rafting the Delaware River, touring the waterfalls, touring local wineries, and set foot on the AT. No, I didn't hike any of the Trail, those days are long behind me. I think we'll probably go back, but stay at a different resort. The kitchen at this one was the worst equipped of any condo we have ever stayed at. (Ouch, terrible grammar.)

Enough for now.

Cya!

Lucina said...

Happy Fathers Day to the many wonderful DADs out there!

I'll have to read you all later as time does FLY PAST and I have to go soon. I just want to thank Gail G. for a fun tribute to DAD. I got the theme!

It was not so much a sashay as a nicely paced walk through the park. I surprised myself by recalling AOKI whose spelling often gives me problems and AIOLI. EDA LeShan who we see so often I want to call ADA but luckily TOTEM set me right. And I must have seen OLETA somewhere because the name slipped right out. RYNE had to wait for perps.

Great start to a Sunday morning. Thank you, Gail and C.C.!

Have a stupendous Fathers Day!

Yellowrocks said...

Fun puzzle in honor of DAD. Happy Father’s Day to all you DADs out there. I did this in the early Sunday edition yesterday afternoon and thus was at loose ends this AM. I think I will wait for Sunday next time.
OLETA is the only fill I don't remember seeing before. I was vague about INNESS
We call all the mixers SODA.
Link text

I used to think that swag or bindle referred only to those small bundles you see on sticks carried by hoboes. Then I realized that they can be quite large and contain bedding.
Link text

WIKIPEDIA: A swagman (also called a swaggie, sundowner or tussocker) was a transient labourer who travelled by foot from farm to farm carrying his belongings in a swag (bedroll). The term originated in Australia in the 19th-century and was later used in New Zealand.

The definition of bindle is a slang term for a bundle of bedding carried by a hobo. A bundle of blankets and bedding carried by a homeless person is an example of a bindle.

Bluehen, we love the Poconos and just west of them, the Endless Mountains where I grew up. We return there every summer.

Misty said...

Well, I always love Gail puzzles, but this one was a challenge that took quite a bit of time. But it filled in slowly until I caught the DAD theme with CANADA DRY (nice shout-out to our own CanadianEh!), and that helped tremendously with the the longer theme answers. Lots of fun clues and misdirections--only the cross between "Partner of 46-Down" and "Partner of 55-Across" drove me crazy. Rich, you really shouldn't allow that kind of cluing--in my humble opinion. But most of my other problems came from just not knowing things, like INNESS, AOKI, DORAG. So all in all, a great puzzle, and a fun Sunday morning--many thanks, Gail. And I always love your write-ups, C.C.

Have a great day, everybody!

Trubrit said...

I guessed that today's theme would be about Dad or Pa . I found a lot of the clues a little tricky today. 86D gave me a real problem,
I was just sure it had something to do with an "eider"Down cover.
Happy Father's Day to all you Daddies.

CanadianEh! said...

This CW took a little bit of work. Thanks for the fun Gail and C. C.
I found all the DADs. Happy Father's Day to all our Dads.

Several ink lots. Hand up for Stud before SIRE. Singer Adams made me think of Bryan and it fit. OLETA was all perps (as was INNESS).
Red wine held up the mid-south until it changed to DARK RED. Reminded me of Marti.

I smiled at my CANADA DRY CSO.

I did not get the H in the OoH AAH cross until I got here. Unlike Misty, I thought it was clever (but possibly unfair). I should have done an alphabet run.

When SWAGS filled in, I started to hum Waltzing Matilda. Ear worm now.

Enjoy the rest of the day. We have thunderstorms on the way and some tornado warnings. Off to batten down the hatches.

tawnya said...

Hello All!

Happy Father's Day to all of you! Hope you get a chance to enjoy your special day. Although I'm pretty sure we all wish we were joining BlueHen for that delicious meal!

Made it through the puzzle without using red letters, but had to google a few things. Enjoyed it all! Well done, Gail. Thank you C.C. for the writeup.

My EYELIDs have been open at night with my shift of 3pm to 3am. Loving every minute of it and DH has been so supportive by keeping quiet until I get up around Noon. Enjoyed some CANADA DRY (with Gin and Lime) after work the other night and realized it was just a little odd to be starting drinking at 4am.

I've got a FEVER

Googled "All the Love" and came up with an answer from Outfield. Of course I thought of All My Love and couldn't get past it.

Wishing you all a lovely Sunday!

t.

tawnya said...

I had to look up Waltzing Matilda - and found Johnny Cash. Can't go wrong with the Man in Black!

Jayce said...

Happy Father's Day. Another terrific puzzle from Gail. I enjoyed solving it.

OwenKL said...

WM is by Banjo Paterson, one of my short list of favorite poets, along side Robert W. Service, who wrote in a comparable style.

Big Easy: don't think of LEVEE as protection of the bank, but protection located at the bank.

PK said...

Hi Y'all! DADgum good Father's Day puzzle, Gail! (DADgum was an expletive my own Dad used so as not to offend my mother.)

C.C.: the only thing I remember about Bloody Mary was her song, "Happy Talk". You have created our version of happy talk in the daily blog. Bloody Mary was a wise woman in her limited capacity. You are so wise in your capacity for language, you can talk any way you want to. We all know of the great effort and intelligence you have.

Diet Pepsi for me. CANADA DRY was a childhood flu remedy. We weren't allowed colas.

Half the names were all perps. But I knew EZIO and that's not an easy one!

Fingerprint = WHORL. I read somewhere that old people sometimes no longer have fingerprint ridges. I looked and my own
fingers are smooth without WHORLs. Guess all that living I've done sanded them down. Do you have them?

Ural before ARAL. Mountains or sea? New vocabulary word: ASPERSE. Tried about six sets of letters on that one.

I've had a jar of VLASICs on my shelf for a couple of years. Can't get the DADgum thing open even with my expensive opener.

Happy Fathers Day to all you DADs! I emailed my sons & SIL wishing them happy and thanking them for my grandkids.

Mimi said...

Great puzzle today. Went much quicker after I put my readers on.

TTP, put a bar of soap in your bed & your leg cramps should go away. I was getting them many times a night. It's been almost 3 years since I've had one now that the soap is there. Any kind will do. I put it at the foot of the bed between the sheet & pad. I know it sounds crazy, but it works for me. Replace every 6 months or so. I use travel size. Grab a few next time you're in a hotel. Hope it works. Let me know.

Mimi

TX Ms said...

TTP re leg cramps - People's Pharmacy article also mentions pickle juice or even relish, in addition to the bar soap remedy. This column is written by husband/wife PhD Pharmacists. Never learned how to link, my apologies.
https://www.peoplespharmacy.com/2010/06/20/science-proves-pickle-juice-remedy-works/

Hope any of the above helps you.

Wilbur Charles said...

Finally, there was one square left. OO_/AA_???? I got it while driving; I often do. That part of the brain churns away.

I flew through this xw, then came to a screeching halt in the East. Pop culture, my nemesis. Then, I was SILKY smooth filling.

Actually, I thought OOH and AAH very clever, after I got it.

I was too tired to post last night.

WC

TTP said...

Thank you Mimi and Texas Miss. I usually just walk it off. Sometimes 5 minutes, sometimes 15 to 20 minutes. I think the source of my leg pains and cramps is really nerve related rather than lack of nutrients. Soap between the sheets sounds like an old wives tale. But hey, ya never know, and if it works for you Mimi, then keep on keeping on.

Unknown said...

27A Great clue!! Bank protection - LEVEE. If it was the other meaning of "bank" -$Bank then the protection would be LEVY. Cute.

Picard said...

FIR and got the theme right away, but I found this rather difficult in places.

Too many obscure names. And I never heard of SWAGS and do not know about Waltzing with Matilda.

LAHTI/INNESS crossing seemed unfair.

Did anyone else put GOOD ADHESIVE first? That had me stuck for awhile.

Only know AIOLI from puzzles and I never remember the spelling.