google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Tuesday, January 30, 2018 ~ David Liben-Nowell

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Jan 30, 2018

Tuesday, January 30, 2018 ~ David Liben-Nowell

Theme: Basketball Stat - Three phrases that graphically represent this desirable B-ball statistic.

54A. Ten or more points, rebounds and assists in one game, in hoops lingo ... and a literal feature of 20-, 33- and 43-Across: TRIPLE DOUBLE


20A. Played the Samaritan: DID A GOOD DEED

33A. Ones who once shared quarters: FORMER ROOMMATES

43A. Love sugary snacks, say: HAVE A SWEET TOOTH

Argyle here. Rows: 16, Columns: 15. David's second puzzle for us. The gimmick was obvious but needed the reveal to make sense of it.

Across:

1. Vulgar: LEWD

5. Cancel, as a mission: ABORT

10. Leave in a hurry: BAIL

14. Gobi Desert continent: ASIA

15. Calf-roping event: RODEO

16. "The __ Duckling": UGLY

17. Writer Ayn: RAND

18. Harmless garden slitherer: GREEN SNAKE

22. Italian automaker: FIAT

23. "The Big Bang Theory," for one: SITCOM

27. Big bang: BLAST

29. Rock band staple: AMP

32. Gush: SPURT

36. Juicy Fruit, e.g.: GUM

37. Cause of shrinking beaches: EROSION

38. Delivers the news: REPORTS

40. Cup o' mud: JOE

48. Up in the air: ALOFT

49. Ukr., until 1991: SSR. Ukraine, a former Soviet Socialist Republic.

50. Many Middle Easterners: ARABs

51. More alluring: SEXIER

53. App symbol: ICON

60. Minor infraction: PETTY CRIME

63. Special forces mission: RAID

64. Ointment additive: ALOE

65. Fertile desert spot: OASIS

66. Thomas __, 9/11 Commission chairman: KEAN. Former Governor of New Jersey.

67. Snowy day toy: SLED

68. Hilton rival: HYATT. Hotels.

69. Poet Pound: EZRAList of his works.

Down:

1. Cooking fat: LARD

2. Morales of "NYPD Blue": ESAI

3. Collection of energy-producing turbines: WIND FARM

4. Avant-garde art movement: DADAISM

5. Specialized jargon: ARGOT

6. NYC division: BORO. (borough)

7. Took too much, briefly: ODed

8. Clarinet insert: REED

9. Shades of color: TONES

10. Baker's ring-shaped mold: BUNDT PAN

11. Turkish honorific: AGA

12. Type: ILK

13. Caustic chemical: LYE

19. Earthquake prefix: SEISMO

21. Garden entrance: GATE

24. Piece of the action, or a shout that stops the action: CUT. Best entry, IMHO.

25. Valuable underground find: ORE

26. Peaks: Abbr.: MTs

27. 2016 film based on a Roald Dahl novel, with "The": BFG. "Big Friendly Giant"



28. Baseball's Gehrig: LOU

29. Archery ammo: ARROWS


30. Poet Marianne and actress Julianne: MOOREs. Unlikely pairing.





31. Dorm decoration: POSTER

34. Workout count: REPS. Short for repetitions.

35. Waterfall spray: MIST. CSO Niagara Falls.

38. Updated, as factory equipment: REFITTED

39. Diner, drive-in or dive: EATERY

40. 1969 Woodstock folk singer: JOAN BAEZ. I can't say as if I ever heard this one before.



41. Gambling venue letters: OTB. (Off Track Betting)

42. "I didn't hear you" sounds: EHs?

43. Gives birth to: HAS

44. Pub brew: ALE

45. __ populi: popular opinion: VOX

46. Food truck fare: TACO

47. Political satirist P.J.: O'ROURKE


52. Copier maker: RICOH. Japanese multinational imaging and electronics company.

53. That is, in Latin: ID EST

55. Ask for divine guidance: PRAY

56. Pop singer Loeb: LISA. I prefer the Cass Elliot version. The first recording was done by Ozzie Nelson! Give a listen.



57. Discharge: EMIT

58. Perjurer: LIAR

59. Writer Ferber: EDNA

60. __ de deux: PAS. (in ballet) a dance for two people.

61. Pipe bend: ELL

62. Digit on a foot: TOE

Argyle

63 comments:

fermatprime said...

Greetings!

Thanks to David and Santa!

Cute theme! Must have been a lot of work!

Only a few unknowns: KEAN, BFG and GREEN SNAKE. Easily filled in!

Hope to see you all tomorrow!

Ol' Man Keith said...

A belated shout-out to D4E4H - for posting the first notice of the rare 5-way mirror diagonals in last Saturday's Xwd.

In my "Diagonal Report" for that Pzl I emphasized how unusual it was to find such a wide side-by-side lineup of diagonals, whether straight-on or reversed, but I failed to acknowledge the earlier sighting by D4E4H.

Credit where credit is due!

OwenKL said...

JOE HAS some land to cultivate
But he's too lazy to hoe or rake.
Perhaps a WIND FARM would be ideal,
Each sprout is a colorful play pinwheel!
And if manure is dear in these parts,
He'll only need to provide cow farts!
Once the windmills grow big and tall
They'll really be no trouble at all!
They fit right in ecological plans --
In fact, wind farms have really big fans!

OwenKL said...

{C.} because it didn't use many words from the grid.

Oas said...

Thanx for a fun puzzle . Caught the theme at tripledouble. Got side tracted a little at the 90* eee ooo rrr ttt. Not as difficult as at first pass. Started where EDNA and EZRA joined at the bottom right. Ended with LEWD and LARD at the top left. Some unknown names filled in easily enough like Moores, Ricoh, and Kean. One swallow of Mcd's coffee left , so solve time acceptable. January almost done:-)) DW used to say the only time in winter I looked happy enough for a photo was when pn vacation in a warmer CLIMATE. Chin up keep focussed

Jinx in Norfolk said...

FIR, with erasures of scrub for ABORT and REtoolED for REFITTED. Didn't know ARGOT, BFG or VOX populi. To ham radio operators VOX means "voice operated relay". When the operator speaks, the radio goes from receive mode to transmit mode automatically.

By far my favorite was O'ROURKE. Regardless of your political views, his "Parliament of Whores" is a fantastic analysis of why Congress is as dysfunctional as it is. I loved his National Lampoon work as well.

OKL, C for content maybe, but A for fun.

Thanks to David and Santa for a fun romp.

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

Tried GARDEN SNAKE...too long, GARTER SNAKE...still not right...GREEN SNAKE. Final fill was the K in the KEAN/OROURKE cross. Seemed to be the only letter that'd fit. Once again I missed the theme and failed to read the entire reveal clue. Some folks never learn. Enjoyed it, nevertheless. Thanx, David and Argyle.

D4E4H said...

Happy Tuesday to yous day.

Thanks to the cruciferous skill of that cruciverbalist Mr. David Liben-Nowell I FIR this Euesdy Tuesday CW in 21:13. Woohoo !

I will have to be careful, when people thank "David," I glow for just a minute.

Thanks to Argyle for an excellent review, and the videos.

Thanks Mike for providing for us. I'm packing light just my Speedos.

Thanks OMK 342A for my SO. That 5er was amazing.

Dave

Oas said...

Jinx at 7:06 . I get why you like O'Rourke. I too am waiting for the day when the voting pupblic will, en mass, elect responsible people of integrity who can work accross party lines for the benefit of all, regardless of who sits on the golden throne.

D4E4H said...

Oops. "Thanks Mike for providing for us." was supposed to take you to

Mike Sherline 1-29, posted 1-30 113A

I will have to review the instructions.

Dave

TTP said...

Thank you David Liben-Nowell and thank you Argyle.

PK should love this basketball related theme. Oscar Robertson "The Big O" is the all time TRIPLE DOUBLE leader, having accomplished that feat in 181 games.

There are currently 355 turbines on the 86 sq mi wind farm at the FOWLER Ridge WINDFARM in Indiana. Component parts are made near ARGYLE IA.

Grammar matters: TTP responds to Madame Defarge, "Your welcome." Madame Defarge replies, "My welcome ?"

Also FLN - In comments read yesterday, one person wrote that cherimoya tastes like Juicy Fruit GUM.

Wanna make 22A a Saturday level clue ? Clue it as "Mandate automaker ?"

Big Easy said...

Only BOOKKEEPING is missing from today's TRIPLE DOUBLE (both offered at many hamburger restaurants). An easy Tuesday romp with only unknowns- The BFG and VOX populi. I'm a LIAR. LISA was also unknown but was filled by perps without even seeing the clue. Sorry.

Julianne MOORE in the 'Age of Cleavage'. How far will it go?
LEWD(er) and SEXIER- who draws the line?

Beach EROSION- bad misconception because the sand moves in AND out or down the beach but it doesn't disappear.

Jinx knows the ham radio ARGOT.
Well before it gets UGLY around here this LARD-ass ( what coaches called the slow runners) is outta here.

Have a warm day.

Northwest Runner said...

Has the editor decided that 16 x 15 will now be a recurring event? Seems as if we've had several recently. Maybe I'm having a "hey you kids, get off my puzzle" moment, but to me it seems lazy on the part of the constructor to expand the grid in order to make a theme work out.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

As Argyle noted, the theme was evident but the reveal was the icing on the cake. I'm not a BB fan but ?I was familiar with Triple Double. My only w/o was Satire before Sitcom which was a silly mistake, as everyone knows TBBT is not satire; sometimes it isn't even a comedy. (I stopped watching it a few years ago.)

Thanks, David, for a Tuesday treat and thanks, Argyle, for the gran tour. I agree with you on Mama Cass's "Dream A Little Dream" rendition.

Have a great day.

Irish Miss said...

Remove the ? and add a "d" to gran. (Proofread, proofread and proofread!)

Magilla Go-Rilla said...

38D: I first went with ‘retooled’. Later the crosswords forced me to rethink that answer.

Yellowrocks said...

Up since since 5:30 AM to take Alan for a minor procedure. I did the puzzle quite late, but it was very easy. I saw the triple double letters, but didn't associate them with basketball until the reveal.
Perps helped with BFG, Big Friendly Giant, and perps and wags helped with Moores. I knew VOX populi.
One of the parents in our school was a big exec at Ricoh, also a big womanizer.
Bundt cakes and home entertaining were very popular in the 50's and 60's, in what I call the little Susie Homemaker era.
Jinx, I will have to read Parliament of Whores. OAS @7:59 Hear! Hear! Both sides say they fear their bases' resentment of compromise, but there must be many who silently agree with compromise. NJ finally got some portion of the money we send to Washington back in the form of Hurricane Sandy relief. Our Republican governor was panned for having his picture taken with the democratic president. So silly!
Dave 2, are you calling those who have "cruciferous" skills, Cabbage Heads? LOL

SwampCat said...

Easy, fun Tuesday. Thanks, D L-N. Argyle, I had never heard of BFG but I really appreciated the trailer.

OKL, I'm still chuckling over the image of windmills growing big and tall.

A good start to the week.....and our weather is perfect. Chilly and sunny. I wish my mood wasn't so dependent on the weather, but it is. I get quite cranky in bad weather. Pathetic fallacy??

Ah well.

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

FIR. No searches needed. The theme was obvious, but Argyle's run-by was helpful. Don't know why the 15X16 format except to balance the theme phrases. No matter; the solve experience was not impacted.

Chairman Moe said...

"Puzzling Thoughts":

While I didn't get the theme until revealed, it was pretty clear to me that it had to involve something "doubled". Might the constructor have somehow thought of involving 36a in the reveal and come up with DOUBLE MINT as the clue, instead?

For BB historians, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that Oscar Robertson was the only NBA player to average a TRIPLE DOUBLE in his Hall of Fame career. Russell Westbrook is a sort of modern version of the Big O

Nice SO to Canadian EH

OKL and I must've been on the same wave length today, as I had this Moe-ku penned before reading the blog:

I'm for new sources
Of energy. Take WINDFARMS;
I am a big fan

But I also had this dittie:

My punny haiku du jour is one that fans of NASCAR (before it was called that) will get

Number 43
Was caught speeding. Was cited
For a PETTY CRIME ...

Kudos to David and Argyle

Oas said...

Yellowrocks Your mention of hurricane sandy brought back memories of Chrisfield Maryland . Spent nine weeks there in voluntary service rebuilding and cleaning up. Met many dear and wonderful people there.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-The OO’s stood out first but the theme was great as was Argyle’s write-up, especially the Ozzie Nelson record!
-GOOD DEED – No GOOD DEED goes unpunished!
-My wife and her twin sister are FORMER WOMB MATES
-A Sydney, Australia newspaper tells of grim consequences for recent LEWD behavior
-Delivering the news with no comment or slant is a lost art
-Marijuana is “advancing?” from felony -> PETTY CRIME -> Legal
-Pakistan saw our RAID that killed Osama Bin Laden as an act of war
-A new “cash crop” in tiny Petersburg, NE
-Pablo Escobar’s Medellin cartel thrived because he saw that politicians and police got their CUT
-Marianne and Julianne have the same outfit except one omitted her undershirt :-)
-Too many “EH’S” is pushing me to the audiologist soon
-A 2013 vote by Nebraska senator Ben Nelson that listened to his party leadership and not the VOX Populi of his state put him into early retirement.

Picard said...

Never heard the term TRIPLE DOUBLE. Not much for sitting and watching sports. Too busy being out and doing things! Did not get the theme until the very end. Learning moment!

EDNA/KEAN was a Natick. Did WAG it correctly to FIR.

Have not heard of either MOORE. Thank you, Argyle, for the SEXIER photo of Julianne MOORE!

I have seen JOAN BAEZ perform. Can't seem to find any photos. At first I thought it was PHIL OCHS. Never heard of LISA LOEB. Agree I like the Cass Elliot version!

BFG also unknown. Never seen BORO spelled that short way.

Here are some photos I took of (and with) ARABS in Jordan.

I have photos of many an OASIS in that part of the world, too. And I have been to the house in Denmark where the UGLY DUCKLING was written. Another time! Another busy day!

From Yesterday:
Wilbur Charles: Glad to know I guessed correctly that LOTR and Star Wars shared mythological roots! Did not realize the plagiarism was so direct!

Lucina said...

I finished this very early this morning then put it down. Clever, thank you, David Liben-Nowell. Well done!

Of course, I didn't understand the theme which I'm sure one has to be a sports fan to do so.

It's a pity that LARD has been removed from tortillas and other products leaving them with no flavor.

VOX populi, the voice of the people, is often ignored, Gary.

BUNDTPAN takes me to the scene in My Big Fat Greek Wedding where the future in-laws try to explain BUNDT cake to the Greek family. Hilarity ensues.

O'ROURKE and KEAN could have been a Natick but K was the only letter that made sense as has been noted.

CSO to Jayce at SEISMO.

Thank you, Argyle; I'm glad you graphically explained the theme.

Have a lovely day, everyone!

CanadianEh! said...

Good time today. Thanks for the fun, David & Argyle.

This CW filled in well with one possible Natick at 47D and 66A (OROURKE & KEAN), both of which were unknown to this Canadian. But my WAG of the K was correct.
I saw the double OOs first before the DOUBLE TRIPLE theme. 18A and 60A were long and I wanted them to be part of the theme also, but they only had Single Doubles.

Yes, I see my CSO at 42D (thanks C'Moe) but Canadians use eh for much more than "I didn't hear you".
WhyDoCanadiansSayEh

There also is a CSO to Avg JOE.
Like d'otto, I tried Garter before GREEN SNAKE.
I debated between Oil and ORE for the underground find and decided that Oil was more valuable. Must have been gold in that ORE!

Ontario had lots of controversy over the construction of WIND FARMs but they are here now.
WINDFARM

NW Runner @8:42 - I think the normal grid is 16 x 16, which makes this a reduction rather than an expansion. Any comments on changing the grid size from any of our constructors??

LOL Dave2 and YR re cruciferous!

Enjoy the day. We have fresh snow.

Yellowrocks said...

In NJ the BORO spelling is common. "A borough (also spelled boro), in the context of local government in the U.S. state of New Jersey, refers to one of five types and one of eleven forms of municipal government (in addition to those established under a Special Charter)."

I followed keenly the work of the 9/11 Commission, chaired by NJ's own Kean. Kean is also a past governor of NJ and past president of Drew U. This former Republican governor and a former Democratic governor, Brendan Byrne, were good friends. In a weekly column in the Star Ledger they waged an interesting and civil dialog which ended recently upon Byrne's death. Such dialog is so rare.

OAS, I just look up the hurricane damage at Chrisfield, MD., news to me. I am glad you were able to help.

D4E4H said...

19D Earthquake prefix: SEISMO is your key to fun.

When you are not driving, are you the NAGivator? Do you enjoy Cartography? Are you interested in the physical sciences? Are you tired of my questions, and hoping I will come to some point? Well wait no more. Available to the first 20 Cornerites who click --HERE--are the answers to ALL questions. Click now, and click often !

Great Seismic Circles !

The Mt. Burdett Meteor Impact in British Columbia, Canada had a seismic wave at the 1985 miles radius to the Southeast. This aligns with the Ohio River, as it forms the boundary between Indiana and Kentucky.

This passes my front door in Louisville.

At the 2110 Miles Radius to the Southeast the seismic wave again aligns with the Ohio River, as it forms the boundary between Ohio and West Virginia.

At the 2230 miles radius to the Southeast, the seismic wave forms the boundary between West Virginia and Virginia.

Cool beans !

Dave

Misty said...

Oh dear, here I go again. I was praying I had gotten this generally delightful puzzle, but 'twas not to be. I didn't know the political satirist or the 9/11 Commission chairman (is that what we call a Natick?) and so was stumped and put in a D for DEAN instead of a K for KEAN. I should have seen the OROUR___ as O'ROUR___--then I might have gotten the K. Darn. Starting the week with two flawed puzzle answers is just like my first week of the new year, when I messed up the whole week's puzzles. Hope it doesn't happen this week. But the puzzle itself was actually delightful, many thanks, David. I don't know sports but still got the theme answer and found all those TRIPLE DOUBLES in each of the long answers. And two grid spanners--impressive. And your write up is always great, Argyle, thanks.

I just taught my class on Marianne MOORE's poetry last Wednesday, and that picture of her in the black hat was actually part of my slide show for class. So this was my favorite clue of the day.

Liked your haikus, Chairman Moe.

As part of the termite/rat clean-up two guys are removing stuff from my attic at this very moment. Again, tomorrow, I fear. But then I hope I won't have any more bugs or rodents in the place for a few years.

Have a great day, everybody.

Mark S said...

Romp in the park. Easy reveal. Like a Monday puzzle. Tuesday’s WSJ more challenging. Kean, Lisa and Vox unknowns; but filled in nicely. IMO, this seemed to be the easiest puzzles I’ve encountered in the 5 months of puzzle solving or I’m getting better at it.

Cheers,

Mark

Mark S said...

Thank you Argyle for your expo and your reference to Ezra Pound. Very interesting and informative. Speaking of the ElI, I grew up 2 blocks from the Ell in the Bronx (the Lexington Avenue Line— Jerome Ave. and Moshulu Parkway). I got so used to the noise that when I moved to LA and rented an apartment near the Santa Monica airport, the noise didn’t bother me.

I’m a running fanatic. I was out running during the Northridge quake in 1974 at 4:30 A. When the quake hit, all the power went out and it felt like I was body surfing, running on top of waves. Fortunately, people came rushing out of their homes with flashlights and candles which helped guide me as I ran back home. This was one of the weirdest experiences I have ever gone through.

Cheers,

Mark520

Mark S said...

Don’t know how the Mark520 got there.

PK said...

Hi Y'all! Really enjoyed this puzzle, David L-N. Fast & Fun! Thanks again, Argyle.

TTP: You are right about the TRIPLE DOUBLE being a gimmee for me, but you need an update. Russell Westbrook of the OKC Thunder surpassed Oscar Robertson's record in April of this year for the most Triple Doubles in a season (2016-2017) and was named Most Valuable Player for the season. I LIU to be sure because I follow the Thunder and was sure he had outdone Oscar. That the big "O" did this in 1962 (?) and the record stood until now shows how difficult it is. Stats for each player are kept on points, assists (throwing to another player who then makes a basket), rebounds, steals, etc. Westbrook was making triple doubles every game for a while. Energetic and skilled player.

Hand up for not knowing OROURKE or KEAN then seeing the "K' made most sense. Garter before GREEN SNAKE. Didn't know BFG altho I'd heard of the movie. ESP. Knew it was _OX POPULI but tried bOX, pOX, VOX. Voila!



TTP said...

Chairman Moe, Oscar Robertson was the first to average a TRIPLE DOUBLE for a single season, and set the record that year with 41 games having a triple double. He was the only player to average a triple double for a single season, and held that record for 55 years until 2017

He holds the all time record of triple double games (career) with 181 games.

PK, in 2017, Russell Westbrook broke became only the second player in NBA history to average a triple double for a single season. That year, he also broke The Big O's single season record of triple double games with 42.

Westbrook is 4th on the career list with 94 games in which he recorded a triple double. Magic Johnson and Jason Kidd are 2nd and 3rd respectively. He should easily pass Jason Kidd (107) next year, and may even pass Magic (138) in games with a triple double. Oscar's career record looks unattainable.

LeBron James will climb the list too, but it's doubtful he's going to end his career with as many as Westbrook, IMHO.

Bluehen said...

Interesting concept for a puzzle theme. It must have taken a lot of work to come up with phrases that yield triple double letters in a row like that. My hat is off to you, David L-N. Sparkling expo as always, Argyle. Thank you both.

I once read that there is a single word in the English language with triple consecutive double letters and that is the longest string in the language. That word is "bookkeeper". I disagree. I think the record for the longest string of consecutive double letters should be four and belongs to the bookkeepers assistant, the "subbookkeeper". What say you all?

Off to get dinner in the stove. Old World Stew tonight.

Cya!

Jayce said...

Another pleasant puzzle. I enjoyed it. I, too, filled in the "K" for O'ROURKE and KEAN last. I also briefly pondered GARTER SNAKE before realizing that (1) it was too many letters and (2) "garter" could be considered a variation of "garden" and therefore not allowed.

OwenKL, excellent poem! Thank you for creating it.

I think 15 by 15 is the "standard" size of the weekday and Saturday puzzle. The ones we had recently were larger, today's being 16 rows high and the one the other day being 16 columns wide. The usual size of the Sunday puzzle is 21 by 21.

In a recent conversation with our son, I lamented how slanted the news reporting is these days. He challenged me to point to a specific news report (not opinion piece) from a specific publication (on-line or print) to support my opinion. I could not find any.

I enjoy seeing the windmills as we drive I-10 through the Palm Springs area.

Best wishes to you all.

desper-otto said...

Noticed, but forgot to mention, the CSO to Canadian Eh! (BTW, I enjoyed the article you linked, eh?)

Picard, I don't think Joan Baez looks anything like Phil Ochs. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

AnonymousPVX said...

Yeah, I was looking for bookkeeper in there as well...I can see no definition or entry for subbookkeeper in any dictionary. Is it a bookkeeper for a submarine? Haha, sorry, couldn’t resist.

desper-otto said...

AnonymousPVX, I think she handles inventory for a sandwich shop.

JJM said...

Always liked PJ O'Rourke. Wish he still wrote for Rolling Stone

D4E4H said...

Northwest Runner 842A

I'm not at all sure why the size of the puzzle bothers you, but I hope to ease your concern. 10D BUNDTPAN fills 8 squares. 38D REFITTED is also 8. These together dictate the 16 square height. If you had a paper CW, and cut across below the N, and above the R, you could lay the bottom half on top of the upper half, and the black sections would lay on top of each other.

The conditions under which the creators work are numerous, and restricting. I applaud any words they wish to use, and I am continually amazed that they can find words to perp.

YR 934A

No Ma-am, but, cutting to the crux of the problem, they do have Cauliflower ears.

Dave

PK said...

TTP: thanks for broadening my perspective on the TRIPLE DOUBLE situation. I knew Westbrook reached 42, but thought he'd done one more but couldn't find it in his stats. Didn't think of the career total.

Ol' Man Keith said...

I enjoyed Mr. Liben-Nowell's pzl, although he completely evaded my aesthetic obsession with a certain pattern of filling. (See below*)

Ta- DA! Not difficult, but thoroughly pleasant.

Misty, as I read your posting I think you may be handicapping yourself by staying true to early but incorrect fills. Starting with DEAN instead of KEAN would not have been a problem if you were open to changing it along the way. I know it can be hard to revisit earlier fills ("Is nothing sacred?"), but you should really view everything as tentative - until the last T is crossed.
There is a certain eagerness to change that needs to be cultivated in this game.
(But you know all this... Right?)

Marianne MOORE came to talk to us when I was an undergrad. I was callow and green and unprepared to hear her. All I recall is that hat.

____________
Diagonal Report: *Foiled! Mr. Liben-Nowell opted out of the diagonal hunt by giving us a 15x16 grid!
As noted before, such asymmetrical Xwds are rare, and they can be quite unpleasant if not uncovered in time. Fortunately, I smelt a rat early on - so spared myself the trouble.

Ol' Man Keith said...

Northwest Runner
You have a good eye. Not many will spot an asymmetrical grid. They are rare on the daily Xwd beat. CandadianEh, the usual grid is 15x15, so today's is a slight expansion - not a reduction.

As you can see from my posting (above) the size of the grid affects my diagonal search directly.
Today's grid is the second time in a month for the 15x16 pattern. Most solvers won't spot it, as it's not significant enough to jar the eye. The newspapers scale it back so it occupies pretty much the same space.

Wilbur Charles said...

Cornerites convened and knelt down to PRAY
That they be spared Wilbur's essay

But even the Almighty
Can't stop this Blighty

From conducting an Eratorian RAID

Not that the usual suspects weren't excellent today.

Like OAS, I'm a McDonald's solver and Sunday I spotted a guy in front of an LaTimes marathon. He'd found an old one but it was entirely blank.

I suggested he try a Monday. Then came Monday and I thought "uh oh". Now today? This was classic beginner material.

Now today I solved at the laundromat- one dry cycle. I forgot to look for TRIPLE DOUBLES. Just averaging ten assists per game is outstanding. Boston legend Bob Cousy managed it in the 50s. With Russell around there was no room for loose rebounds.

WC

TTP said...

PK, you're welcome. Yes, I was referring to career stats.

Westbrook had an absolutely incredible 2016 - 2017 season. Seemed like he was on the highlight reels every night on Sports Center. I started paying attention because I always thought the record of 41 triple double games in a season would never be broken, and he was on a pace to break it. Then he did. What a season !

Westbrook is a 9 year vet, and probably has another 6 years left. He would have to average 15 triple double games a year for the next 6 years to break the career record that Robertson set at 181 games. Doesn't sound too difficult when he had 42 T-D games last year, but to put last year's "career year" in perspective, he "only" has 15 of them this year so far. Excluding last year, his average T-D games per year is around 6.5

He now has 3 consecutive years that with at least 15 in a season. The all time record for consecutive years is 5, which is another record held by Oscar Robertson. I think he'll get his 4th next year and may tie the Big O the season after that, but don't think he'll be able to play at that level for 6 more years. He's an incredibly talented player, and should be a first ballot Hall of Famer when he retires.

Some sports records just seem unbreakable. In baseball, Tris Speaker's career doubles (792) and outfield assists (449) are another couple that I don't think will be broken.

OAS said...

Jayce Sorry I can't share your enjoyment of windfarm scenery. My first experience with the roadside windmills was an unpleasant one. After what seemed like miles of windmills near the highway in Oregon, I experienced dizziness and perspiration. I had to slow down and was glad when we were past that stretch. Windfarms in the distance don't have that effect on me but near the highway I consider them a safety hazard. I applaud the efforts to find alternative sources of energy but sometimes the cure is as bad as the disease IMHO.

Ol' Man Keith said...

Just a note of appreciation.

I respect my cruciverbal colleagues' judgment on many fronts. Today I'm taking a clue from Jinx in Norfolk, who recommends PJ O'ROURKE's Parliament of Whores. Just downloaded the Kindle edition.

Alas, Oas, I'm not so sure we will ever see that wondrous day you mention. The great voting public has no effective means of supporting reform - not after generations of politicos have found their way to game the system. I hope I'm wrong, but whether from the right or left, the goal seems more to gain power than to serve the citizenry.
We wait and wait while candidates are pre-selected for us and lobbyists have much more clout than voters. Our system (and I speak of our government, not politics) is designed to check all major initiatives, including reform.

TTP said...

Keith, on days where there are no diagonals, maybe you could try alternative pattern solving, such as circumference, every other row, every other column, or even radiating outward from the center ?

It was a slow day here.

I was reading various articles about the Fowler Ridge Windmill Farm and came across a note about the effect on the endangered Indiana bat. I hadn't previously known about the Indiana bat. Then I came across this article: Behavior of bats at wind turbines. Wow ! Who knew ?

Anonymous T said...

Hi All!

Almost exactly what Jinx @7:06a said. Same WOs and unknowns and grade(s) for OKL :-)

Thanks David - both for the puzzle and the 15x16 idea. This may help me with an idea I've been trying to grid for weeks (months?). Let's hope Rich (and Northwest) accept it. Sorry in advance OMK :-)

Thanks Argyle for the expo and JOAN BAEZ tune. I saw some back-to-back letters but didn't realize all were in a string until your writeup.

WOs: Scrub/ABORT; BFG, REtoolED @1st (hi Magilla)
ESPs: VOX, BORO, ESAI, KEAN
Fav: Hand-up! I'm a fan of O'ROURKE. NPR's "Wait, Wait," fans - P.J. is an occasional guest.
Sparkle: The CSOs! Jayce, Ave JOE, and C, EH! Think Steve will claim EATERY?; we know Tin will @ALE :-)

{C|A - like Jinx said} {cute, ?}

PVX & D-O: LOL inre: subbookkeeper

Here you go Lucina - BUNDT cake scene.

Time to build dinner; play later. Cheers, -T

Jayce said...

OAS, sorry the windmills negatively affected you. I imagine, but I don't really know, that they emit some sort of radiation that can have adverse effects on a person. I do know that there have been many reports of birds flying into the blades, unable to anticipate how they move and thereby avoid them, and getting killed. This was very much in the local news in regard to the wind farms on the Altamont pass near Livermore, CA. (My personal preference is nuclear power, provided by relatively "clean" fast sodium reactors.)

Misty said...

Ol'Man Keith, thanks for the kind advice. But alas, the D instead of the K was my very last fill, not an early one. But I probably should have reconsidered it before quitting.

And, wow! You actually got to hear Marianne Moore! Wow! I'll have to see if I remember ever hearing or meeting any celebrity poets or writers in my day. None come immediately to mind, but I'll let you know if any do.

Yellowrocks said...

OMK, 6:08, unfortunately so very true. It will not happen in my lifetime.

Ol' Man Keith said...

Misty sorry I misunderstood the order in which you had your D/K mis-fill.

Speaking of famous authors, I enjoyed a neat encounter with a different sort of writer, also in my undergrad days.
I did a fair amount of acting with San Francisco theater groups in my teens. For the Marina Players I acted the role of Gerald Tetley, the "sensitive son" of tyrannical Major Tetley, in a fine dramatization of The Ox-Bow Incident.
That was during my senior year in HS. A little later, in my 1st or 2nd year in college, I had a creative writing class with Walter van Tilburg Clark. I felt strangely shy about telling him I had played a character of his creation. But then, I thought he was even more tongue-tied in conversation than I was.
He gave me high grades on my assignments, but more importantly, he wrote long, detailed critiques on my papers - some of them very amusing - in a tight, precise handwriting.

I regret I did not keep his notes.

Chairman Moe said...

- T @ 6:25 --->

FYI, Richard Petty was a major stock car driver, and his car number was 43 ... he was more famous and popular than Dale Earnhardt Sr. #43

Misty, glad I gave you a smile! 😀

Anonymous T said...

C.Moe - Thanks. I thought that was a driver's number but didn't know Petty (unlike Earnhardt's name)

C, Eh! - Thanks for the article. I LOL'd at the end - after stating that it's likely because Canadians are nice they use eh when finished it went on to finish w/ "[...]brash Americans who don't much care...[how the listener feels]". Funny, eh?

Anyone playing the State of the Union drinking game?

Let's see if I got this in order... #7, #8, #1, #3(x2), #4(x2), #1 [not sure what else yet... Sat-radio "DVR" delay] - oh, wait I sense a '#2 Wall'; ah, nope (not yet).

I listing on NPR, so I'm not sure if #5 or #6 happened or not - took a shot for good measure :-)

Cheers, -T

SwampCat said...

My comment seems to have gotten itself lost.

Canadian Eh! I was so grateful for your article on Eh!. Lots of truth in it....but also lots of fun.

If it helps add a layer of politeness, I say go for it! The world can certainly use more politeness!

Lucina said...

AnonT:
Thank you for the bundt cake link! My family and I love that movie and have watched it many, many times.

Too bad you didn't link the game earlier, however, I chose my own entertainment during that time.

PK said...

TTP: I felt Westwood's sudden surge in TRIP-DUBs was a reaction to Durant leaving OKC that spurred him to greater achievement -- like "who needs him? I can do it all". No way to know. See what happens from now on.

My Sis-in-law is very excited about possibly having a WIND FARM on one of her wheat fields. I'm not so gung-ho about having one on mine. I feel the constant blowing would have rob the crops of needed moisture. We are dry out here much of the time anyway, but at least the wind dies down and brings in rain. Also my farm acreage most likely to be a candidate for a wind farm is a couple miles from a lake that is inhabited with a lot of geese and ducks and in an established migratory flyway. Geese feed on new green wheat. Those big blades could reek havoc on birds. I've watched hawks flapping their wings madly on a windy day hang only to suspended because of natural wind.

My inlaws lived on a farm and had smaller windmills to pump water and supply electricity to a raft of batteries in the basement for some years until Rural Electrification Agency brought lines near enough to hook up. They conserved energy like crazy so as not to deplete the batteries and continued that practice all their lives.

Misty said...

Thank you, Chairman Moe. And Ol'Man Keith, what a great story about your experience with the playwright! That must have been a total highlight for you!

Anonymous T said...

Apropos for today - give some love to Houston and The Beard's TRIPPLE DOUBLE. -T

Ol' Man Keith said...

M., I should point out that Mr. Clark wasn't a playwright; he did not write the stage version of his Ox-Bow Incident. I forget who did the adaptation I was in.
For the 1943 film, Lamar Trotti did the screenplay from the novel.

TTP said...

Keith, I meant perimeter when I wrote circumference.

CanadianEh! said...

Glad you enjoyed the Canadian Eh article, d'otto, AnonT, SwampCat et al. Re "brash Americans", we are not that polite, AnonT. LOL!

Thanks to Jayce and OMK for clarifying the usual grid size.