Theme: "Political Insiders" - Presidential monogram spans across each theme entry.
23A. Kiddie lit hero created by Hans and Margret Rey (#18) : CURIOUS GEORGE. Ulysses S. Grant.
33A. It usually begins "How many (whatever) does it take ... " (#36) : LIGHTBULB JOKE. Lyndon B. Johnson.
51A. Film based on the novel "Shoeless Joe" (#32) : FIELD OF DREAMS. Franklin D. Roosevelt.
82A. Arizona tourist attraction (#34) : PAINTED DESERT. Dwight D. Eisenhower.
101A. Athletic retiree? (#37) : UNIFORM NUMBER. Richard Milhous Nixon.
114A. Religious high point? (#33) : CHURCH STEEPLE. Harry S. Truman.
69A. What's hidden in answers with an apt "#" in their clues : PRESIDENTIAL MONOGRAMS
With "apt" in the reveal clue, I thought there's a further layer to the theme. Nope.
We don't see Alan Arbesfeld's byline often here at LAT. He is a very accomplished constructor, with many puzzles published by the NYT and other major venues.
Don't think I've seen a LAT Sunday with only 134 words.
Across:
1. Truckers' competition : ROADEO. Portmanteau of Rodeo and Road.
7. Finish behind : LOSE TO
13. Adenauer sobriquet meaning "the old man" : DER ALTE. We see ALTE more often often.
20. Turns inside out : EVERTS. Not a word I use.
21. Available : ON HAND
22. Dressing choice : ITALIAN. What's your favorite dressing?
25. Sways on a curve : CAREENS
26. Space cadet? : ALIEN. Got via crosses.
27. Suspense novelist Tami : HOAG
28. Fields of comedy : TOTIE
30. '70s-'80s batting instructor Charlie : LAU. Learned from doing crosswords.
31. Must : NEEDS TO
37. "Mi casa __ casa" : ES SU
38. Bk. after Proverbs : ECCL
40. Raise : REAR
41. Winnebago descendants : IOWAS
42. Winter wear : PARKA. Been looking for a light, short and warm jacket in red.
44. Dining __ : CAR
45. "__ to eat and run ... " : I HATE
48. Gain a lap : SIT
54. __ Gimignano: walled Tuscany town : SAN
57. "It's __ wind ... " : AN ILL
59. KOA visitor : RVER
60. Menu option : UNDO
61. Website page : HOME
62. Rhythm rattler : MARACA
64. Longtime rock 'n' roll disc jockey Dan : INGRAM. D-Otto might know him. Not me.
67. "It's suddenly clear" : I SEE NOW
72. 1991 Steve Martin film set in Calif. : L.A. STORY
73. Front line? : ISOBAR
74. Spiced up : ZESTED
75. Big ones are found on Wall Street : EGOS. Why Wall Street?
76. Altar agreements : I DOs
78. Austrian expressionist Schiele : EGON. Another stranger. Here is his self-portrait.
80. Former "60 Minutes" debater __ Alexander : SHANA
81. Judge of hoops : REF
23A. Kiddie lit hero created by Hans and Margret Rey (#18) : CURIOUS GEORGE. Ulysses S. Grant.
33A. It usually begins "How many (whatever) does it take ... " (#36) : LIGHTBULB JOKE. Lyndon B. Johnson.
51A. Film based on the novel "Shoeless Joe" (#32) : FIELD OF DREAMS. Franklin D. Roosevelt.
82A. Arizona tourist attraction (#34) : PAINTED DESERT. Dwight D. Eisenhower.
101A. Athletic retiree? (#37) : UNIFORM NUMBER. Richard Milhous Nixon.
114A. Religious high point? (#33) : CHURCH STEEPLE. Harry S. Truman.
69A. What's hidden in answers with an apt "#" in their clues : PRESIDENTIAL MONOGRAMS
With "apt" in the reveal clue, I thought there's a further layer to the theme. Nope.
We don't see Alan Arbesfeld's byline often here at LAT. He is a very accomplished constructor, with many puzzles published by the NYT and other major venues.
Don't think I've seen a LAT Sunday with only 134 words.
Across:
1. Truckers' competition : ROADEO. Portmanteau of Rodeo and Road.
7. Finish behind : LOSE TO
13. Adenauer sobriquet meaning "the old man" : DER ALTE. We see ALTE more often often.
20. Turns inside out : EVERTS. Not a word I use.
21. Available : ON HAND
22. Dressing choice : ITALIAN. What's your favorite dressing?
25. Sways on a curve : CAREENS
26. Space cadet? : ALIEN. Got via crosses.
27. Suspense novelist Tami : HOAG
28. Fields of comedy : TOTIE
30. '70s-'80s batting instructor Charlie : LAU. Learned from doing crosswords.
31. Must : NEEDS TO
37. "Mi casa __ casa" : ES SU
38. Bk. after Proverbs : ECCL
40. Raise : REAR
41. Winnebago descendants : IOWAS
42. Winter wear : PARKA. Been looking for a light, short and warm jacket in red.
44. Dining __ : CAR
45. "__ to eat and run ... " : I HATE
48. Gain a lap : SIT
54. __ Gimignano: walled Tuscany town : SAN
57. "It's __ wind ... " : AN ILL
59. KOA visitor : RVER
60. Menu option : UNDO
61. Website page : HOME
62. Rhythm rattler : MARACA
64. Longtime rock 'n' roll disc jockey Dan : INGRAM. D-Otto might know him. Not me.
67. "It's suddenly clear" : I SEE NOW
72. 1991 Steve Martin film set in Calif. : L.A. STORY
73. Front line? : ISOBAR
74. Spiced up : ZESTED
75. Big ones are found on Wall Street : EGOS. Why Wall Street?
76. Altar agreements : I DOs
78. Austrian expressionist Schiele : EGON. Another stranger. Here is his self-portrait.
80. Former "60 Minutes" debater __ Alexander : SHANA
81. Judge of hoops : REF
86. Dorm room, perhaps : STY
87. Cartoon strip : PANEL
88. Small team : DUO
89. Put a stop to : CEASE
91. Mtge.-offering business : S AND L
94. Mosque leader : IMAM
96. Wine characteristic : BODY
97. Revelations : AHAs
105. Mr. Clean competitor : LESTOIL. Never tried this brand.
108. Knight clubs : MACES
109. River to the Rhein : AARE
111. "__ woods these are I think I know": Frost : WHOSE
112. Letting it all hang out, theatrically : EMOTING
118. What love and hate share? : SILENT E. Just the last letter of love and hate.
119. "It's My Party" singer Gore : LESLEY
120. Shakespearean attendant : VARLET. I only know VALET.
121. Hybrid with thorns : TEA ROSE. I can smell it. Lovely.
122. Overage : EXCESS
123. Main squeeze : STEADY
Down:
1. Fix, as a rattan chair : RE-CANE. I'd buy a new chair.
2. Small eggs : OVULES
3. Cliff dwellings : AERIES
4. Ran out, as a supply : DRIED UP
5. Preppy jackets : ETONs
6. The Beavers of the Pac-12 : OSU.
7. Macy's red star, e.g. : LOGO
8. Low tie : ONE ALL
9. Japanese chess : SHOGI. Sho = General. Gi = Game. So, "General's Game".
10. Hammer site : EAR
11. "Star Trek" spin-off, briefly : TNG. The Next Generation.
12. One-named folk singer : ODETTA
13. Mirabile __: wonderful to say : DICTU. New to me.
14. Amazon business : E-TAIL
15. Cheesy "Welsh" dishes : RAREBITS
16. Brown __ : ALE
17. Stay under the radar : LIE LOW
18. Yankees' pitcher Masahiro : TANAKA. Must be Rich's clue. He's avid Yankees' fan.
19. Happens as a result : ENSUES
24. Stunning surprise : SHOCKER. Caesars Palace now charges a $10 parking fee. Sigh! Used to be fun window-shopping at the Forum.
29. Conan of "Conan" : OBRIEN
32. Garr of "Tootsie" : TERI
34. Tennis great Steffi : GRAF. Great match for Agassi.
35. Group in a drive : HERD
36. Veep between Dick and Mike : JOE (Biden)
39. Friend of Hobbes : CALVIN
43. Gp. created by a 1955 merger : AFL-CIO
44. Welsh herding dogs : CORGIS. Favorite dogs for Queen Elizabeth.
46. Invited to one's place : HAD IN
47. Israeli author who wrote "A Tale of Love and Darkness" : AMOS OZ
48. Array of chocolates, say : SAMPLER
49. Seething : IN A RAGE
50. Loses interest in : TIRES OF
52. X-ray examiner, perhaps : DENTIST. Going to see mine next week.
53. Odds and ends : RUMMAGE
54. Many Beethoven pieces : SONATAS
55. "One sec" : A MOMENT
56. Long Island paper : NEWSDAY. They also have crosswords, but not to open submissions, I don't think. Gail is one of the constructors there.
58. Has legs : LASTS
61. Pulitzer journalist Seymour : HERSH. He sure has lots of anonymous sources.
63. "Rocky" role : ADRIAN
65. '90s Indian prime minister : RAO. Nailed it.
66. Planetary reflected-light ratio : ALBEDO. New word to me.
68. Discharges : EGESTS
70. Singer Gorme : EYDIE
71. Pitcher Jesse with a record 1,252 regular-season appearances : OROSCO. He was a Twin.
77. Surfing indoors, say : ONLINE
79. Pine forest floor covering : NEEDLES
82. Trigger was one : PALOMINO. Great fill.
83. Dutch export : EDAM
84. Oversimplify, with "down" : DUMB
85. Funny Martha : RAYE
87. Common attached file : PDF
90. Diner come-on : EAT HERE. Santa loves lo mein and string beans.
91. Most confident : SUREST
92. Breakdown of social norms : ANOMIE
93. Inventor Tesla : NIKOLA
95. Physical strength : MUSCLE
96. Prepares (oneself) for impact : BRACES
98. Fanfare : HOOPLA
99. Like supermarkets and stadiums : AISLED. Never used this word form.
100. Cold and wet, maybe : SLEETY
102. Goes on a tirade : RANTS
103. Bobby in a 1971 #1 hit : MCGEE. "Me and Bobby McGee".
104. Country rocker Steve : EARLE
106. Exercise beads? : SWEAT
110. Matthew of "The Americans" : RHYS. Looks who he's dating? Felicity!
115. Bad spell : HEX
116. 2017 Pac-12 champs : USC
117. Sharp products : TVs.. Great clue.
Oh, I need to show you this sweet picture again! You'll know who that lucky guy is.
Good Morning You Corneriters,
ReplyDeleteThank you Mr. Alan Arbesfeld for this impossible CW. Almost every cell had a catch that somehow I solved. I worked hard to FIR!
Thank you C.C. for your excellent review including a mouth watering PIC of lo mein and string beans.
"6D The Beavers of the Pac-12 : OSU. Ohio State." I'm not a sports fan, but I attended Ohio State. I believe the OSU here is the Oregon State University.
"You'll know who that lucky guy is." I sure will, as soon as you tell me.
I look forward to today's comments.
Dave
FIW, and not surprised at it a bit!
ReplyDelete3 misspellings I didn't realize were wrong,
ETAtL+TOTtE
L.A.STORd+EdDIE
LESLEe+RHeS
and 1 total WAG I had to ask the computer to fill in for me:
OReSCO+EGeN
Needed the reveal to get the gimmick, and while I picked them out easily enough, none of them were helpful for getting their containers.
Once said by a chanting IMAM,
"It is in a minaret that I am!
It's not a CHURCH STEEPLE
Where I call the people,
But on the roll of the mosque, I'm high man!"
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteI normally don't dis a puzzle, but I found this one to be a real fun-sponge. Too many names. Names crossing names. Names crossing foreign words. Baseball name crossing baseball name. Bah humbug! I WAGged EGAN/ORASCO. Bzzzzzt! Couldn't parse AMOS OZ -- thought it was a single last name: AMOSON. Never did get ZESTED. I threw in the towel at the 34-minute mark with two bad cells, one of which I thought might be correct. DNF. Sorry, Alan.
LESTOIL: "Makes water wetter." Remember that?
CORGIS: There's a friendly Corgi on our weekday walking route. When we see her down the block, we holler, "Stella!" -- very Brandoesque.
C.C., I vaguely remember Dan Ingram from my ute. I think he was on WABC in New York. We midwest kids had our car radio buttons set to WLS (Dick Biondi) in Chicago and KOMA in Oklahoma City and KAAY in Little Rock, plus a couple of local stations for daytime listening when there was no skip-wave. That's back in the day when AM radio was king.
D4, I'm gonna stick my neck out and hazard a guess that the guy in that photo is Husker. Doesn't look much like him, but it sure looks like Joann with him. Prom photo, maybe?
ReplyDeleteA tough slog. Lots of unknown proper names.
ReplyDeleteTo OSU or not to OSU, that is a question. Ohio State is one of the largest universities in the nation so it is better known as OSU, but Oklahoma State University, and Oregon State University also are known as OSU. So it depends on whether you want Buckeyes, Ohio, Cowboys, Oklahoma or Beavers, Oregon.
ReplyDeletedesper-otto 720a
Thanks for your help with the PIC.
Dave
Eeeeee-gads! Lots of cheating to finish this one. Hopefully some of the new info sticks. Thanks for the write up, C.C.
ReplyDeleteThere is another layer. The "apt" number is the number that president is in the order.
ReplyDeleteThe "apt #" refers to the presidential order in the clue.
ReplyDeleteI had 2 letters in the mid grid which I had to red letter and run the alphabet.
Agree with the complaint above about the unknowns crossing unknowns, definitely made this tougher!
Hello Puzzlers -
ReplyDeleteGlad to learn I’m not the only one who struggled with this. Grokked the theme easily enough, all the big answers were right, but I could only guess at the unfamiliar names. I mostly guessed wrong. DNF
Morning C.C., grateful for your guidance today!
I don’t know if the multitudes of OSU’s is why Ohio St annoyingly calls itself THE Ohio State University (or tOSU.) My boss would mock them by saying she went to The Bowling Green State U.
ReplyDeleteCharlie LAU was famous for teaching hitting with a strong bottom hand to get topspin. Annoyed Ted Williams, who was a top-hand guy.
Good Morning.
ReplyDeleteNow that was a workout! I guess I had time to kill this morning; it didn't see my struggle as anything awful. I was very impressed with the construction after I filled the reveal, which took a bit of time because I wasn't getting perps and the #clues went right out the window. Thanks, Alan.
C.C., thank you for the tour and explaining so many new words. SHO GI was new to me and makes sense as a General's game. ALBEDO? Huh? I wonder if I'll remember that one. My fave today was CORGIS. We had two over a period of 25 years. After the first one, I said I'd never get another--until I visited a six-week old pup. I didn't think I could wait until her breeder released her at 10 weeks. Great pals--even when they think they're in charge of everybody. Herders are funny: I dog-sat my daughter's Border Collie, and the two of them spent most of their time trying to move me around from room to room. It was rather hilarious.
Have a lovely Sunday. Peace to you.
Hi Y'all! Seems like Alan's puzzle would fit in the NYT better, but the difficulty didn't upset me as much as having to do it in Chrome where I couldn't enlarge it. Couldn't read the small numbers at all. The fact that I was able to do it anywhere was great though, since my internet is still a sometimes thing. Thanks, Alan.
ReplyDeleteGreat expo, C.C.! I recognized Gary & Joann right away, but didn't realize they'd been a couple since high school? Or college?
I was happy to pick out all the PRESIDENTIAL initials. But I failed to get JOE for the veep. ESP.
Madam: Too funny about your herders. I had a German Shepherd that was a gem for herding my toddler out of harm's way in the great outdoors.
I do not want to take credit for prescience, but I did write in my write-up of JW on February 9, 2018, "42. Brutus Buckeye is its mascot: Abbr. : OSU. The Ohio State University. Oklahoma State last week, perhaps Oregon State next." February 1, February 9 and February 18 LAT.
ReplyDeleteI did not recall Mr. Imgram. I listened to WLS - Chicago and WBZ - Boston, but this ARTICLE makes him seem like a special person.
King Henry IV, Part II, Act V, Scene III
"FALSTAFF.
This Davy serves you for good uses; he is your serving-man
and your husband.
SHALLOW.
A good varlet, a good varlet, a very good varlet, Sir John:
by the mass, I have drunk too much sack at supper: a good
varlet. Now sit down, now sit down: come, cousin.
There were many names and unknowns. EGON? I never did listen to SHANA Alexander on 60 Minutes I loved the Jane Curtain-Dan Ackroyd version on SNL.
Charlie was the batting instructor for the White Sox but was most acclaimed for working with George Brett who came close to batting the elusive 400 in 1980, last accomplished by Ted Williams in 1941. Those who came close:
Tony Gwynn 1994 Padres .394
George Brett 1980 Royals .390
Rod Carew 1977 Twins .388
Ted Williams 1957 Red Sox .388
Larry Walker 1999 Rockies .379
Stan Musial 1948 Cardinals .376
Ichiro Suzuki 2004 Mariners .372
Thanks, Alan and C.C.
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteThis was a bit of a struggle, even after filling in the revealer because, as others have mentioned, there were so many unknowns: everts, Shogi, Amos Oz (I, too, thought it was one word), Rao, varlet, Ingram, dictu, etc. On top of these, there was the albedo/Egon/Orosco crossings which led me to a big, fat FIW. (I knew baseball's Jesse but spelled it Oresco.) Rhys was a gimme as I remembered him from "Brothers and Sisters." I didn't care for aisled.
Thanks, Alan, for the workout and thanks, CC, for the thorough and informative expo.
We got about 3" of snow overnight. It'll soon disappear, though, as temps are rising to almost 70 by Wednesday. Imagine. 70 degrees in February in Upstate New York!
Have a great day.
Musings
ReplyDelete-Thanks for all the lovely sentiments yesterday!
-Yes that is the “Before” picture to accompany yesterday’s “After” and my bride has aged much better since prom than I
-SHOGI, HOAG, EGON, PICTU et al were tough but this amateur astronomer did know ALBEDO so…
-The first monogram I saw was Light Bulb Joke but then I saw LBJ was also nested together and on other themers
-This KC Royal hall-of-famer shows the LAU swing trademark – top hand coming off the bat
-You need a red, light, short winter coat, C.C.? I’m all over that!
-We gave upon on lovely, fragile hybrid teas and now grow these hardy beauties
-Our last Husker coach came from OSU, failed and has returned to OSU
-Niece just had a baby at 26 wks that was 2lb 6oz, and they named it CALVIN. He is thriving - modern medicine is amazing
-I did TIRE OF kids’ excuses. I told them, “Just say you didn’t do it and let’s move on”
-I knew I knew this woman on Grace and Frankie but had to look her up. Did you?
A neat theme with the PRESIDINTIAL MONOGRAMS (INITIALS was one letter short) that I caught after USG & LBJ because of the numbers. But after a 'relatively' easy start this puzzle got progressively harder that I had to grind out to an ultimate DNF. The incorrect WAGS at the intersections of SHODI & HOAD and OROSCO & EGON were wrong. I guessed HOAK because I don't think anybody's last name was HOAX. ORESCO & EGEN looked as good, as I had never heard of the three people or the game. D-O's EGAN/ORASCO seemed as good too.
ReplyDeleteSomehow I managed to correctly get more unknowns than I deserved TO. INGRAM, VARLET, LESTOIL (never tried or heard of either), NEWS DAY, HERSH, RAO, RHYS, ODETTA, ANOMIE, DICTU, TANAKA. Knowing but not knowing how to spell LESLEY, EYDIE, and TOTIE had to wait for the perps.
billocohoes- The Brits insist that broadcasters call the Wimbledon tennis tournament "THE CHAMPIONSHIPS" and The British Open "THE OPEN" when mentioning their tournaments on television.
S AND L- I think the FSLIC shut them down or converted them to FDIC banks.
"Bobby MCGEE"- I was 'busted flat in Baton Rouge' once. I was flying on standby out of New Orleans and got 'bumped' off. The only thing to eat at that airport (in 1972) came from the candy machine.
Sidebar
ReplyDelete-In this Picture Matthew Rhys in on the left. He reminds me of the guy on the right every time!
WDOS, what d-o said! Too many proper names crossed by other proper names makes me realize what a small world I encompass. AMOS OZ, HERSH, OLETTA, EARLE (I may have seen that before), and have never heard of LESTOIL. TANAKA crossing LAU. INGRAM was perped.
ReplyDeleteI do know EYDIE Gorme, CSO to my niece who is named for her.
Martha RAYE, NIKOLA, GRAF, SHANA Alexander, even ADRIAN are all familiar to me and though I've seen OROSCO, couldn't recall it until a few letters showed up.
Otherwise, it was a fair and challenging puzzle. Thank you, Alan Arresfeld.
Thank you, C.C., for illuminating all this for us. A red jacket sounds stunning. I hope you find it. My favorite dressing is Ken's raspberry walnut vinaigrette.
Have a happy day, everyone!
Greetings to all!
ReplyDeleteWith more than 20 unknown proper names, I waved the white flag of surrender early in the game. Favorite clue/answer was "Exercise beads?" for SWEAT.
C.C. ( from yesterday) you certainly deserve every bit of the shining shout out from Mike Alpern. Here, here! Thanks for the thorough expo of today's puzzle. For salad dressing, I prefer a balsamic vinaigrette with crumbled gorgonzola or feta cheese.
Husker Gary, what wonderful photos of you and Joann, both then and now. Such a good looking couple!
Enjoy the day!
Very challenging. I used double my Sunday time. The long fills were not difficult, but there were very many unknown names crossing other unknown names. I had some successful wags, but several incorrect ones did me in. I am glad to see that I am in good company. At first seeing GEORGE, I thought it would be presidential first names. After getting MONOGRAMS I went back and found the initials, but it was no help in the solving because I already had the long fills. I do not know many of the presidents by their order #s. I was surprised that the Sunday puzzle was way more difficult for me than Friday's and Saturday's. Gary, I thought of you at ALBEDO.
ReplyDeleteMy garage door is stuck 18 inches from the floor and won't go up or down. I'd like to pull the cord to disconnect the opener, but the tension is too strong for me. I hope my garage door mechanic will come out tomorrow, a holiday. At least my car is out on the driveway and not trapped inside.
HG @ 10:37 ~ I believe the guy on the left in your photo is Zach Braff of "Scrubs" not Matthew Rhys. 😉
ReplyDeleteA Sunday toughie, Alan, but then they're not supposed to be easy. This one sure was challenging, and hearing that you too found it tough, Irish Miss, made me feel better, since you're the ace of puzzle solvers in my book. But I loved the theme, which I got pretty early on because I got FIELD OF DREAMS and noticed the FDR. So, much to enjoy, thanks, Alan, and great write-up, as always, C.C. And great pictures!
ReplyDeleteOne item I still don't understand is KOA visitor being RVER--please explain, somebody.
Madame Defarge, loved your CORGI stories. Doesn't Queen Elizabeth have CORGIS? But I may not be up on my royal dogs anymore.
I hear we're going to get rain on Tuesday, but we sure have a lovely sunny Sunday today.
Have a wonderful day, everybody!
Musings
ReplyDelete-Thanks Irish! I don’t know if it is or not but both of them look like Tex Ritter’s son. How ‘bout this?
-Sidebar: See, the lovely Agnes shows there is a way to make a gentle, non-snarky correction or comment!
KOA > Kampgrounds of America. RVer > Recreational Vehicle. People driving RV (RVers) stay at KOA's.
ReplyDeleteYes, that is Matthew Rhys.
Hand up with desper-otto this was a fun sponge. "Challenging" means pushing our creativity and the constructor's creativity to the limit. This was a bunch of utterly unfair Natick crosses.
ReplyDeleteHand up with Big Easy I was surprised how many I got correct even though they were impossible WAGs.
Too bad about the nastiness of the puzzle. The theme was clever and I got it after awhile. I had to figure out it was PRESIDENTIAL MONOGRAMS and not something involving ANAGRAMS. I have memorized the presidents in order as a way to help with these puzzles. So it was fun to have a chance to use that information!
Here is my recording of our local IMAM speaking after the San Bernardino massacre in December 2015.
ALBEDO was a gimme. As the arctic snow melts, it lowers the ALBEDO of this PLANET. Which causes more heating and more melting. In engineering we call this a positive feedback loop. It usually does not end well.
Plenty of other interesting references worthy of comment. But we are about to head out to Los Angeles.
Hello everyone.
ReplyDeleteDid it on-line. Only a few red letters needed. Haven't seen DER ALTE for a while. Easy tho. Cool beans to have the Pres. initials as a theme. Didn't use it to solve except for the E in DDE. My ship was a DDE when I reported aboard, it reverted back to DD in 1964. But I digress.
Turns inside out - What do you call it when you take a word like Otto and you turn it inside out and get toot?
ALBEDO - An important factor in calculating heat budgets. Extremely difficult to gauge with meaningful accuracy when dealing with the Earth's surface. It is basically empirical when applied to "natural" surfaces. (Sort of like pinning down the roughness factor "n" in Manning's hydraulic equation.)
I did not enjoy this puzzle. Four reasons: (1) Too many entries where you either know it or you don't and getting some of the cross fill doesn't help. E.g. AMOS OZ. Even with 5 of the 6 letters filled it was no help at all. (2) Clues that are too far fetched such that even when the answer emerges it is not clear what relation it has to the clue, for example "Space cadet?" = ALIEN. (3) Instances where the clue doesn't match the answer, such as "Revelations" = AHAS. "Aha" is what one says when one has a revelation; it is not the revelation itself. (4) Proper name Naticks, i.e. where two proper names cross each other neither of which could be expected to be known by at least 25% of the population. For example, SHANA crossing HERSH, EARLE crossing LESLEY, and EGON crossing OROSCO.
ReplyDeleteI'm not convinced BODY is a characteristic of wine that anybody uses to evaluate a wine. Aroma ("nose"), color, "legs," taste, acidity, tannins, finish, complexity, etc. but I have never ever read a wine review that mentions body. What would be the meaning of body, anyway?
Other than that, Jayce, how was your morning? Very good actually :)
Good wishes to you all.
Jayce, it's my understanding that "body" in wine refers to the perceived feel of the weight of the wine on the tongue. Anyway that's my story and I'm sticking to it. I may not always be right, but I never lack for confidence.
ReplyDeleteCya!
Thanks, Bluehen. After I posted I looked it up and sure enough "Body is an important characteristic of wine. Whether a wine is full bodied, medium bodied, or light bodied will help determine which foods pair best with it, when it is best to drink it, and even whether you are likely to enjoy drinking it." I was wrong. Thanks for setting me straight.
ReplyDeleteHard and tricky. I did manage it with a couple of red letters and one Google. I liked it in spite of my difficulties. Thanks A squared and C squared. :>)
ReplyDeleteI do most of the grocery shopping. I often pick up a bunch of pretty flowers. Yesterday I got two bunches of daffodils and one large orchid. Really pretty and cheerful.
Thanks for the explanation, Argyle.
ReplyDeleteThe puzzle to difficult for me . I never the less enjoyed trying. Always happy to see clues for ISOBARS as they remind me of the great time I had years ago in flight school. Studying weather was vital and a large percentage of the ground school mark.
ReplyDeleteReally enjoy reading the blog entries.
Yellow Rocks Had a similar experience with the garage door on Thursday morning. DW left for her volunteer work and the door wouldn't close. I checked it out and thought 3 hrs to correct it. Cable off, rollers out of the track. I called the trusted door man and sure enough , all taken care of by the time I got home from my work. Seems like these things like to happen in the winter.
Desper Otto and Lemonade I remember WLS Chicago The ads for W W Wallworts still fresh in my ears.
Sunday lurk say...
ReplyDeleteC.C. - I'll hazard a guess re: EGOs and Wall Street. It takes a big EGO to risk other people's money.
As for salad dressing, I'm w/ MJ - Balsamic & oil w/ a pinch of salt and/or parmesan/feta.
I bet Bill G also got a kick out of seeing Calvin and Hobbes. too.
Spitz - you made me go look up ALBEDO. I've heard of Manning but my Thermo-knowledge pretty much ends with PV=nrT :-)
DO - I remember when that OK station (er, Oklahoma, too many O's today) went to easy-listening making KOMA quite the apt call-letters. :-)
DO / Lem / OAS: I cannot get the Google to corroborate my story but there was a WLS in Norman, OK in the '90s. I remember driving by it a number of times thinking
a) how does this duplicate call-letter station exist and
b) what is a W doing on the left-side of the Mississippi.
The latter, I learned, is that they were grandfathered-in as they were a station before the FCC make the K-W designation.
If you didn't catch the FLN link: If teaching were taken as seriously as sport [4m] for you teachers out there.
Have a great Sunday Y'all!
Cheers, -T
Didn't like this puzzle either. Proper nouns crossing proper nouns. Missing one letter and having no idea what the letter could be. ancient comediennes and obscure (even for me) sports references. Cleaning product that I never seen used or heard of..BLAH !! 6 of 7 this week. Time to hit the driving range even though its a frigid 18 degrees out (Celsius)
ReplyDeleteAnon-T, there is a WWLS in Oklahoma. In fact there are lots of stations that "violate" the W east of the Mississippi and K west of the Mississippi rule. If those stations ever request a call-letter change, they'll have to abide by the rule, but meanwhile they're grandfathered. Perhaps the most famous is KDKA in Pittsburgh. Here in Texas we've got WOAI San Antonio and WBAP Fort Worth plus a couple of others that are less well known. For awhile there was WBAP and WFAA Dallas playing switcheroo with two frequencies. They both broadcast on 570 and clear-channel 820, but not at the same time. Every couple of hours they'd switch from 570 to 820 and vice versa. Confusing. To make matters more confusing, they were both network affiliates, but the networks stayed with the frequency. All of this came to an end in 1970 when WBAP took over the 820 frequency full time. If that's not already TMI, you can read more about it here.
ReplyDeleteOAS, I suspect a similar problem.It is Sunday and tomorrow is a holiday. My kind next door neighbor disconnected the opener for me and closed the door. Tomorrow or Tues. I will have the garage door mechanic in.
ReplyDeleteFirst, my washer did not drain,covered by a service plan. Then my car transmission failed under warrenty by a hair. Now my garage opener does not work. Likely it is off the track. Trouble comes in threes. I have had my three. Time to CEASE.
DO - I tried to do my due-dillagence and I did find WWLS but no reference of them being in downtown-Norman. This station was on W. Gray (runs parallel to opposite-direction one-way Main). Maybe it's a mis-memory. I'll look for it next time I visit Eldest @OU and take a snap.
ReplyDelete//OU - University of Oklahoma, a very welcoming school for dyslexics :-)
Thanks for the WBAP link - I think the penny finally dropped on "clear channel" meaning "no one else, anywhere within power, is broadcasting on that freq." Is that right?
HAM wanna be -T
HG @ 12:02 ~ As Argyle confirmed, your second photo is Matthew Rhys. All three bear a resemblance but, IMO, Matthew Rhys looks more like Zach Braff than he looks like John Ritter. The eye of the beholder syndrome, no doubt. For example, I didn't recognize Talia Shire from the photo in your link. Maybe if I saw her on the program and heard her voice, I might have come up with her name, but definitely not from that photo.
ReplyDeleteMisty @ 12:01 ~ Thank you for those kind words but today I wore the dunce hat!
WEES about this being a workout. Thanks for the fun Alan and C.C.
ReplyDeleteThis Canadian has been stating here previously about the need to learn the American presidents (with their numbers too for today) and Picard has done it!!! Do all Americans learn them at school as part of American history classes? I would be hard-pressed to list the Canadian Prime Ministers in order.
(. . .and we needed the Veeps today for JOE!)
But with my trusty list, I found the initials and discovered, like Big Easy, that it was MONOGRAMS that fit. Like YR, I was misdirected by GEORGE in the first theme answer and looked for names at first.
Plenty of WAGS and Google searches to fill in all the names and Naticks. I discovered the need for Y in LESLEY, RHYS and EYDIE.
"Spiced up" went from Heated to ZESTED; the Dutch export was Bulb before EDAM (I'm looking for spring).
The noun form of RUMMAGE seemed ALIEN to me but apparently "odds and ends" is an archaic usage. And I always thought Rummage Sale referred to the people rummaging through the piles of odds and ends . . . But apparently they are rummaging through the RUMMAGE, Learning moment for the day.
Enjoy the rest of the day.
C, Eh! - Inre: the mandatory learning of US presidents. It depends. At Catholic school the only rote-learning we did was in Religion class; everything else was building understandings so it didn't matter if it was 1492 [when Columbus sailed the ocean blue] but more so the why and ramifications.
ReplyDeleteWhen I got to public school [I bounced back and forth depending on which parent had custody] it was more rote and I felt dumb for not knowing Taft was #27. //I did know he had a bathtub built for his big-self and he oversaw most of the Panama Canal construction.
In Texas public schools - WOW! Texas history is drilled into these kids' heads. They know everything about the Alamo and Sam Houston but little about current events.
Cheers, -T
DO: To clarify my @3:53: I'm an idiot but not a total one...
ReplyDeleteI know a 'clear channel' is one we can 'talk' on (Hz wise) but hearing "A Clear Channel radio station" was because they were owned by Clear Channel who also owns road-sign advertising. The penny is -- now I get why they are called Clear Channel, they own 1/2 the spectrum.
Having grown up in the Land of Lincoln, Springfield, IL (where I'd "pirate" cable to get their dishes to feed my receiver KSHE 95 out of St. Louis [AND I knew Lincoln was #16 :-)]) and moving to bigger and bigger cities with larger arrays of Radio.... When I moved to Houston, I was looking forward to a smorgasbord.* Instead, I found out what mass-market-media really meant.
Cheers, -T
*I even rigged a directional-antenna in my attic in Norman to get The Edge (102.1 KDGE) out of Dallas. That's what I thought Big City Radio would give me... ok, I guess I am a total one
At rummage sales we always call the odds and ends rummage. I use rummage more as a noun than a verb.
ReplyDeleteWe would be delighted that school children at least recognized the names as Presidents, forget knowing the order. When my David was young we had a set of souvenir spoons for each President. He memorized their names in order. Very rare.
AnonT, yes I did get a kick out of seeing Calvin and Hobbes in a CW. That's the first time I can remember it showing up. I got the complete three-volume set of C & H at Costco years ago. When Jordan was first learning to read, we'd sit on the sofa together and take turns reading panels. We'd both get a big laugh out of his futilely trying to outsmart Suzie. Now he's in 8th grade and he still likes to read it with me. I love when that happens...
ReplyDeleteThe daffodil buds have opened. They are so pretty and they smell good too. The orchid is pretty too. It's the biggest one I've ever gotten. It cost $19. I've already gotten that much pleasure out of looking at it.
And then there was WKRP...
Barbara recorded "The Full Monty" a week or two ago. We were watching part of it while having lunch. I'm surprised that she likes it as much as I do. There's one classic scene that makes us laugh just thinking about it.
Dwight D. Eisenhower, January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961, is the first President I can remember. Can you remember Harry S. Truman, April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953, or Franklin D. Roosevelt, March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945 (Died in office)?
ReplyDeleteHusker Gary,
I traveled back in time to 2-17-18 in my Delorean to see the "Happy Anniversary Picture." I believe you have mellowed in your charred oak keg just as well as your amazing wife Joann! Congrats.
Happy Birthday Chairman Moe!
I am behind in my comment reading. If you wrote after 2-12, 829a, it will be news to me. Later dudes and dudettes.
Dave
Do any of you watch the "Murdoch Mysteries"--my favorite television show? I just finished watching it, and after years and years and years, Julia and William finally got married! Yay!
ReplyDeleteMisty:
ReplyDeleteI love the Murdoch Mysteries but here it is aired at 12:00 A.M. and I record it so I'll see the wedding tomorrow. I've been anticipating it all season!
Oh, so sorry I gave it away, Lucina--my apologies. But even knowing the ending, there are still amazing surprises surrounding everything, so enjoy, enjoy.
ReplyDelete