Theme: Circle Scrambles - different kinds of messages scrambled and highlighted by the circles
20A. Surprisingly little, pricewise : NEXT-TO-NOTHING. [TEXT]
27A. Superfast : A MILE A MINUTE [EMAIL] Not really so fast any more, it's only 60 MPH.
37A. Maxim about frugality : WASTE NOT, WANT NOT [NOTE]. Good housekeeping advice from 1914:
45A. It's learned the hard way : BITTER LESSON [LETTER]
and the reveal:
54A. Confusing statements ... and a hint to the circled letters : MIXED MESSAGES
I think this is the first time Bob has appeared in the LA Times, so congratulations on that debut. Jerry is a more familiar face. I found this one tough going - the circles only made sense when the theme entries were complete, so the reveal didn't help any. Some of the clues were pretty tricky too. I basically picked around letter-by-letter, not the smoothest solve.
With puzzles like this which are heavy on the themage, you are going to get a lot of three- and four-letter fill. Four longer downs broke things up a little, CONGRUENT was my favorite word in the puzzle.
Let's see what else jumps out:
Across:
1. "... __ a puddy tat!" : I TAW. I know it's easy to criticize, but I always think that 1A sets the tone for the puzzle and I liked to come out firing. I might have stopped to rethink this corner.
5. Bygone 26-Down rival : PAN-AM. Pan-American Airways. When it filed for bankruptcy in 1991 the cross-referenced Delta bought out its last remaining viable assets.
10. Limit : CAP
13. Small rodent : VOLE
14. Bold alternative : ITALIC
16. Have a mortgage : OWE
17. "... two fives for __?" : A TEN
18. Helix-shaped pasta : ROTINI. Food! Often used in pasta salads, the spirals hold the dressing nicely.
19. Pince-__ : NEZ. Eyeglasses that sit on your nose. Literally "Nose Pliers" or "Nose Tongs" which I find rather amusing. Moral - don't try to translate words that are understood in your own language. When I first went to France with a friend we went to check our bags at the Gare Du Nord when we arrived in Paris so we were free to explore the city. These places were called "Left Luggage" offices in England. My chum, proud of our high school french, inquired as to the whereabouts of the "Bureau de gauche baggages".
23. Picasso's birth city : MALAGA
24. Desertlike : ARID
32. RR stops : STAS. Stations.
35. Healthy drink : SWIG Healthy as in large or enthusiastic.
36. Immigrant's subj. : E.S.L.
42. Comic strip cry : ACK!
43. "Deadliest Catch" narrator Mike : ROWE. I actually knew this, one of the few TV references where I didn't need help from the crosses.
44. View from Catania : ETNA. Mt. Etna looms large in the background of this Sicilian city.
50. Put away : STOW
51. Split up : PARTED. Past tense; the clue could be present or past tense. Tricky. The "D" was my last entry.
60. MSNBC's "Morning __" : JOE
62. Add value to : ENRICH
63. Avian digestive system part : CRAW. Also known as the crop, it's just below the throat in some birds, not all birds have one. When I first dressed a wild pheasant, I was surprised to find the craw was full of little pebbles. Apparently the birds swallow them to help start the digestion process when they eat seeds.
64. Brewpub order : ALE
65. School bud : ROOMIE
66. Singer Horne : LENA
67. "Not __" : YET
68. Bond and others : SPIES. Agent 007 James, of course.
69. Macron's state : ÉTAT. President of France Emmanuel Macron suggests the french word for "state".
Down:
1. Nobelist Pavlov : IVAN. He of the "conditioned reflex".
2. Revered emblem : TOTEM
3. Singer/songwriter __ Ray Joel : ALEXA. Who? I think she's better known for being the daughter of Billy Joel and Christie Brinkley.
4. Followed the crowd? : WENT LAST
5. European dumpling : PIROGI. More correctly pierogi. Steamed dumplings.
6. Not exactly hummable : ATONAL
7. Post-WWII alliance : NATO. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
8. Settled on a branch : ALIT
9. Ho Chi __ City : MINH. I have to think twice about the order of the "N" and the "H".
10. Harmonious : CONGRUENT. Word of the day. I first learned it in geometry class to describe triangles which could be proven to be identical.
11. Leave open-mouthed : AWE
12. Candy with an Emoji dispenser set : PEZ
15. VI x XVII : CII. 102.
21. Flat-topped cap : TAM
22. Editor Talese with a Doubleday imprint : NAN. I had the "A" in place and jumped in with GAY, even though at the back of my mind I knew he was a writer, not an editor.
25. "Show time!" : IT'S ON!
26. Co-founder of the SkyTeam alliance : DELTA
28. Skin care name : ESTÉE
29. "That is sooo cute!" : AWW!
30. Wasikowska of "The Kids Are All Right" : MIA. Crosses all the way. She looks familiar now that I look her up:
31. Engine starter: Abbr. : IGN. Ignition.
32. DNA lab items : SWABS
33. Unspoken : TACIT
34. Call for an appointment : ASK TO MEET
38. Before, in ballads : ERE
39. Scand. land : NOR.
40. Temple athlete : OWL
41. Squid appendage : TENTACLE. I've got fried calamari on the brain now.
46. Light opener? : TWI-
47. Coined money : SPECIE. A little obscure. When I worked for a marine insurance company I learned that "specie" described cargo that was bullion, usually silver or gold.
48. Pageant bands : SASHES
49. Anesthesiologists' work sites, briefly : OR'S. Operating Rooms.
52. White-plumed wader : EGRET. Egads! An egret!
53. "Strawberry Wine" country singer Carter : DEANA. Not familiar, the song has a nice lilt to it.
55. Gen-__ : X'ER
56. First family grandson? : ENOS. Adam and Eve's son Seth was 105 when Enos was born, according to biblical text.
57. Let go of : DROP
58. Actress Rogers : MIMI. Tom Cruise ex, also appeared in Playboy magazine. She's a professional poker player too.
59. Rescue team acronym : SWAT. Special Weapons And Tactics. I did not know that.
60. Word with hawk or walk : JAY. If a Kansas U hoops player wanders across the street, he's a jaywalking Jayhawk.
61. "¡Viva el matador!" : ¡OLÉ!
... and ¡olé!
I took a client to a hockey game on Monday night - LA Kings vs. Calgary Flames at the Staples Center. I don't think I could have scored better seats! He could coach his own team, he's been a Flames fan since he could skate (probably before he could walk!)
And .. here's the grid:
Steve
Notes from C.C.:
Argyle is out of the hospital. He has moved to the Wesley Center on Lawrence St. in Saratoga Springs. His room has no phone at the moment. Hopefully he'll be back on line soon. Tough road ahead for dear Santa: rehab, prosthesis, etc.
Argyle is out of the hospital. He has moved to the Wesley Center on Lawrence St. in Saratoga Springs. His room has no phone at the moment. Hopefully he'll be back on line soon. Tough road ahead for dear Santa: rehab, prosthesis, etc.
68 comments:
Greetings!
Thanks to Jerry, Bob and Steve!
A few hangups: MALAGA, ROWE, ALEXA, CONGRUENT, NAN, DELTA, PANAM, MIA and DEANA.
Very tired!
Hope to see you all tomorrow!
I actually enjoyed this puzzle as both a themeless, as most of the solving was complete before I saw the reveal, and for the cleverness of the reveal. Of course, the circles made finding the theme so much easier. All of the sayings were top notch and the various other long fill like WENT LAST, CONGRUENT and TENTACLE were great. I did not know NAN, think DEANA was difficult, but I did remember MIA WASIKOWSKA from the tremendous promotion when she was chosen to star in Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland.
I am not sure, but the name Bob Monat sounds familiar; anyway thanks Jerry and Bob and Steve for your exemplary work
Good morning!
Lemon, I solve 'em all as themeless. I did see the theme in this one once I'd finished the puzzle. I tried CONGENIAL at first, and that allowed SERE to go where ARID ought to be and ELBA where ETNA fit. I successfully bollixed up the entire mid-Atlantic. Wite-Out to the rescue! CSO to Lucina with ESL. Thanx, Jerry, Bob and Steve.
DW is back from her sojourn in Germany. The house passed inspection, but within moments of her return I learned that it's not OK to put a blue box of tissues in the bedroom -- apparently clashes with the decor. Heck, I'm colorblind, looked fine to me.
Excellent A. M.,
Thank you Mr. Jerry Edelstein & Mr. Bob Monat for this fine Thursday CW. My last space to fall was at the Natick of 23A MALA g A and 5D PIRO g I had never heard of either word. After the WAG of "G," I FIR in 27:32.
I start where Dudley left off FLN. IMHO FWIW PDQ and XYZ for a house to be raised to the elevated status of a home, it requires 8 legs up.
Four that are attached to meows, and purrs, and four that wag a tale, and lick your face. I was blessed with that combination for many years.
They live on in my memory. Now we enjoy our neighbor's Fifty Shades of Gray kitty, Tiger, who we feed, and love on, and then put her out the door.
We will not take on the responsibility of caring for pets again.
17A two fives for a TEN: At Starbucks I asked for change for a twenty.
"I'd like a ten, 2 fives, and 5 ones."
She was ready to hand it to me when her supervisor asked her to count it.
Surely you know that I would have given the ten back to her.
55D Gen-XER: caused me to look up
Generations Since 1900.
Most of us need to be "Silent."
Ðave
D4: "I would have given the ten back to her." Funny. Your "Generations" card must be several years old; the age ranges are what they would have been three years ago. Just speakin' silently.
I always thought pi(e)rogi was a Polish thing but I guess since Poland is in Europe it is OK. Never saw "letter" in 37A, but I stink trying to do Jumbles. 63A slowed median, had crop before I got craw.
Median is a typo for me down.
Nice morning challenge - I'm with D-O with CONGENIAL before CONGRUENT -44% right as Splynter would say! Didn't use the circles much for the solve
Days of cloudy/ rainy weather - feels like Oregon - hope for a sunnier weekend!
Good morning friends neighbors and countrymen.
Not to shabby as they say . FIR
Thanks Jerry Bob and Steve .
A few unkowns for me like NEZ and OWL and the spelling of PIROGI vs. pErogi . Could someone explain “temple athlete please”
Perogies are a family favorite at gatherings . DW stocked up on dry curds for the Easter get together . Cottage cheese , potato , potato and cheese and flats made from left over dough. Meetballs , ham and usually a rack of lamb or lamb chops for a select few who enjoy mutton in small doses. And baked potato for the poor souls that haven’t learned to love perogies. Cream gravey , sour cream , strawberries in sauce - I best stop now , my mouth waters.
Beautiful cloudless day no wind . Does spring get better than this?
Good Morning:
This was pretty straightforward for a Thursday, with only a few unknowns: Mia, Deana, specie, etc. I know Mike Rowe but not from that particular show and I knew Alexa as I saw her once being interviewed. Madrid came to mind before Malaga but the crossings said no.i was looking for the E in pierogi, also. Nan Talese shows up more than her husband, Gay. Overall, a smooth and satisfying solve.
Thanks, Bob and Steve, for a Thursday treat and thanks, Steve, for guiding us along.
Have a great day.
OAS, Temple University's athletic teams are the Owls.
Jerry and Bob, I enjoyed your puzzle. Instead of solving in large sections, I mostly picked around at it here and there. FIR w/o help. Thanks for the always interesting expo, Steve.
I had GAY Talese at first. NAN came from perps.
Spell check does not like PIROGI. I believe I have never seen that spelling, but it did not deter me. My PA Dutch grandma made similar dumplings called boova schekel, boys' thighs, describing their shape. The German dough has egg in it. I liked the version filled with mashed potatoes and onions.
At the coffee shop where we go every morning there is a customer who talks A MILE A MINUTE, nonstop. In the old days we used to say such a person "was vaccinated with a Victrola needle." He is jovial and interesting in small doses. Living in the same house might be wearing.
D4 @7:15, around here some servers have been duped by that ploy. Not a joke, in that case.
I'm happy to see that Scott has moved on to rehab. I wish him well in the trying weeks ahead.
It is warmer and rainy. I am thankful for the rain because it will wash away much of the snow that has blanketed us for 4 weeks. It is expected to be sunny on Easter.
The owl is the symbol for Temple U in Philadelphia.
Thanks DO and YR .
Thot so :)
Musings
-A fun puzzle and no hard feelings over MALA_A/PIRO_I Natick
-Hilarious Abbot and Costello bit making change with 5’s and 10’s (1:19)
-Yes, this was allowed on those PAN-AM flights
-Engaging write-up Steve as always and loved the Paris story
-Mike ROWE lubricating the Shuttle Crawler Transporter (first few minutes of a 16 min. segment)
-Name that tune, “When they’ve all had their troubles and PARTED, we’ll be the same as we started…”
-My first college ROOMIE was a chain-smoking neurotic trying to stay out of Vietnam
-We’ve trained our kitty to come running when we ring a bell and give her a treat
-My former colleague teaches in Ho Chi Minh city and loves it
-IGN is hopeless when MIL only drives her car once a month. She calls for Gary and his jumper cables
-Grandson wants to be a surgeon but got queasy last week when he shadowed an anesthesiologist in an actual OR
-Omaha’s JAYS in a conflict with Toronto JAYS
-Great to hear Argyle is progressing.
Good morning everyone.
1a - 'I TAW' was a nice CSO to Dudley's Micah, I thought. In 1997, our beloved calico cat, Sneaky, passed on after being part of the family for 20 years. We still speak of her today. (The night she took on the raccoons on our porch caused her and the rest of us to all get rabies shots.)
Nice sassy puzzle from Messrs Edelstein and Monat today. Theme was easy enough but anagrams within kind of made it a second puzzle. Special highlights included SPECIE, SWAT, PEZ & NEZ, and the way ETNA was clued.
VOLE - I recounted the tale of loading up the tractor tool box with stunned VOLES so as to provide a feline buffet for our barn cats a few months ago so I won't repeat it here. Wait; Nope, I changed my mind. here it is:
"VOLE story - Once, when my Dad was taking the final couple swaths in a hayfield, of cutting green chopped grass for silage, (the cut area is bare in this case,) VOLES were scurrying everywhere because they were running out of cover. I caught as many as I could (14), and stacked them in the tractor tool box. Upon returning to the barnyard, I yelled "Here Kitty-Kitty" several times and all the cats came from their separate LAIRS. After about 10 minutes the voles were all EATEN, and I had some happier feline friends."
ROTINI - Reminds me of the fusilli episode in Seinfeld which had a special effect on George's father (Jerry Stiller)
JAY Hawk may be a CSO to PK; I think she's from that part of the world.
Hi gang -
Either puzzles are getting tougher or I'm getting dumber. This one was a struggle start to finish.
I TAW is a weak beginning to an otherwise fine puzzle.
We have a granddaughter named ALEXA. She starts at Central MI U in the fall.
Non-standard spelling for PIEROGI. I can't give it the authentic Polish pronunciation, like my lovely wife does.
We're in the midst of a major kitchen remodel. Quite a disruption.
Cool regards!
JzB
Steve, You receive special acknowledgement for your admission that you were not familiar with Deana Carter. Her first album was a big seller, and was called “¿Did I Shave My Legs for This?” I watched that video, and another, and another. I decided you deserved the best Deana Carter - Music Compilation Reel, "Angels Working Overtime," 1999, 3:47, "I've Loved Enough to Know," 3:23, "We Danced Anyway," 1996, 3:22, and at 11:23 on the video, the best song, "Count Me In." 1996
Ðave
The circled MIXED MESSAGES in the easily guessable theme fills were easy spots. The unknown singer-ALEXA- crossing the unknown birthplace of Picasso-MALAGA- crossing the unknown dumpling-PIROGI stumped me today. I filled ALEXI, MILANO, PIRONI. Misreading the 6D clue as "Not exactly 'humble'" instead of 'hummable' didn't help matters either. DNF correctly.
Tough going for me too, TOO tough.
Inane- I also filled CONGENIAL before the crosses kindly allowed CONGRUENT.
Mike ROWE- also had the show 'Dirty Jobs' and voice on many Science Network shows. He also does commercials for Ford.
"Coined money"- SPECIE I did fill, by perps. Thanks for the explanation Steve. DEANA, IVAN, and MIA were also perped.
No problem with specie. It was a gimme. It most commonly does refer to coined money.
1. (Banking & Finance) coin money, as distinguished from bullion or paper money
2. (Currencies) coin money, as distinguished from bullion or paper money
3. (Banking & Finance) (of money) in coin
4. (Currencies) (of money) in coin
Although, it was among the last to fill I liked to see the less common meaning of CONGRUENT and harmonious.
My DIL's Japanese nephew temporarily is home based with DIL and David. He attends and rooms at Temple U. My Grandson is at Villanova, with high hopes for the Final Four. PIERGOGIS are common here. You can buy them in almost any market, pre-formed and ready to cook.
Thankfully a perp or two gave me MILANO, PAN AM, DELTA, and MALAGA.
I TAW, although not elegant, made an easy start to this one.
Back to the salt mines.
desper-otto at 7:27 AM
I just copied the Generations card from images. I picked one I could read. ¿Do you have a better example? The last time I looked for a list, the categories were different, and my birth year, 1944 wasn't in any category. Go figure.
Husker Gary at 9:05 AM
I'll let Patsy Cline answer for me.
Ðave
I contend that WWII babies belong in a separate category . I theorize that rationing may have resulted in nutritional shortages .
I found this quick and smooth and TEXT=EXXT provided the theme which was unnecessary but elegant . Having said that, I had PIRODI even though mentally the correct word popped in later. FIW
Did Ho Chi Minh work as a busboy at the Parker House in Boston? The jury is out.
D4, I don't think the supervisor was amused . A jury foreman in Florida apparently didn't know the meaning of the word "Unanimous"
I remember CONGRUENT triangles. Btw... recently we had Flames as a clue for OCANADA and I thought at the time "Why pick Atlanta?" .
We also saw ENOS inre. Mormonism
That's all folks
WC
Oddly, I found this an easy Thursday solve unlike others who found it difficult. I sashayed right along and even missed some downs which would have posed problems for me. NAN Talese and DEANA Carter are unknown to me and didn't see them until reading Steve's commentary.
Even the theme emerged with the reveal and that's unusual for me. I often don't see the theme. Thank you, Jerry and Bob. You ENRICH my life with your puzzle.
Like Steve, I also learned CONGRUENT in geometry which was also my only favorite math course I guess because it involves graphics and is not so abstract.
MALAGA is a beautiful coastal city though I thought Madrid first but WENTLAST disavowed it.
That's interesting information about PANAM and Delta.
Thank you, Steve, for your illuminating and informative TEXT (old fashioned usage).
It's heartening to know that Argyle is out of the hospital. I hope he heals quickly and returns to the Corner soon.
Have a lovely day, everyone!
Well, I got that northwest corner with the I TAW right away, but had a harder time in other place. But I did get three of the long fills before I had to start cheating and noticed TEXT, NOTE, and LETTER. That gave me a pretty good sense of the theme although it was a struggle to get MIXED MESSAGES in the end. And I got SPECIE, although I've never heard of that word used in that way. Still, a lot of fun, many thanks, Jerry and Bob. And always enjoy your write-up, Steve.
Thank you for the Argyle update, C.C. Hoping this will be the beginning of a good recovery for him.
Another night having trouble getting to sleep, even though I wasn't worried about anything. Finally resorted to a med, but I wish I could figure out what causes this and how to prevent it.
Have a good day, everybody. My hairdresser of thirty years finally retired, so I have to try a new one today. Hope he does a good job with my simple haircut.
Thank you Jerry and Bob! Nice puzzle all around and wonderful play by play by Steve. BTW, Rhode Island’s official appetizer is Fried Calamari!
Enjoy, if you dare, today’s story:
The caller was talking a mile a minute. Alexa Rowe, was her name. She sang an atonal tale about spies, Mimi Rogers and ex-Vice President Joe Biden. She asked to meet me at an Italian Restaurant on the corner of Etna and Jay street. I knew the place, Malaga’s – a place where I proposed to my ex. PanAm had better luck keeping aloft than me with dames.
She had a tam on her head with an egret feather that was more like a totem pole than a cap. Her eyes reminded me of an owl. It was good she had something substantial on her head because the rest of her getup was next to nothing. The halter-top looked like two sashes across her bosoms and her skirt gave me the idea that waste not want not was the dressmaker’s motto.
Anyway, we ordered diner. She had Rotini with Pirogi dumplings – not diet food and she could stand to drop a few pounds. I stuck with ale and the fried calamari, the best in town.
I got mixed messages from her that stuck in my craw like a tentacle from one of those calamari rings. She said she worked for Estee Lauder and was all excited when Joe Biden, Mimi Rogers and Mia Farrow came in to promote their company. She worked in personal and noticed some strange activity from a few employees. She believed they were spies from a competing company. Was worried about a text she received by mistake.
“It’s on. Biden went last. Vole.” it said and she said the word vole was in italic.
“Sounds bad,” I said with a swig of my ale. “Better contact the top brass at your company.”
“Ack! I’m not well liked by them. I don’t think they’d believe me. Couldn’t you do it?”
“Sure – we’ll both meet up there tomorrow morning. You better give me your phone with those messages.”
We parted but I didn’t go back to my place, I went to a guy I knew. An ex-roomie in college, Ivan Enos, who took up computer encryption and went high in the upper management in NATO. We had a little falling out way back but I needed him now.
Lived in the delta of Ho Chi Minh city during the winter and but just came back to Rhode Island this week. I recapped the whole thing to him and he took the phone and plugged it in and got the phone number of the sender and then the address.
The name came up, Deana Nan, and he found out she was wanted in ten countries for everything from assassination to enriching uranium.
He called the FBI and they sent a SWAT team to her residence. We rode over to the place and watched them arrest her without a struggle.
He turned to me and said, “I’m in awe you called me, I think you might see me better yet!”
“Bitter lesson learned Ivan – let’s stow our grudges but you’re right, I owe you one.”
Rick,
That story is one of THE most clever ideas incorporating the reveals that I've ever seen on this blog. Well done!
Misty 11:15. Folks who have trouble falling asleep might try the "Sleep With Me" podcast. It is free and works wonders!
I liked this puzzle.®
Or, she (Misty) could watch Golf .
Thanks for the entertainment Rick
I think I would rank Monday as the hardest xword this week . Or, as I catch up on sleep they get easier .
Oh yeah, enjoyed Steve's write-up
WC
ACK! FIW.
Hi All!
Like BigE I had a real mess in the NW - MiLAno made ALEXi. PIROGI and ATONAL fixed most of it, but MiLAGA stayed. Oh well, it was well constructed puzzle fun. Thanks Jerry and Bob.
I got the reveal and needed the theme to guess I-EA- was anagram of email to see A MILE A MINUTE which begat CONGRUENT and subsequently back fill NOTHING for NAN, ATONAL, and decide between TAM and FEZ.
SPECIE did not jump to mind but, with S-ECIE in place, I recalled it from Newton and the Counterfeiter.
Nice expo Steve. I'm sure if I knew any French, the "Left Luggage" bit would be funny :-)
WOs: I sAW a puddy... b/f TOTEM fixed it; mOLE to VOLE (duh, Iman isn't Russian); TENnACLE.
ESPs: NAN, MIA.
Fav - "IT'S ON like Donkey Kong"
Runner-up: c/a for ITALIC. I was so stuck on meek or some-such.
HG - Have you thought of a trickle-charger?
Rick - Fun story. Thanks.
Cheers, -T
Kind of a crunchy outing today, happy to get the solve.
Never ever saw PIEROGI spelled PIROGI. I was married to a Polish girl and the Pierogis were always good.
Otherwise, no issues besides the crunch.
Speaking of crunch, I have now been permanently Crowned for the second time.
JJMCK79
Thanks for the accolades, glad you enjoyed it; wasting time is my hobby! I'd also have to say, one of the best reviews I've seen!
I owned shares in Pan Am before its demise. They were worth about $2.00 a share when it went under, only owned eight shares, so I kept them. I spelled MINH wrong, thought it was MING. Other than that and the personal names, it seemed easier than most Thursdays.
Rick
Like Lucina, I thought this one was easy for Thursday. I'm steeling myself for tomorrow and Saturday. I did, however, erase fez for TAM and esau for ENOS, and E-WAGged ALEXA v. ALEXi.
Thanks to Jerry and Bob for a fun day. And thanks to Steve for the nice write-up.
Oh, and FLN. D2's suppository joke was terrific. OK Dave, do you know the difference between an oral thermometer and a rectal thermometer? The taste! Ratatat-boom-crash. I'll see myself out.
Thank you, Arnold. I'm not sure how to watch a podcast, but I'll try to look into it.
Rick Papazian at 11:33 AM
¿So did Joe Biden really do "IT?" ¿Did you leave out ANY of the reveals? I second the motion of the distinguished representative from the great ETAT of Denial, JJMCK79 at 11:47 AM.
Anonymous T at 1:26 PM
Wrote "HG - Have you thought of a trickle-charger?" ¿Isn't that the treatment for BPH? When you apply a charge you get more than a trickle.
Ðave
Hmmmmm, I see that some of you Cornerites found this on the easy side. As for me, it was like walking across a floor covered in corn flakes: crunch, crunch, crunch. And then when I thought I'd got 'er done, I check in with Steve and see that I'd FIW! I solve on paper so it took a trip to the Corner to see that Picasso wasn't born in MiLAnA, and that ALEXi was really ALEXA and that I'd confused, badly, PIROGI with the Italian beer PIROnI. Oh, well, as Scarlett O'Hara said, "tomorrow's another day." Thanks to Jerry and Bob for the challenge, and to Steve for the exposé. A good day to all....
Ta- DA! - A tough, chewy, truly munch-able pzl from Mssrs. Edelstein and Monat today. I agree with Steve, that this was unusually challenging. It required more than the usual share of the 3 Ps (Patience, Persistence, and Perps), but they paid off in the end.
Maybe it’s time to add a fourth P - Pronouncing - as this was one of those that made me revert in the end to pronouncing the alphabet aloud. (I haven’t done that in donkeys' ears, but needed it for the SW corner - to finish up.)
Happy Thursday wishes to Argyle! Glad you're out of the hospital, good sir; may your recovery proceed apace!
____________
Diagonal Report: None. Zero. Zip. First time I've seen this, I believe.
Misty,
Sorry to see you're still having sleep problems. I suppose there are as many reasons for insomnia as there are individuals afflicted by it. That gives me pause when it comes to offering advice - although I have already offered my "music" palliative.
I used to suffer from weeks of sleeplessness, so I will at least mention what turned out to be my causes, on the off-chance they can serve your case. One cause, of a short-term problem, was nervous anticipation. If I was about to face the first rehearsal of a new production or teach a particularly important class, I could be on edge for a couple of nights prior to the event. In these cases, I pretty much knew the cause.
For longer term sleep deprivation, I could often trace (usually later) the cause to either a busy work load (the kind that sneaks up & gradually becomes more mentally taxing) or else to a lack of sufficient physical exercise.
Or both.
I guess for me the physical exertion was more important. If I didn't tire myself during the day it would be hard to sleep at night. And of course when I had a heavier than usual workload, I'd find plenty of excuses to avoid my exercise routine.
You have probably already considered these as possible causes. But I'd feel remiss if I didn't share what (little) I know from experience.
The good news, if it turns out you're at all like me, is that the problem should fade away as you get older.
I was not interested in dry as dust history in my K-12 education. Memorizing dates, names with middle initials, acts of the court, etc for my college freshman American history course was so blah! Meh! Higher level courses were interesting because heroes were real people with warts as well as virtues. Then I became an avid and discerning historical fiction buff, cross checking the stories with the actual facts. I learned which accounts to trust. What an exciting introduction to actual history! I became interested in the actual historical accounts. I am extremely interested in the Civil War and Abraham Lincoln, as is my youngest sister. I am even more interested in the westward expansion of the U.S., Lewis and Clark, the Oregon trail, etc. I have followed the sad plight of the Native Americans and the enslaved Africans.
I became interested in the American Revolution. We had serious currency problems as a new a nation. This is how I learned about specie.
From Wikipedia:
There were three general types of money in the colonies of British America: specie (coins), paper money and commodity money. Commodity money was used when cash (coins and paper money) was scarce. Commodities such as tobacco, beaver skins, and wampum served as money at various times and places.
specie
When I taught history as a story the kids loved it.
Yellowrocks,
Thanks for sharing your approach to teaching history.
Your mention of "commodity money" may add some depth to the Boston tea party. We were always told that the tea's importance was based on the taxes imposed on it. But I assume that tea could be also be a commodity money - not just an item to be taxed. Yes?
YR - I'm w/ you... STORY is part of the word! hi(s)/her... Dates, places, names mean nothing w/o context to bring CONGRENce. I learned hiSTORY in little blocks and, not until I saw a world-wide time-line of goings-on, did things start making sense. I'm still a dolt but I kinda get our his/her-STORY w/ all the bits in motion. (And Jackson might as well had a Twitter account :-)). -T
YR, I HATED history until my freshman year at U of Ky. That teacher was the author of a book (not used in class) based on a collection of Henry Clay's papers, and he brought history to life for me.
I think that high school teachers could do their students a favor by skipping the textbooks for one term and just playing, then expanding on, James Burke's "Connection" series.
Those two experiences have left me with a love of history.
Hi Y'all! Very rapid Thursday solve for me. I seemed to be on Jerry's & Bob's & Rich's wavelength. No circles so didn't really get the theme. Thanks, guys. Thanks, Steve for another international flavored trip through the grid.
WASTE NOT WANT NOT should be familiar to anyone who lived with people who had a rough time during the "Dirty Thirties" without enough SPECIE. My MIL was a master at this phrase. My last boss spouted it at least once a week. I still pretty much live by it. Can't kick the habit.
Didn't know ROWE. I got seasick the only time I watched the show.
DEANA Carter was a favorite during her short national popularity. Loved "Strawberry Wine, 17 first taste of love..."
First family grandson wasn't Don III but ENOS. CRAW again? Wanted MAnaga before MALAGA.
I thought MACRON was related to the atom or electronic words. Somehow missed his name at election.
Yay, JAYHAWKs, in the NCAA Basketball Final Four! Hope I stay awake for the next game.
Argyle, hope rehab goes well for you. I'm rooting harder for you than for the JAYHAWKs. Go Santa go!
Rick:
What a fantastic story! I echo JJMCK79's plaudits. You have a fertile imagination to weave all the puzzle elements into your tale.
Misty:
Do you exercise? As OMK suggested, physical exertion brings on a good sleep. I notice that on days I don't exercise or do physical work it takes me longer to fall asleep. But on exercise days, sleep comes easily.
Saw an interesting word today: ORONYM.I'll use the example provided:
The new animated movie "Isle of Dogs".*
Methinks the obvious culprit in sleep issues would be ceffeine.
-T, thanks for the tip on the Newton story . I read an historical novel about Christopher Wren. Sure enough I came across a book authored by Allen Pinkerton
WC
* eg I love dogs . Isle of Dogs
D4E4H, your use of Spanish question marks is an unattractive affectation. Do you do it just to be annoying?
WEES about the crossing of Naticks ALEXA/MALAGA/PIROGI. I did WAG it all correctly. Hand up had to decide between CROP and CRAW. Hand up MOLE before VOLE. ROWE/OWL was another Natick crossing. Got that WAG, too, to FIR. One of my best friends went to Temple. Had no idea their mascot is an OWL.
Learning moment about PIROGI, MALAGA and ROWE. Thanks Husker Gary for the ROWE link and for the other links!
As a child I learned of LENA HORNE from the brilliantly politically incorrect song "National Brotherhood Week" by Tom Lehrer.
Here are those lyrics. Notice LENA HORNE and Sheriff Clarke are dancing cheek to cheek.
Unfortunately, the recordings I found have different lyrics for that line.
This version has Cassius Clay and Mrs Wallace instead.
Has anyone else ever heard this song? You have to have a good sense of irony to get that it is not promoting bigotry.
CC: Thanks for the update on Argyle! Hope the hospital forwards my card as I was slow getting it out!
Anon at 5:42 it’s a dull flower garden that has only one type and color of flowers . I love the diversity I find in the blog and I suppose even a stinkweed has its place :-))
Thank you, Ol'Man Keith. "Nervous anticipation" may indeed be one of the causes of my insomnia. And thanks for your advice, Lucina. I actually do a 15 minute walk every night at 9:30pm and go to sleep at 11pm. What makes this puzzling is that I sometimes have two weeks without any sleep problem at all, and then it just pops up out of nowhere. I'll have to track it and see if it's an "anticipation" problem.
Thank you everybody, for your kind advice over the past few months.
These CW things continuously amaze me. First that someone can construct one. Then the variability in the perception of the crunchiness of it. I never know which ones of us will breeze, and which ones will be hung in the breeze. ¡Vive les mots croisés! Tinbeni and I offer a "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset, and to all a goodnight.
Yellowrocks at 3:10 PM
Wrote "When I taught history as a story the kids loved it." That's what happens when Andy Teaches History.
Anonymous at 5:42 PM
My unattractive affectation is the standard punctuation for the Spanish language. My intent is not to annoy you, but to learn whether the mark before my words makes them easier to understand. Thank you for your kind input. As observant as you are, I thought you would also be offended by the new "Ð" I found. I do not know what others use it for, but as por moi that is how I make a "Ð" on a paper CW. This helps me know that the character is not am "O." ¡I like it!
Picard at 6:04 PM
I had to watch an entire Tom Lehrer concert before I could come back to the Corner. Thanks.
Ðave
D4E4H. Yes, standard IN SPANISH. Why then do you not post in Spanish?
Anonymous at 8:04 PM
Vous avez peut-être déjà deviné que je ne sais pas écrire en Espagnol, ¡mais ne nous amusons-nous pas!
Pedro
D4 @ 1742 - re "Ð"
You said in part " I do not know what others use it for……"
Well, you could LIU. The Icelanders and Faroese use it for the capital of the voiced "th" sound as in "than".
When I do cw's, I cross my Z's , but not when I post since the font is sufficiently clear.
Hello Puzzlers -
Smooth sailing today. Specie is a word I’ve seen before but never understood. Now, with some of your posts, it becomes clearer.
Husker - Mike Rowe may have had to slather a bunch of grease on the tracks, but at least he got to drive the transporter!
Since some of you enjoyed the Smith College clock story, here’s a similar one I just learned.
The back story: around 1900, a man named Harry Daniel ordered a street clock for use outside his haberdashery in Hartford, CT. Shortly thereafter, he chose to relocate his business to Northampton, MA, so he packed up his wares, including the clock, and shipped them north. He opened his new shop at the corner of Strong and Main, and there it prospered for more than half a century. (When I was a young man, I dutifully went into Daniel’s for suits and the like.) Mr. Daniel needed city permission to erect his clock on a public sidewalk; that permission was given in writing by the mayor, Calvin Coolidge.
After Mr. Daniel passed away, the business folded, and the property was sold to a local commercial real estate speculator. Despite a legal challenge to the contrary, he acquired the clock as a part of the building. It was in poor condition by that time, so he chose to sell it to some businessman with high hopes but low energy. The poor old clock lay neglected for decades in a warehouse. Around 2014, that owner decided to offer it to the city, at a juicy price; the city was just then refurbishing an outdoor park in the downtown, and the clock would fit in nicely. The deal was made.
Skilled restorers went to work on it, and in 2016 the faithful old Seth Thomas street clock was standing proudly in Northampton once again. The original mechanism is still in place. It is wound once a week by a volunteer. It’s a grand sight, particularly at night, what with the internal lighting of the twin dials.
Irish Miss et al:
Did you watch the CBS evening news with Steve Hartman reporting on an American man who traced back the man from Liberia who asked him for money? It will continue tomorrow and likely will be repeated on 60 minutes Sunday.
D4@7:15 - "Surely you know that I would have given the ten back to her." Well, am I the only one who noticed that, had you done that, you would have shorted yourself $5.00? Perhaps you were channeling Bud Costello... :)
@8:57p - you just trolling now? D4 clearly made a joke as D-O pointed out @7:27a.
Lucina - I did not catch that but will look for it.
Dudley - another cool story of old-is-new. Thanks.
Cheers, -T
Misty, I think sometimes my sleeplessness is caused by not having a conversation with anyone for several days (weeks). If I call someone and gab awhile all the words whirling around in my head are spent. Sometimes I could just use a big hug.
Anon T@9:01 - Of course, I knew it was a joke - no trolling involved. Just pointing out that as posted, he would have shorted "himself" $5.00 by giving back the "ten" - NOT the five...!
Sheesh
Late to the party today. Thanks for the fun Jerry and Bob, and Steve.
I moved through this CW fairly quickly for a Thursday and saw the theme, but had a Natick right in the centre with the W in the cross of ROWE and OWL. (This Canadian must now learn all the College mascots!). And the alphabet red letter run to W took forever LOL.
Hand up for Congenial before CONGRUENT, balking at the PIROGI spelling (European clue was fine with me, Bob Niles, as Ukrainians eat them too), and coming here to find out more about SPECIE.
Steve, I assume your client was Canadian to be a Flames fan?
Thanks Husker for the JAYs link. I wonder what became of that situation?
Dudley, sympathy on the loss of your cat. I still think of our tabby who was with us for nearly 18 years; every time I open a tin of salmon, I expect him to come running.
IM, glad to hear that Jack is home.
Continued thoughts and prayers for Argyle. Having spent a quarter of my professional life in a rehab hospital hospital setting, I am aware of the courage and endurance he will need to deal with the recovery and prosthesis.
PK, thankfully I am able to have a conversation with Clauder at supper every night, but I'll try to maybe have an imagined conversation with a friend when I'm trying to get to sleep. Who knows, maybe that will help.
Thanks, Eh. We’re still getting used to our little kitty’s absence. Our next door neighbor was very sweet to us today: she’s a young woman, living alone, and she has a perky Jack Russell terrier. The missus and I take the doggie out for a walk each day while she’s at work. Today, when fetching the dog, we found she had left us a hyacinth and a sympathy card, with a reminder that we could borrow the doggie any time we needed furry snuggles. As neighbors go, she’s a keeper!
Dudley:
I enjoyed your clock story; not only is it interesting, it illustrates love of tradition and good workmanship. New England must be rife with those kinds of stories given the centuries of tradition and that so many industries started there.
PK:
I'm sending you a firm hug!
Thank you Lucina. You are so right, there are lots of examples of pioneering industry around here. Clocks and watches were big, along with metal stamping and forming. Water power was an important force, and we still generate a respectable amount of electricity in old hydro plants. Textile cities such as Lowell once taught the world how it was done. Same for paper-making. Traditionally German arts of lens making took hold here. Stone quarrying was huge. Time has changed a lot of all that, of course, but we hold a legacy worthy of pride.
Lucina, thanks for the hug. Made me feel good.
PK:
You're welcome! I wish I could go over and give you a hearty real one.
Dudley:
Amen! Don't forget furniture manufacturing and glassware. Then there's also film and camera production. The list goes on.
D4 and Spitzboov:
First, the "Ð" letter is also the form for the sound pronounced "d" in Vietnamese, while the letter "D" is pronounced "z". "Why?" you ask. Because the guy that adapted Roman letters for use in Vietnamese -- this is somewhere after 1650 -- was a Portuguese missionary bishop, and used Portuguese orthography. (That's why "MIN" and "MINH" are both pronounced 'mean', and other such oddities of Vietnamese spelling.)
Also, in the old days, when long-distance messages were sent using hand-keyed Morse code, at, say, 50 5-letter words a minute, to prevent confusion between the letter "I" and the number "1", and between the number "2" and the letter "Z", both the latter characters had a distinguishing way of copying them down (a line at the bottom of the "1" and a line through the "Z").
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