A THEMELESS SATURDAY PUZZLE BY ROBYN WEINTRAUB
The warm temps have finally come to the Great Plains and so it appears that spring is finally here. So let's celebrate with a lovely Saturday puzzle from Robyn Weintraub on National Reach As High As You Can Day. For some of us, a clever Saturday puzzle can be just that.
Robyn's four pinwheel stacks of nine-letter fills were very impressive and helpful. Coupled with new learning and clever cluing made for a fun solve. Now let's see if we have reached as high as we can today.
Across:1. Many a tax filer's need: Abbr.: SSN - Most everyone around here has a SSN starting with 507 or 506
4. It's a lock: HASP
8. Half-Blood Prince of fiction: SNAPE and 38. Rickman who played 8-Across: ALAN - My Harry Potter knowledge is seriously lacking
13. Showed emotion: SHED A TEAR
16. Fifth canonical hour: NONES - Divisions of the day. NONES is about 3 pm when it is said Christ was crucified
17. Try: GIVE IT A GO
18. Rarely a problem for happy-go-lucky types: ANGST
19. Clematis supports: TRELLISES - here's my lovely wife Joann's clematis in our backyard
20. Roger who played the U.K. ambassador on "The West Wing": REES - I mostly remember Roger as the priggish Roger Colcort in Cheers
21. Published in installments: SERIAL - A movie version of this format
22. Impressive dismount: BACK FLIP - Looks like she stuck it!
25. Pacific resort, popularly: CABO - CABO San Lucas
27. "Good heavens!": MY OH MY
28. Typographic measure: PICA - In high school we had mostly manual PICA typewriters and a few with elite type and one, count it, one electric
31. Had in view: EYED
33. Guard attachment?: RAIL - It appears this Guard RAIL did its job
34. Endangered chimpanzees: BONOBOS
36. Potential: PROMISE - Spring training is when teams try to see what players show the most PROMISE
39. Letters at the top of a window: HTTP - Hyper Text Transfer Protocol. HTTP://www.usatoday.com is no longer necessary. usatoday.com or even usatoday will suffice
41. Grenoble green: VERT - This wall hanging is entitled Deux autruches dans une voiture française VERT. Did you suss it out as Two ostriches in a green, French car?
42. Many an Egyptian pharaoh: RAMSES - There were eleven of them from Ramses I in 1292 B.C. to Ramses XI in 1075 B.C.
44. Historic Italian family: ESTE - They gave the world the Hanoverian Kings as well as Ivan VI of Russia among other royalty
46. Menu type: DROP DOWN
48. Spaced: IN A FOG - I experience this sensation less with a CPAP device
53. Bad salt container?: BRIG - I doubt she is bad salt (sailor) but she is in the BRIG
54. Medium access?: AFTER LIFE - Mary Todd Lincoln held at least eight seances in the White House trying to contact her dead sons Eddie and Willie
56. Half a comedy duo: MEARA - Anne MEARA, husband and comedy partner Jerry Stiller, their famous son and his wife
57. Waze forerunner: ROAD ATLAS - I had never heard of this site that supplants a ROAD ATLAS but here it shows my short, daily route to sub where I have to cross the mighty Elkhorn River
58. One might be picky: EATER - My new SIL's boys are the pickiest eaters I have ever known. We load up with mac and cheese for them even on Thanksgiving
59. "Okay, back to work": DUTY CALLS
60. Reunion attendees: GRADS - When I sub, I can see the ones that probably won't be coming back for the reunions
61. Offend, in a way: REEK - Non-verbal offense as some people just seem to have an "air" about them
62. Terse street sign: SLO - They couldn't spring for the W?
Down:
1. Certain NCOs: SSGTS - Our cwd friend MSGT is here also
2. English subdivision: SHIRE - A favorite place on Big Bang
3. When some things will change?: NEVER
4. How to get to Carnegie Hall, perhaps: HAIL A CAB - Yup, I put this SNARKY 8-letter word of advice first
5. Fifth-century Roman Empire enemy: ATTILA
6. Black and Red: SEAS
7. Shoulder-length do: PAGEBOY - Named for the the "porridge bowl" haircuts sported by medieval pages
8. Like a comment that may elicit "Oh, snap!": SNARKY
9. "I'm good, thanks": NONE FOR ME - My very educated friend insisted on saying NONE FOR I. Me didn't never correct that there guy. 😑
10. Bow tie alternative: ANGEL HAIR - Pasta
11. Eeyore, for one: PESSIMIST
12. Contractor's no.: ESTimate
14. Brat's place: DELI
15. Sub or Santa follower: ROSA - SubROSA means done in secret (literally "under the rose") and of course Santa ROSA (St. Rose) is the county seat of Sonoma Co. California
23. Nav. rank: CMDR
24. TV Marine: PYLE - If you look closely you can see that Gomer PYLE's job at Wally's Service Station was right across the street from his Gomer Pyle M.C. barracks on the Desilu backlot
26. With 51-Down, tops: BEST and 51. See 26-Down: OF ALL
28. Focus of some climate change concerns: POLAR BEAR
29. Female lover: INAMORATA
30. Plotted together: CONSPIRED - I'll bet you know this source of this lyric: "Later on we'll CONSPIRE, As we dream by the fire"
32. "House" actor: EPPS - Omar's first and last name are becoming cwd staples
34. Avon product?: BARD - Shakespeare's birthplace of course
35. Extremely: OH SO
37. Viking accessory: OVEN RACK - Oh yeah, that's those expensive appliances we never consider! Hey, heat's heat!
40. "Got it" on the radio: TEN-FOUR - Chief Dan Matthews made this phrase a national phenomenon on Highway Patrol.
43. Ellery Queen and Raven awards, e.g.: EDGARS - The clue words are categories of the EDGARS Awards that are judged by the Mystery Writers of America
45. Camp craft: TIE DYE
47. District: WARD - Chicago WARDS are famous for being for sale
49. Resort near Snowbird: ALTA - They are connected by Sugarloaf Pass
50. Gases (up): FILLS
52. Canvas primer: GESSO - I remembered this word from a Sunday puzzle I blogged a few years ago for C.C. and Hard G
55. Thames gallery: TATE
56. Eldest March sister: MEG - Here she is being played by Trini Alvarado in the 1994 movie. (Third from the left) Do you recognize the famous actress at the left who played the mother?
Feel free to enter your comments. 10 - 4?
DA GRID
Husker Gary has updated our Corner map. Please email Gary gschlapfer@gmail.com if you want to be included or excluded in the map.
55 comments:
How to get to Carnegie Hall
Is an old joke, known OF ALL.
And a twist, so drab,
To "HAIL A CAB",
Is so yesterday, with Lyft on call!
One could crawl on their knees thru morning dew,
Or put chin to ground for push-ups, a few.
When DUTY CALLS slack
One could hit the sack --
Those are the choices from the DROP DOWN MENU!
ALAN took some GESSO, in bucket size,
And brushes, and varnish colors he EYED,
And went to shellac
The SHIRE train track --
That's how he TIE DYED the RAIL-road ties!
{A-, A-, B+.}
Sheldor Is Back Online
Good morning Cornies.
Thank youMs. Robyn Weintraub for this extremely difficult Saturday CW. I believe I broke a record for BAVs with 5. I limped to completion after clues that needed their own clues.
Thank you Husker Gary for your excellent review.
Reach for the sky pilgrim!
Ðave
Greetings!
Thanks to Robyn and Gary! Thanks also format, Gary!
I had one cheat, but can't remember where!
From yesterday:
Picard: I have "Time Transfixed" on my study wall! Am huge steam train freak.
Cool wind, very harsh. Knocked over umbrella table full of succulents and huge bougainvillea. Very depressing!
Hope to see you tomorrow!
I too like the pinwheel nine pattern for a themeless, perhaps because I can solve them. This one went relatively quickly for a Saturday, with VIKING my only complete unknown. $18,347.00 as pictured! It did take a while to get PRACTICE out of my head and HAIL A CAB.
I have always loved Susan Sarandon from ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW to THELMA & LOUISE but the cast of the 1994 version of that movie was filled with many fine actors IMDB
I m confused by the Army insignis which seems to have two MSG patches and a Sergeant First Class that I never heard of before, but then my vision excluded me from service.
The pageboy has been around in various incarnations my entire life, here is A LOVELY EXAMPLE
Thank you Robyn and HG, you make my reading of your blog take even longer than the solving except perhaps a Julian Lim Saturday.
Good morning!
Was going through the acrosses, and things remained white until BACKFLIP came to mind.
Finally stumbled through to victory in better-than-normal Saturday solving time. There were some really nice 9s in this one. I really liked it. Thanx, Robyn and Husker.
BRIG -- I toured the USS Lexington in Corpus Christi, but don't remember seeing that BRIG. "Lex" was a sister ship to the flat top where I did time -- "Bonnie Dick."
GRADS -- So far I've only made it to one H.S. reunion, the 15th. It's doubtful that I'll drive 1200 miles to attend another. I believe there's one this year, but I never get the notices anymore.
I went to my 20th HS reunion and the 50th. interesting experiences.
I though the way to get to Carnegie Hall was practice, practice, practice. Viking confused me a bit after I had rack: was thinking of a headpiece with horns. Finally got the Viking cooking. This was a slog but I finished the trek.
Too tough for the short time I have this morning.
Without LIU my guess is Walking in a Winter Wonderland ?
Good Morning,
I may remain IN A FOG, given my slow attack here. Thank you, Robyn, for a fine Saturday challenge. I had great success in the Northwest as I was on your wavelength there. Alas, that didn't last long. Tried worry for ANGST, ability for PROMISE, alums before GRADS, carry out for DROP DOWN, open for HTTP. . . . So it goes. (Do I have to attribute Kurt Vonnegut here?) Faves today ANGEL HAIR--perfect--and ROAD ATLAS. Another V-8 while you're at it.
Thanks, Gary for another interesting Saturday tour.
FLN: On sewing and patterns. In the days before off-price clothing, I taught myself to sew from reading the once very precise instructions included with the pattern pieces. I always thought the entire contents of the envelope was the "pattern." Like Corner seamstresses have already said, it became a difficult proposition after kids: time, space and concentration. Instead of everything, sewing became lovely pieces here and there like the hand smocked dresses I made my daughters.
YR, I hope Alan is doing better.
Here's to the disappearance of the bug many of us seem to have unearthed!
ARGYLE, keep up the hard work! Be well.
Agreed. No weather comments. Make your own sunny day today. Enjoy.
Didn't like to end the week this way...............very difficult puzzle!
What is a "BAV"?
What a slog. More than one "?" Clue is way too many. Next are cross reference clues. Luckily spared me from too many in this puzzle.
Was I ever IN A FOG this morning without my DW INAMORATA (definitely 100% perps on that word) out of town. Robyn made me do mental calisthenics to finish this one. But I looked at the puzzle and decided to GIVE IT A GO, and that puzzle laughed at me for a while. NW was easy. MY OH MY, the NE took some WAGs because SNAPE, NONES, & Roger REES were unknowns filled by the long downs after changing ANGER to ANGST. My Harry Potter knowledge is non-existent, so HG's is more than mine. Ditto for "West Wing" and "TBBT"; I've never seen any of those shows.
SW & SE were white for a while. PICA at top and GRADS at the bottom and nothing between in the SW. MEARA & RAMSES were the lucky WAGs that allowed the SW to be completed after changing A LA CARTE to DROP DOWN and YAWL to BRIG. ALAN Rickman- unknown.
The SE was also a WAG-fest. ZONE to AREA to WARD.
ROGER didn't have enough letters, OVER AND OUT was too long, so a "big" TEN-FOUR was in order for "Got it".
WAZE, the Google APP for driving- MAP QUEST- too short; GOOGLE MAPS- too long; so the trusty ROAD ATLAS (which I ALWAYS have in each of my three cars) filled the bill. Years ago I collected maps from gas stations. Remember those days? And was it a fast fill today? It was SLO going, very SLO.
A programmer who worked for me had (and still has) two personalized license plates for his cars: HTTP and HTML for his wife.
Anonymous@9:18 -- Saturday is supposed to be the most difficult puzzle of the week with plenty of misdirection. Those question marks are telling you to think outside the box.
My post must have ended up in the ether. Totally disappeared. I’ll try again.
I went with:
PRACTICE for Carnegie Hall and CONCUBINE for female lover I realized the were bit wrong because I couldn’t fill in ALAN for Ricknan.
I also tried NAILED IT for impressive dismount. Again I was off base.
I did well all week but today was a killer. I guess I’m a glutton for punishment to attempt Saturday puzzles. This is also a killer 🥓 but I eat it anyhow. Again - glutton for punishment😊
Anonymous at 9:14 AM
Wrote "What is a 'BAV'?" - - - I recognize that abbreviation as it is my invention. The literal translation is "Buy A Vowel" as seen on TV. I use it to mean that I have revealed a letter be it consonant or vowel. I would like it to be included in the Comments Section Abbr., but alas I am the only Cornerite using it. If the usage increased, the BAV would make it to the CSA. Hint, hint.
Ðave
Good Morning:
For a while, I thought this was going to be a DNF but, once I got going, the dominos fell, one by one. The west side was a lot easier to crack and the northeast was the last to fall. W/os were: Practice/Hail a cab (I had plenty of company!), Euro/Vert, Tesso/Gesso, and Dear me/My oh my. Unknowns were Half Blood Prince=Snape (I didn't even know he was a HP character), and the never heard of WAZE. My favorite C/A was Brats place=Deli. The cluing was devilishly devious and misleading, but doable with P and P. Nice double CSO to Spitz and DO with Cmdr and Brig.
Thanks, Robyn, for a true Saturday stumper and thanks, HG, for your always delightful write-up. Thanks, also, for the updated map; I did notice a couple of omissions but I'm sure you'll get a heads up if they want to be included. The Corner is well-represented geographically, for the most part.
FLN, I made the mistake of clicking on the link for that glass bridge in China. I was only able to watch a portion of it before I had to turn it off. Torture, pure torture! I need a dose of frisky felines and cute canines links. (Hint, hint, Mr. Meow!)
Hi, Argyle, hope you're doing better!
Have a great day.
Good morning everyone.
Robyn gave us a goodie. I went hard aground in the SE; although I did get WARD and REEK. Loved and understood the clue for 54a, but just couldn't think of AFTERLIFE. Liked the HASP clue. Favorite clue was for the BARD. Got 80% of the solve unassisted, so I'm happy for a Saturday effort.
BONOBO - Is in the genus which includes common chimpanzees.
CMDR - Thanks for the comment, IM. While CMDR is in common use, so is CDR which is the official form of address. (I answer to either, and also Hey You.)
D4 - Why does BAV have be in the 'list'? Just use it if the context is there. I think the readership here is astute enough to get it.
Yup. This was Saturday all right—who needs a calendar?! I found the entire south side quite difficult until I finally got a toe hold. Very nice Saturday puzzle, with an HG write up; who could ask for more?
Am I the only one who noticed that the Department of Redundancy Department had been at work in the clipping Husker used for 29D? "with whom one is infatuated or in love with"... :P
Cold and rainy here today. A great day to stay inside and curl up with a good—tax return. Today it was especially fitting to have Eeyore show up!
Have a good day, all.
This took longer than it should have because the NE corner held me hostage through quite a few erasures. Though I've never seen any Harry Potter movies or read the books, SNAPE has appeared in CWs before so that started me and REES is well known by Cheers and West Wing fans. He died not too long ago. Last year, I believe.
But bowtie had me baffled as did Eeyore. NONES is a definite given for me. Since my Community was not monastic we prayed Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext and NONES all together in the early morning. Each one is relatively short and they follow one another.
Finally, BACKFLIP emerged with PYLE and the rest filed in. Bowtie? Oh, pasta!!! I love ANGELHAIR. I prefer it to plain spaghetti or fettucine. All that thinking caused me some ANGST.
IMAMORATA I knew but spelled it ENAMORATA (Spanish influence there) and though PECA didn't ring a bell I left it. I hesitated at PAGEBOY though it fit but usually it isn't shoulder length; it's shorter.
I can hear my late BIL's voice on the phone all the way from Charlotte explaining HTTP to me. R.I.P., John. You left us too soon.
Never heard of WAZE.
Thank you, Gary; you cleared up some questions for me with your sparkle plenty. And thanks to Robyn for an outstanding puzzle.
Have a fantastic day, everyone!
Thank you, Robyn, for a challenging outing this am. With very few fills in the first pass, worked from SE to NW and got it done! Lots of great cluing and fill.
Great job on the write-up, Gary! Love your comments and pics!
Spitzboov at 10:55 AM
- - Wrote "I think the readership here is astute enough to get it." I agree with your assessment of the regular Corner commenters. Each is a uniquely gifted individual who should be able to suss BAV from context, but one "Readership person" today did not get it, ergo my explanation. To counter your question, what harm would come if BAV were added to the list?
- - Each Abbr. in the Comments Section Abbreviations was new less than ten years ago, and was suggested by an individual. Two examples follow:
WBS: What Barry Said. Coined by Dudley. - - Do Barry and Dudley comment these days?
WEES: What Everybody Else Said. Coined by Jayce. - - A well used abbr.
Ðave
Hi everybody.
I had Cream of Wheat for breakfast. I like that stuff.
Thanks Robyn and Gary. I've always appreciated your map Gary. Maybe change me to Bill G since that how I'm mostly known as. Originally, I tried to sign up as Bill but that name was already taken.
Thank you for an interesting challenge, Robin. Thank you for your informative, witty expo, Gary. FIR, most of it in average time, but the remainder, the NE,took me 25 minutes more. IM and Lucina, I am with you on the NE.
REES and WAZE were new to me, but perpable.
The bow tie was devilish. Oh, pasta! I don't care for bow ties, too doughy. I usually substitute rotini.
I know the canonical hours, but not in order. Having the O and the S brought NONES to mind.
Lemon, that is the kind of page boy I think of. Cute. Gary's page boy illustrates the probable origin of the word.
I like the word, inamorata. I had to wait to see if it began with E or I.
My friend's mom, a very picky eater, was in rehab. She refuses so many everyday foods. The rehab was very strictly observing Passover while she was there. My friend brought sandwiches in her cooler for lunch and dinner in case mom wouldn't eat.
COS to Alan. Thanks for asking Madam D. Every day Alan has become stronger. Today all the symptoms are gone. Cross your fingers that they do not return. I think we went a bridge to far in cutting back the meds. How are you? Are you back to normal?
Hello Puzzlers -
Seemed easy for a Saturday. Getting some of the long downs in one go simplified the solve.
WikWak, I’m glad you also spotted the redundant “with”. You’d hope not to see a glaring grammar error on a page signed by “Word Nerd”.
Howdy Husker! Thanks for ‘splaining.
At last spring-like weather has arrived.
Hi Y'all! Uphill all the way today, thanks, Robyn. Lots of good misdirection. Great as usual, Gary.
Snow piled up at the bottom of this puzzle, so I thought I was at ALTA. LIU. In Utah! I was thinking Vermont. Hard puzzles no longer give me ANGST. I just keep plugging the holes. WEES.
I put FueLS before FILLS. Am I the only one? And they can't fool me. I'm never going to get to Carnegie Hall or CABO. I tried Bali for the latter. Yep, I'm a PESSIMIST.
Saw on GMA that a 42 year old mother of four is auditioning to be on an NFL cheerleading squad. Four kids and she has that much excess energy? I want to know what kind of vitamins she takes.
As for the SEWing discussion from yesterday, I forgot all about those pattern instruction sheets which I rarely used unless it was very complicated. So yes, I will concede the point about following a pattern. I took sewing class my freshman year of high school then made almost all my clothes which was the source of much creative satisfaction from then on. Taught my two daughters and two neighbor girls how to sew. They sewed a lot for years. Most of my friends sewed. Now the only people I know who sew make quilts.
Dudley at 12:09 PM
- - In my post at 12:03 PM, I asked "Do Barry and Dudley comment these days?" Duh. Hi Dudley. Now how about Barry?
Ðave
WEES this was quite a challenge! Staring at nothing but white for many minutes. BRIG was my first entry. Hand up that BACKFLIP opened up the last impossible frontier in the NE. The clue for SSN confused me. I would think that MOST is more correct than MANY.
Interestingly, I did know WAZE from my niece and nephew and was stuck expecting another app. VIKING completely mystified me. I have never heard of that brand of OVEN. Has anyone else? Plenty of other unknowns: NONES, SNAPE, MEG, ALAN, ESTE, SUB ROSA (I have visited a friend who lives in SANTA ROSA). Hazy memory of GESSO. Quite surprised to FIR!
Husker Gary: Thanks for all the images and clips! The GUARD RAIL clip was amazing! I am glad to know those things work! We have plenty of roads like that where I live. We will be on one today or tomorrow. A lot of people go over the side each year.
Here is my video of a beautiful performance at the convention I just attended in Tucson. Watch for the kind of BACKFLIP on stilts near the end!
Irish Miss and Jinx: Sorry if the China Bridge video was hard to watch! It was for me, too! Our experience at the Grand Canyon was not nearly so scary!
By the way, here is my video of us ascending the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway on our way to Tucson.
Some people found this challenging. Especially when we passed some of the support towers. What had me a bit off balance was that the thing rotates for an ever-changing view!
Thank you,D4E4H; I'm with you. I even BAC in dire straits.
Dave:
Barry was a much admired commenter who almost always was the first one to post in the morning. He withdrew about a year ago (correct me if I'm wrong) when his work demanded more time.
If you want to add an abbreviation, e-mail C.C. as she is in charge of this Blog.
I liked this puzzle that I liked, with which I had somewhat of a hard time with. Very enjoyable, actually. Terrific construction and cluing, and nothing so obscure that only an expert in the field would have a chance of knowing it. Thanks to Robyn Weintraub. And thank you again, Gary, for a wonderful write-up again.
Yep, I (over)confidently entered PRACTICE for the way to get to Carnegie Hall. Also put in WORRY before eventually realizing it had to be changed, eventually, to something else, in this case ANGST. When I saw the "Half-Blood Prince" clue, I heart-sinkingly knew it had something to do with Harry Potter and my heart sank. Later, however, knowing ALAN Rickman I was able to figure it out.
BONOBOS are so cool!
My Egyptian friend pronounces it "RAM SESS."
Eeyore is so cool! I love how his name derives from the way someone with a Cockney accent would say HeeHaw.
Best wishes to you all.
Husker
Though I seldom solve the Saturday (or Sunday) puzzles ...
I always enjoy checking out your write-up's.
By the number of "links" I can tell it is a FUN "labor of love" on your side of the endeavor.
GOOD JOB !!!
My "first" Sunset toast is to YOU !
Cheers!
Well, as I feared, my great puzzle solving week came crashing down this morning with this difficult Robyn puzzle. I did get the northwest corner, both fun and a relief, but that was pretty much it except for an odd word here or there. Required a lot of cheating to finish, although I did enjoy some of the clever misleading clues. I of course thought of the Avon lady and her cosmetics before I got the BARD (and I'm a literary person, supposedly). And I couldn't get that Bad salt container for the life of me. Well, still enjoyable, even with all the cheating. And brilliant pictures and write-up, Gary. I recognized Susan Sarandon right away. And I loved the picture of the CLEMATIS and that scary guard rail video.
So, many thanks, and have a great weekend, everybody!
Anonymous at 12:34 PM
- - BAC is really more in keeping with what I do. A vowel run is easy, and a mental alphabet run is possible, but sometimes none of the 26 letters sounds correct. What if the abbreviation were BACup?
- - I can see that you want to comment. Please move up to the box marked "Name/URL." Enter a word that becomes your Avatar. That way we can know it is you, and not an anon. So far today there have been 4 anon posts. Where they each you, or from multiple anons?
Ðave
Wow....what a toughie....got the solve but had ANAMORATA/PACA instead of INAMORATA/PICA. I think I would have sussed that out if I had reviewed my grid another time....but in all honesty this puzzle was exhausting. I almost put it down after the first pass as it had one clue filled in. So I guess my lesson for today is to give it one more once over after the first 100, haha.
Lemonade @ 6:28 --
Concerning Army enlisted insignia, the posted chart is wrong. The insignia to the right of the first sergeant -- the one with a plain star in the middle -- is that of a sergeant major, not a master sergeant as is listed.
- - Yesterday we had the RED SCARE, which was nothing compared to today's scary videos. I too am glad the guard rail held, and I stopped my view of the glass bridge way before the end of that video.
- - Then I tuned into the real scare of bombing in Syria. Where will this turn next? Will humans ever realize that killing each other, and destroying property is insane?
- - On a lighter note, thanks HG for updating the map. Look at that big star in MN. Regular commenters who I do not see are anonPVX, Cartboy, Hahtoolah, MagillaGo-rilla, Michael, Mike Sherline, Northern Boy, Oas, oc 4beach, Ol' Man Keith, PK, Virginia Syamore, and Wilbur Charles.
Ðave
I'm sure I was the only one that had this burp, 16A, the "fifth canonical hour." From comments above, the count in the West starts with matins.
But if you're eastern Orthodox, the day begins with Vespers, then Compline, Matins, and if the term 'canonical hours' was used, the fifth in order would be Terce, the 3rd Hour. It was only when perps forced 'nones' that the NE started to gel.
Sometimes it seems to me that dealing with hidden assumptions -- whether of the constructor or of the culture -- is a major part of the solve.
(And for Spitzboov @ 10:55. that should be "Hey, you, SIR!" 'Honor to whom honor is due.')
Ta- DA!
Yep! It is a rare Saturday when I can claim a clean Ta- DA!. I appreciated Ms. Weintraub's skill and wit (which more than once tempted me to take the easy road) but, ah... the 4 Ps carried me through.
The most erased fill? 4A: PAIR, HAIR, HATH (they didn't all make sense), HEMP, HASP.
Whew!
I had the most fun solving the longer multi-word answers. They were not always in the expected line of thought, but all rang true in the end.
Least expected was HTTP, an acronym that appears so often we hardly ever "see" it - like the wind. Hoo- ooo...!
Thanks, Husker G, for your usual brilliance. Like you, I first counted on PRACTICE to get me to Carnegie Hall. I mean, who didn't?
____________
Diagonal Report: Unbelievable! Two days in a row with zero diagonals!
When I first came across a diag-less pzl - about a month or so ago - I flagged it as a great rarity. Yesterday I was truly surprised to see another one. And now, with today's slash-free grid, I have to wonder: will this become a new norm?
Say it isn't so!
Musings
-These blogs are a labor of love for me and I try to give every explanation/picture a “hook” to make it more interesting if such a device exists
-I’ll lift a glass of great Fremont, NE water to you, Tinman!
-File under the category: “No good deed goes unpunished”. I have included every name of those that have asked to be on the map and excluded some that asked not to be on it. I have added five new names so far today and the new map will be posted soon.
PK, I admire your sewing without patterns. Did you make your own muslin or paper mock ups to check for fit? The only thing I ever made without a pattern was a simple gathered skirt from a feedbag at 4H. (Yeah, we lived in the sticks.) For the fancier things I sewed I needed patterns, although I made innovations. I would change a collar type or a sash.
After sitting around idle for 4 days I feel almost normal today. This morning I did the weekly grocery shopping and am resting now. No ill effects. I think I will go to therapy, regardless. I am too young to rest all the time.
Today is my dear friend, Arthur's birthday. He is a real pal, but Arthur-Itis, although my constant companion, is no pal. I am sure he is the constant companion of many here.
I am enjoying this short burst of summer like weather. It is healping the buds to catch up and reviving my soul.
Dave, I just updated . Thx
WC
YR & PK:
When we were children my grandmother would use flour sacks, most had printed designs on them, to make clothes for us. She used the T pattern so it was a matter of sewing only two pieces together then hemming all the edges. Being the oldest I used the dresses first then passed them on to my younger sisters until they were ragged and not wearable.
I used a muslin mock-up only once for a special dress I was making and don't recall the occasion any longer.
YR:
I'm so glad you are feeling better.
Just posting to bookmark where I left off
I had a nice post almost done when I hit some button and lost it . Mea culpa. I should comprise in text and paste.
TMaLSS**... WOOHOO!!!
YR, try aloe VERA capsules.
I'm reading Lincoln by Gore Vidal so I know about the seances. Like the many '44s in here I missed Sesame Street and Pooh .
Stupid question of the day. Who is the younger Stiller?
I just noticed DROP DOWN next to Medium access.
If Phil answered text I'd have asked about the half blood . After I nixed OPTIMIST and got the P, I recalled SNAPE . Rowling should get a Nobel for inspiring American young males* to read .
WC
** To Make a Long Story Short
* The girl next door was an HP maven
Wilbur: Ben Stiller is the son. Doesn't look a bit like dear old mom & dad, does he?
YR: glad you're feeling better. I probably didn't make it clear and you misunderstood about the pattern. I DID use the patterns to cut. I just didn't always use the instruction sheet with the patterns. My one daughter had some figure problems so I always had to alter the patterns for her, but that became easy after I'd done it a lot of times. In HS I made so many skirts with three yards of material gathered onto a waistband, put in a zipper and hemmed up the bottom. My mom gave me an allowance of $15 a month. That was to buy all my clothes, books, entertainments, etc. Can't imagine kids today living on that small amount. My sister took sewing class too, but couldn't make a garment, so she waited until I left for school and dressed out of my closet. So I had to make more clothes. I didn't fuss with her at school. I felt sorry for her lack of talent in practical arts. She was a piano prodigy but she couldn't wear that talent. LOL!
Gary, forgot to say I really loved seeing the map--so interesting!
Lucina: I was always thrilled to get hand-me-downs from a distant cousin. They had money and nicer clothes than I could afford -- a few gorgeous wool skirts. I wore them and my sister wore them until they were pretty used up. Sis would take them off and kick them under Her bed with the dust bunnies. Then we had trouble because I'd have to pay to dry clean them If I couldn't brush them clean again.
D4: about the current Syria scare, my question is what happens to the poison gas when the facilities are bombed. Does it escape in the air to cause a further hazard?
HG, love lurking on Saturdays for your write-ups and links - thanks! Joann is truly a Master Gardener - beautiful clematis. My only try, and the poor thing cried "uncle." Though I'm a lurker, can you please re-add me on the map? Live in metro Houston. I print out the map to refresh my memory of where everyone calls home. Thanks.
PK, yup, hand up down here. inaFog made me confidently jot in FUEL, although I should have mentally connected my quick fill with the clued "up" - who "fuels" up?
Prince who? Luckily perps completely filled in SNAPE (HP book/film reviews never interested me), and the same for INAMORATA - what? I really enjoyed this puzzle, as some Cornerites have commented before, a puzzle that makes you "work" and think for the tada - thx Robyn!
I smiled at "Waze forerunner". Family joke, my dear much-loved 84-yo BIL who likes to impress others with his tech expertise (none), always pronounced it WAYZEE, until his daughter corrected him - "Dad, what are you talking about? Oh, that! - it's pronounced WAZE!"
PK, et al. re sewing. I used to love to sew (Mama made all of our clothing - my first store-bought dress was for the prom and Mom was recovering from surgery) until I was chained to the computer eight hours a day. Used to buy fabric after work and, using maybe two or three patterns to morph into a new style, wore it to work the next day. Went to Walmart's last week and passed by the fabric dept. - wow! I can see now why we buy clothes considering the fabric price/yd, and the patterns are now $19-20!
PK, also I saw the GMA clip, and IIRC, she's trying out for the Texans cheerleader squad. Beautiful face and figure and, being a former dance instructor, she had some great moves. I do hope she's picked - I also liked her outlook on life - never too old!!
For all in stormy weather - stay safe and warm.
As I originally tried to post, I thought I had three footholds: CPA(SSN to obvious) which gave me CPRLS for 1D. And ALUMS. I didn't notice VERT.
Instead of diagonal this xword had quadrants.
WC
PK @6:12,
This is one of those times when
the answer is YES,
is not what you wanted to hear...
Luckily, I am oblivious to Saturday difficulty...
FermatPrime: "Picard: I have "Time Transfixed" on my study wall! Am huge steam train freak."
I just saw this! Way cool! I love trains and Magritte and Surrealism, so the painting is good for me!
I see that my Cirque video with the Stilt Walking BACKFLIP has had seventeen views. It seems there are Corner readers who follow the posts but don't necessarily post. It is a beautiful performance.
Picard, my browser won't open the Cirque video. I will try the other browser later. I've had a lot going on this evening. My grandson had vehicle trouble when he was trying to make contact with a date from another town. His dad had to bring another vehicle after grandson left with the girl. So I'm waiting for him to show up to take his mother's car home. He is running around without a coat in freezing weather because he thought it was spring when he left home. I'm glad I no longer have to sit up waiting for teenagers to arrive home on a regular basis. Handsome, smart kid but his common sense didn't kick in today.
Lurk say:
Hello from Highlands Ranch, CO. (It's a community just outside of Denver [no Lem, not made it into the city-proper to meet up]). Brothers and I are having a weekend together.
Robyn - I see it's a nice puzzle that I'll GIVE A GO (don't worry, I'll only remember there's not and E in INAMORATA(?!?)) when I get my paper on Monday.
Nice job HG, as always. I had to reload my browser 2x to see the Guard Rail bit - dang! If you want to put TxMs on the map, she's between me and DO.
To all the Cornerites today who kept me company after my Bros fell out - thanks.
So, do you know what's so cool here? - brew houses. We started at 11:30 (before they opened (except for us)) at 38 State - good beer and friendly brewmaster (Sgt). Then went to Blue Spruce (and had pretzels and wings AND beer) and somewhere else -- where we met a couple [I'll call them the Cubs 'cuz he sported a Chicago Cubs hat] from the Midwest and their babies.
We finished up there and went to an Irish joint. Guess who was settling in too? -- the Cubs couple. We played toss-the-sand-bags-in-a-hole-on-a-slanted-board and ate legit TX Que [the guy who owned the food truck was from H-Town!] and said our Ga'days to the Cubs-couple.
Two more(ish) pubs to go...
Localvore, was the next stop. Beer-fest was on like DonkeyKong - 8 other houses sharing their craft. [there was a hippie brew with ginger that was 'meh' on the way down but the after-taste cleansed to a field of daisies - amazing].
Our penultimate stop was a bigger, more commercial brew place (Breckenridge). It is right off the bike-trail, and so, there's lots of 'crunchies'* there. //All cool folk.
Guess who else was there? - yeah, the Cubs family. We also met another couple (also from the Midwest!) and had fun writing our names on the back of the group-W bench and sipping IPAs.
So, to make a long story longer....
We were leaving Breckenridge to go to one more pub when we saw the "crunchies" from the Midwest out front. He was trying to fix a girl's flat w/o much luck [I'll spare you the details on the Schrader-valve issue] so we (my brother used to own a bike shop) jumped into help. It took a bit (and more help from the crowd - someone had to have a pump that F'ing worked!) but we got her fixed up. We were about to part ways when:
"Hey there's a biker bar 1.4 mi from here. Let's have a drink there," Said the girl who's bike is now in better shape. "I can wait there for my husband because I'm not riding all the way back to Denver tonight."
So (keeping up with this?) - the "crunchy" couple from the Midwest and the the Midwest girl (who's hubby is going to meet her at the biker bar) hop on their bikes and ride while Bros & I drive there. All good. We meet up and have a round, and then another, everyone tells stories, and rounds keep flowing. Then shots., then, then, then... Uber gets us home in time for dinner.
Now that's what I call a fun day. Get up, go, and make friends along the way.
Cheers, -T
^You know, granola-eating health nuts who still believe beer is a good idea :-)
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