google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Thursday, October 18th 2018 Roger & Kathy Wienberg

Advertisements

Oct 18, 2018

Thursday, October 18th 2018 Roger & Kathy Wienberg

Theme Three-Card Monte - as the reveal tells us:

55A. Vegas device used literally in three puzzle answers: CARD SHUFFLER

Which leads us to:

20. They may be added to soup: SODA CRACKERS. I had a little bit of a mental block with this one - I wanted SALT, not SODA and so things wouldn't work too well in this area. The reveal put me straight.

32A. Recognition event: AWARD CEREMONY

40A. Camp activities: ARTS AND CRAFTS

A simple but slick theme with plenty of weight in the theme answers. Add to that a couple of 10-letter across entries and two 11's in the downs and that's a pretty weighty grid to fill around. Roger & Kathy have done a great job with the fill, there's nary a clunker in sight, and where there are some very common fill words, the cluing is often fresh. Excellent stuff.

Across:

1. Cartman on "South Park": ERIC. There are websites where you can make your own "South Park" avatar - this is one of mine from the start of a Premier League season a couple of years ago:


5. John follower: ACTS. New Testament of the Bible. The Acts of the Apostles follows The Gospel according to St. John.

9. European farewell: ADIEU

14. Default takeback: REPO

15. Formal agreement: NOR I. I can't stop parsing this as NORI, the dried seaweed wrapper for sushi rolls.

16. Two-time Argentine president: PÉRON. Interesting use of "two-time" here - Juan Péron actually served three terms as president, but two were consecutive from 1946-1952 and 1952-1955.

17. Famous __: AMOS

18. Keys for Elton: GRAND PIANO

22. Tennis' Open __: ERA

23. Smooth-talking: OILY

24. Fight: COMBAT

28. "25" album maker: ADELE

30. Federal URL ending: GOV

31. Lennon's lady: ONO

36. Prop for Frosty: PIPE

38. Crown installer's org.: ADA. American Dental Association.

39. Short strings?: UKES

45. Inventor's monogram: TAE. Thomas Alva Edison, natch.

46. Head for Vegas?: LAS

47. Carpenter's joint: MITER

49. Like Justice League members: HEROIC

51. Stub __: A TOE

53. Stroke that doesn't count: LET. Tennis serve that hits the net cord before landing in the service court. I noticed last year at Wimbledon that they no longer have judges sitting at the side of the net with the finger on the net cord. When did that stop?

58. Prime hotel time: HIGH SEASON

61. Assessment: LEVY

62. Comforting words: I CARE

63. Support at sea: MAST

64. Destructive Greek god: ARES

65. Genres: TYPES

66. Watch pair?: EYES

67. Sly attention-getter: PSST!

Down:

1. Rub out: ERASE

2. Rider on a shark: REMORA. I'd never heard of these guys before. They're not parasitic as they do no harm to the shark, other than hitch a free ride. They're not really symbiotic either, as the shark doesn't really get much benefit from having them around. The sharks just seem to enjoy the company.


3. Audio system connector: IPOD ADAPTER. I fitted one of these gadgets in my last car to supplement the AM/FM and CD options. Then I lost the iPod.

4. Cuban thing: COSA

5. Hotter: ANGRIER

6. Color named for a sea animal: CORAL

7. Detective role for Beatty: TRACY. Dick Tracy. Didn't Warren co-star with Madonna in that movie? I think that led to something of a fling between them.

8. Cleaning area: SINK

9. Say yes: APPROVE

10. Reason-based faith: DEISM

11. Lyricist Gershwin: IRA

12. Many ages: EON

13. Mattel game since 1992: UNO

19. Furnishings and such: DECOR

21. Root beer alternative: COLA. See "Dad's" below.

25. Proprietors for word lovers: BOOKSELLERS. I love bookstores. If you want to drop me off somewhere and know exactly where I'll be by the time you get back, however long that is, leave me at a bookstore.

26. Diarist Frank: ANNE

27. Elves' output: TOYS

29. Ram fans?: EWES. The Rams fans are all around here.

30. Camping stuff: GEAR

33. Root beer since 1937: DAD'S. You can buy an original, empty bottle on eBay right now for $15.



34. Epidemic-fighting agcy.: CDC. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

35. You won't see one at Westminster: MUTT. You will at Westminster Cathedral, they have a Pet's Corner. Oh wait, Poet's Corner, slight difference.

36. Trail: PATH

37. Requiem Mass hymn word: IRAE. Dies Irae, or "Day of Wrath".

41. They're assumed: ALIASES

42. Mother-of-pearl: NACRE

43. Bottom lines: AMOUNTS

44. Feudal estate: FIEF

48. John Wick portrayer: REEVES. My neighbor Keanu.

50. Natural clay pigment: OCHRE

51. Evaluate: ASSAY

52. More of that: THOSE

54. Secret rendezvous: TRYST

56. Title for Helen Mirren: DAME. "Der ain't nuttin' loik ..."

57. Flutter: FLAP

58. Baseball stat: HIT. Plenty of hits at this time of year. My Dodgers hoping for one better than last year, but have to get past the Brewers first! 5-1 tonight, so 3-2 in the series ...

59. Standoffish: ICY

60. Mountain pass: GAP

Wow - tempus fugit - time to call it a wrap!

Steve


65 comments:

D4E4H said...

Thank you Mr. Roger & Ms. Kathy Wienberg for this challenging Thursday CW. I used much P & P to FIR.

Thank you Steve for your excellent review.

Ðave

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

GLIB/OILY was my only write-over this morning. Zip, zip, done. Yes, d-o missed the theme, as usual. Thanx, Roger, Kathy and Steve.

IPOD ADAPTER: My car radio has a USB port that'll accept a thumb-drive.

Beatty: No idea. I was thinking Ned, not Warren.

I signed up for an extra M-o-W route today. Naturally, it's pouring down rain outside. In four hours that had better be finished or somebody's gonna be unhappy...and wet.

OwenKL said...

ERIC was a pro BOOK SELLER,
In his shop were choices stellar.
He felt that like wine
Old books were fine --
He kept the best in his book cellar!

OwenKL said...

{A-.}

Lemonade714 said...

I agree this is a well done Thursday with enough tricky cluing to make it a challenge. I have heard the word REMORA before but even after filling it in the puzzle I am not sure where. iPOD ADAPTER also took time as I have never had an i-POD. I really enjoyed - Keys for Elton: GRAND PIANO.

Thank you Mr and Mrs and Steve, your icon is precious.

Oas said...

OwenKL. {A}

Enjoyed the workout this morning. Thanks Roger and Kathy.

The theme came together before I had ARTSANDCRAFTS mainly because I was thinking weekend camping . The kids love it but DW and I not so much. We prefer a roof over our heads and some kind of mattress to sleep on. Years ago we went on a weekend at the lake . DW and I rented a cabin , the kids and inlaws were in tents .Chilly spring night out and by morning the cabin floor was full of sleeping bags.
Years later when baby girl needed help to get her dream cottage built I spent two weeks in a sleeping bag under the west coast pines and stars . Went okay till one night I woke up to some woods creature scrtching or chewing on my scalp. I fashioned an off the floor platform in the partially done cottage for myself to sleep on the rest of my stay.
Balmy fall weather happening today. More chainsaw work and bon fires to pass the day.
Wishing peace and good health to all.

Hahtoolah said...

Good Morning, Steve and friends. Fun puzzle. By the time I got to the CARD SHUFFLE, however, I had already filled in the other theme answers.

I learned that Default Takeback is not Redo but REPO. Anyone else see the 1984 film REPO Man?

Thank goodness for the perps, otherwise I never would have gotten the ACTS.

My favorite clue was Crown Installer's Org. = ADA.

REMORA is a learning moment. Thanks for the explanation, Steve.

I used an iPOD ADAPTOR in my car for long trips.

I was not familiar with John Wick, but after getting a few letters, I guessed at REEVES. It seemed reasonable, and fit with the other clues. I thought it might refer to Christopher Reeve, but his name is sans the "S".

QOD: Living in the past is for cowards. ~ Mike Ditka (b. Oct. 18, 1939)

PK said...

Hi Y'all! This was the easiest puzzle for me from the Wienberg duad yet. Thanks for a fun but thought-provoking puzzle.

Thanks, Steve, for another informative expo. Didn't understand NOR I until you explained it. Duh! Couldn't make sense of it from that clue. DNK: COSA.

REMORRA: knew this, but thought they ate sea worms & food morsels to clean up the shark.

I got the theme in 20,32,40 after looking in vain at all the other long fills both across & down. Tricky move not to tell us where to look for once.

Last to fill was the SW corner with the HIGH/HIT cross. I was expecting the baseball term to be initials. HIGH SEASON for hotels was not unknown to me, but had forgotten it. With those clues ICY & GAP were also slow to land. My DIL's national investment business reserves blocks of resort time for training sessions & rewards for top performers, mostly in the "off" season. Their family then takes two dream vacations a year.

Jinx in Norfolk said...

FIW, having FLiPped when I should have FLAPpped. Erased glib (hi D-O), peak SEASON, and soda instead of COLA.

PK - I loved those corporate resort perqs. DW was a hotshot saleswoman, and we enjoyed "training" sessions in Boca Raton and Markup, er, Marco Island. These consisted of a pep talk over a fine dinner, then three days of play. We also traveled to Maui using accumulated "spot awards" her management folks awarded for the little "good stuff" they observed.

My camper has six forward GEARs in its Allison transmission.

I think that the AKC has started holding agility trials at Westminster that are open to MUTTs.

I like those shuffling machines in Vegas. When I was younger I thought I could make money being a blackjack card counter. After a year I realized it was a lot more work than what I did for a living. More fun to drink, chat and people watch while playing basic strategy. Basic strategy relies on random decks, and the machines are truly random while human shuffling isn't. But my true love in the casinos is now craps.

Thanks to Roger and Kathy for the fun challenge, and to Steve for your fine review.

Yellowrocks said...

FIR, though I wondered about NORI. Thanks for clearing that up, Steve. NOR I.
Hand up for glib before oily and redo before repo. Yes, I remember Repo Man.
PK, I agree. We taught that the remora and shark are symbiotic. "Remoras happily eat any unwanted parasites, algae or other particles – acting as a personal shark cleaner. In return, when sharks successfully catch their prey, the remora sneakily snacks on the left overs. Since both the shark and remora benefit from this relationship the shark tolerates the remora clinging to his side." Just now I learn that some authorities say that the a shark gets no benefit from the remora. I disagree.
An advantage of being retired is that we can avoid the summer high season at the shore. After Labor Day there are fewer tourists, lower rates, and less intense heat. We went to Disney right after Thanksgiving one year, avoiding both the summer and the Christmas high seasons. Delightful. I was expecting the baseball term HIT to be initials. HIGH tipped me off.

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

Wallowed around all over the top before establishing a more pronounced solving pace at the bottom. Somehow found myself filling in the longer themes with the last word and then notching leftward. Did not 'get' NORI but perps were quite firm. Only lookup was COSA in my $2 Spanish- English dictionary. (We have enough Spanish here in these puzzles that I thought it was well worth the investment.).
GAP - Seems to be in common use in the Appalachians; particularly Pennsylvania.
ACTS - Probably my favorite book in the Bible.
ADIEU - Fairly common among German speakers, too. I wonder if Frederick the Great's proclivity for French (He did not speak German well.) accelerated the borrowing from the French.
Tschüß, a derivative, was common in the North and has spread throughout the German speaking lands.

Jinx in Norfolk said...

BTW, we can thank ourselves for the nasty, negative political ads (and inane commercial ads). If they didn't work they wouldn't air. I'm old enough to remember everyone griping about the Wisk "ring around the collar" ads. Everyone hated them, but they SOLD SOAP!

The dumb masses (don't say it too fast or the censors will get you) who comprise the electorate like good gossip, and actually doing the research is soo much work. The average voter isn't like the average Cornerite.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-I should have had a REPO on REDO and so I’ll take one bad cell
-Steve’s summative paragraph works for me.
-Got a tee time in 30 minutes

Prairie Woman said...

Good morning! This was an enjoyable puzzle although I stumbled at soda with the crackers.
This is a day late, but after the canal discussion, I wanted to add that DH and I spent a very enjoyable day yesterday at the National Mississipppi River Museum and Aquarium in Dubuque, Iowa. There was a short movie about the Erie Canal which started the canal building and then much mention of the building and use of the 20+ lock and dam systems on the river. They helped transportation but not the wildlife so we are now rebuilding islands to help restore the duck populations. If you are visiting here in the heartland this is worth the time if you are into museums.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

I'm in the minority today as this was a big, fat DNF due to the NW corner. Remora, Eric, Cosa, and Repo did me in. (I, too, wanted Redo and iPod never even occurred to me. C'est la vie, I'll survive. I like the Uno/Ono and Nacre/Ochre pairings. I had Glib before Oily and Alibies before Aliases. My Tracey portrayer was also Ned and my Nori puzzled me until Steve made it make sense as Nor I. The reveal was a surprise as I missed the scrambled Card.

Thanks, Roger and Kathy, for a challenging Friday offering that stumped me, but good, and thanks, Steve, for filling in the blanks.

HG ~ There was a guest co-host on Megyn Kelly's show this morning whose father was from Fremont, Nebraska. His name is Matt Iseman and I think he's a comedian although I've never heard of him. Then, again, I'm not up to date on today's comedians.

I got my flu shot yesterday and my arm is moderately sore. Someone told me the shingles shot leaves you with a very sore arm for a few days. A Cornerite mentioned getting that shot recently (Spitz, maybe?) and I'm wondering if this is true about the soreness. I'm going to get one, regardless, but I'm just curious. Also, was there a co-pay?

FLN

A belated Happy Birthday to Wilber C, I hope it was a special day. 🎂🎁🎈🎉

CED, so sorry your birthday dinner wasn't what you thought it would be.

Bluehen, your dinner sounds yummy. And let me reiterate how much we miss hearing about your culinary capers! Please indulge us!

The majority of the offensive political ads in my area are on during the 6:00 pm local news and the 6:30 national news. Fast forwarding is not an option but muting is. I mailed my ballot two days ago.

Have a great day.

Anonymous said...

For Husker Gary, saw this and thought of you naturally.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/10/18/honestly-its-not-for-everyone-says-nebraskas-self-deprecating-new-tourism-campaign/?utm_term=.0b04eb8875eb

JBM

desper-otto said...

IM, I recently got the flu shot and 2nd Shingrix shot on the same day. The pharmacist warned me about soreness, but I didn't have any. Shingrix isn't covered by Medicare, so it'll set you back about $150 for each of the two shots. Look for coupons on-line. I took in three different coupons and told 'em I wanted the cheapest option. I got out of there for $142. The first shot I ran through my Medicare drug plan. They paid zip-point-zero, and I had to cough up $163. BTW, the Shingrix vaccine is in short supply. Be sure to call your pharmacy to make sure they've got some before going in for the shot.

Big Easy said...

Thanks Steve for reviewing the puzzle because until I checked in at the Corner, I didn't know if I had correctly completed the puzzle. I didn't finish. ERIC, REDO, & COSA were WAGs. Never seen Southpark, thought maybe UNDO, and wondered why Cuba and COSA were connected. I knew CASA & COSTA but not COSA. NORI- I filled it only by perps.

But REDO wasn't to be and IDODADAPTER just looked wrong. REPO never entered my mind, never owned an IPOD and don't they connect with a USB cable anyway. Special connectors are just another reason to never purchase an Apple product. So an ultimate DNF today.

OILY- not a term I've ever heard anybody use for 'Smooth-talking'. Filled GLIB before the perps took over. My NIH changed to FDA before the CDC finally took over. And my SHY friend suddenly became ICY.

Spitzboov said...

Irish Miss @ 0934 - It wasn't me. I don't believe Medicare Part A or B covers the shingles shot. A drug plan might cover some of it.

Big Easy said...

Oas & Jinx- give me the roof too. HIGH SEASON- it seems no matter where we go, the specials are manana or were last week. Quaint inn or B&B. Not for me. Give me the newest place with the most amenities.

'Dumb masses'? Do they run 'half fast'? Say 'em both slowly and distinctly.
Voting research? Do you actually think people really know anything about what or who they are voting about or for? But poll tests are illegal.

Magilla Go-Rilla said...

53A: In a tournament this past season I noticed a buzzer would sound if the ball brushed the net.

Today was a complete finish. Not my usual Thursday status.

JJM said...

I stumbled a bit as I had SOUP CRACKERS instead of SODA CRACKERS, and couldn't get the first word in HIGH SEASON for a while. Other than that things went smoothly. Clever cluing for a lot of the fill!

A year ago my doctor told me that I was at the age where I should get the Shingles vaccination. So, for the last year every time I go to Target or my local Grocery store (btw does anyone but me say "grocery store" anymore?) I ask the pharmacist and he says the vaccine is on back order. For a solid year??? This stuff is impossible to get.

Great day for a ride along the Lake.
See 'ya

Lemonade714 said...

Thank you JBM for chiming in- you LINK

I had no idea Nebraska was last in Tourism

Lemonade714 said...

PK, I love how you worked DUAD into your comments.

Bluehen said...

Boy, today's crossword was a breeze compared to yesterday's, at least for me. I felt like we must have gotten our days crossed up. Of course I had the same missteps as most others have noted - glib/OILY, for example. In the end, FIR in Tuesday/Wednesday type time.


IM, you are too kind. And yes, the dinner was delicious, and I even forgot to mention the wonderful bottle of 2013 Napa Valley Merlot. This restaurant's wine list has earned them recognition from Wine Spectator magazine for several years in a row, and the food and service are excellent. I don't know how to link, but anyone interested can google Caffe (note the two effs) Gelato to view their webpage. Yeah, I know. The name means "coffee ice cream". Heck of a name for a restaurant, isn't it?

As I mentioned yesterday, DW and I just got back from our fall "leaf-peeping" pilgrimage, this time to the Canaan Valley of West Virginia. It was kind of a letdown this year. The natives were all complaining how this was "The Year of the Endless Summer". Very few leaves had turned. The hillsides were just kind of blah. Very funny for those mountains at this time of year. As a matter of fact, those mountains weren't just funny, they were hill areas!

BBQ chicken tonight. I have a big bag of chix parts in the reefer getting to know the dry rub I put on them last night. I'll fire up the smoker in an hour or so. Six hours of smoke should be more than enough. I'll make a BBQ sauce in the meantime, probably a Kansas City style since that is the family's favorite, although I prefer a Carolina vinegar and pepper centered sauce more. Actually with chicken, my favorite BBQ sauce starts with a serious reduction of Coca Cola. We'll also have some bacon/ranch potato salad, a Greek orzo salad, and cole slaw.


Can't afford beef anymore. The cow stumbled into the pot farm and the steaks have never been higher! I'll let myself out.


Cya!

Irish Miss said...

DO and Spitz ~ Thanks for replying. I was told by the pharmacist that the first shot would have a co-pay of $40.00, so it must be covered by my drug plan. I would assume the second shot would cost the same. There for awhile, the vaccine was not available but it is now. I could have gotten the shot yesterday but I had a dinner date and was sort of leery of having to deal with any discomfort. I hope I'm as lucky as DO in escaping any unpleasant after effects when I do get the shot. DO, what was the time lapse between the two shots?

JJM @ 10:12 ~ I usually say either grocery store or grocery market.

Just got notified by Shoprite that my delivery will be delayed by at least an hour because their computer system was down this morning. Ain't technology grand? 😋

Anonymous said...

Re: new shingles vaccine:

I have the Silver Script part D drug plan. I got the first of the two shots and I paid $56 at CVS. I also got my flu shot the same day (no cost) and was sore in the vaccine arm and a bit "off" for a day.

JBM

Abejo said...

Good morning, folks. Thank you, Roger and Kathy Weinberg, for a fine puzzle. thank you, Steve, for a fine review.

My first two answers were AMOS and ERASE. After those I was stuck in the NW, so I headed South. Did all the South and then came back to the NW.

Got REPO after some thinking. Had ADAPTER, then IPOD hit me in the head. OK. Had SODA CRACKERS. Only missing the R and C for ERIC and the R for REMORA. I wagged them and won.

ACTS was a piece of cake. As was IRAE. Liked ASSAY and the clue Evaluate.

Everything else was pretty easy, with a perp or two to help here and there.

Regarding the discussion on shots, I got a Flu shot and a pneumonia shot. I cannot get into the Shriners Hospital without a Flu shot. The pneumonia because my doctor hounded me into it. Come to find out you only need one in your life. I like that. He also asked me to get a Shingles shot. I have not yet, but I may. I had the Shingles once and it was the worst thing I ever went through. I got it because I gave up drinking tea, cold turkey.

Heavy frost this morning while guarding the crossing. Thank goodness no wind.

See you tomorrow. Off rot my day. Three newsletters to write and one meeting tonight. Other than that I am free as a bird.

Abejo

( )

TTP said...

Thank you Roger, Kathy and Steve.

Was wondering why I hadn't heard or read NORI as a term for agreement, but filled in the I because SINK required it, and TADA. Oh, NOR I.

Never thought twice about REPO.

UNO esta una COSA ?

Spitzboov, your remark about Tschüß (a personal favorite) made me think of how GIs in Germany used später for later, as in English slang for "See you later" which could mean at anytime in the future. But for German ears, I know that später means at some point during the same day, so not the way we GIs used it...

So I found this video that explains the concepts of the German words for nonspecific time from sofort to niemals. I found it quite interesting, and then watched about ten other videos from "DontTrustTheRabbit." Some of her videos are about helping English speakers understand German, and some are about helping German speakers understand word meanings in English. Thought you might enjoy.

BlueHen, you are too funny ! Loved the cow / pot farm / steaks higher gag. Hill areas indeed !

Gotta get some chores done. Später !

Misty said...

Delightful Thursday puzzle, many thanks, Roger and Kathy. I got the northeast corner right away and loved getting Elton's GRAND PIANO. Nice to see other music clues like ONO and ADELE and UKES. Never heard of REMORA and that made the northwest tough for me. But I got the CARD SHUFFLER theme early, thanks to getting AWARD CEREMONY, and it was fun to find all those other mixed up CARDS after that. So, fun puzzle and fun write-up, as always, thanks, Steve.

Liked your poem, Owen.

Interesting Erie Canal story, Prairie Woman.

Hope you were able to stay dry, Desper-otto.

Have a great day, everybody!

Picard said...

Got the theme and much of the fill just fine. But some crazy clues and unknowns made this very hard for me to finish. NOR I seemed wrong for "Formal agreement". Did not know that Beatty played TRACY.

Tried PEAK SEASON, then RUSH before getting HIGH. Was expecting an ABBR for Baseball STAT. So HIT seemed wrong. Never heard of JOHN WICK. Have heard of REEVES, though.

Last to fill was ERA/REMORA. Never heard of either and both seemed wrong. But I was wrong. FIR!

I visited the ANNE FRANK house/museum in Amsterdam. Photography is forbidden. But then I got friendly with a history teacher visiting from England. He was sneaking photos for his students. I decided I would sneak a few for my public slide show back home.

Here are a few of my sneaky photos at the ANNE FRANK house in Amsterdam.

Most interesting is the sneaky door with the map over it where she was hiding with her family.

As a child I convinced my parents to take me to the Thomas Alva Edison (TAE) museum in New Jersey. I have photos there which I would have to dig out.

Here are my photos of the THOMAS ALVA EDISON (TAE) Workshop, Laboratory, Office and Library - At Henry Ford Greenfield Village - Dearborn

Ford was such a fan of EDISON he went to extraordinary effort to bring much of EDISON's workshop to Michigan! If you are ever in the Detroit area, don't miss a visit to the Ford museum. You need at least two days to see it all!

Picard said...

From yesterday:
Rainman Thank you for your interest in my Panama CANAL photos. Yes, Panama was full of skyscrapers. And the most construction cranes I have ever seen in one place. It was booming. I did get to see some of the rest of the country and would like to go back to see more. I was in transit between Brazil and Peru at the time.

AnonT and Lucina Thank you for the very kind words about my SANTA ROSA photos. My long lost friend who lives there now was actually in one of my MIT CHAPEL photos recently. She lost her medical office in the fire.

Lucina, I had forgotten that the Charles M Schulz family home was destroyed in the fire. So sad. I did not realize his son lives here in Santa Barbara until I looked that up!

Fortunately, the Charles M Schulz Museum did survive the fire. I am happy you enjoyed my photos there!

I am very grateful for your appreciation. I was about to take a break from gathering and posting my photos. Just in the nick of time! Thanks!

Bill G said...

That was a very enjoyable puzzle with some clever/tricky clues. Thanks Roger, Kathy and Steve.

Yes, I still say 'grocery store.'

FLLN, I expressed my opinion that: I love steak. Rare filets are very tender but I think the flavor of a rib eye can't be beat. Thoughts?

I used to think locks worked because water was pumped in/out to get boats to the higher/lower level of the opposite side. But no. It's much simpler than that. Did you think that about locks too?

PK said...

BlueHen: you're really making up for lost time when you weren't posting. Your posts have been entertaining.

My bro & SIL have been leaf peeping in New England. Yes, IM, they sent pictures of Maine. Also NH & Vermont. Love sharing their trip by their great pictures on the internet.

OAS: your story about being gnawed by a forest creature will make me shudder all day. Glad it wasn't more injurious than you made it sound.

Big Easy: back when I was doing a lot of political interviews for a newspaper, I said I was the best informed voter around. The year Bob Dole ran for president, I realized that I had interviewed every major candidate I could vote for except Bill Clinton. My friend said that was okay since I didn't want to do {er, what Monica Lewensky reputedly did}.

I reconciled my checkbook/bank statement this morning and found a new charge on the statement, a $15 "monthly maintenance fee". Seems a bit stiff when I only wrote nine checks. When I called the bank, all I get is a busy signal. Does anyone else have this kind of charge? Then I found out the check to a new credit card I wrote on October 2 had never cleared the bank. If it isn't paid to the card company by tomorrow, they charge me a $25 late fee. I called the company and was told it usually takes 10 days after they receive a check for it to be posted to the account. Then they charge a late fee when they were the tardy ones? Boo! Hiss! Foul! I was advised to call back tomorrow to see if it cleared yet. So I'm probably going to be $40 poorer just because the institutions say so. I can afford it but I don't like it!

WC: a very belated Happy Birthday to you!

Lucina said...

Thank you, Roger and Kathy Wienberg, for the CARD scramble!

I don't watch Southpark but ERIC was a good guess after ER_C emerged. And adding SODA CRACKERS to soup is a new concept for me, but it makes sense.

I'm sure I've read about OILY tongued characters. And I learned about REMORAs from crosswords.

Once a week I go grocery shopping; as far as I know that term is still in wide use.

Like Steve, I love book stores and libraries. BOOKSELLERS was a given.

My favorite Keanu REEVES movie is A Walk in the Clouds. Anthony Quinn is in it, too.

Blue Hen, that sounds so delicious! You've inspired me for tonight's dinner.

PK, my arm was slightly sore all day after my flu shot.

Have a magnificent day, everyone!

Lucina said...

PK:
Have you considered on line banking? By using my credit union's site I haven't written a check to pay bills for several years and they send the payment on time.

WikWak said...

OAS: the li'l feller was probably just trying to get to know you better.

Another day without Cruciverb. 😕🤬 This is getting old.

FIR in quite a bit over my normal time. Tough, but fair. Thanks, Weinbergs, for a fun and challenging puzzle. Thanks too to Steve for 'splainin' things.

NORI? Hand up for taking forever to parse that correctly. At home we called them Saltines and/or SODA CRACKERS, pretty much interchangeably. I always assumed that name was referring tp baking soda, not a drink. Yes? And many of this country's founding fathers were DEISTs.

Thank goodness I woke up when I did; I nearly slept through my first mid-afternoon nap. That would never do! Have a great day, all!

AnonymousPVX said...

For whatever reason, the Flu vaccine is covered by Medicare....one of the very few drugs covered.

My Plan D - SilverScript - covers Shingrix as a Tier 4....other plans seem to have it as Tier 3.

On to the Thursday puzzle...

Which features one of the worst clues ever, 15A. Pathetically bad, IMO.

Otherwise a typical mid-weeker.

PK said...

Lucina: I'm sure the bank & card company would like me to do internet banking. However, since I can't even figure out a way to get email again, I'm not wanting to give others access to draw on my bank account. I have it set up to receive income but not outgo.

Dave said...

Shouldn't the clue for "Reeves" simply be Wick portrayer, rather than John Wick portrayer?

Jinx in Norfolk said...

Bluehen, I loved the hill areas and the cow play. The last time we went out for steaks with friends, I told them that we should wait for my wife to finish farding before getting into the car.

PK - What Lucina said. You should be able to find a credit union that you qualify to join. Just be careful with your online banking password. Use capital and lower case letters, numbers, and special characters (like !, @, # and $), and change it occasionally. Also, if you have to select "challenge questions" like mothers maiden name, model of your first car and the like, make up something you can remember but isn't exactly true. For instance, if your first car was a Corvair, your answer could be Corvette. If your mother's maiden name was Smith, you could use "Smithson". The answers have to match, but they don't have to be true.

I'm sure that our Corner's IT experts will add other thoughts (and maybe say I'm paranoid and full of Bravo Sierra).

Jinx in Norfolk said...

PK, didn't see your response before posting. Your choice, but expect things to get harder for traditional transactions. A few restaurants around here have started charging a "cash surcharge" to encourage patrons to use plastic or ApplePay / GooglePay. The cost and risk of handling cash outweighs the fees charged. And the cost of stamps ain't gettin' any cheaper.

Ol' Man Keith said...

Like Irish Miss I found the NW corner to be nasty. This extended into the mid-top sector.
I got NOR I, but would have much preferred it to be clued as "Formal disagreement." I get the positive implication of the shared negative - but just don't like it.

Otherwise this contribution from the Wienberg team was pleasantly engaging.

PK ~
Have you thought of bringing the bank's practice to a local consumer agency, or of writing to your local newspaper? Their delaying tactic shouldn't survive the light of day.

~ OMK

Wilbur Charles said...

I * am prone** to mental profanity. I exercised this pet vice after ten minutes with this xw NOIR. Recipients: R&K. Take it as a compliment.

Then... Cartman was a case for my local Marvel Cyber hero Phil. I found him in the jacuzzi. "EMIL??? Do you mean ERIC?".
Btw, I actually stumbled upon an episode and found myself chuckling. Did I cheat?
I'll leave it to the jury. I once texted an empty-headed Amie for the lyrics to a Beyonce song***.

I think all us solvers should be granted a special"cheat" exemption for 1. Non solving kin. 2. Misc. See above.

I had cane < PIPE; Glib< OILY and I have no idea what an NORI is but the perps demand it.

And.. Just before opening the corner I went back and noticed where the CARDs were SHUFFLE d.

Let's post this and read(Steve,?'s ) write-up.

WC

* And I suppose a few others. Jayce???
** We had some fun with Owen's typo of PRUNE over at the J
***Somebody help me .it wasn't "Liar, Liar"
It may have been the title line. I may LIU later.

Irish Miss said...

Lucina @12:40 ~ I think you may be getting me and PK confused. A couple of recent posts of mine have received a comment directed to PK. No harm, just an observation. 😇

I have all eligible payments deducted right from my checking account. Most months, I write only one check, sometimes, none. Other recurring bills are charged to my credit card.

My Shoprite order was only 15 minutes later than the 11:00-1:00 window. What a convenience to have my groceries brought right to my kitchen counter versus me having to lug a couple of heavy bags at a time from the car into the kitchen. They even put perishables in different colored bags so you can deal with them immediately.

My _ _ _ maker is acting up again so I'm hoping my nephew can get it working when he stops by. Otherwise, I'm in trouble for tonight's Dewar's on the rocks. Unlike Tin, I like plenty of _ _ _ !

Yellowrocks said...

Dickens's Uriah Heep was the epitome of an oily and unctuous man.

Unctuous (of a person)- excessively or ingratiatingly flattering; oily.

"The smarmy guy was oilier than a soggy sack of fries."


WikWak, happy belated birthday. I hope it was grand.

CanadianEh! said...

Terrific Thursday (it is Thursday is it not IM?). Thanks for the fun, Roger and Kathy, and Steve.
A bit of a challenge (especially in the NW again) but I had all the theme fills and then with the reveal, I went back to see the CARDS.

Hand up for not parsing NOR I (thanks Steve, I thought it was some Latin expression a lawyer might use), but I did get OILY and REPO on the first try.
It took a minute (sorry for the pun) for the lightbulb moment with Watch pair=EYES.
I went through a whole list of props for Frosty (carrot, hat, scarf, broom) before PIPE fit.
Smiled at clue for EWES.
I didn't understand Justice League (HEROIC) and Famous AMOS even when they perped. LIUed for a learning moment.

Bluehen - Your cow in the pot farm reminded me that I noted 58A HIGH and 47A Carpenter's Joint and assumed I was just sensitive to the terms because cannabis became legal in Canada yesterday.
Speaking of Canada, I filled in the required American spelling for MITER; NACRE is only spelled with RE not ER; but this Canadian actually entered OCHER and then was astounded when perps required a change to OCHRE! No consistency here LOL!

Thanks for the Anne Frank photos, Picard (even if they are contraband!)

Enjoy the day.

Mike Sherline said...

Good puzzle and review. Unusually for a Thurs. I got it all with no red letters! Thankfully not much pop, rap, movies, sports. Learned ADELE here, didn't know Beatty played Dick TRACY, never heard of John Wick. Crosses ttr. Couldn't figure out what NORI had to do with the clue, still think NOR I is a stretch. Took some pondering to find the themers after filling the reveal - thought 18a would be one, I guess just because it's long and compound. Knew REMORA right away from many nature shows - I also understood they provide a skin cleaning service to the sharks. I have an IPODADAPTER in my 2014 car - nice since there's no radio reception around here.

I've always said grocery store, or just the name of the store. What else? I've known some who say market.

Vaccinations - get all the shot(s) - flu & pneumonia kill a lot of us older people, and shingles is a horribly painful condition. If you exercise the arm a little it'll spread the liquid around so it won't ball up at the injection site, lessening the liklihood of pain there (courtesy US Navy, c.1967).

Irish Miss said...

CanadianEh @ 3:16 ~ No wonder the NW corner stymied me, when I don't even know what day it is! I'm surprised eagle-eye DO didn't catch that. 🙃

Wilbur Charles said...

NORI is one of the Dwarfs from The Hobbit. He had a brother or two. Anyone?
Btw. Tony etal. The Redsox superb outfield may be the key to a 4th WS.
I just saw Bett's(MOOKIE) throw in the 8th. 3 gold gloves in one OF
My earlier remark about the Redsox OF came BEFORE the Benintendi catch. I'm watching on tape per usual.

C-EH. You remind me that the CANE belonged to Mr Potato Head

I'll do the LIU. Can't find it but the line was like [Kiss me, Stupid]. Does that help. There must be a Beyonce fan out there

WC

desper-otto said...

IM, that second shot can be administered anytime 2-6 months after the first one. In my case, the cost for Shingrix was so high because I hadn't met my $405 Plan D deductible -- I never manage to get there. All of my routine medications are Tier 1, zero-copay generics not subject to deductible. Shingrix is a Tier 3 drug in my plan and would have a $47 copay after meeting the deductible.

Jayce said...

I had unusual difficulty solving this puzzle. Obviously it was purposely made difficult by the way the answers were clued. "That could be anything!" Fortunately there were just enough unambiguous clues/answers to give a foothold. For example I knew REMORA, the first 2 letters of AD--- (ADIEU? ADIOS? ADDIO?), ADELE, ANNE, IRAE, and NACRE right away. Didn't understand NORI until reading the explanation here. Tough but good puzzle.

Wilbur Charles, yes to prone.

Good joke, BlueHen.

OwenKL, A+.

Hahtoolah, nope, never saw that film.

My dad used to love to spend summer at the Delaware Water GAP.

LW and I got our flu shots today. Her arm is sore, mine isn't (yet.) She's supposed to get a tetanus shot, too, but not today. We're still checking in from time to time to see if Shingrix is available; it still isn't.

Bill G, yes about locks.

Best wishes to you all.

Michael said...

For Husker, Anonymous @ 9:47 (JBM?), and Lemonade --

Thanks for the reference. Thought this was hilarious:

"The self-deprecating slogan naturally lends itself to parody. On Twitter, some Nebraskans jokingly proposed their own alternative slogans, such as “Nebraska: We don’t want to be here, either.”

“Nebraska: Typhoid Free since ‘87!” wrote Brett Baker, a producer at 1011 News in Lincoln. Among his other suggestions: “Nebraska: Minimal storm surge!” and “Nebraska: We have very few serial killers!”"

Michael said...

Bluehen @ 10:33 --

"Actually with chicken, my favorite BBQ sauce starts with a serious reduction of Coca Cola."

You all know that there is a delicious Coca-Cola pie as well? Last eaten over 50 years ago, so I don't recall the ingredients, and probably doesn't work with the 'new, improved' versions of Coke. But it's not just for bourbon anymore....

Mike Sherline said...

OILY - my first thought to describe most newscasters and commercial hucksters and that annoying voice announcing upcoming programs on the networks.

Picard - I almost always look at your pictures and usually like them, though am occasionally a little frustrated by not knowing what I'm looking at, though the pictures and scenery are beautiful. Today I especially enjoyed the Schultz museum and really loved the ones of Greenfield Village. Edison was a hero of my youth - at around 8-10yrs old I read a biography and the story of how he improved the lightbulb by, through long and tedious experimentation and many failures, arriving at tungston in a vacuum as a long lasting filament material. Of course years later I was disappointed to read of what he did to Tesla and of some of his (to my mind) unethical business practices. But his inventions and improvements did increase our knowledge - and comfort. I still wish Tesla's ideas had won out back then and the country had gone with distributed generation and D.C. I know some are recommending the former now and we may finally be heading for it, at least in some areas. I went to grad school at Michigan State, and wish I'd been less obsessed with my studies and performances and taken time to go to Detroit and see the Village. I'm not even sure I was aware of it at the time ('74-'76). I grew up on the east coast and never went to Menlo Park either, though.

Bill G. - I've always liked steak too, and agree that the rib eye is the best tasting, though I rarely eat it anymore.

PK - I echo others' advice to get out of the commercial bank and into a credit union. None of those unexplained surprise charges or mysterious monthly fees. I pay my credit card bills on their web sites - been doing it for many years and never had a problem (knock on wood). But of course you'd have to get your computer problems straightened out first. Besides not having to write and mail checks, the payments are credited instantly, or almost so anyway, and you get comfirmation, so there's never any question of late fees or added interest - as long as you remember to do it on time (which I forget occasionally).

Michael said...

PK @ 12:04 --

Those "maintenance fees" are indeed a pain in the, er, ah, wallet. One of the underlying issues is that it takes time to move paper from the checkbook to whomever. It's a recognized factor -- propagation delay, or latency if you're talking about hard drives -- mostly from the Postal Service, but sometimes the payee's people aren't on the top of their game, either.

"Pay early; mail early" are about the only remedies.

Steve said...

@Dave 1:18PM - yes, you're right, I didn't notice that when I was doing the write-up.

Lucina said...

Several of my bills such as Century Link, some department stores, and others are sent directly to my credit union and are automatically set for payment. I can change the amount if I wish to and others are set to the same amount monthly. If I'm gone when bills are due, I don't have to worry about the payment.

It's too bad NOR I wasn't clued as NORI, the sushi ingredient, to avoid confusion.

TTP:
I don't understand your UNO ESTA UNA COSA. Do you mean UNO es una COSA? Please explain.

Spitzboov said...

And then, if you've had enough about locks, there always this boat lifter-upper/let-downer: Falkirk Wheel.

Lucina - If you are still "working" on your German, you may want to check out the site indicated by TTP @ 1112 in his 6th paragraph.

OAS said...

Spitzboov


as to the tschuss greeting
I saw you use it some time ago and wanted to comment then but ran out of time .

My son married a wonderful young lady some 20 years ago who was brought up largely by her grand parents. They were originally from Germany. She lost the German language but remembers her grandma using tschuss at the end of a telephone conversation with relatives across the pond. A dead give away as to the nationality of complete strangers who say this at parting in a mall or air port or some other public place.

TTP
In Spanish Manana doesn't necessarily mean tomorrow. Only not today but some future time.

WikWak
Had I seen him/her/it and been quick enough I would have wakked it.

PK
No harm done I think . But then maybe I wouldn't know.

Bluehen
you crack me up.

Cheers


SwampCat said...

OMK, thank you for noticing NORI is really not agreement but agreeing to disagree. You don’t like it. Not do I.

I have stopped invoking Thumper because that In itself is a negative comment. I can’t think of ONE nice thing to say?? But this one was just not my cup of tea. Jeffrey Wechsler says that’s a fair comment . Who are we to dispute JW??

Spitzboov said...

OAS @ 1751 - - Thanks for sharing your Tschüß connection. I would hear it more from my Mom than from my Dad. He would say something like "Hool di fuchtig!. Literally; stay damp. It is meant to convey the feeling one might have by being snug, warm and cozy inside during a rainy day outside.

Swamp Cat - I agree with you about NORI. I think you put it in a good context.

Bill G said...

Spitz, I've seen a video of the Falkirk Wheel once before somewhere. I loved seeing it again. What a wonderful example of ingenuity and modern engineering with a little Archimedes thrown in!

Wilbur Charles said...

NORI did indeed have two brothers. Clue: Brother of Ori and Dori.
Speaking of.. " Did anyone think the Redsox were that good?"
Anon-T: Not I
WC:. Nor I
Wilbur's agreement is more formal than Tony's.
Thanks IM and Lucina for the B-day wishes. And whomever I may have missed.

WC

Picard said...

CanadianEh Thank you for the kind words about my ANNE FRANK photos! Yes, contraband! And not of the best quality. But it gives some idea of the experience there.

Mike Sherline Thank you for the feedback on my postings. If ever there is something you want explained, please do let me know. Of course, some of my photos go back 50 years to when I was a child and those details may be limited.

Glad that you are also a fan of EDISON and of Tesla. In the end, Tesla won. Edison wanted DC for electric power. AC won out. Although high voltage distribution is switching to DC because of less radiation loss. I worked on this many years ago.

When I was in high school in the 70s I worked on a little-known Tesla invention called the Thermomagnetic Motor. I was a huge fan of his genius in so many areas. Of course I also built a Tesla coil out of nothing but scavenged materials.

I hope you do have a chance to get to the Ford museum in Dearborn. It is an extraordinary place. He also transplanted the Wright Brothers' family home and workshop there!

From Yesterday:
Lucina You are an amazing traveler and you really seem to absorb the local culture well. I do hope you are able to get to PANAMA and anywhere else you desire while you are still of strong mind and body! By coincidence I just found out today that a friend is in Panama right now.