17. Does really well, for a weekend golfer: SHOOTS PAR. Each golf hole has a par rating, between 3 and 5 strokes, depending on tee to green length. Typical par for 18 holes is 72. The letters of STRAP occur at the end of the phrase.
22. "Next time's for real": JUST PRACTICING. I practice a lot, but have a hard time coming up with a real life situation where one might utter these words. There are, however, memes that use the phrase, if you care to look for them. The letters of STRAP span the two words, and are internal. Same as in the next two entries.
36. Cardiologist: HEART SPECIALIST. A specific kind of medical doctor.
46. Jewish deli meat: KOSHER PASTRAMI. Read all about it.
56. "America's Got Talent" judges' concern: STAR POWER. That elusive combination of poise, talent, stage presense, sex appeal and a certain je ne sais quoi, perhaps. Here, the letters occur at the beginning of the phrase, offering a nice symmetry, where the first shall be last, and the last first.
58. With 62-Across, handyman's assortment, and a hint to what's in each set of circles: LOOSE.
Very thematically rich array, with a central grid spanner, two others just a letter short, and even the shorter entries having nine letters each. And the final - central - initial placement of the circled letters is an elegant touch.
But there are a couple problems. First, LOOSE PARTS does not appear to be an in-the-language phrase meaning what the clues suggest. Or, if it is, I'm failing to find any evidence of it. Instead, it indicates a group of resources that provide children with an intellectually stimulating outlet for creative play.
Second - and this might be just a nit - but KOSHER PASTRAMI can also be parsed this way, with the PARTS not straddling both words. Is anyone else bothered by this?
Hi gang, It's JazzBumpa, perhaps in an overly-critical mood. Grab your STRAPS and PARTS and lets see what we can uncover.
Across:
1. Area with pews: NAVE. The central area of a church.
5. It's saved for a rainy day: TARP. Covering to protect the infield of a baseball stadium from rain.
9. Monster party: BASH. A better than average party, with more excitement or better accessories.
13. Constrain: HEM IN. Enclose something, or prevent it from moving.
14. Singer Adams: EDIE. Her husband was Ernie Kovacs.
Having way too much fun
16. In first place: AHEAD. At the head of the pack.
19. Sophs, come Sep.: JRS. 2nd and 3rd Yr students, respectively.
20. "Who Dat Girl" rapper __ Rida: FLO. It's on You Tube, if you're interested.
21. Corkscrew pasta: ROTINI. Descriptive name - Italian for "spirals.".
26. Hurry, old-style: HIE. To rush or hasten, from Old English hīgian "strive, pant", of unknown origin.
27. Leaf-clearing tool: RAKE. To clean them up when they fall in the Fall.
28. Hairy spider: TARANTULA. I refuse to post a picture.
33. It stings: BEE. I was always told that if I leave it alone then it will leave me alone. Opinions?
40. Energy unit: ERG. A minuscule unit of energy equal to 10−7 Joule. An erg is the amount of work done by a force of one dyne exerted for a distance of one centimeter. One of my college profs described it as the amount of energy exerted when one fly does one push up in one second.
41. Looks through, as a keyhole: PEERS INTO. Sounds sneaky.
42. Tennis immortal: ASHE. Arthur [1943 - 1993] He won 3 grand slam titles and retired in 1980.
45. Spanish "that": ESA. Also literal
53. Learn from A to Z: MASTER. Have complete knowledge and facility in some activity or endeavor.
54. Little newt: EFT. It's a strange life cycle
55. Bloke: GUV. Types of British slang for a man.
60. Latvian seaport: RIGA. Latvia's capital, on the Baltic sea at the mouth of the Daugava River.
61. De __: again: NOVO. Anew, from the beginning.
63. Cocktail garnish: PEEL. Typically of an orange or lemon
64. Gets the picture: SEES. Comprehends. Not necessarily a visual reference.
65. Keep up (with): STAY. Be like an electrician, and STAY on top of current events.
Down:
1. '60s jacket style: NEHRU. The Nehru jacket is a hip-length tailored coat for men or women, with a mandarin collar, and with its front modeled on the Indian achkan or sherwani, a garment worn by Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister of India from 1947 to 1964. [Wikipedia .]
2. "What __!": "Ick!": A MESS. A situation or thing in a condition of disarray, and possibly unsanitary.
3. By way of: VIA. From the same word in Latin meaning "way" or "road."
4. See 28-Down: END. But, as you can see we still have a ways to go. Vide infra.
5. Musk's electric car brand: TESLA. Named for this guy.
6. Limited in scope, as a committee: AD HOC. Latin, literally, "to this, " designating a committee assembled for a specific purpose.
7. Grande opening: RIO. Together these words make the name of a border river separating Texas from several Mexican States. Lame clue.
8. Illinois city that symbolizes mainstream America: PEORIA.
10. Clinton's first Defense secretary: ASPIN. Leslie Aspin, Jr. [1938 - 1995] was a representative from Wisconsin from 1971 to 1993, and Defense Secretary from January, 1993 to February, 1994.
11. Sporty Ford, to devotees: 'STANG. Mustang. I am not familiar with this slangy abbrv. but I guess it's real.
12. Big name in spydom: HARI. Margaretha Geertruida "Margreet" MacLeod [1876 - 1917] better known by the stage name Mata Hari, was a Dutch exotic dancer and courtesan who was convicted of being a spy for Germany during World War I and executed by firing squad in France. [Wikipedia]
13. Pilgrimage to Mecca: HAJJ. This takes place in the last month of the year, something all Muslims are expected to complete.
18. Clock sound: TOCK. Or TICK
20. Guitar neck features: FRETS. Metal strips inserted into the fingerboard to divide it into fixed segments. Each fret represents one semi-tone in standard western equal tempering. If you don't know about tempering and tuning systems, believe me, you are far better off.
23. Whaling direction: THAR. Evidently meaning "there."
Cetaceans don't get any privacy
24. Pub order: PINT. Half a quart, or 0.473 liter.
Is anybody thirsty?
25. Copy on a transparent sheet: TRACE.
28. With 4-Down, fairy tale's last words: THE. Vide supra. Anyway, I thought it was "They lived happily ever after." But hang on; we're still not finished!
29. Fizzy prefix: AER-. Indicating something to do with air, in this case inducing bubbles.
30. Tattered cloth: RAG.
31. Word with class or case: UPPER. UPPER class indicates having lots of money, irrespective of actual classiness. [Funny how that works.] Upper case indicates THIS KIND OF LETTERING.
32. Blues legend John __ Hooker: LEE.
Classic
33. Storage container: BIN. Of Celtic origin, via Old English, indicating a container of no specific type.
34. Approximate fig.: ESTimate.
35. WWII arena: ETO. European Theater of Operations.
37. "__ my case": I REST. An indication that you [believe that you have] done enough to prove your point, and no more argument is necessary. The origin is from courts of law, indicating that an attorney has finished presenting her case to the judge and/or jury.
38. Exec's hire, perhaps: ASST. Assistant. N.B. Abbrv.
39. "Tell the truth!": LIAR. A command presumably issued with no sense of irony to someone you don't believe.
42. Starlike: ASTRAL. From the Latin astrum, meaning "star." Relating to actual stars in the sky; or to a supposed nonphysical realm of existence to which various psychic and paranormal phenomena are ascribed, and in which the physical human body is said to have a counterpart.
43. Fox News anchor Smith: SHEP. [b 1964] He serves as the channel's chief news anchor and as managing editor of the breaking news division.
44. Wading birds: HERONS. There are 64 known species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns.
I got this pic of a great blue heron on the grounds where my mom was in hospice in 2015.
46. Five-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Ledecky: KATIE.
47. Missouri river: OSAGE. A 276-mile-long tributary of the Missouri River in central Missouri, draining a mostly rural area of 15,300 square miles.
48. "Pet" irritation: PEEVE. We all have one, right? My petty pet PEEVE is gratuitous verberization - the morphing of perfectly fine nouns into completely unneeded verbs. "Parenting" frex. Grrrrrrr! What's yours?
49. High dos: AFROS. Hair dos, a la Jackson Five.
50. Greek marketplace: AGORA. A public space used for assemblies and markets.
51. Smelling of mold: MUSTY. A damp, vaguely unpleasant odor associated with mold, mildew or decay.
52. Lithographer James: IVES. [1824 - 1895] He oversaw the business and financial side of the Currier and Ives print-making firm.
53. No. on a new car window: MSRP. Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price.
57. Misery: WOE. Great sorrow or distress.
58. CD predecessors: LPS. Differently formatted discs for recording and playback of music or other audio presentations.
59. Breakfast grain: OAT. A cereal grain, Avena Sativa, grown for its seed. It is suitable for both humans and livestock.
On that nutritious note, our journey ends. A very well constructed, thematically rich puzzle, though I had my nits. Hope it gets your Wednesday off to a good start.
Cool regards,
JzB
61 comments:
Couldn't see a theme until I got to the reveal -- Circles? There were circles? But with LOOSE PARTS as my guide, it didn't take me long at all to figure out where they'd be!
There was a thin girl from RIGA
Who thought that she'd like to be bigga
Her UPPER torso
Became more so
With help from a SPECIALIST bra-rigga
The seer PEERS INTO her crystal ball
To SEE what's AHEAD to befall.
What may come to pass
She can see in the glass,
And warn while there's time to forestall.
{B-, C.}
Straight run top to bottom. Happy Wednesday!
C.C. at Wall Street Journal today -
Owen {B+, B+}
Jazzbumpa , thanks for the tour and Jerry for a quick and fun Wednesday puzzle .
Had to change GUY to GUV when I saw I needed IVES.
Other than that it came together quickly and the Mcd’s coffee still warm.
Cheers - happy hump day :-/
FIW! Confidently wrote in GUY instead of GOV. Would have caught the error had JzB been writing the clue (Currier's partner or similar).
Erased tbird for STANG. I've had three and never heard them called that.
Could have clued UPPER crust as well.
SHEP Smith has risen in the FNC organization despite his thinly-concealed liberal bias. Whenever he is forced to report positive news on Trump he looks like he needs to spit.
Most non-techies don't know that CDs are read (and written) from the center out - opposite of how LPs are played. Most everyone doesn't give a rat's patooey either. CD drives have become passe in car audio systems and computers.
FLN: TTP, I have often awoken to the disappointment that a red bathing suited lifeguard ISN'T kneeling over me.
FLN: YR, I recommend Jenny Wiley State Park near Prestonsburg, KY.
FLN: Don't be too hard on landline companies. Overt and hidden taxes can easily comprise half of a residential bill. Some of those taxes don't apply to wireless service. Having said that, I have not had a landline phone for years and don't miss it.
-T: Hope you do well without adult supervision.
I'd be a LIAR if I said I finished it correctly today. Started the week with a DNF due to GUY and the unknown IYES instead of the Unknown GUV and unknown IVES. With the circles in the paper the LOOSE PARTS were easy to spot.D De NOVO and FLO-rida were perps. Monster MASH became a BASH for BESTIE (sounds like a dog breed to be). PEEKS before PEERS.
Weekend golfers might shoot PAR on a few holes but not on all 18. That's for pros.
PINT? Not according to the EU, Britain should have made it metric. BREXIT anybody?
C.C. in WSJ. I'll have to do it tonight.
Adios.
I've never heard a Mustang called a Stang (I've heard of Arnold), and I've never heard of a BESTIE.
Whalers aren't the only ones who say THAR. Listen to the Carter Family sing "There'll Be No Distinction THAR."
Hi gang -
Had I written the clue for 52 down, it would have been --
He wrote "Three Places in New England."
Coo! Regards!
JzB
Serious- I have a 12 year old lab that I named Peeve. Over the years I've enjoyed the chuckles from folks when I tell them "That's my pet Peeve".
Good morning everyone.
I saw the scrambled PARTS and confirmed it at the reveal @ 62a. Filled in the later circles by subtracting out the letters already filled by crosses, in the circled group. Easy for a Wednesday. No help needed. I REST was easy enough but before settling on it, on the cross, the clue conjured up peep, then peek before PEER…….
RAG - Before going to sea our working parties would take on stores and load RAGS by the bale. The engine rooms and boiler rooms consumed a lot of them.
ROTINI - Easy fill today; we had a ROTINi, sausage, and butternut squash in cream sauce pasta dish last nigh. Very delicious. (The recipe actually called for fusilli.)
CC has a puzzle : "BARGAINS" in the WSJ today. I may work on it later.
Pet PEEVES - When I hear sentences like: "The house sold quickly." or "The meat cuts easily.". (Sort of a passive voice without the 'to be' auxiliary.) I think it is grammatically legal and I've heard it termed "middle construction". I don't remember it being used by speakers where I grew up, but it seems the form is seeing increasing usage in recent years; especially by realtors. The action can be confusing in a relatively uninflected language like English.
I liked the LOOSE PARTS theme. How is STRAP a part of it, except for being an anagram of PARTS? inquiring minds want to know. Some home junk drawers contain all kinds of odds and ends including loose parts. Maybe the constructor meant a home handyman. We used to have a hardware store where the entire second floor was filled with every kind of loose part. The old gentleman who owned it had the patience of a saint and could find any kind of small doohickey we wanted for a charge of a few cents.
I objected to verberization up until about 15-20 years ago, when I realized the changing language was leaving me behind the times. I seldom notice verberization these days. Some of it is becoming normal and in the language, like "man the guns." Some of it is accepted in serious writing now. One site mentions clubbing, going to clubs. That one has made the dictionary as being informal. My opinion is that clubbing will become standard soon. I believe other instances will never make it.
I suppose my pet peeve is people who can't tell the difference between opinion and fact, the attitude that truth is "whatever I say it is," with nothing to back it up. I can learn from new facts. I suspect unsubstantiated opinion.
I hear bestie in real life and on TV and I read it in novels.
Thanks for the puzzle, Jerry. Interesting expo, JzB.
Good Morning:
This was a quick and easy solve, although I needed perps for a few entries. I saw the jumbled Parts (Strap never entered my mind), but the reveal was still a surprise. The only w/o was Mash/Bash, the Monster in the clue being a bit of a misdirect. I never heard of a Stang, either, but, then again, I'm not a car person. I wasn't bothered by the Kosher Pastrami Parts span, but I couldn't help noticing the plethora of 3 letter Es: Esa, Est, ETO, Eft, End, and Erg, plus Esta and Edie.
Thanks, Jerry, for an easy mid-week offering and thanks, JzB, for the always informative review and the tongue-in-cheek Bon mots. Most of all, thank you for not linking any tarantula photos.
FLN
Michael, you late post proves you are a wise man. 😇
Have a great day.
Wonderful Wednesday. Thanks for the fun, Jerry and Jazzb (lovely alliteration this morning!).
We have freezing rain and the newpaper is hanging up to dry (even though it is delivered in a plastic bag); Cruciverb is down again, and I went to Mensa, which was fine until I got to 58A. Circles, I should have circles! But I could look back and see the LOOSE PARTS (and yes JzB, I did notice the extra R choice in KOSHER PASTRAMI). I had no problem with the meaning as I have a handyman DH who sometimes leaves LOOSE PARTS in his pockets for me to discover in the washing machine.
I could not get a TaDa on Mensa; I knew the problem was with GUY and IYES and resorted to red letters to see the need for V. I should have done an alphabet run. (Yes, I prefer Jinx's clue for IVES.)
Hand up for thinking of "Happily ever after" before THE END. And like Anon@8:21, I thought of Monster Mash before BASH.
I moved from Looks to Peeks to PEERS; smiled at 64A SEES.
Perps decided between Tin or BIN, Eso or ESA. They also helped with the unknown names, LEE, SHEP, KATIE, ASPIN.
This Canadian did not know the background behind the PEORIA clue. Forbes.com says "Peoria has become famous as a representation of the average American city because of its demographics and its perceived mainstream Midwestern culture." Interesting about "Will it Play in Peoria". I don't think we have a Canadian equivalent.
It was a good thing that I had finished my coffee when I saw 58D "CD predecessors" after our discussion FLN. Since 8-tracks would not fit, I happily entered LPS!
Enjoy the day.
Pretty obvious to me that the filler is LOOSE PARTS, not sure what JzB is hung up with STRAP instead.
No circles on the Mensa site, so no TA DA even though I filled in all of the squares. Still an interesting puzzle though. Good explanation by JzB.
I didn't know FLO and SHEP, but perps took care of them. I also waited for perps to determine if it was TiCK or ToCK. ROTINI decided for me.
It's National Chopsticks day. Even though I have tried a number of times to use them I usually only make a mess of my meal. I don't seem to have the dexterity needed to be successful with them. And I love all kinds of Asian foods where I could use them. Oh well.
Getting ready to go to a luncheon with a group of high school friends. The organizer sent an email inviting everyone and said that if you didn't come, you would be a primary topic of discussion. Some gentle nudging to increase attendance.
It's raining and just above freezing in Central PA today. So, everyone try to stay warm and dry.
Talk about facts. Spitz, you posted while I was posting @ 9:17. The fact that I reacted to your post before even seeing it must prove that I am clairvoyant. Far from throwing shade I was motivated by you to research middle construction which is very interesting and controversial. Thanks. I tended to agree with which examples the writers accepted and which they rejected. The reasoning is difficult to explain. Some of these constructions have made it into standard language. Many more are debatable. One that made it is SELL. The dictionaries give one definition as (to be) sold and does not call it informal. A common example: That tire sells for $150.
Fox News, Feb 5, 2019, says, "Every time one of these cars sells, the U.S. taxpayer must help pay for it."
I am surprised that more people here have not hear of Currier and Ives who made black and white lithographs and colored them. Copies are still sold today. They are also printed on some Christmas cards.
Currier and Ives
Any constructer named Edelman is all right with me. ? I assume JE won MVP(LIU Yes, most deservedly so)
Well I see I FIW, I had GUY. IVES makes more sense than IYES. .
My PP is the culinary wars against decaf drinkers and ice tea imbibers. If you've brewed extra decaf just add it to the regular-but NEVER vv. Granted, McDonald's sells five gallons of Sweet to one PINT of unsweetened. I don't care, let them add their own sugar
I agree OAS, I liked both today, esp #2.
Penny is Amy's
BESTIE
WC
Well, for those who are unfamiliar with my style,
I noticed that STRAP also works with the circled letters, and is not only an anagram of PARTS, but a perfect reversal. So I decided to have a little fun with the Anagram, which pleased me greatly since, unlike our good friend Jerome, I am not at all good with anagrams.
I'm always looking for the light-hearted or askew approach, and if there's an opportunity to be a smart ass, then so much the better.
Re: verberization -- sure, man the lifeboats. There's still no excuse for PARENTING!
Jerome - not only do you have a pet PEEVE, you also get to pet PEEVE.
A propos of nothing, I was just have a Face Book conversation with the guy [not guv] who wrote this lovely arrangement of
Amazing Grace. Enjoy!
Cheers!
JzB
Musings
-I share your concerns as well, Ron, but the puzzle was still fine
-Remember this hilarious ad: PARTS IS PARTS
-Practice makes perfect? Not always. Practice makes permanent if you practice badly
-Jared Goff was HEMMED IN all night in the Super Bowl
-NEHRU Jacket, uh no. But I did do a Green/white leisure jacket!
-Ad question – “Will it play in PEORIA?”
-My DW has a different standard for when clothing becomes a RAG than I do
-What purpose does an MSRP really serve?
-Spitz’s and YR’s discussion was interesting. Try this one out, “The reciever out-athleticed the defensive back” Yuck!
-Here comes another group of seniors. They just finished reading our crossword friend Elie Wiesel’s book Night and today I am showing the video on genocide Hotel Rwanda
Jazz: Excellent write-up. Good Job!
Fave today, of course, was 24-d, PINT ... Hmmm, that gives me an idea for lunch. LOL
A "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset.
Cheers!
Woohoo! Woohoo! I got this delightful Wednesday puzzle with no cheating and only one tiny erasure (had MASH before BASH) and got it perfectly! Woohoo! Many, many thanks, Jerry. Have to go to a dentist appointment--just a check-up I hope--but will come back and write more later. But just had to express my thanks and pleasure.
HG, good example of awkward construction, out-athleticed. I doubt that turn of phrase will ever become standard.
Some things just grate our ears. Our emotional reaction to language is very interesting and individual. I understand. Some things grate on my ears, too. Unlike Jazz, to me parenting seems fine. Almost 30 years ago, for my MA I took a course on teaching parenting and gave parenting lectures as part of the requirements. There are plenty of articles about parenting online. Our likes and dislikes are opinions which we are entitled to.
Our HOA 's recent decisions are pet peeves around here, not necessarily wrong, but very annoying and upsetting to many of us.
Good morning. Thank you Jerry Edelstein and thank you JzB.
What Spitzboov said. Easy for a Wednesday.
Only type over was TiCK to TOCK. Interesting history on pastrami.
Jinx, was that a certain red bathing suited lifeguard ? The one from Baywatch ?
Pet Peeves ?
1) Distracted drivers of any kind, but especially those that are texting.
2) Golfers in the group ahead who spend an inordinate amount of time looking for a lost ball.
3) Trolls and snarky comments on an otherwise friendly blog.
4) When people don't pick up after their dog.
5) Cramped airplane seats.
6) Most usages of "No problem" instead of "You're welcome."
.
.
.
99) When people congregate and obliviously block entrances, egresses and aisle ways.
100) The neighbor that can't make it through a single conversation without relating another episode of how someone has wronged him and how he got back in their face and gave them what for.
OK, I'll stop. I have too many pet peeves.
What a busy morning for me. Thank you, Jerry and JazzB!
This was a fun puzzle full of LOOSE PARTS. Strap never occurred to me either.
And I would not have known LEE as clued; it filled itself.
Later for my pet PEEVES. Much to do right now.
Jerome:
You are a hoot!
Have a happy day, everyone!
Dang. I just read JazzB's helpful commentary and realized I did have a small goof-up by putting GUY instead of GUV. I thought that IYES name looked peculiar and should have changed it. Still, a great puzzle, Jerry, and clearly your write-up was very helpful JazzB. I watched "America's Got Talent" last night, and loved seeing the championship acts. Those kids are fantastic!
Off to the dentist. Have a great day, everybody!
From yesterday...
TTP...you are so lucky you didn’t end up paralyzed.
Yellowrocks...I,currently have 2 cats, the big guy I adopted from a foster home, and a cutie I pulled off the street. The big guy never sat in my lap until he saw the cutie do it one time, now he does it all the time. The cutie sits in my lap about once a week for maybe 10 minutes and scoots. Not the first time I’ve been fooled by a pretty face...anyway, they do change and adjust over time, but I’m happy to offer a home for animals that would otherwise have a much grimmer fate. And I do like having something alive in the house. I’ve had the cutie for 7 years and she’s just getting friendlier...one never knows what they’ve seen....she used to hide when the trash was collected, now she sleeps through it.
So...today’s puzzle...no issue solving, but my dislike of the circle puzzles is as soon as you suss the circle letters the rest are a giveaway or nearly so. Otherwise a typical Wednesday puzzle.
FRETS....funny, I just dropped my 36 year old Martin off to the local acoustic guitar guru for some needed fret dressing. Wood shrinks over time, metal does not,so they started sticking out the sides of the fretboard. Who knew?
Oh yes, landlines....I used to work my whole career for the phone company...always had a landline. One doesn’t appreciate them until a hurricane or similar when the cell towers lose power. Then they’re priceless.
Anyone depending on Call-ID to screen calls is making a mistake. Wait until you look at the ID and see your own name and number....and that’s an obvious one.
Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, Jerry Edelstein, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Jazzbumpa, for a fine review.
Got through the puzzle easily. Caught the theme at 58A and 62A. LOOSE PARTS. STRAP never occurred to me. Found all the long answers. I had no circles because Cruciverb is out to lunch again, so I printed the puzzle from the mensa site. No circles there. However, I found all the PARTS in the long answers, so I knew where the circles should have been.
HAJJ is spelled a couple ways. I guessed right the first time.
PEORIA again. We get that about once a year. Been there many times.
We had freezing rain last night. Everything was coated this morning, but it was not hard ice. Came off easily.
See you tomorrow.]
Abejo
( )
I also thought PARTS was just fine and STRAP never occurred to me. It still seems unnecessary.
Owen, I love your second poem. For sure an A.
TTP - right there with you! All 100! There are some related subsets: today I saw a doggy poop bag (evidently filled) lying at the side of the road. Who goes to the trouble of scooping up, then just abandons the bag? And, a block away, there is a similar poop bag caught in a tree branch just off the road shoulder; it’s a wooded vacant lot, and I suppose some dog owner figured hurling the bag was easier than carrying it home. They probably didn’t calculate the odds of having it hang up in a branch, beyond easy reach, on display for all to see. Who are these people?
Related to this verb invention thing: I have heard many examples within business-speak over the years. Lately, the local church members have been meeting for the purpose of “visioning”. Blech.
This is for anyone who really wants to see a tarantula.
I saw STRAP in the circles before PARTS, but figured that the reveal would give me the correct unjumbled word.
I confidently wrote TICK and then just figured RiTINI was just another kind of pasta.
Dudley, I often walk the dog on trails thru the woods, and will stash a poop bag rather than carry it so I can pick it up on the way out and dispose properly.
Was your bag full of fresh or stale poop?
On second thought, never mind, don’t answer that question...
The puzzle was easy because I got stuck with red letters.
I guess my pet peeve is how hard it is to do the puzzle on the beach.
(The following is just a rant, no need to read unless you can provide a solution. )
I normally load the LATimes site puzzle on the iPad when in WiFi range, and I can use it anywhere if I do not refresh. Today I watched the Ad three times but the puzzle refused to load.
I went to Mensa. But no load there either. But they at least had an explanation.
My iPad did not have adobe flash Rather than download flash I just went to the Chicago times site which popped up right away. Unfortunately some unknown touch causes the screen to grey out and typing becomes inaccessible. So, in essence,
I have done today’s puzzle three times just to finish
P.s. the Chicago site had no menu to adjust anything like red letters,
And after watching the same ad three times with no reward of a puzzle,
I feel I am due some monetary compensation...
Last night I was following "Random article" links in Wikipedia and ran across John LEE Hooker. Otherwise, I wouldn't have known the answer.
P.p.s...
The Chicago site had no ad
It was the latimes that owes me...
But both were annoying in their own ways.
So in conclusion. My new pet peeve is rants like this, especially when they come from me...
I listen to the Dan Patrick on radio. Years ago I began to hear them use the term "efforting." Dan would ask his producer, "Have you got Tom Brady on the phone yet?" The producer would come back with, "we are efforting". I always thought it was an inside joke or something but last week I heard the term used the same way on a local radio show, "we are efforting to get the mayor on the line to address the issue and hopefully he'll be here when we return from commercial." I guess it's going mainstream.
It took me a long time to figure out that Jazz was being clever this morning using STRAP instead of PARTS when referencing the theme. I looked and looked and then gave up. I gave it one last attempt before leaving for work and saw the hint where he said "I may have it backwards". I groaned, shut off the computer and left for work.
Anon PVX @ 12:32 ~ I'm confused by your comment about Caller ID and screening calls. My approach is if I don't recognize a number/name, I don't answer the phone. If it's a legitimate caller, a message will be left on the answering machine and if it's a scammer/telemarketer, it'll be a hang-up. I'm also used to the scammer's trick of using a legitimate name but a spoofed number. In fact, I received one minutes ago showing St. Peter's Hospital with a 518 number. I know it's not legit as I've gotten previous calls, none of which were from St. Peter's. And, yes, I have received several calls showing my number as the caller. How stupid do these predators think we are?I think I receive an inordinate number of these calls but I'd say they've decreased somewhat from a year or two ago.
Almost a winner, but I wasn't thinking British enough to come up with GUV instead of GUY. I should have known to correct it VIA the help provided by the perp at 52D, but my brain wasn't sufficiently in gear.
That same screw-up seems to have been the downfall of many Corner colleagues--for which we must thank the cleverness of Mr. Edelstein.
How's everybody today after that lengthy State of the Union address?
No political comment here, but after watching the traditional glad-handing & kowtowing entrance, I understood completely why Jefferson refused to give an oral address--on the grounds that America should not have a monarch, nor the trappings of one.
~ OMK
____________
DR: One diagonal today, on the mirror side.
With an abundance of "Ts" and "Hs," it does not yield much in the way of anagrams. The one I could find seems to be rubbing in the fact that I couldn't think of GUV. It points to another popular Britishism for the same Guy, AKA ...
"THAT CHAPPIE"!
IM: RE: Robocalls and Phone Spam.
Our local phone Co. (Verizon) will indicate on Caller ID whether a call may be spam, but not all the time.
In the last 24 hours we've received 12 spam calls. I don't answer them. They are one of my Pet Peeves.
I agree, if it's a real call and I don't answer it the caller will usually leave a legitimate message on the answering machine. If they don't leave a message, then the call couldn't have been very important.
AnonPVX: I agree with you about the need for a landline. My son works for Verizon on the landline side and does not have a landline, which I find to be odd. How many times have you tried to make a mobile call and found that you did not have any signal. Unless a line is physically down, the landline is usually connected to the rest of the world.
Misty ~
Sorry to see you fell for the same GUY/GUV trap. I was excited for you when I read your first posting, but then... ah, well, there's always tomorrow.
And tomorrow and tomorrow. You know the rest.
Good luck with the dentist. They have been the bane of my life. Unlike my brother, who had all his teeth pulled early on (to avoid future dentist bills, he said), I have kept mine. I often wonder why, as dentist bills continue to mount despite insurance.
My latest penalty is having to wear trays with gel in my mouth for 15 minutes a day--to "strengthen the gums," so my DDS tells me.
It costs a small fortune to do what TV ads tell me the latest toothpaste can do for nearly free.
Who knows? We have to trust the experts in white jackets, right?
~ OMK
Only a hundred peeves? I have the Olympic-size Peeveatorium, expansible for any number of peeves, pet or untamed.
One larger peeve is how much debris we have to slog through, to get to the day's crossword sometimes. The worst was an insurance ad -- in CHINESE of all things -- that had to be played before getting to the LA Times puzzle. (I hate to tell these ad mongers that they are just wasting their money: if I need something I'll go hunting for it; otherwise all their noise just gets tuned out.)
IM, the calling number is simple to "spoof". Sorry for being technical, but anything that connects to the telephone company using a link called Primary Rate Interface can tell the telco what the calling number is, and the telco believes it. This is handy for applications like outgoing call centers from legitimate businesses that want customers' phones to show a toll-free callback number (800, 877, etc). 800 numbers are only used for incoming calls; one cannot make an outgoing call from an 800 number. The scammers use it to display a number that you might be likely to trust. For instance, if your number is 818-645-2628, a spammer may use PRI to spoof the calling number to be 818-645-(four random numbers) so you might be inclined to think it is someone from your neighborhood.
I don't know how they can spoof the calling name. That is normally controlled by the telco in something called a Line information Data Base, or LIDB (LID-bee). My guess is that some knucklehead public utility commission somewhere required the telco to give access to all outside parties that can afford the monthly rate.
Hi All!
Thanks for the puzzle Jerry. I had a quick run through the top but the bottom 1/2 really slowed me down.
It took me a twice-read to catch it but I caught the "though I might have that backwards" at the end of your SPANS opener JzB. Very Funny. [I see Pugh just noted that]
WO: GUy b/f GOV
ESPs: KATIE*, NOVO, NAVE, ASPIN, STANG(? Sez whom?)
Fav: THAR was fun
//anyone else think it was wailing and wanted EAST? No?, just us dyslexics, eh?
{B+, B}
Jerome - that's too much, GUV. Nice follow-on Jazz with pet your pet, PEEVE.
TTP - Don't get me started on texters... One killed my motorcyclin' office-mate.
PVX - Hurricanes (and the alarm system) are exactly why I keep a land line. I never answer a call on it though.
Liked FLO Rida over FLO from Progressive; those PEEVing ads can Kiss my Grits! [ :08]
DR report is LOL OMK. Misty, I guess your dentist isn't Asian. Mine is and her office called last week canceling my appointment this morning... Chinese New Year.
Happy Chinese New Year!
Cheers, -T
*CSO to DW on her way to Russia... //Jinx, I never do well w/o adult supervision :-)
TTP@ 11:18, yes!! to every one of them. I'll add phone scammers and telemarketers. I handle them the way IM does. Many new-to-me square dance guests call me and leave no voice mail. I have decided that if they don't leave a voicemail, I will not answer. When I meet them they say, "I called you and called you."
I am considering dropping my landline phone when Alan leaves. It is part of my Internet package and so it comes in through the modem. No power, no phone. I have never had a cell tower failure in all these years. If I drop the landline I will need to provide for Internet access and cable TV another way. My cable TV needs are smaller than Alan's. Any economical suggestions? With Alan leaving I will need to pay 100% of the bills.
PVX, Your cats sound charming. Going catless was hard at first, but now I don't mind it. I still love other people's cats and cat photos and videos. This situation is like parents who love their grandkids, but the kids go home after a while.
Jazz and Pugh, efforting? Yes many of these constructions are cringe worthy.
YR - that's not a land-line, that's VoIP [Voice over Internet Protocol]. A true land-line has 48v DC fed into it [correct me guys; that's from memory and I never worked for telco]. That's why, when the power's out, the land-line still works [assuming you have a real corded-phone].
The great thing about an answering machine hooked to a land-line is, after evacuating for a hurricane, you can call your house... If the machine answers, you know you have power and head-back to assess damage (hopefully, with Air Conditioning :-)).
Cheers, -T
I am no techie. Any phone I know of with an answering machine capability needs to be plugged into an electrical outlet. I have had a VoIP connection for many, many years. Are you saying that without VoIP the phone would work, but the answering machine would not?
Someone suggested a NY state vacation cottage location. Not having bookmarked it, I lost it. Could you please post it again?
I liked this puzzle and Jazzbumpa's comments.
oc4beach @ 2:38 ~ My Verizon service recently implemented flagging calls with a Spam? Alert but it happens about once in every 15-20 calls so, in essence, it's not very helpful. It really doesn't matter to me because of my own policy: Unknown numbers go unanswered, period.
Jinx @ 3:16 ~ Thanks for your comments. I have received many calls showing a toll free number and loads showing my Area Code AND Exchange. As I said, I only answer when I recognize the number. I have no idea how they spoof the caller's name, but it has happened with several different legitimate names, all local and known to me, but not the real caller.
YR @ 3:41 ~ You hit the nail on the head for one of my many (Hi, Michael) pet peeves: people who don't leave a message drive me crazy. I just don't understand this behavior.
YR - Old-School answering machines* need power but the phone itself doesn't [assuming it's old-school corded type; read no antennae]. The 48v DC (look'd it up this time) keeps the phone working but the answering machine won't w/o power.
Cheers, -T
*I picked that link 'cuz of our discussion re: MaBell's monopoly breakup FLN.
Ruminations from Mister Sad...
So, I was at the bank this morning exchanging ATM $$ for 'crisp' bills. I was appropriately embarrassed with the teller as I tried to explain that DW said she needed 'crisp' bills in Russia. And she, the teller, totally understood!
The teller went back to the vault to get 'crisp' money. Later she explained, "In some countries, worn or written on bills are not worth as much in exchange."
The penny (I think?) dropped... Sanctions. 'They' don't get much USD and need to keep it in circulation for a while; it follows, a new bill is worth more than the 'RAGs' that come from the ATM. //anyone know how far off base I am?
DW is finally on her first-leg to Frankfort. I'm watching on flightawre.com (so cool!); she's over KY now. Mini-vacation time for me b/f Youngest gets home from dance.
Dudley, CED - It ain't a WWII fighter but DW's on a Boeing 747-8. Cool AERocraft.
OAS - Red Solo Cups, I assume... :-)
Cheers, -T
OAS, that's definitely another one that is somewhere on my list ! The drink should stay on the table so it doesn't end up on the dance floor.
Yo ! Mr Sad... Your wife is on her way to Kentucky ?
Repeat after me. Frankfurt (am Main) is in Hesse, Germany. Frankfort is in Kentucky, USA.
Just funnin' ya brau ! Don't send me any viral infections.
-T
Right on
Invariably someone bumps into them and they spill their drink leaving a sticky blotch on the dance floor for dancers to trip over AARGHH !?/?!!
TTP it was your # 99 that got me going.
The puzzles this week have been fun, a bit challenging, the expos have been entertaining and educational, and I always love the comments. At least the ones not by trolls.
I've had a stressful start to this week. On Monday afternoon I started seeing flashes of light in my left eye. It seems that every time I moved my eye I saw a flash. I looked it up and one possible diagnosis is a detached retinal. By the time I realized this issue wasn't going away the doctors office was closed. I called when they opened Tuesday morning and got in immediately. Last year at my exam I had retinal imaging done because I was curious about what the interior of my eyes looked like. New pics were taken yesterday. Great relief: not a retinal detachment. Some of the gel in my eye had started to liquify and was pulling on the retina. Every time it pulled on the retinal I saw a flash. After 30 hours the dilation in my eyes is gone. I hope never to experience this again.
I hope everyone has a great evening.
Pat, good to hear that is all it was !
After Dash T's link, I've been racking my brain trying to remember the brand of answering machine I bought around 1984. I know it had a small cassette that was used to record the personalized greeting, that it had a flip top lid, it was large, had a 7 segment display that displayed the number of messages, and that it had a simulated walnut case.
It also had a feature that no matter where I was, I could dial my home number and after entering a code, I could playback and listen to any messages that had been left. Just pull into any Stop-N-Go or U-Totem, put some change in the phone booth, and check for messages. It was high tech cool back then. I think it was a Phonemate.
Pat -
I had this in my left eye, summer of '16. Scary, cause retinal trauma shows the same symptoms as posterior vitreous detachment. One is extremely serious, and the other is trivial.
I noticed it mainly while driving at night. My lovely wife had the same thing last year.
For both of us the symptoms went on for months.
Glad you're OK. Probability of it occurring goes up every year past age 50.
Cheers!
JzB
Among the many other activities today, I collected my friend, Mark, from the hospital. He is doing well but is quite perforated from the laser procedures. As my sister noted, he is very lucky and I agree. Thank you all again for your positive thoughts.
I also have an appointment for my Y
TTP - Nein! [translation: D'Oh!] Da, Frankfurt.
I went hunting for the PhoneMate and found this PhoneMate [makes me think of Columbo] and this short history of machines [1935?!?]. Wait, is this it [Easa-Phone]? It has the fake wood.
Remember in the '90s when making a funny outgoing message was a "thing?"
Back to Germany... Anyone remember Jim Myers who had the Klaus Myers persona /comedy routine in the '90s? His other deliciously-funny bit went something akin to:
"Vell, the Berlin vall has fallen"
[applause]
"That vuzen't me... I had nuzz'ing to do vith it.
[long pause]
"Plus, I don't have an excuse why I don't visit [my] in-laws...
[pretending to be on the phone] "I'd love to come, but...., zis big zinking wall.
[pause]
"My handball game has gone to hell."
Thank you Lucina for the update on your BESTIE!
Cheers, -T
No! I didn't meant to publish!!!!
I have an appointment for my YAG procedure next Tuesday.
TTP:
You made me laugh with your list of PEEVES. I have many as well but often just sigh over most of them. However, number one is dog walkers who don't clean up! In the Newsletter I have become an expert at wording that activity in a large variety of ways. Every now and then I see someone with a plastic bag cleaning up after a dog so I suppose it must reach them.
I also had the answering machine you described at 9:19
Boy did I hit a wall last night. Right after my post. It was like my mind and body said, "You are going to sleep right now !" It was all I could do to brush my teeth and then I was out.
Dash T, glad it was simply a spelling error on your part and not by the airlines. That would have made the news. Thanks for trying to find the Phonemate, mate. Pretty sure now that was the brand.
Lucina, I had to stop thinking of the pet peeves yesterday. I always picked up after my dogs. I usually carried a couple of bags, just in case. I've had to make return trips on a few occasions.
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