Theme: The Byrds Songs - what better to celebrate a nice punning puzzle with a reminder of Roger McGuinn's 12-string Rickenbacker?
I'm assuming I don't have to explain the puns, they're pretty obvious, so let's call out the theme entries and move on.
17A. Devious nestling's cry?: CHEEP TRICK. Here's Cheap Trick for color (or black and white in this picture, darn).
27A. Early-rising duck's call?: QUACK OF DAWN
46A. Prizeworthy cornfield sounds?: CAWS CÉLÈBRE. Not sure about the definition in the clue here. "Prizeworthy" doesn't ring true. Controversial or unpopular in my dictionary.
62A. Elegant dove's murmur?: COO DE GRÂCE. Filling up my quota of diacriticals here.
I was interested to see that two of the four punning entries had been used before - no knock on Paul´s elegant puzzle, but both had appeared in the NYT, granted 20 years apart, but the most recent was 2017. I like how Paul pulled everything together with the aviarian theme though. Let's see what else we've got:
Across:
1. Red ink list: DEBTS
6. Editor's "never mind": STET
10. Fast one: SCAM
14. Naturally lit courtyards: ATRIA
15. Mex. title: SRTA. Senorita. Not just Mexico, any Spanish-speaking country.
16. Roughly: OR SO
19. Word on diet food packaging: LITE
20. Like a coach after a rough game, maybe: HOARSE
21. Marriott-owned hotel chain: SHERATON. Marriott and Hilton have pretty much acquired every other hotel chain on the planet.
23. Sets, as a price: ASKS
24. Div. won by the Braves 13 times: N.L.E. Atlanta of the National League East.
26. Besmirch: TAR
32. __ Maria: TIA. I tried AVE first, which didn't work so well. A non-religious friend of mine works with some parochial schools, and was reading a hymn sheet. She asked me why "Avenue Maria" was part of a prayer.
35. Big bully: BRUTE
36. Protected at sea: ALEE
37. Counselor: ADVISER
39. Watch for money, usually: BABYSIT
42. Four-time Grammy winners Kings of __: LEON. I decided not to link one of my favorite songs of theirs - it has the s*x word in the title, and I didn't want to upset anyone.
43. Backspace over: ERASE
45. Hosp. areas: O.R.'S My first full-time job out of high school was as a cleaner in the county hospital. I'm not sure how many O.R's and E.R's I cleaned up. That was a good education for a precocious 17-year-old. It certainly taught me a couple of life lessons.
49. Amigo: PAL
50. Letters from the Civil War: CSA
51. Mine bonanza: LODE. Is there a father lode? I know there's a mother one.
55. Skated on thin ice: RAN A RISK
59. Look into again, as a cold case: REOPEN
61. Brought into play: USED
64. Many a retired thoroughbred: SIRE
65. "It __ up to me": ISN'T
66. Catcher's interference, in baseball rules: ERROR
67. Kit Carson House site: TAOS
68. Throw away: TOSS. Nicely proximate to TAOS.
69. Nostalgically fashionable: RETRO
Down:
1. Russian country house: DACHA
2. Cultural spirit: ETHOS
3. Work stoppage?: BREAK
4. Elaborate cake layers: TIERS. I guess "elaborate" because a tier needs to be stacked on something?
5. Easy marks: SAPS
6. Kazakhstan, once: Abbr.: S.S.R. Soviet Socialist Republic.
7. Split into thirds: TRISECT. Quite an uncommon word, but perfectly logical.
8. Inscribe: ETCH
9. Start liking: TAKE TO
10. Astronomical time period: SOLAR DAY. The time it takes for a planet to rotate on its axis so that the sun appears in the same place in the sky. 24 hours on Earth, 24 hours, 39 minutes and 35 seconds on Mars.
11. Lit __: CRIT
12. In the matter of: AS TO
13. Kohler rival: MOEN
18. Academic goal: TENURE
22. Churchill's "so few": Abbr.: R.A.F. The Royal Air Force. "Per Ardua Ad Astra". I'm sure you all know the full quote:
25. Bay leaf source: LAUREL
27. Moon and Starr of the NFL: QB'S. Nice clue. Warren Moon and Bart Starr. Bart Starr led the Green Bay Packers to the first two Superbowl wins. He passed away recently, in May.
28. Skewered fare: KEBABS. I wait for crosses, as "KEBOBS" is equally valid. Also "KABOBS/KABABS".
29. "And another thing ... ": ALSO
30. 2003 Masters champ Mike: WEIR. A Canadian leftie, winning the Masters was the highlight of his career.
31. Brings home: NETS
32. Locker room sprinkle: TALC
33. Brain wave: IDEA
34. Admit frankly: AVOW. I had "AVER" first which slowed me down a little.
38. To a great degree: IN SPADES
40. Equally hard to find: AS RARE
41. Contest where participants stand for a spell: BEE. Is the National Spelling Bee done? What, eight joint winners after the organizers ran out of words this year? It seems a little silly now, especially with all the professional coaching that seems to be compulsory to give the kid a chance to compete. Let's just call it a day and move on.
44. Figures: RECKONS
47. Elevator __: CAR
48. Bring out: ELICIT
51. He played Ugarte in "Casablanca": LORRÉ. ¨He goes strolling through the crowd like Peter Lorré, contemplating a crime¨.
52. Eyeball benders: OP ART. I posted an example of this a couple of years ago, and spent the night with my eyes spinning and I couldn't sleep. Google at your own (pleasure) risk.
53. HGTV topic: DECOR
54. Two before marzo: ENERO. Spanish months, January and March.
55. Reddish shade: RUST
56. Where to find Java: ASIA. Also, my kitchen, with a pound of Blue Mountain coffee brought back from Jamaica. I use it sparingly, it's delicious but expensive.
57. Student of Seneca: NERO
58. Just all right: SO-SO
60. Hungarian wine region: EGER. Not one of the most well-known regions, but some nice reds are produced there. You need to be careful, a lot of the wineries load up the wines with a ton of alcohol, not the most subtle approach.
63. Rehab symptom, for short: DT'S. Delirium Tremens, or visions of pink elephants and the shakes, much the same that anyone would experience watching the latest Disney remake of "Dumbo". What were they thinking?
Well, that about wraps up another Thursday from me. Here's the grid and I'll get my coat.
Steve
I'm assuming I don't have to explain the puns, they're pretty obvious, so let's call out the theme entries and move on.
17A. Devious nestling's cry?: CHEEP TRICK. Here's Cheap Trick for color (or black and white in this picture, darn).
27A. Early-rising duck's call?: QUACK OF DAWN
46A. Prizeworthy cornfield sounds?: CAWS CÉLÈBRE. Not sure about the definition in the clue here. "Prizeworthy" doesn't ring true. Controversial or unpopular in my dictionary.
62A. Elegant dove's murmur?: COO DE GRÂCE. Filling up my quota of diacriticals here.
I was interested to see that two of the four punning entries had been used before - no knock on Paul´s elegant puzzle, but both had appeared in the NYT, granted 20 years apart, but the most recent was 2017. I like how Paul pulled everything together with the aviarian theme though. Let's see what else we've got:
Across:
1. Red ink list: DEBTS
6. Editor's "never mind": STET
10. Fast one: SCAM
14. Naturally lit courtyards: ATRIA
15. Mex. title: SRTA. Senorita. Not just Mexico, any Spanish-speaking country.
16. Roughly: OR SO
19. Word on diet food packaging: LITE
20. Like a coach after a rough game, maybe: HOARSE
21. Marriott-owned hotel chain: SHERATON. Marriott and Hilton have pretty much acquired every other hotel chain on the planet.
23. Sets, as a price: ASKS
24. Div. won by the Braves 13 times: N.L.E. Atlanta of the National League East.
26. Besmirch: TAR
32. __ Maria: TIA. I tried AVE first, which didn't work so well. A non-religious friend of mine works with some parochial schools, and was reading a hymn sheet. She asked me why "Avenue Maria" was part of a prayer.
35. Big bully: BRUTE
36. Protected at sea: ALEE
37. Counselor: ADVISER
39. Watch for money, usually: BABYSIT
42. Four-time Grammy winners Kings of __: LEON. I decided not to link one of my favorite songs of theirs - it has the s*x word in the title, and I didn't want to upset anyone.
43. Backspace over: ERASE
45. Hosp. areas: O.R.'S My first full-time job out of high school was as a cleaner in the county hospital. I'm not sure how many O.R's and E.R's I cleaned up. That was a good education for a precocious 17-year-old. It certainly taught me a couple of life lessons.
49. Amigo: PAL
50. Letters from the Civil War: CSA
51. Mine bonanza: LODE. Is there a father lode? I know there's a mother one.
55. Skated on thin ice: RAN A RISK
59. Look into again, as a cold case: REOPEN
61. Brought into play: USED
64. Many a retired thoroughbred: SIRE
65. "It __ up to me": ISN'T
66. Catcher's interference, in baseball rules: ERROR
67. Kit Carson House site: TAOS
68. Throw away: TOSS. Nicely proximate to TAOS.
69. Nostalgically fashionable: RETRO
Down:
1. Russian country house: DACHA
2. Cultural spirit: ETHOS
3. Work stoppage?: BREAK
4. Elaborate cake layers: TIERS. I guess "elaborate" because a tier needs to be stacked on something?
5. Easy marks: SAPS
6. Kazakhstan, once: Abbr.: S.S.R. Soviet Socialist Republic.
7. Split into thirds: TRISECT. Quite an uncommon word, but perfectly logical.
8. Inscribe: ETCH
9. Start liking: TAKE TO
10. Astronomical time period: SOLAR DAY. The time it takes for a planet to rotate on its axis so that the sun appears in the same place in the sky. 24 hours on Earth, 24 hours, 39 minutes and 35 seconds on Mars.
11. Lit __: CRIT
12. In the matter of: AS TO
13. Kohler rival: MOEN
18. Academic goal: TENURE
22. Churchill's "so few": Abbr.: R.A.F. The Royal Air Force. "Per Ardua Ad Astra". I'm sure you all know the full quote:
"Never, in the field of human conflict, was so much owed by so many to so few".
25. Bay leaf source: LAUREL
27. Moon and Starr of the NFL: QB'S. Nice clue. Warren Moon and Bart Starr. Bart Starr led the Green Bay Packers to the first two Superbowl wins. He passed away recently, in May.
28. Skewered fare: KEBABS. I wait for crosses, as "KEBOBS" is equally valid. Also "KABOBS/KABABS".
29. "And another thing ... ": ALSO
30. 2003 Masters champ Mike: WEIR. A Canadian leftie, winning the Masters was the highlight of his career.
31. Brings home: NETS
32. Locker room sprinkle: TALC
33. Brain wave: IDEA
34. Admit frankly: AVOW. I had "AVER" first which slowed me down a little.
38. To a great degree: IN SPADES
40. Equally hard to find: AS RARE
41. Contest where participants stand for a spell: BEE. Is the National Spelling Bee done? What, eight joint winners after the organizers ran out of words this year? It seems a little silly now, especially with all the professional coaching that seems to be compulsory to give the kid a chance to compete. Let's just call it a day and move on.
44. Figures: RECKONS
47. Elevator __: CAR
48. Bring out: ELICIT
51. He played Ugarte in "Casablanca": LORRÉ. ¨He goes strolling through the crowd like Peter Lorré, contemplating a crime¨.
52. Eyeball benders: OP ART. I posted an example of this a couple of years ago, and spent the night with my eyes spinning and I couldn't sleep. Google at your own (pleasure) risk.
53. HGTV topic: DECOR
54. Two before marzo: ENERO. Spanish months, January and March.
55. Reddish shade: RUST
56. Where to find Java: ASIA. Also, my kitchen, with a pound of Blue Mountain coffee brought back from Jamaica. I use it sparingly, it's delicious but expensive.
57. Student of Seneca: NERO
58. Just all right: SO-SO
60. Hungarian wine region: EGER. Not one of the most well-known regions, but some nice reds are produced there. You need to be careful, a lot of the wineries load up the wines with a ton of alcohol, not the most subtle approach.
63. Rehab symptom, for short: DT'S. Delirium Tremens, or visions of pink elephants and the shakes, much the same that anyone would experience watching the latest Disney remake of "Dumbo". What were they thinking?
Well, that about wraps up another Thursday from me. Here's the grid and I'll get my coat.
Steve
42 comments:
Putting the wine region next to DTs was interesting. I did not know EGER which apparently is home to the legendary 'Bull's Blood'. I had to read this WINE BLOG to catch up with our world traveler Steve.
The theme was very amusing, and I agree to have all the puns be related to birds was brilliant, but Paul always delivers. And so does Steve. Thank you
FIR in a whopping 46:06 min.
Good morning Cornies.
Thank you Paul Coulter for this enjoyable Thursday CW.
Thank you Steve for your excellent review.
Ðave
Thanks, Steve, and hi, folks. It's been a while, but I have another LAT later this month. This one's working title was Bird Calls. Some that didn't make the cut were HOOTSTHEMAN - In owl fashion, derides authority?
PEEPINGTOMS - Male turkeys that sound like chicks?
In grandkid news, three-year old Addie was scared by a bee that hovered over her kiddie pool as I watched her in the back yard. But I showed her how to scare them away by spraying a jet of water with the garden hose. She was so proud later as she told her dad. Addie's baby sister Ava is coming along nicely, too. She likes to knock over block towers that Addie builds for her. She has the prettiest blue/gray eyes and joyful smile.
Good morning!
Yup, I fell into the AVE/TIA trap. My "academic goal" was a DEGREE, and my retired thoroughbred was a STUD (but I RECKON he's actually "at" STUD, whatever that means). Understood all of the puns except for CAWS CÉLÈBRE. Seeing RANARISK after filling the grid made me think of "Ragnarok." [???] The downtown SHERATON was my home-away-from-home for a couple of months after I accepted a radio job in Iowa. It wasn't much of a hotel, but it was a short walk to work. This one was easier/faster than yesterday. Thanx, Paul and Steve.
FIR, but like Steve erased ave and like DO erased stud. Also erased roan for RUST and grass for GRACE. UNTIE!!!
I liked this crunchy offering from Paul. I almost didn't print it out because I associate PC's late-week constructs with obtuse Naticks and not much fun. I think I reached that conclusion with inadequate data.
I even immediately knew that catcher's interference is an ERROR. Waited for AV_ _ and _RS.
My SIL's name is DAWN. There have been more than a few ribald jokes QUACKed about this pun.
Smart husbands know IT'S NOT UP TO ME".
Thanks to Paul for the puzzle that even I could complete. My favorite was the way BEE was clued. And thanks to Steve for yet another fine tour.
A puzzle that makes me smile is always a good start to the morning. I just read "The Gratitude Diaries" by Janice Kaplan and I'm trying to be grateful for the little things in life.
Thanks Steve for a fun blog and Paul for an amusing puzzle.
little nit, Steve - isn't it "avian" instead of "aviarian"- or is that a British word that I'm not acquainted with?
12:20 to finish. The top right corner and the bottom left corner were the hold-outs.
The theme was excellently executed today, with very few clunkers.
Good morning. Thank you Paul and Steve.
Yes, much faster than yesterday's, and much more enjoyable, but I still managed to eke out a failure. Had COARSE rather than HOARSE. I was thinking of a coarse throat and raspy voice.
At CHEEP TRICK, I immediately thought of the pop rockers from Rockford, IL. and a couple of their hit songs, 'Surrender" and "I Want You to Want Me". Cheap Trick's lead guitarist, Rick Nielsen has a legenday guitar collection that I recall they said numbers in the thousands.
Steve, reference "Churchill's "so few". There was a line item in yesterday's "This Day in History" for 1940. It read, "The battle of Britain begins as the Luftwaffe attacks southern England. (The RAF was ultimately victorious). At first read, it struck me as odd (like the parens were telling us something commonly unknown), but in retrospect I guess they were talking about the specific battle.
FLN, Canadian Eh, yes, Valacyclovir.
FLN, Wilbur, ignore that guy. He comes every 3 or 4 months, writes something insulting towards the editor, the constructor or the daily blogger, and then goes away.
FLN, Picard, I think I've read about the magic square before. I went to Nuremberg while serving, and that's where I first learned of Albrecht Duerer as I toured his house/museum. Nuremberg and Duerer were featured on a segment of "Rick Steve's Europe" that aired on PBS this past weekend.
Solar Day - "24 hours on Earth, 24 hours, 39 minutes and 35 seconds on Mars".
It doesn't sound like much, but it adds up. A Martian would be much younger than an Earthling even if they were born at precisely the same moment.
Age on Other Planets calculator.
Good morning everyone.
Had to paint out 10 cells with white-out but FIR. No searches were needed. Master puzzle as Steve has stated. Got the avian pun theme OK, but didn't realize it was all birds until reading Steve's take. Had fun spelling KEBABS. Merriam says 'kebob' and 'kebab' are variants. Hade stud before SIRE. Sigh.
RAF - Stood watches under an RAF Group Captain during a NATO exercise. A fine leader and warm personality - a good memory.
Have a great day.
NB - Some posters feel it important to post their solving time which is OK since it is what they want to write about. But to me, a puzzle like Paul's is to be savored. Enjoy the chase and the solve. Once it is done, the fun is gone. Sort of like rushing through a gourmet meal. You wouldn't do that, would you?
Good Morning:
What a treat this was with it's funny, punny theme and lots of great fill and cluing. I tripped over Ave/Tia, Rose/Rust, and Stud/Mare/Sire. I needed perps for Taos, Nero, Eger, and Solar Day. All in all, a very enjoyable solve.
Thanks, Paul, for a terrific Thursday offering and for stopping by and thanks, Steve, for a cheery, entertaining expo.
Have a great day.
Musings¬
-Thanks for the puzzle and the visit, Paul!
-¬So many people these days have a CAUSE CÉLÈBRE and outlets for it
-Grammarist.com says ADVISOR and ADVISER are both acceptable
-Backspace/DELETE - I can’t type as fast as I think
-My bride and I have an agreement for me to play golf a max of 3 times per week. If I had played today on this cool, perfect day I would have been skating on thin ice
-Yeah, me too, my retired thoroughbred was a different 4-letter “S-word”
-“It ISN’T up to me” – Daughters knew better than to ask dad
-I remember my geometry teacher telling us “You cannot TRISECT an angle with just a ruler and compass”
-CRIT is also medical slang
-Paul definitely went “old school” on QB’s
-Joann quickly recalled that our NET was $392/month when I started teaching
-Ugarte got shot before benefiting from “the letters of transit”
-James Lowell – “And what is so RARE as a day in June?” This -beautiful July morning
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Paul Coulter, for fine puzzle. Thank you, Steve, for a fine review.
Hooray, Cruciverb worked again. Two days in a row.
Kind of bounced around on this one. Did get CHEEP TRICK early on. Now I had the theme. The rest surfaced easily with some perps, of course.
Never heard the term LIT CRIT. Must be short for Literary Critic?
Tried REASONS before RECKONS worked much better.
EGER was unknown. Perps.
ENERO was easy once I guessed that MARZO was March.
TTP: How is your Shingles doing. Feeling better I hope. I remember well what you are going through.
Weather is supposed to be cooler today. Hope so. See you tomorrow.
Abejo
( )
Good Morning, Steve and friends. This was a fun Thursday puzzle. I liked the bird puns.
Hand up for the Ave/TIA Maria confusion. I also had to wait for the ER / OR hospital area.
My favorite clue was Work Stoppage = BREAK, followed closely by Watch for Money = BABY SIT.
I, too, wanted my Academic Goal to be a Degree, but instead we were looking for work after getting that terminal Degree.
Weather permitting, I will be staying at SHERATON in Times Square next week for a conference. At the moment, Tropical Storm Barry is brewing in the Gulf and is headed my way, so things may change between now and Monday.
QOD: A right is a responsibility in reverse. ~ E.B. White (né Elwyn Brooks White; July 11, 1899 ~ Oct. 1, 1985), American author
Fun puzzle this morning. Thank you, Paul, also for stopping by and giving news about the grandchildren. The northwest filled right in from the beginning, but I of course also had AVE before TIA. My favorite clue was "Watch for money" for BABYSIT. Liked all the bird calls too, as they came up. And always helpful commentary, Steve.
Have a good day, everybody.
Well this Thursday puzzle had enough crunch to crack a tooth.
Some tough clues, or at least tough for me.
11D, went through the alphabet in order to get the C, still wasn’t sure. Never heard of a LIT CRIT. How does one light a CRIT? Haha.
Markovers....AVE/TIA (we should start a club), and then the SW....ROAN/RUST, CATO/NERO, STUD/SIRE. Very messy in the SW.
But got the solve in spite of it.
See you tomorrow.
Hola!
Thank you, Paul Coulter and Steve. How nice to hear about your granddaughters, Paul.
Hand up. I'm in the club! AVE before TIA. IDEA clued me in the right direction. ALSO, I had ADVISOR then ADVISER. TENURE was a long time coming, in fact, my last fill since I didn't know about Moon and Starr or NLE. LAUREL I did know.
QUACK OF DAWN cracked me up! In fact, all were funny puns.
When I replaced my kitchen faucet it was a toss up between Kohler and MOEN. Kohler won.
WEIR is some kind of dam, I believe.
TTP:
I'm still sending WARM wishes for your quick recovery.
Have a fabulous day, everyone!
A delightfully avian pzl from Mr. Coulter! Honk you very much, sir!
Sorry, folks--I had TIA before even thinking of AVE. That must say something about my religious versus boozing habits, eh? (And no, neither my mom nor dad had a sis.)
Also had MOET before MOEN.
I have an appt with my endocrinologist in a couple of hours. Waiting to see the results of my A1C test. I'm diabetic and used to shoot insulin. That lasted for about ten years, but then we found new oral meds kept things under control.
Lately, though, my sugar level has been gradually rising. (Keeping track, I fear, with my overall sweetness.)
I hope to see a better lab result today. Fingers crossed!
~ OMK
I liked this puzzle and everything about it that you all liked. Got stuck on LIT CRIT because (1) I had forgotten that terminology and (2) because I already had OH SO instead of OR SO.
QUACK OF DAWN quacked me up.
I notice the first 2 of the punny themes are based on English language phrases and the last 2 on French (also used in English) phrases.
Spelling KEBABS as KABOBS stymied me for a while until BRUTE and ERASE showed up.
I got a tad saturated with ASTO, ALSO, SOSO, and ORSO.
Lucina, I'm glad for you that Kohler won over Moen. Good choice. I speak from experience with both brands.
Good wishes to you all.
TTP @ 8:54 -- I'll go for Mars: the calculator says I'm only 39.5 years old! (If only it was so....)
Spitzboov @ 9:14 -- Plus, solving time also depends on your mood, whether or not you are on the constructor's frequency for that puzzle, if the 'Microsoft technical' people called from India again and interrupted, and whether the moon is in Aquarius (or not).
Too many variables involved for just one puzzle ... if it mattered perhaps a running year-long average would work?
33 D -- Brain wave: IDEA , my way of tying the poem below to today's CW.
My uncle used to enjoy reciting a variation of this poem, so I LIU. Here is Mr. Finney's Turnip - Poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
Mr. Finney had a turnip,
And it grew, and it grew,
And it grew behind the barn,
And the turnip did no harm.
And it grew, and it grew,
Till it could grow no taller;
Then Mr. Finney took it up
And put it in the cellar.
There it lay, there it lay,
Till it began to rot ;
When his daughter Susie washed it
And put it in the pot.
Then she boiled it and boiled it,
As long as she was able;
Then his daughter Susie took it
And put it on the table.
Mr. Finney and his wife
Both sat down to sup;
And they ate, and they ate,
Until they ate the turnip up.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
The poetry corner is closed.
Ðave
TTP, and thank you for deleting the post after which I deleted mine. Doing it to Boomer really frosted my cake*
Paul C., Enjoyed the Xword. What was poor Wilbur going to do with BRE at the end of a theme word. I had made the proverbial Rorschach blot of the SW.
Btw , (St) Paul (legend) was also a "student" of Seneca. I thought of Ovid too betraying my cursory knowledge of first century AD history. I think somewhere there was a clue requiring knowledge of the year of the four Emperors(Nero was #4, Claudius #1-who has 2 and 3(a few months apiece)?
Much like LORRE, I know the answer but can't retrieve it. Two or three perps got the latter.
Yes, "Prizeworthy" was odd. But I can't think of anything myself. Perhaps someone will LIU.
Lastly (for now) ERROR is far to big a simplification for CI. OK perhaps "Dropped ball, Wild throw.." is too basic. Passed ball would work. I did LIU this. Historically, CI was scored a hit; with the advent of more sophisticated scoring here's the complicated
Formula
I consider Sabermetrics and her bastard stepson Analytics a curse.
WC
* Various cakes at 2/$2.00 were on sale at Winn Dixie. Lots of fake cream
A hit for the batter, an error for the catcher. Didn't add up
Year of the Four Emperors
First, Nero wasn't first he was last. The four were Galba,Otho, Vitellius and Vespasian. I had been reading NERO Wolfe's "Fer de Lance where the reference occurred.
NW being a fav of some posters(and constructors)
WC
Good News!
My A1C went down, so my current meds seem to be doing the job.
Yay, me!
I thanked my doctor sincerely at the send of my session. No one in my family has ever lived as long as I have. It is by no means an unusually high age, but it sets a record for my clan.
I appreciate my docs and follow their advice closely. I gripe a lot about redundant medical paperwork and our over-priced & generally clumsy health care system, but I think the world of my doctors.
~ OMK
I did a grad research paper on Seneca, so NERO was a gimme.
I wish the clue had been "Terrible student of Seneca," but I suppose that would have given too much away. Seneca was hard pressed to get Nero to learn anything.
Ol' Seneca was smart, though. He was a playwright and, knowing that young Nero fancied himself an actor, Seneca inserted long passages containing details of astronomy, history, and sciences into his plays. This is how Nero memorized some of his lessons--just so he could be a dramatic "star."
Alas, Seneca was implicated in one of the many conspiracies against Nero, and famously committed suicide by taking hemlock and opening his veins in a hot bath.
His death was recorded as a calm, non-histrionic affair as befitted his Stoic philosophy.
~ OMK
If I've got it right, Ovid was also around but saw the handwriting and whisked himself off to seclusion. Another LIU I suppose.
I read about stuff but unlike the olden days don't retain it.
The Paul-Seneca relation is hard to get a consensus on.
WC
Busy today with a possible big storm (not a hurricane) headed our way. After CHEEP and QUACK, the theme was obvious. Not real problems finishing.
No need to knock on Paul or any constructor. There are only so many things you can do with the English language, and that includes puns.
Lit CRIT ( thank you Abejo) and EGER were the only fills completed by perps.
KEBABS, KEBOBS, KABOBS, KABABS- I think all of those are passable.
Lucina & Jayce--- My wife replaced my Delta Kitchen faucet with a MOEN. Pain in the ass. It took the plumber and assistant over an hour. They hate Moen products. Every other water source (three tubs and six lavs) in my house is Delta. They are so easy to work on that I do it myself.
Wrong. Ovid was banished by Augustus.
WC
Ol'Man Keith, yay you on getting your A1C down!
Our neighbor keeps talking about how she's concerned about her weight and her glucose level. Numerous times my wife and I have advised her to cut way down on sweets, which she used to love to eat. Ironically, this afternoon she texted my wife a photograph of a huge Big Gulp, Slurpee, or whatever it is and waxed rhapsodic about the fact she got it on sale. Sheesh.
Big Easy, yes, Delta makes good products too. Also a good choice.
I must have been on Paul’s wavelength. Easy solve once o saw the puns. Loved them !!
Spitz, I also try to make the solve last. I’ve never understood why anyone would want to race through the pleasure of the solve. Each to his own
Steve , I loved the expo. Hurricane to be (maybe) Barry is churning up the Gulf just to scare us. Your fun words provided a balm!!
Stay dry, all you in the path. And stay cool!
SwampCat. In view of the impending Tropical Storm Barry, here is the Cajun word of the day: Namaste. Used in a sentence: Person I: You evacuatin', cher? Person 2: "Namaste."
Hahtoolah thanks!!! My apartment building has walls that were over built. It is a Fort!!! The windows might break and let in water but the building itself isn’t going anywhere.
I’ll hunker down no matter what comes... or doesn’t. The storm is still out there and may or may not... develop... and come here or elsewhere. Stay dry!
Paul, I know you're one of my fans, so I apologize for not being here this morning. The black dog had me. But it's a new day for me now, so I hope you're still around.
Danny Duck could settle anywhere he'd pick,
He could be at the SHERATON, or any bailiwick.
Instead he chose a coop
Where for a little loot,
He got some "benefits" with a CHEEP TRICK!
Ron Rooster was a BRUTE of poultry brawn,
Willing to pimp his hens for a duck john.
He asked Danny for a trade
For the chick Danny laid.
Ron slept in while Danny crowed the QUACK OF DAWN!
{B+, B+.}
Hi All!
Thanks Paul for the fun puzzle to noodle on and for stopping in at The Corner. Thanks Steve for a fine review.
I too enjoyed the punny theme.
WOs: hand-up Stud -> SIRE, REasONS b/f RECKONS
ESPs: TIA, LEON, the vowels in KEBABS.
Fav: Work stoppage? = BREAK
{A, B+}
Spitz - yep, I slowly savor each corner when solving in one sitting. Usually, however, I puzzle between down-time at work [like waiting on folks to show up for meetings, waiting for the computer to finish my work, etc] and it fills the lull with a bit of fun. //Actually, I start the puzzle on the way to work doing bits in my head while stopped in traffic or at a light.
TTP - I have both Surrender [4:34] and I Want You to Want Me on my cycling mix - Gets the blood pump'd!
OMK - great news about your A1C.
All y'all in the path of TS/Hurricane Berry stay safe.
Cheers, -T
So glad your meds are working, and that you're in good health and feeling well, Ol'Man Keith.
Steve - I hope you're right on the kebabs b/c I just tweeted:
There's four ways to spell skewered fare - KEBABS, KEBOBS, KABOBS, and KABABS. Source: LA Times Crosswords :-)
To someone asking: Tell me a fun fact I want to learn new things!
The someone tweeted back she plans to use it in Scrabble!
Oy! What Evil have you/I unleashed? :-)
Cheers, -T
If you're Kabob curious and need a good LOL... The Thread. Be sure to watch the Key and Peele linked. -T
I just checked my link [above] and the guy that linked Key & Peele [4:10] got buried in the thread. So, there you are.
Cheers, -T
OMK:
Congratulations on your A1C reading! Keep it up. I don't know about you, but it's really hard for me.
I'm learning to use my new smart TV. It is actually, very, very smart!
Nice one, Owen. Hope you're feeling better.
Post a Comment