google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday, December 2, 2019 Adam Vincent

Gary's Blog Map

Dec 2, 2019

Monday, December 2, 2019 Adam Vincent

Theme: FOLLOWING ORDERS (39. Doing as told, in the military ... or what the starts of the answers to starred clues can literally have?) - The start of each theme entry can follow "order".

18. *Lucrative business: MONEYMAKER. Money order.

23. *Medieval entertainer: COURT JESTER. Court order.

54. *Hostel audience?: BACK PACKERS. Back order.

61. *Comedian's suppliers: GAG WRITERS. Gag order.

Boomer here.  C.C. said this is the LAT debut for Adam. Congratulations!

Well, we had to say goodbye and send Paul Bunyan's Axe back to Madison, Wisconsin.  P.J. Fleck's lingo changed from "Row the Boat" to "Pull the Sled".  If you had occasion to watch the game Saturday, you got to see the weather that Minnesota is expecting for the next three months.  But the other nine months are worth it.  Only 10 weeks until the groundhog peeks out for his shadow. 



Across:

1. Peruvian home: CASA.  Mi casa es su casa?

5. German philosopher who wrote "The Phenomenology of Spirit": HEGEL.

10. Microsoft Surface competitor: IPAD.  I have been able to live without one of these.

14. Chopped down: AXED.  What Wisconsin did to Gophers on Saturday.

15. Amazon assistant: ALEXA.  I have seen commercials but I don't need Alexa's help.

16. Italia's capital: ROMA.

17. Imperfection: FLAW.

20. Mai __: cocktail: TAI.  I have heard of these but I never had one.  Back in the day my call was a VO Manhattan on the rocks with cherry juice.  Now my call is Diet Pepsi.


22. Hard to erase, as markers: PERMANENT.  I thought it was a lady's hair style.

26. Ave. and tpk.: RDS.

27. Hard to believe: UNREAL.

28. Word with York or Jersey: NEW. " I read the NEWS today, Oh boy" (Beatles - "A Day in the Life") 

30. In shape: FIT.  Anybody own a FitBit?  C.C. and I have gone through about 5 cheap pedometers with disappointing results.

31. Forgetful moment: LAPSE.  I can't remember what LAPSE means.

35. First part of a play: ACT I.  I thought the first part of a play is to buy a ticket.

43. Mario Kart console, initially: SNES.  Gesundheit

44. "__, but no cigar": CLOSE.  Reminds me of when the County Fair used to come to town.  We could put a dime on a square and the carny would spin the wheel.  If our number hit we would win a pack of cigarettes!! We were about 13 years old.  If the number missed we were "close but no cigs" and we lost our dime.  

45. Pencil eraser, e.g.: NUB.

46. Christen, as a knight: DUB.  This is a golf term that I am familiar with.

49. Hurry up: HASTEN.  Dashing through the snow, with a football in my arms.

51. ISP option: DSL.

58. How chops or ribs are served: ON THE BONE.  Not in our home.  I buy boneless chops and ribs.

60. That girl: HER.

63. Modern in-flight amenity: WIFI.  Also in most malls.  We lost computer access due to a digging accident in the neighborhood last summer.  Had to go to a mall to keep in touch with all of you.

66. Earl __ tea: GREY.  I wonder who Earl Grey was??  Should I know him, is he a folk singer?

67. Etsy's biz, e.g.: ETAIL.  I heard that Costco's e-business server went down on Black Friday and it cost them $11,000,000 worth of business. Could be true. The news reported that there were "thousands" waiting for our Mall of America to open at 5:00 AM Friday.


68. Supply-and-demand sci.: ECON.

69. Cravings: YENS.  I don't have a YEN for Japanese money.

70. With a long face: SADLY.

71. Stink: REEK.

Down:

1. Campus eatery, for short: CAF.  At the University of Gophers, we called it Coffman Memorial Union.  They had vending machines on the basement floor.

2. Guns N' Roses frontman Rose: AXL.

3. Slow-moving coastal critter: SEA TURTLE.


4. Bothersome browser apps: ADWARE.  Bothersome, YES, Ridiculous?  A better term.

5. __ and eggs: HAM. Are the eggs green? I once owned a Dr. Suess book titled "If I Ran the Zoo."  It was autographed by the good doctor.  I met him at the San Diego zoo when I was too young to remember.  

6. Slip out to tie the knot: ELOPE.

7. Heredity units: GENES.  Mr. Hackman and Mr. Wilder.

8. Apply, as pressure: EXERT.

9. Joes who aren't pros: LAYMEN.

10. Persia, now: IRAN.  "If IRAN the Zoo said young Gerald McGrew, I'd make a few changes and here's what I'd do."

11. Rod for stirring a fire: POKER. Ante up!

12. Change for the better: AMEND.

13. Pub game: DARTS. This game has infiltrated the bar area of most of the bowling centers I frequent. 

19. Former filly: MARE.

21. Prefix for Venice's country: ITALO.  I'll have to check with my sister Connie.  She's been to Italy more than half a dozen times.

23. Perp's restraints: CUFFS.  I never got to wear them, but I remember when men's pants had them.

24. Bagel flavoring: ONION.  Also Chili, stuffing, and hamburgers.

25. "The Hunger Games" star, to fans: J-LAW. Jennifer Lawrence.


29. Roll of bills: WAD.  I thought a mouth of gum was in a wad.  I pay my bills and keep the green bills in my wallet.  I am pretty sure a wad would not fit.  Never had a wad to try.

32. Insta upload: PIC. Insta(gram).

33. NBC late-night weekend staple, familiarly: SNL.  I still miss Tina Fey.  But I am no longer up late on Saturdays so I do not know what I am missing.

34. Freudian focus: EGO.

36. Heart of the rink: CENTER ICE.  Wanna buy an "R"

37. More faithful: TRUER.

38. 13-digit pub. codes: ISBNS.

40. '60s hallucinogen: LSD.  LBJ took the IRT cross the USA, What did he see?  The youth of America on LSD,  Gimme a head with "HAIR".

41. Org. providing workplace safety posters: OSHA.

42. Attain: REACH.

47. Lyft competitor: UBER.  I suppose taxi companies are not too happy.  I heard that Uber stock is not doing too well. 

48. Bottle-fed tykes: BABIES.

50. Backyard chef's stick: SKEWER.  I used two of them in our Thanksgiving Turkey.

51. Pooch, to a tyke: DOGGY.  " How much is that Doggy in the window?"  Patti Page - maybe 65 years ago ??

52. Drum type: SNARE.  BONGO would have fit.

53. Three-star mil. officer: LT GEN.

55. Panna __: Italian dessert: COTTA.  Better clue maybe.  The Terra Cotta soldiers are sculptures depicting the armies of the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang.  They are located in a museum in Lintong, Xi'an China.

56. Work with dough: KNEAD.  What the dough said to the baker -"As long as he kneads me".

57. Danger: PERIL.

59. "I-" rds., e.g.: HWYS.  I am someone who was a kid during Eisenhower's term.  I remember two lane highways across the country. General IKE promoted the "Interstate Highway System".  Probably the best asset to America in the last 70 years,  

62. Crafty: SLY. Stallone -- Who can forget "Rocky".

64. Hardly a friend: FOE.

65. Confident crossword solver's choice: INK.  Don't forget the "Wite Out",

Boomer 



45 comments:

  1. Welcome, Adam. How appropriate to have you start the workweek.

    Boomer, as always your write-up and perspective on life were very entertaining. EARL GREY was an English Earl who like the taste of BERGAMOT to spice up his tea.

    We get AXL and AXED and NUB and DUB

    Thank you.

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  2. Her boyfriend had one FLAW to heal
    But otherwise he was ideal!
    SADLY, the flaw she meant
    Was something PERMANENT --
    That was, that he was UNREAL!

    Glenn CLOSE, some people are hopin'
    Will do well with some surgical POKIN'
    It looks groovy
    In a movie,
    But the squeamish don't like Glenn, open!

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  3. Quick and easy, but I had to do a lot of downs to get it done. Very nice start for the solving week.

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  4. Good morning!

    You were in fine form today, Boomer. I used ink, but didn't need the Wite-Out. Noticed the GREY CSO to Abejo. SLY -- am I the only person alive who's never seen a Rocky movie? Nice debut, Adam. Keep 'em comin'.

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  5. FIR, but erased odor for REEK and popup for ADWARE. I use Ad Aware to combat that crap, but had to disable it to get the puzzle on the LAT site.

    Elmore James was a financial adviser? Just Shake Your Money Maker.

    DAMNIT! I had a hilarious GAG for LAPSE, but it slipped my mind.

    Loves me some CENTRE (er, CENTER) ICE. Go Capitals!

    When Kentucky got beaten the week after beating #1 Michigan State in the season opener, the announcers said that this was the first time that two number 1 rated teams had been beaten in a November. Add Duke's demise and that makes it 3. Teams have traditionally played only patsys early in the season, but playing good teams exposes vulnerabilities and gives them a chance for targeted improvements.

    Thanks to Adam for the fun, Monday-easy puzzle. We have a beloved local movie critic named Mal Vincent. Break out the 23 and Me. And thanks to Boomer for yet another great tour. I feel your football pain. Dallas is my team, but they may be the worst first-place squad in history.

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  6. Fun puzzle Adam.
    Funny write-up Boomer.

    I had to chuckle at your comment re:ON THE BONE.
    Boneless Ribs? Is that what is referred to as an oxymoron?

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  7. Well - I'm back from TX for the holidays - not looking forward to diving in to the stack of stuff I will return to - both on the desk and sent to my computer! It's still paperwork whatever form it comes in!

    But a quick and amusing puzzle!
    Thanks and congrats to Adam - and to Boomer for the lively blog!

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  8. Monday, and all is in ORDER except for the weather. Snow started again at 8:00 AM. Many schools are closed. I canceled tonight's dance because the height of the storm probably will come at rush hour. House bound.
    CSO to CED and me at 28A.
    I know many men who do not use a wallet and peel bills off the WAD they carry in their pocket. Being a waitress I saw this a lot.
    IMO pants without CUFFS are ideal because they are easier to shorten. I think pants without cuffs have a neater, leaner look.
    I learned to play bridge in the college caf.
    I didn't remember what philosophy Hegel espoused, but I knew he was a German philosopher. Often you can solve puzzles with very little knowledge.
    Inanehiker, welcome home. I feel for you. I have not been away, but I am facing a mound of paperwork today, too. I tend to put it off as long as possible. The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step. If I can get through the first half hour, momentum will carry me through. I hope you get a running start on ours today.

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  9. Good Morning.

    Thanks, Adam. Congratulations on your first appearance. Nicely done and a perfect start to this week.

    Boomer, I appreciate your upbeat presentation today after loosing Paul Bunyan's axe. Big Weekend in the Big Ten--or at least the old B10 as I know it.

    I'm wondering how D-O did with the theme today. I pulled it out of the hat today, which made this a pretty quick solve for me. Once in a blue moon, as they say.

    I thought of C-Eh at CENTER ICE. Probably centre ice in Canada. Also, I always spell GREY with the E. My mom did for whatever reason--probably thought it was fancier.

    Rumor has it we may see the sun a bit today. I sure hope so. Have a very good day to start this week.

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  10. Also, a CSO to the whole NY contingent who are probably house bound, too.

    I wrote to INANHIKER, " I hope you get a running start on ours today." I meant yours, not ours.

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  11. Musings
    -MONEY MAKER – Day care centers and assisted living centers
    -Johnny Carson didn’t like the fact that Bob Hope would only use material his GAG WRITERS had come up with and not be spontaneous on his show
    - W I _ _, yeah, I guess WINE is not all that modern in a plane
    -In the ECON of our federal government, demand is way ahead of supply
    -Husker fans SADLY face a long winter where we did not REACH a bowl because of so many “CLOSE but no cigar” games.
    -We called our campus eatery the GAG
    -SNL’s vast supply of crudity has turned me off and consequently I have turned them off
    -I think we all know what Christmas carol uses a SNARE DRUM
    -The two-lane drive to my golf course on U.S. HWY 30 reminds me of pre-interstate days
    -The jeans mom bought me in August required two CUFFS to make it through the school year

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  12. Good morning everyone.

    Congrats to Adam on his inaugural opus. Enjoyable solve; no searches were needed. Don't know if I'm confident or not, but I use INK because it is easier to see and read. White-out of choice is Liquid Paper.
    REEK - Akin to German Rauchen.(reek or smoke). L. German rökern, Dutch ruiken

    Schools and colleges all closed today in our area. Dentist invited me to reschedule from today to next week. I leapt at it.

    Thanks Boomer for your fine intro.

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  13. Mme Defarge, I think I could have gotten the theme today...if I'd read the complete reveal clue. Once again, I didn't. It was a zip-zip-done kind of solve.

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  14. DO, you aren’t alone, I have never seen any Rocky movies.
    Boomer, I use my iPad instead of a desktop or laptop. My husband was faithful to his old Mac laptop, but now uses his iPad 90% of the time. For Xmas I got him a “Flippy” it’s a triangular foam holder that holds your iPad. If you have arthritis in your hands and/or neck holding your iPad can really aggravate it. I also got one for my teenage grandson as he uses his iPad to stream movies and tv shows. You can find Imitation ones at the big box store that work as good as the higher priced “Flippy”
    I am off to my Aqua Zumba, it’s 43 degrees, but the pool is 87 degrees. Hopefully the sun will come out and there won’t be any wind.
    Hope all of you have a great day, and find some great Cyber Monday deals!

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  15. Gary, preschools near you must be very different from those around here.Google says, "Preschools don't make very much money. Preschool teachers make even less. The Bureau of Labor Services notes that preschool teachers make an average of $21,490 a year. Directors of preschools can make a livable wage, but their job is extremely taxing." Preschools charge high tuition, but their expenses are high. Our church ran its own preschool which went bankrupt. Then the church leased the premises to a different preschool, which is doing, okay, but is not outstandingly profitable. I hear this is typical around here. One local church did not renew the preschool contract due to the wear and tear on the building.The rent the preschool pays the church is not all profit, because the preschool greatly increases what is spent on utilities. The rent aids the church's bottom line, but not tremendously. To use that area for Sunday and evening church activities the church groups have to be very careful to leave everything exactly as they found it. The tiny furniture and belongings get in the way of groups for older children. You have to be very careful that church children do not touch the tempting toys.
    I was a former vestry member, warden, and preschool liaison at different times.

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  16. Good morning, everyone! Congrats to Adam on your LAT debut and thanks for an entertaining start to the week. Thanks, Boomer, for your lively write-up. I got a chuckle out of your “I can’t remember what LAPSE means” comment – happens to me a lot lately LOL.

    Fairly smooth solve today with minimal write-overs. Favorite clue/answer was “Hostel audience? = BACKPACKERS’. Immediately thought of THIS silly Monty Python song at HEGEL.

    Well, our Cincinnati Bengals finally won yesterday following an 0-11 record. A self-described superfan made a pact to camp out on the roof of his restaurant until the Bengals won and spent 57 days there. He was able to come down at last yesterday. Next up – the Battle of Ohio against the Browns.

    Have a lovely day!

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  17. Good Morning, Boomer and friends. I had to check my calendar today ~ this seem a bit challenging for a Monday. HEGEL on the top row on a Monday? I know the name, but he was not the first German philosopher that popped into my mind.

    Funny to have DUB immediately follow NUB.

    I wanted to do my crossword puzzle in a Pen, which is another way of saying INK.

    A CSO to Abejo with the Earl GREY Tea.

    I don't know how I lived before I had my iPAD! LOL.

    I think of amenities as being something you get without paying extra for, hence, WiFi was not my immediate thought for a Modern In-Flight Amenity.

    Stay safe everyone. Yesterday here was 80F. This morning in the low 40s.

    QOD: You have to laugh trouble down to size where you can talk to it. ~ Dan Jenkins (né Daniel Thomas Jenkins; Dec. 2, 1928 ~ Mar. 7, 2019), American author

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  18. After one of my many arrests the key to unlock the cuffs broke in half. The cops had to round up a janitor with a hack saw to cut them off. Not a fun or comfortable experience. I complained that that was punishment enough. Neither they or the judge agreed.

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  19. Hola!

    Thank you, Adam Vincent and congratulations on your LAT debut! Well done! And thank you, Boomer for a jocular review.

    CSO's all around to Abejo, Earl GREY and Canadian Eh for her preferred spelling.

    Hand way up for also not ever watching any Rocky movies. My late DH watched them but I ignored them.

    I'm now back from a family-filled weekend in California where my sister's ALEXA kept us informed, entertained and sometimes frustrated.

    And now I realize that this trip may be the last by car; it's too hard on my back so my Southwest Airlines points will be used for the next one which will be a wedding in May or perhaps before that.

    I hope you all enjoyed a lovely weekend though it sounds like some sports teams may have you upset.

    No puzzling all weekend for me.

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  20. Good Morning:

    This was an easy, breezy Monday with a cute theme and reveal. My only w/o was AOL/DSL. DSL was part of a Cyber sub-theme that also featured iPad, Alexa, SNES, WiFi, ETail, Ad Ware, and Pic. Liked the Nub and Dub duo and the SNL, DSL, LSD trio. CSO to Abejo and his beloved Earl Grey. I'm not familiar with the rank of Lt. General; does it have another designation such as Two Star?

    Thanks, Adam, on an enjoyable debut solve and thanks, Boomer, for bringing some cheer and chuckles to us snowed in folks. We have about a foot on the ground and expect another 6", or so, before it's over.

    Misty and Inanehiker, welcome home. I bet a certain Doxie is a happy doggy. Sending lots of T-rubs to make up for lost time!

    CED, I'd love to know your neighbor's reasoning for not sharing his beef and barley soup recipe. If you and he were competing professional chefs, I could understand it, but as that's not the case, I'm bewildered. Is it an ego thing? Anyway, I hope he's not the owner of the dog you care for so generously!

    Anon T ~ I hope your split pea soup came out to your liking. I love pea soup but I think it's a food, like liver, that one either loves or hates, but I love liver, too. Oddly enough, it's one soup my mother never made because she didn't like it, but, fortunately, an aunt lived next door and she was more than happy to put any leftover ham bone to good use and keep us happy.

    Have a great day and stay safe, all!

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  21. I was typing while you posted, but welcome back to you, also, Lucina.

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  22. Good morning, folks. Thank you, Adam Vincent, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, Boomer, for a fine review.

    First, I could not finish the Sunday puzzle. Too tough for me.

    Second, Boomer, Earl Grey was the Prime Minister of England during the reign of King William, IV. circa 1830's.

    Third, Boomer, yes I have owned two Fitbits. They worked fine until they self-destructed. They both fell apart. So, I will not buy another.

    Puzzle went fine. No cruciverb today, so I printed it from the LA Times site. And, I used INK. Got through it easily.

    Never heard of J LAW. Perps.

    We own two ALEXA's I love them. You can play music, use them as timers. Use them as alarm clocks, and much more.

    Never heard of SNES for 43A. Perps were solid.

    One of my friends from my Kiwanis Club is coming over today to pick up all the aluminum cans I have been saving. We had been recycling them for years as a fund raiser for our Club's charities. However, that is ending. He told me that we only get 20 cents a pound now. We used to get 70 cents a pound. So this is his last trip. As the world turns.

    See you tomorrow.

    Abejo

    ( )

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  23. When I try to access AOL, I am blocked ublock due to gucchi advertising. What's up with that?

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  24. Fun puzzle, perfect for a Monday.
    Pen b/4 ink.

    I questioned sea turtle being a "coastal critter"
    But a little research reveals that while juveniles spend
    Several years in the open ocean, adults often do migrate
    To coastal waters Lester in life.

    Now, let's see,
    What silly link can I find for following orders?

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  25. Hi All!

    Congrats Adam on your LAT debut. Fun Monday puzzle, it was.

    Boomer... *sigh* what can I say; always an upbeat expo with wisps of the past. #Fun

    WO: N/A
    ESP: N/A
    NoNo(?) RTE repeated
    Fav: the word Jester. When he sang 'for the King & Queen /in a coat he borrowed from James Dean / in a voice that came / from you and me...'

    {B+, yech :-)}

    Welcome back holiday travelers! Inanehiker, where in TX were you?

    D-O: I've seen all of Sly's Rocky movies. If you ever get the notion to try 'em, just stop after Rocky III.

    YR - getting the solve with little knowledge goes a long way... JavaMama beat me to Python's Drunken Philosopher song which is pretty much all I know about HEGEL [he can't drink as much as David Hume :-)]. Filled it w/ only the H!

    IM - split pea (with 5d) is tonight but no one stayed up for dinner last night [poor DW had so many papers to grade and Youngest was working on her NHS paper]. Even with all the red-beans leftovers; I'm doing the pea soup tonight for MIL.

    Jerome - I've no need to doubt your story but, um, handCUFFS are pretty easy to pick. Did they really need the saw?

    Cheers, -T

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  26. Welcome, Adam, and many thanks for a delightful Monday puzzle. I got HEGEL and ALEXA, although it's pretty hard to imagine different personalities next to each other like that. I also got CASA, AXED and FLAW, and that got me started on the SEA TURTLE--a fun animal clue. Thank goodness I got I PAD and WIFI, but that ISP option gave me trouble-- I'm not too sharp on contemporary technology. But lots of fun, thanks again, Adam. And, of course, it's always a treat to have a Sunday C.C. commentary followed by a Monday Boomer. Loved your SEA TURTLE picture, Boomer.

    Enjoyed your first poem, Owen.

    Irish Miss, Dusty is smiling over your virtual tummy rub. What a nice "welcome back"!

    Have a great week, everybody.

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  27. Hi Y'all! Great puzzle, Adam! Great expo, Boomer, our blog JESTER!

    Don't know how old Adam is, but the puzzle seemed youth-inspired with all the modern terms & equipment.

    Liked the theme. Wonder if Amazon is taking lots of cyber ORDERS today. I tried to order a new clothes dryer vent hose the other day and Amazon wouldn't accept the password I've always used there. They took it the week before. I decided to wait to ORDER until the current madness dies down. They wanted to suggest a new password to me by email, but since I haven't had email since my server upgraded, that wouldn't work. Always something frustrating with electronics at my house.

    Hand up for never seeing a Rocky movie. Anon-T, I will never be bored enough in this lifetime to do a Rocky binge. I've had more than enough just seeing trailers.

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  28. This was a nice Monday puzzle that went quickly.

    Lucina....I usually drive home for Christmas...it’s a two day drive each way, and I have the car to do it. But I no longer have the willingness. Last year, after the first day’s drive halfway home, in total rain and fog the whole way from CT to VA, I arrived at the hotel just drained. The first thing I did after the next day’s trip home to SC was to transfer the necessary funds for a flight and a rental car into my vacation fund. I already booked the trip, flight, car and hotel. So now I’m ready to go. I love getting older.

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  29. Boomer: Excellent write-up. Good Job!

    Adam: Thank you for a FUN Monday puzzle.

    Fave today, of course< was the Mai TAI ... booze is always a fave. LOL

    Also liked the SEA TURTLE ... we see them often down here.

    Cheers!

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  30. Marvelous Monday. Thanks for the fun, Adam (congrats on your debut) and Boomer.
    I FIRed (in INK) and got the theme. But does nobody else have an issue with it???
    Boomer says:
    Theme: FOLLOWING ORDERS (39. Doing as told, in the military ... or what the starts of the answers to starred clues can literally have?) - The start of each theme entry can follow "order".
    But ORDERS follows the first word entries.
    Okay, now I get it. The theme clue is actually correct - the start words can have ORDERS.

    Lemonade beat us all to NUB/DUB and AXL/AXED, but IM found the cyber sub-theme!
    I also noted RDS and HWYS (and AnonT noted the dupe).
    Thanks Jinx, Madame D, Lucina et al for thinking of me with the proper spelling of Centre and GREY. Now for pronunciation: would that be a Loo-Tenant GENeral or a Lef-Tenant GENeral?

    We usually have NES and I wondered what SNES stood for. Ah yes, Super Nintendo Entertainment System.
    I love my IPAD mini, but it is time for a new one. Edge keeps crashing if the site is too busy or too many ads. Plus, I can no longer update it!

    Lots of E-TAIL going on today, Cyber Monday.

    We had ice and snow yesterday and this morning. Power was off for 5 hours last night.
    Wishing you all a great day.

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  31. Late to the party as usual. Cruciverb didn’t have today’s puzzle and I really prefer doing it on my iPad. While I was there, though, I noticed that I hadn’t done LAST Monday’s puzzle so off I went. Solved it quickly and went on to read that day’s (the 25th) blog, where I discovered that

    I am not the only person in the world who loved Freddy the Pig!

    Sorry for shouting, but that was exciting to find out. I recently found that Amazon has the whole series for the Kindle. Took lots of will power not to buy them all, but I suspect they would be disappointing to reread now...

    Gloomy, glumpy day in Chicagoland. Perfect afternoon for a nap. Bye.

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  32. Ta ~ DA!

    I guess the Earl GREY question has been answered already. Well done, comrades!

    Good to see our Misty back in the fold.
    ~ OMK
    ____________
    DR:
    Two diags, one on either side.
    The near anagram describes a remarkable feline canine, the...
    "CATLIKE POOCH"!

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  33. WikWak ~
    As I posted here a week ago, I too was a huge fan of Freddy the Pig.
    What brought him up again? Just the Amazon Kindle pub.?
    ~ OMK

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  34. I was a big fan of Fat Freddie, one of the Furry Freak brothers in the National Lampoon mag. does that count?

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  35. AnonPVX:
    I share your enthusiasm for getting older! During the weekend festivities I was told to sit and rest because I am old! The younger generation took over the cooking and cleaning. I just never thought I'd see the day. And today I went Christmas shopping and was told I had a 10% discount because of my age. Yea!

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  36. AHIP, a correlation of RHIP (Rank Has Its Privileges). Yesterday I selected a Medicare Advantage plan that will save me about $6,000 on premiums I would have been paying Verizon. Probably will save another couple of thousand on fees and prescriptions. I just couldn't believe that any plan could compete with my subsidized retiree plan, but I was totally wrong. The best part is that all the docs we see, all the facilities we utilize, and all our prescription drugs were already in the network, so as far as we can tell there isn't any compromise. Now I can afford the next motor home breakdown!

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  37. Yellowrock: could you please come over and help with a discussion we're having on language over at JumbleHints? We would appreciate your expertise.

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  38. Anon T- Oh, there's no doubt about the story. And you must consider this- You can't pick a lock when half of the key is broke off and stuck inside the keyhole.

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  39. Jerome - Oh, yeay, an African Swallow maybe...

    Sorry, I'm still chuckling thinking of the copper sitting there with 1/2 a key.

    Cheers, -T

    ReplyDelete
  40. Hi everybody. I just finished a very enjoyable evening helping grandson Jordan with his geometry (SSS, ASA, etc.). After he finished some shrimp tempura, we did our usual thing taking turns reading Calvin and Hobbes. Susie Derkins reminded Calvin about his insect collection project that was due that day at school. Calvin frantically looked for some ants on the way to school. He also asked Susie to scrap the smashed bug off the bottom of his shoe. He was hoping for a D- at least. We thoroughly enjoyed his misadventures. I went through five Kleenexs wiping away tears of laughter.

    On the way taking him home, we listened to the Mills Brothers on a CD in my car. He also likes Scott Joplin's Maple Leaf Rag. He really enjoys what we call 'Grandpa Music.' I enjoy being his grandparent.

    - Intentionally losing a game of rock, paper, scissors is just as hard as trying to win.

    Mind how you go...

    ReplyDelete
  41. Bill G - there's nothin' Grandpa about Joplin's music. Not only is it lively, you can hear the math in the music. The movie The Sting introduced me to The Entertainer but you opened me up a new world of rag-time jazz. Thx. -T

    ReplyDelete

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