23. Floating flower going under?: SINKING VIOLET. Shrinking violet.
28. Ratio of a synagogue's center column to its roof slope?: TEMPLE SINE. Temple shrine.
52. Simon, partly?: GAME OF TONES. Game of Thrones.
69. Highways pitted with potholes?: TOUGH ROADS. Through roads.
71. Cast of "Caddyshack"?: TEE STOOGES. Three stooges.
87. Hauling beach umbrellas?: TOWING SHADE. Throwing shade.
113. Pointy-bottomed paper cups missing their holders?: CONIC PAINS. Chronic pains.
119. "Someone stole our cash box!"?: THE TILL IS GONE. The Thrill is Gone.
Timely theme today. Extra TH in "THE TILL IS GONE", but it's such a fun entry and clue. (Sorry, mistake on my part. Thanks, Owen! Good eye on the HR In TOUGH ROADS.)
Robin also went with 140. Our normal is 144. The fill is so solid.
Across:
1. __ copy: CARBON.
7. Stopped the ship, in nautical lingo: LAID TO.
13. Female Plymouth Colony settler, say: EMIGREE. We see EMIGRE more often.
20. Bagel Bites brand: ORE-IDA.
21. Nostalgic numbers: OLDIES.
22. Cradlesong: LULLABY.
25. Everywhere: ALL OVER.
26. Montréal morning: MATIN. But then, "bonjour" rather than "bon matin".
27. Longings: YENS.
30. Aerosmith's "Love __ Elevator": IN AN.
31. __ dixit: unproven claim: IPSE.
32. They're selective: CHOOSERS.
33. Tricolor cats: CALICOS.
35. Tony nominee Phillipa of "Hamilton": SOO. Wiki says "Soo was born to a Chinese-American father and a European-American mother". Chinese use Su spelling though.
37. Like a prof. emeritus: RET. Retired.
38. Folklore pests: IMPS.
42. End a slump?: SIT UP. Nice clue.
44. Darts: FLITS.
47. Least ludicrous: SANEST.
49. Org. involved in the Waco Siege: ATF.
55. Jamaican tangelos: UGLIS. The skin looks tough and ugly, but it's quite juicy. Nothing beats sumo oranges though.
56. Stable girls: MARES.
58. Girl in a wool coat: EWE. The clue made me smile.
59. Sell in a hurry: UNLOAD.
61. James Patterson hero __ Cross: ALEX.
62. Playful swimmer: OTTER.
64. Put to work: UTILIZE.
74. Home to Purdue: INDIANA.
75. Like a hawk: AVIAN.
76. Altar attire: ALBS.
77. Revealing type: GOSSIP.
81. Bother a lot: NAG.
82. Nocturnal dorm annoyance: SNORE.
83. Longtime SeaWorld star: SHAMU.
91. Luis Almagro's org.: OAS. Organization of American States. Don't know him. Wiki says he's the 10th Secretary General of OAS. A Uruguayan lawyer.
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92. Source of a movie poster quote: REVIEW.
94. Place to stay: MOTEL.
95. Romanov royals: TSARS.
97. Pitcher and poker pro Hershiser: OREL.
98. Portuguese pronoun: ELA.
100. Equinox mo.: SEP.
102. Song refrain: TRA LA LA.
106. Defamatory: LIBELOUS.
110. Word on an Irish euro: EIRE. Harp.
112. Dwarf planet formerly known as Xena: ERIS.
116. Place name from the Greek for "I burn": ETNA.
117. Pablo's last word: ADIOS.
118. Like the moons Titania and Oberon: URANIAN.
122. Film sequel word: REVENGE. Oh, OK, "Revenge of the ...".
123. Make bubbly: AERATE.
124. __ Pieces: REESE'S.
125. Came out: EMERGED.
126. Tuning shortcut: PRESET.
127. Art supporters: EASELS.
Down:
1. __ dust: COSMIC.
2. Grande dame of pop: ARIANA. "Thank U, Next."
3. Thrifty offering: RENTAL. We'll probably go back to Payless next time.
4. They don't cover much: BIKINIS.
5. Hopkins' "Thor" role: ODIN.
6. Tandoori bread: NAN.
7. Is sweet on: LOVES.
8. Dior skirts: A-LINES.
9. Pledges that end an engagement: I DOS.
10. Pickles on "Rugrats": DIL. Learned from doing crosswords.
11. They may be gnashed or gritted: TEETH.
12. Path lead-in: OSTEO.
13. Go by: ELAPSE.
14. Rod Stewart and David Bowie rocked them in the '70s: MULLETS.
15. Not as healthy: ILLER.
16. Treating as unimportant, with "over": GLOSSING.
17. Beatle George's Indian friend: RAVI. Ravi Shankar & George Harrison.
18. Irving Bacheller's "__ Holden": EBEN.
19. Brontë heroine: EYRE.
24. Plaster of Paris component: GYPSUM.
29. Bite: MORSEL.
31. I as in Iris: IOTA.
32. Seabiscuit, once: COLT.
34. Butts: CIGS.
36. Starts to dicker, maybe: OFFERS.
39. Blanc who voiced Bugs: MEL.
40. Chi follower: PSI.
41. HI and OK: STS. States.
43. Katniss' "Hunger Games" ally: PEETA.
45. Letters for short people?: IOU.
46. Spike TV, formerly: TNN.
48. Film part: AUDIO.
49. Early luthier family name: AMATI.
50. Eagle claw: TALON.
51. Slip eponym: FREUD. Freudian slip.
53. Due: OWED.
54. Musical "phone" namesake: SOUSA.
57. Nov. celebrant: EX-GI.
60. Sorting aid on an env.: ATTN.
62. Yes-__ question: OR NO.
63. Done for: TOAST.
65. Freddie Mac purchase: LOAN.
66. Aptly named cooler maker: IGLOO.
67. Marty, in "Madagascar" films: ZEBRA. No idea.
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68. Twisty turns: ESSES.
70. World Court site, with "The": HAGUE.
71. Snarl: TANGLE.
72. Mendes and Perón: EVAS.
73. Oxygen's atomic number: EIGHT.
78. Djibouti language: SOMALI.
79. "Letters From __ Jima": 2006 film: IWO.
80. Tire-changing spot: PIT.
82. Toxin fighters: SERA.
83. Sign of being full?: SRO. Standing Room Only.
84. Yon yacht: HER.
85. One of 17 Monopoly props.: AVE.
86. Hat designer: MILLINER.
88. Capone nemesis: NESS. Watched "The Untouchables" in Chinese ages ago.
89. __ projection: ASTRAL.
90. "I __ you!": DARE.
93. Home or FAQ, e.g.: WEB PAGE.
96. Heavy hammers: SLEDGES.
99. Listed at sea: LEANED.
101. Dress size: PETITE.
103. Easy on the ears: ARIOSE. Not a common word.
104. Duettist with Diana in "Endless Love": LIONEL.
105. Do taxing work?: ASSESS.
107. Cupcake topper: ICING.
108. Ready in the keg: ON TAP.
109. One who helps you find your place: USHER.
111. Fjord, for one: INLET.
113. Antidote: CURE.
114. City once known as Provo Bench: OREM. Learning moment for me.
115. Church part: NAVE.
116. Flight sked info: ETAS.
117. In the Red?: ASEA.
120. Middle of a memorable palindrome: ERE.
121. Extreme umbrage: IRE.
Evan Birnholz, the brilliant Washington Post crossword constructor, kindly asked me to guest-construct a puzzle for the Post to celebrate International Women's Day 2020. You can solve the puzzle here.
C.C.
42 comments:
FIWrong. rOUGH ROADS instead of T and SOheLI instead of MA.
A LUTHIER from INDIANA
Made a banjo from a bandana.
Emulating AMATI,
To keep things taut, he
Used strings from a peel of banana!
There was an OTTER who married a EWE.
We might think that was odd, in REVIEW.
But he'd got her knocked up,
She gave birth to his pup,
So it was what he oughter do!
{B+, B-.}
Good morning! Whoa...it's still dark out.
Got the theme right away, but the cluing made this one hard work. Several answers looked obvious, but only after they'd filled in. Just finished a Patterson book, and even with AL__, I couldn't come up with ALEX. Senior moment. Wanted FBI where ATF needed to go. Got 'er done, so I'm blaming my struggles on that missing HR. Thanx, C.C. and Robin.
Or perhaps it's because even though the coffee maker showed the correct leap-forward time, it failed to make the coffee today. Gotta have that caffeine.
Oops! "Timely theme today. Extra TH in "THE TILL IS GONE", but it's such a fun entry and clue." The gimmick was dropping HR, not TH. T(hr)OUGH ROADS was the clue that had an extra HR to spare!
Good Morning:
This was a fun and "timely" theme that had very few unknowns, unlike a lot of the larger Sunday grids. I needed perps for Eben, Dil, Soo, Eris, Peeta, and Ipse. I don't have any w/os listed, so I guess I didn't have any. I like Ire and Ere abutting each other but I really, really disliked Iller: that has to be the worst crossword fill to ever see the light of day. On a more pleasant note, I enjoyed the critter sub-theme with: Mares, Otter, Ewe, Nag, Shamu, Mullets, Colt, Zebra, and Avian. And, of course, I noticed the CSOs to CED and Jinx at Imps and to our Ret(ired) college professors, and, BTW, has anyone heard from Ferm? Learning moment, for me, was that Orel Hershiser is a professional poker player.
Thanks, Robin, for a satisfying Sunday solve and thanks, CC, for your usual insight and commentary.
I'm waiting for a grocery delivery. I'm trying out Hannaford instead of Shop Rite, for a change. A nice surprise at checkout was that they waive the $10.00 delivery charge on your first order. All three local supermarkets now offer delivery, so the competition must be fierce. It's certainly a big convenience for a lot of people, not to mention a necessity for some.
FLN
CanadianEh, I wish you and DH many more happy and healthy years together. 💞
Have a great day.
FIW. Hand up for rOUGH ROAD, and also missed hEAlED. When I changed hEelED to hEAlED i indignantly thought "even Jinx can spell "heeled" right. Don't know that I've ever heard LEANED = "listed AT SEA". I don't bitch about DST, so I've got to get mine in somehow!
Also DNK MATIN, Phillipa, Almagro, ELA, ERIS, DIL, EBEN, PEETA, luthier, marty, ARIOSE and still don't get ERE. "I as in Iris" too.
Waited for hotel/MOTEL, czars/TSARS, angels/EASELS and apse/NAVE.
I really liked LIONEL and Diana next to "easy on the ears".
I thought OREL Hershiser was a bible-thumper. Poker pro? Is that allowed? That's a snake of a different venom.
Thanks to Robin for the fun challenge. And thanks to CC for the fun tour. I'll print the other puzzle if I can get this WiFi to stay up for more than a couple of minutes an hour.
Have not had a chance to attack the puzzle yet
(Lost an hour somehow,)
But the good news is The Star
Ledger increased the type size of the clues, easier reading.
The bad news is that in doing so they removed the name of the Constructor...
Musings
-ARIOSA (No idea on ARIANA but knew ARIOSE, go figure!), Love IS AN elevator and MOTIN looked fine. 0 for 3!
-I got the theme with only S _ _ K _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and the title
-TEMPLE SINE for us mathheads? Fabulous!
-Many high school bands now play this 1961 OLDIE that features SOUSAphones and the student body sings with gusto!
-Daughter’s older cats watch as the new kitten FLITS about the house
-GOSSIP – fodder for the teacher’s lounge
-ILLER – A woman at a huge YMCA BB tournament here in town was determined to have Covid-19 and so the 5,000 high school and 1,600 college kids in Fremont will have this week off
-The Husker VB team pays for itself and has expensive SRO tickets for every match in the 8,000 seat Devaney Center
-Our county ASSESSOR got caught using county credit card for personal use
Jinx, could you be thinking of Oral Roberts?
Addendum
-Lemon is right. C.C.'s WSJ puzzle was a lot of fun
https://blogs.wsj.com/puzzle/crossword/20200307/45518/index.html
DNK that OREL was a poker player. Pitching is a form of bluffing and fooling
ARIANA not Aretha. But . I knew there should be HR but stuck with ROUGH ROADS. And my lousy Latin left IPSi and I missed the gimme A-LINES. I suppose "luthier" are violin makers?(thx Owen)
FREUD was a late V8. As was VIOLET.
And EX-GI too
Added bonus, CC for the Wa-Post that's in my tbtimes. After last week's Birnholz bruiser perhaps CC will have mercy. If there's a wsj at Winn Dixie ckout I'll buy it for a double dose of CC.
With c350 boxes missing 2 isn't too hard to take. Esp with an FIR on Sat
WC
Owen , #2 is a solid W
Ps, that's Robin Stears for your missing constructor
One bad cell, ROUGH instead of TOUGH. The theme, which I got quickly, helped a good bit, but I didn't realize that TOUGH was one of the theme fills. I should have looked at the placement of the others. Duh. I didn't recognize luthier, although I have seen it before. This puzzle took me longer than most Sunday LATs. The names kinda bummed me, but I got them.
All my mini quiches were scarfed down quickly at the dance last night.
No more yellow rocks, says our regional organization. No shaking hands, either. But... square dancing involves constant hand touching which is still allowed, followed by sanitizing after each tip or set.
No more passing the peace at church. Just bowing in place. Bread only and no wine. Someone humorously suggested BYOB.
There are six known covid 19 cases in NJ so far. One of our neighboring schools is taking off next week so the teachers can plan for lessons to be done at home, if necessary.
There are no more bottles of hand sanitizers on my supermarket's shelves, even though I read it does not help much. There is also a run on toilet paper.
Beautiful clear, warm day here. I rose at 6:00 AM and left at 6:30 to bring Alan home. The full moon on the horizon was beautiful. And then there was a glorious sunrise. No ill effects from switching to DST.
Great work from CC filling in for Evan in the WaPo Sunday. One of the best circle puzzles I've ever seen. Wonderful and timely construction.
The reaction to this latest virus to end all of humankind is troubling.
Remember the reaction to the swine flu, H1N1 and SARS? That all seems rather tame now in light of the current hysteria. I shudder to think of how the media and the political party not in the White House will be reacting, say, 10 years in the future! But, of course, by then, we will all be under water or living on the moon so, what? Me worry?
This puzzle was well put together with the removal of the hour (hr) especially well done. This weekend with this puzzle, C.C.'s COPPERYEADS and the WaPo Sunday LITERAY CIRCLES also by C.C. gave a weekend of long but satisfying solving. I recommend them all.
Sorry, not feeling well so forgive my typos.
Well done! What a very comprehensive write-up. That's a lovely picture of an Irish Euro.
The seed entry for this one was SINKING VIOLET, and originally, I wanted "Eldest Baudelaire in the midst of an 'unfortunate incident'?" Too specific? Too obscure? No idea. But the only other Violet I could think of was Lucy Van Pelt's friend in "Peanuts."
TEMPLE SINE reminds me of all the wonderful times I had in Trig Class, sohcahtoa-ing and triangulating. Such fun!
A LUTHIER is someone who makes violins, guitars and other stringed instruments, from the French word for LUTE -- which I learned while constructing this puzzle. It's the first time I remember ever seeing this word.
Hi Y'all! Great puzzle, TOUGH but doable, Robin! Great expo, C.C.!
I'm proud I knew what a luthier was & WAGd AMATI because I had the A. My nieces husband is a luthier who had a nice guitar building shop going in India until the government cancelled his visa. He ran it long-distance with the employees he trained for several years until recently when it closed. So sad. The instruments had a lovely ARIOSE sound.
Despite reading the title several times, I did not grasp the missing HRs until after I was done filling. Studied those theme entries a long time to understand the significance. Then had a long study when C(HR)ONIC showed up or almost didn't. But I knew the symetry demanded a theme answer in that area.
Lemonade, do hope you get to feeling better.
I loved this puzzle. 57 minutes of fun.
I think what people don't take into consideration is that after rubbing hand sanitizer on, you still need to wipe your hands off again or all those dead bugs are still on your hands. It's like soaping up but not rinsing off.
LW went shopping at Costco and Walmart yesterday. I am perturbed.
Good wishes to you all.
Oops! symmetry.
Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, Robin Stears, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, C.C., for a fine review.
Puzzle went fine. A little more tough than most Sunday puzzles, IMHO. The theme came real late for me. I kept looking for it and then finally figured it out with TEE STOOGES. Helped me with a couple I did not have yet. Clever theme.
OREIDA was a wag. The right number of letters. Bagel Bites have to be similar to Tater Tots.
Took me forever to get EMIGREE. Looking for a lady. Oh well.
Got MULLETS with perps, but no idea what that is.
Tried STUD for 32D. Finally COLT won that spot.
Put in SMATI for 49D. I had a couple letters and it fit.
Liked FREUD. Good clue/word.
TRIED URANIAL for 118A. URANIAN worked better.
Anyhow. Good Sunday workout. See you tomorrow.
Abejo
( )
No GLOSSING it over. I'd love to say I finished it correctly as the missing HR was so obvious and the puzzle was easy but the female EMIGRE crossing the unknown EBEN got me. I guessed EMIGRAE & ABEN.
SOO, ALEX, OAS, ERIS (and Xena), DIL, PEETA- unknowns by perps. I got TOWING SHADE but had never heard the term 'throwing shade'.
Jayce- It's like washing your hands in a public bathroom, drying your hands, throwing away the paper towel, and then touching the door handle to open the door. I NEVER do that.
C.C., Nothing beats sumo oranges you say? Try a Plaquemines Parish navel that is only available in the NOLA area Dec & Jan and you might change your mind.
I'll have to download the WaPo puzzle and print it so I can work it while waiting in the Dr.'s office tomorrow.
Spitz, I hope the email address I used earlier is your current one.
Lemony, feel better soon! 🧸
Robin, thanks for dropping by.
Too good not to post.
I'm a doctor and an Infectious Diseases Specialist. I've been at this for more than 20 years seeing sick patients on a daily basis. I have worked in inner city hospitals and in the poorest slums of Africa. HIV-AIDS, Hepatitis,TB, SARS, Measles, Shingles, Whooping cough, Diphtheria...there is little I haven't been exposed to in my profession. And with notable exception of SARS, very little has left me feeling vulnerable, overwhelmed or downright scared.
I am not scared of Covid-19. I am concerned about the implications of a novel infectious agent that has spread the world over and continues to find new footholds in different soil. I am rightly concerned for the welfare of those who are elderly, in frail health or disenfranchised who stand to suffer mostly, and disproportionately, at the hands of this new scourge. But I am not scared of Covid-19.
What I am scared about is the loss of reason and wave of fear that has induced the masses of society into a spellbinding spiral of panic, stockpiling obscene quantities of anything that could fill a bomb shelter adequately in a post-apocalyptic world. I am scared of the N95 masks that are stolen from hospitals and urgent care clinics where they are actually needed for front line healthcare providers and instead are being donned in airports, malls, and coffee lounges, perpetuating even more fear and suspicion of others. I am scared that our hospitals will be overwhelmed with anyone who thinks they " probably don't have it but may as well get checked out no matter what because you just never know..." and those with heart failure, emphysema, pneumonia and strokes will pay the price for overfilled ER waiting rooms with only so many doctors and nurses to assess.
I am scared that travel restrictions will become so far reaching that weddings will be canceled, graduations missed and family reunions will not materialize. And well, even that big party called the Olympic Games...that could be kyboshed too. Can you even
imagine?
I'm scared those same epidemic fears will limit trade, harm partnerships in multiple sectors, business and otherwise and ultimately culminate in a global recession.
But mostly, I'm scared about what message we are telling our kids when faced with a threat. Instead of reason, rationality, openmindedness and altruism, we are telling them to panic, be fearful, suspicious, reactionary and self-interested.
Covid-19 is nowhere near over. It will be coming to a city, a hospital, a friend, even a family member near you at some point. Expect it. Stop waiting to be surprised further. The fact is the virus itself will not likely do much harm when it arrives. But our own behaviors and "fight for yourself above all else" attitude could prove disastrous.
I implore you all. Temper fear with reason, panic with patience and uncertainty with education. We have an opportunity to learn a great deal about health hygiene and limiting the spread of innumerable transmissible diseases in our society. Let's meet this challenge together in the best spirit of compassion for others, patience, and above all, an unfailing effort to seek truth, facts and knowledge as opposed to conjecture, speculation and catastrophizing.
Facts not fear. Clean hands. Open hearts.
Our children will thank us for it.
#washurhands #respect #patiencenotpanic
Stop freaking out like good little drones!!! Please.
Sunday Lurk say...
Even if it is a name, today's clue for SOO is much better than the non-word 'your point being' from last Friday.
{B+, A}
C, Eh! - I watched Di's wedding too; right after my paper route. I didn't get why it was a big deal but it was the only thing on TV. Years later, I was at a hotel bar w/ a buddy hearing the news of Di's death. We were in Dallas [1/2way between OKC & Shreveport] so our wives (BFFs) could visit ('course, being dudes we get along our own way). Something in the universe seemed to come full circle.
I digress, I wish you many more happy years together.
@1:41 - why is it alarming? Early on, we (well, scientists studying this) pegged the death-rate at ~3%. Couple that with a (upto) 14-day incubation period and you've got a nasty little devil.
Let me put it this way - when designing malware/viruses there's a trade-off one makes between infecting as many targets as possible while not doing damage/getting detected before striking.
A virus that infects/affects immediately has a short life. One that spreads w/o detection and then hits -- that's maximum badness. Covid19 seems to display the latter behavior [even though now we're (scientists) realizing that death-rate is lower].
I always have two weeks of staples on hand anyway; I hate running out of stuff. DW did get some canned goods and other shelf-life stuff in case quarantines abound. It's the same stuff we lay in every year b/f hurricane season anyway.
Youngest calls it our Doomsday Box :-) I call it the Boy Scout Motto.
Lem - you've been under the weather a while now. You feeling you're on the upside yet? And even though Oo's taking good care of you, don't milk it too long :-) Get well bro.
Cheers, -T
Bagel Bites are not much like Tater Tots. They are small pizza snacks using a mini bagel as the crust.
It seems that the reaction to COVID-19 is at either extreme, do nothing at all and discount it or go off the deep end and panic. I think common sense requires a middle way. At coffee hour we friends discussed the implications of the new virus. There most people I spoke with are not that worried. The people who seem most worried are people in charge of groups, like our regional square dance organization or the church leaders. Their thinking is "What if this becomes a disaster and we are responsible for not having been proactive enough?"
YR - exactly! I read @4:04's (presumably a Dr) post and mostly agree [and should remember to refresh b/f posting!] but our failure of testing coupled w/ incubation period of C19 is a problem.
I'm not personally worried I'm going to die if infected but concerned I could spread to MIL or my buddy [who's wife and Middleone has health issues already] w/o knowing it.
People in charge of groups/events have the onus of go/no-go. DW, in charge of International Studies at her College, had to make the no-go decision last week.
If she said 'go', she, along w/ 80 students and 4 other staff, would be in Barcelona right now. If they got quarantined, the students would miss so much class, they could not graduate. Also, it'd be a PR nightmare w/ "Students of [a Texas Community College]..." if that were the results. DW made the right call IMHO. Not panic, just pragmatic.
-T
Why do people in charge of groups/events have the onus of go/no go?
I understand that leaders I'd such should take all precautions in terms of safety but what has happened to personal responsibility? Is it now the responsibility of leaders of groups/institutions/governments to protect us from everything from nuclear holocaust to hot coffee? Where does common sense come in?
I would like to make some decisions myself rather than to adhere to some bureaucratic knee jerking hack. My neighbor's kid was ordered home from a semester abroad in a very capable 1st world country with free healthcare wasting months of planning, substantial money and a lifetime of memories and incalculable experiences for fear he might contract this bug. The authorities weren't worried about theft, broken bones, earthquakes, fire or any other unfortunate accident beyond there control but forced the heartbroken student home anyway. The parents were very upset and wished to veto the decision but were overruled.
Footnote: My neighbors are both in the medical profession, the husband being a heart surgeon and the wife a OR nurse.
"I'd" was a fat fingered version of "of". Lol
@5:35: "With great power comes great responsibility" -- Spider-Man/Peter Parker's Uncle Ben.
DW did not make the decision lightly and went back and forth on many levels to come to her decision. There's numbers that give you the odds. Odds of an earthquake/volcano didn't factor in much, because, well, her kids from last year went to Pompeii.
Watching all the international travel quarantines and guessing the odds...
Well, sometimes, The odds get even [You Bet Your Life - RUSH].
For the record, the kids aren't paying for it, the school is.
Cheers, -T
Great puzzle today. thanks, Robin. My favorite theme answer was Tee stooges. Learning moment was Luthier.
Despite Orange County having no (at this moment) cases of the virus, people in south county have wiped out all the local supplies of toilet paper, hand sanitizer, paper towels and bottled water. Pretty disappointing behavior. We have cancelled a planned cruise and are taking other recommended precautions, but otherwise we are keeping on keeping on.
C.C.’s WP puzzle was excellent. She had clues embedded within answers that were so clever I can’t imagine how she was able to pull it off - and for 7 theme answers!
Thanks for your rational and reasoned comments. We've been through these panics before and survived. We need MDs like you to put "Corona" in a logical arena. Or are all headless chickens???
I understand -T. Just giving my 2 cents. So now I'm broke.
Loved the Holy Triumvirate
Hmmmm. I started this slog at 10 a,m. DST and tossed it at 5:15."Throwing Shade" HUH ??? "LAID TO"? "MULLETS"?? "TEMPLE SHRINE"?? The "long I" is an IOTA??? I've taught middle school for thirty two years and four years in the Master of Ed program in a local college and have NEVER heard or seen such assinine concoctions as these.come on, LAT editors, do your job and EDIT muddled language like this one. At least have the decency to warn us of archane,useless clues. I hate wasting my time on impossible grids like this one.
I started with "Hove to" rather than "Laid to". Worse yet "Vows" fitted where "I Dos" belonged so it took ages for me to catch on.
Spectacular Sunday. Thanks for the fun, Robin (and thanks for dropping by) and C.C.
I got the missing HR theme with SINKING VIOLET which hastened the solve. But I still welcomed a few red letter helps to finish. I noted that two of the themers had SHR, one had CHR, and the other five had THR.
I noted MARES and EWE early, and then all the other animals already mentioned by IM.
Also noted were ARIANA (Grande Dame clue was a groaner!) and ARIOSE, ERE and Ire to end the grid.
I thought of LULLABY for "Nostalgic numbers" but OLDIES fit; then LULLABY was needed for
Cradlesong. Same with NAG and IRE.
Our friends' son is a luthier (specializes in guitar and is very busy).
IM and AnonT: Thanks for the early best wishes for the anniversary of our I DOs, after my Princess Di comment last night.
Wishing you all a good evening.
I neglected to read the tail-end of yesterday's posts and missed thanking Jayce and PK for their kind comments also.
I don't care to list all the fill I found unpleasant, but there was a good amount. Naticks galore. Felt like enormous slog. There's nothing to say about this theme.
The Post puzzle was awesome - had a slow start but the theme really helped. Robin - I’m hoping your original clue for GAME OF TONES was Futurama-related but it was deemed too obscure? Can you confirm??
@7:14 - The Holy Triumvirate are "regular guys, just like us." [Funny or Die - ~5m]
I get your point and agree - no need for panic but be prepared in case others do. I saw this on Twitter and was, like, WTF? //Do you have any idea how long DW & I waited last Sept on line??!?
Peace, -T
Hola!
It is so late and unlikely that anyone from the Corner is still up but I just finished the puzzle and had to post. I had a good laugh at CARBON paper!! When was the last time anyone used that?
Thought of Spitz at LAID TO. Is that a true phrase?
SINKING VIOLETS turned me on to the theme and I loved TEE STOOGES.
For the most part I finished quickly but when reviewing I saw a slew of errors at WEBPAGE/LEANED and their crosses. It was a mess! Also I had EGIS instead of ERIS/ARIOSE. Hand up for ROUGHROADS.
Yet, I still enjoyed the solve. Thank you, Robin Stears.
The reason I finished so late is that we went out to dinner with my daughter and her family. I had been working on this off and on all afternoon as I also went to see the movie, EMMA. It is true to Jane Austen's writing and well done. Yesterday I did not finish and failed to check in at the Corner. I'll have to do that.
As for the current panic-mode, I personally know no one who has been afflicted with the virus. At church we were discouraged from touching each other in any way and wine was not offered at Communion. Yesterday I attended the funeral of my late friend, Judy, and greeted my friends with the usual hugs. So far, so good. I hope you are all in good health, too.
Wishing you all a good night!
Responding to the comment: "The Post puzzle was awesome - had a slow start but the theme really helped. Robin - I’m hoping your original clue for GAME OF TONES was Futurama-related but it was deemed too obscure? Can you confirm??"
I will confirm that my original clue for GAME OF TONES was "Simon or Name That Tune, essentially?"
Sadly, I learned about the Futurama connection after the fact.
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