Straight Fs
If you've never been able to solve a Friday, today should be your lucky day.
20. Avian athletic contest?: GAME OF FINCHES.
28. Advanced degree for a gemologist?: DOCTOR OF FLAWS.
47. Metropolis, thanks to Superman?: CITY OF FLIGHTS.
57. Flunk out ... and what three long answers do?: GET STRAIGHT FS.
Straight Fs would be bad for your GPA. No one should flunk out today.
I always enjoy solving Mark's puzzles. He's definitely in my top 5 favorite constructors. Today was no different, and each of the the three theme answers made me smile.
But IMHO, this was way, way too easy for a Friday. A scheduling error ? What do you think ? Oh, and I'm sorry if I burst your bubble.
I was confounded by the answer to 9D, IN A HUFF. It obviously doesn't fit with the theme answers of the added F. The two Fs still gave pause.
Across:
1. President before Wilson: TAFT.
5. Sign of shock: GASP.
9. Classical inspiration for the 2004 film "Troy": ILIAD. Troy ? Hello, Irish Miss ! Hope you are feeling a little better.
14. Another, in Mexico: OTRO. Fill in OTR and check the perp to decide if it will be A (feminine) or O (masculine). Oh no ! The perp is also Spanish. Good thing we all know the Spanish word for bullfighter.
15. __ ID: USER. You can make your USERIDs complex, but there's no need. Keep them simple. Make your passwords complex, and change them frequently.
16. Chip in a bowl: NACHO. Doritos Nacho Cheese are favored chips in this casa.
17. Almost at: NEAR.
18. Long vehicle: LIMO. A conversation starter for your Limo driver ? It's derived from Limousine. From Limousin, a region in France. A Gallic tribe (Celtics on the continent) lived there in the time of Caesar. They were known as Lemovices, which means "those who vanquish by the elm." Lemo - elm, and uices - victors. In the end, their elm bows and lances were no match as Caesar's armies laid siege. Even though the Roman Army was outnumbered 4 to 1, they won the battle and claimed Gaul once and for all as a Roman province. If you driver has no interest, just talk about the weather.
19. It has no subs: A TEAM. Loved this clue.
23. Like a disciplinarian: STERN.
24. Torque symbol, in mechanics: TAU.
25. RV chain: KOA.
33. Ominous: DIRE.
34. Destinies: FATEs. There were three Goddesses of Fates, as we learned in Steve's write up on June 18th. They were Clotho the Spinner, Lachesis the Alloter, and Atropos the Inflexible. Speaking of destinies, the all girl group Destiny's Child consisted of Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams.
35. Push-up targets: PECs. Pectoral muscles.
39. Not against the rules: LEGAL. Licit.
42. Like a hairpin: BENT.
43. Stretched circles?: OVALs.
45. Brewpub array: ALEs.
52. Corrida cheer: OLE. For the torero.
53. Waze suggestion: Abbr.: RTE. Waze is a GPS app from Google.
54. Estée Lauder subsidiary: AVEDA. Never heard of it until solving C.C.'s "Back to Basics" crossword puzzle last Sunday. She remarked in the review that it is a Minnesota based company owned by Estee Lauder.
62. Problematic bacterium: E. coli.
64. The Mississippi forms its eastern border: IOWA. And the Missouri forms most of its western border.
65. Northern European capital: OSLO.
66. Singer nicknamed "The Velvet Fog": TORME. I read that at age 19 he composed the music and co-wrote the lyrics for this song made famous by Nat King Cole.
67. Visible pollution: SMOG. Fog and then smog ? And ice crystals in the air forming a sundog ?
68. Comics icon Lee: STAN. Marvel Comics.
69. Vast chasm: ABYSS.
70. Sun dog, e.g.: HALO. I believe you pretty much have to be in a colder climate like the northern states or Canada to see these when the sun is at the horizon.
71. Carry: TOTE.
Down:
1. Kitchen picker-uppers: TONGs.
2. Patronized, as a diner: ATE AT.
3. Like many museum paintings: FRAMED.
4. Corrida star: TORERO. Bullfight star: Bullfighter.
5. Wide gap: GULF.
6. "Dream on!": AS IF.
7. Big rig: SEMI. One of my "other duties" in the Army was driving one of these M818 5 ton tractor trucks. Mine was a -A2 multifuel with a ragtop and a semi trailer rather than the lowboy pictured. 10 wheels on 3 driven axles with a lot of torque, and no creature comforts in the cab.
8. Stat relative: PRONTO.
9. Highly annoyed: IN A HUFF.
10. Having missed the deadline: LATE.
11. Item of hockey equipment: ICE SKATE. Like some potato chips, one is usually not enough.
12. Cry of discovery: AHA.
13. Champagne title: DOM.
21. Like much '80s-'90s music: ON CD.
22. Half-__: coffee order: CAF.
26. Wilson who voiced Lightning McQueen in "Cars" films: OWEN. Also the first name of our resident poet and host of Jumblehints Blogspot
27. A new exec may hire one: ASST. The position title is usually ...
29. Shop __ you drop: 'TIL. "Honey, look how much money I saved !"
30. Hematite, for one: ORE. Properties, uses, and occurrence of the most important ore of iron. Among others, ballast for ships, protection from x-rays, and jeweler's rouge. DNK.
31. Fit for a queen: REGAL.
32. Yellow __: LAB. The most popular dog in the United States is the Labrador.
35. Somewhat, to Schubert: POCO. When it came to music, he was anything but poco. He went full-bore. One of the most prolific composers of all time. Schubert only lived to age 31. Steve had poco yesterday in Joe Denney's puzzle yesterday with the clue [Slightly, in scores].
36. Villainous: EVIL.
37. One in a Trivial Pursuit sextet: CATEGORY.
38. Slick: SLY.
40. Big name in Islam: ALI.
41. KFC selection: LEG.
44. Military pilot's missions: SORTIEs.
46. Heavy carpet: SHAG.
48. NBA foul shots: FTs. Free throws.
49. Magic charm: FETISH.
1. any object believed by some person or group to have magic power
2. any thing or activity to which one is irrationally devoted to make a fetish of sports
3. Psychiatry any nonsexual object, such as a foot or a glove, that abnormally excites erotic feelings
50. Jay Leno, for many years: TV HOST.
51. Starts: SETS TO.
55. Key of Chopin's "Minute Waltz": D FLAT.
56. In concert: AS ONE. Harmony, unity, accord
58. "Slippery" trees: ELMs.
59. Capital SSE of Firenze: ROMA. Florence / Rome in Italian.
60. Nowhere to be found: AWOL.
61. "Aladdin" parrot: IAGO.
62. Pilot's approx.: ETA.
63. Corn discard: COB.
FIWrong. Cross of two Spanish words I did not know, ToRERO + OTRo.
ReplyDeleteA drawing by Escher, don't cha know
Has stairways going places stairs ought not to go!
A CITY OF FLIGHTS
And by my lights,
A place I'd rather no be until I get my HALO!
People go to see a plastic surgeon because
For the face FATE gave them, they have no applause.
So they get a nip or tuck
Which improves them so much
They pay a lot of money to the DOCTOR OF FLAWS!
Totally agree that this was too easy for a Friday. Took 6 minutes, 38 seconds. Oh well, there's worse things to complain about.
ReplyDeleteLast space to fall/fill was the "D" in Aveda crossing D Flat. Tau was clued different that I remember previously.
Welcome back to Friday TTP; love your commentary. Mark McClain is very busy and entertaining constructor. All good today, STAN LEE we miss you.
ReplyDeleteGood morning!
ReplyDeleteRats. Second DNF this week. That D in AVEDA crossing D FLAT should've been my final fill. But d-o WAGged a C. Must've seen AVEDA in CC's puzzle last Sunday, but didn't remember it. Thanx, Mark and TTP. (Amazing expo on those Elm Victors. That was one deep rabbit hole.)
I flunked out of FSU in 1961, which led to 3 years in the Army, 2 more years at Villanova, graduate school at Penn State, and 54 years of a wonderful marriage. I didn’t flunk this puzzle, but had a write-over: SORTIES 4 SORTeES. Fun theme and very useful.
ReplyDeleteGood morning everyone.
ReplyDeleteSomewhat easy for a Friday. No problems with the solve. Liked the LIMO/SEMI cross. The clues overlap some with 'long' and 'big' applicable to both.
IN A HUFF did give one pause. But I don't think it conflicts; if one 'F' is removed from each theme fill, you get a well known phrase. If you take an 'F' out of ……HUFF, you get bupkus.
BH and I are celebrating our 55th anniversary today. Long time ago but almost like yesterday. Time flies. We've been blessed.
Having a nice dinner out tonight. Wildflowers at the Oneida Indian Nation casino complex.
ReplyDeleteGood morning.
Spitzboov, I actually has that it my initial write-up. IN A HUFF doesn't fit the pattern because it doesn't match the well known phrase contrivance (and the reveal clue said three long answers) so I was debating between dele and stet. Dele won.
Our 31st was two days ago. Congratulations to you and your BH !
Oh, and Irish Miss, from a day or so ago. True. Not Mrs. TTP.
Condolences, Dash T.
Catching the inserted F into the theme was obvious after GAME OF FINCHES was filled but by sheer luck I knew AVEDA because Chopin's waltz had to be in the key of either 'BEADG' FLAT but I didn't know. I only knew AVEDA because DW bought a new package of some of it-YESTERDAY- and couldn't open it and gave it to me to open for her. It must have been filled by perps Sunday; I don't remember.
ReplyDeleteBut like Anon@ 6:00 am- too easy for a Friday.
FETISH- never knew it was a charm, only your #2 & #3 definitions.
IN A HUFF- I couldn't figure it out because I had filled Yellow CAB instead of LAB but the inserted F gimmick saved me.
HALO- didn't really know what a Sun Dog was but with AOL in place HALO was the obvious fill.
TAU- it took perps because it's been a long time since I've worked any physics problem.
Hungry Mother- you and I went to college when they actually flunked students. These days, everybody is on the Deans list. Don't you know that every parent's child is 'above average'.
As everyone said,, fun fast Friday. Nothing unheard of. AVEDA vaguely rang a bell, after the perps led me to the first letters of the alphabet. After choosing D, it sounded okay.
ReplyDeleteBig easy, I agree about grade inflation. We even had a bit of it when I taught elementary school. Our helicopter parents would go to the principal and she would cave so they wouldn't complain to the superintendent. We were sometimes forced to retest, even when it was obvious the student hadn't studied. Or we had to give make-up work to raise the grade. I had a student who went home with headaches, so his mother could do his work. He was extremely bright and capable. I wondered how these house plants fared in college when mommy couldn't interfere. I heard that some mommies even had the nerve go to the profs. My son would have been so embarrassed.
Spitz I agree about IN A HUFF. No prob.
Happy 55th to you an DW.
Did you college men do panty raids? Our unisex dorms were locked and the girls threw panties out the windows to the guys. Panty fetish?
Tony, condolences on the passing of your nephew. He died a sad but noble death trying to rescue his companion.
IM, I hope you are healing well.
Oh, we had AVEDA Sunday? How'd I miss it? That key could have been A-F,G but the D sounded best.
ReplyDeleteCABs are yellow. Labs sometimes. Of course the ubiquitous cab has been replaced by anonymous Ubers and Lyfts. None of the various bureaucracies knew what to do when they appeared flaunting and ignoring all regulations. Cab drivers would report their illegal airport pkups and the media trashed the cabbies. $$$ talks and popular will won out.
I think when the Beatles broke up the boys were c31 and also highly prolific.
I had Strikes / SORTIES. Mr S suggested IGA/KOA before I sent him to his room.
Our FETISH for xwords is considered a FETISH by many. Make that most. Hence Crossword Corner.
Owen #2 is excellent.
And here I was all along thinking that was lemonade on the write-up.
I see Big Easy among others trod my same solving path.
WC
Spitz, congrats on your endurance.
ReplyDeleteTony, very sorry to hear of your nephew's accident. Sad time for your entire family.
B-E, yeah, if I'd thought about it, I'd have realized there couldn't be a C Flat. That'd just be a B. Double-bzzzzzzt. Now I can't even call it a Natick.
TTP: Excellent write-up.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree this Friday puzzle seemed like a Tuesday level to me.
Now that it is required ... I found the N-95 masks I use to "have-to wear" when I use to take my "best-friend" Charlie to the VA Hospital.
He had had a Heart Transplant back in 1994 ... instead of US being "best-friends" for 21 years ... we were "best-friends" for 35.
(He died from cancer in 2009 ... the Heart was just fine.)
But the N-95 masks were in a box under my sink. They seem to be perfect.
A "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset.
Cheers!
Fabulous Friday. Thanks for the fun, Mark and TTP.
ReplyDeleteI got STRAIGHT FS today and it was a good thing!
Some unknowns filled with perps, like HELO and IAGO (a parrot!). Tiff changed to HUFF.
I always want to spell ILIAD as Ilead but this Canadian know her hockey equipment includes ICE SKATES.
Stat relative was PRONTO not ASAP (which was too short).
I was looking for Major or Minor in the Chopin key.
LIMO crossing SEMI (and the similar clues) brought a smile (hello Spitzboov)|. We also had an ABYSS and a GULF (deep and wide). Another smile at LEGAL crossing REGAL.
For our capitals of the world test, we had ROME and OSLO. And this Canadian even got TAFT.
Happy Anniversary to Spitzboov and BH. Belated wishes to TTP and DW.
FLN, thoughts and prayers to AnonT and family in the tragic death of a nephew.
Wishing you all a good day.
I agree...this was an easy Friday.
ReplyDeleteI had to guess AVEDA and its cross DFLAT -- I never know those flat-sharp-minor-major clues!
And I saw a Sun Dog once -- it was a Parahelia off to one side, but it was composed of a super bright mini-rainbow of colors!
Musings
ReplyDelete-No chance on AVE_A but _FLAT had to be B, D, E or G and I guessed it. AA made no sense and there is no C or F FLAT.
-The FINCH star of our feeders
-Bull Moose TR gave Wilson the win over TAFT
-I was a sub on the A-TEAM my sophomore year
-Telling Rosa Parks to go to the back of the bus was LEGAL but
-The guy who organized our teacher golf outings for years left the group IN A HUFF last week over some very petty issues
-The Carson/Letterman/Leno/O’Brien fiasco was real comedy drama
-Nice job, TTP!
-So sorry, Tony!
-Off to another visit to MIL at memory clinic. She still thinks she is living with her brother who has been dead for 60 years in a town that no longer exists
"The Carson/Letterman/Leno/O’Brien fiasco was real comedy drama"
DeleteI didn't get this
Good Morning, All. Guess I have to agree that for a Friday is was a doable xword. Why did I FIW? LOL Rome/Roma, Halo/Helo. Hmm, Helo sounded sun related to me. Aveda/Dflat was another trap for me. Had to change Inahuff twice: inatiff/inamiff as I went for the cab before lab. Not to mention the Spanish trap out of the gate. The xword rates a challenge for us rookie solvers. Thanks for the fun, Mark and thanks for the write-up TTP. Hot one in Fl today 100 w/o the index. Ugh! Have a great day.
ReplyDeleteI got this nice note from Sid Sivakumar yesterday:
ReplyDeleteHi Gary,
Sorry for the late reply -- my inbox has been flooded the past few days! Yes, I do know of C.C. and am a huge fan of her work, though I've never corresponded with her. Please thank her for adding my website to the link sidebar on the blog page.
Thank you also for the lovely writeup! It was wonderful to see all of those images/visuals alongside the clues and answers. And the commenters were very kind! I thoroughly enjoyed reading through those replies. You have a great community of people who read and interact with your blog.
Hope you enjoy the puzzles on my website! There are plenty of those, and more to come.
Cheers,
- Sid
CanadianEh! on June 25, 2020 at 2:15 PM wrote "D4-great photo on your avatar of you and Hogette(?!) on the ROAD. I BET you had fun on that ZIP DRIVE."
ReplyDeleteThank you. Yes I did. You may find a larger copy of the PIC on my facebook.
Ðave
Good morning Cornerites.
ReplyDeleteThank you Mark McClain for your enjoyable Friday CW.
Carol and I FIR in 38:16 min.
Thank you TTP for your excellent review.
Ðave
I just have to say that otro/a does not mean another in Spanish. It does mean other. Uno mas would mean another, as in one more.
ReplyDeleteAnd I must add my condolences on the death of your nephew, Tony. How sad and what a heroic thing to do. That young lady will probably live with the consequences of her slip and his death her whole life. That's sad, too.
Becky
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteThe first entry on my puzzle notepad is “Way too easy for a Friday”. Hi, TTP and thanks for the CSO at Iliad. Aveda was a gimme as I remembered CC’s comment on it being based in Minnesota. My only w/o was Ohio before Iowa. For some reason, I always look for repetition of certain letters and, today, noticed the O parade: Otto, Nacho, Limo, Oslo, Halo, Torero, Pronto, Poco, Iago, and (Sets) To. Mark is one of my favorite constructors, too, and I enjoyed today’s offering, but it was definitely not a Friday level of difficulty. Filling in Lab brought a smile, as my June calendar photo is a Yellow Lab puppy, as cute as can be.
Thanks, Mark, for a fun, if too easy, solve and thanks, TTP, for your snazzy summary. You’re back in tip-top form once again.
I’m slowly, but surely, healing a little bit each day. While I won’t win any beauty contests or agility tests, I’ve come a long way. The right side of my face was a rainbow of shades and is still kind of scary-looking but the other bruises are well-hidden, if still bothersome. I’ll forego any descriptions of my hand but, suffice it to say, it ain’t pretty, McGee! Stitches are due to be removed on Monday, at which time, I’m sure, I’m going to get the lecture from Hell from my doctor about falls. (I plan to get an emergency alert device soon.)
Happy 55th Wedding Anniversary, Spitz and Betty, and best wishes for many more. 💕
Happy 31st Wedding Anniversary, TTP and Mrs. TTP, and best wishes to you, also, for many more! 💞
FLN
Tony, my heartfelt sympathy on your loss. Any loved one’s death is sad, but losing someone so young is tragic. Condolences to the entire family.
Dave4, you look pretty spry there, with your Redheaded Hogette!
Is anyone else turned off by Savannah Guthrie’s demeanor and delivery the past few nights, subbing for Lester Holt? I can’t put my finger on exactly what bothers me, but I’ll be glad when Lester is back.
Have a great day.
Well, I found this Friday puzzle a delight since it was so doable that I got big chunks of it before needing help, and totally enjoyed it. Many thanks, Mark, for this treat at the end of the week. And nice pictures, TTP.
ReplyDeleteI noticed the OFF theme early on, and loved getting CITY OFF LIGHTS.
Got the ILIAD early on which helped with that corner, and ECOLI, TORME, and ABYSS filled in the southwest corner instantly. Hey, I enjoy moments like this. Then went right on to get SMOG and AWOL and IOWA and HALO, and then OSLO. Yay!
Owen, neat poems, and I loved your second one.
Have a great weekend coming up, everybody!
Good morning, folks. Thank you, Mark McClain, for a fine puzzle. Thank you, TTP, for fine review.
ReplyDeleteLucina: Many thanks for the nice card. Those really cheer me up. And, I need that!
Tony: Sorry about your loss. May God be with you.
Spitz and Lady: Congratulations on the big 55! And, many more.
TTP: Did I see 31 for you and your wife. Great! Many more for you two as well.
Tinbeni: I have not seen you in a long, long, time. Welcome back!
For me, the puzzle was a little tough. I got up about 12:30 AM and started working it. Gave it an hour and laid back downn. Helped me sleep. Finished this morning. Pretty tough on spots.
Liked the theme. I do not think IN A HUFF was p[art of the theme. Too short. Plus there were three other longer answers.
POCO again. Two days in a row. Don't think I ever saw it before in one of these puzzles.
TAU was unknown. I will have to remember that.
Raining here now. We needed it. Much of my garden is planted, now I have to weed. In my condition, a little tough to do.
See you tomorrow.
Abejo
( )
SansBeach@10:22- you alerted me that I actually FIWed. I fell for the Helo/Rome cross instead of HALO/ROMA.
ReplyDeleteThat's what happens when you do the CW in the newspaper and have no red letters or Tada to confirm your fill.
Ah well, it was fun anyway.
Irish Miss - glad you are healing up!
That was fun, Mark! Thanks for bursting my bubble, TTP!
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Becky "that otro/a does not mean another in Spanish." It means both "other" AND "another."
"El novelista ha publicado otro libro." The novelist has published another book.
Hi Y'all! Great puzzle, Mark! Great expo, TTP!
ReplyDeleteI saw there was something a bit (POCO?) OFF about this puzzle early on, and was POCO excited that I had sussed the theme. I was a bit let down when I filled GET STRAIGHT FS because the OFF was so prominent. I still like the puzzle & theme. I remembered POCO from yesterday.
Remembered AVEDA from Sunday so no hesitation there.
Immediately filled IN A HUFF because of all those FFs. Wow, I'm not mad about that.
My pilot flew SORTeES before SORTIES.
Happy anniversaries to Spitz & Betty and TTP & DW. Super accomplishments!
Still thinking hugs & healing thoughts for you, IM. I wince every time I think of your poor skinned hand.
Abejo: also thinking hugs & healing thoughts for you. I am astonished that you are still planning to take on the work of gardening this year. Seeing things grow is always uplifting, but dear man, you may need a sabbatical from gardening to fight this invading enemy.
Agreed that this was much easier than a typical Friday. I enjoyed the three theme answers. Nice job with those, Mark. I thought the reveal was lacking - two Fs in a row count as "straight Fs," I guess? Does a student only take two classes at a time? I personally would've enjoyed a fourth theme at the bottom instead of a reveal. I think most people would've been able to divine the theme without it, and then we would've gotten the bonus of another delightful theme answer (and maybe a harder puzzle as well).
ReplyDelete"Carson/Letterman/Leno/O’Brien fiasco was real comedy drama". Gary I didn't get this??
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing we'll find tomorrow "typical". I ran off Wednesday- Fri on Tuesday. Sat on Wednesday. I had a lot of inky schloppf as I look back. I thought the STRAIGHT F themes were inventive.
WC
Hola!
ReplyDeleteSpitz:
Congratulations on 55 years! And TTP, contratulations on 31! Those are superb accomplishments for all of you.
NaomiZ:
Yes. You are correct. OTRO can mean both other and another. Yours was a good example.
I wondered how bewbies would handle TORERO. I smiled when looking for a or o TORERO appeared.
WEES about this puzzle being too easy for a Friday, but fun nevertheless.
TAFT is an Arizona favorite because he signed our state into the Union on February 14, 1912. We became the 48th.
If C.C.'s puzzle from Sunday contained AVEDA I don't recall, but I am familiar with the brand. The D in D FLAT was my last fill.
Thank you, Mark McClain, for the clever theme. I solved many of your much harder puzzles in the puzzle book I recently finished.
Have a beautiful day, everyone!
Canadian Eh!
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned the difficulties of solving on paper and you are correct. I solve in ink and I believe several others do also, notably, desper-otto. We both keep a handy supply of white out. Mine is in pen form and I think he uses the liquid.
Thanks for all the good wishes. You are a good group.
ReplyDeleteAnon -T, I’m very sorry to hear of the sadness that has befallen your family with the loss of your nephew. My deepest sympathy.
SORTIE - Usually the sign one sees at the Exit ramps in Que.
Well, I concur with those who said it was an easier Friday puzzle. I thought I had a FIR, but then got here and will be leaving with a FIW. Messed up on ROMA/HALO (because I didn’t recognize Firenze as Florence and follow the breadcrumbs), and I didn’t get to read CC’s Sunday write-up yet (because I haven’t finished Sunday’s puzzle yet - Father’s Day at my daughter’s), so EFLAT looked as good as any other key to me. Truth be told, had I read about AVEDA, there’s a good chance I would have forgotten it by now anyway.
ReplyDeleteSooooo, I stared at today’s offering long enough to click some light bulbs, and I was able to once again finish without Mr. Google. Needed some perps to get me back on the right track, but not necessarily to fill in completely unknown words. In fact, the only real unknowns for me were TAU (as clued) and IAGO (as clued as a parrot); figured out TAU soon enough, and the “O” in HALO/IAGO was my final fill, even though the former was messed up, as mentioned.
Guess the historians are still trying to nail down the truth about the events of The Iliad. Good luck with that!
It’s ALWAYS nice when I get 1A/1D immediately! There are so many times when I don’t.
Starts equals sets to? Shouldn't that have been sets OUT to? Would someone please provide an example of how "sets to" on its own would be used in a sentence where it conveys the meaning of starts?
ReplyDeleteSee my note below. :-)
Delete
ReplyDeleteI cannot agree with others that said this was easy...it cannot be easy if I FIW, haha.
The error cell was the D in AVEDA/DFLAT. I knew it had to be 1 of 5, and I picked E.
Write-overs....CAB/LAB, OHIO/IOWA.
Otherwise, no real issues.
I agree, something's off with Savannah Guthrie. Cannot put my finger on it, but she seems blah. Hope she’s ok.
See you tomorrow, stay safe.
Anonymous at 2:07 PM: "After the party, she sets to clearing dishes." More British than American.
ReplyDeleteMirriam Webster and Cambridge Dictionary
ReplyDeleteset to - verb
set to; setting to; sets to
Definition of set to (Entry 2 of 2)
intransitive verb
1: to begin actively and earnestly
e.g I set to work on the mountain of paperwork on my desk.
It is grammatically a phrasal verb
Thank you Lemonade714 he is thinking, as he sets to reply to his kind post.
ReplyDeleteAlso, thank you NaomiZ, for your informative and kind reply as well.
ReplyDeleteMark McClain is also on my list of favorite constructors. I enjoyed solving his puzzle today, which I found pretty EFFortless.
ReplyDeleteI, too, totally forgot AVEDA and my last fill was that D.
Spitzboov and TTP, congratulations on your wedding anniversaries.
For some reason I have always found Savannah Guthrie to be sarcastic and dismissive. On the CBS evening news I see Norah O'Donnell as blatantly sensationalist and more concerned with how she looks than she is in imparting information to her viewers. I see from his comments last night that Bill G likes Lester Holt.
Good wishes to you all.
Wow! We certainly do have different frames of references with regard to news anchors! I love Norah O'Donnel! She is poised, articulate and IMO fair to the satellite reporters.
ReplyDeleteJayce:
Would you please explain why you think she is sensationalist? I see her as reporting what is in the headlines.
Re: "Carson/Letterman/Leno/O’Brien fiasco was real comedy drama". Gary I didn't get this??
ReplyDeleteWilbur, I believe this is referring to the "drama" that occurred first when Leno and Letterman battled to succeed Carson, and then later when Leno agreed to step down from his post, then reneged, then got slotted before O'Brien. O'Brien eventually left NBC entirely due to the fiasco.
Puzzling Thoughts:
ReplyDeleteFLN: Tony (aka, -T), my thoughts and prayers go out to you and your family. Sincerest condolences.
To Jayce and those who commented on the NASCAR situation: I posted this on a limerick board that I (and occasionally, Owen) frequent:
My limerick du jour with an explanation.
First of all, I am proud that NASCAR, his fellow drivers, and the FBI, treated this recent Talladega incident seriously, and with unity. After a thorough investigation, there was no racist intention on what ended up being a garage door rope pull that was attached to the garage door last October.
Nonetheless, several news stations and opinion hosts were “Johnny-on-the-spot” to declare this a racist event before examining the facts, and waiting for the FBI or local authorities to get to the bottom of what happened. Bubba Wallace handled it perfectly; some reporters did not.
Which of course, made me think of this limerick ... hope you get my point ... the fourth line speaks volumes ... sorry if the pun offends anyone ...
When the media’s lips get too loose,
And their stories end up quite obtuse,
As we’ve taught those unfledged,
Use a word like alleged;
Or it might end up being, fake noose.
With regards to today’s puzzle, I, too thought this a bit easy for a Friday, but enjoyed it nonetheless. A couple of write-overs.
It’s been “Africa” hot here the past few days. And yesterday, our A/C went out! Luckily, we were able to get a repair person to replace a burned out capacitor, and we have cooling again. Spending quality time in the pool but it’s running about 92 degrees right now ...
Enjoy the weekend! Stay safe, all.
Moe
@Big Easy: I think I would flunk out today as well, since I decided to enjoy a year on campus without the bother of attending class. I actually got a C in a history class without even one day of class attendance. It was hard for me to keep from talking to my classes about my lost year, since I didn’t want them modeling my behavior and bringing down the wrath of their parents on me. I really had a ball that year, joining a fraternity with a Hell Week road trip to Atlanta, Friday night football games, Thanksgiving at a friend’s house in Miami Beach, an inner tube Floater down a river accompanied by a rowboat filled with beer and ice, a long weekend in New Orleans and a campus on which there were 2 women for every man (it had recently been Florida State College for Women). Good times.
ReplyDeleteLucina, sure, I'll try to explain why I think Norah O'Donnell is sensationalist.
ReplyDelete(1) She needlessly uses adjectives such as "explosive" and "devastating" and "violent" to describe an event she is going to report on. And she enunciates those adjectives with a raised tone of vocal emphasis, distracting the viewer's attention away from the actual thing or event that happened. It's like ADJECTIVE!! noun. "Catastrophic! forest fires."
(2) She puts on a face of fake (to me) concern, furrowing her brow, cocking head head to one side, lips tightly pursed. It's as if her facial expression is always saying, "That's so serious!" Only when she has good news or something "cute" to report does she seem natural, smiling, unforced, not posing.
(3) With regard to content, her headlines often promise to inform you of something that ends up never being delivered by the field reporter. For example, she often promises, "And we'll tell you why" but the actual report never does tell us why such-and-such happened.
(4) With regard to her delivery again, when she is saying a number, she always puts in a brief hesitation, then emphasizes "million!" or some quantity, then another very brief hesitation. For example, "There were seven [tiny hesitation] THOUSAND [tiny hesitation] reported new cases..." Admittedly she is not the only news anchor who does this; our local anchors do to a far greater degree. They're not talking, they're not simply reporting, they're exclaiming.
The field reporters are all pretty good, though, IMO.
Chairman Moe, excellent limerick. I totally get it. Well said.
ReplyDeleteEvery Good Boy Does Fine / FACE: G or D it's gotta be. I chose AVEgA. Bzzzt.
ReplyDelete//Hi D-O & PVX. Y'all scootch over and make some room on the Group-W bench.
Hi All!
Thanks for the puzzle Mark. Caught the them at Dr. FLAW and finished (it wrong) lickity-split.
Was this scene [2:01] your theme inspiration? //Hungry Mother - too soon ? :-)
Fun expo TTP! Liked the M818 reference - you gotta have some stories...
On my weekend warrioring, it got to drive a 5Ton and a deuce-n'-a-half. You wouldn't think they'd give a 17yro keys but...
WOs: put CAFf in ON CD's squares, ROMe, dyslexia got me with STreN @23a
ESP: AVEDA //BigE - almost had Yellow cAB too. Theme saved me.
Fav: Gilbert Gottfried's IAGO [4:05] for a change.
Thank you All for the Corner's love. The kid was talented but such a little shit - we're all missing him dearly.
{A+, B+}
Happy Anniversary Spitz!
And you too TTP!
D4 - lookin' Good!
LEO3 - I've been meaning to ask - who's the kitty in your avatar?
HG - Last weekend I watched 2+ hrs of vintage Letterman | LENO fun [5:00] Also, thank Sid for us - neato.
//that link should fill you in a bit WC.
Cheers, -T
Jayce:
ReplyDeleteThank you for that detailed explanation. I can't say I analyze the reports that minutely. One thing, though, I am glad to see a woman anchor and do confess that is one reason I watch her. Having watched both David Muir and Lester Holt I like them but still revert to Norah. I have not watched Savannah Guthrie.
In future I shall look for those traits you mentioned.
Moe: Perfect! I tried to find everything in the papers and - how did that story change?
ReplyDeleteYou nail'd it.
WC (and probably Picard 'cuz he was abroad) - The Late Nite Wars (just part 2).
-T
First, Tony my prayers are with you and your brother. How awful.
DeleteMark, thanks for a fast and fun Friday. TTP, good stuff.
Owen, A, A-plus!!
IM, keep healing!!
I well remember those late night wars! At the time was the most "serious" thing we had to worry about!
ReplyDeleteAdding to my previous remarks about news anchors as I've been mulling it, I wonder, are men scrutinized as closely as women? It's been said many times that women have to try twice as hard as men once they reach the top of their respective careers. I recall Connie Chung and how much criticism she received though she was first class news reporter, IMHO.
Picard, talk Trekkie to me!
ReplyDeleteI’m at the end of season three of the Original, and just watched an episode where the Klingons are fighting Kirk for control of the Enterprise. BUT... there is an alien presence who is trying to keep them fighting.
Lots of anti-war rhetoric and stuff like that.
Is this the precursor of the political posturing I dislike?
Full disclosure: I loved this episode!
Happy anniversary to whom it applies!
ReplyDeleteToday is 44th for me and DW; tenth for daughter and SIL.
I rely on perps for keys. (I know how they're named, but can never remember which is connected to which opus.) Flat/sharp/major/minor is easy from one or two perps, but need the exact perp for the note. Today I didn't know AVEDA. (The TU doesn't print the Sunday LAT CW.)
>>Roy
Ri-iight.
ReplyDeleteLotsa LIMO drivers love to get into an in-depth discussion of Caesar's invasions.
How strangely easy this lovely Xwd was!
We are ALL of us DOOMED to a dreadful ordeal TOMORROW!
~ OMK
____________
DR:. Just the one diagonal today, near at hand...
How strange. The anagram is of my campus' mascot.
But this variation seems to speak of crones or witches who have stolen its identity.
Misty, this is your mascot too, but these are its humpbacked, cackling, broom-riding versions.
Say Hello to the...
"ANTEATER HAGS"!
Thanks -T, this was a ten year saga? The closest I came was TBBT reruns being followed by Conan at which point I switched elsewhere. And Leno is a Boston guy who cut his eye teeth at clubs on the North Shore where they threw things more lethal than tomatoes.
ReplyDeleteBut as you can see I totally missed all this drama and speaking for Picard, abroad or not I doubt if he ever cared a fig for any network late night entertainment.
Now, as a young BC graduate I roomed with some guys in Boston and Carson at 1130 was a ritual. I went along but never tuned in on my own.
Whatever sport event was on was my TV viewing then I was alerted that a show called Seinfeld was ending. I think I watched the last show but got caught up in reruns.
Of all those shows I think Fraser is the best . And of course re. the network news? I am not familiar with any of those names: Savannah? Norah?
WC
TTP - Happy belated anniversary wishes to you and DW.
ReplyDeleteWe just got back from our dinner. BH and I both had the Wolf Fish. (distant relative of the red snapper). Blackened Cajun style on a bed of Israeli couscous topped with a chunky crab sauce. Soup was a delicious corn chowder with crab chunks.
Mainly agree with Jayce about TV news anchors. We won't watch Samantha at all. We like Lester Holt but the news writing is very biased. We like Norah but her work suffers as Jayce described. She is a member of USAA so I probably tend to give her a little slack. Muir's ABC stuff is on a par with the others, but I don't like his emotional style (every item is a virtual crisis).
We watch no CNN nor MSNBC.
I am very glad to receive the WSJ to make up for what the TV lacks.
Lucina, I’m an equal gender critic. I think David Muir exhibits behavior that makes him look phony too.
ReplyDeleteReading all these news anchors wars is fascinating to me. I’m now realizing I never get my News there!
ReplyDeleteTV, a little bit. Newspapers? Internet, with a huge filter. Those talking heads give me a headache!
Ol'Man Keith, now that you mention it, I too have noticed that David Muir often forgets to tell us where or when an event took place. They should give him a journalism lesson, although he's been doing this for a long time now.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteI watch David Muir because it is a family viewing hour, everybody getting set for Jeopardy re-runs.
But I'm the geezer in the corner shouting at David whenever he blows a story, which is surprisingly often.
Frequently he forgets to mention WHERE an event took place, and he gets no help from the title at the bottom of the screen.
He drops other basic Ws (from the old journalist's catechism of "5 Ws") or neglects entirely part of a story that I have seen raised on earlier cable channels.
Still, the boy looks cool, has TV hair, and--well, what more do we want in family viewing time?
~ OMK
ReplyDeleteThank you all for the Happy Anniversary wishes. I've passed them on to my better half.
As far as anniversaries go, if you are into that kind of thing, I get off pretty cheaply. Timepieces. But at 55 years, Spitzboov gets emeralds. $$$$
Ol' Man Keith, your political commentary was moderated. Not appreciated here. One way or the other. This is not the venue. Feel free to start your own blog where you can vent freely.
ReplyDeleteDash T, yes, I have stories about me and that M818-A2.
They start in basic at Ft Knox. Selected for driver's testing. With a deuce and a half. More than half failed trying to get out of the parking lot because you had to come to a complete stop at the stop sign on the hill. Holding that clutch halfway and feathering the gas without stalling or blowing through the stop sign was not a problem for this rural kid.
- The constant inspections with the motor pool sergeant who was never satisfied with my cleaning of the battery box. He had this thing about the battery box being extremely well maintained. A 48V system with 4 deep cell (heavy!) 12V batteries.
- Working out side deals and swaps with the Chief Warrant Office that was in charge of the wheeled vehicle maintenance platoons. He had his men take special care of my truck (new engine and clutch, new ragtop, new tires) and I got him the repair parts that were in the warehouse that were sitting there unused but weren't supposed to go below minimum stocking levels. They often needed parts for vehicles in the repair lot but couldn't get them. It all started as a one time favor...
- Getting bad directions and getting wedged in and stuck in the woods on one REFORGER (REturn of FORces to GERmany) and having to get pulled out backwards by a tank retriever.
- Driving to Rotterdam in a convoy in another REFORGER. And almost failing to salute 4 Star General George Blanchard as we were loading on the docks. Didn't see him coming until he was within a few feet.
- The weekly day-long runs from Karlsruhe to Kaiserslautern (Ramstein) to the 21st Support Command Sustainment warehouses for parts runs after the two transportation MOS'es got busted for drug use.
I could go on (in depth) over a few beers some day. It was good times for the most part.