google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Wednesday, January 20, 2021, Steve Marron & C.C. Burnikel

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Jan 20, 2021

Wednesday, January 20, 2021, Steve Marron & C.C. Burnikel

Theme: BUNDLE UP

Across:

20. It takes getting used to: ACQUIRED TASTE. A QUIRE of paper is either 25 or 24 sheets. According to Wikipedia: "The usual meaning is 25 sheets of the same size and quality: ​120 of a ream of 500 sheets. Quires of 25 sheets are often used for machine-made paper, while quires of 24 sheets are often used for handmade or specialised paper of 480-sheet reams."

27. Native American leaders: TRIBAL ELDERS. A BALE of paper is 5,000 sheets.

43. Exuberant compliment: YOURE AMAZING. A REAM of paper is 500 sheets.

50. Morning news deliverers ... or based on a hidden word in each, what 20-, 27- and 43-Across are?: PAPER CARRIERS.

These are all measure of paper quantity. Most of us know a REAM, some know BALE, and QUIRE seems more obscure. Two REAMS equals one bundle. Five bundles equals one BALE. This looks to be the first team effort from C.C. and Steve. (Note from C.C.: Steve and I have collaborated on a few puzzles before.)

Across:

1. Guthrie's "Today" co-host: KOTB. Savannah and Hoda.

5. Apple tablet: IPAD.

9. Easily bruised Cajun veggie: OKRA. Did not know it was easily bruised. But 4-letter cajun veggie must be OKRA.

13. Collectively: IN ALL.

15. Possessive shout: MINE.


16. Currency with Khomeini's picture: RIAL. Basic monetary unit of Iran and Oman, equal to 100 dinars in Iran and 1,000 baiza in Oman. 0.000024 United States Dollar.

17. "Same here!": ME TOO.

18. Greek salad ingredient: FETA.

19. Out of sight: GONE.

23. Note dispenser: ATM.

25. Large tea dispenser: URN.

26. Geese cries: HONKS.

31. Put a cap on: LIMIT.

32. One of its first customers was a collector of broken laser pointers: EBAY. Still alive and well.

33. IRS forms expert: CPA. Certified Public Accountant.

36. Just slightly: A TAD.

37. Brown ermine: STOAT.

39. Born and __: BRED.

40. Theater backdrop: SET.

41. High time?: NOON.

42. "Shrek" princess: FIONA.

 

46. Some blue jeans: LEVIS.

48. Sea-__ Airport: TAC. Short for SEAttle and TAComa.

49. Observe: SEE.

54. Late notice?: OBIT. Nice.

55. "The __ Report": 1976 bestseller: HITE. The Hite Report, first published in 1976, was a sexual revolution in six hundred pages. Wikipedia.

56. Bangkok natives: THAIS.

59. Ticket stub abbr.: SECT. Section (refers to seating location).

60. Meadow mamas: EWES.

61. Fires off: SENDS.

62. Programmer's alternative to "if": ELSE.

63. Yom Kippur ritual: FAST.

64. Heavy homework amount: A TON. "It hit me like A TON of bricks."

Down:

 1. Most common surname in Korea: KIM.

2. Half of snake eyes: ONE.

3. Ryokan floor cover: TATAMI MAT. Traditional Japanese flooring.

 

4. Political alliance: BLOC.

5. "Everything's OK": I'M FINE.



6. Berth place: PIER. Great clue.

7. Initial poker payment: ANTE.

8. Tie on a track: DEAD HEAT. A rare situation in various racing sports in which the performances of competitors are judged to be so close that no difference between them can be resolved. The result is declared a tie and the competitors are awarded a joint ranking.

9. Instruments with stops: ORGANS. An organ stop utilizes a set (rank) of pipes of graduated lengths to produce the range of notes needed. Stops with pipes tuned to sound the pitch normally associated with the keys (i.e. the pitch of the same keys on a piano) are called "unison stops."

10. Key-cutting site: KIOSK.

11. Raging YouTube posts: RANTS. Opposite of raves.

12. Sheltered from the wind: ALEE.

14. Plumlike Asian fruit: LOQUAT.

21. GoDaddy purchase: URL.

22. Boris Johnson, e.g.: TORY. UK conservative party. As a political term, Tory was an insult (derived from the Middle Irish word tóraidhe, modern Irish tóraí, meaning "outlaw," or "robber," from the Irish word tóir, meaning "pursuit" since outlaws were "pursued men") that entered English politics during the Exclusion Bill crisis of 1678–1681.

23. Book with insets: ATLAS.

24. Clichéd: TRITE. Overused and consequently of little import; lacking originality or freshness.

28. Auction action: BID.

29. Africa's Sierra __: LEONE. Country in West Africa, on the Atlantic Ocean, known for the white-sand beaches lining the Freetown Peninsula.


 30. Trade name letters: DBA.

33. Flaky bakery product: CROISSANT.

34. Tubular pasta: PENNE.

35. "Opposites attract," e.g.: ADAGE. I'll agree.

37. Kitchen bigwig-in-waiting: SOUS CHEF.

38. A.L.'s Blue Jays: TOR. Toronto baseball team.

39. Show __: BIZ. No business like it.

41. Black, in Biarritz: NOIR. French. Biarritz is a seaside town on southwestern France’s Basque coast.

42. Rhinestone surfaces: FACETS.

43. __ Nicole Brown of "Community": YVETTE.


44. Taking a breather: AT REST.

45. Monet's May: MAI. Artist Claude Monet. French painter.

46. Record company imprint: LABEL. Brand or trademark.

47. Heroic tales: EPICS.

50. Sit for a portrait: POSE.

51. Bygone audio brand: AIWA. Sad, I liked that brand.

52. 66 and others: Abbr.: RTES.

53. Flightless bird of the pampas: RHEA.

57. Altar affirmation: I DO.

58. Phishing target, briefly: SSN. Social Security Number.


46 comments:

OwenKL said...

When you ACQUIRE a QUIRE of sheets, . (25)
A score you'd need a REAM to meet. . (500)
But half a score
Times that more
Would make a BALE of PAPER sheets. . (5000)

Should you eat on a TATAMI MAT
Of fallen crumbs you should keep track.
They could accrete
Beneath your feet
And be CROISSANTS to mice or rats!

TRIBAL ELDERS have a thing
To give to others a special zing.
And they agree
(By five to three)
That they think YOU'RE AMAZING!

{B, B+, A.}

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

Yay, d-o read the full reveal clue, and after a brief search, found the hidden paper quantities. Almost hurt my arm, patting myself on the back. This was my fastest solve so far this week. Thanx, Steve, C.C., and Melissa Bee.

TORY: In Beyond the Fringe the actors explain that our Republican party is the equivalent of the British Conservative party. And our Democratic party is the equivalent of the British Conservative party.

TOR: I heard on NPR local news this morning that some Houston athlete is leaving for TORonto. Don't remember the name nor team involved.

Big Easy said...

Good morning ALL. DW's 75th today and I can't throw a party.

I couldn't figure out the theme on this one. A QUIRE of paper- not a common word. A REAM is knowns. But a BALE of 5,000 sheets? Learning experience for me. I had a baler to bale all the cardboard at work and there are bales of cotton but I guess when I get a case of 10 packs of paper from Sam's it's a BALE.

I had to make a few WAGs to finish at the bottom. AIWA was a total unknown and it could of been the HATE or HITE report and wasn't sure if the Yom Kippur ritual was a FEST or FAST. Luckily I guessed correctly on both.

Ryokan sounded Japanese so TATAMI MAT fit. Unknown.
YVETTE & "Community"- both unknown. Perps.
LOQUAT- all perps

Lemonade714 said...

Steve Marron, our currently retired Thursday sherpa, has had quite a few puzzle publications going back to 2014 including four with C.C.
Steve Marron and C.C. Burnikel lat 15x15 Mon, Aug 25, 2014
Steve Marron lat 15x15 Thu, Sep 11, 2014
C.C. Burnikel & Steve Marron lat 15x15 Tue, Oct 21, 2014
Steve Marron lat 15x15 Fri, Mar 06, 2015
Steve Marron & C.C. Burnikel lat 15x15 Thu, Feb 11, 2016
Steve Marron & Zhouqin Burnikel wsj 15x15 Mon, Jul 20, 2020

inanehiker said...

This was a quick solve - like Big E - I saw the BALE but never heard of it as a unit of paper but just in the agricultural sense: bale of hay , bale of cotton, etc.

With Steve constructing - had a few food references with Cajun OKRA and CROISSANTS!

Thanks Melissa and Steve & CC!

Hungry Mother said...

FIR, as I should since I was a PAPERCARRIER from my car for my last two years at Villanova. I got a late start today by waiting in an online queue for a Florida Publix vaccination appointment which ended with the website entering an error state. Hopefully better days are coming starting at NOON.

Spitzboov said...

Good morning everyone.

Easy for a Thursday, although I didn't think about the theme. Thanks MB for setting that out. But I had lots of fun anyway. Good cluing; many less-seen words. Efficient use of KOTB. Fav. clue was 'note dispenser' for ATM. Had Yvonne before perps asserted themselves and changed to YVETTE. Also wanted 'cross buns' before CROISSANT loomed. 'Flaky' was persuasive. FIR.
Berth: PIER - -Since 'berth' is also a place to sleep on a ship I thought of "Rack" - Bed, especially the combination bed and locker found as enlisted sleeping accommodations.

PK - Glad to see you back. Missed your posts.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

What a nice way to start the day, being greeted by our old friend, Steve, and OFL, CC. I saw Quire and Bale before filling in the third themer, so I wasn’t surprised by Ream, but the reveal was a nice, Aha. I thought much of the cluing was clever and got a kick out of A Ton and A Tad, Mine and Fine, and URL and Urn. With Steve as a co-constructor, the culinary references were numerous: Okra, Feta, Loquat, Croissant, Penne, Sous Chef, Urn, Thai, and Taste! Loquat and Fiona were easy fill-ins as they were both recent entries. Yvette, however, was an unknown. CSO to CanadianEh at Tor and Oo at Thais.

Thanks, Steve and CC, for a fun solve and thanks, Melissa, for the expo.

Have a great day.

Lucina said...

Hola!

Nicely done, Steve! I have missed you on Thursdays so it was thrilling to see your byline with C.C.

QUIRE and REAM are familiar to me but not BALE for paper; only as has been noted, for hay.

Though I never saw Shrek, I like the name, FIONA and know it rom the rave reviews the movie received.

Melissa, what an interesting history of TORY! Thank you for that and for ALL the rest of your narrative. YOU'RE AMAZING!

Of course I expected some food in the puzzle and was pleased to see FETA, CROISSANT, LOQUAT, OKRA and PENNE. I've never had OKRA, though.

I'll be riveted on the TV most of the day today.

Have a FINE day, everyone! We are turning a new leaf today!

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

From a recent CW, a learning moment: Iran - RIAL (Khomeini). SEATAC once unknown has since been etched in my CW cerebral cortex. TRIBAL leader/ELDER: needed the L for LEONE ...(Last name of my grand ANTE Jane)

Alas FIW, even though Hoda KOTB was a recent puzzle visitor and TATAMIMAT a frequent answer I WAGed wrong with an H. As per the theme..I figured ream and bale for PAPERCARRIER as far a I could get. So... it's Quire...add LOQUAT and as per Groucho "Say the secret word and divide a $100. It's a common word something you find around the house."

A piano has stops as well. When I used to play everyone yelled "STOP!!!" 🙉

Can we IDOn't for awhile? 🙄 Shrek's princess FIONA..have we finally stopped ogre shamimg)...Didn't know AIWA was bygone

The chorus's preferred music genre....ACQUIRED TASTE
Fee paid for a texting violation.....IMFINE
The homogenous crowded wharf collapsed from the weight of sheer _____ pressure....PIER
Tyke runs up to Mom with a strange fruit...: " ______ I found!!" ....LOQUAT

Martial Law?..much prefer Marshall Dillon, Kitty, and Doc.

Best of luck to our New President and Vice President. ��

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

Best of luck..with a 🍀🍀🍀

Shankers said...

Fastest Wednesday in a long, long time (although some have mentioned Thursday). Loquat filled itself as did the unknown Hite. T.V. all day today? I think I'll pass on that thank you. Bridge with the guys--an easy decision.

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

Just curious...what happened to the "delete" option?

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-Circles were not necessary to find this gimmick
-Our clerk at Wal~Mart yesterday is a PAPER CARRIER on four rural routes and starts at 1am. She gets 7¢/paper delivered but gets a $2 deduction for any paper not delivered
-MINE is what I coached my VB girls to yell
-There is good in the world: A recent local FB poster reported she found cash and a receipt still in the ATM when she pulled up. The person who had left them there contacted the poster and was so grateful!
-Very famous SETS
-To avoid a DEAD HEAT your torso must hit the finish line first not you head, arms or legs
-Some GoDaddy Super Bowl ads were banned for being too suggestive
-The use of the word “awesome” has become overused and TRITE
-When I contact constructors I say I am Gary D.B.A. (doing blogging as) Husker Gary
-Maybe this YVETTE of 46 yrs ago would be more to likely to appear later in the week

Madame Defarge said...

Good Morning.

This was fun. Although, when I saw Steve with C.C., I thought we'd have a food theme. Ha! Thank you, both for Wednesday fun. My favorite today was PAPER CARRIER. I still have one (and I tip him well twice a year). I'm happy to have a print edition for as long as it lasts. The Chicago Tribune writers are disappearing weekly--on a buyout via the new owner. Sad.

Thanks, Melissa, for today's tour. Nicely done.

PK-yay! You are well and knocked out by technology and nothing worse.

Vidwan: Wow! That was a treatise. Thanks.

OC 4: My dad had something similar to your DW. I think the brain has a protective lever for some trauma. Be well, both of you.

AnonT: I didn't even click on your link, my brain is an earworm mine. ;-)

Stay well everyone. Have a sunny day. It is so here and such a delight.

CanadianEh! said...

Wonderful Wednesday. Thanks for the fun, Steve and C.C., and melissa bee.
I FIRed in good time with just a few inkblots. Then I went back and found the theme. (I had seen RED in 20A and DER in 27A and was pursuing a scrambled RED theme. Nope!) I am familiar with the terms QUIRE, BALE and REAM.

Hand up for Yvonne before YVETTE. I also had Seat before SECT.
I was misdirected at 8D thinking of a railroad track before moving to sports.
I smiled at 26A Geese HONKS after our Wawa discussion the other day. Then AIWA appeared!!

Like Ray-o, RIAL and SEATAC have been "etched in my CW cerebral cortex". Thanks all.
But I am not familiar with LOQUAT. I don't see them around here. I thought of KumQUAT but it had too many letters.

Yes, IM, I noted A TAD and A TON, and I will take a CSO with TOR. Yes, d'o, apparently, George Springer is being traded from Houston to the Blue Jays.

Almost NOON. Even this Canadian is watching your ceremony.
Wishing you all a good day.

Yellowrocks said...

Amanda Gorman, youth poet laureate, was eloquent and moving at the close of the inauguration ceremony . Age 22. Other comments may be political, but this is a salute to beautiful language.

Misty said...

Many thanks for an interesting Wednesday puzzle, Steve and C.C. And I always enjoy your commentaries, Melissa.

Had to scoot through this one and so needed quite a bit of help. But I too got OKRA and CROISSANTS, which was fun, and LEVIS, even though I don't wear jeans anymore. Didn't know we had PAPER CARRIERS anymore--thought the newspapers just got tossed out of the driver's window. OBIT has been showing up a lot in puzzles lately--always a bit sad. But I DO has also been making frequent appearances and that makes me happy.

Have a good day, everybody.

oc4beach said...


Nice Wednesday level puzzle that I solved in good time, but didn't get the theme. Loved MB's tour.

The only answer that I didn't know was LOQUAT, which was totally filled in by perps.

About 2 inches of lake effect snow this morning. The wind is moving it around and hopefully the Sun will take care of what remains. I did shovel the driveway so that I could take my DW to her hairdresser for a trim. I was going to take her Jeep, but the battery was dead, so I took her in the truck.

Madame D: In talking to a number of people, it appears that Transient Global Amnesia is more common than I was aware of. Most people seem to know someone who has experienced it.

Have a great day everyone, and please wear your masks.

AnonymousPVX said...


YVONNE before YVETTE.

Otherwise no issues on this Inauguration Day (at last) puzzle.

Stay Safe.

waseeley said...

Thank you Steve and C.C. I liked this puzzle! I was a PAPER CARRIER in Junior High, but before I ever learned about QUIRES, REAMS, and BALES (hadn't heard of the last til today), my papers came in BUNDLES of about 50, IIRC. I'd pick them up in Miss Howell's garage, untie the bundles, tuck-fold them, and deliver about 100 a day on my bike across a 3 mile route. The Sunday papers were too big to deliver on a bike, so my father would drive me around the route in a station wagon.

And thanks to you Melissa for the write-up. I especially liked the link on "The Hite Report". It took a bit of brain jogging but HITE eventually surfaced, even though I didn't remember what it was about. I wonder what Ms Hite would have had to say about 17A today. It was probably a bigger problem then than now, but nobody talked about it.

26A OPERA is an ACQUIRED TASTE if you give it a chance. It can quickly become habit forming though. The same for what is now called "Modern" music. I first heard BELA BARTOK's "Concerto for Orchestra" at Dw's when we were dating in HS and didn't like it at first. Now it's one of my favorite pieces of music.

My favorite clue was 37A, the STOAT being my favorite MUSTELID. Such a beautiful creature. I've never seen one in real life, but they seem to make regular appearances here.

Ray-O @9:40 AM - Really loved today's RayKus. YOU'RE AMAZING!

Gary @10:02 AM - No reason a DBA can't be a non-profit. "DBA" is also short for DATA BASE ADMINISTRATER, a highly profitable business.

Bill

LEO III said...

Got all of the long fills, but I didn’t see the measures of paper. Yes, I was once a paper carrier – er, thrower.

No earthly idea who HODA KOTB is, and I only know Savannah Guthrie’s name because at one time, I lived in Savannah, GA. I had no clue about a TATAMIMAT either.

OwenKL --- A+++ on #1!

I’m afraid the Houston Astros will regret this day for a long, long time.

PK said...

Hi Y'all! Enjoyed the puzzle, Steve & C.C. Thanks, Melissa.

Thank you for all the welcome back greetings. Made my day. Can't tell you all the anguish the crashed computer caused me. Onward & upward now.

Unknowns: WEES

When I worked at the daily newspaper which printed its own paper, they bought paper in big round bales which were, I think, about four feet in diameter X the length of a broadsheet across. The paper rolled off the bale into the press to print two full-sized pages at a time. The action was much like rolling off toilet paper but much larger scale. Took skilled and experience handling by pressmen.

I can't believe I missed the swearing-in & presidential speech. I knew it was at noon but forgot that meant east coast time. I tuned in just in time for the young poet who was great. Great feeling of relief that the scene was peaceful. Hope it stays.

Anonymous said...

Steve, nice to connect with you again. CC and Steve, fun puzzle. Informative blog, mb. I needed the reveal to get the theme. I thought kumquat at first, but it was too long. Loquat rang a bell and fit with the perps, but all I knew about it was that it is a fruit.
Yvonne before Yvette.
I have never had a key made a kiosk. I have had much bad luck with keys from large home improvement stores. I prefer local mom and pop lock and key stores. They seem to have more accurate machines.
I think of DBA as DOING BUSINESS AS. Our local nonprofit day care center was Just Kidz, a DBA name.
When I first tasted Scotch I hated it. But now it is an acquired taste, one of my favorite choices, especially premium brands.
Light dusting of snow early this AM which soon melted.
I was a paper carrier mom, I helped David fold and tuck the papers. I drove him around when it rained or the papers arrived late and he would be likely to be late for school. I helped Alan more. By the time he became a teen he had become more disabled.
It is amazing how hard it WAS to collect from some customers and OTOH how kind MANY others were.

Chairman Moe said...

Puzzling thoughts:

AT EASE/AT REST. Otherwise a clean grid.

I didn’t “see” the PAPER CARRIERS in the long entries until after the reveal. Saw BALE, REAM, and QUIRE in that order. QUIRE is not a word in everyday speech, but most Q-words are worth looking up if you’re not familiar with the meaning ... not taking anything away from the other 25 letters, though! 🤡

TATAMI MAT and LOQUAT were perped.

Malodorous Manatee said...

Another busy day and I suppose that is a blessing in these days of Groundhog Days. I did get time to solve the puzzle and I did enjoy that. Thank you Steve and CC (who has been a busy person lately) and Melissa.

Much of today will be taken up with switching cell phones. The old one would periodically crash. Getting the new SD card properly configured will take some minutes. Most of the apps have transfered over but some require fresh log ins and then there are all those BT devices to re-pair. None of the MP3s or locally stored photos transfered so those tasks will need to be accomplished.

COVID shot (first) scheduled for Friday.

ATLGranny said...

What a fun puzzle by our Steve and C.C. which I managed to FIR! Plus I found the PAPER CARRIERS after the reveal told me what to look for. Thanks to Melissa B too. A good start to the day accompanied by ample sunshine here.

I had the same problems as others with YVETTE, FAST, and AT REST, which was my third try after recess and at ease. STOAT and EPICS also took some fiddling with but perps came to the rescue in all cases.

So good to see you back after technical problems only, PK, and also good to hear that your DW is doing better, OC 4. Scary time for you.

Lucina said...

Pk:
It's really good to see you back! Technical problems are always a challenge for me, too and I usually have to call on friends or family who are tech savvy. It's good to have help available when they are needed and I'm happy you do as well.

One of the field trips I took with my class was to the Arizona Republic building and we saw those huge presses rolling as well as the huge bales of newsprint they used. It was quite impressive for fourth graders and for me, too. Now whenever I see a movie that involves newspapers such as The Post I can recall that trip and how it looked and smelled.

Realizing how tenuous the newspaper business is I appreciate my delivery person and tip generously at Christmas time when an envelope is included for that purpose.

Watching the inauguration ceremony today was particularly poignant because of the events of January 6th and I appreciated our democracy more than ever.

Steve said...

Hi All

Thanks for the write-up, Melissa, and the comments.

This was one of those puzzles that had been sitting around gathering dust until C.C. kicked me up the backside to finish it. Rich had wanted a few changes made to the original and I put it on the back burner until the back burner got bored :)

So thank you, C.C. and good to see everyone in great humor today!

Shankers said...

LEO III, I can't believe you don't know who Hota Kotb is. Nobody doesn't like Hota as the Sara Lee slogan goes. I thought the preparation for the festivities in D.C. bordered on overkill, even paranoia. Of course, that's just one man's observation...

LEO III said...

Shankers --- I probably have come across her at some time, and I vaguely recognize here face, but I wouldn't have known her if she bopped me up side my head. I very rarely watch TV (maybe an hour or so at night), and I NEVER watch either network or local news. I learn more about what is going on in the world here at the Corner than I do from those peeps.

I'm not being political when I say that I think Newton Minow's words are as relevant true today as they were back in 1961, when he called TV a vast wasteland:

"When television is good, nothing — not the theater, not the magazines or newspapers — nothing is better. But when television is bad, nothing is worse. I invite each of you to sit down in front of your television set when your station goes on the air and stay there for a day without a book, without a magazine, without a newspaper, without a profit and loss sheet or a rating book to distract you. Keep your eyes glued to that set until the station signs off. I can assure you that what you will observe is a vast wasteland."

The only thing different today is that the stations NEVER SIGN OFF! (At least we had Cronkite and Huntley and Brinkley back then.)

For those who came in late and might be interested, here is a link to the Wiki article about him, with reference to his speech:

Newton Minow

LEO III said...

Oh, and we all know the movies have followed right in the same footsteps, which is why I don't do them either, and also why I don't know so many of the names showing up in the puzzles.

Wilbur Charles said...

FIW right off the bat. I thought KOlB sounded better. Didn't think of a two word answer fo the rug.

FIONA is a major character in LEN Deighton's spy trilogies.

I saw RESM and BAY and wondered about QUIRE. SO_S… was enough for SOUS CHEF.

I noticed that CC byline and she didn't disappoint. Not easy but doable (except KOLB- But I knew TATAMI MAT so horse on me)

RayO, top of your game today. Husker, Splynter would be proud.

WC

Solving ahead*, Thursday was tough for me until I grokked the theme circles. YMMV

* Because I can and can't resist. Now to try Saturday

Wilbur Charles said...

I meant REAM and meant to preview

Wilbur Charles said...

YR, I can't wait to read the poem. Excellent use of the various ERATO tools, alliteration etc.

I've heard of Selective amnesia.

WC

Yellowrocks said...

We stayed at a ryokan in Japan with tatami mats on the floor. We were given yukata, casual cotton kimono to wear. We left our shoes at the door. When we used the bathroom we both shared a pair of bathroom slippers to be worn only in the bathroom. We sat on the floor and slept on a futon (no frame) on the floor. The only furniture was a low table. We were served a fancy many course banquet. We knelt on tatami mats at a low table. The servers were scandalized that we mixed and matched dipping sauces instead of following custom. Reminded me of an American chef who was upset when diners put ketchup on his expertly cooked steak.
After dinner we went to an onsen, hot spring bathhouse wearing our yukata. It felt like going out on the street in a bathrobe. Young men laughed at us. When I asked why they pointed out our clothing. I said you are dressed the same. They laughed again saying, but you are not Japanese. A wonderful crosscultural experience.

Avg Joe said...

I smiled broadly when I saw the byline today. It's great to see you back Steve. Enjoyed the puzzle, but was tripped up a bit at first on the theme as the first "paper" I saw was "Trib". Didn't take long to get out of that trap, but bale was new to me.

It's also great to see you back PK.

Anonymous T said...

Hi All!

Whoot! Steve! Long time no see. Thank you and C.C. for the fun puzzle; interesting vocabulary.

Wonderful expo mb; kept me entertained during this morning's meetings :-)
Thanks for explaining the paper measurements; I only knew REAM so missed the rest of the theme.

WOs: Pact->BLOC, started writing Deser->LEONE.
ESPs: KOTB | TATAMI*, LOQUAT, YVETTE, HITE, spelling CROISSANT took some perpage.
Fav: OBIT's clue was cute.

Saw this the other day - STOAT on a trampoline. [0:21 - might want to turn down your speakers]

{A+, B, B+}

Nice to see you AveJoe!

HG - Is that I Love Lucy's SET?

C, Eh! - I have a feeling most of the world was watching; I saw near real-time tweets from my peeps in the UK.

LeoIII - Yeah, losing George Springer to TOR is going to leave a big hole in Astros' line-up.

I too was a PAPER CARRIER; had both a before-school and after-school route. Like PK said, sometimes selling new subscriptions / collecting the $$ could get scary (we didn't live in the best of neighborhoods) but most folks were nice. My favorite stop was the nursing students' dorm - those girls would so dote on me :->

Lucina - I lived for Christmas tips. In '83, I recall one older lady called me to her porch and gave me a quarter and said "Take your girlfriend to the movies and get her some pop-corn." The next day her daughter apologized and gave me $20; I told her no apologies necessary and she didn't have to do that -- it was just kind of her mom to think about me.

Re: the envelope that comes in the Thanksgiving paper; I always lose it and have to try to track down the driver early in the morning.
Oh, and yes, those presses are amazing and you never forget the smell of that ink.

Cheers, -T
*WAG'd correctly the T 'cuz we had KOTB a few weeks ago when I muffed it.

Lucina said...

Anon-T:
The carriers normally have a self-addressed envelope but I copy it onto a Christmas card and put the money in that.

Overkill? After what happened last Wednesday I would say it was precaution and a wise use of our troops. The FBI said they received hundreds of tips about what was planned for today by various nefarious groups but obviously it was thwarted by the presence of all that security detail. I say BRAVO for the good planning.

CanadianEh! said...

Nobody does patriotism better than you Americans! This Canadian even misted up at JLo’s “This Land is Your Land/America the Beautiful”. So heartfelt! And the anthem by Lady Gaga.

I was most impressed by Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman. (YR@12:02)
Her poem was wonderful and her presentation of it was astounding. I watched her hands and it felt like she was singing the words. 🎶🎶. I cannot imagine the hours of work to write and polish that poem, and then to memorize it! And her poise for her age . . .! ❤️




Michael said...

Leo III @ 6:29 wrote, "I'm not being political when I say that I think Newton Minow's words are as relevant true today as they were back in 1961, when he called TV a vast wasteland:"

And that was in the 'good, old days' of TV!

JD said...

JD here, sending kudos to C.C. for her 13th year of gracing us with this wonderful blog...and becoming a SUPER cruciverbalist!! Thank you!

Michael said...

That's interesting, to see here, how important a factor delivering newspapers was for young people, once upon a time (me included: LA Herald-Examiner on bicycle; LA Times by car after the Army; 'stuffing' the various advertising inserts for the Times).

But that's pretty much gone now -- when we moved to Albany, Oregon last year, I tried to get the local paper delivered, but no dice.

Anonymous T said...

C, Eh! - Considering 1/6, and as a vet, a tingle went though my body when I heard, Lady Gaga sing Key's line: "And our Flag was still there..."

MarketPlace mentioned Laureate Amanda Gorman's (I missed her earlier due to work) Prose [5:56]

Dang!

Cheers, -T

LEO III said...

Michael @8:28 --- Yes sir! Truer word were never spoken - er, typed.

And lest ANYONE think that I'm a prude, I'm certainly not! I fit squarely on the Tom Lehrer side of that fence. I do dislike, however, the gratuitous blood and guts stuff.

What's really funny is that when I'm working, I usually run over and pick up a hamburger at a little kitchenette stuck back in the corner of a gas station. Don't laugh --- best burgers in town, cooked and made to order when I walk into the joint. Sometimes, the ladies doing the cooking have a local talk show on the TV, but sometimes they are tuned to some soap opera. I could do a better acting job those bozos on the TV, and I'm certainly no actor --- and I'd do it for a fraction of what they are getting paid.

Yellowrocks said...

Anon T, stoat on trampoline. I needed a good laugh. Thanks.
Also, your tip reminded me that when I was a waitress a very old lady told me she used to be a waitress and understood how hard we worked. She gave me a quarter. Bless her heart. The usual tip would be a couple of dollars.