Theme: GIMME A BREAK (53. Kit Kat bar slogan ... and hint to the starts of the answers to starred clues)
20A. *"Come to your senses!": SNAP OUT OF IT.
11D. *Do some stand-up: CRACK A JOKE.
28D. *Debate tiny details: SPLIT HAIRS.
Boomer here.
Finished a busy week of 8 or 9 appointments at the hospital last week. I received chemo, physical and occupational therapy there, as well as consultation from the oncologist and neurosurgeon who removed my tumor two months ago. Also met with my primary care doctor on Friday. Most of the reviews were good so life goes on.
Across:
6. Pots' cookware partners: PANS. Even though PANS comes alphabetically first, people never say "PANS and POTS".
10. Read, as a bar code: SCAN. Or - how to find a map on the internet.
14. Not dry, as a cake: MOIST. April showers bring May flowers.
15. Rectangle calculation: AREA.
16. "Alice's Restaurant" singer Guthrie: ARLO. "You can get anything you want" there.
17. Word with bear or vortex: POLAR. We have had an experience dealing with POLAR weather all across the country this year.
18. Put in order: SORT. I have been trying forever to put baseball cards in order. They are manufactured in sets, but sold randomly in packs.
19. Single __ whisky: MALT. I prefer a chocolate one.
23. So-so grade: CEE.
24. Chicago Bulls' org.: NBA. Not much a fan here. I am
disgusted with the MLB. Most owners are billionaires. Average player
salary is a half million. Who do they think they are?
25. Stallone's boxer: ROCKY.
27. Cellphone bill statistic: USAGE. I think we pay monthly, not by use.
30. __ Artois: Belgian beer: STELLA.
32. Dadaist collection: ARPS. Jean Arp.
33. Hourly charge, e.g.: RATE.
35. Mustard named for a French city: DIJON. Pass the hot dogs.
38. Pitcher's goof: BALK. Runner gets a free base.
39. Hunting dog's pickup: SCENT. We had a German shorthair when I was young. I don't think he had the nose needed.
41. Response to "Marco!" in a pool game: POLO. TV commercial.
42. "Ghostbusters" goo: SLIME. "Who you gonna call ??"
44. Raggedy doll: ANDY. Also Amos' buddy in old sitcoms.
45. Rubber-stamped: OKED.
46. Popular Campbell's soup: TOMATO. Popular garden crop in Minnesota.
48. Window sections: PANES. A broken one could be a PAIN.
50. "You've got to be kidding": OH MAN.
51. Ruby or emerald: GEM. Diamonds are a girl's best friend.
52. Airport safety org.: TSA. There is a real mess at the
Minneapolis Airport. If you expect to travel it takes about 30-40
minutes to park your car (use Uber) then another half hour or more just
to get through the TSA inspection. Oh - and wear a mask.
60. Corrosive stuff: ACID.
62. Small-town parade street: MAIN. When I grew up, our street
was called Excelsior Boulevard. Later, when I had Boomer's Ballcards on
the street it was changed to Mainstreet.
63. "__ no choice": I HAVE. Sorry, you might choose a different 5 letter word.
64. Farm building: BARN. My great uncle Bill's farm BARN in Siren, WI is in bad shape. I remember it being there when I was four years old!!
65. Voting against: ANTI.
66. Spooky: EERIE. Double letter Great Lake.
67. Bear in two constellation names: URSA. Baseball -- Majors and Minors.
68. Dieter's beer choice: LITE. I think Miller started this. But they spelled it wrong.
69. Stuffy-sounding: NASAL.
Down:
2. Bart Simpson, e.g.: TOON.
3. Country singer McCann: LILA.
4. "I need it now!" letters: ASAP. As sweet as pie ??
5. Stiff, as a drink: STRONG. Aaron Judge?
6. Ziti, for example: PASTA. I like angel hair.
7. Suffix with buck: AROO. Also works with Captain Kang-- Right Mr. Green Jeans ??
8. Spongy ball brand: NERF. Too soft for golf.
9. Stephen Colbert device: SATIRE.
10. "Cheers" bartender: SAM. Where everybody knows your name.
12. Bowling venue: ALLEY. NEVER! NEVER! NEVER! It's called a LANE! The ALLEY takes you into the parking lot behind the building.
13. Musical scale part: NOTE. Do, a deer, a female deer.
21. Taxi alternatives: UBERS. We have used them a time or two.
22. Let the cat out of the bag, so to speak: TOLD.
26. Pre-tied tie, e.g.: CLIP-ON. I have never used one. I tie one on, then go to a party and TIE ONE ON.
27. Eurasian range: URAL.
29. Dad's punting words: ASK MOM.
30. Shorthand ace: STENO. I do not think STENOs are used anymore. Past history talent.
31. Work the bar: TEND. My friends and I used to work the bar from the patron side.
32. Core muscles: ABS.
34. "Never try to outstubborn __": Heinlein: A CAT. Especially Felix.
36. World Cup cheers: OLES. Couple of guys from Sweden.
37. Wordless consent: NOD.
40. Ultracompetitive personality: TYPE A.
43. Online periodical: E MAG. Seems like everything is online now.
47. Zoo inhabitant: ANIMAL. "Something told me it's all happening at the zoo." Simon and Garfunkel.
49. Sleep aid brand: AMBIEN.
50. Hollywood award: OSCAR. After "Best Picture" I don't pay much attention.
51. Fabled lamp occupant: GENIE.
52. "Forbidden" perfume: TABU.
54. __-pedi: MANI.
55. Catcher's glove: MITT. Romney.
56. Actress Seehorn: RHEA.
57. Corn units: EARS. I have two big ones.
58. Reebok rival: AVIA.
59. Boat backbone: KEEL.
61. Forensic evidence: DNA. Darn Nasty Attitude ??
Boomer
37 comments:
FIRight. It's Monday.
Theme: Meh. It's Monday. Tho after SNAP & CRACK, I was wondering if the next one was going to be POP.
At the check-out, each item they scan,
From the KIT-KAT BAR to the frying PAN.
They tried to get me
To do it for free,
But the system don't work for a dotty old man!
STELLA was doused in a STRONG SCENTED SLIME!
She'd been searching for relics of ancient time.
But a GEM that was EERIE
Was guarded by a GENIE
Who'd been saving up slime since the start of time!
{A-, B+.}
In spite of the fact that I wanted to use the grammatically correct "give me a break" rather than " gimme a break", I soon came right and FIRed, as is usual for a Monday puzzle.
FIR with no erasure. DNK RHEA, and only sorta knew LILA.
I have six-pack ABS. I like them so much I have grown a nice, soft, protective layer over them.
In telephony talk:
POTS - Plain Ole Telephone Service
PANS - Pretty Amazing New Stuff
I use a GENIE DVR from DirecTV. I can record four channels while watching another channel. Don't need that many very often, but two often aren't enough.
Thanks to Janice for the nice, easy Monday puzzle. And thanks to Boomer for persevering through all the tribulations. Attitude matters, and yours is great.
At the start of Southeastern Conference play, I whined about the prognosticators ranking Kentucky fifth in the SEC. The season's over, and here's the final standings. I've listed the teams in initial ranking, followed by the actual result:
1. Alabama: Tie 5th (with LSU, Texas A&M, Florida & South Carolina)
2. Auburn: 1st
3. LSU: Tie 5th (with Alabama, Texas A&M, Florida & South Carolina)
4. Tennessee: Tie 2nd (with Kentucky)
5. Kentucky: Tie 2nd (with Tennessee)
(Arkansas wasn’t ranked in the top 5, but finished 4th behind Kentucky and Tennessee and ahead of Alabama, LSU, Texas A&M, Florida & South Carolina)
We'll really know what's what after the conference tournament in Tampa.
Good morning!
Got the so-so theme. No, really. I knew ALLEY would pull Boomer's chain. Finished in good Monday time. Thanx, Janice and Boomer.
CLIP-ON: My employer ditched the tie requirement in '96. Haven't worn one since, though dw claims there's one in the closet for emergencies. Can't imagine what the emergency could be.
STENO: Wound up taking secretarial typing in high school. (Long back-story.) Could do about 80 WPM on a Royal manual at one time. Can still do 60+ on a keyboard. I've never regretted learning to type.
DNA: Just finished a new book by a genetic historian about how the Americas were settled by humans. There's still no real consensus, though most specialists agree that it happened much earlier than previously postulated. Like 15,000 years earlier.
I broke through in 3:34 today. Not a lot to say about it other than I didn't know Lila, Rhea, and don't think of "oked" as the same thing as "rubber stamping."
D-O, Americas were settled by humans?
I'm often convinced its aliens.
D-O, my dad used to say that everyone should have a "wedding and funeral suit". And one of my sisters could type 80 wpm on a manual Royal. I was enthralled by the sound. She ended her career as a stock broker / investment counselor, so I guess "steno" wasn't a promising career path.
Jinx, I'm happy with just a birthday suit.
Anonymous comments @6:51 Ha, ha ... Aliens still coming to America in large numbers, with or without permission....
Thank you Janice Luttrell for a nice and easy Monday puzzle. I even 'struck out' on Ambien, on my first attempt. I have a relative who was addicted to it, for quite some time ... now out of it.
Thank you Boomer, for your humorous review and various puns and jokes. Your medical appts are also vaguely familiar to me as well, but different docs. Keep a strong attitude and keep faith, ... things will work out.
I too, took a semester's worth of touch typing courses, a long time ago, but now I do so little typing that I have forgotten how to touch type ... so its back to hit and peck ....
Have a great Monday, all you folks.
Internet is out so FIR today on my phone. Works OK but I prefer ink on paper. Got the theme with the reveal and had a few type overs (tidy/SORT and faa/TSA). Did not know LILA and RHEA but perps saved me. Amused by the surprise ASK MOM. Thanks for the fun start to the week, Janice. And thanks, Boomer, for your review and health update!
I learned to type during high school too, DO, in a summer course. Very useful through the years, though I now mostly poke with one finger on my phone and use the suggested words above the keyboard a lot. Another rusty skill is writing letters and notes in longhand. Muscles forget how. Last long letter I wrote was to a grandson for his birthday, partly to give him practice reading cursive.
On with the day. Enjoy!
FIR, nice Monday romp.
ATLGranny, my handwriting has always been atrocious, but in recent years it's gotten worse. Now, if it was written more than a day ago, even I have difficulty reading it.
1,2,3 and done. I liked this very easy Puzzle. When Alan went home yesterday and I could concentrate I filled the Sunday puzzle fairly quickly. I had one mistake that should have been obvious. Too bad I can't concentrate on Saturdays.
"Why is stenography still used a lot today?
Live stenographers ensure not only that every utterance is accurately documented, but also who said it, and when they said it. They are able to certify that the resulting transcript is true and correct according to what they heard and witnessed. ... And that is why live stenographers still and will continue to exist."
Alley: Like many other cases here, the cognoscenti differ with Jane and Joe Blow. We Jane Does use alley, which is still in the language.
Many bosses use ASAP where STAT would be more accurate. Additionally, our principal often used suggestions which implied a choice, but were totally mandatory.
I laughed at "Never try to outstubborn a cat." I love cats. No matter how affectionate they are, they are "their on person." They are not people pleasers like dogs. I still miss Kahlua after all these years.
Split hairs reminds me of many of the nits seen here.
"ATLGranny, my handwriting has always been atrocious, but in recent years it's gotten worse. Now, if it was written more than a day ago, even I have difficulty reading it." Me, too. My typing has also deteriorated.
Have a nice day.
Pretty fast , typical Monday - my hang-ups were self inflicted - I thought 12D was "bowing venue" and put altar in before single MALT whiskey made me take a second look to see it was a "bowling venue" which was ALLEY. I knew Boomer would make sure we were set straight in the blog!
I also had ARTS before ARPS and was filling in quickly so put STENO in 39A first instead of SCENT - as Splynter used to say - well it was 60% right.
Thanks Boomer - hope this week is a little calmer but still productive
and to Janice for a clever theme
Musings
-I literally can’t write faster than that
-SPLIT HAIRS – “It depends on what your definition of 'is' is”
-CRACK A JOKE – A former friend used to tell a joke and then laugh uproariously right after the punchline no matter how lame it was
-State BB tournament starts today. Parking, admission, program and concessions will all be done with a SCAN
-I sub in Arlington, NE and it goes by “ARLO”
-NBA – Haven’t (and won’t watch) watched a second of it. Dunks and 3-pointers get dull very fast.
-Unlike Johnny Carson, Colbert finds SATIRE on only one side of the aisle
-It’s been many years since we have seen an OSCAR-winning movie
Good Morning:
This was an easy peasy Monday with a cute theme and reveal. I had a few stumbles with Arte/Arps, FAA/TSA, and Rust/Acid. I, too, was unfamiliar with Lila (was hoping it was Lily) and Rhea. There were some nice CSOs to Ray O and Inanehiker (Scan), Ray O and Anon T (Pasta), Alley (Sorry, Boomer), and HG, CED, and Hahtoolah (A Cat). Some cute pairings were Malt/Stella/Lite, Rocky/Oscar, Scent/Tabu, and Mani/Main. Frosting on the cake was the A Team: Area, Stella, NBA, TSA, Ursa, Lila, Pasta, Type A, DNA, Rhea, and Avia. More frosting was the very low count of only 6 three letter words.
Thanks, Janice, for a pleasant start to the week and thanks, Boomer, for the irrepressible Boomer humor. Setting and circumstances aside, you look great in that picture! Keep up the good work!
Have a great day.
Marvellous Monday. Thanks for the fun, Janice and Boomer (we felt your pain with ALLEY!).
I FIRed in good time and saw the theme (like OwenKL, I wanted SNAP, CRACKle, Pop at first).
RHEA and LILA were unknown, but perps were friendly.
My pitcher goofed with a Ball before a BALK.
Our Campbell’s TOMATO soup had no rice today..
Irish Miss has already caught all the pairs, and A Team (not CEE) for our TYPE A people.
I smiled at OKED crossing NOD. We had ANTI for the other side. Let’s ASK MOM to decide.
Another smile at the A CAT clue. Like YR, I love cats, and agree that they are “their own person”. We had one in my childhood that lived 16 years, and then another for my children that lived 18 years. No cat now, but many happy memories.
Hand up for taking typing classes in high school. I earned some extra cash at university typing essays for fellow-students. And I did not need keyboard lessons when computers came on the scene.
Wishing you all a great day.
Marvelous Monday! Thanx, JL, for this CW. Mondays are my level: FIR in 11. Only W/O TELL:TOLD. DNK LILA, RHEA, but perps rescued me there. As soon as I filled “ALLEY” I thought, oh my, we will DEFINITELY hear from Boomer about this, and we did. Thanx Boomer for your as always entertaining write-up. Hang in there with all the medical stuff, we’re all with you. Let me just mention once more: I really enjoyed filling this CW w/o a big struggle.
Thank you Janice for GIVIN' US A BREAK from the vicissitudes of the past weekend with this Monday stroll.
And thank you Boomer for 'splainin' the clues while CRACKING some SMILES. 😊😊😊
A few favs:
1A ATLAS. At least this one didn't SHRUG.
16A ARLO. Didn't we dine there recently?
30A STELLA. My favorite lager. Too bad I gave up ETHANOL for Lent.
3D LILA. Here's her breakout "Down Came A Blackbird".
7D AROO. "The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension" has been on my bucket list forever. This may be an inter-dimensional message to me to finally watch it.
12D A***Y. We all saw that coming Boomer. Don't you have any pull with Rich to stop this kind of abuse?
30D STENO. Typing was the only useful skill I learned in HS. Still use it every other Thursday.
56A RHEA. Didn't she work for 10D?
Cheers,
Bill
Jinx @5:30 AM Knew about POTS. Thanks for PANS, unknown to me.
D-O @5:36 AM I have such an emergency coming up in a couple of weeks - a nephew is getting married in Alabama. I'll tie mine with a Full Windsor.
Word of the Day Ukraine
Pronunciation: yu-krayn
Part of Speech: Noun, proper
Meaning: The name of the Slavic nation between Poland and Russia.
Notes: In the late 1990s the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign affairs initiated a campaign called "Correct UA", a branch of which, called Kyiv Not Kiev, set out to identify Ukraine to the world as a sovereign nation since achieving its independence in 1991. The "the" in front of Ukraine implied to the Ukrainian ministry that it was still a territory, so should be removed. The adjective is Ukrainian and it may be used as a noun referring to the indigenous population of Ukraine.
In Play: English had relied on the transliterations of Russian words for Ukrainian cities, like Kiev, Lvov and Kharkov. Kyiv No tKiev also attempted to change these spellings in the lingua franca to their Ukrainian correlates,: Kyiv, Lviv, and Kharkiv. By 2019 the campaign had succeeded in most if not all its objectives.
Word History: Defiant serfs fleeing the Russian feudal system in the 16th century headed to the outer limits of Muscovy to escape the reach of the grand prince of Moscow. Ukraine came from the Old Russian phrase u kraju "at the border, edge". The Muscovite grand prince at that time had little influence in those sparsely populated distant lands. As the number of Cossack bands increased the region assumed the name Ukraina "land at the edge".
For more info see Word of the Day
Typical Monday..maybe even easier that usual. Inkover : FCC/TSA, ball/ BALK, (I can't be the only one). Theme: different kinds of breaks. Why doesn't the "pre-tied ties" have a star? (STELLA) *...CLIPON?
stat "I want it now!!" (LIUed: "from the Latin word statim, which means “instantly” or “immediately.”) ...ASAP, " A soon as possible" Seems to be a common CW error. (where is Sir Richard Change-à-lot when you need him?😏).. Boomer, STENOs still used in court. My 1967 HS typing class were the first to use electric typewriters...oooooh!! ☺
In our house Dad said "ASK the Boss"
Recipe: "First you make ____ "...AROO
Peter's paternal side.....PANS
An inexperienced lion tamer might be ___ MALT
Recipe: "In addition to parsley, rosmary and thyme" ____ USAGE.
Rabbit dissections SPLITHAIRS
Mideast country....OHMAN
Boomer..looking gooood.😃
Thought I would give you a break today
by not including any silly cat links.
Also, the gimme a break links were pretty outlandish as well.
So far, the one thing today that did give me a chuckle
(Because it reminded me of me)
was today's Pickles.
Even better was the featured comment below,
It said:
Earl should go to the Memorial and say "plethora."
It would mean a lot...
Good morning. Thank you, Janice and Boomer.
Boomer, I too knew that you would react to ALLEY being clued that way. Keep up the good work and keep recovering.
On a side note, one of C.C.'s Crossword Corner pages of yore is now used in a Google Featured Snippet. Google search "Remember Roman Numerals" to learn more.
Yooper Phil, in response to C-Eh's periodic comments about Canadian disadvantage, you'd written that you would like to try some Canadian crosswords. How about American style crosswords written by a Canadian constructor with Canadian solvers in mind ?
Google search "Best Crosswords", go to the Themed Archives page, then enter Barb Olson and Moderate in the search parameters. I'm about 2/3rds through her 60 moderate crosswords there. They are all fun and challenging.
Just noticed that her most recent one (Easy level) was published 5 hours ago. Have fun. Oh, and yes, a definite American disadvantage in some of the clues and answers !
I noticed on the steno instruction chart that there were no fingers associated with the letters C, I, J, M, N, Q, V, Y, and Z. But S was listed 3 times.
Delightful Monday puzzle, easy but still clever, many thanks, Janice. So great to see you on a Monday, Boomer, thanks for doing this great job even after such a busy week. Take good care of yourself.
So nice to see SAM back at the "Cheers" bar.
I loved the picture of the ARPS collection!
Liked the link between OH MAN! and GIMME A BREAK!
Sometimes simplicity wins the day, like ANIMAL for Zoo Inhabitant.
Have a great week coming up, everybody.
Hi All!
Oy - I had some bad sushi last night. It was shiny. I should have know better but I was famished; now I'm worse. I'll muddle.
Oh, the puzzle...
Monday easy. Thanks Janice for 15 min of fun. Cute theme and I loved throwing Colbert in there.
WOs: DeJON, AVIs
ESP: there were names (LILA, RHEA)
Fav: Hearing Boomer is doing well. And your expo.
I don't know what's wrong with baseball either. They need to get their s*** together and put on an exhibition.
How'd I (and D-O) know 12d would send you Boomer? :-)
//And how'd you miss linking STELLA & ROCKY? :-)
{A+, A-}
I almost entered Ball b/f BALK and was going to go full WilberC mad 'cuz a good pitcher (SAM - y'all remember his back-story, right?) will throw a ball on purpose to jank the hitter. The clue/a stands and I have to wipe some egg from my face.
Marco POLO brought PASTA back from China. And then we (degos) added TOMATO sauce. #GAStroHistory :-)
Jinx knows the POTS for dial-up. #ThumbsUp
HG - LOL what 'is' aint.
D-O: I signed up for typing in HS. There were girls there! //helloooo, C, Eh! & ATLGranny :-)
I got one, 1!, day in before the vice-principal deemed me into Algebra II. Yes, Big E, it was C.E. Byrd.
//Mavis Beacon had a CD and she's why I can touch type to this day.
My handwriting is print. Drafting classes and leaning graffiti has a way of making one precise.
YR, My little Sister will visit in June. She's coming to Houston to take a STENO test and get a court reporter cert. I can't wait to see her again.
//it's kinda funny 'cuz she has to dictate cursing on the machine 'cuz that's what the perps say in court. We both learnt new words :-)
Y'all have a great day.
Cheers, -T
A solid PZL from Ms. Luttrell, worked out by Boomer.
I had a different idea of what was intended by the answer for 32A. I thought it meant a collection of works by M. ARP, probably by another collector.
But judging by the photo displayed,
there needs to be an apostrophe in the fill, viz., ARP'S.
~ OMK
____________
DR: Just the one diagonal on the near side.
The top anagram (11 of 15 letters) identifies a person given to humorous errors in speaking, named for the character who appears in the 1775 comedy, The Rivals, by Richard Brinsley Sheridan.
Such a silly person may be called a...
"MALAPROPIAN"!
(A person following in the tradition of Mrs. Malaprop!)
Nice puzzle!
Stopped by to check on Boomer -- and to see his reaction to the ALLEY clue. No disappointments!
I always enjoy Monday’s for a few reasons. The puzzle is usually not a struggle which sometimes is the case in the previous three days. Also, the comments are usually upbeat as most regulars on here are not stymied by the solve, and then we get to see Boomer’s always entertaining take on the grid. 👋🏼 back at you Boomer! Nice to see you in good spirits with your medical travails of late, hope you continue too improve. Thanks to Janice for easing us all into the week. Managed a FIR in 9 minutes, would have been quicker if I didn’t start with GIVE ME instead of GIMME, solved a lot of the Down words by Across fills, so missed some of them till the expo. Hand up for thinking ARTE instead of ARPS.
Jinx ~~ in reference to your ABS, are you saying you built a shed over your tool?
TTP ~~ thanks for remembering that I had asked that of CanadianEh! and for referencing the Google source, I will definitely take a look, sounds interesting!
Boomer Glad to know you are still alive and strong enough to rant about ALLEY vs LANE!
KIT KAT is our preferred handout at Halloween, though we had no takers this year. Learning moment about the GIMME A BREAK slogan.
I do still use real MAPS to navigate. I like to understand where things are, not just have a disembodied voice tell me turn by turn directions. I meet lost international students in Santa Barbara who don't even know the street they are staying on. Because they have transferred their brains to their "smart phone". I can't see that this will end well.
Here DW and I are holding up the ATLAS Rock at my favorite hiking spot!
I must have a couple of hundred photos of people on my Sierra Club hikes posing as if they are holding up the ATLAS Rock!
From Saturday:
Bill Seeley, AnonT Thanks for the learning moment about Cap'n Crunch and the 2600Hz whistle to make pirated long distance calls. My dearly departed Cousin Sam made a Blue Box for that purpose. Did not know about the whistle.
Husker Gary: SUNSHINE Superman by DONOVAN indeed is a delight worth listening to!
From Friday:
Ray O Sunshine Thanks for the reminder about instrumentals Grazing in the Grass and Classical GAS. My favorites, too. Learning moment that the Grazing in the Grass melody came from Africa.
Funny ATLAS Pic, Picard
It was I who linked SS
WC(As I recall, Gary linked Denver
Too funny. What will Phil do next?
Picard, I also like a paper map for planning. For detail work I like many of the online maps that I can zoom in for more detail. And being a "belt AND suspenders" kind of guy, when I'm going to someplace new I usually call the office and ask them for directions. I It is usually unsafe to try to turn around a 40 foot motor home and a towed CRV, especially since I can't back up without disconnecting the car. I've had car GPS units send me across a road that was closed before GPS was invented, to cross a river where there is no bridge or ferry, and to tell me that my destination is on the left when it is actually on the right. And some of the routing is so far from optimal that it is hard to believe that the algorithm were written by humans for humans.
I liked this puzzle and everyone's comments. Been running errands all day so late to the party.
Thanks for the humorous review, Boomer. Very glad to hear that the news was good.
Anything you want . . 'cepting Alice.
TTP and Yooper Phil- I remember that discussion, and I did mention finding a Barb Olson CW that I was not impressed by at that time. But I did her March 7 CW at the site TTP listed. Not bad . . . and there were a few clues that might stump a non-Canadian.
Yepper!!! While I use my Garmin religiously when driving, anytime I stray out of town, I have my US Rand McNally and my MAPSCO Roads of Texas atlases. I ALWAYS have my TxDOT state highway map and my Texas Travel Guide in the car. Whenever I cross a state line, I stop at the welcome center and pick up the state highway department map and travel guide, and I browse through POI racks for targets of opportunity. In a crunch, there is too much information Mr. Garmin CANNOT tell me!
Soup: I only eat Campbell’s brown (Bean and Bacon) or green (Split Pea and Ham).
OSCAR --- Boomer, you pay more attention than I do. It’s part of my problem here at the Corner, but I’d rather have a DNF or FIW than suffer through the junk coming out of Hollywood these days. That includes most of the stuff on TV too.
I too learned how to type in high school, courtesy of my dad who handed me the typing book and a typewriter and said, “Learn this!” Later, I had an official class in the service, but I already knew how. Best thing about that class was seeing how the typing teacher (a very nice lady who might have taught my dad how to type) ran the class. After I got out of the service and went back to Turtle U, I had a job teaching typing (and IBM keypunch) at a business school for $3.25/$3.50 an hour, while other students were lucky to be getting a buck an hour flipping burgers. I can still hold my own on the computer, although the BACKSPACE key tends to make me rather sloppy.
Nice Monday puzzle, Janice, and nice write up, Boomer! Thanks!
CanadianEh, yes there are plenty of clues and answers in Barb Olson's crosswords that would be a disadvantage to American solvers. Many references to Canadian people, towns or cities, festivals or recurring events in provinces, government and agency abbreviations and of course, having to use the British English spellings in some of the answers. The most difficult for me is when two Canadian-specific answers cross.
Her March 7th crossword was labeled as easy. I was clueless at "C.P.P recipients", "Manitoba town, from "mouse" in French", and at the "town in B.C.'s Cariboo", but managed to perp those in. Her moderate level crosswords would be tougher for most American solvers. One clue was "Their motto is "Maintiens le Droit" crossing a clue with a three letter answer for an event in Vancouver. That was tough, but it perped in as my final entry. Canadians probably auto-filled the first, and perhaps the second is relatively well known as well.
I searched the Corner blog history of LA Times crosswords, and she has yet to be published here, but has apparently been published in the NY Times. I also searched all of the blog comments, and could find no mention of her name by anyone, ever. Perhaps you mentioned finding her crossword somewhere else, or in an off-blog email ?
I can fully sympathize with what you are up against from time to time as you solve the LA Times crosswords.
Post a Comment