Theme: Elementary, my dear Puzzle Solver. One word of each them fill is a chemical element from the periodic table.
17 A. There's an element of doubt to it?: WAFFLE IRON. This is a kitchen device for pressing batter into a shape with dimpled surfaces. IRON is a metallic element with the atomic number 26 and symbol Fe. By mass, it is the most common element on earth.
23 A. There's an element of romance to it?: CARBON DATING. This is the determination of the age or date of organic matter from the relative proportions of the CARBON [symbol C] isotopes carbon-12 and carbon-14 that it contains. The ratio between them changes as radioactive carbon-14 decays. DATING is activity with someone - often, but not always, of the other gender - in pursuit of a romantic relationship.
53 A. There's an element of mystery to it?: SILVER SCREEN. Literally, the screen n which a motion picture is projected; by analogy, movies collectively, or the movie industry. SILVER, beside being the Lone Ranger's horse, is a soft, white, lustrous transition metal with atomic number 47 and symbol Ag. It has the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal. Movies can be, among other things, mysteries, or dramas, or like 64 A. I think this clue is a bit of a stretch. But, then, silver is malleable.
64 A. There's an element of humor to it?: COMEDY GOLD. This is common phrase describing something that is very funny. GOLD is a yellow metallic element with atomic number 79 and symbol Au, used especially in jewelry and decoration and to guarantee the value of currencies.
Found this on Facebook
Hi, Gang - JazzBumpa here to analyze this elementary puzzle. As someone with two long defunct chemistry degrees, I absolutely love this theme.
Looks like this is the premier appearance for Huang-Kim Vu, so congratulations, and welcome!
Now, let's see what other riches we can discover.
Across:
1. Where to hear cutting remarks?: SALON. A place where a stylist can do your do. Nicely clued.6. Tiff: SPAT. Quarrel.
10. "The one over there": THAT. Indication of. specific thing.
14. "Gotta run!": I'M OFF. Alternatively, "There's something wrong with me."
15. Sharpen: HONE. As a knife edge or set of skins.
16. Corned beef __: HASH. A mixture of chopped corned beef and potatoes.
19. Crazy about: INTO. Relating to something you are involved with or enjoy. Crazy about might be overstating it.
20. Prosecco kin: ASTI. A pair od sparkling iotalian wines.
21. Start to matter?: ANTI-. Anti-matter is a substance composed of subatomic particles that have the mass, electric charge, and magnetic moment of the electrons, protons, and neutrons of ordinary matter but for which the electric charge and magnetic moment are opposite in sign. Matter can mean stuff, as a noun, or be of some importance, as a verb. Despite the clever word play, this type of cutesy affix clue has long outlived it usefulness and amusement value.
22. Sing smoothly: CROON.
26. Increased: ADDED TO. Amped up.
29. Carving of a Polynesian god: TIKI. In Polynesian mythology, tiki often represents the first human being on Earth created by the atua (deity) Tane, who, together with Hine-ahu-one, is considered humankind's progenitors. In areas of Polynesia, carved tiki figures were often thought to be a repository for a certain god's mana (prestige).
29. Carving of a Polynesian god: TIKI. In Polynesian mythology, tiki often represents the first human being on Earth created by the atua (deity) Tane, who, together with Hine-ahu-one, is considered humankind's progenitors. In areas of Polynesia, carved tiki figures were often thought to be a repository for a certain god's mana (prestige).
30. "Hips Don't __": Shakira hit: LIE. Fairly sure this is not crooning.
There is no deceit in these body parts
31. "Yikes!": OH NO. Exclamation of dismay.
33. Nana alternative: MEEMAW. A grandmother's title, as bestowed by an infant. This is what my son's kids called Gloria when they were learning to talk. In contract, I remember, her son's oldest, Amanda, asking: "Do I have to call you that?" We said she didn't.
37. __ pressure: PEER. Influence from members of one's peer group. Can be good or bad.
39. Keebler baker: ELF.
33. Nana alternative: MEEMAW. A grandmother's title, as bestowed by an infant. This is what my son's kids called Gloria when they were learning to talk. In contract, I remember, her son's oldest, Amanda, asking: "Do I have to call you that?" We said she didn't.
37. __ pressure: PEER. Influence from members of one's peer group. Can be good or bad.
39. Keebler baker: ELF.
41. Gazpacho, por ejemplo: SOPA. An example of soup - specifically, a cold soup made of raw, blended vegetables, of Spanish origin.
42. Fla. coastal city: ST. PETE. More formally, St. Petersburg, on the Gulf coast, known as the sunshine city.
45. "The Daily Show" correspondent Lydic: DESI. An American comedian and actress [b 1981] who is a correspondent on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. From 2011 to 2016, she starred as guidance counselor Valerie Marks on the MTV comedy-drama series Awkward.
42. Fla. coastal city: ST. PETE. More formally, St. Petersburg, on the Gulf coast, known as the sunshine city.
45. "The Daily Show" correspondent Lydic: DESI. An American comedian and actress [b 1981] who is a correspondent on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. From 2011 to 2016, she starred as guidance counselor Valerie Marks on the MTV comedy-drama series Awkward.
48. Fellows: MEN. Guys.
49. __ Bradley bags: VERA. This is an American luggage and handbag design company, founded by Barbara Bradley Baekgaard and Patricia R. Miller in 1982.
51. If nothing else: AT LEAST. What you might have to settle for.
57. Leg joints: KNEES. The joints between the thighs and the lower legs in humans.
58. Target on a putting green: HOLE. Where you sink you putts. And no gimmies!
59. "Got it": I SEE. Understood.
63. Walkman descendant: I-POD. A portable electronic device for playing and storing digital audio and video files.
66. Course catalog?: MENU. The courses of a meal. Another clever clue.
67. Father of Eros: ARES. Ares is the Greek god of courage and war. He is one of the Twelve Olympians, and the son of Zeus and Hera. Eros is the Greek god of love and sex. Shakira reveals the truth about him.
68. Shoyu flavor: UMAMI. Umami, or savoriness, is one of the five basic tastes. It has been described as savory and is characteristic of broths and cooked meats. People taste umami through taste receptors that typically respond to glutamates and nucleotides, which are widely present in meat broths and fermented products.
69. Cold spell: SNAP. A weather event involving a cooling of the air, or the invasion of very cold air, over a large area. It is marked by a drop of average temperature well below the typical averages of a region.
70. Action at the track: BETS. Wagers.
71. Analyze grammatically: PARSE. Analyze a sentence into its parts and describe their syntactic roles.
Down:
1. Dancer/YouTube star JoJo __: SIWA. Joelle Joanie "JoJo" Siwa [b2003] is an American dancer, singer, and YouTuber. If interested, you can search her many videos on YouTube.
2. Reddit Q&A sessions: AMAs. Ask Me Anythings. [I might even answer.]
3. Ann Taylor __: LOFT. Loft, originally Ann Taylor Loft, was established in 1996 as an extension of the original Ann Taylor brand, offers more relaxed fashions for work and home, in the "moderate" priced category.
4. One end of some commutes: OFFICE. Work place for many.
5. Org. with Giants and Titans: NFL. National Football League.
6. Tibia: SHIN BONE. The tibia is the shinbone, the larger of the two bones in the lower leg. The top of the tibia connects to the knee joint and the bottom connects to the ankle joint. Although this bone carries the majority of the body's weight, it still needs the support of the fibula. If hips dlm't lie, do fibula fib?
7. Coastal city on the Iberian Peninsula: PORTO. Port in Spanish.
8. Choose, as a successor: ANOINT. Figurative. More literally, ceremonially confer divine or holy office upon (a priest or monarch) by smearing or rubbing with oil.
9. Uniform number for Sue Bird: TEN. Suzanne Brigit Bird [b 1980] is an American-Israeli professional basketball player for the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association.
10. Decade that is less than a decade away: THIRTIES. We are now in the twenties. They are not roaring.
11. Location of Hoan Kiem Lake: HANOI. In Viet Nam
12. __ Martin: British car: ASTON. Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC is an English manufacturer of luxury sports cars and grand tourers.
13. Flip-flop: THONG. A shoe that is held on by two straps that go next to the big toe.
18. Habitat for humanity: EARTH. Our home planet.
22. Celebratory slice: CAKE. For birthdays, weddings, graduations, etc.
24. Big fuss: ADO. A state of agitation or fuss, especially about something unimportant.
25. __ sum: bite-sized Chinese fare: DIM. It is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch.
26. Range for yodelers?: ALPS. Range can mean a number of things, depending on context. Here it refers to mountains, not vocal tessitura.
27. Nutrition regimen: DIET. Foodstuffs selected in a nutritional strategy.
28. Profound: DEEP.
32. Outdated: OLD.
34. NYC home of Frida Kahlo's "Self-Portrait With Cropped Hair": MOMA. Museum Of Modern Art, Frida came up the last time I blogged.
35. Chimps and gorillas: APES. Any large primate that lacks a tail, including the gorilla, chimpanzee, orangutan, and gibbon.
36. Desire: WANT.
38. Really got going: REVVED UP. Excited or enthused.
40. Like skeleton racers, seemingly: FEARLESS. Skeleton is a winter sliding sport in which a person rides a small sled, known as a skeleton bobsled, down a frozen track while lying face down and head-first.
43. Some concert merch: TEES. Simple shirts, possibly with complex art work.
44. Mistakenly hit reply all, e.g.: ERR. Make a mistake.
46. Trusty mount: STEED. Just so.
47. __ de la Cité: Paris landmark: ILE. An island in the river Seine in the center of Paris. In the 4th century, it was the site of the fortress of the Roman governor. In 508, Clovis I, the first King of the Franks, established his palace on the island.
50. On dry land: ASHORE.
52. Puzzle: ENIGMA. Something that is mysterious, puzzling, or difficult to understand.
53. Leafs (through): SKIMS. An act of reading something quickly or superficially.
54. How contracts are usually signed: IN PEN. For permanence. INK also fits.
55. "Bleeding Love" singer Lewis: LEONA. Leona Louise Lewis [b, 1985] is a British singer, songwriter, actress, model and activist.
Lips can lie
56. Cleaner sold in green canisters: COMET.
60. Rocket: SOAR. Fly high.
61. Shady bunch?: ELMS. Shade giving trees - they don't lie.
62. Singer Brickell: EDIE. Edie Arlisa Brickell [b 1966] is an American singer-songwriter widely known for 1988's Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars, the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went to No. 4 on the Billboard albums chart. She is married to singer-songwriter Paul Simon.
61. Shady bunch?: ELMS. Shade giving trees - they don't lie.
62. Singer Brickell: EDIE. Edie Arlisa Brickell [b 1966] is an American singer-songwriter widely known for 1988's Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars, the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went to No. 4 on the Billboard albums chart. She is married to singer-songwriter Paul Simon.
64. Taxi: CAB. A vehicle that carries paying passengers
65. "You betcha": YUP. Slangy agreement.
So ends another Wednesday's offering. Hope you reacted well to it.
Cool regards!
JzB
48 comments:
FIRight. A nice, easy, middle of the week. It seems like the difficulty level is decreasing this week. Just a coy plot to throw us off guard.
Simple theme, too, which helped me fill in a couple words after I saw it.
The time had come for ASTON to meet
That great gate keeper -- yes, ST.PETE.
First his record SKIM,
Then PEER DEEP again!
"So you're the one! Your blooper reel is a real feast!"
They planned for the trip with much ADO.
When they were set, something was ADDED TO.
Added a CAKE iced with pastrami,
CORNED BEEF HASH, for UMAMI,
And MEEMAW had a map* from nineteen THIRTY-two!
* It's like a print-out from Google Maps, but impossible to fold up.
{B, B.}
Good morning!
Almost turfed it in the NW corner. I had SIW_, AMA_, and LOF_. Read Prosecco, but was thinking proscuitto and nothing seemed to fit that definition. Three alphabet runs gave me ASTI as the most probable fit. And it worked. Yay. Thanx, Vu (is that your first name or last?), Wendy, and JzB. (That shower stall looks like something Sheldon would want. He called his grandmother Meemaw.)
DNF. Got lost in the NW. Didn't know Siwa or Loft. Nice theme, got it early on.
I braved the elements today in 5:43.
I initially made the same reading ERR as d-o did, but the crosses filled-in for me. I didn't know (or care for) the correspondent crossing the Paris landmark, but there were just a few viable options there, nor did I know the British singer.
I wondered whether Silicon Valley would appear - there is an element of innovation to it.
* Oops. ... reading ERRor....
DNF/FIW. Looked up "prosecco" which gave me ASTI, but had snit for SPAT. No idea for SIWA or AMAS. Don't we sign contracts "with" PEN or "IN" ink? ST. PETErsburg is on Tampa Bay, not on the coast. St. Pete (not petersburg) Beach is on the gulf coast. Do rivers and bays have coasts? Could be, otherwise this one's wrong.
Some people think that THONGs on the beach should be banned. Speedos too. I think such people should be banned.
I guess I'm happy I didn't abandon this one before I started. I did know a few of some of the things I had flagged as obscure, including LOFT, SOPA, ARES and DIM.
Thanks to JazzB for the entertaining tour.
Earlier today, the site wouldn't let me " publish" I'm certainly glad that's fixed now. As to the puzzle, one down was a doozy, and there were a couple of other Naticks along the way, but through P and P and some ESP I managed to FIR, so I'm happy
Fun Puzzle. FIR w/o help. The word ELEMENT in the clues with ?s and CARBON set up the theme which was helpful and clever. The unknown names were perpable.
F_ _ _ L _ S S suggested the unknown FEARLESS. Later I googled skeleton racing.
"The difference between luge and skeleton is that with luge, competitors sled down the track on their backs whereas skeleton competitors sled on their stomachs. Mind you, they do so at speeds upwards of 90 mph." You would have to be fearless to attempt it.
I used to shop at Ann Taylor Loft.
I absolutely hate thongs, which includes flip flops and thong underwear. Annoying and uncomfortable
IMO, "I am INTO" some activity is a good bit stronger than "I like it."
I am into Vera Bradley bags, as is my DIL.
To me a TIFF or a SPAT is a minor argument.
PROSECO, yummy.
I treated my sister to a DIM SUM tour in NYC. We would have done better on our own. The guide's choice of restaurants was not ideal.
" The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea defines a bay as a well-marked indentation in the coastline, whose penetration is in such proportion to the width of its mouth as to contain land-locked waters and constitute more than a mere curvature of the coast." Would not his definition make St.Pete's a coastal city?
The Greek gods come up often in puzzles.
Often the directions say SIGN IN PEN.
Was ready to throw in the pen, the NW was a complete blank except for ASTI; then the WAFFLE part of IRON finally popped into my head; didn't know anything followed "Ann Taylor" but only LOFT made sense so I went for it. FAQS (frequently asked questions) for "Redditt" Q/A was wrong and perpcorrected, finally, with whatever AMAS means the rest tumbled into place ...close one ...FIR. whew!!
Always perpwait on AST_N Martin.
"Hoan Kiem Lake?" (Inkover: Haiti/HANOI, see the first author? )..Sue Bird, Jo Jo, Brickell, Lewis, Lydic??, (it's only Wednesday, why not a "Lucy" type clue for DESI). Didn't we just have "hips that don't lie"? 🤔. EARTH 🌎 our habitat, but for how much longer unless we deal with climate change. ARES god of War IRONically begat Eros god of love.💘
JAZB: Ain't I also a large primate without a tail 🙉
I.C.E. stormed Keebler, rounded up every ELF as an illegal alien worker, all deported back to the North Pole. 😲
What Jinx said about ST.PETE's Beach amd ST PETErsburg.
Thought it was OPORTO, (Portugal): "The Port" like Le Havre, The Harbor (in France).
Lennon and CW commoner: Yoko....OHNO
Fish that can swim backwards...ÎLE
Sib's daughter....KNEES
Singer Dinah was one....ASHORE
More rain 🙄
I really had a hard time in the NW.
Imho, I think it was because 1,2,&3 down were total naticks when crossing 1a, a sexually biased clue/answer...
I had blank, blank, LON, and having no concept or life experience of having my hair cut in a salon, and would only dare venture into something called a "barber shop" if I did not want to be grossly overcharged...
Suffice it to say, I was totally out of my element...
So many proper names and foreign places I didn't know. Some worked out thru crosses but many were beyond me.
Musings
-At least including people who have been famous for about a month like SIWA and DESI didn’t cross each other nor diminish the fun
-The SILVER SCREEN routinely includes an element of mystery with iterations of Agatha Christie works
-COMEDY GOLD
-HONE – my nursery boss contended that dull blades are more dangerous that sharpened ones
-Interesting CROON info
-Sheldon in Big Bang Theory loved his MEEMAW
-My commute ends have been home and school for over 50 years
-My MIL with dementia has vivid memories of the Dirty THIRTIES
-People who REV UP for a living
I like WAFFLE House because at the counter I can watch and listen. They cook everything right there and have several WAFFLE IRONS in use. Very friendly waitstaff
I never heard the expression COMEDY GOLD.
Aha, UMAMI in "fermented products." No wonder I liked the taste of Scotch*
Fortunately, the A's were kind as Wendy and Kim hit us with a rash of pop-cul in NW to start. NFL was a gimme
CSO to Anon-T with ASTON. My Bird was Larry but Sue's pretty good too.
One is apt to see THONGs at St. PETE Beach
I do my xwords in PEN and ink. An anon thought that redundant. If he saw some of the Rorschach BLOTS** he'd have understood
WC(FIR, hooray)
* And tinbeni still does, rumor has it
** Just had it
Who watches all this television and internet programming to come up with these new fills? Surely the constructors saw SIWA and did a google search to see if that assemblage of letters was actually anything in the real world. I also suspect that Lucy’s husband (DESI Arnaz ), Norm’s Cheers wife (VERA Peterson) and arrogant hotel owner (LEONA Helmsley) would have a huge element of mystery to them.
Did just fine today with a Wednesday FIR, so I'm happy too. Caught the element part of the theme just in time before reading JazzB's review. Thanks for your explanations done with wit. I needed your help to understand AMAS.
Had just a couple of WOs, due to starting to spell ANnOINT before seeing it was wrong. The downward direction can confuse me. Otherwise, clean fill which I enjoyed, Vu and Wendy. Thanks!
Good links, CED! Nice to have smiles this rainy morning. Hope everyone is doing well.
(Second attempt to publish...)
Puzzling thoughts:
FIW. Couldn't undo the error I made with SNIT/SPAT, despite the odd look of the crossing words "INOINT" and "NORTO" in the "North Dakota" section
I liked the WAFFLE IRON clue the best. "WAFFLE" - in addition to the breakfast food - can mean to be "wishy-washy"/change your mind or position/be indecisive - hence, the "element of doubt"
A la WC, I too had never heard of the term "COMEDY GOLD". And Wilbur, add me to the short list of those who enjoy Scotch. I definitely prefer those that are more peaty and smoke-flavored
I canceled my paper subscription, so I am now adjusting to doing the puzzles on my computer. It "feels" slower than when I solved IN PEN. And of course, no more "w/o's"; just red letters when I make a mistake
SIWA was an unknown - I needed help with that one. AMAS was another weird entry. As d-otto is known to say, getting a good foothold in the NW corner is paramount to having fun solving puzzles. My "fun factor" with this - on a scale of one to TEN - was a 7.4
BTW, I am going to cease and desist giving you all a head's up on any future puzzles I blog - no more "spoiler alerts"
Thank you Vu and Wendy for a crunchy Wednesday, a TFIW due to FTPR (technically finished it wrong due to failure to proofread). I should have gone back to the far East as it really didn't make a lot of sense due to my LUST to fill 36D. A lot of good stuff though and like JzB I reallly liked the theme.
And thank you Ron for another fine review and for all the revealing musical selections.
As a potter I found a lot of the fill to be highly interesting:
17A WAFFLE IRON. I like IRON, as it is one of the most versatile colorants in ceramic glazes. Depending on the concentration, oxidation state (Fe203, FeO, or Fe3O4), glaze composition ("basic" vs "acidic"), and atmosphere (oxidizing vs reducing) it can produce REDS, GREENS, BLUES, YELLOWS, BROWNS, and BLACKS. And because it's so abundant it's cheap!
23A CARBON DATING. CARBON based fuels have long been used for firing kilns, but they have fallen out of favor due to their contribution to global warming. Thus there has been a shift toward electric kilns in the last 20 years. However I won't go into how that electricity is generated.
53A SILVER. One of the few elements mentioned that isn't too useful, due its tendency to rapidly oxidize and turn black. However this property was very useful in traditional photography.
64A COMEDY GOLD. GOLD tends to evaporate in ceramic kilns, except at very low tempertatures. However very low-fire coatings known as "lusters" can be applied to previously fired gloss glazes. Here is an example called "The Bread Plate" (aka "Christ in the Corn") that was made by my great, great uncle Felix Pratt of Fenton, England for the Great Exposition of 1851 in London. The ears of wheat ("corn")and the Bible verse (Matt. 12:1-8) around the rim were created with GOLD luster.
8D ANOINT. Literally "to smear or rub with oil as a part of a religious ceremony". Perhaps the most famous anointing in the Hebrew Bible took place in 1 Samuel 16:13, with the anointing of David by Samuel.
18D EARTH. The creation of ceramics requires the traditional elements EARTH, AIR, FIRE, and WATER.
Cheers,
Bill
There are men's salons. I never had my hair cut at a barber shop. Not being male doesn't hinder me from knowing of barbershops.
Vera Bradley bags are ubiquitous. Women always comment on my bag, "That's a Vera Bradley isn't it? " The only way men would know of them is when their women friends and family members ask for them as gifts or ask their DH to pay for them.
SALON, NFL and OFFICE were gimmes that gave me I'M OFF and ASTI and opened up the NW.
Last night we heard a wonderful SWING BAND perform tunes from the 30's and 40's, some of which debuted before we were born or when we were little kids. We knew of most of them because there was a neo-swing revival when we were in our teens and 20's. The concert was very well attended and much appreciated.
WAZ
I used to rub graphite powder into my fired clay models after a coat of shellac.
Made them look more like bronze sculptures.
Aha, Steve Bania GOLD
C-Moe. I have an insert from tbtimes with Monday-Saturday xwords(and jumbles). Somebody asked me to keep my hints to myself. Of course to mention that Saturday proved difficult is only redundant
WC
Hi Y'all! Thanks for the challenge, Vu & Wendy. Thanks, for your elementary hard work, JzB.
That NW starter block was a true ENIGMA and last to fill. I knew of JoJo from TV's Dancing with the Stars. She insisted on having another woman as her partner -- the first ever to do so. However, I had no idea what was her last name. Also DNK LOFT or AMAS. Couldn't get SALON, OFFICE or WAFFLE from the clues. Did get NFL on first pass.
I did like the elements theme when I finally figured that out.
I knew TIBIA was the big leg BONE, but never call it SHIN.
DNK: SOPA or Gazpacho, VERA, DESI, EDIE but perped in easily. Don't think they sell VERA Bradley bags out in this area, YR. But my friends were never handbag snobs. That seems to be a more recent phenomena.
MEEMAW? Meh!
By the way, TTP, thanks for clearing out my "duplicate", etc., from my post this morning. You're always on the job, and you do a good one!
PK, I think we are not hand bag snobs. The bags are colorful, convenient, with lots of pockets, and come in many styles. The concept is easily recognizable. We like that we can depend on them; though the colors change, the styles are the same and you know how your stuff will fit in them. They hold a lot and keep us organized. Whether for myself or for gifts I always buy those on sale. I am not stuck on brand names, but when a find a brand I like, I stick with it.
I see Vera Bradley is sold in KS, maybe not near you. I buy online.
Hi Gang -
Gary - at a meeting this morning that got way off topic, one of my friends commented that a dull knife is more dangerous. A sharp knife will cut true while a dull knife will wander. I opined that that should be a song title.
waseeley - on the buject of silver and ceramics, the heating grid in the rear window your car is a ceramic containing metallic silver as the conductor.
Yelloerocks - one of the bands Im play in focuses n music from the 30's and 40's.
Cheers!
JzB
Fun Wednesday puzzle, with a few toughies here and there--many thanks, Vu and Wendy. And your explanations are always totally helpful, JazzB--thanks for those too.
Had a good start in the top middle, with SPAT and HONE giving me SHINBONE and ANOINT.
I'm afraid the only DESI I know is DESI ARNAZ.
Like others, had IN INK before SKIMS and MENU turned it into IN PEN.
It makes sense that a guy named ARES might name his son EROS.
The ALPS seem to show up in puzzles every few days. Glad I come from AUSTRIA and know my ALPS.
Have a great mid-week, everybody.
Hola!
Thank you, constructors, for today's interesting puzzle which was a bit of a challenge for me but FIR.
How things change. Lately I've been going to a barber shop for haircuts and the lady does a good job. These days I just need a trim about every two months.
One of my friends loves clothes from Ann Taylor LOFT because they have a tailored look which appeals to her. VERA Bradley bags are beautiful but I've never owned one.
So now we have a different clue for DESI. Recently I've been trying to watch shows like TMZ and others to learn more popular culture and what I have learned is how drastically times and attitudes have changed!
Great clue for ELMS.
Thank you, Ron, for your always detailed and erudite explanations which I really appreciate.
And now, I'M OFF! Have a great day, everyone. Rain? Really? How quaint.
JzB @12:42 PM Makes sense. Silver is an excellent electrical conductor and as long as it's sealed in some kind of silicate (an excellent heat conductor) it won't oxidize.
Musings 2
-Our granddaughter is headed to D.C. in August to get her master’s at American University. Today she took her friend to the Omaha airport from Lincoln and dropped in to see us on the way back. At lunch I asked her about some of the fill in today’s puzzle and here are her immediate replies:
-Me: Ann Taylor ___
-Emma and my lovely bride: LOFT
-Me: Have you ever heard of anyone named SIWA
-Emma: Yes, that’s Jojo on TikTok
-Me: Hips don’t ___ by Shakira.
-Emma: LIE
-Me: The Daily Show" correspondent Lydic
-Emma: DESI
-Me: ___ Bradley handbags
-Emma and my lovely wife together: VERA
-Me: Bleeding Love singer?
-Emma: LEONA Lewis
How ‘bout dat?
Gary, it's interesting to me that crossword puzzle enthusiasts, as a general rule, seem to be of a certain age (again, I said for the MOST part, there are always some exceptions.) Perhaps our editor (and some of the constructors) harken to a younger generation. That's one theory for the "cognitive divide" between some of the clues and answers recently and the ability to solve them some of them for some of us. I am 67 years old myself, but try to stay current as much as I can. It keeps me young!
Jazz: Nice write-up. Good Job
ST PETE ... my home town,
Now I am about 20 miles north in Tarpon Springs.
A "Toast-to-ALL" at Sunset.
GO LIGHTNING !!!
Cheers!
A clever PZL from the Vu/Brandes team, 'splained by Jazzbumpa.
It reminded me of my HS Chem class, with the periodic table on the front wall.
This is the class in which I blew up a tube of acid, pocking my face and ruining another kid's shirt.
(Hey! At least I had the good sense to run to the big bottle of lime water and splash it all over the two of us.
I still don't think the vice principal gave me enough credit for that.)
Lest we Forget: Notre Dame Cathedral is on the eastern end of Ile de la Cité, atop the ruins of the Roman temple to Jupiter.
~ OMK
_____________
DR: One diagonal, on the near side.
Its anagram (14 of 15 letters) may strike some readers as vulgar, but it stems from an historical reading of Aristotle's Poetics.
In writing of tragedy, Aristotle explains that its chief function is to induce catharsis.
Previously the term was used in medical literature for the purging of the physical body.
In Tragedy, therefore, such a cathartic theme may be defined as the...
"ENEMA LEITMOTIF"!
Thank you Huang-Kim Vu and Wendy Brandes for a nice but challenging Wed puzzle, that I enjoyed. I did not 'get' the theme, until JazzB explained it, but it would have eventually, seeped into my mind .... but I was occupied with some other matters.
Thank you JazzBumpa for a charming review blog of the puzzle. Your punny, laconic attitude is appealing and quite humorous. Thank you.
Re:; Iron or Ferrum being the most common element on Earth .... Google says that the most common elements on the surface er, Earth's crust, are:
1. Oxygen (!) at 46.1%,
2. Silicon @ 28.2
3. Aluminum @ 8.23%
4. Fe - Iron @ 5.33% ... so, Iron is only number four on the surface, atleast...
followed by Calcium @4.15, Na Sodium @2.36, Mg Magnesium @2.33 and Potassium @2.09
I was surprised Carbon was not mentioned, with all the peoples, animals and plant life etc.,
BTW, the most common element in the universe is Hydrogen, but not so much on our Earth.***
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So, now, we have to 'know' the Youtube contributors too ????
What's next, the tik-tok editors ??
*** On elements, and The Periodic Table, may I recommend the book, The Disappearing Spoon, by Sam Kean.
It will absolutely fascinate anybody who has an interest in Chemistry and the Elements !!@!!!@@
Have a nice day, all.
Third times the charm...😁
Anyhoo..
ANON @ 9:44 AM
I agree. Some constructors when backed into a corner, stuck with nonsense fill for which they need to find a clue, likely resort to Google or these crossword computer banks I hear tell about and come up with anything that fits, often an obscure name, set of initials, variant etc. 🤔 I'm sure other authors put in the time and "go back to the drawing board" and redo sections of the puzzle to avoid cryptic fill.
(Constructors, yer forbidden to respond to the above cuz yer not allowed to anymore by recent order of the CW PO-lice 👮♀️👮♂️🚨)
After all the bellyachin' no one took me up on requesting an occasional designated puzzle with no proper names or foreign language (like themeless Saturday) so I'm startin' up a petition. A large blank crossword will go out. You can sign it wherever the number of blanks matches the letters in your name. ( wait ..a puzzle with All proper names, sheesh!) 😲
🤣🤣
The Disappearing Spoon, wiki ... by Sam Kean
Pardon, my 'fake' avatar ... I am on a public computer .....
Third time ....
I forgot, the word DESI, used by people in Pakistan, India and Bangladesh ,,, is like Paesano ... a person from 'back home' or from the South Central Asian regions.
From 'desh' meaning land, or motherland,.... desi is someone from the desh.
Also .... ABCD .... stands for American Born Confused Desi ....
A second generation desi who is not quite sure whether he or she is Asian or American...
No ENIGMA for this Chemistry major when it came to filling out this puzzle today. Never heard of COMEDY GOLD but the perps solved the element. Ditto for SIWA, DESI, TEN, & LEONA. Since my Vietnamese neighbor directly across the street is named HOANG (his personalized license plate) and the constructor was HOANG-Kim Vu, HANOI was a given for a five letter fill for the unknown Hoan Kiem Lake.
Hips Don't LIE & Bleeding Love- unfamiliar with either song but I tell DW that 'chair dancing' doesn't count; only hip dancing.
Shoyu flavor UMAMI- just a good guess
THONG- formerly sandals, now a style of panties
WMOS, the NW was a bear. I managed to FIR but took 37 minutes. DNK SIWA, AMAS, LOFT, LEONA, or ILE. 7D I tried to think of a specific city, until the V-8 can hit. Not being able to sleep all night didn't help me this morning. I liked the theme a lot, and got it early when WAFFLEIRON filled, which also finally got me a toe-hold in the NW. Thanx H-KV&WLB. Thnak you for all the work you put into your fun write-up, JzB. The best news of the day: I went back to the gym for the first time since the C-19 pandemic hit. I managed about a half of what I used to do, but it's a start.
Hello everybody. I have not yet done the puzzle or read any comments. I wanted to come here right away to share with you an experience I had while drifting off to sleep last night. Some of you may know, and some of you may have experienced, that sometimes flashes of insight come to you just as your mind is transitioning from wakefulness to dreamland. I had an especially interesting insight, so startling to me that I burst out in loud laughing that startled my wife. I recalled that at 2:10 PM on June 6th, with regard to the discussion about inanehiker's real last name, waseeley said Aw shucks Nina. Is it an anagram of "ehiker"? At the time I didn't get it, and it is a tribute to the subtlety of waseeley's joke that it took 2 days to for my mind to digest it. Sheer genius to recognize the humor of a name or situation by what is missing from it! That was subtle, dude, and I hereby commend you for it.
Now to do the puzzle.
Hi All!
Thanks Hoang-Kim & Wendy for not crossing names ;-) I love the puzzle theme for Elements of wit.
Thanks for illustrating all the unknown names, JzB. Enjoyable expo.
WOs: ANnoiT (Hi ATLGranny!, hARTH [sic] -. EARTH, started SKans->SKIMS
ESPs: SIWA, PORTO, SOPA, LEONA, ILE
Fav: I'll go with ENIGMA #AlanTuring
DW would shop and my Amex would report Ann Taylor LOFT. Otherwise, I'd never have known 3d.
54d - When closing on a new house, we only signed two documents IN (blue) PEN. The other, seemingly 1,000 documents were electronically signed.
//my joke - "The last time I signed this many documents, I found myself in the Army." :-)
{LOL+, B+}
OMK re: DR. I will have to Google both those words later ;-)
FLN - Thanks fro dropping by The Corner, Robin.
SS/Anon@6:58a - Props to ya': Silicon Valley [13] / Element clue is brilliant.
Ray-O: I've never participated in Redit but we've had AMA (Ask Me Anything) aplenty in the last few years.
BTW - DESI Lydic is FFFunny. Somewhat crude but she's worth a Google [spoiler #politics]
HG - re: Musings 2... Just goes to show you what relics we have become :-)
Gotta run, er, IM OFF. Cheers, -T
I liked this puzzle and was able to finish it without having to look anything up or resort to red letters or alphabet runs. That's the way I like it, not that there's anything wrong with looking something up if it results in a learning experience. Nifty theme. Some really excellent clues, such as the ones for ELMS (Lucina liked it), SALON and MENU, (Jazzb liked them), and OFFICE (I liked it). TIRE pressure had to be changed to PEER pressure. SALON didn't fool me, which is a good thing because I had no idea about SIWA, AMAS, or LOFT.
I learned the term DESI from my PAKI friends, who use it to refer to Indians, as distinct from Pakistanis.
Good wishes to you all.
AnonT.
Used to be a "Daily Show" addict..and Desi Lydic was/is a great political humorist. I'd recognize her face but I wouldn't have picked her name out of a hat. I'll have to squirrel away AMA for next time 😊
Jayce: I thought Pakistanis considered the term "Paki" offensive. But times change and so do expressions so I may be off base.
Vidwan @3:25 PM JzB's statement "By mass, it is the most common element on earth" is probably true if you include the core which is largely made of iron.
Wonderful Wednesday. Thanks for the fun, Huang-Kim and Wendy, and JazzB.
I FIRed and got the theme (which I loved).
The SW corner was a problem again today. (Unlike a lot of you, I was ok in the NW.
IN Ink changed to IN PEN, that gave me IPOD (which I had wanted), Skips changed to SKIMS with MENU, and LEONA perped.
All the other names perped thankfully, since more recent celebrities were used (ie. DESI used to be Arnaz).
This Canadian only knew MEEMAW because a friend spends the winter in Florida, and says that it is the southern word for Grandma.
I learned UMAMI here; I knew that we had AMAS here before but couldn’t remember what it meant when it perped.
Wishing you all a good evening.
Vidwan @3:25 PM However if we're talking about only the crust of the Earth then O, Si, and Al would be the major constituents, which as it turns are the major constituents of clay (a byproduct of the decay of Feldspars, the most abundant mineral class on Earth)
I think the NW corner needed to be redone but i managed. Downfall yep for yup. Steve
Ray-O-Sunshine, you are normally right.
But in context, '... my Paki friends ...' is a qualifier,
... that indicates friendship and connotes filial intimacy, hence that normal pejorative is negated ... completely !!
It would have been a different story, if I, as a stranger, and of indian heritage, might have used that word, ... which I would certainly, normally avoid.
Maybe if we all .... started calling Indians, .... as Indies, ( Like the West Indies -) then things might equalize and everything would become, as equally, acceptable.
BTW, this Paki business started in England, where both Pakistanis and Indians were the lower, uneducated, under employed class, due to unlimited, general immigration, ... hence this sensitivity to certain 'code' words, and shibboleths, which became, and were suddenly deemed inappropriate, by those immigrants, .... primarily, due to the percieved racism and job and housing, discrimination ....
... here, in the US, or in Canada, that is not generally the case, since the immigration was based, on the most part, ... on highly qualified people only, ....
.... hence people, from those emigrated countries, readily became a lot more thick skinned and blase' about short forms ... just my IMHO.
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TTP, I realize this is one of the forbidden subjects and topics on this blog ... but I hope my neutral opinion will get me a special dispensation .....
Waseely,
your point is well taken ... I just read your post.
I also just came across this HIGHLY ACADEMIC paper, where on Page 4, the botton paragraph, among other places, indicates that Iron is the most common element in the earths core , and the earths mass ...
BTW, if you can read the rest of this above-referenced, academic paper ... without getting a headache ... then I will gladly, salute you ....
AL is one of the most common elements on the earth's crust, yet because of its reactivity, it was very difficult to reduce it to the pure metal - before the Hall -Heroult electrolytic process... and Hall was from Toledo, where I believe Jazz Bumpa now currently resides.
Down and out.
YR, I didn't mean to call you a handbag snob. I have some female relatives who are just that. I haven't bought a new one in 18 years. I don't go anywhere so mine is loaded with necessities to grab in case of emergency transport.
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