google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Tuesday, July 26, 2022 / Mary Lou Guizzo and Jeff Chen

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Jul 26, 2022

Tuesday, July 26, 2022 / Mary Lou Guizzo and Jeff Chen

Game Night.  The END word of each theme answer is a board GAME.

16-Across. *   "Now you see what I deal with every day": WELCOME TO MY LIFE.

26-Across. *   "Our goose is cooked": WE'RE IN TROUBLE.


40-Across. *   Tools that may make one say, "Damn you, autocorrect!": SPELL CHECKERS.





54-Across. *   "No idea": I HAVEN'T GOT A CLUE.

And the unifier:

62-Across. Last stage of a chess match, and what each answer to a starred clue literally has: ENDGAME. Everything you wanted to know about the Endgame, but didn't know to ask.



Across:
1. Rental for some exercise classes: YOGA MAT.  Yuck!  Sorry, but I would never rent a Yoga Mat.


8. Vice President Harris: KAMALA.

Kamala Devi Harris (b. Oct. 20, 1964)

14. Make move, as a cartoon: ANIMATE.

15. Grapefruit kin: POMELOS.  The Pomelo is native to Southeast Asia.


18. Clandestine org.: NSA.  As in the National Security Agency.



19. Shortfin shark: MAKO.


20. Facts and figures: DATA.  Hi, Picard!


21. EMT's skill: CPR.  The Emergency Medical Technician better know how to perform CardioPulmonary Resuscitation.

24. More than fix up: REDO.

32. Color selection tools: PALETTES.  One of Van Gogh's palettes as seen in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.


33. Defeat badly: TROMP.

35. Extended a performance, in a way: ENCORED.

36. "The Good Doctor" actress Thomas: ANTONIA.  I have never seen The Good Doctorso was not familiar with Antonia Thomas (née Antonia Laura Thomas; b. Nov. 3, 1986).


38. "Their Eyes Were Watching God" novelist Zora __ Hurston: NEALE.  Zora Neale Hurston (Jan. 7, 1891 ~ Jan. 28, 1960) makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.


39. Stereo components: SPEAKERS.

43. Fly high: SOAR.

44. "Jeopardy!" co-host Jennings: KEN.  Ken Jennings (né Kenneth Wayne Jennings, III; b. May 23, 1974) has made a pretty good living with his trivia knowledge.  Not only was Jeopardy! good to him, both as a contestant and a host, but he has appeared on other trivia game shows, such as Masterminds and The Chase.


45. Regarding: AS TO.

49. Heavy burden: ONUS.

51. Cake mix need: EGG.


59. Desert illusions: MIRAGES.


60. Source of pint-sized beverages?: MINI-BAR.



61. Use: EMPLOY.

Down:
1. Show sleepiness: YAWN.

2. Tip jar bills: ONES.

3. __ monster: lizard: GILA.  //  And 8-Diwn. __ dragon: lizard: KOMODO.  What is the difference between a Gila Monster and a Komodo Dragon?

4. Theater chain initials: AMC.  As in American Multi-Cinema.

5. Chairman who led China's Cultural Revolution: MAO.


6. Bank drive-thru device: ATM.  The Automated Teller Machine is a crossword staple.

7. Swarm (with): TEEM.


9. "Vice" Oscar nominee Adams: AMY.  Amy Lou Adams (b. Aug. 20, 1974) portrayed Lynne Chaney in the movie Vice.


10. Blend: MELD.

11. "Search Party" actress Shawkat: ALIA.  Alia Martine Shawkat (b. Apr. 18, 1989) also portrayed Maeby Fünke on Arrested Development.


12. Hay storage area: LOFT.

13. Drifting aimlessly: ASEA.

15. "__ Face": Lady Gaga hit: POKER.


17. Small fruit pastries: TARTS.


21. New Orleans cuisine: CREOLE.  Creole versus Cajun cuisine.

22. Seabirds that often follow ships: PETRELS.  Everything you wanted to know about Petrels, but didn't know to ask.

23. Solemn ceremony: RITE.

25. Scene not meant to be seen: OUTTAKE.


26. Decreases in strength: WANES.

27. Yosemite peak, familiarly: EL CAP.  El Capitan, affectionally known as El Cap, is more than just a big rock.


28. "The Simpsons" neighbor Flanders: NED.



29. Kaput: BROKEN.

30. Solitary sort: LONER.



31. Kuwaiti rulers: EMIRS.

32. Ballpoint, e.g.: PEN.   A brief history of the Ballpoint Pen.


34. Faux __: PAS.  Today's French lesson.

36. Tailless primate: APE.

37. Bottle part: NECK.


39. "So what" shoulder gesture: SHRUG.


41. __ Tunes: LOONEY.

42. Leans to one side: CANTS.  Probably the most famous CANTer in the world ...



45. Je t'__: French "I love you": AIME.  More of today's French lesson.

46. Leveling device: SHIM.

47. Canvas cover: TARP.

Blue tarps after a hurricane

48. Avocado shape: OVAL.


50. A few: SOME.

51. Idris of "Luther": ELBA.  Idris Elba (né Idrissa Akuna  Elba;b. Sept. 6, 1972) also played Stringer Bell on The Wire.


52. "Where America's Day Begins": GUAM.  According to this article, Guam is not technically where America's Day Begins.



53. "Chicago" star Richard: GERE.  Richard Tiffany Gere (b. Aug. 31, 1949) starred in many, many movies.


55. Sense of self: EGO.

56. Metal container: TIN.

57. Plus: AND.

58. Smoke, briefly: CIG.



Here's the Grid:



חתולה

Today would have been my mother's 92nd birthday.  Sadly, it is also the day that I lost my grandmother, who died 20 years ago today, just 1 week shy of her 96th birthday.


48 comments:

Subgenius said...

Well, they got me on this one, folks. And all because I didn’t know how to spell “ Kama(e)la”! So, I can’t say I’m “ happy “ getting an FIW so early in the week, but it’s not the end of the world. After all, nobody’s perfect!

OwenKL said...

FIWrong. An easy puzzle, too, but not without naticks. Misspelt KaMODO, and didn't know POMELOS [Spell check does not recognize this word] nor ALIA.had two themers filled, but that wasn't enough to give me the the cute theme before I hit the reveal. So a double loss for me.

WELCOME TO MY LIFE, friend Boo!
I'm sure it's confusing to you.
It's so filled with rubble,
I fear WE'RE IN TROUBLE,
And what it means, I HAVEN'T A CLUE!

You never can win against SPELL CHECKERS.
They make the rules, we're the lepers!
They rule on the huff
And other such stuff,
Jump our eloquence, and leave us all beggars!

{A, B.}

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

I was going to congratulate Mary Lou and Jeff for another reveal-less creation. Oops, it was there. D-o didn't read it. D-o also didn't get the theme. Life goes on. Excellent tour, Hahtoolah. (I knew those differences between Cajun and Creole, but didn't remember them.)

GUAM: When I was stationed on Guam back in the '60s, it was a three-stop flight from CONUS: San Francisco to Hawaii, Hawaii to Wake Island, and Wake Island to Guam. Commercial planes of the day couldn't cross the Pacific without a couple of fuel stops.

Jinx in Norfolk said...

FIR, but erased nelle for NEALE. Got all three Natick WAGs at POMELOS x POKER, ALIA, and KOMODO. I knew KOMODO but wasn't sure how to spell it. As Dirty Harry said, "a man's got to know his limitations." Also DNK ANTONIA, PETRELS or AIME.

I've seen some shows that always include OUTTAKES at the end, and some appear to be planned just for the OUTTAKES segment.

A friend's boat was named MIRAGE. He totaled it in an offshore incident, but found a sistership to replace it. He dubbed that one "MY RAGE".

FLN - C-Eh, that OTIS Spunkmeyer company sells dough, ovens and marketing collateral to small stores and restaurants. The cookies are fresh-baked daily and, at least the white chocolate macadamia nut variety, are delicious.

-T, Software estimating is problematic. About the closest we came was to count function points and multiply by an amount (work, duration, and/or dollars). After completing Detail Design, estimates were refined. PMs usually work in the world of cost, not price, and it is the salesperson (who like the fancy title "Account Manager" or "Account Executive") who quotes a price to the customer, with margins for overhead, risk and profit.

Thanks to Mary Lou and Jeff. Didn't hate this one, but thought it was closer to Thursday material. But any puzzle that uses "Damn you, autocorrect!" is ok in my book. And thanks to Ha2la for the fun review. Lots of pictures are good for louts like me.

Hahtoolah said...

Good Morning, Crossword friends. I haven't played a board game in years, but we played some of the games in today's puzzle when I was a kid. I think the game we played most often was Monopoly.

QOD: Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. ~ Aldous Huxley (né Aldous Leonard Huxley; July 26, 1894 ~ Nov. 22, 1963), English writer and philosopher

Anonymous said...

Took 5:08 to end the game today. Didn't see the theme.

Pomelos, Alia, Antonia, and petrels were unknown, and confused me. "Encored" seemed forced, which was troubling with a novelist (that I don't know, but have probably seen in crosswords before) mixed-in there.

I think I'm having a difficult time believing that you can rent a yoga mat.

ATLGranny said...

Another FIR today and enjoyed the ENDGAME theme. A couple of WOs due to not reading the CLUE carefully and not knowing GUAM was where America's day begins and not some morning show like GMA, etc. Also not clear about the difference between inre and AS TO. Thanks, Mary Lou and Jeff, for energizing my brain cells today.

Hahtoolah, another stellar review from you today with many lighthearted moments, as we've come to expect from you. Informative too. Thanks!

FLN It was nice to see so many people come by to post again, like Bill G, Java Mama and oc4beach.

Have a good one!

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

This was an enjoyable solve with a very well hidden reveal, at least to me. My only unknown was Antonia, despite the fact that I’ve seen every episode of The Good Doctor. The only cast members that I can name are Freddie Highmore, Hill Harper, and Richard Schiff. Conversely, I knew Alia Shawkut immediately, despite the fact that I have only just recently been introduced to her in The Old Man series with Jeff Bridges. Interestingly, in the first few episodes, you weren’t aware of her abundant freckles, but in a later episode they were not only emphasized visually, but they were the focus of a revealing anecdote later on in another episode. I thought this puzzle’s fill was above average in freshness and sparkle, not surprising considering the authors.

Thanks, Mary Lou and Jeff, for a satisfying Tuesday and thanks, Hahtoolah, for the cheery commentary and comical cartoons. I’m sure Lucina appreciated the photo of Idris Elba! 😉
Owen, loved number one. 👍

Have a great day.

Sherry said...

Love the card ,honoring Mom's.
Hadn't heard of Petrels, Escape, nor Guam described as where ...
Counted 11 capital names of which I knew 3. Sussed out a few more.

Sherry said...

Not Escape but El Cap.

Bob Lee said...

When we were young and played LIFE, we never quite understood why you got money at the end for each child in the car. We would say, "Time to sell the kids to the gypsies."

Fun puzzle, even though I didn't know some of the people names, but I got them via the crosses.

PK said...

Hi Y'all! Fun puzzle, Mary Lou & Jeff. Always enjoy your expos, Hahtoolah. Thanks.

Forgot to look for a theme until Hahtoolah 'splained.

Je t'dore before AIME.

DNK: POMELOS, ANTONIA, AMY or ALIA. Wow, all "A" names.

I'm a big Ken Jennings fan. He makes me smile. He may be a legend genius, but he's not arrogant.

Monkey said...

FIR, but had no clue about two of the games: LIFE and TROUBLE.

ENDGAME is also the title of a play by Samuel Beckett.

Good and easy puzzle this morning.

Fun cartoons from Hatoolah.

Lemonade714 said...

Thank you Mary Lou, Jeff and Susan for a some sunshine on a very rainy day here in SoFla. No beach walk today, but the puzzle was a walk in the park.

Pomelos were a wonderful surprise for me when Oo had me eat them In Thailand as I never cared for grapefruit, but they are just different enough to be quite yummy.

Be happy and well all

waseeley said...

Thanks Mary Lou and Jeff for all the fun and GAMES and a slightly crunchy FIR. Of the 4 themers I recall spending a lot of time playing CHECKERS and CLUE as a youngster.

And thank you Hahtoolah for another well illustrated and hilarious review. You set the MAXIBAR for the blogging team.

Some favs:

15A POMELOS and ALIA. DNK either and swagged a lucky L to avoid a FIW.

16A WELCOME TO MY LIFE. Not only a board game, but a seminal computer game invented by British mathematician John Conway.

40A SPELL CHECKERS. A CSO to Michael on Sunday for introducing me to the term "Autodefect". And he didn't mean "using a car to flee the country".

62A ENDGAME. Is it a coincidence that this was the LAST Across clue?

9A AMY. The only movie I recall seeing AMY ADAMS in was in the 2016 film "Arrival", a really innovative movie about just how alien aliens might actually be.

Cheers,
Bill

Yellowrocks said...

Fun, easy Tuesday puzzle, Mary Lou and Jeff. I needed the reveal to be in the game (parse the theme). I have played all those games, some with the kids and some with other adults. TROUBLE seems to be the only one strictly for kids
Susan, great review. I liked the Mom's jobs list.
I made the same FAUX PA as others, C instead of K for KAMALA and KOMODO. Embarrassing, because now I remember having seen that before. Alas, too late.
My only unknowns were easily perped, ALIA, ANTONIA and AMY, all names. A perp or two suggested others which were buried in my mind.
PETREL was a gimme with only the P.
I learned today that encore can also be a verb.
Ken and Mayim have been announced as the permanent Jeopardy hosts.

unclefred said...

FIR hours ago with my usual dazzling speed, in this case 21 minutes. Others have mentioned the many things I DNK. Curious that living in FL for over 50 years, I DNK POMELOS. Oh well. I enjoyed the challenge of this CW, a bit crunchy for a Tuesday, but doable, even with the 10 names. After finishing the CW I went back to look at some of the many interesting links Hahtoolah had included, among them: Gila vs Komodo, Creole vs Cajun, Petrels, Ballpoint pens, and Guam/Wake Island. Thus, with other interruptions, hours later I'm finally here to post the fact that I did not see the theme until Hahtoolah 'splained it. Perhaps if I had taken more time to search for the theme, I might have found it, but I was eager to get to Hahtoolah's linked bait. Anyway, thanx MLG&JC for the fun. And thanx too to Hahtoolah for furnishing hours of entertainment in her, as usual, outstanding write-up.

Misty said...

Fun Tuesday puzzle, many thanks, Mary Lou and Jeff. And as soon as I saw all those wonderful, colorful pictures and clever explanations, I knew it had to be you, Hahtoolah! Many thanks for your wonderful work, as always.

My dressing room, thankfully, has a carpet, so I never need a YOGA MAT to do my morning exercises.

Loved seeing KAMALA in this morning's puzzle.

KEN Jennings is doing a good job on "Jeopardy," but I still miss MAYIM BIALIK. She'll always be my favorite "Jeopardy" host.

Might one of your MIRAGES in the desert be a MINI-BAR?

Loved your first poem, Owen.

Have a cool day, everybody.

Malodorous Manatee said...

Un mirage a trois avec Crepes Suzette,certainement une bonne facon de commencer la journee.

Lucina said...

Hola!

I finished the puzzle at about 6 AM but returned to bed and slept some more. Did not analyze it so did not see the GAMES. I've played LIFE, CLUE and CHECKERS but not TROUBLE. I believe that Michael Douglas was in a move called THE END GAME many, many years ago.

When we travel to California and drive through the Mohave Desert, MIRAGES do appear at times but they are more likely to be a semblance of water.

This is the first time I have seen ENCORED as a verb.

Yes, Irish Miss, I did a double take when I saw IDRIS ELBA. He is a fine looking man! Not too long ago he was a guest on ELLEN. Imagine seeing him there for almost an hour! It was almost more than I could take.

When I used to go to the gym, MATS were available to use, but it didn't take me long to realize that I needed my own. That's when I purchased mine.

Thank you, Mary Lou and Jeff for a fun run and thank you, Susan, for an entertaining expo.

Have a terrific Tuesday, everyone!

Lucina said...

Misty, as I understand, Ken and Mayim will alternate hosting every two weeks.

OwenKL said...

"In some games a player who fails to capture forfeits the piece which should have performed the capture. This forfeiture is known as a huff. The huff rule is used in traditional and informal draughts (a.k.a. checkers) games. In tournament play, failing to capture is simply an illegal move."

unclefred said...

C.C., please email me, I have an idea for a CW. I tried emailing you, but unfortunately it was an endless process of "second verification" notifications that didn't arrive and other problems.

CanadianEh! said...

Terrific Tuesday. Thanks for the fun, Mary Lou and Jeff, and Hahtoolah.
Officially a FIW, but I did get the theme.
My downfall was the NE corner. I arrived here to see that I made 4 errors there! Yikes!

This Canadian was feeling bad for entering Pamela instead of KAMALA for your VP. But I see, Americans did not spell her name properly either (although I was really off track with the P).
That also left me with eLIA, not ALIA (I’m betting ML and J’s clue was “ Et ____”)
I started with leMELOS and changed to PeMELOS with POKER, but never corrected the e to O.
That left me with a peMOnO dragon. Yes I had REnO instead of REDO.

Thanks Jinx for the info on Otis cookies. I see they have some Canadian outlets. I will have to watch for them.

Wishing you all a great day.

Monkey said...

MM: Quelle bonne idée.

Jayce said...

I liked this well-constructed puzzle and solved it all without having to look anything up, which is the way I like it. As has been said before, by me and others, good construction means fair and gettable perps that can make getting totally unknown names possible. The only snag for me was having ADD and MIDIBAR which prevented the tada; it took me 5 minutes to hunt it down and fix it.

I know the name KAMALA Harris, perhaps because she's from California.

I also didn't know ENCORED could be a verb. It grates on my ears.

Some medications advise you not to eat grapefruit; I wonder if one should also avoid POMELO.

Hahtoolah, thank you again for a terrific write-up.

As for the host of Jeopardy, I frankly don't like Mayim Bialik. Here's why. She seems to me to be constantly just acting and not sincere, especially noticeable when she interviews the contestants after the first commercial break and responds with canned phrases such as "That's amazing!" Then there's her tone of voice. Imagine the tone of faux excitement when one says something like, "Oh wow, look at that!" She talks like that all the time. "Thank you, Johny Gilbert!" "A true Daily Double!" "How much do you want to wager?" "Here are the clues." All in exactly that same fake-excited tone of voice. It strikes me as completely insincere and mechanical. By contrast, Ken Jennings comes across as sincere, conversational, and truly interested in what the contestants have to say. (And my wife likes the way he sometimes bugs his eyes.)

Good wishes to you all.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-A true Tuesday delight at every turn, Mary Lou and Jeff.
-A POMELO and a PETREL are real things and the obscure names worked themselves out.
-Nebraska’s Willa Cather wrote the classic My Antonia about settling the Great Plains
-The ONUS has been on me lately as my great 82-yr-old golf partner’s distance is WANING
-Freddie Cannon sang of a “CREOLE lady with flashin’ eyes”
-ENCORED – I guess there is no noun that can’t be made into a verb

Ol' Man Keith said...

DNF, because I wasn't sure of the spelling of the 2nd letter in either POMELOS or KOMODO. I pronounce them with a schwa, and never had to write either word.

Otherwise, a decent PZL from the Guizzo/Chen team, deciphered by Hahtoolah.
Thank you, all three!
~ OMK

Bill G said...

Hi everybody.

Have you Jeopardy fans noticed that when Mayim is introduced, Gilbert says, "The host of Jeopardy, Mayim Bialik." But when Ken is introduced, he says, "Hosting Jeopardy, Ken Jennings." Significant? Dunno...

~ Mind how you go...

desper-otto said...

Huster, try to make a verb out of "lake."

Jayce, I absolutely agree with you about Jeopardy!

desper-otto said...

Bill G, as of today Johnny Gilbert will be saying, "The host of Jeopardy!, Ken Jennings. Or maybe he'll start saying "co-host." Of course, due to pre-recording, those programs won't air until several weeks from now.

sumdaze said...

Fun puzzle with an attractive grid. Unfortunately I was thwarted by KaMODO and PaMELOS. A "spellchecker" might have fixed that.
Thank you to Mary Lou and Jeff and to Hahtoolah. Your comics are so fun -- and sometimes they help me to remember for next time!

Ol' Man Keith said...

Hola! sumdaze ~! Join the club!
Along with me, Yellowrocks, Jinx, CEh!, &c.
None of us fancy cruciverbalists were sure of the spelling at the crucial Natick of PO- and KO-!

But we are now.
~ OMK

Anonymous T said...

Hi All!

While I nailed every WAG in the NE, I missed the E in NEALa for the FIW. :-(

As a fan of Chess, I like the unifier. Thanks for the puzzle Mary Lou & Jeff.

As always, a giggle-inducing expo, Hahtoolah. And blessings on this day to you and your maternal ancestors.

WOs: I had a clothed(?) KOMOnO [sic] dragon.
ESPs: AMY, ALIA, ANTONIA, NEALa | PETaLS, AIME, ELBA
Fav: Hey? No, it's computers in our LOFT.
//Growing up in SPI, our garage was actually an old barn with a real loft -- including a hay door and a working pully! The LOFT was the place to be after school. Epic rubber-band battles with our toy-soldiers would ensue.

{A+, B}

Waseeley beat me to the Game of LIFE I programmed for a class (AI?)

D-O: Hurricane Harvey 'laked' my front lawn.

IIRC, in Trebek's book, he said they taped two weeks of shows in a single day. That may be why they co-host two-weeks at a time.

They played CREOLE... [Sultans of Swing 12m]
//Outside of Italy (or Boston's North End) the best food for the money is in New Orleans. And they even have some good Italian there ;-)

Is anyone at The Corner on Chess.com? Maybe a friendly game some Sunday afternoon [after all the relocations are complete!]

Cheers, -T

MaryLou said...

I am happy to hear the puzzle was enjoyed by many. Thanks for all the kind words.

“Damn you, autocorrect!” are indeed words uttered all too frequently by moi. SPELL CHECKERS, can’t live with them, can’t live without them…

oc4beach said...


Nice puzzle and write up today. I managed to finish it in reasonable time under 10 minutes.

We played all of those board games and many more when I was a kid and when my kids were growing up. Now that my kids and grandchild are grown up, we don't get to play them as much anymore. Sigh!

I hate spell check and auto correct with a passion. I try to turn them off, but they keep getting re-enabled on my phone.

I hope everyone had a great day today.

CanadianEh! said...

Jayce- yes, the interaction of some medications and grapefruit also applies to pomelos, Seville oranges and limes. (I won’t bore you with the explanation re reducing the activity of cytochrome 3A4.). With statin drugs used for cholesterol control, there may be alternatives (ie. no grapefruit with Lipitor but ok with Crestor).

Picard said...

Hahtoolah Thank you for the shout out regarding DATA.

I was searching for photos of GUAM, a stopover on one of my Asian travels. In the process, I found a photo of DATA from an airport exhibit in Los Angeles.

Here is my photo of the actual head of DATA on display in that exhibit.

Yes, the NE was a cluster of proper names and unguessable words. Fortunately, I am quite familiar with KAMALA, KOMODO and POMOLOS. No idea about AMY or ALIA which took ESP.

sumdaze Can you please update your Profile with your email address?

From Saturday:
Wilbur Charles Thanks for the comment about my AZTEC video.

Jayce said...

Thanks for the information, especially about Seville oranges and limes, CanadianEh! Good to know.

Hahtoolah said...

Anonymous T: Thanks for the Dire Straits. A favorite of mine!

inanehiker said...

Finally got around to solving- going on vacation tomorrow - so lots to do before I go.
We loved playing GAMEs. I thought of "Avengers: End Game" and the chess show "The Queen's Gambit" when I thought of the theme.
TROUBLE was notable for its Pop-O-Matic in the center instead of rolling the dice. Our kids had that game, but growing up I played the almost identical game Aggravation, which had marbles for pieces and rolling the dice.

I think it's good to have the two hosts for Jeopardy - I like them both - but Ken always seems a little stiff and bland and Mayim has relaxed into it as she has hosted more.
Actually Anon-T - they tape a week of Jeopardy on each day(5 shows) and they tape 2 consecutive days a week, usually Tu/Wed which is nice because the only person they have to bring back the next week is the winner of the 10th show. You have to fly yourself out for the taping- but even the 3rd place winner can cover the cost with that plus the cost for a really reduced rate for a nice hotel as well as a free shuttle back and forth from that hotel to the Sony Picture studios. Anybody they bring back the next week- or many weeks for people like Ken Jennings they pay for the flight and hotel.

Thanks Susan for the always entertaining blog and Mary Lou& Jeff for the puzzle!

Michael said...

Joyce @ 2:35--

Grapefruit is on the no-no list only because there once was a fad diet of drinking ½ to 1 gallon of GF juice a day. This level overwhelms an enzyme system in the liver, which generates bad hepatic juju. Eating ½ a grapefruit occasionally does no harm This per the Mayo Clinic's research newsletter of a decade or two ago.

Wilbur Charles said...

Easy week followed by a hard week. Misplaced my insert and solved online. Luvme hahtoolah write-ups

I didn't get the congrats and fixed some fills but couldn't find what was keeping the congrats away. I palmed an insert (they just go back to tbtimes)

I liked the "mirage a trois"

Anon-T, my son plays online Chess, I'll tell him.

Welcome Marylou. Thanks for testing us on a Tuesday. I for one needed to check perps on 50%

I do enjoy seeing the clues I've missed but I was solving at 3am and wanted to go back to sleep.

Back to P&I

WC

-T. My son doesn't think he's good enough to play you.

Vidwan827 said...


Thank YOu Mary Lou Guizzo and Jeff Chen for a charmingly easy Tuesday puzzle, that I really, really enjoyed !
I so wanted to post earlier, to stay Relevant (!) however, some things like work came in the way and so on, and its late night that I am posting ...

Well, it could have been much worse ...

Thank you Hahtoolah for the charming blog with some very choice cartoons .... that really, really, educate us, and inspire both mirth and information.
I always click on ALL of the links, .... and that 'wastes' another hour or so of my time, before I can finally post....

Thank you for the cartoon on MOMS ... truly, and especially in the USA, the cartoon, while funny, must be very 'dated' .... Truly, in the USA, Moms, can do just about anything !@#@! that a man can, and with even better results ... I have learnt soo much from my wife, ... despite the familiar phrase, that 'Familiarity breeds Contempt'... BTW, the 'F' includes Family, as well ...

I have had professors, Deans, Bosses, Cops, US District judges ( for my citizenship oath etc, ) who were female, ( my wife-Boss is still around the corner ...) and in my health care problems ... My nephrologists, transplant surgeons, cardiologists, urologists, even post-op sex and other therapy consultants (!!) and the chairman (!) _ of certain very private area surgery have been female ...

.... and I have always reasoned ... that IF Men can and have been OB/GYN docs from time immemorial ... why not the other way around for the women ???

On the CW, I found it quite easy going,,... I was very familiar with KAMALA Harris, since her mother was a Tamilian ( from Madras State, now Tamilnadu ) in SEastern India, and I have her book, The Truths we Hold .... which was given to me, a year ago .... although I have NOT read it ... just looked through the pictures inside, of her family, and her friends ...

Under the blog rules, which I agree with, ... I am not going to discuss her politics, or whether I agree with many of them,....
.... but I will say ... the name KAMALA is a less-common variant of the common name KAMLA ( almost always, for a female ) and KAMAL ( usually, a male ) ... comes from the Sanskrit root, K-m-l meaning a Lotus, or related thereto.

However, KAMALA is a (rare ) name in muslim Pakistan also, because of syncretism, borrowing of language and ideas, in this case, ... from the Sanskrit into the Urdu, .... In fact, in the latest Marvel Universe, The latest female heroine, Ms. Marvel, ( after the orig. Ms. Marvel becomes Capt. Marvel etc. ....) in the cartoon harem ....

..... is KAMALA Khan, ( from Pakistan --- ) ... and developed by a Pakistani-American cartoon developer at Marvel Comics, Ms. Sana Amanat. I understand it has been become a TV serial with atleast 4 episodes ... so I hear.
Wikipedia, has all the details.

Have a nice day, tomorrow, you all.

Vidwan827 said...


Inane hiker, thank you for the info on Jeopardy ... I did not know that the savant competitors had to pay their own air fare and hotel bills ... I guess even getting selected to go on the show, is a great honor.

REgarding, the effects of the consumption of Grape Fruits, and its juice etc.,.... what MICHAEL said, as above, is very relevant ... also from Canadian Eh ! ....

... it IS contra indicated against the action of many heart drugs like statins and beta-blockers, etc. ... also in my case, in case of organ or kidney transplants, it is strongly contra-indicated for anti-rejection drugs like Cyclo-sporins etc.

However,... as Michael said, at exactly 10:00 pm, .... IF you are NOT drinking the juices of the GF, or its concentrate, .... one or two or 4 slices, will not be a problem ... this, also from a cardiologist, I know personally ...

I happen to know all about Pommelos ... its one of a few of my favorite fruits !!!

It is, as big or bigger than a GF, but the rind is very thick, and the meat, you get to eat is much less. It is generally much more expensive, and is considered more exotic ... however, it is much sweeter, has no bitter after-taste, and must be laboriously peeled ... no cutting into quarters, like a GF, etc.

Per Wiki, which has an excellent article on it ... it is a cross between a Grapefruit and a Mandarin Orange.
Generally available at COSTCO, for one, and very common, all across S E Asia.

Lucina said...

Vidwan827
Thank you for posting such a plethora of information. I always learn something from your posts. I did not realize that our vice-president was of Indian descent. That must be a first, right? She is certainly a beauty.

AnonT:
How is your move going? Are you all moved into your new home? Is the photo of all your computers in the old or the new house?

Vidwan827 said...


Hahtoolah, forgive me for this intrusion, ... but when I read your comments about the death anniversaries of your mother and grandmother, I was wondering if this was some sort of a Math problem, or a riddle ??

It just got me going, and I kept making conjectures ... and the end, all I could come up with, was this ... hypothesis ...

1. If your Grandmother was your maternal grandmother, then, your mother was obviously her daughter.
2. If your GM died 20 years ago ... that would be the year CE 2022 - 20 = CE 2002 ...

... and your GM was 96 years old, when she passed away, ... so she was born, DOB,1906 .... 2002 - 96 = 1906 CE.

3. Assuming, your GM gave birth to your mother, M, .... when your GM, was between 18 to 24 years old, .... so your Mom's DOB would have been between 1924 to 1930.

4. Since your mother M, was about 92 years old, at her passing ... her DOD ( passing away ) , would be between 2016 and 2022 ....

that is the best I can deduce from the clues given.

What seems to be certain, is that you have Fantastic genes, for longetivity !!!

Mazel Tov und Brocha !


Vidwan827 said...



Dear Lucina, Thank you for your comments !!!

I just happen to write in long sentences, ... when I get going ... ( I talk twenty times more, ... even my wife has to shut me up ... I'm not much smarter than anyone else, just remember more trivia ...)

I have known of Kamala Harris, since she was Attorney General of Californy ... and then U.S. Senator from that state. She is not close to the indian community, and identifies more closer to her father's community, which is Afro-American. He was estranged from the family when she was 5 or 7, ... and she and her younger sister, Maya, were brought up by her mother..

Her mother, was a Ph.D. in Nutrition and Endocrinology sciences, from Univ Calif. Berkeley, and a breast cancer researcher ....

.... and her father, was the first Afro-american to get a Ph.D. in Economics from Stanford Unversity, and retired as a professor emeritus in the Economics Dept., .from Stanford.
They were married in 1963 and divorced in 1970.

As for Kamala Harris' politics and policies, you'll have to read it elsewhere ....


BTW, your daughter and grand-daughters are also very pretty, as well.

May your children and grandchildren bring your great joy and happiness.