Theme: "Al-addin'" - Al is added to each familiar phrase.
23. Extremely harsh bubbly?: BRUTAL CHAMPAGNE. Brut champion.
35. Enjoy a long career as a telegraph operator?: SIGNAL ONE'S LIFE AWAY. Sign one's life away.
56. To catch some rays or to sleep every day until noon, e.g.?: GOAL ON VACATION. Go on vacation.
65. Income from Birkenstock investments?: SANDAL DOLLARS. Sand dollars.
79. Chef's job?: MEAL GENERATION. Me generation.
92. Trying a new brand of ointment?: CHANGING THE TOPICAL. Changing the topic.
113. Annual gala held on April 15?: INCOME TAX FORMAL. Income tax form.
Scott
and Christina might not have the dash in "Al-addin" for their original
title. Patti might feel it's needed as some solvers might miss it.
Tight and consistent set. Five first word changes, two last word changes. AL is always added to the end. Some straying ALs, but they result in some excellent entries.
Congrats on your LAT debut, Scott!
Across:
1. Blast that may invert an umbrella: GUST. Fresh clue angle! And
5. Float on the breeze: WAFT.
9. Soft "Hey, you!": PSST.
13. Golf course rentals: CARTS.
18. To no __: fruitlessly: AVAIL.
20. Actress Fisher who writes the "Marge in Charge" kids' books: ISLA.
21. Raise: REAR.
22. Mythical hunter: ORION.
26. Gossipy sort: YENTA.
27. Terse: LACONIC.
28. Sandra's "Speed" co-star: KEANU.
29. Toy on display, say: SHOW DOG.
31. __ contact: EYE. In Korea, it's rude to make eye contact with your elders or bosses when they scold you. Same in China.
32. "SNL" alum Gasteyer: ANA.
33. Sprain soother: ICE.
34. __ noire: BETE.
43. First, second, or third place: BASE. I had difficulty lifting
Boomer from his chair on Friday. When I finally did, I said "We're a
great team!" He said he's the shortstop because he makes all the plays.
I'm the pitcher because I give up home runs.
46. Kick off: START.
47. Nonetheless: YET.
48. Place for a stud: LOBE.
49. Italian fashion giant: ARMANI. At least, they're not so logo-y.
52. Minute Maid brand: HI C.
55. "Hey-o!": HOLLA.
59. Deliberate: CONFER.
60. Yukon automaker: GMC.
61. Target Field player: TWIN. Everyone likes Byron Buxton.
62. "Barefoot Contessa" host Garten: INA.
63. Cast a ballot: VOTE.
64. Chatter: YAK.
69. __ deco: ART.
72. Item often adorned with feathers: LURE. And
73. Item often adorned with feathers: BOA.
74. "It makes sense now": I SEE. 76. "Word on the street is ... ": I HEARD.
75. Apt name for a lawn care expert: MOE. Mow. Chairman at our Crossword Corner.
83. Dull, in a way: MATTE.
84. Salsa option: MILD. And 72. Salsa, for one: LATIN DANCE.
85. Fútbol cheer: OLE.
86. Angioplasty implants: STENTS.
87. Italian wine region: ASTI.
88. Triumphed: WON.
89. Entire range: GAMUT. Always run.
91. Misplace: LOSE.
98. Bilingual cartoon explorer: DORA. The Explorer.
99. Become unsafe to eat: ROT.
100. Tarnish: MAR.
101. Umami source, briefly: MSG. It's in shio kombu. Tasty.
104. Intimate __: APPAREL.
107. Utterly unskilled: INEPT.
110. Graffiti tag seen in Springfield: EL BARTO.
112. __ shot: SLING.
116. For this reason: HENCE.
117. Commotion: STIR. And
118. Left dreamland: WOKE.
119. Christopher of "Superman": REEVE.
120. Makes less strict: EASES.
121. Enlightened sounds: AHAS.
122. Places to feel kneaded?: SPAS. Ha.
123. Flower holder: STEM.
Down:
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2. Sunlamp danger, briefly: UV RAY.
3. Hollandaise, e.g.: SAUCE.
4. Bandleader Puente: TITO.
5. Book of Shadows readers: WICCANS. From Wikipedia: A Book of
Shadows is a book containing religious text and instructions for magical
rituals found within the Neopagan religion of Wicca.
6. Louisville Slugger wood: ASH.
7. Criticism: FLAK.
8. Far from daring: TAME.
9. Ride proudly: PRANCE.
10. Fluid transitions: SEGUES.
11. __ Antonio: SAN.
12. "Fantastique!": TRES BIEN! And another great fill: 14. "Anyone else around?": ARE WE ALONE.
13. South Dakota's state animal: COYOTE.
15. Marmalade chunk: RIND. I never had marmalade.
16. "Rosanna" band: TOTO.
17. Catch: SNAG.
19. Maui neighbor: LANAI.
24. CNN's "This Is Life With Lisa __": LING. Sister of Laura Ling.
25. Put on a coat: PAINT.
30. Weight: HEFT.
35. Special ops acronym: SEAL. Jacko here.
36. Within reach: AT HAND.
37. Non-clerical: LAIC.
38. Porpoise kin: ORCA. 96. 38-Down offspring: CALF.
39. Rhône city: LYON.
40. Scarf (down): WOLF.
41. Willing partner: ABLE.
42. Banner __: YEAR.
43. Like some pants: BAGGY. Like this pair.
44. Enticing smell: AROMA.
45. Loud slap: SMACK.
50. On the fence: NOT SURE. I'm still stuck into the skinny jeans era.
51. Toward the center: INWARD.
53. Bedrock pet: DINO.
54. Beehive oven input: COAL.
55. Stressful spot: HOT SEAT. We had a stressful week. Thanks to those who have called or emailed to help us.
57. Hollywood crosser: VINE.
58. __ pool: TIDAL.
59. Apple gadgets: CORERS. Real apple. Then 76. Apple that comes in seven colors: IMAC.
63. See 79-Down: VASE. 79. With 63-Down, priceless porcelain piece: MING.
66. Genesis brother: ABEL.
67. Laundry basket measure: LOAD.
68. Roster submitted to an umpire: LINEUP.
69. __ acid: AMINO.
70. Turnips and parsnips: ROOTS. My favorite root: daikon.
71. On edge: TENSE.
77. Leftovers dish: HASH.
78. "At Last" singer James: ETTA.
80. Nanny __: GOAT.
81. Muppet host of "The Not-Too-Late Show": ELMO.
82. Giveaway at the poker table: TELL.
84. Painting that reportedly has its own Louvre mailbox: MONA LISA. Makes sense.
88. Hidden mic: WIRE.
89. "Don't let those people escape!": GET 'EM.
90. Durable watches: TIMEXES.
93. Ravines: GORGES.
94. "Lucifer" actress Helfer: TRICIA.
95. Accolades: HONORS.
97. Shady place: ARBOR.
101. Mascot Hall of Fame inductee from Queens: MR MET. I did not
know there's a Mascot Hall of Fame. Wikipedia says "It was founded by
David Raymond, who was the original Phillie Phanatic from 1978 to 1993."
Our T.C. Bear is not there.
102. Fend (off): STAVE.
103. Clay creature of Jewish folklore: GOLEM.
104. Tennis legend Arthur: ASHE.
105. Courtroom entry: PLEA.
106. ATM codes: PINS.
108. Church supporters?: PEWS. Another fun clue. We left the church earlier last Saturday as Boomer experienced nausea.
109. Mostly removable roof: T TOP.
111. Mars counterpart: ARES.
114. To the __ degree: NTH.
115. Handle letters?: AKA.
Boomer completed his OT sessions on Wednesday. Tomorrow we're going to the big VA for one more blood draw and meeting with his oncologist to see if the new oral chemo is working. Boomer will also receive a bone strengthener injection.
C.C.
28 comments:
I always forget Isla Fisher’s name. And at first I had SWAT instead of Seal. A long and complex puzzle. But through P and P, I made it through. FIR, so I’m happy.
FIW, with WICCeNS sending me down a dark path. Erased hat for BOA. DNK ANA, HOLLA, EL BARTO, GOLEM, and only sorta knew ISLA and INA.
I grew up in a ma and pop motel/restaurant/gas station/convenience store. Our dinner menu included "Honeymoon Salad (lettuce ALONE)".
Isn't there a crossword puzzle prohibition against having "WOKE" and "COAL" in the same grid?
We have LYON Ship Repair nearby. I always thought I would rather take my ship to a truthin' ship yard.
I pressure washed my back porch a few days ago, and yesterday I bought PAINT. Now I gotta go out an put on a coat.
A couple of weeks ago I complained that my Boston butt turned out dry, and I didn't know if it was the cut, freezing, or crock pot cycle. Yesterday I tried it again with another of the frozen pieces, this time only thawing overnight in the fridge and using the higher temperature cycle. Turned out great! I also used the crock pot liner for the first time, and I only wish I had known about them sooner. Thanks!
Thanks to Scott and Christina for the fun, and to CC for explaining it.
FIWrong. 5 cells, some misspellings (which unlike typos, ARE CW mistakes). Worst problem (3 of the 5 errors) was trying to fit SUCCINCT (wildly misspelt as sACiNaC) in for LACONIC.
Title/reveal was helpful, but the themers were so long, they didn't help much.
As with last week, excluding proper names, the clues would have been Monday, or at worst Tuesday, level.
Got a very late start, (see JH for partial explanation), so no time for l'icks yet. First off to the Jumble! May try to add some poetry later,
I was able to finish it in 14:03.
I wasn't a big fan or the "HiC DCon Holla" row. I didn't know Tricia or her show/movie.
I was vaguely familiar with Dan Gable, but wasn't sure if it was Gabel. He had an incredible career.
Good Sunday puzzle, though I don't have many reference points - I normally don't try to solve on Sundays.
I really enjoyed the creative long answers! Thanks!
Interesting about Mona Lisa having her own mailbox. I didn't know that...great trivia question.
I had to laugh at EL BARTO!
As a Sci-fi fan, I only know TRICIA HELFER from the Battlestar Galactica reboot series.
And every time I see NOT SURE, all I can think of is the movie "Idiocracy" where Joe keeps trying to correct the speech recognition system, which eventually tattoos him with his official name of "Not Sure"
In what way is PEW a church supporter? People in pews are supporters as are I-beams.
Scott and Christina, isn’t today Aug. 7?
Musings
-Delightful gimmick fills and just enough fiber!
-SIGNAL YOUR LIFE AWAY – MIL was a telegrapher at one end of a tunnel in WWII
-WAFT always makes me think of Forrest Gump
-Golf courses like CARTS for revenue and speeding up play
-First, second and third BASE not RANK! Duh, loved the clue and the AHA moment.
-Age has decreased half of my “Willing and ABLE”
-A necessary skill if in a Congressional HOT SEAT is stonewalling
-My first TIMEX had glowing hands and numbers. The radium caused cancer and so they were discontinued
Thanks, C.C., prayers continue for you and Boomer.
I had to star this puzzle in the middle because my newspaper was cut off on the left edge and the numbers-but not the clues- for all the across fills up to 61A were missing. The theme answers were easy guesses after a few down perps, noticing the added AL at CHANGING THE TOPIC-AL. For a Sunday it had just a few unknowns filled by perps- TRICIA Helfer, ISLA Fisher, Lisa LING, and WICCANS (aka goofballs). i didn't know EL BARTO but it was an easy fill after a few letters were in place.
TIMEXES- 'they take a licking and keep on ticking' until they went from mechanical to quartz.
Bob Lee- I'd never heard of that movie until last week when my son told me about it and said it described out government and Millennials.
Gary- CARTS won't make slow players speed up. There's nothing worse than having to wait to take your shot because of slow players in front of you.
Hola!
Thank you, C.C., for the commentary and for the update on Boomer.
As usual, Sunday puzzles are a slow slog but doable. Many AHA as well as amusing moments with the play on words. I love it!
However, no MILD hot SAUCE for me! I like it HOT.
I love KEANU Reeves!
PAINT evokes many memories of my youth when we PAINTed (stained, actually) chairs, walls, fences, etc.
GOAL ON VACATION: the day after school ended I slept through the entire weekend following. And in fact, last night I collapsed into bed at 9:30 and immediately fell asleep. I can't take late nights like the previous one when I went to bed at 12:45 AM.
A late friend always planted an ARBOR wherever she moved. Usually it was wisteria and smelled so nice. The AROMA was almost intoxicating.
Have a joyful Sunday, everyone!
Anthony, the church pew supports the person sitting on it.
Good morning. Thank you, Scott, Christina, and thank you, C.C.
The Al-addin in the title made the game obvious after the first theme answer. I knew what to look for. I still might have seen it without the dash, but it wouldn't have been as obvious.
I've been doing MEAL PREPARATION this morning. The sous chef prep steps for Monterey Chicken later tonight. Seasoned chicken breasts on the grill, with a combo layer of barbecue sauce, bacon, and monterey jack cheese during the last minute on the grill. Topped with salsa fresca (pic de gallo) at the supper table. So good.
I remember ISLA Fisher from her role in Wedding Crashers.
"Anyone else around?": ARE WE ALONE ? - Tommy James and the Shondells answered that question.
Great images of the style of Beehive Ovens that were once used in Western Pa and Eastern Ohio to turn COAL into coke. The coke was then used as the fuel in the blast furnaces of the steel belt of Cleveland, Youngstown and Pittsburgh and elsewhere. Atlas Obscura - The Leetonia Beehive Coke Ovens.
I ordered 3000 ladybugs last night. When I release them, I'm going to say, "Don't let that scale escape!" GET 'EM !
The pew supports your bottom!
FIR. Clever clues with play on words. Clever theme. At least, the proper nouns had perp support.
Yes, DO, the pew supports the people in church, I need the support of the pew. I couldn't stand that long. I also use the pews for support when walking up to the lectern as lector to read.
We used to say, "The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak," So true these days. At 75 I could run rings around me today at nearly 85.
Super Sunday. Thanks for the fun, Scott and Christina, and C.C. (hope this week is less stressful).
Like TTP, I saw the AL-addin title, and figured out the trick. Then I FIRed in 33:32 (online on Sundays), which was twice the time of Anon@8:45am, but good for me on a Sunday.
I noted INA and ANA, more of the A-game with HOLA, YENTA, DORA, ETTA. Plus SPAS and AHAS. (And even AKA!)
I also smiled to see KEANU and REEVE(S).
I already had VASE at 123A, but it was needed at 63D. I SEE the STEM is holding up the flower.
Witches changed to WICCANS.
Thanks C.C. for the photo of EL BARTO. Now I understand.
I was thinking of changes of state for those “fluid transitions”. SEGUES brought AHAS.
Wishing you all a great day.
I liked this puzzle. From the title "Al-addin" I figured the letters AL would be added into the theme answers, which made solving easier, but still fun. I enjoyed the word play. As Yellowrocks said, the proper nouns had perp support. It took COYOTE to determine whether it was FILM noire or BETE noire, but I should not have needed that COYOTE because Film Noir doesn't have that final e. It did take WOLF to determine whether the place for a stud would be WALL or LOBE. Similarly, ARMANI made it necessary to change WHACK to SMACK, which revealed BASE. ELMO and LINEUP necessitated changing RANGE to GAMUT, which then revealed GOAT. Fun. I enjoyed seeing the clue "Item often adorned with feathers" repeated. I also enjoyed seeing MOE clued the way it was. Yep, I liked this puzzle.
I sure hope Boomer's oral chemo is working.
Good wishes to you all.
Thanks Scott and congrats on your debut. And thank you Christine for co-puzzling. As the Sunday Sun always has a title, and as they kept Patti's hyphen, the theme was apparent from the get go. I was about 3/4 through it on the dining room table when Teri took an interest, and finally moved it to her side of the table. She got several clues that had had me stumped, finished GOAL ON VACATION (one of her favorite activities), then handed back over. Anywho we got it done with a FIR.
And thank you C.C. for your review. It's been a busy weekend for you! You and Boomer certainly are a team and we're all rootin' (and prayin') for you both.
Favs: All the themers. Very clever.
54A COAL. If you use refractory (hi-fire) bricks you can fire ceramics in them.
69A AMINO. There are 20 different AMINO ACIDS. They are the constituents of the over 80,000 different PROTEINS in the human body. The numbers of each and their order is defined by DNA. They're what we're all about.
66D ABEL. I instinctively filled ESAU when I saw it was 4 letters, thinking it was "Genesis twin". How come constructors never use JACOB?
70D ROOTS. I like DAIKON radishes too. I also like BEETS. We found some beautiful beets a local truck stand a week ago and I made BORSCHT with them. As Cat would say: YUMMERS.
84D MONA LISA. DNK I could write her. I've admired her from a distance twice, but she's really impossible to get close to. Darn tourists!
88D WIRE. Filmed in Baltimore. It's not as bad as you think.
90D TIMEXES. They're the most cost effective watches. They're cheap, they keep excellent time and seem to last forever. When the battery finally dies it's easier to buy a new watch than to go to a store with the proper tools to replace the battery. My conspiracy theory is that marketing must be behind this.
Cheers,
Bill
Let's all celebrate !
A Blog Milestone !
I've been watching and waiting for this to happen for weeks now. How appropriate that this landmark occasion was reached today ! I think it is especially neat that it happened on the day that C.C. blogs the puzzle. How cool is that ?
300,000 Reader Comments !
I can't be certain exactly whose comment today pushed us from 299,999 to 300,000. Somewhere starting at Husker Gary's comment and up to Jayce's comment. They aren't numbered, but earlier this morning the summary number was 299K.
Thank You Scott Hogan and Christina Iverson for a challenging Sunday puzzle - I sort of enjoyed it. The regular clues were simple enough but the people and places were a mystery, and took a lot of guessing. Despite reading the Al-adding ... I did not get the theme until I came to CC's blog.
Thank you CC for the review blog. So glad you both are holding on nicely, despite all the trials, and hope things get even better soon and resove themselves.
RE:: The Mona Lisa .... I remember going to the Louvre in Paris, and seeing the iconic paintings in the various galleries, about 6 years ago. There were literally dozens of pieces of art in each room, and there were 'guide books' for each room, and they were meant to be carried around the room, and explained the various pieces of art, the artist, and their sighificance ...
The guide book pages were encased in plastic and were supposed to be left behind, when you left the room. There were about 15 guide books, on each rack, in/for each language .... French, German, Italian, Portugese, Spanish, Greek and various other European langauages. There were guide books even in Chinese, Japanese and Korean ...
However, there were no guide books in English. None Whatsoever !! So much for the tourism from the USA, UK and Canada ....
Plus, .... the USA passport holders had to pay twice as much entry fees, as those from other countries .... Go, figure that out !@#!!
Have a nice Sunday, all, and a great week ahead, you all.
300,000 Comments in 14.5 years using a 360 day year amounts to 50 comments per year, or we talking 300,000 comments during the first 242 days of the year...
help me mathletes
not only does C.C. blog today's LAT, authored yesterday's and today's USA Today and the Universal puzzle
Always amazing and unstoppable
Fairly easy entry today but got hung up in SW corner. Disagree with113 A. April 15th is only celebratory if you're getting a refund...right??
Lemony, huh? Without picking up a pencil, even if was 100 years it would still be 3,000/year. Did you mean 50 comments/DAY? Feel free to toss a V8 can this way...
TTP reported 300,000 comments but gave no parameters. I just would like to know what the data was saying. I used to crunch data but needed my X,Y, and Z information
Lemonade, 300,000 comments since the blog was started by C.C. on Jan 21st, 2008, which is 5312 days ago.
- There are 365 days in most years, not 360. Some years have 366 days. We call those leap years. For the math, we can use an average of 365.25 days per year.
- 2022 minus 2008 = 14 years.
- 14 x 365.25 = 5113.5 days. We drop the remainder and get 5113.
- Today is not the 242nd day of the year. It is the 219th day of the year. So we add 219 to get 5332 days.
- In 2008, the blog started on Jan 21st. So we subtract 20 days. That leaves us with 5312 days.
- 300000 divided by 5312 = an average of 56.5 comments per day, if that is what you were looking for.
Does that help ?
It's been a long day. I'm going to bed.
Very late to the party. Thanks for the write-up, C.C. Best wishes for very good news tomorrow.
AHA, the Mexican version of Bart Simpson
Once I perped the B, I remembered Dan Gable
CC, you must try marmalade on toast. My favorite at the breakfast counter in little packets.
BC had a great Eagle mascot in the 80s. He may have originated mascot antics
CSO to Boomer: PINS; And…
Prayers for good news tomorrow
Jinx, did you use the bunched up aluminum foil on the crock pot?
I realize I'm in a distinct minority who think FAST play ruins golf. Then again my habit of slicing drives into the woods doesn't help
Here I was thinking I FIR but I had FOR MAn and GOnEM. Mr S, get thee behind me
I see Monday is out. I'll post now. Top half hard, bottom easy. Who did what ?
WC
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