A straight-forward scrambled-letters-in-circles offering from Shannon Rapp for her LAT debut. I did a little digging and, if my Open Source Intel (OSINT - Intel found in the public domain) inkling is correct, Shannon is no stranger to constructing and has her own blog as Norah Sharpe where she (and others) make indie-puzzles.
The reveal, ROLL THE DICE, is clued as 'Take a Chance[on me - ABBA], and how to form the sequence in each set of circled letters.'
And, sure enough, the circles (if you got 'em) have the letters DICE rolled around a bit.
Let's see what Shannon bet on...
17. Many a modern suburb: PLANNED CITY. In Houston, we call them Master Planned Communities. George Mitchell was an innovator of them (#TheWoodlands) and horizontal fracking.
24. Shellfish dish often prepared with coconut milk: CURRIED CRAB. Crab is yummy, why drown it in anything other than clarified butter?
38. "Helping You Ditch Wedding Stress" podcast/blog: BRIDE-CHILLA. As opposed to an 'Anal-retentive Type-A' BRIDE-zilla?
53. "Star Wars" ruling body: JEDI COUNCIL. Where wise meet, they do.
If I'm totally honest, I'd have rather filled ROLL THE BONES [12] [6m] 'cuz, um, -- RUSH!
#Spin-OffPuzzle
Let's see what else Shannon put on the table...
Across:
1. Salat leaders: IMAMS.
6. Kraut-topped sausage: WURST. No, wurst is the best, hotdog-wise.
11. __ machine: FOG. We have one for Halloween (have you noticed stores have already stocked the shelves with All Saint's Day Eve stuff?). If you don't have a FOG machine, dry ice in a tub of water (or a swimming pool!) is fun too.
14. Arcade plumber: MARIO. Nintendo's 'coin' maker and jumping coin taker.
//If you need a laugh, SNL had Elon Musk play Wario in court.
15. Sitcom set in a H.S. science class: AP BIO. Never saw it.
// My 1st day at public HS, I was placed next to a hulk of a kid in AP BIO. The teacher with blue bee-hive hair and horn-rimmed glasses said, "Don't worry, he doesn't bite."
Andy was first string offensive-line, first string viola, and became my best buddy in Boy Scouts.
16. Game with a spinoff called Dos: UNO. Didn't know that but easily sussed.
17. [see: theme above]
19. Neutral shade: TAN. Not -- wait for it,... 39d will be coming along soon.
20. Broadcast hour: AIRTIME. In the age of DVRs & YouTube, are there must-see communal hours where all Americans watch TV at the same time?
21. Get around: ELUDE. I almost went with EvaDE
23. NYC airport code: LGA.
24. [see: theme above]
28. __ : raisins :: log : celery: ANTS. Cute and tasty. If you really need a recipe, there you go.
30. Text status: SENT. Don't you hate the little dancing ellipses after sending, 'you up girl?'
31. Part of cellular plans: DATA. Shooting myself in the foot, I read the clue as planTs more than once...
32. Food Network host Garten: INA. The chef known as the Barefoot Contessa. I have one of her books.
35. Feel sore: ACHE.
37. __ school: MED. I went into computers - no blood when you open 'em up.
38. [see: theme above]
41. Sworn enemy: FOE. Fee, Fi, FOE?
43. Scottish swimming hole: LOCH. There be monsters.
44. Money exec: CFO. Chief Financial Officer aka #BeanCounter.
45. All over again: ANEW.
47. Jewish rite: BRIS. Dare I link Brooks' Men in Tights Mohel scene? I dare, I dare...
49. Pop singer Rexha: BEBE. No clue. I looked her up & listened to two songs - bunch of auto-tuned, um,... Thumper. Her site if you're so inclined.
53. [see: theme above]
57. Cancel: NIX. End of story.
58. Public perception: IMAGE.
59. Like animals native to India or China: ASIATIC.
61. Cargo unit: TON.
62. [see: theme above]
66. Parabola portion: ARC. Conic sections are beautiful - check out their curves!
67. Refuse: TRASH. Ha! She doesn't just say 'no' but throws your butt to the curb.
68. Food truck fare: TACOS. Heck yeah!
69. "Told you!": SEE.
70. Smooth transition: SEGUE.
71. Prophetic signs: OMENS. Anyone ever read / see Pratchett & Gailman's "Good Omens"? [Trailer]
Down:
1. Classic Chevy that shares its name with an antelope: IMPALA
Channeling Ray-O: "Isn't IMPALA what a bull does to a matador?"
//Tip the waitstaff ;-)
2. Speak ill of: MALIGN.
3. Noah's Ark site: ARARAT.
4. __ condition: MINT. Like a CERTS? OR... But what does 'cherry-condition' taste like?
5. SST part: SONIC. Folks are building next-gen SSTs. But, do you want to fly in a craft made by BOOM? //Marketing needs a new focus-group.
6. Fly-fishing gear: WADERS.
7. QR kin: UPC. Do I pick a nit on this? QRs are 2-D alpha-numeric encodings and mostly used for URLs whereas UPCs are 1D numeric typically seen at the grocer. No, I won't pick - both can be read by a machine so they're kin in that sense.
8. Triple Crown stat: RBI. #Baseball. A triple-crown'r is league-leading in Home Runs, Batting Average, and Runs Batted In.
9. Obey at obedience school, say: SIT.
10. Fiddled around (with): TOYED. Play with something until you fix it or break it worser. How's the leaf-blower, CED?
11. Matt Groening series set in the 31st century: FUTURAMA. I became familiar with Matt's work in college (late '80s/early '90s) - EE Prof had this "Life in Hell" comic on his door.
12. Out with one's sweetie: ON A DATE. 'Asleep' was a letter short.
13. Like chunky milk: GONE BAD. Just re-label it as cottage cheese?
18. Bird on some Australian coins: EMU.
22. "Sound of Silver" band __ Soundsystem: LCD. No clue other than the one provided. I looked 'em up tonite. They kinda have an '80s Yaz or 'The The' vibe.
//I'm still not sure how Liquid Crystal Display factors into sound...
25. Prepare to draw a raffle ticket, say: REACH IN. Um, bit of a reach, eh?
26. Foot part: INCH. Cute misdirection
27. Moral support?: ETHIC. ibid
29. Round Table title: SIR. Do you really want me to link Monty Python?
33. Not a one: NIL. Nary has 4 letters
34. Vinegary sauce: ADOBO. I looked it up so you don't have to [cite]. Oooh... #Yummers
36. Rivendell resident: ELF. Sure, I could link J.R.R. Tolkien but RUSH is more fun.
38. Hivemind communication?: BEE DANCE. Cute.
39. Color similar to greige: ECRU. There's the four-letter (19a) TAN.
40. Softball question: LOB. Oy! Thar be political-bent hidden inside.
41. Dish served sizzling: FAJITAS. Even better than TACOs from a truck!
42. "Let's have another": ONE MORE. UNO Mas Fajita?
46. "Pose" wardrobe item: WIG. Pose is in quotes so I assume it's something. Google gave me TV Series . [WikiP] I hope that's Shannon's intent.
48. Criticize harshly: SCATHE. Change 'a' to 'y' and you have The Grim Reaper's tool... A harsh critique of the Salmon Mousse [more Python], indeed.
50. Lure: ENTICE. In your (6d) WADERS out for a trout.
51. Celebrity revered by some in the queer community: BI-ICON. I think I've heard this, but I don't know from where.
52. Superabundance: EXCESS.
54. Mint brand discontinued in 2018: CERTS. But what condition is it in? [see: 4d] Oh right, the one with Retsyn and is two mints in one - click-click [Commercial]
55. "Or so": ISH. More or less, no?
56. Mislead: LIE TO.
60. Savage of "MythBusters": ADAM. If you really miss MythBusters, you can check out Adam's YouTube channel.
63. Catan resource: ORE. I had to lookup Catan post-puzzle solve. It's a game.
64. Zoom delay: LAG. Any communications delay, actually -- usually right before End-Carrier...
65. Baton Rouge sch.: LSU. Geaux Tigers!
And the grid:
But what you really wanted to know:
WOs: arCH->INCH, end->NIX
ESPs: ORE as clued, LCD, BEBE
Fav: FAJITAS!
Well, that's my debut at The Corner's helm. Critique?
//Be kind. #StudentBloggerAtTheWheel.
Shannon - We'd love to hear from you in the comments below.
Cheers, -T
16. Game with a spinoff called Dos: UNO. Didn't know that but easily sussed.
17. [see: theme above]
19. Neutral shade: TAN. Not -- wait for it,... 39d will be coming along soon.
20. Broadcast hour: AIRTIME. In the age of DVRs & YouTube, are there must-see communal hours where all Americans watch TV at the same time?
21. Get around: ELUDE. I almost went with EvaDE
23. NYC airport code: LGA.
24. [see: theme above]
28. __ : raisins :: log : celery: ANTS. Cute and tasty. If you really need a recipe, there you go.
30. Text status: SENT. Don't you hate the little dancing ellipses after sending, 'you up girl?'
31. Part of cellular plans: DATA. Shooting myself in the foot, I read the clue as planTs more than once...
32. Food Network host Garten: INA. The chef known as the Barefoot Contessa. I have one of her books.
35. Feel sore: ACHE.
37. __ school: MED. I went into computers - no blood when you open 'em up.
38. [see: theme above]
41. Sworn enemy: FOE. Fee, Fi, FOE?
43. Scottish swimming hole: LOCH. There be monsters.
44. Money exec: CFO. Chief Financial Officer aka #BeanCounter.
45. All over again: ANEW.
47. Jewish rite: BRIS. Dare I link Brooks' Men in Tights Mohel scene? I dare, I dare...
49. Pop singer Rexha: BEBE. No clue. I looked her up & listened to two songs - bunch of auto-tuned, um,... Thumper. Her site if you're so inclined.
53. [see: theme above]
57. Cancel: NIX. End of story.
58. Public perception: IMAGE.
59. Like animals native to India or China: ASIATIC.
61. Cargo unit: TON.
62. [see: theme above]
66. Parabola portion: ARC. Conic sections are beautiful - check out their curves!
67. Refuse: TRASH. Ha! She doesn't just say 'no' but throws your butt to the curb.
68. Food truck fare: TACOS. Heck yeah!
69. "Told you!": SEE.
70. Smooth transition: SEGUE.
71. Prophetic signs: OMENS. Anyone ever read / see Pratchett & Gailman's "Good Omens"? [Trailer]
Down:
1. Classic Chevy that shares its name with an antelope: IMPALA
Channeling Ray-O: "Isn't IMPALA what a bull does to a matador?"
//Tip the waitstaff ;-)
2. Speak ill of: MALIGN.
3. Noah's Ark site: ARARAT.
4. __ condition: MINT. Like a CERTS? OR... But what does 'cherry-condition' taste like?
5. SST part: SONIC. Folks are building next-gen SSTs. But, do you want to fly in a craft made by BOOM? //Marketing needs a new focus-group.
6. Fly-fishing gear: WADERS.
7. QR kin: UPC. Do I pick a nit on this? QRs are 2-D alpha-numeric encodings and mostly used for URLs whereas UPCs are 1D numeric typically seen at the grocer. No, I won't pick - both can be read by a machine so they're kin in that sense.
8. Triple Crown stat: RBI. #Baseball. A triple-crown'r is league-leading in Home Runs, Batting Average, and Runs Batted In.
9. Obey at obedience school, say: SIT.
10. Fiddled around (with): TOYED. Play with something until you fix it or break it worser. How's the leaf-blower, CED?
11. Matt Groening series set in the 31st century: FUTURAMA. I became familiar with Matt's work in college (late '80s/early '90s) - EE Prof had this "Life in Hell" comic on his door.
12. Out with one's sweetie: ON A DATE. 'Asleep' was a letter short.
13. Like chunky milk: GONE BAD. Just re-label it as cottage cheese?
18. Bird on some Australian coins: EMU.
22. "Sound of Silver" band __ Soundsystem: LCD. No clue other than the one provided. I looked 'em up tonite. They kinda have an '80s Yaz or 'The The' vibe.
//I'm still not sure how Liquid Crystal Display factors into sound...
25. Prepare to draw a raffle ticket, say: REACH IN. Um, bit of a reach, eh?
26. Foot part: INCH. Cute misdirection
27. Moral support?: ETHIC. ibid
29. Round Table title: SIR. Do you really want me to link Monty Python?
33. Not a one: NIL. Nary has 4 letters
34. Vinegary sauce: ADOBO. I looked it up so you don't have to [cite]. Oooh... #Yummers
36. Rivendell resident: ELF. Sure, I could link J.R.R. Tolkien but RUSH is more fun.
38. Hivemind communication?: BEE DANCE. Cute.
39. Color similar to greige: ECRU. There's the four-letter (19a) TAN.
40. Softball question: LOB. Oy! Thar be political-bent hidden inside.
41. Dish served sizzling: FAJITAS. Even better than TACOs from a truck!
42. "Let's have another": ONE MORE. UNO Mas Fajita?
46. "Pose" wardrobe item: WIG. Pose is in quotes so I assume it's something. Google gave me TV Series . [WikiP] I hope that's Shannon's intent.
48. Criticize harshly: SCATHE. Change 'a' to 'y' and you have The Grim Reaper's tool... A harsh critique of the Salmon Mousse [more Python], indeed.
50. Lure: ENTICE. In your (6d) WADERS out for a trout.
51. Celebrity revered by some in the queer community: BI-ICON. I think I've heard this, but I don't know from where.
52. Superabundance: EXCESS.
54. Mint brand discontinued in 2018: CERTS. But what condition is it in? [see: 4d] Oh right, the one with Retsyn and is two mints in one - click-click [Commercial]
55. "Or so": ISH. More or less, no?
56. Mislead: LIE TO.
60. Savage of "MythBusters": ADAM. If you really miss MythBusters, you can check out Adam's YouTube channel.
63. Catan resource: ORE. I had to lookup Catan post-puzzle solve. It's a game.
64. Zoom delay: LAG. Any communications delay, actually -- usually right before End-Carrier...
65. Baton Rouge sch.: LSU. Geaux Tigers!
And the grid:
But what you really wanted to know:
WOs: arCH->INCH, end->NIX
ESPs: ORE as clued, LCD, BEBE
Fav: FAJITAS!
Well, that's my debut at The Corner's helm. Critique?
//Be kind. #StudentBloggerAtTheWheel.
Shannon - We'd love to hear from you in the comments below.
Cheers, -T
Notes from C.C.:
I'm excited to tell you that
Anon-T (Tony) has joined our blogging team. He'll be our pinch-hitter.
Thank you so much for helping us, Tony!!
Tony At Wit's End near Carmel on Father's Day 2017
37 comments:
The Natick “Bebe” and “Bi-icon” almost got me but my WAGs proved successful. Some other answers, like “LCD” and “Bridechilla” were solved through a combination of WAGs and perps. One thing that did help me, however, was that I saw the gimmick early on , so the reveal was a gimme. Although this puzzle was a bit of a slog, I managed to make it through. FIR, so I’m happy.
Oh, and, I might add, Welcome, Anon-T! I think you’ll be a great addition to our stable of clever commentators!
Thank you Shannon for a Wednesday challenge and congratulations on your debut. I took a one letter RISK on a natick and managed to SWAG a FIR. See below.
And thank you -T for your informative, thoughtful, funny, punny, and tony review. What a debut. This AUGURS good things to come! And the [back references to the themers] was a nice touch. Moving them to the top helps when explaining the theme, but I'm sure it confuses some people when the get into the rest of the clues. Don't be surprised if I steal it.
Some favs:
15A AP BIO. AP courses weren't offered when I went to HS, but I did take Advanced Biology in the 12th grade. Mister Potler gave me a life long love of biology and after all these years, like Garrison Keillor's Guy Noir, I'm "still trying to find the answers to LIFE’S persistent questions".
17A PLANNED CITY. Another early planned community was Columbia, Md, designed and realized by architect James Rouse. When it opened in 1967 everyone thought it was FUTURAMA. My father was one of the carpenters for some of the early buildings.
24A CURRIED CRAB. To do anything with crab meat besides stirring in some Old Bay Seasoning, binding it with a beaten egg, and broiling Crab Cakes with it, is sacrilege!
49A and 51D is where I got into trouble. DNK "Rexha" and I don't follow queer jargon, so I had to SWAG 51A/51D. All the perps around it were solid, and so BEBE and BI-ICON it was.
56D LIED TO. In anticipation of -T's debut, I saved this "Word of the Day" from 8/30/22. I'm sure he could tell us some stories about this MALIGN digital practice.
Cheers,
Bill
How about "Slo pitch, pitch" for LOB. How is it a question?
Plus, Patti or whomever found the most obscure BEBE. How about Lilith from Frasier(Bebe Neuwirth)
I also had BRIDE CHILdA so a softball question was DOH??.
As in "What's the greatest city in America?" Boston, DOH*
Welcome Tony, We appreciate you taking the time to enlighten us
I don't have a problem with circles and they helped a bit. A 2square FIW
WC
* And last in the ALEast
Ps, what was tge title of the 1963 Children's Book by ?Keats, Snow..?
Good morning!
Impressive debut, Anon-T. You're going to do well in the blogger's chair.
Thought the "Triple crown" had to do with horse racing. Baseball? Yup, d-o fell into the EluDE/EVADE trap. Thank you, Wite-Out. Don't believe I've ever seen "Greige" before, but it makes sense. My downfall was that second B in BEBE. My alphabet run ended with X -- XI ICON. Bzzzzt. Thanx, Shannon and Anon-T. (Was Andy put at ease by Bee-hive's comment?)
Well I guess a happy debut to me *and* to Tony!
Thanks so much for the kind review. Look forward to many more from both of us. :)
My favorite clue? 38-Down !
https://twitter.com/sharpenorah
https://www.norahsharpe.com/
FIW, penciling in EvaDE for ELUDE. But I got both WAGs at Naticks INA x ADOBO and BEBE x BIICON, so I got that goin' for me. Also DNK APBIO, dos, CURRIED CRAB, BRIDECHILLA, BEBE, FUTURAMA, LCD, Pose, or that CERTS was discontinued after I stopped drinking. Sorry about that.
Hand up for thinking of "the sport of kings" instead of baseball for Triple Crown. I guess it's fair - golf and tennis ripped off "grand slam" from "America's Pastime."
Raisins and log were allegories in my middle-school sense of humor for the common crossword fill SCAT.
"Refuse" is very versatile. It can mean "I won't" or "it's trash". Reminds me of "cite" - to laud, or to write a speeding ticket.
A guy in high school had a circa 1967 IMPALA convertible, white paint and matching interior, 389 4bbl carb, 4-on-the-floor w/Hurst shifter. Not strong enough to be a racer, but it was a total chick magnet.
Thanks to Shannon for the challenge. I choose to believe that the stoopid stuff was Patti's doing. And thanks to -T for the fun review. Except that your Pop and me would rather have seen the theme clued with the Stones' Tumbling Dice.
This one took 7:01 (dang it) to roll out.
Biicon sure didn't look right, but had to be. Had heard of a "bridezilla," and a chinchilla, but not a bridechilla. Wasn't crazy for the adobo/loch/bris combo, but it worked itself out. Still not sure about the "bee dance" answer.
Loved the Jedi Council reference.
Oh joy, circles.
Picking up the circled DICE was easy but there were some unknows filled by perps-BRIDECHILLA, CURRIED CRAB, LCD Soundsystem, FUTURAMA, AP BIO, BEE DANCE (as clued), and an ultimate DNF at the intersection of the pop singer and queer community celebrity-BEBE & BIICON. No idea or knowledge of either and all my WAGs didn't seem normal.
CERTS- didn't know it was gone but OTOH I never bought any either. I'd rather "brush my breath with Dentyne".
31A. Part of cellular plans- had to be either TALK or DATA because the clue directly above it was "30A. TEXT status."
ANTS- thanks for the link because I've never seen or tasted it. Thought it was some type of candy.
Norah- thanks for stopping by but looking at your clues and answers makes us a couple of generations apart.
Jinx- at my HS everybody drove old cars except three people. Jan had a Lincoln, Harry had a GTO, and Eddie had the one an only 1965 CORVETTE Stingray. But Tony (Anon-T) went to school on the other side of town where all the students drove newer cars.
Anon @7:33 AM Here 'tis: Bee dance
Good Morning:
Thumper had to work overtime this morning to convince me to practice his virtues of wisdom and diplomacy. However, I did enjoy being reminded of my first car, a brand-new pristine white 1964 Chevy Impala.
Thanks, Shannon (and Nora, two lovely Irish names) and thanks, Tony, for your boffo, successful splash into the blogging business. Your voice is unmistakeable and I look forward to hearing it often! Congrats and Kudos.
Have a great day.
I thought I was headin' for a DNF in the WURST way when APBIO just popped into my head (my science teacher SIL had mentioned it once). Instead a goofy FIW. Had LOT: "softball question" as in "what lot are we playing in?" Plus TEBE was just as good an unknown. No idea what QR kin/ UPC meant nor RBI for "triple crown".
Inkovers: evade/ELUDE, arch/INCH, aioli/ADOBO (don't they make houses out of that? 😄)
Perwaited on ATM or Fax "machine"...LGA or JFK... LOCH (lake) for "swimming hole"?
At first thought it said "Riverdale resident" Archie wouldn't fit. CERTS discontinued: couldn't decide if it was a breath MINT or candy MINT even though the company was in MINT condition.
I remember walking into my second grade class during the ASIATIC flu epidemic 1957. Out of more than 30 kids there couldn't have been more than 10 of us. The rest sick at home. Never watched but remember the ads with a girl with one eye in FUTURAMA. "Salat" leader was mostly perped
I agree T, if a girl should "refuse" to go ON A DATE she doesn't have to call you TRASH too ☹
Disparaging 1950s TV show: "What's ____ ?".. MALIGN.
Restaurant servers in a flood zone....WADERS
Sleep, female deer, or med amount...DOS
What a Shakespearean does on ice...SCATHE
in an Arabic restaurant dinner often comes with a ____....SALAT
Bravohhh ...Excellent job Antknee!! Good mix of you-mer and info. (How about a "bratty Chevy covered in ice cream" ...IMPÀLA mode )
NORAH AKA Thanks for droppin' by.
Big Easy - I think most schools were similar to yours. A few nice machines, a few junkers, but mostly family hand-me-downs or old-but-serviceable used cars. I once worked in Rolling Hills, CA and was AMAZED by the cars in the high school parking lot. Mostly Beemers, with a Benz and Caddy occasionally appearing. Turns out that Rolling Hills is one of the richest areas of California, and home of then-young tennis star Tracey Austin. But the punch line is that the feds put the city on the list of economically depressed areas, because there were very few jobs available per capita. Guess the housekeepers, chefs, groundskeepers and nannies were working off the books!
Good Morning.
I'm surprised it's still morning. This one took me quite a while with a couple of time outs, which often help me. I was often stymied with the three letter entries on the first two passes. But, ah ha! Good old perseverance. Thanks, Shannon, for a bit of a challenge.
Thank you for the tour Anon-T. I hope I can read your comments as fast as you can think and write them. You are a wizard! Thanks for helping out.
Have a sunny day, everyone.
Really lost, didn't know: Rexha,Jedi..., Imam, Futurama, ApBio. The whole puzzle was a conundrum for me.
Musings
-Shannon/Norah’s sensibilities made me struggle just enough for a fun solve! We’re glad you dropped by. I learned about 38 Down when I took a course called ethology (science of animal behavior)
-Disney wanted EPCOT to be an actual PLANNED CITY but it’s more like a World’s Fair
-AP classes – A friend’s daughter graduated H.S. last year with 33 college credits
-Texts can’t be “UNSENT” but Gmail gives me ten seconds to think it over
-“Told you” – Husbands should receive but never send this message
-Noodling is a sport where your REACH INTO a hole in a river to extract this
-If the more familiar adjective SCATHING is a word, there must be a verb in there somewhere
-Well done, Tony!
FIR, but it was a struggle. Lots of unknowns for me, and a few WAG's saw me through. Perps didn't seem to help today.
I knew from the 1st imbed that something was afoot!
But it was the leaf blower question made me think "this sounds like Anon-T!"
The Monty Python confirmed it!
Yay! This is an occasion! We need to celebrate with a cake!
oh Wow! I had no idea there would be so many! I can't choose just one!
The puzzle?
There were a couple of Naticks that made me want to cheat...
But not as much as this guy. warning! The guy curses a lot!
But how does he do it? You know he has got to be cheating somehow...
(Note: reading the comments, there is a perfectly simple one line explanation...)
And, how's the leaf blower going?
Well, unfortunately we are at the beach, and DW would not let me bring it with us. But when I get home, I have to either figure out a way to add a choke, and some kind electrical short to ground as right now there is no way t9 turn the dang thing off.
(Best bet is hope to find a better fitting carb at the junkyard.)
I take my inspiration from Mustie1, which means this leaf blower could wind up as anything.
Take for instance this motorcycle made from two synchronized leaf blowers and restaurant parts!
My fav is the teapot muffler/exhaust system....
Is it Wed. or Fri.? Thought there were a lot of obscure clues & fills. Perps helped but plenty of guessing. NE corner got me. Also, Natick BEBE (49A) and BIICON (51D). Thanks Anon-T for explaining it all!
Hola!
Congratulations, Tony! Welcome to the narrators' post! Great job on your debut! I look forward to all your future posts.
I started this puzzle at about 6 AM, worked about two thirds of it, then went back to bed. Slept. Drank some coffee and finished. Well, not quite finished because I had a grievous error at BRIDECHILLA, BRIDES HINTS made sense to me. That's my story and I'm ......
Glad to see FAJITAS there. FAJITAS is feminine so takes a feminine article, LAS. And we have a total meal with TACOS which is what we are having for dinner tonight. TACOS that is.
I left 49A blank because I had not heard of "Pop singer Rexha" BEBE. I agree that Newirth would have been a better clue. Never heard of FUTURAMA either.
ADAM. So many ways to clue it! Never heard of that one, though. BI ICON, also a mystery to me.
Ray, I think you mean ADOBE for building. ADOBO is for eating.
Have a wonderful Wednesday, everyone!
This was a fun romp - where the theme answers came quicker than some other parts of the puzzle. Some of the cluing and answers made it feel more like an end of the week puzzle.
I fell into the rut of thinking "Triple Crown" was related to horse racing instead of MLB baseball. I should have thought of baseball because Paul Goldschmidt of my STL Cardinals has a chance at it this year - if he made it - it would be the first NL winner in ~85 years and Miguel Cabrera in 2012 was the first AL winner in 50 years! A very tough feat!
Matt Groening is much more known for creating "The Simpsons" but I have learned FUTURAMA from Sporcle quizzes.
I had the same slips as Ray-O with ATM before FOG and reading Riverside before Rivendell on 36 D.
Congrats and thanks to Tony (AnonT) - I always try to guess who is doing the Wed blog - JzB or Melissa and I was definitely confused until I got to the bottom because it didn't sound like either of them!
and congrats to Norah on her LAT debut- after the fajitas and tacos - it is definitely time for lunch!
Fun puzzle, many thanks, Shannon. And enjoyed your commentary, Anon-T, thanks for that too.
As soon as I saw WURST (I know my German), I started looking for some food. Not much, just a little: FAJITAS, CRAB, TACOS, and a little MINT to spice them up. Hopefully none of this food will have GONE BAD.
But a surprising lot of negativity in this puzzle: with folks ready to MALIGN, SCATHE, LIE TO friends, ENTICE them to do bad things, and then ELUDE responsibility and TRASH reputations. I'd say we have a FOE here to any decent ETHIC.
At least we could have TOYED with a little ELF to cheer us up.
Have a great day, everybody.
WC - I forgot to add - the book you are talking about is "The Snowy Day" by Ezra Jack Keats
It won the Caldecott Medal in 1963 for best illustrated children's book
For those wondering about baseball’s Triple Crown….when one player has the highest batting average, runs batted in and home runs, that player has won the Triple Crown. It’s only been accomplished 12 times by 10 players. Last American League time was in 2012 (Cabrera) , last National League time was 1937 (Medwick). Thanks, Wikipedia.
Two look ups. Saw the gimmick early. Fine debut, Toni. Welcome.
I got ants on a log. Elude vs evade was a problem.
Posing a difficult question is playing hard ball. Posing an easy question is soft ball or a gentle lob.
I am a little distracted and going through a medical maze.
My PC called Monday while we were down the shore and insisted I immediately go to the ER. She had just gotten results from an X Ray I had taken earlier because of jaw pain. Antibiotics were keeping the pain in check temporarily .The PC suspected an infection in the jawbone. So Alan and I came home. After supper I took him back to Blairstown and I went to the ER for a CAT. No bone infection, but multiple abscesses at places my dentist can't reach due to my bad bite.. The situation was urgent but not immediate. I could have come home on Thursday as planned. I have an appointment with an oral surgeon tomorrow for what will be extensive and expensive work. Still having little pain due to additional antibiotics. All kinds of arrangements and paperwork took hours.
Also the CAT at the ER found a growing nodule on my thyroid. Need to schedule biopsy.
I am using some of my unused vacation money to treat myself to dinner out this evening.
Thx, inane, I want to send it to my nephews' 4 yrold twins
Jinx, Tracey Austin's son just upset a 10 seed at US Open
Did I miss explanation of softball club? Thanks YR, no Google result on that one. Sorry about vacay interrup- tough on Alan
85 years. My guess: Ducky Medwick- and PVX comes through. Yaz won in 67 and I think Frank Robinson the next year
WC
Ps, I suspect horse racing triple crown came first
Hi Y'all! Thanks, Tony, for a great expo. I figured it must be yours with Houston planned communities.
Shannon, okay theme. Misty was right with saying there was a lot of negativity in this puzzle. There were also a few offensive fills. Thought this was a lot harder than a Wed. should be.
DNK: UPC/APBIO (last fill) (No AP courses in our little schools when I grew up & when my kids went.) DNK: FUTURAMA, LCD, ADOBO, Riverdell resident =ELF, BEBE/BI ICON, ADAM, Catan resource= ORE. Wagd BRIDECHILLA (never heard of it)
YR: how horrible to have infection there. Prayers for your healing. Wondered why you had been absent lately.
What a strange PZL from Shannon Rapp, made less strange for us by Tony! (Welcome to your new job, good sir!)
I say "strange" advisedly, because it was tougher than usual for Wednesday, but then gave way rather smoothly under P+P.
I had 'em all, a perfect score today--EXCEPT for the *#@! Natick of LOB/BEBE. Because "Rexha" was as alien to me as to Tony, I had no reason to go with a "B for LOB. I took "Softball" literally, so chose LOW? (Not that WEBE Rexha made any more/less sense.)
Yes, I thought of LOB right away, but that did not seem to be a legit question in the game of softball. Whereas, a pitch could be queried as to whether it was too LOW for the strike zone.
Oh, I agree that LOB is a fine fill for an interview question thought to be too easy/lazy.
But then you'd have to know Rexha, wouldn't you?
Just sayin'...
~ OMK
____________
DR: One diagonal, far side, NE to SW.
But, get this: In all 15 letters, this diagonal offers NOT A SINGLE VOWEL!
This is the first time this has happened in living memory.
I could add a single vowel and get scores of words, but--What the Hey?
Quite a challenge this morning not helped by my spelling WoRST.
Congratulations to Anon.T.
Puzzling thoughts:
DNA, so I can't comment on the puzzle/theme/constructor/editors
What I CAN comment on is my Moe-ku* du jour:
We bloggers have "tells"**
When Monty P shows up it's
Anonymous T
*or haiku (for OMK) or senryu (for purists)
** Texas Hold'em Poker term for transparency
Welcome and well done -T
Well done -T. Look forward to seeing more of your blogs.
Wow, a double debut at the Corner ! How sweet is that ?
I guess I'm on the outside. I didn't find Norah AKA Shannon's puzzle difficult, and I nailed most of the answers that some have found to be a bit perplexing. That may be a result of solving the Universal crosswords edited by Erik Agard. The theme answers, and knowing the gimmick helpd with the unknowns.
Some really good links in this fine review by the hopelessly Type A rookie who seemingly can't find enough varied things to do. Good grief. Slow down, Dash T. It'll be there tomorrow.
Actually, we are all appreciative that you've stepped up and got off the bench when called upon, and decided to pinch hit. Standing proud for the home team. Looking good in the neighborhood. Thank you.
Yellowrocks, what PK said. Sorry to hear that your vacay was cut short, and that you have an infection. I also wondered where the heck you have been.
PVX, thanks. The MLB Triple Crown is a big deal. A rarity. And Wilbur Charles, you got it backwards. Frank Robinson first, and then Yaz the next year. 66 and 67. I was in Little League, and becoming more woke to baseball at the MLB level. To me, it seemed that someone was going to win it every year. Then the drought. I was tuned in when Miggy was on his way to winning it in 2012.
For those that were wondering, there have been 13 Triple Crown Winners in American Thoroughbred Horse Racing, with the concept starting in the 40s and 50s' and retroactively awarding back to 1919. In MLB, there have been 14 (batting) Triple Crown winners, going back to the 1870's. 12 since 1900. As inanehiker said, all eyes this year are on Paul Goldschmidt of the National League St Louis Cardinals. The Cards already have the most ever Triple Crown winners at 4. The BoSox have 3. Both are great baseball towns, with storied histories of special ballplayers and lifelong devout fans.
Dash T, to answer your query from days ago, Boo LuQuette aka "Boudreaux from Eunice"
FIW with just one FOGgy box at BE?E / ?IITCON.
Congratulations to Nora aka Shannon on her debut! Thank you for posting on the Corner!
Well done, -T! Did you enjoy doing the write-up?
Hi All!
Thanks for the kind & encouraging words. Glad y'all enjoyed the review.
Thanks Shannon for dropping by The Corner.
And thanks to the other Corner hosts who helped me get from blank-page to a finely-edited post. You know who you are (and I'm afraid I'd miss someone in the Shout-Outs ;-))
I'm glad I wasn't thinking horses at Triple Crown, AP BIO may not have dawned on me.
PK - sorry to hear about all your recent troubles. May next week be brighter.
Thanks for the cake, CED.
Gotta run. My worms for new composting bins came today. I bet they're hungry.
Cheers, -T
AnonT: Do you mean YR with her recent troubles?
Post a Comment