20. Fudge-and-caramel ice cream dish: TURTLE SUNDAE.
26. Regulations for a big contest: TOURNAMENT RULES.
44. Gradually and reliably: SLOWLY BUT SURELY.
50. Ambiguous outcome, and what the circled letters literally contain: MIXED RESULTS.
Circled letters (in red above) are anagrams of RESULTS. Good morning everyone, Melissa here. A pretty typical Wednesday, I'd say - a handful of gimme's, and only a few (to me) unknowns.
Across:
1. Enthusiast: BUFF.
5. Embarrass: ABASH.
10. Member of an ancient religion that values nonviolence: JAIN. If I've seen this before I've forgotten. Jainism.
14. Like some exams: ORAL.
15. "__ Man": Village People hit: MACHO. The group's name refers to Manhattan's Greenwich Village. Where are they now?
16. High ponytail, e.g.: UPDO. I don't usually think of a ponytail as an updo - but it fits: a type of hairstyle that involves the hair being up and out of the face.
17. WNBA alum Barnes who coaches the Arizona Wildcats: ADIA.
18. Skateboard stunt: OLLIE.
19. Baby bird's home: NEST. Adult bird, too.
23. Bubble tea pearls: BOBA. I've never had this - any fans here?
24. Abu Dhabi's country: Abbr.: UAE. United Arab Emirates.
34. "Tomorrow" musical: ANNIE. Based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie.
35. Branch of Islam: SHIA. The second-largest branch of Islam.
36. Body spray brand: AXE.
37. 500 sheets of paper: REAM. Paper Quantities - Quire, Ream, Bundle, Bale & Pallet.
38. Plenty of: AMPLE.
40. Organ component: PIPE. Here is one of the organists from the Stanford Theater in Palo Alto, CA, that shows classic Hollywood movies. From Wikipedia: "Part of the restoration included installing an organ to replace the
original which had been sold as parts. The process took 2 years to
obtain and restore parts which included the 1926 console from Grauman's Chinese Theatre and the organ's 1928 pipes from Loew's Theatre." Their current schedule.
41. Note-taking aid: PAD. More paper.
42. Auth. unknown: ANON. Or commenter.
43. Ready to play, in a way: TUNED. Below, tuning a pipe organ.
48. Agree silently: NOD.
49. Units of resistance: OHMS.
57. Dreary and dull: DRAB. BO-ring.
60. Beyond mad: IRATE.
61. Ames's state: IOWA.
62. Coffee, in slang: JAVA.
63. Golf course halves: NINES.
64. Pre-calc math course: TRIG.
65. Petty quarrel: SPAT.
66. Grind, as molars: GNASH.
67. Creator of a Sonic boom?: SEGA
Down:
1. V-shaped sitting pose in yoga: BOAT.
2. Language spoken by Kamala Khan's family on "Ms. Marvel": URDU. Pakistani-American Super Hero.
3. Carnival: FAIR.
4. Feature of some ball caps: FLAT BRIM. Or visor or bill. What are the parts of a hat called?
5. Slide show?: AMOEBA. Nice clue.
6. Fragrant sap: BALSAM.
7. Org. with a Reproductive Freedom Project: ACLU.
8. Knee-to-ankle area: SHIN.
9. Cleared weeds, say: HOED.
10. Capital of Alaska: JUNEAU.
11. Gorilla, e.g.: APE.
12. Cards with pics: IDS.
13. "__ all heroes wear capes": NOT. Sweet song.
21. Sole: LONE.
22. General vibe: AURA.
25. Olympic sprinter Thompson-Herah: ELAINE. Jamaican, six-time medalist, the first female sprinter in history, and the second sprinter after Usain Bolt, to win the "sprint double" at consecutive Olympics.
26. Waterproof covers: TARPS.
27. Oscar winner Tatum: O'NEAL.
28. Eel-and-rice dish: UNADON. Abbreviation for unagi donburi, "eel bowl," is a dish originating in Japan. It consists of a donburi type large bowl filled with steamed white rice, and topped with fillets of eel grilled in a style known as kabayaki, similar to teriyaki.
30. Org. with the Blues and the Blue Jackets: NHL. Hockey.
31. Dead heat: TIE.
32. Toss out: EXPEL.
39. Crowd around: MOB.
40. Occupations: PURSUITS.
43. Antacid brand: TUMS.
45. Tasmanian marsupial: WOMBAT.
46. Rich cakes: TORTES. What's the difference between a torte and a cake?
47. "Yikes!": SHEESH.
51. Abbr. seen under a deer silhouette: XING.
52. "__ Brockovich": ERIN. Brockovich was instrumental in building a case against PG&E, alleging the company contaminated the town’s drinking water. In 1996, the case was settled for $333 million -- the largest ever paid in a direct-action lawsuit at the time.
53. "The X-Files" agent Scully: DANA.
54. Shared stories: LORE. A body of traditions and knowledge on a subject or held by a particular group, typically passed from person to person by word of mouth.
55. Item needed to play Poohsticks: TWIG. All about Poohsticks. Big fan of Winnie, but somehow I didn't know (or remember) this.
56. Story that might take hours to tell: SAGA. I looked up Michener's Centennial - the audio book is 50 hours and 13 minutes.
57. Playlist overseers, for short: DJS.
58. Knock sharply: RAP.
59. Director DuVernay: AVA. Talented filmmaker, known for 13th, Selma, and When They See Us. Wikipedia.
Well, folks, I have to admit, the “o” in “amoeba “ got me, and I FIW. All I can say is , “Lo, How the mighty have fallen!” And, while I can’t say I’m “happy “ about this, I remain “happy “ to have this community, and all you lovely people, as my friends. As Tiny Tim might say, “God bless us, every one!”
ReplyDeleteMy solve was nearly two minutes faster than yesterday's. I could've seen yesterday's puzzle running on a Wednesday. But maybe it also has to do with the fact that I saw the circled letters, got the jumble theme, and didn't even need to look at the clue to fill in the revealer. (Top-notch themers by the way)
ReplyDeleteGotta love how instead of the perfectly normal word JAIL crossing the perfectly normal word LOT, we have JAIN which has appeared a grand total of 5 times in NYT puzzles, the last of which was a Tuesday in 1989 that needed that J in the corner for theme reasons. At least JAIN/NOT isn't as bad as JAIN crossing OUJDA in the oldest of those five puzzles.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteIs it really only Wednesday. Thought this one was tough. Went sideways with DUCK BILL (FLAT BRIM) and EVICT/EJECT (EXPEL) which really slowed things down. SLOW AND STEADY sounded good, but was too short. For some unknown reason I remembered the JAINs, and even how to spell it. UAE was a gimme -- spent a month there one weekend. Thanx, Brooke and Melissa Bee.
I hope all the liars from yesterday fess up today, if they haven't already. Here's my offering. 1) I once interviewed Tinkerbell on the radio. 2) I spent 6 years as a heavy equipment rep. 3) I moved from west Houston to our current northeast location, so it would increase my daily commute from 30 minutes to two hours.
Hi there~!
ReplyDeleteI felt obligated to comment on the puzzle as today is my first day at the new job - and the job is Pipe Organ Technician - how bizarre that a clue/answer (40A) refers to this instrument~? Today is "meet & greet" plus paperwork day, then I am being sent to Virginia starting Monday to work on my first project. The company, Foley-Baker, ( not the one in the YouTube clip; competitors, LOL ) has hundreds of accounts country-wide, and ironically, now that I live in CT, about 100 of them are in NY, half on LI. And thanks for the links, too~!
Splynter
This took 6:08 to get the results sorted out.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know Jain, the WNBA coach, the eel dish, balsam, the sprinter, or the clue for boat.
Good chance I'd miss them all tomorrow too.
Oh joy, circles....
I loved the shout-out at 42 A ("Auth. unknown).
Splynter, great to hear from you. Good luck with your new endeavor. Do they have a training program? I imagine there are quite a few tricks of the trade that you'll need to master.
ReplyDeleteFIR. Didn't get the theme till the reveal. I just couldn't see "result" in the circles. But a nice Wednesday puzzle.
ReplyDeleteGood Morning:
ReplyDeleteWhile I came pretty close to drowning in unknown pop culture and the torturous cluing for Boat and Twig, I finally survived to get my Tada. The theme was fine, as were the themers which helped with the solve, but I can’t say it was a pleasant experience. Ten unknowns, some because of the aforementioned cluing, are way too many for a mid-week puzzle. Patti’s hand is getting heavier by the week, IMVHO,
Thanks, Brooke, and thanks, Melissa, for guiding us along so skillfully.
FLN
Re our fun truth and lies game, Wilbur and Bill know me well, Tante Nique, not so much. TTP and Lucina’s “lies” were as obvious as the nose on your face! OTOH, I couldn’t decide HG’s lie because both 2 and 3 seemed plausible, and all three of Michael’s rang true.I guess that means HG and Michael are “good” Liars!
Prayers for those in Ian’s path. My nephew is in Port Charlotte and my long-time WWF’s friend is in Punta Gorda, both in the dangerous zone, as of last night’s news.
Have a great day.
FIR, but erased keys for PIPE, pen for PAD, and shody for SEEDY. DNK JAIN, ADIA, BOBA, UNADON, and the clues for BOAT, URDU, ELAINE, TWIG, and AVA. Got both wags at BOAT x ADIA and IDS x JAIN (I really wanted XDS, the memory device in classic video recorders, cameras and smart phones.)
ReplyDelete"...and don't call me SURELY."
I've never watched The X Files, but knew DANA because, well, red heads are my kryptonite.
Thanks to Brooke for the fun challenge, to Patti for keeping the NHL in the limelight, and to melissa b for the delightful tour.
Heading out for the short trip to Gaffney, SC for tomorrow's appointment at the Freightliner factory service center for our RV's annual service. The RV's chassis was built across town, and most of the techs once worked in the assembly plant. They really go over the "dirty part" of the RV, and have found items that our local folks would have missed. Plus it is a quaint little town with very nice people.
Nice to see Splinter's contribution. I suggest that you introduce yourself to new-to-you clients with a gift of tulips to be placed on the instrument.
FLN - I can imagine that Lucina worked at a furniture refinishing company after leaving The Order. Our local firm is called The Strip Joint. So I'm not sure which is her lie.
The NW & S.F. area was troublesome for me but SLOWLY BUT SURELY I managed to FIR after filling the rest of the puzzle first, then going back. With LE SUNDAE in place I tried
ReplyDeleteDOUBLE, TRIPLE, and PURPLE before filling TURTLE (unknown). ADIA was a complete unknown and both BOAT and URDU were unknowns as clued. My FLIP BRIM became FLAT after PURPLE became TURTLE.
Then I couldn't remember if John McEnroe's ex spelled her name as ONEIL or ONEAL but the 'A' allowed a Note PAD to complete the unknown Eel-and-rice dish UNADON.
JAIN, DANA, TWIG, and ELAINE were other unknowns.
SEEDY or SEAMY, SHIN or CALF
Tougher than the usual Wed. puzzle and Patti's WNBA clues are getting boring.
Too many unknowns. I counted 14 yikes!
ReplyDeleteFor my return to the blog today, I got a FIW due to entering PEN instead of PAD. The spelling of Tatum's last name niggled at me but I didn't catch my error.
ReplyDeleteI've enjoyed guessing all the lies yesterday and today. I'm guessing Michael's #2 is a lie. Also, the Murder game sounds fun, OMK.
Nice to hear from you, Splynter. Good luck with your new job! Tulips, TTP?
I messed up east with scrap/Expel for "Toss out". I thought Act was a deodorant.
ReplyDeleteAnd here's a ditty that Splynter might enjoy
5/6/21
It was a seedy joint but Chester often went there…
It's the beginning of a long saga about Chet and Lois over at J-ville
Re. Truth vs Lie. A new boss used It's cousin Truth or Lie? as an ice breaker. It came down to the boss and a very proper lady as to who was an ex-stripper. I still chose the latter but my apology to the her was lame.
Sports clues are now woman athletes or Xer related(ADIA,OLLIE). BUFF was a good clue.
Let's see if my theory that not only during the week but during the month difficultly increases. It seems to be the case this month
Enjoyed MelissaB write-up
WC (FIR)
Musings
ReplyDelete-Unscrambling RUSTLE at first was not helpful
-BO_T/_DIA seemed to call for an “A” and so I got ‘er done
-My phone eliminates any PAD for taking short notes
-I can get through two NINES in less than 90 minutes
-A FLAT BRIM would have made you an object of ridicule in my yute
-AMOEBA – Seeing what is swimming around in pond water is a very cool H.S. biology lesson
-ID - All I had to do to get my new driver’s license this month was to pass an eye test. However, I also had to have my picture taken and I was, uh, not ready for that!
-Did anyone else notice the portmanteau web address in 33 Down?
-Old joke: “Why don’t they move those Deer Crossings somewhere safer?”
-D-O, I’m saying #3. You may have moved but it would not be for that reason. I fessed up last night. I did not get to go on that NASA “weightless” plane but I was in the raffle to do so.
-It was so nice to hear from Splynter! Good luck with your PIPES!
Neat theme. Not too much trouble and few erasures.
ReplyDeleteIrish Miss: I am SHOCKED you were kicked out of the Girl Scouts. Tsk, tsk.
Hola!
ReplyDeleteAgain not too much time to comment because the child is so active! I have to keep an eye on him at all times.
The puzzle was typical for Wednesday. Thank you, Melissa, for the tour. It's always good to hear from you.
I have never heard it called a BOAT pose.
A very interesting but sad book is called, The Stolen Village, that has to do with the Jannisaries.
Must go. Later. You all have a wonderful day!
What a difference a day makes!
ReplyDeleteMuch easier solving experience as none of the perps were Naticks!
SubGenius said: amoeba...
I didnt even see amoeba!
I had to go back and look for it...
(There it is, filled in by perps, never even saw it...)
Thanks for the videos, pipe pitches and superhero songs.
I have not seen them entirely yet as I went to YouTube and saved them to stream on my widescreen TV.
(They look like postage stamps on the Blog...)
But definitely interesting stuff I want to see.
Here are some mixed results
I had to post because of #15.
Wonderful Wednesday. Thanks for the fun Brooke and melissa.
ReplyDeleteI FIRed and saw the MIXED RESULTS theme.
One inkblot to change Pen to PAD.
BOBA was all perps (although we may have had it before). I prefer today's spelling for AMOEBA (and loved the clue).
TWIG was intuitive from the unknown to me Poohsticks.
SHEESH - CSO to Jayce.
I noted GNASH and ABASH (at top and bottom of the CW).
TWIG crossed TRIG, and SAGA crossed SEGA in the SE corner.
SPAT crossed WOMBAT in the SW corner.
Off to do some chores.
Read you all later.
Have a great day.
Thank you Brooke for a good RESULT. The theme was useful and after completing the last two themers, it helped me complete 20A and then the rest of the NW.
ReplyDeleteAnd thank you MB for the informative and entertaining review (I ended up watching 3 Owl City videos before I came back here to comment).
Some favs:
10A JAIN. BAHAI didn't fit and then I remembered AHIMSA, a watch word in the Hippocratic Oath and the meaning of the Second Commandment.
40 PIPE. Interesting video on the effect of temperature on ORGANS. A long time ago I read somewhere that organ pipes were originally made of pure TIN, but it was discovered that they crumbled into dust in subzero termperatures. Nowadays they are made of various alloys of lead, tin, and other metals.
43A TUNED. Also called "well tempered" as in Bach's work called "The Well Tempered Clavier". Here's the recognizable Prelude in C Major from that collection.
49A OHMS. This clue is guaranteed to spark up some excitement in the very near future.
5D AMOEBA. Cleverest clue.
28D UNADON. One of a family of sushi dishes served over a bowl of rice, including TEKKADON (TUNA SASHIMI) and CHIRASHI (mixed SASHIMI). I like UNADON, but it gives me indigestion.
38D ANY. Caller to the Help desk: "Where's the ANY key?"
52D ERIN. Here's the trailer from the movie starring Julia Roberts and Albert Finney.
55D TWIG. Liked TWIG crossing TRIG.
Cheers,
Bill
Splynter @6:12 AM It's great to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you (all good!). One of my nephews used to repair organs as well. In one of his stories, he actually got stuck inside one and needed help to extricate himself. I believe today you experienced a TOPANGA, the most recent Cornerite term for an amazing coincidence. They seem to happen to folks around here a lot.
Plenty of DNKs: JAIN ADIA BALSAM ELAINE UNADON DANA AVA, and knew ONEAL but needed perps to remind me of the spelling is not ONEIL. With that many DNK it’s a wonder I managed to FIR in 18. One W/O: SALE:SAGA. No idea how SALE got in there, makes no sense and doesn’t perp. I got the theme but only after completing the CW and looking for it. “Creator of a Sonic boom?” as a clue for SEGA is pretty cute! Thanx BH for the entertaining CW! Thanx too for the fun write-up, Melissa-Bee!
ReplyDeleteTwo truths and a lie: The lie was #1 -- I interviewed Snow White, but not Tinkerbell. #3 was true (sorry, Husker). I purposely moved much further from the office in hopes it would force me to retire. Took three years, but it eventually worked.
ReplyDeleteFIW, I can never remember how to spell AMOEBA -- not AMaEBA and aLLIE sounded just as good as OLLIE for a skateboard stunt. Hi Subgenius!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the Wednesday challenge, Brooke. I needed the reveal & circles to get the first half of Sundae. TURTLE came to me "slowly".
FAVs: XING, Sonic boom, slide show
Thank you for your helpful review, Melissa! Hand up for being a BoBa Tea fan. In fact, this past Sunday, DH and I took our dog for a walk to get a Strawberry BoBa uptown. The tea pearls are tapioca balls. You need an extra-wide straw to suck them up.
I’m not enjoying the puzzles so much these days. Maybe I’m regressing. Seems like more and more pop culture and “gotcha” clues. I keep trying, though!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Melissa, for the excellent tour.
Late to the party, but…
1. I’m named after the Wendy in Peter Pan.
2. I was employed as a motorcycle test rider by Kawasaki in the ‘70’s
3. I won 3 competitive swimming medals in the U.S. Masters Nationals.
A good puzzle for a Wednesday, thank you Brooke, been seeing quite a bit of your byline lately, nice to see you got your foot in the door as a constructor!
ReplyDeleteDNK JAIN, or BOBA , and the “A” in the BOAT/ADIA crossing was a WAG, but I managed a FIR in a few ticks over 15 minutes. Before the reveal I thought the jumble would be LUSTER.
Thank you Melissa Bee for another fine Wednesday review!
Pretty much glued to the Weather Channel today as hurricane Ian is posing a major threat to our condo in Punta Gorda, as well as many of our friends in the path of a direct hit. Hope they have all evacuated, I’m safely watching it in Michigan.
Wendybird @ 12:58 ~ I agree with your entire first paragraph except the second sentence.
ReplyDeleteYour lies/truth statements:
#1-True
#2-True
#3-False, but probably has some truth, just not precise numbers.
The conditions in Florida are horrendous. Catastrophic per news cryons. 🙏
This PZL from Mr. Husic took me a little more time than usual for Wednesday. The responses from melissa bee made it all worthwhile.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I use SHEESH in my own correspondence, I don't care to see it in most XWDs, as it is too broad, too generic an expression, to be properly clued.
What did I learn today? The RULES for Poohsticks!
~ OMK
____________
DR: One diagonal, far side.
Its anagram (13 of 15) is a bit strange. Perhaps it refers to a contestant in a wet T-shirt contest.
It designates a...
"DOUSED NYMPHET"!
Musings 2
ReplyDelete-Until a perfect day comes along, this one will do! 66F, sunny and a nice breeze. My partner and I got in 18 in 2 hours.
-Wendy, I'm saying three is wrong on some level. Did you know many Peter Pans in your life?
Hi All!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the puzzle, Brooke. Tough.
Fun expo, mb. Love the Chevy Chase link. Thanks!
WOs: sOBA, BALSAs - there's actually more ink that implied 'cuz I kept writing letters
ESPs: BOAT | ADIA, JAIN, UNADON, ELAINE, AVA
Fav: SEGA's clue.
Nice to read you Splynter! Congrats on the new PURSUIT.
DW's friend taught in China for a few years and I guess the language set-in...
She saw "Duck XING" and asked DW, "What's a Duck Zing?"
Wendybird - #1 is my guess.
Back to work. Cheers, -T
FLN, ATLGranny ~
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed reading my notes (yesterday) about our Murder game. Yes, it used to provide us with a lot of laughter--and some hysterical shrieks in the dark!
~ OMK
Pipe organs.
ReplyDeleteNo chance to parse out the puzzle. Spending the day with cousins here in Raleigh. Visited the new R C Cathedral this morning, completed in 2017. As far as pipe organs go this one is 3 stories high (look at the grand piano in the lower right hand corner
Ian
Trying to keep tabs on my buddy as long as his cell service holds out, wouldn't listen and didn't evacuate his place in Bradenton. He is describing his carport blowing away and trees snapping, roofs blowing off. One friend on Sanibel texted she evacuated yesterday another in Ft Myers intends to ride it out.
Hope everyone comes out of this OK. Property can always be replaced.
I liked this puzzle even though I didn't see those RESULTs.
ReplyDeleteHow many 3-letter entries? This many:
1. UAE
2. AXE
3. PAD
4. NOD
5. APE
6. IDS
7. NOT
8. NHL
9. TIE
10. ANY
11. MOB
12. DJS
13. RAP
14. AVA
How many 4-letter entries? This many:
1. BUFF
2. JAIN
3. ORAL
4. UPDO
5. ADIA
6. NEST
7. BOBA
8. SHIA
9. REAM
10. PIPE
11. ANON
12. OHMS
13. DRAB
14. IOWA
15. JAVA
16. TRIG
17. SPAT
18. SEGA
19. BOAT
20. URDU
21. FAIR
22. ACLU
23. SHIN
24. HOED
25. LONE
26. AURA
27. ALDI
28. TUMS
29. XING
30. ERIN
31. DANA
32. LORE
33. TWIG
34. SAGA
Be careful sucking up that BOBA tea. Those tapioca pearls can easily choke you. LW and I have never had it and don't want to, though our neighbor and her two daughters love it.
How is AHIMSA the meaning of the Second Commandment, waseeley?
Hello and congratulations, Splynter! Totally serendipitous that I was just this morning listening on YouTube to Sean Jackson playing Bach's magnificent Toccata and Fugue in D Minor on the organ at St. John's Episcopal Church, Stamford, Connecticut.
Anonymous T, I also think of a Chinese word when I see XING, which is part of the word for "happy" (gāo xìng, 高兴). Hello, Subgenius.
Good wishes to you all.
Jayce @5:14 PM More of a corollary I guess. Don't do any harm to others as you would have them not do any harm to you.
DeleteWow, Ray - O - Sunshine, that is one big, glorious pipe organ. Bigger than the one in the Stanford Theater :)
ReplyDeleteWendy, since #2 or #3 must be true, I'm guessing that both are true and #1 is the lie.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on the declining fun quotient recently.
AtlGranny - "Tulips" was a reference to a naughty saying I've heard since high school. Just skip the rest of this post if that type of humor isn't for you.
ReplyDelete10
9
8
7
6
4
3
2
1
Roses on your piano look nice.
Tulips on your organ feels fantastic!
I hope our friends from Florida are safe and out of the way of the oncoming hurricane.
ReplyDeleteWendybird, I believe your #1 and #2.
Good to hear from you Splynter.
ReplyDeleteWelcome back ATLGranny
Jinx, tsk,tsk, tsk. Dirty old man. Oh, you're not that old.....
ReplyDeleteSplynter- Pipe organ technician? Years ago on Mike Rowe's "Dirty Jobs" one of the dirty jobs was cleaning the pipes on organs.
ReplyDeleteStay clean and if you end up 'dirty' send pictures.
Jinx & Slynter: My sister was an organ major for her master's degree in Applied Organ. She got very tired of organ jokes so thereafter said she was an ORGEL major which is the Dutch, German, & Scandinavian word for the instrument.
ReplyDeleteRay-O @ 4:57 --- Just be thankful that (1) you don't have to dust it and (2) that you are NOT on the parish's maintenance committee!
ReplyDeleteI didn't think anyone would notice what i posted last night ... but since you did, here goes:
ReplyDelete(1) I really spent a year at the then-Army Language School at the Presidio of Monterey in California, to just start to learn Vietnamese (your tax dollars at work, but it was great duty by Army standards, and covered all of my foreign language requirements at college, so -- belatedly -- thank you!).
(2) Got to spend from November 1962 to May 1966 at Fort Meade (for any fans of Army bumper abbreviations: known as FGGM). Just remember that even the big name intelligence outfits, like NSA, are Federal bureaucracies, with all that implies, good or bad.
(3) I lucked out (especially given my MOS) and never had to/got to go to Saigon, Phu Bai, or any of the other 'garden spots,' so that was a fib.