No movie, no popcorn, today -- the trailer for the first themer
from today's constructors, Lisa Senzel and
Will Nediger, should wake you up ...
20A. Review that says, "Hitchcock serves up a twist that you won't see
coming"?: PSYCHO ANALYSIS.
31A. Review that says, "Bit of a downer, but Soderbergh delivers"?: TRAFFIC REPORT.
37A. Review that says, "Idina Menzel shines as Elsa"?: FROZEN ACCOUNT. Just Let it Go ...
51A. In-depth news story, or any of the reviews mentioned in this puzzle?: FEATURE ARTICLE
The ARTICLES were an ANALYSIS, a REPORT, and an ACCOUNT of 3 different FEATURE films - PSYCHO, TRAFFIC, and FROZEN. TRAFFIC'S Feelin' Alright was an AD-LIB by Steve Winwood.
Here's the grid ...
Here's the rest ...
Across:
1. Less risqué: TAMER. Also a noun ...
10. Yearn (for): ACHE.
14. Name said to activate an Amazon gadget: ALEXA. Machines don't seem to understand me, so I avoid talking to them.
15. Potato, in Indian cooking: ALOO. Here's a recipe for ALOO Parathas and here's a video of the steps:
16. Satellite whose day is almost 30 Earth days: MOON. Does the moon rotate on its axis?
18. Word with bar or Bell: TACO.
19. Oodles: A LOT. Notice the space between the 1st oodle and the second oodle, a CSO to Melissa 😁
20. [Theme clue].
23. The Thrashers, on sports crawls: ATL. The Winnipeg Jets (nés The ATLanta Thrashers) are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, playing its home games at Canada Life Centre. Here's their old logo:
|
|
Atlanta Thrashers |
|
|
Winnipeg Jets |
24. "ur the best": ILY.
25. __ and Herzegovina: BOSNIA. Bosnia and Herzegovina sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe, in the Balkans, bordering Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to the north and southwest.
27. Cuddling on the bus, e.g.: PDA. Public Display of Affection. Often clued: "Get a room!"
28. Silk Sonic musician Anderson .__: .PAAK. Note .Prefix. The principals of Silk Sonic are Johnson and his colleague Bruno Mars. Here's their Leave the Door Open with Bruno on keyboards and Anderson on drums. Both share vocals. I like their vibe ...
30. Fox Sports journalist Hale: JEN. Jennifer Hale (born February 28, 1978) is an American journalist working for Fox Sports as an NFL sideline reporter where she is currently paired with Chris Myers and Robert Smith. She also covers NBA's New Orleans Pelicans for Bally Sports New Orleans and also covers college football for Fox Sports.
|
|
Jennifer Hale |
34. __ the line: TOE. I wanted TOW for this. I think both could be used in different contexts.
35. Headed up: LED.
36. Donkey: ASS. They're stereotyped as ill-tempered and stubborn, but they're actually quite wise ....
42. Frightened cry: EEK.
43. Figure of interest?: RATE.
44. Private chats, briefly: DMS. Direct Message Service. Similar to cell-phone text messaging (TM), but DM uses the Internet rather than cell-towers to relay the messages.
45. Chew out: YELL AT.
47. Unruly head of hair: MOP. This is as unruly as it gets ...
48. Pleased sigh: AAH.
.
51. [Theme reveal].
55. High-fiber food: BRAN. My favorite BRAN source ...
57. Keypad key: ENTER.
58. Live a nomadic life: ROVE. Here's Ralph Vaughan Williams' Whither Must I Wander sung by Sir John Shirley-Quirk ...
59. Palo __, California: ALTO. Today's Spanish lesson: "Tall stick". Here's why the town is called that.
60. Harriet Tubman portrayer Cynthia: ERIVO. Cynthia Erivo (/əˈriːvoʊ/; born 8 January 1987) is an English actress and singer. She gained recognition for starring in the Broadway revival of The Color Purple from 2015 to 2017, for which she won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. Erivo ventured into films in 2018, playing roles in the heist film Widows and the thriller Bad Times at the El Royale. For her portrayal of American abolitionist Harriet Tubman in the biopic Harriet (2019), Erivo received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress; she also wrote and performed the song "Stand Up" on its soundtrack, which garnered her a nomination in the Best Original Song category. Here's a clip from Harriet ...
61. Matures: AGES.
62. Efficient: LEAN.
63. Iberian infants: NENES. More Spanish. The Nene is also the national bird of Hawaii ...
Down:
1. St. Petersburg neighbor: TAMPA. And a neighbor of TAMPA, about 30 miles Northwest of it, is Tarpon Springs. It's one of the worlds largest suppliers of natural sponges, preferred by potters everywhere.
2. Top celebs: A LIST.
3. Actress Streep: MERYL. Here's a movie from an A LIST actress I'll never forget ...
4. Corporate VIP: EXEC.
5. Jones of "Parks and Rec": RASHIDA. DNK she was Quincy Jones' daughter. Here she is pouring out her heart to Conan O'Brien (very funny) ...
6. Skewered Thai dish: SATAY. Here's a recipe for Thai SATAY chicken.
7. Splashy style: ELAN.
8. __-Cola: COCA.
9. Strip of computer icons: TOOLBAR. Here's part of my Firefox TOOLBAR ...
10. Collect over time: AMASS.
11. "SNL" regular who wrote the memoir "A Very Punchable Face": COLIN JOST. Colin Kelly Jost (/ˈdʒoʊst/; born June 29, 1982) is an American comedian, writer, and actor. JOST has been a staff writer for the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live since 2005, and co-anchor of Weekend Update since 2014.
12. Indiana residents: HOOSIERS.
13. Sinus specialist, for short: ENT. A CSO to Picard for his recent picture of a different kind of ENT
21. Norwegian saint: OLAF. Olaf II Haraldsson (c. 995 – 29 July 1030), later known as Saint OLAF and Olaf the Holy, was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. He was posthumously given the title Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae (English: Eternal/Perpetual King of Norway) and canonised at Nidaros (Trondheim) by Bishop Grimketel, one year after his death in the Battle of Stiklestad on 29 July 1030.
And since 'tis the season, here is a medley of Christmas carols performed by the St. Olaf's Choir of St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota (and a CSO to C.C.) ...
22. Oxen connector: YOKE.
26. Strong insect: ANT.
27. Company VIP: PREZ.
28. Fragment: PIECE.
29. Outlet letters: ACDC. Only Alternating Current (AC) comes out of an outlet. OTOH Direct Current (DC) is supplied by batteries, which in turn supply a lot of crosswordese. 😀
31. Used a paternity benefit, perhaps: TOOK LEAVE.
32. Sharp's counterpart: FLAT.
33. Skillets, woks, etc.: PANS.
34. Eater of 26-Downs on a log?: TREE FROG. Here's what Tree Frogs eat -- doesn't sound like they'd find Ants on a Log very appetizing ...
37. Tina of "Mean Girls": FEY. Mean Girls is a 2004 American
teen comedy film directed by Mark Waters, written by Tina Fey, and starring
Lindsay Lohan, Rachel McAdams, Lacey Chabert,
Amanda Seyfried, Tim Meadows, Ana Gasteyer,
Amy Poehler and Fey. Based on a book of advice to parents of teenage girls by Rosalind Wiseman, entitled
Queen Bees and Wannabes ...
38. Part of Q.E.D.: ERAT.
39. Marketing kin of "organic": NATURAL
40. Smell: ODOR.
41. Countless: UMPTEEN.
46. Freeway divisions: LANES.
47. Stoneworker: MASON. Among the most advanced masonry in the world are the huge perfectly fitted "polygonal stone walls" of the Incas. But they weren't the first civilizations who built such structures, as described in this video: Evolution Of Polygonal Masonry | From Ancient Times To The Incas | Quarrying, Tools & Methods.
48. Be part of, as a film: ACT IN.
49. Excedrin alternative: ALEVE.
50. Deli subs: HEROS. What’s the Difference Between a Hero, Sub, Grinder, and Hoagie? The biggest one may be where you live.
52. Part to play: ROLE.
53. Jazz great James: ETTA. And here's why ...
60. Harriet Tubman portrayer Cynthia: ERIVO. Cynthia Erivo (/əˈriːvoʊ/; born 8 January 1987) is an English actress and singer. She gained recognition for starring in the Broadway revival of The Color Purple from 2015 to 2017, for which she won the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. Erivo ventured into films in 2018, playing roles in the heist film Widows and the thriller Bad Times at the El Royale. For her portrayal of American abolitionist Harriet Tubman in the biopic Harriet (2019), Erivo received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress; she also wrote and performed the song "Stand Up" on its soundtrack, which garnered her a nomination in the Best Original Song category. Here's a clip from Harriet ...
62. Efficient: LEAN.
63. Iberian infants: NENES. More Spanish. The Nene is also the national bird of Hawaii ...
 |
| Nenes |
1. St. Petersburg neighbor: TAMPA. And a neighbor of TAMPA, about 30 miles Northwest of it, is Tarpon Springs. It's one of the worlds largest suppliers of natural sponges, preferred by potters everywhere.
 |
| Natural Sponges Tarpon Springs, FL. |
2. Top celebs: A LIST.
3. Actress Streep: MERYL. Here's a movie from an A LIST actress I'll never forget ...
4. Corporate VIP: EXEC.
5. Jones of "Parks and Rec": RASHIDA. DNK she was Quincy Jones' daughter. Here she is pouring out her heart to Conan O'Brien (very funny) ...
6. Skewered Thai dish: SATAY. Here's a recipe for Thai SATAY chicken.
8. __-Cola: COCA.
9. Strip of computer icons: TOOLBAR. Here's part of my Firefox TOOLBAR ...
10. Collect over time: AMASS.
11. "SNL" regular who wrote the memoir "A Very Punchable Face": COLIN JOST. Colin Kelly Jost (/ˈdʒoʊst/; born June 29, 1982) is an American comedian, writer, and actor. JOST has been a staff writer for the NBC sketch comedy series Saturday Night Live since 2005, and co-anchor of Weekend Update since 2014.
 |
| Colin Jost |
13. Sinus specialist, for short: ENT. A CSO to Picard for his recent picture of a different kind of ENT
21. Norwegian saint: OLAF. Olaf II Haraldsson (c. 995 – 29 July 1030), later known as Saint OLAF and Olaf the Holy, was King of Norway from 1015 to 1028. He was posthumously given the title Rex Perpetuus Norvegiae (English: Eternal/Perpetual King of Norway) and canonised at Nidaros (Trondheim) by Bishop Grimketel, one year after his death in the Battle of Stiklestad on 29 July 1030.
 | |
| Saint Olaf King and Martyr Feast Day July 29. |
22. Oxen connector: YOKE.
26. Strong insect: ANT.
27. Company VIP: PREZ.
28. Fragment: PIECE.
29. Outlet letters: ACDC. Only Alternating Current (AC) comes out of an outlet. OTOH Direct Current (DC) is supplied by batteries, which in turn supply a lot of crosswordese. 😀
31. Used a paternity benefit, perhaps: TOOK LEAVE.
32. Sharp's counterpart: FLAT.
33. Skillets, woks, etc.: PANS.
34. Eater of 26-Downs on a log?: TREE FROG. Here's what Tree Frogs eat -- doesn't sound like they'd find Ants on a Log very appetizing ...
 |
| Ants on a Log |
38. Part of Q.E.D.: ERAT.
39. Marketing kin of "organic": NATURAL
41. Countless: UMPTEEN.
47. Stoneworker: MASON. Among the most advanced masonry in the world are the huge perfectly fitted "polygonal stone walls" of the Incas. But they weren't the first civilizations who built such structures, as described in this video: Evolution Of Polygonal Masonry | From Ancient Times To The Incas | Quarrying, Tools & Methods.
48. Be part of, as a film: ACT IN.
49. Excedrin alternative: ALEVE.
50. Deli subs: HEROS. What’s the Difference Between a Hero, Sub, Grinder, and Hoagie? The biggest one may be where you live.
52. Part to play: ROLE.
53. Jazz great James: ETTA. And here's why ...
54. Memo starter: IN RE.
55. Product of Bali: BRA. More crosswordese.
Cheers,
Bill
And as always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.
waseeley
And a Happy belated Hanukkah 🕎 and a Merry
Christmas ⛪🎄🎅 to all!
45 comments:
Although the themed answers were normal (and clever!) in-the-language words and phrases, a few extremely obscure names kept the puzzle from being totally enjoyable, IMHO. For example, “Jen,” instead of “Ken” was a total WAG, at least for me. Anyway, FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
Up early for no particular reason. My body DMd my brain, "That's enough." No ALEXA devices chez d-o. Those that came with ALEXA have been stifled à la Archie Bunker. Odd to see NENES appearing so soon with that Spanish reference. This theme required no reveal, but it got one anyway. Thanx, Lisa, Will, waseeley, and Teri.
This morning I'll be off for my final M-o-W route of the year. It's double deliveries, since M-o-W is closed for the holidays next week. My little SUV will be stuffed to the roof.
FIW, missing ALEXi x RiSHIDA, SoTAu x oLOO and ILu. The cross of the spud and Thai dish was just cruel and unusual.
Today is:
WINTER SOLSTICE (longest night of the year)
NATIONAL FLASHLIGHT DAY (why not – it’s the longest night of the year)
YULE - Day of Winter Solstice (on the arrival of the Winter Solstice)
NATIONAL HOMELESS PERSONS' REMEMBRANCE DAY (remembers those in the homeless community who have died the previous year)
PHILEAS FOGG WIN A WAGER DAY (Jules Verne gave this character until 8:45 P.M. on December 21, 1872 to win his bet)
NATIONAL RE-GIFTING DAY (Thursday before Christmas appears to be the most common day for companies to hold their annual employee/company Holiday parties)
NATIONAL FRENCH FRIED SHRIMP DAY (I like shrimp, but fried is my least favorite)
CROSSWORD PUZZLE DAY (the object of a crossword puzzle is to fill in the white spaces of a grid with the correct words using the clues provided. Got that? I hear there will be a test Saturday)
DNK the ATL Thrashers. Figured it must be WNBA or soccer.
Figured white-bread Cynthia Nixon probably didn't play Tubman, but didn't know ERIVO.
Bill's right - outlets aren't ACDC, but some adapters are. Edison wanted all plugs to be DC, but Tesla's AC scheme was much more practical. Some outlets are AC with auxiliary 5 volt DC sockets (for charging via USB cables.) Maybe the days of AC/DC outlets are just ahead. Now if they only played Hell's Bells.
NATURAL doesn't mean "good for you." Hemlock and anthrax are NATURAL.
Thanks to Bill 'n' Teri for the fun tour for this puzzler.
Let's talk about what you thought about this puzzle with an ANYLYSIS, REPORT, lengthy ARTICLE and write up an ACCOUNT of what you liked or disliked.
Liked? Somebody took the time to put it together. I managed to FIR with a WAG of J instead of B,K,L for 30A & 11D. Jen, Ben, Ken, or Len but Colin LOST didn't sound like a real name.
Disliked? UMPTEEN proper names, mainly unknowns of non-ALISTers. RASHIDA, COLIN JOST, JEN, PAAK, RASHIDA, ERIVO filled by perps
FEY, OLAF, HOSSIERS, MERYL, ALEXA, ETTA- at least I knew those.
I or D for private chat. What's the difference?
TAMER- Major Tamer Suleiman, USAF, lives directly behind us. Just retired after 22 years.
All of my issues have already been noted, but I'll repeat them for support.
The clue for ACDC is just wrong.
Crossing SATAY with ALOO and ILY were guesses I managed to get right. I've probably seen those dishes before but no way I get them without a lot of letters filled in.
PAAK and ERIVO both unusual and totally unknown to me. All I can do is shrug and leave it. Didn't know JEN but at least that looked right when I got the perps.
FIR, but had to take a WAG with the crossing of two proper names, Jen and Colin Jost. This is very bad form for a CW. Something about putting a J seemed right and made it happen.
The theme, on the other hand, was fun and very normal. However the presence of all those proper names ruined the fun of doing this puzzle.
Fun fact: on this day 110 years ago the very first crossword was published in the New York World. Back then it was called a Word Cross.
Took 5:07 today to tell the ghost story (Review that says, "Demi gets close to Whoopi"?).
Of today's actresses, I knew Fey and Rashida, but absolutely did not know Erivo.
I knew "Jost" (he's a lucky man), so "Jen" filled itself in, thankfully.
I knew "satay," so "aloo" filled itself in, thankfully.
I knew the 4 intersecting downs, so "paak" filled itself in, thankfully.
I knew the Spanish "nenes" from another very recent puzzle, but repeating bad clues doesn't make them any better.
esper-Otto @5:28 AM You deserve a big ATTA BOY for providing Meals-on-Wheels to shut-ins. That's the real Christmas spirt.
Here's DAB's puzzle #292: XMAS. He has this to say about it:
Hey solvers! Xmas is almost here! And then comes NYE, and after that MLK Day! There’s no time to spll thgs out! So hurry! Do this xword rght nw!. I think he's busy.
Anonymous @7:44 AM I actually included a comment about why Jost is so lucky in the review, but then got off topic about her being a co-star in the quirky Sci-Fi flick Asteroid City. Highly recommended. So is the movie. 😁
Hola!
Was I ever surprised when I saw the puzzle grid was filled! How did that happen? Maybe this calls for some PSYCHO ANALYSIS.
My ALEXA gets a workout every day. I have one only because my daughter and husband bought it for me to remind me to take my pills.
I love Raisin BRAN for breakfast.
Though I have BALI BRAS, that did not occur to me.
Thank you, Lisa and Will. This was fun and it awoke me.
Have a lovely day, everyone! It's winter? Really?
Good Morning:
This was a very clever, well-executed theme with a perfect reveal. The only movie of the three that I saw was Psycho and the only scene I remember is the shower scene. Traffic looks like the type of film I avoid because of the violence and corruption and Frozen looks enchanting, but for children. There were a lot of proper names but I knew all of them except Jen and Paak, both easily filled by perps. Satay appears quite often and is also bandied about in culinary circles and Aloo recently showed up, so neither was a problem. Nenes filled right in, also, due to the very recent usage.
Thanks, Lisa and Will, for a smooth, satisfying solve and thanks, Bill and Teri, for another highly entertaining review and mini lessons on everything from soup to nuts! Laughed out loud at the Lion Tamer and his "Scary" chair! (I'm easily amused!) Also enjoyed the foodie photos and recipes.
Have a great day.
Yes, lots of unknown names for me too, but they filled in thanks to perps, so that’s fair enough. I did leave one blank, the “j” of JOST and JEN.
The theme was easy to discover, so no complaints this morning.
Great report from Waseelee. If PALO ALTO is tall stick in Spanish, BATON ROUGE is red stick in
French.
Happy winter solstice everyone.
I liked the clever theme. Faster than yesterday's puzzle. JEN, PAAK and ERIVO were all perps.
SATAY is common here.
I enjoy Colin Jost on SNL.
I like anything Meryl Strep does. Sophie's Choice was so sad, but I thought it was a good movie.
Families are invited to lunch today at Alan's day program. David will meet me there. TTYL.
Musings
-Happy Winter Solstice. Today we have the least daylight and greatest night time of the year and incrementally start reversing that.
-S_TAY/_LOO took me some time
-I queried SIRI to see if ALOO was right and it was!
-Brandon PAAK Anderson. I didn’t know him let alone that PAAK is his middle name,
-Ms. ERIVO and RASHIDA were also unknown but were necessary fill. OTOH, JEN Pasaki would have been more familiar
-A man where I sub TOOK 18 days of parental LEAVE to start the school year for his newborn
-Old winter joke: C sharp or B FLAT
-When I took geometry, we used this the symbol .˙. for proofs and not ERAT
-As Bill mentioned in his fine write-up, 12/21 celebrates the first crossword puzzle to appear in print.
Husker @10:27 AM Thanks for the CSO, but it was Jinx who pointed out that today is NATIONAL CROSSWORD PUZZLE DAY and KS further clarified that it 's the 110 anniversary of the first "WORD CROSS" day. Jinx also mentioned that you're giving us all a test on Saturday. I'd better start cramming! 😀
Thank you for including DAB's puzzle. Very thoughtful and an excellent puzzle.
DNF. I thought that the theme was clever and there were some amusing clues, but too many names from movies I haven't seen and TV shows I don't watch. TITT, and came to Was & Teri to figure it out. Thanks!
Terrific Thursday. Thanks for the fun Lisa and Will, waseeley and Teri.
I finished and saw the FEATURE ARTICLEs, but knew I might have a FIWed. Sure enough, my choice of B (over K and L) at the Natick-cross for me of names at 11D and 30A. Oy, it was JEN (female). Canadian disadvantage for me perhaps, but I see others had problems here also.
I’ll take the CSO for those Thrashers who became Jets (even though I had forgotten that origin). Anything hockey-related is good for me.
Other unknown names today (.PAAK, RASHIDA, ERIVO) perped.
I learned NENES yesterday.
I had Pine before ACHE, IM before DM, Roam before ROVE.
I thought of Dull before FLAT perped. Oh music!
Jinx- it’s ALEXA and RASHIDA.
Wishing you all a great day.
Greetings! I sailed across the North and then filled the South. The middle gave me the most difficulty. 30A: _ EN crossing _ OST. I knew neither of them and didn’t know if Hale was a first name or a last. (Hale Erwin came to mind.) Ditto Big Easy for the process and guessed wrong with a K. But all-in-all, quite nice for a Thursday puzzle. Thanks, Lisa & Will.
Perps for RASHIDA, ATL as clued, PAAK, DMS, ERIVO.
Thanks Bill & Teri for all the info in your recap and recipes. Uuh, your Chicken Satay recipe links to Quincy Jones. Help!! I’ve tried to make it before, but the peanut sauce didn’t come out right. Would like to try another recipe.
FLN: Thanks, Anon-T for your reply to the covered wagon. I guess I know which age I am!!! My online gaming consists of Spider Solitaire and Mahjong. 🤣
Oh. I did not finish yesterday's puzzle because I was working on my cards all day. I'll see if there is time for that today. Lots to do including grocery shopping.
Sorry, Jinx, I should have credited you. They say that memory is the second thing to go. :-)
A fun puzzle with fresh and lively fill.
I guessed wrong at Colin K/Jost.
Thanks Lisa &Will for a fun Thursday.
My wife and I had went for satay chicken pho last night.
The huge steaming bowls tasted wonderful.
…… kkFlorida
Obscure proper names crossing is a turnoff for me. Guessed all but "Ken" missed the mark. As for enjoying this one, I'll give it C+. GC
Yes, a Thursday toughie...
However,
todays featured article.
RoseE,
Yes, I too was looking forward to learning how to make peanut sauce, and was a little disappointed to find that Waseely does not visit more risqué sites and accidentally post them... however, I did look up a peanut sauce recipe, and was again disappointed that it contained ingredients I don't have, and would never buy. As luck would have it, Chef John to the rescue with a basic ingredient peanut sauce (u can even use jarred Pb if you reduce the sugar additions) that "is the start" and not end all, as it is a base that you can add your own favorites to...
RosE @11:09 AM Good catch! Fixed the link -- enjoy the recipe. 😀
CED, "jarred Pb" -- jarred lead?
D-O @12:27 PM Darn, you beat me to it!
Amazingly, I FIR today, despite initially thinking there way too many unknowns for my ability level. The themers were clever, and the fill was interesting. Thank you, Lisa and Will, and thanks too, Waseely (and Teri) for the excellent tour. I enjoyed the clips - like many, I never took a shower without locking the door for years after seeing Psycho! Sophie’s Choice just shattered me years ago - after seeing the clip, I want to experience it again.
FLN - I really must create a Cast of Cornerite Characters” for myself so I can keep the “nicknames” straight. Many of you know the real names as well, so, for example, Dash T is -T is Tony. There seem to be a few Anonymous folks, so I’m not always sure who is who. Is Lucina Agnes? I know Waseeley is Bill.
Anyway, my apologies for thanking DO for yesterday’s tour instead of -T. I enjoy reading both of your daily comments.
Cheers!
Wendybird AKA Wendy (pretty obvious, huh?)
Typo in my name, above. Sorry.
Wendybird, Irish Miss is Agnes. Lucina is....well....Lucina.
Wendybird,
Take a gander at the Blog photos,
(Top row of clickable stuff)
I had not done it in years and was surprised at how many new photos there are...
(Most of which carry original blogger names for reference)
CED @1:31 AM Thanx CED. You've atoned for your earlier HEAVY comment. Here's a link to the Blog Photos. My pic seems to be missing, but I look like the person on the left in Teri and my avatar above.
Not my fave. Finished, but too many hard names for no good reason. Theme below average, but nothing wrong with it I guess. Maybe I'm just a curmudgeon.
Thanks, CrossEyedDave and waseeley for the recipes. I've copied them both & am looking forward to trying them.
Looking at the pictures I’m reminded we’ve not had a post from Uncle Fred recently. He would post pretty regularly.
Monkey made my comment for me: "I did leave one blank, the “j” of JOST and JEN." I'm clearly not watching enough Fox Sports or SNL.
Here's what I liked about this puzzle:
The theme;
The clue/answer TOOK LEAVE;
The clue/answer FLAT;
The fill TREE FROG (but not the clue).
Here's what I didn't like:
The clue for ACDC;
The clue for NENES;
Crossing proper names.
I was stumped by the crossing of COLIN -OST and -EN Hale. Tried B, K, and L before doing a mindless alphabet run to hit that J.
Names I simply didn't know and got filled solely by perps:
The aforementioned JEN and JOST;
Anderson.PAAK;
Cynthia ERIVO (yep, not NIXON);
RASHIDA Jones.
Names I did know (you know it or you don't, no room for sussing or reasoning):
ALEXA;
Palo ALTO;
MERYL Streep;
Tina FEY;
ETTA James.
Happy winter solstice.
Oops - thanks for the correction.
Puzzling thoughts:
waseeley @ 9:13 ==> I solved DAB's puzzle but I'll be damned if I can figure out his "theme"
COLIN JOST and JEN Hale cost me a FIR
See you tomorrow
Waseeley ushers today’s Senzel/Nediger PZL before us…
Hmm. Alternatively, this one is challenging and piece-o’-cakeish.
I don’t know where to file it.
~ OMK
_____________
DR: Four diagonals today, three of them on the far side.
The near side single yields an interesting anagram (14 of 15), two words more suggestive than literal.
I imagine they apply to a situation where there’s an unattended landing tarmac, one that relies on pilots to exercise good judgment and diplomacy, when more than one aircraft approaches.
I call this the…
“TACT FIELDSTRIP”
Hi All!
Thanks Liz & Will for the fine Thursday puzzle. Thanks waseeley for the review; love me some TRAFFIC and Pearls Before Swine.
Also, waseeley - that Satay recipe looks super-easy; I'm going to give it a try after the Holidays.
WOs: long -> ACHE, toolBAR really delayed finishing the N. Central
ESPs: TRAFFIC, ILY(?), ATL, RASHIDA, JEN, PAAK, ERIVO, NENES probably would have been one too but it was filled before I got there.
Fav: UMPTEEN is fun
I've read Colin Jost's "A Very Punchable Face." Good book. Speaking of SNL personalities, Kenan Thompson has a new book out.
I was really confused by ATLanta Thrashers playing in Winnipeg. I looked it up: The Atlanta Thrashers (Georgia State Bird) were founded in 1997 in Atlanta Georgia as part of NHL four-team expansion. Atlanta Thrashers were sold, moved, and renamed Winnipeg Jets in 2011. //Oddly, I heard Thrashers after the puzzle in this humorous video [#8 @3:00(ish)]
Palo Alto Networks is (oddly) headquartered in Santa Clara but make top-notch firewalls & security intel team (Unit 42).
Cheers, -T
Anon-T, RE: your ILY?: text speak for I love you.
The Winnipeg Jets have a very convoluted history.
“The team was renamed the Jets after Winnipeg's original WHA/NHL team, which relocated after the 1995–96 season due to financial issues to become the Phoenix (later Arizona) Coyotes.”
Long day so short post. Thanks to Lisa and Will!
FAV: Sharp's counterpoint
Hand up for a one-square DNF at COLIN?ost X ?en.
Thanks, waseely! I always appreciate your research (so I don't have to).
RoseE - thanks. I wasn't really sure 'cuz we always use "I *heart emoji* U".
Thanks for more of the back-story, C, Eh!
Cheers, -T
Jinx called the cross of SATAY and ALOO “cruel and unusual”; so was crossing COLINJOST and JEN, both proper names. Aaack.
Although I liked the movie clue theme, how they tie in via the reveal is pretty circular — I just about need a map to grok that!
DC power has nothin’ to do with outlets I’ve ever seen, only AC, so no cee-gar on that one…better clue might be “Malcolm and Angus band”. But being a music guy I’ll forgive the ACDC clue because the sharp/FLAT one was a winner 👍🏽 along with the clue for RATE (Figure of interest?). Fun stuff!
====> Darren / L.A.
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