Theme: Precisely as stated.
This crossword was a real puzzle for today's blogger. If I were younger, I might say my brain LITERALLY exploded! I filled the squares, but it took longer to understand the cryptic clues. And then I read the theme clues from top to bottom and saw that all together they spelled LITERALLY.
17. LI?: LINE LEADERS. Line leaders can be team leaders in manufacturing, or simply people who lead others in a line, like teachers leading children. LI gives us the beginning of the word LITERALLY. L and I are LITERALLY the LEADERS in the word LINE.
24. TE?: MID-SENTENCE. Mid-sentence means in the middle of a sentence. TE is the next part of the word LITERALLY. T and E are LITERALLY the middle of the word SENTENCE.
38. R?: EARTH'S INNER CORE. Earth's inner core is the innermost geologic layer of the planet Earth. R is the next part of the word LITERALLY. R is LITERALLY the inner core (or center) of the word EARTH.
50. AL?: HEART OF PALM. Heart of palm is a vegetable harvested from the inner core of certain palm trees. AL is the next part of the word LITERALLY. A and L are LITERALLY the heart (or center) of the word PALM.
61. LY?: EARLY FINISH. In project management, early finish is the earliest time by which an activity can be completed. LY is the last part of the word LITERALLY. L and Y are LITERALLY the finish (or end) of the world EARLY.
And now for the less cryptic clues and answers:
1. Cybersecurity event: HACK.
5. Far off: REMOTE.
11. Sad: LOW.
14. __ vera: ALOE.
15. Camera holder: TRIPOD.
16. Org. with a flower on its seal: EPA. Environmental Protection Agency.
17. [Theme clue}
19. Range pts.: MTS. Mountains. An abbreviated clue calls for an abbreviated answer.
20. African animal with features similar to zebras and giraffes: OKAPI.
21. Singer DiFranco: ANI. Sure, she's released more than 20 albums, but did she ever expect to be so popular in crosswords?
22. Verbal nudge: DO IT.
23. Capitol fig.: SEN. A figure that might be seen around the Capitol is a Senator.
24. [Theme clue]
28. Documentary podcast about legends: LORE. DNK (did not know), but not hard to guess.
29. Wrapped up in court?: ROBED. Judges wear robes in court, and are therefore ROBED.
30. Bánh mì spread: PATE. DNK, but bánh mì is food (a Vietnamese sandwich), and a spread used with food is often a paté (meat paste).
33. Speaker at a gig: AMP. Gig is a short word for a temporary job, often a live concert or stage performance, and amp is short for amplifier, part of the sound system used on stage. It is technically not the same thing as a speaker, but I'll leave that to the technicians.
35. Part of Amelia Bedelia's outfit: APRON. Amelia Bedelia, a character in children's books by Peggy Parish, is a housekeeper who takes things too LITERALLY. When told to dust the furniture, she obliges by putting dust on the furniture. Here she is "putting the lights out."
33. Speaker at a gig: AMP. Gig is a short word for a temporary job, often a live concert or stage performance, and amp is short for amplifier, part of the sound system used on stage. It is technically not the same thing as a speaker, but I'll leave that to the technicians.
35. Part of Amelia Bedelia's outfit: APRON. Amelia Bedelia, a character in children's books by Peggy Parish, is a housekeeper who takes things too LITERALLY. When told to dust the furniture, she obliges by putting dust on the furniture. Here she is "putting the lights out."
38. [Theme entry]
42. Instagram upload: PHOTO.
43. Tabby: CAT.
44. French twist, e.g.: UPDO. An updo is a hairstyle that lifts hair UP off the neck into a hairDO. A French twist is one such style.
45. "The Masked Singer" judge Ken: JEONG. DNK. I'd had my fill of singing competitions on TV before this series debuted.
48. Electronic music duo __ Punk: DAFT. The masked duo took their name from a negative review.
50. [Theme clue]
53. Workplace of some RNs: ICU. Some Registered Nurses work in the Intensive Care Unit.
56. Samovars: URNS. A samovar is a Russian urn, used for boiling water and brewing tea.
57. Egg __ yung: FOO. Yummers! This can be vegetarian or even vegan.
58. Lampshade-shaped candies: ROLOS.
60. Level the playing field?: MOW.
61. [Theme clue]
64. Smooch in public, briefly: PDA. Public Display of Affection.
65. Coin that fittingly weighs five grams: NICKEL. Fitting, I suppose, because it's worth five cents.
66. No longer feral: TAME. A feral animal lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals -- like most pigeons today! If you take a feral animal into your home and it becomes accustomed to you, it is now tame.
42. Instagram upload: PHOTO.
43. Tabby: CAT.
44. French twist, e.g.: UPDO. An updo is a hairstyle that lifts hair UP off the neck into a hairDO. A French twist is one such style.
45. "The Masked Singer" judge Ken: JEONG. DNK. I'd had my fill of singing competitions on TV before this series debuted.
48. Electronic music duo __ Punk: DAFT. The masked duo took their name from a negative review.
50. [Theme clue]
53. Workplace of some RNs: ICU. Some Registered Nurses work in the Intensive Care Unit.
56. Samovars: URNS. A samovar is a Russian urn, used for boiling water and brewing tea.
57. Egg __ yung: FOO. Yummers! This can be vegetarian or even vegan.
58. Lampshade-shaped candies: ROLOS.
60. Level the playing field?: MOW.
61. [Theme clue]
64. Smooch in public, briefly: PDA. Public Display of Affection.
65. Coin that fittingly weighs five grams: NICKEL. Fitting, I suppose, because it's worth five cents.
66. No longer feral: TAME. A feral animal lives in the wild but is descended from domesticated individuals -- like most pigeons today! If you take a feral animal into your home and it becomes accustomed to you, it is now tame.
My daughter rescued this pigeon on more than one occasion.
"Pretty Bird" is pretty tame!
67. "That lady?": HER.
68. Overcast, say: DREARY. Like Los Angeles during May gray and June gloom.
69. Smell: ODOR.
Down:
1. Brand of mandarin oranges owned by The Wonderful Company: HALOS.
2. Cut from the same cloth: ALIKE.
3. Podcaster O'Brien: CONAN.
4. "__ the change": KEEP.
5. Rd. with a no.: RTE.
6. Significant span: ERA.
7. King with a touching story?: MIDAS. Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, granted a wish to King Midas of Phrygia (Turkey), who said, "I hope that everything I touch becomes gold." That seemed great until he touched his breakfast, which turned to gold, and then hugged his daughter. Oops!
8. Warm-up act: OPENER.
9. Classic Ford named for an Italian city: TORINO. The city is AKA Turin.
3. Podcaster O'Brien: CONAN.
4. "__ the change": KEEP.
5. Rd. with a no.: RTE.
6. Significant span: ERA.
7. King with a touching story?: MIDAS. Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, granted a wish to King Midas of Phrygia (Turkey), who said, "I hope that everything I touch becomes gold." That seemed great until he touched his breakfast, which turned to gold, and then hugged his daughter. Oops!
8. Warm-up act: OPENER.
9. Classic Ford named for an Italian city: TORINO. The city is AKA Turin.
10. Masthead pros: EDS. In publishing, a masthead is a list at the top of a page that includes the names of editors, writers, and owners, as well as the title of the newspaper or magazine. Some of the listed PROfessionals are EDitorS.
11. Triple sec and vodka cocktail: LEMON DROP.
12. __ nerve: OPTIC. I rely on my OPTIC nerves to connect an image of the puzzle to my brain.
13. Use unwisely: WASTE.
18. Fancy wheels: LIMO. Limousine.
22. Song that's only familiar to superfans: DEEP CUT. A song that is less widely played and less well-known than other songs on the same album or by the same artist.
25. Portfolio options, for short: IRAS. Individual Retirement Accounts.
26. __ bra: narrow-cupped garment: DEMI. Good choice with a low neckline.
27. Ski lift: T-BAR. This basic lift will drag you up the mountain so that you can slide down on your skinny sticks.
28. Mail: LETTERS.
30. __ talk: PEP.
31. Spa sound: AAH.
32. "Odyssey" prelude: TROJAN WAR. Odysseus was a Greek hero who fought in the Trojan War and came up with the brilliant idea of the Trojan horse, which allowed the Greeks to enter Troy and end the war. All of that is detailed in Homer's Iliad. In the next book, the Odyssey, our hero struggles for ten years to get home to Ithaca, where his wife Penelope is waiting.
30. __ talk: PEP.
31. Spa sound: AAH.
32. "Odyssey" prelude: TROJAN WAR. Odysseus was a Greek hero who fought in the Trojan War and came up with the brilliant idea of the Trojan horse, which allowed the Greeks to enter Troy and end the war. All of that is detailed in Homer's Iliad. In the next book, the Odyssey, our hero struggles for ten years to get home to Ithaca, where his wife Penelope is waiting.
34. Pittsburgh's __ Park: PNC. A stadium in Pittsburgh, named for a local financial services firm.
36. Chicago airport code: ORD.
37. Opposite of paleo-: NEO. Old vs new.
39. "I'm an owl!": HOOT.
40. Zilch: NADA. From the Spanish for nothing.
41. Etc. kin: ET AL. Etc. or "et cetera" is used at the end of a list to mean "and more things like that."
Et al. or "et alia" is used at the end of a list of names to mean "and other people."
46. Outraged cry: NO FAIR.
47. Roller coaster sensation: G-FORCE. Gravitational force.
49. Brain scan, for short: FMRI. Functional magnetic resonance imaging or functional MRI (fMRI) measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow.
50. Disgruntled grunt: HUMPH.
51. Eat into: ERODE.
52. Beer garden sound: POLKA.
53. "Odyssey" prelude: ILIAD. Same clue as 32 across, slightly different answer! The Odyssey is an epic poem by Homer. The Iliad is the epic poem by Homer that tells the earlier story of the Trojan War. Here in the Corner, we call that a "clecho" -- a clue echo.
54. Pink cocktail, casually: COSMO. Casual reference to a Cosmopolitan cocktail: vodka, orange liqueur, lime juice, and cranberry juice. Popularized by the TV show "Sex and the City."
49. Brain scan, for short: FMRI. Functional magnetic resonance imaging or functional MRI (fMRI) measures brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow.
50. Disgruntled grunt: HUMPH.
51. Eat into: ERODE.
52. Beer garden sound: POLKA.
53. "Odyssey" prelude: ILIAD. Same clue as 32 across, slightly different answer! The Odyssey is an epic poem by Homer. The Iliad is the epic poem by Homer that tells the earlier story of the Trojan War. Here in the Corner, we call that a "clecho" -- a clue echo.
54. Pink cocktail, casually: COSMO. Casual reference to a Cosmopolitan cocktail: vodka, orange liqueur, lime juice, and cranberry juice. Popularized by the TV show "Sex and the City."
55. Theater guide: USHER.
59. Not fooled by: ONTO.
61. Last word of a fairy tale: END. Almost "The End" here, too!
62. "__ darn tootin'!": YER. You are absolutely right. A variant of "You're darn tootin'!" I say, This puzzle seemed hard! You say, YER darn tootin'!
63. Pass muster: FLY. Pass muster comes from the military and means "to pass inspection." FLY can also mean to be acceptable. We usually hear it in the negative: "That plan won't fly." Did this puzzle pass muster with you?
59. Not fooled by: ONTO.
61. Last word of a fairy tale: END. Almost "The End" here, too!
62. "__ darn tootin'!": YER. You are absolutely right. A variant of "You're darn tootin'!" I say, This puzzle seemed hard! You say, YER darn tootin'!
63. Pass muster: FLY. Pass muster comes from the military and means "to pass inspection." FLY can also mean to be acceptable. We usually hear it in the negative: "That plan won't fly." Did this puzzle pass muster with you?
Here's the grid:
This is my first Friday blog, stepping in for Chairman Moe. In his honor, a haiku:
Chairman Moe has some
extremely large shoes to fill --
not LITERALLY!
NaomiZ
Notes from C.C.:
1) Belated Happy 80th Birthday to Tehachapi Ken!
2) Happy 70th Birthday to Subgenius (Darryl). Here is a recent picture of him.
45 comments:
This puzzle was tough! But, through P&P, I eventually got some toeholds into the themed answers, and eventually triumphed. FIR, so I’m happy.
Two other things: I certainly never noticed the “literally” in the puzzle.
And second, Happy Birthday to ME! I realize 70 makes me a relative “pup” compared to some of you, but really, I never thought expected to live this long! And, still, at relatively good health! Who woulda thunk it?
P.S. AI inserted the word “thought “ in there. To me, it’s just as stupid as autocorrect!
Good morning!
Figured out the meaning of the theme clues, but take issue with that R. As written, shouldn't it be RT? Never noticed LITERALLY. I take issue with AMP, as clued. Still, d-o managed to fill everything correctly, so this one's a win. Thanx, Josh and NaomiZ
HBD, Subgenius and Tehachapi Ken.
An amp is not a speaker.
FIR, getting my either/or SWAG at DAFT x FMRI (could have been "raft" Punk for all I know.) I was proud to fill DEEP CUT and DEMI bra without a single perp. (I'm a fan of both.)
I would never in a million years picked up on LITERALY, even though I got the individual plays.
D-O, I don't understand the point. Do you not like my cso by my long-ago street name "EARTH SINNER?"
I don't watch any "dancing" or "singing" themed shows. I knew Ken JELONG because he acted in a commercial for eye drops that was shot right beside where I used to live, Top-O'-Topanga.
Here's today's take on the TROJAN horse from The Wizard of Id comic strip.
Thanks to Josh for the Friday challenge, and to NaomiZ for the fun tour and attempted Moeku.
Never got the gimmick, still not sure I understand it. Nonetheless I completed with perps with one flub; had semi instead of demi-bra.
FIW. Never saw the theme and frankly still not sure I could have sussed it out.
Also heart of palm was a mystery to me. Took a WAG and put pale. Hence my FIW. Also never heard of an fmri and had ORD wrong as well as Daft.
I've seen hard puzzles and one can expect them on a Friday, but this one took the cake.
Overall, meh!
I wasted zero time on the silly theme and the puzzle came together quickly.
Good Morning! I don’t know why I kept looking back at the clues to try and discern the themers. A useless endeavor until I came to the Corner to solve the mystery. But I finished with only a few snags.
Oh the nerve -> OPTIC 🤣 (Like I was feeling at the time 🤣)
Oompa -> POLKA; sEMI -> DEMI
WAGs: LEMON DROP and DAFT crossing FMRI (new to me), my last entry to finish.
ESP: JEONG
I wedged harrumph down to HUMPH
Thanks, NaomiZ, wonderful post. All in all, I thought this puzzle was pretty TAME for a Friday.
And Happy Birthday 🥳🎂🥳 to Subgenius! best wishes for a great day!
Good Morning:
Until reading the expo, I thought the theme was rather weak, but the spelling out of LITERALLY, literally elevated my appreciation for the execution. However, even for a Friday, there were too many unknowns, to me, and too many entries that required a wait and see before filling in the answer. The Daft Punk/FMRI crossing was my downfall as I had no idea of either one, so a DNF for me. On the positive side, props for some clever cluing and the aforementioned enhanced theme execution. But my solving experience could be summed up as the juice wasn't worth the squeeze, as SS once said.
I didn't post yesterday but would like to congratulate sumdaze and CC on a fun and thoroughly enjoyable solve. You two ladies make a great pair! Hope there are more like this one to come!
Belated Happy 80th Birthday to Tehachapi Ken and best wishes for a return to good health.
A very Happy Birthday to Darryl on his 70th! 🎂🎊🎈🎉 I'm so glad Darryl decided to remain a Cornerite! Have a great day, Darryl!
Have a great day.
Took 8:17 today for me literally finish this one.
Never would've seen "literally." Got the theme though after the "Li".
Stumpers for me today were: spelling Jeong, the pate clue, samovars, heart of palm, yer, humph, and demi (not today's actress, Moore) crossing the unknown podcast (lore).
D-O, if Earth is a 5 letter word, and "r" is the center of that word, then I think the clue works.
SubG in the house! Happy 70th birthday to my corner friend. Have a great day & year.
Oops, .i forgot to thank Josh for his efforts and Naomi for filling in so successfully for the Fearsome Friday Duo! While reading the write up, I was wondering where the Moe-kus or the trademark Dad humor were, so I was pleasantly surprised to see your byline.
Happy b/day to our lead off hitter SubG! A Friday FIR so I’m happy too!
As per the typical Friday it required a LOT of perp help, I sorta got the them, but the clues spelling LITERALLY went over my head (figuratively). Maybe those clues needed circles? 🤣 I’ve seen HARUMPH, but never the shortened version HUMPH. Was not familiar with a couple of the theme phrases. DNK DEEP CUT, JEONG. and LORE and DAFT as clued. Never heard of a DEMI bra, so I had to Google that after completion of the puzzle (yes Jinx, there are pictures).
All in all I enjoyed today’s solve, thank you Josh for the morning entertainment!
NaomiZ ~ fine job in your role as blogger today! I think you’re heir apparent for the next opening as full time Corner blogger.
Probably did it that way because INNERCOREOFEARTH was too long for the puzzle.
This puzzle had some bite. Got the theme when I completed one of the answers. That made the others clear.
I waffled over DA_T, but it had to be either DArT or DDAFT.DAFT won.
COSMO came out in the perps. ILIAD and TROJANWAR came easily since I recently read a book based on them as it's theme.
Josh did a fine job on the puzzle and NaomiZ a terrific job with the analysis.
Never bet on a horse that talks back. That reeks of overconfidence.
Blessing.
Musings
-A funny thing happened on my way to hate this puzzle. The gimmick slapped me in the face and DA_T/FMRI yielded to a good guess and I earned a pleasant “got ‘er done”.
-An EARLY FINISH to a huge Omaha overpass project earned a firm millions in bonuses
-A bypass to my golf course seems to be finally finished but we all drive 70 mph right past the 55 mph speed limit signs which they have not taken down.
-Did you have to do a TRIPOD handstand in P.E.?
-DO IT has been the tagline for this Omaha pizza company’s ads for years
-Saying an AMP is a speaker is like saying a launching pad is a rocket
-Amelia Bedelia was one book we word nerds all probably liked
-Overcast is welcome on a very hot golf course
-The Beatles were the warmup/opening act for Tommy Roe until the reaction to the lads made the show producers switch the order around.
-Shouts of “NO FAIR” made my colleague reply, “Fairs come in the summertime”
-My MIL’s POLKA music has similar elements to Hispanic music
-Nice job, Naomi and HBD to Ken and Subgenius.
DNF I couldn’t make sense of the center. I had VIP for AMP.
I never saw the theme so I perpped my way through the theme answers.
I long held on to cloudy for DREARY. Never heard of FMRI, JEONG, DEEP CUT, and APRON as clued. For LEMON DROP, another unknown, I wanted to enter screw driver, but it didn’t fit.
Very happy birthday 🎈🎊🎂🎁 to Subgenius. Have a great day.
Thank you NaomiZ for your expert guidance.
So, was it just temporary insanity on the part of our Google site that for 2 days we had another format? I’m certainly not complaining about the return to familiar surroundings.
Very difficult. The theme clues were no help at all to filling the cells. Took quite some time to very gradually FIR, with VERY extensive help from perps. After completion I went back and carefully examined each theme fill, and guess what? Yep, V-8 can time. I did figure out the theme, but only well after completing the CW. Too many DNKs to list. When perps finally filled FMRI I had a long long at it, finally deciphered the MRI part, but had to come to the blog to be reminded of what the "F" stood for. I hated this CW while working on it, since the theme clues told me NOTHING about what the fill would be. Now I have to very grudgingly admit it was clever. But still hated working on it. A grumpy thanx to JMK. But a whole-hearted thanx to NaomiZ for a very nice write-up. I often wonder how some words have LE and some EL at the end. (Nickle, nickel, for one). And why is it SPEAK but SPEECH? Goofy. (Grump, grump!) Oh!! HBD SG!! Almost forgot.
Fab Friday. Thanks for the fun, Josh and NaomiZ.
Officially a DNF today, since I could not get the F in the cross of DAFT and FMRI, and the D in the cross of DO IT and DEEP CUT, even with alphabet runs.
But I did see the LITERALLY theme, although NaomiZ shed even more light on it.
Great catch also on the DEEP CUT Easter Egg with Amelia Bedelia’s LITERAL interpretations.
I had TED talk before PEP perped.
Cloudy changed to DREARY.
I waited for perps to decide between Hwy, TPK, or RTE.
Same with my nurses, who could have been working in ERS, ORS or ICU (I see now that the clue required a singular answer.)
I had no idea about PNC, but perps filled it. Same with JEONG.
You all know that I held my nose and entered ODOR without the U.
My first thought for the “roller coaster sensation” was Nausea.
I thought the French PATE was an odd match for the Vietnamese food, but I guess the word has become international.
I could not fit After into 61D (as in Happily ever after); eventually END gave the Aha.
I did note that END had an EARLY cross with FINISH.
Blogger is back to the old format on my iPad today.
Happy Birthday Subgenius.
Wishing you all a great day.
unclefred, on FMRI I assumed the F means what it usually means.
Subgenius and Tehachapi Ken Happy Milestone Birthday!
NaomiZ Thank you for explaining the theme. I only partially had grasped it.
Hand up AMP clue is simply wrong. An AMP drives a SPEAKER. A bus driver is not a bus. Crossing it with utterly unknowable PNC was simply NOT FAIR. Did WAG to FIR.
Here is an image of my eye showing the OPTIC NERVE.
The OPTIC NERVE is that small disk just right and above center. I had to have a similar image taken recently when I had a detached retina, but I was not given a copy of that image.
HUMPH! Despite my hard-won FIR, I’m disgruntled by this DREARY puzzle, especially its DREARY theme. After reading NaomiZ’s excellent explanation, I’m not sure whether I’m literally disgruntled or figuratively disgruntled.
Even if I had liked the theme, there were too many other annoyances, like specifying CONAN O’Brien is a podcaster, the useless clue for DO IT, and “I’m an owl.” Hand up for VIP before AMP and unfair before NO FAIR. PNC Park in Pittsburgh is a stunner, but you have to be a baseball fan to be famiiar with it. . . .Copy Editor gives a thumbs-down to “masthead pros” (despite the obvious answer), the lack of consistent style on AAH vs. ahh (two h’s and one a should always be the answer), and “range points,” for which the answer seemed to call for “mountains.” Mt. is the abbreviation for “mount.” Mtn. is the abbreviation for “mountain.”
I did like TORINO (my first fill-in), the clue for NICKEL, DAFT Punk (although the F was part of the very-unknown-to-me FMRI), and especially DEEP CUTS. Alas, Sirius relegated its excellent Deep Tracks channel to streaming-only recently, so now jazz and classical are just about my only favorites in the Sirius lineup. Worse, veteran Deep Tracks jocks Dusty Street and Jim Ladd both died nearly immediately after Deep Tracks was demoted.
This is my first comment in the Corner this week, but I’ve been following the new look. Most of you saw the change Tuesday, but I encountered it Monday. Things were normal Tuesday and on Wednesday morning, but the new look was back Wednesday afternoon – but gone again Thursday and still gone today.
Happy Birthday, Subgenius and belated HBD to Tehachapi Ken. 🎂🎁
This puzzle was crunchy for me and I admit to FIRWH (with help) because I finally gave in and asked Google for JEONG- never heard if him or the show. Still, several interesting clues, and Greek Mythology is one of my passions, so 2 clues were in my wheelhouse. The theme completely eluded me until I read the Blog -sort of a “look how clever I am” demonstration IMHO.
Thanks for the challenge, Josh and thanks Naomi for the great tour.
FLN, Waseely thanks for the pesto help! One last question about the parmesan. Do you use pre-grated in the green can or freshly grated? Makes a difference. Thanks again.
The explanation of 53-down states that this has the “Same clue as 32 across”. It has the same clue as 32 down.
The explanation of 53-down states that Odysseus “came up with the brilliant idea of the Trojan horse, which allowed the Greeks to enter Troy and end the war. All of that is detailed in Homer's Iliad.” The Trojan horse is nowhere mentioned in the Iliad. It is described in Chapter 8 of the Odyssey, starting on line 492.
Looks like the dumbasses at Google have put my PC back on the "new and improved" awful format. Sorry folks, but I won't be checking for comments added to earlier posts.
Steven M. at 12:16 PM has caught me in two errors, one minor, one major! I am embarrassed about my misstatement regarding the Trojan horse, which is not mentioned in the Iliad, but rather, in the Odyssey. Thank you for catching that. It's been a long time since I've read Homer.
Many thanks to all for your kind remarks about my post. I enjoyed writing it.
Hola!
Happy birthday, subgenius!
This was not an EARLY FINISH for me but with PandP I slid into the FINISH line. After I finished I went back and saw the LI-TER-ALY. Such gimmicks don't impress me. I've said many times that I prefer a straight forward crossword puzzle with clever cluing.
My late DH loved EGG FOO YUNG. it's what he always ordered at either the Chinese or Vietnamese restaurant.
When I count money at church it's rare to see NICKELs. Even more rare are pennies.
I've never watched CONAN O'Brien.
Even though it's NADA I'm always happy to see some Spanish in a puzzle.
Some say writing LETTERS is a lost art, but I assure you, I'm a big fan and often write to my friends.
Happy birthday to my friend, Carmine! She reached 86 first then I'll join her in December. She told me she has up to 12 invitations for lunch and dinner during this coming week. Kathy and I will see her in a couple of weeks and we also will treat HER.
Enjoy your day, everyone!
Apologies for a silly response, but some of this puzzle's words sent echoes to me. And so I ended up with a bit of verse:
Today's puzzle was not an EARLY FINISH,
though thankfully the clues were not in Finnish.
I suppose we should thank our own LINE LEADERS
for giving us some helpful feeders.
And I think just seeing that HEART OF PALM
made us all feel much more quiet and calm.
Also that reference to the EARTH'S INNER CORE
did not us for even one second bore.
No, this puzzle was neither DREARY nor REMOTE,
and for that reason I give it my MID-SENTENCE vote.
Have a great weekend, everybody.
Nice rhymes, Misty.
Monkey, thank you for your kind comment. But I also want to tell you that the kind comments you make every day, to a number of people, warm my heart, and make the morning feel good--and probably not just for me. So thank you for all your kindness.
Tough one today! Managed to finally arrive at the finish line with a little help. Did not have an idea on the theme until NaomiZ explained things. Thanks! Wrinkled my nose at some of the iffy clues, and AMP was just plain wrong. Ah, well. It is Friday.
The Prof’s iPad’s Blogger format has been consistently old school. A 4.0 GPA!
That’s right, an amp doesn’t necessarily come with a speaker unless it’s a “combo amp”
This was a Friday head-scratcher that to me often crossed the line from cleverness to look-at-me-my-clues-are-so-cute (and baffling).
I was on a phone call with son Arizona Jim for a bit, and we compared notes on the puzzle. I had no trouble with 49D (FMRI), because my brother, Rick Buxton, is the author of the book on FMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging).
The theme made no sense to me until I read Naomi's explanation.
An AMP is NOT a speaker!!!! HUMPH!
More later, maybe.
What the??? The format is back the way it was back in the good ol' days???
Kudos to the puzzle constructor Josh for a creative multi-layered theme
I've been squeezing in the puzzle this week - while at Cannon Beach in Oregon - so not much time for the blog and comments.
Ray-O had the gimme at fMRI where I was close behind with Tehachapi Ken.
Amelia Bedelia has been a multigenerational favorite in my family. Kids get such a kick out figuring out the difference between LITERAL and figurative meanings.
I've seen Ken JEONG as a judge on The Masked Singer, but I know him more from the TV show "Community" and the movie "Crazy, Rich Asians". He was in all of "The Hangover" movies- but they aren't my taste.
Interesting personal life - he is an internal medicine physician and started doing stand-up comedy and acting in medical school. He did both for several years until he gave up practicing in 2006 though he kept his license.
Thanks to NaomiZ for the blog and Happy landmark birthdays to T-Ken and Subgenius. I had fun with your poem Misty
Hooray for Cannon Beach in Oregon! DW and I love the Oregon coast. I hope you are having a good time, inanehiker.
Thanks to Josh for today's puzzle! I'm so impressed that he was able to come up with those phrases AND make them work in a grid! I FIR, saw the individual gimmicks, and came here to see how LITE RALLY fit the theme. D'oh
Thanks to NaomiZ for doing such a great job explaining this one! I forgot you were subbing today so I was surprised by C-Moe's insight on when to wear a DEMI bra. I also loved your Amelia Bedelia connection with how she takes everything LITERALLY. Hand up for loving those books.
FAVs: clues for MIDAS, USHER, and ROBED
Last to fill was the R in IRAS. I was thinking "job portfolio".
IM@8:40. Thank you!
HBD to SubGenius!
Misty@1:52. What a fun poem! It "did not even for once second bore"!
Misty
I also give you my VOTE for your creative poem! Thank you for entertaining us in such a witty way!
Well, looks like y’all have flogged Josh adequately for the muff on AMP, so I won’t belabor the point any further. Head unit + speaker cab = amp!
I thought the theme was a DAFT one, altho I’ll give some props for the LITERALLY stack. Never saw it til I read the reveal; pretty snazzy, that.
I haven’t ridden a t-bar on the slopes since maybe the early ‘80s; the majority of ski lifts are now high-speed detachable chair systems, some of them 6 butts wide 😎
Happy 🎂 to SubGenius and to Tehschapi Ken!
====> Darren / L.A.
I was prepared to give all sorts of apologies for my silly verse, and instead there are still more kind comments from Sumdaze and Lucina. Thank you, thank you not only for your own lovely and smart comments but also for your kind remarks about others. What a kind and generous group we have on this blog. Thank you, thank you, all.
We've not met, SG, but I wish you a HB!
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