Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here with a puzzle from seasoned constructor, Enrique Henestroza Anguiano. Enrique's puzzles are known for their sparkly fill. We have some fun examples of that today. Let's get into it!
Theme: Geological Time Scales
The circles in each of today's themers alerted solvers that a three-letter word for a geological unit of TIME could be found twice in the full answer.
20 Across. *Overseer of a theatrical production: STAGE MANAGER.
26 Across. *Law that governs interstate electricity transmission: FEDERAL POWER ACT.
45 Across. *Little Free Library instruction: TAKE ONE LEAVE ONE. 
As an added bit of fun, notice that AGE, ERA, and EON are in order from shortest to longest. 
Sussing 20-Across meant that I had six gimmes waiting. That helped to make for a smooth solving experience. No complaints from me. This is a Monday, puzzle, after all.
I won't waste any more time. Here is the reveal:
51 Across. Repeatedly, or what's found in the answers to the starred clues: TIME AND AGAIN. I smiled a smile of recognition and quickly typed in "TIME After time" but ran out of boxes -- which momentarily perplexed me. Nevertheless, I found Enrique's reveal to be equally delightful. Well done!
Now that we know the gimmick, it's about TIME we look at the other clues and answers:
Across:
49. Enjoy thoroughly: SAVOR.
50. "Eternals" actress McHugh: LIA. Lia will celebrate her 20th birthday tomorrow. 🎂 Eternals was a 2021 movie that was external to my radar. Lia played the character Sprite.
57. Gem that may be natural or cultured: PEARL. What's the difference?
60. First Nations people: CREE.
61. Pakistani language: URDU.
62. Spur into action: IMPEL.
63. Prong: TINE. Def.: (noun) a slender pointed projecting part.
64. Melodic vocal quality: LILT.
65. Blender setting for baby food: PUREE.
66. Ooze: SEEP.
67. Big name in potato chips: LAY'S. As it turns out, just last month Lay's announced it's biggest rebranding in nearly a century. In its news release, Lay's said that 42% of people who eat Lay's potato chips do not realize they are made with real potatoes (I am not making that up.) so they want to show more potatoes on the bag. Read all about the big changes and see the new bag design here.
1. Tea infuser material: MESH. I am a tea drinker so I have a few of these. (I am sure I would find more if I opened more drawers.) I bought the top, right one at Sally Lunn's in Bath, UK. It has a metal MESH. The green one has a plastic MESH. The other one just has little holes, no MESH. 
5. Give a poke: PROD. 
9. __ and pains: ACHES. 
14. Inkling: IDEA.
15. Like some overcooked meat: ROPY. The more I tried to find a fitting definition, the more grossed out I got. "Viscous" is pretty close.
16. Accessory used by Woody in "Toy Story": LASSO.
17. Indication: SIGN. and 18 Across. Portentous 17-Across: OMEN.
19. Very much so: TRULY.
15. Like some overcooked meat: ROPY. The more I tried to find a fitting definition, the more grossed out I got. "Viscous" is pretty close.
16. Accessory used by Woody in "Toy Story": LASSO.
Riders in the Sky ~ Woody's Roundup
album: Toy Story 2 (Original Soundtrack) (1999)
17. Indication: SIGN. and 18 Across. Portentous 17-Across: OMEN.
19. Very much so: TRULY.
Also, Truly Scrumptious was the name of the lead female character in the 1968 movie Chitty Chitty Bang Bang played by Sally Ann Howes. I think you already know that the movie was based on the book by Ian Fleming of James Bond fame.23. Little bit: TAD.
24. Part of a good story?: MORAL. Good one! We are not talking about any old above-average story. We are talking about a story that promotes making good (MORAL) choices. Such stories usually end with, "And the MORAL of this story is...."
33. Come to deserve: EARN.
34. Knotted accessory: TIE. Here's a 2:28 min. video on how to TIE a Windsor knot. I like the camera angle.
35. Croc kin: GATOR. Crocodile and alliGATOR are both shortened.
36. "Just __ thought!": AS I.
37. Declared for the NBA draft, e.g.: WENT PRO. National Basketball Association is shortened, so is PROfessional. "Going pro" or "turn pro" refers to when an athlete relinquishes their amateur status, as would be the case when being drafted to a PROfessional team.
40. Yale student: ELI. Yale University students are nicknamed ELI after benefactor Elihu Yale.
41. Techno keyboard: SYNTH. A SYNTHesizer is an electronic musical instrument. They are typically played with keyboards.
43. "__ you decent?": ARE. Translation: Do you have clothes on?
44. "Don't come any closer!": STOP.
24. Part of a good story?: MORAL. Good one! We are not talking about any old above-average story. We are talking about a story that promotes making good (MORAL) choices. Such stories usually end with, "And the MORAL of this story is...."
33. Come to deserve: EARN.
35. Croc kin: GATOR. Crocodile and alliGATOR are both shortened.
36. "Just __ thought!": AS I.
 |
| Honest John from Pinocchio |
37. Declared for the NBA draft, e.g.: WENT PRO. National Basketball Association is shortened, so is PROfessional. "Going pro" or "turn pro" refers to when an athlete relinquishes their amateur status, as would be the case when being drafted to a PROfessional team.
40. Yale student: ELI. Yale University students are nicknamed ELI after benefactor Elihu Yale.
41. Techno keyboard: SYNTH. A SYNTHesizer is an electronic musical instrument. They are typically played with keyboards.
43. "__ you decent?": ARE. Translation: Do you have clothes on?
44. "Don't come any closer!": STOP.
The Supremes ~ Stop! In the Name of Love ~ 1965
49. Enjoy thoroughly: SAVOR.
50. "Eternals" actress McHugh: LIA. Lia will celebrate her 20th birthday tomorrow. 🎂 Eternals was a 2021 movie that was external to my radar. Lia played the character Sprite.
57. Gem that may be natural or cultured: PEARL. What's the difference?
60. First Nations people: CREE.
61. Pakistani language: URDU.
62. Spur into action: IMPEL.
64. Melodic vocal quality: LILT.
65. Blender setting for baby food: PUREE.
66. Ooze: SEEP.
67. Big name in potato chips: LAY'S. As it turns out, just last month Lay's announced it's biggest rebranding in nearly a century. In its news release, Lay's said that 42% of people who eat Lay's potato chips do not realize they are made with real potatoes (I am not making that up.) so they want to show more potatoes on the bag. Read all about the big changes and see the new bag design here.
 |
| Lay's bags 1944-2025 (but not the new one) |
Down:
1. Fail to notice: MISS.
2. Revise, as prose: EDIT. EDIT's etymology says that it is a back-formation from editor, meaning that the word editor predates the word EDIT. I found that surprising.
3. Sonic the Hedgehog game company: SEGA. Sonic the Hedgehog started out as a video game. It was later made into a TV series and a movie.
4. Surf with one's toes off the board: HANG TEN. Fifty years ago, this surfing maneuver was a symbol of West Coast lifestyle. It requires a longer board than surfers use nowadays.
2. Revise, as prose: EDIT. EDIT's etymology says that it is a back-formation from editor, meaning that the word editor predates the word EDIT. I found that surprising.
3. Sonic the Hedgehog game company: SEGA. Sonic the Hedgehog started out as a video game. It was later made into a TV series and a movie.
4. Surf with one's toes off the board: HANG TEN. Fifty years ago, this surfing maneuver was a symbol of West Coast lifestyle. It requires a longer board than surfers use nowadays.
On a related note, in 1960 the Hang Ten clothing company was launched in Seal Beach, CA. Their merchandise featured the bare feet logo. In my neck of the woods, it was the Izod crocodile of the 1970's. more Hang Ten company history 
5. One sharing a limo ride to a formal dance: PROM DATE. This is the "ride to the prom" scene from Napoleon Dynamite (2004). It's 4 min. long. Be patient or fast-forward. 6. Slender tomato: ROMA.
7. Up for new experiences: OPEN.
8. Bundle of energy: DYNAMO.
9. Catwoman, for Selina Kyle: ALTER EGO. While you might not know who Selina Kyle is, pouncing from "Catwoman" to "super hero" to the answer was not too much of a stretch.
10. Italian city known for marble: CARRARA. Do you want to know what a Carrara marble mountain looks like? Or perhaps you want to know how to pronounce this word? Watch this 2-min. video.
11. "The Wild Robot" voice actress Stephanie: HSU. Stephanie will celebrate her 25th birthday a week from tomorrow. 🎂 The Wild Robot is a movie that came out last year.
12. Night school subj.: ESL. subject and English as a Second Language
5. One sharing a limo ride to a formal dance: PROM DATE. This is the "ride to the prom" scene from Napoleon Dynamite (2004). It's 4 min. long. Be patient or fast-forward. 6. Slender tomato: ROMA.
7. Up for new experiences: OPEN.
8. Bundle of energy: DYNAMO.
9. Catwoman, for Selina Kyle: ALTER EGO. While you might not know who Selina Kyle is, pouncing from "Catwoman" to "super hero" to the answer was not too much of a stretch.
10. Italian city known for marble: CARRARA. Do you want to know what a Carrara marble mountain looks like? Or perhaps you want to know how to pronounce this word? Watch this 2-min. video.
11. "The Wild Robot" voice actress Stephanie: HSU. Stephanie will celebrate her 25th birthday a week from tomorrow. 🎂 The Wild Robot is a movie that came out last year.
12. Night school subj.: ESL. subject and English as a Second Language
When I lived in Japan, I was grateful for the city-sponsored Japanese language classes. My fellow students represented many countries.
13. Source of tofu and tempeh: SOY. I have both in my refrigerator. If you are OPEN to learning more, read this article.
21. Unit of corn: EAR.
22. Pai __: casino game with tiles: GOW. wikiHow says that this "is a Chinese betting game that uses tiles instead of cards."
25. Not punctual for: LATE TO.
26. Decadent meal: FEAST. In WHOVILLE, their FEAST was "Who-pudding and rare Who-roast-beast, which was something the Grinch couldn't stand in the least!"
13. Source of tofu and tempeh: SOY. I have both in my refrigerator. If you are OPEN to learning more, read this article.
 |
| tofu (l.) & tempeh (r.) |
22. Pai __: casino game with tiles: GOW. wikiHow says that this "is a Chinese betting game that uses tiles instead of cards."
25. Not punctual for: LATE TO.
 |
| White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland |
26. Decadent meal: FEAST. In WHOVILLE, their FEAST was "Who-pudding and rare Who-roast-beast, which was something the Grinch couldn't stand in the least!"
27. Course that should boost a GPA: EASY A.
28. Beverages: DRINKS.
29. Songwriter/actor __-Manuel Miranda: LIN. Can you believe it's been 10 years since Hamilton opened on Broadway?
30. Poppy part: PETAL. This is California's state flower. Each flower has four PETALs. I took this picture last May.
31. Double-dot symbol: COLON. 
32. Menudo ingredient: TRIPE. TRIPE is stomach tissue used for food. Menudo is a traditional Mexican soup made with TRIPE.
37. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" town: WHOVILLE. In this clip the Whos sing their joyous Christmas song even though the grinch took all of their presents.38. Not post-: PRE-.
39. Oh-so-profound: REAL DEEP.
42. Source of a medicinal oil: TEA TREE. A tree that is a member of the myrtle family. Oil from the tea tree is used in shampoos and skin care products and to treat skin infections. It has been used in some cultures to treat other skin conditions, including acne, burns, and insect bites. The scientific name is Melaleuca alternifolia. source
44. Beach bird: SEAGULL.
46. __ de plume: NOM. This is a name a writer uses instead of their legal name.
47. Raises, as a monument: ERECTS.
48. Routing word: VIA.
52. Grammy winner India.__: ARIE. [b. Oct. 3, 1975] This singer/songwriter performs in our puzzles often. I wonder if she has ever sung an ARIA.
53. State bird of Hawaii: NENE. The NENE is exclusively found in the wild on the islands of Maui, Kauai, Molokai, and the Big Island, but you can also see these beautiful birds at the zoo in Waikiki on Oahu.
54. Opera highlight: ARIA.
55. With no particular purpose: IDLY.
56. Trail mix ingredients: NUTS.
57. Dice-y spot?: PIP. The dots on dice are called PIPs.
58. Source of green eggs: EMU. ... but not ham.
28. Beverages: DRINKS.
29. Songwriter/actor __-Manuel Miranda: LIN. Can you believe it's been 10 years since Hamilton opened on Broadway?
30. Poppy part: PETAL. This is California's state flower. Each flower has four PETALs. I took this picture last May.
32. Menudo ingredient: TRIPE. TRIPE is stomach tissue used for food. Menudo is a traditional Mexican soup made with TRIPE.
37. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" town: WHOVILLE. In this clip the Whos sing their joyous Christmas song even though the grinch took all of their presents.38. Not post-: PRE-.
39. Oh-so-profound: REAL DEEP.
 |
| Keanu Reeves in Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989) |
42. Source of a medicinal oil: TEA TREE. A tree that is a member of the myrtle family. Oil from the tea tree is used in shampoos and skin care products and to treat skin infections. It has been used in some cultures to treat other skin conditions, including acne, burns, and insect bites. The scientific name is Melaleuca alternifolia. source
44. Beach bird: SEAGULL.
46. __ de plume: NOM. This is a name a writer uses instead of their legal name.
47. Raises, as a monument: ERECTS.
48. Routing word: VIA.
52. Grammy winner India.__: ARIE. [b. Oct. 3, 1975] This singer/songwriter performs in our puzzles often. I wonder if she has ever sung an ARIA.
53. State bird of Hawaii: NENE. The NENE is exclusively found in the wild on the islands of Maui, Kauai, Molokai, and the Big Island, but you can also see these beautiful birds at the zoo in Waikiki on Oahu.
55. With no particular purpose: IDLY.
56. Trail mix ingredients: NUTS.
57. Dice-y spot?: PIP. The dots on dice are called PIPs.
 |
| Also, Gladys Night hung out with three cool Pips. |
58. Source of green eggs: EMU. ... but not ham.
When I was teaching at a one-room school, I made green eggs and ham with my students on Dr. Seuss' birthday. I had Araucana hens at the time so I brought in a few of their green eggs. When the kids were not looking, I put a drop of green food coloring in a bowl. Then I let the kids crack the eggs into the bowl which was just above their eye level. When they whisked it together they oohed over the green mixture. Next we cooked it up with some ham cubes. So fun!
59. Boston Marathon mo.: APR. It is traditionally held on the third Monday in the month of April. Cruciverbalists will be interested to know that the race course includes four miles through Natick, MA. details here
59. Boston Marathon mo.: APR. It is traditionally held on the third Monday in the month of April. Cruciverbalists will be interested to know that the race course includes four miles through Natick, MA. details here
The grid:
 |
| Enrique's grid has two 12-letter and two 15-letter themed answers. |
That's all for today. See you next time!
Notes from C.C.:
Our dear blog friend Inanehiker (Nina) lost her mother last Tuesday. You can read Jorae's obituary here. Please keep Nina and her family in your thoughts during this difficult time.
Too many obscure names
ReplyDelete(and foreign terms ) for me to give this puzzle the title of “a walk in the park” so I’m not going to.
Nevertheless, in spite of the above, I finished it right ((FIR) so I’m happy.
12-letter revealers are dangerous, especially on a Monday. All the theme answers get squeezed close together and that leads to stuff like HSU (?) and GOW (?)
DeleteImagine that you want to get into crosswords, you've heard that Mondays are the easiest, and then the puzzle hits you with that CREE ARIE NENE combo.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteThere was a little crunch in the morning cereal. Tasty. TIE reminds me of the time I asked my father to teach me how to tie one. "Lie down," he said. He was an undertaker. Back in '69 we visited Mikimoto PEARL Island in Japan to watch the female pearl divers. Interesting. Thanx for the amusement, Enrique, and for the explication, sumdaze.
Didn’t like Ropy and RealDeep, but otherwise a challenging Monday puzzle.
ReplyDeleteFIR without erasure, in spite of the showbiz fun sponges.
ReplyDeleteBilly Preston had a big hit with Will It Go Round in Circles, which includes the lyric:
I've got a story, ain't got no MORAL
Let the bad guy win every once in a while
SYNTH. At least it's better than (crossword favorite) sesh. (Steve Miller was a pioneer of using one in rock music.)
Thanks to Enrique for the mostly-fun Monday romp. And thanks to sumdaze for another funny and interesting tour. I didn't know that Ian Fleming wrote anything other than the 007 books.
Steve Miller really didn't know how to incorporate SYNTHs into his music. He used them for spacy intros, then the song settled into conventional rock.
DeleteFIR. Ropy? Tea tree? And proper names like Hsu and Lia? And on top of that, silly circles, which, of course, I ignored. All this and more added up to a rather crunchy Monday.
ReplyDeleteThe theme was at best lame and added nothing to this crossword.
Overall NOT an enjoyable puzzle.
An easy Monday stroll today. Any entries that gave me pause were quickly solved with perps, such as MESH (I've never made, or drank, tea) and ROPY (never heard that term used before as clued).
ReplyDeleteOverall a fine puzzle to start the week.
Not a Monday puzzle. Not a walk in the park. So many proper nouns. FIR with perps and wags in a longer time than most Mondays. I liked the theme.
ReplyDeleteSesh and synth are current slang used by many. No prob.
Ropy can mean stringy. I am familiar with the term stringy meat. Tough stringy meat separates into long chewy strands of fiber. In most cases I like medium rare. But long slow cooking meats like pot roast and pulled pork makes them tender, chewable and delicious.
Nina, my deepest sympathy on the loss of your mother.
Thank you YR
DeleteMusings
ReplyDelete-ROPY meat?
-I have had several younger teachers have me tie a Double Windsor knot for them and then have them put the tie around their neck for P/T conferences.
-Some athletes make as much in NIL money as they would if they WENT PRO
- Jess Rucks is one of our constructors who was an URDU translator for the U.S. Air Force
-Fail to notice/MISS – A trait more common to the male of the species
-I knew the answer was CARARA but had no idea that its only vowel was an “A”
-Nina, so sorry to hear about your mother.
Thank you Gary
DeleteI agree not an easy Monday puzzle. I FIRE however with the help of perps for the likes of HSU, LIA, ARIE and guesses for WHOVILLE and TEA TREE.
ReplyDeleteIt also took a while to get the theme what with the circles but by reveal time, I had figured it out.
I still have my original HANG TEN shirt. I bought it in the days when surfing became popular everywhere and after watching that wonderful surfing movie The Endless Summer.
sumdaze thank you for another great review. I’m always so impressed with all the thoughtful, informative, delightful reviews our reviewers create for us.
That should be FIR.
DeleteAddendum
ReplyDeleteARRGGHH – I got the Wordle puzzle today but forgot to do it yesterday because I was so anxious to get out on the course. My 70-word streak came to an end, not with a bang but a whimper. Well, my new streak is now 1.
H-Gary@9:21. Bummer about your 70-day Wordle streak. You might have seen that recently happened to me. Now I'm on a bizarre sub-streak. I have gotten the Wordle in 3 guesses for 5 days in a row now. Yes, I have gotten very lucky with some of my guesses!
DeleteTook six minutes and one second of TIME toDAY.
ReplyDeleteI agree with SubG that this was not a WITP. The Actresses of the DAY were unkind to me (Hsu & Lia), and I didn't know pai gow or the Italian city.
I don't think declaring for the NBA draft makes one go pro. I believe they can still play in college again, provided that the player did not hire an agent.
Nina, I am sorry to hear about the passing of your mother. I hope you find solace in your memories of her.
Oh joy, circles!
Thank you - Nina
DeleteHG, you miss one day and you have to start over in wordle? I had no idea!
ReplyDelete(Doesn't seem fair...)
Went looking for something funny for the theme link, all the while thinking of Inane Hiker, and not knowing what to say. You know what, the same funny schtick just doesn't seem to cut it on a day like today. Then I found this, it may not be appropriate, but then again, maybe it is...
Thank you CED - Nina
DeleteI liked the Marble Mountain video, fascinating! An entire mountain made of marble!? But where does it come from? How is it made? Limestone? No way!...
ReplyDeleteWild robot is a wonderful modern children's fable, i highly recommend it.
Imagine, if you will, a plane load of robots, unprogramed, crashes on an uninhabited island. One robot survives, but knows not what to do, or how to serve. The very crash kills a mother goose, leaving an undefended gosling, which should really just be food, or prey. But the robot not only adopts the gosling, the entire island of animals ends up adopting the robot.
again, wonderful storytelling....
Was it gonna be two DNF Monday’s in a row? Horrors 🥺. The Midwest left me confused until I realized it wasn’t generalPOWERACT but FEDERAL! Whew 😅
ReplyDeleteTheme: Three-letter time related words AGAIN. Cute.
Inkovers: keen/OPEN,
Algonquin J. Calhoun, "Not only do I deny the allegations, I deny the alleGATOR”
Thought Menudo was a Puerto Rican boy band, “one ingredient” of it was Ricky Martin.
“Little Free Libraries” are popping up all over like mushrooms lately. Luckily you can’t ban books on private property, yet.
The usual smattering of names I didn’t know for Monday: HSU, GOW, LIA. Never heard of ROPY steak
Obligation to a damsel in distress … SAVOR
“I am” tofu and tempeh in Madrid… SOY
Woody’s LASSO… ROPY
Sorry about your Mom, Nina
Thanks Ray-O - after 5 months on hospice - she was ready
DeleteEnrique was on my wave length today.
ReplyDeleteI sailed thru this puzzle with only one erasure.
Which is rare for me.
Ropy was a bit iffy … but I have used tea tree oil so that was an easy fill
And I knew Whoville from the grinch so another auto fill answer.
Hsu and Carrara were unknowns but the perps were fair.
I enjoyed Enriques offering today and savoured my FIR 😊
An educational and informative recap Sumdaze. A fascinating little video about Carrara. Thank you.
Not a hard puzzle and the circled double times made the theme obvious.
ReplyDeleteIt was an easy fill in spite of the unknowns, ROPY, HSU, LIA, CARRARA, TEA TREE, and TRIPE.
ROPY and LASSO side by side today. Ropy is new to me.
LILT- In music, TIMBRE is the vocal quality for tone. Janis Joplin and Barbra Streisand may hit the same B-flat they don't sound the same. Lilt would be used to describe the rhythm.
Printed the CW and looked it over, counting 11 names, but only three DNKs. This CW turned out tougher than most Mondays, but managed to FIR in 12. I noticed the theme with the first theme clue, which helped, but did not notice they are in order until sumdaze 'splained it. Wednesday-on-a-Monday, but other than that, a fun CW, thanx EHA. Good write-up, thanx sumdaze. Interesting picture of the tea mesh gadgets. What do you make of the worry about plastic in tea bags? A real problem, or a tempest in a teapot? I always thought that tea bag material was paper! Sorry to hear about your mom passing, Nina. At a loss as to what else to say.
ReplyDeleteunclefred@12:36. "What do you make of the worry..." Yes, I have heard about this concern. You might want to listen to The Nutrition Diva Podcast, Episode #827 for more into. She gives these 4 recommendations to minimize exposure: do cold brew; avoid squeezing & reheating bags: purchase from a list of brands she researched; and using loose-leaf tea. It's always something, right?
DeletePleasant Monday puzzle, many thanks, Enrique. And your commentaries and pictures were once again a help and a pleasure, Sumdaze, so thanks for those too. And C.C., please give Nina our condolences.
ReplyDeleteWell, this puzzle did once again suggest a possible series of interesting events for us to consider. Is it possible that the young woman's ACHES did PROD her to ask her STAGE MANAGER if she could take a break, and leave some of her chores for the new DYNAMO to do? If he agreed, maybe she got on a bike and drove out to the beach where she fed the SEAGULLS before she ate a FEAST of SOY products at the nearby diner. When she had a few left she offered one to a guy at the table next to her, who was so pleased that he asked her to go on a PROM DATE with him. She agreed and they went and shared DRINKS while listening to an ARIA on the radio. They did SAVOR this evening so much that they did it TIME AND AGAIN, and in the end decided they needed something more. The decided it was time to TIE the knot, and now they PUREE baby food every morning, and are happy they WENT PRO.
Enjoy a cheerful and hopefully sunny and happy day, everyone.
The theme and reveal were Monday appropriate but some of the fill, not so much. Ropy is a real nose wrinkler, IMO, and Hsu, Lia, Tea Tree, Tripe, as clued, Gow, Federal Power Act, etc., are not the usual Monday dare but, in fairness, perps overcame all obstacles.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Enrique, and thanks, sumdaze, for the very educational review and some chuckles along the way. Favorite comics were Old Mac Donald and the Zebra in training!
CC, thanks for sharing Nina’s mother’s obituary. Nina, sincere condolences.
Have a great day.
Correction: Fare, not Dare.
DeleteThanks Agnes - Nina
DeleteNina, you have my condolences.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jayce - Nina
DeleteNina, I read the obituary from C.C.'s link. Your mother lived a beautiful life. I especially liked the quote, "You can learn something new every day." Your comments on The Corner reflect that attitude. What a wonderful gift she gave you.
ReplyDeleteThanks Renee - and I do try to live my life that way!- Nina
DeleteLoved the puzzle and the blog post. Sumdaze, thanks for pointing out that the time periods were not just long, but geological. I missed that.
ReplyDeleteHola! The only reason I know ROPY is that I've seen it in recipes, i.e.: cook the meat until it is ROPY". I'm also familiar with TEA TREE oil.
ReplyDeleteThis seemed like a regular Monday puzzle. However, I originally misspelled CARRARA as CARReRA. MORAL corrected that. Lesson learned.
I prefer posole over MENUDO as it is made with beef. My mother, who was raised on a ranch, loved MENUDO.
Fill like HSU, GOW and LIA are greatly helped by their crosses, and I've heard of LIN Manuel Miranda enough that his name is almost a household word.
Yes, I've been by Natick, MA on my way to somewhere else.
Nina, please accept my condolences on the loss of your mother.
Thanks Lucina - Nina
DeleteI glad others found this to be un-Monday as well. For a minute there, I though I was one of the 42% who don't know what potato chips are made of. But great theme, Enrique!
ReplyDeleteBest part of Mondays are sumdaze's reviews. Clark Kent's mom! LOL.
There actually are no seagulls. They are gulls. Period. They may be Western gulls etc. NOT seagulls. Nitpicker.
ReplyDelete