Friday, October 23, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: What is the game, an abbreviated military march? Yes, CPT OBVIOUS! (Drat, HG linked that already this week!)

We return to our prolific Friday phenom, Jeffrey, with a simple-looking theme and tons of fun fill. Each in-the- language phrase is re-imagined "on the base" with the three-letter abbreviation for the military rank replacing the first word of the phrase. The original phrases are all very recognizable and the grid has a fairly standard look. The fill ‒ including long ones like BEGONIA, EMANATE, DOG BITES, ONE IN TWO, POLLSTER, and SWEPT OUT ‒ once again presents JW's affinity for multi-word fill with some of the six-letter answers like AS I CAN, BIG APE, BITMAP, DUCATS, PIMPLE, SEABED, TAKE ME and TIN EAR sparkly. The use of cheater squares to balance the 13-letter fill makes this all come together. Let's feast.

19A. Familiar material, on the base? : GENERAL KNOWLEDGE (12). The clue and fill are straightforward -- only the shortening brings in the military.

26A. Backbone of capitalism, on the base? : PRIVATE ENTERPRISE (13).  LINK.

42A. Disciplinary action, on the base? : CORPORAL PUNISHMENT (13). Remember these? LINK.

48A. Important find, on the base? : MAJOR DISCOVERY (12).

Across:

1. Locale of TV's Krusty Krab restaurant : SEABED. From Sponge Bob to reality...

7. "The Hitch-Hiker" director Lupino : IDA. An all male cast; really easy fill but who remembers this movie?

10. Meatless lasagna ingredient, perhaps : TOFU. Because spinach would not fit. A puzzle rich in INFORMATION.

14. "I wanna go too!" : TAKE ME.

15. Presumed threats to letter carriers : DOG BITES.

17. " ... according to my abilities" : AS I CAN.

18. Half, statistically : ONE IN TWO. You had a one in two chance of getting this right.

21. __ loss : AT A.

22. The Hammer of baseball : AARON. Hmmerin' Hank, yes...

31. Natural mole fur hue : TAUPE. Really? The French word for mole is TAUPE.  The moles we had in Connecticut had darker coats.

33. Balm source : ALOE.

34. Hand analog : PAW.

35. Fruity quaffs : ADES. A mini CSO for moi.

36. "Actions speak louder than words," e.g. : MAXIM. Saying, adage, aphorism, proverb, motto, saw, axiom, dictum, precept, epigram; truism, cliché.

38. Short pooch, for short : PEKE. Pekingese, the Chinese Lion Dog. The look sad to me.

39. It's hardly a smash : LOB. Not a flop or bomb, but a tennis term.

40. Lowlands feature : DALE.

41. __ metabolism : BASAL. Time to fix your BODY.

46. Undemonstrative sort : STOIC.

47. Med. recording : ECG.

56. Cleaned, in a way : SWEPT OUT.

59. Lethargy cause : ANEMIA. The old iron deficiency anemia.

60. One assessing sentiment : POLLSTER. Please no robocalls! Last election is why I gave up my home phone.

61. Digital image format : BITMAP. Not a word I KNEW.

62. It keeps the team together : YOKE.

63. Calculating : SLY.

64. Studio equipment : EASELS. Art studio,  not music.

Down:

1. Companion to Artemis : STAG.  Famous  ART.

2. Simplicity : EASE.

3. Related : AKIN.

4. 2014 Best Rock Album Grammy winner : BECK. This was hard because Led Zepplin won last year.

5. Spring (from) : EMANATE. Nice word.

6. Mean : DENOTE. One of those needless ten dollar words, if you mean mean say mean.

7. Teen __ : IDOL. Wolf anyone? Michael Landon?  Michael J, Fox?

8. "And there you have it!" : DONE. Not even close.

9. Old : AGED.

10. Problem for a conductor wannabe : TIN EAR.

11. 1930s-'40s slugger : OTT. Mel is back.

12. Limited : FEW.

13. Mil. morale booster : USO.

16. Oaf : BIG APE.

20. Lacking color : WAN.

23. Best for consumption, perhaps : RIPEST.

24. Panasonic headquarters city : OSAKA. And why should I know this? Wait for the perps.

25. Staircase support : NEWEL.

26. Southwestern community : PUEBLO.

27. No. twos : VPS. BMS  fit.

28. Perennial political debate subject : TAXES.

29. Priest in 1 Samuel : ELI.

30. N.T. book written by Paul : ROMans.

31. Soothing applications : TALCS.

32. Add to the family : ADOPT.

36. "What a piece of work is a __!": Hamlet : MAN. A very simple Will quote for JW.

37. Legendary fighter : ALI.

38. Broadway flier : PAN.

40. Coins of old Venice : DUCATS. Gold or silver coins used as a trade coin in Europe from the later medieval centuries until as late as the 20th century. Also slang for tickets.

41. Colorful tropical perennial : BEGONIA. Very colorful.

43. Clearasil target : PIMPLE.

44. Guys : HES.

45. Mrs. Miller's partner in a 1971 Altman film : MC CABE.  Wonderful Julie Christie.

49. Scribbles : JOTS. My meh fill.

50. Hamilton's undoing : DUEL. Death more than undoing. HISTORY.

51. Modest sentence : I TRY. Week after week.

52. November honorees : VETS. My in-laws were married on November 8, so we took them to NYC for their anniversary; when there was a huge Veteran's Day parade, my FIL, an ex-Marine from WWII thought we had planned that as well.

53. Rylan of "Guiding Light" : EMME. A complete unknown but sweet looking.

54. Currency of Iran : RIAL. Rially.

55. Doesn't shut up : YAPS.

56. Le Carré figure : SPY. The Spy Who Came In From The Cold was my first real spy novel.

57. Ply with flowers and chocolate : WOO.

58. JFK was one : ELK, I did not know this trivia,  though it looks more like another Kennedy monogram.

Man the weeks are flying by along with the years; my Charlotte turns 3 before next week's blog. And Harper will be one month. Thanks Jeffrey for another fun Friday, I think this is about 30 of your puzzles since I first blogged you back in February 2013. Happy fall all. Lemonade out from here at 

special thanks to a very special John Lampkin.

Note from C.C.: 

Crosswords LA Tournaments will be held tomorrow (Oct 24, 2015, Saturday) at the Fowler Museum at UCLA. You don't need to be a wizard solver to participate. As you can see, they have four brackets for different skill levels. Or you can just be a spectator, solving at the same time with other competitors but your grids won't be scored.

It's an annual charity event Elissa Grossman started in 2009 to raise money for Reading to Kids. I hope our readers in LA area will attend the event and mingle with your favorite constructors, bloggers & fellow solvers.

Friday, October 2, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Que pasa? Que sera sera!

JW is back with an add on theme where QUE is added to the end of a word to completely change the meaning of a word or phrase. Three add the que at the end of the phrase, with two adding to the middle of a word creating a two word answer. Four feature "I" before the add on, with one A. I love the first three in the theme. I also love the gridspanner in the middle. The rest of the fill is very good with ABOUND, ANUBIS, BEAT UP,  EX-PROS, GULDEN, OCEANS, TAIPEI, TRIBAL, ADRENALIN,  AQUA REGIA, FULL MOONS, HEARTBURN examples and some Friday fill like BIOTA and TOQUE. As always, JW makes us work to decipher some of the fill, but is Friday, so let us have at it.

18A. Angry young man's fate? : LIFE OF PIQUE (11).  The book Life of Pi became a worldwide best seller and movie after many rejections.

24A. Hercules, e.g.? : ANTIQUE HERO (11). Anti-hero (or antihero) has been a literary theme from Don Quixote through Marlon Brando, but while an ancient story, there is nothing but hero about Hercules.  (1:25).

39A. Result of a Caribbean sanitation strike? : DIRTY MARTINIQUE (15). My favorite of the theme, both for the drink and a reminder of the horrible volcanic eruption in 1902 that made one PRISONER famous.

56A. Proprietary paperwork? : UNIQUE FORMS (11). Uniforms.

62A. Ready-to-hang Cubist painting? : WIRED BRAQUE (11). A really creative one, with a very famous contemporary of Picasso (Georges Braque) brought to life from an under-wire bra, which he probably never painted.  IMAGE.

Across:

1. "I don't like it!" : BAH. Oddly, my first thought of which I was quite unsure.

4. Waikiki allure : SURF. There are other  sights to see. LINK.(4:12).

8. Like an old jalopy : BEAT UP.

14. Chemical suffix : IDE. A compound.

15. Hesse-based automaker : OPEL. We have seen this German automaker more often than I have seen their cars. And a semi-clecho: 33A. Ingolstadt-based automaker : AUDI. More Germany 46A. Einstein's birth city : ULM. In southern Germany near the Danube.

16. Reporter's coup : EXPOSE. This was harder without imagining the accent.

17. Man-mouse link : OR A.

20. Hill stint : TERM. Capital Hill for politicians.

22. Hershey bar : SKOR. Back again I must get one.

23. Bygone political entity that included Syr. : UAR. The short lived alliance between Egypt and Syria. United Arab Republic.

28. South African golfer with four major championships : ELS. A CSO to our own Big Easy.

29. Be quite prevalent : ABOUND.

30. Polite response to Aunt Polly : YES'M. A reference to Tom Sawyer's aunt, I guess, which fits with 35A. Crude carrier : RAFT.

32. Seasonal affliction : FLU.

44. Poet Sexton : ANNE. One of many creative people who could not control the demons that made them great. LINK.

45. Popular melt meat : TUNA. Yum.

47. 50-50, to Fifi : EGAL. Equal in French.

51. __ Council: "Survivor" feature : TRIBAL. Never watched an episode.

53. Rush : HIE. A nice Shakespeare word.

59. "Well done!" analog : OLE.

60. Pacific feast : LUAU. In Waikiki?

61. Drudge : PEON. So many words for the put upon.

67. Indian state that was part of a former Portuguese colony : GOA. They are famous for their beaches.

68. Tamsui River capital : TAIPEI.

69. Excited about, with "on" : KEEN. A 50s word.

70. "Monsters, __" : INC.

71. Magellan's milieux : OCEANS. He was going round and round.

72. Breyers competitor : EDYS. Yum.

73. Require : ASK. Not want your country can do for you....

Down:

1. Regional organisms : BIOTA. Not a term I am really familiar with so my start was slow.

2. Stimulant trademark : ADRENALIN.  Synthetic epinephrine which has become more popular than the original adrenaline; quite the rush.

3. Jalapeño product, for some? : HEARTBURN. This is our medical corner with pyrosis, cardialgia, or acid indigestion as other names for the burning sensation in the chest. Per wiki.

4. San José sun : SOL. Spanish.

5. News org. : UPI. United Press International.

6. Court charge caller : REF. Basketball court.

7. Soft tissue : FLESH.

8. In front of : BEFORE.

9. Many sports commentators : EX-PROS. Nice letter string XPR, but conflict with clues below.

10. Bee: Pref. : API. From whence comes Apiary, etc.

11. Chapeau seen in "Ratatouille" : TOQUE. A gratuitous bonus QUE

12. Quotidian : USUAL. Not one of your usual clues, this means daily. Latin comes in handy.

13. Jury members : PEERS. Such a strange concept.

19. "__-doke!" : OKEY. Okey dokey smokey.

21. Apennines possessive : MIO. Italian, a region and history I did not know. LINK.

25. Ship loading site : QUAY.

26. Word on a bill : UNUM. E pluribus....

27. Old writings mentioning Odin : EDDA.

31. Open __ : MRI. Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

32. Org. requiring milk pasteurization : FDA. Food and Drug Administration.

34. The Bronx's Jerome Ave. line is part of it : IRT. Interborough Rapid Transit. the SUBWAY.

36. Mixture that dissolves gold : AQUA REGIA. Latin for royal water; the question is why do you want to dissolve gold?

37. Rare twosome of July 2015 : FULL MOONS. The even rarer three full moons?  LINK.

38. Pro __ : TEM. Followed immediately with the clecho

40. Pro's support : TEE. Then staying in the Ts.

41. 1984 Nobel Peace Prize winner : TUTU. The Anglican Bishop DESMOND.

42. Regarding : IN RE. More Latin.

43. Innocent : NAIF. A guileless, unsophisticated person: babe, child, ingénue, innocent. Same stem as naive.

48. Big name in mustard : GULDEN. Their spicy brown is the third largest in the US behind French's and Grey Poupon.

49. Wolf-headed god : ANUBIS. This is the Greek name for the Egyptian god.

50. One covering tracks, perhaps : LIAR. Liar pants on fire.

52. Hit on the head : BOP.

53. Book with steps : HOW  TO.

54. __ crest: pelvic border : ILIAC.

55. Like H.P. Lovecraft stories : EERIE.

57. Tremble : QUAKE.

58. Oreos, say : SNACK.

63. Org. monitoring endangered species : EPA. Environmental Protection Agency.

64. Letters of proof : QED. EVERYONE must know this by now.

65. Turn that's hung : UEY.

66. Chekov's "Star Trek" rank: Abbr. : ENSign. Before he became a Captain and an Admiral.

Well another week and month have slipped away, I hope everyone on the east coast is kept safe from Joaquin. I wonder if Mr. Trump will blame that on Mexico as well? No politics. just silliness.

I am tired from the excitement of the new baby, so off to rest; lemonade out.

Friday, September 18, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: You need to get down on it! (5:11).

An add-a-word puzzle, with a great reveal. JW is back again with a passel of theme words and a really wonderfully amusing reveal. 34A. Annoyed moviegoer's shout ... or what's needed to make sense of the answers to starred clues : DOWN IN FRONT which tells you that DOWN is added to the front of each theme fill to solve the clue. A true Friday theme with added twist of 1A beginning the fun. This is as close as Rich gets to a rebus (multi-letter in a block) puzzle, only the letters are not anywhere but in your mind. Because of the asterisks the puzzle became very doable once you see your first "down" word. If you did not catch on when you finished the top row you were in for a long solve.  The NW corner with two 7s and an 8 make starting slow. But this does give us some fun fill like AMOROSO, CAREFUL, CORRECT, DATA SET, FORESEE, NICOSIA, OVERPAY, SPUTTER, SIDE ROAD and TIRESOME.

1A. *Dejected : DOWNCAST (4). I guess the expression comes from tilting the eyes and head down.

5A. *Sledding spot : DOWNGRADE (5). Visual.

10A. *Waterloo : DOWNFALL (4). Fall again but totally different meaning, don't you love English.

31A. *Data transfer : DOWNLOAD (4). A word that did not exist when I started doing puzzles.

40A. *Faster way to fly : DOWNWIND (4). On the par 5s....

63A. *1964 Grammy-winning rock 'n' roll song : DOWNTOWN(4). What else...

64A. *Decrease : DOWNSWING (5). Back on the par 5....

65A. *Musical starting point : DOWNBEAT (4). Downbeat, the first beat of a measure in music.


Across:

14. Enclosed in : AMID.

15. Electrical component : RELAY. Not a RACE.

16. Seaman's direction : ALEE.

17. 9-Down sensors : RODS. Eyes have rods and CONES.

18. Midwestern tribe : OSAGE.

19. Show appreciation, in a way : CLAP.

20. "You shall hear more __ morning": "Measure for Measure" : ERE. Ah, the Shakespeare appearance; this did not require knowing the play. Not my favorite play.

21. Shows a preference : OPTS.

22. Amethyst source : GEODE.

23. Prognosticate : FORESEE.

25. Struggling engine sound : SPUTTER.

27. Me.-to-Fla. highway : US ONE. I live 33 steps from this highway.

28. Freudian subject : DREAM.

30. '60s radical gp. : SDS. A fun group from college.

32. Crockett's Waterloo : ALAMO. A clecho to 10A.

39. Onetime Silly String maker : WHAMO.

43. Seafarer : TAR.

46. Bygone dentifrice : IPANA. Bucky beaver lives on.

48. "Twelfth Night" servant : MARIA. More Shakespeare, Maria is Olivia's lady in waiting and a central character.

49. Deserve credit, perhaps : OVERPAY.

51. "Yes" : CORRECT.

53. Ancient Iranians : MEDES. You want to READ?

54. Thing on a bob : LURE.

55. "__ guy walks into ... " : SO A. Guy walks into a bar and sits at a table. Tells the waitress, "I'll have a Bloody Mary and a menu." When she returns with his drink, he asks "Still servin' breakfast?" When she says Yes, he replies, "Then I'll have two eggs-runny on top and burnt on the bottom, five strips of bacon ON END-well done on one end and still raw on the other, two pieces of burnt toast and a cold cup of coffee." Indignantly the waitress says, "We don't serve that kinda stuff in here!" Guy says, "Funny... that's what I had in here yesterday..."

56. Actress Russell : KERI.

57. Dinnertime attraction : AROMA.

59. __ stick: incense : JOSS. Did you see this PRACTICE growing up C.C. ? (From C.C.: Indeed. Burning incense (and fake paper money) for the dead is quite common.)

60. Rare blood type, briefly : A-NEG.

61. Memento : TOKEN.

62. Fifi's BFF : AMIE. French for friend, with E because it is a feminine friend.

Down:

1. "Watch out!" : CAREFUL.

2. Spanish sherry : AMOROSO.

3. Rush hour timesaver, hopefully : SIDE ROAD. How often do I get lost on my shortcuts?

4. QB's stats : TDS. TouchDowns are back! Every AFC East team won.

5. Feel one's way : GROPE. I got slapped over that one.

6. Took it easy : RESTED.

7. "Fate is so cruel!" : ALAS.

8. Peer of Trygve and Kofi : DAG. He died young. LINK.

9. Looker? : EYE.

10. Aspect : FACET.

11. Metes out : ALLOTS.

12. Bygone pump word : LEADED.

13. Middle Ages colony residents : LEPERS.

21. Sugar suffix : OSE.

22. Marx of lesser repute : GUMMO. He was replaced by Zeppo in 1915.  The brothers, can you name them?

24. Provide, as with talent : ENDOW.

25. Lifestyle magazine : SELF.

26. Host noted for a 1960 on-air resignation : PAAR.

29. Was loquacious : RAN ON. Yeah, that's it- loquacious!

33. Classic military text by Carl von Clausewitz : ON WAR. The SUMMARY.

35. Legislative VIPs : WHIPS.

36. Touristy viticultural valley : NAPA.

37. Indecisive comment : I MAY. I may not.

38. Hardly fascinating : TIRESOME.

41. Capital of Cyprus : NICOSIA. The city has a HISTORY.

42. Statistical matrix, e.g. : DATA SET.

43. Cruise partnership nickname : TOMKAT. I mention Tom and his ex Ms. Holmes in another JW; a crush?

44. L'Oréal competitor : AVEENO. This time of year this comes to mind for me

45. Altered, as a map : REDREW.

47. Mental wherewithal : ACUMEN.

48. GI grub : MRE. Meals Ready to Eat.

50. Wield power : REIGN.

52. Endangered Sumatran : ORANG.

54. Mythical troublemaker : LOKI.

57. Compact Cadillac sedan : ATS. This car.

58. Dustup : ROW. A common term across the pond.

59. Hook relative : JAB. Boxing terms.

Well we  were treated to another JW that made us work and use our imaginations and I enjoyed it. Happy holidays to all and Lemonade out.

Friday September 4, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Add a little Einsteinium (Atomic Symbol ES)

Back to back weeks of Jeffrey is a new twist on Friday, but the theme of adding ES to the end of the second word of an in the language phrase to completely change the phrase is a classic. (Concise!) The awesome part is that each phrase also completely changes the sound of the second word as well as its meaning. The new phrases are clued with humor. The central grid spanner gives the puzzle a nice appearance. We have all the letters but Q and Z so there are many fun words in the fill plus JW's usual two word fill. CAJOLED, FEEL BAD,  GENESES, NEW MATH, GAME FACE,  IN UNISON,  MILANESE, OLIVE PIT are the features.

17A. Affectionate moniker for a holy river? : OUR GANGES (9).  This GROUP morphs into the RIVER.

31A. Duffer's nineteenth-hole litany? : GOLF GRIPES (10). The grip becomes the complaint for the golfer.

37A. Where some climbers take smoking breaks? : CIGARETTE BUTTES (15). My favorite where the remnant of a cigarette becomes a  thing of BEAUTY.

44A. Highlights of the hippo ballet in "Fantasia"? : JUMBO JETES (10). Ah the 747 becomes this CLASSIC.

62A. Milliseconds? : TINY TIMES (9). Do you think of the Christmas Carol or Herbert Khaury? 

Well enough of the silliness let's get to solving.

Across:

1. Big name in arcades : SEGA.  They lost out to the others like Xbox and Wii in the home gaming but dominate the arcade MARKET.

5. Show pride : BEAM. When you look at a parent watching a child you can see the beam.

9. Speck : ATOM.

13. A or B, in preparations : PLAN.

14. Hard to watch : UGLY. Perhaps this might explain the CLUE.

15. Baseball commissioner emeritus Bud : SELIG.

19. Entry mechanism : STILE. For all you subway riders, this was a gimme.

20. Less prosaic : ODDER.

21. Canceled (out) : XED.

23. __-Picone: women's fashion label : EVAN. Last week it was Anne Klein.

24. Have regrets : FEEL BAD.

27. High court delivery : LOB. Tennis court in honor of the US Open going on now.

29. Storm dir. : ENE.

30. Job application ID : SSN.

34. Eponymous physicist James : JOULE. I found him fascinating, his career was not as a scientist but as a BREWER.

36. Star __: Asian spice : ANISE. And a controversial Herbal TEA.

42. "What's in __?" : A NAME? JW loves him Shakespeare.

43. Town in a 1945 Pulitzer-winning novel : ADANO. John Hersey novel.

47. WWII female : WAC.

50. "You're the __ That I Want": "Grease" song : ONE.

51. Nursery purchase : SOD.

52. 1960s educational experiment : NEW MATH.

55. Spirit : LIFE.

57. 22-Down sound : YIP.

59. Vital vessel : AORTA.

60. Amazon transaction, e.g. : E-SALE.

65. Port array : DOCKS.

66. "Amarantine" musician : ENYA.

67. Kick back : REST. I see it more as relax.

68. With 6-Down, savings : NEST. Gratuitous referential.

69. It contains diamonds : DECK. Good clue.

70. Deco designer : ERTE. Romain de Tirtoff (23 November 1892 – 21 April 1990) was a Russian-born French artist and designer known by the pseudonym Erté, from the French pronunciation of his initials, per wiki.

Down:

1. "SNL" staples : SPOOFS.

2. Loses, in a way : ELUDES.

3. Plant manager's domain? : GARDEN. Really fun misdirection.

4. Clarence Odbody, in a Capra classic : ANGEL. A wonderful character..

5. Cookout item : BUN. HBG or HD?

6. See 68-Across : EGG.

7. Author Haley : ALEX.

8. Whitman's "Song of __" : MYSELF. Last week he sent Poetry in motion, this week a POEM which I dedicate to the memory of Clear Ayes.

9. Braying beast : ASS.

10. Cabeza, across the Pyrenees : TETE. French equivalent of the Spanish for head.

11. Tapenade discard : OLIVE PIT. A discovery of southern France next to Italy and the land where they speak...

12. Lombardy dialect : MILANESE.

16. Points of origin : GENESES. The Latin plural of Genesis. A different use of ES.

18. NYSE trader : ARBitrage.

22. It may be a toy : DOG. Tricky for such a short fill.

25. Fluish symptoms : AGUE.

26. Doofus : DOLT.

28. Procter & Gamble brand : BRAUN. The razor PEOPLE.

32. Sic on : LET AT.

33. Fascinated by : INTO.

34. Entrance support : JAMB. Door jamb.

35. "Watch how wonder unfolds" snacks : OREOS.

37. Said "Pretty please" to, say : CAJOLED. Straight out of the French Cajoler.

38. Harmoniously : IN UNISON.

39. Determined countenance : GAME FACE. What a great fill; I have seen many game faces in so many different settings outside of sports.

40. Fall setting : EDEN. Oh this is devilishly clever, the fall of man.

41. Foundation : BASE.

45. Exultation : JOY.

46. Found the right words for, maybe : EDITED. I really like this clue.

47. More affable : WARMER. A tricky clue for simple fill.

48. Swear : ATTEST.

49. Unsullied : CHASTE. Not the word I would think of for these UNSULLIED.

53. Angkor __: Cambodian temple : WAT. This is only a recent gimme: A wat (Thai: วัด wat Lao: ວັດ vad, Khmer: វត្ត wōat) is a monastery-temple in Thailand, Cambodia or Laos. The term is borrowed from Sanskrit vāṭa "enclosure" per wiki.

54. Wavy pattern : MOIRE. From the French moi·ré meaning rippled.

56. Organization name selected over "Buffalos" in a close 1868 vote : ELKS. The BPOE voted 8 to 7. They have counted many Presidents of the US in their membership.

58. Yearn : PINE. This is an interesting word because along with desire, it can signal withering away. From the Latin poena, penalty, from Greek poinē;

61. 63-Down hrs. : EST.

63. Tumblr HQ site : NYC.

64. Jaw : YAK. I guess it is time for me to stop  yakking and wish you all a happy long weekend and Labor Day. Thanks Jeffrey and all the Corner. Lemonade out.

Friday, August 28, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: A Jeffrey Jumble tribute to Owen and Moe and perhaps suggest s that you TRY POE!

Adhering to the strict interpretation, we have a word jumble (not an anagram) puzzle that features 63 theme squares including the reveal and a grid spanner in the middle. To make this all work, there is the unusual use of six cheater squares, three in the NW and three in the SE. There are many 3 and 4 letter fill and an overall difficulty that did not seem like a Friday. As usual with JW there were lots of sparkly fill CREDOS, FRERES, KIMMEL, PLINTH, BASE TEN, EACH ONE, GEOLOGY, MCENROE, REELS IN, ARISTOCRACY, YOU ARE WRONG and a reveal which is very revealing and amusing. As I have said before, the joy in this type of puzzle comes from the phrasing of the reveal and I really enjoyed the image of the letters from Poetry moving about. Anyway, it is time we move about the puzzle.

16A. Formal dissent : MINORITY REPORT (14). Also a movie with TOM CRUISE. Now a TV pilot that ran this SUMMER.

22A. Lead role in many a Western : STEREOTYPE (10). White hat, ruggedly handsome.

37A. Independence Day VIPs : PYROTECHNICIANS (15). They make our fireworks work.

50A. Vegan diet component : SOY PROTEIN (10). They get their protein where they can.

58A. Metaphor for ballet ... or what this puzzle's circles literally contain : POETRY IN MOTION (14).

Across

1. "It came without ribbons. It came without __": The Grinch : TAGS. We start with Dr. Seuss. Who has appeared in many of JW's recent Fridays.

5. Glutton : PIG. Hog also fits.

8. Be at loggerheads : CLASH. Hmmm. A HUM .

13. Layered snack : OREO. How many clues are there for this American classic cookie?

14. Sch. with residence halls named Acadian and Beauregard : LSU. A CSO to our Louisiana solvers.

15. Crystal __ : RADIO. We have had this clue/fill before and it brought back memories for some of you. Bill G.?

19. Decimal system foundation : BASE TEN. I will defer to our math mavens.

20. Educator LeShan : EDA.

21. Fig. in TV's "Suits" : ATT. This abbreviation for attorney....as foolish as the premise of the show.

28. Cheap sauce : HOOCH. Interesting HISTORY .

31. Transports : HAULS.

32. Appreciative cry : OLE.

33. Rocky prominence : CRAG.

35. Org. of former Soviet republics : CIS. Is this still operational? LINK . Commonwealth of Independent States.

36. Paired : DUAL. Carburetors?

41. It's found in bars : SOAP. I guess Jeffrey was cleaning up his CLUING to be g-rated.

42. "I see what's going on!" : O HO. Not safe to yell on street corners?

43. In the area : NEAR.

44. Obedience trials org. : AKC. American Kennel Club.

45. __ steak : FLANK.

47. Dropped off : SLEPT.

53. "Quadrophenia" group, with "The" : WHO.

54. Med. recording : EEG. ElectroEncephaloGram.

55. Four-time US Open winner : MCENROE. The other US Open. John has established a healthy career making fun of his own antics in commercials. The HBO documentary about him and Borg was great.

63. Word on a menu : CARTE. A la.

64. One rarely without a comb? : BEE. Honeycomb humor.

65. Klein of fashion : ANNE.

66. Stopovers : STAYS.

67. Ware lead-in : MAL. All you windows users know this term.

68. Long-term appeal : LEGS. Splynter are you out there?

Down

1. Burger go-with : TOMATO. Not my first thought.

2. Reign of Terror victims : ARISTOCRACY. The French revolution was so bloody. LINK.

3. Biological determinant : GENE.

4. Laundry woe at the Claus home? : SOOT. All those damn chimneys!

5. Public monument support : PLINTH. A really cool word.

6. Real ending? : IST. Ity, ism?

7. Dude : GUY. My wife says, man-guy.

8. Words to live by : CREDOS. From the Latin to believe.

9. Gently massage, wave-style : LAP AT. The waves lap at the shore?

10. Big deal : ADO.

11. Title for Edward Elgar : SIR. The prolific composer of pomp and circumstance music.

12. Popular : HOT.

17. __ judicata: decided case : RES. Literally the thing adjudicated.

18. Catches : REELS IN.

19. "What nonsense!" : BAH.

23. All : EACH ONE. Do not get this one. Each and every?

24. Archaeological site : RUIN. Not necessarily.

25. "What nonsense!" : YOU ARE WRONG. Nice.

26. Work out the details : PLAN.

27. Unadon fillets : EELS. For C.C.?

29. Corn, for example : CROP. So vague needed perps.

30. One may be passed : HAT. So vague needed perps. Once unearthed I enjoyed it.

34. Rocky field? : GEOLOGY.  I have a nephew who has his degree in geology and works in Everglades.

36. Ivory alternative : DIAL. Soap not Jade.

37. Spots for Smokey: Abbr. : PSAS. Public Service Announcements.

38. Mother of Sean : YOKO. Not sure why this came immediately, there are many Seans.

39. Shoot the breeze : CHAT. Cat in French.

40. These, to Thérèse : CES. French.

45. Monastère members : FRERES. Our French lesson continues.

46. Late-night host since 2003 : KIMMEL. Wow, time flies, I still remember him from Ben Stein' s show.

48. Obsolescent public conveniences : PHONES. I know people who invested heavily in pay phones in the 70s.

49. Word with dance or shoe : TOE. Another stumper.

51. Small-minded : PETTY. Not Tom.

52. Sgt., e.g. : NCO. Non Commissioned Officer

56. List substitute : ETAL.

57. Diamond complement : NINE. Baseball team.

58. See 61-Down : PCS. Personal Computers.

59. Bit in a horse's mouth? : OAT. Tricky, nice misdirection.

60. Baseball stat : ERA. Earned Run Average.

61. Longtime maker of 58-Down : IBM. International Business Machine. Sold the business to Lenovo in 2005.

62. Org. supporting exhibitions : NEA. National Education Association.

No naticks, and a great reveal; hope you all unraveled this one. See you in September. To each of you who sent birthday wishes, thank you very much, it is great to celebrate with my extended family here. Lemonade out.

Friday, August 14, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Annie where are you hiding? DADDY?

Well we have Jeffrey back on Friday with a very visual puzzle that mandates you have the circles to make sense out of his creation. There are no conventional theme answers except the reveal 34A. Classic comics catchphrase ... and a hint to four sets of puzzle circles : LEAPIN' LIZARDS.(13).

The circles reveal 4 familiar lizards GECKO, SKINK, MONITOR and CHAMELEON with the letters in the circles producing a picture of the motion of jumping. I love the visual. The icing on the cake for me is having CHAMELEON which is famous for changing color to elude predators hidden in the puzzle. The rest is a daunting combination of very difficult fill and tricky cluing. ATACAMA SAMISEN NEBULAE MINI-LOTS INERTIAL and many others make this a Friday challenge. Having no theme to fill in easily took out a normal crutch I use to solve, but for me the payoff was worth the effort. Let's see how I got  there.

Across:

1. Game piece : TILE. Especially if you play Scrabble.

5. Place for oysters : BED. Cute misdirection. So much I did not KNOW.

8. Perch, at times : LIMB.  A friend has taken two sparrows into his home.

12. Beef __: dish sometimes made with Guinness : IN ALE. Steve, help? Sounds YUMMY.

15. Social __ : MEDIA. Often quite anti-social.

16. Narrow landforms : NECKS. Isthmus is from the Greek word for neck.

17. Record number, briefly : RPM. Revolutions Per Minute.

18. Hides : SKINS. Sounds like the skink, I think.

19. Higher ed challenge : GRE.Graduate Record Examination.

20. Aromatic : ODOROUS. Not a common word.

23. Hägar creator Browne : DIK.

24. Emperor before Vitellius : OTHO. Lucky for me my son studied Roman Archaeology so I knew of this short lived emperor one of FOUR who served in 69 AD,

26. Yards, e.g. : UNITS.

27. Rude look : OGLE. Politically incorrect look.

28. "Runaround Sue" singer : DION.

29. Path lead-in : OSTEO. Nice misdirection, not in the woods but at the doctors.

30. Pace maker? : FOOT. More tough cluing for easy fill.

31. Setting for a Tony-winning Miller play : SALEM. No politics, but this is a powerful PLAY.

33. Cheers : ROOTS. I have an ear worm LISTEN.(1:07).

40. Patronizes, as a hotel : STAYS AT.

41. Hold on a diner order : OMIT.

45. Common sense : SMELL.Great pun.

46. What Barry White often sings? : BASS, LISTEN. (4:30).

50. Cosmic clouds : NEBULAE. Great word; the building blocks of the universe.

52. Slithery : EEL LIKE.

54. Fireplace wood : BEECH. I know little about FIREWOOD.

55. Relief provider : OASIS. Not Tums or Rolaids.

56. South American desert : ATACAMA. I knew nothing of this DRIEST place.

59. Like some landscape paintings : MOONLIT.

61. Plucked Japanese instrument : SAMISEN. Don't fret if you never heard about THIS.

62. Bleepworthy : OBSCENE.

63. Sci-fi staples : ETS.

64. Calculate, in a way : ADD. One of the many on modern calculators.

65. See 35-Down : TIE. I need an explanation for making this simple fill a cross-reference.

66. U.S. Army E-5 : SGT.

Down:

1. Self-important authoritarians : TIN GODS. Really fun fill.

2. __ navigation: aerospace guidance system : INERTIAL. My learning MOMENT.

3. Wingtip feature : LACE HOLE. What is needed for tie shoes.

4. Rockies grazer : ELK. Not to be confused with 8D. Albanian coin : LEK, though I believe you can buy ELK meat with LEK.

5. Some nobility : BARONS. Counts?

6. Lively wit : ESPRIT.According to MW  "vivacious cleverness or wit."

7. Punish for a military rules violation, perhaps : DEMOTE.

9. "Yay, me!" : I DID GOOD. Nice phrase.

10. Small currency-market trading quantities : MINI-LOTS. A way to take some of the risk out of trading currencies. READ.

11. Navajo craftwork products : BASKETS.

13. That, in Madrid : ESO. Back again.

15. Rejects, usually: Abbr. : MSS. Abbreviation for manuscripts.

21. Laurel and Hardy, e.g. : DUO.

22. 1941 FDR creation : USO. So many acronyms during the FDR years; I am still watching the Roosevelts while I ride the exercise bike.

25. Selective Service status : ONE-A.

27. "__ a Thousand Tongues to Sing": Christian hymn : O FOR. Not in my wheelhouse.

32. USMC enforcers : MPS. Military Police.

33. Singer? : RAT. Someone who tells on another, especially popular with the mob.

35. With 65-Across, soccer game cry : IT'S A. See above.

36. Word before or after brand : NAME. We have had this odd one before.

37. Corrosive material : LYE.

38. Key : ISLE. And, 47D. Theatrical features : AISLES. English is a wonder.

39. Big name in jewelry : ZALE. Every kiss begins with ... oops.

41. Distracting the pitcher, maybe : ON BASE. Well this is stretch but I do recall some who were good when they got on.

42. Use for a rendezvous : MEET AT.

43. Steel girders : I-BEAMS.

44. Stanley who plays Flickerman in "The Hunger Games" : TUCCI. Despicable.

46. Sommelière's suggestion : BLANC. Ou rouge.

48. It may be freestyle : SKIING. marti?

49. Sonnet part : SESTET.Six.

51. Tibet University city : LHASA. Many students go there to get HIGH.

53. Free : LOOSE. I had a date like that once.

57. Rx spec : MED.

58. Furthermore : AND.

59. Nice word : MOT. The old French city "Nice" trick

60. Geisha's band : OBI. Another touch of Japan as our exit line; makes me wonder if there are any  Geisha musical groups playing the Samisen. One last LISTEN.

Another innovative look from Jeffrey and lots of work for me. I hope you all enjoy it.

Lemonade out.

Notes from C.C.: 

1) Belated Happy Birthday to dear Chickie! I'm so sorry that I spaced out yesterday morning. Hope you had a wonderful celebration with Bill and the kids and grandkids. Are you planning a big gathering this weekend?

Left to Right: Chickie, JD, Garlic Gal and Lucina.

June 3, 2015

2) Also belated Happy Birthday to Spitzboov's wife Betty as well! Betty makes a mean Baklava, if I remember correctly. I've yet to find the filo dough in our grocery store, Spitzboov.

Spitzboov & Betty at the reunion dinner held at the US Coast Guard Academy, New London, CT, 2012

Thursday, July 30, 2015 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: "Fifty Shades of Grey"

20-Across. Defiant challenge : TRY STOPPING ME.

32-Across. Would-be immigrant's concern : ENTRY STATUS.

40-Across. Nashville VIP : COUNTRY STAR.

50-Across. Romance novel staple, another word for which is aptly hidden in 20-, 32- and 40-Across : SECRET MEETING. I love it when the reveal perfectly describes the theme, as this one does.  Jeffrey seems to like these hidden word themes, and I get to see him a lot in this Thursday spot. Lots of fun clues in this one, that got a chuckle from me when I figured them out.


Across

1. Each : A POP. I love filling in 1-A immediately.

5. Subtly cruel : CATTY. Meowwww.

10. Stock items: Abbr. : MDSE. Merchandise.

14. Couch potato's aid : TIVO.

15. Bizarre : OUTRE. Way out there.

16. Severely damaged sea : ARAL.

17. "Think you can manage?" : FEEL UP TO IT?

19. Beatle George's Indian friend : RAVI. Harrison and Shankar.

22. Dishevel : MUSS.

23. Matzo's lack : YEAST. Ironically followed by:

25. Approach to a landing? : RISER. Stairs, but it also describes YEAST.

28. Grass plot around a sundial, in "Jabberwocky" : WABE. So-called by the characters in the poem, because it goes way before and way behind the sundial.

Twas bryllyg, and ye slythy toves

Did gyre and gymble in ye wabe:

All mimsy were ye borogoves;

And ye mome raths outgrabe. 

31. __ chi : TAI. Not to be confused with chai tea.

35. Believer's suffix : ISM.

36. Binding oath : I DO. Only about 50% of the time, it seems.

37. "__, With Love" : TO SIR. One of my favorite Sydney Poitier movie. Also a hit song by Lulu.

38. Comprehend : SEE.

39. Scand. country that borders Russia : NOR. I wanted Fin. first.

43. Commercial suffix with wheat : ENA. Before she left for work every day during the school year, my mother would make a big pot of WheatENA, Maypo, Cream of Wheat, or Oatmeal. I still love all of them!

44. Antlered deer : HART.

45. Hops driers : OASTS.

46. Aqua __: corrosive acid : REGIA. "Royal water," or nitro-hydrochloric acid is so-called because it can corrode the noble metals gold and platinum.

48. X-rated stuff : SMUT.

56. Part of RNA : RIBO. I wanted to put in "acid," but thought that probably wasn't it because of the clue for 46-Across.

57. Watergate figure : DEEP THROAT. Anyone remember the brouhaha caused by the movie of the same name?

59. Barbara of "Mission: Impossible" : BAIN. Remember Cinnamon Carter?

60. Bottled-up sort? : GENIE. Fun clue!

61. On a break, say : IDLE.

62. Rustic accommodations : INNS. Out of the way spots for TRYSTS?

63. Old Norse texts : EDDAS.

64. Con's confines : CELL.


Down

1. Org. regulating explosives : ATF. Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

2. Painter Mondrian : PIET. I owned a Mondrian minidress in the 60's.

3. Concluded : OVER.

4. Nylon, for one : POLYMER.

5. Egyptian Christians : COPTS.

6. Road runners : AUTOS. Another fun clue!

7. Trans Am roof option : T-TOP. This is the Hurst style T-TOP.

8. Road __ : TRIP.

9. "Snowman" in a fur coat : YETI. Yesterday, he was a mysterious mountain climber!

10. Homer's beloved : MARGE.

11. Ones earning play money? : DRAMATISTS. See what I mean? Here's another great clue!

12. Helps by arriving early, with "for" : SAVES A SEAT.

13. Priest who mentored Samuel : ELI. All perps.

18. Unreasonable interest : USURY. Loved this clue, too!

21. Scientific Bill et al. : NYES.

24. Ski race equipment : TIMERS. Huge V8 moment - I was all over poles, skis, goggles, helmets....

25. "The Bucket List" director : REINER.

26. Bali citizen : INDONESIAN.

27. Container seen above seats : STORAGE  BIN. "Luggage" bin just wasn't working with any of the perps...

28. "The Weavers: __ That a Time!": folk documentary : WASN'T. I remember their version of "Guantanamera."

29. Quarreling : AT IT.

30. Third U.S. VP : BURR.

33. Ancient portico : STOA.

34. Band commitment : TOUR.

40. Sear : CHAR.

41. "__, I do adore thee": Shakespeare : YOUTH.

42. Swiftian : SATIRIC.

47. Screen array : ICONS.

48. Old photo tone : SEPIA.

49. Deals (out) : METES.

51. A Möbius strip has just one : EDGE.

52. Upset, with "off" : TEED. Not me.

53. Fix : MEND.

54. Joint : NODE.  Oh, I was thinking of something you smoke.

55. Chutzpah : GALL. Love that word, "chutzpah." Does it come from Yiddish?

56. Box score stat : RBI.

58. Business card no. : TEL. I think it would have been fun to clue this as "No-tell mo-___.""

T-t-t-hat's all, folks!
Marti

Note from C.C.:

Here is a great picture of Windhover (Larry) and Lucina. Lucina said "I was visiting a friend in the Convent so that explains the religious items in the background."

Windhover & Lucina

Friday, July 17, 2015, Jeffrey Wechsler

These: Where did you hide all of the Holes?

Keeping to our bi-weekly schedule, we have Jeffrey back this time with a missing word puzzle. In row 1, 8 and 15 (the beginning middle and end) we have a three word string, each 4,5,4; the clue is for a word ending in "HOLE" but the hole is missing. It is an interesting scientific conundrum, can a hole which is nothing be missing? There is much consistency to the grid though a few of the ___HOLE fill are two words rather than a single word. What makes the puzzle a delight is JW's fun reveal which points out that there are nine words that are not, but should be followed by HOLE. Other than that, it is another Friday with high word count and less than 5 letter average fill. The longer fill is varied including ABORTS, LESTER, NO SHOW, SECURE, SPLEEN, SUCCOR, TOO BIG, WADDLE, AM I BEAT, CAPSULE, GADGETS, LOCKS ON, REVERTS, SEVENTY, SLEDGES, BASE CAMP, PUNK ROCK, ORIGINALS, REMINDS OF, with many of them Jeffrey's customary two word fill.  Heck out the symmetry. The asterisks immediately warn the solver that the game is afoot, otherwise 1A would be discouraging. WORMHOLE opened my eyes. Lots of nice musical references; let's see how we all did.

1A. *It offers an ocean view : PORTHOLE(4). Well both ports and portholes do, so this was a hard start. PORTHOLE is written both as one and two words.

5A. *Hardware insertion point : SCREW HOLE (5). While completely avoiding all DF comments, this is one of the theme fill that takes two words, always I think.

10A. *Sci-fi shortcut : WORM HOLE (4). Like many, I learned of this method of travel through STAR TREK. Sorry for the ad, but I like the LINK (4:46).

38A. *Means of evasion : LOOPHOLE (4).  Did you know THIS?

40A. *Stephen Hawking subject : BLACK HOLE (5). Back to space, this time real science. LINK.

41A. *Orca feature : BLOWHOLE (4). This time the science is mammal anatomy. LINK.

67A. *Geologic danger : SINKHOLE (4). I learned about these when I moved to Gainesville and this limestone sinkhole attributed to the DEVIL.

68A. *Serengeti gathering place : WATERHOLE (5). I think in terms of watering holes, but MW says, " a small pool, pond, or lake used by animals for drinking" so what do I know?

69A. *Home security device : PEEPHOLE (4). I do not find these very helpful and they installed the one at work for much taller peep-le, but I do remember this SCENE (1:05).

And the reveal, which i am sure appealed at least to me and Moe and HG and the other golfers----especially this week of the Open Championship (or the British Open to some).
46A. Quick round ... and, collectively, what the answers to starred clues lack : NINE HOLES (9).

I liked it!

Across:

14. Chevy subcompact : AVEO. Discontinued in 2011, so...

15. Salad bar morsel : OLIVE. This was hard because I think of morsel as part of rather than a whole.

16. Domingo forte : ARIA. You do not have to like opera to like Placido. LISTEN (3:01).

17. Spectator sport since the Edo period : SUMO. Not something I knew but easily inferable.

18. Alpine air : YODEL. A stretch for me.

19. Checker, e.g. : DISC. It took me more than one pass to relate to the checker on a checkerboard being a disc.

20. "What an exhausting day!" : AM I BEAT! JW likes multiple word fill.

22. Pounding tools : SLEDGES. I did not need to be hit on the head with a hammer to get this one.

24. Veto : NIX.

25. Clay, nowadays : ALI. Easy unless you are a sculptor or into pottery.

26. Handy assortment : GADGETS.

30. "Terribly strange" age in Simon & Garfunkel's "Old Friends" : SEVENTY. They are both over seventy now.

34. ICU connections : IVS.

35. Medical unit : CAPSULE. I imagine those who did not like the earlier in the week capsule used as a clue for ROCKET, there will be debate about this clue/fill.

37. "__ you finished?" : ARE.

42. Terrible : AWFUL.

44. F1 neighbor : ESC. If you had to look at your keyboard was that cheating?

45. Makers of wood pulp nests : WASPS. John Lampkin showed us this PICTURE back in December.

49. Gets in one's sights, with "to" : LOCKS ON. As with a telescopic sight on your rifle.

52. Backslides : REVERTS to his/her old habits.

56. Cancels the launch : ABORTS.

57. Fasten : SECURE.

58. "Whip It" rockers : DEVO. Where are they NOW (0:16)?

59. Order outfit : HABIT. Nun too soon.

63. __ on the back : A PAT.

64. Monthly pmt. : ELECtricity bill.

65. Midway alternative : O'HARE. The two major Chicago airports.

66. Choice array : MENU. And the clecho, 43A. Choice array : LIST. 

Down:

1. "¿Qué __?" : PASA. The upside down question mark tells you it is Spanish.

2. Reproductive cell : OVUM. Eggs-actly.

3. Takes back to : REMINDS OF. Like my trip to my 50th high school reunion took me back to my childhood.

4. Goldilocks complaint : TOO BIG. Too hot?

5. Protein-rich bean : SOYA. Soy?

6. Blood __ : CLOT. Lots of Blood____fill- TYPE, TEST, LUST, BANK, LINE, MOON, but this is the first appearance of Clot.

7. Unburden : RID.

8. Anticipatory times : EVES. Twas the night before Christmas....

9. More than adequately : WELL. Oh my, you do that so well!

10. Swaying walk : WADDLE.  Don't make fun it is MEDICAL (1:36).

11. Art museum works, usually : ORIGINALS. There are some numbered prints, perhaps.

12. Increase : RISE.

13. Pro and mini : MACS. Apple computers, here I come. Did I answer why?

21. Business VIP : EXECutive.

23. Architectural projection : EAVE.

26. Colorado tributary : GILA. They meet on the other side of Arizona LINK.

27. State as accurate : AVOW.

28. Bar __ : TAB. Bar none I am sure this is Tin's favorite.

29. Petulance : SPLEEN. I guess someone venting his spleen can be petulant, but this was all perps.

30. Help : SUCCOR. A nice old fashioned word.

31. Yosemite grazer : ELK. I did not know this.

32. Stadium in St. Pete, with "The" : TROPicana. You know who has juice in Florida.

33. Landscaping shrubs : YEWS. I understand they like shade.

36. Obi, e.g. : SASH. So often OBI is the fill.

39. "Pure, stripped down" genre, per Tommy Ramone : PUNK ROCK. One of the originals.

41. Climber's refuge : BASE CAMP.

45. "__ Got Tonight": 1983 hit duet : WE'VE. He redid it with Dolly Parton.

47. Absentee : NO SHOW.

48. Sci-fi author/editor del Rey : LESTER. I used to read a lot of Science Fiction and Lester was one of many who came out of the 30's and pulp magazines. He was also a very successful editor and was the inspiration for one of the members of Isaac Asimov's Black Widowers.

49. Fills with cargo : LADES.

50. Division symbols : OBELI. These are just ÷.

51. Neo-pagan gathering : COVEN. A Cool CSO to our California group.

53. Nepal currency : RUPEE.

54. Big name in air conditioning : TRANE. I prefer this TRAIN.(4:52).

55. Everything but the liquor : SET UP. The juice, ice and sodas that Tin never uses.

60. Word associated with a light bulb : AHA.

61. Echolocation user : BAT. Using the sound bouncing off things instead of seeing. I know the feeling.

62. Steaming state : IRE. We leave as we came with a bit of misdirection which I hope did not leave anyone hot under the collar....

Well I am certainly getting accustomed to JW and his puzzles, so I had fun with this. I hope you did and enjoy the rest of the Golf while the rest of the sporting world rests. Lemonade out.