Friday, December 7, 2018, Jeffrey Wechsler

Title: I C said the blind man. 'I see said the blind man' is an old expression, often with "to his deaf wife." My favorite ending is, "... as he peed into the wind. It's all coming back to me now!"

I would reference I.C.E. since the IC replaces E, but that would end up being political. I think I may have exhausted the topic of blindness, but Jeffrey never seems to exhaust his library of wit. In another letter replacement version, he packs in 65 spaces of theme with a central grid-spanner. He uses cheater squares for the 14s, but the rest is just a nice puzzle. Such skill to include IS IT SO, CIERAS, RARE COIN, I'VE GOT TO, TENON SAW all of which are uncommon or brand new for the LAT and the fun word FLAMENCO. The cluing which apparently is too much for CED was fun throughout, so...

16A. Art class model, say?: STATIC EMPLOYEE (14). The STATE employee gets to stand still while being sketched. Some say the DMV employees stand still while waiting on you.

25A. Homeowner's extreme reaction to a hailstorm?: WINDOW PANIC (11). Here we all have hurricane-proof window PANES or shutters.

34A. Ancient Roman's suggestion to a sweat-drenched pal?: CHANGE YOUR TUNIC (15). I wonder if finding this grid spanner made JW change his TUNE?

46A. Where sick con victims seek help?: PATSY CLINIC (11). But do they play her hits over the loudspeaker?

59A. Stand-up invited to a holiday meal?: COMIC FOR DINNER (14). Look who is COMING for dinner? I understand most professionals do not like 'performing' for relatives. I am glad I am not a professional.

A really nice set of themers

Across:

1. City in which much of "Moonlight" is set: MIAMI. Academy Award winner; oops. LINK.

6. Lively display of stamps?: FLAMENCO.

14. Long range: ANDES. One of those clues CED spoke of, not far but an extended mountain range.

15. Valuable collectible: RARE COIN. This fill has been in the LAT twice before, introduced to us by Paul Coulter on a Friday I blogged HERE. That puzzle write-ups has two very interesting aspects; pictures of Lucina added by C.C. and the TONSURE of Buddhist monks which I participated in this trip.

18. Singer Jones: TOM.

19. Ashes not caused by fire: TREES. Another deceptive one, where we wanted fire and needed Fraxinus, English name ash, a genus of flowering plants in the olive and lilac family, Oleaceae.

20. Notable times: ERAS.

22. Genesis twin: ESAU. When your name is 4 letters and has three vowels, you will live on in xwords.

23. Volcanic rock: BASALT. This is a dark, fine-grained volcanic rock that sometimes displays a columnar structure. It is typically composed largely of plagioclase with pyroxene and olivine. The dictionary makes that so clear, right?

30. Calculating: SLY.

31. Lot unit: ACRE.

32. Sucker of sorts: LEECH. Not the victim, but THIS.

41. Wise guys, maybe: SAGES. Using 'guys' to lead you to mobsters, not smart people. If you notice it is clued as two words, and not as wiseguys, you will not fall in his trap.

42. Hotel worker: MAID.

43. Asian holiday: TET. As the celebration of the lunar new year, Tet is the most important holiday on the Vietnamese calendar.

50. Went from 50 to 40: SLOWED. Because lying about his/her age would not fit.

52. "Put __ on it!": A LID.

53. Bust size?: KILO. Stop looking for boobie, all we have here is a drug bust. Why do we use pounds/ounces for most things but 'keys' for heroin and cocaine?

54. Flynn of film: ERROL. He is back; no buckling a swash today.

56. Attorney's org.: ABA.  American Bar Association. A CSO to Susan and others.

63. "It's my duty": I'VE GOT TO. If you must, you must.

64. Really irk: EAT AT.

65. Cutting tool for making joints: TENON SAW. This full name appeared only once, in 2005, in the LAT. It has never been used in an NYT.

66. Works on a batter: STIRS. No baseball, but cooking. Sorry CED.

Down:

1. It's often rigged: MAST. Another fun clue, right CED?

2. Fascinated by: IN TO.

3. Biblical exile: ADAM. It is so easy to put in CAIN and be wrong. JW! And a mini-clecho 22D. Delightful places: EDENS.

4. Came across: MET.

5. "Can this be true?": IS IT SO? A challenging parse.

6. Clear, as a schedule slot: FREE UP.

7. Fabric with a glint: LAMÉ. You do not get the accent in the clue making it hard to see this fabric with interwoven gold or silver threads.

8. Some dadaist works: ARPS.

9. Brooks with lines: MEL. Not bubbling streams but a shout out to this awesome PUZZLE.

10. Green prefix: ECO.

11. British poet Alfred: NOYES.

12. '80s-'90s Olds models: CIERAS.

13. Score early in the set, maybe: ONE ALL. Tennis anyone?

17. Bird crop: CRAW. Anything about this puzzle stick in your...?

21. Muddy enclosure: STY.

23. Stuttgart suds: BIER. Beer by any other name...German 1.

24. Bank holding: Abbr.: ACCT. Cking or sving?

25. WWII female: WAC. Women's Army Corps was the women's branch of the United States Army. The WAC was disbanded in 1978, and all units were integrated with male units.

26. Gigi : je :: Greta : __: ICH. German 2.

27. Org. with frequent firings: NRA. National Rifle Association. Too political.

28. See 57-Down: A LOSS. 57D. With 28-Down, persevere despite hardship: BEAR.  Did you write an essay in school about the cross-eyed bear?

29. Fresh, to Franz: NEU. German 3.

33. Like a rainforest: HUMID.

35. Show awe: GAPE.

36. Quaint "Yikes!": EGAD.

37. Equivalent of OTOH: YET. In didactic discourse, perhaps.

38. Photographer Goldin: NAN. Nancy "Nan" Goldin is an American photographer. Her work often explores LGBT bodies, moments of intimacy, the HIV crisis, and the opioid epidemic. I had to post her photograph she titled "Lemons Never Forget"

39. Sundial marking: III. Another use of Roman numerals to fill difficult places.

40. Health org. with HQ in Atlanta: CDC. What happened to the "P"; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

43. "Naughty!": TSK. Generally in pairs.

44. Draw out: ELICIT.

45. Queen's "Somebody __": TO LOVE.

47. Peter of Peter, Paul and Mary: YARROW. Yarrow co-wrote one of the group's greatest hits, "Puff, the Magic Dragon"

48. Lump of earth: CLOD. Or some of the people I knew in high school.

49. Easter display: LILIES. Lilium longiflorum, often called the Easter lily, is a plant endemic to both Taiwan and Ryukyu Islands.

51. Many suffragists: WOMEN. Hmm, yes women led the movement for women to vote.

54. Young newts: EFTS.

55. "The Godfather" composer Nino: ROTA. He wrote 171 MOVIE THEMES, including Godfather I and Godfather II which won him an Academy Awards each time for Best Original Score. He worked mostly on foreign films, and many for Fellini. These included Fellini's Romeo and Juliet where this Shakespeare quote came from. 60D. "Can __ forward when my heart is here?": Romeo: I GO. Act 2, Scene 1
ROMEO:
Can I go forward when my heart is here?
Turn back, dull earth, and find thy center out.

56. Opposition member: ANTI.

58. Liberal follower?: ARTS. JW will go to any degree to confound and amuse.

61. Fool: CON.

62. D.C. ballplayer: NAT. Will Bryce Harper remain a Washington National?

Another Friday, another great creation from Jeffrey and kinds of things to speak about; I await your comments, critiques and comedy. Be good and see you next week GWATCDR, Lemonade out.

Friday, November 23, 2018, Jeffrey Wechsler

Title: The car of the year and an inspiration? The Triumph TR4

If you are not too stuffed from your Thanksgiving Turkey, or Turducken, or Goose,  welcome to Friday. Well guess who is back with an add-on letters theme. This time Jeffrey adds TR to the beginning of 4 in the language phrases. The results are pretty funny. He even sneaks in a Thanksgiving reference with his Dickens clue. He seemed a bit obsessed with a non-vegetarian slant with GOOSE, MOOSE MEAT and OFFAL all together in the middle; I guess he did not want u to veg out. Two grid-spanners and two 13 letter themers as well as including OFFICE AREA, GRABS ON, ARMORER, KOSHER SALT, MOOSE MEAT, STATE TREE and ON ONE END show his skill in putting together a grid with lots of sparkle. So now...

17A. Imaginary fish?: TROUT OF ONE'S MIND.(15). While I did not go out of my mind I loved this one.

32A. Participates in a biathlon for physicians?: TREATS AND RUNS (13). Medical humor.

41A. Where climbing plants flourish?: TRELLIS ISLAND (13). I also loved the use of Ellis Island as a base phrase.

61A. Tire-testing statistics?: TRACTION FIGURES.(15). The most well thought out combination as our toys become a useful piece of information.

Across:

1. Chicken (out): WIMP. I hope the Friday fear does not make you chicken out.

5. Mild cheese: GOUDA. Because you will have a gouda time.

10. Latticework component: LATH. This was difficult for me, but perhaps a bonus theme fill as
a lath or slat is a thin, narrow strip of straight-grained wood used under roof shingles or tiles, on lath and plaster walls and ceilings to hold plaster, and in lattice and trellis work.

14. Grandson of Adam: ENOS.

15. Behind-the-scenes retail space: OFFICE AREA. This is very convoluted, though I guess it makes sense.

19. QBs' targets: TES. Tight Ends, the best known of which is currently...

20. Second-largest W. Hemisphere country: USA. This is apparently in debate as the source I cite says the USA is bigger than Canada, but not as big of Antarctica, which is only partially in the Western Hemisphere. LINK. Please educate me if you know differently. I have read more, and it seems that Canada is larger based on total mass, which includes internal waterways, while the US is larger in land mass. No intent to slight our Canadian readers or constructors, eh!

21. Clutches: GRABS ON. Also Friday clue/fill difficulty for me

22. Ann้e quarter: ETE. French for part of a year.

23. Composer Bart๓k: BELA.

25. Email tab: SENT.

26. Water collection pit: SUMP. This the low part of an area where liquids collect when draining from something, like from a private waste pool. You often will need a sump pump.

28. Uh-huh accompaniers: NODS. You do it without even thinking.

38. Of limited scope: NARROW. Like many minds.

39. Old auto named for an explorer: DE SOTO. The history of the CAR.

44. More than a peck: KISS. Especially if you are with...

45. Yours, to Yves:  À TOI.  

46. "O, that way madness lies" speaker: LEAR. Jeffrey gets his Shakespeare in this week. King Lear bemoaning the treatment he has received from his daughters.

50. Many a Ph.D.: PROFessor.

54. 50-Across' subj., perhaps: ENGlish

55. Mail creator: ARMORER. Chain mail not e-mail.

59. Texting qualifier: IMO. In My Opinion.

60. Where some drives begin: TEE. Ah some golf.

64. Common cooking ingredient: KOSHER SALT. The WHY it is used by chefs.

65. Campsite sight: TENT.

66. Language that gave us "plaid": ERSE. They also gave us the concept of plaid.

67. Architectural projections: EAVES.

68. Last letters in London: ZEDS.

Down:

1. Record-breaking, rainwise: WETTEST. California wishes it was having some of that instead of those states that are flooding.

2. Reciprocally: IN RETURN.

3. Alaskan burger choice: MOOSE MEAT. Not really true but you can sometimes find this TREAT.

4. Nittany Lions' sch.: PSU. Penn State University in Happy Valley.

5. Dickensian holiday dish: GOOSE. Famous in A Christmas Carol not as the gift, but the background. The STORY.

6. Remains at the butcher: OFFAL. This is an old word which began as a combination of "off" and "fall" - that which falls off.

7. Aerial enigma: UFO.

8. Microwave signal, sometimes: DING.

9. Hardware brand: ACER. I am typing on an ACER laptop.

10. Symbols of innocence: LAMBS. Unless you are being silent.

11. Spring up: ARISE.

12. Mortise partner: TENON. More bonus carpentry.

13. "I __ noticed": HADN'T. Well pay attention!

16. That, in Madrid: ESA. Spanish.

18. One may include a shower: TUB.

24. __ Arbor: ANN. Where the University of Michigan, another Big Ten school is located.

27. Henry VIII's sixth: PARR. It's Catherine or Jack.

29. They may be long at the track: ODDS. Cute horse racing humor; I hope it did not give you a long face.

30. Square root of neun: DREI. German division that isn't military.

31. Find (out): SUSS. A favorite puzzle solving word.

33. Long haul: TREK. Ask James Tiberius Kirk.

34. Recital numbers: SOLI. More than one solo.

35. Leatherworker's set: AWLS.

36. 2014 "NCIS" spinoff locale, briefly: NOLA. A CSO to many here.

37. Pecan, for Texas: STATE TREE. Ours is the SABAL PALM. Yours?

40. How brooms are usually stored: ON ONE END.

42. Org. affected by net neutrality: ISP. Internet service Provider.

43. Fully comprehends: DIGESTS.

46. Hanukkah serving: LATKE. The holiday is fast approaching and homemade potato pancakes are a treat. I use apple sauce, and even cinnamon apple sauce while other prefer gravy or sour cream.

47. Wrong turn, say: ERROR.

48. Bring together: AMASS. A Scrooge reference?

49. Basel-based pharmaceutical giant: ROCHE. Their WEBSITE.

51. Feature of many a Daniel Boone depiction: RIFLE. Dan'l is back for the second straight week- who would a thunk it.

52. Skips: OMITS.

53. Driving hazard: FOG. Especially if you do not know your...

56. GPS datum: RTE.

57. Land of the banshee: EIRE.

58. Civil rights icon Parks: ROSA.

62. Canadian rapper with the album "Reckless": NAV. This CSO to our Canadians comes with a Punjabi heritage. LINK.

63. Big name in snack food: UTZ.

Well I am now hungry and confused, so I will bid you all a fond farewell from Thailand and hope Jeffrey and I entertained this week. I will be back at my normal stomping grounds next Friday.

Lemonade out. I inserted a picture of Oo at the Umbrella Factory where they make and decorate all of them by hand.

Thursday, November 1st 2018 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: Monthly Planner - as the reveal nicely explains:

38A. Today, e.g. ... or what is found in 12 puzzle answers: FIRST OF THE MONTH

It's that time of the year when I usually buy a new planner, and those JAN, FEB, MAR tabs down the pages are pristine and speak to a new year of possibilities. Jeffrey comes up with a great way to represent all twelve of those with each entry's "first" letters being the month abbreviation, and in calendar order to boot. So, here they are, one after the other:

1A. Keys sound: JANGLE

7A. Running a temperature: FEBRILE

16A. Coldplay lead singer Chris __: MARTIN. He seems to be a polarizing character, I've had quite a few people tell me that they like Coldplay, but don't like Chris. I'm not sure why, I've looked through the interwebs for pictures of him being mean to puppies or stories of him buying an island and evicting all the residents, but I came up blank. Anyway, great music and here's an example. Maybe a tad over-produced, but I don't think that's his fault.

21A. Home Depot employee garb: APRON

25A. Yucatán native: MAYAN

28A. Deep-sixes: JUNKS. I tried SINKS before I saw the theme.

45A. Minty cocktail: JULEP. The Derby, "My Old Kentucky Home", hats and juleps.

47A. Drilling tool: AUGER

51A. Calyx part: SEPAL

61A. Rating at a pump: OCTANE

66A. Catholic devotions: NOVENAS. Decades, Novenas, Forty Days, it always seems a long, long process being a Catholic. How long was Moses wandering around the desert?

67A. Irregular paper edge: DECKLE. I know a different DECKLE, and this is my favorite - it's the point cut of the brisket - the piece that you don't get if you buy brisket in the market, you get the flat cut. There's a reason why you don't get the deckle - it's the tastiest, fattiest cut and it goes to the deli. Solution? Buy the entire brisket and brine/corn/pastrami it yourself. If you want to get technical with your butcher, you want the IMPS cut "119", not the "120". I'm not sure how I know that.

Wow, that was a lot of theme! Congratulations to Jeffrey for a great construction job on this. I always avoid the theme reveal if I glance down and see where it is, and this one I had no clue that I was filling in month abbreviations from top to bottom. Well concealed, and a happy moment when the grid-spanner had me looking.

Let's see what else (what else is left?!!).

Across:

14. Become too old to qualify: AGE OUT

15. Howled: ULULATED. Awesome word. Usually funeral-related, as in howling in grief.

17. Lamp fuel: KEROSENE

18. Dude: BRO

19. Quarter: AREA

22. Italian thing: COSA. Many people know it from the Mafia-related "cosa nostra", literally "our thing/"

24. Farm enclosure: STY

31. "Wayward Pines" actress Melissa __: LEO. Lovely crosses, thank you. I'd no clue - I've never seen the show, I had no idea about the actress. My favorite LEO works works in production at CBS. Here's to you, Victoria Leo.

34. Cooler in an apt. window: A/C UNIT

36. Bridal bio word: NÉE

37. Suggestion: HINT

41. Having a fancy for: INTO

42. On the __ vive: QUI. "Who lives?" or "Who goes there?" To be on the alert.

43. Just this far: TO HERE

44. Govt. prosecutors: AG'S. Attorneys General, don't get the "S" in the wrong place or I'll be coming for you to give you a lesson in pluralization.

48. Usher family's creator: POE. The Ushers of the collapsing house. I once wondered why they didn't get some engineers in to shore up the foundations, then realized that underpinning wouldn't solve the family problems.

49. Long-dist. weapon: I.C.B.M. Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile, if I recall correctly.

54. Lyft rival: UBER. I'd call this one the other way around, but point taken.

56. Mix with a horse: TOM

59. Vex: IRRITATE

64. Suffered greatly, in Sussex: AGONISED. Take out a Z, slip in an S unnoticed, and suddenly you're 6,000 miles and a common language apart. Now, there are the counties of Sussex and Essex, there's a historical county of Wessex, mostly now Hampshire and Dorset, and there is Middlesex, which may or may not be a county any more, although it still has a cricket team. But nowhere is there a Northsex, or a Norsex, or anything relating to being north and a county. There's south - Sussex - West - Wessex - East - Essex - in the middle - Middlesex - but the atlas is silent on anything north of London. "Here be demons" - or William Wallace, although he was 300 miles further north.

65. Hard-to-take complainer: WHINER. We all know one.

Down:

1. Doorway side: JAMB. We had a whole discussion about stairway parts a while ago. What's the top of the doorframe called? I forget.

2. Bio lab gel: AGAR

3. Archie's boss, in detective fiction: NERO. Archie Goodwin, the narrator in the Nero Wolfe stories by Rex Stout. I sound awfully clued up about these people. 15 seconds on Wikipedia makes anyone an expert. Thank you, crosses.

4. Understood: GOT

5. That guy, to Guy: LUI. Guy Maupassant springs to mind. "Him" in French.

6. Old lab burners: ETNAS. We called 'em Bunsen burners back in the old country. Much the same thing, I'm sure.

7. Bug with bounce: FLEA

8. U.K. locale: EUR. Some Brexiters will disagree, but geography doesn't lie.

9. Swells up: BLOATS

10. Hoarse: RASPY

11. Ancient Roman road: ITER. Ancient or not, they're still in use. One of the scariest rides I've taken was from Rome to Fiumicino Airport in a taxi when I made the mistake of telling the driver I was running late for a flight home. He channeled his Formula 1 Driver alter ego. This was in a Fiat about the size of my suitcase.

12. Car-collecting comedian: LENO. He's a common sight around here. Most notably driving his Stanley Steamer - you don't see many of those.

13. Early venue for nudists?: EDEN

15. Luau strings: UKE

20. British rule in India: RAJ

22. Childish response to a dare: CAN SO!

23. "Will do!": ON IT!

24. Sport invented by hunters: SKEET

25. Criminal group: MAFIA. See "cosa nostra" earlier.

26. Delivering excellent service to?: ACING. Tennis, the perfect serve. "THWOK!". Pause. "Fifteen Love".

27. Asian tents: YURTS

29. Loosen, as a bow: UNTIE

30. O.T. book: NEH. Handy things, those bilbical abbreviations.

31. Where to claim miscellaneous credits on a W-4 form: LINE G. Ach - I'd have turned somersaults to avoid this one - yes, it's a thing, yes, it's accurate, but where, ever is this used in common parlance? "Did you file in time?

"Yes, but that LINE G was troublesome

"On your W-4? You should have called me

"I will, next year, thanks".

Said no-one, ever.

32. __ nous: ENTRE

33. Survey choice: OTHER

35. Culinary topper: TOQUE. I think these are quietly going the way of cream sauces on everything and cheese on lobster.

37. Hardly stimulating: HO HUM. "Meh." I do love how the language continues to evolve. I love "meh.

39. Ending with hand or fist: -FUL

40. Utah city with a Biblical name: MOAB

45. Baseball's __ Joe: JOLTIN' Congratulations to the Red Sox for a very well-deserved World Series win. One day, Dodger Stadium will be the venue when the home team clinches. Joe DiMaggio, of course, was the clue/answer.

46. Dessert slice: PIE

48. "These are the times that try men's souls" writer: PAINE

"The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman."

Those of you who can, please go out and vote on Tuesday.

50. Lots of people: CROWD

51. Phillips of "I, Claudius": SIAN

52. Logician's word: ERGO. "Therefore". There is a logical fallacy, "Post hoc ergo propter hoc", or "after that, then this happened" which is a handy way to cloud causation with correlation. I refer you to my comment on 48A.

53. B.C. or P.E.I.: PROV. Oh Canada! The provinces of British Columbia and Prince Edward Island.

54. Sport-__: vehicles: UTES

55. Garden area: BED

56. Propane container: TANK

57. Turow memoir: ONE L. Harvard Law.

58. Just: MERE

60. Simile words: AS A

62. Guerrilla Guevara: CHE. Let's have the iconic portrait, just for fun:

I did dig a little deeper - this was the original photograph taken by Alberto Korda in Havana in 1960 - I'm not sure I've ever seen the original:

63. Little jerk: TIC

Ok, muchachos, I think that's me done for the week. Here's the grid! I hope you survived tricks, treats and candy overload.

Steve

Sunday, October 7, 2018 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: "The Irreverent Grammarian"- Seven English grammar-related terms are punnily re-phrased.

22. Confident opinion piece?: DEFINITE ARTICLE. I skip "the" often. Chinese has no definite article.

34. Ammonia and water?: COMPOUND WORDS. Both are compounds.

49. Overlap in a photo lab?: DOUBLE NEGATIVE.

67. Adam?: FIRST PERSON.

81. Truce that's barely holding?: TENSE AGREEMENT.

96. Consecutive jail terms?: RUN-ON SENTENCE.

112. Will sections covering family members?: RELATIVE CLAUSES.

I like the title. Irreverent. That's our Jeffrey. Irreverent with humor, wits and fun.

Just look at the basic grid design. Normally you'll find the grid edges broken into four parts, like our last Sunday puzzle. Jeffrey chose the irreverent way. He broke the edges into three, which increases the word length and of course, filling difficulty. We don't see triple-stacked 7's often.

Across:

1. Repetitive geometric patterns: FRACTALS. Sparkly start.

9. Collinsworth with many Sports Emmys: CRIS. Football analyst.

13. Showed openly: BARED.

18. Ricky Martin's birthplace: PUERTO RICO.

20. Use a hammock: REST. Here is our CrossEyedDave relaxing in his hammock.

21. Other side: ENEMY.

24. Approach evening: LATEN. Not a word I use.

25. Eligibility factors: AGES.  Read this China Daily article. The retirement age in China is 50 for women. 60 for men. Mandatory. But Chinese president is 65 already.

26. Most in need of water: DRIEST.

27. Where Brazil took Olympic soccer gold: RIO.

29. Concert finale?: INA. Concertina.

30. Pitcher's problem: SORE ARM. Different "pitch" in 89. Adjust for pitch: TUNE.

37. Get more precipitous: STEEPEN.

39. Regret: RUE.

40. Track event: MEET.

41. Draw back: EBB.

44. Aveeno competitor: OLAY. Never a fan of Aveeno. Been into CeraVe the past few months.

45. Mark of shame: STIGMA.

48. Hot tub feature: EDDY.

53. Writer Deighton: LEN.

55. Remark that hurts: INSULT.

56. Track winnings: PURSE.

57. Ambulance gp.: EMS.

58. Org. with no "L" in its name, ironically: CTA.Chicago Transit Authority.

61. Brings down: FELLS.

62. Disney film starring Auli'i Cravalho: MOANA. Polynesian girl.

64. Cell pic: SNAPSHOT.

66. Author Dinesen: ISAK.

70. E-commerce icon: CART.

71. Officially rebukes: CENSURES.

73. Pride group: LIONS.

74. Focus of much TV drama: CRIME.

75. Saint-Tropez summer: ETE.

76. Title like Bugs Bunny's "Hare Trigger": PUN.

77. Harbor sights: PIERS.

79. Macbeth and Macduff: THANES.

80. Handheld amp?: MIC.

84. Olympic contact sport: JUDO. The do in Judo is the same as Chinese "tao". Way.

87. Ad rep's links: TIE-INS.

90. Souse's woe: DTS.

91. Single section: UNIT. And 92. Single: ONE.

93. White Castle offerings: SLIDERS.

101. "I can't eat all this!": IT'S A LOT. Boomer has lost quite a bit of weight. He used to love food.

105. British verb suffix: ISE.

106. Always, poetically: EER.

107. Biblical voyage terminus: ARARAT.

109. Bierce's definition of it starts, "A temporary insanity curable by marriage": LOVE.

110. Buddhist spiritual text: SUTRA.

117. Spud: TATER.

118. Sturdy trees: OAKS.

119. Not giving up: PERSISTENT.

120. Iditarod array: SLEDS.

121. Scheme: RUSE.

122. Bar for adults and children: SNICKERS. Great clue/answer. I first saw Snickers at my then boss's home. Tons of Snickers and cigarettes.

Down:

1. Felipe's fire: FUEGO.

2. Point (to): REFER.

3. Comes up: ARISES.

4. Many an Amazon dely.: CTN.

5. Nome : yours :: Nice : à __: TOI.

6. Collages and such: ART.

7. Wasn't true: LIED.

8. Not often seen: SCARCE.

9. Autumn adjective: CRISP. Sweater and leather jacket weather here in Minnesota.

10. Page one, generally: RECTO.

11. Part of 77-Down: Abbr.: ISL. 77. Smallest Canadian prov.: PEI.

12. Chest protector: STERNUM.

13. Not on deck: BELOW.

14. Carrier with HQ in Tokyo: ANA. All Nippon Airways.

15. No longer playing: RETIRED.

16. Corrected: EMENDED.

17. Zhou or Qin: DYNASTY. This makes me so happy. Most of you know Zhouqin is my Mandarin name. I was born in Xi'an, capital city of four Chinese dynasties: Zhou, Qin, Han and Tang. Xie xie, Jeffrey!

18. Palm gadgets, briefly: PDAS.

19. Neighbor of Taurus: ORION.

23. Pro __: TEM.

28. Mr. Right, presumably: IDEAL MAN. 102. 28-Down's opposite: LOSER.

31. Much of Micronesia's makeup: ATOLLS.

32. Get a new tenant for: RE-LET.

33. Indicate: MEAN.

35. Strong desire: URGE.

36. Sign that may make you nervous: OMEN.

38. Joe-__ weed: herbal remedy: PYE. This is new to me. Looks so pretty.

41. Building: EDIFICE.

42. Supposedly medicinal herb that sounds relevant to chiropractors: BONESET. This is also new to me.

43. Restricted road part: BUS LANE.

45. Like some elegant gowns: STRAPLESS.

46. "Whether __ nobler ... ": Hamlet: TIS.

47. "__ been there": I'VE.

50. Adds muscle mass, with "up": BULKS.

51. Honor roll stats: GPAS.

52. Family member: AUNT.

54. "The Green Mile" subj.: ESP. Unfamiliar with "The Green Mile"

57. Slaughter of old baseball: ENOS.

58. Confined, in a way: CHAINED.

59. Badger: TORMENT.

60. Bears witness (to): ATTESTS.

62. Personal bearing: MIEN.

63. Hosp. areas: ORS. So many nice volunteers at the VA hospital in Minneapolis.

64. Common ID: SSN.

65. "Hit the road!": SCRAM.

67. Sugar in much corn syrup: FRUCTOSE.

68. Celt's land: EIRE.

69. Actress Salazar of "Maze Runner" movies: ROSA. Not familiar to me. I bet D-Otto's old sweater has less holes than hers.

72. Venerable letters in global news: UPI.

74. Glass-aloft salutation: CHEERS.

78. Place to stay: INN.

79. Belief: TENET.

80. Con __: tempo marking: MOTO. Learning moment for me.

81. Many a freshman: TEEN.

82. Sporty VW: GTI.

83. Designer Gernreich: RUDI. Monokini.

84. Gavel wielders: JURISTS.

85. Extraordinary: UNUSUAL.

86. Unlikely banquet setting: DINETTE.

88. Wrong: IN ERROR.

93. Legal tender substitute: SCRIP.

94. Target of suburban cleanups: LEAVES. I like the clue.

95. Respectful gesture: SALUTE.

97. Approaches: NEARS.

98. Negotiations: TALKS.

99. Expunge: ERASE.

100. D.C. athlete: NAT.

103. Kitchen equipment: OVENS.

104. Proficiency determiner: TEST.

108. Shore bird: TERN.

111. Like two-thirds of Austria's flag: RED.

113. Dominique's thirst quencher: EAU.

114. 15-season show whose final episode was "Immortality": CSI.

115. Driving need: Abbr.: LIC. License.

116. Propose, in a way: ASK.

Boomer update:

The biopsy showed that Boomer's bone cancer originated from the prostate. He just started taking  Bicalutamide (50mg) yesterday. After two weeks, he'll get a get a hormone shot which lasts for six months. The shot will be repeated, according to Dr Levi Downs. Hopefully we'll know more when we see Dr Downs in two weeks.

We're going to have one more CT scan next Tuesday and bone scan on Oct 16th. In the meantime, Boomer is taking Ibuprofen (800mg) and Oxycodone for pain control.

Thanks for sharing your experiences with me, esp you, Jerry S, I've read your email so many times. It always calms me down. Also want to say "Thank you" to our caring Dr. Nina (Inanehiker) for her medical advice.

Thank you for the warm wishes and suggestions, everyone. They all comfort me.

C.C.

Thursday, September 27th 2018 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme:  Golf Fever - it's the Ryder Cup beginning tomorrow, Tiger's back to winning ways, and we have an aptly-timed theme for this Thursday.

1A. *Top selection: TEE SHIRT. You can't wear a t-shirt to play golf on most courses in the UK, they're very sniffy about dress code. You used to not be able to wear sneakers, but now that all the latest golf shoes look like sneakers, it mush be causing must angst and "what is the world coming to?" wailings from the old buffers in the clubhouse.

Nike have recently been dressing Tiger and Rory McIlroy in collarless shirts - I wonder if they'd be tossed off the course? I highly doubt it.

22A. *Preliminary sketch: ROUGH OUTLINE

36A. *Overly defensive stance: BUNKER MENTALITY. Bunkers on golf courses were originally natural depressions in the links that sheep used to scratch out to huddle from the wind whipping in over the dunes.

45A. *Newbie: GREEN RECRUIT

63A. *Stud poker element: HOLE CARD. From whence "ace in the hole".

and the unifier:

54D. What a sequence of single strokes from the start of each starred answer to the next often adds up to: PAR.

So, on a par-4 golf hole, you skew a tee shot into the rough, muscle it out into a bunker, splash a sand wedge onto the green and make the putt. Not a bad par save.

I once played a par 4 when my ball never even touched the grass. I teed it up, drove straight into a bunker, found a greenside bunker with the next shot and chipped straight into the hole without touching the green. Sheer fluke. I bought drinks.

Nice go from Jeffrey, slick work with the stacked 8's and 6's top and bottom and solid themage. Nothing particularly to cringe about in the fill either.

Let's examine further:

Across:

9. Bring pleasure (to): APPEAL

15. Horror film line that usually gets its speaker in trouble: I'LL GO SEE

16. With conviction: FIRMLY

17. Final Yahtzee roll, e.g.: LAST TURN. Took me a moment. The player who rolls "Yahtzee" has the final roll of the game.

18. Defies: FLOUTS. One of those words often mis-replaced, in "flouts" case by "flaunts".

19. Omaha-to-Milwaukee dir.: ENE

20. Epidermal flaw: ZIT

21. Its practice doesn't make it perfect: LAW. Odd clue, I think I must be missing something punny about "perfect" law?

28. Cowboy leggings: CHAPS

30. Quite small: WEE

31. __ culpa: MEA. My bad!

32. Indian noblewoman: RANI

33. Utopia: EDEN

35. Degrees of creativity, briefly: BFA'S. Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees. Two or more of these degrees are BFA's, two or more degree holders are Bachelors of Fine Arts - what would they be - B's.F.A? We should be told.

39. Track calculation: ODDS

40. Very long time: EONS

41. Support for a stroller: CANE

42. Seminarian's subj.: REL. Not nuclear physics? I'm surprised.

43. __ bran: OAT

44. Stun gun brand: TASER

49. Kareem, once: LEW. Lew Alcindor, UCLA basketball legend. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as an LA Laker.

50. Interoffice PC connection: LAN. Local Area Network.

51. Vehicle that really moves?: VAN

54. Canal zone: PANAMA

57. "Lives of the Mayfair Witches" trilogy author: ANNE RICE. I'd not heard of the trilogy, but it didn't take me long to slot her name in. I read her "Interview with a Vampire" and loved it.

60. Video game figure: AVATAR

61. Agonize about: STEW OVER

62. Deal with a bounced email: RE-SEND

Down:

1. Roofing unit: TILE

2. Vigorous spirit: ELAN

3. "Got anything __?": ELSE

4. Mil. three-striper: SGT.

5. High on the Scoville scale: HOT. Chili heat scale. I've got some fresh ghost peppers in the fridge, I chop them wearing latex gloves. They are not to be messed with!

6. Rodeos, e.g.: ISUZUS. Made me pause for a few seconds. It's an SUV from Isuzu.

7. Equip anew: RE-RIG. A couple of "re"-dos today.

8. Back nine opener: TENTH. More golf!

9. Wealthy: AFFLUENT

10. "Ecce homo" speaker: PILATE. "Behold the man".

11. Hunt stealthily: PROWL. Here, Kitty Kitty!

12. Source of lean red meat: EMU.

13. PC key: ALT

14. Fleur in heraldry: LYS. Lys vs. Lis. Let the debate re-begin.

22. Assigns relative value to: RANKS

23. Mayberry kid: OPIE

24. 2018 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Terrell: OWENS. Known simply as "T-O" for a lot of his career.

25. "It's just a scratch": I'M FINE. I remember reading a quote from a claim form submitted to an Australian auto insurance company. "I told the other motorist I was not injured, but on removing my hat I discovered I had fractured my skull". There's stoic for you.

26. Not as messy: NEATER

27. "Nothing to it!": EASY

28. Less refined: CRUDER

29. Deal with: HANDLE

33. Put on quite an act: EMOTE

34. Cubs' digs: DEN

35. Heck of a party: BLAST

36. Swedish tennis great: BORG. Björn. He was fast around the court. I hear he was "Björn To Run".

37. Astern: REARWARD

38. Amazon berry: ACAI

43. Kind of band: ONE-MAN

44. Mine feature: TUNNEL

46. Please mightily: ELATE

47. Be at loggerheads: CLASH

48. Cost: RAN TO

51. Brawny rival: VIVA. I get Brawny from Costco. They do the job for me. I do go through a lot of them, though.

52. Big name in PCs: ACER

53. Bookish sort: NERD

55. Thoroughfare: Abbr.: AVE.

56. "Life Is Good" rapper: NAS. Grammy Award-nominated album in 2013.

58. Farm girl: EWE

59. Dungeons & Dragons bird: ROC. Muscle car: I-ROC. Fast food billionaire: KROC. LA-based music station: K-ROQ.

Rocking or not, here's the grid!

Steve

Friday, September 14, 2018, Jeffrey Wechsler

Title: Laugh kookaburra laugh.

Once again we are presented with a 16 x 15 puzzle by the incredible Jeffrey Wechsler. We have another sound puzzle designed to amuse as much as baffle. In the first and third theme fill, it is the first word that is re-purposed with a sound-alike word that is clued with humor as the objective. I think the puzzle evolved from PRAISE ON ONE's MIND which is what necessitated the 16 width of the puzzle. Jeffrey then built a symmetrical and consistent theme with the first word of themer one and three being the sound alike and the last word in two and four. Also, to show how much thought JW puts into his puzzles, we have an exchange of the "A" sound to "AI" from a different word that makes the sound. In theme one,  "EY" becomes "AI"; in two A-E becomes AI;  in three "EIGH" becomes "AI" and in 4 "AY" is replaced with "AI." Solid and consistent.

There are some misdirections like -  Late bloomer: ASTER and Edible bulb: ONION. Then he confused me with some puzzlers like - Slight suggestion:  TINGE or Certain octet member: PLANET. With 58 theme squares the long fill was limited to I SWEAR IT,  MAMMALIA, SAINT KITTS and STAY IN STEP all very sparkly. So without further ado.

18A. Complimentary thoughts?: PRAISE ON ONE's MIND (16). Preys on one's mind is the base phrase.

25A. Subtitle for "Further Adventures of Jack and Jill"?: BEYOND THE PAIL (13). Beyond the pale is the base phrase here. Its HISTORY, suggesting it is related to impale. 

45A. Reason to open another register?: WAIT REDUCTION (13). Weight reduction is this base phrase. 

62A. Rate hike at a tanning salon?: ULTRA-VIOLET RAISE (16). Ultra-violet rays this time. 

Across:

1. Mortify: ABASH. This was a more popular word when I was young.

6. Late bloomer: ASTER. This hearkens back to D-O's comment last week, which I mis-remembered as "I can't tell my aster from a hole in the ground." I am not as subtle.

11. Education basic: MATH. 'Rithmatic.

15. Starbucks order: MOCHA. They combine rich, full-bodied espresso with bittersweet mocha sauce and steamed milk, then top it off with sweetened whipped cream.

16. Laughing, say: MERRY.

17. Et __: ALIA.

21. Half a Caribbean federation: SAINT KITTS. St. Kitts is the larger of the 2 Caribbean islands that comprise the nation of Saint Kitts and Nevis, also known as the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis.


22. Breitling competitor: OMEGA. Watches.

23. Where some long drives begin: TEE. Golf.

24. Certain octet member: PLANET. In our solar system.

32. U.K. singer Rita: ORA. She is back quickly.

33. Like the sticks: RURAL. Where people live surrounded by trees etc. The best-known reference to 'the sticks' meaning woodsy America, in any newspaper, was the 'Sticks Nix Hick Pix' headline in Variety, 17th July 1935. This was a famously succinct expression of the opinion that 'people in the backwoods [sticks] aren't interested [nix] in films [pix] about rural [hick] issues'.

34. Tentative statement: I MAY. This clue brought to mind this ear worm...

38. Collaborative website: WIKI. An easy go to; not always right but always there.

40. Classic slot images: LEMONS. Three CSOs in-one!

41. Emanation: AURA.

42. "He that hath no beard is __ than a man": Shak.: LESS. This was not said by Shaquille (Shaq) but is from Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, said by Beatrice.
“He that hath a beard is more than a youth, and he that hath no beard is less than a man. He that is more than a youth is not for me, and he that is less than a man, I am not for him.”

43. Battery post: ANODE. Not cathode.

44. Capt.'s heading: NNW. And back at sea 54A. Flotilla locale: OCEAN. This interesting sounding word which reminds me of floating (the words may be related), can also be in rivers. LINK.

50. Lean (on): DEPEND.

53. Balloting time: Abbr.: NOV. Coming soon to a polling place near you.

55. Keep up (with), as fashion trends: STAY IN STEP. This was very difficult for me, even though once filled seemed easy, though keep in step sounds more familiar. This also the name of a spinal cord injury support web-site.

64. Goa garment: SARI.

65. Edible bulb: ONION.

66. Macabre fiction middle name: ALLAN. EAP also makes a quick reprise here.

67. State of France: ÉTAT. The word in French, known from État Unis and coup d'état.

68. Some red marks: WELTS.

69. Knish purveyors: DELIS. Some HISTORY.

Down:

1. Stage flankers: AMPS.

2. When doubled, one of the Leeward Islands: BORA. Bora Bora is one of the LEEWARD ISLANDS.

3. Trendy berry: ACAI.

4. "Way of the gods" belief: SHINTO. Shinto is the indigenous faith of the Japanese people and as old as Japan itself. It remains Japan's major religion alongside Buddhism. wiki.

5. Get a move on: HASTEN. Jason.

6. French mine: À MOI. Not gold or silver.

7. Posted: SENT.

8. Display, with "out": TROT.

9. Sea eagles: ERNS.

10. White alternative: RYE. Bread, not anything controversial.

11. Class for dogs and cats: MAMMALIA. Mammals are the vertebrates within the class Mammalia, a clade of endothermic amniotes distinguished from reptiles by the possession of a neocortex, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands. wiki. Yes - Mamma is Latin for booby!

12. "Guardians of the Galaxy" figure: ALIEN.I wanted Groot.

13. Slight suggestion: TINGE. This was very tricky.

14. Attacked: HAD AT. Then...40D. Attacked, with "into": LAID. Be careful...

19. Squeezed (out): EKED.

20. Arias, usually: SOLI. The plural of solo.

24. Comrades: PALS.

25. Postseason game: BOWL. In American college football.

26. Historic canal: ERIE. CSO again.

27. Runs on: YAKS.

28. Nottingham's river: TRENT. It has a bridge.

29. Laugh producer: HUMOR.

30. Undercut: ERODE.

31. Comprising standard glazing: PANED. Windows often are made up of panes, which get there by the action of installing windows.

35. Local bond, briefly: MUNI. Municipal bond interest is tax free.

36. The Ponte Vecchio spans it: ARNO. This is the bridge.

37. [What a bore!]: YAWN. Hey, I am trying here!

39. "Scout's honor!": I SWEAR IT. I do!

46. Kendrick of "Pitch Perfect" films: ANNA. 780 milihelens.

47. Meter, e.g.: UNIT.

48. "Heart of Darkness" author: CONRAD. A short novel by Joseph Conrad, about Marlow, an introspective sailor, and his journey up the Congo River to meet Kurtz, reputed to be an idealistic man of great abilities. The contrast between the rich white men and the natives and Marlow's disillusionment with Kurtz is the darkness.
LINK.

49. Deal in electronics?: TV SALE. Such a random clue/fill.

50. Put out: DOUSE.

51. Eye-popping display: ECLAT. Similar to Elan.

52. Ancient Jordanian archaeological city: PETRA. Petra is a famous archaeological site in Jordan's southwestern desert. Dating to around 300 B.C., it was the capital of the Nabatean Kingdom. Accessed via a narrow canyon called Al Siq, it contains tombs and temples carved into pink sandstone cliffs, earning its nickname, the "Rose City."

55. Trig function: SINE. We have our math cornerites to expand, or expound.

56. Labor: TOIL.

57. Oodles: A LOT.

58. Hungers: YENS.

59. Prepare for sowing: TILL.


60. Actor Morales: ESAI. As Boomer says, the vowels are there.

61. They're often secured at tellers' windows: PENS. Do ther chains really help? They go at least back 50 YEARS.

63. Commitment: VOW.

Well I vow to be back again next week ITCDR. Thank you JW and all who read and comment, and a continuing wish for a Happy, Healthy and Sweet year for all.

Thursday, September 6th 2018 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme:

The reveal tells you what to look for...

35A. Impediment to creativity ... and each set of puzzle circles: WRITER'S BLOCK

... and we find, clockwise in each circled block, beginning in the NW: Bradbury, Lawrence, Chandler, Voltaire, Gordimer and Morrison. That's Ray, D.H. (or T.E.), Raymond, no first name, Nadine and Toni to give them all their full monikers. The latter two I have not read, the others I have.

Tough to pick a favorite, but I did find T.E. Lawrence's "The Mint" fascinating. If you have ten minutes to spare today, please enjoy this excerpt from the book. Glorious writing. If your heart isn't beating furiously reading about the race with the airplane, better check your emotional pulse!

Back to the crossword, I'm looking for a connection between the six authors but nothing jumps out unless there's some fiendish meta that I'm missing (quite likely, actually!)

This grid extends the recent sixteen-squares-on-one-side (SSOOS?) Thursday trend, and also features a very clever theme in the "block" shape of each author. Jeffrey's a master at themes, this one is no exception. Let's see what the fill held in store:

Across:

1. Seething: ABOIL

6. Jaguar weapons: CLAWS. My Jaguars had weapons - break down at every opportunity. One to drive, one in the shop.

11. Half a dance: CHA. Cha. (Cha?)

14. Stinger ingredient: BRANDY. Classically made with cognac and white crème de menthe. Cheers!

15. Superman player Cavill: HENRY

16. "The Last Jedi" villain Kylo: REN. Thank you, crosses. No Stimpy clue today? Nice for a change.

17. Alpine airs: YODELS

18. Broken out, in a way: ACNED

19. Days gone by, in days gone by: ELD

Once adown the dewy way a youthful cavalier spurred with a maiden mounted behind him, swiftly passing out of sight, recalling to the imagination some romance of eld, when the damosel fled with her lover.

1891 - Mary Noailles Murfree, In the "Stranger People's" Country

20. Capital on the Volga: RUBLE. Capital as in "money" for anyone new to this game.

21. Suppress, as a story: SIT ON

22. Punching tools: AWLS

23. Suffix with fruct-: OSE

24. Hall of Fame manager Stengel: CASEY. He managed both the Yankees and the Mets. I think the HOF nomination came more from his exploits with the former rather than the latter.

25. Sal of "Exodus": MINEO

26. Waters down: WETS

28. Taiwanese PC brand: ACER

29. Rita awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom: MORENO. And ... cue the music!

30. Hankering: ITCH

32. Depilatory cream: NAIR. Tried NEET first, was wrong. Not sure where I came up with that one. Wiki has it as an acronym for "Not in Employment, Education or Training" referring to young people without a job.

34. Historic span: Abbr.: CEN. tury

38. Big letters in family-owned supermarkets: IGA. Founded as the Independent Grocer's Alliance.

40. Troubadour's strings: LUTE

41. Uncle __: BEN'S. A crime against humanity.

42. Codes of conduct: MORALS

44. Christian with style: DIOR

46. Venerated one: IDOL

50. Adorkable types: NERDS. I LOVE "adorkable". What a great language we have in English.

51. Lets off steam: VENTS

52. JFK posting: ETA. I haven't been to JFK for a while, United stopped flying into there a few years ago. All their NYC flights go through Newark now, with the exception of some regional services into La Guardia. What was the point of this story? I miss the ride into Manhattan past the World's Fair remnants.

53. "Psych" finale?: -OSIS

54. Is after: SEEKS

55. Field mice: VOLES. I didn't know voles were mice. Good to know for the next time I meet one.

57. Area 51 craft: UFO

58. Singer with Lawrence: GORMÉ. Wild, stab-in-the-dark guess for me. Husband and Wife duo.

59. Accept, with "for": SETTLE

60. Greek org.: SOR. Sorority. I drove up Hilgard Avenue by UCLA last week, it's also known as "Sorority Row" from all the sorority houses there.

61. Lyft passenger: RIDER

62. Difficult tasks: TRIALS

63. Hosp. parts: E.R.S

64. Mideast bigwigs: EMIRS

65. Will Rogers prop: LASSO

Down:

1. Work up: AROUSE

2. Risky proposition: BAD BET. Risky? Downright dumb if you ask me.

3. Turow biographical title: ONE L. Harvard Law School calls first year students "one l's"

4. Not working: IDLE

5. Fleur-de-__: Quebec flag image: LYS

6. Poolside chair: CHAISE

7. Debate equipment: LECTERNS

8. Get under one's skin: ANNOY

9. Small songbird: WREN

10. Letters on a Qantas baggage tag: SYD. Sydney airport. I've been there, I don't recall much about it though (the airport that is, not the city!). I recall the Qantas lounge was nice, I flew out of Sydney to Auckland en route back home to LA.

11. Like many tees: CREW NECK

12. Greek: HELLENE. I knew "hellenic", now I know "hellene" too.

13. "... et cetera": AND SO ON. These entries can be difficult to parse. There's a few good examples today, look at 38 and 54D too.

14. How some tickets may be sorted: BY ROW

21. Scented pouch: SACHET

22. Put on: AIR

24. Plant in many Road Runner cartoons: CACTUS

25. Dunderhead: MORON

27. What Marcie calls Peppermint Patty: SIR. I needed this to unlock "ITCH" - I couldn't get away from "ACHE".

29. Distance runners: MILERS

31. Cultivates: TILLS

33. Monastic figures: ABBOTS

35. Golden State team: WARRIORS

36. Christ the __: Rio landmark: REDEEMER. An iconic sight. I got a great view of it flying into Rio's Santos Dumont domestic airport from Sao Paulo the last time I was out there. SDU is right on the ocean and slap-dab next to Sugarloaf, so it's hard to beat the view out of the airplane window.

37. Crime show with several spin-offs: CSI. The purists might have wanted to try to avoid "crime" in the clue as "crime", albeit abbreviated, is part of the answer. Doesn't ruffle my feathers though.

38. "You obviously can't depend on me": I'M NO USE

39. Fetches: GOES FOR

43. Most junk mail: ADS

45. Comic book personnel: INKERS. They draw the outlines. Other folk color them in. With crayon, and their tongue sticking out of the side of their mouth. Just kidding, some of my best friends are in comics and animation.

47. Change symbols, in math: DELTAS. The difference between "this" and "that".

48. Opera with Desdemona: OTELLO. I had a brain futz and tried OFELIA first. What was that all about?

49. Alters with a light touch?: LASES. Laser shaping, reshaping or surgery.

51. 48-Down composer: VERDI

54. "__ told": "That's the rumor": SO I'M

55. Designer Wang: VERA

56. Name in boxy cars?: OTIS. Mr. Elevator. Nice clue.

58. Higher ed. test: G.R.E.

59. Cardinal's letters: STL. St. Louis, on scoreboards.

And, as the stoics would say, "grid and bear it", so here it is!

Steve