Theme: I’m from Boston, and er, ah, you like how I pahk my cah? You take a phrase in the language and change the ER ending into A so it might sound like said by a Bostonian, but transforming the answer into a new and witty sound alike. Wicked cool. As a born and bred New Englandah, I enjoyed the theme, though I struggled with the first entry.
20A. Heavy metal mimic?: HARD ROCK MYNA, anyone ready to hear my story about the bird who sang like Pavorotti again? Did you know MYNAS (or MYNAHS) are members of the starling family? There really is a type of mining done by a HARD ROCK MINERS which I did not know.
28A. Nickname for a pharmaceuticals czar?: PILL PAPA. Sadly, we probably all know a PILL POPPER.
37A. Surfing-induced torpor?: BEACH COMA. Torpor is a nice word, and BEACHCOMBER is a single word which changes into a phrase.
49A. Sailor's pocket bread?: SALT PITA. Lots going on here, SALT as a sailor and bread as , well bread. When I was away at boarding school, the baker told me they really put SALTPETER in the food at our school. It does yield the interesting word anaphrodisiac.
56A. Heavenly food on the nightstand?: BEDSIDE MANNA. My uncle was a doctor, and the patients loved his BEDSIDE MANNER.
Heigh ho all, it is once again Freighday, and for the whole bunch of us with ties the northeast this was a really fun puzzle. In addition to the 5 theme answers, we had another twelve words ending in “A.” So let’s go…
Across:
1. Cape Cod feature: GABLE. Continuing with the New England theme, I grew up in this type HOUSE with the shed dormers.
6. Valentine trim: LACE. We are starting early with our frilly clues.
10. Embezzle: SKIM. I am not sure, but I imagine this comes from the cream rising to the top of milk, and someone stealing the best part.
14. Medicinal plants: ALOES. Our crosswordese of the day.
15. Comet competitor: AJAX. Cleaners, not things in the sky. I had a fish named AJAX, he was a red betta, named after the redheaded giant warrior in the Aeneid.
16. Plantation near Twelve Oaks: TARA. Looks like Gone With the Wind will follow me for a while.
17. Like ESP?: SIXTH. SENSE I enjoyed the movie; it had an unrelated Osmond as well.
18. __ avis: RARA. This rare bird is pretty common in puzzles.
19. Prince William's alma mater: ETON. Their major rival is HARROW, don’t ask me why.
23. Exotic guided tour: SAFARI. Oh my, back to planning a honeymoon.
26. Subway co. in a 1959 song: MTA. Of course the M is for Massachusetts, (Transit Authority) so it fits our puzzle, as well as giving us the KINGSTON TRIO .
27. Flop: DOG. This was my difficult corner, and frankly Scarlett, I do not get the clue. Oh, I just got it, the play was a flop, a dog, a bomb; okay.
31. Aim high: ASPIRE. Dream big.
33. Commotion: ADO. Much of it can become a play.
34. Chapeau's perch: TETE. The mandatory French lesson from my write ups, Chapeau being a HAT and TETE is head.
36. One bearing down: EIDER. Really cute use of language, and play on bearing down.
40. Williams of ''Happy Days'': ANSON. Potsie, who became a director.
43. Peevish, as a puss: SOUR. We all know some, but I will stop there to prevent getting in trouble.
44. One shooting the bull?: VET. Nice misdirection again, inoculating by a veterinarian, not telling stories or killing anything.
47. Sharp Italian cheese: ROMANO. Or annoying TV comedian.
52. 11th-century date: MVI. Oh no, the dread roman numeral clue!
53. Mantel piece: URN. I once made the mistake of picking up one on the mantelpiece when I was picking up a woman foe a date, only to learn I had just met her first husband.
55. Crankcase reservoir: OIL PAN. This should have been next to Gasoline Alley.
60. Bit of plankton: ALGA. While a whale may go through tons, a human cannot digest most plankton.
61. C-3PO worshiper: EWOK. Gotta love a robot with a British accent.
62. Where to see government programs: CSPAN. CABLE SATELLITE PUBLIC AFFAIRS NETWORK.
66. Nat or Card: NLER.I like baseball, but if I do not see and NLER or an ALER anytime soon I will be happy.
67. Sparkling wine city: ASTI. Don’t call it champagne.
68. Elicit a :-) from: AMUSE. Now even puzzles speak in emoticons. LMAO.
69. Dismally damp: DANK. I do loves me a good alliteration and this carries through the clue and answer.
70. "Lolita" star Sue: LYON. I am not sure what happened to this YOUNG LADY but I do know she dated Donovan Leitch; does that help?
71. Pram occupant's wear: NAPPY. A touch of old England to go along with our puzzle, with PRAM being what they call a baby carriage, and NAPPY is a diaper. NC, your thoughts? You can change your mind.
Okay, take a break, have another sip of coffee, and then…
DOWN:
1. State of matter: GAS. Boom, a quick clecho with 51D. State of matter: PLASMA. When was a kid in school when we spoke of STATE OF MATTER we had only gas, liquid and solid; then again the periodic table had only 4 elements, FIRE, WATER, AIR and BILE.
2. Fighter who was a dove: ALI. Muhammed who would not go to VietNam but did 3D. Emulate 2-Down: BOX.
4. Ruinous: LETHAL. I do not think of these as synonymous, but that is just me.
5. F equivalent: ESHARP. JzB, I defer to you on all musical stuff.
6. Blubber: LARD. Man all of a sudden I am the synonym police, while both of these relate to fat, I do not see them as the same thing.
7. Slightly gapped: AJAR. When is a door not a door?
8. Ricochet: CAROM. We had pool table when I was young, so I learned all about ANGLES .
9. Long-odds track wager: EXACTA. Actually a PICK SIX or even a TRIFECTA is harder.
10. Stalk: STEM. For some reason, my first thought was of stalkers.
11. Insect that can mimic a leaf: KATYDID. We had lots of these BUGS when I was growing up in Connecticut, they are kind cool.
12. Cargo on the Edmund Fitzgerald when it sank in Lake Superior: IRON ORE. I did not know that fact, is it mentioned in the SONG ?
13. Recipient of an annual baseball award since 1983: MANAGER. Did not know this easier and that corner was my only slow spot.
21. Rodeo prop: RIATA. ALI pioneered the ROPE A DOPE for his fight against George Foreman.
22. "Casey's Top 40" host: KASEM. He has a 6’ tall wife, Jean who was born in New Hampshire, and was very funny as the second Mrs. Tortelli on Cheers which was set in Boston.
23. Bad Ems attraction: SPA. In case you did not know it, this is a town in the Rhineland, now part of Germany, which I know was part of the Roman incursion into the area. Helps to have a son who studies this stuff.
24. Give a leg up: AID.
25. Showman Ziegfeld: FLO. He was a German immigrant and did great things for American MUSICAL THEATER .
29. Chest muscles, briefly: PECS. No more today girls.
30. Oldest musketeer: ATHOS. I did not ever think about which among this group was the oldest.
32. Zadora of "Hairspray": PIA. Like Sue Lyon, her early film role was in Butterfly as the object of affection of an older man, only Pia did one better, as her lover was her father. In real life she married a 54 year old man when she was 23, but he was rich, and she has had a nice life.
35. OAS member: ECUA. Once again and Ecuador reference, I hope one day to tell great Ecuador stories; I already can tell you about the cocal leaf teas they gave my business partner, but that isn’t very interesting.
37. Zookeeper's main squeeze?: BOA. Oh how cute, a nice change from our ASP.
38. Lassitude: ENNUI. Well here is the ultimate cracked clecho, because this also mean BOREDOM, which could be BOADOM, id from Bahston.
39. DuPont's Fiber A, now: ORLON. Why orlon or nylon or rayon?
40. Worn symbol of support: ARM BAND. Sadly the best know being those of Nazi Germany.
41. "Billy Budd," e.g.: NOVELLA. A controversial little novel, with homosexual undertones.
42. Wee bit: SMIDGEN.
44. Certain lounge frequenter: VIP. They exist in other places than strip clubs guys.
45. SFO listing: ETA. SFO is the code for San Francisco airport.
46. Soak up some rays: TAN. It was 81 today.
48. Tough test: ORDEAL. Related to ORLON?
50. Object of a kicking game: TIN CAN. Ah yes, when we were young and poor, we played kick the can.
54. Like a thorough update: NEWSY. Meh.
57. Cutty __: historic clipper ship: SARK. This is an interesting CLIPPER SHIP and malt whiskey.
58. Agent inspired by Chan: MOTO. Another inscrutable Asian detective, played by Peter Lorre in the movies.
59. Like, with "to": AKIN.
63. Minor crying wolf?: PUP. Yes, wolf babies are pups also.
64. Egyptian viper: ASP. Oh no, the damn ASP was here after all!
65. Napoleonic Wars marshal: NEY. He is becoming a pretty common visitor.
Answer grid.
Wow, I felt like a kid again, thanks for having me in your homes; until next time be sure and use a good hand sanitizer like GermX, and be kind.
Lemonade
Note from C.C.:
Today marks the 3rd anniversary of this blog. I want to thank everyone, esp my dedicated blogging crew and regular commenters for making this a fun adventure.
20A. Heavy metal mimic?: HARD ROCK MYNA, anyone ready to hear my story about the bird who sang like Pavorotti again? Did you know MYNAS (or MYNAHS) are members of the starling family? There really is a type of mining done by a HARD ROCK MINERS which I did not know.
28A. Nickname for a pharmaceuticals czar?: PILL PAPA. Sadly, we probably all know a PILL POPPER.
37A. Surfing-induced torpor?: BEACH COMA. Torpor is a nice word, and BEACHCOMBER is a single word which changes into a phrase.
49A. Sailor's pocket bread?: SALT PITA. Lots going on here, SALT as a sailor and bread as , well bread. When I was away at boarding school, the baker told me they really put SALTPETER in the food at our school. It does yield the interesting word anaphrodisiac.
56A. Heavenly food on the nightstand?: BEDSIDE MANNA. My uncle was a doctor, and the patients loved his BEDSIDE MANNER.
Heigh ho all, it is once again Freighday, and for the whole bunch of us with ties the northeast this was a really fun puzzle. In addition to the 5 theme answers, we had another twelve words ending in “A.” So let’s go…
Across:
1. Cape Cod feature: GABLE. Continuing with the New England theme, I grew up in this type HOUSE with the shed dormers.
6. Valentine trim: LACE. We are starting early with our frilly clues.
10. Embezzle: SKIM. I am not sure, but I imagine this comes from the cream rising to the top of milk, and someone stealing the best part.
14. Medicinal plants: ALOES. Our crosswordese of the day.
15. Comet competitor: AJAX. Cleaners, not things in the sky. I had a fish named AJAX, he was a red betta, named after the redheaded giant warrior in the Aeneid.
16. Plantation near Twelve Oaks: TARA. Looks like Gone With the Wind will follow me for a while.
17. Like ESP?: SIXTH. SENSE I enjoyed the movie; it had an unrelated Osmond as well.
18. __ avis: RARA. This rare bird is pretty common in puzzles.
19. Prince William's alma mater: ETON. Their major rival is HARROW, don’t ask me why.
23. Exotic guided tour: SAFARI. Oh my, back to planning a honeymoon.
26. Subway co. in a 1959 song: MTA. Of course the M is for Massachusetts, (Transit Authority) so it fits our puzzle, as well as giving us the KINGSTON TRIO .
27. Flop: DOG. This was my difficult corner, and frankly Scarlett, I do not get the clue. Oh, I just got it, the play was a flop, a dog, a bomb; okay.
31. Aim high: ASPIRE. Dream big.
33. Commotion: ADO. Much of it can become a play.
34. Chapeau's perch: TETE. The mandatory French lesson from my write ups, Chapeau being a HAT and TETE is head.
36. One bearing down: EIDER. Really cute use of language, and play on bearing down.
40. Williams of ''Happy Days'': ANSON. Potsie, who became a director.
43. Peevish, as a puss: SOUR. We all know some, but I will stop there to prevent getting in trouble.
44. One shooting the bull?: VET. Nice misdirection again, inoculating by a veterinarian, not telling stories or killing anything.
47. Sharp Italian cheese: ROMANO. Or annoying TV comedian.
52. 11th-century date: MVI. Oh no, the dread roman numeral clue!
53. Mantel piece: URN. I once made the mistake of picking up one on the mantelpiece when I was picking up a woman foe a date, only to learn I had just met her first husband.
55. Crankcase reservoir: OIL PAN. This should have been next to Gasoline Alley.
60. Bit of plankton: ALGA. While a whale may go through tons, a human cannot digest most plankton.
61. C-3PO worshiper: EWOK. Gotta love a robot with a British accent.
62. Where to see government programs: CSPAN. CABLE SATELLITE PUBLIC AFFAIRS NETWORK.
66. Nat or Card: NLER.I like baseball, but if I do not see and NLER or an ALER anytime soon I will be happy.
67. Sparkling wine city: ASTI. Don’t call it champagne.
68. Elicit a :-) from: AMUSE. Now even puzzles speak in emoticons. LMAO.
69. Dismally damp: DANK. I do loves me a good alliteration and this carries through the clue and answer.
70. "Lolita" star Sue: LYON. I am not sure what happened to this YOUNG LADY but I do know she dated Donovan Leitch; does that help?
71. Pram occupant's wear: NAPPY. A touch of old England to go along with our puzzle, with PRAM being what they call a baby carriage, and NAPPY is a diaper. NC, your thoughts? You can change your mind.
Okay, take a break, have another sip of coffee, and then…
DOWN:
1. State of matter: GAS. Boom, a quick clecho with 51D. State of matter: PLASMA. When was a kid in school when we spoke of STATE OF MATTER we had only gas, liquid and solid; then again the periodic table had only 4 elements, FIRE, WATER, AIR and BILE.
2. Fighter who was a dove: ALI. Muhammed who would not go to VietNam but did 3D. Emulate 2-Down: BOX.
4. Ruinous: LETHAL. I do not think of these as synonymous, but that is just me.
5. F equivalent: ESHARP. JzB, I defer to you on all musical stuff.
6. Blubber: LARD. Man all of a sudden I am the synonym police, while both of these relate to fat, I do not see them as the same thing.
7. Slightly gapped: AJAR. When is a door not a door?
8. Ricochet: CAROM. We had pool table when I was young, so I learned all about ANGLES .
9. Long-odds track wager: EXACTA. Actually a PICK SIX or even a TRIFECTA is harder.
10. Stalk: STEM. For some reason, my first thought was of stalkers.
11. Insect that can mimic a leaf: KATYDID. We had lots of these BUGS when I was growing up in Connecticut, they are kind cool.
12. Cargo on the Edmund Fitzgerald when it sank in Lake Superior: IRON ORE. I did not know that fact, is it mentioned in the SONG ?
13. Recipient of an annual baseball award since 1983: MANAGER. Did not know this easier and that corner was my only slow spot.
21. Rodeo prop: RIATA. ALI pioneered the ROPE A DOPE for his fight against George Foreman.
22. "Casey's Top 40" host: KASEM. He has a 6’ tall wife, Jean who was born in New Hampshire, and was very funny as the second Mrs. Tortelli on Cheers which was set in Boston.
23. Bad Ems attraction: SPA. In case you did not know it, this is a town in the Rhineland, now part of Germany, which I know was part of the Roman incursion into the area. Helps to have a son who studies this stuff.
24. Give a leg up: AID.
25. Showman Ziegfeld: FLO. He was a German immigrant and did great things for American MUSICAL THEATER .
29. Chest muscles, briefly: PECS. No more today girls.
30. Oldest musketeer: ATHOS. I did not ever think about which among this group was the oldest.
32. Zadora of "Hairspray": PIA. Like Sue Lyon, her early film role was in Butterfly as the object of affection of an older man, only Pia did one better, as her lover was her father. In real life she married a 54 year old man when she was 23, but he was rich, and she has had a nice life.
35. OAS member: ECUA. Once again and Ecuador reference, I hope one day to tell great Ecuador stories; I already can tell you about the cocal leaf teas they gave my business partner, but that isn’t very interesting.
37. Zookeeper's main squeeze?: BOA. Oh how cute, a nice change from our ASP.
38. Lassitude: ENNUI. Well here is the ultimate cracked clecho, because this also mean BOREDOM, which could be BOADOM, id from Bahston.
39. DuPont's Fiber A, now: ORLON. Why orlon or nylon or rayon?
40. Worn symbol of support: ARM BAND. Sadly the best know being those of Nazi Germany.
41. "Billy Budd," e.g.: NOVELLA. A controversial little novel, with homosexual undertones.
42. Wee bit: SMIDGEN.
44. Certain lounge frequenter: VIP. They exist in other places than strip clubs guys.
45. SFO listing: ETA. SFO is the code for San Francisco airport.
46. Soak up some rays: TAN. It was 81 today.
48. Tough test: ORDEAL. Related to ORLON?
50. Object of a kicking game: TIN CAN. Ah yes, when we were young and poor, we played kick the can.
54. Like a thorough update: NEWSY. Meh.
57. Cutty __: historic clipper ship: SARK. This is an interesting CLIPPER SHIP and malt whiskey.
58. Agent inspired by Chan: MOTO. Another inscrutable Asian detective, played by Peter Lorre in the movies.
59. Like, with "to": AKIN.
63. Minor crying wolf?: PUP. Yes, wolf babies are pups also.
64. Egyptian viper: ASP. Oh no, the damn ASP was here after all!
65. Napoleonic Wars marshal: NEY. He is becoming a pretty common visitor.
Answer grid.
Wow, I felt like a kid again, thanks for having me in your homes; until next time be sure and use a good hand sanitizer like GermX, and be kind.
Lemonade
Note from C.C.:
Today marks the 3rd anniversary of this blog. I want to thank everyone, esp my dedicated blogging crew and regular commenters for making this a fun adventure.
