Thursday, November 21, 2013 MaryEllen Uthlaut

Theme: "I Kid You Not!"

The unifier can be found in the middle of the grid today:

40-Across. Troubled youth literally hiding in each answer to a starred clue : CRAZY MIXED UP KID. Today is anagram day, with four of them hidden in common phrases.

18-Across. *Filet mignon dish named for a goddess : STEAK DIANE.

24-Across. *Emergency supplies : FIRST AID KIT. or FIRST AID KIT. It would be better to avoid this type of ambiguity, but there really are no other common 11-letter phrases that use that particular sequence. And you really want to have all the anagram possibilities.

52-Across. *Pipe-smoking royal : OLD KING COLE.

63-Across. *Fictional rank above Padawan : JEDI KNIGHT.

Just missing the "Q" for a pangram. Did it seem especially easy for a Thursday?  Some of the clues were a little tricky, but I found the fill to be very Monday-level, with nary an obscure name in the bunch!

Across:

1. "Are you serious?" : WHAT. (Usually pronounced as WHAAAA??)

5. Handicapper's concern : ODDS.

9. Class __ : CLOWN. I bet CrossEyedDave was the class clown in his school.

14. Doth possess : HATH.

15. Los Angeles, for one : PORT.

16. High nest : AERIE.

17. Opposed party : ANTI.

20. Jet sounds : ROARS.

22. Proactiv target : ACNE.

23. Was in the vanguard : LED.

27. Dog in Baum stories : TOTO.

28. Dangerous fly : TSE TSE.

33. Puffin kin : AUK. Seems they have a playful side, too.

36. Sizable music combo : NONET.

39. Planted : SOWN.

44. Fable : TALE.

45. Makes the scene : COMES.

46. I trouble? : EGO.

47. Slob's napkin : SLEEVE.

50. Spheres studied by Mendel : PEAS. From them, he eventually developed his "Laws of Inheritance."

58. Tailless primate : APE.

61. Explorer on Nick Jr. : DORA. The Explorer.

62. Art support : EASEL.

67. Pro __ : RATA.

68. Where the action is : ARENA.

69. Former Neet rival : NAIR.

70. Similar : AKIN.

71. Face-off locales : RINKS. Hockey face-offs. Hey, Splynter!

72. Low joint : KNEE.

73. Wings, for instance : BAND. Paul McCartney's band on the run...

Down:

1. Marina structure : WHARF.

2. Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum city : HANOI.

3. Rose essence : ATTAR.

4. Need of a 53-Down : THIRST. and 53-Down. Solution for 4-Down : DRINK.

... of 12-Down. Riesling product : WINE? ...or 48-Down. Stoli and SKYY : VODKAS??

5. Brief missions? : OPS. (Operations.)

6. Hi and Lois's daughter : DOT. Her twin brother's name is "Ditto."

7. Foreboding : DREAD.

8. Cupboard arrangement : STACK.

9. Officers-to-be : CADETS.

10. Floral wreath : LEI.

11. Word-of-mouth : ORAL.

13. Aid factor : NEED.

19. Grow together : KNIT...as, a broken bone.

21. Rock-filled : STONY.

25. It can be viewed with a scanning tunneling microscope : ATOM. Invented by Roher and Binnig. Read more about how it works here.

26. Column style : IONIC. I always want to put "doric" first. Hi Dudley!

29. Paranormal ability : ESP.

30. Tip for a croupier : TOKE. We have had this recently, I think.

31. Large gulp : SWIG.

32. Prefix with skeleton : ENDO. And a clecho with 37-Down. Prefix with skeleton : EXO.

33. Book after John : ACTS. (of the Apostles)

34. River through Orsk : URAL.

35. Broccoli relative : KALE.

38. Metronome settings : TEMPI. Plural variant of tempos.

41. Prize component? : ZEE.

42. "The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook" author Paula : DEEN. Her recipes always seem to begin with "Add two cups of sugar to three pounds of butter..."

43. Stylebook subject : USAGE.

49. Tar Heel State campus : ELON. Just outside Greensboro, N.C.

51. Egyptian amulet : SCARAB.

54. 2010 Supreme Court appointee : KAGAN.

55. Honshu port : OSAKA.

56. Admit to the club : LET IN.

57. Twisty-horned antelope : ELAND.

58. Admitting a breeze, perhaps : AJAR.

59. "Frasier" actress Gilpin : PERI. She played Roz, Frasier's radio producer.

60. Shangri-la : EDEN.

64. Press coverage : INK. OK, I had to think about this. Does the clue literally refer to the ink that covers the printing press roller? Or, does it mean column space in the newspaper ("J-Lo sure gets a lot of ink.") I'll leave it to you to decide.

65. Make haste : HIE.

66. Uno e due : TRE. One + two = three, in Italian.

And that's a wrap for me this week!

Marti

Note from C.C.:

 

Charlotte, Lemonade's beautiful granddaughter, turned one year old. Look how pretty she is. Click on the first picture, you'll see how incredible long her eyelashes are. It's in the genes. Lemonade said he used to have long eyelashes before his corneal transplants. Click here to see all the cute Charlotte pictures in my Ginger Roots archive.

Wednesday, July 24th, 2013 MaryEllen Uthlaut

Theme: Clue! (or in my case, Blockhead!). Fun and Games!

17A *Vessel with heavy armor: BATTLESHIP

30A *Rodent catcher: MOUSETRAP

47A *Military campaign: OPERATION

24D *Professional pursuits: CAREERS

26D *Shakespeare play that inspired a Verdi opera: OTHELLO

and the reveal

64A What the answers to starred clues are: BOARD GAMES

Top of the morning to you. Steve here with MaryEllen's foray into the world of squabbling kids. I liked the theme, the longer downs and some nice fill, both across and down. While I was solving I got the feeling there were a lot of abbreviations in the 3- and 4-letter answers, but when I looked it all over at the end it didn't seem to be the case, so no complaints. I hit a couple of humps along the way, but that's what Wednesday's all about, right?

Let's take a look at everything else:

Across:

1 Small thicket: COPSE. I'd be hard-pressed to tell a copse from a thicket. If you told me a thicket was a small copse I wouldn't argue. Throw in a coppice and a spinney and it's woodland confusion.

6 Dry cleaner’s target: SPOT

10 Simple rhyme scheme: A-B-A-B

14 Like many who tweet: AVIAN. TEENS was my first thought here, but I resisted. I have a pair of sparrows nesting in the street sign outside my front door, those guys get up early and don't hold back with the vocals.

15 John’s love: YOKO. Their ballad popped up on my iPod yesterday.

16 “Compliments guaranteed” corn syrup: KARO

19 “Take __ from me!”: A TIP. Your server would say "thank you very much, 20% should do it".

20 Foxy: SLY

21 Without pretense: ARTLESS. I realized I didn't know the true definition of this word. I'd always thought of it as meaning "without class" or something along those lines. Learning moment.

23 Suffix with malt: OSE

24 Algonquian language: CREE

25 Bridge over the Arno, e.g.: PONTE The Ponte Vecchio is the best-known bridge in Florence, but there are plenty more.

27 61-Down prison: GULAG

34 Having a steeple: SPIRED. This is Salisbury Cathedral in England - a beautiful example of a medieval spire. It was built in the 1300's and is more than 400 feet tall - the tallest in the UK.

36 __ Cucamonga, California: RANCHO

37 Trident part: TINE. One of the three prongs. I wonder why the bident and the quatrodent never caught on?

38 Evoking the past: RETRO

40 Continental capital: EURO. "Capital" in the sense of "currency" here.

43 Ranking angel: SERAPH. I find it odd that there's a pecking order of angels. I get that Gabriel has got bragging rights being the Annunciator, but once you've got your wings shouldn't you all be on equal clouds?

45 Protruded: BULGED

50 Snow coasters: SLEDS

51 Versifier’s art: POESY. Thank you, crosses. New word for me today, I'll need to see it at least five more times before I finally can remember it.

52 Varied mixture: OLIO. I've seen this one five times, so now I remember it (and C.C. taught me the difference between this and OLEO when I first started out here!)

54 “The Fox and the Hound” fox: TOD. The old English "todde" means fox. I met someone called Todd Fox once, which seemed a little unfair.

55 Very hot and dry: SAHARAN. This took me a little while because I had a "C" where the "H" should be. See 57D for explanation of muddled thinking on my part.

59 Big bird: EMU

62 Megastar: IDOL

66 Ad writer’s award: CLIO. Check out the Wikipedia description of the 1991 ceremony "The Most Bizarre Event in Advertising History" if you'd like a chuckle today.

67 Actress Petty: LORI. Thank you,  crosses.

68 Military divisions: UNITS

69 Get rid of, in a way: SELL

70 Omar of “House”: EPPS. This is another "I've seen it five times so now I remember it" entry for me.

71 Peeling device: PARER. And a paring device is a peeler.

Down:

1 Fare dealers?: CABS. Nice.

2 Like Humpty Dumpty: OVAL

3 “No beast so fierce but knows some touch of __”: “King Richard III”: PITY. Two Bard references today.

4 Emulated Humpty Dumpty: SAT. Two eggman references also. I learned somewhere that Humpty Dumpty was a siege engine deployed to scale the walls of the defenders' castle during the English Civil War in the 1640's.

5 Swell: ENLARGE

6 Part of DOS: SYSTEM. The Disk Operating System is the foundation of Microsoft's fortunes. Bill Gates wrote MS-DOS which ran the IBM Personal Computer, and all PC-compatibles thereafter.

7 “Jem” sci-fi author Frederik: POHL. Thank you, crosses.

8 Migrant on the Mother Road: OKIE

9 First-rate: TOPS

10 APB letters: AKA. Because it was quicker than saying "All Points Bulletin - be on the lookout for Alphonse Capone, AKA Scarface Al". You just say "APB BOLO ....

11 Southern capital with a French name: BATON ROUGE. Red Stick. The red stick was a tree on the banks of the Mississippi festooned with dead animals marking the boundary between two tribal hunting grounds.

12 Record label owned by Sony: ARISTA

13 Crook carrier of rhyme: BO PEEP. Not a police car.

18 Present, Cockney-style: 'ERE. Orl present an' correct, sah!

22 Design detail, briefly: SPEC

27 Clock std.: GST. Greenwich Sidereal Time. You can stand astride the zero meridian line with one foot in each hemisphere at Greenwich (pronounced Grennitch) Observatory in London.

28 News org.: UPI United Press International.

29 Flax product used in paint: LINSEED OIL

31 Gardener’s brand: ORTHO

32 Old Mideast gp.: UAR. The short-lived United Arab Republic comprising Egypt and Syria.

33 Condescending one: SNOB

35 “Oh, fudge!”: DRAT

39 Prefix with center: EPI. We had a little earthquake yesterday morning in LA - a mild 2.5 with the epicenter close to the airport and my office.

41 Color in a Crayola eight-pack: RED

42 Has too much, for short: OD's

44 Light beams: RAYS. Weird stuff, light. In physics terms, it exhibits the behavior of both a wave and particle depending on how you observe it, and it seems to know that you're looking at it and changes its behavior just to mess with your head.

46 Consuming entirely: USING UP

47 Eye doctor’s science: OPTICS

48 Curly-haired dog: POODLE

49 Chuck of “The Delta Force”: NORRIS. "Death once had a near-Chuck Norris experience". One of the many Chuck Norris sayings.

53 Youngster: LAD

56 Not all thumbs: ABLE

57 Cager’s target: HOOP. I forgot the "cager" slang for a basketball player, and instead went off at a barking mad tangent and filled in the missing letter with "C". I decided that the cager was a person who needed to lock up a bunch of chickens, and therefore his target was the coop. Didn't exactly make SACARAN easy.

58 50-and-up group: AARP. This is no longer an abbreviation, it's the official name for the organization and therefore no cluing issue with cluing "group" rather than "gp."

59 Arabian chieftain: EMIR

60 Dole (out): METE

61 Cold War inits.: USSR. Our old friends the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and another clue-pair with GULAG. (Side question to our constructor experts - could you use "CCCP" as an answer to this clue, or is that cheating because the the letters are actually Cyrillic rather than Roman?)

63 Texter’s chuckle: LOL. Isn't laughing out loud more than a chuckle?

65 Gasteyer of “SNL”: ANA

I think that wraps it up. Have a great day and see you all next time.

Steve

Monday, July 15, 2013 MaryEllen Uthlaut

Theme: Tinnitus - Four sets of rings.

18A. Banner passed from host city to host city : OLYMPIC FLAG

38A. Things associated with 18- and 57-Across and 3- and 34-Down : RINGS

57A. A bride and groom may write their own : WEDDING VOWS. And exchange rings.

3D. Samsung product : CELL PHONE. With some rings that hardly resemble a ring.

34D. Big top performance : CIRCUS ACT. Traditionally in a ring and a big circus would have three rings under one tent.

Argyle here. The grid is arrayed with the themes forming a ring around the unifier. Our constructor has given us three Sunday puzzles in the past. Interestingly, all, like today's, includes the whole phrase as the theme entry, not just one part. Nothing fusty here.

Across:

1. Baglike structure : SAC

4. Frozen drinks : ICEEs

9. Perp's fake name : ALIAS

14. "__ before beauty" : AGE. “Pearls before swine” Dorothy Parker.

15. Religious doctrine : DOGMA

16. Island nation near Fiji : TONGA. It is in the pink area on this MAP.

17. Nothing : NIL

20. Right-angle pipe joint : ELL

21. More than trot : LOPE

22. Take turns : ROTATE

23. Issue a new copy of : REPRINT

25. Female sib : SIS

26. Soggy : WET

27. Unclear, as the future : HAZY

28. Stale-smelling : FUSTY. Related to old wine casks while musty indicates a more moldy source.

30. Make amends : ATONE

32. Taxi customer : FARE

33. Unreturned tennis serves : ACES

37. Venom dispenser : FANG. (or Dorothy Parker)

39. Fair-weather system : HIGH

40. Arborist's concern : TREE

41. Formerly : ONCE

42. "__ and Bess" : PORGY. Opera, first performed in 1935, with music by George Gershwin, libretto by DuBose Heyward, and lyrics by DuBose Heyward and Ira Gershwin.

43. Pass along : RELAY. Pass the baton.

45. Swamp reptile, for short : CROC

46. "Oh, sure!" : "HAH!"

49. Every bit : ALL

50. Take for granted : PRESUME

53. Melodious piece : ARIOSO

55. Historic periods : ERAs

56. Prodigal __ : SON. Luke 15:11-32 - The Parable of the Prodigal Son.

59. Malt brew : ALE

60. Genuflect : KNEEL

61. Grocery walkway : AISLE

62. Pic taker : CAM

63. Having a lot of cheek : SASSY

64. Post-sneeze word : BLESS

65. Attempt : TRY

Down:

1. More rational : SANER

2. Like a twinkletoes : AGILE

4. Place on a pedestal : IDOLIZE

5. One of the original 13 : COLONY

6. Land of pharaohs and pyramids : EGYPT

7. Plus-size supermodel : EMME

8. Plant juice : SAP

9. For no profit : AT COST

10. Barn story : LOFT

11. Relative by marriage : IN-LAW

12. Striped stone : AGATE

13. TV comedian Bob : SAGET

19. Showy spring flowers : IRISES

24. The Lone __ : RANGER

25. Storm-caused sea rise : SURGE

28. __ Feast: cat food : FANCY

29. Yokels : YAHOOs

30. Sternward : AFT

31. Driveway covering : TAR

32. Critical test : FINAL

35. Breakfast staple : EGG

36. Bashful : SHY

38. Deodorant type : ROLL-ON

42. Removes wrinkles from : PRESSES

44. Without difficulty : EASILY

45. Moves like a baby : CRAWLS

46. Keen-sighted birds : HAWKS. Little something for Windhover.

47. Gladiators' venue : ARENA

48. Keeps out of sight : HIDES

50. Ordinary language : PROSE

51. Grinding tooth : MOLAR

52. Nemesis : ENEMY

54. "To a" poems : ODEs

55. Black-hearted : EVIL

58. Chatterbox's "gift" : GAB

Argyle

Sunday September 2, 2012 MaryEllen Uthlaut

Theme: "Caution: People Overworking" - Each angry phrase is reinterpreted literally and humorously considering the profession of the people in the corresponding clue.

23A. The border guard __ : WENT OVER THE EDGE. This reminds me of Laura Ling's travails. Lots of North Koreans cross border into North China.

27A. The actor __ : MADE A SCENE

49A. The mechanic __ : BLEW A GASKET

64A. The tailor __ : CAME APART AT THE SEAMS

82A. The chef __ : CAUSED A STIR. My name is Gordon Ramsay, don't you know how to stir?


100A. The elevator operator __ : HIT THE ROOF

108A. The baggage handler __ : COULDN'T GET A GRIP

The answers are all past tense. Very consistent.

When I downloaded the puzzle and spotted the constructor's name, I murmured: "The grammar lady", maybe because I once blogged a grammar-themed puzzle Ms. Uthlaut made.

Across:

1. Gyro bread : PITA

5. Not just nerves : FEAR. I'm often nervous about "Not" in the clue as I always have trouble figuring out the part of the speech.

9. Pullers of plows : TEAMS

14. Summer staffing solutions : TEMPS

19. Net trading : E-COMMERCE. Solid e-word.

21. __ ease: uncomfortable : ILL AT

22. Glorify : EXALT

25. Pass on : RELAY

26. Move away : RECEDE. Like tide.

29. Sweet serving, often : DESSERT. I miss fried persimmon cake in Xi'An.

33. Stage of existence : AGE. Wow, am I dumb!

35. Avant's opposite : APRES. "After", as in ___-ski for our adventurous Marti.

36. They're often marked in red letters : EXITS

37. Consonant such as "f" or "v" : SPIRANT. I only know "aspirant".

41. Votes against : NOs & 56. "By all means!" : YES.

42. Hardwood tree : ASH

45. Keep on teasing : RIDE

46. Like major appliance repairs : ON-SITE

47. Neighbor of Russia : ESTONIA

53. "A great __ indicates a great man": Cyrano de Bergerac : NOSE. He meant "A big nose...".

55. Back muscles, briefly : LATs

57. Shabby : RATTY

58. They're heard in a herd : BAAs. Lovely.

59. Bring to the mix : ADD IN

60. Thus : ERGO

61. Very tired : SPENT

63. Capital of Belgium's East Flanders province : GHENT. Gimme, Spitzboov?

70. Spelunkers' haunts : CAVES. We used to have a "Spelunker" poster (Richshiff) on the blog.

71. Bargain and steal : DEALS

72. 40-day period : LENT

73. Dizzying genre : OP ART


74. Like many doilies : LACY

75. Melted together : FUSED

77. Cutter : SAW

80. Sacha Baron Cohen persona : ALI-G. I like Sacha Baron Cohen a lot. But his characters are all ridiculous.

81. "Brave New World" feel-good drug : SOMA

85. Keyboard instrument with bell-like tones : CELESTA

87. Earthshaking events : SEISMS. It'll be an earthshaking event when Windhover goes to a nail salon. I'm thinking CrossEyedDave might go there simply because of his curiosity.

89. Orpheus' strings : LYRE

90. Abbr. after Brooklyn : HTS

91. Many, many years : EON

92. Ragged clothes : TATTERS

94. Lounging footwear : MULES

95. "The Crucible" setting : SALEM

97. Cereal grain : RYE

98. Autocratic, Russian-style : CZARIST

104. Raised : REARED

107. "Farewell, mon ami" : ADIEU

114. Arabian Peninsula country : YEMEN

115. Where many knots are tied : ALTAR

116. Vanilla-flavored drink : CREAM SODA

117. Silver fish : SMELT

118. Like Rod Stewart's voice : RASPY. This song is quite good.

119. Author __ Christian Andersen : HANS

120. Shortly : ANON

Down:

1. Bench in the nave : PEW

2. Cover at the bakery : ICE

3. Great deal : TON

4. Tsp. or tbsp. : AMT

5. Unhealthy temperature : FEVER

6. Sets upright : ERECTS

7. Property unit : ACRE

8. Like Gen. Powell : RET'D. His wife loves crosswords.

9. Link : TIE

10. Natural environment : ELEMENT

11. "The Aviator" (2004) actor : ALDA. I watched the movie, don't remember whom he played.

12. Oldest Gabor sister : MAGDA

13. Precipice quality : STEEPNESS

14. Most succinct : TERSEST. My emails are often short, unless I'm tired or sad, then I ramble a bit.

15. Board chairs, e.g. : EXECS

16. Gobbler, for one : MALE

17. Certain drawing : PLAN. For Splynter & Jerome. I wonder if Jerome loves hockey also.

18. Lid irritation : STYE

20. Customs : MORES

24. Processional leader : HEARSE

28. Lost one's lap : AROSE. Ah, that "lap", OK!

29. Louisville race : DERBY. 58. Action at a 29-Down : BETS.

30. Banish : EXILE

31. Aligns oneself (with) : SIDES

32. Dish with many recipes : STEW. I'll let my abundant Thai peppers dry like this.


34. Way to go : GAIT

38. Put up : POST

39. Black as night : INKY

40. Renter : TENANT

42. Ancient garland for the head : ANADEM. No idea. But this is lovely


43. Peaceful occupations : SIT-INS

44. Lacks : HASN'T

48. No longer in style : OLD HAT

50. A cop might put someone under it : ARREST. Nice clue.

51. Nuts (over) : GAGA

52. Perched on : ATOP

54. Promise : OATH. 112. Brief 54-Down : I DO.

59. Things to address : AGENDA

60. Come out : EMERGE

61. Time at a hotel : STAY. Dennis' new house has avocado & lemon trees. I don't think he likes avocados.

62. Bud : PAL

64. It's not so hard to swallow : CAPLET

65. Is of use : AVAILS

66. Genesis father of three : ADAM

67. Gave to another actor : RE-CAST

68. In addition : ELSE

69. Descendants : SEED

70. Mentor : COACH

74. Body shop convenience : LOANER CAR. Made me think of D-Otto's headache.

75. Get really upset : FUME. Another angry word.

76. Red power, initially : USSR. "Initially" always suggests "initials" in Xwords.

77. Phonograph needles : STYLI

78. Buenos __ : AIRES

79. Get by force : WREST

81. Priest's vestment : STOLE

82. Mayor's responsibility : CITY

83. Back at sea : ASTERN

84. Hardly a compliment : SLUR

86. Old TV series with underwater scenes : SEA HUNT. Never heard of it.

88. Cap attachment : EAR FLAP

93. Show at a theater : SCREEN

94. Address from Jeeves : MADAM. Stumper. Never watched "Jeeves and Wooster".

95. Iron alloy : STEEL

96. Cash, in slang : MOOLA

99. Letters from Greece : ZETAS

100. "Airplane!" actor Robert : HAYS

101. The same as before, in footnotes : IDEM

102. "The devourer of all things": Ovid : TIME. I like this kind of quote clue for common words.

103. Often unproductive at bats : OUTS. All too familiar.

105. Engrave : ETCH

106. Taj Mahal home : AGRA

109. Like toast without butter : DRY. You can put fig jam on.

110. Federal agency support org. : GSA (General Services Administration)

111. Director Howard : RON

113. Go for the gold? : PAN. Great clue too.

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday Oct 23, 2011 MaryEllen Uthlaut

Theme: "Gee Whiz" - G is added to the start of each common phrase.

22A. Potentially comforted by a bottle of Beefeater? : GIN CONSOLABLE. Inconsolable. The only entry where the base phrase is one word.

34A. Place for a complainer? : GRUMBLE SEAT. Rumble seat.

57A. Forty-niner after a lucky strike? : GOLD YELLER. "Old Yeller". And 109D. 49ers' org. : NFL. I'm guessing the constructor is a 49ers' fan. Constructors like to put their local teams in the clues/answers.

68A. Christian path to salvation? : GRACE TRACK. Race track.

89A. Stagehand splitting his sides? : GRIP ROARING. Rip-roaring.

107A. Like a baseball player who couldn't find his way to the field? : GLOVED AND LOST. Loved and lost. "Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."

16D. Ineptly prepared mess hall offering? : GRUB THE WRONG WAY. Rub the wrong way. Change the verb "rub" into a noun "grub".

42D. Man at the altar yet again? : GROOM FOR ONE MORE. Room for one more. The answer feels a bit awkward for the clue.

The theme makes me smile. Don and I have been working on a similar project.

It would very very cool not to any other G-word in fill. But it's quite challenging if not impossible in a 21*21 grid. Lots of Down 7's.

The puzzle was tough for me at a few spots. I had a much easy time with Gareth Bain's "Gas" last Sunday.

Across:

1. Marshy ground : MORASS. One more blank for my SWAMP.

7. Parties for royalty, say : FETES

12. Finger lever : TRIGGER. Did not come to me readily.

19. Too : OVERLY

20. Lively Baroque dances : GIGUES. Stumper. I think we've seen the singular GIGUE before.

21. Bench warmer : RESERVE

24. Cruel partner : UNUSUAL. Cruel and unusual.

25. Loosen, in a way : UNTIE

26. Rescued orphan in Byron's "Don Juan" : LEILA. No idea. Haltool might know.

27. Cutlass maker : OLDS

28. Eagle's org. : BSA. First thought was PGA.

29. Be inclined : LEAN. And 51. Is inclined : TENDS.

30. 1994 World Cup host : USA. Any important event in your life in 1994? I graduated from the college and broke up with my first boyfriend of 7 years.

31. Carts without fixed sides : DRAYS

33. "Take __ from me ..." : A TIP

39. Community character : ETHOS. This word always gives me trouble.

40. Boxer's greeting : WAG. Dog.

43. Catch sight of : ESPY

44. Blue gem, briefly : LAPIS

45. Worry-free : SERENE. JD always has a serene look.

46. Scrape : ABRADE

48. Kept talking, and talking ... : RAN ON. Any man who's been in Bangkok for even one night can talk hours and hours about his story. Sin city, Santa!

49. Spread here and there : STREW

50. Some electron tubes : DIODES

52. Mailing ctr. : GPO

53. Johnson of "Laugh-In" : ARTE

56. Run to Reno, maybe : ELOPE. Or get divorced.

59. Double-minded : TORN. Roberto hates when I hesitate. He's the most efficient person I know.

60. Rep.'s opponent : DEM

61. Dolphin's home : MIAMI. Don't follow football. Are Miami Dolphins historically good? Vikings suck.

63. Is in need of : LACKS

65. Critic's pick : NIT. Ha ha!

66. Data : INFO

72. Celtic, for one : CAGER

74. Inert gas : NEON

75. Show stoppers : ADs

76. Hag : CRONE

77. Be half-asleep : DROWSE

78. Chaucerian estate manager : REEVE. I bet it's a gimme for Nice Cuppa. I'm lost if the clue has no "Christopher" in it.

80. San Antonio landmark : ALAMO

81. Treat with carbon dioxide : AERATE. I have no idea what they put in.

82. Quality : CHOICE

84. Word with land or sea : SCAPE

85. Seem less important : PALE

87. "You betcha!" : YES. Very Minnesotan.

88. Many an Indian : HINDU. Hi there Vidwan! Don't be a mouse.

92. Surface statistic : AREA

93. Aromatic compound : ESTER

95. Three abroad : TRE

96. Spell opening : ABRA

100. Sleep lab letters : REM

101. Vintage autos : REOS

102. Hyperion, for one : TITAN

104. Challenging winds : OBOES. Why is it challenging?

105. Riot figures : LOOTERS

110. The Urals divide it : EURASIA

111. Like a jack-o'-lantern's eyes : AGLARE

112. Time of merriment : FIESTA. I like the sound of this word.

113. Completely absorbed (in) : STEEPED. This is a fascinating video. Can you guess what the song is about? It's in Cantonese.

114. Striking hammer parts : PEENS

115. "Help!" film director Richard : LESTER

Down:

1. Mound on the slopes : MOGUL. For Marti.

2. Woolly, in a way : OVINE. In a way, yes.

3. Oscar de la __ : RENTA. Laura Bush's favorite designer.

4. Like an arrow in the air : ARCING

5. Blackthorn fruit : SLOE

6. Genuine, for real: Abbr. : SYN. Genuine is a synonym of "real".

7. Befitting offspring : FILIAL. This kid is already pondering on his filial duty.

8. Alike, to Alain : EGAL. The only Alain I can think of is Alain Delon.

9. Big brass : TUBA

10. Snaky fish : EEL. Yum! Snake meat is quite tasty too.

11. Boston-to-Nantucket dir. : SSE

12. Indeed : TRULY

13. Tears apart : RENDS

14. "We have met the enemy and he __": Pogo : IS US

15. Some microwaves : GEs

17. Taxpayer's crime : EVASION

18. Take a turn for the worse : RELAPSE

20. Is called : GOES BY

23. Stretch with no hits : SLUMP. Boomer loves Pujols. So, go Cardinals!

27. Porridge, essentially : OATS

31. State under oath : DEPOSE

32. "Still Falls the __": Edith Sitwell poem : RAIN

33. "You're in for __!" : A TREAT

35. Cash in : REDEEM

36. Exploits : USES

37. Twisty-horned antelope : ELAND. Horny!

38. Like many beaches : SANDY

39. Always, in verse : EER

40. Began energetically : WADED IN. This phrase always has a "careful and tentative" connotation to me.

41. Texas city near Dyess Air Force Base : ABILENE

45. Baby carrier? : STORK. Fun clue.

47. Payroll service giant, initially : ADP. Automated Data Processing.

48. Civil War cannon, e.g. : RELIC

49. Paint droplet : SPECK

51. Inquisitor __ de Torquemada : TOMAS. Spanish for Thomas, right?

52. Iced, as cake : GLACE

54. Italian seaport : TRIESTE. So similar to TRISTE.

55. Main courses : ENTREES

57. Avant-__ : GARDE

58. South American plain : LLANO. Still remember LLANERO?

62. "__ my love a cherry ..." : I GAVE

64. Filter out : SCREEN

67. Iroquois tribe : ONEIDA

69. Food that's French for "flash of lightning" : ECLAIR. Did not know the entomology.

70. "The Sound of Music" family name : TRAPP

71. Former Colorado governor : ROMER (Roy). Complete stranger to me. Looks like he's late for a date.

73. "__ b?" : A OR

77. Spanish surrealist : DALI

79. Coin first minted under Louis IX : ECU. Two choice: ECU or SOU.

80. It might be a whole lot : ACRE

82. Dickens's Darnay : CHARLES. from "A Tale of Two Cities".

83. Offer one's services for a fee : HIRE OUT

84. Certain NCOs : SGTs

85. Mardi Gras event : PARADE

86. Boston's TD Garden, e.g. : ARENA

90. Web-footed mammals : OTTERS

91. Triangular house sections : GABLES. Melissa linked a good one last time.

93. Spine-tingling : EERIE

94. "Alas!" : SO SAD

97. Upward thrust : BOOST

98. Rouen remainder : RESTE. French for "rest" I suppose.

99. Sirius, for one : A-STAR

101. Breathing: Abbr. : RESP. Respiring?

102. Gilded metalware : TOLE. Like this.

103. One of the Karamazovs : IVAN

104. Comic strip drooler : ODIE

106. __ kwon do : TAE

107. Mountain pass : GAP

108. T-shirt size : LGE

Answer grid.

C.C.

Sunday February 13, 2011 MaryEllen Uthlaut

Theme: English Lessons We Never Learned - English grammatical terms are reinterpreted literally and humorously clued with question marks.

23A. Legal dispute over personal property? : POSSESSIVE CASE. The 's ending, as in Dennis' new car.

39A. Oratorical elements? : PARTS OF SPEECH. Verb, noun, pronoun, etc.

52A. Santa's minor children? : DEPENDENT CLAUSES. Sweet clue. Also known as subordinate clause. Incomplete when standing alone. We also have ELF (30D. Yule aide).

69A. Settlement negotiated by one's ancestors? : ANTECEDENT AGREEMENT. Pronoun must agree with its antecedent.

88A. Part of a broken-up prison term? : SENTENCE FRAGMENT. Again, incomplete when standing alone. Subject or verb is missing, or prepositional phrases beginning with although, because, etc.

98A. Rosy answer in a seer's crystal ball? : FUTURE PERFECT. For example: By next May, I will have been living in the US for 10 years.

120A Philatelist or numismatist? : COLLECTIVE NOUN. Words like cast, team, crowd etc. Can be either singular or plural, depending on context.

Hope my understanding of the above grammatical terms is correct. As I mentioned before, I've never received formal education here and my grasp of grammar & common idioms is pretty shaky.

Favorite today is DEPENDENT CLAUSES (52A), thinking of our Dear Santa Argyle, who should be very happy to see how MAGIC (67D. What Muggles can't do, in Harry Potter books) is clued. He's really into those Harry Potter stuff.

Fun theme & smooth solving for me. I grokked the gimmick immediately after I got my first theme answer.

Across:

1. Bojangles specialty : TAP. Bill (Bojangles) Robinson.

4. Gets into : DONS

8. Plains tribe : OMAHA. Hi there, Husker Gary!

13. If all goes well : AT BEST

19. __ mode : A LA

20. CINN-A-STACK seller : IHOP. Hmm, pancakes. What's your regular order there?

21. Unskilled work : McJOB. Added a bit of scrabbly action here.

22. Combat mission : SORTIE

26. Crew and golf : SPORTS. Crew refers to rowing I presume.

27. Map of Hawaii, often : INSET. We also have OAHU (81D. Interstate H-1 locale) & LEI (122D. Wreath of welcome).

28. Film feline : ELSA. "Born Free".

29. Sports car quality : SLEEKNESS

31. Rod's associate : REEL

32. Liquid-Plumr maker : CLOROX. Isn't it too lazy to have the "be" dropped?

35. Aspiring atty.'s challenge : LSAT. And LLB (121. Legal deg.)

36. Generic pooch : FIDO

45. Wyo. neighbor : IDA

48. What the fourth little piggy had : NONE. Does this refer to the "This Little Piggy" nursery rhyme?

50. Some avant-garde art : ARPS. Jean Arp.

51. Playground response to 111-Down : IS TOO. And 111D. Playground response to 51-Across: IS NOT.

58. Cause trouble to : AIL

59. Skipped over : ELIDED

60. U.S. currency : DOL. Chinese currency is called Ren Min Bi, the primary unit is Yuan.

61. As one might expect : NATURALLY

64. Flight segment : STAIR

65. Equip with weapons, old-style : ENARM. OK, old-style.

68. "Hamlet," e.g.: Abbr. : TRAG. Have never seen "Tragedy" abbreviated this way before.

76. Lugs : OAFS. Noun lugs.

77. Smooth move : SEGUE

78. God-fearing : PIOUS

80. Bourbon with a floral logo : FOUR ROSES. First encounter with this brand.

85. Follower of Samson? : ITE. Samsonite.

86. He overthrew Batista in 1959 : CASTRO

87. James's creator : IAN (Fleming). James Bond.

92. Online recruiting site : eHIRE. Was ignorant of this website.

95. Stand up to : DEFY

96. Bold Ruler, to Secretariat : SIRE. Should be an intuitive guess.

97. Reptilian warning : SSS

103. Beer holder : CASK

105. Detective Wolfe : NERO

106. "Tristram Shandy" author : STERNE (Laurence). Stumped me last time. See here.

108. "__ Not Seen the Sun": Dickinson poem : HAD I

112. Committed : DEDICATED

117. Hurt badly : MAIM

118. Peacock and rooster : MALES

119. Real estate hires : AGENTS

124. Walk softly : TIPTOE

125. Euripides play in which the title heroine never goes to Troy : HELEN. Really? Helen never made it to Troy?

126. Lamb alias : ELIA. Charles Lamb.

127. Sgt., for one : NCO

128. Fur fortune family : ASTORS

129. Heavenly path : ORBIT. Heavenly clue.

130. Prog. listing : SKED. Schedule.

131. "__ a life!" : GET

Down:

1. Piglike forest dweller : TAPIR. Hi, there.

2. How the cheese stands? : ALONE. Got me. "The Farmer in the Dell": ... The cheese stands alone.

3. So last week : PASSE

4. Japanese lawmaking body : DIET. Nailed it. Often constructors use "Diet" in clues to trick solvers.

5. Sounds of surprise : OHs.

6. Rocket section with a heat shield : NOSECONE

7. Tell, slangily : SPILL

8. 1998 Masters champion : O'MEARA (Mark). Tiger's best friend. Nice person.

9. Turn-of-the-century year : MCC. 1200.

10. 1977 Steely Dan album : AJA

11. Cartwright son : HOSS. "Bonanza".

12. Genesis shepherd : ABEL

13. Evaluate : ASSESS

14. Palace of the Ottoman sultans : TOPKAPI. Well, maybe Hahtool & Lucina know. Both have been to Istanbul. I've got no idea.

15. 19th-century literary sisters : BRONTES

16. Raison d'__ : ETRE. Also 71. Latin being : ESSE. Two "Be".

17. Is sidelined : SITS

18. Hardy heroine : TESS. "Tess of the D'Urbervilles".

24. Righteous beginning? : SELF. Self-righteous.

25. Cognac initialism : VSOP (Very Superior Old Pale)

33. Like some surgery : ORAL

34. More, in adspeak : XTRA

37. Bony labyrinth : INNER EAR. Tricky clue.

38. Longtime publisher __, Mead and Company : DODD. Stranger to me.

40. Twisted into thread : SPUN

41. Mount south of Olympus : OSSA

42. Series ender : ET AL

43. Curl up : COIL

44. Word with cats or cow : HOLY. Have never heard of "Holy cats".

45. Bad day for Caesar : IDES. Ides of March.

46. Mouth formation : DELTA. River mouth.

47. Beelike : APIAN

49. Put a stop to : ENDED

53. Time management figure : EDITOR. Time magazine.

54. Ring __ : TONE

55. Highland families : CLANS

56. Major addition? : ETTE. Majorette.

57. Unfailing : SURE

62. Mob activities : RAMPAGES

63. Senioritis? : AGEISM. Fun clue: -itis.

66. GPS suggestion : RTE

70. Money-managing execs : CFOs. Real money, not Money magazine.

72. "__ Nacht" : GUTE. Good night.

73. Perils at sea : REEFS

74. Staff additions? : NOTES. Musical staff.

75. They might be left on the road : TURNS. Great clue.

79. Ones sitting tight? : SOTS. Why?

80. Feudal estate : FIEF

82. Army detachment : UNIT. New definition of "detachment" to me.

83. "Momo" author Michael : ENDE. No idea. Was this guy very famous?

84. Joke ending? : STER. Jokester.

86. Siena sweetie : CARA. Cara Mia.

89. Pair of officers? : EFFS. Two letter F in officers.

90. Medvedev's denial : NYET. Just Russian for "No". Medvedev is Putin's shadow.

91. Vegan beverage : RICE MILK. Have never tried it. Soy milk, yes!

93. Meet by chance : RUN INTO

94. Builder : ERECTOR. And 101. Builder's material : CEMENT.

99. Undoes : ERASES

100. Proverbial kettle critic : POT. The pot calling the kettle black.

102. Ford Explorer Sport __ : TRAC. No Gillette razor today.

104. Top Tatar : KHAN. As in Genghis Khan or Kublai Khan.

107. Dark times, informally : NITES

109. How a noted spider came? : ALONG. "Along Came a Spider".

110. Tennis tie : DEUCE

112. Bank deposits? : DATA. Don't get this one either.

113. Sponsorship: Var. : EGIS. Variation of Aegis.

114. Part of LAPD: Abbr. : DEPT

115. Return from the canyon? : ECHO

116. One who walks the walk : DOER

118. Subject of an annual Colorado brewing festival : MEAD. Not familiar with this Mead Festival. A quick Google search shows it's held in Denver.

123. "No mortal could __ with Zeus": Homer : VIE. Easy guess.

Answer grid.

C.C.