Theme: QUIP
18A: Start of a quip: THE TEST OF
27A: Part 2 of quip: A PROFESSION IS
40A: Part 3 of quip: A LOVE
48A: Part 4 of quip: OF THE DRUDGERY
63A: End of quip: IT ENTAILS
The original quote is: The test of a vocation is the love of the drudgery it involves (Logan Pearsall Smith). Look at what lies at the HEART of the puzzle! See it?
I had another bumpy ride today, with the PEÑA corner. I totally forgot what RPI stands for. And I wanted RENO for 28D: Clinton cabinet member (PEÑA). But it did not fit, neither did LEON (Panetta). I even had problem with TU FU. I grew up in Northwest China and I was used to the Mandarin spelling of DU FU & Li Bai rather than the Cantonese way of TU FU and Li Po. I guess PEÑA is just too low profile for me. If he were as ubiquitous as David Axelrod, I would've nailed him.
I got BAHT, INVAR, SDI by across clues. I don't think I could ferret them out without any references. Somehow I just could never remember this currency BAHT. I only remember vividly the evening when I bought my black Wacoal Contour with BAHT. It's beautiful!
ACROSS:
1A: Hindu social stratum: CASTE. Does this caste system still exist in India today?
6A: Frenchman of the cloth: ABBÉ. French for Abbot.
21A: Bony: OSTEAL. Osseous also means bony.
23A: Cartoon Alley: OOP. Learned it from doing crossword.
25A: More crowded: DENSER
34A: Newhart's co-star Mary: FRANN. No idea. Not familiar with "Newhart".
35A: Concerning: ANENT. I don't think I've ever used this word before.
38A: Part of RPI: INST. RPI is Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
47A: Saturn model: ION. Nice change from the "charged atom" clue.
51A: River in a Strauss waltz: DANUBE. Got it this morning. "The Blue DANUBE Waltz".
55A: Stimulate: AROUSE. Yes, please! Please spend your windfall rebate to buy someone you love an OMEGA watch. That's the purpose of the $150 billion "Stimulus Package"!
65A: Actress Dickinson: ANGIE. I guessed. I don't know her. I only know Janice Dickinson.
68A: Haggard of country: MERLE
70A: Lairs: DENS. OK clue if not for DENSER at 25A.
71A: Spruce up: PREEN. I don't like PREEN crossing 62D: PEEN. But I suppose it's unavoidable sometimes.
DOWN:
7D: Thai currency: BAHT. It equals to 100 satangs. Here is 100 BAHT banknote. The guy on the picture is the current King of Thailand. He enjoys an incredible high approval rating. He was actually born in the US.
8D: "Desperate Housewives" role: BREE. Played by Marcia Gross. Not my cup of tea. Here is a picture of all those "Desperate Housewives".
9D: Mexican state: ESTADO
11D: Revolving spit: ROTISSERIE
19D: Actress Verdugo: ELENA. Got her this morning.
21D: Massenet work: OPERA
26D: Baseball team: NINE. Not interested in NINE holes?
27D: Leaning precariously: ATIP. If you insist...
28D: Clinton cabinet member: PEÑA (Federico). Clinton's Secretary of Transportation. He is Obama's National Campaign Co-chair.
29D: Appellee: RESPONDENT
30D: Maison room: SALLE. French for room.
31D: Hair net: SNOOD. Why do people wear SNOOD?
32D: Nickel/steel alloy: INVAR. I've got no idea. It's a trademark of a brand of iron alloy. "The trademark name was selected by the alloy’s inventor, the Swiss physicist Charles-Édouard Guillaume, to express the invariability of its dimensions when heat is applied."
36D: Queen of Jordan: NOOR. Hard for me to take her "Leap of Faith"! (Update later: NOOR means light in Arab language, and it's NUR in Farsi, thank you BC for the information)
37D: Singer Orlando: TONY. Unknown to me. Inferable though.
39D: Li Po's contemporary: TU FU. Regarded as the Greatest Chinese Poet. He had a very hard life compared to Li Po, who wrote most of his poems when he was drunk. It's no surprise that Li Po's most famous poem is "Drinking Alone by Moonlight".
41D: Harden: ENURE
44D: Standing by the plate: AT BAT. 2 baseball references today. See 26D: NINE.
46D: Reagan program initials: SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative). Technical name of STAR WARS.
49D: Newspaper name: HERALD
50D: "Maverick" star: GARNER (James). I forgot. He just appeared on April 30 puzzle.
56D: Seine tributary: OISE. So, if it's a 4 letter blank, it's OISE; 5-letter blank, then it's ISERE.
57D: __ Ude, Russia: ULAN. Or __Bator, Mongolia. ULAN means "red" in Mongolian, so literally ULAN Bator is "Red Hero".
61D: 5,280 feet: MILE. Or 1.60 kilometer for me.
C.C.
18A: Start of a quip: THE TEST OF
27A: Part 2 of quip: A PROFESSION IS
40A: Part 3 of quip: A LOVE
48A: Part 4 of quip: OF THE DRUDGERY
63A: End of quip: IT ENTAILS
The original quote is: The test of a vocation is the love of the drudgery it involves (Logan Pearsall Smith). Look at what lies at the HEART of the puzzle! See it?
I had another bumpy ride today, with the PEÑA corner. I totally forgot what RPI stands for. And I wanted RENO for 28D: Clinton cabinet member (PEÑA). But it did not fit, neither did LEON (Panetta). I even had problem with TU FU. I grew up in Northwest China and I was used to the Mandarin spelling of DU FU & Li Bai rather than the Cantonese way of TU FU and Li Po. I guess PEÑA is just too low profile for me. If he were as ubiquitous as David Axelrod, I would've nailed him.
I got BAHT, INVAR, SDI by across clues. I don't think I could ferret them out without any references. Somehow I just could never remember this currency BAHT. I only remember vividly the evening when I bought my black Wacoal Contour with BAHT. It's beautiful!
ACROSS:
1A: Hindu social stratum: CASTE. Does this caste system still exist in India today?
6A: Frenchman of the cloth: ABBÉ. French for Abbot.
21A: Bony: OSTEAL. Osseous also means bony.
23A: Cartoon Alley: OOP. Learned it from doing crossword.
25A: More crowded: DENSER
34A: Newhart's co-star Mary: FRANN. No idea. Not familiar with "Newhart".
35A: Concerning: ANENT. I don't think I've ever used this word before.
38A: Part of RPI: INST. RPI is Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
47A: Saturn model: ION. Nice change from the "charged atom" clue.
51A: River in a Strauss waltz: DANUBE. Got it this morning. "The Blue DANUBE Waltz".
55A: Stimulate: AROUSE. Yes, please! Please spend your windfall rebate to buy someone you love an OMEGA watch. That's the purpose of the $150 billion "Stimulus Package"!
65A: Actress Dickinson: ANGIE. I guessed. I don't know her. I only know Janice Dickinson.
68A: Haggard of country: MERLE
70A: Lairs: DENS. OK clue if not for DENSER at 25A.
71A: Spruce up: PREEN. I don't like PREEN crossing 62D: PEEN. But I suppose it's unavoidable sometimes.
DOWN:
7D: Thai currency: BAHT. It equals to 100 satangs. Here is 100 BAHT banknote. The guy on the picture is the current King of Thailand. He enjoys an incredible high approval rating. He was actually born in the US.
8D: "Desperate Housewives" role: BREE. Played by Marcia Gross. Not my cup of tea. Here is a picture of all those "Desperate Housewives".
9D: Mexican state: ESTADO
11D: Revolving spit: ROTISSERIE
19D: Actress Verdugo: ELENA. Got her this morning.
21D: Massenet work: OPERA
26D: Baseball team: NINE. Not interested in NINE holes?
27D: Leaning precariously: ATIP. If you insist...
28D: Clinton cabinet member: PEÑA (Federico). Clinton's Secretary of Transportation. He is Obama's National Campaign Co-chair.
29D: Appellee: RESPONDENT
30D: Maison room: SALLE. French for room.
31D: Hair net: SNOOD. Why do people wear SNOOD?
32D: Nickel/steel alloy: INVAR. I've got no idea. It's a trademark of a brand of iron alloy. "The trademark name was selected by the alloy’s inventor, the Swiss physicist Charles-Édouard Guillaume, to express the invariability of its dimensions when heat is applied."
36D: Queen of Jordan: NOOR. Hard for me to take her "Leap of Faith"! (Update later: NOOR means light in Arab language, and it's NUR in Farsi, thank you BC for the information)
37D: Singer Orlando: TONY. Unknown to me. Inferable though.
39D: Li Po's contemporary: TU FU. Regarded as the Greatest Chinese Poet. He had a very hard life compared to Li Po, who wrote most of his poems when he was drunk. It's no surprise that Li Po's most famous poem is "Drinking Alone by Moonlight".
41D: Harden: ENURE
44D: Standing by the plate: AT BAT. 2 baseball references today. See 26D: NINE.
46D: Reagan program initials: SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative). Technical name of STAR WARS.
49D: Newspaper name: HERALD
50D: "Maverick" star: GARNER (James). I forgot. He just appeared on April 30 puzzle.
56D: Seine tributary: OISE. So, if it's a 4 letter blank, it's OISE; 5-letter blank, then it's ISERE.
57D: __ Ude, Russia: ULAN. Or __Bator, Mongolia. ULAN means "red" in Mongolian, so literally ULAN Bator is "Red Hero".
61D: 5,280 feet: MILE. Or 1.60 kilometer for me.
C.C.
