Themeless
Strange journey to the "Land of Oz" today. Too sudden a landing at the Munchkins' country I suppose. Had no idea who was "Mothers of Invention Inventor", could only think of Plato, who originated this "Necessity is the Mother of Invention"idiom. Did not know Ringo's oldest son ZAK, could only think of Julian, John Lennon's oldest son. ZANZIBAR was simply impossible for me, and ALYDAR was also completely foreign to me.
But I found my yellow brick road quickly, and conquered upper right corner after some mild struggle. Was not familiar with COLONNADE, had never heard of IDENTI-KIT, but ELAINE, INI and OSKAR helped.
The easiest part for me was the ALOE VERA corner. There was absolutely no IMPEDANCE (33D: Electrical resistance) there at all. With all those Blackwater shooting scandal talks last year, HESSIANS (Redux) came to me immediately.
The lower left also crumbled quickly, but I really dislike the clue for KAN (61D: Alternative to KS). Very lazy cluing. Would be very happy if it's reworded as Dorothy and " The Wizard of Oz" related, or simply "Neb. neighbor".
Then I went back to the thorny upper left corner, still could not get much done, and finally succumbed to Google. But hey, I arrived at the "Emerald City" and saw the great "Wizard of Oz".
I really like the below "?" clues today:
15A: Start of a number?: AREA CODE
27A: How much above?: A CUT
31A: Weapon of mass offense?: STINK BOMB. I wish its parallel ARMS (37A: Jacket parts) were clued as weaponry related.
44D: Shrinking flowers?: VIOLETS
Ready to tee off? Let's go!
Front nine:
1A: Island off Tanzania: ZANZIBAR. Here is the map. Wikipedia says the word "ZANZIBAR" probably derives from the Persian word "zangi-bar", meaning "Cost of the Blacks". And its main industries are spices, raffia and tourism. I like this zippy name.
I like country names with letter Z in them: Belize, Brazil, Czech Republic, Kazkhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mozambique, New Zealand, Switzerland, Tanzania, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Zambia & Zimbabwe. Mozambique looks very intriguing, with Z & Q.
9A: Scruples: ETHICS. No "Moral standards" any more?
16A: Fill with false hope: LEAD ON
17A: Glimpsed surreptitiously: PEEKED AT
18A: San ___, Texas: ANGELO. ANGELO is also the villain in Shakespeare's "Measure for Measure".
19A: Foot: suff: PED, as in "Biped" and "Moped", according to Dennis. "PEDI"or "PEDO" are prefixes for foot.
20A: Type of scheme: PYRAMID. I am not familiar with this stock scheme. Only know the "Ponzi Scheme". Here is definition from the dictionary: "A fraudulent moneymaking scheme in which people are recruited to make payments to others above them in a hierarchy while expecting to receive payments from people recruited below them. Eventually the number of new recruits fails to sustain the payment structure, and the scheme collapses with most people losing the money they paid in."
22A: Three-time runner-up to Affirmed in 1978 Triple Crown: ALYDAR. Who remembers those runner-ups? Exotic name though. Here is Belmont Stakes ALYDAR vs. Affirmed clip, very exciting finish. ALYDAR is in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame now.
30A: Kamoze of reggae fame: INI. This is his "Here Comes the Hotstepper". I think this constructor Allan E. Parrish loves reggae music also. Last time he clued another reggae singer MAXI Priest ("Close to you") in his puzzle.
36A: Actor Werner: OSKAR. Weren't you here yesterday?
38A: Follow obsessively: STALK
40A: Cover up: HIDE
41A: Like Batman and Robin: CAPED
43A: Tires out: ENERVATES
46A: City st. : AVE. Thought it would be better to clue it as "___, Caesar!" to pair with 62D: Caesar's seven: VII.
48A: Spinnaker, e.g.: SAIL. I forgot what a spinnaker is. Pieced "SAIL" together from down clue.
49A: Clampett patriarch: JED. Ah Uncle JED to to Jethro. Everything I know, I learned from doing crossword.
57A: Braided hairdo: PIGTAIL. Here is Chatty Cathy in PIGGTAIL hairdo. Is she original?
59A: Small deer: ROE. This ROE topped Canapé looks delicious, is it rosemary sprig on the top?
60A: Signaled subtly: WINKED
62A: Soothing plant: ALOE VERA
64A: Box up: ENCASE
67A: Mercenary soldiers: HESSIANS
Back nine:
1D: Mothers of Invention inventor: ZAPPA (Frank). Is this a gimme to you? Here is more information about "The Mothers of Invention" band. Why is "the" omitted in the clue?
2D: Staggering: AREEL
3D: Disadvantaged: NEEDY
4D: Ringo's oldest son: ZAK (Starkey). I am not familiar with him or "The Who" band.
5D: Frozen floating mass: ICE PACK. Does this clue sound OK to you?
6D: Training room offerings: BODY RUBS. Wherever you say!
7D: Hebrew month: ADAR. It's the Purim's month. Here are the 12 months in Jewish calendar: Tishri, Heshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Shevat, Adar, Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tammuz, Av, and Elul. So, there are total three 4-letter months in the calendar, I think I saw ELUL clued in a TMS puzzle before, not Iyar. I bet every one of those names has an unique origin, just like our calendar.
10D: Adjust, as margins: RETAB
9D: "Seinfeld" character: ELAINE. NEWMAN next time!
11D: Old crone: HAG
12D: Composite pic maker: IDENTI- KIT
13D: Portico: COLONNADE. "Colonne" is French for "Column", "Ade" is a simply a noun forming suffix.
14D: Alternative to chains: SNOW TIRES
21D: Talks indistinctly: MUMBLES
24D: Saint-Saëns' "___ Macabre": DANSE. Saw this clue in a Feb TMS puzzle. Here is Matisse's "La DANSE".
28D: Satchel's cousin: TOTE BAG
31D: Lewis and Clark's guide: SACAJAWEA. And 32D: On a tour: TRAVELING. Great parallel.
33D: Electrical resistance: IMPEDANCE. The symbol is Z. Not familiar with this electricity term. But "IMPEDANCE" is easily inferable.
34D: Playing piece: MAN. I don't get this one. What playing piece?
36D: Commandment word: SHALT
39D: WWII word: K RATIONS
42D: Most profound: DEEPEST
47D: Dracula's conquests: BRIDES. Isn't Dracula also CAPED?
51D: Hoard away: STASH
54D: "Two women" Oscar winner: LOREN (Sophie)
55D: Makes tight: SEALS. And Sealed it with a Kiss. Wow, what kind of dance is that?
I am just so sad that Tim Russert is gone. My Sundays will never be the same. I will miss him tomorrow, and next Sunday, and the Sunday after, and every Sunday... I will remember you, Tim Russert, always.
C.C.
Strange journey to the "Land of Oz" today. Too sudden a landing at the Munchkins' country I suppose. Had no idea who was "Mothers of Invention Inventor", could only think of Plato, who originated this "Necessity is the Mother of Invention"idiom. Did not know Ringo's oldest son ZAK, could only think of Julian, John Lennon's oldest son. ZANZIBAR was simply impossible for me, and ALYDAR was also completely foreign to me.
But I found my yellow brick road quickly, and conquered upper right corner after some mild struggle. Was not familiar with COLONNADE, had never heard of IDENTI-KIT, but ELAINE, INI and OSKAR helped.
The easiest part for me was the ALOE VERA corner. There was absolutely no IMPEDANCE (33D: Electrical resistance) there at all. With all those Blackwater shooting scandal talks last year, HESSIANS (Redux) came to me immediately.
The lower left also crumbled quickly, but I really dislike the clue for KAN (61D: Alternative to KS). Very lazy cluing. Would be very happy if it's reworded as Dorothy and " The Wizard of Oz" related, or simply "Neb. neighbor".
Then I went back to the thorny upper left corner, still could not get much done, and finally succumbed to Google. But hey, I arrived at the "Emerald City" and saw the great "Wizard of Oz".
I really like the below "?" clues today:
15A: Start of a number?: AREA CODE
27A: How much above?: A CUT
31A: Weapon of mass offense?: STINK BOMB. I wish its parallel ARMS (37A: Jacket parts) were clued as weaponry related.
44D: Shrinking flowers?: VIOLETS
Ready to tee off? Let's go!
Front nine:
1A: Island off Tanzania: ZANZIBAR. Here is the map. Wikipedia says the word "ZANZIBAR" probably derives from the Persian word "zangi-bar", meaning "Cost of the Blacks". And its main industries are spices, raffia and tourism. I like this zippy name.
I like country names with letter Z in them: Belize, Brazil, Czech Republic, Kazkhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mozambique, New Zealand, Switzerland, Tanzania, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Zambia & Zimbabwe. Mozambique looks very intriguing, with Z & Q.
9A: Scruples: ETHICS. No "Moral standards" any more?
16A: Fill with false hope: LEAD ON
17A: Glimpsed surreptitiously: PEEKED AT
18A: San ___, Texas: ANGELO. ANGELO is also the villain in Shakespeare's "Measure for Measure".
19A: Foot: suff: PED, as in "Biped" and "Moped", according to Dennis. "PEDI"or "PEDO" are prefixes for foot.
20A: Type of scheme: PYRAMID. I am not familiar with this stock scheme. Only know the "Ponzi Scheme". Here is definition from the dictionary: "A fraudulent moneymaking scheme in which people are recruited to make payments to others above them in a hierarchy while expecting to receive payments from people recruited below them. Eventually the number of new recruits fails to sustain the payment structure, and the scheme collapses with most people losing the money they paid in."
22A: Three-time runner-up to Affirmed in 1978 Triple Crown: ALYDAR. Who remembers those runner-ups? Exotic name though. Here is Belmont Stakes ALYDAR vs. Affirmed clip, very exciting finish. ALYDAR is in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame now.
30A: Kamoze of reggae fame: INI. This is his "Here Comes the Hotstepper". I think this constructor Allan E. Parrish loves reggae music also. Last time he clued another reggae singer MAXI Priest ("Close to you") in his puzzle.
36A: Actor Werner: OSKAR. Weren't you here yesterday?
38A: Follow obsessively: STALK
40A: Cover up: HIDE
41A: Like Batman and Robin: CAPED
43A: Tires out: ENERVATES
46A: City st. : AVE. Thought it would be better to clue it as "___, Caesar!" to pair with 62D: Caesar's seven: VII.
48A: Spinnaker, e.g.: SAIL. I forgot what a spinnaker is. Pieced "SAIL" together from down clue.
49A: Clampett patriarch: JED. Ah Uncle JED to to Jethro. Everything I know, I learned from doing crossword.
57A: Braided hairdo: PIGTAIL. Here is Chatty Cathy in PIGGTAIL hairdo. Is she original?
59A: Small deer: ROE. This ROE topped Canapé looks delicious, is it rosemary sprig on the top?
60A: Signaled subtly: WINKED
62A: Soothing plant: ALOE VERA
64A: Box up: ENCASE
67A: Mercenary soldiers: HESSIANS
Back nine:
1D: Mothers of Invention inventor: ZAPPA (Frank). Is this a gimme to you? Here is more information about "The Mothers of Invention" band. Why is "the" omitted in the clue?
2D: Staggering: AREEL
3D: Disadvantaged: NEEDY
4D: Ringo's oldest son: ZAK (Starkey). I am not familiar with him or "The Who" band.
5D: Frozen floating mass: ICE PACK. Does this clue sound OK to you?
6D: Training room offerings: BODY RUBS. Wherever you say!
7D: Hebrew month: ADAR. It's the Purim's month. Here are the 12 months in Jewish calendar: Tishri, Heshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Shevat, Adar, Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tammuz, Av, and Elul. So, there are total three 4-letter months in the calendar, I think I saw ELUL clued in a TMS puzzle before, not Iyar. I bet every one of those names has an unique origin, just like our calendar.
10D: Adjust, as margins: RETAB
9D: "Seinfeld" character: ELAINE. NEWMAN next time!
11D: Old crone: HAG
12D: Composite pic maker: IDENTI- KIT
13D: Portico: COLONNADE. "Colonne" is French for "Column", "Ade" is a simply a noun forming suffix.
14D: Alternative to chains: SNOW TIRES
21D: Talks indistinctly: MUMBLES
24D: Saint-Saëns' "___ Macabre": DANSE. Saw this clue in a Feb TMS puzzle. Here is Matisse's "La DANSE".
28D: Satchel's cousin: TOTE BAG
31D: Lewis and Clark's guide: SACAJAWEA. And 32D: On a tour: TRAVELING. Great parallel.
33D: Electrical resistance: IMPEDANCE. The symbol is Z. Not familiar with this electricity term. But "IMPEDANCE" is easily inferable.
34D: Playing piece: MAN. I don't get this one. What playing piece?
36D: Commandment word: SHALT
39D: WWII word: K RATIONS
42D: Most profound: DEEPEST
47D: Dracula's conquests: BRIDES. Isn't Dracula also CAPED?
51D: Hoard away: STASH
54D: "Two women" Oscar winner: LOREN (Sophie)
55D: Makes tight: SEALS. And Sealed it with a Kiss. Wow, what kind of dance is that?
I am just so sad that Tim Russert is gone. My Sundays will never be the same. I will miss him tomorrow, and next Sunday, and the Sunday after, and every Sunday... I will remember you, Tim Russert, always.
C.C.
