Theme: Endearments
23A: Make palatable: SUGARCOAT
47A: Weight we hate?: LOVE HANDLES
72A: King novel: PET SEMATARY
97A: Ratel: HONEY BADGER
125A: Tiny dwelling: DOLL HOUSE
14D: Sultan of the Swat: BABE RUTH
16D: 1959 Peck/Kerr movie: BELOVED INFIDEL
52D: Golden parachute: SWEETHEART DEAL
90D: Last letter?: DEAR JOHN
I've never heard of "PET SEMATARY" or "HONEY BADGER". Had no idea that the latter is the most fearless animal on earth. The clue "Ratel" looked like a kind of palm tree to me. I must have mixed it up with "Rattan" or something else.
I loved this puzzle. Very sweet theme and engaging theme answers. I was surprised that there was no DARLING in the grid. Don't you ever call your loved one DARLING at home?
I think I've seen enough RYA (70D: Scandinavian rug) and ERECT (98D: Put up) this week. So annoying! The clue for IRAN (27A: Iraq neighbor) was very jarring too. Why not simply "Turkey neighbor"? I was also stumped by SPEEDUPS (65A: Increases in pace). I thought the clue was asking for a verb phrases, so I kept wanting SPEEDS UP.
Across:
9A: Tree with huge trunk: BAOBAB. It's indeed huge. I've heard of "monkey bread tree". But I did not know that it's called BAOBAB in English.
19A: NASA's ISS partner: ESA (European Space Agency)
20A: City in Provence: ARLES. Van Gogh painted here! This is his "View of ARLES with Irises". Do you like it?
21A: Floating fleet: ARMADA
25A: 2nd best: GRADE B
26A: Pitcher's rubber: SLAB. Ha, new baseball slang to me.
28A: Baudelaire's "Paris __": SPLEEN. The title SPLEEN here refers to "bad temper", not the organ. I've never heard of Charles Baudelaire before. Wikipedia says he also wrote "The Flowers of Evil", and it's "important in the symbolist and modernist. The subject matter of these poems deals with themes relating to decadence and eroticism."
30A: Zeno's birthplace: ELEA. Last time's "Whence Zeno" clue brought hundreds of new visitors to this blog.
33A: Cassia plant: SENNA. Very pretty, in full bloom. Wikipedia says the leaves and flowers of SENNA are used in Thai cooking. I did not know that some of SENNA stems can grow as high as six feet.
35A: Fine porcelain: SPODE. I forgot. Identical clue on another TMS puzzle. SPODE china is named after British potter Josiah SPODE. Good example of EPONYM (29D: Word derived from someone's name).
44A: 1964 A.L. Rookie of the year: OLIVA (Tony). This clue makes me happy. I love Tony OLIVA.
50A: Starter's starter?: ESS. Clever clue.
54A: Segal and Leinsdorf: ERICHS. I got it from down clues. I know neither of them.
69A: Wrongly convicted French soldier of the 1890ss: DREYFUS (Alfred). I googled his name, then I realized that he was the guy in Zola's "J'accuse" letter.
71A: Way of old Rome: ITER
77A: John Tyler's First Lady: LETITIA. I googled again. I did not know her name. I had no idea that John Tyler had a second "First Lady" too (Julia Gardiner Tyler).
79A: Alfonso's queen: ENA. She looks a bit rebellious. Her grandson Juan Carlos is the current king of Spain.
80A: Coastal resident: SEASIDER. Hmmm, this reminds me of the limericks "There once was a man from Nantucket...."
83A: Lge. landmass: CONT. And ISL (121D: Sm. landmass). Oh by the way, I was really in awe of the ISLS clue last Saturday. But later I found out that it was not original. Someone else tried "Christmas or Easter, briefly" for ISL several years ago.
87A: City on the Adige: TRENT. I forgot, yet again. It was just here last Sunday, identical clue. Here is the map. I bet this clue would be different if Senator TRENT Lott were still in the office.
91A: Maltreat: ILL-USE. I've never heard of "ILL-USE" before. Good to learn.
100A: Callaway's "Big" driver: BERTHA. Nice Big BERTHA driver. Callaway also has Big BERTHA iron sets. But why quotation mark for Big?
102A: Broadcast talent org.: AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists). Not familiar with this acronym. Were they involved in the writer's strike earlier this year?
103A: Denver concert site: RED ROCKS. New to me. Oh my goodness, gorgeous photo. WP says U2 performed here in June 1983, and their performance was later included in Rolling Stone's list of the "50 Moments that Changed Rock and Roll".
107A: Pollen-bearing organs: ANTHERS. I like the drops of dew on this flower petal. ANTHER is from ANTHOS, Greek for flower.
112A: Old Ford model: LTD. Learned this LTD model from doing Xword. LTD is always "Inc." to me.
113A: Open some: AJAR. I suppose "Open" here is an adjective. But "Open some" does not make any sense to me. What does "some" mean here?
115A: Nervous system disorder: CHOREA. New to me. It's defined as "any of various disorders of the nervous system marked by involuntary, jerky movements, especially of the arms, legs, and face, and by incoordination." From Greek chorós, dance, the same root as "chorus". No wonder dictionary says this disorder is also called "Saint Vitus' dance".
120S: Helmut's three: DREI. Eins, zwei, DREI.
128: M. de Balzac: HONORE. Had no idea that Balzac's given name is HONORE. One of my favorite Chinese authors, Fu Lei, was very influenced by Balzac.
131A: Caterwaul: YELL. I did not know the meaning of "caterwaul".
132A: Caught red-handed: NAILED. Lois probably wanted the clue to be "Used a hammer".
133A: Virgule: SLASH. I forgot the meaning of "Virgule".
134A: TV's "Science Guy" Bill: NYE. He has become a stalwart in our puzzle.
Down:
1D: Put up a fight: RESIST. I would add some romantism and clue RESIST as "Withstand the lure of".
2D: Loan shark: USURER
3D: 1998 Olympics city: NAGANO. Can never remember the English name for this city. Only knew its Chinese name 長野市.
9D: Author of "National Velvet": BAGNOLD (Enid). Good to see her surname being the answer.
11D: Tumor: suff.: OMA. Ha, I actually remember this OMA.
13D: Ms. Rogers St. Johns: ADELA. Her autobiography is named " The Honeycomb". Could be a good theme entry too.
17D: Almost a ringer: LEANER. Horseshoes terms. It's "a thrown horseshoe that leans against the stake." New to me.
18D: Carve relief: EMBOSS
31D: Pretentious performer: ARTISTE. I don't understand the clue. Why "Pretentious"? ARTISTE is just a French word for artist, isn't it?
36D: No-win situation: DILEMMA. Do you like "Catch-22"?
41D: CXII halved: LVI. Roman 56.
51D: Group of seven: SEPTETS. Trio & quartet.
60D: Like horror movie: EERIE. That's how I felt about "The X-Files".
64D: Iceland currency: EYRIR. Did not know this Iceland coin.
74D: International accord: ENTENTE. And PEACE (67D: Dove's desire).
75D: Stone-worker's block: ASHLAR. Had no idea that such kind of block is called ASHLAR.
78D: Windpipe: TRACHEA. The respiratory tube. New to me also.
84D: Workplace safety grp.: OSHA
93D: J. Hancocked?: SGD (Signed).
99D: Popeil company: RONCO. "But wait, there's more!"
100D: In a blunt manner: BALDLY. Did not know that bald also means "blunt".
104D: Supporting pillar: COLUMN
105D: Klown on "The Simpsons": KRUSTY. Another google. Here he is.
106D: Derrick for loading cargo: STEEVE. It's not in my dictionary. I still could not believe this is a real word.
114D: "Aurora" fresco painter Guido: RENI. See this captivating "Aurora", so soft and harmonious in touches. I like the mythological themes in his and Raphael's paintings. Very beautiful & poetic!
116D: Muslim unit of weight: ROTL. I simply forgot. Stared at _ OTL for eons.
C.C.
23A: Make palatable: SUGARCOAT
47A: Weight we hate?: LOVE HANDLES
72A: King novel: PET SEMATARY
97A: Ratel: HONEY BADGER
125A: Tiny dwelling: DOLL HOUSE
14D: Sultan of the Swat: BABE RUTH
16D: 1959 Peck/Kerr movie: BELOVED INFIDEL
52D: Golden parachute: SWEETHEART DEAL
90D: Last letter?: DEAR JOHN
I've never heard of "PET SEMATARY" or "HONEY BADGER". Had no idea that the latter is the most fearless animal on earth. The clue "Ratel" looked like a kind of palm tree to me. I must have mixed it up with "Rattan" or something else.
I loved this puzzle. Very sweet theme and engaging theme answers. I was surprised that there was no DARLING in the grid. Don't you ever call your loved one DARLING at home?
I think I've seen enough RYA (70D: Scandinavian rug) and ERECT (98D: Put up) this week. So annoying! The clue for IRAN (27A: Iraq neighbor) was very jarring too. Why not simply "Turkey neighbor"? I was also stumped by SPEEDUPS (65A: Increases in pace). I thought the clue was asking for a verb phrases, so I kept wanting SPEEDS UP.
Across:
9A: Tree with huge trunk: BAOBAB. It's indeed huge. I've heard of "monkey bread tree". But I did not know that it's called BAOBAB in English.
19A: NASA's ISS partner: ESA (European Space Agency)
20A: City in Provence: ARLES. Van Gogh painted here! This is his "View of ARLES with Irises". Do you like it?
21A: Floating fleet: ARMADA
25A: 2nd best: GRADE B
26A: Pitcher's rubber: SLAB. Ha, new baseball slang to me.
28A: Baudelaire's "Paris __": SPLEEN. The title SPLEEN here refers to "bad temper", not the organ. I've never heard of Charles Baudelaire before. Wikipedia says he also wrote "The Flowers of Evil", and it's "important in the symbolist and modernist. The subject matter of these poems deals with themes relating to decadence and eroticism."
30A: Zeno's birthplace: ELEA. Last time's "Whence Zeno" clue brought hundreds of new visitors to this blog.
33A: Cassia plant: SENNA. Very pretty, in full bloom. Wikipedia says the leaves and flowers of SENNA are used in Thai cooking. I did not know that some of SENNA stems can grow as high as six feet.
35A: Fine porcelain: SPODE. I forgot. Identical clue on another TMS puzzle. SPODE china is named after British potter Josiah SPODE. Good example of EPONYM (29D: Word derived from someone's name).
44A: 1964 A.L. Rookie of the year: OLIVA (Tony). This clue makes me happy. I love Tony OLIVA.
50A: Starter's starter?: ESS. Clever clue.
54A: Segal and Leinsdorf: ERICHS. I got it from down clues. I know neither of them.
69A: Wrongly convicted French soldier of the 1890ss: DREYFUS (Alfred). I googled his name, then I realized that he was the guy in Zola's "J'accuse" letter.
71A: Way of old Rome: ITER
77A: John Tyler's First Lady: LETITIA. I googled again. I did not know her name. I had no idea that John Tyler had a second "First Lady" too (Julia Gardiner Tyler).
79A: Alfonso's queen: ENA. She looks a bit rebellious. Her grandson Juan Carlos is the current king of Spain.
80A: Coastal resident: SEASIDER. Hmmm, this reminds me of the limericks "There once was a man from Nantucket...."
83A: Lge. landmass: CONT. And ISL (121D: Sm. landmass). Oh by the way, I was really in awe of the ISLS clue last Saturday. But later I found out that it was not original. Someone else tried "Christmas or Easter, briefly" for ISL several years ago.
87A: City on the Adige: TRENT. I forgot, yet again. It was just here last Sunday, identical clue. Here is the map. I bet this clue would be different if Senator TRENT Lott were still in the office.
91A: Maltreat: ILL-USE. I've never heard of "ILL-USE" before. Good to learn.
100A: Callaway's "Big" driver: BERTHA. Nice Big BERTHA driver. Callaway also has Big BERTHA iron sets. But why quotation mark for Big?
102A: Broadcast talent org.: AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists). Not familiar with this acronym. Were they involved in the writer's strike earlier this year?
103A: Denver concert site: RED ROCKS. New to me. Oh my goodness, gorgeous photo. WP says U2 performed here in June 1983, and their performance was later included in Rolling Stone's list of the "50 Moments that Changed Rock and Roll".
107A: Pollen-bearing organs: ANTHERS. I like the drops of dew on this flower petal. ANTHER is from ANTHOS, Greek for flower.
112A: Old Ford model: LTD. Learned this LTD model from doing Xword. LTD is always "Inc." to me.
113A: Open some: AJAR. I suppose "Open" here is an adjective. But "Open some" does not make any sense to me. What does "some" mean here?
115A: Nervous system disorder: CHOREA. New to me. It's defined as "any of various disorders of the nervous system marked by involuntary, jerky movements, especially of the arms, legs, and face, and by incoordination." From Greek chorós, dance, the same root as "chorus". No wonder dictionary says this disorder is also called "Saint Vitus' dance".
120S: Helmut's three: DREI. Eins, zwei, DREI.
128: M. de Balzac: HONORE. Had no idea that Balzac's given name is HONORE. One of my favorite Chinese authors, Fu Lei, was very influenced by Balzac.
131A: Caterwaul: YELL. I did not know the meaning of "caterwaul".
132A: Caught red-handed: NAILED. Lois probably wanted the clue to be "Used a hammer".
133A: Virgule: SLASH. I forgot the meaning of "Virgule".
134A: TV's "Science Guy" Bill: NYE. He has become a stalwart in our puzzle.
Down:
1D: Put up a fight: RESIST. I would add some romantism and clue RESIST as "Withstand the lure of".
2D: Loan shark: USURER
3D: 1998 Olympics city: NAGANO. Can never remember the English name for this city. Only knew its Chinese name 長野市.
9D: Author of "National Velvet": BAGNOLD (Enid). Good to see her surname being the answer.
11D: Tumor: suff.: OMA. Ha, I actually remember this OMA.
13D: Ms. Rogers St. Johns: ADELA. Her autobiography is named " The Honeycomb". Could be a good theme entry too.
17D: Almost a ringer: LEANER. Horseshoes terms. It's "a thrown horseshoe that leans against the stake." New to me.
18D: Carve relief: EMBOSS
31D: Pretentious performer: ARTISTE. I don't understand the clue. Why "Pretentious"? ARTISTE is just a French word for artist, isn't it?
36D: No-win situation: DILEMMA. Do you like "Catch-22"?
41D: CXII halved: LVI. Roman 56.
51D: Group of seven: SEPTETS. Trio & quartet.
60D: Like horror movie: EERIE. That's how I felt about "The X-Files".
64D: Iceland currency: EYRIR. Did not know this Iceland coin.
74D: International accord: ENTENTE. And PEACE (67D: Dove's desire).
75D: Stone-worker's block: ASHLAR. Had no idea that such kind of block is called ASHLAR.
78D: Windpipe: TRACHEA. The respiratory tube. New to me also.
84D: Workplace safety grp.: OSHA
93D: J. Hancocked?: SGD (Signed).
99D: Popeil company: RONCO. "But wait, there's more!"
100D: In a blunt manner: BALDLY. Did not know that bald also means "blunt".
104D: Supporting pillar: COLUMN
105D: Klown on "The Simpsons": KRUSTY. Another google. Here he is.
106D: Derrick for loading cargo: STEEVE. It's not in my dictionary. I still could not believe this is a real word.
114D: "Aurora" fresco painter Guido: RENI. See this captivating "Aurora", so soft and harmonious in touches. I like the mythological themes in his and Raphael's paintings. Very beautiful & poetic!
116D: Muslim unit of weight: ROTL. I simply forgot. Stared at _ OTL for eons.
C.C.
