Theme: Against the Clock
17A: Just before deadline: LAST MINUTE
49A: No time for photos: BAD HAIR DAY
11D: Blink: SPLIT SECOND
25D: Open mic night: AMATEUR HOUR
I disliked the clue for GIVES (43D: Hands over) because of the answer IN HAND (46A: Under control). A simple "Donates" should work perfectly. I also think "Var." should be added to the clue of SCEPTRES (9D: Sovereign's staffs).
Felt rather dumb this morning. Spent an awfully long time trying to figure out why LCS (3D) are "Letters before the W.S." I kept thinking of yesterday's Wall Street huge rally rather than the World Series. This is not the first time that I was stumped by LCS (League Championship Series).
Nice puzzle though. I like the theme, and the grid looks so pretty. But hang on a SECOND, if I drink MINUTE maid orange juice every morning, will I have an HOURglass figure? Or am I just a DAYdreamer?
Across:
1A: Future tulips: BULBS. Lovely pink tulip flowers.
14A: Computer data format: ASCII. I just have so much difficulty remembering this acronym.
19A: Hammer end: CLAW. What's the difference between CLAW and PEEN?
20A: Snappy one: BITER. Snakes are all BITERS, aren't they?
27A: Sawmill output: LUMBER. I've never been to a sawmill or LUMBER yard.
28A: Small spars: SPRITS. Not familiar with this sailing term. Here is a SPRITSAIL rigged boats.
34A: Suffragist Carrie: CATT. New to me. Carrie Chapman CATT. So many C's. She looks like Curt Schilling, doesn't she? This pair of Persian Blue dangling earrings will add some feminine touch to her face.
35A: Fraternity letters: BETAS. IT geeks probably want the clue to be bug related.
36A: 1405: MCDV
43A: Sergio and Andy: GARCIAS. It's never boring to watch Sergio play golf. I adore Andy GARCIAS in "The Untouchables" & "When a Man Loves a Woman". I like Michael Bolton, don't you?
46A: Under control: IN HAND. "Can I Touch You... There?"
47A: Legend automaker: ACURA
48A: Stringed instrument: VIOL. Which is harder to play, VIOLA or violin?
55A: "Dies ___": IRAE. So powerful and dynamic! Lots, lots of vodka!
56A: Day's march: ETAPE. Is it a commonly used word? I've never heard of it before.
58A: Ancient ointment: NARD. I forgot. It was clued as "Fragrant ointment" on an earlier puzzle. Also called spikenard, it's "a flowering plant that growns in Himalayas of China, India and Nepal". Melissa probably knows something about the NARD oil.
59A: Force units: DYNES
Down:
1D: Dance in France: BAL. Costume party is "BAL masqué".
2D: John Dos Passos trilogy: USA. I've never heard of this trilogy or the author. Very guessable though.
4D: Gradually: BIT BY BIT
5D: Literary comparisons: SIMILES. I did wake up feeling fresh as a daisy this morning. How about you? Got any inspirations from your dream last night?
10D: Reciprocal of a cosine: SECANT. Would not have got this word without the across clues.
28D: Girls of Sp: SRTAS (Señorita). French equivalent is MLLES.
32D: Infamous '50s flop: EDSEL. This has become a collectible car, right?
35D: Loaf location: BREAD BIN. Not BREAD BASKET? Who would want to put their bread in a BIN?
36D: Archrival of Sherlock Holmes: MORIARTY. Foreign to me also. I've never read any Arthur Conan Doyle novel.
38D: Vandyke site: CHIN. Strung the answer together from surrounds. I did not know the meaning of "Vandyke".
41D: Justice of the Supreme Court since 1986: SCALIA (Antonin). Probably the most consistently conservative justice.
42D: S. Amer. nation: ECUA. Its capital is Quito.
47D: Hebrew month: ADAR. The Purim month.
50D: Southern constellation: ARA. Or "Notre Dame's Parseghian".
C.C.
17A: Just before deadline: LAST MINUTE
49A: No time for photos: BAD HAIR DAY
11D: Blink: SPLIT SECOND
25D: Open mic night: AMATEUR HOUR
I disliked the clue for GIVES (43D: Hands over) because of the answer IN HAND (46A: Under control). A simple "Donates" should work perfectly. I also think "Var." should be added to the clue of SCEPTRES (9D: Sovereign's staffs).
Felt rather dumb this morning. Spent an awfully long time trying to figure out why LCS (3D) are "Letters before the W.S." I kept thinking of yesterday's Wall Street huge rally rather than the World Series. This is not the first time that I was stumped by LCS (League Championship Series).
Nice puzzle though. I like the theme, and the grid looks so pretty. But hang on a SECOND, if I drink MINUTE maid orange juice every morning, will I have an HOURglass figure? Or am I just a DAYdreamer?
Across:
1A: Future tulips: BULBS. Lovely pink tulip flowers.
14A: Computer data format: ASCII. I just have so much difficulty remembering this acronym.
19A: Hammer end: CLAW. What's the difference between CLAW and PEEN?
20A: Snappy one: BITER. Snakes are all BITERS, aren't they?
27A: Sawmill output: LUMBER. I've never been to a sawmill or LUMBER yard.
28A: Small spars: SPRITS. Not familiar with this sailing term. Here is a SPRITSAIL rigged boats.
34A: Suffragist Carrie: CATT. New to me. Carrie Chapman CATT. So many C's. She looks like Curt Schilling, doesn't she? This pair of Persian Blue dangling earrings will add some feminine touch to her face.
35A: Fraternity letters: BETAS. IT geeks probably want the clue to be bug related.
36A: 1405: MCDV
43A: Sergio and Andy: GARCIAS. It's never boring to watch Sergio play golf. I adore Andy GARCIAS in "The Untouchables" & "When a Man Loves a Woman". I like Michael Bolton, don't you?
46A: Under control: IN HAND. "Can I Touch You... There?"
47A: Legend automaker: ACURA
48A: Stringed instrument: VIOL. Which is harder to play, VIOLA or violin?
55A: "Dies ___": IRAE. So powerful and dynamic! Lots, lots of vodka!
56A: Day's march: ETAPE. Is it a commonly used word? I've never heard of it before.
58A: Ancient ointment: NARD. I forgot. It was clued as "Fragrant ointment" on an earlier puzzle. Also called spikenard, it's "a flowering plant that growns in Himalayas of China, India and Nepal". Melissa probably knows something about the NARD oil.
59A: Force units: DYNES
Down:
1D: Dance in France: BAL. Costume party is "BAL masqué".
2D: John Dos Passos trilogy: USA. I've never heard of this trilogy or the author. Very guessable though.
4D: Gradually: BIT BY BIT
5D: Literary comparisons: SIMILES. I did wake up feeling fresh as a daisy this morning. How about you? Got any inspirations from your dream last night?
10D: Reciprocal of a cosine: SECANT. Would not have got this word without the across clues.
28D: Girls of Sp: SRTAS (Señorita). French equivalent is MLLES.
32D: Infamous '50s flop: EDSEL. This has become a collectible car, right?
35D: Loaf location: BREAD BIN. Not BREAD BASKET? Who would want to put their bread in a BIN?
36D: Archrival of Sherlock Holmes: MORIARTY. Foreign to me also. I've never read any Arthur Conan Doyle novel.
38D: Vandyke site: CHIN. Strung the answer together from surrounds. I did not know the meaning of "Vandyke".
41D: Justice of the Supreme Court since 1986: SCALIA (Antonin). Probably the most consistently conservative justice.
42D: S. Amer. nation: ECUA. Its capital is Quito.
47D: Hebrew month: ADAR. The Purim month.
50D: Southern constellation: ARA. Or "Notre Dame's Parseghian".
C.C.
