Words: 70 (missing V,W,X)
Blocks: 33
Thought I was doomed on this one, with almost nothing in the Mid-North
and NE corners - then one quick change and a solid W.A.G. got me
enough to fill the grid - but alas, with two bad entries. Seemed like a
continuation of yesterday's proper names run, too (I count 18+ "*"), and yet another deceptive layout offering just two double stacked 11's inside the edges again, and two vertical 9's;
21. Barbecue sauce additive : LIQUID SMOKE - JACK DANIELS fit, too
25*. "Hard Times" chronicler : STUDS TERKEL - never heard of this guy, and crossing 8D., was one of my bad entries
46. They're often discounted : FLOOR MODELS
- I'm all for floor models and demo units - I can live with something
being 'Scratched and Dented" before I get it; it adds character, and
there's none of the anxiety of being the dumb-ass who does ding it first....
51. Skipped nothing : RAN THE GAMUT - RAN THROUGH fits if I skip something
6. Capricious : ARBITRARY - I thought arbitrary meant "bearer's' discretion"; that's def. #1; turns out that def #4 is this one, meaning "unreasonable"
32. Folk instruments named for a Greek god : PAN FLUTES
T-minus 56hrs 9mins onward~!
ACROSS:
1. Philip II's force : ARMADA
- I did not fill this in immediately; I was thinking of Philip, Duke of
Edinburgh, husband of Queen Elizabeth II; you have to understand, my
parents were born and raised in England, so the royal family gets a
lot of attention
7*. Gaelic name for Scotland : ALBA
11. "Top Gun" fighter : MIG - ah, not "ACE", and once this changed, 11D. revealed itself
14. On-call accessory : BEEPER
15. Saturnine : DOUR
16. Plug extension? : OLA - Plugola - new to me; it's essentially a payment to get one's product prominently mentioned in TV and films
17. Egyptian symbol used as a logo by the band Journey : SCARAB - Cool album cover
18*. "__ and the Paycock": O'Casey play : JUNO
19*. Garfield's veterinarian : LIZ - and I believe Jon's occasional date, too
19*. Garfield's veterinarian : LIZ - and I believe Jon's occasional date, too
20. West end? : ERN - WestERN
24. Rejections : NOs - for those keeping track, I had to scrub the Home Depot mission TWICE because a certain girl was not there two days in a row; I have been holding off on getting a custom paint color made so I have a reason to go back, but it's holding up the completion of the job....
24. Rejections : NOs - for those keeping track, I had to scrub the Home Depot mission TWICE because a certain girl was not there two days in a row; I have been holding off on getting a custom paint color made so I have a reason to go back, but it's holding up the completion of the job....
26*. Wizard revealer : TOTO - Toto, the dog, yanks the curtain in the Wizard of Oz
28*. University of Latvia locale : RIGA
29. Whiz : SAIL - As in "I whizzed through that test"
30*. Rockefeller's successor : MONDALE
32. Civil : POLITE
34. Powerful seniors' lobby : AARP - getting awful popular in CWs lately
35*. Mandlikova of tennis : HANA - I remembered her name as ANNA first
36. What a shrug may indicate : APATHY
39*. CIA director before Petraeus : PANETTA
42*. Lagoon of Venice resort : LIDO - Travel tips for those interested
43*. Random House co-founder : CERF
44*. Sam's twin in "Lord of the Flies" : ERIC
50. Miss the mark : ERR
52. Sushi staple : AHI
53. Two after epsilon : ETA
54. Sistine Chapel ceiling depiction : EDEN - not ADAM, not EROS; one place I would like to see in my time
55. Vestiges : TRACES
57. Agnus __ : DEI
58. Graduation party rental : TENT
59. Deerstalker feature : EAR LAP - this hat, of Sherlock Holmes fame
60. WWII spy gp. : OSS
61. Needlework in a parlor : TATS - tattoo parlor, that is
62. Brisk : SPEEDY
DOWN:
1. Cutting, maybe : ABSENT - from school
2. Family game night site : REC ROOM
3. Will, barring obstacles : MEANS TO
4. National Poetry Mo. : APRil
5. Gives everyone a hand : DEALS - card games
7. Deem : ADJUDGE - D'oh~! I put in assuage, and knew that was wrong
8*. Mrs. John Quincy Adams : LOUISA
9. Cake pan trademark : BUNDT
10. Materialized : AROSE
11*. Hawaiian island once used as a quarantine site : MOLOKAI
12. "Thumbs up!" : "I LIKE IT~!"
13. Epitome of grace : GAZELLE
22*. "The Old Curiosity Shop" villain : QUILP - no clue, all perps, the Wiki
23*. Prehistoric toon boss : MR. SLATE - Fred's boss; I confuse him with Mr. Spacely sometimes
28*. University of Latvia locale : RIGA
29. Whiz : SAIL - As in "I whizzed through that test"
30*. Rockefeller's successor : MONDALE
32. Civil : POLITE
34. Powerful seniors' lobby : AARP - getting awful popular in CWs lately
35*. Mandlikova of tennis : HANA - I remembered her name as ANNA first
36. What a shrug may indicate : APATHY
39*. CIA director before Petraeus : PANETTA
42*. Lagoon of Venice resort : LIDO - Travel tips for those interested
43*. Random House co-founder : CERF
44*. Sam's twin in "Lord of the Flies" : ERIC
50. Miss the mark : ERR
52. Sushi staple : AHI
53. Two after epsilon : ETA
54. Sistine Chapel ceiling depiction : EDEN - not ADAM, not EROS; one place I would like to see in my time
55. Vestiges : TRACES
57. Agnus __ : DEI
58. Graduation party rental : TENT
59. Deerstalker feature : EAR LAP - this hat, of Sherlock Holmes fame
60. WWII spy gp. : OSS
61. Needlework in a parlor : TATS - tattoo parlor, that is
62. Brisk : SPEEDY
DOWN:
1. Cutting, maybe : ABSENT - from school
2. Family game night site : REC ROOM
3. Will, barring obstacles : MEANS TO
4. National Poetry Mo. : APRil
5. Gives everyone a hand : DEALS - card games
7. Deem : ADJUDGE - D'oh~! I put in assuage, and knew that was wrong
8*. Mrs. John Quincy Adams : LOUISA
9. Cake pan trademark : BUNDT
10. Materialized : AROSE
11*. Hawaiian island once used as a quarantine site : MOLOKAI
12. "Thumbs up!" : "I LIKE IT~!"
13. Epitome of grace : GAZELLE
22*. "The Old Curiosity Shop" villain : QUILP - no clue, all perps, the Wiki
23*. Prehistoric toon boss : MR. SLATE - Fred's boss; I confuse him with Mr. Spacely sometimes
27. Partying it up : ON A TOOT - DAH~! not "on a TEAR"
31. Morse code unit : DAH - hey, wait, that's my word~!
33. A : ONE - there are a few ways 'one' could explain this; or is that "a" blogger?
35*. Scheherazade's milieu : HAREM - Learning moment for me
36. Ristorante sauce : ALFREDO
37*. Eponymous workout creator Joseph : PILATES
38*. Keats, in a Shelley title : ADONAIS
39. Hairsplitting types : PEDANTS
40. Cloying sentimentality : TREACLE
41. Space cadet : AIRHEAD
43. Well-expressed : COGENT
45. Like fried wontons : CRISPY
47*. Fictional blockade runner Butler : RHETT
48*. Argonauts' helper : MEDEA
49. Narrow band : STRAP - I tried STRIP first
56. Is for more than one? : ARE