Words: 72 (missing J,Q,X,Z)
Blocks: 34
I really like the look of this labyrinthine grid - I hope it was not as hard for you to work through as it was for me - but I might just be tired. I got blanked in the NE, had to Google a couple of things in order to get anything at all. One grid climber today:
6D. The Falcons of the Mountain West Conference : AIR FORCE ACADEMY - Colorado Springs, CO
and some of the two pairs of 10's and 9's in the corners;
17A. Honda CRF, e.g. : TRAIL BIKE - one I had to look up; I pondered ELECTRIC CAR, but it ran out of juice
28D. Its English version has more than 3.5 million entries : WIKTIONARY - Started with DICtionary, and that was close enough
3D. Silly goose or sitting duck : NOUN-PHRASE - learning moment for me - the Wiki
54A. Loretta Lynn's father was one : COAL MINER - is a child who was bad this year going to be a "COAL MINOR" at Christmas?
ward on~!
ACROSS:
1. Fiji neighbor : TONGA
6. Round server? : ALE HOUSE - DAH~! I tried BARMAID, too short, BARTENDER, too long....
14. Cutter cousin : SLOOP - boats - or should I say, ships
15. Research activity : FIELD TRIP - I took a "field trip" this week; UPS sent me to Queens for two days to deliver - what a completely different operation~! I spent my 10-hours yesterday on FOUR blocks, period, delivering 300 packages.
16. Hot-and-cold feelings : AGUES - meh
6. Round server? : ALE HOUSE - DAH~! I tried BARMAID, too short, BARTENDER, too long....
14. Cutter cousin : SLOOP - boats - or should I say, ships
15. Research activity : FIELD TRIP - I took a "field trip" this week; UPS sent me to Queens for two days to deliver - what a completely different operation~! I spent my 10-hours yesterday on FOUR blocks, period, delivering 300 packages.
16. Hot-and-cold feelings : AGUES - meh
18. Cost : RAN TO - this one still gets me; needed some perps to remind me
19. Honda et al.: Abbr. : MFRs - slight clecho from 17A; manufacturers
20. 1969 Tommy James and the Shondells hit : "SHE" - The other one I needed to look up
21. Canadian road sign letters : KPH - Kilometres per hour - no, wait that's British....Columbia???
22. Recent delivery : NEONATE - I just couldn't think of anything but NEWBORN
25. Architect Mies van der __ : ROHE
26. Cellphone display : BARS - signal strength
27. Midwestern tribe : IOWAs
31. Like some discount mdse. : IRRegular
32. "Powerage" band : AC/DC - going with a gratuitous Hard Rock music link from their previous album
33. Go away : VANISH
34. Org. led by David Stern : NBA - All perps; don't follow basketball
35. Infuse with : STEEP IN
37. The Wildcats of the Big 12 Conf. : KSU - A bit of a redundancy with the grid climber
38. Composer Holst : GUSTAV - English composer, famous for "The Planets"; his "Mars" piece was the inspiration for this number from the godfathers of Heavy Metal
40. Is not misused? : AIN'T - Isn't, misused
41. Noir protagonist : TEC - Detective, from the genre
42. Power : STEAM
43. Troubling spots : ACNE
44. Drop : SINK
45. Haberdashery items : TIE TACS
47. On a roll : HOT
48. Devil : IMP
51. Bank deposit : LODE
52. Philatelist's purchases : PANES - of stamps
57. Get around : EVADE
58. "Li'l Abner" Tony winner, 1956 : EDIE ADAMS
59. iComfort maker : SERTA - hey~! NOT an Apple product~!
60. With equanimity : SEDATELY
61. "Shame __!" : ON YOU
DOWN:
1. Peter the Great, e.g. : TSAR
2. First International Gymnastics Hall of Fame inductee : OLGA KORBUT - seemed like the best WAG money could buy
4. "Faust" author : GOETHE
5. It roughly translates to "bearded" in Tibet : APSO
7. Picks up : LEARNS
8. Woman in a "Paint Your Wagon" song : ELISA
9. Aerobic exercise can raise it, briefly : HDL - ah, not BPM (heart-rate)
10. Wagering option, briefly : OTB - Dah~! not I.O.U.?
11. "Gunfight at the O.K. Corral" screenwriter : URIS (Leon)
12. Punjab sect member : SIKH
13. It's almost pointless : EPEE - tough way to clue a crossword staple - I could think of so many items without a point - even considered "KNEE" for a moment
15. NSA headquarters site : Ft. MEADE
22. "Grimm" network : NBC-TV - I WAGed ABC-TV, and was 80% right
23. Red Sox Hall of Fame pitcher Luis : TIANT - I defer to our C.C., who is proabably jonesing for some baseball these days (C.C.: I drew a blank. Wiki shows he was with the Twins in 1970. Notice the wording of the clue: He was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame, not Cooperstown.)
24. Forever and a day : EON
25. Gymnastic event : RINGS
29. Gave the go-ahead for : ASSENTED TO - started with SAID ---- TO
30. Peel off : SHUCK - not SHAVE - that showed up at 44D
32. "Same here" : AS AM I - what's an "asami"?
33. Jungle features : VINES
36. Grasping organ : PINCERS - not very useful on those VINES in the Jungle, though. Some singular/plural deception
39. Bit of ink : TATtoo
43. Like some Hindemith works : ATONAL - If Mr. Silk says so....
44. Cut off : SHAVEN
46. Fail to say : ELIDE
48. Secures : ICES
49. Way : MODE
50. Took care of, in a way : PAID
52. Chilean cabbage? : PESO
53. Junior on the NFL 1990s All-Decade Team : SEAU
55. Rural area : LEA
56. Door closer? : MAT - Doormat - I've seen some funny ones at work (some are a little crass)
Splynter
Notes from C.C.:
1) Please click here for a great tribute puzzle George Barany & Friends constructed.
2) Bill G, you did it! The first one on the blog. You rock!!
3) Here is a picture of our Farmer/Philosopher Windhover. Click on it for a clearer image. He said this on the blog:
"I'm not generally in the habit of wearing feather boas (again, not that there's anything wrong with that). The pic was taken at a recent Hallowe'en party. The Irish went as Little Debbie (the Atlanta-based snack food entrepeneuress, not the one who "Did Dallas") and I was a Swiss Roll snack cake. I figured no one would "get it", but I was wrong. They were all already drinking when we arrived, and as you know alcohol sharpens the mind. (I learned that from Cliff on Cheers)."
Click here to see a picture of his lovely wife Irish & my favorite picture of him.
Notes from C.C.:
1) Please click here for a great tribute puzzle George Barany & Friends constructed.
2) Bill G, you did it! The first one on the blog. You rock!!
3) Here is a picture of our Farmer/Philosopher Windhover. Click on it for a clearer image. He said this on the blog:
"I'm not generally in the habit of wearing feather boas (again, not that there's anything wrong with that). The pic was taken at a recent Hallowe'en party. The Irish went as Little Debbie (the Atlanta-based snack food entrepeneuress, not the one who "Did Dallas") and I was a Swiss Roll snack cake. I figured no one would "get it", but I was wrong. They were all already drinking when we arrived, and as you know alcohol sharpens the mind. (I learned that from Cliff on Cheers)."
Click here to see a picture of his lovely wife Irish & my favorite picture of him.
