Our divine miss m is back on a Friday, and I really appreciated having this puzzle awaiting me as I return from Jamaica. This is a straightforward 5 theme puzzle with the CH in each 'in the language' phrase changed to SH and clued with her normal wit and charm. I found it easier than most of her Fridays but maybe the rest and rum gave me clarity. I enjoyed the six letter stacks at the top and bottom juxtaposed to the theme and the balance of PRIME TIME and CERTIFIED. So come along for a walk through the fertile Friday mind of marti.
17A. Liner with Intel inside? : SILICON SHIP. (11)(CHIP). Ocean liners are ships and Intel is the largest maker of Silicon chips. 'Intel inside' is their advertising mantra.
22A. Nylon notable? : SHEER LEADER.(11)(CHEER). Cheerleaders seldom wear hose until they get to the Cowboys. My favorite one.
37A. Get one's kicks in a painful way? : TAKE IT ON THE SHIN.(15)(CHIN). Shins are so sensitive and then again a chin can be too.
47A. Principal plant? : THE BIG SHILL. (11)(CHILL).We just had SHILL and the MOVIE was a big success.
60A. Surprise the neighborhood? : SHOCK A BLOCK.(11)(CHOCK).CHOCKABLOCK is a wonderful word meaning filled up with, really creative.
Across:
1. Set count : REPS. Repetitions, another of those pesky mini-words, an abbreviation that has become a word. This is from working out at the gym, which I did everyday I was in Jamaica.
5. Ally of Sun : CHIANG. The post Imperialistic China was ruled initially by SUN YAT-SEN and later his ally CHIANG KAI-CHECK. They were both frequent topics for the grown ups I observed as a small child.
11. Relocation aid : VAN. Really?
14. Unrestrainedly : AMOK. Do you need to be running?
15. Divulges : LETS ON. Whatever you do, do not let on that you know she is pregnant.
16. As per : A LA. French.
19. One may be flipped : LID.This expression comes from a time when everyone wore hats?
20. When many night visions occur? : PRIME TIME. Nice clue.
21. Revealing garb : MINI. The short skirt returned the same year I started college, oh my the distractions.
25. Bag : VALISE. A nice old fashioned word.
29. High mountain : ALP. Now you know this is a marti creation.
30. "Yikes!" : EGAD. Another of her favorites, she based an entire puzzle on the word.
31. Lock : TRESS.
34. "Gerontion" poet's monogram : TSE. Don't know the work (I am terrible at titles) but it is always Eliot.
41. Rush participant's prize : ORE. Rush like a gold rush, nice deception even if 'prize' is a bit misleading.
42. Fields : AREAS.
43. Give for a while : LEND. Interesting definition.
44. Music-licensing org. : BMI. ASCAP and BMI are the two biggest.HOW IT WORKS.
45. Meshes : AGREES.
53. Playground bouncer : BALL.
54. Like some important letters : CERTIFIED.
59. Pay stub? : OLA. Payola.
62. Take home : NET.
63. University of Minnesota mascot Goldy __ : GOPHER. My first post here was discussing college team names, like golden gophers; and, 56D. New York college with a mascot named Killian : IONA. Now this is obscure.
64. Unsigned, briefly : ANON. The ultimate SO to our biggest fans.
65. Private __ : EYE.
66. Professorial duds : TWEEDS. Don't forget the patches on the elbows.
67. Numerous : MANY.
Down:
1. Scrape : RASP.
2. Mideast VIP : EMIR.
3. __ sci : POLI. This used to be a popular major for pre-law, but no longer in favor.
4. Take from the top : SKIM. Skimming profits is still a problem.
5. Dress : CLOTHE.
6. '20s-'30s skating gold medalist : HENIE. For you CA (3:30)
7. Personal answer : IT'S ME. I hope our English teachers do not cringe too badly. 9D. "__ can't" : NO I. yes you can! 38D. "__ Said": Neil Diamond hit : I AM I. Not familiar with this song. (mini-theme?)
8. "My Name Is __ Lev": Chaim Potok novel : ASHER. One of Hahtoolah's favorite books.
10. 57-Down measure : GNP. Gross National Product. Isn't it interesting that GROSS has three such disparate meanings.
11. Bona fide : VALID. From the Latin.
12. Dress style : A-LINE. Your new star? At least Miley has some clothes on.
13. Floor : NADIR. Oh come on marti (Rich) I know it is the opposite of Zenith (highest point) but I would not call a ceiling a zenith. Frankly it makes me want to Ralph.
18. Pool lead-in : CESS. Drat, I do not want any cess in my pool!
21. Tourist's guide : MAP.
23. Secure at the dock : LASH. Such a fun word. Reminds me of LaRue.
24. Otherwise : ELSE.
25. Highest power? : VETO. veto power being the ultimate control.
26. Petri dish filler : AGAR.
27. Vacation destination : LAKE. miss m lives not far from Webster Lake, which is also known as Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg. LINK.
28. Chemical suffix : IDE.
31. Digital temperature gauge? : TOE. A great visual of people approaching the Ocean.
32. Genetic messenger : RNA. RIBONUCLEIC ACID.
33. Unexpected fictional visitors : ETS. Extra Terrestrials, I am not sure how unexpected they are anymore.
34. You, to a Friend : THEE. Friends are how Quakers address each other.
35. Function in 39-Down : SINE. 39D. It involves angles, for short : TRIGonometry.
36. Scraps : ENDS. As in, scrapping a project.
40. 35mm camera option : SLR. Single Lens Reflex.
44. Marathon unit: Abbr. : BBL. 42 gallons of oil make one Barrel.
45. Trains may stop at them : ALTARS. Another typical fun visual, the train on the wedding dress. The wedding in Jamaica was informal for all but the bride, who wore the formal white dress with train.
46. Smooth-talking : GLIB. MW says it comes from Low German glibberig slippery.
47. Chophouse choice : T-BONE. What are the steaks of choice here, or are we all vegans?
48. Tin Man actor Jack : HALEY. A wonderful SO for our own.
49. Make merry : ELATE.
50. Breadth : SCOPE. Is that why they named the product which makes your BREATH smell good.
51. "Wag the Dog" actress : HECHE. Anne, ex-companion of Ellen. The TRAILER. (2:28) Good cast.
52. Ticked : IRKED.
55. Hoax : FLAM. Flim? I have never seen or heard this word without FLIM attached.
57. Coll. major : ECONomics.
58. Fashion letters : DKNY. Donna Karan New York.
60. York, for one: Abbr. : SGT. WWI hero.
61. Do-it-yourselfer's concern : HOW. Yes the books are often HOW TO....... I wonder if I can get C.C. to write a how to do a crossword blog. There are books on solving and on constructing, but...
Well I guess this is the end of another edition of the Idiot's Guide to a Friday LAT. Great to be back! (Nah, Jamaica and all-inclusive was awesome, I even was putting Rum in my coffee.) Lemonade (spiked of course) out.
1) Here is a wonderful photo of JD & her husband Bob, all bundled up in layers. Click here for more pictures from JD's Yellowstone trip. She's now frolicking in Costa Rica.
2) Click here for a few Before & After pictures of Marti's renovation project for her next door house. The tenants move in tomorrow.
Top Floor Stairs, Before
Top Floor Stairs, After
3) Here is a great picture from Lemonade's Jamaica trip. Click here for more. I'm intrigued by the words on Charlott's T-shirt. Looks like "I am..."?
4) I made a mistake yesterday. Today we celebrate Pi Day & JJM's 56th birthday. He sent me these two cool pictures yesterday.
