Three different takes on the act of sniffing.
20-Across. [sniff] : I'VE CAUGHT A COLD. In my case, I'm sniffling because of allergies.
37-Across. [sniff] : THIS IS REALLY SAD. All right, fess up. How many of you cried at the end of "Steel Magnolias"?
56-Across. [sniff] : WHAT'S THAT SMELL? Does your S.O. hold the milk up to your nose and ask if you think it's still good?
I have blogged Jeffrey's puzzles so often, that I can finally spell his name without looking back at the puzzle information. ;-)
Across:
1. Bit of plankton : ALGA. Nailed it. ("This is gonna be a piece of cake!")
5. Venus and Mars : ORBS. ("Ummm...")
9. Actress Thompson of "Veronica Mars" : TESSA. ("Uh-oh, I'm in trouble...")
14. Small deer : ROES. I wasn't thinking in the plural!
15. Roman numerals may be seen on one : DIAL. My first thought. But I held off because everything else up north was pretty blank for a while.
16. Coveted annual honor : OSCAR. Took a minute, but it came to me.
17. Very aware of : TUNED IN TO.
19. Caroler's wear, often : SCARF.
22. Sun. speech : SER.mon.
23. Expressive music genre : EMO.
24. Sport fishing quarry : MARLIN. I found lots of clips on you tube, but this one was just crazy scary to me. 3:19
26. Way around London : TRAM. I noticed immediately that "double-decker bus" would not fit.
28. Debatable skill : ESP.
30. Manner of speaking : TONE.
31. Rueful : GRIEVOUS.
36. Shepherd's __ : PIE. I still remember the delicious shepherd's PIE that my grammar school cook used to serve.
41. "Jingle Bells" contraction : O'ER.
42. Some road signals : BLINKERS. The car's blinkers, or the yellow blinking light?
43. Desertlike : ARID.
45. Otoscope user, for short : ENT. I never knew that Tolkien's giant trees used otoscopes? ;-)
(Ear Nose and Throat doctor)
46. Hurricane __ : LAMP.
50. Knock it off : DESIST.
52. Inflation meas. : PSI. Pounds per Square Inch.
55. "Alice in Wonderland" (2010) star Wasikowska : MIA. She and Johnny Depp were very good in this version.
60. Botch : MISDO.
61. Cockpit option : AUTO PILOT.
62. Expensive : STEEP.
63. Not at all pleasant : GRIM.
64. NYC-to-Montauk system : LIRR. Long Island Rail Road.
65. Frauds : SHAMS.
66. Barnyard meal : SLOP.
67. Cocker spaniel of film : LADY...and the Tramp.
Down
1. Recording __ : ARTIST.
2. Vent opening : LOUVER. Nit. The louver is what covers or exposes the vent opening.
3. Canis and Felis : GENERA. Your generic dog and cat.
4. "Give me __" : A SEC.
5. Disgust : ODIUM.
6. "Don't Pass Me By" songwriter : RINGO.
7. Bad thing to take in Vegas? : BATH.
8. Pinball machine feature : SLOT. Ah yes, you never get to use all the other features until you put your coin in the SLOT.
9. 1900 Teatro Costanzi premiere : TOSCA. Nailed it. Rome's original opera house.
10. Go with : ESCORT.
11. Food often served seared : SCALLOPS. I just made those the other night, and served them with a balsamic reduction. Yumm.
12. Autonomous region of Italy : SARDINIA. There were five choices.
13. Dog's declaration : ARF.
18. Actor Daniel __ Kim : DAE. Remember him from Hawaii Five-O?
21. Pharmaceutical container : AMPULE.
25. Grant factor : NEED.
27. Classic two-seated roadsters : MGs.
28. It happens : EVENT. Because "S**T" was too short. ;-)
29. Overcharge : SOAK.
32. Barbecue morsel : RIB. Mmmm...it's getting to be that time of year, when we use our favorite 52-Down. Cookout site : PATIO.
33. The Skerries in the 39-Down, e.g. : ISLETS. And 39-Down. View from Liverpool : IRISH SEA.
34. Yeats' home : ERIN.
35. Camera shop offering, briefly : SLR.
37. "The Wind in the Willows" figure : TOAD.
38. Legalese adverb : HEREWITH.
40. Fashion monogram : YSL. Yves St. Laurent.
44. Crown jewels item : DIADEM.
47. First name in aviation history : AMELIA.
48. Upper-class address : MILORD.
49. Insignificant : PALTRY.
51. Conductor's calls : STOPS.
53. Tread heavily : STOMP.
54. NetZero, e.g.: Abbr. : ISP.
57. Puts (out) : TAGS.
58. Throw hard : HURL.
59. Paper or pepper source : MILL.
60. Ed.'s pile : MSS. Manuscripts. The second "S" is not just the plural of the abbreviation. It follows the rule of doubling the last letter of the abbreviation, similar to using "pp" for the plural of "pages."
And that's it from me for now. Your turn!
Marti
