Theme: WHERE WAS I (66. Lost-one's-place words often preceded by the two-letter start of 17-, 29- and 49-Across)
17A. Rental vehicles for self-moving: U-HAUL VANS. Uh, I ...
29A. Designed for comfort and efficiency: ERGONOMIC. Er. I ...
49A. Rainy day protectors: UMBRELLAS. Um, ...
Boomer here.
UH, Years ago I attended UM (University of Minnesota) for a year. UH, I got one A in Bowling, 2 "B"s in Math courses, a couple of "C"s and ER one "F". D UH.
As a devout baseball fan, I am happy to honor Jackie Robinson as his normal MLB day was changed from April 15 to August 29 this year. Players on all teams wore uniforms numbered 42 in Jackie's honor and I am proud to display my 1955 Topps Double Header card from my set.
1. Asks for a treat, as a boxer: BEGS. I am pretty sure that Muhammad Ali never had to beg for anything.
5. Site of a boxer's attack: RING.
9. Chocolate syrup brand since 1928: BOSCO. Wow, there's a brand out of the past. I remember their commercials but I never had any. Must have been too expensive.
14. Circus prefix with bat: ACRO.
15. Diva's delivery: ARIA. Of course, I was in the Benilde High
School Glee Club. Every Spring we would do a joint concert with two of
the Catholic girls' schools in Minneapolis. We delivered some pretty
good ARIAs back then, if I do say so myself.
16. "This __ much!": "I'm overwhelmed!": IS TOO. "Is not".
19. "Pleasantly" chubby: PLUMP. We go for the PLUMP Watermelon.
20. President after Madison: MONROE. Wow, we go way back to 1817 and he was from the Democratic Republican party. They must have split up sometime later.
21. Mother-of-pearl sources: ABALONES.
23. Has title to: OWNS. I have a title to my van, but I also own 14 golf clubs and about that many bowling balls. Never won a title in golf but I have a couple in bowling.
25. __ standstill: AT A.
26. Tea biscuit: SCONE. I wonder if Baskin Robbins has S CONES ?
35. Guffaw syllable: HAR. Not sure if Oliver Hardy made this famous, but he is the first guy I ever heard him say HAR, HAR, HARDY, HAR. HAR..
36. Pirate in "Hook": SMEE. Played by Bob Hoskins.
38. U.S. state with the lowest average annual rainfall: NEVADA.
We usually get there once a year. I don't ever remember getting wet
there. However we are skipping the retirees party this year. No vaccine,
no plane rides to Nevada.
39. Horse known for its endurance: ARAB.
41. Wed: UNITE.
43. Not fer: AGIN. Beverly Hillbillies' accent.
44. Wisdom teeth, e.g.: MOLARS. I have fake teeth now, but in my younger years, I never cut any wisdom teeth. I guess you need to be wise to get them.
46. Fabled loch: NESS.
48. Stooge Howard: MOE. With Larry and Curly, my favorites.
51. Casual conversations: CHATS.
53. Contend (for): VIE.
54. Bro of van Gogh: THEO. "But I could have told you Vincent, this world was never made for one as beautiful as you". Starry Night - Don McClean.
56. Dedicatee of an annual MLB tribute game: OLD TIMER. Count me in.
61. Snare: ENTRAP.
65. Lion's warnings: ROARS.
68. Lake craft: CANOE.
69. Bubbly-textured Nestlé chocolate bar: AERO. N-E-S-T-L-E-S. Nestles makes the very bet, Chocolate.
70. Muscle pain: ACHE. I get them all of the time. Some of my golfing friends are a pain in a different location.
71. Change for the better: AMEND.
72. Tall tale: YARN.
73. Classic Jaguars: XKES. "I was cruisin' in my Sting Ray late one night, when an XKE pulled up on the right. Dead Man's Curve - The Beach Boys.
Down:
1. Wicked Witch of the West creator: BAUM. "The wind began to switch, the house to pitch. and suddenly the hinges started to unhitch."
2. Reverberate: ECHO. Hallo, Hallo. Hallo
3. Mom's mom: GRAN. We always called Mom's Mom "Grandma"
4. Become disenchanted with: SOUR ON.
5. Poe's "ebony bird": RAVEN. "Nevermore"
6. Nest egg letters: IRA. I saw plenty of nest eggs at my Uncle
Bill's farm. They did not have pictures of president's (or Hamilton or
Franklin) on them,.
7. Columbus ship: NINA. This guy always has amazed me. He packed up three ships and sailed across the Atlantic looking for India.
8. Chatterbox: GASBAG.
9. Double-winged WWI aircraft: BIPLANE. Also amazing what flew in the 1910s.
10. Norway's capital: OSLO.
11. Leave slack-jawed: STUN.
12. Arrive: COME. Hi, Ho, COME to the fair. We have a big one in Minnesota, but not this year. No Covid spread wanted.
13. "Sorry, my mistake": OOPS.
18. The Home Depot competitor: LOWE'S. We usually use Home Depot. Closer to our home and 10% discount for veterans.
22. Shows contrition: ATONES. Okay, Sorry if I bored you. Monday
puzzles are fairly easy.
24. Noticed: SEEN.
26. Former SeaWorld star: SHAMU. Interesting. I went to Orlando
for a golf outing a couple of times in the eighties. We went to Disney
and Epcot but skipped Sea World. In the Land of 10,000 lakes, if
you've seen one sea you've seen them all.
27. Off-the-cushion billiards shot: CAROM.
28. Dental care brand: ORAL- B. I just use a cup and a fizzy tablet for my dental care.
30. Spanish queen: REINA.
31. Caesar's eggs: OVA.
32. Molten rock: MAGMA.
33. Meathead: IDIOT. MEATHEAD ?? Archie Bunker's favorite word for Michael Stivic.
34. Curved-top candy shapes: CANES. My legs don't always cooperate, but I am not into CANES yet.
37. Mosque visitor: MUSLIM.
40. Saloon: BAR. These seem to be Covid-19 factories. They were
closed for awhile but I guess the Governor felt sorry for the owners.
Masks and some social distance rules are in effect. I used to stop for a
quick one after work, but now I am on the wagon for good.
42. Exam: TEST. "This has been a TEST. Had it been a real
emergency we would have told you to go downstairs and put a pillow over
your head."
45. Made changes in: REVISED.
47. Play division: SCENE.
50. Wiggle room: LEEWAY. At least SIX feet of LEE WAY in any public situation please.
52. Hair-removal substance: HOT WAX. Seems like we used to use this to shine up a car.
55. White wader: HERON. Add another "R" and you have Tim HERRON
of the PGA. He only ever won one PGA tournament and his nickname is
"LUMPY". After Clarence Rutherford on "Leave it to Beaver". Of course a
Minnesota golfer and a little better than me.
56. 26-Down, for one: ORCA.
57. Rich soil: LOAM.
58. "Great" dog breed: DANE.
59. Suffix with Jumbo: TRON. A video game that I never tried.
60. Flightless bird: RHEA. We had Birds last week, but I don't remember her.
62. __ of lamb: RACK.
63. Tennis great Arthur: ASHE. Hall of Famer. Passed to early at age 49.
64. Crusty desserts: PIES.
67. Goof up: ERR. I'm a baseball guy. I call it an ERROR.
Boomer
