Saturday Themeless by Sheryl Bartol
This was Sheryl's lovely response when I asked her about this
puzzle:
Hi Gary,
Nice to hear from you again. This puzzle went through a lot of
iterations and rework. In the end, it was quite different from
where I started, as I discovered new word combinations along the way.
Here are a few comments on some of the entries:
One of my favorite words is EMOTICON which I often use in my emails
;)
We play a lot of board games in my house, especially during a
pandemic, which inspired my CARTEL clue.
I am also a big Indian food fan, hence the way I clued LENTIL.
Lastly, I love the change that our dear editors made to my clue for
POET, which was not nearly as clever.
I hope everyone enjoys solving it!
Thanks,
Sheryl
1. They clean up: JANITORS - They are a great asset to any school or business especially these days.
9. Menu category including shells: PASTA - Conchiglia is Italian for conch shell
14. Park, for one: OPEN AREA.
15. Monopoly player?: CARTEL - Real money and products
16. Sign in many restaurant windows: UBER EATS which can lead to this delivery service
15. Monopoly player?: CARTEL - Real money and products
16. Sign in many restaurant windows: UBER EATS which can lead to this delivery service
17. Emblem on a dollar bill: US SEAL.
18. For or against: SIDE - If you choose a SIDE, you might have to 57. Retreat from, as a previous statement: WALK BACK - Wait, that's not what I meant
19. Parisian street food: CREPES - Parfait in French means perfect. Oh, but you already knew that. Uh, the truck doesn't seem to be parfait!
21. CPR group: EMS The difference between EMS and EMT
22. "__ Story": TOY.
23. Reasons for sighs: CLOSE CALLS - Put down that cell phone!
25. Female rabbit: DOE.
26. Like "Home Alone": RATED PG
31. Many glasses are sold as one: PAIR - I got my first PAIR at 15. You?
33. Queen dowager of Jordan: NOOR - A Jordanian Queen born in Washington D.C.
34. Browning but not cooking: POET - A clue change Sheryl admired for POET Elizabeth Barrett Browning
35. Have the ability to: COULD.
37. Barbecue tool feature: TINE.
38. Fireside sight: LOGS.
39. Like some tricks: DIRTY.
40. Showed scorn: SNORTED - Yeah, I'm the only one who first put SNEERED
42. "Erie Canal" mule: SAL - I’ve got an old mule and her name is Sal, Fifteen years on the Erie Canal. She’s a good old worker and a good old pal, Fifteen years on the Erie Canal
43. App update messages, say: PUSH ALERTS - It's up to you whether to get 'em or not
46. Award show VIPs: MCS - The Golden Globes had Ricky Gervais MC their award show and he promptly made fun of everyone in Hollywood. What did they do? They had him back!
51. "What can I help you with?" speaker: SIRI - "Who was James Buchanan's vice president?"
52. Clear out: VACATE.
54. It often includes a colon: EMOTICON - :-) Sheryl says she really enjoys these. I have found Bitmojis which are pretty cool!
56. Amtrak speedsters: ACELAS - NYC to DC takes 2h and 35m on this train
58. Gives up: CEDES - There are several below
58. Gives up: CEDES - There are several below
59. Clomps (through), as a puddle: SPLOSHES - Yeah, I'm the only one who put SPLASHES. Even GALOSHES made more sense instead of this word that is foreign to me (and my spellchecker)
Down:
1. Renaissance faire contest: JOUST.
2. Challenging H.S. science class: AP BIO - A page on Speciation from an Advanced Placement Biology book
3. Clingy, say: NEEDY.
4. Memo intro: IN RE.
5. Menlo Park, N.J., notable: TAE - Edison and his staff are said to have comprised the first R & D facility
6. Pythia of the Temple of Apollo, for one: ORACLE - This
ORACLE was always a woman and was said to have made her prophecies
after inhaling fumes (hallucinogenic?) that rose from cracks in the Earth in the temple at
Delphi.
7. Vintage: RETRO - Acme dinettes are still in production
70 years later
8. MS enclosures: SASES - Self Addressed Stamped Envelopes
("en vuh lopes" or "awn vuh lopes?")
9. Volkswagen sedan: PASSAT - In German, PASSAT means "trade wind"
10. MGM motto word: ARS.
9. Volkswagen sedan: PASSAT - In German, PASSAT means "trade wind"
10. MGM motto word: ARS.
11. Safe room barrier: STEEL DOOR - This safe room from the Atlas Company might interest you if you live in Oklahoma's "Tornado Alley"
-
12. Baseball or soccer: TEAM SPORT.
13. Start of a Shakespeare title: ALL'S -ALL'S Well That Ends Well - "Love all, trust a few. Do wrong to no one." Act I scene i.
15. Its lines have lines: CUE CARD.
12. Baseball or soccer: TEAM SPORT.
13. Start of a Shakespeare title: ALL'S -ALL'S Well That Ends Well - "Love all, trust a few. Do wrong to no one." Act I scene i.
15. Its lines have lines: CUE CARD.
25. Discourages: DETERS.
27. Like a cloudy London day: GREY - How that "colour" is spelled where you might be able to see only a few "metres"
28. Goes (for): OPTS.
29. Gentle parting sentiment: GO IN PEACE.
30. Criticized publicly: DENOUNCED - Election day can't get here fast enough
31. Charley, in Steinbeck's "Travels With Charley": POODLE.
32. National Mustard Day mo.: AUG.
35. Adheres ... or separates: CLEAVES - A poetic expression using the less common (first) definition
39. "__ Kapital": DAS - Is it ironic that a first edition of Marx's anti-capitaliism book now sells for $300,000?
42. Boardwalk activity: STROLL.
44. Online show offering Hollywood info: E-NEWS.
45. Update after a new survey, maybe: REMAP - After Lewis and Clark's survey
46. Biblical prophet: MICAH
47. "Time in a Bottle" singer: CROCE - This song and its scenes tug at my heart
48. Some islands have them: SINKS.
49. Temperature control syst.: HVAC - Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning
51. They're often rivals: SIBS - I'm sure there was none of that with Sheryl and Debbie!!
Comment below:
Notes from C.C.:
Happy birthday to Wilbur Charles (Bill)!