Saturday Themeless by Chuck Deodene
Today's puzzle is by veteran constructor Chuck Deodene. Chuck had this to say about himself: I grew up in suburban New Jersey in the 1970s, majored in Chemistry at Oberlin College, and currently reside in Bloomington, Indiana. Along with my reading for the OED, another word-based trade I sometimes ply is crossword puzzle construction.
Yes, you read that right, Chuck is a reader for the Oxford English Dictionary and actively ferrets out new words to enter into that TOME. Chuck made a connection with a man from the OED in his father's used book store in Bloomington. Here Chuck describes this fascinating OED job
I have to wonder how many of the words Chuck unearths for the OED wind up in his puzzles.
1. Filtered messages: SPAM - You hope they get filtered out
5. Walk, e.g.: GAIT
9. Disreputable: SLIMY beat out Shady and Seamy
14. Get sucked into, in a way: HATE WATCH - Our constructor friend from Kingston, Ontario, Brian Paquin, introduced this term to us earlier this month. It means getting "sucked into" watching TV that you really don't like. For me it's soccer because I get sucked in to see why it is "the most popular game in the world" but after a few minutes I still don't get it and move on.
16. Choice word: EENIE.
17. Certain charger: AC ADAPTER - This one keeps me able to keep outputting whatever it is I output here even though I have worn off the top of the Command Key
19. Director's cut, perhaps: RE-RELEASE - One more shot at wringing some bucks out of a movie
20. Discovery: FIND.
21. It may be slashed: PRICE - The Omaha World Herald was going to charge me $620/yr up from $575 and I declined. Then someone from the paper offered to slash the PRICE to $490. What an insult! This just in: Yet another call offering me the paper for $199!
22. Curiosity shop stock: EXOTICA.
25. Tray opening: ASH - An smoking artifact of my childhood I do not miss
27. "Fake" salon service: SPRAY TAN - Very popular around prom time. Girls call it '''fake bake"
 |
| Avant Après |
28. Tool box?: SHED - Yeah, I suppose most SHEDS are just big boxes
31. Trenton Thunder, for one: AA TEAM - Derek Jeter filled the stands in Trenton, NJ when he was there for a Yankee rehab assignment
31. Trenton Thunder, for one: AA TEAM - Derek Jeter filled the stands in Trenton, NJ when he was there for a Yankee rehab assignment
33. Stop on the road: INN.
34. Adulterate (with), perhaps: LACE
35. Bite harmlessly: NIP AT.
36. Feet treat: PEDIcure
37. Japanese salad veggie: UDO - UDO and wakame seaweed salad
38. Aussie agreement: OK MATE - I suspect you can append MATE to most anything said "down under"
39. "__ sow ... ": AS YE so shall ye reap.
40. Low-fat, low-sodium regimen: RICE DIET - Like most diets:
44. Got off the point: STRAYED.
45. Religion involving ritual magic: WICCA
49. Possible swing result: MISS - There is no joy in Mudville...
50. Rare medical service: HOUSE CALL - We have great EMT's in our town who saved my friend's life in his house
54. Stuns, in a way: TASES.
55. "Terrible idea": I THINK NOT.
56. Pop superstar from Tottenham: ADELE - She recently made headlines for something other than her angelic voice. She lost 50lbs
 |
| Avant Après |
57. Smarts: GOOD SENSE and 1. Quick-witted: SHARP.
58. Like contested divorces: MESSY.
59. Villainous giggle: HE HE - or this NYU assistant professor. BTW, that is her full name.
60. Batik artist: DYER.
Down:
2. Hoosier State NBAer: PACER - Not LARRY (Bird) but the Indiana PACERS
3. Gaming pioneer: ATARI - ATARI's Pong was an early game changer! I remember standing in line to plunk down my quarter to play at a console like this. Wanna play online using your arrow keys?
2. Hoosier State NBAer: PACER - Not LARRY (Bird) but the Indiana PACERS
3. Gaming pioneer: ATARI - ATARI's Pong was an early game changer! I remember standing in line to plunk down my quarter to play at a console like this. Wanna play online using your arrow keys?
4. The '70s, in a Tom Wolfe essay: ME DECADE - Wolfe's essay postulated that this was a break from the communalism of the '60's
5. "Um, what?" expression: GAPE.
6. "__ way!": ATTA.
7. Street fair treats: ICES - Philadelphia's Famous Italian ICES
8. Term trademarked by Lakers' coach Pat Riley, even though the team never achieved one under his leadership: THREEPEAT - He never did get three in a row
9. Spume at the shore: SEA FOAM.
10. Joshing: LEVITY.
11. Silly comments: INANITIES - They have a lot of air time to fill in during transitions
12. Pleasurable diversions, informally: MIND CANDY - Ours are crossword puzzles
13. Still: YET.
15. Dylan Thomas's home: WALES - Dylan's home of Swansea, U.K. in Wales is NNW of Exmoor, U.K. (Doone Country) we had recently
13. Still: YET.
15. Dylan Thomas's home: WALES - Dylan's home of Swansea, U.K. in Wales is NNW of Exmoor, U.K. (Doone Country) we had recently
23. Like the 1972 film "Fritz the Cat," originally: X-RATED - Google if you must
24. Miss Hannigan's charge: ANNIE - Carol Burnett played the authoritarian head of the orphanage in ANNIE in her Hard Knock Life26. Pocket square, e.g.: HANKIE.
27. March VIP: ST PAT.
28. Sounds tipsy, maybe: SLURS.
29. Was on Easy Street: HAD IT MADE.
30. Oil spills, e.g.: ECO CRISES - The Exon Valdez and Capt. Hazelwood leapt to mind
32. Aspired: AIMED HIGH
36. Lost one's cool: PANICKED.
38. Hardly a quick jaunt: ODYSSEY
43. 1936 Olympics standout: OWENS - Hitler didn't really snub Jesse OWENS as he did not congratulate any athlete. Here is a famous mashup of the two outside pictures that show an event in the middle that never happened.
 |
| Actual Picture Fake Mashup Actual Picture |
46. Clever: CANNY - Kathy (Yellowrocks) is a fan of this word but I am more familiar with uncanny as in: Patrick MaHomes has an uncanny ability to avoid getting tackled.
47. Conclusion: CLOSE
48. Get to fit: ALTER - Dang, these pants have shrunk since Thanksgiving
51. Chiwere-speaking native: OTOE.
52. "I'm toast": UH OH.
48. Get to fit: ALTER - Dang, these pants have shrunk since Thanksgiving
51. Chiwere-speaking native: OTOE.
52. "I'm toast": UH OH.
54. Flat-topped cap: TAM.
