SQUA-RE RE-PAIR
gERry WildenbERg - doubled ER ER
This is Gerry Wildenberg's debut for the LA Times - he has two other crosswords published in the NYT going back 10 & 11 years ago - and I checked again, just to be sure, because I was friends with a Geri, who was Geraldine; Gerry's a dude - a cool-looking older guy, and from his picture, I am guessing an outdoorsman, a hiker, a camper....Anyway, today's construction has "R-E" doubled in the theme answers, with the center being a grid-spanner, and no stray RE's anywhere else. More 4LW than 3LW, but I felt, even with some being easy, there were again too many names ( a dozen by my count ) for my solving experience. The theme answers, all unique, and the reveal;
18. *Bills wide receiver who played in four consecutive Super Bowls: ANDRE REED - name #1
24. *Wildlife sanctuary: NATURE RESERVE - the first part was blank, but I did fill in "PREserve", which was close - can anyone offer a solution to the pesky gnats that hover around one's eyes & ears~? I walk every other day, and they are so aggravating, I end up cutting the hike short - I practically bathe in Off! with DEET, but that's of no use - and I am going to try Picaridin as well - I do not want to wear a net....
36. *Meh evaluations: MEDIOCRE REVIEWS - I've had my share in my time blogging
49. *Like material that slows flames: FIRE RETARDANT
57. Made twice as great, and what can be found in the answers to the starred clues: "RE, DOUBLED"
And Away We Go~!
ACROSS:
1. Clown's prop, maybe: STILT - yeah, but how about a drywall mudder~?
6. Criminally assist: ABET
10. Breakfast spot: NOOK
14. "Golly!": "OH GEE~!"
15. Angelic adornment: HALO
16. Prefix meaning "all": OMNI
17. Oscars host O'Brien: CONAN - name #2, but I know him
20. Paraguayan pals: AMIGOS
22. Airport pickup info: ETA
23. Acid initials: LSD - the "dropped" acid
28. Cry of insight: "I SEE~!" - I used Ghostbusters, now here's Die Hard . . . .
ya~! I SEE him~! @ 0:20
29. Fit, as matryoshka dolls: NEST
Irish Miss, I am still on the lookout for my four-legged friend; last week on my walk, a guy in my neighborhood came out with HIS Schnauzer, but he did not have much to tell me about where to get one :7(
30. Volcano near Catania: ETNA - four-letter volcano~?
33. Whiskey flavor: PEAT - Sunday fill, too - this week, I am trying "Ryze", the mushroom coffee that supposedly helps burn fat - I will let you know. It has a distinct 'earthy', almost broth-like flavor, and I like it - I am down to 27lbs since May 1st
34. Chewy mints: MENTOS
41. Only national park in New England: ACADIA - in Maine; knew this from solving crosswords, like this past Sunday
42. One of 14 in a sonnet: LINE
43. "u crack me up": ROFL - Rolling On Floor Laughing - textspeak
44. Part of a Rorschach test: BLOT
45. Operatic solo: ARIA
53. Artist Yoko: ONO - name #3, crossword staple, like Sunday - JEEZ
55. Boxing family name: ALI - name #4, crossword staple
56. Shelter with a sloping roof: LEAN TO
61. Urged (on): EGGED - 11D. is "egged", too
62. Cheese with an edible rind: BRIE
63. Gymnast Korbut: OLGA - name #5, crossword staple
64. Wicked one: FIEND - In honor of Black Sabbath's "Back to the Beginning" final show with Ozzy Osbourne last Saturday in their home town of Birmingham, UK, here's one from their debut album
Wicked World
65. Convinced: SOLD
66. Golf club choice: WOOD
67. Varieties: SORTS
1. Confident retort to a boast: SO CAN I~!
2. Inventor Edison: THOMAS - name #6, but not too obscure
3. Set off, as fireworks: IGNITE - thankfully, the folks of my neighborhood set off only a handful of medium-sized noise-makers about 9pm on July Fourth, and then it tapered off within the hour - another reason I am glad to be in CT. Down on the Island~? It's about who can waste the most money for a smoky backyard
4. Maritime measure: LEAGUE - Dah~! Not FATHOM
5. Voice above baritone: TENOR - aaaand Sunday, too - wow.
6. Cry of insight: A - HA~!
7. Abolish: BAN
8. Like Cain, of Adam's sons: ELDEST
9. Dense cake: TORTE
10. Neither's partner: NOR
11. Brunch option: OMELETTE - Ah. The "extended" version of omelet, just like on Sunday
12. Change for a five: ONES
13. "The Secret Life of Bees" novelist Sue Monk __: KIDD - filled via perps; I suppose 'Captain' was not Wednesday worthy - name #7
19. Linguist's asset: EAR - TONGUE did not fit - and EAR makes me think of muscians
21. __ Falls: women's suffrage convention site: SENECA - upstate NY, filled via perps, name #8
25. Tail end: REAR
26. Getty of "The Golden Girls": ESTELLE - second time this week the show was in a clue, still, name #9
27. Caesar's "I came": VENI - Julius Caesar boast, veni vidi, vici - I came, I saw, I conquered
31. "__ we're talking!": "NOW~!"
Naomi, these legs are "for the birds" ( BTW, how big IS this Splynter file ~? )
32. Pack animal: ASS - What'd you call me~? A pack animal~?
33. Taro-based staple: POI
34. __ block: MENTAL - Ah. I could not make WRITERS or LEGO fit
35. Night for last-minute wrapping: EVE - could'be been a name . . .
36. Stain or tear: MAR
37. Italian scholar Umberto: ECO - obscure, for a 3LW that could be a "not" name, #10 - the editor~?
38. National flower of Wales: DAFFODIL - I did not know this
39. South Asian rice cake: IDLI - filled via perps - more here - name(ish)
40. Hilarious comedian: RIOT
44. S.O.S competitor: BRILLO - I have caught two field mice in glue traps over the last month - I though this was a "winter" problem; now I am thinking about investing in an ultrasonic repellant, but I really have to go around and seal up the places where the little buggers are getting in; it was suggested to stuff steel wool, or better, soap-infused steel wool pads in thr holes around the pipes of my baseboard heaters.
45. "Slowly," on sheet music: ADAGIO - oops, I thought it was LEGATO - but that's tied notes
46. Madison Square Garden hockey player: RANGER - I knew this because I am a long-suffering NY Rangers fan; they never seem to have the tenacity, the drive, the desire to fight for the toughest trophy in sports - they're more like "eh, whatever", and that's very frustrating for fans
Igor Shesterkin is the exception
47. Purpose: INTENT - thie intent of playing an NHL season is to get to the Stanley Cup playoffs ...
48. In conflict: AT ODDS - but this seems to be AT ODDS with the NY Rangers
50. Novelist Santha Rama __: RAU - name #11 - more here
51. Jab with one's arm: ELBOW
52. Coral colonies: REEFS
53. Snow globes, e.g.: ORBS - good WAG on my part
54. Wolfe of detective fiction: NERO - I've read the whole series from Rex Stout, and the follow-up novels from author Robert Goldsborough - name #12
58. Uni reference: OED - we had this on Monday
59. Feeling of self-worth: EGO - semi Meh. Is it a "feeling~?"
60. June honoree: DAD
Splynter
Notes from C.C.:
Happy 55th birthday to Anon-T, who's always there when I need a pinch-hitter.
Tony At Wit's End near Carmel on Father's Day 2017
