Saturday October 4, 2008 Linda Bushman

Theme: None

Total blocks: 27

We seem to have a lot of 27-block themeless on Saturdays. FYI, our lowest is a 26-block puzzle (a hard one) by Robert Wolfe on August 23.

I like this puzzle. It has such an eye-pleasing grid, so open and receptive. I wish I could solve it unassisted. But I enjoyed my struggle today.

I did not know why NIMRODS (8D) is clued as "Silly hunters?". After seeing the explanation from dictionary, I thought it's rather clever to have both NIMRODS and NOAH ( 19A: Ancient miner?) structured in one grid.

Across:

1) :-), for example: EMOTICON. A happy start for me.

9A: Zigzag braid as trimming: RIC-RAC. See Little Trimmings. New term to me.

15A: So-called feather of song: MACARONI. From "Yankee Doodle". I did not know this.

16A: Contend: ALLEGE

17A: Top-to-bottom renovation: EXTREME MAKEOVER

20A: Red-and-white sign: BARBER POLE

21A: Saharan formations: DUNES. This reminds me of "The English Patient".

24A: Take off the top: SKIM. Really? Is this the "Take off the top" in your mind?

25A: Infuses: STEEPS

27A: Brit bombshell Diana: DORS. She sure has the Marilyn Monroe look.

32A: Galley notation: STET. I got it from the across fills. Not familiar with "Galley" as a printing term.

34A: Scope of Tweed's influence?: BOSSDOM. Big stumper. I had never heard of Boss Tweed or Tammany Hall before.

38A: Parched: THIRSTY

43A: Poetic palindrome: ERE. Able was I ERE I saw Elba.

46A: Confuse: MUDDLE. And STIR UP (29D: Agitate)

52A: David's "Kill Bill" co-star: UMA. Don't know who David is. But UMA Thurman is always clued as "Kill Bill" star.

55A: Highly respected woman: GRANDE DAME. Like whom?

60A: Call a truce but remain at odds: AGREE TO DISAGREE

63A: Happening quickly and dizzingly: IN A WHIRL

64A: Entertainer O'Shea: TESSIE. Total stranger to me.

65A: Super bowl start: COIN TOSS

Down:

1D: Puts right: EMENDS

2D: Use up all credit: MAX OUT. Have you seen "MAXED OUT"?

4D: Carolina athletes: TAR HEELS. No idea. Why are they called TAR HEELS?

10D: Robert of "The Sopranos": ILER. I can never remember his name. It's a very rare surname, isn't it?

11D: Equine footfalls: CLOPS

12D: Those who annul: REVOKER. If you say so.

13D: Maturity cutoff point: AGE LIMIT

14D: Formal event: CEREMONY. I've never attended a Japanese tea CEREMONY, have you? That geisha's face is too white.

18D: Costello's straight man: ABBOTT. "Who's on first?" I love baseball.

22D: Web user: SPIDER. Ha, so simple, but I overthought.

34D: Boastful individual: BRAGGART. Learned a new word this morning: blow-hard.

35D: Win a debate: OUT- ARGUE. Is this a word?

36D: Track officials: STEWARDS. What track?

37D: Latino boy band: MENUDO. No idea. Did not know that Ricky Martin was a member of MENUDO.

39D: Stop signal: RED LIGHT

42D: Always on the move: NOMADIC

47D: Hollywood Dolores: DEL RIO. No idea. Wikipedia says she starred in "Madame DuBarry". That's the same DuBarry in the song "Lydia" (Guiess, DuBarry, Garbo./Rolled into one), right?

49D: Detroit duds: EDSELS. I am used to the "Ford flops" clue.

51D: Places for pads: KNEES

57D: Disk extension: ETTE. Diskette.

58D: Morales of "La Bamba": ESAI. I've never seen "La Bamba". I like his role Tony Rodriguez in "NYPD Blue".

61D: Grass bristle: AWN. This is Paul's Word of the Day.

C.C.

Friday October 3, 2008 Barry Silk

Theme: EDU (Email address ending in 18A, 23A, 40A, 53A and 62A)

18A: Two-rope jumping: DOUBLE DUTCH

23A: Goods tax: EXCISE DUTY

40A: Manhattan Project's oralloy: ENRICHED URANIUM

53A: Stipulatory: AGREED UPON

62A: Waste land?: GARBAGE DUMP

Neat puzzle. But I messed up the upper left corner, trying so hard to cram in MORSE instead of HARD C for 3D: First letter sound in code?

It seems that our editor is now obsessed with ENYA (19D: "A Day without Rain" singer). She appears in our puzzle so often, always as the answer though. I suppose he can clue MAY (66D: Just might) as "Enya song "MAY It Be"" next time.

If you were the constructor, how would you clue NURSE? I don't like "RN word".

Did you notice that most of our weekday puzzles have 38 blocks?

Across:

14A: Nutritionist's abbr.: RDA. And NO FAT (69A: Like Jack Sprat's diet). The Zone diet probably has the most sensible combination (40% carb, 30% protein and 30% fat). The most effective way to lose weight is to fall in love. Your mind will be AWHIRL (31A: Spinning) with everything but food.

15A: Pele's first name: EDSON. I did not know this before. Wikipedia says "While his birth certificate shows his first name as Edison (after the American inventor), he prefers to call himself EDSON". See this autographed EDSON =Pelé ball.

20A: Chinese vine: KUDZU. If not for ZIP (21D: P. O. code), I would not have got this vine. It sounds so Japanese.

22A: 1940's computer: ENIAC. How to pronounce ENIAC?

34A: Bear greeting?: HUG. Such a tender loving hug.

37A: Yemeni seaport: ADEN. Shouldn't Somali explore its Gulf of EDEN coast for oil? Why is it so poor?

39A: Drum type: BONGO. They are handmade, aren't they? I am surprised that some of the vintage Ludwig snare drums are worth thousands of dollars. I don't understand "Let There Be drums."

47A: Right-angle degrees: NINETY And CIR (70A: Geometric fig.).

52A: Brit's omega: ZED. I like this clue.

58A: Lustrous finish for velvet: PANNE. New word to me. I like her outfit.

67A: Japanese drama: NOH. Or Nogaku. The Japanese opera. Funny NOH/Kabuki clip.

71A: __ sense (keen intuition): SIXTH. Have you seen Bruce Willis's "The SIXTH Sense"? Sounds scary.

72A: Salty calls: AHOYS

Down:

2D: For two: A DEUX. Dinner A DEUX, are you ready?

4D: One Gorgon: MEDUSA. She really looks awful. The other two are Stheno and Euryale.

11D: Walk-in veterinarian: PET CLINIC

24D: Porter's "Well, Did You __?": EVAH. Why EVAH? I wanted EVER. I actually saw "High Society", but I don't remember this song.

25D: Fiddle follower?: DE-DEE. New to me also. Maybe I've heard people say it, I just never pay attention to it.

29D: Video effect: SLO-MO

34D: Big name in pickle packing: HEINZ. My first thought was Vlasic.

36D: Intl. road race: GRAND PRIX

54D: Davis of "Hero": GEENA. I've never seen "Hero". I like her "Thelma & Louise" & "A League of Their Own".

55D: Old pound parts: PENCE. Mark, is it old? How old?

60D: Writer Ogden: NASH. Ha, gimme. Have to thank Clear Ayes/Ken for their "Candy is dandy" posts. But why "Writer" instead of "poet"?

C.C.