Sunday October 6, 2013 Paul Hunsberger

Theme:  "Epicenters" - All 10 theme entries have odd-numbered letters so EPI falls exactly in the very center of each theme answer, hence perfect symmetry for the 10 EPI's.

34A. Bearded impressionist : CAMILLE PISSARRO

49A. Near East product : RICE PILAF. This looks like fried rice. What do you call that spoon?

65A. It may be a sign of chilling : GOOSE PIMPLE. I call them "Goose bumps".

82A. Swatch, e.g. : TIMEPIECE

98A. "Call me" : LET'S KEEP IN TOUCH

9D. Peter Sellers film that began production after his death : TRAIL OF THE PINK PANTHER

11D. Figure skate feature : TOE PICK. New term to me.

24D. "Capisce?" : GET THE PICTURE?

48D. TV prototypes : PILOT EPISODES
 

86D. Rock bottom : THE PITS

This  puzzle  reminded me of the "Middle Child" puzzle I did a while ago, where TOT falls exactly in the middle. It made me appreciate Paul's puzzle that much more.

Plus, his 10-themer grid design is beyond brilliant. Every theme answer intersects at least one more theme answer. And the middle Down intersects 3 Across theme entries. Notice how two EPI are located in the exact middle of the grid? And all the 10 EPI's are in perfect symmetry.

Across:

1. Band booster : AMP

4. Fig. that rarely exceeds 4 : GPA

7. "Drive for show, __ for dough": golf adage : PUTT. So true. A long drive is good for men's ego.

11. Steam whistle sound : TOOT

15. Fútbol cheer : OLE

18. Rapper Big __ : BOI. Of OutKast.

19. Sinuous swimmer : EEL

20. Cross letters : INRI

21. They may be even or long : ODDS

22. 106-Across rival, for short : UAL. 106. Atlanta-based airline : DELTA

23. Italian dressing herb : OREGANO

25. ESPN datum : STAT

26. James Joyce accessory : EYE PATCH.  Our Misty wrote a couple books about James Joyce.

28. Nearly 40 inches : METER. I'm 5'4'' or 1.63 meters.

29. Masseur's bottleful : HOT OIL. Has anyone had hot oil massage?

31. End-of-missive extras, for short : PSS

32. Scope opening? : PERI. Periscope.

33. Fly, in fly-fishing : BAIT

37. "The Art of War" author : SUN TZU. Just spelled Sun Zi in Mandarin.

39. Montreal-based shoe retailer : ALDO

40. Mountaineer's tool : ICE AX

41. Mogul-dodging path : ESS. Everyone who reads this blog on Thursdays should nail it.

43. Brutal : HARSH

45. Evil-smelling : FUNKY

47. "Not interested" : I PASS

53. Poetic monogram : TSE. T. S. Eliot.

54. Evening affair : SOIREE

55. Sound-activated infomercial gadget : CLAPPER

56. It's a real knockout : ETHER. We've seen similar clues before.

58. Webmaster's code : HTML

59. __ circus : MEDIA

60. "__ Shoes": 2005 Cameron Diaz film : IN HER. Liked the movie.

61. Abstains from : LAYS OFF

64. Monet subject : PARC. Tricky crossing with RCMP (49D. Law gp. in red serge tunics). 

68. O'Hara home : TARA

70. Construction site sights : DETOURS

72. Moon-related phenomena : TIDES

73. Postgame postmortem : RECAP. Tiny dupe with the clue in SUM (83D. "To recap ..." )

74. Gorbachev's land: Abbr. : USSR

75. Perfume, as at High Mass : CENSE

76. Parts of some baby splits : TWO PINS.  3-10 (or 2- 7 for lefties).

78. Laundry supply : STARCH

81. 2012 Stanley Cup champs, initially : LA K. LA Kings. Do they use LAK in scoreboards, Splyner?

84. Port of Crete : CANEA. Total stranger to me.

85. It can be used in dating : STAMP. Great clue.

87. Baseball teams : NINES. Boomer at our backyard yesterday. The Morneau shirt is sold by his fan club. I'm not sure it's legit for them to produce these shirts, TTP.

88. Ducked down, say : HID

89. Some IRAs : ROTHs

91. Some hieroglyphic squiggles : ASPS

94. Top parts : CROWNS

102. "It's All Coming Back to Me Now" singer : DION (Céline)

103. Grimm menace : OGRE

104. Maple yield : SAP

105. Plays guitar chords, in a way : STRUMS. For Bill G. Don't miss this cute clip he linked a few days ago.

107. Sandwich order : PASTRAMI

109. Flimsy : THIN

110. Biweekly stub, perhaps : PAYSLIP

112. Somme summer : ETE

113. "Sometimes you feel like __ …" : A NUT

114. Let use for now : LEND

115. Fruity quencher : ADE. Hello Charlotte!

116. Post-op stop : ICU

117. Retreat : DEN

118. Welcome center offerings : MAPS

119. Work measures : ERGs

120. Go-ahead : NOD

121. Talk Like a Pirate Day mo. : SEP

Down:

1. Los Alamos test subjects, informally : A-BOMBS

2. Wells' island doctor : MOREAU. Dr. Moreau.

3. Baker's container : PIE TIN

4. Transmission selection : GEAR

5. Pocket protector insert : PEN

6. Tropical hi : ALOHA

7. Flower part : PISTIL

8. Not yet shared : UNTOLD

10. Spine line : TITLE

12. Epic with a trip home to Ithaca : ODYSSEY

13. Texas oil city : ODESSA

14. Kitchen meas. : TSP

15. Where to catch the sound of music? : OUTER EAR. Got me.

16. Game with meshed sticks : LACROSSE

17. Pre-coll. : EL-HI. Yeah, yeah, I know it's not a good fill. Compromises are made in every  puzzle.

27. Busy time for a CPA : APR

30. __ Steaks : OMAHA

34. Nobelist of 1903 and 1911 : CURIE

35. Missing person? : PINER. I like this clue also.

36. Universally accepted principles : AXIOMS

38. "Valley Girl" co-songwriter Frank or Moon : ZAPPA

42. Toronto-to-D.C. dir. : SSE

44. 35mm shooter : SLR

46. They're often email addresses : USER IDS

50. "The Life __": "Mary Poppins" tune : I LEAD

51. Leadership nucleus : CADRE

52. Swamps : FENS

54. Cause of eyelid redness : STYE

57. What one may be taken for? : THE TEAM. Take one for the team.

58. "I'm sorry, Dave" speaker of sci-fi : HAL

60. Moths with colorful eyespots on their hind wings : IOS. I wonder if those Apple guys are aware of these moths.

61. CD precursors : LPs

62. Prima __ case : FACIE. I got it. But I don't know what it means, Hahtoola/Lemonade.

63. Euro forerunner : FRANC

65. Spout : GUSH

66. Boston Garden legend : ORR (Bobby)

67. Convene : MEET

69. Cathedral part : APSE

71. Nominees for them are announced in January : OSCARs

73. Rodeo performer : ROPER. I wanted RIDER.

75. Brooch fastener : CLASP

76. Texter's "Don't go there!" : TMI (Too Much Information)

77. Barmaid, to the Bard : WENCH

78. Learning ctr. : SCH

79. Pickup feature : TAILGATE

80. Guam Air Force base : ANDERSEN. Named after General Andersen who died in a aircraft accident in 1945, says Wiki.

85. Anger : STEAM UP

90. 1994 Olympic gold medalist skater Baiul : OKSANA. Got via crossings. Sounds Japanese.

92. Piano part : STRING

93. Hits with force : POUNDS

95. Award-winning sci-fi writer Connie : WILLIS. Wiki said "She has won eleven Hugo Awards and seven Nebula Awards for particular works —more "major awards" than any other writer". I feel bad not knowing her.

96. Perceive : NOTICE

97. Buy quickly : SNAP UP

99. Vietnamese holiday : TET

100. Basketry fiber : ISTLE. Classic crosswordese.

101. Place to follow politics : C-SPAN

103. Page with sentiments : OP-ED

106. Applied henna, e.g. : DYED

108. Colorado State athlete : RAM

111. Bustle : ADO

C.C.

PS: Check out Splynter (Left) in this YouTube clip.

Saturday, Oct 5th, 2013, Mark Bickham

Theme: None

Words: 70 (missing Q,V)

Blocks: 32

   This was one of those puzzles where perseverance wins the day.  Many proper names had me stumped for a while, with that creeping feeling that I was gonna give in to Google - BUT - a few Wild-Ass Guesses (WAGs) and some slight changes to my first guesses, and Ta-Da~!!  We had us a grrreat grid spanner today, with a little mis-direction:

35A. At sea : DISCOMBOBULATED - I so wanted "ON THE BOUNDING MAIN", but I needed two more spaces; I like this word; I have not gotten discombobulated on my first UPS driving route - but wait til they move me to a different one for Christmas, when I'm looking for house numbers in the dark....

And some tricky triple 10-letter corners;

5A. Site of many rolls : CRAPS TABLE - bakery? fat farm? oh, got it

16A. One of Sophocles' Theban plays : OEDIPUS REX

57. Showmanship : RAZZMATAZZ - ZZ's~!!!

61. Trooper relative : ISUZU RODEO - not a state trooper; we've had this automotive ruse before....note the License Plate~!

ON WAAG~!

ACROSS:

1. "The Matrix Reloaded" actress Pinkett Smith : JADA - even though I have not seen the movie, there's not too many "Pinkett Smiths" that I know of....

15. Asian sea : ARAL - crossword staple

17. Brought up : BRED - I was stuck on REARED, SIRED, and then tried BORE

18. "Been there" : "I CAN RELATE"

19. Walked to the gangplank, say : SAW OFF - past tense of SEE off - and if you're on the gangplank, I hope it doesn't get SAWN OFF

21. One in a rack, maybe : SKI - um, yeah, one of these can be found in a rack, too....

22. Edible Andean tubers : OCAs

23. Cindy Bear's boyfriend : YOGI - DAH~!  I did not know this

24. It may be thrown in : THE TOWEL

26. Less enthused : SOURER

28. Strauss' "__ Rosenkavalier" : DER

29. Toss up : LOB

31. Duke Frederick's daughter in "As You Like It" : CELIA - OK then

33. Bowl, e.g. : ARENA

40. Nerdy : UNHIP - ah, not WEIRD

41. 1978 LPGA Tour Rookie of the Year : LOPEZ - Nancy Lopez, once married to baseballer Ray Knight

42. Ristorante suffix : INI - RotINI, LinguINI, etc.

43. N.C. State is in it : ACC - the Atlantic Coast Conference - sports

46. Former Prussian province : SAXONY

49. "Give me a break!" : "OH PLEASE~!"

52. Buck back? : AROO - BuckAROO

53. When Annie sings "Maybe" : ACT I - Put in "ACT", and wait; in truth, it can really only be "I" - maybe "V"; ever seen "X"?

54. Skit site, for short : SNL - I put this in, then took it out; my last fill via perps

55. Saturate : IMBRUE

60. "__ girl!" : ATTA

62. Common subject in "The Far Side" : COWS - here's one, and a link to more

63. Bit of bun flavoring : SESAME SEED

64. Granny __ : KNOT - Dah~!  I was stuck on "SMITH"

DOWN:

1. Short blows : JABS

2. Decks out : ARRAYS - I put in ARORNS, not realizing that this is NOT how you spell ADORNS

3. Dismantled Korean automaker : DAEWOO - every now and then I see this logo on cars; some Wiki on the company

4. Older brother of designers Vasco and Rodolfo : ALDO GUCCI - Once I had ALDO ---CI, the V-8 can flew

5. Lock arrangement : COIF - Hair locks; didn't fool me, but I tried UPDO to start

6. Cam button : RECord - on your camcorder

7. Recipe phrase : A DASH - DAR~! an "A" phrase; I was looking for BLEND, SAUTÉ, etc.

8. Edged with shears, as cloth : PINKED - Nailed it - mom is a seamstress, and owns PINKING shears

9. Elf : SPRITE

10. Calendar abbr. : TUEsday - take your pic; seven days, twelve months; or wait for perps; when the "E" showed, that narrowed it down a LOT

11. Comparatively base : AS LOW

12. Place for an allergy alert : BRACELET - ah, and a good one, as well

13. Not to mention : LET ALONE

14. They used to be together : EXES

20. Warm-colored gem : FIRE OPAL

24. Oakland paper, familiarly : TRIBune - a WAG

25. Degree hurdle : ORAL EXAM

27. Titular Wes Craven street : ELM - The TITLE "A Nightmare on Elm Street"; titular had me thinking about "racks" again

30. Harmful : BAD

32. 2011 Huffington Post acquirer : AOL - America OnLine, once part of Time Warner - more here

34. Fayetteville athlete : RAZORBACK - Arkansas

35. SADD focus : DUI - not DWI - not "while intoxicated", but "under the influence"

36. Never : IN NO CASE

37. Noble pets of imperial China : SHIH TZUs - looks funny in the DOWN

38. Admired speaker : BOSE - I thought this might be a mis-direction; not an orator, but a woofer/tweeter; could have been POLK, too

39. __ tree : UP A

44. Brother of Lucrezia Borgia : CESARE

45. Epic poem divisions : CANTOS

47. Antiviral brand : NORTON - Computer virus software

48. Couple's address : YOU TWO - "Oh, you two, get a room~!"

50. Pie not served for dessert : PIZZA - dinner last night

51. Noddy Holder's rock group : SLADE

53. Onassis et al. : ARIs

55. __ Center: former N.J. Nets home : IZOD

56. Word with Side or End : EAST - EAST side, EAST end

58. Ornamental flower : MUM - I thought this might be the answer, but it filled via perps anyway

59. Series finale : ZEE - EX, WYE, ZEE - what a great way to finish~!

Splynter

  For those who are wondering, I did three days of UPS driver training with a supervisor last week, and then this week my first day was TUEsday - and they sent me out, alone, with 162 stops.  Most seasoned guys go out with that many this time of year.  Not a good day.  But the rest of the week the stops came down, and I got better with the names and numbers.  However, there was an 'incident' about 4 stops from the end of today's run; a woman mowing her grass next to the stop sign I was at chipped up a rock, and it shattered the glass of the open door on the right side of the truck - four inches to the right and it could have beaned me; had to drive back to the center with a thousand shards of safety glass falling to the floor.