Tuesday, April 15, 2008 Verna Suit

Theme: 3 WHITE THINGS

17A: 3 white things: WATER BREAD HOUSE

61A: 3 white things: LIE SOX CHOCOLATE

3D: 3 white things: RAT ELEPHANT MEAT

11D: 3 white things: SAUCE COLLAR WALL

And some NECCO wafer (52D) and some unagi sushi rolls (25D: EEL). YUM! (40D: Dee-lish!)

This puzzle felt like it was originally constructed for TV guide, very movie-concentrated. I was annoyed by the inconsistency in the cluing of actors'/actresses' names. If you clue ABLA as Jessica, ADAM as Comic Sandler, EMIL as Actor Jannings, then 58A: MAE should be simply clued as Actress West, no need to mention the movie title (West of "My Little Chickadee"). The cluing for the role parts is pretty consistent, everyone of them has the movie/TV title: "Casablanca" heroine (ILSA), "Damn Yankees" vamp (LOLA), Ted's "Cheers" role (SAM).

Anyway, I tanked again today. I guess I was still dazed by yesterday's ULRIC/SHIV puzzle. And this vast field of Movie/TV related entries is definitely my TERRA INCOGNITA. I've got to find a way to turn this Achilles' heel into strength, somehow.

I threw in the towel very quickly, oh, probably after 15 minutes of floundering, then started my hot and heavy flirting with Mr. Google! Did not enjoy this puzzle at all.

Across clues:

4A: Ms. Andress: URSULA. Alright, let's start with her picture in Dr. No.

10A: Atlas section: ASIA

14A: Physician's org: AMA. Told you yesterday I was IATROPHOBIC. But I guess it will drive some people nuts if it's clued as "Japanese pearl diver". I wonder why most of the AMA Divers are women.

15A: Self-assured: POISED

19A: Date tree: PALM. Clue is not accurate, should add "Some". Look at these dates, they don't grow on palm trees.

20A: Foes: ENEMIES. They are us.

23A: Preserve, in a way: CAN

23A: "The Persistence of Memory" and others: DALÍS. Need to add "Painter" in the clue. Here is the painting.

24A: Founding Shaker: ANN LEE. Mother ANNE LEE. I've never heard of her.

26A: Late-night news hour: ELEVEN. I wish the entry were ÉLÈVES. It would be a perfect match for 65D: ÉCOLES.

29A: Tiny particles: SPECKS

36A: Approaches a red light: SLOWS

37A: Qatar's capital: DOHA. Today is the last day of DOHA Forum.

39A: Willy follower: NILLY. I thought of WONKA first, but quickly dismissed it.

41A: Smelting waster: SLAG

42A: Warning sound: ALARM. I put ALERT there for a long time.

44A: Remove errors from: DEBUG. "Remove errors" is sufficient, not need to add "from".

47A: Lunatic: MANIAC

49A: 1936 Loretta Young title role: RAMONA. Had no idea about this film. I am surprised by the specificity of the clue though, is 1936 that essential to string together the answer?

53A: __ incognita: TERRA. Unknown land. The plural form is TERRAE incognitae.

56A: Ted's "Cheers" role: SAM (Malone). Ted Danson role. No idea. But I am pleased that the Editor decided to put the pianist SAM on the DL today.

58A: West of "My Little Chickadee": MAE. Filled in MAE simply because she is the only West in Hollywood. Have never heard of the movie. (Update from superfrey: Adam West is the original Batman)

59A: Corridor: HALLWAY

64A: Aleutian island: ADAK. No idea. Looks like ATKA is also an island here. (Update from Dennis: ATTU is another Aleutian island)

65A: Schools near Seine: ÉCOLES

68A: Burns or Browning: ROBERT

69A: Pres. or CEO.: LDR (LEADER). No, nope, not familiar with this abbreviation at all.

Down clues:

1D: Spoke crow? CAWED. I like this clue a lot.

2D: Appliance maker: AMANA

4D: Rebels: UPRISES. Verb form here.

8D: Memorize: LEARN

9D: Extras: ADD-ONS

12D: "Casablanca" heroine: ILSA. OK, she said "Play it, Sam". Now I am waiting for RICK to appear in the next puzzle.

18D: Actor Jannings: EMIL. I vaguely remember I saw his mug before. Maybe his name came up when I was searching for Runner Zatopek.

24D: Moose toppers: ANTLERS. I prefer the clue to have "?".

28D: "National Velvet" author Bagnold: ENID. "Author Bagnold" should be sufficient!

30D: "The Bridge on the River __": KWAI. No, total stranger to me.

31D: Certain N. C. O. : SSGT

32D: Comic Sandler: ADAM. Mr. Deeds.

33D: "Damn Yankees" vamp: LOLA

35D: Actress Jessica: ALBA. She and mkat both eat peach for breakfast! Isn't she beautiful?

38D: "Tosca" tune: ARIA. Puccini work.

43D: Swedish city opposite Copenhagen: MALMO. Alright, here is the map. See Copenhagen (København) on the left?

45D: Had to ask directions: GOT LOST

48D: Cajoler: COAXER

50D: Jodie Foster film: NELL

52D: Tasty wafter brand: NECCO (Acronym for New England Confectionery Company).

55D: Per annum: A YEAR. Groan!

56D: Criticize severely: SLAM. Hmm, Hillary, I wonder who is the real "Elitist" here? Not someone who attended Wellesley College? Not someone who spent years working for the ""the ultimate establishment law firm"? Not someone who earned over $100 million in the past 8 years?

57D: Verdi opera: AIDA. The only Verdi opera I know.

60D: Maple genus: ACER. Also a big PC manufacturer

62D: Jamaican music: SKA. Nope. I only like Bob Marley & his Reggae.

63D: Fireplace shelf: HOB

C.C.

Monday, April 14, 2008 John Underwood

Theme: BAR

17A: Bar: UNIFORM INSIGNIA

27A: Bar: MUSICAL MEASURE

47A: Bar: COCKTAIL LOUNGE

62A: Bar: LEGAL PROFESSION

The theme entries today are not as awe-inspiring as Underwood's last "Chess Mate" theme, still great though. Would be better if BAR is not clued as the Answer to 70A: Stand in the way.

But I tanked! Could not get on his wavelength this morning. He was in AUGUSTA, MA. I was in AUGASTA, GA bemoaning Tiger's lost chance and his draggy putter. Coulda, shoulda, woulda, oh, Tiger!

All in all, a very foggy round of golf. Sun never came out and water never parted. Teed off OK, but lost my ball quickly after 2 holes. Put MING for Ho Chi _ City, had no idea what was SHIV, did not know the meaning of "licketys-split". Nightmare there! Also made a Herculean effort trying to putt ULRIC into the hole. Had trouble reading the line. Could not see where the breaks were. "Tack room" was a complete stranger to me.

Had lots of fun at the upper right corner though. The intersection of SEX with MANS, Knee-bending movements and IMAX made me laugh. BRAS & INKY night brought up a vivid picture, not to mention the evocative French words PARC, Semisoft BRIE, FEU (fire), AMIS (though not clued as male friends)!

Did you pay attention to the Front Nine (ACROSS) clues? They are probably the shortest I've ever seen in TMS puzzle. Felt like John Daly's golf style, powerful & quick.

Alright, let's take a mulligan and tee off again!

Front Nine:

1A: Sphere of power: ORB. A nice change from the "Poetic peeper" or "Eye, poetically" clue.

4A: Shillong's state: ASSAM. Have never heard of Shillong. It's the Capital city of ASSAM state. I want to take a walk at this ASSAM tea garden. Darjeeling tea is pretty good too.

9A: Adagio, allegro, etc.: TEMPI. Plural form of Tempo. Would have never strung this word together if not for the IMAX.

15A: Florida city: MIAMI. I love Will Smith's "Welcome to MIAMI".

16A: King's territory: REALM

20A: Audiophile's setup: STEREO

21A: Street-fighter's blade: SHIV. A knife, esp switchblade. Dictionary.com says it is probably originated from gypsy language "Chiv", meaning blade.

25A: Go lickety-split: ZIP. Now I know that "lickety-split" means "At great speed, rapidly".

35A: Tint: COLOR

36A: Closet type: LINEN

37A: Longfellow's bell town: ATRI. The Bell of ATRI.

39A: Go-ahead: SAY SO

41A: Tater: SPUD. Do you know that "murphy" is also a potato?

42A: Tack room gear: REINS. Alright, "tack room" is "a room in or near a stable for storing saddles, harnesses, and other tack."

44A: __ Loa volcano: MAUNA

46A: Switchback curve: ESS

52A: "Dune" composer Brian: ENO. The Microsoft Sound guy (Windows 95 start-up sound).

55A: High shots: LOBS. This would be a great clue entry for yesterday's The MASTERS puzzle.

58A: Code for one-on-one: DUELLO. No idea. It's of Italian origin. "The code of rules regulating dueling"

65A: Lennon's "Instant __": KARMA. Never heard of it. The only Lennon song I like is " Imagine"

68A: Simple weapon: SPEAR. Very simple indeed. Wikipedia shows 8 different kinds of wielding methods!

69A: The March King: SOUSA

Back Nine:

1D: Untitled work: OPUS. How so? Why untitled?

3D: Semisoft cheese: BRIE. Have some, avec Pinot Blanc.

4D: Of a single-celled organism: AMOEBIC

5D: Hot Sahara winds: SIROCCOS. Also spelled as SCIROCCO. Weird looking word. My Webster's says it originated from Arab word "sharq", means "east, to the rise of sun". Hot, oppressive wind blowing from Libyan deserts (Sahara Desert) across Mediterranean into S Europe. It seems more like north wind rather than east wind, doesn't it?

6D: "Casablanca" pianist: SAM. "As Time goes by", play it again, Sam. I don't like the crossing of SAM with 4A: ASSAM. (Updates from drdad and the Gargoyle. In the movie, Ilsa said, "Play it, Sam. Play 'As Time Goes By"'. Rick said, "You played it for her, you can play it for me. Play it!")

7D: Writer Kingsley: AMIS. Father of Martin Kingsley, who was romantically involved with Tina Brown in her earlier lumpy days in London.

8D: Ho Chi _ City: MINH

9D: Insignificant: TRIVIAL

10D: Med. printout: EEG

11D: Provides with a crew: MANS

12D: Knee-bending movement: PLIÉ. Ballet movement.

13D: Big name in big pictures: IMAX (Image Maximum)

18D: Monks' titles: FRAS

24D: Genoese specialty: SALAMI

19D: Magnitude: SIZE

26D: Greek letters: PSIS

27D: San __, CA.: MATEO

28D: First Pope-canonized saint: ULRIC. Or Saint ULRICH, bishop and patron saint of Augsburg. Big stumper for me.

29D: True blue: LOYAL

30D: Crewman under Capt. Kirk: MR. SULU. Like this clue a lot.

31D: Dismantle mortise joints: UNPEG. Hurry up, you EMIRS of the Golf states, unpeg your currency from US dollars, Greenspan might be right this time!

32D: Try it again: REUSE

33D: Extremes: ENDS. Tire of this cluing.

34D: Paris Greenery: PARC (Park in French)

38D: Black as night: INKY

40D: As commanded: ON ORDERS. This phrase, together with SAY SO, A POP and a few other colloquial expressions in his other 2 puzzles has convinced me that Underwood is a very young guy. What do you think?

43D: Of constellations: STELLAR

45D: Maine's capital: AUGUSTA

48D: Each: A POP

52D: Moose cousins: ELKS

53D: Tidal situation: NEAP

54D: Made-up Monster: OGRE. Indeed, it's made up.

56D: Bikini parts: BRAS

59D: An arm or a leg: LIMB

60D: _ Linda, CA.: LOMA. Nope, I have never heard of this city.

61D: Unique person: ONER

63D: Doctor's org. AMA. I am an IATROPHOBIC, deeply skeptical of anything AMA recommends.

64D: Pot-au-__: FEU. Literally Pot on Fire. Needs some Dijon extra strong to spice it up!

C.C.

Sunday, April 13, 2008 Michael T. Williams

Theme: The MASTERS (The theme is an Arnold Palmer quote, to be exact)

27A: Start of an Arnold Palmer quote: WHAT OTHER PEOPLE MAY

48A: Part 2 of quote: FIND IN POETRY OR ART

85A: Part 3 of quote: MUSEUMS I FIND IN THE

114A: End of quote: FLIGHT OF A GOOD DRIVE

Sub-theme:

70A: Garb at The Masters: GREEN JACKET

125A: Golf ball choice: DUNLOP

108A: Cromwell's nickname: IRONSIDES

130A: "Lelia" author: SAND (a bit of stretch for sand trap, but I want the puzzle to look better).

30D: Nobel Prize winner Wiesel: ELIE

No TEE for golf puzzle? You never cease to amaze me Mr. Editor! How can you clue TEE so many times in the past week yet fail to bring it up when it's aptly needed?

I marveled at the great timing of this puzzle when I first saw the titled theme (The MASTERS). I expected the theme entries to be the architectural features of Augusta National, you know, like the Hogan Bridge, Magnolia Lane, Crow's Nest, or just plain old Amen Corner, or some of the hole names, Azaleas, Juniper, Camellia, etc.

Alas, only GREEN JACKET and ARNIE (4 times Masters Champion) himself are directly related to The Masters. But the quote here is pretty good. Watching Tiger hitting his tee shots, or chipping or putting, is indeed much more enjoyable than going to an art museum or reading a poetry book, to me at least. His swing is poetry in motion. I really admire how GREEN JACKETS is positioned in the very center of the grid. Very nice concept and execution!

However, I am clearly not cut for the Sunday puzzles, still too forbidding and unapproachable to me. Way too many authors and actresses' names. I knew none of the actresses. And out of the 7 authors, I only knew ERLE Stanley Gardner. I vaguely remembered ERMA Bombeck, but I could only penned in _RMA as I was not sure whether her name is IRMA, or ERMA. I suppose George SAND (130A: "Lelia" author) was inferable, but only if you knew 105D: author EUDORA Welty, who was a total stranger to me. Susan SONTAG's name simply escaped my brain, though her photos taken by Annie Leibovitz came to my mind vividly.

"Lady Jane Grey" dramatist Nicholas ROWE was an utter tragedy for me. I had big problem with that knotty 3-author corner. Who else? Oh, Writer Shiley Ann GRAU, another weird name for me. And I pieced together CERF (Bennett of Random House) by the crossing clues. Not familiar with him either.

I hope you tamed this golf course with your TITLEIST PRO V1. I struggled with my stupid DUNLOP.

Front Nines:

1A: Sheriff's gang: POSSE. One bullying repeat offender!

6A: Political cartoonist (1840-1902): NAST (Thomas)

10A: Pastry shells: CRUSTS

16A: One of Ted's stations: TBS. The SAWYERS for 18D saved me from messing around with CNN or TNT.

19A: Arrivederci, Andre: ADIEU. Arrivederci is Italian for goodbye, ADIEU is French.

20A: "Star Trek: TNG" character: TROI. Learned it from doing crossword. Not a fan of Star Trek or Star War, or any science fiction stuff, or Lord of Rings fantasy.

21A: Cool due: HEPCAT

23A: Crevasse pinnacle: SERAC. This toughie tortured me on a Feb puzzle, and tormented me again today.

24A: Airfoil: WING. Not familiar with this term. It's "any surface, as a wing, aileron, or stabilizer, designed to aid in lifting or controlling an aircraft by making use of the air currents through which it moves".

25A: Satellite of Jupiter: EUROPA. Guess who sighted it first? Galileo! I dislike the word SATELLITE appeared again as the answer to 35A: Spy-in-the-sky.

26A: Spat: ROW

22A: Old-time high note: ELA. Nope, I don't know you.

31A: Classify: ASSORT

34A: Part of NLCS: NATL (National). NLCS is National League Championship Series.

35A: Spy-in-the-sky: SATELLITE. Would be a great clue if not for 25A.

36A: Private seals: SECRETA. Singular Secretum. No idea. Have never heard of "Sigillum Secretum". It's used "for private correspondence by medieval monarchs". My dictionary only explains SECRETA as "substances secreted by a cell, tissue, or organ."

41A: Way of old Rome: ITER

42A: Romance Lang.: ITAL

45A: Alternative to 9: SEPT.

55A: Ballet turn: PIROUETTE. I am proud that I got this one.

60A: Elroy Jetson's dog: ASTRO. Nailed this one too.

64A: Back and Red, etc: SEAS. Would be a good clue if SEAWORLD were not the answer for 4D.

68A: Devoted to schoolwork: STUDIOUS

69A: Commercial award: CLIO. The Clio Awards. Clio is the Muse of History in Greek.

75A: One who meddles: TAMPERER

77A: Hamlet or Ophelia: DANE

78A: Yields: CEDES

79A: Equipped with a tiller: STEERABLE. OK, I suppose so.

81A: Hindu tunes: RAGAS. Second appearance this week.

93A: Greek letter: THETA. My first fill is OMEGA, as I did not know the meaning of "Strumpets" for 94D. Did any of you fill in DELTA first?

97A: Bum around: ROAM

98A: __ Mahal: TAJ

100A: Pro __ (in proportion): RATA

104A: Hunt and peck: TYPE. First time I see this phrase. It's "a slow and inefficient method of typing by looking for each key separately before striking it: used by untrained typists." Opposite of Touch System/Typing.

106A: Ones who caution: WARNERS. I would prefer the clues to be "Virginia Senator John and others".

108A: Cromwell's nickname: IRONSIDES. No idea, why is it in plural form?

111A: Turn sharply: SLUE

113A: Get cozy: NESTLE

118A: Ambrosia of immortality: AMRITA. Hindu word. No, have never heard of it. Alright, so "A" is not, MRTA is dead! Try me next time then.

119A: "Lady Jane Grey" dramatist: ROWE (Nicholas). See here for more information. Dislike ROWE and ROW (26A) in the same puzzle.

126A: _ go bragh!: ERIN. So, the original Irish was "Éire go Brách". "Brách" is equivalent to "eternity" or "end of time". Ireland forever then? Wikipedia says that the other derivative spelling is "Érin go Brea". 'Brea" means beautiful. Is this the Irish poetic confusion? Beauty is seldom eternal.

127A: Digression: ASIDE

129A: Ancient Jewish mystic: ESSENE. Faintly remembered this word. It's "a member of an ascetic Jewish sect that existed in ancient Palestine from the second century B.C. to the second century A.D."

130A: "Lelia" author: SAND. George SAND. Chopin should have stayed with her. He could have lived a longer and more productive life. This is a very interesting name to mess up with the solvers' brain for any French related clues, like Sand's Sea for MER, or Sand's Salt for Sel (wonderful alliteration, isn't it?). Please share with us if you have some other clever ideas.

Back Nines:

4D: Orlando attraction: SEAWORLD. Could've been reclued as "Golf Channel's neighbor" to mislead solvers and highlight the MASTERS theme, since Golf Channel's HQ is in Orlando.

5D: Game played with 32 cards: EUCHRE. No idea.

6D: Content abbreviation: NT WT

7D: Greek poet saved by a dolphin: ARION. Ugh, another Greek myth. Wikipedia says ARION is also "the Greek music awards show". I guess it's like our Emmy Award. It's also a character in DC Comics called "ARION, Lord of Atlantis". Are you a fan of DC Comics?

8D: "Illness as Metaphor" writer: SONTAG (Susan). Her son David Rieff ("Swimming in a Sea of Death") was just on Terry Gross' Fresh Air a few months ago. Agonizing to hear how she came grips with illness!

10D: "Moonstruck" star: CHER

11D: Stays on in the military: REUPS

12D: Lift hooves, say: UPREAR. I did not get this one immediately.

13D: Gets a move on: SCOOTS

14D: Valve attachment: TAPPET. No idea. It's "a sliding rod, intermittently struck by a cam, for moving another part, as a valve".

15D: Delay by deception: STALL

16D: Wood eater: TERMITE

17D: Swollen: BLOATED

19D: Ruth and Diane: SAWYERS. Knew Diane Sawyer. Have no idea who Ruth Sawyer is.

28D: Harmonize: ATTUNE

29D: Mr. Fudd: ELMER. Got it this time.

32D: Planet-finding grp.: SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence)

37D: Cobra's cousins: ASPS

47D: Poker choice: STUD

49D: Simpson trial judge: ITO (Lance)

56D: Dublin's country: EIRE. See also 126A: ERIN

57D: Natterjack: TOAD. Sewn it together from down clues. I've never heard of "Natterjack".

58D: Use a diapason: TUNE. Did not know the meaning of "Diapason". Not fond of TUNE and ATTUNE appeared in the same puzzle.

61D: Louver piece: SLAT. (Update: I misread it as Louvre piece, so I wanted ARTS first)

62D: What cons do: TIME. Good clue. I am just so happy that "ET. AL" got some jail time today. It appeared in our puzzle 4 times in the past 6 days.

63D: Weapons in Clue: ROPE. Have never played this board game before.

66D: Steely Dan album: AJA. Saw this clue before, but I could not squeeze anything out of my brain quickly. It revealed itself after I got GREEN JACKET.

70D: Write Shirley Ann: GRAU. She won a Pulitzer in 1965 for her "The Keepers of the House".

72D: Agatha's contemporary: ERLE. ERLE Stanley Gardner.

73D: Bennett of Random House: CERF. Bennett CERF, founder of the Random House.

76D: "Maggi" creator Bombeck: ERMA. If Bombeck was not clued, I would've jumped into the train of the novel "Maggie". Of course, Stephen Crane did not fit. I've never heard of the sitom "Maggie". Old TV series are definitely my Achilles' heel.

82D: River island: AIT

83D: Do beaver work: GNAW

84D: Actress Isabelle: ADJANI. Non! Étrangère à moi!

86D: Witticism: MOT. Always thought it's "Bon Mot".

87D: Final authority: SAY SO

88D: Beseeches: IMPLORES

89D: Bilge water: NONSENSE

90D: Waste allowance: TRET

91D: Flax filament: HARL. Would've never got this one without the across clues. It's "hemp filament as well".

93D: Nothing to worry about: TRIFLE

94D: Strumpets: HARLOTS. Strumpet is such a weirld word. Where is the origin? Let me check. ... OK, so one theory says it's connected with "stuprare", Latin for "have illicit sexual relations with," or "strupum" (dishonor, violation). Others suggest "strompe" (stocking) or "strompen" (to stride, to stalk, as a prostitute might a customer). TO STRUM: to have carnal knowledge of a woman, also to play badly on the harpsichord or any other stringed instrument. I think I will remember it next time. STRUM PET.

95D: French stars: ETOILES

96D: Space juice?: TANG. By the way, TANG is also the name of a culturally very prosperous dynasty in China. Its capital city is Xi'An, where I grew up.

101D: Benchmark test: LITMUS

102D: Decorates: ADORNS

103D: Pollute: DEFILE

105D: Writer Welty: EUDORA. No idea. I had a quick glance at her bio at wikipedia, she wrote a book called "A Curtain of Green". Green is at least golf related. So "A Curtain of Green" author might work better here if not for the GREEN JACKET.

110D: Squelched: SAT ON. "Sit on" here means "to suppress or to silence". To "sit on" a bad news, to "squelch" a negative report, etc.

112: Booth or Meese: EDWIN

116D: Rip angrily: REND

121D: Actress SCALA: GIA. She appeared in the TMS puzzle before, but I forgot! My brain is very picky in what it chooses to remember.

122D: News chiefs, for short: EDS (Editors). How about Crossword Editors? They are not in charge of any news.

C.C.

Saturday, April 12, 2008 Tom Pruce

Theme: NONE

Wow, our TMS crossword stalwart golfers Ernie ELS, RORY Sabbatini both missed the cut yesterday. BUBBA Watson is hanging there strong though. I don't think K. J. Choi stands a chance this time, so I am going to flip-flop on my prediction. I will pick up Retief Goosen. I do like Travor Immelman and Ian Poulter though. Have been following both of them (and Justin Rose) since their European Tour.

I almost shot a bogey free round today. Nice and easy. Everything was in sync. I found my TIGER zone. No slice or hook, all my tee shots are straight. No chip flub. And the greens were so receptive. No undulations at all. I only went to dictionary once to check the meaning of 22A: "Subjugates" (had a bit of problem with VIREO and HELEN). Polished off this puzzle around 25 minutes.

Grid: Total letters filled: 191. Total blank squares: 34

Front Nine:

1A: One of the Seven Sisters college: VASSAR. Vassar has gone co-ed, right? Meryl Streep, Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe in "Friends") and Edna St. Vincent Millay all graduated from this college. Jackie Kennedy also studied here for 2 years before her Sorbonne venture.

7A: Mass produce efficiently: CHURN OUT. Efficiently? Really, not hurriedly or routinely? How come I cannot see any efficiency in the puzzles you CHURN OUT for us Editor? Where is the Quality Control?

15A: Slip away, as time: ELAPSE. I like the addition of "as time", rendering the clue much more accurate than "Slip away" alone.

16A: Biddies residence: HEN HOUSE

17A: Belly buttons: NAVELS

18A: Apportioned: ALLOTTED

19A: Breakfast choices: OMELET

20A: Place-kicker's need: TEE. Poor Fred Couples. Had he made that birdie on the last hole, he would've held the consecutive Masters cut record all by himself rather than sharing it with Gary Player. Speaking of Gary Player, all you crossword constructors or constructors wannabes, why not misguide us with his surname for golf related clues next time?

21A: TV journalist Safer: MORLEY. Don't you just love his interview with Helen Mirren? I bet FCC is lurking around ready to pounce on their next nude interview!

22A: Subjugates: ENSLAVES

30A: Oral moisture: SALIVA. Hope your first kiss experience is better than Leonardo DiCaprio's.

31A: Husky pull: SLED

35A: Ornamental case: ETUI. It's painful to watch Ms. ETUI's wrinkly face 3 times a week!

38A: "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" Co-star Dillon: MELINDA. No idea. I got her name from the down clues. The only actor/actress Dillon I know is Matt. Had a mild crush on him after" Crash".

42A: Accustom: INURE. No hesitation this time between INURE and ENURE due to the "I" in SMIRK.

46A: Low mountain crests: RIDGE. Alright, I am ready for former Homeland Security Secretary Tom ___ !

48A: Folk tale: MYTH

50A: Fully committed: KNEE DEEP. I thought KNEE DEEP has a negative undertone, like Hillary (Wellesley Grad) is now KNEE DEEP in trouble. "Fully committed" sounds very positive to me. Are they the same to you?

58A: Fold: CREASE

59A: Thiamine deficiency: BERIBERI. No idea. I got it from the down clues. It's of Sri Lanka origin, meaning "I cannot, I cannot" in Sinhalese language. The word is "doubled for emphasis".

64A: Laws issued by monarchs: EDICTS. Disagree. Any public proclamation issued by the authority can be EDICT, including those fatwas.

65A: Monty Python troupe member: ERIC IDLE. Pieced it together from down clues.

66A: Relative intensity: DEGREE

67A: Ready-for-anything attitude: GAMENESS

68A: Borgnine or Hemingway: ERNEST. Knew Hemingway, had no idea who Borgnine is.

Back nine:

1D: Animal toxin: VENOM

3D: Piggybank filler: SAVER

4D: Indefinite period: SPELL

5D: In dreamland: ASLEEP

6D: Fashioned anew: RESTYLED. Oh by the way, the RESTYLE maven Stacy London (TLC's What Not to Wear) also graduated from VASSAR.

7D: French manor house: CHATEAU (Castle). Here is a beautiful CHATEAU at Feste's suggestion. And enjoy some sumptuous Chocolate Gâteau if you do not care for ASPIC.

8D: Euripides play: HELEN. No idea. Anything Greek related is tragically daunting to me. According to Wikipedia, Euripides' greatest works include Alcestis, Medea, Eletra and the Bacchae.

9D: Except if: UNLESS

11D: Slangy contradiction: NOT. How come it's a "Slangy contradiction"? I don't get this one. (update: See Comments section for explanation).

12D: Inning ender: OUT. The intersection of this OUT with 7A CHURN OUT is NOT pretty.

14D: Actor Knight: TED. Knew him from the "Chess Mate" puzzle.

23D: Stick it out: LAST. Needs recluing. Don't like the double appearances of OUT (12D: Inning ender) and out.

25D: Small green bird: VIREO. Lovely, isn't it? The plumage is indeed green.

27D: Prone to backtalk: SASSY

29D: Relative to etc.: ET AL. This makes me laugh! Look how ET AL and I SAY are stacked together to anchor the whole puzzle! Is that your statement Mr. Editor? I say, bloody!!

31D: Insolent smile: SMIRK

32D: Red Square figure: LENIN

33D: Give the slip to: ELUDE. Good clue. But really I hate when "slip" appeared twice in the clue. See 15A: Slip away.

34D: Funeral song: DIRGE

36D: Brit's indignant comment: I SAY

41D: Go before: ANTECEDE. OK clue. Don't like how ANTECEDE parallels SECEDE.

44D: Uses up: EMPTIES

47D: Leave the union: SECEDE. I was on the wrong train initially, thinking of separate and divorce.

49D: More difficult: HARDER

51D: Some noblemen: EARLS. OK, OK, I know your name is EARL.

53D: Period in power: REIGN

54D: Mother of pearl: NACRE. Here is a picture.

55D: __ Park, Colo.: ESTES

61D: Periphery: RIM

63D: Open container: BIN. Most of the bins have lids, don't they?

C.C.

What Other Puzzles Do You Solve? Poll Result

Question: Besides TMS crossword, what other puzzles do you solver every day?

Total votes: 209

Sudoku: 123 (58%)

Jumble: 55 (26%)

Cryptoquip: 35 (16%)

None of the above: 56 ( 26%)

I allowed for multiple choices for Sudoku, Jumble and Cryptoquip, but now I don't know how to calculate the number and percentage of solvers who picked up all the three. I am so bad at math. Help me! (Update: Forget about my question earlier. There is no way I can figure it out, since some solvers might have picked up 2 of the 3).

Thank you for the participation.

C. C.

Friday, April 11, 2008 Stanley B. Whitten

Theme: FUNERAL RITUALS (In proper order)

20A: James Joyce classic: FINNEGANS WAKE

40A: Len Deighton classic: FUNERAL IN BERLIN

56A: Gettysburg tourist attraction: CEMETERY RIDGE

Too dark a theme for me. I would prefer driving down the Magnolia Lane this morning and lingering around Amen Corner to see how Tiger masterfully tames the whole GOLF field. I want to smell the pine trees, the azaleas, the dogwoods, and the sunshine. I want to feel the VIBES and the AURA from Augusta Golf Course, and never think about life and its fragility.

I had another double-bogey round today. This golf course just did not fit my eyes. Too many doglegs. Besides, I dubbed almost everyone of my fairway wood shot. I had no idea that OSLO was once called Christiania. Did not know that HORSE SENSE means Savvy. Horse does not have much sense for God's sake. Had to google ISAK Dinesen, then I realized that I had searched for her before. But why did she change her original name Karen into a weird ISAK? Or is ISAK a common Danish name?

And the stupid GEER! Drdad will be so disappointed to hear this, but I completely forgot what he told me last week. Sigh! I also failed miserably on LEAR, GALABA, LEVO, LOGE, COLORATURA, UVULAE. And the two literary classics meant nothing to me, I've never heard of them. My only highlight today is BOB DYLAN.

Grid: Total letters filled: 191. Total blank squares: 34

Let's tee off! Front Nine:

1A: Low in pitch: DEEP

5A: Jagged cut: GASH. Did not get this one immediately. Also, I was never aware of the crude slangy side of GASH until this morning. GASHED was clued "Cut deeply" in yesterday's puzzle.

9A: Slangy feelings: VIBES

14A: Latin and others: ET AL. Third day in a roll!

15A: Christiania, today: OSLO. Is this a gimme for you?

16A: French river: ISÈRE. Got it this time.

17A: Ambiance: AURA

18A:Goneril's father: LEAR. King LEAR's other two daughters are REGAN and CORDELIA.

19A: Core group: CADRE

23A: Jefferson's bill: TWO

24A: Will of "The Waltons": GEER

25A: Kilmer of "The Doors": VAL. He is also in Déjà Vu (Agent Paul Pryzwarra).

28A: Lead balloon: DUD

31A: Yada, yada, yada: ETC. The annoying Seinfeld! Why deceive kids with "Deceptively Delicious" food? I don't get it.

33A: Nautical distance: SEA MILE

35A: Bad to the bone: EVIL

37A: Stockings: HOSE

39A: Nero's successor: GALBA. Who succeeded him? OTHO! Here is a list of all Roman Emperors.

43A: Martini garnish, perhaps: OLIVE

45A: Numbers game: KENO. Never knew that KENO originated from China until nytanonimo told me a few days ago. My ignorance knows no bounds, that's for sure!

46A: Went for a quick visit: RAN OVER

50A: Put on: DON

51A: Actress Tilly: MEG. Nope, not familiar with her. Would've nailed it if it's clued as "Actress Ryan" or "Ebay CEO Whitman".

62A: Plot of hair?: SCALP. I like the clue.

64A: River to the Caspian Sea: URAL

65A: Breakfast area: NOOK

66A: Cliffside dwelling: AERIE

67A: Baltic capital: RIGA. Not fond of the crossing of RIGA and RAGA. Not pretty!

69A: Put forward: POSED

Back Nine:

1D: Unhearing: DEAF. Is this a self-referential meta clue of yourself Mr. Editor?

2D: Needle case: ETUI. Weren't you here yesterday?

4D: Factory: PLANT

5D:Calvary: GOLGOTHA. It's "a hill near Jerusalem where Jesus was crucified"

6D: On the Indian: ASEA

7D: Casual coinage: SLANG. Would be alright if not for 9A: Slangy feelings.

8D: Savvy: HORSE SENSE

9D: Rectory: VICARAGE

10D: Author Dinesen: ISAK. Author of "Out of Africa".

11D: Driven to distraction: BEDEVILLED

21D: Sheepish she: EWE. The alliteration here is so so.

22D: Little in Stirling: WEE. I am just so BEDEVILLED by this clue. How come WEE is always clued as "Little in Scotland"? Doesn't WEE mean "little" in America also?

26D: One lacking pigment: ALBINO

27D: Look to (for): LEAN ON

28D: Bend out of shape: DEFORM

29D:Soft palate attachments: UVULAE. Singular UVULA.

30D: Some train units: DINING CARS

32D: One soprano: COLORATURA. Brutal clue. Who knows? It's "a lyric soprano of high range who specializes in runs, trills, and other florid decorations in vocal music."

34D: Visible impression: MARK

36D: To the left: pref: LEVO. Counterclockwise. Opposite of DEXTRO, clockwise.

41D: Made over extensively: REVAMPED

42D: Robert Zimmerman: BOB DYLAN. Great clue, very topical too, given his recent Pulitzer award. Did not know that Bob Zimmerman got his last name from the poet Dylan Thomas until Winfield told me. Thanks.

49D: Court room railing: BAR

55D: Bush-league: MINOR. Disagree. It's MINORS. You don't call a Minor League a MINOR, do you? It's always MINORS to me. Unless you refer to the player, then you will have to re-clue it as Bush Leaguer. (Update: My mistake. Bush-league means Mediocre, Minor. Bush League, without the hyphen, refers to Minor League. )

57D: Nobel-winner Wiesel: ELIE

58D: Hindu Music: RAGA. I doubt there would be such rave about Anoushaka Shankar and her RAGA-heavy "Breathing Under Water" if not for the the featured guests (Her father Ravi Shankar, Norah Jones (her half-sister) and Sting) in the album.

59D: Venetian notable: DOGE. Dictionary.com says it's "The chief magistrate in the former republics of Venice and Genoa." Is this word still in use today?

62D: Chucklehead: SAP & 63D: Boardroom bigwig: CEO. Perfect parallel, perfect words to describe the ilks of Dennis Kozlowski. By the way Mr. Cayne (James), does anyone still call you for a tee time? And bridge?

Please have a look at yesterday's comment section. Littlelj offered a delicious plate of Scones/Biscuits/Cookies for your afternoon tea.

C.C.

Thursday, April 10, 2008 Alan P. Olschwang

Theme: QUIP

17A: Start of a quip: PROVIDENCE

24A: Part 2 of quip: GIVETH AND

40A: Part 3 of quip: THE

52A: Part 4 of quip: INCOME TAX

63A: End of quip: TAKETH AWAY

And America giveth and Murdoch taketh away. This guy is a genius. He knows so well that Grove giveth and Gates taketh away (Bob Metcalfe's quip on Wirth's Law). He swallowed MySpace, gobbled up Wall Street Journal, and now ready to wolf down Yahoo as desserts. America is beautiful, isn't it?

A LA Mr. Olschwang, however, France is more glamorous (total 7 French words). MANET's "Olympia" is more seductive, CLAUDE Debussy's music is more captivating, even the gelatin ASPIC is more tantalizing on a French menu. The ugly Sartre and his existentialistic NAUSEA are probably not BETE-noires to French ÉLÈVES. To me, they are intolerable!

David Sedaris (Me Talk Pretty One Day) will probably enjoy this puzzle very much. He is an avid crossword solver, and I think he does Chicago Tribune Puzzle on line, from Paris.

I would have finished this puzzle unassisted if not for the stupid "J" in the upper right corner. I had F_ORDS (10D) and _ILT (16A) sitting there staring at me forever. I have never heard of "JILT". In fact, I wanted it to be RILT, as FRORDS looked like a sensible word to me. I would NEVER put a "J" there. FJORDS just looked so ridiculously wrong. Had to flirt with Mr. Google to get this letter, a very expensive visit.

Grid: Total letters filled: 189. Total blank squares: 36

Across clues:

1A: __ firma: TERRA. Do you know where the Terra Cotta Warriors Museum is?

14A: Projecting bay window: ORIEL. Here is a picture for you.

16A: Leave at the altar: JILT. Julia Roberts' The Runaway Bride is too much of an overkill. Don't like it.

19A: Earthen ware crock: OLLA. Native American Pottery OLLA can be breathtaking. Look at this one.

20A: Erhard' s program: EST (Erhard Seminars Training). Werner Erhard. Unknown to me. I got it from down clues.

21A: _ noire (bugbear): BÊTE

22A: Entryway: PORTAL

26A: St. Francis' place: ASSISI

29A: Way back when: AGES AGO

34A: Antiseptic pioneer: LISTER (Joseph). Hence the brand name Listerine.

41A: Part of a flight: STAIR

43A: Ames inst. : ISU (Iowa State University).

44A: Composer Debussy: CLAUDE. Impressionist composer (La Mer). Of course, CLAUDE can also be clued as Painter Monet.

47A: Ruffle feathers: RILE

48A: Commuter's lane: CARPOOL

55A: Sartre novel: NAUSEA. La Nausée. Again, I don't understand, how come the translation is not "The Nausea"? Why is his "Le Mur" translated as "The Wall" then? I am very confused about English article "the".

58A: Arab garments: ABAS

62A: Force out: OUST. Ugh, pay attention to this small details please! Try "Supplant" next time.

66A: Eins, zei, __: DREI. I suppose this is German one, two, three.

67A: Continuously: EVER

68A: Ecole attendee: ÉLÈVE. French for pupil.

69A: English title: EARL

70A: Pub projectile: DART

71A: Took the plunge: DARED

Down clues:

1D: Shark type: TOPE. Here is a picture.

4D: Gun it in neutral: REV

5D: Cover stories: ALIBIS. Good clue.

6D: Narrow mountain ridge: ARETE

7D: "Olympia" painter: MANET. So serene & sensual & defiant. I don't think this picture is in Musée D'Orsay though. Lunch on the Grass is there. The audacious, unabashed nudeness, "come on and dare me"!

9D: Amount of ooze: SEEPAGE

10D: North sea inlets: FJORDS. Also spelled as Fiord. "A long, narrow, deep inlet of the sea between steep slopes".

11D: Happy song: LILT. Don't like it's intersection of JILT.

23D: Lulus: ONERS

24D: Pith: GIST

25D: Despised: HATED. Are they the same? I thought "despise" means "scorn".

26D: Meat stock jelly: ASPIC. I have to show this picture again. I just love it. It has wasabi & pistachio in it.

27D: Chip dip: SALSA. ASPIC tastes very good with SALSA too.

28D: Scrub extra hard: SCOUR

30D: With one's might: AMAIN. No idea, got it from across clues.

32D: Jury's determination: GUILT. I wanted GUILTY or VERDICT, but neither fit.

32D: Baddies: OGRES

35D: Author Calvino: ITALO. Never heard of him.

36D: Old Chinese kingdom: SHU (蜀). Technically there was never a SHU kingdom, only Former SHU ( 前蜀) and Later SHU (後蜀). Both located in today's Sichuan Province. Hot, spicy food there.

39D: Tea treat: SCONE. American BISCUIT (mostly sweet). British BISCUIT is American COOKIE. I think British also call crackers are biscuits. Not very sure. Maybe our fellow solver Littlelj (British) will jump in later today to confirm (Hi there, great cherry blossom pictures by the way!).

42D: Chicago's Sue: T REX. Plenty of photos here.

45D: Placed: LOCATED

46D: Bother: EAT AT

49D: Flower part: PISTIL. No idea. I got it from across clues. It's "the ovule-bearing or seed-bearing female organ of a flower, consisting when complete of ovary, style, and stigma."

51D: Cut deeply: GASHED

54D: Chicago movie critic: EBERT (Roger)

55D: Protuberance: NODE

59D: Water vessel: EWER

60D: Church section: NAVE (sorry for the mistake earlier).

61D: Soaked in anil: DYED

C.C.

Wednesday, April 9, 2008 Philip J. Anderson

Theme: FORTES (Physical, Intellectual & Visual)

17A: Publisher's forte?: MANUAL DEXTERITY

39A: Prevaricator's forte?: MENTAL AGILITY

62A: Diver's forte? DEPTH PERCEPTION

Nope, not an easy Wednesday for me.

Got mired in the mucky upper left corner again. Was not familiar with IGA (2D: Supermarket grp.). Had no idea that AGATE was a printing type. It's always a "Playing marble" to me. I doubt my baseball stat nut husband knows this special size word for the sports data he is poring over every morning. Did not know "MANDRAKE the Magician". Not a fan of comic strip. Only glance over at "Dennis the Menace" occasionally. The crossing of 3D & 17A MAN is very inelegant.

I did not actually experience much resistance in other areas, though I don't think I would've got MIRO & SEWER without the down clues. MIRO is the most vicious clue I've ever seen in TMS crossword. How many people have seen this "Painting" painting? Ridiculous! "Painters on Painting" painter or "Antipainter' painter will be sufficiently challenging!

SEWER clue is very diabolical too. For me, Ed Norton is him, Salma Hayek's ex. Have never heard of "The Honeymooners". Again, without the down clues, I would've failed miserably. I hate the TEX clue (8D: Comboy's handle) too. Want to overawe me? Add a "?" for the clue. Then I will go gaga over your cleverness. (Update: My mistake. I did not know that cowboy is called a TEX. I complicated the whole thing).

Grid: Total letters filled: 187. Total blank squares: 38 (reached the maximum). Total 26 letter As in this puzzle (13% of the filled squares)

Across clues:

1A: FRD coins: DIMES.

6A: Meat pastes: PATÉS. Hmm, Paté de campagine, fresh baguette directly out of a boulangerie, and a bottle of wine. Perfect picnic in Paris, esp if you are in love!

11A: Dupe: SAP. "Soul-sapping" = "Today" extension, indeed Robin (Givhan).

14A: Tiny type size: AGATE. It's "a standard unit of measurement found primarily in newspaper publishing, AGATE is approximately equal to 5 1/2 points or 1/14 of an inch. The very small type used for statistical data in the sports and stock sections of a newspaper is agate type." It's also used to display legal notices in newspapers. Considered to be the smallest point size that can be printed on newsprint.

20A: Cash in Iraq: DINAR. No "Bread in Iraq?". Guess the Editor is not in the mood to dance around with us this morning. Good, we need straight & honest answers about Iraq, everything! Where did the $9 billion OIL revenue go? FYI, DINAR is also the currency in Iran, Jordan and a few other countries in Middle Eastern countries.

22A: Long, thin fish: GAR. OK, they do look long and thin. I've never had GAR before.

24A: Perspiring: SWEATY

28A: "Painting" painter. MIRO (Joan). Would you get this one without the down clues?

31A: Ed Norton's "Office": SEWER. Is it a gimme for you?

34A: Bury the hatchet: MAKE UP

43A: Seer's deck: TAROT

49A: German philosopher: HEGEL. Ah, the Dialectics guy. Karl Marx adopted his theory and formed his own "Dialectical Materialism". My middle school headache!!

51A: __ fide (in bad faith): MALA. I am always confused by this translation. "MALA fide" looks like "bad faith' to me, where is the preposition "in"?

57A: "All Things Considered" network: NPR. Do you like Robert Segal? I do.

19A: Major artery: AORTA

70A: Bandleader shaw Shaw: ARTIE. Repeat offender.

73A: Electrical pioneer: TESLA (Nicola). Also, unit of magnetic flux density.

Down clues:

2D: Supermarket grp.: IGA (Independent Grocers' Alliance)

3D: Magician of comics: MANDRAKE. MANDRAKE the Magician. Sigh.

4D: Pin box: ETUI. OK, one more ETUI for you.

5D: Astin and Hayes: SEANS. Knew Sean Astin. Sean Haynes, no!

6D: San Diego team: PADRES

8D: Cowboy's handle: TEX (Fletcher). This guy is so prolific, he reminds me of Willie Nelson's career. "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys". (Ugh, I entangled myself on this one, sorry for the mistake).

13D: Walter in the NFL Hall of Fame: PAYTON. Ha ha, finally a HOFer I know.

19D: Sleep sate: R. E. M. Enough of this word. Go back to sleep pls!

23D: Composer Khachaturian: ARAM

25D: Infused with oxygen: AERATED. I wonder why golf course green keepers aerate their greens in autumn rather than in spring time.

27D: Abominable snowmen: YETIS

32D: Move, in realtor-speak: RELO

35D: Jazz state: UTAH

38D: Thailand's last name?: SIAM. Great clue. Here is information I got from Wikipedia :" The country's official name was Siam until 23 June 1939, when it was changed to Thailand; it was renamed Siam between 1945 and 11 May 1949, after which the name Thailand was once again adopted". So Thailand's last name before Thailand is indeed SIAM.

40D: Theater section: LOGE

41D: Passages: TRANSITS

45D: __ es-Salaam: DAR. Again, the across clues saved me. "DAR es-Salaam" is Arabic word for "Abode of Peace'. Dar means "house". Salaam is "peace". Wikipedia says that the commonly known "Haven of Peace" translation is an erroneous.

46D: Large crowds: HORDES

47D: UFO crew?: ALIEN. Why the question mark?

48D: Tyrant: DESPOT

50D: East Indian sailor: LASCAR. Also spelled as LASHKAR. Probably a gimme for Governor Bobby Jindal or CNN's Zain Verjee. It's an impossible for me without the across clues.

55D: Dundee refusal: NAE

56D: 3/17 honoree: ST. PAT.

59D: Spurious imitation: SHAM

63D: Luau dish: POI. I've never had POI before. I do like steamed/baked taro though.

66D: Texas tea: OIL. Good clue. A bit groan on TEX, Texas though.

67D: Performance grants org.: NEA (National Endowment for the Arts).

Alright, I am ready for a torturous QUIP. Go ahead, make my day!

C.C.

How to remember Roman Numerals

OK, here is the best Mnemonic: Sentence to remember Roman Numerals I fished out from the Google Ocean. I only made a few changes to fit in my blog format. The ascending order of Roman numerals: LCDM:

Lucky Cows Drink Milk

Lucy Can't Drink Milk The Roman numerals in order for I, V, X (1, 5, 10) I Vant XRays The Roman numerals in order for I V X L C D M (1 5 10 50 100 500 1000) I Value Xylophones Like Cows Dig Milk A Poem to remember all the Roman numerals: M's "mille" (or 1000 said) D's half (500 - quickly read!) C's just a 100 (century!) and L is half again - 50! So all that's left is X and V (or 10 and 5) - and I - easy!

Explanation Roman Numerals

I	=	1
V	=	5
X	=	10
L	=	50
C	=	100
D	=	500
M	=	1000

Roman numerals are expressed by letters of the alphabet and are rarely used today except for formality or variety. There are four basic principles for reading Roman numerals:

1. A letter repeated once or twice repeats its value that many times (XXX = 30, CC = 200, etc.).
2. One or more letters placed after another letter of greater value increases the greater value by the amount of the smaller (VI = 6, LXX = 70, MCC = 1200, etc.).
3. A letter placed before another letter of greater value decreases the greater value by the amount of the smaller (IV = 4, XC = 90, CM = 900, etc.). Several rules apply for subtraction: (a) only subtract powers of ten (I, X, or C, but not V or L); (b) only subtract one number from another; (c) do not subtract a number from one that is more than 10 times greater (that is, you can subtract 1 from 10 [IX] but not from 20—there is no such number as IXX).
4. A bar placed on top of a letter or string of letters increases the numeral's value by 1,000 times (XV = 15, = 15,000).

Hope it helps. C.C.

Tuesday, April 8, 2008 Diane C. Baldwin

Theme: Common Phrases for "WORN OUT"

20A: In need of a boost: RUNNING ON EMPTY

39A: Energy depleted: ALL OUT OF STEAM

60A: Exhausted: ON ONE'S LAST LEGS

I enjoyed your comments on yesterday's ICED/ICE tea, very entertaining. Keep 'em coming!

It's a "S" Fest today. Total 23, that's about 12% of the total fill. These rampant ESSE, ESSEN, MESS, ASSES made me cringe! Did you groan at all?

I had a double-bogey round of golf today, mainly due to the heavy-rough right corner. First of all, I had no idea where the fairway was. I did not know that "bark'' can be a boat/SHIP. And WISTERIA was not an easy word to be squeezed out of my brain, neither was ARMYWORM. I felt so stupid falling into the ISMS bunker again. What a waste of my years studying Marxism, Leninism and Mao Ze-Dong Thought.

So I cheated, I went to the dictionary for the definition of "bark", kicked my ball out of the rough a la Mulligan President Clinton, hacked it close to the green and somehow chipped it in. All the other holes were fairly easy, no dogleg, no severe slope, no unfair pin position. All in all, a fun round!

The grid structure of the first several rows and the middle part is so similar to Ms. Baldwin's last offering. She might be using a crossword software for the construction I think. Are any of you guys foodies? Do the crossings of ASPIC, TOAST & OGEES look pleasing to your eyes?

Grid: Total letters filled: 189. Total blank squares: 36 (identical to yesterday's).

Front Nine:

10A: Swing to and fro: SWAY

15A: Half-pints: RUNTS. I got it from down clues. I had no idea that "Half-pints" is a slang for a short person. Besides "shrimp", what other words have the similar meaning?

19A: Doctrines: ISMS

24A: Word with Whiz: GEE. Good, no more "Turns right" (GEES), singular for a change. This should make one solver happy. Want to know who he/she is? Go to the Comments section of the March 27 puzzle, and see who opined at 7:39am.

25A: Generic stuff: DNA. Never know when to put DNA and when to put RNA.

26A: Flock member: EWE

30A: Pi follower: RHO. Very easy to infer, even if you are not sure of the exact order of the Greek alphabet.

32A: Atomic number 5: BORON. No idea. I suck at this atomic matter.

34A: Took the cake: WON. I ATE first.

36A: Frequently, to a bard: OFT

38A: Encircle: GIRD. Variant spelling is GIRT.

43A: Utter joy: GLEE. I always associate utter joy with "BLISS". To me, "GLEE" has a "GLOAT" connotation.

45A: "Annabel Lee" poet: POE. I tried too hard to outsmart the editor. I penned in EAP recklessly.

46A: Small salamanders: NEWTS

50A: Meat stock jelly: ASPIC

65A: Poultry housing: COOPS. Good clue. "Housing" refers to houses collectively, in case you wonder why "S" is there.

68A: Be entertaining: AMUSE

69A: Soybean paste: MISO. Hmm, it's clued as "Sushi bar soup" last time. Someone misread the clue as "Sushi bar soap" (you know who you are). And this soap does exist, look at here.

Back Nine:

1D: Hooded vipers: COBRAS. Never knew that "Hood" a special term for snake's neck skin. Interesting. Snakes do not have sternum.

2D: Exceedingly sudden: ABRUPT

3D: Primitive shelter: LEAN TO. Weren't you here yesterday?

4D: Loretta of country music: LYNN. Surprise me with something else! Jaime __ Spears!

5D: Stretch one's neck: CRANE. I try to picture how COBRAS can "stretch their ribs outwards which expands the hood."

6D: Kind of strike: HUNGER. Solution: Force-feed!

8D: Stalemate: STANDOFF

9D: City on the Ruhr: ESSEN

10D: Ark or bark: SHIP

11D: Showy ornamental vine: WISTERIA. It's "any climbing shrub belonging to the genus Wisteria, of the legume family, having showy, pendent clusters of blue-violet, white, purple, or rose flowers." Look at this picture, isn't it lovely?

12D: Destructive moth larva: ARMYWORM. Ick.

22D: Queen of fairies: MAB. "Queen Mab". It's also the name of Marianne's horse in "Sense and Sensibility."

29D: Little screecher: OWLET

31D: Hogwash: HOOEY

33D: Curvy moldings: OGEES. It's a "molding having the profile of an S-shaped curve". Now this is very fascinating: "In fluid mechanics, the term ogee is used for an aerodynamic curve due to the "oh, gee!" effect of physically navigating such a curve. For example, a wing may be shaped as an ogee curve, particularly on supersonic aircraft such as the Condord. Also, the downstream face of a dam spillway is usually formed in an ogee curve to minimize erosion."

35D: Crackpot: NUT

39D: Tavern: ALE HOUSE. I put TEA HOUSE first.

40D: Indecency: LEWDNESS

41D: Humdrum: TIRESOME. I put BORESOME first.

42D: Drinker's salute: TOAST

43D: Economic stat.: GNP (Gross Nation Product). I am just so intrigued by Bhutan's GNH (Gross National Happiness) measurement. It's such an innovative way to ascertain the quality of our life, albeit not as scientific as GNP.

49D: Slip away: ELAPSE. Don't like the double "P" appearance here.

51D: Lyrical: POETIC. Have yet to hear from Bob Dylan himself on the Pulitzer!

52D: Consume: INGEST. Antonym: EGEST

53D: Universe: COSMOS. The plural for COSMOS could be COSMOS or COSMOSES.

56D: Coffeehouse order: DECAF

58D: Nincompoops: ASSES. Could not find the origin of this "Nincompoops" anywhere.

61D: Fodder for the smelter: ORES. I never knew that "Fodder"s plural form is still "Fodder". Good to learn. This is my favorite clue of today's puzzle. I like the "er" rhyme.

62D: Churlish individual: LOUT. I put BOOR first.

63D: Succotash morsel: LIMA. Disagree. It's LIMA BEAN. Cooked with kernels of corns.

64D: Sleep state: R. E. M. (Rapid Eye Movement". It's was clued as "Man on the Moon" group on March 18.

Please let Philip J. Anderson return tomorrow!

C.C.

Monday, April 7, 2008 John Underwood

Theme: "Chess Mate"

17A: "Chess mate" dancer: IRENE CASTLE

27A: "Chess mate" dancer: TED KNIGHT

37A: "Chess mate" poet: ELIZABETH BISHOP

53A: "Chess mate" talk-show host: LARRY KING

61A: "Chess mate" mystery pseudonym: ELLERY QUEEN

To Monday-Friday solvers, please read this A Few Updates post first.

After yesterday's titanic struggle against Wiseman and his heinous IATRO puzzle, today's offer considerably salved my wounds and soothed my bruised confidence. A smooth sailing for me this morning.

I did get bogged down on 34A, 25D & 26D area for a long time. I simply forgot Sorvino's name (MIRA). And ANTZ escaped my mind. I've never read Agatha's Sparkling Cyanide. In fact, I misread the clue as "Christian's Sparking poison". So I was thinking of Chrisitan Dior's Poison Perfume. It's sparking, isn't it? I used the Green Poison for a long time, then I switched to Opium.

Grid: Total letters filled: 189. Total blank squares: 36

Ready to tee off? OK, Front Nine:

1A: Calls on the carpet: CHIDES. Learned this phrase from last Friday's puzzle.

11A: Peke's bark: YAP. I just found out that YAP is also "Group of Islands in the W Caroline Islands, W Pacific). Just in case this devilish constructor decides to waterboard us with this clue for pleasure.

14A: Repeat from memory: RECITE

20A: Hanoi holiday. TET. I like this kind of specific clue. Hate when it's clued as Asian holiday. Chinese has Spring Festival, and many Asian countries do celebrate this Lunar New Year, but only in Vietnam is it called TET.

24A: Suspension part: I BEAM

31A: Christies' "Sparkling" poison: CYANIDE

33A: Waist watching: ON A DIET. I start to really enjoy this kind of "preposition + article+ noun" combined answer. Very lively.

36A: No more seats: SRO. There should be some hint in the clue to indicate an abbreviated answer, don't you think so?

46A: Feeler: ANTENNA

49A: Scrutinize: EYEBALL. By the way, I cook terrible American food for my American husband by "EYEBALLING" the measurements all the time, thanks to Rachel Ray.

55A: Smooth transition: SEGUE

56A: Australian isl.: TASM (Tasmania). No idea. I pieced it together from down clues. This clue/answer appeared on March 2 puzzle also. I did not know then, and I will probably forget it again soon.

68A: Take offense at: RESENT

71A: Augments: ADDS TO. I am not falling into "Fill in S first" trap any more.

Back Nine:

1D: Picayune nitpicker perhaps: CRITIC. Did not know the meaning of "Picayune", but got the answer nevertheless. You talkin' to me, Mr. Underwood?

2D: As a result of this: HEREBY. I filled in HERETO first.

3D: Summer cooler, to some: ICE TEA. Incorrect, it's ICED TEA (thank you for pointing it out Dennis). Wonder why rappers name themselves as ICE T or ICE Cube.

4D: Clamor: DIN

7D: Periodical number: ISSUE

10D: Breastbones: STERNA. Sternum is the singular form.

11D: Immature-ish: YOUNGISH. Ugly clue. Why put "ish" there?

12D: Modern protagonist: ANTIHERO

18D: Uffizi display: ARTE. The Uffizi Gallery in Florence. Good clue.

25D: Bug movie: ANTZ

26D: Ms. Sorvino: MIRA. She spent sometime in Beijing, so her Mandarin Chinese is pretty good.

8D: Shakespearean verb: DOTH

29D: Like unsightly knees: KNOBBY

32D: Discredit: DEBUNK. I don't like the clue. Not fond of the double appearances of letter "D" both in the clue and the answer.

30D Semi -convertible: T TOP

37D: Latin & others: ET AL. WHAT??? Is this your original clue Mr. Underwood? Shouldn't it be " Latin: & others?"

38D: Crazies: LUNATICS

39D: Corporate web: INTRANET

42D: Kemo __: SABE

48D: NYC team: NY METS. Johan Santana is my favorite pitcher! (Update: from drdad: the clue should be reworded to avoid the repetition of letter "NY").

49D: Elbe tributary: EGER. Learned from doing crossword of course.

51D: Softly bright: LUCENT

52D: Shanty: LEAN TO

54D: 48D, e. g. : NLERS. National Leaguers.

58D: Gore Vidal's Breckinridge: MYRA. No, no idea. Here is some information.

63D: Countenance: LET

64D: Math proof letters: QED (Quod Erat DeMONSTRANDUM). I would never got this one if not for the across clues.

65D: Coyote State sch.: USD (University of South Dakota)

(Note to crockett1947, I hope you have a new record today. This puzzle is tailor-made for you!)

C. C.