Tuesday, November 29, 2022 Jared Goudsmit

The Princess and the Pea.  Each theme answer is a two word phrase where each word begins with the letter "P".  Today's puzzle is theme-heavy.  There are 6 theme answers: 4 in the Across position and 2 in the Down position.

17-Across. Big name in crossword magazines: PENNY PRESS.

28-Across. Wet blanket: PARTY POOPER.

47-Across. Challenging yoga asana named for a showy bird: PEACOCK POSE.  Nope, can't manage this pose.

61-Across. Electricity facility: POWER PLANT.

3-Down. Noodles often served alla vodka: PENNE PASTA.  Yummers!

30-Down. Picnic dinnerware: PAPER PLATE.

Across:

1. Word before and after against: HOPE.  Against Hope and Hope Against.  Hope can also be a woman's name.  [Name adjacent.]

5. Bite: CHOMP.

10. Credit card option, familiarly: AMEX.

14. Above: OVER.

15. Sound transmission: AUDIO.

16. Rain gutter site: EAVE.

19. Wreak havoc on: RUIN.

20. Concave belly buttons: INNIES.

21. Dramatic declaration during an unveiling: ET VOILÀ.  Today's French lesson.

23. Cave-dwelling fish: EEL.

24. Yuletide songs: CAROLS.  Why Christmas songs are called Carols.  Carol is also a woman's name.  [Name adjacent.]

26. Egyptian cobra: ASP.  The snake that did in Cleopatra.

33. Ancestry.com sample: DNA.

34. "__ the front door!": SHUT.

35. Look daggers (at): GLARE.

36. Blu-ray __: DISC.

38. One-named singer whose four studio albums have numerical titles: ADELE.  Her given name is Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (b. May 5, 1988).  The four referenced studio albums are numbered 19, 21, 25, and 30.  The numbers refer to her age in which she started working on the album.  [Name # 1.]

41. Go in circles: SPIN.

42. Actress/model Kate: UPTON.  Kate Upton (née Katherine Elizabeth Upton; b. June 10, 1992) began  her modeling with Sports Illustrated in 2011 and was a cover model in 2012.  [Name # 2.]

44. First word for some babies: MAMA.

46. __ out a living: EKE.

50. Uncooked: RAW.  Some uncooked foods are delicious.

Sashimi

51. Shoelace tips: AGLETS.  I learned the name for the shoelace tips from doing the crossword puzzles.

52. Indy 500 sponsor: STP.

54. Digital currency: BITCOIN.

57. Pro at net working?: GOALIE.  Cute clue.

60. Empty hallway sound: ECHO.

64. Sci-fi author Stephenson: NEAL.  I don't generally read Science Fiction, so am not familiar with Neal Stephenson (né Neal Town Stephenson; b. October 31, 1959).  [Name # 3.]

65. Like the humans in "WALL-E": OBESE.

66. Director Preminger: OTTO.  Otto Preminger (né Otto Ludwig Preminger; Dec. 5, 1905 ~ Apr. 23, 1986) was born in Austria-Hungary.  He started his career in Austria before moving to the United States.    He was known for pushing the boundaries of censorship by dealing with themes that were taboo, such as drug addiction (The Man with the Golden Arm) and rape (Anatomy of a Murder).  He also directed the 1960 film Exodus.  [Name # 4.]

67. Oscar winner Catherine __-Jones: ZETA.  Catherine Zeta-Jones (b. Sept. 25, 1969) is married to  Michael Douglas (b. Sept. 25, 1944).  They share the same birthdate, albeit he is 25 years her senior.   [Name # 5.]

68. Nash of "The Rookie: Feds": NIECY.  Niece Nash (née Carol Denise Ensley; b. Feb. 23, 1970) also portrayed Deputy Raineesha Williams on the television sit-com Reno 911!  [Name # 6.]

69. Gas in an eye-catching sign: NEON.

Down:

1. Grand Canyon people: HOPI.

2. Brick __ pizza: OVEN.  Yummers!

4. Orange half of a "Sesame Street" duo: ERNIE.  [Name adjacent.]

5. Bottle tops: CAPS.

6. "Ben-__": HUR.  The novel Ben Hur, by Lew Wallace was first published in 1880.  It was adapted into a movie starring Charlton Heston in 1959.  It was an influential Christian novel when it was published and was a best seller until 1936 when Margaret Mitchell's novel Gone with the Wind was published.  [Name adjacent.]

7. Laudatory poem: ODE.  A crossword staple.

8. Great woe: MISERY.  Also the title of a novel by Stephen King.

9. Hospital recovery area, for short: POST-OP.

10. Some spray cans: AEROSOLS.

11. Haleakala National Park island: MAUI.  The park is named after a dormant volcano.

12. Profoundly bad: EVIL.

13. Warrior princess played by Lucy Lawless: XENA.  Xena: Warrior Princess was an adventure television show that ran from 1995 until 2001.  [Name # 7.]

18. Shrill cries: YELPS.

22. YouTube journal: VLOG.

24. "Dang it!": CRUD.  Really?

25. Basketball shot: ATTEMPT.  Why an attempt?

26. Make logical sense: ADD UP.

Cartoon logical sense.

27. Long-billed marsh bird: SNIPE.

29. "I see now!": AHA!

31. "Get Out" actress Alexander: ERIKA.  Get Out is a 2017 psychological horror film.  Erika Alexander  (née Erika Rose Alexander; b. Nov. 19, 1953) played a TSA detective in the film.  [Name # 8.]

32. Continue to subscribe: RENEW.

37. Pepsi rival: COCA~COLA.

39. Country between Thailand and Vietnam: LAOS.  Laos is landlocked.

40. Ambulance letters: EMS.  As in Emergency Medical Services.  Emergency motorcycles can be seen all over cities in Israel.  They are the first responders and can provide medical assistance until the ambulance arrives.

43. Canceled, at Cape Canaveral: NO GO.

45. Greek fable writer: AESOP.  You can find his fables here.  [Name # 9.]

48. Like some earrings and ties: CLIP-ON.  Are clip-on earrings even available anymore?

49. Obi-Wan __: KENOBI.  Alec Guinness (né Alec Guinness de Cuffe; Apr. 2, 1914 ~ Aug. 5, 2000) portrayed Obi-Wan Kenobi in some of the Star Wars movies.  [Name adjacent.]

53. Bird of prey's claw: TALON.

54. Mercedes-__: BENZ.  I was shopping a month or so ago and there was an older woman in the shop who was wearing a Janis Joplin tee shirt.  The clerk asked her if she was a Joplin fan.  The woman replied, "oh, yes, but I was her babysittter."  [Name adjacent.]

55. Frozen drink brand: ICEE.

56. Not this: THAT.

57. Lady __ tea: GREY.  This must be the phrase of the week.  This tea appeared in Sunday's puzzle.  I knew of Earl Grey Tea, but was not familiar with Lady Grey Tea.  The difference seems to be that citrus peels are an addition to the Lady Grey Tea. 

58. Keen about: INTO.

59. Prestigious British school: ETON.  Prince William (b. June 21, 1982) and Eddie Redmayne (b. Jan. 6, 1982) were classmates at Eaton.

62. Tiny: WEE.

63. Keyboard key for exiting full-screen mode: ESC.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

Many thanks to Sumdaze for filling in on Tuesdays while I was in Israel.

At the Market in Jerusalem

At the Market in Jerusalem

Chagall Windows at Hadassah Hospital

Chagall Windows at Hadassah Hospital

Nothing beats an Israeli breakfast

Monday November 28, 2022 Janice Luttrell

Theme: COATTAILS (61. Features of some formal jackets, and what the ends of the answers to the starred clues literally are) - The last word can follow "coat".

17. *Source of endless funds: MONEY TREE. Coat tree.

23. *"Peter Pan" pirate: CAPTAIN HOOK. Coat hook.

39. *Pre-employment screening process: BACKGROUND CHECK. Coat check.

49. *Suspenseful ending to a series: CLIFF HANGER. Coat hanger.

Boomer here. We don't need a coat in Minnesota yet.

I hope you all enjoyed Thanksgiving and had a happy Black Friday. I enjoyed the Vikings' victory over the Patriots. 

 

Across: 

1. "The Fox and the __": HOUND. Red fox.

6. "My gal" of song: SAL. Old time song.

9. Sharply bitter: ACRID.

14. Former anesthetic: ETHER.

15. Weep: CRY.

16. Overused, as an expression: TRITE. "In this day and age ..."

19. Moon-related: LUNAR. It's a bird. It's a plane. It's a moon.

20. Vietnamese soup: PHO.

21. Tehran's country: IRAN.

22. Irritating inconvenience: HASSLE. Black Friday. Not worth the hassle.

25. Thumbed (through), as a book: LEAFED.

29. Catch on to: GET.

30. Spanish "other": OTRA.

31. "What __ can I say?": ELSE.

34. Newsletter edition: ISSUE.

42. "Straight Outta Compton" actor __ Jackson Jr.: O'SHEA. Son of Ice Cube.

43. French head: TETE.

44. French fashion magazine: ELLE.

45. "I smell a __!": RAT.

47. Some electric cars: TESLAS.

55. Noodle dish: LO MEIN.

56. West Coast gas brand: ARCO.

57. Atlas page: MAP.

60. Tequila plant: AGAVE.

63. Spinal Tap guitarist Tufnel: NIGEL.

64. Energize, with "up": AMP. Minimum of 100 in your house.

65. Cruise stopovers: ISLES.

66. Bergen's dummy Mortimer: SNERD.

67. Dessert choice: PIE. We had pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving.

68. Toy holder: CHEST. Need one for Christmas.

Down:

1. Natural rope fiber: HEMP.

 

2. Texter's "Although ... ": OTOH.

3. "Yeah, I'll pass": UH NO.

4. Word before a maiden name: NEE.

5. Cold packing material for shipping fish: DRY ICE.  Don't touch it.

6. Part of a quilter's fabric supply: SCRAP.

7. "__ you clever!": AREN'T.

8. Strong cleanser: LYE.

9. __ City: New Jersey resort town: ATLANTIC. Gambling mecca.

10. Puppy love: CRUSH.

11. Classic detergent brand: RINSO. Not DOWNY.

12. Author Calvino: ITALO.

13. Hall of Fame shortstop Jeter: DEREK.  #2.

18. __ Joe's: food store chain: TRADER. Great place to buy nuts.

22. Quaint "Shake a leg": HIE.

24. Writer's representative: AGENT.

25. Rebecca in the Basketball Hall of Fame: LOBO.

26. Flight sked info: ETAS.

27. St. Louis landmark: ARCH. Been there but did not go up.

28. Counterfeit: FAKE.

32. Great deal of, slangily: LOTTA.

33. Mystery novelist Grafton: SUE.

35. Tom Jones's "__ a Lady": SHE'S.

36. Exchange for cash: SELL. on eBay.

37. Golden State sch.: UCLA. Great basketball team.

38. Barely gets (by): EKES.

40. Comic strip cat: GARFIELD.

41. Catch a scent of: DETECT.

46. "Kung Fu" actor Philip: AHN.

48. Like some R-rated films: EROTIC.

49. Families: CLANS.

50. Enter a password, say: LOG IN. Tough to remember them.

51. Picture: IMAGE.

52. High temperature: FEVER.

53. Actress Watts: NAOMI.

54. Wine fruit: GRAPE. We like the green ones.

57. Odometer unit: MILE.

58. Pub orders: ALES.

59. Discreet summons: PSST.

61. Ballplayer's hat: CAP. This is too easy

62. Firepit residue: ASH. We don't use our fireplace any more.

Boomer

Notes from C.C.:

This will be Boomer's 281st (Thanks, TTP) and last Monday write-up for our blog. The brilliant Sumdaze (Renee) will take over the Monday blog starting December 5th. 

Thanks for the love and attention you've given to Boomer over the years. He really enjoyed blogging and reading your comments. For the past month, he did not play any computer game or take part in Facebook bantering. He spent all his extra energy on his Monday blog, tackling it bit by bit.

Sunday November 27, 2022 Katie Hale

Theme:  "Let It Go"

23. Ready to move on from reading Beat poetry?: OVER THE COUNTERCULTURE.

36. Would really prefer to use a globe?: AGAINST THE WALL MAP.

57. No longer interested in fairy tales?: PAST ONE'S BEDTIME STORY.

79. Trying to keep cool in a more eco-friendly way?: OFF THE AIR CONDITIONER.

99. So done with craft beers?: BEYOND THE PALE ALES.

118. Feeling too good for the family car?: ABOVE ONE'S STATION WAGON.

So each theme entry has four words (four parts in the first theme answer), the first word hinting at the "over/done". Five of the first words are prepositions, PAST is not. The starting three-word is a common phrase, the last two is a common phrase also. 

I had to ask Agnes and D-Otto for the title. When I first opened the grid, I thought the gimmick would be remove IT from each common phrase. 

Across: 

1. Board in a wooden deck chair: SLAT.

5. Continent with the highest and lowest points on Earth: ASIA. Mount Everest & the Dead Sea.

9. Fragile juggling props: EGGS.

13. Tell the teacher: TATTLE.

19. Baja resort: CABO. Looks amazing.

20. Remain unsettled: PEND. I've only used PENDING.

21. Actress Spelling: TORI.

22. "A Midsummer Night's Dream" king: OBERON. Sometimes we see his wife TITANIA.

27. Enter with flair: WALTZ IN.

28. Warsaw __: PACT.

29. Wobbly, quaintly: ATEETER. This word looks funny.

30. Some poets: ODISTS.

33. Get better: HEAL.

35. "Macbeth" role: HAG.

43. Netflix's "The Haunting of __ Manor": BLY.

44. Tag figure: PRICE.

45. Big name in coolers: YETI.

46. Aim high: ASPIRE.

48. Uber offer: RIDE.

49. __ Springs: PALM.

51. Singer Carly __ Jepsen: RAE. We had fun with "Call Me Maybe" a few years ago.

54. Grab: SNATCH.

62. 18-wheeler: RIG.

63. Marketing fees: AD RATES.

64. Smack: SLAP.

65. "This could be a problem": OH BOY.

69. Bozos: OAFS.

72. The "kid" in "Here's looking at you, kid": ILSA. "We'll always have Paris."

73. Ski resort hangout: LODGE.

74. Dijon deity: DIEU.

75. Large wardrobe: ARMOIRE.

77. Hush-hush org.: NSA.

86. Disorderly protester: RIOTER. Stunned to read these protests. My brother Andy has been sleeping in his company in Xi'an for 3 days. One of his colleagues tested positive for COVID, then no one in the company was allowed to leave.

87. Bag-screening org.: TSA.

88. Actress Mireille: ENOS.

89. "Misery" actor James: CAAN.

91. __ to go: RARING.

94. Spot for a nap: SOFA.

96. Tempo similar to lento: LARGO.

97. "SmackDown" org.: WWE.

104. With it, once: HEP.

105. Hideaway: LAIR.

106. 2013 Lady Gaga album: ART POP.

107. "And when I love thee not, / Chaos is come again" speaker: OTHELLO.

111. Step after using a sous vide, maybe: SEAR. I think I heard of "sous vide" from our Steve or Tony.

113. Sears partner: ROEBUCK.

122. "Hakuna __": "The Lion King" song: MATATA.  Wikipedia says this is Swahili for "No worries".

123. Expansive: VAST.

124. Latin years: ANNI.

125. Blackthorn fruit: SLOE.

126. Like some patches: IRON-ON.

127. "Orinoco Flow" singer: ENYA.

128. Diamond corner: BASE.

129. NASCAR driver Petty: KYLE. Richard Petty's son.

Down: 

1. Flat-bottomed boat: SCOW.

2. 9-Down output: LAVA. 9. Sicilian volcano: ETNA.

3. Cain's brother: ABEL.

4. Legal wrong: TORT.

5. Rose garden pests: APHIDS.

6. "Not this movie again!": SEEN IT.

7. Company abbr.: INC.

8. Brouhaha: ADO.

10. "Roger that": GOTCHA.

11. Grimm girl: GRETEL. Hansel and Gretel.

12. Title for Patrick Stewart: SIR.

13. Talk up: TOUT.

14. Up to it: ABLE.

15. Béret spot: TETE.

16. "If I'm honest ... ": TRUTH BE TOLD. Great fill.

17. "Because you're worth it" cosmetics brand: L'OREAL.

18. Zip: ENERGY.

24. Oily part of the face, to dermatologists: T-ZONE. Guys probably don't know this.

25. Surprise victory: UPSET.

26. Soothes: CALMS.

31. Concern for the "Queer Eye" guys: STYLE.

32. "__ the breaks": THEM'S.

34. Birmingham's st.: ALA.

36. Big month for a CPA: APR. We'll always have D-Otto!

37. Handlebar part: GRIP.

38. Verdi opera: AIDA.

39. Treats with a cold pack: ICES.

40. Technology magazine: WIRED.

41. Church recesses: APSES.

42. Banking IDs: PINS.

47. "Midnight Cowboy" role: RATSO.

49. Taro dish: POI.

50. Wool source: ANGORA.

52. Brody of "Peaky Blinders": ADRIEN.

53. Etc. kin: ET AL.

55. Rock climber's handful: CRAG.

56. Boost: HYPE.

58. Give it a go: TRY.

59. Nuts and bolts: BASICS.

60. Part of TGIF: ITS.

61. Treating with contempt: MEAN TO.

65. Aroma: ODOR.

66. Old 45 player: HI-FI.

67. Pre-makeover image: BEFORE PHOTO.

68. "Straight __ Compton": OUTTA. Ice Cube and his son here.

70. French friend: AMI.

71. Stronghold: FORT.

73. Asian language: LAO. Meaning "old" in Chinese. Boomer calls me "Lao Po". Sadly I heard "Lao Po" many many times last night. He was just so uncomfortable and needed attention. He even chokes on water.

75. Hilltop nest: AERIE.

76. Swelter: ROAST.

78. Female sib: SIS.

80. Marjoram, e.g.: HERB. Never had marjoram.

81. Put off: DEFER.

82. Unsuitable: INAPT.

83. Rose Bowl org.: NCAA.

84. __ Grey tea: EARL.

85. Fury: RAGE.

90. Lottery ticket picks: Abbr.: NOS.

92. Hose material: NYLON.

93. State in southwest India: GOA.

95. "Home Alone" actress Catherine: O'HARA.

96. Looney Tunes stinker: LE PEW.

97. Question in an identity crisis: WHO AM I.

98. Home mixologist's dream: WET BAR.

100. Leaf manufacturer: NISSAN.

101. Somewhat formal: DRESSY.

102. Cook wear: APRONS.

103. Canadian coin, familiarly: LOONIE.

108. 2008 AL Rookie of the Year Longoria: EVAN.

109. Mother of Artemis: LETO.

110. Bank offering: LOAN.

112. Naan flour: ATTA.

114. Luxuriate (in): BASK.

115. Far from fair: UGLY.

116. "Sounds good": COOL.

117. __-slapper: KNEE.

119. Festive night, often: EVE.

120. Diner check: TAB.

121. Food Network host Garten: INA.

We finally got an hospital bed with an air mattress last Monday. Unfortunately things went downhill very fast. Boomer's oxygen level and blood pressure have been very low. He hardly eats anything and is sleeping most of the time. The hospice nurse told us on Friday that Boomer might have two weeks left. 

Please continue to keep him in your thoughts and prayers. 

C.C.