Tuesday, March 18, 2014 Gail Grabowski and Bruce Venzke

Theme: Aaugh! - Words for at the end of one's rope, at the end of the theme entries.

18A. Smart remark : WISECRACK

27A. Crisp cookie : GINGER SNAP

48A. Super-popular : ALL THE RAGE

63A. Compulsive cleaner : NEAT FREAK

71A. Lose it, and a hint to the last words of 18-, 27-, 48- and 63-Across : GO APE

Argyle here. Synonyms today. Charlie Brown's cry of frustration sums up the feeling we have when we've come to the end of our rope and can't take it anymore. One misstep and we are off the deep end. Fortunately, Gail and Bruce have given us a puzzle that shouldn't incite such feelings; quite the opposite. Very nice Tuesday.

Across:

1. Uncertainty : DOUBT

6. Bit of gel : DAB. A little dab will do ya'.

9. Classroom supply : CHALK. Really? Do they still have chalkboards?

14. Media mogul Winfrey : OPRAH

15. Old studio letters : RKO. (Radio-Keith-Orpheum)

16. Google rival : YAHOO

17. "The Cloister and the Hearth" author Charles : READE. An historical novel (1861) set in the 15th century, it describes the events, people and their practices in the struggle between man's obligations to family and to Church.

20. Bowling building : ALLEY. Boomer's baliwick.

21. Year's record : ANNAL

22. Word from a heckler : BOO

23. Firmness of spirit : GRIT

25. Makes furious : IREs

31. Ditty : TUNE

35. Old vitamin bottle no. : RDA. (Recommended Dietary Allowance)

36. Melville novel that continued the story from "Typee" : "OMOO"

37. Betray like a stoolie : RAT ON

38. Country music's __ Ridge Boys : OAK. Find your favorite. Videos

39. Team supporters, collectively : FAN BASE

42. "As I see it," in texts : IMO. (in my opinion)

43. Reaper's bundle : SHEAF

45. LAX predictions : ETAs

46. Windy City hrs. : CST. Chicago is in the Central time zone.

47. Can in a cooler : SODA. Did you have soda bread yesterday?

51. Jessica of "Sin City" : ALBA

53. Voice below soprano : ALTO

54. Unit of resistance : OHM

57. Desktop computer that inspired clones : IBM PC

59. Rainy-day covers : TARPS

65. "__ you to try it!" : I DARE

66. Fad : CRAZE

67. Place for pampering : SPA

68. Israeli desert : NEGEV. Beersheba is its largest city.

69. Voice an objection : DEMUR

70. Skosh : TAD

Down:

1. Cartoon explorer with a cousin named Diego : DORA

2. German automaker : OPEL

3. Eurasian border river : URAL

4. Rotten apple : BAD EGG

5. Race track cry after "And" : "THEY'RE OFF!"

6. Holmes' confidant : DR. WATSON

7. Similar : AKIN

8. Region bordering Croatia : BOSNIA

9. Rinse or spin, e.g. : CYCLE

10. Guffaw syllable : HAR

11. Obsessed fictional captain : AHAB

12. Bonkers : LOCO

13. Early cartoon clown : KOKO

19. Lawman Wyatt : EARP

24. Culinary author Rombauer : IRMA

26. RR stop : STA

27. "That's disgusting!" : "GROSS!"

28. Montana neighbor : IDAHO. Direct shout out.

29. Ready to skinny-dip : NAKED

30. Prestigious prize : NOBEL

32. City in upstate New York : UTICA. Semi-shout out.

33. Asian menu assurance : NO MSG

34. Cyberjotting : E-NOTE

37. Turning back to zero, as an odometer : RESETTING

40. Smear campaign commercial : ATTACK AD

41. Satirist Mort : SAHL

44. Duracell size : AAA

48. Shortened wd. : ABBR. We get a lot.

49. Least plausible : LAMEST

50. Truckers' competition : ROADEO. See the cute play on 'rodeo'.

52. Career soldier : LIFER

54. One way to store pics : ON CD

55. "Grab this" : "HERE"

56. Title of respect : MA'AM

58. Mama's mate : PAPA

60. Sitar music : RAGA

61. Get ready for the OR : PREP

62. Golfer Ballesteros : SEVE. Spanish professional golfer: won the British Open Championship (1979; 1984; 1988) He died in 2011 at 54

64. Shih __: Tibetan dog : TZU. "Being beautiful takes a lot of work."

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to dear Warren, who used to comment on our blog regularly. How's the pottery & jam business, Warren?

Left to right:  Warren, JD, EddyB, Chickie

Monday, March 17, 2014 Charlie Riley

Theme: 'Tis Wearin' of the Green Day - Have some Irish items.

16A. Tricky situation to deal with : HOT POTATO. Irish potato.

24A. Salon styling stuff : HAIR CREAM. Irish Cream.

37A. Former NFLer with a season record 23 touchdown receptions : RANDY MOSS. Irish moss.

54A. Flying socialite : JET SETTER. Irish Setter.

64A. Hearty meal often made with mutton, and, in a way, what the ends of 16-, 24-, 37- and 54-Across comprise : IRISH STEW

Argyle here with Charlie. ;~) Top of the mornin' to you, when even an editor is Irish. He has shown us what a Monday puzzle can look like and gave out a few CSO's, too.

(Note from C.C.: As Argyle mentioned, Charlie Riley is the pseudonym of Rich Norris (LA Times Daily Crossword editor).  It's an anagram of "i.e., Really Rich")

Rich and his wife Kim

Across:

1. Bambi's mom, e.g. : DOE

4. First grade lessons : ABCs

8. Father-son actors Robert and Alan : ALDAs

13. Essence : CRUX

14. Sodium hydroxide, in chem class : NaOH

15. Deserve : MERIT

18. Chicago airport : O'HARE

19. Smitten : IN LOVE

20. Piper's son of rhyme : TOM

22. Radio switch letters : AM/FM

23. End : CEASE

26. Santa's laugh sounds : HOs

27. Victrola corp. : RCA

29. Govt. intelligence gp. : NSA

30. Dr. of rap : DRE

31. Division word : INTO

33. Taiwanese-born director Lee : ANG

35. Asked God for guidance : PRAYED

40. JFK's vessel : PT BOAT. Our "Patrol Torpedo" version of the German S-boat that the English called an E-boat. Got it? U-boat was a submarine.

43. Soft slip-on : MOC

44. Norse trickster : LOKI

48. "I got it!" : "A-HA!"

49. "Norma __" : RAE. (1979)

51. Approves : OKs

53. Flying Peter : PAN

57. Start of a fitness motto : "USE IT....or lose it!"

59. Curved foot part : ARCH

60. Minor league rink org. : AHL. (American Hockey League)

61. "Just watch me!" : "I CAN SO!"

62. "Politically Incorrect" host Bill : MAHER

66. "Not __ out of you!" : A PEEP. Dreaded 5-letter partial.

67. Casino freebie : COMP

68. Chile's Cape __ : HORN

69. Methods: Abbr. : SYSTs

70. "Ghost Hunters" channel : SYFY. (previously the Sci Fi Channel)

71. Two-time loser to DDE : AES. Dwight D. Eisenhower / Adlai E. Stevenson

Down:

1. Talk and talk and ... : DRONE ON

2. Show more staying power than : OUTLAST

3. Old Montreal team : EXPOS. Baseball

4. Poker game starter : ANTE

5. Sheep's sound : [BAA!]

6. Terra __: pottery clay : COTTA

7. Surefire winner : SHOO-IN

8. Latin "I love" : AMO

9. "The Merry Widow" composer Franz : LEHAR. Info on his operetta.

10. Serious-and-funny show : DRAMEDY. (drama/comedy)

11. Orbitz quote : AIR FARE

12. Originated (from) : STEMMED

13. Oh-so-stylish : CHICHI. [shee-shee]

17. Finished for good : OVER

21. Logical guy with pointy ears : MR. SPOCK. Science officer on the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

24. Ranch worker : HAND

25. Auto dealer's inventory : CARS

28. Bach composition : CANTATA

32. Gold, to Gomez : ORO

34. Workout place : GYM

36. Communication for the deaf: Abbr. : ASL. (American Sign Language)

38. Swiss river : AARE

39. Othello, for one : MOOR

40. Pillow fight garb : PAJAMAs

41. Psychologist's treatment : THERAPY

42. Cookie dough units : BATCHES

45. Summer shoe style : OPEN-TOE

46. Former German leaders : KAISERS

47. Back home after traveling, say : IN TOWN

50. Moral principles : ETHICS

52. For instance, with "as" : SUCH

55. Piece of paper : SHEET

56. "The Jetsons" boy : ELROY

58. Malia Obama's sister : SASHA

61. Cosby/Culp TV series : "I SPY"

63. Rotation meas. : RPS. (revolutions per second)

65. Global currency org. : IMF. (International Monetary Fund)(Headquartered in Washington, D.C.)

"Kiss me, I'm Irish."

Argyle

Sunday March 16, 2014 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: "Foresees" - Each theme entry has Four C's.

23A. South Temperate Zone border : ANTARCTIC CIRCLE

34A. Pope's realm : CATHOLIC CHURCH

50A. NFL wide receiver who once changed his name to match his uniform number : CHAD OCHOCINCO. Now back to Chad Johnson. Ocho Cino is 8 & 5 rather than 85.

73A. Challenge for Henry Higgins : COCKNEY ACCENT

93A. Proof of payment : CANCELED CHECK

111A. It's barely legible : CHICKEN SCRATCH

124A. Current path : ELECTRIC CIRCUIT

As usual, lots of clue changes. Rich always makes me look smarter than I really am.

Click here to see my original submissions. I actually had CHAD OCHOCINCO clued as "6-time NFL Pro Bowl wild receiver" initially.  Rich said:

"... I had to chuckle at your "wild receiver" typo--an apt one for Mr. Ochocinco, I'd say.  ;-)..."

 Across:

1. Data theft target: Abbr. : SSN

4. Bowler feature : BRIM. Hat.

8. Instant, in product names : REDI

12. Brightly colored foam shoes : CROCS

17. Traffic noise : TOOT

19. It may be cracked: CODE

20. Green shampoo : PRELL. So what's your favorite shampoo?

22. Like most of western China : RURAL. Xi'An, my hometown, means "Western Peace". It's the gate to Western China.

26. Ma-__ store : AND PA. Dreaded 5-letter partial. Owen said last Thursday"...Every puzzle must have nits, its a LAW!". I've got to obey the law. Owen's Law.

27. Do without : FORGO

28. Outfielder Crisp : COCO. He has 3 C's.

29. Helps with a job : ABETS

31. Some Caltech grads : EES

32. Sprite Zero alternative : FRESCA

38. Airline that co-founded Star Alliance : SAS. See here. United is a founding member also.

39. Maker of Total Effects skin care products : OLAY

41. Colin Hanks, to Tom : SON

42. Common article : THE

43. Gin fizz fruit : SLOE

44. Wore out the carpet : PACED

46. Ready to eat : RIPE. So ready for the nectarine/peach season.

48. Company that insured Bruce Springsteen's voice : LLOYDS

55. Tiger's 2004 bride : ELIN. Tiger is now dating Linsey Vonn, a Minnesota Native.

56. Sly tactic : RUSE

57. Pickle pick : DILL

58. Island near Corsica : ELBA

60. NASA moon landers : LEMs. I'm not sure Rich will accept YUTU, China's moon rover. It means "Jade Rabbit".  In Chinese myth, there's a rabbit living in the moon.

63. Haunt : OBSESS

66. Gullible one : NAIF

68. Actor Morales : ESAI. I missed the last episode of "NYPD Blue".

70. "__ open!" : IT'S

72. Asian sash : OBI. This one is so elaborate. I bet it costs a fortune.

77. Wood cutter : SAW

78. Sister : NUN

79. Online magazine with a "Runway" section : ELLE.  I referenced Elle Fanning.

80. With 102-Across, Japanese golfer : ISAO. And 102. See 80-Across : AOKI

81. Cascades peak : SHASTA

83. Bug-__: Ortho garden product : B-GON. Owen's law.

85. Glorifying poems : ODES

88. Boy with a bow : EROS

90. Quick ride : SPIN

91. Guinness serving : PINT

97. Sam's rival : COSTCO. Not my type. Everything is so big.

100. Morro Castle site : CUBA. Never heard of the castle.

101. "Over the Rainbow" composer : ARLEN (Harold)

103. Picasso's aunt : TIA. And 65D. Picasso's sun : SOL. 123D. Picasso's here : ACA

105. Some Bronx trains : ELS

107. Palm Pre predecessor : TREO. Look how Rich simplified my wordiness.

108. Tiny songbird : TIT

115. Call-to-action response to one's own rhetorical question : I SAY NO

117. Merged Dutch carrier : KLM. Owen's Law. One airline per puzzle is enough.

118. Daisylike flower : ASTER

119. Et __ : ALIA

121. Wear down : ERODE

122. East Texas university : LAMAR. My clue is too gossipy.

128. Put in : ELECT

129. Drink from a bowl : LAP UP

130. Pod veggie : OKRA

131. Other, in a bodega : OTRA

132. Pops, to tots : DADAs

133. Intricate patterns : WEBS. Are you surprised by Bill Gates' comment on Snowden, Jayce?

134. Caught, as a show : SEEN

135. Occurrence : HAP

Down:

1. Fills vacancies in : STAFFS

2. Mexico's second-largest state : SONORA

3. Warning sign : NO TRESPASSING. The kids in our neighborhood just ignore the sign.

4. Discreetly send a dupe email to : BCC

5. Campus military gp. : ROTC

6. Folly : IDIOCY

7. Muslim holy city : MECCA

8. Troy, N.Y., tech sch. : RPI. Hi there Spitzboov & Splynter. By the way, Irish Miss, where were you born?

9. Bungle : ERR

10. Tattoo alternative for the squeamish : DECAL

11. "No more guesses, just tell me" : I'LL BITE

12. Computer problem : CRASH

13. Download option : RUN

14. Well-organized : ORDERLY

15. Its southern shore is on Nantucket Sound : CAPE COD

16. Budget overhauls : SLASHES

18. Diamond thieves' undoings? : TAGS. Baseball diamond. Rich's doing. Loved the clue.

21. Hanger-on : LEECH

24. Like Louis XV chairs : ROCOCO

25. Private beds? : COTS

30. Immune system defender : T CELL

33. D'Urberville who seduced Tess : ALEC. Real jerk.

35. Cornucopia shape : HORN

36. Not neat : ON ICE

37. Me.-to-Fla. route : US ONE

40. Condition that affects focusing, briefly : ADHD

45. ''Zip-__-Doo-Dah'' : A-DEE. Owen's law

47. C-SPAN figure : POL

49. Bebe's "Cheers" role : LILITH

50. Sing like Michael Bublé : CROON. Do you like him, CanadianEh!?

51. Noisy disturbance : HUBBUB

52. Grunted, in a way : OINKED

53. Group sharing a crest : CLAN

54. French Open winner before Björn : ILIE (Nastase)

55. Alleviate : EASE

59. "Chill out!" : BE COOL

61. Squandered early years : MISSPENT YOUTH. Santa gave me this clue. Must be from his personal experiences. He looks so innocent in this 1960 photo.

15-year-old Argyle

62. Reception disruption : STATIC

64. Like California's 17-Mile-Drive : SCENIC. Oh, I'm not familiar with the drive. Pebble Beach is there. No wonder. JJM might have played there.

67. Memo opener : FYI

69. Brief reply? : ANS (Answer)

71. Posh : SWANK

74. Thicken, as cream : CLOT

75. "Gimme __" : A SEC

76. Feel concern : CARE

82. "I don't want to be remembered for my tennis accomplishments" speaker : ASHE

84. __ nerve : OPTIC

86. Old French coin : ECU

87. Civil War weapon : SABER

89. Slightly burn : SEAR

92. Jots down : NOTES. I still write my notes in Chinese. Strange, isn't it? I also count in Chinese.

94. Simba's love : NALA

95. A third of neun : DREI (3)

96. Dennis Eckersley, e.g. : CLOSER. Gimme!!

97. Laughed demonically : CACKLED

98. "Très chic!" : OOH LA LA

99. Went over cursorily : SKIMMED

100. Source of legal precedents : CASE LAW

104. Inside company? : INTEL. Intel Inside.

106. Headliner : STAR

107. "Blurred Lines" singer Robin : THICKE. He and Miley Cyrus performed this infamous song at the 2013 MTV VMA Awards. Too much for me to link. Very gifted. He's the son of Alan Thicke.

109. Former Indian prime minister Gandhi : INDIRA

110. Dance click : TOE TAP

112. Mini racers : KARTS

113. Breakfast treat : CREPE. Oh, I have a question for D-Otto or other foodies on our blog:  How do you prepare your oatmeal? I've only used the quick-cooking rolled oats. Alton Brown's steel cut  looks quite creamy.

114. Advertising awards : CLIOs

116. Gas acronym : ARCO

120. Corn maze measure : ACRE

125. Young lion : CUB

126. Decorates with Angel Soft, briefly : TPs. Where are you, TTP?

127. Actor Holm : IAN

C.C.

Saturday, Mar 15th, 2014, Barry C. Silk

Theme: Saturday Silkie~!

Words: 72   (missing J,Q)

Blocks: 30

  Today's challenge from Mr. Silk took some intuitive thinking, as quite a few clues gave me fits. With the chunky triple 7-letter corners, I find this type of grid to be the most difficult, especially when you can't get a foothold.  In my case, I struggled a bit in the SW, and bad WAGs made some other spots slow to solve - and I had one wrong letter.  One grid-spanner, and let's hope that it's a thing of the past for the next 12 months~!

35. Winter forecast : FREEZING DRIZZLE - I got the DRIZZLE part from MAZDA, so I tried "--- AND DRIZZLE", but that didn't help

Aw, Dr. NO~!

 ACROSS:

1. Instrument played with mallets : MARIMBA - BAM~! Nailed it, not that I'm saying much - but hey, XYLOPHONE wouldn't fit

8. Pitcher's coup : PICK-OFF - I don't watch baseball, but this is one of those nifty little plays that make the game interesting - along with the "hidden ball" trick

15. Mine carriers : ORE CARS - Funny, ORE CARTS didn't fit, so I skipped it the first time around - and I was 114% correct

16. Orwell superstate : OCEANIA

17. 1980s Hollywood sex symbol : BO DEREK - I was trying to think of a popular male, and when the "K" appeared, I was stumped - oh, her - still looking good

18. Hang : SUSPEND

19. Meas. seen on a tee : YDs - Argh~!  My first thought was golf, but then I thought "nope, he's going with T-shirt here", and tried "XXL"

20. Beguile : TEMPT - not TEASE, not GET AT

22. Warthog features : TUSKS - made the "Top 10 List" for ugliest animal~!

23. Screened conversation? : VIDEO CHAT - I was thinking this could be "CONFESSION", but it's one letter too many

25. 28-Across natives, e.g. : ASIANS - circular clues -->

28. The Mekong flows along its border : LAOS

29. Fighter acronym : MiG - Mikoyan-Gurevich, the Russian military aircraft company

32. Going downhill : WORSE

33. "The __ Affair": Jasper Fforde novel : EYRE - never heard of it; Saturday cluing

34. Lighten : EASE - a burden, for example

38. Servers at affairs : URNS

39. Ballpark figs. : MGRs - Ah, the guy in the dugout, not ESTs

40. Needles : RIDES

41. Food-curing chemical : LYE - not MSG

42. "__ Mia": 1965 hit : CARA - I tried MAMA, and that's 50% right, but I knew the date was wrong

43. Give away : DONATE

44. Funk band instrument : SAXOPHONE - I think this is funky

46. When to see die Sterne : NACHT - 'the star(s)' in German, and 'night'; there's also a band by the same name, so I guess you could see them at night, too

49. Pasta bit : SHELL

50. Card quality : WIT - Card as in ham, clown, cut-up, etc.

53. Odorless fuels : ETHANES - all the light ones are pretty much odorless; the stink from propane is actually ethyl percaptan, which is added to warn you of a leak - it was a gas explosion that leveled the two buildings in Harlem NYC this week.

55. Tennessee neighbor : ALABAMA - GEORGIA fit, too; KENTUCKY, ARKANSAS, MISSOURI, and VIRGINIA are all 8-letters long

57. Zip up : ANIMATE - I was in "winter clothing" mode on this one, so this answer was slow to show

58. Extreme : RADICAL

59. Surfing annoyance : POP-UP AD - tell me about it; I hate that little 'hiccup' you get from ads on computers and mobile devices that shifts everything down one line JUST as you tap to move to the next link

60. Ship maintenance site : DRY DOCK - my Dodge Stratus and Ford Van are in 'dry dock' right now; today will be the first warm, dry day with no snow on the ground, allowing me to finally take a look and see what's wrong

DOWN:

1. Colorado State's __ Arena : MOBY

2. MLB nickname in recent news : A-ROD

3. Cabs, e.g. : REDS - DAH~! Wines, not Taxis

4. Winter coat : ICE - I've seen enough

5. Two-time 1990s A.L. batting champ Edgar : MARTINEZ - C.C. has more (From C.C.: He spent his whole career with the Mariners. He'll remain in the Hall of Fame ballot next year. Look at what I found:)

2-Down, Ken Griffey Jr, 5-Down

6. Procreates : BREEDS - Ah, not the Biblical BEGETS

7. Help desk sign : ASK ME

8. Deltiologist's collection : POSTCARDS - learning moment

9. Post-op area : ICU

10. Basque baskets : CESTAS

11. Shot : KAPUT

12. People : ONES - As in "the ones waiting for spring to arrive"

13. Rat : FINK

14. They come and go : FADS

21. Storyteller? : POLYGRAPH - TATTLE-TALE didn't fit

23. Arrangements may be made in them : VASES

24. Weed killer : HOER - my one missed letter; I had HOAR - hey, that could kill weeds, too - it kills the grass....

25. Horrific : AWFUL - not SCARY

26. Classic board game : SORRY!
 

27. Daughter of Queen Juliana of the Netherlands : IRENE - Saturday cluing for a popular crossword name; this one goes back a bit, as Queen Juliana passed at 94 ten years ago

29. Tribute maker : MAZDA

30. Key : ISLET - ah, not iNSet

31. Inane ones : GEESE - "You silly gooses~!"

33. Absorbed : ENGROSSED - I did NOT try "---- UP" to start, as in "SOAKED"

34. Salon, for one : E-ZINE

36. Big name in movies? : IMAX - yep, that's a big screen

37. Nickname in 20th-century British leadership : IRON LADY - Margaret Thatcher - that's the second "Iron" to come out of Britain - I prefer Iron Maiden....

42. Short time out? : CAT-NAP

43. Word on a Canadian loonie : DOLLAR - no animals were tattooed in the making of this crossword

44. San Diego attraction : SHAMU - not ZOOOO....

45. Picked up : HEARD

46. Tide table term : NEAP

47. Words before time or point : AT NO

48. Wood __ : CHIP - ah, not SHED

50. City on the Brazos : WACO

51. Apple product : iMAC - It's going to be "i" something....

52. Converse : TALK

54. Touchdown info : ETA - airplanes, not football

56. Nod, at times : BID

Splynter

Friday, March 14, 2014, Marti Duguay-Carpenter

Theme: Shhh, The change in sound when marti has too much Cabernet.

Our divine miss m is back on a Friday, and I really appreciated having this puzzle awaiting me as I return from Jamaica. This is a straightforward 5 theme puzzle with the CH in each 'in the language' phrase changed to SH and clued with her normal wit and charm. I found it easier than most of her Fridays but maybe the rest and rum gave me clarity. I enjoyed the six letter stacks at the top and bottom juxtaposed to the theme and the balance of PRIME TIME and CERTIFIED.  So come along for a walk through the fertile Friday mind of marti.

17A. Liner with Intel inside? : SILICON SHIP. (11)(CHIP). Ocean liners are ships and Intel is the largest maker of Silicon chips. 'Intel inside' is their advertising mantra.

22A. Nylon notable? : SHEER LEADER.(11)(CHEER). Cheerleaders seldom wear hose until they get to the Cowboys. My favorite one.

37A. Get one's kicks in a painful way? : TAKE IT ON THE SHIN.(15)(CHIN). Shins are so sensitive and then again a chin can be too.

47A. Principal plant? : THE BIG SHILL. (11)(CHILL).We just had SHILL and the MOVIE  was a big success.

60A. Surprise the neighborhood? : SHOCK A BLOCK.(11)(CHOCK).CHOCKABLOCK is a wonderful word meaning filled up with, really creative.

Across:

1. Set count : REPS. Repetitions, another of those pesky mini-words, an abbreviation that has become a word. This is from working out at the gym, which I did everyday I was in Jamaica.

5. Ally of Sun : CHIANG. The post Imperialistic China was ruled initially by SUN YAT-SEN  and later his ally CHIANG KAI-CHECK.  They were both frequent topics for the grown ups I observed as a small child.

11. Relocation aid : VAN. Really?

14. Unrestrainedly : AMOK. Do you need to be running?

15. Divulges : LETS ON. Whatever you do, do not let on that you know she is pregnant.

16. As per : A LA. French.

19. One may be flipped : LID.This expression comes from a time when everyone wore hats?

20. When many night visions occur? : PRIME TIME. Nice clue.

21. Revealing garb : MINI. The short skirt returned the same year I started college, oh my the distractions.

25. Bag : VALISE. A nice old fashioned word.

29. High mountain : ALP. Now you know this is a marti creation.

30. "Yikes!" : EGAD. Another of her favorites, she based an entire puzzle on the word.

31. Lock : TRESS.

34. "Gerontion" poet's monogram : TSE. Don't know the work (I am terrible at titles) but it is always Eliot.

41. Rush participant's prize : ORE. Rush like a gold rush, nice deception even if 'prize' is a bit misleading.

42. Fields : AREAS.

43. Give for a while : LEND. Interesting definition.

44. Music-licensing org. : BMI. ASCAP and BMI are the two biggest.HOW IT WORKS.

45. Meshes : AGREES.

53. Playground bouncer : BALL.

54. Like some important letters : CERTIFIED.

59. Pay stub? : OLA. Payola.

62. Take home : NET.

63. University of Minnesota mascot Goldy __ : GOPHER. My first post here was discussing college team names, like golden gophers; and, 56D. New York college with a mascot named Killian : IONA. Now this is obscure.

64. Unsigned, briefly : ANON. The ultimate SO to our biggest fans.

65. Private __ : EYE.

66. Professorial duds : TWEEDS. Don't forget the patches on the elbows.

67. Numerous : MANY.

Down:

1. Scrape : RASP.

2. Mideast VIP : EMIR.

3. __ sci : POLI. This used to be a popular major for pre-law, but no longer in favor.

4. Take from the top : SKIM. Skimming profits is still a problem.

5. Dress : CLOTHE.

6. '20s-'30s skating gold medalist : HENIE. For you CA (3:30)

7. Personal answer : IT'S ME. I hope our English teachers do not cringe too badly. 9D. "__ can't" : NO I. yes you can! 38D. "__ Said": Neil Diamond hit : I AM I. Not familiar with this song. (mini-theme?)

8. "My Name Is __ Lev": Chaim Potok novel : ASHER. One of Hahtoolah's favorite books.

10. 57-Down measure : GNP. Gross National Product. Isn't it interesting that GROSS has three such disparate meanings.

11. Bona fide : VALID. From the Latin.

12. Dress style : A-LINE. Your new star? At least Miley has some clothes on.

13. Floor : NADIR. Oh come on marti (Rich) I know it is the opposite of Zenith (highest point) but I would not call a ceiling a zenith. Frankly it makes me want to Ralph.

18. Pool lead-in : CESS. Drat, I do not want any cess in my pool!

21. Tourist's guide : MAP.

23. Secure at the dock : LASH. Such a fun word. Reminds me of LaRue.

24. Otherwise : ELSE.

25. Highest power? : VETO. veto power being the ultimate control.

26. Petri dish filler : AGAR.

27. Vacation destination : LAKE. miss m lives not far from Webster Lake, which is also known as Lake Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg. LINK.

28. Chemical suffix : IDE.

31. Digital temperature gauge? : TOE. A great visual of people approaching the Ocean.

32. Genetic messenger : RNA. RIBONUCLEIC ACID.

33. Unexpected fictional visitors : ETS. Extra Terrestrials, I am not sure how unexpected they are anymore.

34. You, to a Friend : THEE. Friends are how Quakers address each other.

35. Function in 39-Down : SINE. 39D. It involves angles, for short : TRIGonometry.

36. Scraps : ENDS. As in, scrapping a project.

40. 35mm camera option : SLR. Single Lens Reflex.

44. Marathon unit: Abbr. : BBL. 42 gallons of oil make one Barrel.

45. Trains may stop at them : ALTARS. Another typical fun visual, the train on the wedding dress. The wedding in Jamaica was informal for all but the bride, who wore the formal white dress with train.

46. Smooth-talking : GLIB. MW says it comes from Low German glibberig slippery.

47. Chophouse choice : T-BONE. What are the steaks of choice here, or are we all vegans?

48. Tin Man actor Jack : HALEY. A wonderful SO for our own.

49. Make merry : ELATE.

50. Breadth : SCOPE. Is that why they named the product which makes your BREATH smell good.

51. "Wag the Dog" actress : HECHE. Anne, ex-companion of Ellen. The TRAILER. (2:28) Good cast.

52. Ticked : IRKED.

55. Hoax : FLAM. Flim? I have never seen or heard this word without FLIM attached.

57. Coll. major : ECONomics.

58. Fashion letters : DKNY. Donna Karan New York.

60. York, for one: Abbr. : SGT. WWI hero.

61. Do-it-yourselfer's concern : HOW.  Yes the books are often HOW TO....... I wonder if I can get C.C. to write a how to do a crossword blog. There are books on solving and on constructing, but...

Well I guess this is the end of another edition of the Idiot's Guide to a Friday LAT. Great to be back! (Nah, Jamaica and all-inclusive was awesome, I even was putting Rum in my coffee.) Lemonade (spiked of course) out.

Notes from C.C.:

1) Here is a wonderful photo of JD & her husband Bob, all bundled up in layers. Click here for more pictures from JD's Yellowstone trip. She's now frolicking in Costa Rica.

2) Click here for a few Before & After pictures of Marti's renovation project for her next door house. The tenants move in tomorrow.

 Top Floor Stairs, Before

  Top Floor Stairs, After

3) Here is a great picture from Lemonade's Jamaica trip. Click here for more. I'm intrigued by the words on Charlott's T-shirt. Looks like "I am..."?

4) I made a mistake yesterday. Today we celebrate Pi Day & JJM's 56th birthday. He sent me these two cool pictures yesterday.

Thursday, March 13, 2014 Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme: "I am not a crook"*

17. Cookies named for their flavor : NILLA WAFERS. Vanilla flavored.

28. Flu sufferer's complaint : I FEEL AWFUL. DH's complaint for the entire month of January!

34. Fib : TELL A WHITE LIE. Would I lie to you?

40. Washington county or its seat : WALLA WALLA. Love the name of that city. I'll have to visit it one day.

And the reveal:

55. Ones often in custody ... and what 17-, 28-, 34- and 40-Across are? : LAW BREAKERS. The word LAW is "broken" in the theme entries.

My old friend Jeffrey is back in the Thursday lineup with a buried word theme.  I wasn't looking for the theme, but spotted LAW in the first two entries, and confirmed it with the third and fourth. I liked the reveal, because it describes the phrases perfectly.  I finished this one in about my typical Wednesday time, so slightly easier than normal for a Thursday. Let's see why I was on Jeffrey's wavelength.

*(Bonus points if you can name the source of the quote.)

Across:

1. Move suddenly : DART. Filled immediately.

5. Art style emphasizing gritty reality : VERISM. In old Roman art, it could be described as "warts and all," for busts that represent the subject realistically instead of romanticized.

11. Cut, as a branch : LOP.

14. Maker of BESTÅ storage products : IKEA. Odd-looking diacritical marks? Probably Swedish...

15. G8 member country : FRANCE.

16. "__ Got No Strings": Pinocchio : I'VE.

19. Chemin de __ : FER. French for railroad. Literally, "road of iron." Much better clue than "Not agin'…"

20. First name in American poetry : EMILY. Dickinson.

21. Carrier with a hub in Oslo : SAS. Scandinavian Airlines System.  I wonder how many BESTÅs they carry each week?

22. Physics unit : ERG.

23. Toed the line : OBEYED.

25. Modesto-to-San Jose dir. : WSW. 1 hour and 23 minutes, depending on the route you take.

26. __ speak : SO TO.

27. Agree, in a way : NOD.

31. Trig ratios : SINES.

33. "It's a Wonderful Life" director : CAPRA. One of the all-time greatest movies ever, and my personal motto!

38. Some stereos : SONYS.

39. Stage device : ASIDE.

43. Spooner, for one: Abbr. : REV.erend.

46. "Perhaps" : I MAY.

47. Have the flu : AIL. Kinda sorta clecho with one of the theme entries.

48. Plant with edible seeds : SESAME.

51. On behalf of : FOR.

52. Initials on old globes : SSR. Soviet Socialist Republic.

53. Stingy one : PIKER.

54. Yank : TUG.

59. Computer add-on? : ESE. (Why not "Crossword add-on?") He could not clue it as a direction, since WSW was also in the grid.

60. Brought down : ABASED.

61. Really important : HUGE.

62. Blushing : RED.

63. Desert shimmer : MIRAGE.

64. Shot : SPED.

Down:

1. Eat at the main meal : DINE ON.

2. Like Superman's arms, often : AKIMBO.

Superman

3. Leaned (on) : RELIED.

4. Running amount : TALLY.

5. Group for ex-GIs : VFW. Veterans of Foreign Wars.

6. Stat that's better if it's lower : ERA. Earned Run Average.  Baseball.  I wanted "par."

7. Luftwaffe foe: Abbr. : RAF. Royal Air Force.

8. Actually existing: Lat. : IN ESSE.

9. Poor penmanship : SCRAWL. DH needs me to read his "notes to self" sometimes, because he cannot make them out.

10. Fool (with) : MESS.

11. 2012 film for which Ang Lee won Best Director : LIFE OF PI. Read the book. Saw the movie. Loved them both.

12. Operatic opening : OVERTURE. Recognize this one? 3:06

13. Vine-covered walkway : PERGOLA. Pretty!

18. Assent to a captain : AYE.

24. Actress Merrill : DINA. I remember her from "Operation Petticoat."

25. Formal group assent : WE SHALL...overco-o-ome

26. Soggy lowland : SWALE.

29. Handful : FEW.

30. Completed with one stroke : ACED. Golf. If you hit the ball into the hole in one stroke on a par three, it is called an ACE. I have had exactly one in my life.

31. In a foxy way : SLYLY.

32. "As Time Goes By" requester : ILSA.

34. Burns' "tim'rous beastie" ode : TO A MOUSE.

35. Blew up : ENLARGED. Nice misdirection. I wanted "exploded" at first.

36. Catalina, for one: Abbr. : ISL.and.

37. Familia members : TIAS. Spanish "aunts."  Uncles = tios.

38. More rapid : SWIFTER. I get housework done SWIFTER with my Swiffer.

Swiffer

41. Horseradish relative : WASABI. Yesterday, I bought some WASABI peas. Healthy and yummy!

42. Elevated conflict : AIR WAR.

43. Gather, as fallen leaves : RAKE UP. As opposed to "Gather, as money": RAKE in.

44. Come out : EMERGE.

45. Skilled : VERSED.

49. Pollution-fighting org. : EPA. Environmental Protection Agency.

50. Followers of Guru Nanak : SIKHS.

52. Bang on the way out : SLAM. (the door)

56. Merit badge gp. : BSA. Boy Scouts of America.

57. Short rule? : REG.ulation

58. Stamp ending : EDE. Stampede

And that's it from me for this week!

Marti

Notes from C.C.:

1) Here is a photo of Mike Alpern & George Barany at the ACPT. Mike organizes the annual Cru Dinner. Our own Minnesotan George was the judge this year. You can click here and view Mike's ACPT 2013 pictures. See Marti and Rich? Hopefully Mike will have a 2014 Picasa album to share with us.

March 9, 2014 ACPT

2) Happy Birthday to JJM, who has been posting here on our blog for quite some time. Yet I don't feel I quite know him. So, use your imagination for the cake picture, Dave! (Added later: JJM's birthday is tomorrow. Sorry for the mistake.)