Saturday, Jan 14, 2012, Alan Olschwang

Theme: None

Words: 70

Blocks: 32

5 grid-spanners today from our constructor, whose last Sat LAT puzzle was April 2011. This was another healthy mental workout for me, with just a couple of "ugh" spots of proper names crossing foreign words or abbrs. Our 15-letter entries:

17A. Without delay : AT THE DROP OF A HAT - Scroll down to read about it here

32A. They're hidden in negotiations : ULTERIOR MOTIVES - every single one of them

37A. One with a lot to offer : REAL ESTATE AGENT - a "lot" to offer - good one ~! I need to get in touch with local agents, so I can promote my new Inspection business; I saw this name for an Inspection company yesterday - "Sure Lock Homes"; thought it was a locksmith's truck at first....

38A. Cousins of flares : BELL BOTTOM PANTS - Image

52. Rail campaign, traditionally : WHISTLE STOP TOUR - a little history here, and a side note that the color of UPS trucks is called "Pullman Brown"

Yes, No, Maybe, Not ~??

Onward ~!

ACROSS:

1. "Vexations" composer : SATIE - Don't like to start on a Proper Name; sparse piano piece

6. Offers : BID PRICES - not a fan of eBay, but it's OK in crosswords

15. Collision sound : CLACK - Makes me think of Terry Pratchett's "communications" system

16. Annoy the director : OVER-EMOTE

19. Backstabber : RAT

20. __ Arann: Dublin-based carrier : AER - WAG, of Aer Lingus type

21. Communicates, in a way : SIGNS - using your hands, for the deaf, e.g.

22. __ rich : FILTHY

25. Nice noodle? : TETE - French, the city of Nice (neece)

26. "The Prague Cemetery" author : ECO (Umberto)- Crossed with "biblical mount" ??? - Eh

27. Dope : POOP

29. First mate? : EVE - Adam's mate

39. GPS heading : SSE

40. Apparently are : SEEM

41. Egg head? : OVI

42. Office stamp : REC'D - I like to "over-pronounce" when I fill in crosswords; hence, this is "Wrecked"

44. Common soccer result : ONE-NIL - my dad is a monster soccer fan, so I hear on the TV all the time a "gripping one nil victory for Manchester ~!!!" ( 1-0 )

47. Express a view : OPINE

49. Classified letters after a number : RMS - I actually do not get this at all - my first thought was Rms, for hotel rooms, then I thought it was speaker output rating; and now I wonder if it's the reference to a British ship

51. Horned grazer : GNU

56. They may be competing : INTERESTS

57. Grammy-winning mezzo-soprano Anne __ von Otter : SOFIE - a half WAG; I had the --FIE part

58. Chucks : TOSSES OUT - Do we all use the word 'chuck' in this sense? I know it's common here on Long Island

59. Examines closely : SIFTS

DOWN:

1. Secret Santa gift : SCARF - Never been in a Secret Santa; my mom, as a teacher, was often involved - but never got or gave a scarf

2. Asia's __ Mountains : ALTAI - take a gander

3. Revealing : TATTLE-TALE - adjective, in this moment

4. Hessian pronoun : ICH

5. Obtain the hard way, with "out" : EKE

6. Drill : BORE

7. Composer Novello of British theatre : IVOR

8. Passbook abbr. : DEPosit - that kind of passbook

9. Many a Rilke work : PROSE POEM - Rainer Maria Rilke

10. Overhaul, as in dry dock : REFIT

11. Celeb's concern : IMAGE

12. Rosenberg trial attorney Roy : COHN

13. They may change during flights: Abbr. : ETAs

14. Ready : SET

18. Word with trip or light : DAY

23. Immune response component : T-CELL

24. Biblical mount : HOREB - Not up on my Bible - more here

25. Oater omen : TOM-TOM - the "injuns" are mounting an attack DUM - dum - doo-doo

27. Blotto : POTTED - Sunday marked 7 years since I was "potted, blotto, wasted", etc.

28. Be bombastic, perhaps : ORATE

29. Barkeep's respite : EVENING OFF - does he go to the bar anyway? I used to on my night off....

30. Blow off steam : VENT

31. Ballpark figs. : ESTimatesS

32. Metro regions : URBS - metropolitan/urban

33. Bottom of the barrel : LEES

34. Symmetrical, in a way : ISOSCELES - the Triangle; how many can you find?


35. Hit lightly : TAP ON

36. "__ my love ..." : I GAVE

42. Gets promotions : RISES - possible I might be getting one

43. __ nous : ENTRE - 'Frawnsh', again

44. Spanish bear : OSO

45. Arctic language : INUIT

46. Attractive aspects of fishing? : LURES

47. "Aaugh!" : OH NO

48. Worst : PITS

49. Alphabet string : RSTU - I'm OK with this

50. __ Helens, Wash. : MT. ST. - the volcano

52. 1999 Pulitzer-winning play by Margaret Edson : WIT

53. "__ Beso": Anka hit : ESO

54. Some email enders : PSs - Have you ever added a P.S. to an email, or just wrote another one?

55. French pronoun : TOI - Eh, you know how I feel; seems like French is more frequent at the beginning of the year~?

Answer grid.

For those who are wondering, my paperwork is in for the promotion at UPS, but no word yet - and I got a real cell phone at last ~! Yea~! It works as a phone, everywhere, and all the features work - joy~!

Splynter

Note from C.C.:

1) Congratulations to Splynter on the impending promotion and new cell phone. You deserve both!

2) Happy Birthday to dear JD. Hope it's a day full of wonders and love. Look at her adorable grandsons.

Friday, January 13, 2012, Marti Duguay-Carpenter

THEME: The Doctor told me , "add a Y and give me a pun in the morning". Why, Y not? Not quite a simple 'add a letter' at the end of the first word of a common two word phrase which also changes the meaning into a very amusing visual describing a not very nice person or persons. Another Friday from Marti for me to write up, I already see this year as being better than last. The theme of 2 10's and 2 12's came easily, so let's examine them.

17A. Peevish audience?: TESTY GROUP. Our Test Groups often lost their patience when we had them administer electric shocks to teach their classmates, during Psychology experiments..

27A. Irritable telemarketer?: CRANKY CALLER. Our Crank Caller, loses his patience, too?

48A. Sect members telling off-color jokes?: SALTY SHAKERS. By far my favorite, transforming the boring Salt Shaker into an old religious zealot who believes in speaking in tongues, celibacy and telling dirty jokes. I have mentioned my high school was built on the sight of an old Shaker village. I am going to an alumni event Sunday. Thanks M.

63A. Surly sort?: TOUCHY TYPE. I am no Touch Typist, but don't call me a Hunt 'n Pecker, I am a little touchy on the subject.

The rest was all over the place, with fun facts, new stuff and tricky clues befitting a Friday; almost a pangram, with only the "J" missing. Hey, wait a minute, now that I am here, maybe it is a pangram, let's see.

Across:

1. Sign of age: WEAR. and tear; don't I know it.

5. Asian city whose name means "place of the gods : LHASA. I have read much about the Dalai Lama and TIBET.

10. Buds: PALS. Not BEER?

14. "Play it, Sam" speaker: ILSA. Watch IT. 4:07. Really a great clip of a beautiful woman.

15. Legendary creator of talking animals: AESOP. The true history of this 5th century BC fabulist is debated, but they all seem to agree he was "of loathsome aspect...potbellied, misshapen of head, snub-nosed, swarthy, dwarfish, bandy-legged, short-armed, squint-eyed,liver-lipped—a portentous monstrosity."

16. Fairy tale side, often: EVIL. Good versus.

19. Jim-dandy: A-ONE.

20. Third baseman Ron posthumously elected to the Hall of Fame in December 2011: SANTO. A Chicago Cub legend, who was also a Diabetic who lost the lower half of both legs before succumbing in 2010.

21. Something for nothing: FREE RIDE. Like the joy of reading this blog if you do not contribute a little.

23. Know-it-_: self-proclaimed brains : ALLS. lucky none of us are like that.

26. Carrier with a portmanteau name: AMTRAK. AMerican TRAcK crammed together.

32. Place for a ring: EAR. How many of our male regulars have adorned the lobe with a piercing?

33. Like London fog: SOUPY. Not Sales, just fog.

34. Range of understanding: REACH. beyond my ken. (Insert barbie jokes here).

38. Cpls., e.g.: NCOS. Non-commissioned Officers.

40. Bucs and Nats: NLERS. National Leaguers, in baseball.

42. First name in sports cars: ENZO. Ferrari.

43. Belief: TENET. Often associated with religious beliefs.

45. Rap sheet listing: PRIOR. I can hear the wheels turning.

47. Graffiti ID: TAG. Live and learn.

51. Winter climber's need: ICE AXE.

54. Ornate metal ware: TOLE. My momma done tole me? I did not know this word for enameled stuff.

55. "If I may ...": PERMIT ME, one of Dennis' new job phrases, when confronted with a bra...

58. High capital: LA PAZ. Nuestra Señora de La Paz, Our Lady of Peace. The seat of government in Bolivia, overlooking the wonderfully named Lake Titicaca. The Lake alone can revive out DF ways.

62. Sunburn soother: ALOE. "Allo, Allo can I help you? LINK.

66. River to the Moray Firth: NESS. Yes, the river starts in the LOCH and runs to the INLET in the North Sea.

67. Footnote abbr: ET SEQ. A common legal term from the Latin meaning literally 'and following.'

68. Rock bands?: ORES. Nice misdirection clue to describe how the metal sits in the rocks. No AXEOLOGY reference today.

69. Help hold up, say: ABET. More fodder for the hater, hold up like a robber might.

70. Country dances: REELS. Any of a number of dances, likely all from Ireland, Scotland or England. My FAVORITE.1:59.

71. On deck: NEXT. How perfect, a baseball reference for C.C., and a segue into the...

Down:

1. Wilde and Twain, e.g.: WITS, Oscar and Mark certainly were; my father used to tell me I was 1/2 way there.

2. Zeno of __: ELEA. perps made this possible, I recall the PHILOSOPHER, not where he was from.

3. Part of AAA: Abbr.: ASSN. American Automobile Association.

4. Wood being tested for use as artificial bone: RATTAN. The wood from certain Asian Palm Trees, unaware of this bone(headed?) idea.

5. Get behind: LAG. For our Scandinavian members, this is from Norwegian lagga to go slowly, like many do.

6. The other woman: HER. Marti, you promised not to tell!

7. Since: AS OF.

8. Go bad: SOUR. Like an idea or milk.

9. Post-trial proceeding: APPEAL. My favorite part of the legal process, to get a higher court to rectify an an error by the trial court.

10. Partridge's perch?: PEAR TREE. Can you do all 12 days without looking? LINK.

11. To have, in Le Havre: AVOIR. The French lesson of the day, such as "avez vous le crayon?"

12. McCartney of Wings: LINDA. marry a rock legend and you too can be a star. LINK. 3:17 A nice Jewish girl from New Jersey ends up Lady McCartney.

13. Smooth and glossy: SLEEK.

18. Yellows: YOLKS. Ha, not ages with time, Marti just egging us on.

22. Critical care abbr: EMER. gency.

24. Interpol command center site, locally: LYON. pronounces Leeawn; we call it LYONS, like from Detroit.

25. Cut stone: SCULPT. Literal; nothing like cutting cheese.

27. Slight change?: CENT. I lost the RED this week.

28. Derby, for example: RACE. Not the hat, the horses.

29. Memphis middle name ARON. We owe poor Elvis a second A.

30. Mimicking APERY. not a cage for APES.

31. Old string player: LYRIST. One who plays the LYRE, unlike Jim Carrey who plays the LIAR.

35. Certain forced bet: ANTE. Your buy in for each hand.

36. Winter Palace ruler: CZAR.

37. Big bikes: HOGS.

39. Briefly, show whose name appears under "123" in its logo: SESAME ST. The briefly explains the abbreviation of STREET. Go Muppets.

41. NYC neighborhood: SOHO. South of Houston. Classic crosswordese, know it!

44. Roll before flying: TAXI. Really cute clue, my mind was not on the runway, but my suitcase.

46. Come from behind : RALLY. All right, the write up was dragging but I am ready for a strong finish.

49. Love __: LETTER. My gift to you all this SONG.3:47.

50. "Something's Gotta Give" actress: KEATON. Diane, perhaps more famous for the work of our this week topic Woody Allen and Annie Hall.

51. Bucky Beaver's toothpaste: IPANA. here is where we separate the young and old how many recall this TV ad? LINK. 1:05

52. One of Us?: CELEB. I presume the reference is to the magazine Us Weekly.

53. Jagged: EROSE. "By any other name would smell so sweet..." No, not that kind, like leaves, anyway, hey again ARABON.

56. Sunbeam speck: MOTE. Like dust ones.

57. Chant ending: EUSE, no not amen, nor an encore but Chanteuse.

59. Woodpile in "Light My Fire": PYRE. An anthem whether you like the version by the DOORS 3:37 or Jose Feliciano.

60. Peak: APEX. I loved Twin Peaks; the TV show, not Dolly Parton, though I love her too, she is so tiny, er short.

61. Tang: ZEST.

64. "Fantasia" unit: CEL. A single frame of a cartoon. Very popular crossword answer and more fuel for the hater.

65. Mil. centers: HQS. Head Quarters. Military is abbreviated so the answer MUST be an abbreviation.

Answer grid.

Well, here at Blogger Central, I am getting ready to pack up my tools and my old Groucho Marx idea book, and leave the rest to you the readers; first thank you Marti (see comment below) and I do want to remind you it is Friday the 13th, and all my co-workers insist I leave my hockey mask home! So be careful out there.

1) Constructor comment:

I originally was playing around with the old "add a letter" theme. But I wanted a "cool" letter (not just e, or s, or t...).

***I know!!! Use a "Y" !! It's a cool letter, and besides, it's worth 3 in scrabble...***

TaDa! We have a theme. Hmmm, now for those pesky theme entries. Pesk-Y ?? Why, that's it!! Use people who are DF, just like our blog: Peevish, irritable, telling off-color jokes, surly...perfect!

2) Note from C.C.:

Please cap your post length at about 20 lines. Also, if you want to practice links at the Comments section, please use yesterday's or any old post so as not to affect the comments flow. Thanks.