Wednesday December 11, 2013 Rick Papazian

Theme:  GET A ROOM (63A. "Whoa! Do that somewhere else!" ... which hints at what can be shared by the beginning and end of the answers to starred clue) - Room can follow the first word & precede the second word in each theme entry.

16A. *Colonial imposition that led to a "party" : TEA TAX. Tea room. I had to ask Argyle what "Room tax" is.

17A. *After-school chum : PLAYMATE. Play room. Roommate. 

28A. *FedEx, for one : DELIVERY SERVICE. Delivery room. Room service.

37A. *Wrestling move : LEGLOCK. Legroom. Room lock. I just call it "lock", never "room lock".

46A. *Some like it hot : BATH TEMPERATURE. Bathroom. Room temperature. This is often a TEA clue.

65A. *Summary of atlas symbols : MAP KEY. Map room. Room key.

C.C. here, filling in a blogging gap.

 

It's hard than it looks to come up with natural phrases where both words can precede/follow a certain word or like today's, one precedes/one follows.

This type of grid with stacked 8's & 6's start is notoriously hard to fill cleanly. There is a reason why most first theme entry is 9+ letters. And this grid has 7 themes (2 grid spanners). So you could imagine the changes the constructor faced during the filling process.

I think this is Rick Papazian's LAT debut. Congratulations, Rick, I'm sure your next grid will be easier :-)

Across:

1. __ Husky : SIBERIAN

9. Shoot for, with "to" : ASPIRE

15. Like poisonous mushrooms : INEDIBLE. I'm not an adventurous mushroom eater. I also find it hard to make mushrooms tasty.

18. "I __ a clue!" : HAVEN'T

19. Fun-with-bubble-wrap sound : POP

20. Sign of success? : SRO (Standing Room Only). Marti might have gone with ALTA for 7D to avoid the ROOM dupe.

21. Sweetie : DOLL

22. Novelist Hunter : EVAN.  Also known as Ed McBain. Lemonade likes him.

24. Dropped in : CAME OVER

32. Simple : BASIC

33. Sty fare : SLOP

34. Prince Valiant's boy : ARN. ALETA isPrince Valiant's wife. I learned both from doing xwords.

 

41. Record producer Brian : ENO

42. Tract for Heathcliff and Cathy : MOOR. "Wuthering Heights"

44. Any Elvis number : OLDIE

53. Direct opposites : INVERSES

54. Receiving customers : OPEN

55. Wild party : BASH

56. Sportscaster Costas : BOB. Who is your favorite sportscaster, Buckeye Bob?

59. Hwy. : RTE

60. 7-Up, in old ads : UNCOLA

66. Notice in passing? : OBITUARY. Nice clue.

67. Cheers up : AMUSES

68. They're often displayed on a cart : DESSERTS. This Apple strudel is waiting for me at the fridge right now. I was too full to eat yesterday. 

 

Down:

1. Nursed : SIPPED

  

2. Under Cupid's spell : IN LOVE. I was 16 when I fell in love with the boy I grew up with. We were together for 7 years. How about your first love?

3. "Help me out, will ya?" : BE A PAL

4. Eponymous ice cream maker : EDY

5. Salty spots on margarita glasses : RIMS

6. Steel beam : I-BAR

7. Midrange voice : ALTO

8. Wedding column word : NEE

9. Where telecommuters work : AT HOME. Do you work at home also, Anon-T?

10. Deck coating : SEALER. Oh, I thought it's called SEALANT. 

11. __ dog: conditioned reflex experiment : PAVLOV'S

12. Meteor tail? : ITE. Meteorite.

13. Was published : RAN

14. Telephone no. add-on : EXT.

21. Courtroom VIPs : DAs

23. Beak : NIB

24. One-eyed monster : CYCLOPS

25. Repulsive : VILE

26. Nobel Prize subj. : ECON

27. Confiscated auto : REPO

29. Actor Kilmer : VAL

30. Laramie-to-Cheyenne dir. : ESE

31. Big truck : RIG

34. Prefix with dextrous : AMBI

35. Colorful horse : ROAN

36. Kid's punishment : NO TV. Like GOUP & PERSE, Tricky to parse at times.

 

38. Bullfight "All right!" : OLE

39. USN officer : CDR. Spitzboov was a Commander when he retired from the Navy Reserve. I love these pictures.

Sallie & Spitzboov

40. Sephia automaker : KIA

43. South African antelopes : RHEBOKS

45. Ike's WWII arena : ETO (European Theater of Operations)

47. Seat of County Kerry : TRALEE. Unfamiliar to me. What's it famous for?

48. School writing assignments : ESSAYS

49. "So what" : MEH

50. Racket : UPROAR

51. Sharp comeback : RETORT

52. "The __ in view; draw up your powers": "King Lear" : ENEMY'S. For Keith.

56. Actress Neuwirth : BEBE

57. Elevator name : OTIS

58. Dugout rackmates : BATS

60. Thurman of "Kill Bill" : UMA

61. '60s-'70s arena, briefly : NAM

62. PC component : CPU

63. Word on U.S. currency : GOD

64. Repent : RUE

Here is one more tip for Sallie and those who want a clearer picture for their avatar. 

Click on your Blue Name, then "Edit Profile" on the upper right, then scroll down to "Profile Picture", then click on "From Your Computer", then upload the picture & click on "Save Profile".

If you click on my blog picture on the left, you'll notice that it can be enlarged while others on the blog remain the same. It's because I did not click on "From Your Computer", I picked the second "From the web. Paste an image URL below". See below (click it, a clearer picture will show up).

I simply copy and paste a link from my Ginger Roots blog. You can copy & paste any link you like, whether it's from my Ginger Roots Blog Photo archive, or your Facebook, Instagram or any website (like here for Sallie's Crab).

Again, it might take a few tries. Be patient.

C.C.

Tuesday, December 10, 2013 C.C. Burnikel

Theme: Downers - Three things that will head you into a fall, either meteorologically, literally, or metaphorically. And they are all in the Down columns.

11D. Destined for one's comeuppance ... or what the last words of 3-, 9- and 25-Down are doing? : HEADING FOR A FALL

3D. Sultry stretch : DOG DAYS OF SUMMER. "the days dwindle down to a precious few"

9D. Vacation with worms? : FISHING TRIP. TRIP - fall down.

25D. Slogan on a Boston basketball fan's shirt : CELTIC PRIDE. Pride goeth before a (down)fall.

Argyle here. What have we done to deserve such largesse? First Marti and now C.C. and I have the privilege of blogging them both. Today we have two grid spanners and perhaps a tick harder fill so I think Rich got them in the right order.

Across:

1. Says "I do" to : WEDS. Doesn't need the 'to'.

5. Harvest bundle : SHEAF

10. Bone below the knee : SHIN

14. Big name in skin care : AVON. Still ringing doorbells?

15. Sculpture subjects : TORSI

16. Jay with a column in Popular Mechanics : LENO. "Jay Leno's Garage"

17. Smokes : CIGARETTES

19. Speak wildly : RANT

20. Dated song : OLDIE. From our collective adolescence.

21. Computer repair pros : TECHs

23. Fizzle out : DIE

24. 2013 Literature Nobelist Munro : ALICE

26. Words sighed after a defeat : I TRIED

28. Ice cream maker Joseph : EDY

30. Cultural funding gp. : NEA. (National Endowment for the Arts, not National Education Association)

31. Let loose, as pigs : UNPEN

32. Large group : PASSEL

34. Two-time Oscar-winning director Lee : ANG. Spike Lee hasn't won an Oscar.

35. Turkish general : AGHA

38. Pop star : IDOL

39. Fortuneteller's deck : TAROT

41. Corp. moneymen : CFOs. (chief financial officer)

42. Sidewalk eatery : CAFÉ

43. Suffix for a school of thought : ISM

44. Chopper blades : ROTORS

46. Classic role for Nimoy : SPOCK

                            LINK

48. Highchair protection : BIB

49. Be a fink : RAT

50. "Zip it!" : "SHUT UP!"

52. "Aida," for one : OPERA

54. Sewn edge : HEM

55. Catches in a sting : TRAPS

58. Until now : SO FAR

61. Poor box deposit : ALMS

63. "Tell me about it" : "I CAN RELATE"

65. Kennel pest : FLEA

66. "You've Got Mail" co-screenwriter Ephron : DELIA. Here with her late sister, Nora.(left)

67. Complete failure : FLOP

68. Civil suit cause : TORT

69. Philosophy test component : ESSAY

70. Shade trees : ELMS

Down:

1. Home of the Texas Sports Hall of Fame : WACO (From C.C.: TTP, do you remember you tricked me last time with your Texas Ranger Hall of Fame link? That's the clue I  submitted.)

2. Villainous : EVIL

4. Slow mollusk : SNAIL

5. Fr. holy woman : STE.

6. Drink with dim sum : HOT TEA

7. Art Deco artist : ERTE. "R T"

8. "Be there in __" : A SEC

10. Nikon product, for short : SLR. (single- lens  reflex camera)

12. Navel type : INNIE

13. Well-known : NOTED

18. Queen, in Quebec : REINE. "queen" in French.

22. Additive sold at Pep Boys : STP. 740 stores

27. Flinch, say : REACT

28. Long heroic poem : EPIC

29. Pop, to baby : DADA

31. One, for Juan : UNO

33. Got some shuteye : SLEPT

34. Pitcher's asset : ARM

36. Jewish wedding dance : HORA

37. Lead-in for prof. or D.A. : ASST.

40. Show curiosity : ASK

45. More than heavyset : OBESE

47. Not at home : OUT

48. __ and Herzegovina : BOSNIA

50. Golf club part : SHAFT

51. Greeting word : HELLO

53. John who married Pocahontas : ROLFE. Pocahontas saved Captain John Smith's life but married tobacco planter John Rolfe. His story.

56. Top pilots : ACES

57. Buds : PALS

59. Molecule part : ATOM

60. Crunch count : REPS

62. Used a chair : SAT

64. Boxing's Sugar __ Leonard : RAY

Argyle

Note from C.C.:


To Sallie & all those whose Blogger account was accidentally converted to Google Plus, please click here on how to switch back to your old account. Misty successfully got hers back last time. Be patient, it might take a few tries.

Monday, December 9, 2013 Marti DuGuay-Carpenter

Theme: Y - Four theme entries that ask 'Why' but not a 'Y' to be found in the answers.

17A. "Why bother?" : "IT'S HOPELESS!"

27A. "Why me?" : "WHAT HAVE I DONE?"

43A. "Why worry?" : "FORGET ABOUT IT!"

57A. "Why not?" : "GIVE IT A SHOT"

Argle here. Warti is back upright for today's puzzle. Now can OwenKL give us some haiku.

Across:

1. Gem weight unit : CARAT

6. Three-line Japanese poem : HAIKU

11. Container for Peter Pan : JAR

14. "You __ busted!" : ARE SO

15. Past prisoner, for short : EXCON

16. Prefix for a lifesaving "Pen" : EPI

19. Bit of Morse code : DIT

20. Trivial gripe : NIT

21. Stow cargo : LADE

22. "57 Varieties" brand : HEINZ. Started with prepared horseradish.

24. Purr former : CAT. Cat update, Marti?

25. Plane for a small airstrip, briefly : STOL. Short TakeOff and Landing

33. Entire : WHOLE

34. Neeson of "Schindler's List" : LIAM

35. Carps at : NAGS

37. Blubber : BAWL

38. 90-degree pipe piece : ELL

39. Clinton's vice president : GORE. Al

40. Johnson of "Laugh-In" : ARTE

41. Island dance : HULA

42. Beast with one hump or two : CAMEL

46. Pet food brand with a ProActive Health variety : IAMS

47. Chimpanzee, e.g. : APE

48. Equally strange : AS ODD

51. Northwestern pear : BOSC

53. Revolutionary Guevara : CHE

56. Logician's proof ending : QED

61. Spoon-bending Geller : URI

62. Musical Merman : ETHEL

63. Eucalyptus-eating marsupial : KOALA

64. Civil War prez : ABE

65. Students' hurdles : TESTS

66. Kick out : EXPEL

Down:

1. Abel's older brother : CAIN

2. Class for potential painters : ART I

3. Remainder : REST

4. Residue in a smoker's tray : ASH

5. "You missed the deadline" : "TOO LATE"

6. Pay attention to : HEED

7. Wheel-supporting shaft : AXLE

8. Cold bagful for a party : ICE. or for your head after the party.

9. Bout enders, briefly : KOs. Knock Outs.

10. Without footwear : UNSHOD

11. "Star Wars" warrior : JEDI

12. Neat as __ : A PIN

13. Big name in hotels and crackers : RITZ

18. Hiker's route : PATH

23. Stretch out : ELONGATE

24. Phone screening service : CALLER ID

25. Underwater experiment site : SEALAB

26. Tiny Dickens boy : TIM

27. Pier : WHARF

28. Do-it-yourselfer's book genre : HOW TO

29. Indigenous Alaskans : ALEUTs

30. Grand Roman home : VILLA

31. Judd of country music : NAOMI

32. "Snowy" heron : EGRET

33. Fighter's org. : WBA. (World Boxing Association)

36. Salt, on the Seine : SEL. in France.

41. Partner of haw : HEM

42. Baked treat often wrapped in fluted paper : CUPCAKE. CED?

44. Gizmo : GADGET

45. Brewer's kiln : OAST

48. Greenish-blue : AQUA

49. Balkan native : SERB

50. Drooling toon dog : ODIE

51. Red root vegetable : BEET

52. Lubricates : OILS

53. Bloke : CHAP

54. Ice fishing access : HOLE

55. List-shortening abbr. : ET AL.

58. Suffix with Wyoming : ITE. Really

59. Old videotape type : VHS

60. Fenway team, for short : SOX. No wine reference today.

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to dear Hahtoolah, who never appears on the blog without an inspiring and thoughtful "Quote of the Day".  If you pay attention to the bracketed dates in Hahtoolah's quote source, you'll know that her quotes are never random. And she's been carefully selecting her quotes for us for a few years, talk about consistency! Her posts are also consistently caring & informative. (Dave, think cat!!)

Sunday December 8, 2013 Jean O'Conor

 Theme: "Drollery" - ERY sound is added to each familiar phrase, resulting spelling changes in a few theme entries.

 23A. Rush hour traffic reporters? : ARTERY CRITICS. Art critics.

 36A. List that includes "full," "round" and "wide"? : LIP GLOSSARY. Lip gloss.

 

 56A. Foes with bows? : ARCHERY ENEMIES. Arch-enemies.

 77A. Reason for a strange smell coming from the trunk of the car? : GROCERY NEGLECT. Gross neglect.

95A. "Chantilly Lace" and "Blue Velvet"? : FINERY TUNES. Fine-tunes.

114A. Group of sweet-talking experts? : FLATTERY PANEL. Flat panel.

3D. Hasty remark? : CURSORY WORD. Curse word.

69D. Food for thought? : BRAIN CELERY. Brain cell.

Two of the theme entries have second word altered. Two of the theme entries are in plural form. So no odd man out in the theme set. Consistency is very important in theme entry selection.

This puzzle only has 138 words. 144 is always the magic number to me.

Across:

1. Tex-Mex casserole : TACO PIE. Has anyone tried Korean taco?

8. Woodworking tool : LATHE

13. Where tie-dyeing may be done : AT CAMP

19. Came to : EQUALED

20. Phylicia of "The Cosby Show" : RASHAD. Won Tony for "A Raisin in the Sun".

21. Muse of comedy : THALIA. We often see her sister ERATO.

22. Foster : NURTURE

25. Confrontation-ending device : TASER

26. What the Tin Man had : NO HEART. He thought he didn't have.

28. Krypton, for one : RARE GAS

29. Like some contracts : ORAL

31. More than cool : RAD

32. Diplomatic office : EMBASSY

34. Like auxiliary vbs. : IRR.  Like "Be", in many languages. Chinese "Be" is the same for  you, I, we, etc. All Chinese verbs are.

39. Hardly rah-rah : TEPID

43. One-named "I Do!" singer named for a Jackson : TOYA. OK, named after La Toya  Jackson.

45. National No Socks Day month : MAY. May 8. New trivia to me.

46. 13 for Al, e.g. : AT NO. Aluminum.

47. Music genre heard in the film "The Big Easy" : ZYDECO

48. Ticket seller's query : HOW MANY

50. Happy : GAY

52. Rival of 56-Down : DDE. 56. Rival of 52-Across : AES. No-clue clues. I like when one of the cross-referenced entries is clued. The other can be "Rival of ? -Across/Down".

54. H.S. offering : DEG

55. Makes up (for) : ATONES

61. Kitchen gadget : CORER

62. Activity center : BEEHIVE

63. Lacquered metalware : TOLE

64. "Then ..." : AND SO

65. Tony's portrayer on "NYPD Blue" : ESAI. Very irrational when it came to his ex-wife.

66. Adjective for a 93-Across : OLDE. And 93. Quaintly named lodging : INNE.

68. Ready to bloom : IN BUD

72. Certain girder : I-BAR

74. More like a mountain road : SNAKIER. And 85. Like a dirt road vis-à-vis pavement : DUSTIER

76. MLB exec Joe : TORRE

81. Commercially, it started in the U.S. around the time of the Boeing 707 launch : JET AGE. Never heard of this term. Are we still in this age?

82. Pal of Harry and Hermione : RON. Just for Jazzbumpa!

83. Second-century date : CLI. 151.

84. NFL scores : TDs

86. Exceedingly : EVER SO

89. Pentagonal plate : HOME. Home plate.

92. Fr. neighbor : BEL (Belgium)

94. "__ the Beat": 1982 hit for The Go-Go's : WE GOT

99. No. after a dot : CTS. Oh, money.

100. Divulged : SPILLED

102. Hockey legend : ORR

103. Love-crazy Le Pew : PEPE

105. Go along with : AGREE TO

108. Make an error on, as a check : MIS-DATE

111. Early 20th-century Oklahoma boom town : TULSA

116. Pittsburgh skyscraper builder : US STEEL

118. Baseball's Posey : BUSTER. 2012 National League  MVP. For our River Doc. Hondo follows the Giants also.

119. Hun king: ATTILA

120. Pension collector : RETIREE

121. Guides : STEERS

122. Nos from Nikita : NYETS

123. Jules Léotard and Amelia Bloomer, for two : EPONYMS. It can refer to people after whom things are named or  things that derived from people.

 

Down:

 

1. It's pitched : TENT

2. Blue shade : AQUA

4. Genre featuring big hats : OATER

5. Deer or elk, sometimes : PLURAL. So irrational. They can be counted, why can't they take plural forms?

6. Court suffix : IER. Courtier.

7. Adam's first home : EDEN

8. Texas border city : LAREDO

9. Hollywood canine : ASTA

10. What's left : THE REST

11. Clinton imitator on "SNL" : HARTMAN (Phil)

12. Big name in ice cream : EDY

13. Gillette razors : ATRAS

14. Dry : THIRSTY

15. Having good night vision : CAT-EYED

16. Sacha Baron Cohen alter ego : ALI G

17. Flaky mineral : MICA

18. Hand at dinner : PASS. Please hand/PASS me the wild rice.

20. 1986 Indy champ : RAHAL (Bobby). I don't follow racing. Is the Letterman/Rahl team good?

24. Supercomputer maker : CRAY. Drew a blank, TTP!

27. Wild revelry : ORGY

30. Depicts in words : LIMNS

33. "Homeland" terrorist Nick : BRODY. JD likes the show. Read more here. Fascinating series.

34. Ivy League city : ITHACA

35. Encourage with cheers : ROOT ON

37. Fork over : PAY

38. Greet with two letters? : SAY HI. Great clue.

40. Cab starter : PEDI. Pedicab.

41. Slush Puppie maker : ICEE

42. Shepherds, perhaps : DOGS

44. Inclined to forget : AMNESIC

47. Greek known for paradoxes : ZENO.  The guy from Elea.

49. Oxygen-dependent organism : AEROBE

50. Stubborn stain : GREASE

51. Sore : ACHING

53. Thwart : DETER

 

57. Called forth : EVOKED

58. Bits of antiquity : RELICS

59. Privileged classes : ELITES

60. "Amahl and the Night Visitors" composer : MENOTTI

62. New Hampshire state mineral : BERYL. Minnesota does not have one. See here. Just learned from D-Otto's comment last week that we don't have State dog either. What's wrong with us? So cold here right now. I thought of Dr. Zhivago & Lara while walking through the thick snow & biting wind last Thursday night to attend a party.

67. Lt. Columbo, e.g. : DET

70. Pressing : URGENT

71. Some farm machinery : DEERES

73. Gas station acronym : ARCO

75. Trim to fit : ALTER

77. Sprouted : GREW

78. Travel randomly : ROVE

79. 10 C-notes : ONE G

80. It's nothing to Nero : NIHIL

81. Cocktail with a sprig of green : JULEP

85. Scout group : DEN

87. Prize ribbon feature : ROSETTE

88. Noted gatekeeper : ST. PETER

90. Almost out of gas : ON EMPTY

91. Try to make peace : MEDIATE

92. Actor Reynolds : BURT. Of course I thought of RYAN first.

95. Señorita's blossom : FLOR (Flower)

96. Alpine tunes : YODELS

97. Merry refrain : TRA LA

98. Gets busy with : SETS TO

101. Anatomical canals : ITERS. Learned from doing xwords.

104. Applied (for) : PUT IN. Tricky clue for me. Tricky tense too.

105. Homes for B-52s, briefly : AFBs

106. Superfluity : GLUT

107. Demolish, in Dorset : RASE

109. Bad mood : SNIT

110. __-et-Loir: French department : EURE. According to Wiki, Eure-et-Loir is named after the Eure and Loir rivers.

112. Come across as : SEEM

113. Many microbrews : ALES

115. TV chef Martin : YAN. He was born in Guangzhou also. The real Cantonese food is very light. Fresh veggie, fresh seafood, lightly steamed or sauteed. Most restaurants have live fish, snakes, etc. You pick what you want, the chef will then cook for you..

117. Pennant race mo. : SEP

Today we celebrate the birthday of Jazzbumpa (Ron),  who always gives us all he has every time he blogs. Click here for more pictures of his talented grandchildren. Amanda the ballet dancer spent a week with the Rockettes this past summer. Nate is a great baseball player.

(Updated later. Click here for 3 updated pictures Ron just sent to me.)
 

Gloria & Ron

In the yard: Gloria, Lauren, Josh, Me, Abby.

Happy 80th Birthday to Misty's husband Rowland as well! Hope it's an extra sweet day for both of you.

C.C.

Saturday, Dec 7th, 2013, Bruce Venzke

Theme: None

Words: 68 (missing Q,X,Y,Z)

Blocks: 34

   This is my third Saturday LAT from Bruce, and I think it's a spectacular looking puzzle with nearly perfect symmetry (From C.C.: This puzzle has the normal 180 symmetry. And the Left to Right symmetry. And the Top to Bottom symmetry.) and a very solvable puzzle at that~!  Not much to start with, but the solitary fill I had in each corner was just enough to work out some of the common language spanners - we have six today (and two 11-letter climbers);

17. Emergency strategies : EVACUATION PLANS - there was a HazMat fire at the UPS terminal in Uniondale, NY, in Nassau County; my center is in Suffolk; they had to call in FIVE fire deparments, plus a spill team.  That closed the operation for most of the morning sort - not a pretty scene.  No one hurt.

20. Mattered : MADE A DIFFERENCE

23. Post-election governmental meeting, perhaps : LAME DUCK SESSION - when the president knows he's not coming back in January - Wiki

42. Number? : LOCAL ANESTHESIA - Didn't fool me~!  Numb-ers, so I was looking for Novocaine, etc

47. Takes an opposite position : CHANGES ONE'S TUNE

56. Alters some game parameters : RAISES THE STAKES

ON WA RD~!

ACROSS:

1. Overseas county : SHIRE - anyone else read this as countRy?  I had CHINA to start

6. Zurich highlight : ALP - was looking for the German word for song/solo, "ARIA"

9. Golden Gate element : CABLE - tried TOWER first

 14. Saved for later, in a way : TAPED - not much these days; everything I watch is digitally recorded on the cable company DVR

15. Architectural prefix : NEO - nice alternative to "Matrix" character and "opposite paleo-"

16. Providers of added light : ATRIA

 21. NBA great : Dr. J - Not a basketball fan, but I DID know it was not "OTT" nor "ORR"

22. Bush led it for about a yr. in the '70s : CIA

32. March middle : IDES

33. They may lead to risky moves : DARES

34. Many a reference book : TOME

35. Like some tempers : BAD - had it in, took it out; I had the wrong idea for the crossing "suit" (23D)

36. "Reversal of Fortune" Oscar winner : IRONS - Jeremy

37. Brimless hat : TAM - Took a gamble and tried FEZ; BZZ

38. Home of Phillips University : ENID - Oklahoma

40. Secretary of State after Colin, familiarly : CONDI - Condoleezza Rice

41. Candy __ : CANE - anyone try "GRAM" here?

45. Seinfeld specialty : WIT - meh

46. Electrical particle : ION

57. Great enthusiasm : ARDOR

58. Classified abbr. : EOE - Equal Opportunity Employer

59. Part of a meet : EVENT

60. Disengages, as from a habit : WEANS

61. High degree : Ph.D - not "Nth"

62. Comes up short : LOSES

DOWN:

1. Arise (from) : STEM

2. "__ Nagila" : HAVA

3. Jobs news of 2010 : iPAD - Steve Jobs, of Apple

4. Moves back : RECEDES

5. Former Georgian president Shevardnadze : EDUARD - mostly perps

6. Freeze beginning : ANTI - Antifreeze; my water pump went on the Dodge this past Wednesday - it's still sitting in the parking lot at UPS.  The car owes me nothing - it's got 242,000 miles, and it's 14 yrs old - I am seriously considering the Dodge Dart come January

7. Hero in Treece's "Vinland the Good" : LEIF - Henry Treece, who wrote this juvenile historical account of Leif Ericsson

8. Magic word : "POOF"

9. Mid-calf pants : CAPRIs

 10. That much or more : AT LEAST

11. Grain layer : BRAN

12. Omar's role in "The Mod Squad" : LINC

13. No effort : EASE

18. Settles : ADJUDICATES - healthy $2 word

19. Bare things : NECESSITIES - the 'bare necessities' - OR - Bear?

23. Suit material : LIBEL - ah, THAT kind of (law) suit

24. Hersey's bell town : ADANO

25. Front VIP : MEDIC - my first thought was front office, but this is the battlefield front

26. Leslie of "Fanny" : CARON - stuck on Nielsen

27. Danish capital : KRONE - capital as in money

28. Enthralls : SENDS

29. Whits : IOTAs - not a whit (iota) of truth

30. Arabian peninsula native : OMANI

31. Mythical lion's home : NEMEA - I tried ASLAN, but that's THE lion (and the wrong one)

39. Suddenly occurs to : DAWNS ON

41. 1/100 of a Brazilian real : CENTAVO - more money

43. Hybrid cats : LIGERS - LIons/tiGERs - oh MY~!

44. Low-cost stopover : HOSTEL

47. Sticking place : CRAW

48. Memorable napper : HARE - Aesop fable where the slow and steady tortoise wins - I did not know there was some 'controversy' over its interpretation

49. Radamès' love : AIDA

50. Flight feature : STEP - A flight of stairs

51. "We're in trouble!" : OH-OH

52. Call for : NEED

53. They usually have four strings : UKES

54. Birds seen by players of 53-Down : NE-NE

55. Body shop figs. : ESTimateS - I fiugre the water pump on the old Dodge is going to cost me $300-400, and that sounds like a new car payment to me....

Splynter

Another two-letter word game;

What are these lists which use one letter from the first pair to the next?

AL LA AR RI IN NM MN NY

GW WW WH HT TJ JB BO

NA AS SI IR RN NE

Note from C.C.:

Happy Birthday to Larry, our philosopher/farmer Windhover, who's been with the blog for a long time. Windhover met with Lucina last year too. Can you imagine life without TV or computers? That's how Windhover and his wife Irish live their life. Click here for a few pictures of young Larry. 

 
 

Friday, December 6, 2013, Marti DuGuay-Carpenter

Theme: Turn the puzzle upside down, by Warti.

As I heard the story, this was inspired by the divine one's childhood, when she was little she was called Warti, which made her embarrassed, so she changed her name to Marti, and this puzzle ensued. (I hope she does not sue me for libel!). Or maybe Ian Fleming changed his mind about the name of James Bond's boss? Fun, simple theme presented in a pinwheel (2 across, 2 down) with a very cute but too late to be helpful reveal. The 'in the language' phrases are tweaked with the simple W to M change to create new and amusing phrases. So much fun in marti's puzzles, I am going to shut up and let her entertain you.

20A. Odd way to check for ore? : M(W)INE TASTING. (11). We know our resident oenophile may have started with this seed entry. Licking rocks does not sound appealing.

57A. What you need when your car is stuck in the mud? : M(W)IRE SERVICE. (11). Nice convoluted clue, which I hope did not bog you down.

11D. Summons from the cosmetician? : M(W)AKEUP CALL. (10). Really great visual of the beautician calling and saying, "Quick get in here now, your mascara ran!"

29D. Fix potatoes the hard way? : M(W)ASH BY HAND. (10). Another great transition to a visual.

and the reveal, in the center of the grid...

37D. Audi rival, and, when spoken as a command, a hint to this puzzle's theme : BMW. "Be M, W." Maybe this was the seed....Gather up all of the Ws and make them M, that will turn the Morld on its ear.

Across:

1. Some arm bands : TATS. Fun clue and the perfect counterpart for the last Across clue. 71A. "Toodles!" : TATA. A repeat from yesterday.

5. Work on the web : SPIN. I am sure marti planned this is a misdirection involving spiders and not the internet, but with the spin doctors out there, it works both ways.

9. Grant access : ADMIT.

14. Earthy hue : ECRU.

15. "That can't be!" : OH NO.

16. Heat energy source? : MIAMI. Cute since So'Fla. is often the only place in the US where the sun is warm this time of year. The the team seems bored, waiting to see of Greg Oden is healthy.

17. On the roof of : ATOP.

18. __ accompli : FAIT. A French expression clearly in the language in the US meaning already done. You can see where our word accomplished comes from.

19. Seeing red : IRKED.

23. Dreyer's partner in ice cream : EDY.

24. Blooms with hips : ROSES. Did you know roses bore FRUIT ? Many health benefits.

25. Waimea Bay locale : OAHU. Supposed great surfing, too bad all of our Hawaii posters are not active.

27. Uncomfortable place to be in : LIMBO. Initially a religious concept.

30. Friendly response to a knock : IT'S OPEN.

33. Atty.'s group : ABA. American Bar Association.

34. Letter before mu : LAMBDA. Do you know your Greek ALPHABET? (2:19) Sing it!

38. It may be a lot : ACRE. Wonderful play on words.

39. '50s sitcom name : DESI. Mr. Arnaz, or Mr. Lucille Ball?

41. Pyle of Mayberry : GOMER. More tv, Jim Nabors, the loveable marine from Mayberry, who Rock Hudson found so fetching; maybe it was the music.

42. Mumbai music : RAGA. My learning moment. Obviously you need to know Bombay is now Mumbai, and then know about Indian music. LEARN. Think of it as the beginning of Reggae.

43. 1939 Garland co-star : LAHR. Bert, and I am not Lion.

44. Without exception : ALWAYS.

46. Remove : LOP. We will lop off a few inches.

47. Attaché's place : EMBASSY. Not the case, the diplomat.

49. Is inclined : TILTS. Another clever use of words, taking the literal meaning of an incline.

51. Shows of support : YEAS. Raise your hands if you like this clue?

52. Bit of a scrap : RUN IN. Not iron, confrontation.

55. Dash no. : MPH. My "eh" of the puzzle. Dash = dashboard?  Sure, but only in context, or maybe this is just too clever for me. 100 yards was my first thought.

62. Muse for Millay : ERATO. What kind of middle name is VINCENT for a woman?

64. Culture medium : AGAR.

65. Scraped together, with "out" : EKED. I think this may be the most used fill of all.

66. Maker of the Mighty Dump : TONKA. Oh, the toy....my first thought did not pass the breakfast test.

67. Pace : GAIT.

68. Texter's button : SEND.

69. Optional component : ADD ON.

70. Some shooters, briefly : SLRS. A single-lens reflex (SLR) camera is a camera that typically uses a mirror and prism system (hence "reflex", from the mirror's reflection) that permits the photographer to view through the lens and see exactly what will be captured, contrary to viewfinder cameras where the image could be significantly different from what will be captured. (Wikipedia).

Down:

1. One in the standings : TEAM.

2. Opening on Broadway : ACT I. They all have to start somewhere.

3. "__: Uprising": Disney sci-fi series : TRON.

4. A-one : SUPERB. The exact reverse from yesterday.

5. Remote hiding places? : SOFAS. More cute misdirection, marti is really in control today.

6. Introduce gradually, with "in" : PHASE.

7. DDE and JFK, e.g. : INITS. My initial nit of the day.

8. Words of denial : NOT I?  At least by an English teacher.

9. Pamplona pals : AMIGAS. The female friends from Spain.

10. E, but not A, I, O or U : DIRection. Actually more misDIRection.

12. Contacted, in a way, briefly : IM-ED.

13. Neat : TIDY.

21. Trade item? : TOOL. Not trade like an exchange, but a career.

22. Official with a seal : NOTARY. Every office needs a few.

26. Winter coat : HOAR. The sliver of silver coating the ground.

27. Serve from a pot : LADLE.

28. Steel girder : I-BEAM. You knew she would get one of these in the puzzle.

30. Bean sprout? : IDEA. Oh such wit! Hers is obviously in full bloom.

31. Rye fungus : ERGOT. Home for LSD.

32. Some tides : NEAPS.

35. "Open" autobiographer : AGASSI. I am so bad with with book titles, I read it and did not know it was his until I had the AG. Did you know you cannot copyright a Title? Want to do your own Gone with the Wind?

36. Herb that protected Odysseus from Circe's magic : MOLY. All perps, never knew of this HERB, which once again is Greek in origin.

40. "Dies __" : IRAE.

45. Move a little : STIR.

48. South Pacific islander : SAMOAN.

50. Use money to make money : INVEST.

52. Majestic : REGAL.

53. Allegheny, as of 1979 : USAIR. From a regional to a huge international, to swallowed up by American....

54. "Darn!" : NERTS. An old variation of NUTS, probably from the regional dialect of the northeast.

55. Self-referential prefix, in modern lingo : META. Metadata, data about data is the only example I can think of, but it is more of our recent clue fascination with all that is Greek.

56. Impel : PROD.

58. Tabloids, to some : RAGS. Riches to others.

59. Flat pack furniture seller : IKEA.

60. One seen in a store dish : CENT. Take a penny, leave a penny.

61. Icelandic literary work : EDDA. A word I know only from crosswords, but I have seen it for so many years.

63. Ref's ruling : TKO. Technical Knock Out.

Speaking of Out, I am out of material, so it is time to hit the road. Thanks marti, I got dizzy doing this while standing on my head. I hope you all have the blood rushing to all the right places. Have a great week end. Lemonade out.

Notes from C.C.:

1) Here is a picture JD took on her first trip to South Africa. She said "The children created this likeness of their hero on a wall in Cape Town, Nelson Mandela, using hand prints."

2) Happy Birthday to dear Lucina, the only regular I've met in person. She's just as cheerful and fun as she is on the blog.

(L-R back row: Chickie, Clear Ayes, Garlic Gal; Front: JD, Lucina, Dodo. 

Picture taken on June 23, 2011