google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner

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May 21, 2016

Saturday, May 21st, 2016, David Steinberg

Theme: None

Words: 72 (missing F,Q,X)

Blocks: 31

 Somehow I sensed that there should have been an extra row or column in this puzzle, as Mr. Steinberg's last two offerings on Saturday were both expanded grids.  I moved through this one with relative ease, but got stumped at two Naticks, which kinda bummed me out.  Oh well.  Unlike those previous two, no spanners in today's construction, but triple 11-letter across and almost triple 9-letter downs in the corners;

17a. Whatchamacallit : THINGAMABOB - D'ya know I actually read the word "gewgaw" in a novel last week - I was so pleasantly surprised to see it because it justified the many times its appeared in crosswords, and I said "that's not a word"....

12d. Buddhism branch : MAHAYANA - I was curious, so I looked; here's the Wiki, and it led to the word "Dharma" which is this guitar player

 Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser

62. Amusing editor, at times : AUTO-CORRECT - some very hilarious results : WARNING~! Adult Contact - Content~!  Damn, auto-correct

36. Team member in "Moneyball" : ATHLETIC - I thought this was a Wall Street movie, but it's this one; I don't know what movie I was thinking about

ONE EARED~! (Damn auto-correct~!)

ACROSS:

1. Librarians might use them : HUSHED TONES

12. Lt. col.'s inferior : MAJor - I read this as "literary college's" inferior, so I put in "TAs".  Odd.

15. Sci-fi concept : ANTI-GRAVITY

16. Lovelace whom many consider the first computer programmer : ADA - Natick #1, with a proper name crossing a religious branch; "Ida"~?  "Ada"~?

18. Solo on-screen : HAN - this guy; I just finished reading "the making of Star Wars" and "the making of Empire Strikes Back"


19. Trail, perhaps : HUNT - the verb, not the noun; pondered PATH

20. Milky Way source : MARS - the candy bar

21. Camera product : IMAGE - yep, that's the output

23. Tablet container : ARK - historic tablets, not electronic ones

24. Coral Triangle tourist destination : BALI - Mali or Bali~??  I didn't get much help from the crossing

25. Left rolling in the aisles : SLAYED

26. Down a lot : TOPE - I shoulda known this; drinking to excess....

28. __ other : EACH

30. Robot starter : NANO - eh, more like NANO-bot, than robot

31. Pay dirt : ORE

33. Hassle : NUISANCE

35. First instrument for many : RATTLE - I still play the rattle, but it's made by Ludwig, and comes in several pieces

38. Icy Hot competitor : BENGAY

39. Keep secret : WITHHOLD

41. Sushi bar delicacy : ROE - dah.  Not AHI

42. __ pedal: guitar accessory : ECHO - I have a delay pedal, but not an echo, and I really, really want one.  I also have a chorus, distortion, and Zoom pedal, which has multiple effects built in, and there's a pedal accessory that allows me to create a  "wah-wah" effect with it.  I thought the answer might have been "WA-WA"

43. Slam offering : POEM - didn't get it; perps

45. Org. that monitors plants : OSHA - DID get it, the factory kind of plants

48. Nervous person? : NELLIE - har-har

50. Fail to beat the heat : MELT - the only "ice" found in Florida is that under the skates of the Tampa Bay Lightning, now even in their Stanley Cup series

52. AIDS-fighting drug : AZT

54. Rough stuff : TWEED

55. Low-cost pub : ZINE - publication and magazine

56. "__ bien" : ESTA - dah~!  Not TRES

57. Storage unit? : BIT - computer storage

58. Vaping devices : E-CIGARETTES - the evolution of these things is incredible; very popular with the younger types at UPS

61. "Wheel of Fortune" purchase : AN "I" - fill in "AN", and wait....

63. Mo. for which tanzanite is a birthstone : DECember

64. Comics-derived danger alert : SPIDEY SENSE - well, I wasn't sure how to spell "Spidey", since I didn't read the comic book; I tried SpideE

my kind of spider sense

DOWN:

1. Yoga variety : HATHA - ooops, not ASANA

2. Fine after an accident : UNHURT - ah.  Not TICKET; my experience in one accident was that the other party involved crossed in front of me while I had right-of-way; he was given two tickets - the other for not wearing the seatbelt

3. Well-lit? : STINKO - well, I got it, but the "O" at the end was a bit meh. 

4. "Gimme a __" : HINT

5. Noodle variety : EGG

6. Certain queen's domain : DRAMA

7. Steamed cantina food : TAMALE

8. Like a certain female artery : OVARIAN - I didn't realize there were names for the smaller ones

9. Ink deliverers : NIBS - Dah~!! Not PENS

10. WWII arena : ETO - learned from crosswords

11. Basil's wife on "Fawlty Towers" : SYBIL - a WAG; I thought "sibyl" was the answer to 14D., but it didn't fit

13. Company offering many promotions : AD AGENCY - cute

14. Mystery woman : JANE DOE - Mystery no more~!!  I have found her, and this is what she looks like - I might have solved a LOT of criminal investigations, too~!!


22. Watches over : MANAGES

24. Where an engineer may retire : BERTH - Natick #2, the "E" did me in....I am not sure I get this; does this mean a train engineer and sleeping in a car on the train~?

25. Less forward : SHIER

27. Artery problem : POTHOLE - I got this; I was on a different wavelength from the first artery clue, this one referring to the highways into/from a city

29. Bear fruit? : CUB - oh, so witty

32. Secretly unite : ELOPE

34. Arrogant sort : SNOOT

35. Beverage used in Chinese cuisine : RICE WINE

37. "Eldorado" group : ELO - ah, the song Eldorado; Iron Maiden has a song with the same title

39. Soured : WENT BAD - straight up

40. Part-human mythological creature : DEMI-GOD - CENTAUR fit, too

44. Threat : MENACE

46. Get cracking : HASTEN

47. Ancient cacao bean traders : AZTECS

49. TED talk subjects : IDEAS

51. Encyclopedia Brown's first name : LEROY - perps

53. Discretion : TASTE

55. Italian tubes : ZITI - this helped out a lot in the SE

56. Sera is a form of it : ÊTRE - I pondered "DOSE", as in medical serum; turns out to be the conjugation of the Frawnche, and reminds me of this song

Wax Tailor, with Doris

59. Tea holder : CUP - so simple, I figured it had to be wrong

60. Halting syllables : ers....

Splynter