If you are not too stuffed from your Thanksgiving Turkey, or Turducken, or Goose, welcome to Friday. Well guess who is back with an add-on letters theme. This time Jeffrey adds TR to the beginning of 4 in the language phrases. The results are pretty funny. He even sneaks in a Thanksgiving reference with his Dickens clue. He seemed a bit obsessed with a non-vegetarian slant with GOOSE, MOOSE MEAT and OFFAL all together in the middle; I guess he did not want u to veg out. Two grid-spanners and two 13 letter themers as well as including OFFICE AREA, GRABS ON, ARMORER, KOSHER SALT, MOOSE MEAT, STATE TREE and ON ONE END show his skill in putting together a grid with lots of sparkle. So now...
17A. Imaginary fish?: TROUT OF ONE'S MIND.(15). While I did not go out of my mind I loved this one.
32A. Participates in a biathlon for physicians?: TREATS AND RUNS (13). Medical humor.
41A. Where climbing plants flourish?: TRELLIS ISLAND (13). I also loved the use of Ellis Island as a base phrase.
61A. Tire-testing statistics?: TRACTION FIGURES.(15). The most well thought out combination as our toys become a useful piece of information.
1. Chicken (out): WIMP. I hope the Friday fear does not make you chicken out.
5. Mild cheese: GOUDA. Because you will have a gouda time.
10. Latticework component: LATH. This was difficult for me, but perhaps a bonus theme fill as
a lath or slat is a thin, narrow strip of straight-grained wood used under roof shingles or tiles, on lath and plaster walls and ceilings to hold plaster, and in lattice and trellis work.
14. Grandson of Adam: ENOS.
15. Behind-the-scenes retail space: OFFICE AREA. This is very convoluted, though I guess it makes sense.
19. QBs' targets: TES. Tight Ends, the best known of which is currently...
20. Second-largest W. Hemisphere country: USA. This is apparently in debate as the source I cite says the USA is bigger than Canada, but not as big of Antarctica, which is only partially in the Western Hemisphere. LINK. Please educate me if you know differently. I have read more, and it seems that Canada is larger based on total mass, which includes internal waterways, while the US is larger in land mass. No intent to slight our Canadian readers or constructors, eh!
21. Clutches: GRABS ON. Also Friday clue/fill difficulty for me
22. Ann้e quarter: ETE. French for part of a year.
23. Composer Bart๓k: BELA.
25. Email tab: SENT.
26. Water collection pit: SUMP. This the low part of an area where liquids collect when draining from something, like from a private waste pool. You often will need a sump pump.
28. Uh-huh accompaniers: NODS. You do it without even thinking.
38. Of limited scope: NARROW. Like many minds.
39. Old auto named for an explorer: DE SOTO. The history of the CAR.
44. More than a peck: KISS. Especially if you are with...
45. Yours, to Yves: À TOI.
46. "O, that way madness lies" speaker: LEAR. Jeffrey gets his Shakespeare in this week. King Lear bemoaning the treatment he has received from his daughters.
50. Many a Ph.D.: PROFessor.
54. 50-Across' subj., perhaps: ENGlish
55. Mail creator: ARMORER. Chain mail not e-mail.
59. Texting qualifier: IMO. In My Opinion.
60. Where some drives begin: TEE. Ah some golf.
64. Common cooking ingredient: KOSHER SALT. The WHY it is used by chefs.
65. Campsite sight: TENT.
66. Language that gave us "plaid": ERSE. They also gave us the concept of plaid.
67. Architectural projections: EAVES.
68. Last letters in London: ZEDS.
Down:
1. Record-breaking, rainwise: WETTEST. California wishes it was having some of that instead of those states that are flooding.
2. Reciprocally: IN RETURN.
3. Alaskan burger choice: MOOSE MEAT. Not really true but you can sometimes find this TREAT.
4. Nittany Lions' sch.: PSU. Penn State University in Happy Valley.
5. Dickensian holiday dish: GOOSE. Famous in A Christmas Carol not as the gift, but the background. The STORY.
6. Remains at the butcher: OFFAL. This is an old word which began as a combination of "off" and "fall" - that which falls off.
7. Aerial enigma: UFO.
8. Microwave signal, sometimes: DING.
9. Hardware brand: ACER. I am typing on an ACER laptop.
10. Symbols of innocence: LAMBS. Unless you are being silent.
11. Spring up: ARISE.
12. Mortise partner: TENON. More bonus carpentry.
13. "I __ noticed": HADN'T. Well pay attention!
16. That, in Madrid: ESA. Spanish.
18. One may include a shower: TUB.
24. __ Arbor: ANN. Where the University of Michigan, another Big Ten school is located.
27. Henry VIII's sixth: PARR. It's Catherine or Jack.
29. They may be long at the track: ODDS. Cute horse racing humor; I hope it did not give you a long face.
30. Square root of neun: DREI. German division that isn't military.
31. Find (out): SUSS. A favorite puzzle solving word.
33. Long haul: TREK. Ask James Tiberius Kirk.
34. Recital numbers: SOLI. More than one solo.
35. Leatherworker's set: AWLS.
36. 2014 "NCIS" spinoff locale, briefly: NOLA. A CSO to many here.
37. Pecan, for Texas: STATE TREE. Ours is the SABAL PALM. Yours?
40. How brooms are usually stored: ON ONE END.
42. Org. affected by net neutrality: ISP. Internet service Provider.
43. Fully comprehends: DIGESTS.
46. Hanukkah serving: LATKE. The holiday is fast approaching and homemade potato pancakes are a treat. I use apple sauce, and even cinnamon apple sauce while other prefer gravy or sour cream.
47. Wrong turn, say: ERROR.
48. Bring together: AMASS. A Scrooge reference?
49. Basel-based pharmaceutical giant: ROCHE. Their WEBSITE.
51. Feature of many a Daniel Boone depiction: RIFLE. Dan'l is back for the second straight week- who would a thunk it.
52. Skips: OMITS.
53. Driving hazard: FOG. Especially if you do not know your...
56. GPS datum: RTE.
57. Land of the banshee: EIRE.
58. Civil rights icon Parks: ROSA.
62. Canadian rapper with the album "Reckless": NAV. This CSO to our Canadians comes with a Punjabi heritage. LINK.
63. Big name in snack food: UTZ.
Well I am now hungry and confused, so I will bid you all a fond farewell from Thailand and hope Jeffrey and I entertained this week. I will be back at my normal stomping grounds next Friday.
Lemonade out. I inserted a picture of Oo at the Umbrella Factory where they make and decorate all of them by hand.
