Friday, September 2, 2022, Jeffrey Wechsler

 Title: Shh, I am trying to think, and I lost an H. 

Jeffrey is back with a puzzle that mostly plays very easy for a Friday. I do remind you that all final clue/fill pairings are up to the editor(s) so don't heap too much praise or too many complaints on JW. It is nice to know we will still get puzzles from our veterans like Jeffrey, Doug Peterson, Rich Norris, Gary Cee, and others. Today is a Friday staple, adding letters to a word in a phrase and cluing the created combination with wit and charm. Today we have a bi-gram (2 letters)  added- SH. 

RABBIT SHEARS and HOCKEY SHRINK  are both laugh-out-loud fill. The puzzle is also has conventional symmetry with 13/12/12/13 themers. We have no really obscure fill; FARRO and CORUNDUM are not easy but it is a Friday. We also have ALTAR BOY, FACING OFF  and MISS A BEAT  as long fill .

I have been doing puzzles since I sat in my parents' bed and watched them do the Sunday NYT and all the other delights in the Sunday magazine starting in about 1955.  I have seen many changes in all puzzles when editors move on. Everyone has the right to present the puzzles they want; but relax, they all also need to sell ads, I am encouraged for the future no matter how brief, especially if I get to blog a JW now and then. It may be only once a month, or even less but it will always be fun for me, and a joy to discuss with you all. On to the theme...

19A. Storage area for Christmas toys?: SANTAS SHELVES (13).  I think it is perfectly natural that Santa's helpers who are all elves, would store their work product on SHELVES. We do not even need to debate whether Santa himself is in fact an elf.

24A. Clippers used by Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail?: RABBIT SHEARS (12). If you not know Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-tail from the Beatrix Potter books you might be stumped, but I imagine all would recognize a cotton-tail as a type of rabbit.

40A. Analyst for Ducks and Penguins?: HOCKEY SHRINK.(12). This challenged my link finding ability and made me cry "oncle." Are there psychiatrists for hockey players?  Would they work to make them meaner? You, my reading audience, are welcome to find a perfect link and make me look foolish.

46A. Earthquake-resistant?: FIT FOR SHAKING (13). This a very cerebral fill, which made me think before getting the clue/fill. FIT FOR A KING is a very common phrase and the only themer to change.  Many new tall buildings are constructed to withstand major tremors. More than half of the world's 7.8 billion population live in cities and urban areas, and 2.5 billion more are expected to join them within the next 20-25 years.(arch daily). (Various architecture magazines). The world has had the horror of the collapse of the Twin Towers in New York City and in SoFla, we had Champlain Towers South, a 12-story beachfront condominium in the Miami suburb of Surfside, Florida, United States, partially collapse. Ninety-eight people died. 

Now that Jeffrey has lightened the mood, or was it me? Let us examine the rest.

Across:

1. __ Cass: MAMA. Cass Elliot was a member of the successful 60s band The Mamas & the Papas. They only were together from 1965 to 1968, but since that was the end of high school and start of college for me, I recall them fondly. As far as who I would have fondled...never mind. 

5. Some Sappho poems: ODES. JW has brought his whole artistic side to this puzzle, first music then poetry, though I doubt he was in high school when she was writing. 

9. Not great, chancewise: SLIM. And his partner, NONE.

13. Malicious: EVIL. MAL is a root word in many languages for bad and has been used by writers, poets and movie makers forever. Oo loves musicals, so we recently watched the Disney series of movies called the DESCENDANTS which were based on the premise that all of the DISNEY villains had children who were equally bad. Or were they? 

The CAST.

14. Ruminant with striped legs: OKAPI. The okapi, also known as the forest giraffe, Congolese giraffe, or zebra giraffe, is an artiodactyl mammal that is endemic to the northeast Democratic Republic of the Congo in central Africa. Although the okapi has striped markings reminiscent of zebras, it is most closely related to the giraffe. Wiki.

15. Locks in a stable?: MANE. Staying in four legged mammals for $800 Alex, where do horses mainly live?

16. Chimney concern: NEST. Birds however can live anywhere, except maybe in a... 

17. Horror movie locale: CRYPT. Which freedom...

18. Rankles: IRKS. the bees.

22. "The Comedy of Errors," for one: FARCE. I love how JW sneaks in his Shakespeare with this play. It is the story of the farcical misadventures of two sets of identical twins. Many years earlier, the Syracusan merchant Egeon had twin sons, both named Antipholus. At their birth, he bought another pair of newborn twins, both named Dromio, as their servants. Why name both sons the same? For comedy of course. One son, and one servant were lost at sea, eventually reunited leading to much laughter of confusion.

23. Prepped: READY. Past participle? This not getting ready but already ready.

29. Cookies that once came in collectible tins: OREOS. This is a replica of a 1918 can.

30. Flying things: WINGS. Cute misdirection as wings are very often integral to flying. 

31. Basic nutrient: FAT. Despite what Jack S. thought fat is important in a human diet. What HARVARD RESEARCHERS found.

34. Hors d'oeuvres carrier: TRAY. Not the waiter but his instrument, but not a

35. Hand-picked instrument?: BANJO. Very cute visual clue.

36. Arrived: CAME. Boomer told me NOT to comment on this though it might be...

37. Very popular: HOT. No pictures, sorry.

38. Canine that preys on red kangaroo and swamp wallaby: DINGO. I know nothing of the RED KANGAROO or the SWAMP WALLABY   I know DINGOS are from Australia and like to eat babies. "A dingo ate my baby!" is a cry popularly attributed to Lindy Chamberlain-Creighton, as part of the 1980 death of Azaria Chamberlain case, at Uluru in the Northern Territory, Australia. The Chamberlain family had been camping near the rock when their nine-week-old daughter was taken from their tent by a dingo. Maybe?

39. Après-ski drink: COCOA. Ahh. chocolate.

42. Initial phase: ONSET. I am waiting for this to be the WORDLE word. (I wrote this Monday, August 28 at 8:13 PM, life can be amazing!)

45. Cy who pitched the first perfect game of the modern era: YOUNG. Again I could find no film of this all time great (511 victories!) but here is a retrospective on Cy and other baseball greats.

                                    

51. Touched down: ALIT. Like a mosquito on your arm.

52. Still in the game: ALIVE. It is imperative to be alive to play the game.

53. Dish (out): DOLE. Bob failed in many tries to become President. RIP Bob.

56. Inheritance factor: GENE. My first wife's uncle Gene was not nice.

57. Records, in a way: TIVOS. All you would want to know and more as TiVo has its own site. TiVopedia.

58. Aerial enigmas: UFOS.

59. Set up: Abbr.: ESTD. ESTablisheD. Good for businesses and buildings.

60. Pour out forcefully: SPEW.  I use this word with rhetoric or vitriol not volcanoes.

61. Some lit. degrees: MFAS. Masters of Free Association? I recall when I used to get lit my mind wandered; and it is doing it again.

Down:

1. Guys: MEN. 

                                        

2. Hail, in a hymn: AVE. Do you think of  Ave Maria? Or  Avē Imperātor, moritūrī tē salūtant  ?

3. Falter: MISS A BEAT.

4. Assistant in Mass production: ALTAR BOY. The capital M gives it away; Boomer was an Altar Boy, not just for the wine.

5. Pod that may be fried or pickled: OKRA. Such a debated food, but I married a woman raised in Birmingham who loved it. Maybe try this RECIPE.

6. Diary pages: DAYS. So simple it was hard.

7. Actor Omar: EPPS. He has had a good career for a young man. His IMDB.

8. Order of Darth Sidious: SITH. There are many here who scoff at the STAR WARS epics, and there are many who love them. Sidious is a most central character but he died. Or did he?

9. Shows satisfaction: SMILES. There are happy smiles. relieved smiles and satisfied smiles which are not all nice.

10. Silk source: LARVA. You probably all know silk comes from a silkworm. Bombyx mori, the domestic silk moth, is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of Bombyx mandarina, the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth.

11. Tatted up: INKED. I grew up in a religious home where marking your body was s sin, because you had to be arrogant to improve on the perfection your creation had been. 

12. Out of order?: MESSY.

14. Chamber group: OCTET.

20. CBS military drama with regional spinoffs: NCIS. This first location in Virginia was a spin-off of s series known as JAG. They both were created by DONALD P. BELLASARIO who must be a real Giglionaire by now. From Virginia  NCIS went to Miami, New York, LA, New Orleans and now Hawaii. They also had some Doctors without Borders and a Cyber division.

21. __ on the side of caution: ERRS. DONALD clearly did not. Of course. I meant Bellasario. No politics here.

22. Grain of emmer, spelt, or einkorn: FARRO. This refers to the grains of three wheat species, which are sold dried, and cooked in water until soft. It is eaten plain or is often used as an ingredient in salads, soups, and other dishes. That will make you lose weight.

24. "Divergent" novelist Veronica: ROTH. Veronica Anne Roth (born August 19, 1988) is an American novelist and short story writer, known for her bestselling Divergent trilogy.

                                        

25. "Boys Don't Cry" Oscar winner: SWANK. Hilary has won two best actress Oscars, also winning for "Million Dollar Baby" with Clint Eastwood.

26. Trunk hardware: HINGE. The trunk of a car? The piece of luggage? DKDC.

27. "Have a ball!": ENJOY. My new life motto/

28. In the past: AGO. Up until weeks ago, in fact. I was always...

31. Going head-to-head: FACING OFF. with everyone, but now I know we are...

32. "You're __ friends": AMONG.

33. Deck chair wood: TEAK. Teak weathers beautifully.

35. Shaving brand: BIC. They were just cheap ball points when Boomer and I were young; of course we sill wanted them.

36. Mineral in abrasives: CORUNDUM. Corundum is a crystalline form of aluminum oxide typically containing traces of iron, titanium, vanadium and chromium. It is a rock-forming mineral. It is a naturally transparent material, but can have different colors depending on the presence of transition metal impurities in its crystalline structure. wiki

38. Inflict upon: DO TO.

39. Woo-shik of "Parasite" and "Train to Busan": CHOI.

40. Hoisted: HEFTED.

41. Wanda who plays Dr. Karl in the "Bad Moms" films: SYKES. Her IMDB.

42. Old enough to vote, say: OF AGE.

43. "Frasier" role: NILES. David Hyde Pierce and his 40 year RELATIONSHIP.

44. Stretch: STINT. I relate it to a prison sentence; why not?

47. "Phooey!": RATS. They got us boss, time to go.

48. Intimate apparel item: SLIP. Finally a picture...

49. Bee flat?: HIVE. Very cute, the apartment where the bees live.

50. State openly: AVOW. AVOW = AVER another APEX ACME choice.

54. Mauna __: LOA. I tried for years to get my clue, "it's higher than LOA" in a puzzle, no chance.

55. Start of spring?: ESS. Silly end to the puzzle but the word SPRING does start with an S.

I thank you all for reading, writing and enjoying. I now realize I cannot compete with all the Bloggers who link so much wonderful stuff. My limited vision and brain power are all you get. Thank you Jeffrey , C.C. ,and Boomer . Lemonade out leaving you the grid...