google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Tuesday, October 4, 2011 Ed Sessa

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Oct 4, 2011

Tuesday, October 4, 2011 Ed Sessa

Theme: Escapologist



20A. Understand how things are done : KNOW THE ROPES

36A. Places to see links : FRENCH CUFFS. Cufflink.

42A. Simple floral garlands : DAISY CHAINS

58A. Stage name of Ehrich Weiss, for whom the ends of 20-, 36- and 42-Across were props : HARRY HOUDINI

Argyle here. If Monday and Tuesday are any indication, we are in for a tough week.

Across:

1. Its "fleece was white as snow" : LAMB. If you started here, you might have thought we were getting a speed run. Wrong.

5. __ Sutra : KAMA. An ancient Indian Hindu text.

9. Go with the flow : ADAPT

14. Pastoral verse : IDYL

15. Pink-slipped : AXED

16. Ladies' man : ROMEO

17. Nicolas of "Adaptation" : CAGE. 2002 comedy-drama film. Poster.

18. Got one's uniform dirty, maybe : SLID. Baseball.

19. Mississippi, e.g. : STATE

23. Many frozen dinners are high in it : SODIUM

24. Taker of vows : NUN

25. Def Jam genre : RAP. Hip-hop music label.

28. Native American group : TRIBE

31. As plain as day, e.g. : SIMILE

33. Tax pro : CPA

38. Friend : ALLY

40. Cancún uncle : TIO. Cancún aunt : TIA. Cancún reveler : WILD

41. 36-Across opening : SLIT. The place for the cufflink in a French Cuff.

47. Fair-hiring initials : EEO. Equal Employment Opportunity.

48. Forensic facility : DNA LAB

49. Spy wear : CLOAK. Magician wear, too.

51. Sí or oui : YES

52. Do-favor link : ME A

54. Broadsided : T-BONED

61. Wife of Abraham : SARAH. Sarah (originally called Saray) was Abraham's main wife. In addition, Abraham had two more wives: Hagar (the mother of Ishmael) and Keturah.

64. Long, long time : AEON

65. "__ Three Lives": TV oldie : I LED. Synopsis.

66. Michelangelo work : PIETA. Sculpture.

67. Pear variety : BOSC

68. Charity : ALMS

69. Suisse peaks : ALPES. French spelling.

70. Like an animated Pea? : SWEE'. It is implied that Swee'Pea is Popeye's nephew.

71. Cold-cock : KAYO. Knock out with one punch, like Popeye would do after he ate his spinach.

Down:

1. The home team gets the last ones : LICKS. Baseball again.

2. Hersey's "A Bell For __" : ADANO

3. "Nearer, __, to Thee" : MY GOD

4. Messed up : BLEW IT

5. Former Asian state known for goat wool : KASHMIR. Today Kashmir denotes a larger area that includes the Indian-administered state of Jammu and Kashmir (the Kashmir valley, Jammu and Ladakh), the Pakistani-administered Gilgit-Baltistan and the Azad Kashmir provinces, and the Chinese-administered regions of Aksai Chin and Trans-Karakoram Tract. Would Led Zeppelin still go there? Clip.(8:32)

6. Wheel holder : AXLE

7. Golda of Israel : MEIR. 4th Prime Minister of Israel in office from March, 1969 to June, 1974.

8. Supplement : ADD ON

9. Poison in some whodunits : ARSENIC. Like "Arsenic and Old Lace", performed in high schools everywhere.

10. Kids' book connectables : DOTS. Connect-A-Dot.

11. GP's gp. : AMA. A general practitioner (GP) is almost a thing of the past.

12. Gently stroke : PET

13. Place for a ring : TOE

21. Racetrack surface : TURF. Usually inside the dirt track. Image.

22. Door sign : PUSH

25. Go through energetically, as drawers : RIFLE. Also in some whodunits.

26. 1966 Michael Caine title role : "ALFIE". Song.

27. Pasta topper : PESTO

29. "Little Women" woman : BETH. Four sisters – Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy.

30. Pioneering computer : ENIAC

32. Letters before nus : MUs. 12th(mu) and 13th(nu), letters of the Greek alphabet.

33. Tea leaves holder : CADDY. Box or casket with a hinged lid and lock used for storing tea leaves. Caddy is derived from the Malay kati, a unit of weight for tea. Cuppa, do you concur?

34. Wood shaver : PLANE

35. Fake name : ALIAS

37. Slinky's shape : COIL

39. Fashion monogram : YSL. Yves Saint Laurent.

43. Steinway alternatives : YAMAHAs. Pianos.

44. Trucker with a handle : CBer

45. Never : NOT ONCE

46. "Elephant Boy" actor : SABU. Black and white movie 1937.

50. Alaskan brown bear : KODIAK

53. Iraqis, usually : ARABS

55. Nabisco brand named for its flavor : NILLA

56. The Penguin, to Batman : ENEMY

57. Playground retort : "DID SO!"

58. Can't stand : HATE

59. "Ouch!" : "YEOW!"

60. Fire truck item : HOSE

61. Mineral spring : SPA

62. Feel sick : AIL

63. Workout unit : REP


Argyle

66 comments:

Barry G. said...

Morning, all!

Not too bad today. The only real sticking point was in the NE corner where (a) I couldn't parse the clue for AMA, (b) I had AGREE instead of ADOPT and (c) I had EAR instead of TOE. Took awhile to work all that out.

TURF took all the perps to get, since I was thinking car racing. I tend to associate TURF with football fields.

"As plain as day, e.g." for SIMILE definitely would have thrown me in the past, but now I'm on to their little tricks...

Similarly, SABU used to be a complete unknown to me, but I've finally committed it to memory.

Have a great one!

thehondohurricane said...

Good day folks,

Not a standard Tuesday level for me, but still a lot of fun with interesting clues. I made it a little more difficult with a few misdirections of my own before righting the ship. For 12D, had pat before pet, for 31A, simple before simile, and 5d, Cashmir before Kashmir. The K was a swag and seemed more appropriate.

Kept trying to fit in trounce for 54A, but Tboned appeared thanks to the perps. Can't say I've heard of Tboned in this context previously.

The last place I would ever look for a ring is on a toe. Am I missing something here.

1D, the home team gets the last ones/licks favorite clue. You got to either really know the game or rely on perps to get this one.

In a hurry..... Lionheart, Sharon Kay penman's new book hits the shelves today. Been waiting impatiently for its publication almost two years.

Hahtoolah said...

Good Morning, Argyle and friends. What's it all about?

I didn't find this as rough as you did, Argyle. I got HARRY HOUDINI early on, which helped with ROPES and CHAINS. I had the CUFFS already.

I did, however, learn that the place for a ring is a TOE and not the Tub.

My favorite clue was GP's gp = AMA.

QOD: Character is like a tree and a reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing. ~ Abraham Lincoln

HeartRx said...

Good Morning Argyle, C.C. et al.

I think if I had stuck to the across clues I would have gone much faster. But peeking at the downs led me to pen in “ADD to” instead of ADD ON, “exit” instead of PUSH and “PaT” instead of PET. So that messed up the north for a while.

Then, I can never remember if it is EEO or EOE for "fair hiring initials".

Thank goodness I knew HARRY HOUDINI, and was able to go back and fill in the theme entries and fix all my boo-boos. SWEE’ !!!

Happy Tuesday, all.

kazie said...

I thought this was a fun CW with no really hard clues, but many fresh and interesting. My only problem was T-BONED, an unknown expression for me, crossing with SABU for which I guessed SAMU. Everything else fell in neatly with only perp help.

My son lived on Kodiak Island several summers fishing for salmon, and frequently saw Kodiak bears near the camp.

Mainiac said...

Morning Argyle, CC and All,

I had to erase the same stuff as HeartRx and agree with Argyle that this is becoming a tough week. The NW killed me. Idyl crossing Adano and My God? Harry Houdini finally unlocked Know the Ropes which led to spelling Kashmir correctly, finally. Lots of smudges before I fixed everything. I'm glad tomorrow is Friday...........

My feet are starting to mold its been raining so much here. Cruise ship passengers don't look very happy.

Have a good one.

Yellowrocks said...

Fast puzzle. I did it in order using ACROSS and DOWN alternately to check as I went. Seeing ROPES, CUFFS, and CHAINS, I guessed HOUDINI without the clue.
I had PAT and ADD TO tentatively, then checked the PERPS and immediately changed to PET amd ADD ON.

TOE RINGS
Link toe rings

T-BONED Scroll to the bottom pictures
Link T-Boned

Unknown said...

Yeow! Not a speed run at all. Trip, stumble and fall is more like it. Thanks Argyle for your usual insightful blog.
Tuesday's cw had some clever as well as fresh cluing. Once I got Harry released; the rest fell into place, but not without some afore-mentioned stumbles!
It's a beautiful morning in NC! We've had some chilly nights already, so it's time to move the house plants indoors. Where to put them is the problem. Oh well, on to the ret of the day.
Have a super one All!

Unknown said...

I really should remember to preview! Please pass the V-8.

Denny said...

I was good with everything but LETTERS BEFORE NUS, which although the perps gave me MUS, I had no clue what that meant. Only here did I find out it had to do with the Greek alphabet. Would have been fairer to have indicated that somehow in the clue.

Grumpy 1 said...

Good morning, all. I guess I was on Ed's wavelength today. Once across, once down and done. A lot of fill that used to be total unknowns but are now familiar helped.

Interesting that we always see the clue 'center of a simile'/ASA, but this simile just had 'as' in the middle. Any one else remember Tom Cahill's column in Popular Mechanics magazine? He was a real master at concocting similes. Even if the subject of a particular column didn't interest me, I always looked forward to an interesting read because of his style of writing.

Great links, Argyle.

HeartRx said...

I had a Mazda Miata a few years ago. Let me tell you, they are not a good car for driving in New England (rear wheel drive, too light).

One fine Saturday morning in January, I was driving to a funeral when I hit a patch of black ice. Skidded sideways down the road into the oncoming lane, and was T-BONED by an oncoming Oldsmobile LeSabre. Yikes!! I thought I was going to be attending my own funeral...

Bought a Subaru Forester AWD the next day, and haven't looked back...

But the experience allowed me to confidently enter 54A today!!

Jazzbumpa said...

Hi gang -

Couldn't find Ed's wavelength and felt as if the ROPES, CUFFS and CHAINS were on me today. Too many troubles to recount.

SWEE' is a bit twee.

ADD ON really should be ADD TO.

ME A is rather an awkward partial.

ALPES?!?! I guess we must ADAPT.

No comments on KAMA Sutra? What would ROMEO say?

There is a huge DF opportunity, but I will practice restraint.

Yamaha also makes a fine trombone, though I have never played one.

Cheers!
JzB who occasionally connects the DOTS

Anonymous said...

Good write-up and puzzle! Couldn't think of TBONE to save me. Think it's a mental glitch because I'd like to forget our TBONE episode. Some idiot ran a red light and hit the driver's side with my daughter driving. She was unhurt. I had a cracked sternum, dislocated ribs and painfully bruised breast. Had to sleep sitting up for a month. Still get a minor panic attack when I approach that intersection 13 years later.

PK

Hahtoolah said...

Jazz: I was momentarily stumped by Alpes, until I realized the clue indicated Suisse.

Yellowrocks said...

I am always curious about how other people go about things. Often I pick up useful tips this way. Do many of you actually do as many ACROSSes as possible without looking at the DOWNs, or vice VERSA, all the DOWNs first? I guess I don't have the confidence to do this. Even when I am quite sure, as with LAMB today,I immediately check the DOWNs and then check them with more ACROSSES. I find a kind of synergy in this.
Is the other way more efficient? So many of you experts seem to use it, so there must be something to it.

Anony-Mouse said...

Thank you for a very nice puzzle Mr. Ed Sessa, and a sparkling commentary, friend, Argyle.

Thanks to Yellowrocks for the T-Bone explanation ( I was going to ask the question - ). Since I don't eat beef, the original T Bone is still somewhat of a mystery to me.

Argyle, your explanation on Kashmir, was admirable and succinct. Since a detailed explanation inevitably involves politics, I feel no urge to broach it. The textile fibres of the hapless goats, however, is known by (from ) the Olde English as Cashmere.

For some women of high maintenance, it is also referred to as 'mere Cash'.

Altho cashmere sweaters were first manuf by the Scots and the English, it is now made by several others.

to be contd.

Tinbeni said...

Argyle: Fun write-up & links.

Looked for the reveal. Knew Ehrich Weiss was HARRY HOUDINI and was off to the (TURF) races.

ROPES, CUFFS & CHAINS ... or my Yanks situation after they BLEW IT last night.

Good-luck Jazz, I have to rely on A.J.Burnett (lol). Have a feelin' the LICKS are coming. tears ...

Letters before nus, hmmmm, that's greek in the clue, so it must be mus.

All-in-all, a FUN Tuesday.

Cheers !!!

Anony-Mouse said...

(Continued- ) The finest fibres of the 'Kashmir' goats - the "under down" hair - is called Pashmina ( var.) from the Persian Pashm, meaning wool.

The original manufr's of Pashmina fabrics were Indians, Paks, Afghanis and Nepalese, now, the ones with the most modern methods of management and manufacturing, are, who else, the Chinese. Pashmina is a very fine fibre wool, less than 15 microns diameter, and very light weight and warm. Often made into scarves etc, it can be purchased inexpensively in many Chinese stores, even some Chinese grocery stores. Well worth a look.



Alt QOD: I never did well in math. I could never persuade the teacher that I hadn't meant my answers literally. ~ Calvin Trillin.

Have a good week, you all.

Anonymous said...

SEEN on a Bumper Sticker -

Sticks and Stones, may hurt my bones, but Whips and Chains excite me....

Tinbeni said...

Yellowrocks:
I solve, in pen on paper.
I tend to scan the clues.
Fill-in the "Clue____" answers and gimmies.
Then look for the "reveal" clue.
If I get the "reveal" (like today) then I concentrate on the themes.
More often than not, for whatever reason, if I don't get 1-A & 1-D, then I solve from the bottom-UP.

I (almost always) look at the perps before entering.

As such, I'm somewhat of a sloth.
Never a "speed-solver" since I'm also having coffee and watching/paying attention to, CNBC.

I also read the Comments before making mine to reduce repetition.
(But some does slip in, oh well).

Anonymous said...

Good morning Argyle, C.C. et al,

Could not wait to read Argyle's write up as soon as MUS filled itself in ????, and alpes was obviously what Ed wanted. Thanks for the WHY in both cases.
Geez, eniac, kayo, tboned had to be 1/2 perp,1/2 WAG.Isn't it Tuesday.
Oh well, I LOVED the theme, and Argyle your title, picture and write up were great.

Love "Alfie"..who wouldn't?

2 minutes til the bell.

JD

Lucina said...

Hello, fellow puzzlers. Great blog, Argyle, as usual.

Today I was on Ed Sessa's wave length from the start though I had RIVER before STATE for Mississippi.

No CLOAK and dagger this one. The ROPES, CUFFS,and CHAINS revealed HARRYHOUDINI.

MUS was definitely a question mark for me. Thanks for explaining, Argyle. And since MEA is a Latin word, mine, it surprised me that wasn't clued so.

The PIETA is impressive not only for it's beauty, but in the delicate details which only a master sculptor like Michelangelo could produce.

Have a SWEE' day, everyone!

eddyB said...

Hello.

No problems with this one. A good
Tuesday effort.

Today's Dennis the Menace toon was a day late.

Sometimes auto racers wind-up on the turf.

eddy

Yellowrocks said...

Argyle and Anony-Mouse, interesting discussion on Kasmir, cashmere, and pashmina. I have two pashmina scarves and one pashmina sweater, so soft, light, and warm. Just thinking of them makes me feel cozy. On New Year's Eve everyone thought the pashmina scarf made me look elegant.

Tin-Beni, thanks for sharing. If getting a toe hold is slow, I do exactly as you do. However when ever I get an answer I work the ACROSSes and DOWNs adjoining it. I will share a touch of Pinch, neat, with you at sunset, if only in spirit.


As a tutor I recommended many different methods of attack until I found one suited to each pupil. The process of working things out interests me.

TinoTechie said...

Anony-Mouse, The T bone steak has a bone in it that resembles the letter T. The smaller side is a nugget of Filet, and the larger size is a New York Strip. The porterhouse has a larger nugget of Filet.

In a T-Bone collision, the cars form a letter T when the collision occurs.

Greg

Spitzboov said...

Good Afternoon Argyle and all.

Straightforward. uncomplicated puzzle today. I agree with most of the comments and have nothing significant to add. I don't use TBONED either, but when I saw T_O_ED. it had to be that with the NILLA cross.

Yellowrocks; I use much the same solving style as Tinbeni except I don't watch CNBC while doing it. I also read the comments before posting, to see if there is something I want to react to.

Bill G. said...

Fun puzzle. A couple of clues outsmarted me. Letters before mus for example. Even after I had it filled in, I didn't understand it until I came here. For as plain as day, I had SIM__E from the crossing words and I was sure it was SIMPLE. Ed got me!

Grumpy, yes I remember Tom Cahill. I always enjoyed his columns. Thanks for the memory.

Yellowrocks, if you aren't trying to be a speed solver, then I think doing the acrosses and downs together makes the most sense since their interaction is often helpful.

Math puzzle:
The family consists of a mother, a father and some children. The average age of the members of the family is 20, the father is 48 years old and the average age of the mother and children is 16. How many children are in the family?

Jayce said...

Hello everybody. For some reason I zipped through this puzzle today with relative ease. Easier than yesterday, actually.

I used to try to do all the acrosses first, but now I will only pencil in an answer if it is a complete gimme and I have high confidence that I got it right. Since there are relatively few of those, I like to sort of go acrose down across down, using the perps to confirm or reveal. I use pencil on paper, the paper being the newspaper, except on Sunday when I have no choice but to do the puzzle on line. I prefer pencil on paper to on-line.

NUS fooled me, as I kept seeing "MUSNUS" as one word and wondering what the heck it was. I couldn't shake the expression "no muss, no fuss" from my mind. Thanks, Argyle.

Nice to see MEA, SPA, and AMA clued in fresh new ways.

Misreading the 10D clue as "Kids' book collectables" prevented me from understaning what DOTS had to do with it.

Best wishes to you all.

Anonymous said...

BillG,
Is the answer 6 kids?

Spitzboov said...

Bill G.

6 kids, 1mother, 1father.

Yellowrocks said...

Bill G.
What I am trying to understand is how doing all the acrosses and then all the downs is speedier. I'm not being difficult, I would actually like to know. It seems to me that some people get hung up for a while on HIP/HEP, PET/PAT, SIMPLE/SIMILE, ADDED TO/ADDED ON, when these have been taken care of quickly for me by PERPS. Monday through Thursday I usually get a very speedy solve. It seems that most people take as long as I do on the weekend puzzles. Maybe it's just a case of to each his own, like with my students' methods. But if you know why going one way first helps, please let me know.

Calgon said...

If the average age of the children is 11, how old does the mother feel after years of working, cooking, cleaning, grocery-shopping, making lunches, getting the kids ready for school, driving them back and forth to activities, helping them with their homework, stressing over finances, and knowing she's only about halfway there; meanwhile DH is trying to decide whether he should start Romo or Vick on his fanboy football team?

GarlicGal said...

Hello everyone. I'm back, although I don't have much to add! Nice Tuesday offering. I filled in Harry Houdini before I got any of the "hints". SABU, ENIAC, - crazy words I have committed to memory.

My favorite T-bone is T-Bone Burnett! A wonderful music producer/performer.

Just celebrated with my high school class last Saturday. We had our combined 60th Birthday Bash/42nd Class Reunion. What a hoot! Who were all those old people???

Happy Fall.

Bill G. said...

Yellowrocks: First, I am not a speed solver. I'm usually kind of competitive but I solve crosswords for relaxation (except Saturdays). I think the fastest way to solve an easy puzzle is just to fill in all the acrosses lickety split and then the puzzle is done without having to do the downs at all. Of course, you could just as well fill in all of the downs only. But if the puzzle is too hard for that approach, then doing the acrosses with the downs (more or less together) makes sense to me since some of the filled-in letters give you hints for the unknown words. But I am no expert on all of this. Getting the puzzle done one way or another and enjoying the clever clues and themes as they emerge seems to be satisfying for me. I hope this helps.

My car was a bit wet this morning. More rain due tomorrow if you believe the weatherman. (I tend to be skeptical unless they say 90 or 100 percent.) We'll see.

Abejo said...

Good afternoon, folks. Thank you, Ed Sessa, for a great Tuesday puzzle. Enjoyed it. Thank you, Argyle, for the write-up.

Got through this easily. Picked up HARRY HOUDINI right away.

There were a few head-scratchers. 1D LICKS, 26D ALFIE, 46D SABU. The rest ame easily.

Yellowrocks: I do my puzzle with pen and paper. I never (hardly) write an answer until I see a crossword that looks logical. Then I enter them both. I work across and down at the same time. My goal is to complete the puzzle by never entering an answer unless it crosses with a previously entered word. I am seldom able to do that.

Abejo

ant said...

22D reminded me of that Far Side panel: Midvale School for the Gifted. Not sure how to link (and not even sure if I can due to copyright), but I bet most of you know which one I'm talking about. If not, a quick search will get you there...

kazie said...

Yellowrocks,
I do it like you--always put in any that I'm absolutely certain of, but mostly have to check the perps to be sure. Often there are more than one possibility so I feel I need to do that so I don't get stuck looking for a cross that can't work with my wrong WAG. I also retreat to the south if I can't get a foothold in the north. When I get a few letters in an unknown perp, I look at the big picture aspect of the partially missing word and frequently that solves it for me because I "see" the rest of the answer forming itself.

Anonymous said...

ANON @ 10:25

It"s a song by Rhiana

Jazzbumpa said...

Nearer My God To Thee reminded me of this hymn - an American Spiritual, here played dixieland style by Hungarians. What more could anyone want?

OK, more: at no extra charge, alternate
T-BONES.

Cheers!
JzB

Seldom Seen said...

Nicolas CAGE is billed as Nicolas Coppola in the classic teen movie Fast Times At Ridgemont High.

One scene in the movie shows a guy telling another to play Led Zeppelin IV when making out. Later he is shown playing KASHMIR on the car stereo. Kashmir is not on Led Zeppelin IV, it is on Physical Graffiti.

Anonymous said...

JazzBumpa: like your TBONE much better than mine! Thanks.
PK

Argyle said...

Thanks, JzB. I'd forgotten about T-Bone Walker. I down loaded that clip and will go back for more.

Anonymous said...

I usually solve the puzzles in blocks. Read 1a then 1d to get compatible crosses then try 2d on across alternating with whatever I can solve in that NW block. Then I go to the next block with the first across and down. If the puzzle is hard, I do a quick read through of each block. If nothing is forthcoming I move on to the next block until something begins to fall for me. Sometimes it is clear at the bottom. Work what I can then go back to the top. By that time, my subconscious may have solved some of the first ones. Only pencil with a good eraser for me! - PK

HeartRx said...

Ant @ 3:06, Far Side was always a favorite – must be my warped sense of humor, I guess…

But if I had thought of this cartoon when I saw 22D, “exit” would have become “pull”, then finally PUSH…

Avg Joe said...

Don't forget. Joon is on again today.

Lucina said...

Jazz:
Love those Hungarians!

Yellowrocks:
My method of solving is quite similar to those of many others on the blog.
First, a freshly sharpened pencil with a good eraser and paper is always my choice. I keep a pack of eraser tops to replace worn ones.

Then I proceed in blocks similar to anon especially on Saturday. But I always scan across and down to ensure that they are compatible.

Today KAMA Sutra put me in position for a speed run.

Hahtoolah said...

Lucina: interesting choice of words you used on your Kama Sutra comment!

Jazzbumpa said...

I never go for speed, but that might just be old age.

When working puzzles, I start in the NW corner, but roam around for wherever I can find a foothold, using whatever across and down clues I can suss.

Cheers!
JzB T-BONER of a sort

Spitzboov said...

T-Bone

Lucina and Hahtool: ROTFLMAO

Jayce said...

I just viewed on Youtube Joon Pahk's appearance last night on Jeopardy. Very cool.

Chickie said...

Hola Eveyone, A speed run for me today. For some reason I was on Ed Sessa's wave length. Much easier than Monday's puzzle.

The theme was great. Houdini came easily and I was able to go back and get the last theme entry, Daisy Chains, with the HH clue. I originally wanted something to do with leis, but nothing worked.

Yellowrocks, I usually do the Across and Downs together. Tinbeni said it well.

Favorites today were GP's gp. and Spy wear.

"I led Three Lives" came from way back in my memory. Sabu was unknown, but the perps solved that.

Great links, Argyle.

Have a great evening everyone.

Chickie said...

Jazz, The Hungarians were really Jazzy.

Also, Joon was awesone last night. Being a crossword constructor gives him a real edge, I think.

LaLaLinda said...

Hi All ~~

I zipped right through this one today ... fun and easy! I liked 'Go with the flow' for ADAPT and 'Got one's uniform dirty' for SLID.

Spitzboov ... loved the TBONE-Seinfeld clip. Poor George. LOL

Off to watch Joon and then the Tigers!

Enjoy the evening ~~

Bill G. said...

Since this blog is about words and since many of you enjoy comments about grammar and usage, I thought you might enjoy this NY Times article I just found.

I love that Far Side cartoon. I used to have it on the bulletin board in my classroom. I also enjoyed that Hungarian version of "Just a Closer Walk with Thee."

HeartRx said...

Bill G., (as always) a most interesting and pertinent link to the NYT article on grammar, usage and style.

JD said...

Bill, timely article. The last 2 days I quickly blogged because I was in a rush; both posts had errors, and I know this bothers many on this blog. So, if a paper wants to get the news out as quickly as possible, those articles will have errors.I grumble about it too, but I see why it happens.

BTW Bill, the rain is coming. Those dark clouds are heading s-o-u-t-h......enjoy

swee' dreams

Bill G. said...

I'm glad you enjoyed the NY Times article. Did you notice that there's a link in the first sentence of the article to a bunch of their favorite FAQs?

Yes, the math puzzle answer is six children. You guys are hard to stump.

Joon is coming on. See ya.

JD said...

Anony-mouse, learning moment for me about pashmina...thanks!

Spitzbov @ 5:30, hilarious clip!!

uh oh...missed Joon

Jazzbumpa said...

Im real glad I don't never make none of them gramma fox paws.

It aint that the Tigers can't hit Burnett, it's just that they can't get it past Granderson.

And now they are out of pitchers. Who starts Thursday - Penny?

Oh . . . the slough of Despond.

Toast me, Tin Man . . .

Sadly,
JzB

dodo1925 said...

Hahtool, Lucina's statement interested me, too. LOL. Your toe/tub ring made me laugh, too.

Hello, all. I haven't finished reading all your comments yet, but I wanted (for 0nce) to get a response in before it's too far from the refence.

dodo1925 said...

Hello again.

This puzzle really filled pretty easily for me. One glaring error that I didn't proofread: I had French chef instead of French cuff. My 'e' looked like an 'f' and I was doing the thing Kazie was talking about, visualiing the word when it has a few letters. It often works. Obviously I hadn't thought about the clue, or maybe I hadn't even read it!

YR, I have a strange habit for beginning a solve. I try to get all the first across line, first checking 1D. Even if I don't get them all I start with 13A or whatever the last block is, and try to get all the downs back to 1D
Sounds weird, I know but it often gives me a foothold. From then on I use both across and down, sometimes filling in a block, just because I get going on all of them.

I've tried doing all the acrosses first but I always get sidetracked when a whole block starts to fill.

I never time myself. I really enjoy working the puzzles and it's nice if they take a little longer, sometimes.

Too long! Sorry!

fermatprime said...

I bet no one will read this!

Had a rough day with unexpected nap.

Great work, Ed and Argyle! More like a Monday level for me.

I always work puzzles looking at both ways.

Yes, Joon really creamed 'em. Look forward to more such wins!

They have poor Alex limping in again. Tsk.

Have $758 15-yr. old Persian cat (just counting recent expense) in bathroom locked up. On mucho kidney medication/prescription food. Dog has never liked him so this causes a plethora of problems.

Cheers!

Argyle said...

Of course someone will read this!

dodo1925 said...

Ferma, I read you, too! I wish I could convey to you whatever it is that puts me to sleep!. Maybe it's the morning coffee. Perhaps you should try that and see what happens! The dr. put my mom on ritalin in her dotage to pep her up; Some of the kids I taught had to take that to calm down! Ya never know. Years ago I had a neighbor who would have a cup of coffee when she couldn't sleep. She swore it helped.

John Cox said...

Love the Houdini connection. Thanks. I have a Houdini blog if anyone wants to learn more about 58A.