tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post1095965732714667683..comments2024-03-28T18:52:07.432-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Gossip spreader / MON 2-23-15 / Pilgrim to Mecca / Sidling sea creature / Groundbreaking admission from Ellen in 1997 sitcom / Facility with treadmills yoga matsRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger64125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61573982612931856462015-03-30T13:46:54.830-04:002015-03-30T13:46:54.830-04:00As @Spacey once said – “Mondayne”. Easy clues, eas...As @Spacey once said – “Mondayne”. Easy clues, easy to fill. <br />Did like the 14s and near absence of3s.<br />Megan Fox, yeah baby.<br />So there was good with the plain. OK for Monday.<br />rondonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-71793686090382110112015-03-30T13:40:31.332-04:002015-03-30T13:40:31.332-04:00MENS ALIBI
A BITTERPILL goes down better with BEE...MENS ALIBI<br /><br />A BITTERPILL goes down better with BEER,<br />SOURGRAPES with a GLASS of wine.<br />Too many of either and I’ll LEER at the REAR<br />of MEGAN. OHYOU know she’s fine.<br /><br />--- CHAD ROPER<br />Burma Shavenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-4594048713038573122015-03-30T13:15:33.524-04:002015-03-30T13:15:33.524-04:00Spooked by last Saturday's effort, I looked ab...Spooked by last Saturday's effort, I looked about for something more "hidden" than the seemingly obvious GLASS at the start of this Monday romp! Then confirmed it with GYM and went on to enjoy a friendly solve. A good way to,start the week! Now, if I can just build on this.....DMGnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-40493910059463223952015-03-30T11:40:20.225-04:002015-03-30T11:40:20.225-04:00Gosh, guys, I know Mondays have to have softball c...Gosh, guys, I know Mondays have to have softball clues, but do we really need "(W.W. 1 spy)" after "Mata____?" I found myself taking turns, doing just the downs in one square, then only the acrosses in the next. Too easy.<br /><br />The highlight of my puzzle experience today was @lms's Shakespearean takeoffs. OH YOU, Loren!<br /><br />I guess STATE DEBT is a thing--in our state it REALLY is--but as a phrase, it's like a lot of the "phrases" or "things" that the Wheel of Fortune game show comes up with for the final puzzle. Just...not in the language, per se. If you're the winner on one of those days, fuhgeddaboudit, you are not going to solve it.<br /><br />And the final "revealer--" the last across--left a...well, you know. C.spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-85679567945752989852015-02-28T06:05:25.670-05:002015-02-28T06:05:25.670-05:00In 2004, she made her film debut with a job within...In 2004, she made her film debut with a job within the teen comedy Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen. In 2007, she co-starred as Mikaela Banes, the love curiosity of Shia LaBeouf's character, in the blockbuster motion movie Transformers, which grew to become her breakout role. <br /><br />https://afrossip.com<br /><br />costluleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04189055059094642083noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84558747738296341782015-02-24T04:53:31.930-05:002015-02-24T04:53:31.930-05:00Notto diacritical sole, but there's always lut...Notto diacritical sole, but there's always lutefisk.<br /><br />'Chitterlings' must be what the deeper South calls 'chitlins', bien sur.Elephant's Childnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-57335285533485151022015-02-23T23:39:36.930-05:002015-02-23T23:39:36.930-05:00I thought this was a fine Monday puzzle: easy but ...I thought this was a fine Monday puzzle: easy but not boring, cute theme, nice post-Oscar tie-in.Carolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15971759975067250908noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-16864880321476477142015-02-23T23:15:16.072-05:002015-02-23T23:15:16.072-05:00@Tita: Here's the best case I know of to illus...@Tita: Here's the best case I know of to illustrate the blurry line between rotten and fermented: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%C3%A1karl" rel="nofollow">Hákarl</a>. <br /><br />Whenever it is I make it to Iceland, I don't know if I'm going to have the cojones to give that a try. I like to think of myself being a pretty adventurous eater, but man. That sounds difficult. (Although, give me the choice between that and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balut_%28food%29" rel="nofollow">balut</a>, and I'll be wolfing down as much fermented rotten shark as I can get my hands on.)Steve Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15185067739452052656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-52686337277221702532015-02-23T17:58:51.831-05:002015-02-23T17:58:51.831-05:00Nice, clean Monday puzzle; thanks Joel Fagliano!
...Nice, clean Monday puzzle; thanks Joel Fagliano!<br /><br />@lewis pretty much said everything for me :-).<br /><br />Regarding constructors and what they're paid: I've spent a lot of the last few weeks toiling on the PB2 meta that Rex recommended some weeks ago and it is so involved that I found myself wondering how many people would have to purchase it to pay for the effort PB2 put into the whole thing. I hope there were a few million solvers but unlikely. And I won't be winning the prize - I'm just waiting for the upcoming reveal! But it was great fun.Teedmnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12832353448839187816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88379388289093696182015-02-23T17:14:43.730-05:002015-02-23T17:14:43.730-05:00Could speed solvers be using auto-fill to enter pr...Could speed solvers be using auto-fill to enter previously used words? If so, wouldn't that be cheating?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49737338255910681922015-02-23T16:46:34.344-05:002015-02-23T16:46:34.344-05:00The theme seemed fine to me. I guess I think of ea...The theme seemed fine to me. I guess I think of eating as consuming something more solid than a liquid. But there would seem to be a broader and a narrower sense of the word. <br /><br />If my dog was about to eat a pill that dropped on the floor I would reflexively shout "Roxie, don't eat that!" by which I would not mean "Roxie, don't chew and swallow that, but it's ok if you just swallow it."Clarkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17459992224851404501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-42054944123981345562015-02-23T16:40:12.731-05:002015-02-23T16:40:12.731-05:00Did the puzzle in our Wilmington newspaper as I do...Did the puzzle in our Wilmington newspaper as I do every day. It's very small and very easy. One of the answers today was MUSEUM...Didn't say what kind!!!chefbeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15195945085405126511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-26042015070717427382015-02-23T16:33:01.514-05:002015-02-23T16:33:01.514-05:00@Whirred...not only is the pay low, but the puzzle...@Whirred...not only is the pay low, but the puzzles that are used again in NYT calendars, books, what-have-you, do not benefit the constructors.<br /><br />(btw - it is only in the last year or so that they got a pay raise - from $200.)<br /><br />Secondary tangent bouncing off the Barbed Wire MUSEUM tangent...<br />VOBW (Voice Over Barbed Wire) is how telephone service was brought to some very rural places...<br /><br />Using the already-strung and ubiquitous wire as the transmission method...pretty interesting story in Inc about how this grass-roots method dramatically increased adoption of the new-fangled technology via a market that "Big Telecom" deemed unprofitable.<br /><br />Speaking of constructors, forget to thank Mr. Fagliano for this Monday morsel!Titahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16368251255494687496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3487614865562641492015-02-23T16:05:09.857-05:002015-02-23T16:05:09.857-05:00Very easy solve for me. Broke the 10 minute barrie...Very easy solve for me. Broke the 10 minute barrier for a Monday - Tuesday by maybe 30 second. Average times for me for these days is 12-13 minutes.<br />Enjoyable solve.<br />After solving the puzzle I printed another puzzle and filled the answers as fast as I could from my completed solution. My time? 3:27.<br />How Rex and the other speed solvers can solve this puzzle in 2:30 or even less is beyond me. My brain must have a slower microchip.<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-4535223346205800112015-02-23T15:04:18.314-05:002015-02-23T15:04:18.314-05:00
@SteveJ - that blurry line - I had a check-out cl...<br />@SteveJ - that blurry line - I had a check-out clerk at the supermarket helpfully ask me if I wanted to put back the cheese and select a different one - this one had gone bad... (It was a particularly ripe Maytag Blue.)<br /><br />As cheeses go, the farther over the line the smellier/better...Titahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16368251255494687496noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-51659887219718267672015-02-23T13:36:59.856-05:002015-02-23T13:36:59.856-05:00@63: Good discussion topic: Things U swallow, with...@63: Good discussion topic: Things U swallow, without ever chewin on, ergo U don't exactly eat it. Top candidates:<br />* Scams involvin African princes.<br />* Saliva (George Carlin: "Toxic, but only if swallowed in small amounts, over a very long period of time").<br />* Off-brand tablets, and other pdas.<br />* Political ads by yer fave party.<br />* Raw oysters. (Not m&e, boy!)<br />* Spellcastings.<br />* Tequila worm. (I draw the line, if it's movin.)<br />* Pangrams. (@63 prefers to chew on em, tho)<br /><br />fave moo-cow MonPuz E-Z clue (tm): "The M in Y.M.C.A." Primo way to weedle in a plural of inconvenience. Let's just put ol MENS on that there list, above.<br /><br />Lastly, let's hear it for weeject wespect, today:<br />*One lil jewel, right at the start.<br />* One right at the bottom.<br />* One dead-central, in the middle.<br />* YAY<br /><br />M&A<br /><br />** gruntz (they'll even pay U, to do it) **<br />@Joel: Primo job. U should follow-up with another puz, with a HAVINGGOODTASTE revealer. M and Alsonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-24086944332905458252015-02-23T12:38:55.843-05:002015-02-23T12:38:55.843-05:00I consider doing the Monday puzzle the admission p...I consider doing the Monday puzzle the admission price for reading the coments here. Today's good stuff was well worth it.<br /><br />@Loren Muse Smith: Loved your sentence using the word "diety."<br /><br />Only two three-letter entries. Impressive, especially for a Monday.<br /><br />@Whirred Whacks: I've often had the same thought that you expressed. The hourly pay for constructors seems to be less than minimum wage. I take that to be the reason that commenters often thank the constructor.<br /><br />I go to a lot of movies and I usually love the Oscar telecast. But not last night.<br /><br />mathguynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-12534180832866826882015-02-23T12:21:53.512-05:002015-02-23T12:21:53.512-05:00Hey, it's a day of the week so rex must be act...Hey, it's a day of the week so rex must be acting like a dick. His ARTMUSEUM redundancy comment is possibly the stupidest thing he's ever written. And, boy, is there a lot of competition for that distinction! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-36774742434596647662015-02-23T12:00:14.999-05:002015-02-23T12:00:14.999-05:00Easy Monday - nice long answers. Joel is a pro.
L...Easy Monday - nice long answers. Joel is a pro. <br />Liked Oh, you!machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-48330900449612164662015-02-23T11:35:10.274-05:002015-02-23T11:35:10.274-05:00@Anon11:17 the 14s are the 14 letter words LEAVEAB...@Anon11:17 the 14s are the 14 letter words LEAVEABADTASTE and ROTTENTOMATOES. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-42007438090822037182015-02-23T11:33:57.659-05:002015-02-23T11:33:57.659-05:00Two Faglianos today if you're using the iPad a...Two Faglianos today if you're using the iPad app. Using my completion times as the benchmark,Joel's "runt" was harder than his Monpuz since at my rate of solving, the mini would have taken me around twice as long to solve had it been 72 words instead of ten. Since it came up, I have to wonder if Joel gets paid for his minis or if they are merely part of his job.<br /><br />@NCA President, I well remember aspirins disolving on my tongue. Yuck! None of the tricks my mother attempted could disguise that taste. And, @LMS, MucinexD, if put on the tongue with the smooth and shiny side up is also an extremely BITTER PILL and requires less than a second to be noticed!<br /><br />SEGUE to SEGUE which is a very popular word in the American entertainment industry (a term I never heard used in England or Australia). In film, a cross-fade, a dissolve, an iris and a wipe are among the effects known as segues which are used as transitions from one scene to another. Ergo,as per @LMS returning to her sheep, the clue would have to be referring to a second SEGUE after the transition to a discussion of thyroid medicine. Not a particularly good clue though I suppose it is marginally acceptable.<br /><br />How LOUTish of @REX, to GO SO LO as to TWIT this theme on such a literal basis. No sense of humorousness here at all, it seems more like a really l o o o o o n g stretch just to find something to CRAB about. I hope y'all'll note that I almost never TWIT OFL, Capt. 63.<br /><br />I enjoyed this effort mostly because it didn't rely on three letter ESE for glue (quite a rarity), I got a bit of a smile at the revealer. To protect any homophobes that may or may not be among us, I won't, paraleptically, point out that INTO, I'M GAY, REAR, and YAY are all in the same puzzle. (Rolling On the Floor, Laughing And Choking.)Numinoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01263999193499725814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80525943685947738062015-02-23T11:24:54.490-05:002015-02-23T11:24:54.490-05:00@Questinia – Hah! I'll see your first course ...@Questinia – Hah! I'll see your first course and raise you a second course – Biloxi Chitterlings Tartare.<br /><br />And now a word from our sponsor, Scope mouthwash. . .Loren Muse Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05308030011870397977noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19990694393913359012015-02-23T11:24:00.177-05:002015-02-23T11:24:00.177-05:00@anon11:17 - 14 letter answers. "15's&quo...@anon11:17 - 14 letter answers. "15's" span the whole grid. Zhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181544219511150272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-21776524942257310082015-02-23T11:22:51.335-05:002015-02-23T11:22:51.335-05:00Maybe @Rex should avoid drinking and blogging. Ju...Maybe @Rex should avoid drinking and blogging. Just a thought. At least he's not hurting anyone. <br /><br />What everyone said about ART MUSEUM redundancy; here in Sacramento we have the California Automobile Museum, California Railroad Museum, and something that started as a museum of Women's History but now it's the California Museum. There's also a Children's Museum; I haven't been in, assume it's not a taxidermy display... (sorry; and I haven't been drinking.) <br /><br />I've been doing a book of Tough NYT Puzzles, mostly from the 90s. There is something more intellectually satisfying about them than recently, although I certainly run into plenty of recent Saturdays that I can't do even with cheating. But today's was fine for a Monday, IMO. I've tasted plenty of BITTER PILLs (happens when you split them and lose the coating) and the line between "eating" and "taking" [a pill] is too fine to worry about. Is chewing required? Do dogs, then, "take" their food? <br /><br />Thank you, Mr. F; nice way to start the week. Ellen Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00473445503706985149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-27514633799196570822015-02-23T11:20:30.324-05:002015-02-23T11:20:30.324-05:00@LeapFinger 10:25
What you say makes sense. Also,...@LeapFinger 10:25<br /><br />What you say makes sense. Also, the NYT crossword platform/distribution system is the "Tiffany" in the Xword world. It just seems like the content creators are getting the short end of the stick. <br /><br />For example, my "Creative Whack Pack" app is available on the Apple App Store. For every unit sold, Apple takes 30% of the proceeds; I, the content creator, receive 70%. The same is true if you rent "Birdman" or purchase music from iTunes: the producer gets 70% and Apple gets 30%. <br /><br />Seems to me there's little in the NYT Xword business model without the content itself. <br /><br />FWIW: when I've created books, software, and apps, I've paid near top dollar for illustrators, designers, and programmers, and also (for many) granted royalties to the same people if the products were successful. Based on what I've read, I'm not sure this happens to NYT constructors. Whirred Whackshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05637591146611998012noreply@blogger.com