tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post7090295523588329164..comments2024-03-29T03:22:09.826-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Cereal with propeller-headed mascot / THU 7-14-11 / St Pete ball field / Art is fruit that grows in man / Histoire de first in popular seriesRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger97125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-46616752284947005412011-08-18T20:54:35.907-04:002011-08-18T20:54:35.907-04:00@Quilter1 - Just to set the record straight on beh...@Quilter1 - Just to set the record straight on behalf of my former employer, it was not the FBI that nailed Capone on tax evasion; that would be the IRS.<br /><br />rOILUP and QwIK spoiled my finished grid but didn't spoil the fun.Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83847640801155966152011-08-18T17:45:31.665-04:002011-08-18T17:45:31.665-04:00@ retired_chemist: I'm QUITESURE you're ri...@ retired_chemist: I'm QUITESURE you're right; the product is spelled "Qwik." I suppose we must extend Mr. Q a bit of constructic license on that one.<br /> Scanning the clues before starting (an old habit), I generally find that the answer to many of them "could be anything," so vague are they. 12d, "decorative floor," seemed one of those. But after QUERY, QUAKE, QUOTE and QUIT--plus recalling the obvious theme clue at 51a--PARQUET came roaring in. That pretty much took care of the NE/SW corridor. Now a special shoutout for the only six-vowel, no-consonant entry I've ever seen (The McDonald farm thing is only five): OUIOUI. Physics class gave me DENSITY, and it wasn't long before the SE was done.<br /> Then the NW. Had ____STRAP, wanted JOCK but couldn't come up with a 1-d that had J in that spot. Put the puzzle down and took a breather; the only thing that takes today's off the "Easy" rating for me. When I picked it up again, somehow I thought immediately of CHINSTRAP, as if it was the simplest thing in the world to get. "Stand." If that isn't a could-be-anything clue, nothing is. But it occurred that one of the meanings could be STOMACH--yeah, that's it [I said] because the NY county is ONEIDA. Good to know that my trips to Turning Stone produced SOME upside.<br /> So, but for the little hiccup wedging into the NW, I had no trouble today. I'll call it "Easy-Medium." I did have a single-letter writeover, at ONEHOP. The crosses forced an A in there.<br /> The theme makes me think of The Coasters: "You better mind your P's and Q's--and your M's and N's and O's, Because the Shadow Knows; The Shadow knows." Ah, they don't make 'em like that any more.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-53808891580869993032011-08-18T16:24:55.479-04:002011-08-18T16:24:55.479-04:00Bad start since I thought the answer to 57A was MA...Bad start since I thought the answer to 57A was MAIS OUI and so assumed (wrongly) a rebus was in order. Once that was sorted, props to messrs. Quigley & Livengood for a great Thursday challenge though you can also count me in the BELNET/SOBS crew.<br /><br />As a lapsed C. of E. member, let me tell you that back in the day in Old Blighty, PAPIST was indeed often employed as a pejorative term, usually prefaced by "bloody" or much worse.Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-56822247161136052032011-08-18T15:21:18.937-04:002011-08-18T15:21:18.937-04:00Pretty Quick solve.
Has a clue ending in "an...Pretty Quick solve.<br /><br />Has a clue ending in "and others" ever NOT led to a word ending in S? I've never seen it, so that was my first letter. SPAR a gimme after that.<br /><br />Proceeded from there to the baseball clue and filled in NE in short time. (I hate HIP HOP but that intersection brought my first smile). Had QTS, QUIP and QUERY, suspected a run of Q's and filled them all in along the diagonal. Glanced at the "or a hint" clue, suspected P'S AND Q'S, noted HIP and CLOP and filled in all the P's on the west side, along with 51a. The rest fell in place rather quickly.<br /><br />Hand up for jock STRAP. But of course CHIN STRAP snapping is more specific to the Gridiron, while jock strap snapping is more specific to idiots. Only other writeover was Bum RAP<br /><br />My voting record includes a 1972 check mark for QUISP.<br /><br />I wondered brief(less)ly whether there has ever been a performance of gEnITALS at Carnegie Hall.<br /><br />@efrex 11:38 AM<br />Some ground balls are rollers. And some ground balls are fielded on a "short hop", which for the purpose of describing the play is distinctly different from a ground ball fielded on a hop.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-64624311555738543312011-08-18T14:40:05.531-04:002011-08-18T14:40:05.531-04:00Loved this puzzle and was so proud to finish a Thu...Loved this puzzle and was so proud to finish a Thursday AND a BEQ!<br /><br />@Deb - I also wonder about Papist being pejorative here - my first contact with the word was reading a novel about about Henry VIII, in which the term simply referred to followers of the Pope in Rome, as opposed to the Church of England, of which Henry was the head.<br /><br />SLEETY again? Didn't we just have that one?<br /><br />I always thought Ps and Qs referred to Please and Thank you (Q). My parents always told me to watch my Ps and Qs ie. be polite.<br /><br />Anyway this was a clever and most enjoyable puzzle! Best clue - Low-stakes game - brilliant!<br /><br />Captcha - ampkranc What the teenager next door uses to ruin my peaceful Saturday afternoon.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-13064617624861757802011-08-18T14:03:08.537-04:002011-08-18T14:03:08.537-04:00Back when I was a wee one and first came across th...Back when I was a wee one and first came across the written phrase "Mind your ps and qs," my little brain pronounced it P-ESS and Q-ESS and could not for the life of me figure out what it was about. I thought the explanations here were pretty interesting, esp. the one about typesetting.<br /><br />One of the easier Thursdays in memory, although I got tripped up by RIP/ROIL. (Paper solvers don't get the help of Mr. Happy Pencil.) Never heard of QUISP but I love Jay Ward.<br /><br />I automatically recorded Le Tour (OUI OUI!) every morning, so no conflict with the soccer match. It was exciting even if our gals didn't prevail. <br /><br />BTW, the Mrs. -- who is totally un-HIP to all other SPORTS -- and I are really excited to be headed to Salida for the start of stage 2 of the US Pro Cycling Challenge on Tuesday. Hoping to get close up with Cadel (whom my wife ADORES), the Schlecks and Levi.Cary in Bouldernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-46760557141942148802011-08-18T11:22:53.058-04:002011-08-18T11:22:53.058-04:00@Deb - PAPIST is a derogatory term for Catholics, ...@Deb - PAPIST is a derogatory term for Catholics, though I've never really understood what was so insulting about it.Ben "The Best" Tuthillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49044722556142551772011-08-18T10:06:06.254-04:002011-08-18T10:06:06.254-04:00Wheeeee, what a ride! I loved this one, too, and ...Wheeeee, what a ride! I loved this one, too, and flew through it in record time. I was bummed to come here and find out I had an error though: nELNET/SOns. Nelnet is the name of one of the servicers of my son's student loans, so even though it didn't answer the clue very well (nor do sons typically call the shots), I left it in. <br /><br />Can someone explain to me why PAPIST is pejorative here?<br /><br />Love, love, love the clue for SADISTS. Ha!Debhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16675331024091722316noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-87322548250025646732011-07-16T05:04:01.202-04:002011-07-16T05:04:01.202-04:00Loved this. Great co-constructor mash-up.
Esp p...Loved this. Great co-constructor mash-up. <br />Esp pleased to see QTIP as it's been my mantra lately: Quit Taking It Personally.<br />If only I could!pandrea qarla michaelsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-78433390625091647442011-07-15T14:01:52.196-04:002011-07-15T14:01:52.196-04:00Sfingi said...Are there still Bloods and CRIPs?
Y...Sfingi said...Are there still Bloods and CRIPs?<br /><br />Yes, Sfingi! There are still Bloods and Crips operating, mostly against each other in Brooklyn NY.<br /><br />I was not happy to see this in the puzzle.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-6729832304372747242011-07-15T07:50:52.763-04:002011-07-15T07:50:52.763-04:00Really amazed creator didn't take advantage of...Really amazed creator didn't take advantage of the QUISP/QUAKE cereal pairing in the puzzle--but given the obscurity of QUISP that might have upped the difficulty a notch.<br /><br />BTW, both cereals were nearly identical and both tasted suspiciously like another Quaker Oats cereal, Cap'n Crunch. I was a fan of all three back in the days when it was OK to say "sugar" in relationship to children's food... (Remember Sugar Pops and Super Sugar Crisp-both sold under different names now.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82122393885890796232011-07-15T03:17:07.693-04:002011-07-15T03:17:07.693-04:00An very enjoyable occasional NYT solve for a Brit....An very enjoyable occasional NYT solve for a Brit. Highly delighted that TROP/CRIP was right, but another who invented Nestle QWIK (possibly influenced by our "Kwikfit" car repair chain) and couldn't be saved by the crossing QUISP.xwd_fiendhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01290578300623523697noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-27489377033957376602011-07-15T01:27:13.784-04:002011-07-15T01:27:13.784-04:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my 7/30/2009 post for an explanation. In a nutshell, the higher the ratio, the higher this week's median solve time is relative to the average for the corresponding day of the week.<br /><br />All solvers (this week's median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Mon 7:01, 6:52, 1.02, 62%, Medium-Challenging<br />Tue 8:44, 8:55, 0.98, 52%, Medium<br />Wed 12:33, 11:52, 1.06, 71%, Medium-Challenging<br />Thu 16:37, 19:06, 0.87, 27%, Easy-Medium<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:42, 3:40, 1.01, 55%, Medium<br />Tue 4:37, 4:35, 1.01, 58%, Medium<br />Wed 6:16, 5:52, 1.07, 72%, Medium-Challenging<br />Thu 8:28, 9:15, 0.91, 40%, Mediumsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-16204686642973884922011-07-14T22:28:35.542-04:002011-07-14T22:28:35.542-04:00Perhaps this: http://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?d...Perhaps this: http://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=2/16/1996<br />Was the Courant using NYT syndication at that time? I know they did for a while, but readers found them too difficult.Cho Dahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15783595441345604289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-7095090718936211752011-07-14T22:22:43.651-04:002011-07-14T22:22:43.651-04:00What a great, satisfying puzzle!
No Googling, som...What a great, satisfying puzzle!<br /><br />No Googling, some changing, so clever, so much fun putting in those Qs.<br /><br />Don't forget Quentin Quisp.<br /><br />Are there still Bloods and CRIPs?<br /><br />I remember asking some inmate who used the rowing machine if he was ever in crew before I realized he would have never heard of it.<br /><br />Of course, my Utica is in Oneida County. This is pronounced with a long I, and is, therefore, an exception to the I before E rule. The Oneidas were Indians of the Iroquois Confederation, and one of the few tribes that were on "our" side. <br /><br />@Deerfencer - but who else could it be? Artist? 3 letters? Someone said artists should never be allowed to speak. (Who was that?)<br /><br />@Quilter - most studies show they don't make that much money, and even live with their mothers.<br /><br />Just one comment, and I'm sure BEQ knows - OCD includes compulsive hoarding, which includes animal hoarding and senile squalor syndrome which are both the polar opposites of the neat freak.Sfingihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06903616949048940858noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-9451161270883323732011-07-14T22:13:34.633-04:002011-07-14T22:13:34.633-04:00OCD is a miserable condition, but not as bad as CD...OCD is a miserable condition, but not as bad as CDO, which is similar but with the letters in alphabetical order like they belong.<br /><br />I've seen the line of P's and Q's before in a puzzle in _The Hartford Courant_ probable 15 years ago. Off to search...Cho Dahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15783595441345604289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-78528299006888259652011-07-14T20:47:57.749-04:002011-07-14T20:47:57.749-04:00Good puzzle today. I started in the middle with t...Good puzzle today. I started in the middle with the short "q" words, and it was easy from there. <br />Anyone else like to complete the puzzle without errors, as opposed to finishing it quickly? That's my 'thang'.<br />My only error today was to write adman not adrep - until the theme became clear, after I solved the 'q' clues.afroqwnnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-29711072539308066412011-07-14T19:37:05.281-04:002011-07-14T19:37:05.281-04:00In the days of old in taverns and pubs, mind your ...In the days of old in taverns and pubs, mind your p's and q's was a term the bar owner or manager said at the end of the night to the waitresses or cocktail girls. They kept track of what they sold by marking P's and Q's on a peice of paper for all the pints and quarts they sold or disbursed. The bar owner would say, "Mind your P's and Q's, (pints and quarts). That meant for them to tally up their P's and Q's and give a total.Three quarks for Muster Mark!noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-77821037106750893092011-07-14T18:53:01.215-04:002011-07-14T18:53:01.215-04:00Also, I had ABODES instead of ADORES as the answer...Also, I had ABODES instead of ADORES as the answer for "Digs." Only two wrong letters - my best result EVER for ANY Brendan Emmett Quigley puzzle HE is a constructor whom I greatly respect, but whose work I normally find disproportionately impossible. I suspect my success this time was because he had a co-constructor to diffuse some of his maddeningly clever obtuseness. :)COIXT RECORDShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06471607923683058246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-4257658109065817052011-07-14T18:47:45.894-04:002011-07-14T18:47:45.894-04:00I figured out the P's & Q's thing pret...I figured out the P's & Q's thing pretty early on, but got caught up for a bit when I filled in P's and Q's all the way along the diagonals to the edges of the puzzle (instead of only adjacent to that center line). When I first found that one of those squares HAD to be another letter, I briefly considered that each row contained one erroneous letter as *deliberate* mistake, and that the clue about Crossword editors would somehow tie in and be SLOPPY or some such (i.e., the editor supposedly did NOT mind his p's and q's and had let a wrong letter slip in). I was only slightly disappointed to find out that the puzzle wasn't quite as clever as I thought it was. Still awesome work though.COIXT RECORDShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06471607923683058246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-56392577027987646692011-07-14T18:33:17.214-04:002011-07-14T18:33:17.214-04:001 across so filled me with rage that once I put it...1 across so filled me with rage that once I put it in I decided to quit the damn puzzle.Tobias Duncanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14828873893205954337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-45740626791462015802011-07-14T18:01:11.800-04:002011-07-14T18:01:11.800-04:00I had BELNET for 59a (a Belgian internetty thing t...I had BELNET for 59a (a Belgian internetty thing that I thought was a little obscure) instead of TELNET (almost as obscure), but fit so well 52d (ones often calling the shots) that I don't mind at all.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-7941845327299852942011-07-14T17:17:31.786-04:002011-07-14T17:17:31.786-04:00@Chip Hilton: the soccer doesn't start until 9...@Chip Hilton: the soccer doesn't start until 9 o'clock German time, that's way past the Tour de France is finished. Now you still have to choose between golf and soccer....machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-41755506768961288162011-07-14T17:16:27.073-04:002011-07-14T17:16:27.073-04:00@ Anon 4:16 -
"2 + 2 = 4." "Oh, t...@ Anon 4:16 - <br /><br />"2 + 2 = 4." "Oh, that's definite."<br /><br /><br />"2 + 2 = 4." "Quite sure."<br /><br />Seems OK to me.retired_chemisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13181126754941899228noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83049525599926284612011-07-14T17:14:51.546-04:002011-07-14T17:14:51.546-04:00I'm QUITE SURE you're mistaken there, Anon...I'm QUITE SURE you're mistaken there, Anonymous 4:16. In brief: "quite" is one of those hard-to-pin-down words, so the meaning you think is there and the meaning intended are both there, given the right context.<br /><br />SCRIP is any non-legal-tender money substitute. Companies, co-ops, whole business districts will sometimes issue it.<br /><br />Saying a neat freak has OCD is horribly overstating things. A neat freak simply has a higher standard than the rest of us, and quits when the job is done. Someone with OCD would keep cleaning an already clean room, over and over again, knowing full well the room is clean.<br /><br />The puzzle started out challenging, as I could get very few entries at first, and some that I could get, I backed off from--especially all those Q's that just seemed unlikely! This meant I got to the theme revealer rather quickly, at which point I got the joke and finished the puzzle rather quickly.william e embanoreply@blogger.com