tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post7335439350092585889..comments2024-03-19T05:57:42.282-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Bendel of fashion / TUE 11-5-13 / Journalist Skeeter of Harry Potter books / Yale whale players / Fed procurement overseer / Like better active today than radioactive tomorrow sentiment / Historical subject for Gore VidalRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-60275990234645108022013-12-10T18:44:42.465-05:002013-12-10T18:44:42.465-05:00Had to get SHUMAI and HENRI totally on crosses.
...Had to get SHUMAI and HENRI totally on crosses. <br /><br />OMG, I need to ZIPUP and IREFUSE to MOPUP.<br /><br />@Diri, how's the weather up there for your and your fellow YANKS? Hope you're keeping warm. Mother Nature is being SCREWY<br /><br />Capcha: lyhemai. Answer from the TAIPEI immigrant when asked if he would or wouldn't tell the truth? (I know, it's a stretch.)Solving in Seattlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04249420848844874936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-22387694916157222162013-12-10T18:34:07.295-05:002013-12-10T18:34:07.295-05:00@spacecraft, check above re Boito, and @Michael Ha...@spacecraft, check above re Boito, and @Michael Hanko, thanks for attending! My niece was in the chorus. She's in Brooklyn so got this timely, not 5 weeks later when we've all forgotten . . .sdcheezhdhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05457420125517948430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-62579884466504297662013-12-10T17:14:18.132-05:002013-12-10T17:14:18.132-05:00I have friends who are still adamantly and activel...I have friends who are still adamantly and actively ANTINUKE.<br /><br />The theme helped me with Amy's last name, and I needed all the crosses for several words (most of them Asian).<br /><br />More puzzles like this, POR favor!Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-36090255863187825642013-12-10T13:55:38.687-05:002013-12-10T13:55:38.687-05:00Better half hailing from WINNIPEG, I'm not per...Better half hailing from WINNIPEG, I'm not permitted to spell it incorrectly! Fun puzzle for a Tuesday providing much more crunch than usual. Glad SHUMAI was available from its crosses as it was a new term for me - sounds good, though. <br />Off to WInteriSE the car now as cold weather seems here to stay...Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-52005127134248749182013-12-10T13:39:27.870-05:002013-12-10T13:39:27.870-05:00For the most part this one was in my WINEHOUSE. I ...For the most part this one was in my WINEHOUSE. I do so agree with ACME's assessment of Amy. Fabulous talent (and remember, I'm a music snob), but her life was a mess. Sigh.<br /><br />Like the comments on the crossing of AHH with "Delta of Venus," but maybe OMG would've been better?<br /><br />Thanks Steve J for the clarification of OCS. Guess I didn't know it cuz I was a Vietnam era C.O.<br /><br />To Anonymous 12:44 PM: think "the nub of the matter."<br /><br />I love SHUMAI. To those who've never heard of them or tried them, these dumplings are dee-lish.Cary in Bouldernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-6297662264851678032013-12-10T13:13:39.648-05:002013-12-10T13:13:39.648-05:00A few odd words (SUMAI, WEI...), but, for me, a wo... A few odd words (SUMAI, WEI...), but, for me, a workable puzzle. Was embarrassed that I couldn't Immediately parse OCS as my Dad took the course In the '30's, leading to his military career. My DNF, however, was misspelling SISKaL, which sent me here to find out who CHa was! I sometimes don't understand my brain!<br /><br />@Gimger, shouldn't we've getting some tennis soon? We dont get the Tennis Channel, and our newspaper seems to basically ignore the sport.GMGnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-17744883972102907742013-12-10T11:16:57.366-05:002013-12-10T11:16:57.366-05:00Wait, what day is this? TUESDAY?? Cluing OPERA wit...Wait, what day is this? TUESDAY?? Cluing OPERA with Boito??? Who outside of his (her?) immediate family knows BOITO? Yikes--or should I say OMG! Same with HENRI. A fair enough name, but Bendel?? I live in Las Vegas, home of the high-end shop--and I've never seen this one. Never heard of him either. And SHUMAI? This is supposed to be a Tuesday word?? Clearly, someone's raising the bar, and I'm too old to chin myself.<br /><br />This one had three distinct personalities: the ultra-obscure as noted above, a cleverly presented and revealed theme, and a host of stale crosswordia: EPEE, ETUI, ERN, ELIS, SEN and our old friend ARP.<br /><br />My SIDEBET was a SIDEBar, slowing me a bit there; PACKET isn't in that much use these days, and didn't come to me right away. And how do you take care of a fly? ZaPit, of course! Oh. THAT kind of fly.<br /><br />Despite these flaws--and those hated YANKS being ATBAT, IREFUSE to totally pan a Paula. Some of the fill has much ALLURE. Say, one thumb in each direction. But as clued, it should have appeared on a Thursday.spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-65656876129528776052013-12-10T09:49:06.788-05:002013-12-10T09:49:06.788-05:00Oh yes, nice to see my hometown in the puzzle, but...Oh yes, nice to see my hometown in the puzzle, but so many comments about mis-spellings (36D)!<br /><br />@ACME 1:18 pm, you chose well......<br /><br />Easy puzzle for me but my writeover was because of entering the answer for 9A in the space for 16A. Oops.J.aussiegirlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-7501917366847173812013-11-06T18:32:34.955-05:002013-11-06T18:32:34.955-05:00As usual, I just enjoy doing the
puzzle. I'm a...As usual, I just enjoy doing the<br />puzzle. I'm amazed at some of the clues that are given that I <br />would not have thought of.<br />Example:Tyler-I would never have<br />thought of that as a clue for CSA.<br />And in general, I in awe of anyone who can construct a puzzle.ANON Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-47582142410616275782013-11-05T22:50:43.394-05:002013-11-05T22:50:43.394-05:00@Blackeyed Susan - My wife and I have been taking ...@Blackeyed Susan - My wife and I have been taking on the NYT crossword over breakfast for about 20 years now, and we've gotten pretty good at it (not like Rex and his contemporaries, but good). We still enjoy it completely - so you have at least 20 years to go before becoming a sourpuss like Rex.Mohair Samhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16502840715719161565noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88334038135544833322013-11-05T22:39:50.166-05:002013-11-05T22:39:50.166-05:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my 8/1/2009 post for an explanation and my 10/15/2012 post for an explanation of a tweak I've made to my method. 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 6:18, 6:07, 1.03, 69%, Medium-Challenging<br />Tue 8:56, 8:15, 1.08, 71%, Medium-Challenging<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:58, 3:46, 1.05, 74%, Medium-Challenging<br />Tue 5:12, 5:09, 1.01, 53%, Mediumsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-5146681289123065282013-11-05T21:51:48.088-05:002013-11-05T21:51:48.088-05:00I have been coming to this site for nearly a year ...I have been coming to this site for nearly a year (since my new year's resolution to do the puzzle every day) and am achieving my goal of really getting better. The impossible are becoming doable, thanks to all I've learned from all of you. And I'm entertained as well - laugh out loud entertained even. But I just don't get Rex. What does he want from these constructors anyway? Today was clever and fun for most. I think he's crossed the line from edgy to sour. And what's the point of doing something that you no longer get joy out of and that irritates you besides? Does this happen to all good solvers? And if so how much longer do I have??Blackeyed Susannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-81083934543565277592013-11-05T17:06:26.494-05:002013-11-05T17:06:26.494-05:00@acme--
I also made the mistake of spelling it WIN...@acme--<br />I also made the mistake of spelling it WINNEPEG instead of WINNIPEG. Felt particularly stupid as I watched their Jets play my beloved Red Wings last night.<br />Had a lot of write overs for a Tuesday. Remember putting ANTIbomb instead of ANTINUKE and MAO instead of CHE, which I was sure was right, thinking it sounded like something out of his little red book. Oh well...Benkonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-89521096631574892812013-11-05T15:56:24.605-05:002013-11-05T15:56:24.605-05:00Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 8/1/2...Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 8/1/2009 post for an explanation of my method and my 10/15/2012 post for an explanation of a tweak to my method):<br /><br />All solvers (median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Tue 8:55, 8:15, 1.08, 71%, Medium-Challenging<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Tue 5:29, 5:09, 1.06, 66%, Medium-Challengingsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-55945767692617239092013-11-05T15:08:21.768-05:002013-11-05T15:08:21.768-05:00@M&A had a fruit fly infestation once...this w...@M&A had a fruit fly infestation once...this worked. You will need tooth picks, piece of fruit as bait and a jar (glass or plastic) with a medium size opening with a lid (two if you want to maintain the trap 24/7). Pierce the fruit with 4 or five toothpicks so you it looks like a star. Place the fruit/picks near flie activity on a solid surface. carefully place the jar upside down sonto the toothpicks so the opening covers the fruit. Monitor the fruit and when plenty of flies are on the fruit, with the lid in one hand wave the other hand at the fruit to scare the flies. They should fly up into the jar. Place the lid on the jar securely and place in the freezer for a couple of days until flies are frozen dead. Use second jar to maintain trap if needed. I was dubious at first but it worked well and cleared up our fly problem in about a week's time.JustJoenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-33704504437396790172013-11-05T14:03:27.245-05:002013-11-05T14:03:27.245-05:00C'mon folks, any felt tip pen will suffice whe...C'mon folks, any felt tip pen will suffice when solving in the dead tree version (a ball point pen will collect fibers and eventually clog). Save the fountains for Clairefontaine or Rhodia.<br /><br />KIL is awful and not used by any real scientists or engineers.Namelessnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-86494928800829124342013-11-05T13:58:11.885-05:002013-11-05T13:58:11.885-05:00i don't feel so bad anymore…two others plus me...i don't feel so bad anymore…two others plus me misspelled winnipeg…schmuzzhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15641995525666982653noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-79594350788938750882013-11-05T13:55:40.334-05:002013-11-05T13:55:40.334-05:00Had some trouble in spots, especially in the NE, s...Had some trouble in spots, especially in the NE, so this ran difficult for me. Could not see OCS even though I’ve seen it a million times before. I started wondering if it was a new abbreviation such as INStitution or ACAdemy. When I relented and changed hUB to NUB, ANTI-NUKE jumped out at me which got me ANAIS and PACKET, then OCS.<br /><br />In the end, meh.<br /><br />@Questina – Don’t forget about Brooks Brothers<br />Birdnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-30534450039682964462013-11-05T13:52:26.751-05:002013-11-05T13:52:26.751-05:00The gap between WI and SE never bothered me in the...The gap between WI and SE never bothered me in the least. I just thought, "Oh. WISE is cracked apart. Cute."<br /><br />I like AIRLINE crossing ZIP UP.<br /><br />Puzzle was fun, and it felt like the right Tuesday bite.<br /><br />Mini themes: Four words ending in two vowels, eight words with double letters.<br /><br />Today's KIL is yesterday's BEI.Lewishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09709142959535977331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-53326799281444608052013-11-05T13:51:31.045-05:002013-11-05T13:51:31.045-05:00@M. Kerfuffle - Incompétence incroyable! You canno...@M. Kerfuffle - Incompétence incroyable! You cannot find <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0M7ibPk37_U" rel="nofollow">my original video</a>? Here it is!Le Chat Noirnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-31610530283940384232013-11-05T13:47:29.246-05:002013-11-05T13:47:29.246-05:00Wikipedia, the one and only source for all human k...<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shumai" rel="nofollow">Wikipedia</a>, the one and only source for all human knowledge, has SHUMAI as being of Chinese origin, not Japanese.Wiki Toadynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-76474942834200951792013-11-05T13:33:06.935-05:002013-11-05T13:33:06.935-05:00@ dick S, fountain pens are the only way to go. I...@ dick S, fountain pens are the only way to go. If I do one on paper I use my Churchman's Prescriptor with Noodlers Heart of Darkness or a Pelikan with stub nib and Tanzanite blue. Love the bleed.<br /><br />@ MAS, if you wage war on the fruit fly just don't let happen what happened to Mr. Heisenberg on Breaking Bad. Try a yeast solution. I had to breed fruit flies in Genetics class and that's what we used to keep them happy.<br /><br /><br />Questiniahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06225633428852696530noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-6600508491872943472013-11-05T13:27:46.184-05:002013-11-05T13:27:46.184-05:00Yeah - I don't like the word "POESY"...Yeah - I don't like the word "POESY" much. Maybe it's just me.Arbynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-23102781983387119902013-11-05T13:18:00.837-05:002013-11-05T13:18:00.837-05:00WINNIPEG is thte only place in Canada I've bee...WINNIPEG is thte only place in Canada I've been to, as it's directly North of Minnesota, but that didn't stop me from misspelling it WINNePEG... As it's not MinnIsota.<br /><br />And I didn't know what the Yale Whale is/was, so tough for me to see ELIS, I blame that on my strict Harvard education to block out all things Yale!<br /><br />But I thought this was great... Five themes including the clever reveal... And since three of the four cracked words only had 9 letters, that is hardly a yawning chasm!!!<br />To argue over how wide the crack is/should be is teetering on the most ridiculous criticism yet!<br /><br />Good to see HENRI as a girl-clue and not necessarily the go-to Matisse...after all, it reflects the super well-dressed and most glam of all the women puzzle constructors!<br /><br />SHUMAI is perhaps of Japanese origin, but it is definitely at every dim sum place here in SF and the word definitely looks more Chinese than Japanese esp if it were SHU MAI.<br /><br />@Carola, I liked the HRE bleedover, too!<br /><br />Love Amy WINEHOUSE 's voice. Heartbreaking mess tho. When my Israeli raved about her years ago when her first album came out and said I must listen, I listened and saw the videos and told him she'd be dead before I had a chance to see him again.<br />He was so mad at me for even expressing that out loud. Sadly it was true. Look at the video @rex posted and you can already see it. Such a sad end to such a phenomenal talent.Acmenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82827919520915393972013-11-05T13:07:28.047-05:002013-11-05T13:07:28.047-05:00OK I'll bite Mr JN:
Why is (in your opinion)...OK I'll bite Mr JN: <br /><br />Why is (in your opinion) MOP UP terrible fill?<br /><br />-MASAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com