tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post8548697436563346132..comments2024-03-28T18:01:16.957-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Kudos in street slang / WED 4-3-13 / Tamboura player's music / Nut with cupule / 1981 Burt Reynolds movie / Cabinet department until 1947 / Mechanical bandit featureRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger89125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-51891967881341051812013-05-08T21:17:31.269-04:002013-05-08T21:17:31.269-04:00@Evan -- "I'm almost surprised that NOM w...@Evan -- "I'm almost surprised that NOM wasn't clued as 'One-third of a LOLcat's sound' "<br /><br />Great minds think alike! NOM NOM NOM. Whenever I see HAI in a crossword puzzle I think, "Oh hai!"<br /><br />@Anoa Bob, I loved your clam related clue for MOOD SWING! I also felt it looked odd as singular, like scad vs. scads.<br /><br />@Spacecraft, "inside-the-park home run with the bases loaded" meaning FOUR players would SCORE - very clever!Syndi Solvernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-30215590093684289512013-05-08T20:46:43.308-04:002013-05-08T20:46:43.308-04:00I enjoyed the puzzle even though I was a really sl...I enjoyed the puzzle even though I was a really slow solver today. BIG UPS to Gary Cee!<br /><br />My biggest trouble was the cross at ALAI/ELI. I guessed the L correctly. Then I looked up "The Book of Eli" and realized that I've actually seen it, LOL! I just forgot the title.<br /><br />This puzzle taught me that there is a DOM DiMaggio in addition to Joe. I only knew of DeLuise. And since he was in the movie, I wonder why that clue was chosen? Hmmm.<br /><br />I'm amused that GROK is considered fresh by some. But it's a fun word! <br /><br />However, I do prefer not to think about its more literal meaning, eating of the dead. :-) (See <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stranger_in_a_Strange_Land" rel="nofollow">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stranger_in_a_Strange_Land</a> )<br /><br />It reminds me of those lines from the movie Gandhi (paraphrased):<br /><br />"Are you Christian? I know a Christian. She drinks blood."<br />(awkward pause)<br />"The blood of Christ. Every Sunday."Syndi Solvernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-34176051143086880002013-05-08T15:50:11.084-04:002013-05-08T15:50:11.084-04:00@DMG, correct, 16A refers to the four ARROWs (up, ...@DMG, correct, 16A refers to the four ARROWs (up, down, left, right) on a standard PC keybooard. GROK may be a cartoon character but it's more common as a verb: from Wiki - "To grok is to intimately and completely share the same reality or line of thinking with another physical or conceptual entity. Author Robert A. Heinlein coined the term in his best-selling 1961 book Stranger in a Strange Land. In Heinlein's view, grokking is the intermingling of intelligence that necessarily affects both the observer and the observed."Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-5019414432138320642013-05-08T15:39:32.105-04:002013-05-08T15:39:32.105-04:00Theme - what theme? I didn't see no stinkin...Theme - what theme? I didn't see no stinkin' theme! But now that it has been pointed out and admired by so many I have to say I think @Spacecraft's addition of FOURSCORE takes it to a whole new level.<br /><br />Having "enuredto" where USEDTOIT belongs bollixed up the SE corner for a while. It didn't help matters that I automatically wrote in apsE for Cathedral area.<br /><br />I used to think that my father looked a lot like Jack WEBB (but Dad smiled more).Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-60332181556658515262013-05-08T15:23:07.925-04:002013-05-08T15:23:07.925-04:00Enjoyed this puzzle, though it left me with a few ...Enjoyed this puzzle, though it left me with a few questions, and my, all too typical, one square boner. Realized that the ArAl mountains had to be wrong as the,totally unknown, BIGUPS was the only letter combination that made any kind of sense. So I replaced the mountains with AtAI, a spelling error I seem doomed to carry to the grave. In the same vein, it was a bit comforting to learn I wasn't the only one who misspelled MACKERaL. Enjoyed the aha moment of KING, but don't understand the ARROW answer. Guess maybe it refers to some computers, but certainly not this iPad. Wasn't GROK the name of some cartoon character? Better say 'bye before I sound anymore discombobulated!DMGrandmanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61205494029226400512013-05-08T15:19:50.957-04:002013-05-08T15:19:50.957-04:00I second @Spacecraft's comments above.
Agree ...I second @Spacecraft's comments above.<br /><br />Agree with @Ebenezer from primetime that SAL BANDO would have been a natural for this baseball-themed puzzle. Still, the good ole B&O railroad from Monopoly was a great blast from the past, if not a current TOPTENHIT. Not a fan either of the WAWA cluing - would have preferred the northern Ontario town or a shoutout to the late and very great SNL comedienne Gilda Radner's BABA WAWA.<br /><br />Grew up on Robert Heinlein's juvenile SF books and then later Stranger in a Strange Land blew my mind so am always pleased to see GROK make the grid.<br /><br />Bring on Thursday...<br /><br /><br /><br />Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-23271482212495627582013-05-08T12:24:37.508-04:002013-05-08T12:24:37.508-04:00If Cee had done as @Ebenezer suggests and clued 7d...If Cee had done as @Ebenezer suggests and clued 7d as the ballplayer instead of the RR, it would have turned my other thumb up. But as clued, BANDO is in the same rotten barrel with other abbreviational ANOMALies like AANDE (Gawd, it hurts so bad just to type it!) in which the words are initialized, yet somehow the ampersand is lengthened to the full word "AND." As I have said before, this makes NONSENSE! Cut it out, people!<br /><br />With the upturned-thumb hand, though, I'll pat Mr. Cee on the back for a theme that came to light only after I scanned the completed grid for it. To me the theme was "an inside-the-park home run with the bases loaded--" the only play that would feature all the listed actions and let FOURSCORE.<br /><br />Oh, and for managing to clue ALAI with other than "Jai-."<br /><br />Interesting that EGOMANIA is in direct line with SNOOKI, especially with the "diva" reference.<br /><br />Agree that the clue for OSAY is smashingly good.<br /><br />Sorry about the "AND" rant; you'd think by now I should be USEDTOIT. Hasn't happened yet.Spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-64609855854939398962013-04-04T09:58:20.074-04:002013-04-04T09:58:20.074-04:00Hi, sorry for the spam, but I've released a fr...Hi, sorry for the spam, but I've released a free crossword app in the Play Store called Crossword Rush. I've constructed all the puzzles myself (themed, easy difficulty), and a kid at the uni nearby did the programming. <br /><br /> I have no budget for advertising (do you have any idea what Facebook charges for ads!?), nor for hiring marketing pros. So I'd love it if you'd give it a shot. <br /><br />There are no ads in the app, but rather kiip rewards, which will (very occasionally, if I may put those words together) give you a real-life reward. <br /><br />Thanks, and sorry again for the spam.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-59150151556374256562013-04-04T01:20:36.626-04:002013-04-04T01:20:36.626-04:00This 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 7:02, 6:12, 1.14, 92%, Challenging<br />Tue 7:22, 8:19, 0.89, 16%, Easy<br />Wed 9:25, 10:16, 0.92, 30%, Easy-Medium<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 4:22, 3:42, 1.18, 96%, Challenging (8th highest ratio of 172 Mondays)<br />Tue 4:21, 4:52, 0.89, 13%, Easy<br />Wed 5:20, 6:04, 0.88, 18%, Easysanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-70268408648174311302013-04-03T21:57:05.784-04:002013-04-03T21:57:05.784-04:00@Notsofast and EllenS. Yes, I am old but still Sp...@Notsofast and EllenS. Yes, I am old but still Sparky. My father nicknamed me for Barney Google's horse, Spark Plug. Do you recognize my avatar? Rex did. Cicero's Cat, ran under Mutt and Jeff. Just the facts, Maam. Sparkyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11149915526159432838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-38391118792270734282013-04-03T20:00:11.954-04:002013-04-03T20:00:11.954-04:00@Rob C:
My fault, I missed that part of your comm...@Rob C:<br /><br />My fault, I missed that part of your comment.Evanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15440942981870183719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-12339712819507609522013-04-03T19:17:18.452-04:002013-04-03T19:17:18.452-04:00I remember Hatlo's cartoons ("They'll...I remember Hatlo's cartoons ("They'll Do It Every Time" and "Hatlo's Inferno") but not his habit of soliciting ideas from readers and thanking them. Nice to be reminded. <br /><br />And the dialogue on "Dragnet" was stilted even when new. Stan Freberg did a satire on it in 1953, <a href="http://youtu.be/oUdFLyNCeI4" rel="nofollow">St. George and the Dragonet</a>. I actually owned the record at one time. Thank the gods for YouTube. <br /><br />Finally, on the theme of "Wawa", my captcha is "Palthi". Describes the collegial, inclusive nature of this blog: everyone is palthi-walthi.Ellen Shttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00473445503706985149noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80300311156658158752013-04-03T18:53:40.930-04:002013-04-03T18:53:40.930-04:00@Bird: His baseball career being before my time, ...@Bird: His baseball career being before my time, I remember Phil Rizzuto as the pitchman for The Money Store:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDQHQkuv9l0" rel="nofollow"> Phil Rizzuto </a>JenCThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18290169184354765840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3536086410630009832013-04-03T18:40:23.014-04:002013-04-03T18:40:23.014-04:00@Elle54 - I know, I know. Phil Rizzuto said "...@Elle54 - I know, I know. Phil Rizzuto said "Holy Cow".<br /><br />The Yankees retired Rizzuto's number 10 in a ceremony at Yankee Stadium on August 4, 1985. During this ceremony, he was also given a plaque to be placed in the stadium's Monument Park. The plaque makes reference to the fact that he "has enjoyed two outstanding careers, all-time Yankee shortstop, one of the great Yankee broadcasters." Humorously, Rizzuto was accidentally bumped to the ground during his own ceremony, by a live cow wearing a halo (that is, a "holy cow"); both honoree and cow were unhurt. Rizzuto later described the encounter: "That big thing stepped right on my shoe and pushed me backwards, like a karate move."<br /><br />He is also immortalized in Meat Loaf's song "Paradise by the Dashboard Light"Birdnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-85238017292704388382013-04-03T18:37:19.633-04:002013-04-03T18:37:19.633-04:00If it's a Dimaggio clue, you just KNOW it ain&...If it's a Dimaggio clue, you just KNOW it ain't gonna be Joe. I'd be willing to bet that the more obscure brother DOMinates when it comes to crossword puzzles. Shucks, I'd bet that brother Vince gets more ink (X-word speaking) than the hall-of-famer.lawprofnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61914563129509381732013-04-03T18:17:15.566-04:002013-04-03T18:17:15.566-04:00Put me in, Coach! A week that gets the juices flo...Put me in, Coach! A week that gets the juices flowing. Never saw the theme but knocked it off with little trouble. You young 'uns have no idea how big Jack WEBB was in the 50's. Watch the re-runs of Dragnet and crack up at the stilted, wooden dialog.<br /><br />Back to baseball: Darvish was really whirlin' last night. One out short of a perfect game which would have been the 25th in Major League history and, amazingly, the 7th in the last five seasons. Chip Hiltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11944056030047563287noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-15457879769683093322013-04-03T18:15:31.568-04:002013-04-03T18:15:31.568-04:00Hi Rexites - First time, long time... ...Hi Rexites - First time, long time... <br />@Evil Doug - Thank you for<br />anticipating my question - <br />I knew I had a forehead-slap<br />coming to me.<br /><br /> Also, is there not such a <br />thing as a truthful alibi; <br />for those unjustly accused <br />- do all alibis require lying?<br /><br />In closing, anyone who GROKS <br />The Little RASCALS knows that<br />Spanky is the KING of child<br />actors - AMEN!Uncle Johnnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-86917139660014757212013-04-03T18:07:16.377-04:002013-04-03T18:07:16.377-04:00NONONO! Holy Mackerel belongs to JACK BRICKHOUSE f...NONONO! Holy Mackerel belongs to JACK BRICKHOUSE for the Chicago Cubs!<br />@fearless Kim<br />@chefbea<br />@birdElle54noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-1820436356619666062013-04-03T17:05:36.438-04:002013-04-03T17:05:36.438-04:00@Sparky: A tip of the hat to you for knowing the H...@Sparky: A tip of the hat to you for knowing the Hatlo Hat reference! You must be old, like me.Notsofastnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-58197568956294873312013-04-03T16:57:25.301-04:002013-04-03T16:57:25.301-04:00@rexparker:
He missed one DiMaggio. It was
Vinc...@rexparker:<br /> He missed one DiMaggio. It was<br />Vince who played centerfield for <br />Pittsburg.<br />ANON Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-66484809242091937012013-04-03T16:42:54.223-04:002013-04-03T16:42:54.223-04:00Happy with this baseball wednesday entry. Did mak...Happy with this baseball wednesday entry. Did make one mistake in the SW corner: Had RAmpS for RAKES making d48 and d61 slightly off. Since I didn't know Snooki or Rem, RAMPS made sense given the clue of Ground crew gear. Think airports. Anyway, I enjoyed a Google-less effort.<br />Also I really do appreciate the comments the other day about my kvetching over the clues and some of the difficulties I have later in the week. You are right: these things are puzzles, not competitions or tests of knowledge. I have to learn to relax and enjoy the process. Thanks.LaneBnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-68663177515960323332013-04-03T16:39:04.915-04:002013-04-03T16:39:04.915-04:00Thanks, @chefbea and @bird! Cow, mackerel... ;-)Thanks, @chefbea and @bird! Cow, mackerel... ;-)FearlessKimnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-65220205257007294202013-04-03T16:38:49.174-04:002013-04-03T16:38:49.174-04:00Three easy days in a row for me. I did Monday to W...Three easy days in a row for me. I did Monday to Wednesday at one sitting. Monday was near my fastest time (just under 5 min.), and appropriately, I slowed down through Tues. and Wed. Thought Wed. was a very nice, even puzzle, even though I missed the baseball theme entirely - never looked for a theme! How big a fan am I? Was at opening day, and am going again tonight despite sub-forty degree temperatures. My first baseball game was Aug 11, 1953, Oisk vs. Maglie at the Polo Grounds. Oisk pitched a 2 hitter, and Hodges and Furillo hit homers. I LOVE baseball!OISKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16808675378318214461noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-4132801627175008682013-04-03T16:00:02.852-04:002013-04-03T16:00:02.852-04:00I've been to Wawa, Ont. too. There is a huge s...I've been to Wawa, Ont. too. There is a huge statue of a Canadian goose there. I think Wawa is the native name for that goose. Maybe that would have been a better clue. I mean, we all know wapiti means elk so why not?Two Ponieshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03279414989390373057noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-32048856503581997682013-04-03T15:56:08.693-04:002013-04-03T15:56:08.693-04:00Wawa what a horrible clue....Wawa what a horrible clue....grandmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06989563151015092417noreply@blogger.com