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Relative difficulty: Medium-Challenging (4:46, but just woke up and brain is moving like molasses)
Theme answers:
- GRAPE LEAVES (18A: *They get stuffed at Greek restaurants)
- BANANA / SPLITS (23A: *With 50-Across, classic ice cream treats)
- LEMON / DROPS (30A: *With 44-Across, sour candies)
- ORANGE PEELS (55A: *Garnishes for old-fashioneds)
La Plata (Spanish pronunciation: [la ˈplata]) is the capital city of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. According to the 2001 census [INDEC], it has a population of 765,378 and its metropolitan area has 899,523 inhabitants.La Plata was planned and developed to serve as the provincial capital after the city of Buenos Aires was federalized in 1880. It was officially founded by Governor Dardo Rocha on 19 November 1882. Its construction is fully documented in photographs by Tomás Bradley Sutton. La Plata was briefly known as Ciudad Eva Perón (Eva Perón City) between 1952 and 1955. (wikipedia)
• • •
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| You wouldn't have brackets in the actual clue, but you get the idea |
Five things:
- 27A: Something divided in W.W. II (ATOM) — hard and gruesome. Again, that corner ... KIN for FAM (21D: Relatives, casually), MRI or CAT (scan?) for TAT (32A: Body image). ACROBAT clued toughly. OLD FOES??? (20A: Enemies from way back) Glad I eventually escaped that wasp's nest
- 34D: Emulated Pinocchio (TELLS A LIE) — this is the OLD FOES of the southern half of the grid. Actually, this is just green paint* (the verb-phrase version of which I always think of as "eats a sandwich").
- 48A: Wedding gown designer Di Santo (INES) — Can't find anything about her that isn't promotional copy. No wikipedia page, somehow??? Anyway, apparently she designs wedding gowns.
- 8D: South American corn cakes (AREPAS) — so good! I only learned what these were in the past few years. Had them first, weirdly (?), in Minneapolis. There's a guy who makes them at our local farmers market every weekend now. Mwah!
- 9D: Air race marker (PYLON) — I couldn't describe an "air race" to you if I tried. Also, I read this as "Air Race maker" and thought I was looking for some brand of model airplane.
Constructor count: Men: 26.5 / Women: 3.5
*a phrase you might use in conversation but that doesn't seem strong enough to be a stand-alone answer
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
PEEL out Rex! You clearly weren’t a teenager given to driving a car too fast, burning your tires and PEELing out. Not a personal best today for me, but close. Fun puzzle!
ReplyDeletePR today as Symphony of the Seas nears Cozumel.
ReplyDeleteChallenging to me too, for a Wednesday. I liked 45A: Noted 1970s-80s gang leader. KOOL & The Gang, whose biggest hit was “Celebration” in 1980/81.
ReplyDeleteHah. Had a dnf at the LA PLATA/RPI cross ‘cause I forgot to go back and run the alphabet. No biggie.
ReplyDeleteBut I sat there several moments trying to figure out how the theme worked since the fruits were all obviously still in the grid. Had it not been for BANANA SPLITS, I would’ve sworn the themers all were things where the actual fruit was not present – no grapes in GRAPE LEAVES no orange in ORANGE PEEL (Probably no lemon in LEMON DROPS but rather disodium guanylate, azodicarbonamide, sodium carboxymethyl cellulose, and propylene glycol.)
But then I saw the joke, that all the fruit is outta here, man. Check you later. An evil juicer walks into a bar, so the banana splits, the orange peels, the grape leaves, and the lemon drops. For me, DROPS is actually the outlier because it doesn’t feel as “walks out”-ish as the others. (I'm with @Pam on PEEL.)
“Nemeses” before OLD FOES.
And I can never spell DAIS. What a weird-looking word. Daïs. There. Much better.
COVER ME – you wouldn’t believe the amount of class time I miss because of IEP meetings, SAT process meetings, trainings… and this year, the onus of finding someone to cover our classes is, well, on us. (We have a bit of a substitute teacher shortage.) So I get an email that an IEP meeting has been scheduled tomorrow during my 2nd period. This means
1. I have to beg/bribe Mr. Arthur, a chemistry teacher and the only teacher who is free second, to give up his precious planning to watch my class.
2. My 2nd period 10th graders can’t do the poetry stations I worked on forever because they require lots of hands-on teacher help. English teacher help. Meter systems, not metric systems.
3. That class is now a day behind my 6th and 7th periods, also 10th grade English.
Anyhoo – my first thought on COVER ME.
Emily – so cool that you found four fruit phrases that work this way.
Got through this one with some lucky guesses. ATOM took me a long time, because I had inserted an S for the plural of 21D and so for EONS had _AS there. Lots of ERASING at 54A, also. I just can never KEEP straight the correct spelling of MAESTRO.
ReplyDeleteSo, for my money, a good Wednesday puzzle. I smiled at some of the crossings, such as ADM and AFLOAT, and CAT SIT (CATS IT? -- oh, for the want of an "H") and PESTS -- not that I dislike CATS, but I know that some people do. We also get FRUITLESS crossing an answer clued as "Wall off" (19D). PONDER that ONE.
Speaking of ONE, ONE-ROOM schoolhouse brought back fond memories. I started school (in the late 1950s -- still the ATOMic era) in a poorly insulated three-ROOM schoolhouse, in Maine. That was across 9 grades (sub-primary, as they called the first level then, through 8th grade). I'm amazed that those teachers managed to stave off chaos given their by-design SPLIT attention to each class. Whenever there was a polar vortex, or especially heavy snow -- which was often in those parts -- we would get a day off, driving my mother nuts.
Finally, and not to beat a dead horse, but my point from yesterday about that infamous toothpaste brand was not that I, myself, found the clue and answer unfair (we have the brand in France), but to express sympathy who thought that it could have been better clued. Yes, the puzzles frequently mention foreign brands, such as EVIAN, that are sold in the USA. But this was the first case in my memory of an answer being the name of a product that I still believe is NOT, or at least no longer, sold in the USA.
I think the theme is solid. The revealer is right on. Beanbag Amerika's alternate clue is BORING and removes the fun pun. I would have had a much smoother solve if I had guessed CAD instead of rAt for 14Aa. That messed me up for a while. 39D would make a good motto.
ReplyDeleteWow! What a great theme. It’s still January, but I’m willing to bet that will be one of the ten best all year.
ReplyDeleteSurprisingly tough for a Wednesday. TSTRAP (?) crossing TAG ON and AREPAS (?), INES (?) over TEENIE (??), ASSORTS, LA PLATA, RPI.
See what happens when you let female constructors in? You get BRA crossing ASS. Also LOO and the phallic BANANA. Leave the FRAT humor at home, lady.
O, @LMS, having just watched "Rent," I thought of the song "I'll Cover You." Hope Mr. A. comes through.
ReplyDeleteLoved this....now I feel ready for my Wednesday. Maybe a camel will visit the office.
Easy Wednesday for me. 75% of my average time.
ReplyDeleteNot especially interesting or clever.
Never heard of The Office so I didn’t know it was a comedy. I DROPped in BRITISH and never looked back. So I had a big fat DNF, for the sole reason that I couldn’t care less today if I was right or wrong. I didn’t understand the theme and was too weary of it to PONDER it further. Much more fun coming here. Rex’s pic of an Old-Fashioned reminded me of many nights at the Oak Bar in the Plaza. EONS ago. How is DROPS construed as leaving? Let go, okay. Dump, sure. But unless it’s new slang I agree with Loren that it is hors de la question. Speaking of French, ETC, can anyone tell me why bistro in Paris is spelled bistrot?
ReplyDeleteHad Ambo for Dais and that held me up for awhile. A “theme” I have to come here to discover definitely needs to be clearer!
ReplyDeleteYES!! That is the only word I could come up with that resembled what I thought was the best answer, “podium.” I think of the DAIS as the raised platform for a group. This was my one and only hang up.
DeleteSo today we get a puzzle full of cats, candy, desserts, bras, and wedding gowns. Happy now Rex?
ReplyDeleteGuessed mid letter of prince and first of seaport to be “R”: wrong ! Otherwise good puz, unknowns, to me, were gettable. Been around tennis for long time & this is first ever heard LOVEALL.
ReplyDeleteZippy offering, where the solve felt faster than making the transition from an indignant "Banana splits are NOT fruitless" to "OHO, banana SPLITS!" This was, admirably, a very tight theme. I think it might have worked better as a Tuesday, keeping the lovely reveal and three theme answers, leaving out LEMON DROPS, because like @quasi, it doesn't sound to me like a word that means leaving.
ReplyDeleteRegarding FRUITLESS, that includes none of my breakfasts, and I'm starting to think it's beginning to include the NYT crosswords, which only had two Berrys in 2018.
The theme answers seem more fruitful than fruitless. The synonyms for exiting weren't clear enough for my little pea brain.
ReplyDeleteI know "tack on" and "tag along". Tag on? Nah.
Wedding dresses? If it's not Vera Wang then I'm lost.
The clue for hone did not need the qualifier "as one's skills" unless Will thought that was more of a Wed. clue.
What is the difference between quaint and just plain old?
I did like the misdirect in the clue for niece but that's about all.
Sorry Emily, no fun today.
I liked this a lot and thought the theme was quite cute, Rex’s PEEL nit nothwithstanding. Nice to see LA PLATA in the puzzle — I know the place well but it might be a Natick for many. FRAT ROW / TEENIE / INES was also the last thing I got. This was a fun one for me — thanks, Emily Carroll!
ReplyDeleteWhy have I all of a sudden started getting annoying Captcha pictures — and intermittently, not every time!?!?!? Humph.
This was brutal for me, for a Wednesday, mostly due to the cross of 2D and 27A. The clue for 27A totally misdirected me. Add in my blankness on FA_ for 21D and I was trying to decide if the AzOres had been divided in WWII and could a single one be an AzOr? FAM finally hit me and then the TEENIE ATOM.
ReplyDeleteTough one today for me, and a banana split isn't "literally" fruitless unless they're made differently now from when I was a kid. Ah, reading the comments, I see my brain PEELed out when it came to the theme, which I now see is quite clever (me too on "drops"). I did enjoy the Wednesday challenge, so thanks, Emily Carroll.
I personally don't think DROPS is in the "ballpark" as Rex claims. You can "split," you can "leave," but can you "drop" or "peel" without some kind of preposition? You drop out (mostly) and you peel out...so those two were different than the other two.
ReplyDeleteLike most puzzles, I understand what they're trying to say so I just give them the benefit of the doubt and move on.
The RPI/LAPLATA cross was a near natick, (RdI? RoI?) But with my rudimentary knowledge of Spanish, I figured the P was right...then I remembered RPI was a thing (I only know from crossword puzzles).
I also think we usually talk of splitting atoms, not dividing them. I'm calling shenanigans on that clue.
With that, I'm going to make like an orange and peel.
@rex, Thank you for keeping count of the women constructors published in the NYT. We don't know what we would do without you, the Moses of the crossworld, the Abe Lincoln, the Martin Luther King. If only more women knew that they wanted to construct puzzles.
ReplyDeleteAddendumb... I meant Oak Room at the Plaza, not Oak Bar. Plus I’ve given more thought to the theme question. I wouldn’t say I’ve had second thoughts though. But what if each themer had a tacit “off” added to it. The banana splits off. The orange peels off. The lemon drops off. The grape leaves off... well that last one didn’t work as well. Maybe it is we who do the offing. Leave off the grape. Peel off the orange. Split off the banana. Drop off the lemon. Hmmm. Maybe. Maybe not. I guess I better PEAR my losses. @ Lewis, yes, too few Berrys here but a patch of them at the New Yorker.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteEasy for me, faster than Wednesday average. I didn’t bother with the theme revealer except to note the first half of every answer started with the name of a fruit. Only hang up was my brain conflated RIT with RPI to RTI, so it took a bit hunting down my error at the very end, but still finished faster than average.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDelete@Quasi7:28 --
The clue (Paris EaterieS) is plural, so it's BistroS crossing IneS (never heard of her before, but ... )
I spent 4 years in Troy, NY, so RPI was a gimme for me.
Re: 8:03 and 8:44: dunno what constitutes plagiarism in xwords, but 11/3/2013 Sunday and today’s puzs do have GRAPELEAVES, BANANASPLITS, LEMONDROPS, and FRUIT & LOVE in combo form, in common.
ReplyDeleteI’m inclined to give today’s benefit of doubt.
Merci @Wm. C., I got that answer. But my question was about the spelling of bistro in France. “bistrot” —I have since googled it and found out that both bistro and bistrot are used there. One theory is it was a Russian word but there’s no proof. I was surprised to find that it is a relatively new word in the French lexicon, first appearing in the 1890s. Sorry for the confusion.
ReplyDeleteOn balance, this one is a winner.
ReplyDeleteThe Good
-- Damn clever theme. Yes, ORANGEPEELS isn't as good as the others, but any answer clued via an old-fashioned is fine by me.
-- Some really good clues today: those for KOOL, MAESTRO, NIECE, PESTS and ERAS. I also enjoted the clue for PYLON, just because it was different.
-- Cluster of relativity: FAM, TIAS, NIECE
-- Cluster of South America: TIAS eating AREPAS in LAPLATA.
-- For some reason, I love the term BRITCOM.
The Not-So-Good
-- More short junk than ideal: RPI, BANC, ROI, TAT, MAV, INES, OCT, MES, ADM, FAM, ANI, LOO and the ETS/ELS/INS trifecta.
-- Is LOVEALL really a thing? If so, when would it be said? If I'm serving, I'm going to give the game score (e.g., "four three") but I'm not going to say LOVEALL.
@Lewis -- LOL at your FRUITLESS/Berry comment.
I wouldn’t assume it’s plagiarized if the theme has been used before. It’s possible that two people came up with the same idea. It’s up to the editor to notice, though admittedly that’s a tall order. Liked the puzzle. I’m in the don't care about the gender of the constructor camp.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIn her note on xwordinfo, the constructor indicates that she originally submitted the puzzle without the split up theme answers, and the editors suggested the split in order to make the fill cleaner.
ReplyDeleteI think one of the benefits of having a more diverse pool of constructors is getting clues that take us out of our field of knowledge, and this puzzle does a little of that (at least for me). I liked this one!
I thought this was rather fun in a Tuesday way.
ReplyDeleteI liked the way the BANANA has to go down the aisle before it SPLITS. The LEMON also has to skedaddle on down before it DROPS. The GRAPE LEAVES me to PONDER where the next FRUIT will take a powder.
OK, so we have two fun Spanish words. LA PLATA (lovely place - Dad took me to one of my first nightclubs called "Scandal" and I might very well have had my first old-fashioned} Then we have the delicious AREPAS. I used to have them for breakfast and then lunch when we lived in Venezuela. I wonder why it took the USofA so long to discover them. I dare the NYT to have Cachapas in a grid.
So @Anony 8:03 says this was plagiarized? I don't think so. Such a strong, ugly word. Emily did have the GRAPE LEAVES clued the same way but the Lemon and Bananas are very different. There is no ORANGE PEELS and the reveal is different. Further, it was a Sunday and it wasn't nearly as fun as this one. My two cents.
Guys, "I gotta peel" is modern day slang for "I have to leave". It's legit.
ReplyDeleteCrunchy for a Wednesday. Cute theme. I enjoyed it. Running out now.
ReplyDeleteRex, peel me a grape.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ms. Carroll, for a very enjoyable puzzle.
ReplyDeleteUnlike @Rex, the NW corner went right in for me. ALI has become a crossword regular, which gave me ACROBAT, CAD,RPI, OLD FOES, BANANA, & I DID NOT. More thought required for ATOM, LA PLATA-- didn't know the latter was a city, but deduced it from the eponymous river.
ReplyDeleteI sort of question the "Super" in the clue for 54A, MAESTRO -- as far as I know, ALL conductors are called that, it doesn't mean they are particularly good. But it was nice to see it near the Maidenform BRA; I'm pretty sure one of those old "I dreamed I ____ in my Maidenform bra" ads featured conducting the NY Philharmonic.
@Pam and @Loren, I think Rex's point was that you need "out" with PEEL to make it mean leave. You almost need it for DROPS -- but if someone decides to leave my course, they DROP it, so that's OK.
I once constructed a puzzle that was based on an anagram of POST..
ReplyDeleteOPTS, POTS, STOP, TOPS. Came to the conclusion the theme was a little blah. Never sent it anywhere. Two weeks later the exact same theme is in the NYT. Fact for those who don't construct ... That this theme has been done before is not at all unusual. Two puzzle makers creating the same theme is a common.
What an obtuse theme, but after having it explained it's okay, I guess. If I had gotten BANANA SPLITS first who knows how differently I might have started thinking about it.
ReplyDeleteTo paraphrase E B White -- a joke dissected, same as a frog, dies as a result.
Mostly just mad I didn't take the time to figure it out myself.
Celebrate that the answer to 45A is Kool
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GwjfUFyY6M
I'm curious how/why @Anon 8:03 is familiar with the 1/3/2013 puzzle. Is s/he the constructor or is it just that they recently solved it in the archives.
ReplyDeleteHey All !
ReplyDeleteHah @Jerome D Gunderson
I submitted a Sunday puz with that same theme! You missed SPOT. My revealer was CHANGE THE SPOT. It was rejected, as Will said the theme was too familiar. Great minds. :-)
Liked this puz, all the FRUITs skedaddling. Kinda strange that two of the themers are separated, but it still ENDS up nice.
Liked the KOOL clue. Had a clue similar to that once.
There F's. Triple the amount of yesterday! And ONE ROO(M). Har.
BISTRO MAESTRO
RooMonster
DarrinV
When you think of the number of crosswords out there, not just the Times but all of them, many if not most of the themes have probably been done before I’d bet. I’m sure I did the puzzle six years ago but I didn’t remember it so I don’t care that it’s been used before.
ReplyDeleteMore like Easy for me. I liked it a lot - & loved 45 across "KOOL" - thanks Emily!
ReplyDeleteEasy...except for grokking the theme which took reading the answers a couple of times to materialize. Pretty smooth and subtle, liked it.
ReplyDeleteI got Naticked on one of my pet peeves. Sandal features. OK. I don't know who wears sandals. I really don't. I don't wear sandals. Living up here in Natick, no one wears sandals. So we get these clues for sandal features and I start thinking resorts in the carib which is warmer than here. So, cross sandal feature with a south american corn cake that could easily be Irepas as arepas and we are not just in Natick, but all the way inside the natick mall.
ReplyDeleteOn the Captcha issue, I think that feature violates ADA. I wear polarized contact lenses for an eye condition, and for the same reason the robots have trouble with those things, I have trouble seeing them too. Grr
If I were inclined to plaigiarize a puzzle I’d use any puzzle other than the Times, which has such a comprehensive archive. Let’s give Ms Carroll the benefit of the doubt.
ReplyDeleteanother day they didn't deliver the paper, although the ice is pretty thick around here, and it has to be a day when a teetotal cousin twice-removed makes it in. unfair to Local 12 Villains, Thieves, and Scoundrels Union. so SAD.
ReplyDeleteI loved everything about this puzzle and killed it! Faster than my Monday time (OK, I am a slug and a “fast” Monday is under 10). But the theme was tight and entertaining and the fill cleverly clued , although I disagree with DAIS as the speaker’s “stand.” That would be a podium or ambo, but since DAIS was certainly easy to get, so what. Happy solve for me; I so rarely feel like a maven at this despite my six decades of daily solving. I’d be a bit faster on paper, but still not in the pros like so many members of this august community. Fun, fun, fun!
ReplyDeleteI didn't write much, earlier, since I was running out, but I did write something, and it's not here. A comment from late yesterday never appeared either. I liked this puzzle, thought it had some challenge, and thought the theme was cute. Let's try posting again...
ReplyDeleteI loved this puzzle! Thanks Emily Carroll! I'm not sure why - maybe all the food words. Definitely a puzzle on my wave length.
ReplyDeleteI found a picture of Ines Di Santo for anyone who is interested: https://oceandrive.com/ines-di-santo-on-what-inspired-her-fall-2018-bridal-collection
Good Day, All: I have a question for the panel of experts out there (and Mike).
ReplyDeleteAre there an equal number of women constructors submitting puzzles to the NYT and is Will simply discriminating against them, as Mike implies with his snarky gender count?
Or could it be that there are many more men constructors submitting so the ratio is in line with those numbers?
If anyone really knows, I would love to be educated. If, in fact, there are equal submissions then, yes, the disparity is great and unfair. But if not, it seems like just yet ANOTHER silly, personal attack on Will.
But our "fearless leader" would NEVER resort to that...
MAN-GOES?
ReplyDeleteNeat theme. Even the LEMONDROPS & ORANGEPEELS made perfectly good sense to m&e, until I read all the arguments against em.
fave fillins:
* OLDFOES. Swanee River! Singin 'bout all the old foes back at home. Nostalgic.
* COVERME. Wanted something like EARLYOUT or REDEPLOY, after readin that alarmin clue.
* MAESTRO. Always luv them KOOL weird vowel combos splatzed in the middle of answers. Makes M&A aeoli his oeuvre ass off.
* Weeject stacks, in the NW & SE. Primo way to start off yer solvequest's coffee & cinnamon roll.
staff weeject pick: ADM. It's kinda rank, I believe.
Fun and fairly smoooth solvin experience. All the spared nanoseconds wish to thank Emily darlin personally, for that. Did hold my breath briefly, while traversin the AREPAS/PYLON/BANC T-Strap Tagon Pass, tho.
Thanx for the fruitful d-parts, Ms. Carroll. The only U that didn't drop appreciates the honor of bein used in the puzrevealer.
Masked & Anonymo1U
p.s.
To all my precious northern friends: please stay in and wear a blanket and stay warm and maybe work the (runt) puzzle backlogs, until U pass out from ecstasy. Hot choco also recommended, as a non-hallucinatory-drug alternative.
desperation fashioned by experts:
**gruntz**
@Quasimojo: You have never heard of The Office??? It was only one of the most popular (and funniest) shows on TV. Actually just binge watched on Netflix, until Michael leaves...what's the point after that?
ReplyDeleteDo you own a TV? (more power to you if you don't) Now I feel guilty for watching so much TV.
Have you heard of M*A*S*H? Friends? Seinfeld? Welcome back, Kotter? (OK, just kidding on that one)
(and BTW, I'm just having fun, please don't think I'm criticizing in any way)
All the best... :)
@Nancy
ReplyDeleteI can still see you 10:05 comment.
@David Schinnerer
Past discussions indicate that ratio of accepted puzzles doesn't vary much by sex. Women just submit a lot less. @Rex's thesis's that @WS & the NTTimes should do more to motivate women to construct and submit.
LA PLATA was in the last corner to fall. But it should not induce a Natick. Everyone knows that Buenos Aires is on the Rio de la Plata, which the Brits used to (annoyingly) call the "River Plate". So even if you never heard of the provincial capital city, it is easily deducible.
ReplyDeleteThe Oak Room brought back memories, I visited New York for the first time back in 1958 with my mother, Though we stayed at the Waldorf because it had special rates for Junior League members and not, therefore, at the Plaza. I was told we could have dinner anywhere I wanted, and the Oak Room was what appealed to me. It was in those days the epitome of elegance. And for the first time in my life I had Baked Alaska for dessert. I envy anyone who became a regular there.
I believe reCAPTCHA leaves something on your computer that tells it you have been there before and can be trusted. I only have to deal with those dumb pictures if I am at a different computer or on a cell phone.
@Gill-I wondered why the dare on cachapas. I googled. I now know.
ReplyDelete@Roo, I share your affinity for the F but 3x0=0. (re: today's count)
Hope Beanie is acceptable (52A clue)
59A reminds me of recent litter box clues. CATSIT. (I know, a stretch)
Favs today: FOP FAM SCOW TSTRAP ASSORTS
Found this easy and enjoyable. Divide the atom? I don’t think so. Try ordering a banana divide.
ReplyDelete@David Schinnerer, no indeed I don’t own a TV. I gave it up about ten years ago, but even back then I watched few comedies. Never seen Friends, Seinfeld, or the other two you mentioned. In fact I have never watched SNL and only learned about its stars here in the puzzle. I do watch a lot of obscure old movies, however, so I am not exactly without plenty of entertainment options.
ReplyDelete@Quasi & @Old Sock
ReplyDeleteWay back when, I was working as TV buyer at a 4A Ad agency on Madison Avenue and the sales reps would take us out for three martini lunches at the Rib Room at the Roosevelt which included Caesar salad made table side and fantastic slabs of roast beef. After lunch, we'd go back to the office and sleep.
@GHarrus:
ReplyDeleteDivide the atom? I don’t think so.
tell that to the folks in Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and many no longer existing atolls in the Pacific.
@Nancy: How would they motivate more women to do that? Either you construct or you don't, right? What would the incentive be other than to get paid (and have your work in the NYT)Seems the incentive is the same for all.
ReplyDelete@David Schinnerer
ReplyDeleteI think you meant your question for me. Anyway, ask @Rex, it's is thesis.
But seriously,@Rex believes the NYTimes could run seminars and other functions to "turn on" women to crossword construction.
Some people agree with him and some people don't.
If you are trying to HONE your grid construction skills, both yesterday and today provide good examples of how the ultra useful POC (plural of convenience) can help to get it done.
ReplyDeleteBoth grids rely on several two-for-one POCs, where a Down and an Across share a terminal square S. Those are equivalent to what some call a "cheater square", where a black square is added for no other reason than to make it easier to fill the grid. That shared terminal S could be changed to a black square, the clue slightly tweaked, and essentially nothing would be changed, other than the grid pattern would now show its true colors, so to speak. The higher the number of black squares, the easier it becomes to fill the grid.
For those still earning points for their POC merit badge (@merican in Paris, after your sleuthing yesterday, a merit badge will be on its way to you, as soon as the new batch of badges comes in), you're most likely to see those double-duty Ss in the bottom, right-hand corner of grid sections, e.g., 6D TIAS & 20A OLD FOES, or 26D INS & 34A TOTEMS. This is especially so along the bottom-most row of the grid. Check it out.
Like to stay longer, but gotta PEEL.
@OffTheGrid
ReplyDeleteHar. Nice math calculation! But, I'm sure you know I meant three More F's than YesterPuz. Three times As More. 3x X 0=3. Yeah, that's it. :-) There's probably an algorithm that can prove that!
And to think, I used to be good at math in school!
RooMonster
Body image, briefly = TAT is why I love crosswords.
ReplyDeleteGoogle Red Bull airraces , Rex. Check out the videos. redbull
ReplyDeleteIt’s s been awhile but i remember having FSX, Microsoft's Flight Sim 10, and they had Red Bull tracks and a plane so you could try your hand at these tyoes of air races, PYLONS and all. It was exciting and tough to execute a fast lap even sitting in a nice chair in a relatively quiet space. I can't imagine doing it pulling the G's. The pilots aren’t that young either from when I watched it last, several years ago.
Not sure if they even race in the states.
Constructor here. I wouldn't normally comment, but I feel like I need to respond to these plagiarism accusations.
ReplyDeleteI would never plagiarize another constructor's work. This 11.3.13 puzzle isn't one I've seen prior to learning about it today. It's disappointing because I think that puzzle is actually much better than mine and takes the concept to a more interesting level.
In terms of having the theme answers, we clearly came up with the same idea and there are only so many fruit/synonym-for-leaving combos. And regarding the clue for GRAPELEAVES, my original clue was tweaked by the NYT editing team so that it's verbatim is again a coincidence and one that's out of my control. The fact that TELLSALIE is in both puzzles is super weird though.
As a constructor, the last thing I would want to do is copy someone else's work. There's no fun in making a puzzle that's already been done before and from the purely practical standpoint of getting your puzzle accepted, doing something unoriginal (unintentionally or otherwise) is never going to work. I once spent days making a "fruit loops" themed puzzle only to get it rejected with the feedback that the same idea had already been done by another NYT constructor, which I was unaware of. So because of that experience, now when I get an idea for a puzzle before wasting my time constructing I actually always check the Xwordinfo word database to see if my revealer has been used before in order to avoid these situations. In this case with the slightly different FRUITFLIES vs FRUITLESS I missed this earlier puzzle. Had I known about it, I wouldn't have made this one.
And for the truly cynical who think this is all BS, why would I blatantly rip off someone's puzzle and then submit it to the exact same newspaper? I'm not well-versed in the logistics of plagiarism, but that doesn't seem like easiest path to conning my way into the sweet, sweet riches and fame that come with being a hobbyist crossword constructor.
Hopefully most of you were equally as unfamiliar with the 11.3.13 puzzle as I was and still enjoyed solving this one.
Best,
Emily
Ah @ Banana Diaquiri, I was merely commenting on the inapt use of the verb, not the horrific consequences.
ReplyDeleteI’m fully with Ms. constructor.
ReplyDeletePlease continue to build/submit puzzles for all of us to enjoy. I really admire ability to construct.
Emily,
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the puzzle. Try not to let the libelous comments get to you. There are a lot of blowhards in this forum; they often make assertions with no basis in fact.
Loved AIRRACE, and love AIRRACEs. The Reno AIR RACEs are awesome fun, and a when the Red Bull AIR RACEs ran in New York near the Statue of Liberty I sailed down there and watched them from my boat. Was an great time. I also love LEMONDROPS and am drinking tea with ORANGEPEELS in it as I am writing this.
ReplyDeleteQuick, easy solve. Only hangup was deciding between RPI and RIT. Needed to look at 3 down. My age may be showing.
ReplyDeleteI completed both this puzzle and the 11/3/13 puzzle and they sort of have the same gag but that's the extent of it.
ReplyDeleteThis puzzle has the JOHN X seal of approval, and that ends the discussion. You are dismissed.
Hi @Emily. I'm glad you stopped by with your classy response
ReplyDeleteI mean, good gravy, there must be millions of "same way clued" words everywhere. I'm just flabbergasted at how many there seem to be for OREO.
Your puzzle isn't anything like the Sunday one, and frankly, I like yours better.
@Emily
ReplyDeleteThanks for commenting. I'm sorry you felt compelled to, but I understand. Veterans of this site have learned to take Anonymous comments with a grain of salt. I hope you've noticed that no one else thought you did anything wrong.
I loved this puzzle and hope to see more of your work.
Thank you Emily, I loved your puzzle and was outraged by the arrogant assertion that it was plagiarized. It was clever and fun! I look forward to your next one.
ReplyDeleteEmily @ 1:48 ~ I am sorry that you were subjected to such a vile attack on your character and credibility. Your calm and measured response is admirable. I hope to see your byline again and often.
ReplyDeleteCheck the back of any Hard Rock Cafe hat for the words “ Love All “
ReplyDeletethe WWII bombs were 1 uranium bomb and 1 plutonium bomb. both were A-bombs, aka fission bombs. they work by splitting the atom.
ReplyDeleteStop libeling anon commenters we are people too
ReplyDelete@JC66...you're right, sorry Nancy!
ReplyDeleteThis puzzle felt slightly "different" to me than the usual Wednesday fare; words like PONDER, MAESTRO, and ACROBAT seemed fresh although apparently there's a database or some such to look up how often words are used in crossword puzzles? Talk about another time sink for an addictive personality - I will try to avoid that site at all costs. Be that as it may, I really did like the mid-length fill and while I completed the puzzle in my average Wednesday time, it felt challenging, fun, and different.
ReplyDeleteGot the "fruit" part of the themer but it took reading Rex to understand the "less" part - very nice and elegant twist. Struggled in the NW corner too, but finally cracked it by dredging up RPI from the memory banks. Nice to see ANI clued as something besides a young Darth Vader, and this coming from a devoted Star Wars fan.
Nice puzzle, Ms. Carroll, thank you very much for the enjoyable Wednesday diversion.
OK so @DavidS. For the specific "editor and contributor" interaction you are correct-- if the ratio accepted is equal to the gender ratio of constructors submitting, Will is blameless assuming quality is averaged. And maybe OFL is trying to blame WS directly for the lack of gender balance, but that is an English major's mistake. The question I always have (having spent my career in the physical sciences I have some amount of expertise here) is: what are the environmental conditions that make men and women equally likely to contribute, and are we sure there isn't an unintentional imbalance there? Some equivalent to locating the safety showers over the urinals in the men's room, thus creating an uncomfortable situation for women chemists, for example. And no, I didn't make that up.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, the puzzle was ok but too easy for a Wednesday, the themer/themed answer relationship was non-crisp,and on balance a B- effort. And if an idea is six years or more than 2000 puzzles old it's new again; who cares. Weird, if the same editorial staff approves the current puzzle and posts the archived ones, though. My two cents.
Oh and PS the captchas are not polarized.
Just catching up on the blog now, as I raced out earlier to get in some outdoor exercise ahead of the polar vortex. I see they didn't lose my first comment after all. Either I was sloppy in looking for it the first time, or they found where they had misplaced it and put it back. But I'm glad I returned to the blog, because I'm horrified that you, Emily, have been accused of plagiarism. What an absolutely outrageous accusation! Who can possibly keep track of what has and hasn't been done in puzzledom, when puzzles come out 365 days a year over decades? It's wonderful that you came on the blog to explain yourself, but it really shouldn't have been necessary.
ReplyDeleteSince I didn't have time earlier to emphasize how much I enjoyed this puzzle, let me say it now. I think the theme is clever, amusing and well-executed. But even more, I appreciate the cleverness and imagination of the cluing. I especially like MAESTRO (54A); NIECE (49D); CAT SITS (59A); ATOM (27A); and FRAT ROW (38D).
I hope you won't wait EONS to create another puzzle. You have talent, and I expect to LOVE ALL you do in the future.
The issue of plagiarism in crosswords was made very real and everyone can look up what real crossword plagiarism looks like. Shortz’ position on reusing themes can be found for those interested. The occurrence of actual plagiarism may be reason for Shortz to reconsider his policy of allowing new versions of already published similar themes, but that is up to him as editor. Personally, I think the accusation is uninformed at best, mean-spirited and contemptible at worst, especially when posted anonymously. Let’s be very clear, this puzzle was edited by a team with full access to a wealth of archival tools and they determined it was original work. Similar themes are permitted after sufficient time as determined by Shortz. If I were a moderator I’d remove the offensive comments.
ReplyDeleteCan someone explain “judge’s seat “ clue???
ReplyDelete@Anon 4:43 p.m. I've only heard it in the phrase "en banc," but apparently, the straight definition of it is "the seat on which judges sit in court." https://www.dictionary.com/browse/banc
ReplyDelete@Z. Good post.
ReplyDeletePlease help! 61-Across. I just don't get it. Thanks.
ReplyDelete@Maddieail
ReplyDeletePack of wolves, herd of cows, murder of crows, parliament of OWLS.
Thanks!!!
DeleteTime posted by Arkansas girl who has been solving for a year and a half: 45:38. Started last night around 9:30 and nodded off several times. Picked it back up today.
ReplyDeleteThere was one anonymous poster who accused (unjustly IMO) the constructor of plagiarism. The rest came to her defense. Let’s not overreact.
ReplyDeleteORANGE you glad you got up and did this?
ReplyDeleteLady Di, the Fruitless Recruiter for ACPT
I cannot TELLALIE: IDIDNOT like this one. I thought the theme was rough, but in a different way than OFL: I LOVEALL the examples except BANANA/SPLITS, because there are no actual grapes in GRAPRLEAVES, no actual lemons in LEMONDROPPS, and no actual oranges in ORANGEPEELS.
ReplyDeleteI am fed up to here with T-bars, T-tops, and TSTRAPS. I hate it when they TAGON a letter like that. Down with musical keys and blood types; off with the heads of B-movies, S-stars, and E-ANYTHING!
INES is a name?? Oh yeah, I recognize it as Inez. I Googled the name for curiosity--and found INES Helene, whom I promptly installed as DOD, so there's that.
EONS and ERAS in the same grid. I tell you, I had to KEEPAT this. Never heard of LAPLATA or AREPAS. Very uneven cluing, including mean ones for ATOM and FRATROW. Sorry, Will, but it looks like you're padding the distaff stats with subpar entries. Bogey--and I'm being nice.
I had to guess but I guessed right for my final entry at the crossing of LAPLATA/ALI/RPI. None of those words were in my wheelhouse. Aside from that, it was a pretty KOOL puzzle.
ReplyDeleteRATRACE ENDS
ReplyDeleteIDIDNOT know ANI wore only TEENIE GRAPELEAVES,
“TAGON no BRA, nor COVERME with clothes,
it’s FRUITLESS to PONDER or KEEPAT such pet peeves,
and so KOOL to LOVEALL my OLDFOES.”
--- INES LAPLATA
Found this one mostly smooth, easy and good, while also agreeing with Rex's parsing of the theme, which is a little off.
ReplyDeleteSplitting the BANANA, dropping the LEMON, peeling the ORANGE, and leaving the GRAPE made them FRUITLESS? Okay, good enough, I guess.
AREPAS were an unknown, but covered by the crosses. Same with LAPLATA and INES.
Sorta liked this one.
Did this one quicker than either Mon or Tues. PONDER that. RPI a gimme, the Engineers sometimes have a good hockey team.
ReplyDeleteCATSIT looks like it’s missing a letter, like H.
In Azerbaijan I had several types of dolma – veggies and/or meat wrapped in GRAPELEAVES.
As found on Righteous Babe Records, yeah baby ANI DiFranco.
Frightfully EZ. KOOL.
@Foggy - just a quick note - RPI is often used in xwords, so it's good to have in your wheelhouse. (Make room...)
ReplyDeleteLady Di
I found this medium and fun. Fun, I say!
ReplyDeleteLike many others, my first thought on getting the revealer was, "what do you mean, FRUITLESS? There's all these fruits." But after some more thought, I got the idea that the fruits "leave" or "go away". Cute.
I enjoyed the solve, several sneaky clues, and generally solid fill. Continuing a good week.
@Lady Argh! My wheelhouse is infested with barnacles. But I'll try to make room for RPI. Cheers!
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Thanks for writing this excellent blog for us. I have gained good stuff fromhis website. I am looking forward to your next blog.
ReplyDeleteIf you searching for a legit financial service .Check it out. Link below.
Buy a card
Unclaimed Mystery Box
legit PayPal transfer dark web
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Not only that, but I am happy to share this post with my friends. Keep it up...