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Literally art-doer / SAT 11-14-20 / New Zealand demonym / 1960s It Girl Sedgwick
Saturday, November 14, 2020
Constructor: Emily Carroll and Erik Agard
Relative difficulty: Easy or Easy-Medium (untimed)
Word of the Day: demonym (55D: New Zealand demonym => KIWI) —
: a word (such as Nevadan or Sooner) used to denote a person who inhabits or is native to a particular place (merriam-webster.com)
• • •
Really liked ROBOT ARM, GPS UNIT, UMPTEEN, NEW MONEY, and TANDOORI, which I like because it's tasty and because it came to me instantly, with no crosses in place, and lastly because it really helped make the Across answers in the NW easy to see—helped me get off to a pretty fast start. I had GEL ERA IPSE and NEIN (wrote in NYET and then instantly corrected it—stupid brain hiccup); these were all in place, along with the very incorrect AYE at 2D: Parlement vote (OUI), and then TANDOORI slid into place and instantly the long Acrosses up there became obvious, which means my AYE error was obvious. And off we went. Not sure about ON GOD (8D: "I swear!"); definitely the clunkiest thing in the grid for me. Maybe it's olde tymey!? I had "BY GOD!" in there for a bit, but TANDOORI made that impossible. I know that the Canadians stand ON GOD for thee, Canada, but that phrase just isn't familiar to me [update: LOL apparently it's "we stand on guard for thee," you can stop emailing me now, thanks :)]. I also didn't know PALO was "stick" in Spanish. Thought EDIE (39D: 1960s "It Girl" Sedgwick) was an EVIE at first, and now can't remember who *is* an EVIE. Surely someone ... ah, EVIE Sands! Such a crossword name.
Definitely fell for the MEDUSA / ATHENA trap at 13D: Mythical figure associated with snakes, but, as with all today's traps and pits and dead ends, this one was easy enough to get out of. Love the clue on KENT (27A: Lane hugger?). Had the "K" and legit thought "... KERB?" But KENT, yes, he does hug Lois LANE from time to time, if memory serves. I just found the overall frame of reference of this puzzle very suitable to me. Literary terms! (DOGGEREL, a gimme) (37D: Crude verse). New Zealand! (my wife is a KIWI) (55D: New Zealand demonym). Diana RIGG! (of "The Avengers"!) So much to love. See you tomorrow ... for the Sunday puzzle ... why can't the Sunday puzzle have so much to love!? There's so much more of it ... sigh. Oh well, I can always hope. See you then.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
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142 comments:
On God isn't olde timey. It's what the kids are saying.
ATONE for “Do makeup?” and “ONGOD,” which I’ve never heard anyone say, were the only clunkers here for me — I found the rest of this really delightful. A lovely start to Saturday!
"ON GOD" is very modern youth slang, particularly in the African-American community. Contemporary of "I swear to God" and "I swear on my mother's grave". I loved it.
Hate the cluing on GPS UNIT - the era of the dash-mounted GPS unit has come and gone. They are either built into the vehicle display or people dash-mount their smartphones. Otherwise a very pleasant puzzle with, as Rex points out, great long answers that pop and facilitate movement.
Glad you've turned off the timer, Rex; maybe you'll have more fun if you just relax and enjoy the ride. Plus, I think your reviews are often biased by how quickly you were able to do them -- you seem to like ones that allow you to break time records and dislike ones that don't -- so now you can focus more on a puzzle's construction and content rather than how quickly you can zip through it.
I thought yesterday was pretty easy, but today was a personal best for Saturday time. I liked the puzzle a lot, with the long answers like 4 and 11 Down and 36A for toeholds, and answers like ERIC IDLE and LIAISING.
I believe the device is for the planets.
1A broughtTHIS to mind.
Canadians stand on guard for thee :>)
I liked this one for the most part - maybe a little simple for a Saturday? MNEMONIC DEVICES was a gimme for that central spanner and set the tone for the rest. The two vertical longs were fantastic - especially SO ITS COME TO THIS. ERIC IDLE is not my favorite Python but a nice addition to the fill. Agree with Rex re: ON GOD - I’ve never used it or heard it. Also on the wonderful clue for KENT. Thought Dudgeon was a type of wood. Odd to say but GPS UNIT leans slightly old. Learned Art doer for GEISHA.
Enjoyable - but too quick for a cold, Saturday morning - finished before my run. Hopefully the Saturday Stumper lives up to its name.
I'm sure I am not the only solver who had the ND in 7 down and confidently wrote in vindaloo instead of tandoori! Quickly fixed though. Enjoyable puzzle.
“Palo” is cognate with palisade, impale, and “beyond the pale.” Think of the sharpened logs that make up the fort walls in F Troop.
Just an FYI: We Canadians “stand on guard” for thee. Standing on God sounds uncomfortable...but maybe He doesn’t mind...who knows.
This was the only gem of the week. After a series of slogs this had the right balance of tricksiness without being glib. Little to know crosswordese. It could have been a tad harder, but I didn't feel like it was a gimme. No obscure proper names. And most importantly, no Naticks.
Interestingly, I saw Natick on a map of the Massachusetts earthquake last week.
A nice medium difficulty Saturday. I learned how to spell LIAISING not that it will stick.
Today I relearned how to spell MNEMONIC. Switching the M's and N's around really makes the precious nanoseconds add up, or would if I cared about such things.
Knew PALO of course, and now you all no what a PALO alto is, but I'd need to do the research to find out why they named it that. Also could have saved myself some grief if I'd noticed the French spelling of "parlement".
EC and AA for the win on a Saturday. Well done y'all. Well done indeed.
Good on Rex for turning off the timer. I just don't the whole speed thing. Perfect way to ruin a perfectly good puzzle. And look how much he enjoyed it as a result! Instead of ranting about Medusa vs Athena (which I also fell for), he just appreciated the author's caginess. The whole bath water thing would have caused an aneurism if he'd been speed solving. Instead of fulminating for 10 sentences about 4D, he appreciated the trickiness of the answer and enjoyed figuring it out.
I also enjoyed the puzzle. Weirdly easy for a Saturday for me.
So far it seems unanimous: very pleasant puzzle. I didn't find it difficult for a Saturday (my time was well below average), but there was a skosh of resistance and some nice crunch, and it was educational as well. How many of you knew, for example, that GEISHA meant "art-doer"? Love it. (Speaking of Japanese, just now I had to look up how you spell "skosh" -- my word, my spelling feels far less secure than it used to -- and discovered that it comes from the Japanese sukoshi, pronounced skoh-shee, meaning "tiny amount". Apparently brought into the English language by servicemen returning home from WWII.)
I'm guessing that the river AVON runs through Bath, England, and so that would explain it for Rex. (Ah, yup -- just looked it up.)
I like unusual letter combinations like IAI and MNE.
Couldn't remember right away if it was IPSE dixit or IPSo dixit, but the P anyway enabled EUROPEAN right away, a nice way to start.
Not a speck of dreck anywhere, as far as I can see. Must reside partly in the puzzle design which allowed only a few 3-letter words. What a terrific offering. Thank you, Emily and Erik.
I always do Saturday puzzles on paper with pencil because, well... I could have used ink today because I only erased one letter. I don't speed-solve but have to say this was the easiest Saturday I can remember. Great clues and answers - I just was in the same zone as the puzzle creators today.
Now if we can just drop the “first thing in the morning” types excuses...
Really easy for a Saturday, about 10 minutes faster than my 26 minute average. And having accidentally seen the constructors' names before solving, I was expecting a much tougher experience. I kept waiting for one of the quadrants to become a sticky situation, but not today.
I'm disappointed in 53D's clue. The addition of (rarity) made it a gimme and in fact is where I started this puzzle.
Thanks, Rex, for explaining the MNEMONIC DEVICES in 36A's clue. I wrote out the MVEMJSUN to see if I could figure it out but the planets did not occur to me. I would write it My Violent Evil Monster Just Scared Us Nuts, Period. I haven't forgotten you, Pluto!!
Good to know that ON GOD is newish; it struck me as odd.
EC and EA, nice job.
@Emily & @Erik, another great Saturday puzzle. On my wavelength all the way. Thanks to you both! :)
In the NW, got "goes----", "oui", "era", "liaising", "so its", down to "tendons", "NIH", "hol-day", and the rest fell in 1/2 my Sat. av. time. Both Fri. and Sat. have been in my wheelhouse and exceptionally easy for me. Love the easy puzzes, but also love the challenging ones. I take whatever they throw at me with gratitude and appreciation for their craftspersonship.
Holdups: none to speak of.
Corrected: 1A "goes over"; 31A "holiday"; 5D "omni".
New (or sorta new) to me: "palo"; "May" (as clued); "on God"; "Levis" (as clued); "Avon" (as clued); "Geisha" (as clued); "Odin" (as clued); "Edie"; "anthem" (as clued); "wars" (as clued); "he's" (as clued); "mnemonic devices" (as clued); "Eric Idle" (as clued); "Athena" (kinda).
Fav. clues/answers: "sashay"; "European"; "Kent"; "mnemonic devices"; "new money"; "gel"; "Avon".
??"I swear!" / "on God"??
Peeves: none today; yesterday's was enough. LOL
Learned: Mnemonic for the planets.
Bottom line: lots of tricky, clever cluing, but the crosses were all there to make the fill easy to suss out. Lots of fun!
California roll: my favorite sushi before going vegan.
"Eric Idle" performs 'Always Look on the Bright Side of Life' - The Graham Norton Show - BBC One
RuPaul Teaches Jack Whitehall To "Sashay" Away | The Graham Norton Show
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
Cruised through most of this as if it were Monday. Getting all three grid spanners quickly certainly helps. I’m undecided on all the legislative voting. Two is okay, three feels a little too too. I do know how I feel about “stick” in a clue and STICKY SITUATION: that’s infelicitous.
My Achilles Heel was the SW. Neither my Spanish nor my Japanese are that good, I forgot Silas MARNER was Eliot, the PLATTE disappeared, “Rising” wasn’t moving me UPWARD to a finish, and the best I could do with National Prayer Day was “first half of the year, so jAn, MAr, or MAY. I decided that MAY was likeliest because the Y ending made sense for “formal.” Then I remembered PLATTE (I briefly wondered if Idaho had a Potato river flowing into the Missouri) giving me —TH-M for the Japanese clue. ANTHEM seemed more likely than usTHeM, uncovering UPWARD and the corner finally fell. I think I spent twice as long on those nine answers, even starting with UMPTEEN and RETINA, as I did on the rest of the puzzle. Looking at it now, failing the 19th century lit test was the crux. If I had remembered MARNER everything else would have come as easily as the rest of the puzzle.
Do a deer, is A TONE. I want to like that clue but I can’t.
The infamous Davis of Hollywood (5) clue. How many can we name? You can add just 1. I’ll start: Sammy
List so far
GEENA
Sammy
Hand up for chuckling at the Rexian Mondegreen. All our northern brethren are either rolling their eyes or ROFL.
When I started this last night I could barely keep my eyes open.
And then I saw the byline and just prayed for Death to take me. Okay, that might be a bit of an exaggeration, but... I was in no mood or condition.
And then it went by quicker than yesterday. What on earth? Not only that, but it was fun!
I have a MNEMONICDEVICE(S): Big Dogs Dig Great Holes So Simply
And yes, I'm just gonna let it hang there, so Suffaaah, Pope!
Today I read Rex before commenting because I was reasonably sure he wouldn't color my opinion - and I was right.
Same temporary SOITC... before SOITSC and I didn't know the MNEMONIC reference either, and then duh-slapped myself.
(Although "brain hiccup"?? These morning solves/write-ups have made him so dainty.)
AAANYWAY, either Emily Carroll is responsible for this puzzle's wavelength, or I might be starting to catch on to Erik Agard just a tad.
Whatever. It was a pure delight solve-wise and content-wise.
Brilliant! Many thanks to you both!
🧠🧠.5 (for a Saturdee, that's nuts!)
🎉🎉🎉🎉
@Z
I read 29D differently: when you ATONE for something, you make up for your past sin. Nothing to do with Rodgers and Hammerstein.
I just googled ON GOD. A Kanye West video. An Urban Dictionary top entry* telling me it means someone is telling the truth. A link to the Kanye lyrics. A religious tract (so a different usage) and a Young Dolph video. Top five hits and @Anon5:46 appears to be spot on.
The Canadian anthem is "on guard" on "on God"
I am a Canadian so wanted to point that out
Put in AQUA for 23D, feeling clever. Bath was a Roman town, and Latin for water is AQUA. Oh, well.
Also, it’s not tthat AVON, as in Shakespeare’s Stratford-upon. It's another river of the same name.
Also also, this AVON, the one through Bath, originates in Chipping Sodbury.
Did not know Diana RIGG had died, nor that she was in Game of Thrones.
@Wit - Gotta be careful. One person's "no obscure proper names and no Naticks" will be another person's GEENA crossing RIGG, or PLATTE crossing PALO, or who the devil is this EDIE person?
@Z:
GEENA
Sammy
Essie
Yes, but what if you can't remember the MNEMONIC DEVICE? Or if you can remember the MNEMONIC DEVICE, but can't remember what it refers to? Or, if like me, you've never been taught the MNEMONIC DEVICE and haven't the foggiest idea what it refers to?
I guess you come here and find out. Which I will as soon as I finish writing this.
This was fun. Filled with delightful stuff like UMPTEEN and SASHAY and LIAISING and DOGGEREL and ROBOT ARM and STICKY SITUATION. And the clues were so interesting. Loved the WARS quote (22A); loved discovering what GEISHA means (well, I guess there are many different kinds of arts, right?); was interested to find out that ATHENA was associated with snakes (I thought it was MEDUSA). And I learned the Japanese ANTHEM, though I've already forgotten it.
As Saturdays go, I found it pretty easy, but I'm not complaining. Junk-free, proper name-free, fairly clued and very lively. Nice collaboration.
The East half played much easier than the West. The start was in the SE.
DOGGEREL was a gimmie after limerick failed. NEW MaNna and EaR NEW MONEY and EYE. cornea before RETINA for that matter. STICKY SITUATION only spanner that came quickly. Misplaced the S in its Eastern equivalent.
RIGG and GEENA. Two of faves. Of course Bette.
Geena, Sammy, Essie, Ossie. Let's keep this going! Who's next?
*For those who eschew the Urban Dictionary, there’s a thumbs up/down ranking system. Top entries are the ones with the most favorables. In a jerk free world this system would be a pretty good assessment of an entry’s currency, but since Urban Dictionary is crowd-sourced and there are jerks, it is best to accept these rankings with at least a smidge of skepticism.
@TTrimble8:48 - I like your reading just as heartily as I like mine. The puzzle seems to have been easy for many, so I guess some clues had to be toughened up, but either way that one is not so much tough as it is a streeeetch.
Ooh, Essie is a new one for my list.
@Albatross Shell - I’m throwing a flag because you didn’t copy and paste the whole list so far:
GEENA
Sammy
Essie
Bette
Ossie
Anon is right! Everything old is new again...
@Z -- I typed in Bette and Ossie and then didn't press "Send" because I was only allowed one. I didn't want to break the rules, but I also didn't want to self-censor.
Did Miles ever work in Hollywood?
Diana Rigg was a big part of my viewing life because she hosted "Mystery" on PBS. Can you identify who the host was before her? I had to look it up because I didn't remember, but afterwards I said "Of course").*
*Hint: It's not Alistair Cook.
How is this anything but easy? Set a Saturday personal best of 6:23. Never heard ONGOD either but got it on crosses.
@Teedmn 8:26 AM
Thx for adding poor little Pluto to the mnemonicperiod :)
@Z 8:38 AM
Thx for mondegreen, and to Rex for clearing up the ??"I swear!" / "on God"?? mystery. 😉 "layd him on the green" - No worries, mate.
@Frantic Sloth 8:38 AM
I did the puz as soon as it hit the app (7:00 PM pst), so "sleepy eyes" hadn't visited yet. Was relieved to get it in 17, as I usually do start to drowse shortly thereafter. As for your mnemonic, I bit (pardon the pun), and couldn't get ahold of anything chewy, so there's this: "Big Dogs Dig Great Holes So Simply" - Tanks fer nuttin LOL
I too had "SOITC", but went down South to see if any of the crosses worked and soon figured out my error.
@TTrimble 8:48 AM
Same take here. Got that one right off.
@Gurufateh Kaur Khalsa 9:07 AM
Go Canucks!
@TTrimble 9:23 AM
I was going to add Bette, but just hit "refresh" before posting and saw that @Z 9:33 AM had beat me to the punch bowl. 😉 - So, here's one of my favorites : Alvin Davis.
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
@Z
GEENA
Sammy
Essie
Bette
Ossie
Ann B. (Alice in Brady bunch but what was another noted role in early TV? Her character and name of show?
@Z 933am
If I can use that flag as a mask, I'll keep it. Otherwise, I'll toss it back st you for not acknowledging @TTimble was correct. You misread the clue to the correct answer. I didn't mention it cause of the piling on rule. You make your rules, I'll make mine.
"Athena was dating Poseidon, and then she saw Medusa kissing Poseidon, so then she got really mad at Medusa and cursed her."
------- explained by my 9 year old.
Get ready, people. These kids are set to run circles around us. Mine is doing so already, and I couldn't probably solve without her.
This dang puzzle. I basically had a DNF, I didn't and still don't know about chill = nip. Napflix and chill was the only thing I could relate to there, so Diana became a Ragg, and I got stuck.
The cheating allows me to perpetuate a 27 day streak, my alltime record. Is the puzzle way easier? Or am I just lucky to have a crack team of solvers alongside me now with COVID shutting us all in.
I asked the fam, "Who is Eric Idle?" and they both started saying, "Nee....neee...." I am not one bit clear what this is all about.
Want to go ride my bike, but there's snow on the ground here, and it is supposed to snow 3 more feet or so. Good thing I haven't been riding, or I'd really be jonesing.
Count me in. Great puzzle with some thought-provoking clues and multilingual challenges, but overall it played fast. My only complaint is it was a bit "dry" (as a county) with only YEASTY to quench my thirst. Perhaps tomorrow I'll get a bit more wine and cheese!
@Z - Nancy nee Davis
@Nancy - one of the joys of public television. The great Vincent Price hosted in the 80s - I don’t think there was anyone else in between but I could be wrong.
Hey All !
This one started off like a typical SatPuz for me. Went through all the Acrosses, and got precisely... nothing! Thought, "Oh, boy, here we go with an hour or so solve!" Then went through the Downs, managing to get a bunch. Thought, "Huh, some nice answers to build off, maybe 45 minutes-ish?" Ended up with probably a personal record time, if not, it's close, I'll check after posting. Surprised myself at how easy I found it. Finished in 18:01, as in 18 minutes. Dang!
Have to confess to my one-letter DNF, however. Dang it, I was so close, but my not-knowing-all-things-sophisticated got me again! The Eliot hero was my unknown (well, the Spanish stick and the High dungeon were unknowns, also) but having W_ATH for the dungeon got me the R, but the last letter in was O, giving me PoLO/MoRNER. Had to Goog for MARNER. Figured PoLO could be correct, because PoLO is a stick, right? Or at least used in a POLO game? Probably not...
Fell into the constructors pre-planned traps. aye-OUI, medusA-ATHENA, kyra-EDIE (is that Kyra's mother?) Agua-AVON, toGOD-ONGOD (thanks to the explainers on that one, kids these days! :-)), sun-MAY.
Have two obscure (well, at least not well known) Davis' to add:
GEENA
Sammy
Essie
Bette (surprising she was the fourth one mentioned)
Ossie
Josie (of the sitcom Charles in Charge)
Julia (of BBC's Nighty Night)
So an overall cool SatPuz. Save the remaining scant brain cells for other adventures! Gonna go PEEK AT the SB to see if I can get s'more. Still in awe of @bocamps prowess at it. y.d -5, of which I really should've got 3 of them. It seems lately I've been missing easy ones. Burnt out? Alas.
No F's - Alas again.
RooMonster
DarrinV
Well, here's to me and my unfounded hubris. Seems everyone found this easy - especially for a Saturdee. Oh, well.
Add my voice to those approving of Rex's metamorphosis from late-night curmudgeon to early morning pleasure-solving dainty-man. Great move, Rex!
@pabloinnh 753am and others -- what is it with these towns named for sticks? PALO alto, Baton Rouge...others?
@Z 838am Well, my first response to Davis of Hollywood was Viola. So tack her onto the parade.
Well this didn't fancy my tickle as much as I wanted it to. It sorta had that "pull my finger and see what you get" effect. I might've felt that way at LIAISING. So instead of doing what any ASTUTE GEISHA might do, I pondered that usage. Would I ever use that word in everyday parlance? Nah....I hate the present participle.
BUT.....No Google today and THAT alone should make me happy. I danced with the long downs and they let me lead. I didn't step on my partners toes so that made me happy on my way to the spiced punch bowl.
Lets see...What held me up a tad? DOGGEREL. Yep. I don't know my crude verses. I had DOG to begin with and thought OH Lordy this is another one of those pups ending with an oodle. Oh...wait...it's another one of those words I don't know how to pronounce and would never use in a sentence because it would sound snooty. My absolute RIP RIGG to the rescue. The PEEKAT helped as well.
@pablito...PALO Alto is named after the Redwood trees.
So I finished with DRESSY ERIC and spent my IDLE time looking at the puzzle. I loved the clue for KENT. I use to smoke some those things but I gave them up for lent. ON GOD.
Remember....Able Bodied Seamen Catch Harry Pirates.
******Sob Story Alert*****
My new avatar is me reminding people to PLEASE wear a mask. My dear, sweet 80 year old neighbor is now hospitalized with COVID. Her grandkids, whom she hadn't seen since March, came for a quick visit. They thought they were safe. They weren't. She's very ill. California is now in a purple tier. I just hope Trump doesn't do to us what he's done to New York. You know.....you can't have the vaccine because you didn't vote for me......We all need a HOLY DAY....just be careful. The turkey can wait.
P.S. My son gave me those EYE glasses and I know I look like an alien. Fun, huh?
"OR the cocktail count? On God! No!"
“Turned off the timer”!!!
Our little Mikey is growing up! That’s so cool. Savor the experience.
@Nancy - I won't give the answer away so others can think, but drop my own hint. Our own Gill I has worked with that host, and described that person as her "absolute favorite".
@TTrimble 848am Thank you! I had no idea what @Z was talking about. 🤣🤣🤣
And I can't believe I forgot Bette Davis!! Sheesh!
@kitshef 913am I believe EDIE Sedgwick was one of those Warhol girls and also some sort of cousin to Kyra. I could look it up for clarity and elaboration, but already did my homework for the week.
@Nancy 945am Hmmm. I know I'm gonna do another duh-slap when the answer comes...and I probably would have guessed Alistair Cook, so thanks for the hint.
@Albatross - totally fair point on proper nouns. Although, in this case I'd say most were pretty inferable (and palo isn't technically PN). If you couldn't get Geena/Rigg, you'd be left with *eena/Ri*g. Can't think of another letter that would work.
I'm working my backward through all the Thu/Fri/Sat NYTs and so my perspective may be skewed currently. Platte and Geena have shown up a lot in the last 2 decades.
I am surprised at the comments on Edie. She was a big star in Warhol's factory, and there have been a number of references to her in movies and music (check out her Wikipedia page). Also - a very New Yorky. Personally glad to see Edie not clued as Sopranos star again.
@Frantic I love Viola Davis. That series where she teaches law students to kill people? Soooo good.
Easy-medium and easier than yesterday’s for me. The 15s are terrific and Jeff gave it POW. Liked it a bunch!
Erasures = vinDalOo before TANDOORI and hIP before NIP.
@z
GEENA
Sammy
Bette
Oh, my, what are we up to here. Reminds me of the game we used to play during long road trips where you take turns adding to a list of names in alphabetical order, each time reciting the current list:
Alvin/Ann B., Bette, ..., Essie, ..., GEENA, ..., Josie/Julia/Jefferson, ..., Mac, Nancy, Ossie, ..., Sammy, ..., Viola, ...
Love the Ann B. addition. Who of us of a certain generation can't name all the principal actors of the Brady Bunch? I mean, Supreme Court Justices may come and go, but the Brady Bunch reigns eternal.
@TTrimble (8:11). You expressed my opinion of the puzzle beautifully. Nice to have you back.
Also loved Nancy’s comment. She hit all the things I liked.
A rough measure of crunch for me is the ratio of mystery clue/entries to the total number. Today there were ten, about 15% of the 70. I’m comfortable there. Last Saturday defeated me - - it had about 25%.
It’s no easier to memorize this MNOMIC than to memorize the names of the planets. The ones I know are HOMES and Every Good Boy Does Fine.
Never saw “domonym” before. I suppose that it comes from the root behind “demographic.”
Right - no more humblebrags.
Nice puzzle. PB time, half previous average. Thanks EC & EA!
Bette
GEL? OUI! And off we go, on a grid pleasure cruise. I particularly liked SO IT'S COME TO THIS as a complement to STICKY SITUATION. Also liked DANDER (as in "getting your DANDER up") leading to WRATH. Aptly Greek hubris led me to write in the "obvious" medusA, my having associated ATHENA only with an owl. Nice that she shares the puzzle with ODIN and his ravens.
Really enjoyed this puzzle. Nice to end this week on a high note.
As soon as I saw Rex' "untimed" I was looking forward to what the excuse was going to be. Instead, an intentional change-up, which seems to have done wonders for his puzzling experience. I would love to see him keep up the experiment and see how it changes his enjoyment level.
Hope everyone has a great weekend, except for the "Stable Genius".
@Z 8:38 AM
Sorry, Z, I just re-read your original "Davis List" post, and now understand that the complete list is to be re-posted with each addition: slow on the uptake, am I. 🤔
So, to "atone", here's the list (hope I didn't miss any):
Using @RooMonster 10:08 AM's list as a base and (adding Alvin & Viola); not sure about @ ChuckD 10:08 AM's "Nancy nee Davis".
GEENA
Sammy
Essie
Bette (surprising she was the fourth one mentioned)
Ossie
Josie (of the sitcom Charles in Charge)
Julia (of BBC's Nighty Night)
___
Alvin (Seattle Mariners great)
Viola
@RooMonster 10:08 AM
You had great run; my streak has been mostly on the short-list ones. What goes around comes around. Keep the faith!
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
@Sami 1026am I know - right? In Meryl Streep's acceptance speech (for the SAG award for "Doubt"), she said "Viola Davis - my God somebody giver her a movie!" I knew then she'd be one to watch.
I cringed when I saw Erik Agard because his puzzles generally give me fits, but apparently Emily is a good influence because today was quite pleasant. I laughed out loud at the clue for KENT and loved the planetary long middle cross and long downs. Saturdays can sometimes seem like work, but this is a great way to start the day.
I’m glad Rex turned off the timer as it seems to have improved his outlook considerably but I’ve been saying this for years now. No need to ALIENATE anyone over hitting a little snag now and then. Just relax and 46 Down.
@Wit1033am
I was making no point about proper nouns, just that RIGGINS GEENA were to of my favorite actresses. Maybe you got confused because I left out the word "before" due to my inept re-editing earlier on. But do not see your reading. But no problemo, just to offend some folks.
Liked it overall, but... OUI, NEIN and AYES, all in one puzzle and all clued by referring to legislatures? And STICKYSITUATION with "stick" in a clue? These seem like glaring flaws even if not mortal sins, and I am surprised not to see Rex mention them!
ON GOD SO ITS COME TO THIS? Without a Twitter account or the interest in having one, I find that neologism so typical of the Agard/Newboy wheelhouse disjunction...love his grids and clues, but almost always have a bleeding scalp for those couple of things I just don’t get. Brilliant long character strings & Emily’s AVON clue alone justify this puzzles POW award, so congratulations on filling that cycle slot and giving us another dynamic duo to look forward to in days to come.
Surprisingly smooth day solving even with the Medusa/ATHENA stumble Rex noted. I vote SI for the mini-theme of foreign electoral choice though I’m not happy with PALO—maybe I need to stick to my Duolingo MNEMONIC DEVICES more carefully! A great way to start a blustery day. Hope others liked as well🤒
In the Canadian National Anthem called O Canada, we Canadiand sing “stand on guard for thee”.
Really enjoyed this one. Never understood the whole timer obsession so am glad @rex is letting go of that. Now hungry for tandoori.
Russell Baker
My good deed for the day. I bring you straight from the Wordplay Blog comments section two alternate MNEMONIC devices for the planets:
My Very Energetic Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas.
Many Very Eager Men Jump South Under New Pajamas.
You're welcome.
@albatross shell
Sorry about that! Mea culpa. I actually meant to respond to @kitshef
Kristin DAVIS from Sex And The City.
@GILL: I’m so sad to hear the news about your neighbor. You’ve mentioned her so often that I feel like I know her. Hoping and praying she recovers fully.
@Albie - I did say I liked @TTrimble's reading as much as mine.
@bocamp - I never actually made it one of the rules because it just seemed obvious to me that we'd need the whole list each time to keep track. Now I can't figure out who came up with Viola first, whether or not anyone thinks the period in Ann B. Davis counts as a letter or whether or not @Roo is a rule breaker by adding 2. The Davis Chaos has begun.
Saw this in my Science News and thought the music and science types here might like it.
As a teen in the Sixties, can't say I was ever aware of Edie Sedgwick. She doesn't sound or look familiar. But then Andy Warhol, if I heard of him at all at, say, 16, would have been that weird old guy with the Campbell's soup cans. Also thought Marilyn was a kind of fat, overly made-up old lady trying way too hard to look sexy. Couldn't understand the fuss. Not a rabid fan, but Twiggy and the Beatles everybody heard of. Edie who? Oh, the joys of youth, when you're sure of everything, except yourself, and know everything! Have a happy day, everyone. Only two months to go! The puzzle? Nailed it! 😊 - newbie
Either I’m getting better or the themeless puzzles are too easy. I think I’m getting better.
@GILL I 1012am Oh no!! That's so awful about your neighbor. Let's hope some of your boundless energy and strength have rubbed off on her. Poor thing. 😥
ON GOD? Inaugural notation, to m&e. But, that's ok. Bring it. ON GOD? … EN GARDE, puz!
day-um. M&A thought he was gettin pretty NYTPuz-seasoned, when he cut thru this whole Saturday-strength rodeo like it was nano-second butter. But, nooo -- lotsa folks here had the same moo-cow eazy-E experience.
Them fillins were just plain smoother than snot. They tried to make up for that with a few ?-marked and otherwise frisky clues, but still no big ornery STICKYSITUATION was created.
staff weeject pick: HES. Apostrophe meat. Primo weeject stacks in the NW & SE, which helped make things easier for the M&A, right outta the solvequest chute. (First two entries splatzed in: OUI & ERA.)
@RP: M&A got TANDOORI offa just the T-. Am tolerable impressed, that U could get it offa nuthin at all, tho. ONGOD-ly, dude. [ … And congratz, on weanin yerself off the eggtimer.]
GPS UNIT? har. This may be the most desperate X-unit answer in X-word history. Althooo ... back in 1979 a puz did have a SCISSOR LIFT UNIT answer, I'll grant. WHOD UNIT sounded even worse, until M&A mulled it over for a few nanoseconds.
Thanx for gangin up on us and takin it easy on us, Emily darlin & Erik dude. Luved yer {Lane hugger?} clue. Not so much on the {Bath water?} clue.
Masked & Anonymo5Us
So it's come (down) to this:
**gruntz**
@Z 11:28 AM
Haha, what's obvious to others is often not to me; I'm workin' on it, tho. 😉 Here's the complete list so far (I think) 🤞
Geena
Sammy
Essie
Bette
Ossie
Josie
Julia
Ann B.
Viola
Alvin
Btw, thx for the "sound" link. :)
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
Just a quick thumbs up for @ Postradamus whose handle I just noticed in review of previous posts. Can hardly wait until s/he has an avatar image to go with such a brilliant choice for online ID! Would have emailed my delight directly, but no contact on the profile; as I’ve said before, that’s a choice I can understand though it does limit engagement. And good thoughts to @Gil & her neighbors 😷
Oh, and if we were at all hep to the kid lingo, Justin Bieber sings "On God," on this track, which he also performed recently on SNL. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWSSye6_eVo
Let's just face it. This is crap, and we are old.
Good one! Difficult enough to make me pause but clever enough to allow enough fair clues to get my answers to the hard ones. yay!
Several 👍🏽S 🧩❤️🧩
@bocamp
No, no, you're missing some. See my post of 10:33 AM. Namely: Jefferson, Mac, and I think Nancy should be added, esp. in view of daughter Patti (which is new).
Now if only we had another M, and a convincing U, we could build the world's worst planet MNEMONIC. :-)
Speaking of which, @Nancy's mnemonics were fantastic, especially the second (so much more memorable than the usual, at least for those of a certain cast of mind).
I suggested to Rex a couple of weeks ago that he might enjoy the puzzles more if he'd stop timing them. I'm not taking credit for his good mood today but after starting to read the blog I looked ahead to make sure he wrote it and didn't have a sub! What a good cup of coffee, a leisurely pace - and, yes, an election - can do, huh? Wishing good health and recovery to the elderly neighbor...and everyone...and a successful vaccine soon. - newbie
I came close but I didn't finish it (OMG an Erik Agard & company puzzle!) but I enjoyed the journey.
Palo Alto (Tall Stick) named for a giant redwood tree seen there.
I am 68 and have read this column and comments for several years. I don't agree with many of the political views and shake my head at the hypocritical bashing of people and things that are etched in history regardless of attempts to erase them. One glaring example is the allowance of rappers names whose lyrics are vile to say the least. But the continuous praise by a certain faction of this forum of Rex's reviews when he clearly is feeding his own ego and pushing a horrible political agenda kills me. My only conclusion is that Rex is lobbying hard for Will Shortz's job and using every opportunity to throw mostly unfounded criticism at his work. And these obsequious sycophants that write what they probably think are clever and intelligent reviews in this forum are merely auditioning for Rex's website rights if and when he does usurp that coveted title of Editor. My mother started me on puzzles when I was 10 years old and will continue to read this only to keep reminding myself that intelligent people aren't always wise and can be misled and for me to remain humble and thankful.
@Z
Har! I'm a rebel without a cause! (Or without a clue, actually!)
The DAVIS Challenge was a famous five-letter actor, so Ann B. and Kristin are out (although fine actors.)
@Sami
Got a hearty LOL at your "Let's just face it. This is crap, and we are old."
@bocamp
Just keep getting your 0, and I'll celebrate like I got it too!
RooMonster Is There A Famous David Davis Out There? Guy
Shakespearean DOGGEREL --
KING: How well he's read, to reason against reading!
DUMAIN: Proceeded well, to stop all good proceeding!
LONGAVILLE: He weeds the corn, and still let's grow the weeding.
BEROWNE: The spring is near, when green geese are a-breeding.
DUMAIN: How follows that?
BEROWNE: Fit in his place and time.
DUMAIN: In reason nothing.
BEROWNE: Something then in rhyme.
LONGAVILLE: Berowne is like an envious sneaping frost that bites the first-born infants of the spring.
-- "Love's Labour's Lost," Act I, scene 1. This play has the most strung-together rhyming couplets of the Shakespeare plays. It is a lesser-known farce about scholarship, romance, and what it means to pledge. Well worth the time for some of its characters -- doppleganger variations on Falstaff, Benedick and Beatrice, etc. The conclusion is complex and poignant for all the silliness that leads up to it.
It also contains the notorious, invented word "Honorificabilitudinitatibus," spoken by a clown. Unscramble this mouthful of an anagram and you get a Latin phrase suggesting that Francis Bacon wrote Shakespeare's works -- a theory mostly discredited since it first emerged in the 19th c. So why do I keep coming back to it? It is so half-baked and plausible when viewed out of the corner of the eye.
Answer to my Ann B Davis trivia: She played Shultzy, assistant to Bob Collins (Bob Cummings) in the Bob Cummings Show.
Trivia chain-Bob's nephew was played by Dwayne Hickman who had his own show as the title character in The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis. Dobie's pal was Maynard G. Krebs played by Bob Denver. Then I think Denver had his own show maybe. Kidding! I trust most of you know what that was.
Rex says it’s themeless and I suppose it is but there is a thread running through it involving votes by foreign legislative bodies.
I’m likely not the first to point out that in the Canadians National Anthem “We stand on GUARD for thee”. And now I know that ONGOD is really a thing. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen it (and I’ve never heard it. Although this puzzle was a challenge it was a good challenge. I loved how well I did in getting the long clues. Although STICKY I got near the end I had Situation very early thanks to that ION at the end. This was an excellent puzzle. Thank you to the person who created it. And so lovely to see Diana RIGG appear.
Whoops! I missed the five-letter condition in the Davis challenge. So scratch on Jefferson and Mac. Sorry! (And partial apologies to @bocamp. What's that I hear? No worries?) But maybe Nancy and Patti can stand.
NIP took me a while, but should not have, since here in Sonoma County, temps have been close to freezing, and there has definitely been a NIP in the air.
I had "pass by" before SASHAY. So I finished the puzzle there, having learned that a GEISHA is an art maker, and laughed at the KENT answer, and said to myself, "This is the finest puzzle I have done in many weeks." Amazed but glad to see OFL agrees.
A GEISHA, BTW, is not supposed to sleep with her customer. She is there to entertain him and charm him, over as many a cup of expensive tea as she can manage. Her very elegant clothing (a SARI?) remains buttoned up.
Surprised it took me so long to find WARM but that elegant clue for WARS escaped me for a while. Fortunately I knew the Bath river is the AVON. The reason you see it all over Britain is that AVON was the British/Celtic word for "river". And a much nicer word for "river" than they one they have up in York, the Ouse. Which also means "water", it is thought, and there are three or four Ouses in England.
As for IDLE, he is definitely one of my four favorite Pythons.
I did not like NEW MONEY (Fresh bread?)
NEW MONEY is a reference to “Old money vs new money,” Vieux riche vs Nouveux riche.
“Fresh bread” would be something someone might say if they win $1K in a scratch off, or if they’re spending the first amount of their just-cashed paycheck. “This rounds on me, I got fresh bread.” Maybe?
“NEW MONEY” is an adjective for someone who just became rich (with the classist derogatory implication that they do not have the taste or sense to go along with their newfound purchasing power).
“NEW MONEY” is an adjective for people in a particular economic situation. “Fresh bread” is a reference to the money itself.
If a family experiences a life-changing windfall and moves into the rich neighborhood and builds a gaudy eyesore of a mansion, no one would say “Oh, they’re obviously fresh bread.”
That is my nit, and I am going to pick it.
Otherwise I loved this puzzle.
@TTrimble 12:23 PM
Just refreshed the blog comments before sending this and saw your latest post. I didn't edit mine, tho, just to show we're on the same page. LOL
Mea culpa, and thank you; that's why I added the ("I think") caveat. We can't include "Jefferson" or "Mac", as they won't meet the 50D 5 letter requirement, but we'll get Patti and Nancy (w/nee) on there. That last one will be up to @Z to rule on, tho. He seems to have allowed the period in Ann B. so, we'll have to wait on see. LOL
Geena
Sammy
Essie
Bette
Ossie
Josie
Julia
Ann B.
Viola
Alvin
Patti
Nancy (nee)
Hopefully, I haven't missed any. 🤞
@GILL I. 10:12 AM
My thoughts and prayers are with your dear neighbor and her family. 🙏
@Roo
You're too kind. This one looks tough. 🤔
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
Miles Davis of Hollywood!
@TTrimble12:57 - “Davis of Hollywood” (5) is the movie version of “Key of random musical work” (4) or (6) where all the clue does is narrow the set a little from 26^5 possibilities (I think I got that math right 26 possible 1st letters x 26 2nd x 26 3rd x 26 4th x 26 5th letters, so 26^5). I think the other lengths are actually a wee bit easier.
@TTrimble 12:23 PM
Oops … forgot to add: "no worries, mate!"
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
Jim, If that's your idea of "humble and thankful, I'd hate to see your idea of sanctimonious and disgruntled. Trying not to judge, but you make a lot of assumptions in speaking with such dubious authority.
Another oops … gotta disqualify my contribution to the "Davis List"; as far as I can tell, the closest Alvin Davis came to Hollywood, was when the Mariners played in SoCal, although he did live in nearby Riverside. LOL. I'll add @Z's "Miles" to the list, tho.
Geena
Sammy
Essie
Bette
Ossie
Josie
Julia
Ann B.
Viola
Patti
Nancy (nee)
Miles
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
For sure continue morning solving. So nice to read positive comments
Easiest Friday ever. I'd say I was getting better, but the long answers just fell like rotten timber.
Apparently I'm the only one who could only think of T.S. Eliot, and figured the hero must be one of those cats (when Prufrock wouldn't fit). I needed most of the crosses to realize it was George. All part of the fun of solving.
I thought having OUI and NEIN cross EUROPEAN was a feature, not a bug--with AYES way across the channel.
@Sami, I don't think anyone has answered you. One would more commonly hear "it's nippy today," meaning it's chilly -- but one could also say "there's a NIP in the air" or "there's a chill in the air."
@Gill, best wishes for your neighbor's recovery.
My wife used to have an office up on our third floor; when I was on the first floor and wanted to ask her something I would use the intercom feature on our cordless phones, and she would always say< "SO IT'S COME TO THIS when she picked up. I thought those days were gone, but she just called my cell phone to ask me if there was part of a lamb chop left over from last night.
@bocamp - It was @Nancy who asked about Miles Davis, I only checked out his Wikipedia page and found a justification.
Alvin did a play a half season at the end of his career with the California Angels... Seems as legit as “Do makeup?” for ATONE or A TONE. (@Frantic Sloth - as in Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Ti Do - so Do is made up of A musical TONE - @TT is probably right but I’ve grown to like my reading more as the day has progressed).
Are we done with a mere dozen? There’s 4 new to me names on the list so I’m just betting there are at least a couple more out there.
@Z
Do you get a commission based on the number of comments? ;-)
****SATURDAY STUMPER ALERT*****
Just thought I'd point out that if you haven't tried a Newsday Saturday Stumper, today's is a good one to start with. Good and tough but nowhere near as full of misdirects as this thing can be and often is.
My contribution to the Davis clan has to be #44. Ernie Davis, the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy. Not an actor but there were a couple of movies made about his life, which ended far too soon at 23. A great football player and apparently a fine man.
There's a documentary about music industry bigwig Clive Davis.
I threw tandoori in with no crosses, then changed it to vindaloo, still with no crosses, then took everything out completely til I got some crosses! The double "o" revealed the correct option to me!
Spent too much time on SB, so got to this late. It seemed sloggy, but my time said otherwise. Some very nice wordplay, so lovely grid.
@ JC66 3:13 That thought has crossed my mind on several occasions. But so what? Some people like to comment; some like to show off how smart they are; some just like the faux sense of "community" that develops around a blog.
I do like the new & improved rex these days.
I made an earlier comment this morning that I don't think made it past the moderator regarding why his (rex's) mood seems so much more cheerful.
Z 3:00 PM
Didn't remember the stint with the Angels. Still a pretty big stretch, and I thank you for the face-saving out. I say thank you, you say "no worries". LOL But, what I really like is your "do" / "a tone" take. Very creative thinking, and who's to say what's right or wrong? I went with the "atone" version, but I like yours even more. Do, a female deer … :) - And, I apologize to @Nancy for the mis-attribution for "Miles". :) My reading and comprehension skills are very much a work in progress. 🤓
@JC66 3:13 PM 😂
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-16
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
@GILL - so sad to hear about your neighbor. Please let us know how she is doing.
@JC66 - My find function says there are already 17 @Z’s today, so I feel like I’ve been pretty restrained. 😎😎
@Joe Dipinto!
Geena
Sammy
Essie
Bette
Ossie
Josie
Julia
Ann B.
Viola
Patti
Nancy (nee)
Miles
Clive
@Z
I was jocularly referring to your flogging the DAVIS contest, not the number of times you posted.
Kimono not Sari
Kimono
Have you ridden in an Uber lately?
Thanks!
Palo Alto
The Eliot clue allowed me some reminiscence-time about "Murder in the Cathedral" - that was Thomas Becket, I thought to myself, but how unlikely is that for an Agard clue? Pondered a while more before remembering George.
On a six day streak �� not looking forward to Sunday ��
7:56 pm Rex finally apologizes to Canada.
@Graham 7:35 PM
If you preview your post, your emojis will turn to ??'s. I would suggest before you preview that you copy your post, then after your preview, close the comment window, open a new one and paste your copy. There may be other ways you can accomplish your goal, but that's what worked for me after @Z explained why the emojis were turning to ??'s. 😊
@Z 👍
___
-4
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
Dang @Z, only 18 posts today? Its good to keep restraining yourself like that! 😋😂🤣🤣✌️
@Z
To quote your first post:
"Do a deer, is A TONE. I want to like that clue but I can’t".
By your second post you liked it "as heartily" as the ATONE explanation w/o reference to which was the likely intended explanation. I had a feeling you were going to STICK to your God and your guns, I mean your do(e) and your note, on this one. Well, I do appreciate your analysis a bit more than I did before. Better no. Intended no. I won't pick up the flag, but I will wait until I hear from the replay officials in New York.
I would throw a flag on Ann B. and a couple of of the names on the list on an of-Hollywood basis. But I defer. Your game your rules.
I don’t get it; I did most of this puzzle in three short sittings, but was stuck forever on wrath/Marner. I remember Silas Marner, but “wrath” for “high dudgeon?” Doesn’t help that I kept thinking “dungeon” instead “dudgeon.”
@Graham 7:35 PM
I forgot to wish you good luck on Sunday's Puz. 🤞
Peace 平和 Pokój शांति Frieden Paix Friðr ειρήνη Pax 🕊
I liked this one a lot - got through a Sat. with just a few lookups and in normal time, so medium for me. I'm in the Medusa before Athena camp. Took a while to sort it out.
I'm a Killing Eve fan and "Angel of the Morning" is in it, but with a Dutch singer. The tune is instantly recognizable but the only word I understand is Ange. Still, beautifully done.
Yup! Nu timey
I’m a daily solver of the Times (of London) Cryptic crossword, and occasionally do the NYT crossword and am invariably disappointed. Not so for this puzzle. Tasty, crispy clues and answers from start to finish. I don’t know how y’all can do it, having tens of boring puzzles at a time with one breath of fresh air every few months.
Erik was idle for this one. A nasty Natick ALIENATED me: PALO - MARNER. I went with PoLO thinking they use polo mallets in that crazy horse sport, and those are sticks right? Wrong. Too bad. It was decent aside from that. The editor was NOHELP for the UMPTEENth time. As a result, I give it ASEA.
Like HENS teeth, this was one puzzle where I came roaring out of the completed NW. SOITSCOMETOTHIS. Easier than expected for a Saturday involving Mr. Agard, though I nearly came a cropper by putting in NOgood too early. NOHELP is a better answer anyway.
Co-DOD's intersect: Diana RIGG and GEENA Davis. I wonder if there's a GEENA RIGG anywhere. Had fun doing it: eagle.
I have heard, "I put that ON GOD" when a kid (almost always African American), wants to really be believed.
ALIENATE UMPTEEN
This DOGGEREL MAY create a STICKYSITUATION,
DAY after DAY, TENDON to be DANDER raising,
SOIT'SCOMETOTHIS my ASTUTE friend,
EYE won't be HUSHED in the END:
with EDIE and GEENA EYE'd rather be LIAISING.
--- KENT MARNER
Like yesterday's, today's puzzle was (relatively) easy for end-of-the-week, but I found it rather more fun. The grid spanners were smoothly filled in, and the only place where I had a write-over was at PALO, where I initially had PoLO, but then realized that the Eliot hero was one of *George* Eliot's. Liked it.
Hand up for aye having been where OUI belonged, NEIN minutes later examining AYES in the SE when EYE showed up in the corner and realized that parlement was spelled funny ; that's when OUI GOESINTO the NW and, IPSE dixit, done.
The corners make me EDGY.
EDIE Sedgwick, we hardly knew ye, but you gave the teen girls of the '60s ideas about how to wear mascara.
ERICIDLE GOESINTO a bar . . . just not in MN right now. Lockdown.
Easy enough. Still have never heard ONGOD!?!?????
A solid, fair, and surprisingly gettable Saturday from a couple of expert word-play constuctors.
SW corner was the site of a STICKY SITUATION, including the PALO “stick” and MARNER, whom I didn’t recognize as an “Eliot hero”. But with a little extra time it all came together nicely.
A pretty rare end-of-week delight.
I believe I have the correct interpretation for 29D.
To ATONE for my sins, I will do makeup sex.
Didn’t Oliver (Hardy) once say, “What a STICKY SITUATION you’ve gotten us into this time, Stanley.” It sure sounds pretty close. A classically comedic duo.
More like "Well, that's another fine mess you've gotten us into, Stanley." Yw Gods, how old AM I?
Hmmm, maybe it was “...a fine mess....” Anyway, doesn’t matter.
@spacecraft -- Aha, just saw your correction. Quite right.
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