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Self-confidence / TUES 4-26-22 / "The People's Princess" / Pro golfer Calvin / Freshwater fish with a colorful name / Heavy hardcovers
Tuesday, April 26, 2022
Hello, everyone! It’s Clare for the last Tuesday of April. Hope everyone had a good month; I’ve been enjoying the nice weather and have been biking some more. But, now that I work a 9-5 job, I go for a ride when everyone else is out and about, and I don’t like having to dodge people or other bikers!! I recently tried rock climbing for the first time, which was quite fun (though my forearms got so sore). As always, I’ve been rooting on my teams — Liverpool is on quite a run (if only Man City would go away), and the Warriors are up in the playoffs. So, I’ve got hope!
Anywho, on to the puzzle…
Relative difficulty: Pretty easy
Theme answers:
- DRAG QUEEN (5D: *Trixie Mattel, e.g.)
- AIR KISS (25D: *Contact-free smooch)
- CANDY HEART (28D: *Seasonal confection that may say "I Luv U")
- SUGAR RUSH (36D: *Sensation after consuming too many Pixy Stix, perhaps)
In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Margaret Bent, "a piece of music in several parts with words" is as precise a definition of the motet as will serve from the 13th to the late 16th century and beyond. (Wiki)
• • •
It’s been a while since I’ve seen a Tuesday puzzle where the themers are the downs instead of the acrosses — I liked the change-up. The way I did the puzzle, I figured out the revealer (ROCK BOTTOM) before getting any of the theme answers; then, I found each of the theme answers to be fairly obvious just from the clues. This is a puzzle where I didn’t look back at the theme until after I’d finished solving. The theme was fine, maybe even a bit on the good side. In a puzzle like this, you might’ve expected the revealer to be at 38A, which is smack dab in the center of the puzzle. But the revealer obviously wouldn’t work there, and it fit the theme to have it running down. I’d never heard of RUSH, but I see they’re a successful rock band and will have to look up some of their music.
In general, my solve felt a bit passive. Like, there wasn’t much that really jumped out to me about the puzzle — either good or bad. I will say I think I enjoyed this puzzle more than I have a Tuesday in a while just because I personally found it easier. So, even if the puzzle was meh, I’m looking back at it with a bit of a rosy tint.
I liked LIBRA (26D: Fair and balanced type, astrologically) and ARIES (27D: Strong and resilient type, astrologically) grouped together in the puzzle. There was also some symmetry with MOTET (23D: Sacred choral work) and HYMNS (33D: Songs that might be accompanied by an organ), which I thought worked. And, possibly some intentional symmetry with ACH (7D: German interjection) being in the same column as CRY (60D: "___ me a river!"), as ACH is a form of German cry (i.e. an exclamation). APLOMB (25A) is a great word. I like seeing Calvin PEETE (51D) in the puzzle — he was quite the golfer and a real pioneer. I liked the kitschy clue for ROBE (16A: Judicial cover-up?). NEST EGG, REMAKES, SEESAWS, and AREA RUG all seem like inoffensive longer acrosses.
I always thought “bro hug” was a more common term than MAN HUG (18A: Bro’s embrace)? I might be mistaken. I really didn’t like the clue for TOOTH (31A: Filling station?) — since when is a tooth a station?? My hardest section of the puzzle was the eastern middle, mostly because it took a while to get TOOTH, and then I didn’t know MOTET. SLURPS (8D: Impolite sounds from the dinner table) may be impolite in the U.S., but they can actually be a sign of respect/enjoying the meal in other cultures.
Misc.:
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
Misc.:
- I know it’s a different context, but I find it amusing that the NETS (65A) just got swept in the playoffs. This might be coming from a slightly bitter Warriors fan who doesn’t mind if Kevin Durant doesn’t look good — or Kyrie Irving, for that matter.
- PENS (31D) being White House souvenirs reminded me of something I just read today about how the White House is in need of new glassware because people keep taking their glasses home.
- Whenever I see “DREAM ON” (10D), I immediately get the iconic Aerosmith song in my head and start trying to sing the bridge. Problem is, I’m not Steven Tyler and couldn’t even hit those notes in my own dreams.
- One of the unintended consequences of studying for the bar exam is that I engrained a lot of miscellaneous elements in my head and, particularly, elements of criminal law. So as soon as I see ARSONS (46D: Fire felonies), the common law definition of arson immediately jumps into my brain, and I start reciting it. (For those who want to know, it’s: The malicious burning of the dwelling of another. So, under common law, if someone burned down a warehouse that wasn’t someone’s dwelling, it wasn’t considered arson.)
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
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96 comments:
Hi Clare! I solved in a weird counterclockwise fashion so that the revealer came at the end. I don't think I would have even noticed the theme without it!
Yes RUSH was huge back in the day (my day, by the way). Great Canadian band, from an era with lots of them (April Wine, BTO, Chilliwack, Prism, etc.). Actually HEART was also sorta Canadian in a way... Americans formed the band in Vancouver, then moved south after fame struck.
Typeovers: TD RUSH before TD PASS, DEGREE before HONORS, DRESS UP before DECK OUT. Ohh... Mr. Dressup was an iconic Canadian kid's show... back in the day... sigh. (Fun fact: Mr Dressup was played by Ernie Coombs, who had worked with Fred Rogers, although Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood started a year later than Mr. Dressup.)
[Spelling Bee: Mon. 2:40 to pg, ~15 min to QB. 5 day QB streak!]
A couple of combined column entries I really liked today:
(5D + 49D) Trans confession……. DRAGQUEEN OWNUP
(10D + 44D) Singles bar put down…….DREAMON MAMA
I feel like I need to point out, before @Joe DiPinto does, that 49D OWNUP could be a themer, since UP is a pretty interesting proto-punk band from late ‘60s Detroit. You can look them up easily enough, but here’s a little amuse bouche from the Wik to get you interested: “It's common to name the MC5 and the Stooges among the forefathers of what they call punk rock, but it was their associates in a third band, the Up, who could more accurately be identified as the real precursors of punk."[1]
I had a very good time with this nicely themed, and filled, puzzle. Thanks, Simon Marotte.
Thanks Clare!
HEART, QUEEN, KISS & RUSH. Add Zeppelin, Floyd, and pre-piano Van Halen and I think that's my complete college playlist. I was lured in by Cyndi Lauper, but that's mostly where the sugar pops of the 80s ended for me.
Yay:
JIG
APLOMB
PSYCHE
LIBRA/ARIES
FLOSSES
DRAG QUEEN
MOTET
Ha:
DROP ROBE
Boo:
ASYLA (barely a word)
TOOTH (I have SO many dental appointments)
Easy-medium. No real problems as I knew all the groups. Solid theme, smooth grid (except for maybe ARSONS), liked it.
Super easy Tuesday. The only thing I objected to was 64A, calling EGO a contribute, sounds like more of a detriment to me.
Hey, Clare! Thanks for the write-up. I had totally missed ARIES right next to LIBRA.
I had a dnf ‘cause I had for my “filling station” “booth” instead of TOOTH, never noticing the wrong “mobet.” Oops. I often have lunch with someone whose size makes booths problematic, so I try to get there first to tell the hostess that we want a table. I don’t want my companion to hear this request ‘cause I’m afraid it screams PUT US AT A TABLE WITH A CHAIR THAT CAN SCOOT BACK TO GIVE HER ENOUGH ROOM. It’s happened more than once that the oblivious host puts us in a booth, and then I have to scramble to say something like it’s too cold there or some such so that we can be reseated at a table.
“Safe havens” – I live with Mom on a street called Alyssum Place. You can imagine that when I give my address over the phone, the person always hears “asylum” instead. No. It’s the flower that no one has ever heard of. Sigh.
Sure, it’s rude to SLURP at the table unless you’re spending the summer in Ise, Japan and eating soba. I was sitting there soundlessly eating my noodles when Kimi-san commented about how quiet my soba-eating was. I asked if it was rude, not to SLURP (because, c’mon, in Japan, it’s all about not being rude, Ever), and Kimi-san said, そうですね. . .translation: Oh hell yeah, it’s rude. I started SLURPing forthwith.
Speaking of things Japanese. . . my son’s wedding was this past weekend, and it was a hoot. One of my big take-aways was seeing my (very buttoned-up daughter) cut loose. Apparently after the reception, she and a couple of groomsmen went to a sake bar and then to a DRAG show. This is not Sage. Sage is the one who never overdrinks, leaves at a reasonable hour, takes off her makeup, and even FLOSSES before getting into bed. She had a blast. (Avatar is us before rehearsal dinner. The picture makes me laugh because we’re wearing the same shoes and had not planned it. Mirror, mirror on the wall, I am my mother after all. . .)
When everyone was getting ready at the venue, the fire department was called, and Emily (my new daughter-in-law) got a great picture with two cute firefighters. Apparently the alarm was set off because of an extreme hairspray situation. I wasn’t involved, as I was hightailing it back to the hotel to retrieve the garter that had been left behind.
Simon - I loved this theme, especially its revealer. Reminded me of a list of creative things written on employee evaluations, one being Since my last report, this employee has reached ROCK BOTTOM and has started to dig.
A few more. . .
"I would not allow this employee to breed."
"Works well when under constant supervision and cornered like a rat in a trap.
"When she opens her mouth, it seems that it is only to change feet."
"He sets low personal standards and then consistently fails to achieve them.
"This employee is depriving a village somewhere of an idiot."
"This employee should go far, and the sooner he starts, the better."
"He brings a lot of joy whenever he leaves the room."
"If you see two people talking and one looks bored, he's the other one."
"A photographic memory but with the lens cover glued on."
"It's hard to believe that he beat out 1,000,000 other sperm."
"Some drink from the fountain of knowledge; he only gargled."
"Takes him 2 hours to watch 60 Minutes."
@LMS: Congratulations on your son's nuptials!
I had more trouble with this puzzle than a normal Tuesday. My filling station was a mOuTH (sorry, @Gary Jugert). That made MOTET hard to see, and that in turn made APLOMB virtually invisible for way too long.
Seems like we haven't had a pangram in a while. Today's puzz is 15 short.
Fairly easy Tuesday. You're right that "Bro Hug" is the common saying.I've never heard anyone use MAN HUG.
Go Liverpool!!
Know all the bands and like three of them. Cultural center is definitely in my wheelhouse, Trixie Mattel aside.
NEST EGG – we just had this discussion – not rainy day money. NEST EGG is saved for something specific like college or retirement, where you have some control over when you will need it so you can invest in non-liquid assets. Rainy day money aka emergency fund has to be liquid.
What makes a MAN HUG different from a hug?
@Clare - get yourself a copy of Permanant Waves or Moving Pictures, turn up the volume, and enjoy.
One likes to believe in the freedom of music
But glittering prizes and endless compromises
Shatter the illusion of integrity
Spirit of Radio, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, Neil Pert
All the world's indeed a stage and we are merely players
Performers and portrayers
Each another's audience outside the
Gilded cage
Limelight, Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson
A cute, punny theme on the vertical that prompted “Good one!” when the reveal filled in. I liked the watery feel, with DROP, REDFIN, ASEA, SLURPS, and REEF. I enjoyed the lovely answers ORACLE, APLOMB, and ASYLA. I noted the conflicting neighbors TD PASS and DROP. And it struck me that a couple of the answers might work as one-word band names: PANG, perhaps, or URGE.
No UNREST, simply smooth and enjoyable.
In Toto, this was a fun Journey, with no Misfits in the grid, a lovely Oasis to serve as the Genesis to my day. Thank you, Simon!
Ugh. Finished with bOOTH/MObET.
Classic Rock invades the puzzle. I am mildly surprised Clare only didn’t know one of the bands. These bands were Moldie Oldie fodder before the constructor was born. The most surprising thing is that there only two dead band members in the groups. Dr. Brian May looks more a wizened wizard than a guitar hero these day (although he still shreds) and it’s been two decades since Gene Simmons embarrassed himself on NPR. I chide the puzzle all the time for having a cultural center of somewhere around 1993, but 1979? Seriously? Next week, Crimson and Clover.
To be clear - totally wheelhouse. WLAV had all these bands in heavy rotation all the time. From Beth to Barracuda to Tom Sawyer to a Fat bottomed girl taking me home tonight beside that red firelight these bands are part of the soundtrack of young Zed. But I don’t like this PPP theme any more than I’d like an opera based theme or an Emo based theme or a gangsta rap based theme.
@LMS - Which one is you?
@Marcus Aurelius - Har! 🤣😂
A relative of mine lets loose very loud burps at the dinner table when visiting, and always follows them with the comment, “in China, that would be considered a compliment,” while everyone else at the table thinks, “that was so gross.” So, SLURPS, yes, impolite in my world (although burping is far worse).
@kitshef. A NESTEGG is simply a sum of money saved for the future. The use of the money matters not. Why complicate it?
@Anonymous 7:49: Because connotations matter, and @kitshef is right to make the distinction between NEST EGG and rainy day money.
Interesting puzzle, very straightforward - seems like it could have run on a Monday. I met Calvin Peete at a a corporate-sponsored event about a million years ago (circa late 80’s). I figured he would be a real WoE for many, but Claire is familiar with him as well.
Yes, I noticed the usual trick with ASYLA - which I shall give a POc moniker to (in addition to the side-eye) - Plural of “choice” rather than convenience. The NYT is comfortable with that convention, so better to be on the lookout for it a couple of times a week.
It seems like ancient gods and goddesses get much more airplay in CrossWorld than their actual level of interest in the general population would warrant (I guess that’s true of all kinds of trivia though - so all I can do is keep filling up my notecard). Pretty soon I will be able to erase the European words for king and queen though, so I will have some spare white space to accommodate the brothers, sisters, sons, daughters of Zeus, Ares, Aphrodite, Erato, Clio . . . . . . .
Excellent Tuesday, so well done. I loved the punny word play and the top to BOTTOM themers. However, being decidedly not a music lover, I had NO CLUE what I was supposed to grasp from those themers. I thought, is it ROCK CANDY? DRAG down the QUEEN? KISS the BOTTOM of the AIR? No? One-named bands you say? Alrighty then.
After doing a very brief bit of research I was amazed to find that all of them have been existence since the late 60s/early 70s. Who knew? Never a good thing when a theme has to be explained but in this case the fault was mine in not being familiar with the answers. At least there weren’t any Harry Potter clues.
I had SUGARHIGH at first & thought Sugar was somewhat of an obscure band to choose before remembering the 'bottom' aspect of the theme and replaced with Rush. That said, for those unfamiliar, Sugar was a pretty fun power pop band fronted by Husker Du's Bob Mould
Hi Clare. Thanks for stopping by, and for the arson note. You've probably been told you know more law now (after studying for/passing the bar) than you ever will in the future, when your practice is more specific.
Liked the puzzle a lot, and the theme helped me get SUGAR RUSH. Had SUGAR HIGH until I caught on. And just love APLOMB sitting out there, with such aplomb.
Congrats to your son, LMS. Sounds memorable; hope your mom had a good time.
Fun time all around. Yea the revealer placement was too soon - but no worries. Overall fill was fine - APLOMB, SEE SAWS and PSYCHE are all above average for early week. Little side eye to TD PASS, MAN HUG and what seems like an overuse of plurals.
Following the classic rock theme - Michael Schenker shredding ROCK BOTTOM
Enjoyable Tuesday solve.
@Anonymoose and @kitshef and @others from the other day - NEST EGG can carry the connotation of money set aside for a specific purpose, but doesn’t always carry that connotation. Merriam-Webster goes with only a fund of money accumulated as a reserve and if you look at the “recent examples from the web” you will see some usages with and some without that “specific purpose” connotation. I do think “Rainy Day Fund” generally doesn’t have that connotation, but that doesn’t mean NEST EGG never carries that same meaning.
I agree with Zed. I don't think NEST EGG to win general retirement money is "wrong" in today's usage.
I thought the five theme phrases were really good - if looked at unrelated to ROCK music. For me, the featured bands fall into the "I guess I might have heard of" category, except for HEART, a complete unknown. If you asked me to name four ROCK bands, I could come up with the Beatles, the Stones, the Kinks, and ??? Thank you to Clare and commenters above for pointing out other pleasures of the grid.
Help from previous puzzles: REDFIN. No idea: SEGEL. What the heck?: TOOTH, only from crosses.
Thx Simon; very nice Tues. puz! :)
Hi Clare, good to see you again; thx for your review! Warrior fan here, as well!
Med.
Been racking my brain on Croce's 702 for a couple of hrs (hi @jae), so this was a most welcome respite. :)
Smooth solve, with very little resistance.
Top to bottom, starting with JIG and ending with FEW.
Fun coincidence: listening to Pachinko yesterday, where SLURPing was was mentioned. Contemplated the subject of cultural norms, and how occasional awkward moments can arise, e.g., @LMS's example.
Enjoyed every minute of this one. :)
Did the FLOSSing HONORS just prior to doing the puz, then off to bed to rest my PSYCHE. [had a good sleep; ready to (try) to finish the last of Croce's 702 this AM (the NW/MW quad)]
@Frazzled by Phrazle (3:29 PM yd)
I solve on my MacBook Air, but opened the site on my iPad to have a look. It's exactly as you describe, using both Safari and Brave browsers. Doesn't look like Solitaired has an app, so until you hear back from the support team, you may just want to bone up on your qwerty keyboard positions. Even tho the letters disappear, they're still clickable. And, of course the greyed-out letters will still show in your entries, so this may be a workaround for you. 🤞 Btw, I intend to do it on my iPad today to see how the whole solve pans out. It will help me memorize the keyboard letters, as well. I touch type, and my fingers just automatically find the right letters, but sometimes when a xword makes reference to certain keys, I have to picture an imaginary keyboard and do some 'air typing' to recall the exact positions. lol
@okanaganer 👍 for your QB streak! :)
___
yd's: WH: 6 (whew!) / Sed: 19/21 / Duo: 34/37
Phrazle 22: 2/6
⬜⬜🟩 🟪⬜ 🟪🟩🟪🟨⬜🟩
🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
Peace 🙏 🇺🇦 ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness to all 🕊
An easy ride down the bunny slope with only one slight bump at SEGEL, everything else was pretty much a well-known, although I haven't run into APLOMB in a while. Where ya been?
ROCKBOTTOM showed up after I had DRAGQUEEN, which pretty much gave things away, which is why I dislike revealers in the early stages of a puzzle. This was only useful for SUGARRUSH instead of SUGARHIGH, although if there's a band named UP there's probably another band named HIGH somewhere.
If not a plethora, at least a small herd of M&A moo cows. Guess I'd pick ___me a river for my gimmiest gimme.
Nice enough Tuesdecito, SM. Some Merriment to be had, and that's always a good thing, for which thanks.
@kishef "What makes a MAN HUG different from a hug?" Toxic masculinity.
I had no idea what the theme was and solved it as a themeless. I don't feel I missed anything especially important or entertaining.
Of the ROCK bands, I've vaguely heard of QUEEN and KISS but have never heard of HEART and RUSH.
If I were a person of real curiosity, I would go to YouTube right now and listen to all four of them so that I would be able to knowledgeably discuss:
*Their various members and the specific instruments that they play
*The subtle and not-so-subtle differences in their choice of songs
*Their relative ages, eras, and choice of hair styles, clothing, and (if relevant) jewelry
*How much applause and excitement they generate at their concerts and which one(s) appear to be most popular and "now".
But I am not that person. (You already knew that, of course.)
Sorry to bother you with all this, but it's a second Phrazle birdie in a row:
Phrazle 23: 2/6
🟩🟩🟩 ⬜🟪⬜🟨 ⬜🟪 🟨🟪⬜
🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟩🟩 🟩🟩🟩
#phrazle
Unlike, say, @Anoa Bob, I never notice POCs unless they're really, really bad.
ARSONS is really, really bad.
Yeah, this puzzle was in my wheelhouse for sure and I really enjoyed it. I will say that when I saw Trixie Mattel I ran through my BARBIE kin…let’s see…Midge is a friend, Skipper’s a sister…hmmm Trixie….
@LMS, you and your daughter look MAHVELOUS! Seriously though…very chic. I about coffee spit when I read your BOOTH story because I have a friend where I do the SAME thing! I don’t know about your friend but sometimes mine will ASK for a booth. Um. I’ve had to look at “them” resting on the table….
@Zed…c’mon. Tommy James and the Shondells are a far cry from QUEEN, KISS, HEART, and even RUSH in terms of being memorable/famous. And yes, I liked Crimson and Clover when it was out…thanks for the blast from the past. I’m thinking you were little Zed when THAT came out because I was, like, in eighth grade.
@Zed 8:19 AM and other folks commenting on NEST EGG - Your nest egg pays for your vacation, your weekend place in the Berkshires, or even your kid's college; your rainy day fund replaces the hot water heater that just flooded the basement.
@Carola 8:24 AM - Get thee to a classic rock playlist on Spotify!
@Gary Jugert 8:45 AM - With a side dish of homophobia, since, when I hug a man, it ain't no man hug.
@Loren: Beautiful picture. You ladies look stunning, especially the shoes. Congratulations on the wedding!
@Nancy (9:13) Dare I say this? You ROCK! (And apparently so does bocamp.)
@GILL: I cooked my eggs this morning and posted a picture on Facebook for you. The first one was a little overdone but the second one was almost perfect. Thanks for the advice.
I’ve been meaning to say this every day and keep forgetting: @Frantic I miss you!
It took me an embarassingly long time of staring at the puzzle (which was easy) to figure out why these were themers. I like QUEEN. My little brother liked KISS. (He's got better taste in music now.) I never cared for RUSH. HEART had a couple of good songs.
When I wasn't listening to folk rock/singer-songwriter type stuff I went more new wave: Blondie, Talking Heads, The Pretenders, The Police, The Bangles, Cyndi Lauper.
Liked having themers run downhill.
I'm in the minority, guessed "tooth" right away, and thought "filling station" was a very cute and clear clue. Fun puzzle!
Hey All !
Dang, Clare, way to make me feel old, in you never having heard of RUSH. 😁
We could have Across Themers (symmetrical even!) if there are Bands out there (with how many there are, it's easily possible) EGG, MAKES, TRY, OUT, FIN, SAWS, RUG. Har.
Liked this TuesPuz. Interesting it's a Downs theme. Variety is the spice of life.
V and X from a pangram. Try a little harder next time Simon. 😂
Got a good laugh out of @LMS's "evaluations". Nice to see you again. Great pic! You guys look very elegant. On your hairspray story (lol, btw), I had a girlfriend once who used a ton every day. I used to tell her she was responsible for an ozone layer hole. (I'd that why we broke up?) Har
yd -0!! (Finally! First in quite a spell.) / Duo 36/37 - Missed 1-2-4-15 (ouch on 15!)
Two F's
RooMonster
DarrinV
Give me asyla over arsons any day.
Why do I think our constructor just dropped in Trixie Mattel to start and began working around it.
Loved "aplomb". That's about it.
Didn't think "motet" had to be sacred, and it seems the wiki agrees.
I remember a hundred years or so ago getting mail addressed to me with "Esq." attached to my name.I think when I had sent in a box top to "Battle Creek, Michigan".
Surprised Rex didn't have beef with "manhug". Like "man bun", why specify a gender? We don't say woman hug or woman bun, but because men aren't expected to do or have these things, we genderize it? Seems a bit passe these days.
Hard to know how one would miss the LIBRA-ARIES pairing assuming one read the clues.
I don't think a consensus was reached on NESTEGG. Dictionaries seem to mostly go with specific purpose savings which certainly could include rainy day savings. Originally derived from farmers putting eggs in the nests to encourage hens to lay more eggs. So maybe a lay away plan.
Also maybe an urban myth (that nest egging actually worked), just like the SUGARRUSH urban myth that science seems to refute.
One thing that is real is I am now typing on a line instead of a box on this site and the post keeps jumping back to the beginning and it's irritating as hell. I thought it was the site but since no one else has mentioned it I'm thinking it is my phone. Any ideas out there?
@10:38 - Uh…
@9:56 - Same. I didn’t even blink.
@Beezer - Maybe Gary Puckett would have been better?
@LMS, love the shoes, outfits, and the wedding update. It sounds like a blast! The firemen were a nice touch. Their outfits tend to be festive. We had police at my daughter’s wedding, a bit drab but exciting nonetheless.
I’m a fan of the puzzle because I was ready for a vertical theme. Variety is… , you know. The rock groups were old and familiar so that was another plus. One of the KISS members lived in town and I got to see his awesome recording studio. I don’t think they were ever hit up to do a fund raiser for the nursery school though. I like to think they would have agreed.
The answer for TRIXIEMATTEL was out of left field. I thought she must be a friend of Barbie and Ken. I’m obviously still living in the sixties.
RUSH was a “successful” band? So I guess Stephen King was a “successful” writer, Meryl Streep a “successful” actor and Abraham Lincoln was a “successful” president.
Lots of great music from them.
P.S. I’m not a rabid Rush fan.
Do we spell it TooEasyDay now?
Also had SUGARHIGH before SUGARRUSH here. In regards to RUSH: for those unfamiliar with them, they are one of few Canadian rock bands that have gotten a strong foothold in the US market, and one I would consider one of the major bands of the "classic rock" genre. Every single rock drummer out there would know who Neil Peart (pronounced "PEERT" by him, but "PERT" often by others) is. Him and John Bonham are routinely lauded as the top rock drummers of all time (with others in the mix, but if you took a poll, those would most likely land in the top two spots. I'd probably put Copeland (the Police), Collins (Genesis) and Bonham (Led Zeppelin) in my classic era top three.) Their music tends to be complex, prog-rock, with Ayn Rand-inspired lyrics (Peart was the main lyric writer), and a tolerate-it-or-hate-it voice of Geddy Lee, the singer/bassist. The Rush fan demographic tends to skew heavily male, at least in my experience. The third band member, Alex Lifeson, the guitarist, needs to be mentioned not just for completeness, but for his immense skills on guitar, too. All three members were fantastic musicians in their own right. That said, their music really isn't my cuppa. If those unfamiliar with them want to check out one song, "Tom Sawyer" is probably the most well-known, though "New World Man" was their highest charting in the US. They are a staple of classic rock stations, and still referenced in pop culture regularly.
RUSH and PEETE are from the same era. Maybe Clare is a golfer? Dem lawyers.
Red River JIG ~ Reg Bouvette (Canadian Métis style)
@Nancy 👍 for 2 in-a-row! :)
@Whatsername (9:45 AM) 😊
@RooMonster 👍 for -0 yd! :)
___
td pg: (in just over 30.0) / W: 4* / Phrazle: 3 (doable on iPad, but somewhat awkward (hi @Frazzled by Phrazle)).
Peace 🙏 🇺🇦 ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness to all 🕊
@Anonymoose 7:49. I think we just disagree about what is more complicated. To me, it is easier to have one phrase that means "thing A" and another than means "thing B", rather than one phrase for "thing A" and another for "either thing A or thing B".
@Zed…🤣 Throw in Midnight Confessions by the Grass Roots, too!
@TJS…the old Esquire for little boys, eh? As an attorney I always thought the esq designation was silly. Once a new admin had put Esq. in my signature block whereby I politely and kindly told her that attorneys do not refer to themselves as esquire. Whew. I was really glad I noticed that!
Great puztheme idea. CREAM woulda fit right into that there themer pool. Maybe they could even rise to the top of the theme answer?
Gotta be a rock band out there called SLURPS. And if not, there oughta be.
staff weeject pick: RPM. Kinda jibes well with the puztheme.
fave sparklers: SLURPS. NOCLUE [Better clue: { } ]. DREAMON. REMAKES [Just watched the "Dune" one; has primo sandworms].
Thanx for the fun with bottoms, Mr. Marotte dude. M&A knew all the bands.
Masked & Anonymo6Us
p.s. Thanx to Clare ESQ-darlin for the good sub-blog.
Nice shoes, @Muse darlin; hope to hear from U again before the next weddin. Worst work evaluation: "I'd hire him right after I hire Trump".
**gruntz**
I wanted to sing with Alfie and ask "What's It All About?" I wondered, I pondered, a did a JIG with a fiddle and still...I asked why a DRAG QUEEN is cozying up with that CANDY HEART...
Good gravy on lumpy potatoes....ROCK BOTTOM??? Then I had to wonder whose BOTTOM is a ROCK? So I continued to DREAM ON. Oh, wait! I turned on my APLOMB with a bodacious AIR KISS...those little rears are the names of ROCK groups sez I. The TOOTH fairy did the Macarena with me. It was quite fun. My ROBE didn't fly open and I didn't MOON anyone of no purpose.
NEST EGG:
HI @Whatsername...I can't wait to see a picture of your EGG. Were you able to do the SLURPS with it? I do.
Yes...I, too miss our friend @Frantic and @JD as well. I hope they come back soon and add to our fun fest.
@Loren. You and your daughter look so pretty...AND happy!
A really big day today!
WordHurdle 195 2/6 #wordhurdle
🤍🤍💛💛💛💙
💙💙💙💙💙💙
Luck was involved, though, as you can see.
why don't we all stop complaining and admit the truth. any pile of moolah not spent in real time or sequestered in a place where you can't touch it unless X happens, is all the same. money is money, or fungible. it can be spent for NEST EGG reasons or rainy day reasons or splurge on a three-way reasons. money knows no distinctions.
Enjoyed this Tuesday puzzle from Simon Marotte. Creative theme with a great revealer and solid fill. Far from ROCK BOTTOM.
Especially liked DRAG QUEEN and SUGAR RUSH.
Also loved the clue for TOOTH. Maybe that filling is the result of eating all those Pixy Stix.
In the ACH Department, I struggled a bit with 8D as I tried to come up with a 6-letter way to spell BURPS. Also cringed at the POC at 46D. More than one vicar might be a group of PARSONS. But more than one fire crime is not a group of ARSONS.
The themers that got away: KIDNEY STONES, REVOLVING DOORS, and SEA EAGLES.
"The pound hug (also referred to as a pound shake, hip-hop hug, one-armed hug, dude hug, cootie hug, homie hug, shug, bro-grab, bro hug, brah hug, thug hug, man-hug, or a daps) is a stylized greeting, exclusively performed between two people, that consists of a combination of a handshake and one-armed hug. Unlike the traditional hug, which symbolically and effectively removes interpersonal barriers and unites the two persons embracing, the pound hug—performed by keeping the right hand locked in handshake while the left arm wraps around the other's shoulder—interposes the obstacle of the two right arms to the joining of the two bodies. "
the wiki. so not the same as a girl hug. or an air kiss. or a fist bump.
Trixie Mattel is a skinny legend who's hilarious and also a successful musician. Check out her latest and best music videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2MMdbp8wgw and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gR1pslYotM4 (the latter is a tribute to Loretta Lynn) and also her web series with another great drag queen, Katya, called Unhhhh (also that would be a diabolic word for a crossword): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJN2bvt4TLA.
why does ACH always bring to mind Bill the Cat???
@Anonymous (11:25a.m.) Yeah, a "bro hug" (how I typically know it) is a subset of a hug. I have never in my life seen women give what I define as a "bro hug." Here's a helpful illustration: https://higherunlearning.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/bro-hug.jpg
Now, granted, there may be some people who define any hug between two men as "bro hugs" (or MANHUGs), but in my peer group it is defined as the illustration above. You can probably do a dissertation on the bro hug, what it means societally and in terms of gender roles, throw in aspects of sexuality in there, but let's just keep it simple.
It's hard to believe that a puzzle like this can get published in 2022. It has a theme with 4 bands comprising 28 members and only THREE of them are WOMEN!!! I don't think one of the bands has had a hit song in about 20 years. Just a puzzle for old white guys. How do we convince Rex to be a little more socially conscious and pay attention to the puzzle content as well as the clues and construction.
Good puzzle - smooth and clean. I did have to study it after completion to see the theme.
I knew of all the bands but couldn’t identify who did what song if I heard it. I did see Bohemian Rhapsody, the biopic about Freddie Mercury (of Queen) and kept being surprised that I was so familiar with the music. In my younger days, good music was in the air, and I didn’t worry about who I was hearing. Then I went and married a one-time (pre AOR) DJ with eclectic tastes. These bands are not on his playlists. As far as I know….
Sometimes I worry he might die first, and then my work will be cut out for me, having to identify my favorites in our music collection. I guess that’s what happens. I also worry that if I die first he won’t know how to pay the bills. Hm, I'm sensing a theme here.
@LMS I laughed tears at your hairspray story.
Never heard of BROHUG, only man.
Any Curb Your Enthusiasm fans here? According to Larry David, when there is a MANHUG, there needs to be "penis awareness". You need to both scoot your rearends backwards so penises don't touch.
MANHUG: lean forward so absloutely no touching below the waist (groin area) as per Larry David in Curb Your Enthusiasm. Because you know why.
Anyone else wonder why SEESAW isn't spelled seasaw since it mimics ocean motion.
A man who became a nurse was always identified as a "male nurse" in days of old and probably currently in some places. It's always important to assert manhood when the activity or status is one that is traditionally female. Or so it seems.
@Carola - You might be more familiar with Jason SEGEL as Marshall on “How I Met Your Mother” or as David Foster Wallace in the movie “The End of theTour”.
Clare, pull up some Rush music online. Don’t forget the sharp needled to puncture your eardrums to stop the painful screeching.
Also, W’s fans should be grateful that Durant played for them. No guarantee they win those 2 titles without him.
I had the same DNF. I thought booth was so clever too!
@VS:
Just a puzzle for old white guys.
Well, some may be. Most old white guys are New York Post bros, and fancy themselves drug store truck drivin men.
@VS with the Best - Uh...
@kitshef 11:03 - 🤣 🤣 🤣 - As if English is concerned with ease of use or logic - 🤣 🤣 🤣
@Beezer - Ooh Ooh! Here's the one...
@another anon 12:15 My brother -in -law is a nurse. When he is asked if he is a male nurse, he says: I'm not sure, let me check my pants.
Nice puzzle, nice writeup. Somehow this one had me reacting to various clue/answer combination:
*59A, "Beats me" for NO CLUE -- could have been clued this way:
59. -
*33A could have been "most songs by James Brown."
53A, Lake below Huron -- depends on which end of the watershed you start from, although I guess if South = below it works.
@Loren, you must have been eating cold soba. If you try to suck in hot soba (or udon) without slurping, the hot broth is likely to burn your lips. I'm told that was why the custom developed, but who knows?
There's a great scene in the movie "Tampopo" where a group of young Japanese women who are going to the US for work are being taught how to eat spaghetti without slurping. They find it hard.
I more or less stopped listening to pop music after the 1960s, returning only when my kids got old enough for The Clash. So I too knew all the names, but have no idea what any of them sound like. And SUGAR higH seemed just as likely as RUSH, except for the crosses.
Meh on this puzzle.
The revealer doesn't work.
These are Rock bands or groups not "rocks."
I'm surprised it was accepted. Fail.
@albatross shell 10:43 AM ... could it be a problem with your browser? (the app you use to view web sites). Maybe try a different one... on my Android phone I have Chrome, Firefox, and the default Android Browser apps.
Joe DiPinto, thank you for your reply. I tried Phrazle on my android phone and it worked like a charm, so I guess there is an issue with my iPad. I’ve contacted support 3 times to no avail. 🙁
@jberg - 53A, Lake below Huron -- depends on which end of the watershed you start from, although I guess if South = below it works. - Works in a literal, feet above sea level, sense as well. Lake Huron surface elevation is 577 feet above sea level, Lake ERIE is 569 feet above sea level. Lake Superior is a lofty 601 feet above sea level. If you think about where all that water is heading this will make sense. (Note: Wikipedia"s footnote links on some of these figures are old and broken - so there may be more recent/better figures somewhere else that reflect the recent higher water levels)
Great Lakes water levels have been declining, not rising
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/water-levels-of-the-great-lakes-are-declining/
Yesterday there were 34 black squares with three themers and a reveal which left lots of open space for interesting, quality fill, and may be one of the reasons Jeff at xwordinfo.com gave it the POW award. Today the count goes to 36 black squares with four themers and a reveal and there is much less room left for good fill. We get two tiny pinched off corners and a slew of entries that needed some convenient alterations to get the job done.
Here are some that were not up to the task of filling their respective slots---GEL, SLURP, PEN, REMAKE, UZI, HYMN, AMP, HONOR, SEESAW, ERA, FLOSS, ARSON and NET. Plural of convenience (POC) to the rescue! One, ASYLUM, was too big for its slot and needed to be cut down to size, a kind of singular of convenience.
So I'm staying with 34 black squares as the optimum number for a themed puzzle with a restrained use of theme material that leaves ample room for good fill as being the best combination for a top notch puzzle that is a joy to solve.
@Nancy, how about "I looked at last week's police blotter and saw four assaults, six break and enters and two ARSONS"? I don't think I've ever seen a plural of convenience that can't be used in a legitimate example, however tenuous that might be. So I just notice how those -Ss and -ESs take up additional grid space and make it easier to get it filled without adding much of anything of interest or value to the puzzle.
Don't hate me but I don't think of QUEEN as a ROCK and roll band but more as a Broadway show tune type band. I mean "Bicycle, bicycle, bicycle, I want to ride my bicycle, bicycle, bicycle", that ain't ROCK and roll people. Ain't saying they aren't good, just that they're not a ROCK band.
If there's one thing we can all agree on it's music!
I was just looking at my 1980’s souvenir t-shirt from the ROCK BOTTOM Brewery in Portland, OR, where I consoled myself after my unsuccessful audition for a horn opening with the Portland Symphony. On the back of the shirt is a bighorn sheep and the name Big Horn Brown Ale.
Somehow missed that AIR KISS was a themer, and without it had to have Clare explain what was going on. ROCK QUEEN? ROCK CANDY? (Hi, @Whatshername!)
Okay theme now that I know it, and some ok fill, PSYCHE DREAM ON APLOMB ORACLE SEESAWS. Didn’t care for all the -ese: ERA ERIE ERR EGO ECON, but had a good time anyway.
If you’re tired of ROCK BOTTOM, try this: Black BOTTOM by Ma Rainey [Gertrude Pridgett], American singer "Mother of the Blues", born in Columbus, Georgia today in 1886 (d. 1939) - maybe. Some records show September 1882 in Alabama.
https://www.rollingstone.com/ma-rainey-20-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-mother-of-the-blues/
Rainey would record 92 songs during her five years on Paramount, over a third of which she wrote herself. Her 78 RPM records for “New Boweavil Blues,” “Don’t Fish in My Sea,” and “Dead Drunk Blues” sold in such fantastic quantities that some credit her for saving the label from bankruptcy. Paramount showed their thanks by promoting her extensively, referring to her in breathless ad copy as “the Songbird of the South,” “the Gold-Neck Woman of the Blues,” "the Paramount Wildcat," and, of course, “the Mother of the Blues.”
Black Bottom Dance
Hop down front and then you Doodle back
Mooch to your left and then you Mooch to the right
Hands on your hips and do the Mess Around
Break a Leg until you’re near the ground
Now that’s the Old Black Bottom Dance
She spent the last years of her life managing several theaters in the town of Rome, Georgia, and she sponsored shows to raise funds for flood victims and others in need. “She had a heart as big as a house,” remembered one friend. She died of a heart attack three days before Christmas in 1939.
@okanoganer, 🙂 for your QB streak; I don't know how you do it!
@LMS, congrats for son and new d-in-l Emily! Nice shoes. And I screamed with laughter about the employee comments!
@Mike in Bed-Stuy 9:33 - Thanks for the nudge - I'll give it a try.
@jae 12:29 - Thank you for the film reference -not familiar with it at all but it will be on for this week's Movie Nite.
@Anoa Bob:
I mean "Bicycle, bicycle, bicycle, I want to ride my bicycle, bicycle, bicycle", that ain't ROCK and roll people.
Pull up just about any song from Dire Straits, and reach the same conclusion.
You don't know Rush? SMH...
Only thing that tripped me up was "filling station". I wanted it to be booth, like at a gas station, but... That doesn't make sense either. Would have finished in record time if not for that....
A small observation from an automotive engineer. The RPM is not a statistic, it is an instantaneous measurement.
@Anoa Bob:
He's been responsible for a lot of ARSONS in his life.
He's been responsible for a lot of ARSON in his life.
This is what I had in mind when I deemed ARSONS to be terrible.
Of course one can find a way to use ARSONS in a sentence, and you did that most nimbly. But it's still a stretch. Frankly, I thought you'd hate ARSONS a lot more than I do. :)
@All
I believe @VS with the Best was being facetious.
And @whoever said about the new commenting non-box, sucks bad, very aggrevating way to comment, yes, I have it too, and it's ridiculous.
RooMonster Being Back The Comment Box! Guy
Very good, but it was a bit too easy for a Tuesday. But that’s on the editor. This one would have been perfect if it was placed in the Monday slot. Other than that, it was a very decent puzzle from a new constructor who already has four NYTXWs under his belt after just over one year.
PS - Is ASYLA really a thing?
Bonus themer: DOD MAMA Cass Elliott, way too soon gone.
I kept thinking about a SUGAR high, but "HIGH" was never, to my knowledge, a ROCK band. Should've known RUSH: they were my son's idols back in the day. (I was not impressed. Sounded like a bunch of toneless screaming to me.) Calling QUEEN a rock band makes as much sense as anything. They were unpigeonholeable. They were simply QUEEN. Freddy: another premature exit.
I liked this. A tad uber-easy, but fun to do, and well put together. No fill groaners, though just a slight side-eye to ASYLA. Birdie.
Back in stride Wordle-wise:
BYBBB
YYBGY
GGGGG
DROP GELS, DREAMON
I got a SUGARRUSH from a CANDYHEART, I mean,
MAMA, I've NOCLUE who got 'em.
Oh NO! An AIRKISS and MOON from that DRAGQUEEN,
NO HONORS, I've hit ROCKBOTTOM.
--- ALEC SEGEL
Only one change, made before finishing all correctly. AIRbuSS became the correct AIRKISS. I'll take the BUSS instead.
Now we need to know drag queen names? Where will this knowledge thing end up? With a gerund?
ing
Diana, Lady-in-Wait for Crosswords
From Syndication Land
Always a delight to have LMS check in here. I can imagine her students look forward to her classes!
Our own princess @DIANA,LIW in the puz. Hurray!
EZ music based puz.
Wordle birdie.
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