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Gen Zer who might be into faux freckles and anime / SUN 3-26-23 / Nickname for Luigi / Things a plangonologist collects / The museum of social decay per Gary Oldman / Do to do delivery / Kapoor of Slumdog Millionaire / It's 2.3 years for the average heterosexual couple / Home to wild Bactrian camels / Spanish resort island to locals / Vegan alternative to gelatin / C-suite members
Sunday, March 26, 2023
Constructor: David Karp
Relative difficulty: Easy
Theme answers:
I do, I do ... not. Care for this. At all. I was out very early on, based primarily on the fill (IDEO? SITU? GIGIO!?!?!), but also based on the fact that I got the first themer, looked at the title, saw that this was going to be a 3 x "I" thing where the last eye was removed, and ... knew that I didn't have anything to look forward to. At all. Except some wackiness. And the second themer confirmed what I suspected, which is that the concept doesn't contain nearly enough wackiness to make it worth the squeeze. ORIGIN STORES? That is some put-you-to-sleep wackiness. Even the base phrases are kinda boring. I don't think I even know what a "certificate of claim" is. I'm sure it's *fascinating* but, shrug. I guess the whole point of the puzzle is the revealer, but the title already gave the concept away completely, so when I got to the revealer, it felt more redundant than revelatory. Also, really, you're going to build an entire Sunday grid around a one-hit wonder band from more than a quarter-century ago? I can hear the diehards out there going, "'One-hit wonder!?' What about 'Jumper,' man!? Or 'How's It Gonna Be!?' Or a little song called 'Never Let You Go,' ever heard of it?" No, I haven't, but OK OK, let's say, three- or four-hit wonder, with no real hits since 2000; happy? I actually don't want to disparage anyone's music or musical tastes. They just seem like a minor band to build a whole-ass Sunday puzzle around, especially this ... belatedly. So the revealer felt odd, on many levels, and it didn't really reveal anything, since the (very awkward) puzzle title already did that, and the thing that was being revealed wasn't that scintillating to start with. Moreover, the fill just wasn't strong enough to make up for the theme's mediocrity. For longer fill, you've got only a handful of 7- and 8-letter answers, plus a couple of 9s, and only REALITY TV and (maybe) TREKKIE rise even to the level of "interesting." I wish there were more here to get excited about.
- PIERCING SHREK (23A: Preparing to put earrings in an ogre?) ("shriek")
- ORIGIN STORES (31A: The Macy's in New York's Herald Square, and others?) (“stories”)
- FIVE PILLARS OF SLAM (52A: Pentad for a poetry performance?) ("Islam")
- PICKING ONE'S BRAN (68A: Shopping for some cereal?) ("brain")
- CERTIFICATE OF CLAM (87A: Prize in a chowder cook-off?) ("claim")
- SPITTING MAGE (104A: Old-timey wizard who needs to learn some manners?) ("image")
the group of people with the most important positions in a company, whose job titles usually begin with C meaning "chief" (dictionary.cambridge.org)
• • •
HOBBES is a "cartoon character"? (102D: Cartoon character who said "Van Gogh would've sold more than one painting if he'd put tigers in them"). Were there "Calvin & HOBBES" cartoons that I missed? (there were not). HOBBES is a *comics* (or *comic strip*) character. Yes, cartooning is the basic visual language of comic strips, but calling a comic strip character a "cartoon character" feels like misdirection that's bordering on inaccuracy. When you say "cartoon character," you are implying the character appeared in a cartoon, that is, in animated fare of some kind, which HOBBES never did (god bless you, Bill Watterson). The Pink PANTHER? Cartoon character; HOBBES? No. That HOBBES ANIL VESSELS REALITYTV corner was by far the toughest thing for me to put together today, and it wasn't that hard in the end. Slight slow-down around E-GIRL (92A: Gen Zer who might be into faux freckles and anime), since I can never remember what letter is supposed to come before said GIRLs or what it's supposed to stand for (I think it's like EMO? Maybe? Whoops, no, it's "electronic" because it's a phenomenon associated with the ... internet? So ... like every other phenomenon on the planet these days? It's a TikTok thing which is why I know Squat about it. Yet I did know about it ... and yet I forgot about it. Once again, thank god for fair crosses.
Any other mistakes or write-overs? I had PETSPAS before DOGSPAS, hardly interesting (1A: Businesses that might offer "pawdicures"). I wrote in FREDO before FRODO (which is what happens when you don't read the clue) (84A: Literary character described as "a stout little fellow with red cheeks"). No idea what a plangonologist is, but I knew that collecting DELLS was probably not a thing, so ... DOLLS, then (77D: Things a plangonologist collects). Does being a collector really make you an "-ologist?" Seems pretty high-falutin'. But if the doll people insist, then OK. People should be called what they want to be called. I had SEARS before K-MART (69D: Former retail giant), and PEN and INK before APP (17D: What some people use to solve a New York Times crossword). Ugh, the cutesy winky meta clue. Not a fan.
[I sorta like this one. Actually, all these THIRD EYE BLIND songs were pretty huge hits.
The group's fame was just very ... chronologically contained, I guess you could say]
The "do"-to-"do" clue for SCALE was kind of cute (62D: "Do"-to-"do" delivery), though it's slightly amazing that that clue does not have a "?" on it, since a. you would not normally refer to a SCALE as a "delivery," and b. the clue is absolutely punning on a different phrase, i.e."door-to-door." These are basic criteria for a "?" clue and yet ... no. Odd. What else did I like? PAPADAM, those are tasty (72A: Deep-fried appetizer often served with chutney). I'd like to like EARGASM (13A: Feeling of auditory bliss, in a modern coinage), but the coinage isn't that "modern," actually. There's a 1976 album by Johnnie Taylor called "EARGASM," which I know because I own it. Whether you'd call the coinage "modern" or not, it's certainly a standout answer, especially in this grid. I like the EARGASM GROUPIE stack; very suggestive. Not much else here to get your heart rate up, though, I'm afraid. Ah well, as usual, there's always next week. See you when I see you.
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99 comments:
Easy-medium. I solved the theme revealer first and mostly coasted through the rest. Most embarrassing misstep was vettE before SKATE for way too long, the lack of a capital S on stingray didn’t register.
PAPADAM was a WOE.
I’ve heard of the group but none of the videos @Rex posted are even vaguely familiar. Liked it more than @Rex did.
I question 69D, I was in a KMART today in Westwood NJ, i had seARs first
The theme was a bit of a groaner. I don't think I've actually heard the phrase PIERCING SHRIEK ever. But THIRD EYE BLIND was a good band back in the day. (I must be getting old cuz I say "back in the day" a lot!)
Actually I like the term ORIGIN STORE. I wonder where the original Hudson's Bay store was? Considering the Hudson's Bay Co. started in the 1670s (!!!) running frontier trading posts, and once owned about 25% of what is now Canada.
I don't miss KMART much, but Sears was okay, especially for appliances.
Not sure I've heard of EARGASM before. I wanted EARWORM even though that's kinda the opposite of "auditory bliss"; "auditory water torture" seems more apt. A few months ago, JD Souther's "You're only lonely" popped up in a puzzle and I'm still suffering with it. (Damn! it's back, why did I have to mention it?)
[Spelling Bee: Sat currently -2, missing a 6 and a 7. I will take a shot at it tomorrow morning; we'll see.]
Rex, please do not obsess about HOBBES. He (even though fictional) was one of the best things I remember about the 1990s.
Otherwise, your fairly short write-up reads like you were short or long of coffee when working the puzzle. But not too far off. Maybe you need a cat snug while writing?
All that aside, I will agree, this yet another was crappy Sunday. My memory is probably Swiss cheese at this point, but maybe there was been one (as in, just "ONE") good Sunday #NYTXW puzzle in 2023?
Otherwise, your various complaints were... complaints. I mesh with you about PAPARDAM, because figuring that one out did fix PISSINGONESBRAN, which no, I don't think that what's #NYTXXW intended.
A jumbo "Wednesday". After struggling with Friday, I kinda enjoyed the respite. Not much more to say.
I didn’t get the title so I ignored it. I thought it had something to do with weddings. I did enjoy figuring out how the theme works, but once I did that, the themers we’re not terribly exciting. However, there is always joy in finding a CLAM in my puzzle, I even if it’s pretending to be another word. Despite some crosswordese, I found much to like in the fill. Nothing to rave about, but I liked it more than Rex did.
I still too not get 62d clue or answer at all. Am I missing something?
Easy-Medium for me, with most of my trouble in the SE. I fell into a few of the constructor's traps:
pen before APP at 17D (also considered @Rex ink)
Wanted "somosas" at 72A; PAPADAM was a WOE.
islam before BAHAI at 111A, despite recognizing the reference at 52A
Tried to expand HOmer (as in Simpson) to fit in 102D
THIRD EYE BLIND (119A) was another WOE
Thought the river offshoot at 116D would be the ait/ria kealoa before it turned out to be ARM
@Rob: Think a musical scale: Do, Re, Mi ...
Is it “origin stories”?
Do re mi fa so la te do = scale.
Music scale…. Do-re-mi back to do
It refers to the “do” that anchors each end of the sung musical (“do re mi”) scale.
Spent some time in vowel hell today, with IDEa before IDEO, FReDO before FRODO, and PoPADoM before PAPADAM. Unlike Rex, I read the whole clue for FRODO, but it was of no help to me.
What is the earliest year something can originate in to be called ‘modern’? What is the latest year something can originate to be called ‘classic’?
Perhaps this is some new meaning of the word 'blind' with which I am unfamiliar. More likely, the revealer just does not work.
Why not just make the clue for PANINI plural, to avoid the blowback from those who insist on PANINo for the singular (with some justification … I’d prefer to see panini used only for the plural, but won’t let it ruin my day).
Pretty sure MENORCA is MENORCA to most people, not just locals.
I like that Rex basically reverses his initial take on THIRD EYE BLIND over the course of his column.
Acrostic offered a bit more challenge than the last two had, although the solve never felt like it was in jeopardy as the quote's theme surfaced early, which generally helps.
@Rob: Instead of door to door, we have do to do. The C scale in music starts and ends on do.
Definitely origin stories is a phrase, especially on comic books. Spider-Man’s origin story? Peter Parker bit by a spider. The Flash? Chemical spill and lightning. Superman? Exploding planet. And so on…
This one stole my thunder. I was just working on one where the revealer is BLINDFAITH. The themers would include OLDFUL (Yellowstone spouter) and MARIANNEFUL (60s English rocker).
I’m with Rex all the way on this one.
Some random thoughts:
• I like RAN OUT, which can mean both “left” and “nothing left”.
• It was fun trying to come up with new theme answers, even though I couldn’t come up with any worth anything. Props to David for coming up with these!
• I like the letterhead answers: EGIRL, KMART, and GSPOT.
• I love the cross of PEI and IM (of IMPASSE).
• This is David’s third NYT puzzle, his first a Friday, his second a Saturday, and now this. Well on your way, sir, to hitting the cycle in seven days. Andrew Reis is the only constructor to do it in their first seven puzzles, but not in a consecutive order, as you have done so far. Just putting that out there…
• Lovely PuzzPair© of CLUTCHES and EGG ON.
• The answer CON echoed the theme, as it can be made into a word with the addition of the letter “i”.
• OMG, how I love papadam! Just seeing that answer brought the taste right back.
So, David, you gave my brain not only a lovely fill-in-a-Sunday workout, but lovely sidelights as well. Thank you for creating this!
I predicted Rex's response to this puzzle. I found it OK, but appreciated the challenge in finding themers in which to drop the third "i"! Agree "do"-to-"do" clue was tough (and I had PADADOM at first, which didn't help) but interesting once it revealed itself. Gen Zer was a head-scratcher for me... I'm an old fogey, you know.
BTW, "falutin" has no apostrophe, and this is the shortened form of "highfalutin." From the OED:
Origin: Formed within English, by clipping or shortening. Etymon: highfalutin adj. and n.
Etymology: Shortened < highfalutin adj. and n.
= highfalutin adj. and n.
1921 T. R. Glover Pilgrim viii. 118 He does not use of the Church the splendid language of Paul, still less the falutin of some second century Christians.
1928 Observer 12 Feb. 17/5 The Swarajists..would have..sought to flout Parliament with falutin phrases.
----------------------------
highfalutin, adj. and n.
Pronunciation:
Brit. Hear pronunciation/ˌhʌɪfəˈluːt(ɪ)n/, U.S. Hear pronunciation/ˌhaɪfəˈlutn/
Forms: 1800s hifalutin, 1800s highfalut'n, 1800s highfoluting, 1800s hyfalutin, 1800s– highfalootin', 1800s– highfalootin, 1800s– highfaluten', 1800s– highfaluten, 1800s– highfalutin', 1800s– highfalutin, 1800s– highfaluting.
Origin: Of uncertain origin. Perhaps formed within English, by compounding. Perhaps a variant or alteration of another lexical item. Etymons: high adv., fluting adj., high-flying adj., high-flown adj.
Etymology: Origin uncertain; perhaps (i) < high adv. + a second element perhaps representing a variant pronunciation (with epenthetic vowel) of fluting adj. (perhaps with reference to the sound of affected speech, although see also note below), or perhaps (ii) an arbitrary alteration of high-flying adj. (compare high-flying adj. 2) or high-flown adj., perhaps influenced by flight v.
[...]
slang (originally and chiefly U.S.).
A. adj.
Absurdly pompous or bombastic; pretentious, affected. Cf. high-flown adj. 3.
A typical Sunday of late in that I found it fairly dull and the theme did not have much to it. Maybe they will consider having all days as a 15x15 grid as most people seem to consider many Sunday puzzles a bit of a slog like me…
Agree, Rex. I found this one a yawner and lacking the cleverness I like. But on the positive side, the revealer actually revealed something and that’s always a plus. But the heavy handed title pretty much negated that plus. Grumble, grumble.
Rob - perhaps 62D refers to the musical scale?
It's pretty much at the point where I solve the Sunday #NYTXW merely to keep my streak going. The Sunday themes have been so very weak for so very long that... I don't know, have I even liked solving ANY of the Sunday puzzles in 2023? If so, my recollection falters. Maybe one; back in January? No blame on the constructors; this is all on the editor.
Theme on this one was I guess technically interesting in retrospect, but a serious load of "meh" while actually solving the puzz.
I feel pretty hedgy about this one. On the one hand, it was a tried and true Sunday theme type. On the other, I found the themers a little pale, wan, lacking in heft. My favorite was probably FIVE PILLARS OF SLAM – constructor Karp got me: I was sure there was going to be a play on “iamb.” PIERCING SHREK had some merit, too, but I found the clue off-putting [Preparing to put earrings in an ogre?]. In?...In? Put earrings in an ogre? A bit oddly expressed/a bit graphic.
I found THIRD EYE BLIND to be a thought-provoking revealer. I’d never heard of the rock group, but that’s neither here nor there. The expression is intriguing beyond today’s “phonetic hint” about the missing third letter “I.” It’s got me thinking about spiritual blindness and the inability to perceive anything outside the strictly material. I know in some traditions, the third eye is associated with the body’s energy centers and that it is said to open during meditation. And then there’s the photoreceptive third eye of some amphibians, which has a function in the regulation of circadian rhythms. Hmm. Do we humans have a THIRD EYE? I wonder. If so, let it not be BLIND.
My biggest error was manTa for SKATE, confirmed by that darn T in CERTIFICATE OF CLAM. Wasn’t sure that IN A PILE conveyed much haphazardness – maybe “heap”? I’m glad TOTO was able to transcend second-fiddle status and claim his rightful achievement as Wizard unmasker. I vaguely remember ALIAS: it had a massively convoluted story line and introduced the world to Jennifer Garner. I liked the following clues: [“Black” or “Pink” animal] for PANTHER and [Walk in the park…or sit in a park, maybe] for PICNIC. (That “do” -to- “do” business sailed over my head.) The FAVA/limA kealoa reared its head for the second time in a week – on Wed I fell into it, but today I waited for crosses. Really like Gary Oldman’s take on REALITY TV: “The museum of social decay.” And, hey, do EGIRLs grow up to be EDAMS?
I can’t give you any Van Gogh tigers, but here’s one by Ranson in the Van Gogh Museum.
Only one uniclue today:
“Pet groomers that will leave your canine gasping.”
DOG SPAS G-SPOT EARGASM
[SB: Fri and Sat, 0. @okanaganer: Funny you should ask about me and streaks. In the year and a half that I’ve been keeping my SB stats, my record is 4 QBs in a row. I’ve managed that several times and, as of yesterday, I did it again. Can I reach the elusive 5? Today will tell.]
I found this... fine. The theme was definitely a groaner - agree that it's definitely odd to build a puzzle around THIRD EYE BLIND, particularly when what it reveals isn't particularly exciting or sparkly.
I will say I appreciated what felt like the constructor's attempts to give original fill or less common cluing for the shorter words, even if there were some WoEs as a result. GIGIO was one; IDEM was another - I don't think I've ever once used IDEM in citation, though now I fear I've overused Ibid. Of course I had no idea what a plangonologist collects until getting enough crosses to guess. Once confirmed, I immediately made space for that morsel on a shelf in the trivia corner of my brain.
Basically, if one gnores the theme, which I am nclined to do, it's fine, f a bit on the easy side.
No happy music at the end, which meant proofreading a Sunday puzzle. Finally spotted PAPADuM crossing SCuLE. Oof. That’s what happens when I solve before finishing my first cup of coffee. My brain is a cobwebologist.
I need a “liked it more than Rex did” hot key. All of his critiques are valid (except for the obscurity of Third Eye Blind that he half talked himself out of), but I enjoyed the solve. The themers were at least serviceable, and PICKING ONES BRAN was really good.
On a side note, I largely missed Third Eye Blind when they were popular because I was adulting in the late 90s. To have them described as an “oldies band” was quite the unexpected reminder of my mortality.
I may be making this up, but i remember Sundays of old as the the day you had to figure something out to solve the puzzle. Like it was a brain game, more than just filling in a bunch of answers. I felt like a big sense of AHA when I would get the whole trick and then i could fill in the rest of the clues. Like maybe a number was placed in lieu of some letters, or something was actually backwards or continued in the next line, Idk, maybe I’m hallucinating. These are all the same, just slog slog slog.
My excitement was already at a high level when I filled in SHREK, who I think is unfairly characterized as an OGRE (I know, I’m going to lose that one, but I’m sticking up for the big green fella - besides, if HOBBES doesn’t have to be a cartoon then SHREK doesn’t have to be an OGRE - thanks for your assistance on that one Rex). I got even more excited when I realized this was probably the easiest time I’ve ever had with a Sunday puzzle from the Times. Yes, definitely an easy one if not the easiest over the last 3-4 years (Wednesday tough?).
Unfortunately, I had a DNF with one letter to go. I’m sure we’ve all probably seen the BANFF park in a prior grid, but I didn’t remember it and had nothing for the FRODO cross. Oh, well - that comes with the territory here and I associate no shame with an NYT slop crosses slop DNF (I was lucky enough to guess correctly at the other tough BANAI v. ANIL cross).
Impossible. And no fun, either.
I hope it's only a typo, but it's BAHAI !
As a horny 19 years old in 1976, and well aware of Disco Lady, I was shocked to hear that anyone would have spent hard earned cash at the time to own the album, which DJs of the era, would spin in order to urge couples to grind on one another. You crack me up Prof!
Isn’t it Gaia?
Alice Pollard - I had the same problem with KMART. it is not”former” in my book - I have been to the one in Westwood recently as well.
@Dr. A -- yes, that is how I remember the Sunday puzzle of old. More like a super Thursday. Sometimes it would take hours to do--with phone calls back and forth with my dad in Brooklyn. Nice to remember.
Amy: of course Rex entered Petspas before DOGSPAS. He lives with 2 lovely cats.
Did the puzzle last night and find that improved the Sunday experience for me.
While not a Third Eye Blind fan (but enthusiastic 👍for Hobbes), can appreciate the occasional homage puzzle. They remind me of some of my devotions. Red Sox! Broadway musicals! Sherlock Holmes!
I don't think the band name evokes this theme's illustration of it particularly well. Do you really notice, oh yes there's one I and then there's another I, and look there *should* be a third one over here? It really just comes across that there's one letter missing from each answer.
Here's an ORIGIN single
Go big or go home - just not for me and definitely can’t support a Sunday sized grid. The overall fill is not a complete product. No joy in Mudville today.
Slobberbone
So. . . Gary Oldman has a quote collection? I know Dwight Garner published one recently. What a dumb-ass clue for 83D. He’s a great actor but so what? Will we start seeing more of such clues? This puzzle is filled with niche-y trivia and tortured in its clueing. I agree with others here that Sundays are reaching new lows. And WS’s comments in today’s print edition are stomach-turning. The wackiness just doesn’t substitute for cleverness and invention and wit.
Hey All !
I still wondering how the 90's are thirty years ago. My word, what happened to my 30's and 40's? Even my 50's are zooming by. I'll give someone 10 million dollars to invest a time-slowing machine. 😁 (It would have to slow time for me to pay off 10 million dollars!)
Neat puz. Six Themers of I -I -I phrases. With the last word having to be something with and without the I. They were wacky enough for me. I guess they rate low on Rex's "Wacky Meter".
Can't say I've heard of an EGIRL. Shouldn't it be AGIRL, for Anime? What's tha E for? (Looks at Rex ... Electronic, says he... OKaaaaaay)
For those following cheater squares (you're out there, right?), there are two obvious ones, after TUFT/before ALIAS, after ANODE/before OMAN, but there are also two hidden in the interior, after GOFF/before HUG, after LAS/before IDEM. You're welcome. 😁
Good SunPuz. My mom misses KMARTS. And she likes Westerns. Amazing the things you find out about your parents.
Used to go to my neighborhood ORIGIN STORE, a locally owned Five and Dime when I was a wee lad. 1¢ gummy candy, cheap everything else. Matchbox cars were 75¢, and that was a huge sum! My little town of 2000ish people. I lived on the "edge of town" (our house was right on the border of another 2000ish person town) , so my friend and I had to bike "all the way" to "downtown" (downtown being maybe a one mile stretch) to get to said Five and Dime. Ah, youth.
Seven F's (O MAN)
RooMonster
DarrinV
I started this puzzle from the bottom up, because I wanted to get the song and find out what I was looking for in the themed answers. So I was going along fine, and then the last themed one that I got was PILLARS OF SLAM. I am not usually overly sensitive to stuff like this but it seemed disrespectful to use the name of a religion's core beliefs as a gimmick for a joke in a crossword puzzle. There must be other three-letter-I phrases where removing the last one makes a word that could have been used here.
@A Moderator
Two days in a row my posts aren't appearing. Is it me? Was it the METH BIONIC Uniclue? I hope it's Blogger being Blogger. 😉
Theme answers that were fun to unravel...plus some very sharp and curiosity-provoking clues in the rest of the puzzle...made this a highly enjoyable puzzle to solve despite (quasi-rant coming):
THIRD EYE BLIND is the name of a band???!!!! Who names these groups? Every time I think I can't possibly see a name for either a band or an individual singer that's weirder than the one I'm looking at right now, guess what? One comes along that's even weirder.
And to base an entire puzzle on these people?!!! I mean really!!! Fortunately it didn't matter because the Sunday title explained the theme answers a lot more clearly.
What on earth is an EGIRL? Is she any relation to a Valley Girl? And I can never remember who FRODO is, but the name is in the zeitgeist, so in it went once I had the "F".
But colorful quotations I never heard before can make a puzzle sing for me and I loved the HOBBES quote at 102D (even though I had no idea who said it) and I loved the Gary Oldman quote at 83D.
Great head-scratching clues for AGE GAP, PICNIC and BLURB. EARGASM has appeared before, but it's a wonderful coinage and I didn't remember it.
So a thumbs-up from me -- despite that ridiculously named band.
Love @kent's proposal for a "liked it better than Rex" hot key. I'd be pushing it hard today. Not that it was a sensational puzzle, or flawless (I fully agree that "cartoon" is a misleading clue for Hobbes), but that it met the minimal requirements for a workable Sunday puzzle: no real naticks and able to be cleanly finished (though "mage" for "wizard" left me with some doubts). The themer was adequate... some amusing wordplay there... in short, "liked it more than Rex." In the absence of a hot key, maybe we can use a standard abbreviation for this, like LMTR....
Sounds overly sensitive to me
Thx, David; I like it, I DO, I DO! :)
Med.
Solved without benefit of totally grokking the theme, altho, ironically, the revealer was important to getting ANIL.
Trickiest clue: "Do"-to-"Do" (confusing it with the theme), and not being sure of the final'A' in PAPADAM, nor the TV spy drama, SCALE was obscured until I clicked on the 'do re mi …'.
Clever clue for PICNIC.
GAiA before GAEA; pet SPA before DOG SPA; EARworM before EARGASM; TOgO before TOTO (d-oh!).
Still, the dilemma of jIST vs GIST persists (altho, apparently the former isn't even a bonafide word). Nevertheless, G SPOT obviated any concern.
Thank goodness for all the crosses at STATIN. Other unknowns: E GIRL; ANIL; DOLLS.
An enjoyable 'walk in the park' today! :)
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Joining @kitshef on the Cox & Rathvon acrostic at xwordinfo.com. 🤞
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Peace 🕊 🇺🇦 ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness to all 🙏
Did not understand the clue for SCALE until I read the comments here, and I don’t care for it now that I understand it. Reached for that one. Agree with Rex that HOBBES is not a “cartoon” character (nor should he ever be!). I liked EARGASM because it reminds me of the song No Diggity (“givin’em eargasms with my mellow accent”) which takes me back to good memories of early college days. Also liked FIVEPILLARSOFSLAM because it sounds like the name of a classic 90’s hip-hop group or something equally cool, though I acknowledge it would likely be disrespectful if it actually were. GIGIO… apparently is a nickname for Luigi, and now I know that, and that’s as much good as I can say for that. Overall, I enjoyed most of today’s puzzle, but I can’t say it gave me an eyegasm. (Is that a thing? It kind of creeps me out. lol)
They're an oldies band? Seriously?!?
You know this puzzle is geared a bit older when THIRD EYE BLIND is the marquee answer ... that band is now playing the casino circuit 😂
The clue for 74 Down (something made in a press) was a little off: PANINI is the plural of panino. The clue should have been "things made in a press."
Also, the answer for 20 Across (stacked haphazardly) seemed odd. IN A PILE doesn't have to mean haphazardly. Whenever I stack things in a pile, I make sure that pile is nice and even.
SPITTING MAGE is a fun iMAGE, as clued. I like this theme and its revealer. I had fun going back and seeing that it was indeed the third I that was dropped.
The whole NE gave me trouble, with the unknown basketball team (B-ball, sigh), my ORIGINal entry for 31A and my inability to think past "pen" for 17D. But I prevailed!
Thanks, David Karp
I agree - it wasn’t fun. De-flating. Maybe a future theme?
Saturday’s Universal Crossword by David Karp and Jeff Chen was fa more enjoyable than this one. And The New Yorker magazine has much better puzzles (most of the time) than The New York Times. Why is that?
Re: @burtonkd's query from yd: 'right answer/wrong space':
I posted the following late yd, but felt the MALAPOP concept merited a re-post today.
Btw, ACME is Andrea Carla Michaels.
____
Here's yd's late post:
@burtonkd (9:12 AM) / jberg (7:59 PM)
re: 'malapop', i.e., right answer/wrong space
Here's the origin of the term: (check out the blog for that day to see the many relevant comments to ACME's post)
____
@Rex from Mon., Aug. 18, 2008 wrote:
"36D: Bearded flower (iris) - weirdly, I had IRIS at 55A: Eye part (uvea) before I ever saw this clue. What are we calling that phenomenon, Andrea?"
@ACME (2:03 PM) wrote: [posting as @Anonymous (due to a 3 post limit at that time, which she thot she'd already reached]
"@mac
uh oh, this "andrea" thing is beginning to take on a life of it's own!
Before it goes too much further,
I guess apres vu didn't catch on, and as Rex has wisely pointed out, it's NOT the opposite of a deja vu bec we HAVE seen it, albeit in the wrong place.
sort of a mal deja vu...
so as a nod to that, how about a
MALAPOP?
MALAPOP: A word that you've popped into the puzzle or that has popped up, albeit it in the wrong place?
(Plus it's a nod to that baseball thingie of pop-ups...not to mention annoying pop-up ads)
MALAPOP, anyone?
(In Minnesota tho a MALAPOP would be a soda that's gone flat!)"
___
Peace 🕊 🇺🇦 ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness to all 🙏
Can someone please explain “band stan “? I know what a groupie is, but what’s a “stan “?
@Photomatte: "You know this puzzle is geared a bit older when THIRD EYE BLIND is the marquee answer".
Thank you for that, just thank you so very, very much. I QUIT listening to AM music radio 10 years before the named song (which I have never heard of before) was released, so your comment implies that not only am I old, I must be positively geriatric. And somehow I am not yet 60.
This puzzle just pissed me off at every turn, seemed to have been written by some “insider “ which I totally didn’t get. So much of the fill was just plain dumb.
Todays offering is a perfect example of why I didn't bother with Sunday puzzles for years. They tend to be rather soft. I knew the band so out of this whole puzzle PAPADAM and EGIRL were about the only unknowns and they were quite fairly crossed. You could say that brief promise of difficulty PETERed out.
Putting what you know into puzzles is boring so it's been a real lackluster weekend.
yd pg -1
Try to find today's Doonesbury strip. It's about Prevagen. Hilarious.
@Carole - a stan is an obsessive fan. Like a groupie, but generally seen as creepier.
Agree as do many others.
Maybe Shortz just doesn’t get many good contributions.
I also know what a groupie is but not what a "stan" is. What in the hell is a "stan"? I am very surprised only one other person has posed this (unanswered) question.
Well obviously from the context it means "fan" I guess, but I've never heard it before, and based on the lack of comments, I'm in the extreme minority. Anyway I finally found this:
"A stan is a highly devoted fan of a particular person, like a musician, actor, author, or influencer. [...] The term 'stan' comes from the song of the same name on Eminem’s 2001 album, 'The Marshall Mathers LP.' The track tells the story of an obsessed fan named Stan, who writes the rapper multiple letters."
(looks like someone just posted the answer while I was typing this haha)
https://www.howtogeek.com/684055/what-is-a-stan-and-where-does-the-name-come-from/
Naticked at Agora/Banff/Anode, which seemed a bit much to expect obscuritywise from one solver (this one anyway). Much of the rest of the cluing was very cringeworthy, but so is Third Eye Blind, so at least there was consistency in that regard. Hatcha!
It’s from an Eminem song about an obsessed fan.
At least I learned a couple of new words...like papayas and eargasm....never knew either. Hmmm
Yet another NYTXW for my comatose brother to solve. Third Eye Blind.... I remember them, and their "Semi Charmed Life" song being a tribute to methamphetamine? Maybe a Sunday will come that by the time I wake up (here in CA), the rest of you will be finishing up the puzzle.... Thank you Rex!
UTICA at 40D is where Annette Funicello is from, Mouseketeers. And Alice Kramden's Uncle Leo.
I briefly thought "do to do" could involve hairdos, with the answer SCALP. Didn't sit right, though.
Somehow I thought there'd be comment after comment about GSPOT coming next to EARGASM (see what I did there??) But almost 2pm and no one has even blinked at the naughtiness of it all.
Guess I just need to get my mind out of the...
Choir again, which requires some driving, which eliminates and early Sunday start, so late to the party again. At least I get to read the comments before I weigh in. Anyone understand the do-do clue?
I thought this was OK. Caught on by reading the title and filling in PIERCINGSHREK and then had a reasonably good time seeing how many themers I could fill in with not many letters, which is my substitute for the acrostic these days. I have heard of THIRDEYEBLIND but if you offered me X amount of money to come up with one of their songs you would still have X amount of money.
Strangely enough, I read the "tigers" clue and could only think of Calvin, duh, and I agree that neither is a "cartoon character". What they are is Comic Strip Hall of Fame Immortals.
And my definition of REALITYTV is "oxymoron". Anything involving a camera crew is hardly "real". (Rxception-this does not apply to sports, especially of the amateur variety.)
Workmanlike Sunday, DK. Didn't Kickstart the woohoo! machine, but nice enough. Thanks for some fun.
@bocamp - thanks for the response yesterday, and again today since I didn't see your MALAPOP. Correct response, wrong day now:)
Even Stan is 22 years older than he was when stanning Eminem. Commit it to memory, it will show up again - I know I've seen it here before.
Calvin & Hobbes can show up whenever they like, and will always be a delight!
At their peak, there were 2,486 KMARTS in the US. In 2022, there were 3 in the continental US. So despite multiple posters somehow being from Westwood, NJ, home to one of the three, I think we can still accurately call it a "former retail giant". Btw, the ORIGINSTORE was in Garden City, MI (per Wikipedia).
@Nancy from yesterday. Any good sci-fi ultimately tells us something about ourselves. I understand the NYPL has a video streaming service, so you can just call up whatever you want from the catalog and play it on the spot - get your handyman to help set it up:) I can't show my face in the NYPL due to overdue DVD fines that added up when I forgot to take them back before a vacation once, oops...
I second the recommendation of Arrival as sci-fi that might be Nancy-tolerable:) No pew-pew-pew laser fights.
@pabloinnh - you of all people coming from choir rehearsal should understand the do-do clue:) Think solfege.
Not seeing my posts either
@Pablo
You can get the NYT Acrostic here for $10 a year.
@Burtonkd
I think @Pablo was making a joke about the number of responses.
Stalker + fan = stan
Mixed feelins, about this particular puztheme. Drop-a-letter theme mcguffins ain't exactly revolutionary … plus, surprisin for one to show up in the SunPuz, where it can become almost downright monotonous. And the revealer band name of mystery added nuthin much to the lowerin of nanosecond usage, at our house.
Kinda really liked SPITTINGMAGE, tho. har
staff weeject pick: LAH. Needs a new clue, kinda. Evidently LAH is a British note name, so maybe go with that: {Brit's sixth attempt at a pitch?}. Or somesuch.
Quad stacks of weejects in the NE & SW. They really established their territories, on the top and bottom puzrows [8 outta 21 a pop]. Like.
fave: PAPADAM. My sis-in-law reliably orders this appetizer at the local Indian eatery. So a very familiar -- albeit puz debuter -- word. Not so familiar was debuter-word EGIRL. But, hey -- nuthin wrong with a little EGAL-itarianism.
Thanx, Mr. Karp dude. Was real extra-relieved, that yer puztitle weren't meanin to go with: "I Do, I Doo-doo", btw.
Masked & Anonymo6Us
p.s. @Nancy: If U don't watch that "Primer" flick, check out its plot-flow explanation, over on Wikipedia. That alone is still good for a hefty time-flow-mind-blow.
**gruntz**
@JC66/Pablo - you are probably right, I saw the "late to the party" part and not the "I've read everything" part.
The do to do clue is basically making fun of people with less-than-upper-class accents.
Hi @JC66 and @burtonkd-
Yep.
Gaia is the Greek transliteration, more common lately. Karp or Shortz chose the Latin version to get out of a trap in construction. I think it used to be seen more in the past. The Latin version is the origin of geo as in geology.
Thankfully easy, keeping the effort:payoff ratio in balance. I appreciated the theme more after the reveal pointed out the two Is preceding the blinded one. One theme answer seemed off to me: PICKING ONES BRAN, as one usually picks someone else's brain, although one may rack one's own.
Do-over: pet SPA. No idea: THIRD EYE BLIND. Clueless: why SCALE was right - thank you to those who explained it.
JC66 2:42 - Thank you for the information about the online Acrostics! We get the daily paper, so I can solve them in the mag, but solving online is obviously so much easier. I signed up and enjoyed doing today's.
@M&A
"Primer" is way too too for a start out Sci-Fi flick. Holy cow. I've watched it twice, and read All the write-ups about how to interpret it, along with the graphs and charts, and it's still confusing.
That movie title needs a Double ? marker.
Har.
RooMonster Prime Time Guy
Will Shortz (in the "newspaper version") didn't have to point out what he found unsatisfactory in Mr. Karp's first attempt, did he? It's quite as if he felt a need to say, “Despite what you may have read on various online forums, I do have editorial standards for fill.” And the rest of note seems like special pleading for the one that was accepted.
If anyone here ever spent time on Nantucket they would know the
Macy origin store was there. Check it out.
I found this difficult. Saturday’s was a cinch and this one took all I had and a lot of writing overs to get to the finish line. And no. It wasn’t worth it but OCD makes me waste my time on this shit.
@Sandy McCroskey – I don't see why Will Shortz has to say anything about the puzzle, ever. His comments never improve the solving experience, they almost always seem intended to compensate for some perceived deficiency.
The clue for AGEGAP is wrong. 2.3 years is not the difference in age “for the *average American couple*”, it is the *average difference in age* for American couples.
Mean vs median is middle school math. Or elementary school math even? I don’t remember exactly. Either way, Will Shortz should know better.
THANK YOU all who responded! I didn’t get it either!
Exactly. I really miss those puzzles too.
When did HEROS become an appropriate pluralization? I feel like it's been in several recent puzzles but keep tripping on it because the plural should be HEROES even if the subject is a multitude of sandwiches, no?
Well, no one mentioned this (I may be overthinking it) but Third Eye Blind’s monster hit (Semi-Charmed Life) has a chorus of Do do do, do do do-do,,, which everyone was going around singing for months during the time it seemed to be on the radio constantly. And that always struck me as ironic, given that this catchy peppy, earworm was about crystal meth!
i had similar gripes. thought this puzzle was more challenging than last week. was happy to have a shout out to Utica, my hometown, but i didn’t get it until it was nearly filled in! Living there didn’t feel at the foot of the mountains. i toiled over the NE and filled it in last because i was sure PEN was correct. it was not. i should have used a pencil ;)
Rex, I am in complete agreement with the amount of cranky you level at the dissatisfying ease of this puzzle.
I put down my beloved cat, Syd, a week ago today. I completed this puzzle in what felt like 3.2 seconds while sobbing and under a cloud of grief-induced brain fog. The puzzle did not provide the prolonged distraction I had hoped for.
Groan
Even after getting THIRDEYEBLIND fairly early on, I didn't suss out it's relationship to a puzzle "theme" until I had finished and was looking at the completed grid.
OTOH, I had a good time with the puzzle. I guess some others did not. Too bad for them...
Diana, Lady-in-Waiting for Crosswords
Happy Easter, Syndilanders! Preparing dinner for two lonely neighbors; way too much to do to tackle a NYTXW today.
Wordle bogey.
Bless your heart @spacey.This puz not very wacky. DIMS in the corners.
Wordle par.
My local Indian restaurant spells it “papadUm” so I had no idea what SCULE meant. Thanks for the explanation here.
But how dumb am I getting with age? Never associated 3rd I blind with the theme answers.
So wretchedly irritating that I got a DNF on the ridiculously mis-spelled PAPADAM. I have never in my life - nearly 70 years of it - have I seen that word spelled like that. Will Shortz, it is high time you retired.
I had Sears first also before K-Mart. This whole thing was a time burning slog. Way too many esoteric answers and clues. Not enjoyable for me. Please let's get a good Sunday puzzle next week. It's been a while IMHO.
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