Opposite of relief, in printmaking / SUN 1-21-24 / Aid in getting a leg up? / Exclamation before an ill-advised action, maybe / Moose's mating season / Yiddish word meaning "woe" / Pop singer with noted bangs (and bangers!)
Constructor: John Westwig
Relative difficulty: Easy
THEME: "Funny Business" — puns based on some sad sack's failed business ventures...
Theme answers:
23A: "First, I founded an aerospace start-up, but I never ... GOT IT OFF THE GROUND"
39A: "When that fell through, I tried my hand at fishmongering, but we ... DIDN'T SCALE WELL"
56A: "Next, I pivoted into breakfast restaurants, but competitors ... POACHED OUR EMPLOYEES"
77A: "When I tried candlemaking, all my workers ... SUFFERED FROM BURNOUT"
92A: "I decided to try operating an airport, but just before launch we ... RAN OUT OF RUNWAY"
112A: "Finally, I decided to buy a grocery store on an intersection, but a rival had ... CORNERED THE MARKET"
Word of the Day: Hyperion (80D: The 380-foot-tall Hyperion, for one) —
Hyperion is a coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) in California that is the world's tallest known living tree, measuring 115.92 m (380.3 ft).
Hyperion was discovered on August 25, 2006, by naturalists Chris Atkins and Michael Taylor. The tree was verified as standing 115.55 m (379.1 ft) tall by Stephen Sillett. It was found in a remote area of Redwood National Park that was part of the original 1968 park boundaries. The park also houses the second, fourth and fifth tallest known trees, coast redwoods named Helios, Icarus, and Daedalus, currently 377, 371 and 363 feet, respectively. Hyperion was measured as 116.07 metres (380.8 ft) tall in 2019.
Hyperion is estimated to be 600 to 800 years old and contain 530 m3 (18,600 cu ft) of wood.
The exact location of Hyperion is nominally secret but is available via internet search. However, In July 2022, the Redwood Park superintendent closed the entire area around the tree, citing "devastation of the habitat surrounding Hyperion" caused by visitors, and now anyone who gets too close could face up to six months in jail and a $5,000 fine.
Researchers have said that woodpecker activity at the top may have prevented the tree from growing taller. (wikipedia)
• • •
[47A: Pop singer with noted bangs (and bangers!) (SIA)]
I wish I had better news but wow this one was ... something. Pure corn, of an unabashedly olden, subdadjoke variety, just D-grade punning as far as the eye can see. And the fill did nothing to enhance the experience. I did not solve so much as endure this one. Would've quit very early if solving and being miserable and sharing that misery were not my job. This is one of those days when I just have to shake my head and accept that sometimes people are "tickled" by things that leave me cold. Less than cold. It wasn't even that the puns were groaners—I can absolutely handle a groanfest, if the groans are thoughtful and ambitious enough (go big or go home, where dumb puns are concerned). It's that these puns were so predictable, so flaccid, so tepid, so completely shrugworthy. There wasn't a one that was surprising or unexpected, literally none that seemed worth the price of admission. It felt like the puzzle was just going through the motions. And while some of the themers at least have a kind of internal coherence—CORNERED THE MARKET and RAN OUT OF RUNWAY at least seem like phrases that make sense and can stand alone—most of them feel like they've been beaten and mangled in order to fit symmetrically. "Got off the ground" makes sense, but the addition of "IT" makes it sound awkward. "DIDN'T SCALE WELL" ... yeah, OK, that's a thing one might say, though the "WELL" part felt slightly tacked-on. With POACHED OUR EMPLOYEES ... the "EMPLOYEES" part of that was probably the "hardest" part of the theme for me. I kept trying to think of another word for "ideas." POACHED OUR EMPLOYEES standing on its own seems slightly ridiculous. The "from" in SUFFER FROM BURNOUT feels wedged in there. Lots of little awkwardnesses all over the place. But the phrasing wasn't really the problem. The corny premise and the completely lackluster puns, those were the problems. All of that, with no good fill anywhere to alleviate the pain. Unless you are the kind of person who thinks an answer like BUSINESS SCHOOL *alleviates* pain, in which case, well, we are very different.
This puzzle did that clue doubling thing not once but twice, ugh. The whole "whose title sounds like a command" (in the clues for "LOVE ME" and "USE ME") adds absolutely nothing to either clue, or to my appreciation of either song, or anything. All you've done in both cases is make the clue longer. You've literally put more words in the clue, but that's it. I guess if you'd never heard of either song, you could maybe use the clues to help you (?), but there's nothing charming about the clue twinning there. The [Swiss cheese] / [Swiss "cheese"] doubling is much better. "Cheese" is (dated) slang for money, so ... you get actual cheese (GRUYÈRE) and metaphorical cheese (FRANCS). I have to admit, the clue twinning there actually works. Are AÇAI BOWLs still "trendy" (82D: Trendy treat of Brazilian origin)? I have never had one, or even been somewhere where one was on the menu. I only know they exist because crosswords tell me so (this is also the only way I know TSURIS (70D: Yiddish word meaning "woe")). Are we really doing WIFEY? We are? I'm being told we are. OK ... well, huh. Interesting choice. Not sure I'd've gone *annnnny* other way than the Judy Blume title there, but you wanna go with [The missus], knock yourself out, I guess. Seems like some solvers might hear it as condescending or insulting, but you do you, crossword guys!
The one potentially tough section, or so it seemed to me, was the NE, and that's due entirely to INTAGLIO (17D: Opposite of relief, in printmaking), a word lots of people won't know, or, if you're like me, will kinda sorta know, but not really, only in that cocktail party knowledge kind of way where if someone mentions it, you nod knowingly and murmur, "yes, of course, I've heard of that [sips martini, adjusts monocle]." All the crosses seem fair, though I guess I can imagine someone not knowing SIA and having no idea what letter to put in that INTAGL-O / S-A crossing. If that was you, I'm so sorry. I had my own struggles, but they were few, and not very significant. I wrote DAY ONE before ONE ONE (i.e. 1/1) (66A: New Year's Day). I had never heard of Hyperion the REDWOOD. I struggled with OTTOMAN because of its "?"-ness (34D: Aid in getting a leg up?) and GOODS because ... I don't know, sheer vagueness, I suppose (88A: Freight, e.g.). "YEAH, SO?" had that elusive quality, that all "UM, NO" / "UH, OK"-type answers have (95D: "Whatcha gonna do about it?"). I stared at ACT for a little bit, wondering how it worked for [State lines?], until I realized that actors "state" their "lines." I got YOLO easily, since it's been slang for about a decade now ("you only live once!") (110A: Exclamation before an ill-advised action, maybe). Did you know that YOLO went 46 years between appearances in the NYTXW!? It was clued as [California county] in 1968, back when Margaret Farrar was still editor, and then it went missing for the better part of a half century before turning up in the Shortz Era, in a 2014 Joel Fagliano puzzle, clued as [Modern acronym suggesting "seize the day"]. Quite a comeback for YOLO. Apparently, if you're YOLO, you do not, in fact, only live once.
Just a final note to say that if you sent me snail mail recently in response to my annual solicitation of financial contributions, the postcards arrived from the printers last week and the first of the thank-you cards have just gone out. My teaching job started up again last week, so it will take me a couple weeks to get through the mail, please be patient. The cards have been so lovely—so many kind notes and also ... well, a lot of little extras. Little cards and stickers and photos and gifts and such. See if you notice a theme developing:
[It's cats, the theme is cats]
There was also this poem, from reader David D—, which felt like a fitting way to end today's write-up:
LMTR! Though Rex properly points to the one natick in the puzzle (SIA/INTAGLIO) I downgrade this to a quasi-natick because there is only one really plausible letter to fill that space, so I give it a pass. Yes, yes, the theme was kinda' cheesey, but hey, it's the Sunday puzzle after all. The quasi-natick aside, there was a mercifully low PPP count in this puzzle, such a welcome relief that I want to thank its constructor for an enjoyable puzzle, which presented no untoward obstacles to its successful completion! Haven't been able to say that for a month of Sundays!
The protagonist of this puzzle reminded me a lot of the orange crybaby. A bunch of disastrous business ventures, well-documented in the NYT. Revealer should be BECAMEPRESIDENT. Of course when I was a business owner, we often grilled our employees. Never thought of trying them poached.
I'm lukewarm on SMASHIN = break. I mean the Smashed In Windows theory of policing has been pretty thoroughly discredited. OTOH, the Smashin Pumpkins Theory is alive and well.
We ASSISTS are always up for some TUSHIE.
Definitely an old timey vibe to this one, and WIFEY agrees. Still, it was fun filling in the themers almost without crosses. Thanks, John Westwig.
So I decided to go into writing crosswords but ran into gridlock, so I went into editing crosswords and found I was clueless, so I went into blogging about crosswords where I finallly found a home for my witty negativity.
Just have to add wrt “wifey” My less than bright neighbor applied for a job in my company AND in my group. I told my boss “hell no”, but we went through the interview process anyway, which was still remote at the time. I stayed out of camera during his presentation, but participated in the team review afterwards.
One thing everyone mentioned was the fact that he referred to his wife as “the wifey”. That one just one of many things that did not impress my colleagues.
I had a chuckle at Rex: you nod knowingly and murmur, "yes, of course, I've heard of that" [sips martini, adjusts monocle].
The theme was a bit bland, as Sundays often are. CORNERED THE MARKET was the best. (Never) GOT IT OFF THE GROUND and RAN OUT OF RUNWAY could both describe the same unfortunate event. As for typeovers, c'mon you all, admit you had TIE before BIB for "Neckwear provided at some restaurants".
Why the metric system is so better: "There are 768 [TEASPOONS] in a gallon". 768!!
[Spelling Bee: Sat 0, got straight to QB in under 30 minutes which is unusual considering there were a LOT of words. Usually I have to take a break or two to get there. My week: all QB except for Tues... @puzzlehoarder from yesterday, sound familiar? I probably missed the same 8er, but I got the 10 letter pg by just randomly mashing shorter words together and getting lucky. I have never heard or seen that word.]
A very average Sunday. TSURIS was easy as I'd recently seen the "Curb Your Enthusiasm " episode where John Hamm uses it in a mock eulogy for Albert Brooks. The spelling wasn't a problem as I've seen it in print.
Today was the first Sunday crossword I ever finished by myself.
And I’ve been doing crosswords for 11 years. Despite being a regular at the crossword M-W, I would run out of patience with the Thursday. From there, I assumed that I would just be unable to do the more difficult days. So, I just never really tried. Rebuses! Bigger grids! Puns! I found a sweet spot, so I stuck to it.
This year, though, I decided that I wanted to push myself in all ways. Part of that resolution was the crossword. Yesterday was the first Saturday I solved on my own. Today is the first time I’ve amassed a seven day streak.
So, yeah, this solve was easy. But it felt really good to be able to work it out. I turned … a corner…
Seeing that some of y’all were talking SB: Sat SB was quite nice. Very quick. This week, I missed one word on Tuesday and one on Thursday. Other than that, SB all week. A relatively easy week this week for sure. At least today’s SB is providing a little bit more of a challenge.
I am also a newbie (joining the crossword crowd less than a year ago). I still have not completed a Sunday without using the “blue” letters… but got close a few times. Monday and Tuesday are now usually a gold star and working Wed slowly… but Thurs to Sat are still out of my ballpark. I do love rebus puzzles but hate Natick issues and love this blog; a must read after finishing the puzzle. So glad to see another newer solver on here!!
Once again, solved while watching football so my time stats were skewed.
1D: BeGOne before BUGOFF 28A: REhash before REREAD 39A: DIDN'T SCorE WELL before SCALE (prior to reading any of the theme clues) 47A: SzA before SIA 54A: turnS ON before FLIPS ON
Easy, whooshy, started at the top and proceeded apace south and east, ending with EON. Yes, tIe before BIB! I'm in Lisbon where it's 11am Sunday and our hotel room is just about to be ready, meanwhile we get to relax in this gorgeous living room, and nothing in town is open! But looking forward to dinner.
Go big or go home with your puns - this one came up short yet again in this new year. The big guy touches on most of the dreck - tired theme + flat fill + Sunday sized grid = slog. This needed a slap in the TUSHIE to get it going.
AÇAÍ BOWLs are definitely a thing. Friends tell me that WIFEY is the moniker of a very popular online porn star - I may have to do some research. Liked the OTTOMAN clue and GRUYÈRE is pretty cool to see. Problem is there’s just so much bad fill that any bright spots are overwhelmed.
Funny Struggled a bit with this, having trouble getting on the constructor's wavelength. And didn't enjoy it much. A couple of the puns land, but some are weak sauce and RAN OUT OF RUNWAY is particularly bad.
David D-'s poem is the highlight of today's blog, agreed.
I liked this. Corny as all heck, sure. Maybe this speaks to my being of a certain age. Some of the cluing seemed fresh: (for) VALOR, TEASPOONS, TINS, OED.
I was confused about a couple of clues. RUT? KITED? New to me. RUT is a funny word, isn't it? - "Not tonight, honey, I'm in a rut. Oh, maybe yes!"
One more thought: While the theme answers were very corny, I think the idea of using these in a continuous story line (trying to open different businesses) helps. They were not random corny phrases. I know, I know... Not many supporters on this one: "Vox clamantis in deserto."
I'll admit to being caught off guard by DIDNT SCALE WELL and chuckling mindlessly, but otherwise agreed, it was thoroughly average. I also don't really like one-off gimmicks such as KITED/FRAUD that aren't implemented throughout the grid.
Agree with the others who have mentioned INTAGLIO, TSURIS and SIA as the trouble spots. The whole RAN OUT OF RUNWAY situation doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun (then again, neither does POACHING one”s EMPLOYEES - well, maybe if you use a nice beurre blanc).
Rex wishes the theme had more substance to it (his standards are obviously much higher than the NYT’s, as this is about the best that you can hope for - at least it’s not words dropping off a cliff, forming a waterfall or getting filled in backwards, et c.).
Can anyone elaborate as to how / why a cub or a colt would be considered a ROOKIE ? I’m just stuck on the sports analogy (first year player). I’ve never heard of a new employee or some other type of NOOB being referred to has a colt. That one is just not registering.
I went a little too Yiddish on 70A - having just the H, I wrote in TUcHus. I quickly corrected it when I was sure that 65D didn’t start TS-, and then was gratified moments later to get my Yiddish fix at 70D with TSURIS.
Hey All ! Tried and true expressions. But wacky clues for them. Liked the variation.
No mention of the doubled OFF. Of course, I liked it, gets four F's!
Nothing too difficult to suss out today. Solved at a fairly brisk pace. Got stuck on the NEGEV Desert, tho. Wasn't anything happening in that small area, and it being the last area unfilled, angstness set in, and I had to go Goog for NEGEV. Not up on all the deserts out there.
Still taking it as a win, but I guess my current streak should be asterisked (today not being the only puz non-Googed). So, Streak at 36 Days*. 😁
No problems anywhere: I knew INTAGLIO, SIA, and TSURIS so I guess it was in my wheelhouse. Agree puns were tepid but liked them more than Rex did. The poem is the highlight of the morn!
It seems fine for The NY Times to reflect its NY-ness, which makes TSURIS fair game. And POACHED OUR EMPLOYEES is pretty much a layup for people in the business world but YMMV.
3 teaspoons equal a tablespoon. 2 tablespoons equal an ounce. So 6x32x4=768. Hee hee, they hid the ASS in ASSISTS, and tossed in an ALFRED BUTTS in a clue. I also enjoyed the tribute to Sandy Otterson.
Ooh - cub reporter Jimmy Olsen. I watched that show all the time as a kid. As I got older, I realized that Superman, an American icon and superhero, is a guy who wears his underwear on the outside of his pants.
We’ll go with tough (for me) clue for ROOKIE, but fair - and I appear to be in the minority with my difficulty.
I'm happy to say that in 53+ years of marriage I have never referred to my spouse as WIFEY, and if I ever do, I hope she slugs me. I mean, really. Side note--she has never called me "hubby" either, gracias a Dios.
I read the definition for INTAGLIO and wrote it in off the IN, but if you asked me to define INTAGLIO I would have invented a totally half-assed definition. One of those words. You don't know it, you know of it.
I am frequently ignorant of proper names, how do you do LILY?, but today is the first time I've encountered that phenomenon with regard to a tree.
TIE for "neckwear"? That was my second consideration, right after LEI. No, really.
Some tepid haha in this one, JW. I think it would have been a perfect Sunday for someone who has never done a NYT Sunday puzzle and wants to say they can do one. I Just Wish that described my situation. Thanks for some moderate diversion when it's too cold to do anything else.
If only I'd laughed. Even once. But the beauty of trying out your puns and one-liners in a crossword puzzle is that, even if you're not quite ready for SNL primetime, you have the modest task of keeping your audience mildly diverted during the solve -- and in this case, at least in NYC, during yet again another shut-in day of icy sidewalks and 21-degree weather -- rather than having to make them roll in the aisles like you would in the TV studio.
I was mildly diverted -- and during days and days and days of weather like this, it was plenty good enough. Thanks, John Westwig, for the morning diversion.
The fact that these are all actual business speak cliches (scale especially) then made haha literal elevated it above the run of the mill groaner that Rex took it as I think. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
The metric system just likes 5s and 2s in equal proportion, whereas the English system tends to prefer 2s and 3s (though the 5280 feet in a mile has a factor of 11 snuck in just for spite).
Of course, since our numbers are written based on 2s and 5s in equal proportion, the metric system is a lot simpler.
Yes, overall fairly easy - though opened with error - had correct answer at 1A, but went with Begone at 1D. Slowed things down for a while there.
Intaglio is used in printing U.S. currency. It may be combined with other printing methods, depending on the denomination. The NYT Magazine used to be printed in rotogravure, which is intaglio on a rotary press. Not sure how the magazine is printed now. The plant in Pennsylvania that formerly printed it closed, I believe. Ok, still is printed in gravure, according to the ad specs page for the magazine.
Hah, one of Rex's betes noir, the duplicate clue thing, got me today. I eventually got GRUYERE but FRANCS took a lot longer due to "cheese" not being one of money's many euphemisms in my lexicon. At one point, I was wondering if I was going to have to look up "smile" in my French dictionary.
That whole SE section held me up today. Nude and crude rhymed with rude and 114A was iN a second, and stayed there much longer than a second. I could have really used a better clue for STOOP, like "bend down" or "front steps".
EON clue, quite awkward, I thought. "Over time period?" I suppose it was trying to use overtime as a misdirection but yeah, no.
The theme answers were fairly fun, using business terms to punnily describe failing businesses (and what's up with BUSINESS in both the title and 16D?)
Thanks, John Westwig, it was an interesting Sunday puzzle.
Teedman About front steps as clue for stoop. It is an only in NYC regionalism so it might be very hard for many to get. (New Yorkers got it from the Dutch word for step).
@anonymous 12:58 LOL ( Well not quite, ubt a big smile - clever.
I do not get "didn't scale well" When and why would anyone ever say that? Also "ran out of ruby" The rest got a smiley face from me. I knew intaglio (from some corner of my brain) But had never heard or read tsuris. I agree with comments for whom "cease" does not mean money. I cannot remember a redwood named Hpeion. Having grown up in So Cal and visited Yosemite and the other giant redwood park as a child, I thought I knew my named redwoods. I don't understand "Cub or colts" as a "rookie"or maybe I don't accept it - I sort of see a connection in meaning.
Like @ Nancy dealing with icy sidewalks & frigid temperatures in NYC (of course it could've been worse since we only got an inch or 2 of snow - I'm sure Rex got more), so I was looking forward to Sunday's diversion. Which I got - at first. Must be me since I began on such a promising note. Then it got annoying, ie INTAGLIO, HEW TO (73D Follow closely), & WORST of all, WIFEY (as in "Hubby.")
I'll take the blame, though, John since I did enjoy it until I didn't.
Now, having read Rex's write-up, I can add that ACAI BOWL is indeed still trendy in Brazil, or at least in the summer of 2022. The friends we were visiting insisted in having one for dessert, with side toppings of granola, bananas (or was it banana chips?) and powdered milk (for creaminess). I thought it was okay. Kind of one note blueberry-ish.
And that cover of Dan Simmons' "Hyperion" - I have that book (same cover) in my library, an interesting enough book though the sequel was less so, in my opinion. And yes, that's what came to mind when I saw Hyperion in the clue for REDWOOD. Hyperion as redwood would be one of those martini-sipping nod moments Rex mentions, as I've read some interesting articles about the micro-biomes each redwood creates and I'm sure Hyperion was mentioned in one of them but not info I stored anywhere.
Wifey - my hometown friend tells me a guy I dated a few times now writes an occasional column in the local paper and refers to his missus as WIFEY. Eww, and maybe whew!
16 U's! 34 weejects! Hit-and-miss attempts at puztheme business humor! BUSINESSSCHOOL on the side! har!d not to like, dis an itty bit.
staff weeject pick: STD. Hard to beat a SunPuz with a Sexually Transmitted Disease in it.
Best thing: @RP's "Hyperion" book cover in the blog's WOTD. Luved that book. Read it many many years ago, but still think The Shrike is the best. Heard that Bradley Cooper may make a film version soon? Would beget primo shrike/schlock.
Why the all the high dudgeon over WIFEY? Sounds more like a term of endearment than one of disparagement. Would HUBBY in a grid generate the same amount of animus? (Or should that be anima?)
Karaoke was big when I was in Japan in the 80s. Practically ever bar would have one set up with a big screen for videos and lyrics. The play list would often include a couple of songs in English. When an Anglo came in, the locals would ply us with beer and whisky and then coax us into singing one of the American hits. One that frequently came up was Presley' "LOVE ME Tender". When I read the clue for 60D "1956 Elvis hit whose title sounds like a command", I was surprised to see just the Tenderless LOVE ME. Had to go to Cousin Googs to find out that both were Presley hits in 1956.
TORPOR for 52D "Listlessness" warmed this old word nerd's heart but, alas, that's what set in about two thirds of the way through this one. My solve buzz KINDA SORTA (Friday) RAN OUT OF RUNWAY.
I liked how there was a BUSINESS SCHOOL in the puzzle, which apparently offered no help to the hapless entrepreneur with his or her many start-up failures. Nice parallel with BARE ESSENTIALS - e.g., be sure you can SCALE WELL before setting up as a fishmonger. Bonus: learning there's a redwood named Hyperion.
I have been doing the NYTXW Sundays every week for about 20 years, and most of them for the last 45.
By far, this was the easiest ever. Took me only about 15 minutes. I concur with Rex about "dad jokes," yes, groaners, but these seem dragged out of the 1960s.
I liked solving it, I guess, but... do better, NYT. Way way way too easy.
I RAN OUT OF FUN WAY before I GOT IT OFF THE GROUND. This one SUFFERED FROM TURNOFF. So, I decided to start a humorous crossword, but I COULDN'T GET THE PUN ACROSS.
Sigh, solving a print-out of the puz for the fourth time in a week. Tuesday I could not find my paper in the fresh snow in = front of my house so I reported it missing for a substantial refund and read the paper on the replica edition (I cannot figure out what I want to read just from headlines, I don't know how people do that) and printed the puzzle. All well for a couple of days, then no paper Friday, so once again print-out and replica. And later in the day enough snow had sublimated that the Tuesday paper became visible in the perennial bed. I felt terrible that deliverer had come in the awful weather Thursday morning and then got docked by my false report, so I vowed to fess up to the human answering the delivery number in business hours. But Saturday no paper again. So I called and told the person the story, said person told me no deliverer had a right to stop delivering because they were inaccurately reported. So today, no paper, again. I reported and asked for a refund, they gave me a refund of $17 and change. For a paper I could buy in the store for $6. So I guess I will just keep playing this game, if it goes on long enough maybe I will wind up getting NYTimes access for free. Oh, the puzzle. I was so sure of TUcHus crossing TSURIS I never figured out that area at all. And I was sure the football receiver was a WIDE end, so I never saw the moose's mating season. But it was pleasant enough.
noun noun: rut; plural noun: ruts an annual period of sexual activity in deer and some other mammals, during which the males fight each other for access to the females. "a moose in rut" verb verb: rut; 3rd person present: ruts; past tense: rutted; past participle: rutted; gerund or present participle: rutting; adjective: rutting (of a deer or other mammal) engage in the rut or annual period of sexual activity. "researchers say the deer are rutting earlier"
@gfrpeace - I've been subscribing to the NYT for more years than I'd like to remember. Recently I also got spotty delivery (in the summer, so no snow yet) & hated it that they had me by the "balls" (forgive my vulgarity) since I love doing the puzzle (not necessarily reading the headlines, well, maybe the Cooking & Well sections). Plus it's become so expensive, except for new subscribers.
Thanks to commenters on the blog, I recently switched to a Digital subscription which is MUCH cheaper.
I have to admit that I miss the printed paper at my door in the am but it wasn't worth the bother anymore. Their loss.
Jb about the dead tree edition cost I am still addicted to print But whenever they raise the price I call. and get a lower figure. This last time they were desperate enough to keep me to off a price lower than I was paying before. But I understand why you switched
1) I still remember enough high school Latin that I knew that "Vox clamantis in deserto" means "the voice of one crying in the wilderness."
2) I know that anyone called @pabloinnh lives in New Hampshire.
3) I knew the college you were referring to was Dartmouth. Could Dartmouth's motto possibly be the "Vox" motto?
Google told me that, yes, it is. So now my question is: Why would ANY college pick the motto: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness"? It's not exactly an upbeat message, is it? It doesn't exactly seem like a selling point, does it? Very strange.
What 🦖 said. Picked at this all day because I kept finding more interesting things to do. It was like grabbing an old book in the stacks of a musty university library basement, blowing off the dust and cobwebs, cracking it open to a creaking sound, and seeing the title Fun Crosswords! with a copyright date long long ago. Such a collection of cringes. WIFEY ... wow.
HARRY POTTER IS #1! Everybody it seems loved his dead mom.
Tee-Hee: PEW ... TUSHIE.
Uniclues:
1 Active military man prepares to eat spaghetti. 2 Snake swallowed all the rabbits. 3 Uncover how to avoid being uncovered. 4 One prepared to open a used book store.
1 BUD AT WAR ASSISTS BIB 2 BOA CORNERED THE MARKET 3 DETECT BARE ESSENTIALS 4 BUSINESS SCHOOL ROOKIE
My Fascinating Crossword Uniclue Keepsake from Last Year: Seventeen years of listening to undergrads whine and department chairs making horrible decisions in exchange for health insurance and a salary that won't cover a third bedroom. POST-DOC'S GRIND.
It took 33 years for the poor Bills fans to suffer another "wide right" but most of western New York is in mourning today. The explanation of "Turkey Bowl" recollects the hilarious scene from "The Big Bang Theory" when Leonard wants to learn about football. Dr. Cooper, while working at his computer overhears Leonard's musing over the term "line of scrimmage". "The line of scrimmage is the imaginary transverse line separating the offense from the defense".
Almost RANOUTOFRUNWAY with that bit of restaurant attire: tIe. Major misstep, as it led to traINingSCHOOL. An ill-advised action. Yipe! (not YOLO)
Plenty of misdirection and sideways cluing here to take it out of the "easy" basket. True, most of the themers whooshed (but DIDNTSCALEWELL?? Nonsense to me. Must be a sort of boardroom lingo to which I'm not privy.) It was mainly the short-to-medium fill that provided the resistance. (Extract = GLEAN? I get it, but the clue leads to a lot more things before GLEAN)
Then there's the Swiss "cheese" right alongside the Swiss cheese. Cute, but not so inferable. Via "cheddar," I suppose.
GOTITOFFTHEGROUND with...just that. It whooshed. Fortunately, I did not SUFFER...FROM BURNOUT before finishing. Par.
Why are the apparently easy puzzles for everyone else more like medium/hard for me? This was a perfect example of one of those puzzles. But I am glad that my frustrations with some final fills brought me to the blog and I was treated to David O’s clever poem. Thanks David and you too, Rex!
.png)
.jpg)
Easy. Whooshy and mildly amusing. Liked it more than @Rex did.
ReplyDeleteAs @Rex predicted I did not know INTAGLIO (but I did know SIA) and my only serious hiccup was trying to spell GRUYÈRE.
It's harder to pronounce it
DeleteLMTR! Though Rex properly points to the one natick in the puzzle (SIA/INTAGLIO) I downgrade this to a quasi-natick because there is only one really plausible letter to fill that space, so I give it a pass. Yes, yes, the theme was kinda' cheesey, but hey, it's the Sunday puzzle after all. The quasi-natick aside, there was a mercifully low PPP count in this puzzle, such a welcome relief that I want to thank its constructor for an enjoyable puzzle, which presented no untoward obstacles to its successful completion! Haven't been able to say that for a month of Sundays!
ReplyDeleteThe protagonist of this puzzle reminded me a lot of the orange crybaby. A bunch of disastrous business ventures, well-documented in the NYT. Revealer should be BECAMEPRESIDENT. Of course when I was a business owner, we often grilled our employees. Never thought of trying them poached.
ReplyDeleteI'm lukewarm on SMASHIN = break. I mean the Smashed In Windows theory of policing has been pretty thoroughly discredited. OTOH, the Smashin Pumpkins Theory is alive and well.
We ASSISTS are always up for some TUSHIE.
Definitely an old timey vibe to this one, and WIFEY agrees. Still, it was fun filling in the themers almost without crosses. Thanks, John Westwig.
So I decided to go into writing crosswords but ran into gridlock, so I went into editing crosswords and found I was clueless, so I went into blogging about crosswords where I finallly found a home for my witty negativity.
ReplyDeleteJust have to add wrt “wifey”
ReplyDeleteMy less than bright neighbor applied for a job in my company AND in my group.
I told my boss “hell no”, but we went through the interview process anyway, which was still remote at the time.
I stayed out of camera during his presentation, but participated in the team review afterwards.
One thing everyone mentioned was the fact that he referred to his wife as “the wifey”. That one just one of many things that did not impress my colleagues.
Mostly aagree with Rex on this one. But, I feel obliged to point out that the Tsuris/Tushie cross deserves mention. I laughed out lud at that one.
ReplyDeleteI had a chuckle at Rex: you nod knowingly and murmur, "yes, of course, I've heard of that" [sips martini, adjusts monocle].
ReplyDeleteThe theme was a bit bland, as Sundays often are. CORNERED THE MARKET was the best. (Never) GOT IT OFF THE GROUND and RAN OUT OF RUNWAY could both describe the same unfortunate event. As for typeovers, c'mon you all, admit you had TIE before BIB for "Neckwear provided at some restaurants".
Why the metric system is so better: "There are 768 [TEASPOONS] in a gallon". 768!!
[Spelling Bee: Sat 0, got straight to QB in under 30 minutes which is unusual considering there were a LOT of words. Usually I have to take a break or two to get there.
My week: all QB except for Tues... @puzzlehoarder from yesterday, sound familiar? I probably missed the same 8er, but I got the 10 letter pg by just randomly mashing shorter words together and getting lucky. I have never heard or seen that word.]
A very average Sunday. TSURIS was easy as I'd recently seen the "Curb Your Enthusiasm " episode where John Hamm uses it in a mock eulogy for Albert Brooks. The spelling wasn't a problem as I've seen it in print.
ReplyDeletemissing a 6 pointer on the Sa SB
Today was the first Sunday crossword I ever finished by myself.
ReplyDeleteAnd I’ve been doing crosswords for 11 years. Despite being a regular at the crossword M-W, I would run out of patience with the Thursday. From there, I assumed that I would just be unable to do the more difficult days. So, I just never really tried. Rebuses! Bigger grids! Puns! I found a sweet spot, so I stuck to it.
This year, though, I decided that I wanted to push myself in all ways. Part of that resolution was the crossword. Yesterday was the first Saturday I solved on my own. Today is the first time I’ve amassed a seven day streak.
So, yeah, this solve was easy. But it felt really good to be able to work it out. I turned … a corner…
Seeing that some of y’all were talking SB: Sat SB was quite nice. Very quick. This week, I missed one word on Tuesday and one on Thursday. Other than that, SB all week. A relatively easy week this week for sure. At least today’s SB is providing a little bit more of a challenge.
Congratulations Anon
DeleteI am also a newbie (joining the crossword crowd less than a year ago). I still have not completed a Sunday without using the “blue” letters… but got close a few times. Monday and Tuesday are now usually a gold star and working Wed slowly… but Thurs to Sat are still out of my ballpark. I do love rebus puzzles but hate Natick issues and love this blog; a must read after finishing the puzzle. So glad to see another newer solver on here!!
DeleteReally bad puzzle, but really good poem!
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteOnce again, solved while watching football so my time stats were skewed.
1D: BeGOne before BUGOFF
28A: REhash before REREAD
39A: DIDN'T SCorE WELL before SCALE (prior to reading any of the theme clues)
47A: SzA before SIA
54A: turnS ON before FLIPS ON
Easy, whooshy, started at the top and proceeded apace south and east, ending with EON. Yes, tIe before BIB!
ReplyDeleteI'm in Lisbon where it's 11am Sunday and our hotel room is just about to be ready, meanwhile we get to relax in this gorgeous living room, and nothing in town is open! But looking forward to dinner.
John is a wordplayer. Can you figure out the answers to these clues he’s come up with in the past?:
ReplyDelete1. [Checks for ticks?] (7)
2. [Mean dude] (7)(3)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
SYNONYM
AVERAGE GUY
He also has A1 constructing chops. In a prior Saturday offering, he had the following gorgeous triple-stack of spanners:
SOMETHING TO HIDE
ANYTHING YOU WANT
NOTHING PERSONAL
Today he shows his talent for creating a catchy theme, evidenced by multiple emulators in the comments, at least over at WordPlay.
Plus, I found it had enough rub to rub my brain’s tummy, I loved the marvelous original clue [State lines?] for an answer that has appeared more than 600 times in the Times (ACT), and I smiled at the PuzzPair© of BIB and SPOT ON.
I don’t know what to expect next from you, John, and that is a very good thing. Thank you for a fun outing today!
Anon@12:58 for the win!
ReplyDeleteLiked this one. Good Sunday morning fun.
Go big or go home with your puns - this one came up short yet again in this new year. The big guy touches on most of the dreck - tired theme + flat fill + Sunday sized grid = slog. This needed a slap in the TUSHIE to get it going.
ReplyDeleteD. BOON was ICONIC
AÇAÍ BOWLs are definitely a thing. Friends tell me that WIFEY is the moniker of a very popular online porn star - I may have to do some research. Liked the OTTOMAN clue and GRUYÈRE is pretty cool to see. Problem is there’s just so much bad fill that any bright spots are overwhelmed.
The NYT needs to up their Sunday game.
UTOPIA
Funny Struggled a bit with this, having trouble getting on the constructor's wavelength. And didn't enjoy it much. A couple of the puns land, but some are weak sauce and RAN OUT OF RUNWAY is particularly bad.
ReplyDelete@Rex the redwoods are speaking to you and they want you to read “The Overstory!”
ReplyDeleteDavid D-'s poem is the highlight of today's blog, agreed.
ReplyDeleteI liked this. Corny as all heck, sure. Maybe this speaks to my being of a certain age.
Some of the cluing seemed fresh: (for) VALOR, TEASPOONS, TINS, OED.
I was confused about a couple of clues. RUT? KITED? New to me. RUT is a funny word, isn't it? - "Not tonight, honey, I'm in a rut. Oh, maybe yes!"
One more thought: While the theme answers were very corny, I think the idea of using these in a continuous story line (trying to open different businesses) helps. They were not random corny phrases. I know, I know... Not many supporters on this one: "Vox clamantis in deserto."
ReplyDeleteI'll admit to being caught off guard by DIDNT SCALE WELL and chuckling mindlessly, but otherwise agreed, it was thoroughly average. I also don't really like one-off gimmicks such as KITED/FRAUD that aren't implemented throughout the grid.
ReplyDeleteAgree with the others who have mentioned INTAGLIO, TSURIS and SIA as the trouble spots. The whole RAN OUT OF RUNWAY situation doesn’t sound like a whole lot of fun (then again, neither does POACHING one”s EMPLOYEES - well, maybe if you use a nice beurre blanc).
ReplyDeleteRex wishes the theme had more substance to it (his standards are obviously much higher than the NYT’s, as this is about the best that you can hope for - at least it’s not words dropping off a cliff, forming a waterfall or getting filled in backwards, et c.).
Can anyone elaborate as to how / why a cub or a colt would be considered a ROOKIE ? I’m just stuck on the sports analogy (first year player). I’ve never heard of a new employee or some other type of NOOB being referred to has a colt. That one is just not registering.
Freight is not GOODS. Freight is money paid for the shipment of goods. The goods are CARGO.
ReplyDeleteSo a freight train carries…money?
DeleteNCmathsadist
DeleteFreight has a lot of meanings. Very few words have only one. Crosswords play with this a lot.
So not ships but (US) trains.
Freight is not GOODS. Freight is money paid for the shipment of GOODS. The GOODS themselves are CARGO.
ReplyDeleteFreight train?
Delete"Wifey" is cringe.
ReplyDeleteNot unrelated: where are we at now with the male to female creator ratio?
I went a little too Yiddish on 70A - having just the H, I wrote in TUcHus. I quickly corrected it when I was sure that 65D didn’t start TS-, and then was gratified moments later to get my Yiddish fix at 70D with TSURIS.
ReplyDeleteI looked up the constructor, wondering “how old is this person?” And he’s young. How could that be? “Wifey”??????
ReplyDelete@SouthsideJohnny - for 'cub', think of a cub reporter at a newspaper. I think Jimmy Olsen in Superman was frequently referred to as a cub reporter.
ReplyDelete'Colt' is sometimes used the same way. Sorry, no pop culture reference for that one.
Hey All !
ReplyDeleteTried and true expressions. But wacky clues for them. Liked the variation.
No mention of the doubled OFF. Of course, I liked it, gets four F's!
Nothing too difficult to suss out today. Solved at a fairly brisk pace. Got stuck on the NEGEV Desert, tho. Wasn't anything happening in that small area, and it being the last area unfilled, angstness set in, and I had to go Goog for NEGEV. Not up on all the deserts out there.
Still taking it as a win, but I guess my current streak should be asterisked (today not being the only puz non-Googed). So, Streak at 36 Days*. 😁
Have a great Sunday, all.
Nine F's (LOVE it)
RooMonster
DarrinV
No problems anywhere: I knew INTAGLIO, SIA, and TSURIS so I guess it was in my wheelhouse. Agree puns were tepid but liked them more than Rex did. The poem is the highlight of the morn!
ReplyDeleteIt seems fine for The NY Times to reflect its NY-ness, which makes TSURIS fair game. And POACHED OUR EMPLOYEES is pretty much a layup for people in the business world but YMMV.
ReplyDelete3 teaspoons equal a tablespoon. 2 tablespoons equal an ounce. So 6x32x4=768. Hee hee, they hid the ASS in ASSISTS, and tossed in an ALFRED BUTTS in a clue. I also enjoyed the tribute to Sandy Otterson.
ReplyDeleteOoh - cub reporter Jimmy Olsen. I watched that show all the time as a kid. As I got older, I realized that Superman, an American icon and superhero, is a guy who wears his underwear on the outside of his pants.
ReplyDeleteWe’ll go with tough (for me) clue for ROOKIE, but fair - and I appear to be in the minority with my difficulty.
I'm happy to say that in 53+ years of marriage I have never referred to my spouse as WIFEY, and if I ever do, I hope she slugs me. I mean, really. Side note--she has never called me "hubby" either, gracias a Dios.
ReplyDeleteI read the definition for INTAGLIO and wrote it in off the IN, but if you asked me to define INTAGLIO I would have invented a totally half-assed definition. One of those words. You don't know it, you know of it.
I am frequently ignorant of proper names, how do you do LILY?, but today is the first time I've encountered that phenomenon with regard to a tree.
TIE for "neckwear"? That was my second consideration, right after LEI. No, really.
Some tepid haha in this one, JW. I think it would have been a perfect Sunday for someone who has never done a NYT Sunday puzzle and wants to say they can do one. I Just Wish that described my situation. Thanks for some moderate diversion when it's too cold to do anything else.
Just the right amount of challenge for a Sunday. Enjoyed it. Finished in under 30 which is average for me.
ReplyDeleteIf only I'd laughed. Even once. But the beauty of trying out your puns and one-liners in a crossword puzzle is that, even if you're not quite ready for SNL primetime, you have the modest task of keeping your audience mildly diverted during the solve -- and in this case, at least in NYC, during yet again another shut-in day of icy sidewalks and 21-degree weather -- rather than having to make them roll in the aisles like you would in the TV studio.
ReplyDeleteI was mildly diverted -- and during days and days and days of weather like this, it was plenty good enough. Thanks, John Westwig, for the morning diversion.
The fact that these are all actual business speak cliches (scale especially) then made haha literal elevated it above the run of the mill groaner that Rex took it as I think. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
ReplyDelete768 is actually a very basic sort of number.
ReplyDeleteIt has 9 factors of 2 and one factor of 3.
The metric system just likes 5s and 2s in equal proportion, whereas the English system tends to prefer 2s and 3s (though the 5280 feet in a mile has a factor of 11 snuck in just for spite).
Of course, since our numbers are written based on 2s and 5s in equal proportion, the metric system is a lot simpler.
Villager
8 factors of 2
DeleteYes, overall fairly easy - though opened with error - had correct answer at 1A, but went with Begone at 1D. Slowed things down for a while there.
ReplyDeleteIntaglio is used in printing U.S. currency. It may be combined with other printing methods, depending on the denomination. The NYT Magazine used to be printed in rotogravure, which is intaglio on a rotary press. Not sure how the magazine is printed now. The plant in Pennsylvania that formerly printed it closed, I believe. Ok, still is printed in gravure, according to the ad specs page for the magazine.
Any other retired folks have a moment’s hesitation: which one has bangs, SZA orSIA?
ReplyDeleteAndy Freud about Sia v. Sza.
DeleteFortunately, I didn’t think of Sza. I wouldn’t have a clue which one does until this puzzle!
And here I was, hoping that Hyperion was a 380-foot rollercoaster that I’d not heard of.
ReplyDeleteAre you listening, SixFlagsFair?
I liked the puns more than Rex, but the constructor completely lost me by including both "wifey" and "pinup."
ReplyDeleteGrumpy now.
Also, a couple of months ago I played WIFEY in a game of Scrabble and incurred the wrath of Mrs. Freude. Won’t pull that stunt again.
ReplyDeleteHated it
ReplyDeleteHah, one of Rex's betes noir, the duplicate clue thing, got me today. I eventually got GRUYERE but FRANCS took a lot longer due to "cheese" not being one of money's many euphemisms in my lexicon. At one point, I was wondering if I was going to have to look up "smile" in my French dictionary.
ReplyDeleteThat whole SE section held me up today. Nude and crude rhymed with rude and 114A was iN a second, and stayed there much longer than a second. I could have really used a better clue for STOOP, like "bend down" or "front steps".
EON clue, quite awkward, I thought. "Over time period?" I suppose it was trying to use overtime as a misdirection but yeah, no.
The theme answers were fairly fun, using business terms to punnily describe failing businesses (and what's up with BUSINESS in both the title and 16D?)
Thanks, John Westwig, it was an interesting Sunday puzzle.
Teedman
DeleteAbout front steps as clue for stoop. It is an only in NYC regionalism so it might be very hard for many to get. (New Yorkers got it from the Dutch word for step).
In the UK a freight train is called a GOODS train.
ReplyDeletemissis and wifey are not uncommon to hear in many sales pitches.
And for the first in months, I instead of jumping around the puzzle I actually did a puzzle from left to right and top to bottom.
The puns were terrible, of course, but that’s standard for puns, dr. Johnson’s comments notwithstanding!
@anonymous 12:58 LOL ( Well not quite, ubt a big smile - clever.
ReplyDeleteI do not get "didn't scale well" When and why would anyone ever say that? Also "ran out of ruby" The rest got a smiley face from me. I knew intaglio (from some corner of my brain) But had never heard or read tsuris.
I agree with comments for whom "cease" does not mean money.
I cannot remember a redwood named Hpeion. Having grown up in So Cal and visited Yosemite and the other giant redwood park as a child, I thought I knew my named redwoods.
I don't understand "Cub or colts" as a "rookie"or maybe I don't accept it - I sort of see a connection in meaning.
Like @ Nancy dealing with icy sidewalks & frigid temperatures in NYC (of course it could've been worse since we only got an inch or 2 of snow - I'm sure Rex got more), so I was looking forward to Sunday's diversion. Which I got - at first. Must be me since I began on such a promising note. Then it got annoying, ie INTAGLIO, HEW TO (73D Follow closely), & WORST of all, WIFEY (as in "Hubby.")
ReplyDeleteI'll take the blame, though, John since I did enjoy it until I didn't.
Liked your poem, David D :)
It was okay, but just okay. The NYT Sunday crossword can and should be much better than this. Why are we served up mediocrity week after week?
ReplyDeleteNow, having read Rex's write-up, I can add that ACAI BOWL is indeed still trendy in Brazil, or at least in the summer of 2022. The friends we were visiting insisted in having one for dessert, with side toppings of granola, bananas (or was it banana chips?) and powdered milk (for creaminess). I thought it was okay. Kind of one note blueberry-ish.
ReplyDeleteAnd that cover of Dan Simmons' "Hyperion" - I have that book (same cover) in my library, an interesting enough book though the sequel was less so, in my opinion. And yes, that's what came to mind when I saw Hyperion in the clue for REDWOOD. Hyperion as redwood would be one of those martini-sipping nod moments Rex mentions, as I've read some interesting articles about the micro-biomes each redwood creates and I'm sure Hyperion was mentioned in one of them but not info I stored anywhere.
Wifey - my hometown friend tells me a guy I dated a few times now writes an occasional column in the local paper and refers to his missus as WIFEY. Eww, and maybe whew!
16 U's! 34 weejects! Hit-and-miss attempts at puztheme business humor! BUSINESSSCHOOL on the side! har!d not to like, dis an itty bit.
ReplyDeletestaff weeject pick: STD. Hard to beat a SunPuz with a Sexually Transmitted Disease in it.
Best thing: @RP's "Hyperion" book cover in the blog's WOTD. Luved that book. Read it many many years ago, but still think The Shrike is the best. Heard that Bradley Cooper may make a film version soon? Would beget primo shrike/schlock.
Thanx, Mr. Westwig dude.
Masked & Anonymo16Us
**gruntz**
Why the all the high dudgeon over WIFEY? Sounds more like a term of endearment than one of disparagement. Would HUBBY in a grid generate the same amount of animus? (Or should that be anima?)
ReplyDeleteKaraoke was big when I was in Japan in the 80s. Practically ever bar would have one set up with a big screen for videos and lyrics. The play list would often include a couple of songs in English. When an Anglo came in, the locals would ply us with beer and whisky and then coax us into singing one of the American hits. One that frequently came up was Presley' "LOVE ME Tender". When I read the clue for 60D "1956 Elvis hit whose title sounds like a command", I was surprised to see just the Tenderless LOVE ME. Had to go to Cousin Googs to find out that both were Presley hits in 1956.
TORPOR for 52D "Listlessness" warmed this old word nerd's heart but, alas, that's what set in about two thirds of the way through this one. My solve buzz KINDA SORTA (Friday) RAN OUT OF RUNWAY.
I liked how there was a BUSINESS SCHOOL in the puzzle, which apparently offered no help to the hapless entrepreneur with his or her many start-up failures. Nice parallel with BARE ESSENTIALS - e.g., be sure you can SCALE WELL before setting up as a fishmonger. Bonus: learning there's a redwood named Hyperion.
ReplyDelete@Colin-Your "vox clamantis" quote made me wonder if you went to school just up the road from where I live. (I didn't.)
ReplyDeleteI have been doing the NYTXW Sundays every week for about 20 years, and most of them for the last 45.
ReplyDeleteBy far, this was the easiest ever. Took me only about 15 minutes. I concur with Rex about "dad jokes," yes, groaners, but these seem dragged out of the 1960s.
I liked solving it, I guess, but... do better, NYT. Way way way too easy.
I RAN OUT OF FUN WAY before I GOT IT OFF THE GROUND. This one SUFFERED FROM TURNOFF.
ReplyDeleteSo, I decided to start a humorous crossword, but I COULDN'T GET THE PUN ACROSS.
Any help why is Rut at 101A is the Moose's Mating Season??
ReplyDeleteI am wondering same thing
DeleteSigh, solving a print-out of the puz for the fourth time in a week. Tuesday I could not find my paper in the fresh snow in = front of my house so I reported it missing for a substantial refund and read the paper on the replica edition (I cannot figure out what I want to read just from headlines, I don't know how people do that) and printed the puzzle. All well for a couple of days, then no paper Friday, so once again print-out and replica. And later in the day enough snow had sublimated that the Tuesday paper became visible in the perennial bed. I felt terrible that deliverer had come in the awful weather Thursday morning and then got docked by my false report, so I vowed to fess up to the human answering the delivery number in business hours. But Saturday no paper again. So I called and told the person the story, said person told me no deliverer had a right to stop delivering because they were inaccurately reported. So today, no paper, again. I reported and asked for a refund, they gave me a refund of $17 and change. For a paper I could buy in the store for $6. So I guess I will just keep playing this game, if it goes on long enough maybe I will wind up getting NYTimes access for free.
ReplyDeleteOh, the puzzle. I was so sure of TUcHus crossing TSURIS I never figured out that area at all. And I was sure the football receiver was a WIDE end, so I never saw the moose's mating season. But it was pleasant enough.
noun
ReplyDeletenoun: rut; plural noun: ruts
an annual period of sexual activity in deer and some other mammals, during which the males fight each other for access to the females.
"a moose in rut"
verb
verb: rut; 3rd person present: ruts; past tense: rutted; past participle: rutted; gerund or present participle: rutting; adjective: rutting
(of a deer or other mammal) engage in the rut or annual period of sexual activity.
"researchers say the deer are rutting earlier"
It took about 15 seconds.
@gfrpeace - I've been subscribing to the NYT for more years than I'd like to remember. Recently I also got spotty delivery (in the summer, so no snow yet) & hated it that they had me by the "balls" (forgive my vulgarity) since I love doing the puzzle (not necessarily reading the headlines, well, maybe the Cooking & Well sections). Plus it's become so expensive, except for new subscribers.
ReplyDeleteThanks to commenters on the blog, I recently switched to a Digital subscription which is MUCH cheaper.
I have to admit that I miss the printed paper at my door in the am but it wasn't worth the bother anymore. Their loss.
Jb about the dead tree edition cost
DeleteI am still addicted to print
But whenever they raise the price I call. and get a lower figure. This last time they were desperate enough to keep me to off a price lower than I was paying before.
But I understand why you switched
@Georgia, re RUT: definition #1 on Merriam-Webster.
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteThx John; very 'businesslike' production! 😊
ReplyDeleteDowns-o, with near success. Had three incorrect cells; two at the 'Trendy treat' (ACAI rOlL), and one at the 'Swiss cheese' (GRUnERE).
Totally lucked out on INTAGLIO; it just sounded better than anything else I could come up with, altho, it did seem to have a ring of authenticity.
@Anonymous (4:48 AM)
👍 for your success with td's puz, and another 👍 for your SB prowess! :)
___
Progress on Fri.'s downs-o. I think I've got the long A & C downs, but can't quite manage the 'Needing P.R.' one, tho.
On to Sat.'s downs-o. 🤞
___
Peace 🕊 🇺🇦 ~ Compassion ~ Tolerance ~ Kindness ~ Freudenfreude & a DAP to all 👊 🙏
Açaí bowls are definitely a thing. Many locations on Long Island and NYC. I enjoy them myself!
ReplyDelete@pabloinnh (1:51) --
ReplyDelete1) I still remember enough high school Latin that I knew that "Vox clamantis in deserto" means "the voice of one crying in the wilderness."
2) I know that anyone called @pabloinnh lives in New Hampshire.
3) I knew the college you were referring to was Dartmouth. Could Dartmouth's motto possibly be the "Vox" motto?
Google told me that, yes, it is. So now my question is: Why would ANY college pick the motto: "The voice of one crying in the wilderness"? It's not exactly an upbeat message, is it? It doesn't exactly seem like a selling point, does it? Very strange.
What 🦖 said. Picked at this all day because I kept finding more interesting things to do. It was like grabbing an old book in the stacks of a musty university library basement, blowing off the dust and cobwebs, cracking it open to a creaking sound, and seeing the title Fun Crosswords! with a copyright date long long ago. Such a collection of cringes. WIFEY ... wow.
ReplyDeleteHARRY POTTER IS #1! Everybody it seems loved his dead mom.
Tee-Hee: PEW ... TUSHIE.
Uniclues:
1 Active military man prepares to eat spaghetti.
2 Snake swallowed all the rabbits.
3 Uncover how to avoid being uncovered.
4 One prepared to open a used book store.
1 BUD AT WAR ASSISTS BIB
2 BOA CORNERED THE MARKET
3 DETECT BARE ESSENTIALS
4 BUSINESS SCHOOL ROOKIE
My Fascinating Crossword Uniclue Keepsake from Last Year: Seventeen years of listening to undergrads whine and department chairs making horrible decisions in exchange for health insurance and a salary that won't cover a third bedroom. POST-DOC'S GRIND.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Açaí Bowl are a big deal around here. The Playa Bowls chain has hundreds of locations in the NY/NJ area.
ReplyDeleteIt took 33 years for the poor Bills fans to suffer another "wide right" but most of western New York is in mourning today. The explanation of "Turkey Bowl" recollects the hilarious scene from "The Big Bang Theory" when Leonard wants to learn about football. Dr. Cooper, while working at his computer overhears Leonard's musing over the term "line of scrimmage". "The line of scrimmage is the imaginary transverse line separating the offense from the defense".
ReplyDeleteAlmost RANOUTOFRUNWAY with that bit of restaurant attire: tIe. Major misstep, as it led to traINingSCHOOL. An ill-advised action. Yipe! (not YOLO)
ReplyDeletePlenty of misdirection and sideways cluing here to take it out of the "easy" basket. True, most of the themers whooshed (but DIDNTSCALEWELL?? Nonsense to me. Must be a sort of boardroom lingo to which I'm not privy.) It was mainly the short-to-medium fill that provided the resistance. (Extract = GLEAN? I get it, but the clue leads to a lot more things before GLEAN)
Then there's the Swiss "cheese" right alongside the Swiss cheese. Cute, but not so inferable. Via "cheddar," I suppose.
GOTITOFFTHEGROUND with...just that. It whooshed. Fortunately, I did not SUFFER...FROM BURNOUT before finishing. Par.
Wordle bogey.
REDWOOD UTOPIA
ReplyDeleteFATIMA said, "USEME
AS ANY BAD BOY can,
ASFOR my BARE TUSHIE,
LOVEME like you OTTOMAN."
--- MR. ALFRED "ED" STRAUSS, CIA
Gotta admit. Corny is the first thing I thought after finishing this. Or cheesy, I guess.
ReplyDeleteBut I love a pun, so there sure was plenty of that for me.
Lady Di
Why are the apparently easy puzzles for everyone else more like medium/hard for me? This was a perfect example of one of those puzzles. But I am glad that my frustrations with some final fills brought me to the blog and I was treated to David O’s clever poem. Thanks David and you too, Rex!
ReplyDelete