tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post2312811241537624153..comments2024-03-28T20:49:13.267-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Many viviparous births / FRI 9-30-11 / Muleta material / Toppers popular with jazzmen / Wheelie supporter / Natures lay idiot I taught thee to love pennerRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger93125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-70512826138120919442011-11-05T13:11:43.409-04:002011-11-05T13:11:43.409-04:00I didn’t see the oval of vowels that @Martin point...I didn’t see the oval of vowels that @Martin pointed out, but did see the As,Cs and Ks that @SAXword mentioned. If you highlight those and the Os from planktOn and jacklOrd, you get a picture of a car popping a wheelie(28 down’s clue) more or less encircled by the vowels. So subliminal, even the constructor didn’t see it?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3934727657728884302011-11-05T10:23:35.276-04:002011-11-05T10:23:35.276-04:00Friday-only solver in syndication for the last ten...Friday-only solver in syndication for the last ten years. Puzzles usually take all week to chip away. This was the only time I finished one in one "sitting" - easiest for me ever.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-32015177507154379732011-11-04T20:10:10.913-04:002011-11-04T20:10:10.913-04:00From syndiland, almost gave up in the NE corner bu...From syndiland, almost gave up in the NE corner but SPUTNIK came over the horizon at the last minute (I had used up the hour allotted) and saved the day. Noticed lots of Ks but failed to see the diaganol line they formed. It's always good to finish a Friday puzzle.<br /><br />And on this date 5 years ago, RPDTNYTCP included these highlights:<br />- "Solving time: around 40 min. (tired, in bed)"<br />- "I tanked this puzzle. Very unsatisfying. The problem was entirely my fault, though it involves one of those bits of esoterica that tick me off every once in a while. My mistake, which when I realized it made me so angry that I had to go and vent On Another Blog before I even wrote a word here, was as follows: for 45D: Calendrier column (Mardi), I had MERDI. If I were French, I'd have exclaimed MERDE upon realizing my error. I studied French for seven years in high school and college. You'd think I'd know the $@#$-ing word for TUESDAY! But I wrote MERDI and it became locked in. I never questioned it. Since I didn't know the esoteric piece of crap next to it - 49D: Carillon component (bell) - I wrote in CELL, thinking it the only -ELL word that could rightly said to be a "component" of something (I had two shots: biological cell or prison cell). Resulting problem: I had CELD (!?) for 49A: Worn smooth - the correct answer to which turns out to be the very simple BALD. So Saturday leaves a bad taste in my mouth yet again. The rest of the puzzle was OK, I guess. Reasonable Saturday difficulty, nothing spectacular. <br /><br />What the hell is "Carillon?""<br />- There were two comments, including this from @Andrew: "Let's go to New Orleans for Merdi Gras."Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-81465010969893434962011-11-04T13:04:36.661-04:002011-11-04T13:04:36.661-04:00K is for Krozel, I guess. Or do the K's have ...K is for Krozel, I guess. Or do the K's have some sort of significance in Track & Field?<br /><br />Not wild about GINGERS. I'm a MARY ANNS guy.<br /><br /><br /><br />@a guy 3:49 PM<br />I drew a puzzle on my cat.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-63933991982311399402011-11-04T11:26:31.386-04:002011-11-04T11:26:31.386-04:00Strange how minds work. Just last week the ol'...Strange how minds work. Just last week the ol' Spacecraft here was wailing the blues over a totally unfinishable (for me) grid rated "easy" (?!?) by most of you; today I breezed through this one which earned a rating of 'medium-challenging." Go figure!<br /> Leapt right into the middle with the JACKLORD gimme, which got me JACKSONS; a couple more -CK-words and I got the pattern.<br /> Hand up for pinky, and for the word that should have been clued as "Rogers and others" (GINGERS). The repeated -CKLESS and -INGERS didn't bother me; the repeated ONEs did, for some reason.<br /> The few nits aside, I agree with the overall sentiment that this effort had freshness and zing aplenty. Nice job, Joe!<br /><br />pronve: Brett Favre's position on the turf after a sack?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-68943489063975658072011-10-01T20:21:48.478-04:002011-10-01T20:21:48.478-04:00While we're on the subject of Gettysburg gener...While we're on the subject of Gettysburg generals, and considering the season, let's not forget Union Major General Abner Doubleday (although his relationship to baseball may be more legendary than factual...)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-33179647491939492112011-10-01T04:51:15.918-04:002011-10-01T04:51:15.918-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.evil doughttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17593231055589228837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-25934609153150037492011-10-01T01:00:34.976-04:002011-10-01T01:00:34.976-04:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my 8/1/2009 post for an explanation. In a nutshell, the higher the ratio, the higher this week's median solve time is relative to the average for the corresponding day of the week.<br /><br />All solvers (this week's median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Mon 6:10, 6:51, 0.90, 14%, Easy<br />Tue 11:09, 8:55, 1.25, 95%, Challenging (7th highest median solve time of 119 Tuesday puzzles)<br />Wed 12:18, 11:51, 1.04, 63%, Medium-Challenging<br />Thu 19:18, 19:13, 1.00, 55%, Medium<br />Fri 20:38, 25:45, 0.80, 17%, Easy<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:14, 3:40, 0.88, 5%, Easy (6th lowest median solve time of 118 Monday puzzles)<br />Tue 5:35, 4:35, 1.22, 97%, Challenging (5th highest median solve time of 119 Tuesday puzzles)<br />Wed 6:07, 5:51, 1.05, 68%, Medium-Challenging<br />Thu 8:38, 9:22, 0.92, 42%, Medium<br />Fri 10:38, 12:44, 0.84, 24%, Easy-Mediumsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-87232865783609310382011-09-30T21:51:57.227-04:002011-09-30T21:51:57.227-04:00Easy puzzle even if I did make at first the common...Easy puzzle even if I did make at first the common mistakes of Meade and pinky. I don't like track meet as "an event" though I can see the logic. It seems to me that a track meet consists of many events -- dashes, long runs, high jumps, etc. I suppose it is an event that consists of various events...michaelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-4991876370300384092011-09-30T19:53:29.285-04:002011-09-30T19:53:29.285-04:00What happened to tinbeni? and ulrich?What happened to tinbeni? and ulrich?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-75446730062165995112011-09-30T19:40:12.517-04:002011-09-30T19:40:12.517-04:00Best Wedgie: @Evil DougBest Wedgie: @Evil DougSnopesnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-12581196360850861542011-09-30T19:32:22.875-04:002011-09-30T19:32:22.875-04:00The diagonals of two ss's, three a's, five...The diagonals of two ss's, three a's, five c's, and seven k's spelled sack in an odd way, and led me to meander looking for other themes.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13974374600414269218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-41360719680342355562011-09-30T19:21:08.633-04:002011-09-30T19:21:08.633-04:00Oh, and of course @GLR who got there first.Oh, and of course @GLR who got there first.Stanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02681342234536407419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-12369598178150751972011-09-30T19:18:40.685-04:002011-09-30T19:18:40.685-04:00Best meta-comments: @Chill and @Chip Hilton.
Be...Best meta-comments: @Chill and @Chip Hilton. <br /><br />Best story: @Jesser.<br /><br />The puzzle: I'm with Rex on all the repetitions, but don't think that makes the puzzle bad. Just odd. Keep trying new things, constructors!Stanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02681342234536407419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-34178704067602813002011-09-30T18:58:16.847-04:002011-09-30T18:58:16.847-04:00Somehow I wrongly associated "Book 'em,Da...Somehow I wrongly associated "Book 'em,Danno" with JACK Webb as Sgt. Friday. When my error produced PeSTBOX and PAULKwEE it came to me that Friday was always looking for just the facts. Actually, I don't believe I've ever seen Hawaii 5-0, but I did know that JACKLORD was the star.<br /><br />All around fun puzzle, Mr. Krozel. Thanks.miriam bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03506593846362044050noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-10280977932384799032011-09-30T18:52:06.298-04:002011-09-30T18:52:06.298-04:00@Chip Hilton - I suspect our idea of a good clue o...@Chip Hilton - I suspect our idea of a good clue on GINGERS would have been assailed by younger solvers as "dated." But it's good to know that there's at least one other person out there whose mind works like mine!GLRnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-81357681153091269302011-09-30T17:49:45.106-04:002011-09-30T17:49:45.106-04:00@GLR: I'm stunned. I was panning down the ent...@GLR: I'm stunned. I was panning down the entries, tsking over the varmint joke snippiness, just waiting to make my suggested clue involving Rogers and Baker. And there it is, right above me in the batting order. Great minds...<br /><br />Surprised at the number of folks who don't know the lovely, and talented, Ms. Danes.Chip Hiltonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11944056030047563287noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-50688994036270158882011-09-30T17:26:44.069-04:002011-09-30T17:26:44.069-04:00Generally enjoyed this puzzle - about a normal tim...Generally enjoyed this puzzle - about a normal time (for me) for a Friday.<br /><br />I'm not a constructor, but I get the concern over lots of plurals - even though the only real "klinker" here was GINGERS - but I don't get why there's a concern over two answers with "ONE" in them or repeated sequences of "INGERS" or "LESS."<br /><br />Thought GINGERS might plausibly have been clued as names - "Drummer Baker and dancer Rogers" or something like that.GLRnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-85143068943580879852011-09-30T17:17:00.866-04:002011-09-30T17:17:00.866-04:00GINGERS: They go with ale and beer
GINGERS: Jers...GINGERS: They go with ale and beer<br /><br />GINGERS: Jersey redheardsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-21347143414113149532011-09-30T16:25:37.624-04:002011-09-30T16:25:37.624-04:00@600, thank you for the Wordsworth; I had forgotte...@600, thank you for the Wordsworth; I had forgotten it. My mother taught me to recite poetry, as her father taught her. Her mother was a Lucy. <br /><br />Three and out.CoffeeLvrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16473192190412844538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88680056678091794272011-09-30T16:25:33.713-04:002011-09-30T16:25:33.713-04:00@jesser et als. stories remind of the joke about h...@jesser et als. stories remind of the joke about how men in a village got their names: Joe the baker, Fred the barber... the punch line was "you f#*k just one goat"<br /><br />book - em @evil duckdkhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17317008233459295376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-87514733253211963782011-09-30T16:20:56.237-04:002011-09-30T16:20:56.237-04:00DNF no surprise. Worst section SE. Boolean new t...DNF no surprise. Worst section SE. Boolean new to me. Thought 35D tends to. Hands up for PInkY, airkiss, then LOVEpAT. Got FLANNEL but I thought muleta is a sandwich. The whole line of Ks fell in just fine so I thought I was off to a good start. The JACKs crossing don't bother me at all. Repeated words can be fun.<br /><br />Thanks @Jesser. It was worth the wait. @Rex. I take it that's a Petty girl, not a Vargas?Sparkyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11149915526159432838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-8298644993783938362011-09-30T16:18:00.544-04:002011-09-30T16:18:00.544-04:00Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 8/1/2...Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 8/1/2009 post for an explanation of my method):<br /><br />All solvers (median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Fri 20:33, 25:45, 0.80, 17%, Easy<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Fri 10:53, 12:44, 0.85, 24%, Easy-Mediumsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-89590556970742693772011-09-30T16:13:35.985-04:002011-09-30T16:13:35.985-04:00@martin -- the top of that oval isn't symmetri...@martin -- the top of that oval isn't symmetrical with the bottom and it could have been -- it is awesome enough what he did, but it would have been magnificent if he made it symmetrical.<br /><br />Thank you so much for pointing out the oval!Lewishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09709142959535977331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-38067291202717256162011-09-30T16:13:16.788-04:002011-09-30T16:13:16.788-04:00@Martin - would be cooler if the oval was an oval....@Martin - would be cooler if the oval was an oval.Zhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181544219511150272noreply@blogger.com