tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post3134518428780986099..comments2024-03-28T15:13:08.509-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: He starred as himself in Cuban Pete 1946 / SAT 1-23-10 / Grunting slimy-skinned swimmer / Fielding Menotti title heroines / Nagasaki noodleRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger90125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3710293773751577992010-04-21T23:06:18.507-04:002010-04-21T23:06:18.507-04:00Charming puzzle.
Posters a little off, though: Mo...Charming puzzle.<br /><br />Posters a little off, though: Moot is a synonym for debatable, ie. doubtful (issue). That the more common usage is the polar opposite doesn't affect that. Similarly, sure, eggs are valuable: if this seems counterintuitive, try walking out of the store without paying for them.<br /><br />Meanwhile, SF Alice and antiorc are right that 'spatula' and 'neighborhood' are lousy/lazy.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-27262772700432326612010-01-23T21:40:17.187-05:002010-01-23T21:40:17.187-05:00Artistry, of course. I have a sticky R on my keyb...Artistry, of course. I have a sticky R on my keyboard, sort of the opposite of the uvular fricative in French.fergushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17056002311944010536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-4285233492646538402010-01-23T21:36:04.916-05:002010-01-23T21:36:04.916-05:00Our constructor relishes our mistakes, I hope. To...Our constructor relishes our mistakes, I hope. To me, that's the mark of flirtatious artisty in this neighborhood -- to get you going somewhere you hadn't thought you'd go.fergushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17056002311944010536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49752659036753626232010-01-23T21:32:34.160-05:002010-01-23T21:32:34.160-05:00Tried to put Dunnhills in for the smoke of 18 acro...Tried to put Dunnhills in for the smoke of 18 across.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61454945418943281952010-01-23T21:06:00.527-05:002010-01-23T21:06:00.527-05:00OMG, no. The samisen is played with a large weigh...OMG, no. The samisen is played with a large weighted plectrum called a bachi in Japanese. All those lovely geishas playing their samisen with a spatula? Boggles the mind.Alice in SFnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-39944776054018599342010-01-23T20:51:14.001-05:002010-01-23T20:51:14.001-05:00@Andrea Zeta Hoople: Bolshoi joke, I believe from...@Andrea Zeta Hoople: Bolshoi joke, I believe from The Smothers Brothers:<br />Tom: They have a really good ballet in Russia!<br />Dick: Bolshoi. . .<br />Tom: No, really, I hear it's REALLY good.<br />Not sure how that got by the CBS censors, but I recall hearing it.Ruthnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-72912682728523652342010-01-23T19:31:49.800-05:002010-01-23T19:31:49.800-05:00The sub-text of "Jimmie Crack Corn" subv...The sub-text of "Jimmie Crack Corn" subverts the notion that slaves loved their benevolent masters as in "Gone With The Wind." The slave's (dead) master has "gone away" and the slave "don't care." Rex, I like the late Blosom Dearie too. The slow tempo & perfect enunciation are a hallmark of her style.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-5359685990207630992010-01-23T19:22:29.620-05:002010-01-23T19:22:29.620-05:00Quite a few other errors:
IGNUT for Goober
CARRIE...Quite a few other errors:<br /><br />IGNUT for Goober<br />CARRIES OFF WITH (verb was the problem)<br /><br />SECEEDED, oddly for Not withdrawn<br />PAPERER, ?, instead of PAINTER<br /><br />I even wondered about IMPLANT for the Major pest of the South, but that was probably too much of a stretch.fergushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17056002311944010536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-69158577864778279192010-01-23T18:38:34.842-05:002010-01-23T18:38:34.842-05:00The clue for ESTS is kind of off. If I estimate th...The clue for ESTS is kind of off. If I estimate that there are 5 million peanuts in the 2 lb tub of peanuts next to me, that's not exactly in the ballpark (although I wish it were! Imagine, 5 million peanuts!).antiorcnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-29913110871477101332010-01-23T18:37:14.059-05:002010-01-23T18:37:14.059-05:00Another Zellweger bungler. Obscure for OCCLUDE, S...Another Zellweger bungler. Obscure for OCCLUDE, Salute for SALAAM, and ANEAL was my verbal aid in Forging. Hence many problems, which gradually worked themselves out -- with requisite Saturday satisfaction. MOTT and ISABEL were the only toeholds.fergushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17056002311944010536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-25131896828885600332010-01-23T18:36:31.706-05:002010-01-23T18:36:31.706-05:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my <a href="https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=35115061&postID=3588389571383499624&isPopup=true" rel="nofollow">7/30/2009 post</a> 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 6:47, 6:54, 0.98, 51%, Medium<br />Tue 8:56, 8:47, 1.02, 60%, Medium<br />Wed 10:54, 12:01, 0.91, 27%, Easy-Medium<br />Thu 22:53, 19:26, 1.18, 89%, Challenging<br />Fri 22:38, 25:51, 0.88, 21%, Easy-Medium<br />Sat 26:45, 29:53, 0.90, 24%, Easy-Medium<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:39, 3:40, 1.00, 54%, Medium<br />Tue 4:28, 4:29, 0.99, 54%, Medium<br />Wed 5:45, 5:55, 0.97, 48%, Medium<br />Thu 10:45, 9:22, 1.15, 85%, Challenging<br />Fri 10:30, 12:24, 0.85, 14%, Easy<br />Sat 12:49, 17:12, 0.74, 7%, Easy<br /><br />With the exception of the "Aha, I'm in! Woo hoo! Do a little dance!" Etc." part, Rex captured perfectly my usual Saturday solving experience (although the "Holy &$%! I'm not going to be able to do this." is usually more than a brief sensation) I don't get it. From Monday through Thursday, my solve times are usually anywhere from about average to a good bit better than average compared to all online solve times. But come Friday and Saturday, it's like I've never seen a crossword puzzle (or the English language) before. There must be some kind of psychological block going on, but it's hard for me to imagine a day when I'll be able to complete (without cheating) a puzzle with the likes of MOTT, LIVIA, ISABEL, SUVA, KELSEY, BENE, SOBA, ERIKA (as clued here), SAMISEN, TZATZIKI, TESSA (as clued here), TOADFISH and AMELIAS (as clued here). With all of these answers, I can't believe that this puzzle comes in at an Easy rating, but there it is. Color me humbled. I'm in awe of Rex's and Oranges of the world for being able to solve a puzzle like this in 5 minutes. Amazing.sanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-31984584506912206682010-01-23T18:19:02.932-05:002010-01-23T18:19:02.932-05:00@babslesley: this sauce is great with grilled lamb...@babslesley: this sauce is great with grilled lamb (kabobs for instance) or lamb burgers. Also good with spicy stews or curries, for the latter add a little ground cumin. <br /><br />@Glitch, I agree with you, but this one is too appropriate: my whockmachttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-10654124316502554202010-01-23T18:11:59.898-05:002010-01-23T18:11:59.898-05:00I feel like everything lit.doc says goes double fo...I feel like everything lit.doc says goes double for me. I found this a struggle but am so proud to have done the whole thing correctly and with no googling, which I really oppose. What's the point? Anyway, I use the dead tree edition and had so many writeovers I could hardly see what I was writing, but I got it! The whole bottom half was actually pretty easy, but the north killed me. Anyway, I got it! I got it! And even though Rex got it probably 100 times faster than me I agree with him that it was just what a Saturday puzzle should be.SueRohrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13511695558054356816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-74780663197287629482010-01-23T18:07:59.114-05:002010-01-23T18:07:59.114-05:00I was surprised to be able to do a Saturday Karen ...I was surprised to be able to do a Saturday Karen Tracey with no particular problems (though slower than some of you). My only wrong track was spending some time trying to thing of Renee Zellweger's last name. I don't know Tessa Allen, but Karen (Allen) was obviously wrong.<br /><br /> And I had to google samisen after finishing the puzzle.michaelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61988249443665933832010-01-23T18:00:47.863-05:002010-01-23T18:00:47.863-05:00Love that I'm now getting recipes from this si...Love that I'm now getting recipes from this site. Maybe my tzatziki sauce will be a bigger success than my attempt at today's puzzle. Raul, besides gyros what else is this sauce good for?babslesleynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-72719902688830747052010-01-23T17:31:26.236-05:002010-01-23T17:31:26.236-05:00Ach(k), I ended with lots of little errors with th...Ach(k), I ended with lots of little errors with the spelling of names. I had to look up KELSEY and OSLIN to fix the SE corner. I blew the BENe/SAMISeN corner with an O; I neglected to change my ERs to EHS which left me with TOADFISR. Sloppy solving of a nice puzzle. Thanks Karen Tracey! I'll try to do better next time around.PlantieBeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01960277851368508036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-17869256301925871012010-01-23T16:56:35.936-05:002010-01-23T16:56:35.936-05:00@lit.doc I sent you an e-mail explaining how to p...@lit.doc I sent you an e-mail explaining how to print it from the NYT website. Fun easy puzzlechefbeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15195945085405126511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-21840678180021473972010-01-23T16:48:22.941-05:002010-01-23T16:48:22.941-05:00@lit.doc: Small? You should try printing the acro...@lit.doc: Small? You should try printing the acrostics. The font must be 4 or something. I do the 2nd Sunday and then check the Wordplay blog if I need help.<br /><br />It's a nice puzzle, but not all that hard.<br /><br />It was nice to see the agreement on MOOT. I thought maybe I wasn't thinking clearly. If A is a synonym for B and B is a synonym for C, A is not necessarily a synonym for C.<br /><br />Tzatziki on toasted pita. Exquisite and not unhealthy!Meghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17964374453128401532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-62030052516938580642010-01-23T16:40:43.573-05:002010-01-23T16:40:43.573-05:00This has been a good week womenwise (wise women-wi...This has been a good week womenwise (wise women-wise?).<br />Tuesday marking the first teen girl (Zoe Wheeler)puzzle ever in the NYT, followed by a sparkling Thursday dose of Elizabeth Gorski and ending the week with a Saturday Karen M. Tracy!<br /><br />Even tho OSLIN/KELSEY proved Natick-y for some, I loved the fact that today there are lots and lots of ladies, even tho half are fictitious!<br /><br />Catherine ZETAJONES, TESSA Allen, ERIKA Christensen, KT OSLIN, LIVIA, ANN KELSEY, AMELIA Fielding, AMELIA Menotti, and ISABEL Archer.<br /><br />They would make quite the SOCIABLE HEN party!<br /><br />(insert Groucho Marx singing "Livia oh Livia the encyclopivia...")<br /><br />AND not one baseball player!<br />(Altho there is STAT and REFS thrown in to let us know the crossword world hasn't gone absolutely crazy!)andrea the hoople michaelsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-68443264774830708302010-01-23T16:35:54.409-05:002010-01-23T16:35:54.409-05:00@chefbea (or anyone), never done the second Sunday...@chefbea (or anyone), never done the second Sunday puzzle before. Doesn't come up in Across Lite (and prints reeealy small). Any to print the answers too?lit.dochttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06729199575329286046noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-43411357048270909402010-01-23T16:35:05.621-05:002010-01-23T16:35:05.621-05:00Just came from a family evemt where my brother ask...Just came from a family evemt where my brother asked if I knew Rex Parker. I found that very disturbing for some reason.Jeffreyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01699404861773455504noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-25920943689529307202010-01-23T16:24:15.561-05:002010-01-23T16:24:15.561-05:00I enjoyed this puzzle alot, it was perfectly mediu...I enjoyed this puzzle alot, it was perfectly medium to me, and I had one mistake: 49D Ach/56A Helsey. Don't know that woman. Didn;t know Tessa either, but the crosses helped me out.<br /><br />I thought the Politburo and Bolsjevik right next to each other was brilliant. Started out spelling it Bolsjewik, though, but I don't want to talk about Ws.<br /><br />Before I figured out Ozark and got Zeta Jones, I though Etta Jones? Isn't it Etta James? <br /><br />@Andrea: now I know why I disliked "goober" so much!<br /><br />I'm on the "not quite accurate" side with moot. With ten of, I always want 2 ffs at the end.machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-1655424014832393182010-01-23T15:55:28.800-05:002010-01-23T15:55:28.800-05:00Curious about the samisen?
http://www.youtube.com...Curious about the samisen?<br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZ_0xp1MgTcBlanchehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08376653968448424435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-40157750986321210032010-01-23T15:42:26.051-05:002010-01-23T15:42:26.051-05:00Is a samisen different from a shamisen? Shamisen b...Is a samisen different from a shamisen? Shamisen being a Japanese guitar-like instrument strummed with a paddle (or I suppose spatula-like tool).<br /><br />I went ahead and googled it just now and I suppose it's a variation. Never seen it spelled without an H. That one threw me for a bit of a loop.thewertlenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-86856824352190775952010-01-23T15:38:10.349-05:002010-01-23T15:38:10.349-05:00Prep-school fac-brat here. I believe though that g...Prep-school fac-brat here. I believe though that growing up we preferred the term 'kid'.Stanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02681342234536407419noreply@blogger.com