tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post3227834199876819446..comments2024-03-29T05:08:37.783-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Proto-matter of the universe / TUE 5-3-16 / Coyolxauhuqui worshiper / Longtime oreo competitorRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger107125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-86294858992707549922016-08-05T21:16:22.014-04:002016-08-05T21:16:22.014-04:00My name is pinkey i am from UK, I want to quickly ...My name is pinkey i am from UK, I want to quickly tell the world that there is a real on line spell caster that is powerful and genuine, His name is Dr.OSEWE, He helped me recently to reunite my relationship with my ex who left me, When i contacted Dr.OSEWE he cast a love spell for me and my ex who said he doesn't have anything to do with me again called me and started begging me. he is back now with so much love and careing. today i am glad to let you all know that this spell caster have the powers to bring lovers back. because i am now happy with my ex. To anyone who is reading this article and needs any kind of help like WINNING LOTTERIES, GETTING OF JOB. BEAUTY SPELL CHILD BEARING. SPIRITUAL PROTECTION. JOB PROMOTION. BEAUTY SPELL HERBAL CARE money spell HIV spell, Dr.OSEWE can also offer any types of help like Reuniting of marriage and relationship, Curing of all types of Diseases, Court Cases, Pregnancy Spell, Spiritual protection and lot's more. You can contact with his email DR.OSEWETEMPLE@GMAIL.COM. you can also contact him on this whatsapp number +2348119253708packerstandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02250047297790455685noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82029442227051092422016-06-07T20:35:11.586-04:002016-06-07T20:35:11.586-04:00Ford Lincoln Mercury was the name of the character...Ford Lincoln Mercury was the name of the character in the book/movie Postman. In example where they book and the movie were both excellent. Could have been a good revealer clue. Not that we needed one. <br />Chrisquidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09081420204956069917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-15214509837986831132016-06-07T20:21:44.274-04:002016-06-07T20:21:44.274-04:00As soon as I saw the clue for FROS I was pretty su...As soon as I saw the clue for FROS I was pretty sure we'd have an exploding Rex head today. But I didn't expect the reaction we got for the reasons he gave. <br /><br />As a relatively new solver, I've been trying to catch up by solving puzzles in NYT (and a few other) anthologies. Sorry, I don't see the quality going up or down when I compare them to current puzzles. My reactions to those (and the current ones) are fairly consistent. Some are easy, hard, not my cuppa, o wow!, etc. Some folks like lotsa trivia, some word play. It always amazes me that Rex doesn't like puns (what is wordplay about???) so that might explain his outrage today - the themers were too close to being punny. <br /><br />As a wiser-than-I-am person once said, my use of words is just some antics.<br /><br />I must say also that I don't allow Rex's opinions, or yours Dear Reader, to make me feel better or worse about my own opinion. But maybe that's because of my fairly non-competitive nature. I compete with myself. But when I play with others, I tend to try to help the other person out. In tennis I always tried to give my "opponent" a well-placed shot. And I kept forgetting to remember the score. <br /><br />So I found today's theme answers somewhat easy and fun, and some of the fill to be a bit above the level of wheelhouse I'd expect for Tuesday. <br /><br />And, for the record, I had a dnf as I didn't fill in the B in ABAFT. So...do I get an F? <br /><br />Diana, Awaiting the Minnesota Tournament this Sunday, Sunday, Sunday! Diana,LIWnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-76749241678787238462016-06-07T19:27:19.808-04:002016-06-07T19:27:19.808-04:00The word YLEM had me stumped. According to Wikiped...The word YLEM had me stumped. According to Wikipedia, the word was coined by physicist Ralph Alpher, an associate of George Gamow. I attended a four-part lecture series by Alpher back in the 70's, and I don't recall him mentioning the word. I do recall that he resented that the Nobel prize went to the guys who experimentally detected the background radiation, but not to the physicists who predicted it would be there.D_Johnsonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-56771442089347464122016-06-07T18:22:57.970-04:002016-06-07T18:22:57.970-04:00The last thing I wish to do is to pile on a puzzle...The last thing I wish to do is to pile on a puzzle. In one sense this puzzle was very easy as the theme was a give-away after the first themer. The only entry with which I was unfamiliar was YLEM, but that kind of thing never bothers me. I know my vocabulary/knowledge base is not completely comprehensive (probably diminishing as I age), but as I have said many times, I don't think there is such a thing as a "pick your day of the week" clue or answer. So, YLEM is just fine by me.<br /><br />And another thing, tomorrow is another day and another puzzle. Yay.rain forestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-12598444245585792242016-06-07T17:30:28.946-04:002016-06-07T17:30:28.946-04:00@rondo: We have some things in common:
-Twin Citi...@rondo: We have some things in common:<br /><br />-Twin Cities, Minnesota (born and raised on Mpls. side, but now an Oregonian).<br />-Paper and pen solver (the only reasonable way to do it).<br />-Fan of Ichiro (from his Mariner days on; looking forward to his 3000th hit).<br />-Agree with your selection of yeah babes (but a bit, only a bit, put off by sexist implication).<br />-A Harper's subscriber (though I don't do the puzzle).<br /><br />Cheers, @leftcoast <br /><br />leftcoastTAMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-43733443350404249632016-06-07T15:47:30.857-04:002016-06-07T15:47:30.857-04:00It is endlessly fascinating to me that, whatever m...It is endlessly fascinating to me that, whatever my take on a given subject, there will always be intelligent and experienced people with a completely different perspective. Which is a big part of my enjoyment of these conversations. Thanks, @rain forest, for being willing to consider the comments of someone you have so very little history with. <br /><br />My take on today’s puzzle: comparing this to yesterday’s (both meant to be relatively easy) you see the difference between the work of an experienced, highly competent constructor and a relatively inexperienced one trying to accomplish the same thing. It was perhaps unfair to publish them sequentially.<br /><br />Today’s theme seems no more simplistic than yesterday’s, but suffers from being so obvious that the solver can pretty much just go down the grid and fill them all in. Much of the fill was the opposite, with lots of crosswordese and obscure trivia, which I have to think would be quite opaque to the casual solver. It seems a little more challenging than yesterday for the experienced solver, but, I thought, less fun. And two South Park kids is at least one too many.<br /><br />The <a href="http://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=05/03/2016" rel="nofollow"> constructor’s notes </a> , as has been mentioned already in the earlier comments, make it clear that <i>he</i> thought this puzzle could have been improved. He’s certainly right, and I wish he had received the editorial help he needed to make it so.Sailorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05185068601066087185noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-20636945759886523572016-06-07T13:38:33.667-04:002016-06-07T13:38:33.667-04:00Outlier puzzle for a Tuesday, though the theme was...Outlier puzzle for a Tuesday, though the theme was pretty transparent and filled lots of space.<br /><br />But ALECTO? PICOT? YLEM?? Yikes! Needed the crosses for those and a couple more.<br /><br />Fun exercise. <br /><br />leftcoastTAMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-70450440974330660682016-06-07T12:54:45.865-04:002016-06-07T12:54:45.865-04:00It’s a Tues-puz folks, not known for brilliance, s...It’s a Tues-puz folks, not known for brilliance, so I didn’t think that hard about the quality. And there were a few toughies mixed in, as mentioned above. The thing that almost caused a DNF was my mis-spelled YLuM which made a perfectly good RAGu, until I read that clue. Might have let it go otherwise.<br /><br />I thought the NW corner started with a bit of trickery. Jessica could have been yeah baby Biel so check crosses, right? Big name in denim coulda been LEes, so I stopped at LE__. But it certainly showed me that Jessica was yeah baby ALBA. Smoother sailing from then until the YLEM inkblot.<br /><br />ICHIRO will likely be most remembered as a Mariner, but plays for Miami now. He’s closing in on 3000 hits, and that’s after playing for years in Japan before MLB in the U.S. <br /><br />For anyone who might care, I solve on paper, with pen, and don’t notice how long it takes unless there’s a convenient accident. Been doing it that way for 30 years. Solving on a device doesn’t interest me, but to each his/her own. And it does seem that some of the constructors’ names that used to show up frequently don’t appear much anymore. But I’m probably not about to go searching them out. The NYT puz is syndicated to both the Mpls and St. Paul papers, so that’s the puz to do. After reading the sports page. And then the paper gets re-purposed, as kindling in the wood stove or for streak-free window washing, etc. Can’t do that with a device. And syndilanders get to re-live the holiday themes 5 weeks later. The only puz I do in real time is in Harper’s magazine; now there’s a challenge, and I won the mail-in contest once. If I’m really bored I might print out a WSJ puz.<br /><br />I had a ’68 and a ‘73 Belvedere and a ’71 Fury: PLYMOUTHSROCK!<br />rondonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-88228580539637388342016-06-07T11:34:25.768-04:002016-06-07T11:34:25.768-04:00RAZED SCORE
YES, she was a RIDER in ABRAHAMSLINCO...RAZED SCORE<br /><br />YES, she was a RIDER in ABRAHAMSLINCOLN,<br />a SOMBER BABE with UNEASE and no Accord,<br />and REST EASY to DISAGREE with her thinkin’<br />when she FELL ABED OUT in HARRISONSFORD.<br /><br />--- GENE “UTAH” ROARK<br />Burma Shavenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-20523801779867497662016-06-07T11:28:03.700-04:002016-06-07T11:28:03.700-04:00Not sure what happened here; I got a message that ...Not sure what happened here; I got a message that I "must have double-clicked" something that caused "conflicting edits." So here is what I hope is my only post; I have to assume the first one is gone.<br /><br />Conflicting is a good word for today's puzzle. As soon as I had the AB in the first theme line I had them all; that's 56 squares filled. This could be a record-breaker. Ah, but that was the Dr. Jekyll of it.<br /><br />Mr. Hyde said, "NOTSO fast there, BABE!" [more on that later] My original post contained a rant about South Park; suffice it to say I don't watch it and thus knew neither of those names. I do watch all those science shows like Wormhole and How the Universe Works, yet until this morning I never encountered YLEM. This IS Tuesday, right? ALECTO, NIMES...are you SURE it's Tuesday?? L'Ouverture?? I'm not even counting PICOT; I know that one because I used to work in a bra factory (and no, before you ask, I didn't get a chance to see them being modeled). But all this doesn't belong this early in the week.<br /><br />Now to the "Hey BABE" thing. That clue is just SO wrong. I say that to a woman, I'm liable to get slapped upside the head. I say that to a man...not. Not EVER.<br /><br />Who wouldn't pick ALBA as the DOD? Yet there's also GENE Tierney of b&w movies; Hawkeye Pierce thought her overbite "sexy." And as mom to the Face that Launched a Thousand Ships, LEDA deserves at least honorable mention.<br /><br />Now I will try and not hit anything twice--and forgive me if both blogs appear. Score for today: bogey. NUFF said.spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-73601479164539911472016-05-04T09:47:15.961-04:002016-05-04T09:47:15.961-04:00FEER not. DE ZAR's ETIC-ETA bars A RUB when yo...FEER not. DE ZAR's ETIC-ETA bars A RUB when your ARZE is OSSO ICHI. Yes, SIRRAH! A SEMINal LATE thought TOCIP in MINED when there's SODA on your SACROiliac.<br /><br />LET NATS bite! FFUN, FFUN, FFUN!!<br /><br />(Just a quick look back at yestergrid before closure)Leapfingerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14243620614139990887noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-68057001563650576322016-05-04T08:02:26.419-04:002016-05-04T08:02:26.419-04:00HairHairJeff Lewishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10354928233835212575noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-12603440493135035442016-05-03T23:28:21.599-04:002016-05-03T23:28:21.599-04:00As a longtime solver, I am increasingly dismayed b...As a longtime solver, I am increasingly dismayed by the deteriorating quality of the New York Times crossword puzzles -- especially over the last week and a half to two weeks. As soon as I saw today's cheap gimmick I thought "seriously?" and had a little debate with myself about whether I would even bother to finish it. I finally decided to do it just to see how bad it was going to be. <br /><br />Maybe novice solvers and recent devotees find this sort of thing clever or challenging, but to someone who has been solving puzzles for 40 years, this is a terrible piece of work. If I didn't know it was from the New York Times I would have suspected it was from a second-rate newspaper syndicate. <br /><br />Today we had EASY and UNEASE, yesterday it was YOWZA and YOWIE. This sort of duplication should not occur in a well-done puzzle. I can't even remember the last time I saw the old chestnut ONAN in a puzzle -- it's been years. <br /><br />I'm old-school and still get the New York Times in print, primarily for the puzzle -- but if it keeps publishing dogs like this one I going to cancel. Seriously, this is really inferior work. notarysojackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14393842095041585457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82418749609817280712016-05-03T23:07:19.828-04:002016-05-03T23:07:19.828-04:00I found this to be VERY challenging for a Tuesday!...I found this to be VERY challenging for a Tuesday!!!Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06581264930569305915noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-39645513699346332192016-05-03T22:26:36.764-04:002016-05-03T22:26:36.764-04:00Now I do have to say that the kind of person who s...Now I do have to say that the kind of person who subscribes to the NYT has probably been to Nimes. I went as a college student and took all my children there, too, to see the amazing Pont du Gard and pay a quick visit to the Maison Carree in Nimes, second only to the Pantheon in Rome as a building dating back to the Roman Empire that is still more or less intact. And for those of you who have not been, you can't do better than to spend a few days in Avignon, with a car and side trips to Nimes and Arles and all those other xword friendly places in the South of France. old timernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-29820560097701423702016-05-03T21:57:47.664-04:002016-05-03T21:57:47.664-04:00I didn't mind the theme, though I never heard ...I didn't mind the theme, though I never heard of this Suzuki fellow, but I thought the fill was atrocious. Way too obscure for Tuesday. <br />Debrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00002807945357368445noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61830184975061563022016-05-03T21:02:18.402-04:002016-05-03T21:02:18.402-04:00Hm...I've been solving these puzzles daily for...Hm...I've been solving these puzzles daily for about a decade. I can pretty consistently finish Saturdays, and I almost always finish every other day. I say that not to brag but to establish the perspective of a seasoned solver. This puzzle wasn't very good, but I think Rex is way overstating the problem. For one thing, I think he gets way too wound up by the quality of the theme. Great themes are fantastic, but I don't think a lesser theme is a net negative, especially on a Monday or Tuesday, when the straightforwardness of the puzzle demands a simpler theme.<br /><br />The quality of the puzzles has declined, but it is still the best newspaper puzzle out there, by a wide margin.<br /><br />And to Rex, whose blog I love, a criticism with good intentions: it may be that the Times's quality is sagging, but so too does your blog when you spend your energy griping. When you offer pop culture arcana, amusing anecdotes about how the puzzle somehow relates to your life, or cheeky commentary on lesser clues (like your "Natick rule"), this blog is an absolute treasure. When you gripe...well, it's not fun to read, even if your criticisms are valid. So if you believe it important for content producers to heed the word of their fan bases when it comes to sagging quality, as you seem to think it is for NYT, I encourage you to consider it in your own work. This blog is so great. Please do not let it slip.KevCohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11458766784931570907noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-43251123244203180392016-05-03T20:37:40.911-04:002016-05-03T20:37:40.911-04:00100% agree 100% agree Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-24643968446448654802016-05-03T20:26:13.279-04:002016-05-03T20:26:13.279-04:00Applause for @Dolgo. " stuff ... that USED to...Applause for @Dolgo. " stuff ... that USED to be knowledge educated people have". There are two kinds of PPP; that which is part of a classical education (ALECTO, AZTEC, LEDA), and that based on something temporarily popular, and which may or may not hold up over the years (STAN, ERIC, ALBA). A nice mix or a tilt to the former makes for a good puzzle. Favoring the latter leads to drek (for me).<br /><br />And my two cents in defense of @Rex - this is his blog, which he updates (almost) every day, and moderates the comments, for FREE (donations appreciated). No one HAS to read it; no one who does read it HAS to pay for it. Personally, I disagree with an awful lot of his commentary - but I appreciate, and learn from, his point of view.kitshefnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19659609073756902902016-05-03T20:17:52.047-04:002016-05-03T20:17:52.047-04:00@jberg. Congratulations and best wishes. @jberg. Congratulations and best wishes. RAD2626https://www.blogger.com/profile/18196568765752439378noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-79909526692325890662016-05-03T19:49:30.558-04:002016-05-03T19:49:30.558-04:00I detect some sour grapes from some of the critici...I detect some sour grapes from some of the criticism about Rex. I think Rex is always right. This is the New York Times not the Greenwich times. We deserve better. Chronic dnferhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05129538196003383400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-40691029036797421922016-05-03T19:20:18.449-04:002016-05-03T19:20:18.449-04:00@puzzle hoarder and @janet - Last Sunday I had a l...@puzzle hoarder and @janet - Last Sunday I had a league game immediately followed by my HS team having a game, so the HS kids came out to watch the old man play. My league team was short, so I recruited one of my high schoolers to play. I didn't take the best player, I took the best athlete. After the kid scored five times the other team put the best player in the league on him. Afterwards I told him just who had been covering him. Neither his age or relative lack of disc skills mattered because I put him in a position to succeed. This is what I expect Shortz to do with young (all new) constructors, put them in positions to succeed. Publishing a puzzle that needs re-working is no favor. Neither is, "your puzzle is a good one <i>for a kid.</i>" We've seen other new constructors improve with time, so I'm sure Mr. Westwig will, too. That has nothing to do with his age.<br /><br />@Harry - Good point about the many different audiences that Shortz has to please.Zhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181544219511150272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-957533524489997262016-05-03T18:38:52.576-04:002016-05-03T18:38:52.576-04:00I'll vote with @NCA President.I'll vote with @NCA President.Normhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10032302346488486116noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-28481099943822885072016-05-03T18:11:00.124-04:002016-05-03T18:11:00.124-04:00Darn auto-correct...I meant osso BucoDarn auto-correct...I meant osso Bucochefbeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15195945085405126511noreply@blogger.com