tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post5599096259654814111..comments2024-03-29T05:08:37.783-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Flat-bottomed boat / THU 1-15-15 / Ottoman honorific / Nearly blind jazz great / Fashionable 1980s item resembling bit of astronaut's attire / Popular recreational watercraft / Sussex river where Virginia Woolf tragically ended her lifeRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger94125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-78559965794095535702015-02-20T00:49:26.617-05:002015-02-20T00:49:26.617-05:00Euchre; yukk!Euchre; yukk!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-32005408646800557562015-02-19T16:01:02.678-05:002015-02-19T16:01:02.678-05:00Had trouble with this one. Painfully worked out ev...Had trouble with this one. Painfully worked out everything but the central bottom. Only thing I got there was ARTTATUM and OKlets, obviously not enough to give me any help with the acrosses. Tried MOONshoe , but, for obvious reasons it didn't feel,right. Some you win, some.....<br /><br />CheckDMGnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35993165279495376622015-02-19T15:55:44.149-05:002015-02-19T15:55:44.149-05:00@rain forest: Yes, I have been here before, but no...@rain forest: Yes, I have been here before, but not often. Thanks for the "welcome" post yesterday.<br /><br />Today I had virtually the same experience with this puzzle as you did. When I got to the punctuation business at the end, I found it a bit of a letdown. leftcoastTAMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-76591169704951074802015-02-19T14:31:05.550-05:002015-02-19T14:31:05.550-05:00While I did RENT an AGED SEA-DOO,
OLGA inquired to...While I did RENT an AGED SEA-DOO,<br />OLGA inquired to USE MARYS DORY.<br />We three then did something TABU.<br />And when it became just a LIL UGLY and GORY<br />The weather seemed to be right ONCUE.<br />When from NIMBI came HAIL<br />And we all had to BAIL,<br />ICOULDHAVE have been hurt HADINOT loved those TWO.<br />Burma Shavenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-66966111321336654622015-02-19T14:17:52.245-05:002015-02-19T14:17:52.245-05:00Gotta love Ogden Nash, even a somewhat lesser effo...Gotta love Ogden Nash, even a somewhat lesser effort. Like many others I was on the lookout for punctuation all over the place, and caused myself grief when I first entered SEAdoOs ("craft" can be plural). There were many places where the opaque cluing made for slow going, but I have to say that the cluing in general was high-calibre. <br /><br />This took over an hour, but I finished with a flourish. <br /><br />The webCAM was clever, I would ARGUE.<br /><br />No photos today.rain forestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-57431493161945583072015-02-19T13:49:52.151-05:002015-02-19T13:49:52.151-05:00Kinda obtuse cluing I thought; couldn't get mu...Kinda obtuse cluing I thought; couldn't get much going at first, just some wide-spread seeds. <br /><br />Had lAst gAspS for HAIL MARYS until DARYL Hall saved me from that mess.<br /><br />I'm thinking that MOONBOOTS were only "popular" in colder climes as they looked to be insulated pull-on affairs.<br /><br />EUCHRE is still played here on the MN/WI border. I think some taverns and the Legion hall still have tournaments.<br /><br />Know ARTTATUM (and many others)from the late Leigh Kamman's "Jazz Image" radio show on on MPR. Spent many a late Saturday night with that cranked up.<br /><br />This puz wasn't exactly a LEMON, but it sure wasted alot MORE of my time than I was expecting.<br />rondonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-86645206655654760152015-02-19T12:16:22.321-05:002015-02-19T12:16:22.321-05:00Hardly medium over here. MOON BOOT? There was such...Hardly medium over here. MOON BOOT? There was such a thing? "Fashionable?" Then why have I never heard of it? Don't believe I've ever seen one, either. So, so much I didn't know. including ART TATUM right next door. I thought I wouldn't even come close to finishing. Wild guesses, like ILLSAY off just the first L, saw me through. Thanks for that one gimme clue: "Deliver, as a big kiss." Man, if that word wasn't PLANT I was gonna throw the book.<br /><br />The rest of the clues were Saturday tough. And since the Nashism presented here was a total unknown for me, practically the whole grid was hard. In the first place, that "...with punctuation included" caveat led me to imagine several rather than just one, and most likely rebus involvement. When it turned out to be but a single dash, I was let down--or, relieved that the puzzle was doable after all.<br /><br />The quote left me as flat as the bottom of a DORY. This was indeed "not his finest hour." Gee, I could have loved elm or oak, had I not loved syca-more. Whoop de (SEA-)DOO. The fill was not too UGLY--but not scintillating either. Give this one a B-: hard to go lower because I finished correctly after being sure I wouldn't.spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-48600987751895055272015-01-18T15:34:10.470-05:002015-01-18T15:34:10.470-05:00@Anon2:26Sunday - Good thought, but KIA has a mode...@Anon2:26Sunday - Good thought, but KIA has a model called a <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=Kia+Soul&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=ahi8VPbSJMyqyATT84GAAg&ved=0CAgQ_AUoAQ&biw=1200&bih=635" rel="nofollow">Soul</a>Zhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181544219511150272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82445376810006885292015-01-18T14:26:14.610-05:002015-01-18T14:26:14.610-05:00Shouldn't soul producer be "Seoul"? ...Shouldn't soul producer be "Seoul"? Kia cars are made there in Korea.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61726903231893276232015-01-17T06:25:41.544-05:002015-01-17T06:25:41.544-05:00I'm with Rex and everyone else who took issue ...I'm with Rex and everyone else who took issue with the snubbing of the other punctuation marks in this puzzle. I mean what are they - CHOPped liver? Found some of the clues quite iffy as well such as Bow (to) for LOSE. I think of bowing to something as accepting loss, not the loss itself. I also struggle with HAIL MARYS in this context. Would it be OKTHEN to say, "I finally Googled OUSE in a HAIL MARY to finish this puzzle"? Not sure but I think UHUH. Quote themes... *sigh*. Loved the cartoon though! Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02360307385577843474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-66721166034848534812015-01-15T20:48:38.009-05:002015-01-15T20:48:38.009-05:00I solved the whole puzzle and then spent twenty m...I solved the whole puzzle and then spent twenty minutes trying to figure out what to put in the square that required the dash. Frustrating . Never did come up with the right answer. Utica happens to be where a branch of Dunder-Mifflin (note the dash) Paper Company is located. Ginnygingerpienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-48668610195831772172015-01-15T20:03:47.236-05:002015-01-15T20:03:47.236-05:00I am doing some looking at that quote. It appears ...I am doing some looking at that quote. It appears in tons of Nash related stuff, but it never seems to have a source. I did find a piece in the April 1961 Baltimore Sun, that says Nash said the following at an author's luncheon:<br /><br />I could not love New York so much<br />Loved I not Baltimore<br /><br />Maybe he said a variation of the thing all the time, or maybe by the time he published it he changed it.Gorelickhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14303187504509509635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-87646249388444648852015-01-15T18:56:02.875-05:002015-01-15T18:56:02.875-05:00Also went seadoos in the SE.Also went seadoos in the SE.The L A Kidnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35008067535027789472015-01-15T18:49:45.512-05:002015-01-15T18:49:45.512-05:00If EUCHRE isn't the official card game of Mich...If EUCHRE isn't the official card game of Michigan it is only because our pols are a bunch of slackers. <br /><br />Mentioned to Ultimate car-pool buddy that I do the NYTX. He asked' "how far in the week can you get? Wednesday?" I barely felt smug at all when I told this Brown grad, "Oh no, an occasional Saturday might stump me but I solve most of them." I kept a small degree of modesty by not saying "in pen." Wouldn't want to BRAG. Zhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16181544219511150272noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-43979390562668397732015-01-15T18:35:40.346-05:002015-01-15T18:35:40.346-05:00Oh yeah, Haley Gold is pure gold today!Oh yeah, Haley Gold is pure gold today!Teedmnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12832353448839187816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-45267868087468907232015-01-15T18:34:29.707-05:002015-01-15T18:34:29.707-05:00Michael Jackson probably would have started a one ...Michael Jackson probably would have started a one MOONBOOT fad except it interfered with his MOONwalking!<br /><br />@Sir Hillary, loved your NIMBI acronym.<br /><br />secTS/shush, yup. UNtIe? Yup. DNF due to OiSE and AGEe/BEes. I forgot bees have drones, not kings, doh!<br /><br />Thanks, Mr. Schouwerwou, for a different kind of Thursday solve (and congrats on your debut.)Teedmnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12832353448839187816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-63736681194692934552015-01-15T17:14:25.761-05:002015-01-15T17:14:25.761-05:00The clue for sleepover was odd. For us a sleepove...The clue for sleepover was odd. For us a sleepover was a kind of party not a kind of night. We'd say "I'm having a sleepover, do you want to come" the way you'd say "I'm having a party". I'd expect the clue to be "perfect party for a pillow fight". Could be regional.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19472319385930994522015-01-15T16:54:36.940-05:002015-01-15T16:54:36.940-05:00@ludyjynn - Hon! I miss it (lived there 1971-1974...@ludyjynn - Hon! I miss it (lived there 1971-1974).Carolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15971759975067250908noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19738936244063638592015-01-15T16:42:02.611-05:002015-01-15T16:42:02.611-05:00@ludyjynn...I don't tweet or text but I think ...@ludyjynn...I don't tweet or text but I think it means - on the other hand....notice the hyphen I usedchefbeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15195945085405126511noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-37544996660714081362015-01-15T16:33:49.703-05:002015-01-15T16:33:49.703-05:00What the hell does OTOH mean? I've never '...What the hell does OTOH mean? I've never 'tweeted' and sincerely hope this is the last time we will see a Twitter reference in a NYT x-word (punctuation included).<br /><br />Grateful that no one here has taken the opportunity to dis my adopted hometown of BALTIhyphenMORe in the comments so far! Here is my dilemma on the subject of the Nash quip: A Jersey girl, born and bred, NEWYORK was my first love. Any reference to going into 'the city' meant, of course, a bus or train ride into Manhattan. First 'real' job and apartment after college was mid-town and upper east side (rent controlled). <br /><br />But then...a teaching offer in suburban Balto. (not the PIEDPIPER) brought me here. It was not a love match by any means. Rotting piers downtown were not yet demolished to create the Inner Harbor attractions. The provincial, small-town-in-a big-city atmosphere was a let-down after the 24-7 excitement of NYC. But...within a year, I found myself saying to friends and family up north, "Baltimore is like a fungus; it grows on you!" And I meant that in the nicest way. Part of the appeal of "Charm City" is just that--the people here are truly charming, Hon! And here I sit, 39 years later! But I still adore NY.<br /><br />Thanks, HS and WS.Ludyjynnnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-73110633885111204312015-01-15T16:20:11.393-05:002015-01-15T16:20:11.393-05:00Euchre is common in Rochester and the rest of west...Euchre is common in Rochester and the rest of western New York too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-71571072720032372332015-01-15T16:00:35.534-05:002015-01-15T16:00:35.534-05:00Raul -- That's "Orono."Raul -- That's "Orono."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-63421843578077686872015-01-15T16:00:27.107-05:002015-01-15T16:00:27.107-05:00What Nancy said. And I love Ogden Nash, but this i...What Nancy said. And I love Ogden Nash, but this is not one of his better quotes. Hate product names in general, since I seldom know them, sea-doo? Never heard of Stephanie Meyer, have but the vaguest recollection of moon boots, with "OUSE"? I don't even like the clue for "Tomboy." <br /><br />@maisdemere - without checking, is that the same poem with the line "Four walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage?" That is Lovelace also...<br /><br />Didn't know about Nash's connection with Baltimore, but I know he was a Yankee fan, mentioning in one poem "sailing serenely into harbor with Mel Allen and Red Barber." OISKhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16808675378318214461noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-27127963425805959382015-01-15T15:20:57.361-05:002015-01-15T15:20:57.361-05:00You weren't the only one who misread the Steph...You weren't the only one who misread the Stephanie MEYER clue. I filled in the crosses and though, "Since when did she get a day time talk show?"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-69204720141621447472015-01-15T15:20:28.166-05:002015-01-15T15:20:28.166-05:00Many many many years ago, my Boy Scout troop used ...Many many many years ago, my Boy Scout troop used to have summer camps at Lake Utica in the Stanislaus National Forest up in the Sierra Nevada. In those days nearly nobody else ever went there. Other troops established 'summer homes' at other lakes in the vicinity. In the three weeks we were there it would have been unusual to see anyone not one of our scouts. It was almost pristine wilderness, something, I gather, nearly impossible to find these days. When the name "Utica" catches my attention, it's usually not a city in New York that comes to mind, rather, it's blinding granite, tall pines and icy water drenched in the summer sunlight. Cold evenings around a huge campfire after badly cooked dinners on wood burning improvised camp stoves. Ah, the good old days.Numinoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01263999193499725814noreply@blogger.com