tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post6863104794801799742..comments2024-03-29T03:22:09.826-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: FRIDAY, Nov. 9, 2007 - Henry HookRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-81931650047095297052007-12-23T20:05:00.000-05:002007-12-23T20:05:00.000-05:00Embrittle was definitely not crosswordese to me. I...Embrittle was definitely not crosswordese to me. It went in on the first pass and helped me secure that corner. I allow myself to Google US politicians, sports and celebrities, as I'm not from there, so Bernie and The Bears got in that way.<BR/><BR/>I was thinking in terms of a new TV show being picked up as a pilot episode, so I had SEASONRUN until the kitchen appliance starting with NS forced me to admit it couldn't be. I had OLIVER for the second helping for a long time too, so the sharable file ending in OF or OS wasn't happening.<BR/><BR/>I didn't think Iroquois territory ever extended as far north as the Cree lands, and we just say "Cree" not "Crees" so I apparently was alone in trying to cram FRENCH or ALGONQUIN into five letters. I also got stuck with the UNEQUALY thing, and as Americans often have only one L in words we spell with two, I was not 100% sure it was wrong. I got STYX on my own as I'd already guessed MAX, but needed Rex to understand ELEM.<BR/><BR/>Only one I hated was NLAT. I've never seen that written anywhere. At first I put HIGH, because I figured NY didn't get any hotter than that, then I remembered that Americans use F, so tried MEAN (which at least got me WRONGNUMBER, when I misread my H changed to M as an N!)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-46935789067502960972007-12-21T23:27:00.000-05:002007-12-21T23:27:00.000-05:00Debbie: It's Fleshiest.From the Syndicate:Bernie S...Debbie: It's Fleshiest.<BR/><BR/>From the Syndicate:<BR/><BR/>Bernie Sanders is quite a hero up here in the frozen north as he's very much in the mold of a Canadian politician; i.e., Bernie's US socialism is about on par with the positions of the middle-of-the-road Liberal Party up here.<BR/><BR/>In a puzzle with so much slang/informality (YEAH, SORTA, etc.), too bad Henry Hook didn't find a way to use "DA BEARS" in the SNL tradition instead of "THE BEARS".<BR/><BR/>And as Nat King Cole sang, today's puzzle was "UNLETTABLE in every way...".<BR/><BR/>Adieu.Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-76769358553027970052007-12-21T17:10:00.000-05:002007-12-21T17:10:00.000-05:00Freshiest? seriously now...Freshiest? seriously now...Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09145916924212242079noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-56333047296459697132007-11-10T09:10:00.000-05:002007-11-10T09:10:00.000-05:00Loved this, since I was lucky to know more than I ...Loved this, since I was lucky to know more than I should have. Total gimmes came early: BERNIE, SIRPAUL, SEASONTWO, STRATTON, MSQUAD, ALTIMAS, SANTERIA (which I remembered from a creepy movie with Martin Sheen), and THEBEARS (being from Chicago). I have never gotten off to a faster Friday start--thinking something must be wrong. But wasn't slowed too much after these, with good footings everywhere.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-16025634577420294782007-11-10T08:48:00.000-05:002007-11-10T08:48:00.000-05:00I had exactly Rex's problems in the NE. The whole...I had exactly Rex's problems in the NE. The whole west side fell quickly, then slogging. 58 minutes.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-26181549857671755932007-11-10T07:39:00.000-05:002007-11-10T07:39:00.000-05:00Finally finished this puzzle very late last night ...Finally finished this puzzle very late last night after leaving it in disgust to go shopping. When I got home, everything just fell into place!! First clue I got was 'pobble' - cannot believe I could remember that from elem. school! Really enjoyed it after the early problems. Had to Google leu and Bernie and santeria but apart from that all was OK. Am just about to go outside to fetch in todays hard copy - the only way to approach the puzzle as far as I am concerned - and settle down for an hour with a coffee before facing the dayAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-73083796052031493052007-11-10T03:25:00.000-05:002007-11-10T03:25:00.000-05:00Felt a little Saturday-oid to me, but is was such ...Felt a little Saturday-oid to me, but is was such a beautiful puzzle. Loved the long and the short of it... wrongnumber, seadweller, GOP, dueler. Stemless was a deja vu. I'm sure we've had that recently. Does cinch=corselet? Is there a kind of armor or a female undergarment called a cinch? Never saw Saw. I was clueless on pobble, lue, leone, santeria, or druse, but they fell in place eventually from crosses. I never thought I'd finish this puzzle, but I was having so much fun, I didn't care. Then suddenly it was done. Like Orange, I like to look things up after the fact, then add them to my little sieve upstairs and hope they'll stay there.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-87573009584979604072007-11-10T00:34:00.000-05:002007-11-10T00:34:00.000-05:00"Br." in the St. Pete clue is an abbreviation sign..."Br." in the St. Pete clue is an abbreviation signal.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-72593109758289052682007-11-10T00:04:00.000-05:002007-11-10T00:04:00.000-05:00I'm rather proud that I was able to fill in as muc...I'm rather proud that I was able to fill in as much of this puzzle as I did without Googling or resorting to the dictionary.<BR/><BR/>All I know about Afro-Caribbean religion I got from Bob Marley records, so I wanted RASTA-something for that clue. PSST is cute in retrospect but was a pain to get.<BR/><BR/>Did anyone else feel that ST. PETE should have had a flag as an abbreviation?<BR/><BR/>My sister-in-law has an ALTIMA so that was a gimme. I like Lear, but POBBLE was a new one on me. And the clue for ADIEU was terrific.<BR/><BR/>Took me a while to realize about He (helium) or I (iodine, right?).<BR/><BR/>All in all, a challenging but gettable (rhymes with UNLETTABLE) puzzle. However, I shudder to think what tomorrow will bring...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-24433576027087439472007-11-09T21:16:00.000-05:002007-11-09T21:16:00.000-05:00Thanks for the tip on the NYorker profile, Martin!...Thanks for the tip on the NYorker profile, Martin! According to it: " ... an average solver will do the Monday puzzle in an hour or so, the Wednesday in two hours, and fling the Saturday puzzle across the room in a fit of impotent fury." <BR/><BR/>The Monday puzzle in AN HOUR OR SO??? Man, I guess I must be way above an average solver, then. How could the Monday ever take even close to an hour, much less Or So? Or am I just being smug? ;)wendyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06899889818724088564noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-31131476434936960942007-11-09T20:55:00.000-05:002007-11-09T20:55:00.000-05:00Martin, Thanks for the article, which I soon reali...Martin, Thanks for the article, which I soon realized I had read at some point, with vaguely envious fascination. It made me realize that I now pay attention to the Author of the puzzle, something I hadn't done before becoming a regular consumer of Rex bloggery. I also realize, probably by personifying the construction, that I am much more acutely aware, or curious about the creative process that goes into this exercise. I once likened crossword construction to writing a poem, and while they're not exactly parallel there is some fundamental similarity.fergushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17056002311944010536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-14715727297712642712007-11-09T20:14:00.000-05:002007-11-09T20:14:00.000-05:00I thought the level of difficulty was about averag...I thought the level of difficulty was about average for a Friday (doable for mewithout references with some thought) until I got to the NE. Even after googling the Lee Marvin clue, I still ended up getting several letters wrong. And I didn't understand the answer elem until I read one of the comments here (by the biochem major).Michael Chibnikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04700426644898924644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-16229659895753655782007-11-09T19:27:00.000-05:002007-11-09T19:27:00.000-05:00Henry Hook may not be a kid, but he's probably the...Henry Hook may not be a kid, but he's probably the only crossword constructor with a <A HREF="http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2002/03/04/020304fa_FACT" REL="nofollow"><I>New Yorker</I> profile</A>.<BR/><BR/>And Rex, metals are embrittled. <A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen_embrittlement" REL="nofollow">Hydrogen embrittlement</A> is a major cause of metal failure, as all hotrodders know.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-32693432019609076492007-11-09T19:15:00.000-05:002007-11-09T19:15:00.000-05:00Obnoxious self-promoting plug: My book, How to Con...Obnoxious self-promoting plug: My book, <A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/Conquer-York-Times-Crossword-Puzzle/dp/0312365543/sr=8-1/qid=1169508773/ref=sr_1_1/102-4878015-2953736?ie=UTF8&s=books" REL="nofollow">How to Conquer the New York Times Crossword Puzzle</A>, could possibly be an even handier tool for improving one's crossword skills than reading blogular discussions of crosswords. Though of course, this blog and some others do raise awareness of constructor tricks, cluing conventions, crosswordese, etc.<BR/><BR/>Our own Rex coined IMOO as "in my obnoxious opinion." He's hoping it will go viral. It's got definite potential, though the muddling with "own" or "obvious" is a strike against it. I like its self-deprecating nature, though.<BR/><BR/>Rafael, I rarely ever Google while solving, but I do it frequently after I finish, looking up answers I wasn't familiar with. It's a helluva handy way to learn moreāand learning more words and factoids allows one to become more adept at crosswords.Orangehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12433254398377357737noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-29288994553769974922007-11-09T18:39:00.000-05:002007-11-09T18:39:00.000-05:00Johnson: My awareness of this community seems to ...Johnson: My awareness of this community seems to improve my focus and I do feel like the discussions forward some sort of technique. Curious to know if an official position exists on the use of reference materials like dictionaries and the internet. As a rule I don't use them. Does Rex Google?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-47141385548686718712007-11-09T17:29:00.000-05:002007-11-09T17:29:00.000-05:00This was a very challenging puzzle, and although I...This was a very challenging puzzle, and although I could quarrel about more than a few clues, one clue makes it all worth it...and I'm surprised you don't mention it Rex: 41 Down: Bush League=GOP <BR/><BR/>calpoetcalpoethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02004802666520193176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-52224675065750535082007-11-09T17:15:00.000-05:002007-11-09T17:15:00.000-05:00I worked over two hours (mostly in the NE fighting...I worked over two hours (mostly in the NE fighting with OTOES crossing UNOQU---) Finally fell when I got ELEM (and I, a biochem major!)<BR/><BR/>Great challenge and great Friday fun.<BR/><BR/>I wonder if there's any way to quantify how much better we become as solvers because of this blog. I have improved enormously, mainly because I won't log on until I've really fought the hard fight.Do others feel you have improved? Rex?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49155583822689816722007-11-09T16:36:00.000-05:002007-11-09T16:36:00.000-05:00IMOO = In My Own Opinion, but could also be "Obvio...IMOO = In My Own Opinion, but could also be "Obvious" or "Odious" opinion.<BR/><BR/>I got the western half fairly easily, with copious amounts of googling, but the east killed me.<BR/><BR/>I really wanted the nasty apartment to be untenable, to the extent that I allowed it to be misspelled as untennable for quite some time. I had Druze which messed me up in the same quadrant. Is "deputes" a word? If so, it should be demoted. The Free Dictionary disagrees with me.<BR/><BR/>Never heard of a pobble. Didn't we have Jabberwocky yesterday? Gibberish poem week?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-22432292822489158462007-11-09T16:06:00.000-05:002007-11-09T16:06:00.000-05:00Fell for the ULTIMA, ALTIMA also which gave me UD_...Fell for the ULTIMA, ALTIMA also which gave me UD_EU for an across. Ugly.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-18365072447688454002007-11-09T15:59:00.000-05:002007-11-09T15:59:00.000-05:00I stuggled with the puzzle and almost completed it...I stuggled with the puzzle and almost completed it without Googling. Which for me is fantastic for aFriday. Completed all except the NE where the NAtive Americans slew me. Had Footless instead of Stemless. Otoes instead of EEries and Faun instead of scud. Got Sela and Styx and Saw but not Adieu as I spelled "Altimas" as "Ultimas" and had "under" for "adieu." Cars and sports and very old TV are my weak spots. LIke others hated "dueler" until it was explained for a"second" time and had the aha moment followed by the D'uh.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-53161079016919798512007-11-09T15:30:00.000-05:002007-11-09T15:30:00.000-05:00bip and hirschfeld combine beautifully here:marcel...bip and hirschfeld combine beautifully here:<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://i2.webfood.com/goodstadt/i/marcel_marceau.jpg" REL="nofollow">marcel</A><BR/><BR/>;-)<BR/><BR/>janieAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82245578986718947992007-11-09T15:19:00.000-05:002007-11-09T15:19:00.000-05:00IMO = IN MY OPINION. Sometimes an H is inserted be...IMO = IN MY OPINION. Sometimes an H is inserted before the O to mean HUMBLE. Have no idea about IMOO.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-17390679923398529432007-11-09T14:59:00.000-05:002007-11-09T14:59:00.000-05:00Can someone please explain what IMO or IMOO means?...Can someone please explain what IMO or IMOO means? Thanks. (I'm sure it will be quite obvious once I know) :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49323784943858463552007-11-09T14:54:00.000-05:002007-11-09T14:54:00.000-05:00So many nature shows watched gave me CEPHALOPOD fo...So many nature shows watched gave me CEPHALOPOD for Octopus, e.g. so that had to be right. Right? Well, sometimes you can be too clever, and then take forever, unwilling to relinquish such a proud display of underwater knowledge. Same goes for ALPH, my Deep river, which twice five miles ran through canyons measureless to man down to a sunless sea. Too bad I couldn't DWELL there, with my UNEQUALS, which seemed plausible for Without a match. I recalled the DRUZE militia from conflicts in Lebanon when I finally had to abandon the Cuttlefish and Octopi, still running ragged all over the Eastern front. I wonder if there is any connection between SANTERIA (which I teased out from Voodoo somehow) and DRUSE? I doubt it. I was thinking leglessly on 6A, figuring it had something to do with supreme inebriation? Well, my wineglass could end up stemless in response to that clue. I'm not OK with PEKES as Lap dogs, though I am IMPRESSED with most of the rest of the Puzzle. And still wondering whether what I bit on for 31D was an intentional misdirecting Hook?fergushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17056002311944010536noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-51890057845719053132007-11-09T14:06:00.000-05:002007-11-09T14:06:00.000-05:00Oh that northeast above 40 degrees nlat! I too lo...Oh that northeast above 40 degrees nlat! I too lost my cred with cree, was unequal the task of making that word fit, and was up the Styx without a pobble.<BR/><BR/>I also also hated second helping until I loved it. <BR/><BR/>And I'm sort of with Wendy on order blank. Besides, even back in the day, was an order blank still a blank after you filled in the form?<BR/><BR/>All in all, a nice TGIF gift from Messrs Hook and Shortz.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com