tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post7769475153998092510..comments2024-03-28T18:52:07.432-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Kudlow Report airer / SAT 4-20-13 / Naturalist who coined term invertebrate / Its highest rank is Wonsu / Battle with Slum writer / Small meat-stuffed pastries / Thief star 1981Rex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger71125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-71481737163365068802013-05-26T13:39:13.122-04:002013-05-26T13:39:13.122-04:00Even later, DNFing on Sunday due to all of the abo...Even later, DNFing on Sunday due to all of the above reasons, especially in the SE and the JAMBAJUICE/LAMARCK cross. <br /><br />Syndisyncronicity of a type in that I stumbled on an excellent TV bio of the other David Steinberg, the astute comedian/director of another generation, whilst attempting vainly to solve this diabolical wunderkind David Steinberg's creation. Waxy in Montrealhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04395751487137805245noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-37253336697408291432013-05-26T11:56:26.127-04:002013-05-26T11:56:26.127-04:00@Ginger - I did the most recent DS puzzle yesterda...@Ginger - I did the most recent DS puzzle yesterday and I guarantee Syncity solvers are going to love it! I came up one square short of a completed grid but that didn't spoil the fun. <br /><br />@Murray - nice to see you back.<br /><br />Now on to the Sunday (should I call it the "Synday") puzzle.Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35003272577500096342013-05-26T00:42:01.366-04:002013-05-26T00:42:01.366-04:00Late to the party, as usual it seems. Crosswordes...Late to the party, as usual it seems. Crosswordese and google helped me, but not enough. Big Fat DNF, but lotsa fun anyway! Too many blank spots to mention.<br /><br />By the way, five weeks from today, we syndilanders will have another David Steinberg to challenge us. The kid is amazing.<br /><br />Thank You to all our veterans, who have given so much to a country that continues to ignore and marginalize them. Gingernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-13622320573560505092013-05-25T22:16:12.252-04:002013-05-25T22:16:12.252-04:00A big DNFWOG for me due to the crosswordese in the...A big DNFWOG for me due to the crosswordese in the SE. I was really thrilled to discover a couple of clues geared toward the west coast. A lot of puzzles are geared toward the east coast (yes I am aware it is the NYT). Jamba Juice and ARCO were big gimmes for me. Also loved the clues for Nicki Minaj and Barney Fife. I only knew pirogies, never heard of the Russian pastry, pirozhki, until today. Ran-tan, Bari, Rima, Alyn who? 3/4 easy medium - 1/4 impossible.<br /><br />Overall a good work out. Keep at it young Mr. Steinberg.<br /><br />Murray in Syndyland, CAAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-54139059959407175482013-05-25T18:55:31.947-04:002013-05-25T18:55:31.947-04:00Dear Mr. Webster:
Thanks for the heads-up on ran-...Dear Mr. Webster: <br />Thanks for the heads-up on ran-tan. I probably should have looked it up myself, but it sounded so strange to me that I assumed it must be a catch word of some sort. <br />I note that it is considered to be "imitative", which I find hard to believe, because it is such a soft sounding word. I associate "banging" with harsh sounds. Think of the sound of a judge's gavel or someone banging on your door to alert you to a fire. We even say guns "go bang", and that is surely not a soft sound.<br />At any rate, thanks again for your effort. I learned something new today.<br />Sincerely, DMG<br /><br />DNGrandmanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84114507447553174422013-05-25T17:53:42.526-04:002013-05-25T17:53:42.526-04:00Also DNF, but differently. Got the NE, W and SW ju...Also DNF, but differently. Got the NE, W and SW just fine, thank you (all except the second vowel of JAMB?JUICE--the rest of which went in on crosses, one of the many thinga and people I never heard of). But NW, center and SE? Nothing except GOIN, GARLAND and NITS. That wasn't enough. The "Rice on shelves" clue, totally fair and brilliant, just threw me. One look at the solution made me groan aloud; I really should've gotten that one, but still am not sure it would have been enough. I know nothing about apps, RETE or the nonsensical word DESELECT. Yeah, it's a word. If you've ever uttered it in your lifetime, raise your hand.<br /><br />Didn't think so. The rest of it was just as unknown; couldn't get a foothold. Either impossibly obscure, or "that could be anything." ZASINZEBRA: the end.Spacecraftnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-73106540143476988212013-05-25T15:30:43.848-04:002013-05-25T15:30:43.848-04:00ran–tan
noun \ˈran‧ˌtan\
-s
Definition of RAN-TAN
...ran–tan<br />noun \ˈran‧ˌtan\<br />-s<br />Definition of RAN-TAN<br />1<br />: a knocking, banging, or pounding noise <br />2<br />: riotous conduct : spree<br /><br />Origin of RAN-TAN<br />imitative<br /><br />Merriam Webster Onlinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-73795273119091420432013-05-25T15:13:17.506-04:002013-05-25T15:13:17.506-04:00Got about half of this one. Done in by not knowing...Got about half of this one. Done in by not knowing the singer and Emmy winner in the NE, and drawing a complete blank in the SE. Knew none of the Downs except ETAS, and thought the schoolmates were polynesIAN, which confirmed my vague memory that there is a seaport that ends in '"I". But the rest, nothing. It's been a long time since I have been so thoroughly stumped by a puzzle. I hope this isn't an indication of the future, but it seems to be a trend to fill grids with (Google) trivia rather than wordplay. Still don't understand RANTAN. Is it from a cartoon or what? DMGrandmanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-49328271543873146932013-04-22T10:35:16.238-04:002013-04-22T10:35:16.238-04:00.........very MALESKIAN indeed
if you do these fo............very MALESKIAN indeed<br /><br />if you do these for speed OR if you must finish the entire grid then you most likely wont enjoy<br /><br />but if you like to re-discover SARD, BARI, PIRoZHKI, RIMA, ARCO and RIAL, as i do, then even an unfinished puzzle can be satisfying<br /><br />i realize that among competative solvers TIME is the main focus as the definitive differentiator among contestants = but i'm in no hurryAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82951460729098252022013-04-21T22:17:13.675-04:002013-04-21T22:17:13.675-04:00AACK! Great puzzle, destroyed me completely. Just...AACK! Great puzzle, destroyed me completely. Just finished. Medium? Hah! Multiple Googles, several wild guesses that happened to pan out. What @Gill I. P. and @lms said. Argh. On to Sunday, while it's still Sunday :O<br /><br />-- FearlessKimAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-11393972050464801622013-04-21T18:32:56.568-04:002013-04-21T18:32:56.568-04:00I started the puzzle Saturday evening after work a...I started the puzzle Saturday evening after work as usual and twenty-four hours later I am ready to throw in the towel, with 2 blank squares and 3 wrong squares. There is no way on god's little greeen earth that I would ever have gotten PIxxZHKI, and HEADTOToes seemed fine to me. Clearly, none of the crosses were any help. In an interesting case of synchronicity, BOING reappears in today's syndicated puzzle by Liz Gorski clued as "Jumping-on-a-matress sound".Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-68349192830610566402013-04-21T03:33:48.853-04:002013-04-21T03:33:48.853-04:00I've been inspired by PuzzleGirl's guest p...I've been inspired by PuzzleGirl's guest post last Saturday, so saw it through even though I had to do substantial Googling. <br /><br />Roger RAMJET popped into my head - old cartoon, so I was able to get that one. (Actually, remembered it as Rodney RAMJET until I googled after it was over.)<br /><br />I didn't know GARAGE BAND was a "best-selling Apple app," but it fit, as did INDONESIAN (and not Hawaiian). <br /><br />ANNE Rice on the shelf was a great clue.<br /><br />In Seattle, there's a place called PIROsHKI PIROsHKI - eventually got the Z, but the S caused a long delay - s AS IN ZEBRA doesn't work. We used to have JAMBA JUICEs up here - unsure if they still are. Ebenezernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-31012810696850788242013-04-20T22:53:13.932-04:002013-04-20T22:53:13.932-04:00@jae - Thanks - cripes, I even had the wrong conti...@jae - Thanks - cripes, I even had the wrong continent! Well, any doubt that I strike out on pop culture is erased.Mohair Samnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-60606284038346348162013-04-20T21:43:43.234-04:002013-04-20T21:43:43.234-04:00This was fun (and took me a long time to get as fa...This was fun (and took me a long time to get as far as I did, though did not finish SE). However . . .<br />I have never heard of a "ramjet;" never heard of "H's" for "ETAs;" and was bothered by the cross of "pirozhki" with "Lamarck."<br />Even so, thank you David Steinberg. And RIP, Don Knotts.Robsohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18261624922232372391noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-35894755375668333432013-04-20T21:07:50.409-04:002013-04-20T21:07:50.409-04:00VIL/RINTAN, that is.VIL/RINTAN, that is.Matthew G.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07957320012395569238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19755252858702890122013-04-20T21:04:39.465-04:002013-04-20T21:04:39.465-04:00I had the malapop of all malapops when, after gett...I had the malapop of all malapops when, after getting AEON, SARD and BARI, I tried NORTH KOREA where KOREAN ARMY belonged. Then I had Kirk ALAN, which even now seems more likely than ALYN, and it just got worse from there. I eventually recovered, but what a ____ show! Never had a malapop that fit so perfectly with one of the words exactly right but showed up in the wrong end of the entry!!<br /><br />Got Naticked by VAL/RANTAN. I had VIL/RINTIN. Alas. <br /><br />Excellent puzzle, David. Just wish I'd known RANTAN.Matthew G.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07957320012395569238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-43670000466600561662013-04-20T21:01:34.581-04:002013-04-20T21:01:34.581-04:00@Nate - You're missing the hyphen. ran-tan@Nate - You're missing the hyphen. <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ran-tan" rel="nofollow">ran-tan</a>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-85156881981001335372013-04-20T20:18:58.497-04:002013-04-20T20:18:58.497-04:00Not only is rantan not in Rex's
vocabulary, it... Not only is rantan not in Rex's<br />vocabulary, it isn't in my<br />dictionary or in Google.<br /> What am I missing?ANON Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-82116469315976854062013-04-20T20:11:12.798-04:002013-04-20T20:11:12.798-04:00Thanks for the nice writeup, Rex--and for all the ...Thanks for the nice writeup, Rex--and for all the comments, everybody! It's always interesting to see what people like and don't like. Reading all this is actually making me a bit hungry--maybe I'll have a calzone or some pirozhki for dinner (topped off by a Jamba Juice!)!David Steinberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02037243171142078417noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-11028021075045360442013-04-20T19:38:02.092-04:002013-04-20T19:38:02.092-04:00David is awesome, and Rex praised the puzzle, but....David is awesome, and Rex praised the puzzle, but...<br /><br />Come on, seriously, Rex? I can't remember the last time you referenced so much crosswordese in your writeup and ended up writing that the puzzle was "fine work." <br /><br />And of course, the minions follow suit.<br /><br />Part of what makes David awesome is that he's beyond his years. He can handle the truth. This puzzle was kind of stale -- just say it, ya dinguses.<br /><br />Mostly Will's fault, anyway.<br /><br />Mitzienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-52528784076483379512013-04-20T18:32:59.113-04:002013-04-20T18:32:59.113-04:00oh, rantan [equally obscure]oh, rantan [equally obscure]michaelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-10417748541611058982013-04-20T18:31:38.967-04:002013-04-20T18:31:38.967-04:00I admire anyone who got the se without googling. Y...I admire anyone who got the se without googling. Yes, indonesian was easy, but how many people know that wonsu is a rank in the Korean army (not me for sure). sard, rima, alyn, rattan, and pirozhki (the spelling, not the word)!michaelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-34876271778887341562013-04-20T18:22:55.608-04:002013-04-20T18:22:55.608-04:00Tried to do this one on a plane to Houston with a ...Tried to do this one on a plane to Houston with a bad cold (me, not the plane). Got body slammed. Weren't the president's classmates Hawaii kids? Had pirogues (as in "me gotta pole de pirogue down de bayou") before pirogies, still wrong. Maybe if I hadn't been on a plane. Maybe if I hadn't had a cold. Maybe if I'da just stood in bed. Lawprofnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-75051807289090672642013-04-20T18:05:38.545-04:002013-04-20T18:05:38.545-04:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my 8/1/2009 post for an explanation and my 10/15/2012 post for an explanation of a tweak I've made to my method. 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 6:12, 6:14, 1.00, 47%, Medium<br />Tue 9:31, 8:15, 1.15, 82%, Challenging<br />Wed 9:44, 10:13, 0.95, 40%, Easy-Medium<br />Thu 25:05, 17:17, 1.45, 94%, Challenging<br />Fri 20:49, 22:14, 0.94, 38%, Easy-Medium<br />Sat 28:27, 25:19, 1.12, 82%, Challenging<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:51, 3:43, 1.04, 69%, Medium-Challenging<br />Tue 5:28, 4:49, 1.13, 81%, Challenging<br />Wed 5:58, 6:02, 0.99, 46%, Medium<br />Thu 14:47, 10:01, 1.48, 92%, Challenging<br />Fri 12:25, 12:52, 0.96, 43%, Medium<br />Sat 19:21, 15:08, 1.28, 90%, Challengingsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-73106812857172376942013-04-20T17:25:49.889-04:002013-04-20T17:25:49.889-04:00@Gil I.P. - "She needs her adenoids removed&q...@Gil I.P. - "She needs her adenoids removed" sent me into a fit of laughter. I love American Idol, but every time that woman opens her mouth I hit the mute button.<br /><br />Like others, SE did me in. DNF!chefwenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03999206352243329280noreply@blogger.com