tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post8022913485902991111..comments2024-03-28T22:04:17.970-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: SATURDAY, Jul. 4 2009 — 1946's Giant Brain / Parlor pic / Baseball's Dark Dowling / Non-coffee order at Starbucks / 1973 Ali jaw breakerRex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger82125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-36333826407939600572009-08-10T00:31:40.643-04:002009-08-10T00:31:40.643-04:00@organic intellectual: Yow! Everybody (including f...@organic intellectual: Yow! Everybody (including foodie) missed that one. Good work!slypetthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05537129206516720012noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19935141430660374802009-08-09T18:54:38.483-04:002009-08-09T18:54:38.483-04:00Unlike many of those people who have commented abo...Unlike many of those people who have commented above, I found this crossword particularly challenging, not only because I am new to crosswords, but also because I am young (don't get many of the historical references) and I am Canadian (don't get a lot of the patriotic American references).<br /><br />But as they say... practice makes perfect.<br /><br />Nonetheless, the following answers bothered me:<br /><br />"Nan" is rarely spelled that way. Usually it's "naan".<br /><br />"Emeer" is usually spelled "Emir", and furthermore, "Emirs" tend to be rulers of an Emirate. But Oman is not an Emirate, it is a Sultanate! So the big man in Oman should be a Sultan, not an Emir!organic intellectualhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09359809204929508256noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-53148433029612481632009-08-09T13:39:36.128-04:002009-08-09T13:39:36.128-04:00I had a baseball card collection with about a doze...I had a baseball card collection with about a dozen Al Darks. Made that one a gimmee.RBnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84516865755883542142009-08-08T16:44:02.070-04:002009-08-08T16:44:02.070-04:00Being in syndication land I forgot that this was a...Being in syndication land I forgot that this was a 4th of July puzzle. Got the theme about half way through and enjoyed the construction of the puzzle. It took a long time to get "tat" but when I got it I said "doh". Rose Garden seemed like another theme answer, and I was disappointed to change it to rock, but resede didn't work. The hardest piece was Baku and Alea, and I admit I guessed. But it was cool to be able to correctly complete a Saturday puzzle without Google.singernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-65736569257821464862009-07-06T03:28:18.347-04:002009-07-06T03:28:18.347-04:00"Why is there such a big step up from THursda..."Why is there such a big step up from THursday to Friday?"<br />Because there is no theme, you sillygoose!<br /><br />Themes totally kickstart you when you get stuck...but on a Fri/Sat, you're just stuck. <br /><br />That said, you should try this Saturday's (if you are still reading this a day later) bec it HAS a theme (due to the holiday tie-in) and it will totally help you solve it.andrea itsallabouthtethemebabynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-47169275109371467782009-07-05T01:29:17.648-04:002009-07-05T01:29:17.648-04:00Based on the data I am faster than average for Mon...Based on the data I am faster than average for Monday/Tuesday, average for Wed./Thur., and totally unable to bring home a Fri./Sat.<br /><br />I have been getting about 40% of Friday puzzles, including this Friday, and opting out of Saturday for the most part. <br /><br />I can tell I am making progress by the sheer number of things that are now gimmes that used to confuse me (Nita Naldi!), but I wonder if there is a genetic cap on crossword solving ability. Dad has been doing these for 70 years and he is still shaky on weekends.<br /><br />Why is there such a big step up from Thursday to Friday?<br /><br />Stuck in the Sunday-Thursday rut but still loving it...sillygoosehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03483946342170291849noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-68355849353172075582009-07-05T01:03:04.745-04:002009-07-05T01:03:04.745-04:00@andrea - FORMAN is fine if clued "Crosscan&#...@andrea - FORMAN is fine if clued "Crosscan's boss Ian". He hates when it is mispelled FOREMAN (and it always is).Jeffreyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01699404861773455504noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-63981961506252828322009-07-05T00:23:59.693-04:002009-07-05T00:23:59.693-04:00@Peter and JoeK
WOW! I was in total awe that ther...@Peter and JoeK<br />WOW! I was in total awe that there were FOUR fifteen letter phrases that fit perfectly, but that INDEPENDENCEDAY could intersect exactly where it would need to seems almost a miracle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!<br />I totally salute you guys!!!!!!!!!!<br /><br />Also misunderstand what catawampus was...<br />BTW, ALOP is not good in Scrabble...I've been caught playing it...more than once :(<br />KVETCH is good but not KVELL... go figure.<br /><br />@Matt<br />Think Sam Cooke's "Youuuuuu Send me" <br /><br />Stayed up till 3:30am trying to work out a corner of a Sunday I'm trying to make...and there I was wondering if EDEL could possibly be good and here it is in today's puzzle!!!!!<br /><br />It's hard bec ALL Scrabble words, practically, are good in crosswords but there are 75% more things you can use in crosswords...proper names, partials, initials and on and on.<br />That only occurred to me TODAY.<br />(Yay database! Otherwise I'd be s-t-u-c-k)<br /><br />Second moment of total synchronicity, yesterday my friend Elisa and I were discussing her 13 yr old daughter Chaityn's wanting to be called Chay (Eliza's relieved it's not Chaz!)<br />She ruled out CHE and decided not to spell it CHAI bec of the tea/chai and the chai, as in Hebrew for "life", (which I think is cool, personally).<br />Anyway, there it was in the puzzle... but I inexplicably tried FOAM first off the - - A -!<br />?!<br /><br />@artlvr<br />My take on TAT was also the old-fashioned parlor clue but how incredibly cool that it works both ways!!!<br />Love that it's super old and super hip all in one clue that I didn't even really get!<br /><br />@Rex<br />"Should have listened to the shorts"!!!! hee hee hee hee hee<br /><br />Off -OR--N I tried FORMAN! Misspelled and just plain wrong<br /><br />(I should have listened to the Shortz...)andrea kvetch michaelsnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-66926086458396034552009-07-04T23:04:17.883-04:002009-07-04T23:04:17.883-04:00@sanfranman you're making me realize how much ...@sanfranman you're making me realize how much I LOVE data! I mean I always knew I love to look at data from my own lab or from collaborative projects. But I see your name and it makes me happy: Data!! I was so excited today when Rex seemed to be awaiting your numbers to back up his impression. And of course, your data did!<br /><br />It's also great to see the multi-week pattern. That self selection process is interesting--so many people dropping out on Saturday. Since by Saturday, the top 100 represent may be 30% of the total number, the remainder of the solvers are probably needing a significantly longer amount of time relative to Friday. <br /><br />This all says that Will et al do a remarkable job of gauging difficulty of a puzzle. But your data suggest that may be they need less experienced testers (less capable than the top 100) to even out that jump between Thursday and Fridays. <br /><br />@mac, yes it's pretty wild. I totally crash after Christmas...foodiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13052189131129098616noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-91005483661167415422009-07-04T22:39:37.451-04:002009-07-04T22:39:37.451-04:00Forgot something else. The Beets Ulrich were super...Forgot something else. The Beets Ulrich were superb!machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-12575079662089765932009-07-04T22:36:21.736-04:002009-07-04T22:36:21.736-04:00incredible......incredible......machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-61640150369524013462009-07-04T22:35:39.175-04:002009-07-04T22:35:39.175-04:00@Fikink: congratulations on all those important da...@Fikink: congratulations on all those important days. To you too, Dock John.<br /><br />@Foodie: that is really increadible. I thought we were unusual with Christmas, wedding anniversary and both our birthdays within 1 month. Our birthdays are 1day (and ten years) apart, though, two Aquarii (Aquariuses) in one house.machttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794371617847975218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-3849932997843140362009-07-04T21:51:34.730-04:002009-07-04T21:51:34.730-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.Glitchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14940000404613329056noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-7851454668146567492009-07-04T21:46:21.147-04:002009-07-04T21:46:21.147-04:00Aside from last week:
I am visiting family this we...Aside from last week:<br />I am visiting family this weekend and the Peanuts Cookbook is still at my mother's house. There is, indeed, a recipe called "Lucy's Lemon Squares."treedwellerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12634227778469664442noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-11849631006326354882009-07-04T19:43:19.011-04:002009-07-04T19:43:19.011-04:00What a nice doable July 4th Saturday puzzle. I go...What a nice doable July 4th Saturday puzzle. I got tangled up in the ARIS, ARES problem and didn't think twice about AEREDALE. As ArtLvr just pointed out, tatting can refer to lacework, and that's what I thought the parlor pic was about. Agree about ALOP being a strange word.<br /><br />Happy 4th and safe fireworks for all of you. We just got back from the beach and will head over to the backside of Magic Kingdom later for the happiest fireworks on earth.PlantieBeahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01960277851368508036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-14295489206630322992009-07-04T19:28:14.083-04:002009-07-04T19:28:14.083-04:00@edith b
No need to apologize--I meant my complain...@edith b<br />No need to apologize--I meant my complaints to be taken tongue-in-cheek. It's all in fun, after all. But thanks for the sentiment.treedwellerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12634227778469664442noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-67049359272267198282009-07-04T19:11:26.712-04:002009-07-04T19:11:26.712-04:00@ Xman -- You asked: Can someone please explain 21...@ Xman -- You asked: Can someone please explain 21d: TAT as the answer for "Parlor pic"? and one answer is surely "short for tattoo in a tattoo parlor"... However, TAT is also an old word for embroidery or crochet, and especially that kind of needlework with an adage or prayer framed and displayed in the parlor or sitting room of a home in Victorian era... The adjective "tatty" meaning some sadly worn or un-chic garment or decor is related to this old-fashioned TAT.<br /><br />∑;)ArtLvrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03869528391374878601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-28296110482104048922009-07-04T18:35:29.824-04:002009-07-04T18:35:29.824-04:00Happy fourth, everybody. Hope y’all enjoyed the d...Happy fourth, everybody. Hope y’all enjoyed the day and the patriotic theme.<br /><br />My best Saturday time ever: 12:43. Didn’t notice that there was a theme until I had solved the puzzle. Lots of fun cluing. 33A “Copy cats?” is my favorite. SARTRE (with a couple of crosses), ELOHIM, ENIAC, NANO, NITA, EMEER, ALS, NAN, SEL, ROD STEIGER, DOSE, and SLY AS came easily and everything started falling into place. <br /><br />Note that this includes a TON of crosswordese. I am thinking Crosscan is right – solve thousands of puzzles and your time improves markedly. I expect this is in part because the crosswordese no longer mows you down and in part because you just get a richer vocabulary of non-crosswordese answers.<br /><br />Some odd clues IMO – 45A Branches = SECTS? Sort of, maybe…. Thanks all for the discussions of TAT and ARIS, which were the NETTLES in my netherclothes today.<br /><br />BTW if you do the puzzle in Across Lite, does your timer reset seconds to :00 (minutes stay OK) if you quit and restart? Mine does…..retired_chemisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13181126754941899228noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-25820628868463443712009-07-04T18:19:46.459-04:002009-07-04T18:19:46.459-04:00This week's numbers ... the number in parenthe...This week's numbers ... the number in parentheses is the number of solvers.<br /><br />Mon (all) 7:07 (857) prev 3 week avg: 6:44 (907)<br />Mon (Top 100) 4:01 prev 3 week avg: 3:37<br /><br />Tue (all) 8:40 (776) prev 3 week avg: 8:30 (878)<br />Tue (Top 100) 4:26 prev 3 week avg: 4:20<br /><br />Wed (all) 11:56 (685) prev 3 week avg: 14:38 (641)<br />Wed (Top 100) 6:14 prev 3 week avg: 6:58<br /><br />Thu (all) 21:34 (401) prev 3 week avg: 14:52 (640)<br />Thu (Top 100) 11:17 prev 3 week avg: 6:56<br /><br />Fri (all) 33:18 (306) prev 4 week avg: 26:10 (456)<br />Fri (Top 100) 18:18 prev 3 week avg: 11:22<br /><br />Sat (all) 22:04 (342) prev 4 week avg: 29:33 (318)<br />Sat (Top 100) 12:19 prev 3 week avg: 17:11<br /><br />I think this may be the first Saturday NYT I've ever solved without consulting the internet, so I knew it had to be on the less-than-challenging end of the rating scale. Based on the median top 100 solve time, it slots somewhere in the challenging Thursday/easy Friday range. (Note that I posted the wrong previous 3 week Friday average for the top 100 yesterday.) I think maybe Will took pity on us after a tough week.<br /><br />I now have 4 or 5 weeks of data and a picture is beginning to emerge. Here are the average median times (to the statisticians in the audience, please pardon the awkward terminology) for Monday through Saturday. The first number is for the top 100 solvers, the second for all solvers:<br /><br />Mon 3:43 6:51<br />Tue 4:21 8:32<br />Wed 6:47 13:58<br />Thu 8:01 16:33<br />Fri 13:06 27:36<br />Sat 15:58 28:04<br /><br />If you plot the times for the top 100, they're pretty linear with a bit of a jump between Thursday and Friday. The plot of the times for all solvers looks more like the hockey stick that someone hypothesized a while back with a bit of a discontinuity between Tuesday and Wednesday and a much larger one between Thursday and Friday. The ratio of the "all solvers" times to the "top 100" times increases in a fairly linear fashion from Monday through Friday (1.84 to 2.11) and then drops to 1.76 for Saturday. Since there are many fewer solvers on Saturday, I think this suggests more die-hard crosswordaholics in that sample.sanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-26044525059083798022009-07-04T18:16:12.231-04:002009-07-04T18:16:12.231-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.sanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-18956834192769242842009-07-04T17:48:32.712-04:002009-07-04T17:48:32.712-04:00I was gonna call Natick on the ALEA/BAKU cross but...I was gonna call Natick on the ALEA/BAKU cross but since nobody else has complained about it, I'll just chalk it up to my own ignorance.<br /><br />LOVE the MONGO quote, jeff in chicago! Frankly, I'm surprised that it took so many comments before that reference appeared.<br /><br />Happy 4th, everyone! Today's my anniversary, not of my wedding but the one we count as our real anniversary: the day we met. Seven years and counting (and no itch).Doc Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12540112168511893896noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-65165545552034457682009-07-04T17:36:15.878-04:002009-07-04T17:36:15.878-04:00killer crossing: STEIGER / CALGON... loved the clu...killer crossing: STEIGER / CALGON... loved the clue for SACK RACE.kevin dernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19295870627631158262009-07-04T17:35:55.345-04:002009-07-04T17:35:55.345-04:00@Stan suggests ALOP as derived from "lop-side...@Stan suggests ALOP as derived from "lop-sided." Problem: I cannot find ALOP in any online dictionary that I have access to. Perhaps someone can check the OED as a last resort.<br /><br />"Atilt" derives from "tilt" in the manner proposed here. Problem: "Atilt" is <a href="http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/atilt" rel="nofollow">an English word</a>, attributed back to 1562. "Alop" doesn't exist, AFAIK.<br /><br />This is a GNARLy problem, as the definition of GNARL isn't much different from that for <a href="http://www.thefreedictionary.com/knurl" rel="nofollow">"knurl</a>," (1. A knob, knot, or other small protuberance.) and of which "gnurl" is a noted variation. Not that I think "ulop" is a better entry for 23A. So 23A is ALOP for sure, but it is not for sure in the English language.<br /><br />Sigh...<br /><br />Lurking LarryAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-20338390183764960132009-07-04T17:19:20.699-04:002009-07-04T17:19:20.699-04:00These two constructors began with a grid of 57 per...These two constructors began with a grid of 57 permanent letters in it.<br />No substitute theme entries allowed...unlike other grid designs. As a result, a few words like ARIS and ALOP were no doubt<br />unavoidable.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-53864039717396674342009-07-04T17:12:19.085-04:002009-07-04T17:12:19.085-04:00alop adj. In a lopsided state.
(Webster's 2n...alop adj. In a lopsided state.<br />(Webster's 2nd International Dict.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com