tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post8653247900456915743..comments2024-03-29T11:24:03.304-04:00Comments on Rex Parker Does the NYT Crossword Puzzle: Feldshuh of Brewster's Millions / THU 10-7-10 / Outdoor retail promotion / Cartoon 23 best-selling books / Carrier overseer / Nimbus launcher 1964Rex Parkerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16145707733877505087noreply@blogger.comBlogger82125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-70167651273900414912010-11-11T17:27:56.160-05:002010-11-11T17:27:56.160-05:00Syndicated puzzle was published on Veterans Day, s...Syndicated puzzle was published on Veterans Day, so to all veterans and current members of the armed forces: Thank you for your service to the country - and to the families that support our service men and women, your sacrifices are appreciated. And now back to the puzzle.<br /><br />I was totally bemused by the (-) clues for a long while until I figured out that the six SIDEs turned into longer answers (I never said I was very sharp (hee-hee) about these things. Never associated Nixon with DETENTE so I was glad to learn about that. Wanted the Quaker product to be Oil so the H just above the center of the grid was the last letter to go in for me. Had SLEWS of fun!Dirigonzohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03903353503511480168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-60043176360435749382010-11-11T16:20:18.242-05:002010-11-11T16:20:18.242-05:00captcha: fullgeno: Age group of those in the futur...captcha: fullgeno: Age group of those in the future who will eat a lot of "Quaker product?"<br /><br />Syndicated puzzler.<br /><br />HEXAGONal SIDEWINDER. While I have to admire the construction of this puzzle, not much in the cluing or answers really popped for me (I DID kind of enjoy "One way to turn right"=ONRED, I guess).<br /><br /><br />I like to walk away with at least one really mellifluous word or conceptually juicy term as a reward for my solving efforts. Afraid this puzzle fell a little flat as far as that. VTEN wasn't too bad either, I suppose. 47A "-"=ESWIPE has possibilities though.NotalwaysrightBillnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-80278586007716023042010-10-19T15:57:23.506-04:002010-10-19T15:57:23.506-04:00I'm not an expert on dog breeds by any stretch...I'm not an expert on dog breeds by any stretch, but I didn't know that Lhasa Apsos are considered terriers. Guess I need to look up terrier as a generic dog descriptor.<br /><br />I just got around to this puzzle today (19 Oct) but quite enjoyed it!Jennyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18350571589422693875noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-81697652339439394512010-10-08T15:03:24.969-04:002010-10-08T15:03:24.969-04:00@clark (probably too late): I actually know about ...@clark (probably too late): I actually know about the Urban Dictionary and at least when I tried it it didn't have an entry for this. So I'll try again. I am truly a blue stater, and understandably resist the notion that my comments subtly cast blue staters in a bad light. It used to be OK to be critical of the puzzles on this blog, which is why I joined it.Blue Staternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-72778428186049845732010-10-08T02:24:30.803-04:002010-10-08T02:24:30.803-04:00@Blue Stater -- The urban dictionary makes it soun...@Blue Stater -- The urban dictionary makes it sound harsh.<br /><br />The name you use just makes me wonder sometimes if you really are a blue state sympathizer or someone who, by posting comments that subtly cast blue staters in a bad light, means to undermine them. That would make you a reverse Moby. But mostly I was just joshing.Clarknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-83245015009866974482010-10-08T01:36:56.871-04:002010-10-08T01:36:56.871-04:00actually, in the 6-sided shape shown above ... one...actually, in the 6-sided shape shown above ... one of the angles is 270 degrees, not 90.<br /><br />Thank you - peace out :)AdamWhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09275603939514949611noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-48255220223894445192010-10-08T01:33:54.804-04:002010-10-08T01:33:54.804-04:00This week's relative difficulty ratings. See m...This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my 7/30/2009 post for an explanation. 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 5:46, 6:57, 0.83, 1%, Easy<br />Tue 8:41, 8:55, 0.97, 50%, Medium<br />Wed 9:57, 11:37, 0.86, 20%, Easy<br />Thu 16:39, 19:05, 0.87, 29%, Easy-Medium<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Mon 3:16, 3:43, 0.88, 3%, Easy<br />Tue 4:37, 4:36, 1.00, 57%, Medium<br />Wed 4:47, 5:44, 0.83, 11%, Easy<br />Thu 8:01, 9:09, 0.88, 33%, Easy-Mediumsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-38375111415853253632010-10-07T23:24:05.561-04:002010-10-07T23:24:05.561-04:00Wicked, lovely, fun puzz. I am not a witch.Wicked, lovely, fun puzz. I am not a witch.Robinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00404995201196513974noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-29569593774161236102010-10-07T22:10:02.042-04:002010-10-07T22:10:02.042-04:00@ Steve J
I think what @Ulrich is saying is that ...@ Steve J<br /><br />I think what @Ulrich is saying is that there are 6 (right) angles in the puzzle formed by the theme answers, 3 begiinning with SIDE and 3 ending in SIDE. In this case HEXAGON only refers to these 6 angles, not to a shape.JC66https://www.blogger.com/profile/05324615675333287919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-25566261324511104792010-10-07T21:52:33.078-04:002010-10-07T21:52:33.078-04:00OOPS. Meant puzzle, of course. My typing is horri...OOPS. Meant puzzle, of course. My typing is horrible. Apologies.<br /><br />demod-demon with a cold?Sharpie84noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-70859969108401340762010-10-07T21:50:18.575-04:002010-10-07T21:50:18.575-04:00Love the Far Side--the "Cat Shower" with...Love the Far Side--the "Cat Shower" with the giant tongue hanging from the wall! Too funny, I'll have to pull out my old FS books and take a run down memory lane.<br /><br />Thoroughly enjoyed this puzzel, even though it took a good while.<br /><br />Love this site, too, always learn something new--like chamois!<br /><br />I also used the mane on my skittish quarter-horse, she played little games when being mounted. By a rider.Sharpie84noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-23080176900214608522010-10-07T20:45:01.793-04:002010-10-07T20:45:01.793-04:00Today I drove in my USED car over to a SIDEWALK sa...Today I drove in my USED car over to a SIDEWALK sale and SIDESWIPED a SIDEWINDER on THE FAR SIDE of his car. Well, he EMERGED from his car and said, “GOD, what MOUNTAINSIDE did you come from?” I said, “OHS, ID DO a better job next time when the light’s ON RED.” He said, “What’s your NAME?” I replied, “Do you have a PEN? It’s PATTI SALIERI. I’ll write down for you.” He said, “THX. Mine’s DIEGO.” Got TO GA now....”Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-85232175985919069262010-10-07T20:03:40.554-04:002010-10-07T20:03:40.554-04:00Blue Stater, your first stop in these situations s...Blue Stater, your first stop in these situations should be Urban Dictionary. In this case, for example, <a href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=moby" rel="nofollow">it helps.</a>Mr. Helpfulnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-19334839913668978642010-10-07T19:51:16.388-04:002010-10-07T19:51:16.388-04:00@Ulrich: Thanks. Guess I wasn't clear in my co...@Ulrich: Thanks. Guess I wasn't clear in my comment. I do get what you're saying. What I was referencing is that I don't see any sort of shape formed within the puzzle (i.e. I can't see any way to create a closed shape based on the answers), and so I'm left with the thinking that the shape clue is not to be taken literally, but metaphorically with the presence of SIDE six times in the puzzle. Hope that's clearer.Steve Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15185067739452052656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-81585732604958488592010-10-07T19:44:19.975-04:002010-10-07T19:44:19.975-04:00If you don't like Brewster's Millions, the...If you don't like Brewster's Millions, then whatever, that's fine. I like maybe six movies, so I won't rag on anybody for that.<br /><br />But not liking "I Love LA"??? That song is just as sarcastic/ironic/witty as anything else Randy Newman has done. Yeah it's poppier than "Short People" and the like (but not by much), but I don't understand how you can hate that song when it has that incredible songwriting and twisted submeanings that Newman is known for.Ben Hassengerhttp://www.facebook.com/frankandearnestnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-91974047742689510562010-10-07T19:41:08.962-04:002010-10-07T19:41:08.962-04:00@Clark: OK, I give up, what's a "reverse ...@Clark: OK, I give up, what's a "reverse Moby"? Googled it, got buried in crazed right-wing websites. Yet another corner of PopcultWorld I haven't been keeping up with.Blue Staternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-59668993223513698572010-10-07T18:46:33.008-04:002010-10-07T18:46:33.008-04:00I've never posted here but have viewed often. ...I've never posted here but have viewed often. Found this puzzle lots of fun and not too difficult after seeing "sideswipe". <br />But I had to share this with you. I got "rheo" right, but for the wrong reason - never even thought about rheostat, I thought it meant Runs-Hits-Errors-men left On base! Too much baseball last night, sigh.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84932704861826879532010-10-07T18:36:22.880-04:002010-10-07T18:36:22.880-04:00@foodie: Actually, this is one of the few instance...@foodie: Actually, this is one of the few instances where a "prediction" of mine worked out. When I normally write a comment and think "this is sooo interesting--I bet someone will respond", I'll get precisely zero responses.<br /><br />@Steve J: A hexagon, by definition, is a polygon with 6 corners, and hence 6 sides. There is nothing in the definition that determines the size of the angles formed by the sides at the corners or the lengths of the sides. Hence, this is a hexagon, where all angles happen to be 90 degrees: <br /> ___<br />| |__<br />|_____|<br /><br />Note that it is concave. A REGULAR polygon is a polygon where all angles and all sides are equal. A regular polygon is always convex.<br /><br />Does that help?Ulrichhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02086202853174403008noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-55073938257420815042010-10-07T17:59:29.471-04:002010-10-07T17:59:29.471-04:00This felt tougher than my time showed. Took me a l...This felt tougher than my time showed. Took me a long time to get the theme/trick, but once I did things fell into place quickly.<br /><br />I did have to recover from multiple writeovers: CAR instead of GOD (the former would be a much cleverer clue/answer combo, imo), ADM instead of FAA for "carrier overseer," PEANUTS for a brief moment at 7A, and it seems like 1-2 others I'm forgetting. <br /><br />Also had to resort to Google for the first time on a Thursday in ages. That got me TOVAH, which finally cracked open the NW for me. <br /><br />Very clever concept. I'll comment on the various HEXAGON commentary only to say I'm still left not totally grasping it (other than the presence of six SIDEs). <br /><br />@JaxInL.A.: There are several letters that once existed in English that we don't use anymore. They originated in Old English, and they were deprecated during Middle English. By the time you get to Early Modern English (essentially contemporary with Shakespeare), they're gone, although æ still hangs around, particularly in non-American dialects (e.g. orthopædics).Steve Jhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15185067739452052656noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-5022121538300096752010-10-07T16:57:18.791-04:002010-10-07T16:57:18.791-04:00.... and my dad, Anakin (aka Darth Vader). And my....... and my dad, Anakin (aka Darth Vader). And my pal Han Solo. And... and... and...<br /><br /><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Wars_characters" rel="nofollow">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Wars_characters</a>Luke Skywalkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84792554042076571402010-10-07T16:52:58.696-04:002010-10-07T16:52:58.696-04:00Tovah Feldshuh has been in a ton of TV and had a r...Tovah Feldshuh has been in a ton of TV and had a recurring role as a defense attorney on Law and Order. (I went through a phase of watching L&O reruns 5 days a week for a while, after never watching the original shows). So I don't think she's really obscure. And it's a memorable name!Ruthnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-84650283469067232382010-10-07T16:42:08.707-04:002010-10-07T16:42:08.707-04:00Ooops, looks like I made the PEN/PaN mistake also,...Ooops, looks like I made the PEN/PaN mistake also, I didn't think that my spelling of DETaNTE looked right but left it alone because PaN seemed to work out so nicely.<br /><br />@Clark - Thanks, but I believe when you were here I made the comment that any one of you boys could use me as an armrest. Sigh!chefwenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03999206352243329280noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-52319104691320940022010-10-07T15:25:57.700-04:002010-10-07T15:25:57.700-04:00Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 7/30/...Midday report of relative difficulty (see my 7/30/2009 post for an explanation of my method):<br /><br />All solvers (median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)<br /><br />Thu 16:41, 19:05, 0.87, 30%, Easy-Medium<br /><br />Top 100 solvers<br /><br />Thu 8:28, 9:10, 0.92, 46%, Mediumsanfranman59https://www.blogger.com/profile/15118732156312301425noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-24645645576477506572010-10-07T14:58:56.852-04:002010-10-07T14:58:56.852-04:00FWIW, Jar-Jar actually has a surname too: Binks.FWIW, Jar-Jar actually has a surname too: Binks.asadnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35115061.post-37638841216206110122010-10-07T14:47:58.951-04:002010-10-07T14:47:58.951-04:00@Ulrich, I take it back. I can now imagine how it ...@Ulrich, I take it back. I can now imagine how it would be in 2D. I kept wanting the sides to be equal. If you get rid of that, then it works.foodiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13052189131129098616noreply@blogger.com