Tuesday, April 21, 2020

QOD:  Advice is like castor oil, easy enough to give but dreadfully uneasy to take. ~ Josh Billings (né Henry Wheeler Shaw; Apr. 21, 1818 ~ Oct. 14, 1885), American writer and humorist

I'm so Dizzy from Running in Circles!  Although this appears to be the dreaded circle puzzle, the circles here are actually an integral part of the theme.  A word describing "run" is literally found in the circles.

20-Across. Stretched wall hangings: CANVAS PRINTS.  Sprint.

27-Across. Semi-casual garment named for an Atlantic island: BERMUDA SHORTS.  Dash.

42-Across. Major blood vessel in the neck: CAROTID ARTERY.  Dart.

48-Across. Waste one's time ... or what 20-, 27- and 42-Across contain?: RUN IN CIRCLES.

Run in Circles

Across:

1. Seer's card: TAROT.

6. On __: without a contract: SPEC.

10. No. on an invoice: ACCT.  As in Account Number.

14. When directed: ON CUE.

15. Downtime: LULL.

16. Cub or Brave, briefly: NLER.  The Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta Braves are both National League baseball teams

17. Lawman Earp: WYATT.  Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp (Mar. 19, 1848 ~ Jan. 13, 1929) also makes frequent guest appearances in the crossword puzzles.  This is at least the 4th time he has visited when I provide commentary.  Interesting fact:  He was elected to be the constable of Lamar, Missouri in 1870.  Within a year, however, he left that job and somewhat aimlessly, began roaming the West.  He was arrested for stealing horses in Indiana territory.  He fled to Kansas to escape prosecution.  He was ultimately hired to be a police officer in Wichita, Kansas.  He was let go from that position after beating up a candidate for county sheriff.

18. Armory contents: AMMO.

19. Like a slick garage floor: OILY.

23. ... __ to grow on: extra birthday cake candle: AND ONE.

26. Severe anxiety: ANGST.

32. See 25-Down: BREES.  //  And 25. With 32-Across, record-setting New Orleans Saints quarterback: DREW.  These clues give us Drew Brees.  Drew Brees (né Andrew Christopher Brees; b. Jan. 15, 1979) gives back to  his community in many ways, including assistance during the current pandemic.

33. Words of empathy: I CARE.

34. Cries of pain: YOWS!.

35. Leaves out: OMITS.

36. Bottom of a ship: HULL.

40. Cause abrasion: CHAFE.

41. Leg bone: TIBIA.

45. 21st-century president with a Nobel Peace Prize: OBAMA.  President Barak Obama (b. Aug. 4, 1961) was the recipient of the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize.

47. Sparkly headwear: TIARAS.

53. "My goodness!": EGAD!

54. Dueling blade: ÉPÉE.  A crossword staple.

55. Take potshots: SNIPE.

59. Early automaker: OLDS.  Ransom Eli Olds (June 3, 1864 ~ Aug. 26, 1950) was a pioneer in the American auto industry.  The Oldsmobile was named after him.  The Oldsmobile ceased production in 2004.

Ransom Olds driving his Oldsmobile.

60. Billionth: Pref.: NANO-. Think of the nano-second.  Opps!  You took too long!

61. Raptor's claw: TALON.

62. Senate spot: SEAT.

United States Senate

63. Citrus drinks: ADES.  Hi, Lemonade!

64. Leered at: OGLED.

Down:

1. AAA job: TOW.

2. At least one: ANY.

3. Color TV pioneer: RCA.  Color televisions have changed a bit since they first came out.

4. Results: OUT COMES.

5. The "T" in DPT: TETANUS.  The DPT is a vaccine that fights against 3 infectious diseases that were once common in childhood: Diphtheria, Pertussis (whooping cough), and Tetanus.

6. Croat, for one: SLAV.

7. Mountain cat: PUMA.

8. Shade trees: ELMS.  Sadly, many Elm trees have succumbed to Dutch Elm Disease.

9. Trotting sound: CLOP.

10. Bless with oil: ANOINT.

11. Holds on tight: CLINGS.

12. Boston NBAers: CELTS.

Boston Celtics from the 1980s.

13. Private rendezvous: TRYST.

21. Actor Beatty: NED.  Ned Beatty (né Ned Thomas Beatty; b. July 6, 1937) is a retired character actor.  He made his film debut in the 1972 movie Deliverance.

22. Like Flying Eagle pennies: RARE.  The Flying Eagle penny was in circulation in 1857 to 1858.  A little before my time.

23. First name in advice: ABBY.  Think of Dear Abby (née Pauline Esther Friedman; July 4, 1918 ~ Jan. 16, 2013).  She was known professionally as Abigail van Buren and wrote an advice column called Dear Abby.  Interestingly, her identical twin sister, Esther Pauline Friedman (July 4, 1819 ~ June 22, 2002) also wrote an advice column under the name of Ann Landers.  The Dear Abby column continues, but is now written by Abby's daughter, Jeanne Philips.

24. Fiddling emperor: NERO.

28. Set one's sights on: AIM AT.

29. Jules Verne genre: SCI-FI.

30. Couldn't stand: HATED.

31. Hosp. areas: ORs.  As in Operating Rooms

35. "Gotcha!": OHO!

36. Ran into trouble: HIT A SNAG.

37. Lyft alternative: UBER.  Both are ride services.

38. Turkish money: LIRA.  Very colorful.

39. Potato chip brand: LAYS.  If I am going to eat potato chips, I want just the plain chips ~ not one of those weird flavors.

40. Prefix with berry: CRAN.  A brief history of the CRANBERRY.  It's not just for Thanksgiving.

41. Gives it a go: TRIES TO.

42. Country with the longest coastline: CANADA.  My first thought was Chile, but that country doesn't have enough letters.  I had forgotten about the long northern coastline of Canada.  Hi, CanadianEh!

43. In the thick of: AMIDST.

44. World's busiest airport, on luggage tags: ATL.  As in the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

45. Layered cookies: OREOS.  A crossword staple

46. Taps horn: BUGLE.

49. Wrestler John: CENA.  John Felix Anthony Cene, Jr. (b. Apr. 23, 1977) is not only a wrestler, but also a rapper, actor  and television personality.  His birthday is on Thursday.

50. Tablet with Siri: iPAD.

51. "The Son of Man" painter Magritte: RENÉ.  René Margritte (Nov. 21, 1898 ~ Aug. 15, 1967) was a Belgian Surrealist artist.

52. Corp. bigwigs: CEOs.  As in Chief Executive Officers.

56. Under the weather: ILL.

57. "Annabel Lee" poet: POE.  As in Edgar Allan Poe (Jan. 19, 1809 ~ Oct. 7, 1849).

58. Coincidentally and aptly, it was also yesterday's last Down answer: END.  This must have been Rich's clue.  You have to do yesterday's puzzle to "get" this clue.

QOD:  Advice is like castor oil, easy enough to give but dreadfully uneasy to take. ~ Josh Billings (né Henry Wheeler Shaw; Apr. 21, 1818 ~ Oct. 14, 1885), American writer and humorist