QOD: 12/01/2020 - 19/01/2020

Friday 17 January 2020

Friday, January 17, 2020

QOD: I just make it my business to get along with people so I can have fun. It’s that simple. ~ Betty White (née Betty Marion White; b. Jan. 17, 1922), American actress

Thursday 16 January 2020

Thursday, January 16, 2020

QOD: I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list. ~ Susan Sontag (née Susan Rosenblatt; Jan. 16, 1933 ~ Dec. 28, 2004), American writer and political activist

Wednesday 15 January 2020

Wednesday, January 15, 2020

QOD: Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, “What are you doing for others?” ~ Martin Luther King Jr. (January 15, 1929 ~ April 4, 1968)

Tuesday 14 January 2020

QOD: In conversation, remember you’re more interested in what you’re saying than anyone else is. ~ Andy Rooney (né Andrew Aitken Rooney; Jan. 14, 1919 ~ Nov. 4, 2011), American television personality

It's What's Inside that Counts. The circled letters spell out things that can make up the inner core.

17-Across. City near the Great Salt Lake: OGDEN UTAH. Nut.

25-Across. "Be yourself," nowadays: KEEP IT REAL. Pit.

36-Across. Casino advantage: HOUSE EDGE. Seed.

51-Across. "Be right with you": JUST ONE SEC. Stone.

And the Unifier:
61-Across. Earth's most central geologic layer ... or what can be found in each set of puzzle circles: INNER CORE.

Across:

1. Watering hole: BAR.

4. African language group: BANTU.

9. Suddenly took interest: SAT UP.

14. Québec street: RUE. Today's French lesson.

15. Future oak: ACORN.

16. Way to go it: ALONE.

19. Has to have: NEEDS.

20. Biceps exercises: CURLS.

21. Hosting a show, briefly: MC-ING. As in being an Emcee, short for Master of Ceremonies.

23. Tennis do-over: LET.

24. Breyers __ Cookies & Cream: OREO. A fresh new clue for our old crossword staple.

27. Arnaz-Ball production company: DESILU. The production company is a combination of Desi and Lu(cy).

29. Muss, as hair: TOUSLE.

30. Magazine VIPs: EDs. As in Editors.

31. Adjust to one's environment: ADAPT.

35. Old fast fliers: SSTs. As in SuperSonic Transport, a crossword staple. Why the Concorde was retired.

39. Fleshy fruit: POME. According to Webster's, a Pome is a generic term for any fleshy fruit "consisting of an outers fleshy layer and a central core with usually five seeds in a capsule." The best known example of a Pome is an Apple. In fact, in French, the word for Apple is Pomme. Other examples of Pomes, include: pears, quince, loquats, and pomegranates.

42. Barbecue spot: PATIO.

43. Can opener: TAB.

46. Feathered friends: AVIANS. The obvious Birds was too few letters.

49. Beethoven's "Tempest," e.g.: SONATA. Time for a musical interlude. This piece is also known as Sonata No. 17 and was composed by Beethoven around 1801/1802.

55. Chimps and gorillas: APES.

56. Furry sitcom extraterrestrial: ALF. Alf was a sit-com ran from the mid-1980s to 1990. I never watched it, but am familiar with it because Alf makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.

57. Chutzpah: MOXIE. Chutzpah is that quality in the man who kills his mother and father, then throws himself at the mercy of the court because he is an orphan.

58. Stick with a pin: PRICK. // And 22. Little point to pick: NIT.

59. Early American crop: MAIZE. Scientists believe that maize was first domesticated in the Americas, probably in Mexico. A large cache of ancient maize was discovered in a cave in New Mexico over a hundred years ago.

63. Geographer's volume: ATLAS.

64. Tokyo-based watchmaker: SEIKO. I had a Seiko watch like this one.

65. No-frills bed: COT.

66. Filters (through): SEEPS.

67. Jacket material: TWEED. I initially tried Denim.

68. "Very cute!" sounds: AWs!

Down:

1. Tacit rules of male friendship: BRO CODE. If it's tacit, why is there a book?

2. Was a sign of: AUGURED.

3. Set right: REDRESS.

4. Passes a law against: BANS.

5. Pressure prefix: ACU-. As in AcuWeather, which allows you to learn of weather conditions where you live.

6. "I'm innocent!": NOT ME!

7. Barely detectable amount: TRACE.

8. Far from cool: UNHIP.

"I recommend hip replacement surgery for men who aren't as hip as they used to be."

9. Serenaded: SANG TO.

10. Stein filler: ALE. Time for another musical interlude.

11. Like many summer shoes: TOELESS. I prefer sandals.

12. Still being shuffled: UNDEALT.

13. Tablet crushers: PESTLES. Tricky clue. I was thinking along the lines of an iPad, which I certainly wouldn't want to crush.

18. "The Time Machine" race: ELOI. A crossword staple. I have never read The Time Machine, but apparently there are two-post humans existing in the future and the Eloi are one.

25. Spiral-horned antelope: KUDU. These animals are native to Africa.