Friday, January 31, 2020

QOD:  The most luxurious possession, the richest treasure anybody has, is his personal dignity.  ~  Jackie Robinson (né Jack Roosevelt Robinson; Jan. 31, 1919 – Oct 24, 1972), American professional baseball player

Thursday, January 30, 2020

QOD:  It is an unfortunate human failing that a full pocketbook often groans more loudly than an empty stomach.  ~  Franklin D. Roosevelt (né Franklin Delano Roosevelt; Jan. 30, 1882 ~ Apr. 12, 1945), 32^nd President of the United States

Wednesday, January 29, 2020

QOD:  An empty man is full of himself.  ~  Edward Abbey (né Edward Paul Abbey; Jan. 29, 1927 ~ Mar. 14, 1989), American writer and essayist

Tuesday, January 28, 2020

QOD:  Listening is being able to be changed by the other person.  ~  Alan Alda (né Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo, b. Jan. 28, 1936), American actor

Take Me Out to the Ball Game!  Who gets the most Runs Batted In?  The POWER HITTER!



17-Across. Corporate acquisition offer: TAKEOVER BID.

24-Across. Unfair hiring practice: GENDER BIAS.

34-Across. Marquee actor's honor: STAR BILLING.

48-Across. Life-changing incident for Peter Parker: SPIDER BITE.

And the Unifier:
57-Across. One batting cleanup who gets a lot of the stat hidden in 17-, 24-, 34- and 48-Across: POWER HITTER.

Across:

1. Sister's attire: HABIT.  Religious garb.

6. Transmits, as a text: SENDS.

11. Young guy: LAD.

14. 2019 Australian Open winner Naomi: OSAKA.  Naomi OSAKA (b. Oct. 16, 1997) represents Japan on the world tennis circuit.  She was born in Japan to a Japanese mother and a Haitian father.  She won the 2019 Australian Open, however, sadly she was eliminated from play in the 2020 Australian Open just last week.  American Coco Gauff (b. Mar. 13, 2004) beat her.  Look how young these professional tennis players are!

Naomi Osaka, age 22

Coco Gauff, age 15

15. Get used (to): INURE.

16. King Kong or Donkey Kong: APE.

King Kong

Donkey Kong

19. Pampering place: SPA.

20. "You should leave now": PLEASE GO.

21. Studio stand: EASEL.

23. Crew team's blade: OAR.

27. Nixon's older daughter: TRICIA.  Tricia Nixon (b. Feb. 21, 1946) was married to Edward Cox (b. Oct. 2, 1946) in 1971 in the White House Rose Garden while her father was still President.

30. Belfast's province: ULSTER.  Ulster is the green area on the map of Ireland.

31. Coil of yarn: SKEIN.  A CSO to our resident knitters.

32. Geometry product: AREA.

39. "Close Encounters" hoverers, briefly: UFOs.  As in Unidentified Flying Objects.

40. Arrange loosely: DRAPE.

43. Christie of mystery: AGATHA.  Dame Agatha Christie (née Agatha Mary Clarissa Miller; Sept. 15, 1890 ~ Jan. 12, 1976) wrote over 60 detective/mystery novels.  Her best known recurring detectives/sleuths are Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple.  Christie herself was involved in a personal mystery in 1926 when she disappeared for 11 days after a quarrel with her first husband.

47. Without exception: TO A MAN.

51. "Yada, yada, yada" letters: ETC.

52. Link to the internet: MODEM.

53. Has an easy catch with: TOSSES TO.

56. Soufflé need: EGG.

60. Big name in jeans: LEE.

61. Airport shuttles: TRAMS.  An airport tram in needed to get from one terminal to another at the big airports.  The Atlanta airport calls it the Plane Train.  I use this one a lot because I nearly always have to go through Atlanta when I fly.

62. "__ Jacques": FRÈRE.

63. Give permission to: LET.

64. Final authority: SAY SO.

65. Fork-tailed seabirds: TERNS.

Down:

1. Family-style Asian dishes: HOT POTS.  We found a fabulous Hot Pot restaurant in Houston that made hot pot just like we had in Chengdu.

2. Just for fun: AS A LARK.  After getting the Lark, I wanted On A Lark, but the Sister's HABIT told me that was not the correct answer.

3. Bear claw makers: BAKERIES.  Clever clue.

4. DIY furniture store: IKEA.  This store has become a crossword staple.  The company was founded by Ingvar Kamprad (né Feodor Ingvar Kamprad; Mar. 30, 1926 ~ Jan. 27, 2018).

5. Art community NNE of Santa Fe: TAOS.

6. Prolonged battle: SIEGE.

7. Scandal-plagued energy giant: ENRON.

8. Well-worn pencil: NUB.

9. Soft & __: deodorant: DRI.

10. Matzo meals: SEDERS.

11. Collie of old TV: LASSIE.

12. Become visible: APPEAR.

13. Handshake events: DEALS.

18. "Tom's Diner" singer Suzanne: VEGA.  I knew the song, just didn't known its name.

22. NYC dance company: ABT.

25. Dramatic one-on-ones: DUELS.

26. Airline that doesn't fly on Shabbat: EL AL.  A crossword staple.

28. Op. __: footnote abbr.: CIT.  Today's Latin lesson.  Op. cit. is an abbreviation fo Opus citatum, which means "the work cited".

29. __ flash: quickly: IN A.

32. Britcom starring Jennifer Saunders: AB FAB.  Jennifer Jane Saunders (b. July 6, 1958) is one of the stars of the British comedy Absolutely Fabulous.

33. __ Grande: RIO.

35. Industrial area of western Germany: RUHR.

36. Words of commitment: I DO.

37. Agency under FDR: NRA.  As in the National Recovery Administration.  This agency was established on June 20, 1933.

38. Casino regular: GAMESTER.

41. Dressmaker's guide: PATTERN.

42. Concert extras: ENCORES.

43. Orbital high point: APOGEE.

44. 1959 Sandra Dee title role: GIDGET.  The movie was before my time.

45. Drink suffix: -ADE.  A partial CSO to the blog's Lemonade.

46. Dangles a carrot in front of: TEMPTS.

47. New Age pianist John: TESH.  He probably doesn't like this picture anymore.

John Frank Tesh (b. July 9, 1952)

48. Get a whiff of: SMELL.

49. Market express lane units: ITEMS.

50. Sculpted form: TORSO.

54. Sort (through): SIFT.

55. Basic French verb: ÊTRE.  This ver has become a crossword staple.  I have conjugated it here in the past.

58. Man-mouse connector: OR A.  Are you a Man OR A Mouse?

59. Method: WAY.

Here's the Grid:

Monday, January 27, 2020

QOD:  The spirit of liberty is the spirit that is not too sure it is right.  ~  Learned Hand (né Billings Learned Hand; Jan. 27, 1872 ~ Aug. 18, 1961), Federal Judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the 2^nd Circuit

Sunday, January 26, 2020

QOD:  There is no security in this life, only opportunity.  ~  Douglas MacArthur (Jan. 26, 1880 ~ Apr. 5, 1964), American general