Friday, July 2, 2021

QOD:  A signature always reveals a man’s character ~ and sometimes even his name.  ~  Evan Esar (July 2, 1899 ~ Dec. 9, 1995), American humorist

Thursday, July 1, 2021

QOD:  We all make mistakes, but the thing is to learn from them.  And make different mistakes.  ~  Debbie Harry (née Angela Tremble; July 1, 1945), American singer and songwriter

 

Wednesday, June 30, 2021

QOD:  For bureaucrats, procedure is everything and outcomes are nothing.  ~  Thomas Sowell (b. June 30, 1930), African-American economist and social theorist

Tuesday, June 29, 2021

QOD:  I must endure the presence of a few caterpillars if I wish to become acquainted with the butterflies.  ~  Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (June 29, 1900 ~ July 31, 1944), French pilot and writer 

Broken Homes.  Another word for one's house can be found "broken" in each of the theme answers.  Sad theme today since it is less than a week since the condo collapsed in Florida last week.  Sadly, the husband of a friend was in that building that day. 

18-Across. Kooks: DING-A-LINGS.  Digs.

20-Across. Where fingerprints may be analyzed: CRIME LAB.  Crib.

59-Across. Cheerleading team: PEP SQUAD.  Pad.

61-Acrpss. Contest with a puck: HOCKEY GAME.  Home.

And the Unifier:

38-Across. Like a well-trained pet, and a hint to each set of circles: HOUSE BROKEN.

Across:

1. Reaction to a bad joke: MOAN.  I would think Groan is a more common response to a bad joke.  Why can't you trust atoms?  * 

5. Mary's was little: LAMB.  Mary had a little lamb, it's fleas as white as snow.  (As kids, we thought the word fleece was actually fleas.)

9. Hip-hop headgear: DO-RAG.

14. Armory supply: AMMO.  As in Ammunition.

15. Plus: ALSO.

16. How many single people live: ALONE.

17. Singer McEntire: REBA.  Reba Nell McEntire (b. Mar. 28, 1955) is a country singer-songwriter.

22. 2020 Super Bowl number: LIV.

23. Beehive State native: UTE.  Utah is the Beehive State, and the name of the state is derived from an Apache word.  Ute means People of the Mountains.

24. Another name for the peyote cactus: MESCAL.  Everything you wanted to know about Mescal / Peyote, but didn't know to ask.

26. Significant times: ERAs.  This is becoming a crossword staple.  It is also the name of a laundry detergent.

30. Yemen's capital: SANA'A.

32. Paid in advance, as costs: UP FRONT.

34. Ancestry.com concern: DNA.

36. Michael of "Arrested Development": CERA.  Michael Cera (b. June 7, 1988) is a Canadian actor.

37. "Got __ ideas?": ANY.

41. Pub order: ALE.  A crossword staple.

43. Gets with effort, with "out": EKEs.

44. Witness: SEE.

45. Knights __: "The Da Vinci Code" group: TEMPLAR.  The Da Vinci Code was a 2003 novel by Dan Brown, which was later made into a movie.

47. White house?: IGLOO.  We find our Igloo Ice Chest to be very convenient while on vacation.  

51. Canadian gas: ESSO.  Hi, CanadianEh!  //  And 64-Down. Tank filler: GAS.

52. Populated with trees: WOODED.

56. Spanish Main treasure: ORO.  Today's Spanish lesson.  Hi, Lucina!

57. Tax preparer, for short: CPA.  As in a Certified Public Accountant.  Some of our regulars are CPAs.

65. Money drawer: TILL.

66. Boo-boos: OWIES.

67. Diaper rash cream additive: ALOE.  A fresh new clue for an old staple.

68. Vacation spot: ISLE.

69. Green sauce: PESTO.  Another crossword favorite.  I have been making homemade Pesto.

70. Phishing targets: Abbr.: SSNs.  As in Social Security Numbers.  The word Phishing first appeared arount 1996.

71. Is worth it: PAYS.  Did you know that in France, the word Pays means Country or Region?

Down:

1. Neiman's business partner: MARCUS.

2. Mafioso code of honor: OMERTA.  Today's Italian lesson.

3. Sleep aid brand: AMBIEN.

4. Linguist Chomsky: NOAM.

Avram Noam Chomsky (b. Dec. 7, 1928)

5. Soup scoop: LADLE.

6. Butch Cassidy or the Sundance Kid: ALIAS.  Butch Cassidy's given name was Robert LeRoy Parker (Apr. 13, 1866 ~ Nov. 7, 1908).  Apropos of today's puzzle, Butch Cassidy was from the Beehive State. 

7. 24-hour news service: MSNBC.

8. Marshy region: BOG.

9. Surrealist Salvador: DALÍ.  Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, 1st Marquess of Dalí de Púbol (b. May 11, 1904 ~ Jan. 23, 1989) is probably best known for his painting, The Persistence of Memory.  There is a fabulous Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida that is well worth the visit.

10. Twist who asked for some more: OLIVER.  A reference to Oliver Twist, by Charles Dickens (Feb. 7, 1812 ~ June 9, 1870).

11. Harry's pal Weasley: RON.  Hi, JazzB.  Also the obligatory reference to Harry Potter.

12. Director Lee: ANG.  Ang Lee (b. Oct. 23, 1954) has a very impressive film resume.  He has also won 3 Oscars.

13. Some fridges: GEs.  As in General Electrics.

19. Top NFL players: ALL-PROS.

21. Common temple name: EMANU-EL.  The word comes from the Hebrew (עִמָּנוּאֵל) which literally means "G~d is with us".  If "Temple" is used in the name of a house of worship, it is likely a synagogue of the Reform movement.  Other Jewish demoninations rarely use the word Temple when referring to their houses of worship.

25. Violinist Leopold: AUER.  Leopold Auer (June 7, 1845 ~ July 15, 1930) was a Hungarian violinsit and composer.  He was also a well-known violin teacher.

27. Stable color: ROAN.

28. Raggedy doll: ANN.  I had a Raggedy Andy that looked just like the one below.

29. Snorters' quarters: STY.

31. Brouhaha: ADO.

33. Docs with doctored birth dates, say: FAKE IDS.

35. "Shoot": ASK AWAY.

36. Letterman's last network: CBS.

38. Skirt lines: HEMS.

39. Architect Saarinen: EERO.  Eero Saarinen (Aug. 20, 1910 ~ Sept. 1, 1961) and his father, Elie Saarinen (Aug. 20, 1873 ~ July 1, 1950) were both well known architects from Finland.  Eero designed the Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C., and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri.  Eero appears quite frequently in the crossword puzzles.

40. Neurologist's readout: Abbr.: EEG.  As in the ElectoEncephaloGraphy.

41. Had a bite: ATE.

42. "__ Misérables": LES.  Les Misérables by Victor Hugo (1802 ~ 1885) is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century.

46. Pool player's target: POCKET.

48. "Little Women" author __ May Alcott: LOUISA.  Louisa May Alcott (Nov. 29, 1832 ~ Mar. 6, 1888) wrote many novels, but is probably best known for Little Women and Little Men.

49. How much medication is taken: ORALLY.

50. Loads: OODLES.

53. Milky gems: OPALS.  Hi, Kazie!  The Opal is the national gemstone of Australia.

54. Possessed person's possessor: DEMON.

55. Sporting blades: ÉPÉES.  A crossword staple.

58. Mexican money: PESO.

60. Medicine cabinet swab: Q-TIP.

61. Jump on one leg: HOP.

62. Have bills to pay: OWE.

63. Prefix with gender: CIS-.  As in Cisgender.  Webster's defines cisgender as: "of, relating to, or being a person whose gender identity corresponds with the sex the person had or was identified as having at birth."  We have seen this prefix in past puzzles.

Here's the Grid:

*  Because they make up everything. 

חתולה

Monday, June 28, 2021

QOD:  What wisdom can you find that is greater than kindness?  ~  Jean-Jacques Rousseau (June 28, 1712 ~ July 2, 1778), French philosopher

Sunday, June 27, 2021

QOD:  Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming it.  ~  Helen Keller (née Helen Adams Keller; June 27, 1880 ~ June 1, 1968), American author and political activist