Friday, May 12, 2023

QOD:  Why buy good luggage, you only use it when you travel.  ~  Yogi Berra (né Lawrence Peter Berra; May 12, 1925 ~ Sept. 22, 2015), American baseball player and coach

Thursday, May 11, 2023

QOD:  The body says what words cannot.  ~  Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 ~ Apr. 1, 1991), American dancer and choreographer

Wednesday, May 10, 2023

QOD:  If you’re going to be famous, sure, be funny, be irreverent.  But above all, be useful.  ~  Bono (né Paul David Hewson; b. May 10, 1960), Irish musician

Tuesday, May 9, 2023

QOD:  Life is rather like a tin of sardines ~ we’re all of us looking for the key.  ~  Alan Bennett (b. May 9, 1934), British actor and playwright

Time to get to Work.  The first words of each theme answer pertains to one's wages: RATE, PAY and FEE.

18-Across. Review site used by students: RATE MY PROFESSORS.  Yup! There is a website for that.

28-Across. Honor, with "to": PAY TRIBUTE.

49-Across. Alliterative chant from "Jack and the Beanstalk": FEE FI FO FUM.

And the unifier:

64-Across. Entry-level wages, and a hint to the first words of 18-, 28-, and 49-Across: STARTING SALARIES.

Across:

1. NYC nabe with the Museum of Ice Cream: SOHO.  Who knew there was a Museum of Ice Cream in the neighborhood South of Houston?

5. Keith Haring genre: POP  ART.  Keith Haring (né Keith Allan Haring; May 4, 1958 ~ Feb. 16, 1990) was known for his Pop Art that often depicted themes of social activism.  Sadly, he died of complications of AIDS at only 31 years old.  [Name # 1.]

11. First piece moved in chess, often: PAWN.

15. "My turn!": I'M UP.

16. Dealership perk: LOANER.

17. __ vera gel: ALOE.  //  Not to be confused with 42-Across. Lisbon greeting: OLÁ.  Today's Portuguese lesson.

21. First part: INTRO.

22. Après-__: SKI.  Today's French lesson.

23. White House rejections: VETOEs.

24. Bronx-born member of Congress, familiarly: AOC.  Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (b. Oct. 13, 1989) represents New York's 14th District in the United States House of Representatives.  [Name # 2.]

26. Using Wi-Fi: ON-LINE.

32. Ye __ Shoppe: OLDE.

35. Sheltered, at sea: ALEE.  This used to be a crossword staple.

36. German article: DER.  Today's German lesson.  //  And 41-Across.  French article: LES.  

37. Most concise: TERSEST.

40. Tell tales: LIE.

43. EMT skill: CPR.

44. Makeup for lashes: MASCARA.

46. Ride-or-die pal, briefly: BFF.  I was not familiar with the phrase "ride-or-die", but the perps gave me the Best Friend Forever.  According to the Slang Dictionary, the phrase means extreme loyalty to someone or some thing.  It does not exactly have a positive connotation.

47. Singer Del Rey: LANA.  Lana Del Rey (née Elizabeth Woolridge Grant; b. June 21, 1985) is known for her melancholic melodies.  [Name # 3.]

48. Opportunity: SHOT.

52. Montana's capital: HELENA.  How Helena got its name.  It is still a mystery.  Maybe Montana will weigh in and give us her take on the State's capital.  [Name adjacent.]

54. Soccer goal part: NET.

55. Calm: SERENE.

58. Neutral possessive pronoun: ITS.  Not to be confused with It's, which is another concept altogether. 

60. __ cotta: TERRA.  Today's Latin lesson.  The term means Baked Earth.  I saw the Terra Cotta Warriors when I was in Xi'an, C.C.'s home town.

67. Appellation: NAME.

68. Sign after Taurus: GEMINI.  Gemini and Taurus = a love match.

69. Colorful eye part: IRIS.  Everything you wanted to know about the Iris but didn't know to ask.

Iris are also colorful flowers

70. Avoided a tag, perhaps: SLID.  Think baseball.  It looks painful.

71. Like some fancy bathroom floors: HEATED.  My bathroom floors are not so fancy.  We did, however, experience some very fancy heated toilets while in Vietnam.

72. "__ No Sunshine": Bill Withers hit: AIN'T.  Bill Withers (né William Harrison Withers, Jr.; July 4, 1938 ~ Mar. 30, 2020) was working as an aircraft assembler when this song was released in 1971.   [Name # 4.]

Down:

1. Apple's virtual assistant: SIRI.  If you ask Siri personal questions and you will get some funny answers.  [Name # 5.]

2. Mideast sultanate: OMAN.

3. Sluglike species of "Star Wars": HUTT.  The most famous Hutt is probably Jabba.

4. Run: OPERATE.  As in operating some sort of machine, and not running a marathon.

5. Kleenex layer: PLY.

6. "My bad!": OOPS!

7. Sport that turns everyday objects into an obstacle course: PARKOUR.  You learn something new with every crossword puzzle.  The word parkour is derived from the French term (more of today's French lesson) parcours du combattant, which roughly translates to obstacle course.

8. Bless using oil: ANOINT.  Charles III, King of Great Britain (b. Nov. 14, 1948) was anointed at his coronation ceremony last Saturday.

9. Whistle blower?: REF.  Cute clue.

10. Rome's __ Fountain: TREVI.  The Trevi Fountain was constructed in the 1700s.  Construction began in 1732 and it was completed in 1762.  The name derives from the Latin word Trivium, which indicated the intersection of three streets.  The three streets are Via Via De'Crocicchi, Via Poli and Via Delle Muratte.  The fountain was officially opened and inaugurated almost exactly 261 years ago ~ on 22 May, 1762 by Pope Clement XIII (Mar. 7, 1693 ~ Feb. 2, 1769).

11. Muted shades: PASTELS.

12. __ gobi: vegetarian curry dish: ALOO.  Another learning experience.  Aloo Gobi is a vegetarian dish made with potatoes and cauliflower.   It looks good.

13. Was dressed in: WORE.

14. Loch in tabloid photos: NESS.  The modern legend of the Loch Ness monster dates back just 90 years.

19. Tie up at the dock: MOOR.

20. Madame's Spanish counterpart: SEÑORA.  Today's Spanish lesson.  Hi, Lucina!

25. Angry Orchard beverage: CIDER.

27. Acquit: LET OFF.

28. Tropical tree: PALM.

29. Pseudonym: ALIAS.

30. "Unbelievable!": YEESH!

31. "Take care on the way home!": BE SAFE!

33. Late-afternoon coffee choice: DECAF.

34. Broadcaster of some NCAA games: ESPNU.  ESPNU is the sister company of ESPN that covers college sports.

38. Pixieish: ELFIN.

39. Shuttle on rails: TRAM.  Also known as streetcars.

41. Not yet visible: LATENT.

45. Held together: COHERED.

46. Scrams: BEATS IT.

47. Game of chance also known as "Mexican bingo": LOTERIA.  Another learning experience

50. Mystery: ENIGMA.  Alan Turing (né Alan Mathison Turing; June 23, 1912 ~ June 7, 1954) cracked the Enigma Code.  The Enigma machine was an encryption machine the Germans used during WWII to transmit coded messages.  Turing and other researchers at Bletchley Park found some weakness in the code and were able to decrypt it.  It's a fascinating history.

51. Greek cheese: FETA.  Feta is a soft, crumbly Greek cheese made from sheep or goat milk that is brined in salt.

53. "Psycho" actress Janet: LEIGH.  Janet Leigh (née Jeanette Helen Morrison; July 6, 1927 ~ Oct. 3, 2004) is the mother of actress Jamie Lee Curtis (b. Nov. 22, 1958).  The shooting of the shower scene in Psycho gave Janet nightmares for years after.  It creeps me out, too.  [Name # 6.]

55. Taxpayer IDs: SSNs.  As in Social Security Numbers.

56. List-shortening abbr.: ET AL.  A crossword staple.

57. Actor Malek: RAMI.  Rami Said Malek (b. May 12, 1981) made a convincing Freddie Mercury in the 2018 movie Bohemian Rhapsody.  [Name # 7.]

59. Levelheaded: SANE.

61. 2023 Super Bowl performer, to fans: RI-RI.  Ri-Ri is the nickname of Rihanna (née Robin Rihanna Fenty; b. Feb. 20, 1988).  [Name # 8.]

62. Bridle part: REIN.

63. Admin. aide: ASST.  As in an assistant.

65. Formerly called: NÉE.  More of today's French lesson.  Technically, the word comes from the French which means born.  The word née, the feminine past participle of naitre, "to be born." The masculine form is né.

66. Pot top: LID.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

Monday, May 8, 2023

QOD:  I am indeed rich, since my income is superior to my expenses, and my expenses is equal to my wishes.  ~  Edward Gibbon (May 8, 1737 ~ Jan. 16, 1794), English historian

Sunday, May 7, 2023

QOD:  Truth springs from arguments amongst friends.  ~  David Hume (May 7, 1711 ~ Aug. 25, 1776), Scottish philosopher