QOD: October 29

Showing posts with label October 29. Show all posts

Tuesday, 29 October 2024

Tuesday October 29, 2024

QOD: If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough. ~ Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (née Ellen Eugenia Johnson; b. Oct. 29, 1938), 24th President of Liberia and recipient of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize

GOAAAAAL! Last week, I had the Football QuarterBacks. This week we hit the soccer GOAL! The word GOAL can be found STRETCHED in each of the theme answers.

17-Across. Person announcing numbers in a hall: BINGO CALLER. GOAL.

26. Grammy Award won twice by CeCe Winans: BEST GOSPEL ALBUM. CeC Winans (née Priscilla Marie Winans; b. Oct. 8, 1964) has earned 15 Grammys. GOAL [Name # 1.]

45-Across. Notre-Dame de Paris, notably: GOTHIC CATHEDRAL. Since the massive fire at the cathedral in April 2019, the church has been closed. It is anticipated that the cathedral will reopen in early December 2024. What features make a cathedral gothic? According to Britannica, "the term Gothic was coined by classicizing Italian writers of the Renaissance, who attributed the invention (and what to them was the nonclassical ugliness) of medieval architecture to the barbarian Gothic tribes that had destroyed the Roman Empire and its classical culture in the 5th century CE." GOAL

And the Unifier:

59-Across. Crowdfunding target, and what can be found in three of this puzzle's answers: STRETCH GOAL. I had not heard this term, but have been the "recipient" of such a concept. A Stretch Goal is "a form of motivation that relies on challenging your team to push harder and reach for the proverbial stars."

Across:

1. Useful quality: ASSET.

6. "All __ Up": Elvis hit: SHOOK.

11. LED TV brand: RCA. The initials stand for Radio Corporation of America.

14. "¡Hasta __!": LUEGO. Today's Spanish lesson. See you later, alligator.

15. Satirical 2022 biopic about Al Yankovic: WEIRD. [Name # 2.] Quinta Brunson (b. Dec. 1989), who was featured in last Tuesday's puzzle, appears in the Weird Al biopic. Alfred Matthew Yankovic (b. Oct. 23, 1959) began his career when he was on the Dr. Demento Radio Show in 1976.

16. Pole worker: ELF.

Also known as Aerial Aerobics.

19. "Houdini" singer Lipa: DUA. Dua Lipa is an English and Albanian singer and songwriter. Earlier this year, Time magazine included Dua Lipa (b. Aug. 22, 1995) in its list of the 100 most influential people in the world. [Name # 3.]

20. Justice Dept. worker: ATT. As in an Attorney.

21. Rock groups: BANDS.

22. Many an early email user: AOLER. An AOLer is a person who subscribes to America On Line.

24. Dot on a domino: PIP.

25. Childish comeback: AM SO.

34. Canyon sound: ECHO.

35. __ protector: SURGE.

36. Workplace protection agcy.: OSHA. As in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

37. Opponent: FOE.

38. Scuff up: MAR.

39. Yogurt container: TUB.

40. Wallet bills: ONES.

42. Military trainee: CADET.

44. __ moments ago: MERE.

48. Floor protectors: MATS.

49. Bendy letter: ESS. Or, as we would write the letter, it is an "S."

50. Watercooler gurgles: GLUGS.

52. Poet T.S.: ELIOT. T.S. Eliot (né Thomas Sterns Eliot; Sept. 26, 1888 ~ Jan. 4, 1965) is considered to be one of the 20th century's greatest poets. [Name # 4.]

55. No. 1 pal: BFF. As in Best Friend Forever.

58. Apple's mobile platform: iOS. As in iPhone Operating System.

62. Luau gift: LEI.

63. Ram, in the zodiac: ARIES.

64. Privileged group: ELITE. We are an Elite group of crossword solvers.

65. "Not Dead Yet" TV network: ABC. Not Dead Yet is a sit-com about a woman who gets a job writing obituaries.

66. Undersized: DINKY.

67. Upscale watch brand: ROLEX. Did you know that a genie just "whispered" the name "Rolex" into the ear of the company's founder one day, hence the name of the company.

This diamond encrusted watch will set you back a few bucks.

Down:

1. Actress and entrepreneur Jessica: ALBA. Jessica Marie Alba (b. Apr. 28, 1981) has been acting since the age of 13 when she appeared in the 1994 film Camp Nowhere. [Name # 5.]

2. Court filing: SUIT.

3. Shipped off: SENT.

4. Pancake batter ingredient: EGG.

5. Oversized: TOO BIG. David Byrne (b. May 14, 1952), of Talking Heads, was known for wearing a BIG suit.

6. White lake bird: SWAN. Does the King of England all the swans in England?

7. Grasped: HELD.

8. Paints on palettes: OILS.

9. Extracted resource: ORE. A crossword staple.

10. Subtitled TV show from Seoul, e.g.: K-DRAMA. Korean Dramas, or K-Drama, refers to Korean-language television shows made in South Korea. Complete unknown to me.

11. Chain known for Cheddar Bay Biscuits: RED LOBSTER. Apparently the company just hired a new CFO.

12. Whodunit game: CLUE. It's also a musical.

13. Hardly close: AFAR.

18. Guitar clamps: CAPOS. Everything you wanted to know about a guitar Capo but didn't know to ask.

23. Scandinavian capital: OSLO. The capital of Norway.

24. Compensated break from work: Abbr.: PTO. As in Paid Time Off.

25. Tavern beverage: ALE.

26. Enshroud in mist: BEFOG.

27. Thrifty, in brand names: ECONO.

28. Pianist's reference pages: SHEET MUSIC.

29. Poison __: SUMAC. Everything you need to know about Poison Sumac before you venture out into the wild.

30. Designer bag name: PRADA. Prada is an Italian high-end fashion house that specialized in leather handbags, shoes, and prêt-à-porter. The company was founded in 1913 by Mario Prada (d. 1958). [Name # 6.]

31. White marsh bird: EGRET. Egrets are such beautiful and elegant birds.

32. Communications officer on the Enterprise: UHURA. A Star Trek reference. [Name # 7, Fictional.]

33. Selena's "Only Murders in the Building" role: MABEL. Only Murders in the Building is a sit-com where three strangers share an obsession with true crime and suddenly find themselves wrapped up in one. It stars Steve Martin (né Stephen Glenn Martin; b. August 14, 1945), Marty Short (né Martin Hayter Short, Mar. 26, 1950) and Selena Gomez (née Selena Marie Gomez; b. July 22, 1992). [Name # 8. ]

41. Thick carpet: SHAG. Shag Carpets were a big thing in the 1970s. Are they making a comeback?

42. Loops in via email: CCs. Originally CC stood for Carbon Copy from the days when a piece of carbon paper was placed between two sheets of paper in the typewriter so the sender could retain a copy. The term survives even though it is a far cry from the original meaning.

43. 2000s teen series set in Newport Beach: THE OC.

44. Surgeons' degs.: MDs. As in Medical Doctor.

46. "How tragic": IT'S SAD.

47. Old Testament queen: ESTHER. In Hebrew, she is known as Hadassah. Esther is the Persian version of the name. In the Hebrew Bible, the Book of Esther tells the story of a young Jewish woman living in the Persian diaspora. She find with the king and becomes queen. She then risks her life to save the Jewish people from destruction when the court official Haman persuades the king to authorize a pogrom against all the Jews of the empire. The Book of Esther, which is read during the Jewish Holiday of Purim, is the only Biblical book that does not mention the name of G'd. [Name # 9.]

50. Arizona county or river: GILA.

51. "Feel What U Feel" Grammy winner Lisa: LOEB. I am not familiar with Lisa Anne Loeb (b. Mar. 11. 1968). [Name # 10.]

52. Olympic speedskater Jackson: ERIN. Erin Jackson (b. Sept. 19, 1992) was the first Black American to win a Winter Olympic gold medal in an individual sport. She won the gold medal in the Women's 500m speed skating event at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. [Name # 11.]

53. Onion kin: LEEK. Everything you wanted to know about leeks and onions.

54. Teeny: ITSY.

55. Bubble, as water: BOIL.

56. Destiny: FATE.

57. Show off, in slang: FLEX.

60. Bi- plus one: TRI-.

61. Day-__ colors: GLO. DayGlo might also glow in the dark.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

Today is National Cat Day!

Fang, my neighbor's cat that adopted me.

Sunday, 29 October 2023

Sunday October 29, 2023

QOD: Talent is a pursued interest. Anything that you’re willing to practice, you can do. ~ Bob Ross (né Robert Norman Ross; Oct. 29, 1942 ~ July 4, 1995), American painter and art teacher

Friday, 29 October 2021

Friday, October 29, 2021

QOD: Art is a wrestling with the meaning of life. ~ Jon Vickers (né Jonathan Steward Vickers; Oct. 29, 2916 ~ July 10, 2015), Canadian opera singer

Thursday, 29 October 2020

Thursday, October 29, 2020

QOD: Put light against light ~ you have nothing. Put dark against dark ~ you have nothing. It’s the contract of light and dark that each gives the other one meaning. ~ Bob Ross (né Robert Norman Ross; Oct. 29, 1942 ~ July 4, 1995), American painter and art teacher

Tuesday, 29 October 2019

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Today is National Cat Day!

QOD: Children, old crones, peasants and dogs ramble; cats and philosophers stick to their point. ~ H.P. Lovecraft (né Howard Phillips Lovecraft; Aug. 20, 1890 ~ Mar. 15, 1937), American writer

It's My Party and I'll Cry if I Want To!

Today is a bid of an odd theme. After I finished the puzzle, I stared at the circles and the unifier before the the light bulb went on. So, today we'll start with the Grid and Unifier:

38-Across. Act in a bipartisan way, and what the circled letters do Across and Down: CROSS PARTY LINES. The circled letters are common letters of words that Cross each other. Each of the "crossed" words describes a type of Party, hence the Circled Letters Cross Party Lines! Notice, too, the nice symmetry of the circle placement on the grid. Clever!

There are 4 sets words that Cross the Party Lines as we shall see below:

The word Pool crosses with the word Work at the letter O. Hence we get a Pool Party and a Work Party. A Pool Party sounds like fun. A Work Party ~ not so much.

16-Across. Game with cues and balls: POOL.

11-Down. Toil: WORK.

~~~~~~~
Two words cross Masquerade ~ Disco at the letter S and Theme at the letter E, giving us a Masquerade Party, a Disco Party and a Theme Party.

17-Across. Social event with costumes and facial covers: MASQUERADE.

3-Down. "Y.M.C.A." music genre: DISCO.

9-Down. Unifying feature of many escape rooms: THEME.

~~~~~~~~
Two words cross Tupperware ~ After at the letter T and Beach at the letter A. This gives us a Tupperware Party, and After Party and a Beach Party.

61-Across. Kitchen storage brand: TUPPERWARE. We've all probably all owned some Tupperware at some point in our lives.

50-Down. Chasing: AFTER. An After Party is a party that is held after another party of event. There are lots of After Parties following the Oscars, or so I'm told.

52-Down. Surfer's hangout: BEACH.

~~~~~~~~
The word Wrap crosses the word Stag at the letter A, giving us a Wrap Party and a Stag Party.

64-Across. Rolled-up sandwich: WRAP. A Wrap Party is a party for the cast and crew of a film or television program after the completion of the production. It could also be a party held for wrapping gifts. I belong to an organization that wraps gifts for children in the community at Christmas time. We call that gathering a Wrap Party.

57-Down. Without a date: STAG. The party for the groom before his wedding.

Across:

1. Rogues: CADS.

5. Is without: HASN'T. // Interesting to be right next to 10-Across: Possesses: OWNS.

14. Rose's Broadway love: ABIE. A reference to the play Abie's Irish Rose, which was also made into a movie. It was a comedy from the 1920s about a young Irish Catholic girl who fell in love with a young Jewish man and the obstacles they faced from their families.

15. Copier brand: RICOH.

Probably not for home use.

19. Gaelic tongue: ERSE. A crossword staple.

20. Defunct Amer. soccer competition: U.S. CUP.

21. Commented: REMARKED.

23. Footwear insert: SHOE TREE. Not to be used while wearing the shoe.

26. Slice of history: ERA.

27. Homebuyer's need: LOAN.

28. Accustom (to): ENURE.

32. Ron Weasley's pet Scabbers, for one: RAT. I initially tried Bat. Everything I know about Harry Potter, I learned from doing the crossword puzzles. At least I recognized that Ron Weasley is a character from Harry Potter.

35. The "S" in CBS: Abbr.: SYS. As in the Columbia Broadcasting System.

37. San Diego ball club: PADRES.

42. Major blood vessels: AORTAs.

43. Have a bug: AIL.

44. Northern Calif. airport: SFO. The code letters for the San Francisco International Airport.

45. Avow: SWEAR.

46. Lunch hour: NOON.

49. Nutrition fig.: RDA. As in the Recommended Dietary Allowance.

51. Native encountered by Crusoe: CANNIBAL. A reference to Robinson Crusoe, the 1719 novel Daniel Defoe. Hand up if you have read this book.

55. Large watchdogs: MASTIFFS.

59. "SNL" alum Cheri: OTERI. Cheri OTERI (née Cheryl Anne Oteri; b. Sept. 19, 1962) makes frequent guest appearances in the crossword puzzles. She was on Saturday Night Live 2 decades ago, where she played a number of roles, including the Spartan cheerleader.

60. Rebuke from Caesar: ET TU.

65. Office communication: E-MAIL.

66. "__ hardly wait!": I CAN.

67. Internet transmission delays: LAGS.

68. Uses for a fee: RENTS.

69. Therefore: THUS.

Down:

1. "The Stranger" novelist Albert: CAMUS. Albert Camus (Nov. 7, 1913 ~ Jan. 4, 1960) was a French existentialist philosopher. He was born in Algeria to French parents. His father was killed in the Battle of Marne in 1914, so Camus never knew his father. In 1957, Camus was the recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature. He was killed 3 years later in a car accident at age 46.

2. Make self-conscious: ABASH.

4. Book that continues a story: SEQUEL.

5. Charlemagne's domain: Abbr.: HRE. As in the Holy Roman Empire, which was neither Holy nor Roman. The Holy Roman Empire was actually a group of territories in Western and Central Europe from the time of Charlemagne until the early 1800s. The largest territory within the HRE was the Kingdom of Germany, but included Bohemia, Italy and Burgundy. It's rulers were often referred to as the King of the Romans. The boundaries of the HRE were fluid over the centuries. The term Holy Roman Empire was first used sometime in the 13th Century.

Map of the HRE around 1000 C.E.

6. Balloon filler: AIR. Some balloons are filled with Helium, but they float away.

7. Hiccups cure, so they say: SCARE.

8. Lymph __: NODE.

10. Part of MO: OPERANDI. As in Modus Operandi, a phrase from the Latin, which means Mode of Operating.

12. Odor detector: NOSE.

13. Iditarod conveyance: SLED. The Iditarod Sled Dog Race is an annual event that runs from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska. The word Iditarod means "distant place" and is derived from a native Alaskan language. The original of today's race began in the early 1970. History of the Iditarod.

18. __ no good: scheming: UP TO.

22. "That's __ shame": A REAL. This wasn't the first word that popped into my mind.

24. Speaks in a gravelly voice: RASPS.

25. One-named "Only Time" singer: ENYA.

29. Caterer's coffeepots: URNs.

30. Snorkeling spot: REEF.

Great Barrier Reef

31. Gas brand in Canada: ESSO. A crossword staple.

32. Some TVs: RCAs. As in the Radio Corporation of America.

33. In __: lined up: A ROW.

34. Ripped up: TORE.

36. Mrs., in Madrid: SRA. Today's Spanish lesson

37. Traffic cone: PYLON.

39. Recipients of venture capital: START UPS.

40. Broadway restaurant founder: SARDI. The famous Sardi's restaurant in Manhattan's Theater District began as a modest little eatery in 1921. It was originally called The Little Restaurant. The founders were Melchiorre Pio Vincenzo Sardi and his wife, Eugenia Pallera. He was known in New York as Vincent Sardi (Dec. 23, 1885 ~ Nov. 19, 1969). Shortly after the restaurant first opened, it moved down the block under its current name ~ Sardi's. Because the restaurant is in the Theater District, Vincent Sardi hired a sketch artist to draw caricatures of actors and other celebrities, which adorn the walls of the restaurant.

41. "Mean Girls" screenwriter Fey: TINA. Tina Fey (née Elizabeth Stamatine Fey; b. May 18, 1970) was also a sketch writer for Saturday Night Live before her portrayal of Liz Lemon on 30 Rock.