The three 15-letter stacks in the middle were tough to crack, especially the first...35A: Snap out of it (return to reality). The other two were brilliant...38A: Much work to get done (a lot on one's plate) and 39A: Place for good deals (clearance center).
It's snowing again tonight, and Leslie has to be at work at 7:30...that means another early morning so I can get her there on time. It took me 40 minutes to make a 10-minute trip on Tuesday. It's amazing that a 3-inch snow can wreak so much havoc...but the roads were so slick. That said, I'd better wrap this up so I can get six or so hours of sleep.
The gimmes and guesses that worked...8A: Watches in astonishment (gapes at), 24A: Work an aisle, slangily (ush)...that appears fairly often, 47A: Hand tool (awl), 50A Unclear (hazy), 52A: Spill the beans (tattle), 57A: Cook first, as pie crust (prebake), 5D: Bite-the-bullet type (stoic), 9D: Something to bid (adieu), 23D: Singer John and others (Eltons), 34D: Wayne W. __, author of "Your Erroneous Zones" (Dyer), 46D: It's seen on the back of a U.S. quarter (eagle), and 49D: Actor __ Cobb (Lee J)...whose full name appeared in Wednesday's puzzle.
Those answers helped me fill out the rest of the bottom half, including 59A: Cardiff Giant or Piltdown Man (big hoax), 60A: Went through (pierced), 61A: Away (on leave), 62A: University with campuses in New York and Rome (St. John's), and 63A: Zealots have them (agendas).
...which led me to the connected cluing at 36D: With 14-Down, something that can have you seeing things (Rorschach / test). That had me flummoxed for some time, but once I had the HACH at the end, it didn't take long to see the right answer.
I did have to resort to Google for a couple of things, including 22A: French city where William the Conqueror is buried (Caen), 43A: "Baudolino" novelist (Eco)...how many times do I have to see that one before I remember it?, 3D: Guam's __ Bay (Pago), and 26D: Renaissance artist Piero __ Francesca (della).
Even Google couldn't help with 16A: Luxembourg grand duke in whose name an annual art prize is awarded (Adolphe), 6D: Leader of the Alamo siege (Santa Anna), or 20D: Neighbor of Hoboken, N.J. (Union City).
That's it for tonight...I'm off to bed. Here's the grid...
...and I'll see you tomorrow.
Linda G
13 comments:
This one felt fairly easy, maybe medium, for a Friday puzzle. Even the three long answers in the middle came quickly. That's a first! But, like you Linda, the top gave me more trouble than the rest. I finally resorted to Googling the bay in Guam, and the Grand Duke.
We got about eight to nine inches of snow today. Lots of shoveling and achy muscles tomorrow. Drive carefully on those snowy roads.
Linda,
This was easier than this Thursday's for me. I was able to finish it in 45 minutes without Googling (except to check the spelling for rorschach). I first tried to spell it rauschach. But realized it was wrong. This was my best Friday for the past 6 months or so that I have been attempting Fridays. As I struggled so with Thursdays and gave up without finishing it, I was glad to be able to complete a Friday's without Googling.
I found todays puzzle to be a challange...nothing came easy and I needed Dr. Google to get it done...I am impressed profphil...good for you!!!!can anyone explain Ba preceder being ALIF...thought it was the Periodic Table but still could not get it!
Have a good day and drive safely
Bob
Not positive, but I think it may be the Hebrew alaphabet.
After reading Orange and googling, it's Arabic.
I thought Union City was unfair. Since the defintion included the abbreviation "NJ" I put in NY once I got the y. That was the last spot to fall as a result.
Thank you rick,,,if I finish a puzzle I like to know what the answers mean!!!
Bob
I'm from NJ, so UNIONCITY was easy... lived in HOBOKEN for a while...
I kept expecting to get stuck but the answers kept opening up. The middle was tough for me. Living in the south and having very limited knowledge of NJ cities, Union City was a lucky guess with U___n_ity. That let me get the middle.
Overall not a bad Friday. I just hope that Saturday doesn't beat me as badly as last week!
Well, I'm impressed with annielee, profphil and jimd! Good job.
If Saturday's looks too tough for my battered brain to deal with tonight, I'll just do an early morning solve and blog ; )
my tough spots revolved around assuming 10d was "poor STATE" and 38a was "a lot on one's TABLE."
even with the *--O-PHE* i googled for the answer to 18a. and for 34d, DYER.
i'll have to look for a thursday nyt. sounds like it was a good one from these comments.
(don't y'all just love the scrabbly letters in the word verification thingy? i do.)
6WL
This was a really EASY Friday--for ME. Which illustrates the oddness of gimmies and the differences of mind. The whole top just seemed so straightforward that I kept penciling in lightly because so that when the hidden snarl emerged I could erase with a good heart!
Cummon: deadlock=impasse, sure. Then all those downs: meat, A Pop, stoic, ETs--surely not on Friday! (Santa Anna, now, is tougher for a Canadian, but Yanks should be inking it in.) Same thing in Newfoundland: adieu, elm, span, Ah So.
I'm thinking, well, Manny's just leading us gently into the big 15s, where he will kill us. Lets see: Della, Otoes, freely, riata, otter -- A Lot On Ones Plate fairly leaps out.
I'm not complaining, mind you. Never did get the bottom right corner, even with escorting and boa in place. No idea what you have on the back of your quarter. Thought maybe a crik ran in a coulee. Didn't spot those Xs at all at all. Happy that the half-hour I spent on a Friday got me that far.
But Medium difficulty--no way!
timetraveller, I don't recall much of this puzzle...I should probably keep my hard copy around until the syndicated puzzle runs.
It's always interesting, though, to read that someone breezed through something I struggled with...or vice versa.
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