Friday, April 4 - David Quarfoot

I'm willing to bet that David Quarfoot will have one of the highest Scrabble scores with this puzzle. Not only does Q appear six times, Z shows up three times in one word (pizazz...at 44A: Dash). Other Scrabbly letters include J, K and V.

As usual, I groaned loudly when I saw Quarfoot's name on the byline...but I was pleasantly surprised to have a few gimmes:

16A: Accidental in the key of B or E (D natural). I'm not sure if JimH covered in his music lesson last week.

20A: Three-ingredient treats (S'mores).

23A: Beethoven's "Pastoral" Symphony is in it (F Major).

37A: Burger replacement (Rehnquist). Raise your hand if you were trying to think of something with tofu as an ingredient. I did only for a second.

41A: Stands in line at an airport? (kiosks). You gotta love a word that starts and ends with a K...at least in the singular.

1D: Tynan player in "The Seduction of Joe Tynan" (Alda)...one of my all-time favorite actors.

7D: Rimes with "Blue" (LeAnn)...catchy clue.

26D: 2002 Denzel Washington drama (John Q)...a more recent favorite.

38D: "Mmmm...Toasty!" sloganeer (Quiznos).

Those two Q's made me wonder if they'd not only go up diagonally...they'd also come down. They didn't...but I was able to fill in several more words, just by guessing that they'd start with Q.

22A: Peck parts: Abbr. (qts)...crossing with 22D: It often gets down (quilt).

27A: Noted centenarian of 2000, familiarly (Queen Mum)...with 27D: Pursuit (quest).

33A: Parent's ruse to hush noisy kids (Quiet Game). I only filled in the first word...we didn't play such a game. It crossed at 33D: Rare delivery (quint).

35A: Silence (quell)...with 35D: Guatemala's national bird (quetzal). I had to Google for that one. What a gorgeous bird!
40A: One way to wax (eloquent). The other way I know is poetic...but John Q made that one easy to get.

There were some devilish answers in this one, including 15A: Like some cubs (ursine), 56A: Sleuth who "looked rather pleasantly like a blond satan (Sam Spade), 58A: Spellbinding "Batman" villainess played by Joan Collins (The Siren), 11D: Number between drei and funf (vier)...where's Don when I need him?, 28D: Contemporary of Agatha and Erle (Ngaio) and 30D: Literally, "women's boat" (umiak).

A couple of favorite clues...53A: Dodger's dread? (IRS audit), 55A: Do borderline work? (patrol), 3D: End of a loving trio (amat), 39D: It might get you backstage (VIP pass) and 41D: Pecking order? (kiss me).

It's 9:45 and Don just came home. There's much more to this puzzle...feel free to share your thoughts on it.

Here's the grid...



...and I'll see you tomorrow.

Linda G

Friday, February 22 - Mike Nothnagel and David Quarfoot

My all-time favorite constructor, Mike Nothnagel, has teamed up with David Quarfoot for this Friday's killer puzzle. I was so exhausted after solving it that I needed a power nap before I could tackle the blog.

I would never have finished this without a lot of help from Dogpile...for answers such as:

45A: Boulogne-sur-__, France (Mer). That looks like French for bologna of the sea...

4D: Poet who won a Pulitzer for "The Dust Which Is God" (Benét).

8D: Kinkajou's kin: Var. (racoons). Variation or not, that just looks wrong. But is that not the sweetest little face?

9D: 1883 Maupassant novel (Une Vie)..."A Woman's Life."

32D: "Underboss" author Peter (Maas).

33D: Smythe of hockey (Conn).

47D: Papa Bear of the N.F.L. (Halas).

With only a handful of gimmes, I was definitely not on the combined wavelength tonight.

41A: Some are manicured (lawns).

46A: Response of feigned innocence (who me).

55A: __-Mints (Rolands rival) (Alka).

56A: Singer of the 1967 hit "California Nights" (Lesley Gore). She was best known for "It's My Party," but "You Don't Own Me" was my favorite of her songs. My sister's senior portrait looked a lot like this shot of Lesley Gore...it was probably the flip more than anything else. [Update: This is too eerie. Before she had even downloaded this puzzle, Wendy blogged about Lesley Gore AND "You Don't Own Me." Have you ever thought that Wendy and Mike Nothnagel might be same person? And that Linda G is another alter ego?]

3D: Where I-25 and I-70 meet (Denver). If I hadn't made that trip at least 100 times, I wouldn't have known it.

6D: Shortening in the kitchen? (tbsp)...although I thought about lard briefly.

37D: It's out for a pout (lower lip)...not exactly a gimme, but I got it with only the W in place from lawns.

There were some exceptionally good multiword answers...not Google-able but fairly easy to flesh out.

1A: Awfully accurate? (sad but true).

15A: Salade niçoise ingredients (green beans). I could only think of potatoes and tuna, so that one took a little longer to fall into place.

17A: Providers of exceptional service? (tennis aces).

34A: Where to find pop art? (soda can).

38A: Start of some how-to titles (The Art). All I could think of were all of the books for dummies...but those share the same ending.

40A: Childish comeback (are so). We haven't had a playground retort in a while, so I didn't mind seeing one tonight.

59A: Subject of the 2004 book "Dancing Revelations" (Alvin Ailey).

61A: Outdoor toy that attaches to a garden hose (Slip N Slide).

7D: Level (tear down).

12D: Bit of kitchen wear (oven mitt). My hand won't work in one of those...maybe it's just too small. It's two potholders for me.

13D: Execute exactly (do to a tee).

14D: Over, with "of" (in excess). It took me forever to understand the clue, then even longer to get the answer. The cross at 21A: Presidential middle name (Knox) made good use of the X. I'll bet someone out there can tell us which President.

34D: Cause of colonial unrest (Stamp Act).

35D: "You don't say!" (oh really).

As tough as this puzzle was, there were so many things I loved about it. In addition to the plethora of multiword answers, there was an abundance of some of my favorite letters...K, V and X.

And I just noticed that it's almost 11:30, so I'd better call it a night. Here's the grid...



...and I'll see you tomorrow.

Linda G

Friday, January 25 - David Quarfoot

When I saw David Quarfoot's name on the byline, I was a little nervous. I scanned the clues and saw several gimmes...even thought I might be able to nail this one.

I was wrong.

Which is not to say that I didn't do fairly well, given that it was a Quarfoot puzzle. I ended up with only a few blanks...all filled in after a quick visit to Dogpile.

The gimmes:

9A: 23-Across and others (beiges)...23A: Shade shade (ecru). Don't ask me how I got that immediately.

15A: One and only (true love). I thought it was too corny to be true.

18A: Key that doesn't include 58-Across (E major)...58A: It's almost a B, scorewise (A sharp). I am truly thankful for piano lessons...some things have stayed with me.

25A: Biblical miracle setting (Cana).

26A: Powerful piece (queen).

47A: Meccan pilgrim (Hadji).

55A: Spotter's confirmation (I see it).

65A: Judge of films (Reinhold). I love his name...love that I got it.

1D: Henry Clay or William Jennings Bryan (statesman).

3D: Versatile actors may play them (dual roles).

11D: Stuck (in a rut).

12D: 11 1/2" soldier (GI Joe).

I liked the identically clued...but very different...34A: Pilot's place (sky) and 60A (gas range).

I also liked the words I could make by different parsing of multiword answers. 63A: Fancy haberdashery item (ascot tie) becomes A SCOTTIE...46D: Calm (at ease) becomes A TEASE. I came up with entertaining clues as well.

Speaking of multiword answers, others include 1A: War-torn Baghdad suburb (Sadr City), 16A: Weather Channel topic (El Niño), 29A: Call from home (yer out), 31A: 1936 N.L. leader in slugging percentage (Mel Ott)...the two names tripped me up, 37A: Part of Manhattan's Alphabet City (Avenue C), 39A: "Be honest" (don't lie), 2D: It forbids religious tests for political office (Article VI), 7D: It might hold a couch potato's potato (TV tray), 34D: Enter gently (slide into), 35D: Head of state known to his people as "Dear Leader" (Kim Jong-il), 36D: "Of course" (yes, indeed), and 43D: Swee' Pea's creator (E. C. Segar).

This was some of the best fill I've seen in a long time. Maybe I was just more on Quarfoot's wavelength tonight...as opposed to other times when I've had fewer than a dozen solid answers.

It wasn't a gimme, but it didn't take long to remember 17A: Fleet runner of myth (Atalanta) when I had just a couple of letters in place.

Tripped up on 53D: Underhand? (peon)...thought I was so clever when I filled in palm.

I have an early meeting tomorrow and a long day to boot. I'm so ready for my Saturday at home. Have I mentioned how much I'm lovin' my no-driving day?

That's it for tonight. Here's the grid...



...and I'll see you tomorrow.

Linda G

Friday, October 26 - David Quarfoot

This is the first David Quarfoot puzzle I've finished since I started doing the NYT puzzle (again) a year ago. DQ puzzles are always a struggle for me...more so tonight because I was trying to solve it while watching game two.

Yeah...we lost again. But it was a much better game than last night's and held my attention throughout. It'll be interesting to see how the Red Sox do on Rockies turf...they just might have trouble breathing at that altitude.

This was my favorite DQ puzzle, and I'm not just saying that because I finished it. The clues were fresh and the fill some of the best I've seen.

1A: News Corporation-owned Web site that's one of the 10 most visited sites in the world (MySpace). I don't have a MySpace...it's all I can do to keep up with this blog and the others I read.

15A: "Cab," e.g. (red wine)...as in Cabernet. Had the answer but didn't get it straight away.

17A: What the key of D minor has (one flat). I have trouble remembering the number of flats or sharps in particular keys, but this one was easy to figure out. Sharp wouldn't fit with a number, so I knew it was flat...and it had to be one.

19A: Driving distance is a concern in it (PGA tour). It just doesn't get any better than that.

22A: Miss Gulch biter (Toto). I don't think we're in Kansas anymore.

32A: Buries (trounces)...rhyming with yesterday's jounces.

46A: Taper (VCR). Boy, that one threw me. I was thinking about candles and was sure that VC was wrong. Even when I got 47D: "Way to go, dude!" (rock on), I couldn't figure out how that was a taper...then it hit me.

54A: Flips (has a cow). I don't know how in the world I got that one right off, but I did.

The final six across answers were all superb: 57A: Not-so-good feeling (malaise), 59A: Former field food (K-ration), 61A: Terminal timesaver (E-ticket), 62A: Its value is in creasing (origami), 63A: Sprint acquisition of 2005 (Nextel), and 64A: Crossword source since 1942: Abbr. (NY Times). Forty lashes for anyone who didn't get that last one.

And that's just the acrosses. Favorite downs include:

2D: Poem reader at the 2006 Olympics opening ceremony (Yoko Ono). Love the double O...making it look like yo-KOO-no, with the accent on the second syllable.

3D: Gaga (smitten). That's been a favorite word since it was used in the first love note I received.

4D: With 20-Down, waffle alternative (Pop / Tart). Not that I'd consider that an alternative to a waffle.

11D: Center of Connecticut (silent C). I immediately guessed that it referred to the letter C, so I was surprised that there were so many letters. Got it PDQ. I was born in Hartford...so enjoyed seeing this one.

12D: All thrown together (in a pile). Another good guess.

13D: Little women (petites). I'm not crazy about the clue. I'm definitely short and wear petite clothing , but I don't think of myself as a little woman. That sounds like a sexist comment about one's wife. Stepping off my soapbox...

27D: He wrote "It's certain that fine women eat / A crazy salad with their meat" (Yeats). I guessed that because I had the Y in place, but that doesn't sound to me like something Yeats would have written.

38D: Cartoon boss working at a quarry (Mr. Slate). That's one of those answers that you know but you just can't bring it to the forefront of your mind...especially when you're watching the World Series.

43D: Beau ideal (epitome). Love the word.

I still don't get 56A: Hiver's opposite (ete). Would someone please explain that one?

And while you're at it...how about 55D: Not yet 58-Down (wait / act). Huh?

Here's the grid...

...and I'll see you tomorrow.

Linda G

Friday, June 1 - David Quarfoot and Katy Swalwell

If you're a regular reader, you know that I've been unable to finish the last two David Quarfoot puzzles. But here it is, a Friday puzzle, and I finished it.

It must have something to do with Katy Swalwell.

Stacks of nine-letter entries, some eight-letter stacks, and a couple of twelve-letter entries. I'm not calling this an easy puzzle, but none of the fill was extremely difficult. That said, several of the clues needed to be revisited more than a couple of times.

The twelve-letter entries:

6D: The Elite Eight are associated with it (March Madness)

21D: Subject of some sightings (Elvis Presley). Not to be confused with 10D: Subject of some sightings (UFO).

My favorite nines:

1A: White-bearded, red-capped patriarch (Papa Smurf). Raise your hand if you were thinking St. Nicholas.

57A: Wally Schirra commanded it in 1968 (Apollo VII). I had just gotten my driver's license and was trying to command a 1965 Mustang.

62A: Plain (easy to see). Once I got past the ordinary mindset, it was easy to see where they were going with this one.

And the eights:

34D: Environmental awareness topic (acid rain). Makes me think of a Kelly Clarkson lyric. It's the lies that drop like acid rain.

12D: About three grains (one carat). I initially thought they were referring to bread. If they're talking gems, I've only heard of points for measuring less than a carat.

Other favorites:

33A: Symbol of contrasting principles (yin yang)

41A: Slip acknowledgement (I goofed). Priceless...although the word looks funny sitting there.

59A: All-natural abode (igloo).

26D: A little after, timewise (ten past). They continue to come up with different ways to clue telling time.

32D: Good sign? (halo). Not omen.

44D: Words on a heart (be mine). Not timely, but sweet.

I need to keep this one short. I have an early morning appointment with the orthopedic surgeon to see the MRI results and determine where we'll go with my shoulder. I take some small amount of comfort in the fact that the injury isn't age-related. For some reason, it's more acceptable/tolerable to have a sports-related injury. I'm a sick human being.

Linda G

Friday, May 18 - David Quarfoot

David Quarfoot + Friday puzzle = too hard for me.

I've worked on this puzzle for the better part of an hour and a half and have maybe 20 answers. My neck and upper back are tingling -- a sure sign that I need to give it up and go to bed.

Fellow blogger Rex Parker will be very happy to see this puzzle. I'm very happy to let him solve it, and I look forward to reading his blog in the morning.

This link will take you to his May archives...you'll have to scroll down from there. No peeking at other puzzles!

One of these days, I'll finish a Quarfoot.

Today is not that day.

But it is almost the weekend. Be safe and have fun.

Linda G