Sunday, December 28, 2014, C.C. Burnikel

Theme: I'm thinking of a number between 1 and 8.... 

Today I get to ESPouse some comments on this ESPcially fun puzzle by our Extra Special Puzzlemistress C.C.!

ESP Testing in Ghostbusters. Remember which subject did well?

Seeing SPIRIT and SPEED early sent me down a blind theme alley but then I saw the very clever ESP grouping split between two words as either ...E SP... or ...ES P... Seven Across and two Down. Coupled with her always fun cluing made for an enjoyable time on this last Sunday of 2014.

Theme Answers

23A. Nonconformist : FREE SPIRIT 

33A. Roadword warning : REDUCE SPEED

45A. Candy that comes in three colors : REESES PIECES - E.T's favorite!

70A. X Games pursuits : EXTREME SPORTS - Knock yourself out! Probably will.

89A. Position held three times by Henry Clay : HOUSE SPEAKER - LBJ knocked heads together and got more things done than as VP.

103A. Athlete's setback : ANKLE SPRAIN 

117A. Pledge drive talk, essentially : SALES PITCH - Like during this fabulous show

15D. Colorado Gold Rush area : PIKES PEAK - The temp dropped 50˚F as we rode the Cog R.R. to the top

80D. Polite acceptance : YES PLEASE

...and the Reveal:

97D. One with the ability hidden in nine puzzle answers : PSYCHIC - The reveal! How come they aren't  getting rich by betting on football or playing the lottery?

Across

1. Holed, as a putt : SUNK - "It's in the hole!" Caddyshack

5. Gives and takes : SWAPS 

10. Unlit : SOBER - Clever. 

15. Showy display ; POMP - Hey, whatever floats your boat...

19. Neat as : A PIN - A wifely trait that my daughter's didn't get

20. ____ firma : TERRA - Some of California's TERRA sometimes is not so firma 

21. Butt (in) : CHIME

22. Google Nexus competitor : iPAD - Joann always seems to have hers out despite not wanting one initially 

25. Predecessor of Begin : RABIN

26. Superman's cover : KENT - Really? The glasses and the curl fooled you?

27. Choice cut : FILET

28. Went for a seat : RAN - My best friend's son ran for and now has a seat in the U.S. Senate

29. British aristocrat : EARL - My favorite contribution by an Earl

30. Get hot on Twitter : TREND 

31. Longtime Guardian cartoonist Asquith : ROS 

37. Equally not : AS MAD - as a wet hen?

39. Rosemary relative : OREGANO

41. Tolkien forest giant : ENT - We might as well learn it. It's not going away

42. "Moneyball" Oscar nominee : BRAD PITT

44. Boneheads : NINNIES

48. "Gimme __!": start of a Rutgers cheer : AN R 

49. "10538 Overture" band : ELO

51. Good buddy : PAL 

52. HDTV brand : RCA - Now made by S. Korean Company, On Corp,  in China

53. Pulls a fast one on : SNOWS - Can anyone say Bernie Madoff

56. Don McLean song that begins "Starry, starry night" : VINCENT

58. Large spitz : AKITA - Built for when it 53A's

62. Parts of teacups : EARS - A tea connoisseur like C.C. would know

63. Central Utah city : OREM

65. Pomegranate color : RED - I only learned last week how to eat a Pomegranate

66. Dragon roll ingredient : EEL

68. Room to chill : DEN - Mine's my sunroom

69. Still undecided, briefly : TBA - Like televised college football games

73. Permitted : LET - In tennis LET serves are not permitted

74. Huge load : TON 

75. Uni, in sushi bars : ROE

76. You, to Goethe : SIE

77. Tax-sheltered accts. : IRAS - This is the time of year we wished they were Roth IRA's

78. They may be placed : BETS - A scene where the guy on the left BETS on 22 Black on Bogie's advice

79. Delivery expert, briefly : OB/GYN Leonard, "Raj you should be an OB/GYN like your dad". Raj, "My God Leonard, I can't even look a woman in the eye!"

81. Canal transport : GONDOLA

83. Forward : PUSHY

84. "Ich bin __ Berliner" : EIN - JFK gave Berlin hope 36 years before the wall came down

86. Has too much, briefly : ODS

87. Styling stuff : GEL - Yeah, it really works on you!

88. Pop holder : CAN - It was glass in my ute and I got 2 cents for returning them

94. Troop support mission : AIR DROP - These kept Berlin alive in '48 and '49

98. Looks for flaws in : INSPECTS - Did anyone ever get one of those bikini inspector jobs?

99. "The Royal Tenenbaums" director Anderson : WES

101. Eavesdrops, with "in" : LISTENS

102. Stretch : SPELL - Whether  is a bad SPELL of weather

107. Ottoman governor : BEY - Why do I think they weren't elected?

108. "You __ right!" : ARE SO

110. Olympian war god : ARES

111. Auction group : LOT

112. Stern with a bow : ISAAC

114. South Pacific capital : APIA - Looks pretty good from the cold prairie in December

115. Tea grade : PEKOE

119. Brings together : WEDS

120. Revise, as text : EMEND - Certainly part of this process

121. Map fleck : ISLET

122. Spice Girl Halliwell : GERI

123. Hebrides tongue : ERSE

124. Fellas : DUDES

125. Insincere : PHONY

126. Teeny amt. of time : NSEC - Time it takes for the idiot behind me to honk his horn when the light turns green. .000000001 sec

Down:

1. Paella ingredient : SAFFRON - Do you know the same song I do with SAFFRON in the lyric?

2. Existing independent of experience, in logic : A PRIORI - True by definition - All triangles have three sides? Yes. All tall people like basketball? Nope!

3. Eponymous market analyst : NIELSEN - We hated being a NIELSEN family

4. Joint where kids are welcome? : KNEE - even on artificial ones

5. Son of a Gun! vinyl protectant maker : STP

6. Oddballs : WEIRDOS - Big Bang is making Oddballs more mainstream

7. Pianist Claudio : ARRAU - No chance

8. Royal issue : PRINCE - There's probably one in the POMP picture above

9. Held court : SAT 

10. Junkyard metal : SCRAP - We got $20 for our old barbecue grill

11. Midwest hub : O'HARE - a "gots to have" even when just connecting through O'HARE

12. Fundamentalist region : BIBLE BELT - I think I live in the buckle of that belt

13. Longtime Brit. music label : EMI

14. Second-home income, perhaps : RENT 

16. Feature of club nights for wannabes : OPEN MIC

17. Official order : MANDATE

18. Safeco Field summer hrs. : PDT - Beautiful home of the Seattle Mariners close to the Puget Sound

24. Stretches to the limit : STRAINS

29. Where el sol rises : ESTE

31. Extremists : RADICALS - One man's radical is another's champion

34. Ernest Moniz's dept. : ENER - The present's Secretary of Energy

35. 2001 scandal subject : ENRON - Substitute Kenneth Lay for Bernie Madoff from above

36. Who and No: Abbr. : DRS - or J and Dre

38. Rehab hurdle : DTS - My dad went through these

40. Chews (on) : GNAWS 

43. National Humor Mo. : APR

46. Blunted blades : EPEES - Could someone look up how often we've had this word in 2014?

47. Construction site sight : SANDPILE 

49. Continually : EVER -"ForEVER and EVER, Hallelujah, Hallelujah" are words in of one of the most beautiful vocal pieces ever penned

50. Citrus drink : LIME SODA - Usually Lemon/Lime

53. Squabble : SET TO

54. Big wheel : NABOB - Would have remained in obscurity without Spiro Agnew needing alliteration with Nattering and Negativity

55. Borneo rainforest denizen : ORANG - My daughter's friend was told to stay behind the orange line when walking by the ORANG cages at the Omaha Zoo. They were smart, strong and had long arms.

57. Words to live by : CREED 

59. Wastes time : IDLES

60. Brush targets : TEETH - Joann tell the grandkids "It's time to tickle the ivories"

61. Fidgeting : ANTSY - Ever teach a Kindergarten class?

63. Good Grips kitchenware brand : OXO

64. Google Maps offering: Abbr. : RTE

66. Depression __ : ERA - Even with expendable cash, Joann's mother still shops like it's the dirty 30's

67. "The X-Files" extras : ETS -Spielberg had the one that liked REESE'S PIECES "phone home" in his movie

70. Two-time British Open champ : ERNIE ELS - It's said his swing is identical to Michelle Wie's. Not much else ;-)

71. Belarus capital : MINSK

72. __ exam : ORAL - Never had to take one

78. Cake pan trademark : BUNDT

81. Gets buff? : GOES NAKED

82. Role-playing game beasts : OGRES

83. Carrot cousin : PARSNIP - I've never crossed the path of this veggie

85. Pres. advisory team : NSC - JFK and the NSC said no to missiles in Cuba and Khrushchev blinked

88. DXV ÷ V : CIII - If the forum has DXV togas and V senators, how many does each get?

89. "To each __ own" : HIS - this song was #1 for three performers in my birth year

90. Hypothetically : ON PAPER - Where this made sense

91. Handles for surfers : USER IDS

92. National org. with the slogan "everychild. onevoice" : PTA

93. "Babe" extras : EWES - Did they say their lines sheepishly?

94. Twelve Steps support group : ALA TEEN - Could'a used that growing up

95. Money-back lures : REBATES - Just take 'em off the price and save some paper

96. Plot size, perhaps : ONE ACRE

100. Make waves, in a way : SPLASH

104. Danish coin : KRONE

105. Victoria Quarter city : LEEDS - Third largest city in the UK. Been there, Steve?

106. Rich boy in "Nancy" comics : ROLLO - Richie Rich was in a different venue

109. Rebuttal piece, perhaps : OP-ED

113. Fire __ : SIGN - Ares, Leo and Sagittarius 

114. Leave wide-eyed : AWE

116. Feathered six-footer : EMU - Not that's a REAL Big Bird!

117. Nurse : SIP

118. Muddy home : STY

My ESP tells me I'd better get busy with my chores! Thanks for a lovely Sunday Puzzle and all you do for us "Denizens Of The Puzzle"! 

Three more days until 2015. Does anyone know of any unbreakable resolutions?

Sunday, September 21, C.C. Burkinel

Theme: Taco Filling

We are very close to the autumnal equinox of equal day and night and I'm sure you'll find this puzzle will give you an equal measure of fun themeage and sparkling fill. It's not jusT A COincidence that our lovely blog mistress is today's constructor! Where else could a brilliant woman from China construct a puzzle about Hispanic food but in America? As she wrote, WHAT A COUNTRY!

C.C. has identified the word TACO as being the filling between words in common phrases just as these fillings below are used in actual tacos! ¡Muy Bueno!

Four of her theme fills were the last two letters of one word and the first two of another

23A. Nissan Bluebird competitor : TOYOTA CORONA - Became the number one nameplate in the world in 1997 surpassing the VW Beetle

66A. February 1945 summit : YALTA CONFERENCE - Many thought FDR was very sick at this conference. He died two months later.

88. Strong morning drink : ROBUSTA COFFEE- One of the two main types

115. Christmas rental : SANTA COSTUME - Argyle apparel?

and three used the A as an article

29A. "That's enough out of you!" : PUT A CORK IN IT 

45A. Didn't panic : KEPT A COOL HEAD - Despite someone saying "Put a cork in it"

108A. Yakov Smirnoff catchphrase : WHAT A COUNTRY - Part of his funny 1985 beer commercial

Add in great six ten-letter vertical fills and learning and we have an very nice Sunday!

Across
    
1. Gardener's enemy : APHID - Literally small suckers

6. C to C, say : OCTAVE - It's the interval between Some and where when you sing Somewhere Over the Rainbow. OH COME ON, you tried it, didn't you?

12. Anti-drug ads, e.g. : PSA'S - Public Service Announcements. There are some graphic anti-texting ones out now

16. Try a little of : SIP 

19. World's largest energy consumer : CHINA - It takes a lot for 1.3 billion people

 
20. Like some pullovers : HOODED

21. No-luck link : SUCH - CCR sang "I ain't no senator's son"

22. Likewise : TOO

25. Family rec center : YMCA - The largest one in North America will be here in Fremont, NE after the aquatic center is added this fall

26. Unified : ONE - Italy just before it was unified

27. Artist Yoko : ONO

28. Berserk : AMOK

32. Conclude one's case : REST - TV's Perry Mason seldom had to REST his case before someone jumped up and confessed in open court

34. Bordeaux bud : AMI 

35. They bite : TEETH - so do these in your TACO

36. Notable survivor of the Trojan War : AENEAS - Also Homer's subject in The Aeneid

37. Felix Leiter's org., in Bond films : CIA - Anybody remember Gust Avrakotus?

38. Golfer's pocketful : TEES - They can be hard to get in the ground in February

40. Pen handle? : BIC - Ever had a waiter with a dozen in his apron?

42. German gripe : ACH - Is ACH du lieber (ADL) "OMG" in Deutsch?

43. Storied ball dropper : GALILEO - I didn't try it but I was where he did it more than 400 yrs after the event

52. CCXI x V : MLV - Just a minute...

53. Attila, for one : HUN - Did someone ever call him "hon"?

54. Firth or fjord : INLET

55. 1,000-yr. realm : HRE - On what show did Linda Richman say, "The Holy Roman Empire was neither Holy, Roman nor an Empire, Discuss..."

56. Org. that promotes hunter safety : NRA

57. Sour British brew : ALEGAR - VineGAR made from ALE according to Webster

59. Sno-Cat feature : TREAD - Keep that end down and the tin side up

60. __ Mason: investment giant : LEGG - Okay

61. Lang. of Luther : GER - He wrote his 95 Theses in Latin which were then translated into his native German. The original Castle Cathedral door in Wittenburg, where they were posted, burned but his Theses are on the bronze door there now

62. Mmes., in La Mancha : SRAS

63. Lamb Chop creator Lewis : SHARI

64. Cartoon girl with a talking backpack : DORA - The Explorer, but how 'bout Dumb DORA

65. Campus bigwig : DEAN - Wormer?

70. Doggy bag item : BONE

73. "__ you one" : I OWE - Can I get that in writing?

74. Creek croakers : TOADS

75. Meat order specification : LEAN - Makes for the best TACOS

78. "Just the Way You __" : ARE - She loved me that way when we were first married...

79. Works at home, maybe : UMPS - Going unnoticed is a perfect game for them

80. Prepares, as for action : GIRDS

81. Heavy herbivores : HIPPOS - Africa's most dangerous animal after the mosquito

83. Remote button : REW 

84. Milano Mr. : SIG - Signore abbr.

85. Split causes : RIFTS - A 1912 Republican RIFT gave us POTUS Woodrow Wilson

86. PC-to-PC system : LAN - Local Area Network

87. Letter before chi : PHI

91. Like a sleeping baby : ANGELIC 

93. "Wheel of Fortune" buy : AN E - Thanks Vanna!

94. Lap dog, briefly : POM - ...eranian

95. Newspaper section : ARTS - Ah yes, the thea-tuh!

97. Crossed paths with : MET - Remember the guy going to St. Ives?

98. City with a Kansas State campus : SALINA

101. Café lighteners : LAITS - Cafe au lait- I'll have mine straight up Mr. Barista

105. WWII domain : ETO - European Theater of Operations

106. USAF noncom : TSGT - Tech Sargent (E-6)

110. Corn holder : SILO - Also missiles

112. "That feels so nice!" : AAH

113. Rand who created John Galt : AYN

114. Political period : TERM - Some would love limits on these


118. Weightlifting beneficiary : PEC - Want good PECS?

119. Actress Lena : OLIN

120. Oscar winner Kidman : NICOLE - She won while she was still feeling empty after her divorce from Tom

121. Spikes, as punch : LACES - Field goal holders are supposed to get the football LACES away from the kicker

122. Atlanta-to-Miami dir. : SSE

123. Teases, with "on" : RAGS

124. Initial phases : ONSETS

125. Quite heavy : OBESE

 Down:

 1. Lineman? : ACTOR - Clever! I have nightmares about acting and not knowing my lines

2. Mealtime annoyances : PHONE CALLS - It's an election year


3. Classic Western shout : HI YO SILVER

4. Rescuer of Odysseus : INO - I learned her name and gender

5. Some Dropbox contents : DATA

6. "Seriously!" : OH COME ON

7. Browsing activity marker : COOKIE - I clear these out of my browser periodically

8. A.L. East team : TOR - onto Bluejays


9. Become a mother, maybe : ADOPT - We did ADOPT a kitten on September 10th and she saw no reason why  I should be doing my LA Times Crossword on my lap desk as I do every morning

10. Field of action : VENUE

11. Skype appointment : E DATE - Okay

12. Futures dealer? : PSYCHIC - Hey pick the lotto numbers!

13. Sport with a referee called a gyoji : SUMO - The gyoji had better stand back!


14. Ghana's capital : ACCRA - Home to 2.3 million


15. "Hurry up!" : SHAKE A LEG

16. Wiltshire monument : STONEHENGE - The Autumnal Equinox tomorrow will draw an, uh, interesting crowd to STONE HENGE

17. Ancient region of Asia Minor : IONIA - Now in Turkey


18. Millay and Milton : POETS - Edan St. Vincent and John respectively

24. Bobby Jones, for his entire golfing career : AMATEUR - He made his living as a lawyer and retired from competition at 30

30. Time to swing : AT BAT - A C.C. puzzle without baseball? OH COME ON!

31. Snow measure : INCH - One inch of rain can equal ten inches of show. We had a three inch rain last week...

33. __ chi : TAI

39. Downhill, e.g. : SKI RACE - Going down a mountain on two slats at interstate highway speeds? What could possibly go wrong, Marti?

41. Makes sense : COHERES

43. Robin Roberts' show, initially : GMA - Good Morning America. Also the great first line to the chorus of City of New Orleans

44. Jokhang Temple city : LHASA

46. Cuban Liberation Day month : ENERO

47. Court figure : PLAINTIFF - PLAINTIFF Stella Liebeck wanted $18,000 from McDonalds for spilling hot coffee on her leg. They refused and she wound up with $600,000 from a court

48. "Airplane!" hero Striker : TED - Funniest movie ever?

49. It has keys and stops : ORGAN - Where do you even start?

50. Geometry product : AREA

51. "Shucks!" : DARN

58. "Let's Get It On" singer : GAYE - Marvin

59. Signs of spring : THAWS -


60. Men with manors : LORDS - Cute! LORD Grantham will be back in his Downton Manor soon on PBS!

63. Temporary fix : STOP GAP - Stop gap tax levies never seem to go away

64. Jordan River outlet : DEAD SEA - Lowest land point on the planet

65. Like some pockets : DEEP

67. Put a cap on : LIMIT - A LIMIT OF five potato chips? Yeah, right!


68. Strong suit : FORTE

69. Hold on tight : CLING

70. Virologist who worked with Epstein : BARR - Nearly 95% of adults have had had the Epstein Barr Virus sometime in their life

71. Layered snack : OREO

72. Big name in athletic shoes : NEW BALANCE

76. Nonsense : APPLESAUCE - Famous APPLESAUCE scene with horrible Bogie imitation from cheesy TV

77. Koufax quartet : NO HIT GAMES - One of the true gentlemen of the game who also retired at 30 because of extreme arm pain from his incredible curve ball

79. Clay or Webster, briefly : US SENATOR

80. Picture file suffix : GIF

81. Millennium Falcon pilot : HAN SOLO - Princess Leia became Mrs. HAN SOLO in the book series

82. [Not a typo] : SIC - Yore (SIC) enjoying C.C. puzzle, ain't (SIC) you?

85. Punic Wars fighter : ROMAN - How Rome beat Hannibal and the Carthaginians

86. Some fruit pie crusts : LATTICES

89. Workbook chapter : UNIT - Unit One in science books is always measurement

90. Op-Ed pieces : COLUMNS

92. Rescue pro : EMT - We have full time ones here but small towns depend on volunteers

96. Add more flavoring to : RE-SALT - The driveway has frozen over again and so...

98. Exchanges : SWAPS

99. "Now I remember" : AH YES - A big part of the song Maurice Chevalier sang to Hermione Gingold

100. Amtrak express : ACELA - Capable of 150 mph

102. "__ big deal!" : IT'S NO 

103. Get ready for a fight : TRAIN - On his first morning of TRAINING, Rocky drank raw eggs. Remember?

104. Matches audio to video, say : SYNCS - The Husker radio broadcast does not SYNC with the TV. The audio for the Fresno game was 3 seconds late

107. This and that : THESE

109. HP Photosmart insert : ORIG - Don't forget your ORIG. on the HP copier

111. Where the Storting makes legislative decisions : OSLO

116. Ballet support? : TOE

117. Check : TAB