Easy, quick solve; but fun. We need more like this one.
Still catching up from being in Europe.
May be back on track. This was a “Solve”. Beat my average by a respectable amount.
Figured out PARALLEL PARKS based on pattern of circles but just blew by the “PARKS” part and finished without help from the theme itself.
When I actually saw the park names, I was gob-smacked. How do they DO these things???
1
“Storms like the wind in her eyes” was what I have been singing for like 30 years now. Today I learned...
Oooh, I liked this one!!
Loved the parallel parks, and have been to three. Some day I hope to get to Acadia and Archer as well.
Thank you John, for a very fun Tuesday!
1
Here's a late-in-the-day entry about a fictional parking scenario, though the parking is head-in, not parallel.
In June, 1968, I was on a school trip to New York City, during which we visited Radio City Music Hall, where we saw a Rockettes stage show, followed by a viewing of "The Odd Couple" (Matthau and Lemmon). Before the feature, there was a short comic film which (I think) was titled "Space." (I couldn't find the film on YouTube, so here's a description.)
It followed the misfortunes of a man trying to park in a large parking lot at a shopping center, and for a long time, not finding a space.
When he finally does find a space, he manages to slip his car in between two very closely spaced neighboring cars. But he can't get out of the car. The left door won't open far enough, nor will the right. Same front and back. He tries going through a window, but no go. In the course of all these antics, he drops his keys on the ground, and when he tries to retrieve them, he only knocks them under the car hopelessly out of reach.
At last, he gives up and settles in to wait for one of the other cars to move. Final shot: night. The man is asleep. His car and the two neighboring cars are still there. As the camera pulls back, we see that they are the only three cars remaining in the entire lot.
Maybe not the most hilarious film ever. But 18-year-old me enjoyed it well enough to remember 50+ years later.
6
Nice touch on 45D (Lennon), given that today is Yoko's birthday.
3
Some toughies for a Tuesday: BREE, LABAN, ARDENCY, MONADS, SENSEI, SARA and EILEEN (as clued), and CERBERUS.
26A: Remember Jethro Bodine? 😊
4
@Ron
I believe we had Uncle Jed just the other day.
A wonderful theme!
Out with the dotard and protect our parks!
5
I upgraded the operating system on my Mac laptop last night (the up side: I can now see the proper emojis on the Emoji Movie puzzle! yay!). The down side--the first four times I tried to get to Spelling Bee, all I saw was seven gigantic solid black hexagons. And when I tried to comment and/or reply to a comment here, either the "Share your thoughts" box just disappeared, or nothing happened. I finally got a box to show up, so I'm hoping this goes through. And I was finally able to get into Spelling Bee. But everything is v-e-r-y s-l-o-w so far, as I test things out and see what works and what doesn't, so I may not be spending much time here until things settle down.
Anyway, I enjoyed the puzzle, even though I don't remember a whole lot of details about it (did it on my phone last night). I did like seeing those diagonal lines of the parks.
2
@Liz B
Depending on what you upgraded from, there may be a lot going on behind the scenes for a while, which will slow other things down. But once that's done and things are properly sorted, it should speed up. Good luck!
Good Tuesday effort that was easy on the surface but took a couple of passes to complete.
One new-to-me word: MONADS
One word excavated from deep memory: CERBERUS
One cross-out: ma'am before SIRE
One sad reminder of age-related loss: PARALLEL PARK (I've been demoted from Wizard of Tight Spaces because of decline in depth perception).
4
A quick solve today; really enjoyed the clever construction and theme.
My only question about the puzzle is why the word quarterly was included in 8D. Seems a bit superfluous. Don't all paystubs include YTD figures?
1
Mary,
Yes, superfluous. Perhaps a Tuesday-level misdirection?
3
This was definitely a bit more challenging for me than the average Tuesday, but that is not a bad thing!
1
Deb, I like your clues and writing as much as I like solving the puzzles. Keep it up!
14
hey Deb -- where's the right place for feedback on the various online games? Love Vertex, but it drives me crazy I can't see past puzzles or do those I missed (for that matter ditto on Spelling Bee)!
3
@ethan f.
Go to the bottom of the puzzle screen under SUPPORT and click on "Send Feedback."
Yeah, I got sidetracked halfway through the Sunday Vertex and never finished it. My chicken remained headless. Would have liked to be able to go back and finish it!
1
@ethan f.
[email protected]
The theme was clever and it was fun to see the parks. It went quickly and smoothly for me. I found the unusual entries, such as ARDENCY, were guessable from crosses. I got SARA from crosses too, as I didn’t remember the song (though I’m the right age for it). LABAN just popped into my head, so I must have heard it at some point, even though I’m no biblical expert. I loved seeing KEISTERS; it’s just a funny word somehow. I checked on its origin and it was first attested as a slang word used by burglars for a sort of tool box. The origin is uncertain but possibly from the German and Yiddish “Kriste” meaning box. Alternative spellings are keester, keyster, and kiester, so we could see those in a future puzzle.
3
This is the kind of puzzle I like to show to non-puzzle friends, so they can understand why the NYTX is special.
12
Our constructor wrote:
"Triple-checked squares are a construction challenge..."
I'm sure they are, John, and you did a great job, but are they really "triple-checked?" Only in special circumstances do the editors permit an "unchecked" square (i.e., one that is not crossed). If the usual across and down agreement is "checking," shouldn't adding another dimension (as in today's diagonals) be "double-checking?"
IMHO YMMV
2
Barry Ancona, good point! And rather subtle. To ensure that three items, say x, y, z, are equal, only two equalities need be verified.
3
@polymath OK, I can see I have even more to learn than I previously imagined. This conversation officially goes well beyond my meager understanding of crossword construction—in fact, it’s reminding me of when I hit a wall and dropped Calc 2 my freshman year of college!
1
Kate,
You learned it in high school (or earlier).
If x=y and y=z, you know without further "checking" that x=z.
2
I wonder if the parents of the girl in the picture knew when they named her that MARAVILLA is Spanish for marvel or wonder.
@Steve L
Hmm. Google the photo and you'll see this caption (sic):
"Mara Gonzalez, center, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, failed her driving test last Wednesday in Denver. Credit...Matthew Staver for The New York Times"
Makes one wonder about the editors.
1
Actually, what this made me wonder was, why would anyone bother to Google this image, but maybe that’s just me. (I’m also wondering about the editors, a little.)
@Zoe Baker
The NYT recycles some of its own images and uses other sources. It is occasionally interesting to see in what context the photos may have been originally published, but maybe that's just me.
Letter Boxed
Tried to find a word that complemented MULTICULTURAL, but couldn't
Instead I got:
C - S (9), S - Y (6)
1
@EskieF
Still working on today’s.
Yesterday I had: BLEND DEPRAVITY
Letter Boxed answer was: PARABLE EVIDENTLY
@EskieF A variant on yours I think:
C-R(8), R-S(7)
1
@EskieF
I got V-R(8), R-C(8) today.
Cute theme, which I fully grokked only after finishing.. Probably my fastest solve of any Tuesday NYT, thanks to some lucky guesses. Ouchless before tearless, urgency before ardency. (Didn't know ardency was a word.) I love national parks and hope to visit Arches and Denali someday, having visited Redwood, Acadia, and Glacier.
1
Note to Mr. Guzzetta: saw and enjoyed all the parks featured today, and I just finished a loop that covered eight more. My total so far is 51. Hang in there!
4
I'd like to see KIA or ORA clued as a part of Maori greeting KIA ORA just once*.
It is one of the, if not _the_ most beautifully sounding "hello" I've ever heard, and would be a great nod to Maori culture. While the word MAORI has appeared as an answer quite often in NYT (that combination of common letters must have saved a constructor or two), never ever did it appear as a clue - not even for HAKA, which still awaits it New York Times debut.
I know most people don't know the greeting, but it can be eased in with simple crossings the first few times. And then, you'll be happy you learned it. I mean, just go on and say it - KIA ORA - and tell me it doesn't sound lovely!
*Actually it was clued like this once, in 1986, but as a part of "Australian" toast. Oh, dear.
4
Loved this. Especially the parks and the parallel parking. My favorite kind of puzzle.
1
Hooray for national parks! In ACADIA I got to see a male Blackburnian warbler close enough to admire it without binocs. So beautiful.
3
Just as I once marveled at the bigger-than-life majesty of the REDWOODs, today I marvel at the sheer mastery of John Guzzetta's construction skills. Weaving those parks diagonally through the grid, including the revealer, well, wow, just wow!
John, it is with sincere ARDENCY I applaud you!
7
Have I ever DNFed on a Tuesday puzzle before now? I don't think so. But I ran the alphabet three times when I had ?EARLESS for "like baby shampoo" and couldn't come up with TEARLESS. What on earth is TEARLESS baby shampoo? I use grown-up shampoo and I'm pretty sure it doesn't have any TEARS in it, either. And of course I didn't know ?CU for the "Horned Frogs School". What kind of nickname is that for any self-respecting school? (Sorry Texas or Tennessee or Tampa or Trenton or Toronto or whatever that "T" stands for.)
I also realize that I have never heard or seen the name LABAN in my life. How is that even possible when Rachel and Leah are so well-known? I've never claimed to be any kind of expert on the Bible, but really Nancy!!! Maybe I only skimmed that chapter?
Other than that, I liked this puzzle a lot. I thought the theme was based on a clever double meaning of the word PARKS. I thought the PARKS were useful in helping with the solve. Or in my case the non-solve. And I appreciated such un-Tuesday-like fill as DICTA, DOTARD and MONADS. A very nice job.
3
@Nancy The TEARLESS answer is a reference to the old Johnson's Baby Shampoo ad slogan..."No more tears."
3
...and TCU has been clued as Horned Frogs 16 times before in the Shortz era, so there's that.
3
@Barry Ancona --
...but who's counting? :)
1
TIL a possible origin of the name Cerberus (the multi-headed dog of the Greek god Hades) is the Proto-Indo-European word k̑érberos, meaning "spotted". Hades' dog might have literally been named "Spot".
I think this idea has been debunked, but it is still funny...
8
@Algernon C Smith
I always wondered if each head had its own name...
3
Guess I’ll wait for Wednesday’s print edition to see what the village (9 down) is, Bree or Dree.
1
Paladin,
I give up: why?
(If the link in the column to the answer key is coming up blank, try it again; I found it. Or, go to xword.info.)
1
@Paladin
Or ask one of us... (it's BREE). ;-)
I'm not sure if you can call AdSORB(tion) soaking up, as it's more of a "clinging to". The chemistry folk can correct me if I'm wrong tho...
2
@Barry
I don’t do the puzzle online and don’t have access to the online version.
Nice puzzle and was buzzing along til But screwed up 18A as REBATE instead of RECALL, so ended up finishing in NE. Hard a hard time figuring out what park ARBH__ was, and eventually realized the right answer and everything filled nicely.
2
@Mark Josephson REFUND also fits! 🤦♀️
Yes I thought of that too. And that would lead to just as much fun as I had with the crosses and the park name.
Random question: whenever I click subscribers can take a peek at the answer key I get a blank page. I am a crossword and NYT subscriber and signed in on an Android phone. Anyone else encounter this?
2
@lpr
Sometimes the link gets lost on it's way to the web page... you can always go to www.xwordinfo.com to see the completed grid (and read a wonderful review by Jeff Chen) if the NYT link is confused...
lpr,
The link is working; I can't vouch for Android.
Loved this one, as an ardent fan of the outdoors who knows and loves all of the parks — as well as a New Yorker who prides myself on getting me car into tight spots! The “aha” moment when I got the theme and the park names fell into place put a smile on my face that usually only comes on Sundays.
3
Had my education about the traffic in the US ended with about a million movies I watched as a kid, I would be totally perplexed about that "getting a car into tight spots" part you mention.
I knew back then that when an American wants to park (preferably while covertly following a nefarious vehicle in front of them), they just spontaneously make an elegant slide to the side and - voilá! - the car is parked.
Where I still had my doubts is whether their cars had a reverse gear and if so, what it was used for.
2
Very nice puzzle. Putting the parks on the diagonal took it to another level. I've visited all the parks in the puzzle except for DENALI. I was in Alaska once, but only for about two hours. I was also only about 6 years old when we visited ACADIA on a family trip so I don't remember it well. Great memories of all the others.
Probably been to Yellowstone the most times and it's a favorite, but people are sometimes surprised to know that one of my very favorites is Death Valley. Just something subliminally impacting about it. And it also has my all-time favorite park sign, overlooking the lowest point in the U.S.. The caption reads, "But it's a dry heat."
On that note, my answer history search today was for ZABRISKIE. Nope - never been in any puzzle, with or without 'point.'
5
"I was in Alaska once, but only for about two hours."
Rich,
Twice, about two hours each time.
(Short)
2
@Barry Ancona
I also spent about two hours in the 49th state. I believe I was coming back from the same country as Barry and Rich. But on the way to that country, I spent about two hours in the 50th state. Later, I spent more time in the 50th state.
@Carl I'm guessing you were married? When I was there that was a requirement for taking R&R in that state.
I was scheduled to go to Australia but never made it that far. Have always hoped to make it there someday but I think the chances are slim at this point.
1
While I appreciate the clever theme. This was the first Tuesday puzzle I didn't even come close to solving in three years.
Here are just a few of the words I've never heard of: ARDENCY, DICTA, LABAN (was a baptist church kid, never heard of him), BAYING, TERRARIA, BASSI, MONADS.
A 1930's boxing champ? One town in an epic trilogy? No musical references in the last 45 years?
Please, just one Beyoncé reference next time.
4
This Baptist church kid knew Laban as the guy who tricked Jacob into working 7 years to marry his love Rebekah. When the time was up, Laban secretly switched the bride to sister Leah. So Jacob had 7 more years of work to acquire Rebekah.
As to the rest of your unknown words? Live and learn.
3
@DW Rachel and Leah were the sisters. Rebekah was someone else. I had to look this up last night and have already forgotten the details...
@Dave
Gosh, Dave. Of course you are right. This is what happens when I rely on memory rather than researching to confirm. I never forgot the story because it was such a raw deal for Jacob.
1
I enjoyed this one.
I got my driver's license at the age of 14 (yes, fourteen). It was technically a learner's license that automatically became a full license on my 16th birthday. At that time my only restriction was that I needed a licensed passenger who was at least 18 years old.
While 14-year-olds can still get licenses in Arkansas now, the restrictions are (only slightly) more stringent. They can also get hardship licenses that allow them to drive alone in certain circumstances. When I was young, the hardship license was available to . . . 12-year-olds.
2
@ABelsey (I mention Arkansas because that's where I grew up. I'm now in the UK where, as far as I know, there are no 12-year-old drivers.)
1
@ABelsey
To be fair, there isn't much out there to hit....
To all of you Arkansans (or Arkansawyers, whichever you prefer), I know it's probably a vibrant, wonderful state, but as Steve Martin once said, "Comedy is not pretty".
After 20 years of being a volunteer wilderness first responder and trainer of same I offer up three bits of advice:
1. Always carry 3 ways to light a fire when hiking. Drier lint and fine (OOO) steel wool make excellent tinder.
2. Lost? Sit down and build a fire. The fire gives you something to do, keeps you warm and signals where you are.
3. Tell someone where you are going and arrange a time to reconnect. When in National Parks you can tell a ranger.
Final words. When one is lost one tends to walk in a circle. To test this out close your eyes and walk across a large open space. When you open your eyes you will find you have drifted to the right or left depending on your dominant hand. Looking for someone who is lost? Ask if they are left or right handed and send one person straight ahead and two or more to the right of left depending on the answer.
Oh the puzzle.....
Happy to see DOTARD in the grid. Now if only curmudgeon....
19
Your points are so excellent I took a screenshot of your post. Thanks!
2
Loved the parks theme. I just received a great picture of my son and great grandson amongst the REDWOODS, bringing back nice memories of camping in beautiful parks. We camped in many over the years and for me the most beautiful was GLACIER, so I agree with Elke.
I did find it more of a Wednesday level of difficulty but managed to keep my weekly 2 day streak alive.
As always, so impressed with the effort that went into making the theme work.
6
@suejean I visited GLACIER for the first time just a few years ago with one of my sons. Quite a memorable trip and it quickly jumped close to the top of my list of favorites.
I've also matched your 2 day streak. Who knows - one of these weeks we might just get past that 7 day record.
2
Almost spit out my coffee when I read Deb's story about the stop sign.
3
@Marcia Fidler
The first time I took my test for a driver's license, everything was going fine until I was somehow heading right for a parked car by the side of the road, and the person giving the test had to grab the wheel and steer us away from it. Once things had settled down, I said to him "So that was probably bad... right?". He said nothing about it and politely asked me to make my way back to the starting point of the test. I passed the 2nd one with flying colors, but never quite got over how badly I had botched the first...
@Steve Faiella: As the examiner and I walked out to the car for my driving test, it suddenly occurred to me that I had never actually started the car before. So I closed my eyes, prayed, and turned the key. I doubt that the prompt start of that engine was actually a miracle, but it sure felt like one.
2
That story was hilarious!😂
When I took my driving test I was driving my parents older car with no power steering. I pretty much flunked the parallel parking section.
But since we lived in a suburb where you almost never had to parallel park, the tester took pity on me and coached me through it. Now of course I live in Seattle where one often has to parallel park. Still not my top skill but much improved!
I agree with Deb. A more difficult Tuesday than normal but doable.
4
Loved this puzzle! I share the love of our National Parks and trails, and the fear of overly powerful DOTARDS who don't get it.
I passed my driving test first time out, on my sixteenth birthday (yes I am bragging), PARALLEL PARKing the family station wagon while a group of dudes looked skeptically on. I was not going to let them have the satisfaction!
Finally, the puzzle gave me a wry remembrance of the comedian Mitch Hedberg: "I USED TO do drugs. I still do drugs, but I USED TO, too." RIP
10
@Ann I drove a tiny tercel when I took my test just to be sure. My son didn't even have to parallel park for his test, but he's better at it than I am. I've gotten better recently, because I've made myself do it more frequently. I still have a cheat sheet in my glove box!
1
@Megan
I have a new car with a backup camera that just takes all the fun out of it 😁
3
Enjoyed it. I remember being awe-struck at the sheer size of the REDWOODS!
1
In John's picture in XwordInfo, he's sitting in the great outdoors, donning a big hiking backpack, and I can just picture the moment he, with a passion for hiking and for making puzzles (27 in the NYT), hit this theme, that big "Yes!" echoing across the canyon.
Placing the theme answers on the diagonal, I'm guessing, forced answers not normally seen on Tuesdays, such as CERBERUS, DICTA, MONADS, LABAN, and ARDENCY. I liked that; it de-slumbered my brain, brought it to its happy place.
Right in the middle of all the puzzle's parks is Montana's GLACIER National Park, which is home to black and grizzly bears, and that's fitting, as this must have been a bear to construct, and John, thank you for that effort, which, for me, brought a taste of honey.
7
What a nice puzzle! I thought the clueless park entries added another level of fun. I’m very sure they gave a headache or two to the constructor. Congrats John. I think your decision to go diagonal made this puzzle stand out in a very good way.
On a side note, it is 2 am and I can’t sleep. Doing this puzzle did not help. Ugh.
9
SPELLING BEE THREAD
02/18/20
Center Letter: O
6 Letters: H I L M N T
43 WORDS, 151 POINTS, 2 PANGRAMS, BINGO
First letters:
H x 2, I x 1, L x 10, M x 15, N x 4, O x 4, T x 7
Word Lengths:
L4 x 26, L5 x 6, L6 x 5, L7 x 2, L8 x 1, L9 x 2, L11 x 1
Grid:
4 5 6 7 8 9 11 Tot
H 2 - - - - - - 2
I 1 - - - - - - 1
L 7 2 1 - - - - 10
M 7 2 2 2 1 1 - 15
N 1 - 1 - - 1 1 4
O 3 1 - - - - - 4
T 5 1 1 - - - - 7
Tot 26 6 5 2 1 2 1 43
63
@Greg I'm only giving general hints, & a few for words I consider really obscure.
2 cardinal numbers & their ordinals (1 of them a pangram).
1 compound word of a list word plus another not on list.
2 birds: 1 a water fowl & other a small one from New Zealand.
Other words:
Otter den
Abbrev. of plate printing technique
Drudgery, archaic
Gangster girlfriend
Large upright stone block, pangram
39
@Kevin Davis Awww, you’re not listing every clue anymore, you really had us spoiled. Thanks, thou, these clues are useful, will have to work for the rest😊
16
@Greg thank you for grid. And thank you @Kevin Davis for hints. Can never remember the New Zealand bird.
First two letter list:
HO-2
IN-1
LI-3, LO-7
MI-3, MO-12
NO-4
OL-1, OM-1, ON-2
TO-7
26
Also, TILTS IN (Today I Learned To Spell In English) - KERBEROS = CERBERUS
9
Loved it! Original idea, perfect execution, and a theme close to my heart.
I'm also most happy outdoors - while I only did a few of North American parks, my most lasting good memories are those of being in the nature on seven different continents and more seas than I can remember. I can only echo what Robert and Elke say - let us make sure we don't destroy them all.
14
If you ever get here in the New York metro area and love to see nature in its rawest power in an urban setting, I invite you to visit The Great Falls national park in Paterson, NJ. It is the site of some of the earliest manufacturing in the colonies, powered by what are truly magnificent natural falls. They are the most spectacular in winter when they are partially frozen.
If you come, take the time to visit the American Labor Museum in the next town over, Haledon, NJ. Paterson is the birthplace of the American labor movement and the area is packed full of history. It is truly an urban setting (NOT one of the shiny places, but a real place where people live) and seeing the raw power of both Nature and People in the space of a few blocks is truly inspiring.
5
Thanks! I am indeed hoping to visit the New York again soon and this sounds like a wonderful place to go.
1
This was a lot of fun, loved the long shadows clue.
The theme reminded me of an illustrator I recently came across who pairs illustrations of national parks captioned with real life one star reviews of the same.
https://instagram.com/subparparks?igshid=1yhbbzo89aaq
12
@Amber C Thank you for that link! What a hoot! Review of Yellowstone Natl. Park: "Save yourself some money. Boil some water at home." I'm dying!
7
Road trip to (nearly) every national park. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2016/08/02/how-to-visit-nearly-every-national-park-in-one-epic-road-trip/
If it was in the NYT I'm sure it'd cover them all. [wink]
3
Delightful puzzle, what a fun solve! As a longtime puzzler who's only now starting to get into the weeds: can someone explain the constructor's reference to "triple-checked squares" in his note?
1
@MM I'm not completely sure but I think it refers to those squares needing to make sense for the across, down, and in this case diagonal sense.
4
@MM I was wondering about that myself so I googled. A triple-checked square needs to be part of 3 different answers. All of the circled squares are triple-checked. They are part of a horizontal answer, a vertical answer, and a diagonal answer.
5
and Elke
AHA- PARKS. Have been to all -except DENALI (or McKinley as it was once known ). Urge all to get to GLACIER before they (the glaciers) all melt away. That same heat makes going to ARCHES not in the heat of summer a wise idea.
Learning to PARALLEL PARK may not be a TEARLESS exercise-some people (ahem) will drive several blocks to find a "nose in" spot.
I RECALL Sal MINEO as Dov Landau in "Exodus"- , another not TEARLESS affair .
A PLEA -the North American National Parks are treasures to be protected from DOTARDS who see logging , ranching and mining in their future,
So, thanks to John G. for raising this issue with this nice puzzle.
19
Great Tuesday.
Appreciated the theme, and circle placement.
Also, congrats for not clueing 40across with Eno...
8
@Newbie
The entry BRIAN has never been associated with the clue "Eno". I think there is enough of him the other way around!
1
@Andrew - hey, this little thread inspired a clue for me:
"Eno, for one" (ten letters)
palindrome
3
@David Connell
Masterclass. You need to repost this in tonight’s (tomorrow) wordplay. It’ll get a lot more eyes.
A very intricate puzzle and full marks to the constructor. It reminds me of those meals which my wife takes an hour of hard work to cook and we ungrateful souls demolish in ten minutes. If my solving time is average I'll wager it took Mr Guzetta 100 times that to make it.
21
So great! I admit, I didn’t even notice the parks theme until reading the blog. I think it’s a sign I need to slow down and enjoy the experience of filling out the puzzle, noticing what the constructor has slipped in...instead of just racing every day. 🤷🏽♀️
15
@Mrs. King
36A pretty much spells the theme out, however I can see how one might have forgotten to look for the PARKS by the end of the solve.
Meant to add something earlier, but this isn't the one mentioned in 39D: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ozd2ja7mAgM
1
A tougher than usual Tuesday (for me at least). Could have been a Thursday except no trickery. Keep it up!
3
My favorite PARALLEL PARKS story is set in NYC. My wife and I were walking and a car was leaving a parking place. Apparently a guy a half block away looked in his rear view mirror and sped in reverse. He arrived at the parking spot to back in at the same time a woman was going in front end, such that each had half the spot.
There was much screaming and yelling and referencing the other one's mother's marriage status at their birth. Never did find out who won
8
@coloradoz
Mine was in Greenwich Village in the 80s. A man was trying to squeeze into a tight space and directed his female companion to go outside and help guide him in. After several unsuccessful attempts, she said to him, “I just can’t visualize the car fitting into that space.” Thirty-odd years later, my wife and I still use the line when faced with a seemingly impossible challenge.
17
@Puzzlemucker, there’s a cute parking story in last week’s Metropolitan Diary (of which I am a fan):
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/09/nyregion/metropolitan-diary.html
3
@coloradoz
Your penultimate sentence had me guessing for a while, but I finally got it!
That puzzle was a walk in the park.
(I used to be scared of going to some parks, but now I'm petrified.)
22
Mike,
Nobody is replying to you today; it is not forest to say.
9
@Mike
Perhaps this fun activity will help you with your fear of parks...
https://youtu.be/yhuMLpdnOjY
P.S. It's Tom Lehrer, so fans will know immediately what the link points to... :-)
4
Thank you for DOTARD!
What do y’all think of of a car that PARALLELPARKS itself? The ads for them are interesting. I’m wondering if I’d be wresting control back from the car, resulting in some sort of damage to the vehicle.
I saw SADE in concert during the early 90’s and she was fabulous!
https://youtu.be/T2u2eqerRks
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@Pani Korunova my car does that, and as soon as the driver touches the steering wheel, the car returns control to the driver, so no harm done.
@Pani Korunova I feel sorry for the person who owns the car that the self-driving car has parked next to, far too close to allow entry, thereby preventing that car's driver any possibility of getting into their own car.
Yes, damage to the self-parking car might ensue.
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Harps and zithers are related the way birds and bats are - which is to say, not at all.
Yes, they both have strings that are essentially played unstopped, one string per pitch in the range - just as birds and bats both have wings that flap for flying. But they are totally unrelated otherwise.
In the case of the animals, it's convergent evolution:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Convergent_evolution
The harp has strings that pass through the soundboard, that is, the harp's strings are perpendicular to its body. The zither has strings that are carried over a bridge on the soundboard, that is, parallel to its body. They define two completely separate divisions in organology (that is, musical instrument theory).
Six years ago, when the evil Russian empire which now has our "president" in thrall invaded and seized the Crimean peninsula, I played a piece on my bandura to grieve with my Ukrainian friends. (Long before, I had done my student teaching at the Ukrainian national cathedral in Philadelphia, and my students sang for Pope John Paul II when he first came to the USA and said mass at that church.)
The bandura is a lovely example of a zither in its most developed form.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uel3QAbrUqs
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@David Connell
This is interesting. I thought the same though I know nothing of organology. I kind of think the bat/bird analogy is not quite right, as both instruments have a plucked string, which is surely the common ancestor? But that might be analogous to an ancient dinosaur...
I’d like to find something about the evolution of musical instruments (might be like tackling an evolutionary biology degree).
Also, in one of my favorite movies, The Third Man, the music is referred to as zither music, but is that correct?
@Frances - as to the Third Man, yes, a particular instrument from Austria, the Alpine concert zither. If you saw the bandura in my posted link, it's very similar to that, but smaller and squarer.
Read the article on convergent evolution and you'll see how descendants of the same structure are inside those wings, but the wings themselves have different origins.
Whoever invented the first stringed instruments had to make a decision about where to stretch the strings, and that basic decision between stretching out from a box or stretching over top of a box means one can't evolve into the other. A piano can't be a harp, it will always be a zither. A lyre can't turn into a zither, it will always be a harp.
Try to imagine a harp made as an adaptation / descendant of the violin. Can't be done!
Another way to put it: the plucked string is not more important than the structure, because without endpoints, it couldn't be made tight enough to play. You can't pluck it on its own.
Fun puzzle and nice to see the parks evolve, and wish I'd seen more than just Redwoods, although I've seen a few others and some spectacular places elsewhere.
No real problems with the puzzle, but I agree with Deb that the fill was a bit above what we usually tend to see on a Tuesday. Cluing was on point and crosses were helpful in solving the two or three words that wouldn't come readily.
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Hubby and I drove to Maine in 2017 primarily to visit ACADIA. Such beauty. We’re trying to visit the National Parks while still somewhat young enough (not DOTARDS in our own minds) to drive to them. Last year we high plains drifted to Mt Rushmore, Glacier, and Yellowstone. This country is so beautiful. I’m glad we’re finally getting to see it and hope to continue.
KEISTERS!
:-)
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@Just Carol
Once went mountain biking in ACADIA. It was one of the most memorable rides I've ever taken (right up there with mountain biking in the hills outside of Denver). Our national parks are such a treasure. Let's hope they can survive the onslaught of the current administration...
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Steve,
Try mountain biking on a mountain some time.
@Barry
I believe the mental picture of what is meant by "hill" and "mountain" varies by state. I knew a skier and climber from Colorado who never understood why we in the NE called "those little green things" mountains.
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REWED under GARDENED had me wondering if this was an alternate form of REWEEDED.
REWED looked wrong and sounded wrong, (I wanted to pronounce it RUDE). I suppose that to REWED, it presupposes that one reproposes.
On a related note, 12D could have taken the clue “Sent another Presidential tweet, say.”
Liked seeing the CARE BAER.
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TIL I learned SIC is also used to indicate something quoted is not an error.
"The share price of Maple Leaf Gardens, which owns the Toronto Maple Leafs (sic) hockey team, ...". In this case, the editor is indicating Leafs is not an error as opposed to using Leaves
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@coloradoz
Except that it's used when a mistake is made, not when a well-known trademarked name has an intentional "error" in it.
The DOTARD tweeted "Covfefe (sic)" in the middle of the night.
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@Steve L
I know about the use when referencing an error. The SIC in referencing the Maple Leafs surprised me- it ios
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Finishing - it is from an article in the Economist
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Wait til the stop sign turns green? I've totally done that. Folllowed by driving through the intersection without looking when I realized it wasn't going to. Thats not the only reason I decided to give up the car but it played a part. Luckily l live in NYC.
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@Margaret
I live on a quiet residential street with little traffic. The drivers treat the stop sign across from my house as a
" suggestion" and think it is always green
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Ha! I flunked my first drivers' test too. I was 18, and my father and I had gone through the teeth-gritting experience of him teaching me how to drive his gigantic 1954 Pontiac. The instructor probably saw how scared I was and that I really wasn't ready to drive in NYC.
He had me made a U-turn on the block of the huge wholesale produce market that (?used to be?) in the South Bronx. I did it! Then he had me parallel park in a tight space. I did a pretty good job getting in but was trying to perfect my parking when my car's bumper barely kissed the rear bumper of the car in front of me. The instructor was jubilant. "You touched it!" he said. "You flunked!"
I was very relieved.
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@Millie
True story- The first time I ever drove a car was to go and take the driving test for a license. Passed.
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@Millie
Great story. Love the ending.
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@Puzzlemucker
Why thank you! I finally got my driver's license in my mid-20s when I was living in Queens, it was practically rural compared to the South Bronx Produce Market neighborhood and I wasn't even asked to parallel park. It was a breeze.
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Fun puzzle. Love the national parks, with Yellowstone as my favorite.
Coincidence that 5 across in the Mini was also Final Jeopardy Monday evening?
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@Jim
Yeah, I doubt the Jeopardy people talk to the NYT Crossword people before their products come out.
Unless the clue in the printed paper turns out to be something different...
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I struggled a while with DICTA because a lawyer uses that word to describe precisely the part of a court opinion that it is NOT mandatory to obey.
Obiter dicta = things said in passing, i.e. without intending them to be mandatory.
Alas alas
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@CM
I actually had FIATS instead of DICTA until the very end. Slowed me down a bit...
@Robert Kern
The difference between FIATS and DICTA is that DICTA don't have to be taken in for repairs once a month.
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@Steve L
Wasn't DICTA the coach of Da BAERS?
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I’ve been to all five of those wonderful parks. The national parks are our greatest treasure. May they endure.
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While the parallels could easily have run the two obvious directions - across or down, these parallel park went along the diagonals. So even though the theme is an appreciate-after-the-solve type, it was pretty nice, because there were no clues for them and we didn't have to solve for them.
First pass, I guessed from the clue it might be PARALLEL PARKS but didn't put it in (it's a Tuesday after all, so I wasn't going to be desperate about it). Some pretty interesting entries - PEYOTE, ARDENCY, LABAN, KEISTERS, TERRARIA, TEARLESS, CERBERUS, even BAYING. Does this puzzle deserve D PLUS OR A? Decidedly the latter.
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Whee . . . Fun, fun, fun. The theme, yes, but there’s KEISTERS, TERRARIA, “Shadows that have grown long?”/BEARDS, IDEALIST, “Relative of a zither” (100% fun word), CERBERUS, SENSEI, BAYING wolves, ELI and PEYTON, even D-PLUS (a grade you rarely see in a NYT puzzle or a family’s annual holiday letter).
Just seeing the names of those parks makes me smile. Thanks, John!
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I got the revealer and immediately thought “who knows the names of parks?” But then I slowly realized I did know them as I filled in the rest. The park of a great theme!
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Nice puzzle. Officially at a streak of 500. I'm trapped now . . . .
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Happy to see Brian May, CBE, Ph.D. in the puzzle...keep on fighting 'til the end!
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On this President's Day, there's one answer that sticks out more than a car parked along the curb by a, well, old, ineffective sort...
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@Steve L
Is it a word that made some of us, for one brief moment, do an imaginary high-five with Kim Jong-Un?
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@Martin
Um, mayyyyy-be!
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