Friday, March 20, 2020

Friday, March 20, 2020, Wyna Liu and Paolo Pasco

DNF

First off, I'd like to post the link to the virtual crossword puzzle tournament that our regular commenter Jim Kingdon mentioned in the comments the other day. Here it is:

http://www.crosswordtournamentfromyourcouch.org

The tournament takes place tomorrow, starting at 1 PM. There is no cost to enter, and constructors include multiple favorites of mine, so I'm sure they'll be fun and challenging. In this time of social distancing, I love the idea of using the internet to bring us closer together. So puzz away!

So, on to today's puzzle. It's always painful to have to write those three letters at the top. I have my own rules for errors, etc. I allow one or two, in which case I use the FWOE or FWTE abbreviation. But if I have more than two, it's a DNF. Today, I guessed SARees for 28A: Required wear in some Hindu temples (SARONG). Perhaps I should have known GORDO, although I do not know Spanish at all, from Rancho Gordo. Meanwhile, JeAN seemed as likely as JOAN, and I did not parse REELIN, instead settling on the odd REELIe. Reelie?
A ROB Roy, that well known SCOT
Ah well, this sort of thing can't detract from a fine themeless puzzle. CARETOELABORATE? Why, yes I will, thanks for asking!

WHOWOREITBETTER is excellent, and I love the NW and SE corners, including ATHLEISURE, TWITTERATI, and ZAGATRATED. 17A: Acted cheekily (in two senses?) (STOLEAKISS) gets the nod for best clue of the day. Although part of me was hoping for something having to do with heinies. You can't have it all.

21A: They touch people's funny bones (HUMERI) is a lovely non-QMC. So literal. The funny bone, for those who don't know, is actual the ulnar nerve just behind the medial epicondyle of the elbow. For those who did know, I apologize profusely for neuro-splainin'.

Stay safe, y'all. And do lots of crossword puzzles.

- Colum

1 comment:

  1. 27:03
    Slow, but a finish nonetheless. 1A Needs to recharge, maybe (POWERCORDS) is fantastic. I own a few SARONGs, and will, on occasion, put one on, so that was a gimme (boys have the slit in the front, while girls put it on the side, otherwise they're pretty-much the same). Oddly, I knew EGGWASH, figured out ANNLANDERS with just two crosses (DEMETER and DAVIDS), and was able to come up with most of the rest without much trouble, although somewhat slowly, but there's no SHAME in that. I didn't know Colum's nerve trivia (though I did get HUMERI). WATUSI was pretty easy for a Friday.

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