0:06:54
Well, I didn't love this one, but I did have a moment, when I saw "USU" starting a clue, that the grid might include the word "Usufruct." It didn't, sadly, but I amused myself by thinking of trying to put that into a grid someday. And while I was so distracted, I put in "Hee" for 35D: "____-haw!" (YEE) and then spent about a minute or so looking for an error when the "Well Done!" screen failed to materialize.
The theme seems a little weak. Is one of the U.S. Opens going on right now? I don't think so, but I could very easily be wrong. This is one of the very rare times, however, where knowing the theme gave me an answer. I had put in USAINBOLT (16A: Jamaican sprinter nicknamed "The Fastest Man on Earth") and USUALFARE (20A: Nothing daring in terms of offerings), so when I came to 37A: PC outlet, I thought briefly of a store, but then realized that it was probably a port instead, and the memory of the two Us gave it to me. I hadn't yet realized that it was "US," but, well, maybe it's better to just think of it as a bunch of words starting with U. That way, you get to add ULEE (43A: Title beekeeper in a 1997 film) and UNRESTS (37D: Turmoils), to the mix.
I am familiar with neither NALA (9A: Simba's best friend in "The Lion King") (a Kimba rip-off, btw), nor ATTAR (10D: Fragrance of roses), but I made a lucky guess. And what the hell is 21D: "The ____ Daba Honeymoon?!?" And lastly, I didn't know that a BOSC pear was a 30A: Winter pear, so that's something I learned. Other than that, it was a rather boring Monday.
- Horace
7:39
ReplyDeleteNot a problem, of course. My only write-overs were 55D Actor Morales, where I’d originally filled in Erin instead of ESAI and 24A Sounded like a horn, where I’d originally filled BeepED instead of BLARED. Most of this puzzle was the USUALFARE for a Monday, but there were a few gems, like GROGS and DANSK (not often seen). (Note: I knew that "The Lion King" was a Kimba rip-off, though Disney probably did pay for it.)