I do know how to spell HOULIHAN. I really do. Why would I put in HOoLIHAN? And why did I not catch RoNTO? One day I'm going to make it over to the ACPT, and it's mistakes like this that I would like to cut out.
Patrick Berry routinely makes DELOVELY themeless puzzles, and this one is very nice indeed. I don't love it as much as some of his others. You may have noticed that I have a thing about corners that are cut off from the rest of the puzzle. That's the case here in the NW and the SE. But that's a small bone to pick.
After all, we get 15A: Sea that Homer called "wine-dark" (AEGEAN). Yes. This is wonderful. And how about the absurd beauty of 30D: They meet at a summit (HILLSIDES). How literal! I'm also still chuckling over 50A: Agricultural outfit (OVERALLS). Definitely not what I was thinking.
It's funny that one day after I CARP about "o sole..." as a partial, we get the entire song title for once (OSOLEMIO).
Of the marquee long entries, I liked POUNDSTERLING (I'm such an Anglophile - I just finished reading a 3 volume biography of Winston Churchill - fascinating stuff, running to over 3000 pages, but the authors disposed of the last 10 years of his life in some 120 pages). 31A: Instructions on where to go? (HOUSETRAINING) - I so wanted "potty training" instead, but this works well. SHIPOFTHELINE wasn't as inspiring.
1A: Radisson rival (RAMADA) - D. Brand name, clued with a brand name. Unfortunate way to start.
Fave: GADABOUT (47A: Restless sort). What a great noun. I tried Gogetter first, but recognized that didn't quite fit.
Least fave: MISDO (26D: Make a hash of). I just don't think it's a word anyone would use in conversation.
I'm getting hungry, looking at all those TAPAS, PITAS, and MISO. Dinner, anyone?
And now YOUREFREETOGO.
- Colum
18:32
ReplyDeleteNice summary. I enjoyed this puzzle very much. Made me work at it, but good fill all around.
Even with the error, I think you would have outscored me in most formats. Nice job!
21:59 with two errors!
ReplyDeleteI spent a full five minutes trying to parse RESTAREA. I eventually got SHIPOFTHELINE, but I didn't know Seven ____ (Civil War battle site) (PINES), and oddly guessed mINES, which gave MIT_S for (Scoopers for taramasalata). In all, lots o' TRUMBO in that area...
But even all that didn't sour me on this one. Cut off corners and all, I very much enjoyed it. I think Dad would be proud that I put in GNEISS off the G, and possibly I wouldn't even have needed that, but it was already there when I first read the clue.
Thumbs up!
32:59 (FWOE)
ReplyDeletePITAS/PINES, where I had an "h" because I'd originally put in hIllS there until I had HILLSIDES at 30D and assumed that two "hill" entries probably wouldn't appear in the same puzzle. I entered GNEISS pretty quickly, too, but off of the _N__S_ (HOULIHAN and MARS crosses). I originally entered aye instead of OUI, which both work for the clue, but slowly things started coming together. I, too, loved the puzzle despite the corners.