Theme: Farmhouse homilies from Brooklyn. Each of the theme phrase are sound-a-likes for in the language expressions which are reclued from an animal perspective. A very fun concept and the second of Mr. Sajdak's puzzles which I have had the pleasure of blogging. The theme answers take the common two 13 and two 14 letter fills, and the rest of the puzzle seems straightforward for a Friday, with many short fill, but some new stuff and onward and upward we go.
20A. Thoroughbred farm slur?: SO'S YOUR MUDDER. "So's your mother" are often the fighting words in response to a particularly nasty and graphic insult. A mudder is a horse which does well on a wet and sloppy track, like the recent Belmont Stakes.
29A. Dairy farm proverb?: BE KIND TO UDDERS. While I get, "Be kind to others," I am not getting a great visual of how to follow this advice. I need help from our experts, Carol and Lois....
46A. Cattle farm commandment?: HONOR THY FODDER. My favorite, especially so close to father's day. If you are a city person, the chopped up hay to feed the animals etc. is FODDER.
56A. Clydesdale farm boast?: HEAVY BREEDERS. Heavy breathers. Clydesdales are the huge horses from the Budweiser commercials; I am unfamiliar with their breeding prowess, though I have received too many invitations to go to watch the girls play on the farm.
Heigh ho, it is I, Lemonade, and it is off to work we go.
Across :
1. Drops a fly, say: ERRS. Baseball reference; at least I know 1A.
5. Web code: HTML. Hyper Text Markup Language; almost all regular posters have learned how to link using this code.
9. Patio parties, briefly: BBQS. Nice alliteration, no grilling allowed on my patio; don't you love condos?
13. Fiefdom, e.g.: REALM. From the old French reaume, kingdom.
15. Recitative follower: ARIA. I am not an expert on opera stuff, but it is like what happens in between the big songs, so the audience can follow the plot. LISTEN .
16. "For sure!": YEAH.
17. Test: ASSAY. back in the old westerns, they were forever going to get their gold tested at the ASSAY office.
18. "The Case for Public Schools" author: MANN. A trained attorney who was instrumental in free non-sectarian schooling for all. He was an interesting MAN .
19. Nice head: TETE. No one should be falling for thise French city anymore; and we have had TETE often.
23. Schubert's "The __ King": ERL. A sad story of a boy snatched by an evil elf, but the MUSIC is lovely.
24. '70s radical gp.: SLA. Symbionese Liberation Army, the crazies who snatched and brainwashed Patty Hearst. The names from the word symbiotic. And a mini-leftist theme with 48D. SDS co-founder Tom: HAYDEN. Students for a Democratic Society, who became a Senator and married Jane Fonda.
25. "Eternally nameless" principle: TAO. The constructors favorite Eastern Philosophy.
26. Fancy pond swimmer: KOI.
33. Words before "Gave proof through the night": IN AIR. Sing everyone, "The bombs bursting...."
34. It has pedals and stops: ORGAN. Not a bicycle, or a body part.
35. Tub filler: LARD, an insult when I was growing up.
38. Loses interest: SOURS. Maybe that is where they have all gone.
41. European capital: OSLO. A nice shout out to our Norwegian contingent.
42. Sweat: EXUDE. She was actually glowing...
44. Half a "Star Wars" character: DETOO. R2.
51. Ruling party: INS. Not the outs, the ins. I saw I N S first.
52. "Jane Eyre" star Wasikowska: MIA. The little girl from Oz who starred in the Alice in Wonderland remake is all GROWN UP .
53. Business __: END. Like when you point a gun.
54. Valuable Ming: YAO. poor guy, has not been able to play basketball in two years; feet were not meant for 7'6" bodies.
60. Drop a line, in a way: MOOR. Tying up a boat.
62. Some tributes: ODES.
63. Capital at the foot of Mount Vitosha: SOFIA. Bulgaria; one of my associates has been to the palace there and says it is lovely.
64. Shared currency: EURO.
65. Time to give up: LENT. I like this misdirection.
66. Body: TRUNK. Very tricky also, meaning like torso.
67. Things to pick: NITS. A shout out to Marti?
68. Eating up: INTO. He was really eating up her line of bull, not realizing all she wanted was his money.
69. Part of many a snail's diet: ALGA. Good to know, I was worried I would not know what to serve if any came to visit, but if one is enough!
Okay, no rest for the weekend, on we go.
DOWN:
1. Rub out: ERASE. Cool, clecho alert! 4D. Rub out: SLAY. Two ways to say goodbye.
2. Suck up again: RESORB. before you all get on your high REABSORB horses, this is actually correct, directly from the Latin resorbere which derives from sorbere "to suck."
3. Fight in the boonies: RASSLE. I hope you did not have to wrestle with this clue long.
5. Shortwave medium: HAM RADIO. In this world of cellphones, they still hang in.
6. Car for the pits?: TRAM. They use trams underground in the mines to transport whatever is being mined. need a gold mine? Limestone?
7. Hora part: MINUTO. This reference to the Spanish for hour and minute would have been so easy, but for the dance the HORA, oh well it did not take to long to see where I was wrong.
8. "Ed Wood" Oscar winner: LANDAU. This wonderful actor came to my attention in Mission Impossible but his work as BELA LUGOSI in this movie was fabulous.
9. Memory unit: BYTE.
10. Microbrewery stock: BEER KEGS. Only two weeks after Marti used this shout out to my bubbly brewing boys.
11. African evergreen whose leaves are chewed as a narcotic: QAT. Once upon a time I had a girlfriend who loved playing scrabble who bought a dictionary chock full of real words like this so she could stomp me. It is loaded with amphetamine.
12. Pirate's pronoun: SHE. Arrg, and she is a fine vessel.
14. Muscle-contraction protein: MYOSIN. And why should we know about this SCIENTIFIC MINUTIAE ? The link was chosen as a shout out our RPI brethren.
21. They articulate with radii: ULNAS. Oh goody, anatomical puns, very humerus.
22. Doofus: DODO. Hello our darling D.
27. Spoken: ORAL.
28. Money-object connection: IS NO. Reminds me of Richard Attenborough running around during Jurassic Park saying. "Spared no expense." Then I saw the movie 41 times....
30. Man-to-boy address: KIDDO. In what century was that?
31. Former Jerry Marcus comic strip: TRUDY. One of the many family comics of the sixties, before the revolution.
32. Dickens's Edwin: DROOD. Dickens last novel, which was unfinished at his death. It reads that way.
35. City near Provo: LEHI, We recently had this referencing the Mormon prophet for whom this city is named. Our first siting was in the birthday puzzle our fearless leader created for Dennis. Wherefore art thou brother?
36. Neural transmitter: AXON. Who is our neurology expert?
37. Not have enough: RUN SHORT. Some double words to confuse us, they never seem to run short of these.
39. Mentions: REFERS TO. You all know what I am referring to.
40. One may be skipped: STONE. I really like this clue, there is even a word for this pastime.
43. Big name in household humor: ERMA. Bombeck.
45. Most curious: ODDEST. Not curious like nosy, but curious and curiouser.
47. Denmark's __ Gardens: TIVOLI. The beautiful and amazing home of the second oldest AMUSEMENT PARK in the world.
49. Hottie: EYEFUL. Please do not go to this link if you are offended J LO and a bit of nudity.
50. Ready and eager: RARING. Well I am actually fading, I hope you all have had a nice ride.
55. Yodo River city: OSAKA. Geography lesson.
57. Winged god: EROS. Also called Cupid, stupid.
58. Out of shape?: BENT. Come on, just relax I know it all goes too fast.
59. "Cannery Row" restaurant owner __ Flood: DORA. If you have never read any John Steinbeck, he really had a great sense of this country in the depression, I suggest you read this NOVEL though do not be shocked because Dora is much more than a restaurant hostess.
60. Rooks, for example: MEN. Chessmen to be more accurate.
61. Overseas agreement: OUI, yes, more French for the finish. Until next time, take your vitamins, drink your juice and be good to each other.
Lemonade
Note from C.C.:
Here are a few great photos of our secretive CA Coven Gathering yesterday. Click pictures for enlargement. Nice to finally see you, Garlic Gal!
