"Do you know the perimeter of this opera house?" "No, but I can find the aria." (I'm not sure how many times I've used this pun, but it's tenor more.)
@Mike Bass'd on recent experience, alto often I mezzo up when I countertenor more.
@Mike Aida lunch with the Pearl Fishers, take a sail with the Flying Dutchman, and Tosca a stab at whatever's Gudanov for them. I don't bother with triviatta and Norma-ly my score's just fine.
I know when I do one of Robyn’s puzzles I will light up with smiles. Her puzzles are gifts, filled with play, with I-can-relate-to-that colloquialisms, and with fun-to-crack riddles. Often overlooked is her construction skill. Look at the answers in the grid. Where’s any ugliness? Where? On a 72-word puzzle with a mere 30 black squares, do you know how difficult this is to achieve? I gaze at the filled grid and feel peaceful. Robyn is about the longs (answers of eight letters or more). There are 12 in this puzzle. Today, my three favorite answers were longs – INSIDE JOBS, THAT’S THE SPOT, and DON’T REMIND ME. The first two are NYT debut answers, and the third has only appeared once in all the major crossword venues. Wow! Plus, wit and originality in cluing. For instance, ABSENT has appeared a hundred times in the major venues, often clued [Not in class]. But Robyn added a twist never before used, with her terrific misdirecting [Not in English, say]. Oh, I also liked the lovely serendipities today – the three rare-in-crosswords 5-letter semordnilaps (SPANS, SLOOP, SMART), and the kitchen-y PuzzPair© cross of STEAM TABLE with a “fryer” homophone (FRIAR). You are a talent and a Crosslandia treasure Robyn. Thank you for another shining tour through the box!
@Lewis This comment really increased my appreciation for the puzzle. And just to save anyone else a lookup, a “semordnilap” is a word that spells another word when read in reverse. It’s actually “palindromes” backwards.
I don’t comment often anymore, life is… lifing? But I just had to stop by and say how wonderful it was to see Robyn’s name in the byline! Hands down my favorite weekend constructor. And this one was a delightful treat to solve as always. In complete awe. ❤️❤️
@Embee Nice to see you back here!
A delightful romp with clever clues and pleasant answers. A gentle and charming Robyn Weintraub Friday. the emus can get some rest
Always great to get a Robyn Weintraub Friday. Never too easy, never too hard. Just enough to make you fill in some wrong guesses and spend the time to figure out what you did wrong, and then fix it and get it all done. A little slower, perhaps, than some of my other recent Fridays, but well worth the detours.
@Steve L The Friday puzzle needed six less cheats than the Thursday puzzle, which needed all of fifteen cheats. Also, it was really fun! I was surprised to hear the triumphant music, it ended so quickly.
Another excellent Friday! Lots of good stuff here. It's always a delight to do a puzzle that challenges without being obscure and difficult. Happy weekend, everyone!
I misread the plural for “things in pockets that can be picked” and thought… OREO?? Right? If you left some in your CARGO PANTS all unprotected, and a hungry thief saw you eat one. Of course you could fool the thief by putting Hydrox there instead.
@Cat Lady Margaret Or, if you’re Napoleon Dynamite, and correctly read it as plural, it could be TOTS.
A Weintraubian Friday. I was actually momentarily bummed. Last night, we were celebrating, and I (may or may not) have been *sipping* limoncello spritzers. So, when I saw her name, I lit up (in a sad, spinny-headed way), but thought I should hydrate, and wait until I could savor it. Puh. Leeze. Like I’m gonna wait. In the same way I said, “ no thanks to the fourth(?) spritzer. I dove in. I pounded my white tea, rubbed the puffy regret from my eyes, and dug in. The magic of Robyn’s puzzles is that they are *not* easy. But they pretend to be. They're tricky. They zig. They zag! A long clue for a long answer could make you slow down, hack away at the crosses, furrow your brow… But with her puzzles, you go with your gut. And she knows what you’re gonna think. And it’s right. It’s like you were there, constructing with her, and vaguely remember the answers. I had no idea who the queen with 47 letters in her name was, but didn’t we all just plop in THAI? Witchcraft, is what it is. Weintraubian witchcraft. Now, I need a Tylenol. And more tea. And thank you, thank you for this frolicking Friday! Please. More puzzles. Fan-girl CC out. I’m sounding creepy.
@CCNY I'm repeating myself, but....I missed several MORE fun clues, I see from your post. Ah, well.
Super quick for a Friday but I enjoyed the wordplay in the cluing (clueing?). Especially liked "Minor change" and "Not in English".
A quarter of NATO’s member states are monarchies, their heads of state being kings, queens, and one grand duke. With only a couple of exceptions (e.g. France and the U.S.), the rest have elected figureheads as head of state whose job consists mainly of cutting ribbons and waving at crowds. Those countries and the monarchies send their *heads of government* abroad to represent them in international bodies such as NATO summits. Further complicating the picture, Canada and the U.K. have the same head of state; Charles III would represent both countries, since Canada’s Governor General is head of state only in the absence of the monarch.
@Fact Boy @Steve L explain TCS to this guy It's ironic, your explanation proves that the clue is valid. Biden and Macron are both heads of state. The fact that they both attend NATOSUMMIT periodically makes the clue valid with no further debate
Robyn Weintraub just doesn't swing and miss with her Friday puzzles . . . ever. She is SO consistently great.
The cluing was excellent, perfect for a Friday. "Paperless pup" had me lost for quite a while.
Leopold Stowkowski. One of the favorite Bugs Bunny episode is when he dons a white wig and pretends to be a conductor. As he solemnly walks in, there are stunned and awed whispers.."Leopold,..Leopold...Leopold"
Yes indeedy, those Warner Bros. (and Disney) [animators] sure lived up to their ART DEGREES. (Funny how Emeric Emu never became a popular character.)
Well, I haven't enjoyed a puzzle so much since... uh... when was Robyn's last puzzle published again?
Always glad to see a Robyn Weintraub puzzle and this was quite a nice challenge. Not all that easy for me, of course, and had to cheat a bit in more than a couple of places but still found it to be an enjoyable workout. Answer history search today was inspired by 32d (SLOOP). Wondered about the... SloopJohnB. Nope - never been an answer, though 'John B' was in the clue for SLOOP once. But then... A search for answers containing 'JOHNB' led me to an incredible Sunday puzzle from April 18, 1993 by Norman S. Wizer with the title "People with connections." That one had four 21 letter theme answers and two 19 letters. The clue and answer that got me there: Abolitionist, dessert and actress : JOHNBROWNBETTYBUCKLEY Some other theme answers: GEORGESANDPIPERLAURIE MONTYHALLMARKANTONY GRANTWOODCHUCKCONNORS HARRYGOLDENRODSERLING EDITHHEADCOUNTBASIE Just thought that was really amazing. ..
Putting it out here again for the editors to consider: Make Wednesday a flex day to keep us puzzled. Sometimes a more-than-Tuesday-difficult themed puzzle (as it usually is now), but more frequently either a less-than-Thursday-difficult "tricky" puzzle or a less-than-Friday-difficult themeless. Robyn's puzzle today is a prime example of what I'd love to see in a Wednesday themeless. (And as noted earlier by others, if Easy Mode is a Friday option, crank up the Friday difficulty.)
@Barry Ancona Huh? emu food more emu food
@Barry Ancona I second that (e)motion. I would have appreciated this more if I didn't feel cheated by the lack of an end of week workout.
LOL! I should have known given this is a Robyn puzzle... I filled in the long answers easy peasy with such flair and then got sooo stuck on SO many short ones. ABSENT and MUTT cracked me up so much once I realized what those answers were. So many "oh... duh" moments. Loved it!
Well, that seemed easy for a Friday puzzle especially the clues for the longest answers.
Not in English, say. Clues do not get any better than that. Love it
Oh no, Robyn, the puzzle snobs may have the long knives out for this one -- but not from this solver. In fact, directly upon finishing, suspicions were confirmed when the 'i' button revealed your byline. Let's hope THERE'S MORE on the way.
Hard for me today... I was shocked to hear the happy music! Thank you for your fun long entries, Robyn! You are well loved here in Crosslandia ... and you keep making me happy.
@Bonnie I agree, I smiled when I saw her name on the puzzle, this was a fun one and was sorry to end it by finishing!
Great fun puzzle! I got stuck on my hard headed insistence on "opera stage". When I gave up on it, everything in that northeast corner flowed. I enjoyed working this puzzle. It was at the just perfect level of difficulty for my current abilities. The puns and wordplay were in my wheelhouse, and the clues were solid! I've been working my way back over the last month from a grueling case of spring COVID. I got it before I could get the vaccine. I've been using the NYT word games as a gauge of my healing from the fatigue and brain fog. This puzzle was the first that I could stay with and solve evenly. Thank you NYTs for your wonderful games! At my age, these games are more than just fun for me, but a daily workout for my brain. As a lifelong scrabble and crossword lover, kudos for a lovely mix of different challenges. Thank you Robin Weintraup, great job.
@Bonnie Ann I had a similar experience—puzzle, not Covid! Hope you continue to mend.
Tough one for me, I didn't think I would finish. I was stuck from 1A! However, I decided to power through and managed to complete the puzzle less than 5 min over my average. This crossword had a number of truly wiley clues- "Minor change" CENT "Paper for an animator, perhaps" ART DEGREE "Touches, eg" IPODS "Ew, ew, EW!" TMI "Not in English, say" ABSENT I could go on, but I'm running out of room.... I'm really impressed with this puzzle, and when I read the name of the constructor I realized I'm a big fan, I still remember the last puzzle of hers I tackled.
Very solid Friday — I wait for the day, or to be honest the previous night at 10.
Wow, yesterday's and today's puzzles were just fantastic. Great way to end the week. Very satisfying.
It's been too long since the last one. I always enjoy Robin's puzzles. We're gonna have to wait till next year? ☹️ Thanks, Robin!
Works on a crew indeed. This was fun !
Maybe, just maybe, y'all are getting better at solving crosswords and that's why they're starting to seem "too easy" for you. Then again, maybe it is a serious problem worthy of wounded complaint. Regardless, I enjoyed this puzzle quite a lot. Thank you, constructor! Condolences to those solvers who felt robbed, cheated, misled, or otherwise disappointed. Hopefully, the rest of your days go a bit better.
@Mick Yes, all those great solvers who say it was too easy can make us average brains feel dumb sometimes.
@Mick I did find it easy today, but I’m thrilled! And yes, I’m assuming it’s because I’m getting better at it. Fun one.
That was a fun puzzle. I got about half of the big answers at first blush. OPERAstage tripped me up for a while, and I was convinced NATOSUMMIT was NATion____. 15 minutes, no mistakes, pretty good for a Friday for me
@Steven M. I came perilously close to putting in OPERA stage, but thought of HOUSE in time. It wasn’t until I had THAT’S THE SPOT that I knew it was HOUSE.
Almost a PB. Lots of fun clues.
very much enjoyed figuring out "not in English", thank you.
I'll add my voice to the growing mass of admiration. It was a tough one to get started, OLIN was my first fill, but it flowed upstream from there. Many thanks.
Sam, best column photo ever! And thank you, Robyn, for a most enjoyable Friday. Hope to see you again soon.
Maybe I'm just in a Friday Fog but this one felt tough for me, but then the long clues always do. 36 minutes and I needed *a lot* of help, but once I was on the right track things flowed a bit more. I could stop "ew-ing" and start being "elated" by the clues. Once it was over I was tickled by the cleverness, but I sure was stuck for a while there.
This morning is my last of a week of vacation Up North (which RiA would hardly consider "north")--A beautiful, cool, sunny morning: A kayak ride around the lake, followed by a breakfast on the deck of cherry pie, coffee, and a Robyn Weintraub Friday puzzle! Can life get any better? Curiously, as I was kayaking around the lake, I spotted a family of Canada geese, parents with seven goslings; and another couple walking on shore with only one gosling. "Did they only have one chick, or were the rest eaten by predators, I wonder? Do they feel sad that they only have one? Do the others brag that they've been so prolific?" And that got me thinking about Niobe, daughter of Tantalus, and her fatal hybris; I believe that, in the end, she was metamorphosed into a boulder which seeped water--a specific boulder (but where?) which Pausanias--the Fodor of the 2nd c--records having visited. If you have 25 minutes and nothing to do, and want to hear some stunning sounds, treat yourself to *The Tears of Niobe*, care of Stephen Scott and the Colorado College Bowed Piano Ensemble (which, coincidentally, uses no [hammers], at least the conventional kind): <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_X0TaTiZRs" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_X0TaTiZRs</a> If you have only 3'56", you can help the Roche sister clean the kitchen: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwXR6D7SJuY" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwXR6D7SJuY</a>
@Bill Canada geese often raise their young communally with multiple pairs banding together to raise a single group of young. I’ve often seen a group of six or more adults forming a loose perimeter around a group of 20 or more goslings feeding on shore. They are the perfect illustration of “it takes a village …” primarily concerned with the overall propagation of the species.
@Bill Please keep your Canada Geese up north. Down here in California cities they arrive in large flocks and spread their poop all over school and park playing fields. Not our favorite critters. They've become a total nuisance in the last 10-15 years. Not a problem before that.
I usually check to see who the constructor is, so was delighted today, like everyone else. Right off the bat a fun clue at 15A. Adding to the welcome backs for Robyn. Still really tired, time for a nap.
It took me a few beats to accept that ABSENT was the correct answer. Doh. Good job. I believe the conclusion to the syllogism in the puzzle is "Ergo dogs with papers are animators". Just a reminder--It's Pride Month! Everybody GO BI!
Robyn Weintraub’s puzzles are always a delight, and this was no exception. The NW corner started out mystifying to me, forcing a meandering clockwise journey until I finally circled back, armed with more crosses from below. Somehow managing to dredge LEOPOLD Stokowski from the MIST of memory was the key I needed to finally crack CARGOPANTS. I was off to the races from there, opening up my GAIT to a sprint to the finish! Just enough crunch for a Friday without being too obtuse. Perhaps a titch on the easier side, but still firmly in end-of-week territory. Bravo, Robyn!
Thank you Robyn, again. You certainly do have a great mind and I always enjoy solving your puzzles.
The pair of IOTAS appearing in the "Iliad" cracked me up. I usually don't get those "spell out the letters" answers without multiple crosses, but that one just clicked for me.
@Grant I didn't "get it" until I saw your comment- I just had "IOT.." and surmised the answer from the clue and moved on without further thought. Thanks for turning on the lightbulb for me.
I wondered for a second if the paperless pup was “full” as in ready to burst. Enjoyed that clue. * On the always-present “puzzle difficulty level” topic: I think the serious and long-time puzzlers who say fairly regularly here that puzzles are getting faster, have a strong point. I started solving (on iPad) about six years ago or so. I do the current puzzles daily, and don’t look up answers. I am not very fast. I am also working back through the archives, doing almost all Wed through Sun puzzles, and sometimes Mon and Tues. Currently in October 2015. For archives, I am willing but reluctant to consult Google. In the past six months or so, almost every “current” puzzle has been below my daily average time, and almost every archive puzzle is near or above it. Think about bell curves, and running averages as you consider these facts, not one puzzle, not even today’s. Also consider that 2015 was closer to my pop cultural sweet spot than is today (I’m “still 59” for the first time). I don’t personally mind that the puzzles are getting easier. But I would say there is good evidence that they are. And yeah, I enjoy some chewier ones. I would welcome a change to keep Fri and Sat a bit harder on average, such as that suggested below by Barry Ancona, or a similar idea. I hope to never be this long-winded again. And if the NYT already knows all our timing numbers, as I just now imagined might be the case, then what a total waste of wind!!
@JohnWM I just recently ran across this article where this fellow had the same experience as you, feeling that puzzles have been getting easier over the years. It’s a difficult thing to actually study, but he got a bunch of crosswording friends together to try to collect some data. It’s a mildly interesting and quick read. Bottom line he seems to agree with you. See: <a href="https://tinyurl.com/3ep4b3y6" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/3ep4b3y6</a> — — — —
Thank you for a fun and solid Friday puzzle Robyn. I particularly liked Not in English and Paper for an animator clues- great stuff!
There was lots of clever clueing in this on and it was entertaining from top to bottom. I liked seeing one music delivery system (SONOS) atop another (the now defunct IPODS). Though I didn’t realize when I first started using these to play music, they would soon render my cd collection virtually obsolete, just as the cd player had largely rendered my vinyl collection obsolete. PABLO Honey was a gimme, although I must confess I don’t “get” Radiohead at all.
@Marshall Walthew Are you regretting your purge of vinyl recordings? DHubby got rid of his CDs (and reel-to-reel tapes, and 8-tracks, and ...well, you get it.) We can play everythiing from Edison cylinders to new vinyl records... thanks to his 'hobby.' He 'cleans up' recordings electronically and studies discographies for original recording settings so as to produce the most authentic and cleanest rendition of his favorite music.... I think that's crazy...not like quilting, which is a perfect hobby.....
@Mean Old Lady I still have the vinyl and the cds. Even though I no longer have a stereo set up for playing vinyl and seldom use the cds. To my wife’s chagrin, I am sentimentally attached to them. Btw, my daughter agrees with you about quilting.
@Mean Old Lady I didn’t regret selljng some of my vinyl for a pittance until Sonos “updated” their app and my playlists disappeared. My memory isn’t that well-tuned these days.
I was planning to get in some early (and cool) gardening before crosswording…but then I saw the constructor’s name. As ELATing as always! Thanks, RW. (I won’t even complain about sweating, promise 😉.) Do emus sweat? I kind of hope so.
@Kate I went out at 5:50 a.m. and it was still a bit late to enjoy "the 'cool' of the morning." A female mallard had been nesting in 'landscape grasses' near the street over past weeks, and was pacing nervously as I worked. Later I checked the nest--empty now--and saw her down the street with one (possibly two) babies...of six eggs incubated. Life is tough.
@Kate Now, you ladies are just bragging. The British summer hasn't got going yet; highs of 14c, lows of 6c. That’s cool for April, let alone June. Apparently the jet stream hasn’t moved north yet, so we’re still facing Arctic blasts. I had to get my winter sweaters out again. Brrr.
Loved loved loved the misdirects in the clues. “Minor change” and “not in English” will go down as all-time faves. This puzzle was the epitome of tough-but-fair.
This was definitely easier for me than the Thursday array, with that NE corner-from-hell. Animators would seem more likely to have 'computer graphics' majors rather than ART DEGREEs. For "Junipero Serra" I wanted the answer to be FREEWAY.....alive in memory... NoCal Traffic Nightmares are probably still a thing.... I prefer INSIDE JOBs with No Heavy Lifting, myself. But NObody DARNS socks (or calls one of a certain style "a crew")... One DARNS things when DAMNS might offend tender sensibilities. I missed a lot of the clue/entry pairs simply by virtue of filling the grid so quickly...but after yesterday, not gonna complain about that!
Right on my average. Felt hard, but I never felt put-upon. (My typical reaction to a Robyn Wintraub.) Southwest had me stumped for a while, but then I bellied up to the buffet and made a meal of it. Plenty of smiles throughout, but "Minor change" for CENT made me go "oooooo, that's good."
Different mindsets produce different results. This was extrememly difficult for me, but I made it through without any lookups. One of the few I can remember where I got the long clues quickly but they weren't of much help for the shorter ones. Nice workout for me, sorry for those who breezed through and missed the pleasure when the final solve came.
Nice one Robyn. Ran through all the Joes related to the NYY and never came across TORRE. MOURN for me. As to some of the esoteric complaints: Call me and I will adjust your meds. Great Friday.