Jannicut
Connecticut
I need to explain my aversion to the (now quite dated in academic circles) term HERSTORY. Women - like men - are part of *history*. If we segregate women to their own "story" (or special offset box on the textbook page), we end up making them peripheral to the dominant tales we tell about the past. The story of the Nineteenth Amendment is not exclusively a story about women gaining the franchise; after all, at a basic level, it relied on the votes of male legislators to make it happen. It changed the makeup of the electorate as a whole. It reflected an evolution in ideas about citizenship. (It also enfranchised white women *far* more successfully than women of color.) (It's also true that the wordplay doesn't work grammatically, but that isn't my main concern. Additionally, the amendment as written didn't actually grant the vote to "women." Rather, it excluded "sex" as a criterion for limiting the franchise. Though given the historical moment, the effect was to grant the vote to [some] women, it was worded to apply broadly to everyone.) Paying attention to groups who have been traditionally overlooked in mainstream accounts of the past shouldn't just add other stories we can pay attention to or ignore as we choose; it should transform the stories we already have to make them more accurate because they have become more inclusive and therefore better reflective of their subjects. Sincerely, A Historian
Re 50A, Woodrow Wilson and Gordon Brown received PhDs almost a century apart (from Johns Hopkins and the University of Edinburgh, respectively). Both doctorates were in History. I wonder about referring to them as “honors,” though, as they were both earned degrees rather than honorary awards. I certainly wouldn’t argue that the PhD made either man a more effective leader, but I do think we’d be better off if politicians knew more about the past than is currently fashionable.
Now that’s a Saturday puzzle. When I saw it was by Sam Ezersky, I knew it would be. Persistence, patience, flexible thinking about misdirection, and (of course) working the crosses did the trick. Thanks, Sam.
This breezy and fun Tuesday was a delightful way to bring my gold star streak to 1500.
I took a break from this fun puzzle to see the aurora borealis from the front of my house! Absolutely stunning. And so amazing to have the northern lights come to me after so many years of wishing I could go to them. Then, when I came back inside, the southeast quadrant of the puzzle fell into place (though in black and white rather than green and purple). Quite a Friday night!
Please don’t bake with crisco (unless you’re baking for vegans or folks who don’t eat dairy). Butter will always taste better. Baked goods are treats. Don’t have them too often, but make them worth it when you do!
I apologize to everyone for this especially tricky Friday, designed entirely I’m sure to give me anxiety about hitting the streak benchmark of 2000! Persistence paid off, but slower than my average (which is not a problem, just unusual). I’ve kept this streak going somehow through pandemic, cardiac arrest, and a variety of other crises; I wasn’t going to let some fanciful wordplay do me in!
I was delighted by the inclusion of RUBBER in the theme set! I’ll take smiles anywhere I can find them, and that definitely made me smile. Thanks so much, David Rockow :)
Today, the day before the 80th anniversary of D-Day, is an apt time to have HEDGEROW in the puzzle. A fair amount of the territory inland of the Normandy landings was agricultural, including dairy country where the fields were separated by hedgerows. German soldiers used them as camouflage, hiding in them to snipe at the advancing Allied forces. The cows who lived in those fields, however, were not accustomed to having men in their hedgerows, and were quite curious about them. They tended to gather at the spots where the snipers were hidden, investigating. This was a great help to the Allied soldiers, as it tipped off both the presence and the location of the Germans. And that’s how the cows of Normandy supported the Allied cause in the Second World War.
One of the things I teach my students is actually how early we find the first reference to World War I / First World War. While it’s true that it didn’t stick until much later, the first usage I know of dates to London in the early 1920s. That soon after the Armistice, it obviously had nothing to do with the rise of Hitler or German rearmament (neither of which had happened yet). It wasn’t about the Treaty of Versailles, either. Rather, it was a label that was meant to shock, used by an American in Europe to comment on the fundamental changes of the postwar world. He wasn’t saying anything about anticipating any particular Second World War, just his confidence that there would be one of some kind, some time (and probably not that far in the future).
I know there are other fans of Vertex in this community and I just wanted to say how sorry I am that the NYT has decided to discontinue it. It wasn’t a good sign when it never had its own button in the redesign of the Games app, which I can imagine didn’t help its numbers and therefore hastened its demise. The last Vertex puzzle will appear August 29, sadly. I find them soothing and they use my brain in a quite different way from the NYT puzzles. They are also often very clever and produce their own kind of “aha!” moment when the whole picture comes into view (as I solve on my phone, I never see the entirety until the end). Many thanks to all the designers and especially Burgess Voshell. Your work will be missed on a daily basis.
Given that this column appeared in the wee hours, by an author who doesn’t usually write about Friday puzzles, and with a hastier feel than we are used to seeing from Sam Corbin, I just want to say that I hope that Deb Amlen is all right.
Well, I guess we can feel good about our crossword skills if we managed to solve the puzzle despite missing essential information for the theme clues? Sadly, though, it meant missing out on Deb’s endorphin-boosting smiles.
I thought the “goofy clue for 37-across” was worth the price of admission all by itself, and was glad to learn it had survived so many iterations and changes. Fun and elegant puzzle that absolutely picked up steam as it went. Thank you Julian Xaio and please keep constructing!
Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening is certainly still read and taught in New England, as my kids can confirm. It’s also often sung - it’s one of the seven Frost poems the great choral composer Randall Thompson used in his Frostiana. In fact, I have a hard time remembering it any other way than through the alto line! Even though I know it by heart, I can’t really recite it, because the music is so connected to the words for me.
@Puzzlemucker Always happy to see you! And it’s taken me two months to say this, but your December 31 ode to this community made my new year. Thank you. Do emus write couplets?
What, no Bananagrams? That’s a favorite in our family.
I think for the first time ever, my longest solve time of the week (so far) was … Wednesday. Maybe it’s good for us to have our expectations unsettled!
It’s not grammatical, but: C# : SPOTWALDO
Before he was the NBA Rookie of the Year in 2004-2005, the amazing Emeka Okafor was MVP of the 2004 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship. Before he played professionally for Charlotte, he played his college ball in Storrs CT, basketball capital of the world. (That was the second basketball national championship for the UConn men; they now have six, including the last two. The UConn women have an astounding eleven championships.) Go Huskies!
@Nancy Burp cloths don’t make any sounds, thank goodness. You put one over your shoulder after baby has eaten and hold baby against it and pat baby’s back and bounce gently until baby brings up any air bubbles - which are often accompanied by some portion of what baby ate. They’re protective, and easily tossed in the laundry :)
@Nick Roumel You’re looking in the right place for your error.
Reading the accounts of those folks with personal experience with former numb-ers, I was struck by something: Not only has ETHER gone out of style - so have tonsillectomies. And thank goodness in both cases. Wouldn’t want to have to put a gas mask on an emu.
One day in high school I was over at the house of a friend whose charming and sophisticated mother was not a native English speaker. She walked into the room and announced, with great aplomb, “Girls, I am so hungry I could eat a cow!” In the moment, it felt like the funniest thing ever. Still a memory that makes me smile.
@Wayne C I live on the other coast (but still a coast) and the reason “sea” can’t just be inferred in yesterday’s example is that there are also river otters :) Here’s a west coast source explaining the difference: <a href="https://www.seattleaquarium.org/animal/river-otters/#:~:text=First" target="_blank">https://www.seattleaquarium.org/animal/river-otters/#:~:text=First</a>, sea otters are two,tail is long and pointed.
What, no Bananagrams? That’s a favorite in our family. Emus should spend more time playing games and less time blocking short comments!
Vague or general clues to familiar kinds of answers meant a slow start turned into a fast finish. Once I found a few toeholds, the crosses cascaded into quick completion.
@ Caitlin : For COXES to face the rowers, they have to sit in the stern, not the bow, because the oarspeople are facing backwards themselves. And that’s exactly where they usually are. They can still be regatta leaders I guess because they steer, but if they were both facing the rowers and in the bow they wouldn’t be able to see where they were going because they’d be facing where they’d come from instead. I’m with you on 007’s gun. I managed the name of the company with a few crosses to prompt me, but the specific model required every cross and wasn’t going to come any other way. Not my wheelhouse, and I’m ok with that.
I didn’t have any personal bests this week (I’ve solved too many puzzles for that to happen very often), but I’m guessing that my combined time for all the weekday puzzles was the lowest it’s ever been. I don’t know of any easy way to check that, but this week’s puzzles have flown by. Fun but fast, every day!
@Jeb Jones My mother used to make her pie crusts 50/50 to get (much of) the flake of crisco and (much of) the flavor of butter. I still prefer all-butter crusts, for their flavor and tenderness. It may be something of a generational shift; crisco was a pantry staple in my childhood but it’s not something I buy. I think there’s a lot less crisco baking going on than there used to be, unless the baking is specifically vegan or nondairy. I’ve done quite a bit of baking over the years and still struggled with the clue until I had a couple of crosses (as “King Arthur” obviously didn’t fit). There are, of course, also stalwart lard pastry fans. Suet, too. (Not for vegetarians, obviously.)
The song for this puzzle is surely The Edison Museum by They Might Be Giants. Wonderful for both adults and kids! <a href="https://youtube.com/watch?v=HQgAIKf0tIc&si=jqZlq96vCNX3yoGq" target="_blank">https://youtube.com/watch?v=HQgAIKf0tIc&si=jqZlq96vCNX3yoGq</a> Do emus confuse Menlo Park NJ and Menlo Park CA?
@Eric Hougland @Isabeau That is the one Encyclopedia Brown story I remember in detail! Moral: don’t trust most folks who deal in military memorabilia
@HeathieJ I didn’t know “bubbler” was a Wisconsin thing - it’s also a Rhode Island thing! We moved from upstate NY to Providence and I had no idea what this “bubblah” (the accent made it even harder) was that my fellow second graders were talking about. I was also thrown by “elastics” (rubber bands) and my teacher always called the bathroom “the lav.” I was entirely unfamiliar with “lavatory” so I was impressed that my new elementary school apparently had advanced science facilities!
I live in the heart of UCONN territory, and have encountered that very confusion before! Thanks for 99D from the basketball capital of the world.
@Jay Hoodsie! The perfect New England (not just Boston) answer. Thanks for the Saturday morning nostalgia trip.
@MAR1 We’ve always referred to the white “locket” on one of our black cats by a different sartorial nickname: because of its lacy appearance, it’s her jabot. (We originally thought her sister was all black, but then discovered she has white fur between her pads, only visible when she flexes her paws.)
@Pani Korunova It was creepy then too, at least to this kid. And yes, Richard Dawson played Newkirk in Hogan’s Heroes, that mind-boggling concept that was a sitcom set in a Nazi POW camp. The extraordinary Werner Klemperer was the incompetent Colonel Klink. (It ran forever in syndication and was often on in the after school hours, when we certainly weren’t allowed to watch tv but there was no one home to stop us. We watched quite a bit of My Three Sons and Bewitched, too.)
@Helen Wright I learned it from a class taught by historian of France Mary Louise Roberts, author of (among other things) *D-Day Through French Eyes: Normandy 1944* (University of Chicago Press, 2014). The cost of the battles to the Normande cows themselves was very high: certainly many tens of thousands, perhaps as many as 100,000, were killed. Some of the Allies had another reason to be grateful for the white cows. Advancing with few supplies, there were sometimes opportunities for the soldier with the right skill set and his companions to fill their bellies with milk that was as fresh as it could be. (The cows, accustomed to regular milking and therefore made quite uncomfortable by the disruption to their routines, are said to have appreciated the interaction too!)
@Arkangel2 As Caitlin explained in her column, ‘18A. This is a hidden-word clue, the kind you’d find in a cryptic or puns-and-anagrams puzzle. The [Woman in dire need?] in this case is RENEE, composed of consecutive letters in “dire need.”’
@john ezra Holmes injected more than he snorted, even though Watson disapproved of the quite frequent drug use.
@J-J Cote We did Choose Something Like a Star in high school, too!
@Rich in Atlanta I highly recommend the animated “Olive the Other Reindeer” Christmas special, with an all-star cast, fun songs, and a brilliant and dry sense of humor.
@Steve L Surely including “degree” isn’t the only alternative? I raised a concern about the clue but did not rewrite it. Do I have more faith in the creativity of the crossword editorial staff than you do? I wouldn’t have thought so, based on the large number of your comments I have read over the years. I’m a little surprised you chose to pick a nit that wasn’t even there.
@SBK We call it the “Manfred runner” so the person who created it is held responsible. I agree that it’s just wrong. Love the pitch clock, though!
@Natdegu Or Chuck! Don’t forget Chuck.
@Jonathan I think it’s even more popular in Australia than in the US. Italian-Anglophone? Though I doubt the emus like it. Or the koalas.
@Weak It did indeed - on a Sunday afternoon :)
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