LarryF

When HUMAN CANNONBALL Zazel retired it took a long time to find a replacement of the same caliber. L

Pyroclastic Flows are deadly avalanches of volcanic ash that flow down the sides of volcanoes during an eruption. They can move over 60 miles an hour, destroying everything and everyone in their path. The eruption that destroyed Pompei was a pyroclastic flow. L

My favorite anagram: ALEC GUINNESS-GENUINE CLASS L

Great fun. I got all of the long ones easily, and had near my best time for a Saturday. Trivia: Port MAHON is the origin of Mayonnaise. It also features prominently in the “Master and Commander” series of 20 novels by Patrick O’Brian. L

Premise: SOMELIKEITHOT is the funniest movie ever made. I first saw it before it was released, a friend’s father was a distributor and brought it to our summer camp. L

Hmmm, I have always assumed a different meaning from Hamlet’s “I know a hawk from a handsaw”. A hawk is a mason’s tool, a flat metal plate with a handle underneath for carrying mortar (also called a mortarboard). A handsaw is a flat metal plate with a handle on one end and serrations on one edge for sawing wood. So I’ve learned something. L

Vowels, in order:FACETIOUSLY. And it’s not the only example, despite what my 6th grade teacher told us. L

A QUILTING BEE is a normally a gathering of quilters working on ONE quilt stretched on a quilt frame. L

I was especially pleased at 36A L

Fun, challenging puzzle, but closer to a Wednesday in difficulty. L

Who is General Failure, and why is he reading my C:/ drive?

Re 3D: FRIARs, or Friars Mendicant, are not monks, and in general live in the community, nor in monasteries. L

Nit: Except in movies, EJECT is not a button. It is a handle above the user’s head that is attached to the ejection seat. When the user grabs the handle and pulls down a canvas cover the handle is attached to protects the user’s face, then a small rocket in the seat propels the seat and pilot out of the aircraft. At the same time the canopy blows off. The rocket can propel the seat 300’ or more vertically, so it is possible to eject while still on the ground. Once free the seat separates from the user, and the user’s parachute deploys at an appropriate altitude.

Seeing UP as a clue for DUENORTH brought back a memory from my wife’s time as a museum guide. She was giving a spotlight tour “The Search For the Nile”, and one of the visitors asked how could the Nile flow up? L

I had SPIDEYSENSE for a while, but couldn’t quite get OYLESS referring to a sale. L

Trivia: Badabing was a real strip club in Lodi, NJ. Its actual name was Satin Dolls. L

TIVOs are still very much in use. We have 2 and use them to time-shift just about everything we watch (except for streaming), with the added benefit of skipping commercials. TiVo still comes out with new models every year or two. They last forever, however, and hold almost unlimited content, unlike the DVR services offered by cable companies. We have hundreds of movies and other shows that we can bring up and rewatch in full or just excerpts, such as the Nicolas Brothers or Fred Astaire. L

You mean HOBBES isn’t real? Next you’ll tell me Sherlock Holmes doesn’t exist!

Fun puzzle, and I liked the theme, bit I have 2 nits: MACH 1 is incorrect usage. Ernst Mach determined the speed of sound in air. In his honor it was called the MACH NUMBER. Initially I was thought to be an absolute limit, like Einstein’s speed of light. When this was demonstrated to be wrong a number was added as a means of measuring. But the speed of sound in air is still referred to as the Mach Number. The other is that oil tankers do not carry drums, they carry their cargo in enormous tanks. L

What a challenge! My slowest solve ever, but I loved the misdirection. I knew that agave and asparagus are MONOCOTS, but not that HYACINTHS are. I had DAFFODILS for the longest time, which slowed me down a lot. L

Re 121A, businesses frequently use postage METERs to print postage on an envelope. Mail that has been processed this way is called METERED mail and is processed differently from STAMPED mail. L

Fun, slightly more difficult than I would expect from a Tuesday. A better translation of GROK is “to consume”, it also has the related meaning of to grasp or understand completely. L

Wow, what a challenge! Thought it was going to break my 3330 day streak. It was a record for me, my slowest Saturday ever. L

Clever and fun, but seemed easy for a Thursday. L

Great to see Lead Belly’s greatest hit in 42 down. <a href="https://youtu.be/NT-OuWmXDsY?si=1nWmT5qV8F-1eDoc" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/NT-OuWmXDsY?si=1nWmT5qV8F-1eDoc</a> L

51A:TIL HER DADDY TAKES HER T-BIRD AWAY L

Fun puzzle. I had SNIFFTEST first, because that’s the way I always heard (and used) it. L

Very enjoyable, I had nothing for quite a while, then it suddenly all came together. One nit to pick: 14D. The speed of sound is the Mach Number, never MACH ONE. Faster than the speed of sound it’s accepted to use, say, MACH TWO, but not at the speed of sound. Ernst Mach never anticipated it as a travel parameter, and he died long before anyone even thought it possible to travel even 100 mph. L

A little hard for a Monday, but very enjoyable. L