dannmann's NYT crossword puzzle ramblings

wednesday, october 10, 2007
robert zimmerman / will shortz

difficulty factor: two outta five band-aids; i took a few on the chin here.

theme: the spelling of a word with two syllables is replaced by their two corresponding sounding alphabet letters to front a familiar phrase.

• 17A EZ (easy) ON THE EYES
• 11D IC (icy) STREETS
• 32D SA (essay) CONTEST
• 39A QP (kewpie) DOLLS
• 64A CD (seedy) CHARACTER

i got off to a slow start with this one; the previous two days intuitive and decisive powers were just a fleeting memory.

and then... 20A MARISA tomei appeared to me [eyes glazing over, drooling like homer when thinking of food, and repeating... m-m-m-marisa...]

*** (ARI alert (age revealing info): i remember seeing the diminutive, bespectacled, and legendary hollywood agent irving paul "swifty" 2D LAZAR on the mike douglas show back in the 48A OLDEN days. the rest of the northwest corner fell into place with 17A EZ (easy) ON THE EYES being a lightbulb moment. the light went dim very fast, however.

(marisa IS easy on the eyes... and btw. nice positioning.)

one of the reasons i'll never be a speed puzzler is that i doggedly work away from an area that i've already completed. and i will stick with a mostly filled area with a determination once reserved only for the revered postal carrier: "neither rain, nor sleet, nor heat of day, nor dark of night shall keep this puzzler [carrier] from the swift completion of his appointed rounds."


so i'm NOT a skip-around-the-place kinda guy... until it's last resort time... or friday or saturday! well, from the northwest i could have chosen to head east, but no, i chose south.

and the journey was on... (serious shift away from reality here...)

29A TITLE?!

(we don't need no steenking titles!)

my 4D MINIONS were carrying a rather dim light on the 30D BUS to the 43A SPCA when to my surprise the light brightened at the hint of an 32D SA (essay) CONTEST. it allowed me to notice a strange 52A FUNGUS crossing my 52D FLESH! (for some bizzare reason, i really got a kick outta that... not the fungus... i mean... the way it looked crossing... oh, forget it.)

a 64A CD (seedy) CHARACTER (named 'mac' something) followed me out past the 7D REEFS to the 40D PRESIDIO, killed my good friend 49D DUNCAN and stole my prized 39A QP (kewpie, which is colloquial speak for 'cupid') DOLLS.

62D "RATS!" (and other less savory 70A NOUNS) i shouted into the frosty night as the bells 29D TOLLED, and i ruminated the 19D SIN and tragedy of it all. my 54D ASHEN face drawn, i lamented, "ain't that the absolute 5D PITS?!"

i quickly got my 13D HANDS on some 6D ALE, so, i could get off the 11D IC (icy) STREETS and 22D SULK in the corner with a sympathetic 56D LATIN 25D MAIDEN.

now, you can be 35A KEEN to 10D RESENT my 12D SPIEL laden with 9D OVERKILL, if you so desire, but nobody pomised you the garden of 50A EDEN here, so, there'll be no 54A ADO about nothing!



'til next time... 18D HA HA!


(wtf, over?! that just took on a life of its own...)


keep on keepin' on...

dann