Words: 70
Blocks: 26
Hi there~! Hope your morning solve was a tough, but enjoyable one - this is my first time analyzing a Mr. Wiesenberg construction in the year I have been here at the blog, and I either knew his answers, or I was completely lost - and no 51D. was going to help. Triple stacks of 11- and 10-letters in a classic pinwheel frame, most of which came easy with a few letters; it was the middle "stairs" that did me in - yes, I cheated today. oh well.... ONWARD with some of the longer strings -
17A. Western Hemisphere group : THE AMERICAS - we'll start with a map - one that everyone should be familiar with....so I went with an "ALT" (q.v. 45A) light pollution version
53A. Skinny : ECTOMORPHIC - I thought this guy was an "Ectomorph", and he ain't skinny
14. Opalescent gems : MOONSTONES - sounds cool, like they came from the moon, but they're found right here on Earth
25. Snooze : GRAB SOME Z'S - just great fill here - I got it from the crossing "ZEE"
I already said it, my Orthorunican friends~!!!
ACROSS:
1. "See ya!" : I'M OUTTA HERE - nice start, since I was not going anywhere until I was finished; I did have to wait until I had some downs filled first. Reminds me of Dennis Miller's sign off on SNL, 4 rows down here
12. Part of an org. : MEMber
15. Overprotective governments : NANNY STATES
16. Simpson judge : ITO
18. HBO alternative : SHO - Showtime TV - their website is www.sho.com
19. Ruman of Marx Brothers films : SIG
20. Wing: Pref. : PTER - as in Pterodactyl - this fella
21. Good sense : REASON
23. Place for a Valentine's Day gift : VASE - "Aww, you brought that tall man some flowers..." - OK, what movie, huh? huh?
24. Puts (in) conditionally : PENCILS - as in "he pencils in a tentative lunch time"
25. "Brighton Rock" author : GREENE - actually, the whole middle section was Proper names, and I knew none of them
28. Guinevere's lover : LANCELOT - well, OK, I know this one, but had to wait for some perps
29. "Conjuring" author James : RANDI
30. Siesta time : TARDE - OK, total unknown for me - I tried ONE PM, since I thought the clue was asking for a specific moment; I am guessing this means "late"~??? A little help here, with my language barrier
31. Trip taker of a kind : EGO
32. "__ boy!" : ATTA
33. Fur sources : MINKS
34. Not backin' : AGIN'
35. Short life story? : BIO
36. "South Pacific" Tony winner : PINZA - Unknown to me
37. Jaded : BLASÉ
38. What Balboa called the Pacific : SOUTH SEA - 36A. Pacific clecho, too
40. Lures : TEMPTS
41. Some entrées : ON-RAMPS - now, I figured this out early, because I am familiar with on-ramps and cloverleafs, but I figured since it was "French" in needed to be "On Rampe", or some "ALT" spelling....
42. Hardly a sign of support : HISS; and 54A. Puff adder's warning : SSS - some snake clecho
43. Lorin __, who succeeded Szell as the Cleveland Orchestra's music director : MAAZEL - well, now, I just linked this guy whose CD I "promoted" last week with "1812" - which by the way, was the year we had a war, 200 years ago
44. Cabinet div. : DEPT
45. Alt's opposite : NEU - completely lost on this clue: at first I was looking for the "ALTernative" to ALTitude, but nothing was coming to me; I call it brain-lock when you hit a "Sticking Point" (that is not a "TINE") and you refuse to give up - I am guessing it's German for Old and New - I found this link to a synagogue
48. Taina of "Les Girls" : ELG - Another unknown for me
49. Longtime separatist Sri Lankan group : TAMIL TIGERS - tried PAPER tigers, but I know what a paper tiger is, and it has nothing to do with Sri Lanka
52. Omega counterpart : ZEE - last letter in two alphabets
55. Having another look at : REASSESSING - Great bottom edge fill, with two "E"s, and four "S"s
DOWN:
1. QBs' stats : INTerceptionS - one stat a QB wants to keep really low....
2. When doubled, a fish : MAHI-mahi
3. NASA acceleration unit : ONE G - a measure of the force of Earth's gravity
4. Actress Merkel : UNA
5. Kettledrums: Var. : TYMPANI
6. Safari threat : TSETSE
7. Up __ : A TREE
8. 2009 Broadway revival : HAIR- other 4-letter plays; CATS, RENT
9. Inclusive abbr. : ETC - Et Cetera, "and other things" from Latin
10. Hits after a screech, probably : REAR-ENDS
11. Core : ESSENCE
12. Perceived Cold War weapons disparity : MISSILE GAP - the space between dart throws, when playing for beer....
13. One studying animals' behavior in their natural habitats : ETHOLOGIST
22. Poker plus, usually : ACE
23. Hindu sacred text : VEDA
24. Cold wear : PARKA
26. Bases : RATIONALES
27. Followings : ENTOURAGES - love the show, too
28. "The Great Caruso" star : LANZA - the movie, here
30. Sticking points : TINES - nice mis-direction for me - I was looking for "bones", or something that holds up a contract negotiation - nope~! Just these
33. Lose : MISPLACE
34. Charity : ALMS
36. Acidity-measuring device : Ph METER - I was fairly certain of the "Ph" part, but I tried TESTS, then PAPER - but it crossed my other WAG at PAPER (49A.)
37. Rouses to action : BESTIRS
39. Toon whirlwind from Australia, familiarly : TAZ
40. Sneak : TIPTOE - I had " - - - -OE", and thought nah, that's not going to...oh, wait~!
42. Big wheels at sea : HELMS - DAH~!! I was trying to get LINERS and OILERS here - and we were looking for the actual BIG wheel....
44. De Soto's deity : DIOS
45. Classic fruit-flavored drink : NEHI - Crossword favorite, new(ish) clue
46. Ireland, poetically : ERIN
and three closing initialisms -
47. SOS responder : USCG - The United States Coast Guard
50. Common commuting letters : MTA - e.g., Metro Transit Authority
51. Help for lost drivers, for short : GPS - Global Positioning System - once a piece of expensive military equipment, most cars and smart phones now come with one, and I think it's a good idea - so why do I always end up lagging behind some Cidiot lost on his way out to "Wine Country" at the end of Long Island ~????
Splynter
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