Words: 70 (missing Q,U)
Blocks: 31
I get very dismayed when I see Mr. Bickham's name listed as the
constructor on the crossword, because I find his Saturday puzzles to be
very difficult to solve. While today's grid has a very cool look to it,
there was also a LOT of white, and my first pass did not yield
much. BUT - as is always the case, by plugging away, and throwing a few
WAGs in, I was able to complete it. There was no analyzer available
last night, so forgive me for typos and omissions. Two grid spanners:
17a. Traditional Austrian dish : WEINER SCHNITZEL - I started to fill in VIENNA SAUSAGE, but that just wasn't working with the down answers that I knew were correct
56a. Annual People feature : SEXIEST MAN ALIVE - Adam Levine of "The Voice" and Maroon 5 fame was the winner in 2013 - very racy pic here
Onward~!
ACROSS:
1. Lake Titicaca forms part of its border : BOLIVIA - oh, what a name~! map
8. Rug treatment : SHAMPOO - for both the carpet and the toupée versions
15. Demanding attention : EXIGENT
16. Performing a spiritual ritual : CENSING - the wafting of the thurible - I just learned something
19. Promise that doesn't always work out : I DO - I did, but now I don't; maybe....
20. Baby blues, e.g. : PEEPERS
- I have blue eyes; the hostess at the Italian restaurant has gorgeous
ones - she's so adorable, I'm thinking about "I DO" again
21. Half a Gabor? : ZSA-zsa
22. It can help you avoid ads : TIVO - or your local cable company's DVR, which is just about the only way I'll watch television these days
24. _____ Gras : MARDI
25. Swabber's aid : PAIL - I thought we might get our "Q" with Q-tip, the cotton swab, and the "U" on the DOWN side
26. Bohemia native : CZECH - could be from right here on Long Island, too~!
28. Food often served in chains : PIZZA - not links, as in sausage
29. Cry upon arriving : HERE I AM~!
32. Breezes (through) : WALTZES - tough, but entertaining clue/answer
34. Anabaena or chlorella : ALGA
35. Andean root vegetables : OCAs
36. Cyclist's wear : SPANDEX
39. Milky : WHITISH
43. Patty Hearst's SLA alias : TANIA
44. "Pearly Shells" singer : DON HO - now that I think about it, this should have been an easy WAG
45. Prophetess in Luke : ANNA - Saturday cluing for a common name
46. Conforms : JIBES
51. Fresh-mouthed : PERT
52. Way to go: Abbr. : RouTE
53. More than just enthusiastic : FANATIC
55. Mark, as a ballot : X IN
59. Didn't need instructions : KNEW HOW
- I'm a "Type 5"; even if I do KNOW HOW, I still read the instructions -
which came in handy doing a laminate floor last year; the installation for
the larger tile style requires the longer side to be tapped into place,
not the shorter one
60. Christmas eave sparklers : ICICLES - Did NOT fool me - I saw the "a" in the homonym eve
61. Straightforward demand : YES OR NO ?
62. Banks, e.g. : LENDERS
DOWN:
1. Entrance : BEWITCH - DAH~!! totally fooled by this en-TRANCE, not EN-trance; I was looking for a doorway that ended in ---ITCH
2. Discolor, as banana peels, e.g. : OXIDIZE
3. Be postponed for later attention : LIE OVER - meh; I think of LIE OVER as in airports
4. Engine starter: Abbr. : IGNition; too bad there was no way to deceive us with "KEY"
5. #2 : VEEP - The "V.P."
6. Directed against a thing, to lawyers : IN REM - Lemonade?
7. Clueless : AT SEA
8. TV listing : SCHEDule; TV is technically an Abbr.
9. '50s-'70s Montreal Canadiens star ____ Richard : HENRI - brother of Maurice, the "rocket"; this led Henri, younger, to be nicknamed the "pocket-rocket"
10. Spanish cordial : ANIS - anise in English
11. Colo. hours : MST - Mountain Standard Time
12. Dash : PIZZAZZ - Scrabbly fill
13. It fits all, so they say : ONE SIZE
14. Crazy Horse and Red Cloud : OGLALAs - according to Wiki, one of seven subtribes of the Great Sioux Nation
18. "Kiss of life", briefly : CPR - Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation - and I spelled it correctly without looking it up~!
23. "1984" location : OCEANIA - or Eddie Van Halen's backyard, if you're thinking about this 1984
25. Rest area visit : PIT STOP - I had PI-S-O- , and thought....naw, can't be
27. "Broom-____": comic strip : HILDA
28. Geometric pattern : PLAID
30. Gray : AGE - put it in, took it out, went back in
31. Nth degree : MAXimum
32. Blow away : WOW
33. Rhine whine : ACH~!
36. 2004 Stiller title role : STARSKY & Hutch - IMDb; Owen Wilson as Hutch, but even better was Snoop-Dogg as Huggy Bear
37. Pro-V hair care brand : PANTENE
38. Takes over : ANNEXES
40. Banished : IN EXILE - better than "ENISLE"
41. McGovern's running mate : SHRIVER
42. Sex appeal : HOTNESS
46. Bourne of Ludlum's novels : JASON - I saw a fourth book at the Salvation Army last week; almost bought it for $.99
47. Apart, in a way : IN TWO
48. "... like THAT!" : BAM~!!!
49. .biz biz : ETAIL - I like the redundancy
50. "____ I Don't Have You" : 1959 hit : SINCE - I would link the Guns N' Roses version for Slash's great opening guitar work, but Axl ruins the rest of the song
53. NHL Player's Association director Donald : FEHR - Oh, I know this name all too well for the fiasco from last season, and its shortened schedule
54. "Am I my brother's keeper?" speaker : CAIN
57. Iconic Japanese island, familiarly : IWO Jima
58. PC monitor type : LCD
Splynter
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