Friday, September 2, 2016

Ounces of pRxevention…; Taking a bite outta the hand that feeds ya? Pinheads, idiots, lunatics, sexist crap; Add IT to the mix… add I too; Sound and Nonsense; Grecian earnings owed (to stockholders)



Welcome to our September 2nd edition of Joseph Young’s Puzzleria!

Our featured puzzle this week another outstanding cryptic crossword puzzle composed and constructed by patjberry. (His first one appeared in P! last March 3rd.)

Patrick’s new cryptic crossword appears beneath our main MENU and is titled “Cryptic Crossword Slice: Pinheads, idiots, lunatics, sexist crap.”
Thank you, Patrick.

A half-dozen additional puzzles are listed under this week’s menus (including, under our main MENU, two Ripping Off Shortz And Stevens Slices).

“Think Good, It’s Friday!” Indeed, it’s our first Friday in September. So limber up, grab some lumber, step up to the plate and feast on our menu of mystification.
And, as always, enjoy.

Hors d’Oeuvre Menu

Easy Peasy Of Cake Hors d’Oeuvre:
Sound and Nonsense

What to do to create a ___________
For the hoppers of borders who jump-fence?
Donald says, “Build a wall,
And let’s make it real ___...
We will do it if you elect _____-_____!”

Fill in the blanks of this limerick to make it rhyme… and to make a modicum of sense (or at least as much sense as anything can make in this wacky election year).
Note: The word that belongs in the first line’s blank is an approximate rhyme of “jump-fence,” but the hyphenated-words that belong in the last line’s blank are an exact rhyme. 

Morsel Menu

Decay And Detriment Morsel:
Grecian earnings owed (to stockholders)

Name a national (U.S.) chain of stores with gross annual earnings of over $5 billion. The store’s name contains eight letters and two words (although it is written without a space). The first four letters of the name spell something detrimental to what the final five letters of the name spell.

Rearrange the first few letters of the store’s name to spell a Greek letter that in scientific notation can stand for the rate of decay of what the final five letters of the name spell.

What is the name of the store chain? What is the Greek letter?

Appetizer Menu

Tailor-Made Munchies Appetizer:
Taking a bite outta the hand that feeds ya?

Name a bite-sized bit of food, in its plural form. To the “southeast” edge of the first letter of this food add a “tail” segment curling clockwise, thus forming the name of a brand of bite-sized food eaten by critters with tails.

What is the bite-sized food, and what is the brand name?


MENU

Cryptic Crossword Slice:
Pinheads, idiots, lunatics, sexist crap

Cryptic Crossword Tutorial,
by patjberry:
A cryptic crossword is a rather skeletal-looking puzzle – usually 225 boxes set within a 15-by-15 grid. You solve it just like a regular crossword except that the clues are usually made up of two parts:
1. The straightforward clue, and
2. The wordplay that may be essential to get the answer.
The wordplay may include:
anagrams, homophones, “containers” (one word inside another), hidden words within the clue, initials, charades (“this” plus-or-minus “that”), reversals of spelling, or, in many instances, a combination of any of these.
And be on the lookout for abbreviations – such as L = left, R = right, B = born, D = dead.
Watch also for clues involving self-referring words and phrases, like “bandleader” = B (the “leader,” or leading letter, of “band”); “sorehead” = S (the “head” of “sore”); “Fourth of July” = Y (the “fourth letter” of  “July”); and “grand opening” = G (the “opening letter” of “grand”).

If you’re anything like me, you’ll be hooked on cryptic crosswords in no time. Have fun with it!

Instructions:
The number in parentheses at the end of each clue tells
how many letters are in the answer. Multiple numbers in
parentheses indicate how letters are distributed in
multiple-word answers.
For example, (9) indicates a nine-letter answer like
“ampersand,” (4,5) indicates a four-and-five-letter answer
Like “fish stick,” and (4-5) indicates a four-and-five-letter
Hyphenated answer like “four-wheel.”

ACROSS
1. Rub women the wrong way using latest sexist crap (6.3)
6. Could be bush, right?! (5)
9. Movie a pinhead, likewise an idiot, shot? (1,7,2,5)
10. Records left behind in a safe, initially (6)
11. Chap gets awfully hot after having run a race (8)
13. Recalling a lunatic, full of energy, causing a sensation (10)
14. Eye problem handled by the ophthalmologist, yes? (4)
16. Performers in musical with twist ending? (4)
17. Doddering old man, retired, put in the home (10)
19. They don’t know one has read novel (8)
20. Screen star ultimately died in vain (6)
23. Different genre: rock ballad or folk song (9,6)
24. Sort of early for bed (5)
25. Crazy about a display using wavy patterns (9)
 
DOWN
1. A little pony, a lamb, and an antelope (5)
2. Everything covered with bare guts in emergency room during Patrick’s operation (8,7)
3. Victim of bad karma, yes? (4,4)
4. Got up, put on a robe (4)
5. Groovy instrumental intro that got us dancing about (5,5)
6. Tears up a little? It’s going around (6)
7. Beheld war, united, waving flag (3,5,3,4)
8. Support Democrat, having thought about last election? That’s dumb! (5-4)
12. Used to support helper (10)
13. Michael, for one, has to stay up in case top comes off (9)
15. Rats? Rats riot, stupid! (8)
18. Heard one singing for money (6)
21. Strange bit of excitement on lake (5)
22. Top runner covering first mile (4)


Ripping Off Shortz And Stevens Slices:
Add IT to the mix… add I too

Will’s Shortz’s National Public Radio Weekend Edition Sunday Puzzle from August 28th was created by Sandy Stevens. It reads:
What one-syllable word in 7 letters becomes a four-syllable word by inserting the consecutive letters IT somewhere inside?

Puzzleria!’s first Ripping Off Shortz And Stevens Slice reads:
What one-syllable word in 7 letters becomes a four-syllable word by inserting the consecutive letters IT somewhere inside?

Note: Our one-syllable word has not yet been coined, and therefore does not yet exist in dictionaries. It is an eponymous verb much like the verb “borked,” which means “to have obstructed a candidate for public office through systematic defamation and vilification.” The word “bork” comes from the surname of the late Judge Robert Bork.
Our puzzle’s yet-to-be-coined word is the past-tense form of a future word rooted in the first name of a current political party spokesperson. The definition of this spokesperson’s first name will read something like: “to place someone in the position of having to clean up after a candidate for public office who continually utters inflammatory, defamatory and vilifying statements.”

When an “IT” is added to the past tense form of this coined word, a new past-tense word is formed that already does exist, one that means “to have again riled up a mob influenced by a candidate, say, uttering defamatory and vilifying statements.”

Puzzleria!’s second Ripping Off Shortz And Stevens Slice reads:
What two-syllable word in 6 letters becomes a four-syllable word by inserting an “I” somewhere inside?

Note: Whether the two-syllable word is actually two syllables or three syllables, however, depends on which dictionary you consult. It seems the United Kingdom tends to prefer the two-syllable pronunciation, and the United States the three-syllable pronunciation.
Logically though, based on the word’s root, it should be pronounced as a two-syllable, not three-syllable, word.
Maybe we ought to say the word has two-and-a-half syllables!

Dessert Menu:

Pound Cake Dessert:
Ounces of pRxevention…

Name preventive measures medical professionals often recommend, in two words. Move the space between words two places to the right, forming a new first word. Add a consonant to the left of the remaining letters, forming a second word.

The result is a two-word phrase describing what those who do not heed their medical professionals’ advice might have to do.

What are the preventive measures? What is the two-word phrase?




























Every Friday at Joseph Young’s Puzzleria! we publish a new menu of fresh word puzzles, number puzzles, logic puzzles, puzzles of all varieties and flavors. We cater to cravers of scrumptious puzzles!


Our master chef, Grecian gourmet puzzle-creator Lego Lambda, blends and bakes up mysterious (and sometimes questionable) toppings and spices (such as alphabet soup, Mobius bacon strips, diced snake eyes, cubed radishes, “hominym” grits, anagraham crackers, rhyme thyme and sage sprinklings.)


Please post your comments below. Feel free also to post clever and subtle hints that do not give the puzzle answers away. Please wait until after 3 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesdays to post your answers and explain your hints about the puzzles. We serve up at least one fresh puzzle every Friday.


We invite you to make it a habit to “Meet at Joe’s!” If you enjoy our weekly puzzle party, please tell your friends about Joseph Young’s Puzzleria! Thank you.

79 comments:

  1. Slyboots Lego, in Decay and Detriment there's some overlap of the words, yes?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Word Woman,
      This puzzle Morsel is right in your scientific/word wheelhouse.
      And, the 5-letter word that the 4-letter word is detrimental to can be used to conbat tooth decay.

      What's happenin' at your Partial Ellipses Of The Sun (PEOTS) blog this week, oh Woman of Words?

      LegoWhoIsSeekingAnEffectiveDeetrimentToSkeeterProliferation

      Delete
    2. I'm there, Lego. I repeat, SLYBOOTS!

      At Partial Ellipsis of the Sun this week we are partial to THE SILURIAN PERIOD AND THE STATE OF MAINE

      Delete
  2. Everybody enjoy my puzzle! I already have the limerick, but of course the others(not my cryptic)will require hints. We'll probably eat out tonight, but I haven't heard anything yet. Just checking in early to see my puzzle. Talk to y'all later!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I fear my posting anything at all is a giveaway to one of your puzzles this week!

    Rebuses for fun and profit!
    Individual words are separated by curly braces. The "∈" ("element of") operation in rebuses 18 and 19 means "insert the letter(s) on the left into the word on the right". If any of the characters look like a box, see this image for how they should display.

    Escape sequences
    1. Name the soft drink: \t
    2. Name the movie studio: {\n} + {🎦}

    A suitable run of four
    3. Name the Edward Norton movie: {👊} + {♣}
    4. Name the Jeff Bridges movie: {CRAZY} + {♥}
    5. Name the Saturday Night Live cast member: {DAVID} + {♠}
    6. Name the musician: {NEIL} + {♦}

    se7en. Name the actor this sounds like: {°K – L} + {  + E}
    8. Name the newspaper: {NY} + {×}
    9. Name the retail chain: {○} + {K}

    A melodic trio
    10. Name the book: {♭ + LAND}
    11. Name the Robert Redford movie: {THE} + {♮}
    12. Name the marker brand: {♯ + IE}

    13. Name the Broadway play: ℋ
    14. Name the 2011 internet fad this sounds like: {ℏ + ING}
    15. Name the Desperate Housewives actress: {🜸 – ASITE + IA} + {✗}
    16. Name the Joseph Gordon-Levitt movie: ½ / ½
    17. Name the actor this kind of sounds like: {:} + {∀} [Hint: he co-starred in {CRAZY} + {♥}]
    18. Name the movie director: {JAMES} + {ME ∈ ˇ}
    19. Name the deadpan comedian this sounds like: {T ∈ 7} + {© – ⌘C}
    20. Name the Modern Family actress: {㋆ – Y + IE} + {⌘ – KNOT}
    21. Name the Norse god (also a movie title): {# + BER – ㋉ – PE}
    22. Name a common German word: {W + ̲} [click for video hint]
    23. Name the human developmental phase: {♬ – ⅙} + {Å – ROM}
    24. Name the Star Trek character this sounds like: {✓ + ⚰ – CIN}
    25. Name the circus occupation this sounds like: {⏢} + {🎨}
    26. Name this "homicidal" group of animals: {¶ – PIL} and {§ – SIL}
    27. Name the type of beetle: ¤

    Vote {🎺 – ET}-{¢} 2016! Their policies are made of paper and strings!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for posting these clever rebi, PlannedChaos. I got a few quickly, as did patjberry (below), and am still wading through the "symbolism" in the others.

      LegoWhoBelievesPlannedChaos',ntIsSweeterThanAnyBavarianCreamCu*d!

      Delete
    2. Re #14: I can truthfully say I've never been that bored.

      Delete
    3. #15: The first symbol shows up on my laptop as the simple rectangle that I have learned to recognize as machine language for "I can't handle this". On my phone it's just an empty space. I have deduced that what was intended must be something orthorhombic in nature.

      Delete
  4. PC, some I got right away and most I can't figure out. I'm more concerned with Lego's puzzles right now. Any hints, Lego?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. pjb,

      DADM:
      The store peddles parts and accessories.

      TMMA:
      Alphabetically, the first letter of the food is fair to middlin', which means, not so extreme.

      ROSASS:
      The first:
      "Our puzzle’s yet-to-be-coined word is the past-tense form of a future word rooted in the first name of a current political party spokesperson..."
      A presidential candidate stumbled over the pronunciation of this political party spokesperson's last name, which, in the realm of transportation history, sounds like a description of the era from about 1830 backward.
      The second:
      "Don't pinch me or wake me up... I am living im my dream house!"

      PCD:
      As to the preventive measures: It's not doses of some kind of syrupy nostrum you slurp from a spoon... er, is that footwear I see floating on the sea's surface above the shipwreck?

      LegoThinksThePartsABicycleStorePeddlesMightBePedals

      Delete
  5. Think of a well-known female sitcom character. Add a vowel and rearrange to get the place where she worked.
    I'll say this for her: no one forced her to do what she did, and she did it out of a sense of patriotism rather than avarice.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Carla from "Cheers" worked at an "alc. bar."

      LegoWhoseMottoIs"WhenYouDonNotKnowTheAnswerPostSomeNonsense"

      Delete
    2. A, E, I, O, U, and sometimes B...

      LegoThinksAreLettersTHatCanBeUsedToSpell:BeauBioOboeBabeAbeBoa...

      Delete
  6. I think I have the chain store puzzle.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I think I'll need a few better hints for the rest, Lego.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sunday Hints:
      DADM:
      Seek the lost planet airmen and their commander! (No, not Buffalo Bill!) They are lost... somewhere.

      TMMA:
      The brand of bite-sized food eaten by critters with tails is alphanumeric. The bite-sized bit of food is merely alpha.

      ROSASS:
      The first:
      The current political party spokesperson is from my neck of the woods. Indeed, the party he represents was founded in the state he now calls home.
      The second:
      What will it take to put you in a position solve this puzzle today? The same thing it will take to put you in this 3-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath colonial Cape Cod house today...
      What will it take? Effective [two-syllable word]!

      PCD:
      These preventive measures always begin getting publicity around this time of year.
      Try replacing one of the two words in "footwear flotsam" with a synonym, and then spoonerizing.

      LegoWhoFeelsLikeAFleaFlyingOrFlyFleeing!

      Delete
  8. I got the preventive measure puzzle!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can't quite get it. Without a hint from you, pjb, I'm toast. Whaddya say?

      Delete
    2. (Is there a draft in here? Let me close the chimney.) If I may inject—when I'm playing poker and I have this hand, I have a good chance of taking the winnings from the center of the table.

      Delete
    3. Funny you should mention 'draft'. More, uh, Wednesday, that's it, Wednesday.

      Delete
  9. The first five letters have to do with going to the bathroom, and that's all I can tell you. I have an even better hint for the chain store puzzle: One of the words in the answer goes with one of the cryptic answers, and both words have the same number of letters! Go easy on the hairspray!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Here's another one for all of you while you work on my puzzle:
    Think of a pop song title from 1969 by a legendary American singer/songwriter. It contains 10 letters total, three words. If you were to remove the two spaces and divide the title exactly in half, the first half would spell the one-word title of a rock song released the following year by a short-lived group led by a legendary British rock guitarist. The second half consists of the singer/songwriter's surname, all but the last letter. This has been replaced by a letter that, if the original letter were an abbreviation for a common English word, the new letter would be its opposite abbreviation. Also about the singer/songwriter: If you dropped one letter from his stage name and rearranged the rest, you would get a two-word name for a type of musical group you wouldn't necessarily see or hear performing any of the singer/songwriter's music.
    What's the name of the song from 1969? The song from 1970? Who performed each? What are the abbreviations? What's the type of musical group?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. SOLVED (Y/N)?
      >>>> Y

      I find the type of musical group terribly bland. Tons of applause for puzzlemaker PJB. Once I got the 1969 song, the rest fell into place like dominoes.

      Delete
    2. Thanks greatly for the bonus puzzle, patjberry.
      I had a geographical advantage for one of the two artists in your puzzle. The rock song by the short-lived group, IMHO, has one of the most recognizable and thrilling guitar intros ever.
      The singer/songwriter's song title, of course, is ungrammatical (but I can some cut slack for "poetic license, I guess), and it is one of my least favorite songs of his/hers... but I am still a big fan, especially of his/her album whose title initials spell out a "word" that rhymes with Mott.

      LegoAdmitsThatInOrderToSolveTheTypeOfMusicalGroupHeHadToGetThe'EllOuttaThere!

      Delete
    3. Any connection to 1D is purely coincidental, of course.

      Delete
    4. Yes, Paul, coincidental... unless we take into account 10A, and if we change 9A to:
      "Export spice, blended aged ales, muddled aid into subcontinent" (4,4,2,5).

      LegoAdmitsThatpatjberry'sCrypticCrosswordCluesAreSmartArtWhileLego'sAreDaft"Craft"

      Delete
  11. HI folks. Although I'm not up to grasping everything posted above, I just wanted to check in briefly, to say I managed to solve the Hors D'O and the Morsel right away, and then the first of the RIpping Off puzzles. Also all but one (or two) of PC's rebi.....but I'm completely stuck on the Appetizer, the Dessert and the second Ripping Off one.

    I don't even think of tackling cryptic crosswords (I didn't the last time PJB had one of those on here either.)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. TMMA:
      The food begins with a vowel. The brand name begins not with a bon mot but with a Bonn no.

      ROSASS #2:
      I TRY ALE when I'm feeling IRATELY.

      PCD:
      Solving this puzzle is like searching in vain to find a needle in a haymaker.

      LegoLovesTheSoftLushLife

      Delete
  12. I got the second ripoff puzzle, but the bite-sized food puzzle is still tough.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Also, VT, I'm disappointed you're not even giving my puzzle a try. Try it, you'll like it. What's a little wordplay? Come on!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I would like to play your cryptic crossword, but I don't have the experience playing them that you do. Can you recommend any websites with introductory cryptic crosswords for someone like me just starting out so I can get the hang of it? I've done some reading, but so far haven't been able to figure out the clues in yours.

      Delete
    2. If I may 'inject'...
      My 'well-known female sitcom (arguably 'dramedy') character' riddle contains hints for the four longest entries in pjb's grid.
      I don't think that's a rnajor giveaway.

      Delete
    3. Paul,
      Feel free to "inject away," ant time the spirit moves you.

      Regarding your: September 2, 2016 at 11:15 PM post:
      "Think of a well-known female sitcom character. Add a vowel and rearrange to get the place where she worked.
      I'll say this for her: no one forced her to do what she did, and she did it out of a sense of patriotism rather than avarice."

      I do not have the answer. But I have tried. And, in doing so I have created a piggyback that I planned to use on this Friday's P! blog. But I fear that, because I do not know your intended answer, my piggybackpuzzle might somehow overlap on your sitcom puzzle, and fair-minded people would cry "Foul!" and accuse me of Paulplagiarism!

      I will lose sleep over this! So...

      If you would, could you email me at legolambda@aol.com and put my mind at ease?
      If you wouldn't, could you then instead somehow allay my fears via Puzzleria! post?

      LegoThinks"RippingOffPaul"Doesn'tHaveQuiteTheSameRingAs"RippingOffShortz"!

      Delete
    4. Major Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan, R.N. worked in a hospital.
      That's the straightforward answer to the poser. I'll try to untangle the ties to pjb's puzzle sometime between 3PM EDT and nightfall.

      Delete
    5. After further research, maybe RN does not apply to Maj. Houlihan. She apparently graduated from a four-year nursing school, so I think BSN applies, but I think RN is a licensing sort of thing (kind of like passing the bar in the legal profession), and maybe the Army has its own protocols, so I don't really know.
      Nor do I really know her primary motivation for joining up. She wasn't drafted, and I don't think she was in it for the GREENBACKDOLLARs (although they came in handy for bailing and drying out her alcoholic, kleptomaniacal old lady). Was it allegiance to the REDWHITEANDBLUE or Army Green? Maybe her parents 'forced her' into it, in a way. At any rate, E.M. Forster wrote APASSAGETOINDIA.
      But enough MEATBALLSURGERY already; what else is new? I guess those people trying to sneak into our homeland from their fatherland (on second thought, MOTHERLAND) will get their comeuppance when Trump&Pence build their tall wall. I think the Dalai Lama has been reincarnated 13 times, which is 5 more times than any cat, and certainly more than that other reindeer. Give peace a chance!
      I think I've touched all the bases ... at least somewhat ... so it's alright, and I'm ...

      Delete
    6. You have indeed touched all the bases, Paul, and also an acid or two. Touche!
      Hot Lips + a = hospital = inspired. And I am breathing a sigh of relief. You shall see why come Friday morning.

      BTW, on behalf of pjb and all Puzzlerians!, I think I can thank you for solving his very fine and really challenging puzzle.

      Much more than alright. Thank you, Paul.

      LegoWhoSavorsTheJoyceOfReadingPaul'sR.E.M.(RapidEnvelope-pushingMovement)Ramblings...AndLegoMeans"Ramblings"InTheBestSense!

      Delete
  14. There's always the Guardian website and their "Quiptic", sort of a quick cryptic. I think it's the easiest one. Of course, I subscribe to GAMES/World of Puzzles magazine. Their cryptic crosswords might be good starters for you. It's not that difficult if you know what you're doing. It can be tricky at first, though.

    ReplyDelete
  15. I am no whiz at cryptic crosswords, but I can plow through them if given enough time and mustering enough effort.

    A few of the easier clues in this "Quiptic, as Patrick suggested, are:
    4. DOWN: Suspect trickery as real malt's blended (5,1,3)...
    "Blended" implies mixing letters, implies and anagram
    "REAL MALT'S" anagrams to "SMELL A RAT," which is the answer to the embedded clue, "Suspect trickery."


    Also:
    17. ACROSS: One who watches actor step out (9)...
    Another anagram. (Lots of those in cryptic crosswards!). I guess that "one who watches" was the clue part, then set off to look for a disguised synonym. "Out" could mean "out of kilter" perhaps. I f so, then "actor step" can be put back into kilter to spell SPECTATOR.
    (Am I correct about "out" meaning "out of kilter," Patrick?


    LegoTryingToDecryptTheCryptic

    ReplyDelete
  16. Yes, Lego, "out" is commonly used as an anagram indicator. So is "off". The Quiptic would be the perfect jumping off place for beginners, IMHO. BTW, I have the answer to Paul's puzzle. I hate to say he ripped me off, but I think I've used that very anagram before in another puzzle. P. S. IMHOBTW doesn't really spell anything(and neither does PSIMHOBTW!)

    ReplyDelete
  17. BTW I may be late revealing my answers later today. I have an appointment to see my therapist Dr. Bentley at 1:00PM. After most doctor's appointments I feel like taking a nap, usually because I have to get up earlier than usual and might not get as much sleep.
    Still can't get the bite-sized food puzzle or the political spokesperson puzzle. Plus my mom's been using the Kindle for the past three, maybe four hours and it needs recharging badly. Any other hints to end on, Lego?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. patjberry,
      For which puzzle(s) would you like hints?

      Also, if you would like pjb, I could post the answers for your cryptic crossword if you like (along with the filled-in grid, and the clue-explanations you sent me).
      I have been posting answers around 7 to 9 PM CDT on Wednesdays, so as to give Puzzlerians! ample opportunity to reveal their "solvific" handiwork first.

      LegoPoisedToDoleOutEleventhHourHints

      Delete
  18. As I said, the bite-sized food puzzle and the political spokesperson puzzle. And yes, please post the filled-in grid and explanations. I'm afraid some Puzzlerians still aren't getting the idea of my puzzle.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Dalai Lama works as a hint for both of those puzzles, imho, pjb.

      Delete
    2. Thanks, Paul, for your hints.

      I will post the answer to your puzzle, pjb, later tonight at around dusk CDT.

      TMMA:
      The brand is a part of an "idiom/legend/old wives tale..." and the brand rhymes with one of those words I just put in quotation marks, preceded by what certain critters would seem to do "on Fancy Feast," at least according to the manufacturer's propaganda... I mean, advetising.

      ROSASS #1:
      The first four letters of the first name of the political spokesmans are a homophone of the first five letters of the answer Will gave forh his 1-syllable/4-syllabe puzzle last Sunday.

      LegoEleventhHourPower

      Delete
  19. FINALLy finally finally....putting together several of Lego's hints, I figured out both the Dessert and the (even tougher) Appetizer. (Was close on IT for a long time, before the light eventually dawned.) The second Ripping Off may elude me forever though....the deadline is only 10.5 hours away.

    ReplyDelete
  20. I, too, am stumped by the second R.O. with its fractal syllables, but I've been told my pronunciation is Laosy, so ...
    As for the Hors d’Oeuvre, I know it's supposed to be easy, and 66.66...% of it is, I mean, I know 'wall' rhymes with 'yuge', but I can't discover the appropriate non-hyphenated rhyme of 'jump-fence'.
    Other than that, I think I've got everything. Well, except for PC's rebi. I didn't seriously try most of those; just picked at them here and there. I can be finicky like that [that's another hint, pjb (in case the previous one wasn't enough)].

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Paul,
      The EPOCHO rhyme is a 3-syllable word that begins with a C. Its 2nd and 3rd syllables rhyme (well, kinda-approximately-somewhat rhyme, anyway) with "jump-fence."

      VT and Paul,
      The second ROSASS 4-syllable word is a kind of antonym of "dreamworld." The 2-syllable word is probably in the Yellow Pages... with the same number of syllables, but with a slightly altered ending. (Update: Actually it is not in the Yellow Pages. What is in the Yellow Pages is a two-word category, with its first word beginning with the same four letters as both the 2-syllable and 4-syllable words...
      Paul Simon has some of this 2-syllable category "here in my bag.")

      LegoDonningHisGabardineSuitAndBowtieCamera

      Delete
  21. Still not sure about the bite-sized food puzzle, but I've got the spokesperson puzzle!

    ReplyDelete
  22. You did say the word in the food puzzle began with a vowel.

    ReplyDelete
  23. ROSASS:
    REINCE Priebus. REINCED (+ IT) = REINCITED
    DEFIED (+ I) = DEIFIED

    DESSERT MENU:
    Run FEW ERRANDS>>>buy FEWER BRANDS
    Run LIGHT ERRANDS>>>buy LIGHTER BRANDS

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Very creative dessert answers, ron. Not my intended but still quite solid.

      LegoSaysOneOfTheErrandsHeIsCuttingBackOnIsRunningToThePharmacyToBuyCartloadsOfBrandNameDrugs(AndEvenGenerics!)

      Delete
    2. DEFENSE, TALL, TRUMP-PENCE
      AUTOZONE, AUTO, OZONE
      OLIVES, 9LIVES
      REINCED(Reince Priebus), REINCITED
      REALTY, REALITY
      FLU SHOT, FLUSH HOT
      Sorry I was so late. We had to babysit. Luckily only one crayon out of 24 was sacrificed.

      Delete
  24. Rebus answers:

    1. Tab
    2. New Line Cinema
    3. Fight Club
    4. Crazy Heart
    5. David Spade
    6. Neil Diamond
    7. Kevin Spacey (KELVIN – L, SPACE + E; he featured in the movie "Se7en". The KELVIN symbol doesn't take a degree sign, but I included it to differentiate it from simply being the letter K.)
    8. NY Times
    9. Circle K
    10. Flatland
    11. The Natural
    12. Sharpie
    13. Hamilton
    14. Planking (Planck symbol)
    15. Marcia Cross (MARCASITE – ASITE + IA, CROSS)
    16. 50/50 (HALF/HALF)
    17. Colin Farrell (COLON, FOR ALL)
    18. James Cameron (ME in CARON = CAMERON)
    19. Steven Wright (T in SEVEN = STEVEN, COPYRIGHT – COPY)
    20. Julie Bowen (JULY – Y + IE, BOWEN KNOT – KNOT)
    21. Thor (OCTOTHORPE + BER – OCTOBER – PE)
    22. Wunderbar (W + UNDERBAR)
    23. Teen angst (SIXTEENTH – SIXTH, ANGSTROM – ROM)
    24. Pavel Chekov (CHECK + COFFIN – CIN)
    25. Trapeze artist (TRAPEZOID, ARTIST PALETTE)
    26. A murder of crows (PILCROW – PIL, SILCROW – SIL)
    27. Scarab beetle (the currency sign is sometimes known as a SCARAB)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks again for the multiple rebi, PlannedChaos. Funstuff.

      I solved only about half. I ought to me more familiar with font symbols than I am. And the more "cutting edge" culture often seems to be passing me by, making me miss allusions, codes, shibboleths, etc.

      Of the ones I solved, I especially enjoyed Wunderbar, Trapeze Artist and Steven Wright.

      LegoSometimesFeelsLikeAnUnmooredShippolethAdriftAtSea

      Delete
  25. Things have been hopping over here at Joe's but are QUIESCENT over at Partial Ellipsis of the Sun today.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Apologizing once again for my lateness....had an emergency medical appt, and then errands....ho hum.

    HORS D'OEUVRE: HUMP DENSE; TALL; TRUMP-PENCE.

    MORSEL: AUTOZONE; TAU

    APPETIZER: "OLIVES" and "9 LIVES"

    RIPPING OFF SHORTZ and STEVENS SLICE: 1. REINCE and REINCITED; 2. ?

    DESSERT: FLU SHOTS and FLUSH POTS

    PC's REBI:
    1. TAB
    2. NEW LINE FILMS
    3. FIGHT CLUB
    4. CRAZY HEART
    5. DAVID SPADE
    6. NEIL DIAMOND
    7. KEVIN SPACEY
    8. NEW YORK TIMES
    9. CIRCLE K
    10. FLAT LAND
    11. SHARPIE
    12. THE NATURAL
    13. SHARPIE
    13. ?
    14. PLANKING
    15. MARCIA CROSS
    16. 50/50
    17. COLIN FARRELL
    18. JAMES CAMERON?
    19. STEPHEN WRIGHT
    20. JULIE BOWEN
    21. THOR? (but I have no idea WHY)
    22. WUNDERBAR
    23. TEEN ANGST
    24. CHEKOV
    25. TRAPEZE ARTIST
    26. CROW MEONS ?
    27. SCARAB

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, I did notice them, PC, thanks. I stil lhave to figure out the James Cameron one, however.....and don't quite understand where 'murder' for the crows came from. [I know that must be what a group of crows is called, out of that list of weirdo terms for animals flocks/herds.]

      Delete
    2. OOh, I meant to ask you, HOW did the script H turn into Hamilton? Natch, I thought of that, but had no idea why the single letter would mean Hamilton.

      Delete
    3. A second question, PC: your last rebus above, re voting, which didn't appear in the link for those of us who see only little squares.....which of course, I had to use.....the voting one didn't show what its little square meant. What DID it mean? And what was the answer, thus?

      Delete
    4. 13. That script H is used in Hamiltonian mechanics.
      18. The upside-down circumflex-looking thing is called a caron, so inserting the letters ME into this gives CAMERON.
      26. The answer could just as well be "crows", it's just that the way I phrased the clue asked for "this 'homicidal' group of animals". You are correct, a group of crows is called a "murder" of crows.

      As to the "vote" footer, I wasn't really intending that to be a puzzle as I thought it was obvious from context (and it directly related to the easy-peasy Hors d’Oeuvre). But here is an image for how it's supposed to look, and I trust you can figure it out from there. The "Let's Go Fly a Kite" from Mary Poppins that I linked to was inspired by that song's line "with tuppence for paper and string", which rather sounds like the group I'm alluding to.

      Delete
    5. I LOVE that song from Mary Poppins....and have been known to break out singing it whenever the mood strikes (or kites are flying anywhere.)

      Thanks for all the explanations. I never heard of a 'caron' only a circumflex. I never heard of Hamiltonian mechanics either, only Newtonian.

      Delete
  27. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  28. Just found/read the last hint re the second Ripping Off puzzle, and since you practically 'gave it' to us, Lego, I can now say that the answer is REALTY and REALITY.

    ReplyDelete
  29. This week's answers, for the record, Part 1:

    Hors d’Oeuvre Menu

    Easy Peasy Of Cake Hors d’Oeuvre:
    Sound and Nonsense
    What to do to create a ___________
    For the hoppers of borders who jump-fence?
    Donald says, “Build a wall,
    And let’s make it real ___...
    We will do it if you elect _____-_____!”
    Fill in the blanks of this limerick to make it rhyme… and to make a modicum of sense (or at least as much sense as anything can make in this wacky election year).

    Answer:
    Line 1: comeuppance
    Line 4: tall
    Line 5: Trump-Pence

    Morsel Menu

    Decay And Detriment Morsel:
    Grecian earnings owed (to stockholders)
    Name a national (U.S.) chain of stores with gross annual earnings of over $5 billion. The store’s name contains eight letters and two words (although it is written without a space). The first four letters of the name spell something detrimental to what the final five letters of the name spell.
    Rearrange the first few letters of the store’s name to spell a Greek letter that in scientific notation can stand for the rate of decay of what the final five letters of the name spell.
    What is the name of the store chain? What is the Greek letter?

    Answer:
    AutoZone; Tau
    Auto emissions have been shown to be responsible for depleting the Earth's ozone layer.

    Appetizer Menu

    Tailor-Made Munchies Appetizer:
    Taking a bite outta the hand that feeds ya?
    Name a bite-sized bit of food, in its plural form. To the “southeast” edge of the first letter of this food add a “tail” segment curling clockwise, thus forming the name of a brand of bite-sized food eaten by critters with tails.
    What is the bite-sized food, and what is the brand name?

    Answer:
    Olives; 9Lives

    Lego...

    ReplyDelete
  30. This week's answers, for the record, Part 2:

    MENU

    Cryptic Crossword Slice:
    Pinheads, idiots, lunatics, sexist crap

    Answer: (See the filled-in grid at the bottom of this week's blog. Also, the answers are are also given for each clue, below. The explanations of the clues are given below that.)
    ACROSS
    1. Rub women the wrong way using latest sexist crap (6.3)
    NUMBER TWO
    6. Could be bush, right?! (5)
    SHRUB
    9. Movie a pinhead, likewise an idiot, shot? (1,7,2,5)
    A PASSAGE TO INDIA
    10. Records left behind in a safe, initially (6)
    ALBUMS
    11. Chap gets awfully hot after having run a race (8)
    MARATHON
    13. Recalling a lunatic, full of energy, causing a sensation (10)
    ALLERGENIC
    14. Eye problem handled by the ophthalmologist, yes? (4)
    STYE
    16. Performers in musical with twist ending? (4)
    CAST
    17. Doddering old man, retired, put in the home (10)
    MOTHERLAND
    19. They don’t know one has read novel (8)
    AIRHEADS
    20. Screen star ultimately died in vain (6)
    RIDDLE
    23. Different genre: rock ballad or folk song (9,6)
    GREENBACK DOLLAR
    24. Sort of early for bed (5)
    LAYER
    25. Crazy about a display using wavy patterns (9)
    DAMASCENE
    DOWN
    1. A little pony, a lamb, and an antelope (5)
    NYALA
    2. Everything covered with bare guts in emergency room during Patrick’s operation (8,7)
    MEATBALL SURGERY
    3. Victim of bad karma, yes? (4,4)
    EASY MARK
    4. Got up, put on a robe (4)
    TOGA
    5. Groovy instrumental intro that got us dancing about (5,5)
    OUTTA SIGHT
    6. Tears up a little? It’s going around (6)
    SPIRAL
    7. Beheld war, united, waving flag (3,5,3,4)
    RED WHITE AND BLUE
    8. Support Democrat, having thought about last election? That’s dumb! (5-4)
    BRAIN-DEAD
    12. Used to support helper (10)
    SECONDHAND
    13. Michael, for one, has to stay up in case top comes off (9)
    ARCHANGEL
    15. Rats? Rats riot, stupid! (8)
    TRAITORS
    18. Heard one singing for money (6)
    TENNER
    21. Strange bit of excitement on lake (5)
    EERIE
    22. Top runner covering first mile (4)
    SKIM

    EXPLANATIONS OF CLUES:
    ACROSS
    1. RUBWOMEN anagram containing T in sexist
    6. BUSHR anagram&lit.(R for right)
    9. A+P(head of pin)+AS+SAGE+ANIDIOT anagram
    10. L for left+BUM inside AS(S for safe)
    11. MAN containing HOT anagram after RA(R for run)
    13. RECALLINGA anagram
    14. Hidden in ophthalmologiSTYEs
    16. CATS with the last two letters switched
    17. OLDMANR anagram(R for retired)containing THE
    19. I(for one)HAS READ anagram
    20. R in star+D(for died)inside IDLE
    23. GENREROCKBALLAD anagram
    24. EARLY anagram
    25. MAD reversed+A+SCENE
    DOWN
    1. Hidden in poNYALAmb
    2. ALL inside BAREGUTS anagram inside ER inside MY
    3. KARMAYES anagram
    4. GOT reversed+A
    5. I inside THATGOTUS
    6. RIPS reversed+AL(L for little)
    7. BEHELDWARUNITED anagram
    8. BRA+D containing IDEA containing N in election
    12. SECOND HAND
    13. HANG inside PARCEL-P
    15. RATSRIOT anagram
    18. Sounds like TENOR
    21. E in excitement+ERIE
    22. SKI+M in mile

    Lego...

    ReplyDelete
  31. This week's answers, for the record, Part 3:

    Ripping Off Shortz And Stevens Slices:
    Add IT to the mix… add I too
    Puzzleria!’s first Ripping Off Shortz And Stevens Slice reads:
    What one-syllable word in 7 letters becomes a four-syllable word by inserting the consecutive letters IT somewhere inside?
    Note: Our one-syllable word has not yet been coined, and therefore does not yet exist in dictionaries. It is an eponymous verb much like the verb “borked,” which means “to have obstructed a candidate for public office through systematic defamation and vilification.” The word “bork” comes from the surname of the late Judge Robert Bork.
    Our puzzle’s yet-to-be-coined word is the past-tense form of a future word rooted in the first name of a current political party spokesperson. The definition of this spokesperson’s first name will read something like: “to place someone in the position of having to clean up after a candidate for public office who continually utters defamatory and vilifying statements.”
    When an “IT” is added to the past tense form of this coined word, a new past-tense word is formed that already does exist, one that means “to have again riled up a mob influenced by a candidate, say, uttering inflammatory, defamatory and vilifying statements.”

    Answer:
    "Reinced" (that is, "cleaned up");
    Reincited

    Puzzleria!’s second Ripping Off Shortz And Stevens Slice reads:
    What two-syllable word in 6 letters becomes a four-syllable word by inserting an “I” somewhere inside?
    Note: Whether the two-syllable word is actually two syllables or three syllables, however, depends on which dictionary you consult. It seems the United Kingdom tends to prefer the two-syllable pronunciation, and the United States the three-syllable pronunciation.
    Logically though, based on the word’s root, it should be pronounced as a two-syllable, not three-syllable, word.

    Answer:
    Realty; Reality

    Dessert Menu:

    Pound Cake Dessert:
    Ounces of pRxevention…
    Name preventive measures medical professionals often recommend, in two words. Move the space between words two places to the right, forming a new first word. Add a consonant to the left of the remaining letters, forming a second word.
    The result is a two-word phrase describing what those who do not heed their medical professionals’ advice might have to do.
    What are the preventive measures? What is the two-word phrase?

    Answer:
    Flu shots; Flush lots

    Lego...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Obviously, Lego, you were thinking of a DIFFERENT kind of FLU than I was!!! (My FLUSH POTS referring to Nedi pot kind of thing,i.e. nasal congestion, where as yours....) Hee hee

      Delete
    2. I also got "flush pots" as my answer. Somehow to me that seems to better fit the way the puzzle is worded. Maybe because flushing a pot is an actual discrete thing one can do, whereas flushing lots is a more abstract concept without count.

      Delete
    3. Believe it or not, VT and PC, "flush pots" was my original answer for the puzzle. But for some reason I thought "pots" was too colloquial, or something. Also, I didn't like the way it echoed "fleshpots."

      LegoWhoHasWitnessedManyACollegeStudentFlushPotDownThePotAsCopsKnockedOnTheirDormDoor...BelieveItOrNot,Ripley!

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    4. I think it shows in the wording of the second half, although I commode your restraint. Funny that I completely glossed over the "L" when considering consonants. Well, funny to me, but I'm easily entertained.

      Delete
    5. Funny, the "illegal" nature of the word 'pot' didn't come to mind at all...only the Nedi Pots. And like PC, I somehow never even considered "L".

      Delete