Friday, April 26, 2019

What’s my board certified line? Neighborly global greetings; White satin pocketfuls of peaceful gulls; The long and short of Capistrano; Funny Bon Mots;

PUZZLERIA! SLICES: OVER 8!/21 SERVED

Schpuzzle Of The Week:
What’s my board certified line?


Add the letters in the name of a board game to a name for a board certified professional. 
Rearrange this result to name another board certified professional, one who may work alongside the first professional. 
Who are these professionals?


Appetizer Menu

Conundrummery
Funny Bon Mots

🥁1. Think of a slang term meaning “somewhat,” in five letters. Rearrange to name a style of comedy.
🥁2. Name a specific variety of tool which sounds like the last name of two contemporary public figures — a stand-up comedian and an actress. The comedian’s first name is a genre of music. The actress’s first name is an English word meaning “frenzied.” A synonym of this word is the first name of a current political commentator.
🥁3. Think of a modern day humorist. Drop the last letter of their first name and rearrange to get a type of transformation in eight letters. Change the middle two letters to an S and reverse the first three letters to get a term closely related to the previous word.
🥁4. The first name of an entrepreneur can be rearranged into the last name of a well-known comedian, or a word that often precedes “gunman,” or a word related to the holidays.
🥁5. Think of a comedian whose first name is a color and whose last name is something you might find on a suit jacket.

MENU

Linkin Logorrhea Slice:
White satin pocketfuls of peaceful gulls

Name an anagram of a country.
Link this anagram to the end of a word to name something found in the Pacific. Link it to the end of a synonym of that word to name something found in your pocket. 
Link the same anagram to the beginning of a word to name something a gullible person writes. Link it to the beginning of a synonym of that word to name something worn by knights. 
These two pairs of synonyms begin with four different letters that appear within a 5-letter string in the alphabet. 
What is found in the Pacific?
What is found in your pocket?
What does a gullible person write?
What is worn by knights? 

Riffing Off Shortz And Nathan Slices:
Neighborly global greetings

Will Shortz’s April 21st NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle, created by Daniel Nathan of Washington, D.C., reads: 
Think of a common greeting in another country. You can rearrange its letters to get the capital of a country that neighbors the country where this greeting is commonly spoken. What greeting is it?
Puzzleria!s Riffing Off Shortz And Nathan Slices read:
ENTREE #1:
Think of a polite but not too formal greeting spoken “in the Old Country” by the immigrant parents of an entertainer named Jerry. 
You can rearrange its letters to spell the collective name for Jerry and his family: Rita, Robert and Pamela. 
What greeting is it?
ENTREE #2:
Think of a common greeting in a United State. Spell it backward, then remove the first letter of the result to get a common greeting in any of the states south of the United States. 
What greetings are these?
ENTREE #3: 
Think of a common greeting in a Southeast Asian country. 
Remove two letters used as a universal expression of affection, usually in written correspondence. 
Rearrange the result to spell a neighboring country. 
What greeting is it? 
What are the Southeast Asian country and neighboring country?
ENTREE #4:
Think of a common greeting in a European country. 
You can rearrange its letters to get a common greeting spoken by the lead character in an award-winning movie released in a patriotically significant year, and a three-letter chant popularized four years later during the Olympic “Miracle on Ice.” 
What are these two greetings? 
What is the three-letter chant?


Dessert Menu

Easy To Swallow Dessert:
The long and short of Capistrano

Name two things, containing nine letters total, that swallow other things up. 
Two letters in the shorter word appear also in the longer word.
A homophone of a third letter in the shorter word appears in the longer word. 
What are these two words?


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.

84 comments:

  1. Here I go again, starting it all!
    Happy Friday, everyone! While we sit here waiting to find out our plans this evening, I've managed to actually solve everything except Conundrum #3 and the Dessert. That's right, I only have TWO things left unsolved this week! Not bad for the first day, or considering I didn't see the new puzzles late last night! But then, there was that one time I solved everything the first night. I still can't believe I was that lucky! Oh well, so I have two left this time. Just means not as much work for you, Lego, coming up with hints at your leisure! Hope everybody has a great time working on these puzzles, as well as a great weekend of course!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Time for me to check in, as well, I suppose....I solved a lot too, but wasn't able to get Conundrums #2 and 3, OR the Dessert OR the Schpuzzle....but i was getting really tired, so kinda gave up on the Schpuzzle...

    Will be interested to hear how everyone else is coming along, since we seem to have a robust set of posters now!!

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  3. So far, have solved the Logorrhea, Appetizer #4 (I did not get the comedian except via Internet search), and Entrées #1, #2, and #3. Still working on the others, but I likely will not get the other Appetizers, as they relate to show business.

    For me, referral to the NPR puzzle of last week was useful.

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  4. I think I am safe in posting this, since the two words do NOT contain two of the same letters, but I came up with the idea for the Dessert of a BLACK HOLE!!! Hee hee.....9 letters....swallows things up!

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  5. At the risk of posting too much in too short a time, I just worked out the Schpuzzle. I had been on the 'right track' late last night, just the wrong person...yippee

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  6. Like it :)

    But we may never hear from you again.

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  7. Well, funnily enough, I've just come up with a 'real' answer for the Dessert, which has a clever thing that I think meets the 'homophone' portion of the clue. Not utterly confident about the short word, but it's the only one I can make meeting the requirements.

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    Replies
    1. VT,
      You've probably solved the Dessert. Congrats. The shorter word is not as common as the longer word.

      LegoWhoTheorizesThatTheBlackHoleIsGreaterThanTheSunAndIts"Farts"

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    2. In that case, LegoNoBlackHole, may I say that I thought it [Dessert] was a pretty clever puzzle.

      Delete
    3. Merci, VT. And you are a pretty clever puzzle solver.

      LegoWhoSays"I'llGetYouSolvedMyPrettyCleverPuzzle(AndYourLittleDogToo!)

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    4. Is the short word even a word? If it is, I'm flummoxed.

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    5. It is a real word. It has a formal meaning and an informal meaning. Both are similar. The informal meaning is probably more apropos to my puzzle, however. It might be used thusly:
      "I was starving! I crammed large hunks of ham and havarti cheese down my ___!"

      LegoSaysThatHamWasLikelyCookedInSomeHillbillyKettle

      Delete
    6. I still don't have the Dessert, even after glossing through this whole conversation. Some normal(read: "understandable")hints would be nice.

      Delete
  8. NASH
    DEAN
    ????
    ????
    RSSL
    ????
    JUNK
    PAIN
    ZERO
    ZERO
    ?!!?
    !??!

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    Replies
    1. Boy, Paul, I sure wish I ever knew what you are talking about (I guess they are some kind of hints, but they never make any sense to me.)

      Delete
    2. I hear you, VT. But let us analyze Paul's post:
      It is a list of a dozen lines, with four characters in each line.
      There are a dozen puzzles on this week's Puzzleria!
      Perhaps Paul's 12 lines correspond to our 12 puzzles?
      If so, I do not yet know how NASH pertains to the Schpuzzle (but it probably does).
      I am pretty sure I know how DEAN pertains to Mathew's first Conundrum, however.
      I might know how JUNK pertains to my Linkin’ Logorrhea Slice... might know.
      There may be a "TEARS" nexus between the answer to the first Entree and Paul's PAIN, but it is an iffy nexus.
      As usual, there seems to be a method to Paul's "muddiness!"

      LegoWhoIsConfidentThatComeWednesdayPaulWillClearUpAllThatAtPresentSeemsMuddy(AsHeIsWontToDo)

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    3. PARCHEESI and PHYSICAL THERAPIST don't work out ... the puzzle is flawed!

      Delete
    4. Back in my Haight-Asbury days I was suffering from a sore hip. I sought out a PHYSICAL THERAPIST for some relief. She wasn't available that day, but her associate agreed to see me and check out my bum hip.
      When I walked into her office I noted by her hairstyle that, sartorially, she was a decade or two ahead of her time (I had been doing a lot of peyote and was a bit clairvoyant). She also wore beads and flowers in her hair. She prescribed marijuana.
      She was a RATTAIL HIPPY (sic).
      RATTAIL HIPPY + CHESS = PHYSICAL THERAPIST
      Just sayin'.

      LegoContendsThat"Chess"And"PhysicalTherapy"DoIndeedWorkOut...But,Sure,ThePuzzleIsStillFlawed

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    5. Should we ever take anything you say, such as the above, seriously? Or your tales merely a means to a puzzle-y end?

      Delete
    6. Excellent question, ViolinTeddy. Most musings of my "history" here on this platform are fictional or, as you so cleverly put it, "merely a means to a puzzle-y end."
      I lead a relatively boring life, so must embellish. I love writing fiction, even though I spent most of my professional life reputedly reporting facts and commenting on them. Making it up as you go along is infinitely more fun.

      LegoWhoHasJustNowHadAnEpiphany:"HeyICouldBePresident!"

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    7. Your sign-off [directly above] brings me full circle back to when I first became involved with your blog (well, first on Blaine's, and then moving quickly to P!)...the subject back then had been the Car 54 theme song, but for some reason, I also brought up the "Every Little Boy Can Be President" song that had appeared in one episode of Family Affair (sexist, though that title now is).....sorry, I just had to burble!

      And thank you for the above clarification; I am glad you can indulge in making things up as you go along!

      Delete
    8. Note:
      In my April 27, 2019 at 10:23 AM post, above, I used the word "sartorially" when I should have used the word "tonsorially."

      LegoNotesThatAGuyMayBeAClothesHorseButItIsNotTheClothesButTheManeThatMakesTheMan!

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  9. All the above aside, I just came up with Con #3's transformation and related word (which is how I knew it was correct), but NOT yet the humorist (i.e. going backwards is darn difficult in this case.)

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    Replies
    1. With respect to the "transformation", I know Lorentz and Fourier are out of the question, but are they in the ballpark?

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    2. Lorentz and Fourier, to my knowledge, never played in Wrigley, Fenway. Candlestick... or even in Minute Maid Park! They are out of the question.
      The transformation alluded to in this conundrum is more along the baselines the type of a qalldark (sic) that is generated by performing those requisite "transformational gymnastics" that often muddy the puzzle texts purveyed by mad puzzlemakers such as yours somewhat truly!

      LegoWhoMournsTheDemiseOfThePoloGroundsEbbetsBriggsShibeJarryForbesThreeRiversSick'sSprotsmansParkHaymaker'sGroundsAndSwampoodleGrounds

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    3. Well, okey-dokey, now I know the transformation, because I can chop out its heart, insert a serpentine letter, and then dismember and reassemble to get something kinda related to the transformation, but, without knowing what letter to add to the mix, I'm having trouble coming up with the first name of a humorist. With some slightly different "gymnastics", I can derive the last name of a filmmaker whose sense of humor often escapes me, but that's no help, of course. What I need now is not the letter destined for removal from the humorist's first name, but, rather, an obscure hint to that letter, which will take me some time to figure out, during which VT can wonder how I can be so obtuse.

      Delete
    4. An attempt at an obscure hint (with my apologies to Mathew Huffman is it is not so obscure):
      e is for electric
      i is for issue
      k is for keith
      q is for quarterly

      LegoTheObscure(NotToBeConfusedWithJoeTheObtuse)

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    5. I am certainly NOT wondering, Paul, about your being 'obtuse.' I am in exactly the same boat as you, not knowing how to get the humorist. I didn't get home from errands soon enough to reply myself, that your proposed transformations mentioned above were "way too fancy."

      I have not yet read and absorbed Lego's hint above....

      Delete
    6. Well, having now read the hint, I am feeling plenty obtuse myself! As in, "huh?"

      Delete
    7. One addition to the hint in my April 27, 2019 at 8:10 PM comment:
      ...m is for motors

      LegoNotesThatFourEllipsesAlsoCouldHaveBeenInsertedWithinHis8:10PMComment:OneEachPrecedingTheETheITheKAndTheQ

      Delete
  10. OOh, I just stumbled upon (well, I was trying hard) Con #2's solution, although I still haven't located the political commentator referred to at the end.

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  12. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  13. Hi all,
    I think I have a solution to Cons #2 and #3!
    It fulfills all the requirements set forth in #3, but I cannot find an appropriate actress yet. I have never heard of the comic (only found it through a list of same) and got the solution solely working backwards from the related words.

    Some hints:
    1. The two related words relate to a problem that only men (or boys) can have.
    2. The words also describe the first (and many later) determinations of G.
    3. The last name sounds like someone that I did not need to use to make this post.

    Am I right? If not, at least I have an alternate to Con #3.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. geogfan,
      I must admit to being somewhat confused.
      Are you saying that you have a single solution that works for both Conundrum #2 and Conundrum #3?
      Here are the two conundrums in question:
      #2. Name a specific variety of tool which sounds like the last name of two contemporary public figures — a stand-up comedian and an actress. The comedian’s first name is a genre of music. The actress’s first name is an English word meaning “frenzied.” A synonym of this word is the first name of a current political commentator.
      So, in #2 we seek the identities of a comedian and an actress whose surnames sound the same, and a political commentator whose first name is synonymous with the first name of the actress.
      #3. Think of the modern day humorist. Drop the last letter of their first name and rearrange to get a type of transformation in eight letters. Change the middle two letters to an S and reverse the first three letters to get a term closely related to the previous word.
      So, in #3 we seek a humorist's full name, an 8-letter "transformation," and a term closely related to that transformation.
      I can say this in regards to Regarding Conundrum #2: the first name of the actress is a first name (somewhat akin to "Moon Unit" or "Dweezil") that it is likely that no one ever had previously!

      LegoWhoIsUnsureIfgeogfanIsRightButWhoInAnyEventAlsoAlsoApplaudsAlternativeAnswers

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    2. Congrats, Lego! I just noticed Will Shortz used another of your puzzles this week! Easy one, too!

      Delete
    3. Thank you, cranberry. I know you know the feeling.

      LegoWhoseJoyHoweverIsTemperedByThe"ThereIsNothingNewUnderTheSunSyndrome"

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  14. Lego-
    The use of the definite article in #2: "the modern day humorist" connotes to me that #3 is chained to #2, i.e. the antecedent to the humorist in #3 is the comic in #2. Are you saying that #3 is not chained to #2? if so, it should in #3 IMHO read "Think of a modern-day humorist..."

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    Replies
    1. Sorry, geogfan. Again my goof!
      #3 should read Think of A (not THE) modern day humorist.

      LegoExtendsHisApologiesTogeogfanAndMathew

      Delete
  15. Thanks Joseph :)
    So now I have solved #3 but not #2 as yet (also I got #1,#4, and #5). My answer to #3 fits all its conditions, so I believe it is the *right* answer.

    When I first read the clues on Friday, I was disappointed, as I had thought that #2 and #3 were linked, and since both dealt with showbiz, I had little chance to solve them, and not getting #2 would be tantamount to not solving #3.

    So now I still have not solved #2, Entrée #4, the Schpuzzle and the Dessert. Hints are welcome.

    Congrats on getting your puzzle on NPR this week.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, geogfan, for your congrats on my NPR puzzle today.
      I am sorry, however, about not catching the incorrect "the" in Conundrum #3. I have now corrected the text, substituting an "a".
      I will try to muster up some hints ere midnight.

      LegoPlayingKernelMusteredInTheKitchenWithALeadPipeCinch

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    2. I forgot to add my own congrats, for what they are worth. I didn't manage to solve it, though.

      Delete
  16. Sunday Hints:

    Schpuzzle:
    "House and Senate hopefuls hit the campaign trail."
    Rewrite the sentence above in just two words, a subject and predicate. Spell part of it backword to form one of the professionals.

    Conundrums:
    #2. Fiction by a fellow named James describes the action of the tool. After you find the tool, forget the flathead. Top off your tanks instead.
    Those who know the comedian on a first-name basis know he is a mixed-up stooge.
    Those who know the actress on a first-name basis know she has some kind of body.
    Those who know the political commentator on a first-name basis know he/she is a Geddy/Alex/Neil fan.
    #3. The type of transformation sometimes is preceded by "pitching."
    The term closely related to the type of transformation includes a forward Spanish assent followed by backward English negation.

    ROSANS:
    ENTREE #4:
    The common greeting spoken by the lead character in an award-winning movie released in a patriotically significant year is half a spinning toy. The three-letter chant popularized four years later during the Olympic “Miracle on Ice” is chanted backward at some Phoenix-based collegiate sporting events.

    ETSD:
    Two letters in the longer word that don't appear in the shorter word have a value of 105.
    The letters in the shorter word are found at or near the beginning, middle and end of the alphabet.

    LegoLifesonLeePeart

    ReplyDelete
  17. Well, all I got from that was the assent and the negation. Not enough to work with, IMHO.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. More Sunday Hints:

      Conundrum #3
      Albums by the humorist, who is a cancer survivor, have been nominated for Best Comedy Album Grammys.
      The letters in the humorist's name can be rearranged to form a word for a two-person dance and a synonym for "dance" with the letters "isturb" inserted within.

      Dessert:
      The longer word is reputedly abhorrent!

      LegoTakesASecondCrackAtHinting

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    2. Oh boy, that was exhausting. I finally hit upon the humorist, who, it seems to me, has appeared in the past in the conundrums. But this sure wasn't easy!

      Now my only unsure answer is for the political commentator, as the only one who has come to mind, well, google tells me the first names are NOT synonyms.

      Delete
    3. VT,
      The humorist did indeed appear in a previous conundrum. Don't believe all Google tells you; the two words are sufficiently synonymous.

      LegoWhoBelievesViolinTeddyHasSolvedAllThisWeek'sPuzzles

      Delete
  18. That got me #3, but I still don't understand the Dessert. Is "abhorrent" actually the longer word? It couldn't be!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Replies
    1. cranberry and ViolinTeddy:
      Regarding my "The longer word is reputedly abhorrent!" hint for the Dessert...
      It is true, VT, that "abhorrent" is not a "thing." It is an adjective sometimes used to describe the longer word, however, from the point of view of a word beginning with N. Sometimes the word beginning with N is personified as a woman with the initials M.N.

      LegoWhoAbhorsCarpetCleaning

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    2. Got the longer word, don't know the shorter word. Can you help me with that one?

      Delete
    3. I well know from personal experience, Lego, that the longer word is indeed an abhorrent activity. I am failing to understand, however, what you mean by "from the point of view of a word beginning with N", which originally I didn't know WHAT word you meant, but it did hit me as I was typing this post, along with the meaning of M.N. But, what does M.N. have in any way to do with the longer word?

      Delete
    4. If N abhors a [longer word], it would stand to reason that M N (N's personification) would also abhor the [longer word].

      LegoWhoAlsoAbhorsABroomAndDustpan

      Delete
  20. OK, now I got the Schpuzzle. I was on the right track all the time, but had been overthinking it. Probably because last week I had to see my gastroenterologist and today I see my otorhinolaryngologist.

    On Entrée #4, I am still baffled. I am certain that I have the short greeting and the chant (I got both long before the hints) but cannot get the "common" European greeting. Can letters be repeated in it?

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    Replies
    1. geogfan,
      It is a greeting meaning "Your Health!" or"Cheers!"
      I believe our difficulty arises from the various transliterations of the greeting into English. The one I am using is a 5-different-letter word in which the vowels are in alphabetical order and the consonants are in reverse alphabetical order.

      LegoWhoWantsToGoWhereNobodyKnowsHisName

      Delete
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  22. On the site https://matadornetwork.com/nights/how-to-say-cheers-in-50-languages/ I see no greeting that fits perfectly your transliteration. I can reasonably vouch for the Slavic transliterations (with which I have some familiarity, especially Russian). The Greek "English-pronunciation" at that site is incorrect: I would transliterate ΥΓΕΙΑ as "UGEIA" or maybe "UGEIYA", not "Yamas" as given there. The whole Greek phrase (per google.translate.com) is Στην υγειά σας which I would transliterate as "stin ugeia sas".

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  23. Joe - please be assured that I am not criticizing you on the above post, rather the Greek transliteration of that Web site. Also, I do not speak Greek but know the alphabet via Cyrillic and mathematics use.

    Finally, I could never come up with such clever puzzles as you.

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    Replies
    1. I understand, geofan. It is all good. Thank you for all your comments and contributions. [Cheers!]

      LeGreekToMe!

      Delete
  24. OK, I have declared that I have solved Entrée #4.

    Now to Dessert. I ave a candidate 6-letter word for the longer word that fits all criteria, but I cannot find a 3-letter word that fits then. This is abyssmal (sic).

    If it is 5 + 4, I am still in a hole.

    FYI, I just changed my Bloggername from geogfan to geofan, as geofan is easier on the vocal apparatus. Previous posts remain geogfan, however.

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    Replies
    1. geofan,
      Congrats on Entree #4 geofan.
      As for the Dessert, 'Tis 6 + 3, not 5 + 4 (or 7 + 2 or 8 + 1!)
      The 3-letter word, if you spell it backward and add an "!" and an "h" in the right places, spells a word you saw on the Billboard Hot 100 on the 1980's.

      LegoAwaitingHisWakeUpCallFromJaneCharlotteGinaBelinda...

      Delete
    2. That got it for me! I now have both words and the whole Dessert! I'm done, and I will see y'all Wednesday!

      Delete
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  26. Lego, thanks for the tip. Of course, 7+2 and 8+1 are excluded via the original puzzle (and subsequent posts)..

    And now I have yet another possibility for the Dessert solution: rather like the opposite to an earlier post by VT. I will have to try the 6+3 possibilities for both to see which one fits. It may be nothing.

    There is a 5-letter alternate for this second word that may even yield a 5+4 alternate solution. But the 5-letter word is rather obscure. I have used it professionally (not board-certified) in reference to corrections of apparent mass to obtain true mass, but only in metrological publications.

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  27. Finally solved the Dessert! The Billboard hint did not register for me at all, but a similar one (also in time) for Frisbees may help.

    Lego, your homophone is TRULY CLEVER :) :) :)

    As to the 5+4 alternate solution, I found a candidate that fits all stated criteria, except that it contains one of the valued letters (plus one other) from the longer word. In fact, the 4-letter word was what I had been stuck in for some time, before I migrated to the 6+3 possibilities.
    Geofan

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  28. I guess I've never really gotten the knack of the question and answer process on this blog. Oh, well!
    When I wake up I'll still need two names that mean "frenzied". I know they're out there.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Got Con #2. This is a true feat, as I had never heard of either performer, nor of the genre of music. So I had to rely solely on combing through long lists of performers.

    Hint: There is another stand-up comic with the same last name, but his first name is the SI unit of inductance. He is not the one referred to, however.

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    Replies
    1. Yeah geo, combing thru long lists becomes a habit when you partake of this blog!!! I had never heard of the guy either. And had barely heard of the actress.

      Delete
    2. Simple question:
      Does the commentator's first name surface in this video?

      Delete
    3. Simple answer: Didn't hear it...but great video.

      LegoWhoNotesHoweverThatTheCommentator'sFirstNameDoesNotSurfaceInThisVideoEither

      Delete
  30. In the movie, John Nash loses a game of GO and declares that the game is flawed. Although he was subjected to insulin shock therapy and anti-psychotic drugs, I don't think a SURGEON ever tampered with his brain.
    Dean Martin SORTA borrowed the ROAST concept from the Friar Club.
    How many ways are there to spell Filips? I think VT mentioned EMO having appeared in this blog before, and I believe she's right. I never heard of BUSY. I tried to find an adjectival use of RUSH, but apparently that was misguided. COKIE?
    I think "cancer survivor" was what tipped me off to TIG NOTARO, which contains the letters of ROTATION, plus one. I had been looking for a 9-letter first name.
    RSSL would be the last name of a musician with the vowels removed except for the fact that LEON speled it with two L's. Anyway ELON > LENO > LONE > NOEL
    Hmm, I forgot all about the color/jacket comedian until just now, but of course it's RED BUTTONS (who "never got a dinner!").
    I is for ISLAND, K is for KEY, L is for LETTER, and M is for MAIL. J is for JUNK, which is the kind of mail a chain letter is, and fills in the missing link.
    PAIN KING SALVE worked great for removing splinters when I was a kid. Jerry and family are the VALES. I'll spare you the "Sister Act" link; you can look it up yourself.
    One meaning of ALOHA is LOVE, which means ZERO in tennis. ZERO has another meaning in the context of 12/7/41.
    Noughts and crosses, exes and ohs, whatever. See the last comment on the 4/14/19 edition of Blaine's Puzzle Blog.
    Without the detailed explanation, I never would have figured out how to arrange YO and USA into a Greek greeting. I still have trouble with it ... YASOU?
    I had VACUUM, but for the wrong reason. I was sure the homophoned letter was Q, and was trying to rationalize something about QVC "swallowing up" Zulilly and HSN. When it became clear that was incorrect, I seized on MAW, but the only word I could think of with EH in it was WIMOWEH. That didn't seem right. I forget how it eventually dawned on me, but I agree with geofan about "double U" being brilliant.

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    1. J is Junk! Beautiful!
      Very nice solving, Paul.

      LegoSleepyLion

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    2. I'm confused. ANd too lazy to go back through ALL the posts to try to find out....where does JUNK appear in the answers this week?

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    3. Island chain
      Junk mail
      Key chain
      chain Letter
      chain Mail

      LegoIJKLM

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    4. However, Junk was Not in the Original Puzzle ...

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  31. Thanks Paul, for your answers and experiences. I eventually solved all (the plethora of hints - especially the Sunday hints - helped).

    Some musings on the Dessert puzzle, which was my favorite. From Lego's April 26 hint (I was starving..."), I fixated on the second word as CRAW, which implies a 5+4 solution. I could find no 5-letter companion to fit. After I realized that 6+3 was also possible, I found (after comprehending Lego's 105 = CV) the possibility of CAVE-IN. Certainly it swallows up things and is abhorrent, if you are in one! The only 3-letter companion meeting all conditions that I could find was AWN, and a mention of "beard" strengthened this hypothesis, with a weak homophone of IN for N. But I had never heard of an AWN to designate something that swallows up things. Maybe teeny things??

    Finally I stumbled on VACUUM, got MAW immediately thereafter, then had the double-U epiphany shortly after that. My day was made.

    Subsequently, I mused on a number of 5+4 alternate solutions, all based on VACUO as the longer word (frequently used in the phrase "in vacuo" [= in a vacuum] in mass metrology and chemistry). Possible alternate short words then could be: CRAW, YAWN, JOWL, JAWS. Each of these "almost" works (CRAW is best) and meets some of the hinted conditions, but none has a good homophone (Could A in CAVE be taken as one?).

    Again many thanks for a pleasant week of musing!

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  32. WRT my hints:
    Con #3:
    1. Males (most often youths) can suffer from testicular torsion, which results from rotation of said organ.
    2. Cavendish used a torsion balance to determine the gravitational constant, G, in 1798.
    3. NOTARO sounds like NOTARY. I did not need to use one to post.

    Dessert:
    A VACUUM is somewhat like the opposite of a BLACK HOLE. It is nothing.

    My hints of "abyssmal (sic)" and "hole" related to the alternate (incorrect) solution of CAVE-IN + CRAW noted in my previous post.

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  33. For Con #2, I considered submitting a hint:
    Kreuzschlitzschraubenzieher

    But then I decided against it.
    geofan

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  34. SCHPUZZLE: NURSE & GO => SURGEON

    CONUNDRUMS:

    1. SORTA => ROAST

    2. PHILLIPS; BUSY PHILLIPS; EMO PHILLIPS; RUSH LIMBAUGH?

    3. TIG NOTARO => ROTATION & TORSION

    4. ELON (Musk) => LENO, LONE & NOEL

    5. RED BUTTONS

    LINKIN SLICE: CHINA / CHAIN => ISLAND CHAIN; KEY CHAIN; CHAIN LETTER; CHAIN MAIL

    ENTREES:

    1. SALVE => VALES (JERRY, wife Rita, daughter Pamela, son Robert)

    2. ALOHA AHOLA => HOLA

    3. XIN CHAO [VIET NAM] => INCHA => CHINA

    4. YASOU (Greece) => YO [Rocky] and USA

    DESSERT: VACUUM & MAW

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  35. Schpuzzle
    GO, NURSE, SURGEON
    Appetizer
    Conundrums
    1. SORTA, ROAST
    2. PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER, EMO PHILLIPS, BUSY PHILLIPS, RUSH(Limbaugh)
    3. TIG NOTARO, ROTATION, TORSION
    4. ELON(Musk), (Jay)LENO, LONE, NOEL
    5. RED BUTTONS
    Menu
    ISLAND CHAIN, KEY CHAIN, CHAIN LETTER, CHAINMAIL
    Entrees
    1. SALVE, VALES
    2. ALOHA, HOLA
    3. XIN CHAO, VIETNAM, CHINA
    4. YASOU, YO, USA
    Dessert
    MAW, VACUUM(UU is "double U", as W is pronounced)
    In closing, a thought from EMO:
    "I used to think the brain was the most important part of the body, but then I thought, 'Well, look what's telling me that.'" -pjb

    ReplyDelete

  36. This week's official answers for the record, part 1:

    Schpuzzle Of The Week:
    What’s my board certified line?

    Add the letters in the name of a board game to a name of a board certified professional.
    Rearrange this result to name another board certified professional, one who may work alongside the first professional.
    Who are these professionals?
    Answer:
    Nurse, surgeon
    Nurse + Go = surgeon

    Appetizer Menu
    Funny Bon Mots

    1. Think of a slang term meaning “somewhat,” in five letters. Rearrange to name a style of comedy.
    Answer:
    SORTA, ROAST
    2. Name a specific variety of tool which sounds like the last name of two contemporary public figures — a stand-up comedian and an actress. The comedian’s first name is a genre of music. The actress’s first name is an English word meaning “frenzied.” A synonym of this word is the first name of a current political commentator.
    Answer:
    PHILLIPS (screwdriver), EMO PHILIPS, BUSY PHILIPPS, RUSH LIMBAUGH
    3. Think of a modern day humorist. Drop the last letter of their first name and rearrange to get a type of transformation in eight letters. Change the middle two letters to an S and reverse the first three letters to get a term closely related to the previous word.
    Answer:
    TIG NOTARO, ROTATION, TORSION
    4. The first name of an entrepreneur can be rearranged into the last name of a well-known comedian, or a word that often precedes “gunman,” or a word related to the holidays.
    Answer:
    ELON (Musk), (Jay) LENO, LONE, NOEL
    5. Think of a comedian whose first name is a color and whose last name is something you might find on a suit jacket.
    Answer:
    RED BUTTONS

    MENU

    Linkin' Logorrhea Slice:
    White satin pocketfuls of peaceful gulls

    Name an anagram of a country.
    Link this anagram to the end of a word to name something found in the Pacific. Link it to the end of a synonym of that word to name something found in your pocket.
    Link the same anagram to the beginning of a word to name something a gullible person writes. Link it to the beginning of a synonym of that word to name something worn by knights.
    These two pairs of synonyms begin with four different letters that appear within a 5-letter string in the alphabet.
    What is found in the Pacific?
    What is found in your pocket?
    What does a gullible person write?
    What is worn by knights?

    Answer:
    Key chain; island chain; chain letter; chain mail;
    "Chain" is an anagram of "China."
    ("Key" and "island" are synonyms, as are "letter" and "mail.")

    Lego...

    ReplyDelete
  37. This week's official answers for the record, part 2:


    Riffing Off Shortz And Nathan Slices:
    Neighborly global greetings

    Will Shortz’s April 21st NPR Weekend Edition Sunday puzzle, created by Daniel Nathan of Washington, D.C., reads:
    Think of a common greeting in another country. You can rearrange its letters to get the capital of a country that neighbors the country where this greeting is commonly spoken. What greeting is it?
    Puzzleria!s Riffing Off Shortz And Nathan Slices read:
    ENTREE #1:
    Think of a polite but not too formal greeting spoken “in the Old Country” by the immigrant parents of an entertainer named Jerry. You can rearrange its letters to spell the collective name for Jerry and his family, Rita, Robert and Pamela. What greeting is it?
    Answer:
    "Salve!" (Jerry and his family, Rita, Robert and Pamela are the Vales.)
    ENTREE #2:
    Think of a common greeting in a United State. Spell it backward and remove the first letter to get a common greeting in any of the states south of the United States. What greetings are these?
    Answer:
    Aloha (in Hawaii); Hola (in Mexico)
    ENTREE #3:
    Think of a common greeting in a Southeast Asian country. Remove two universal letters used as an expression of affection, usually in written correspondence. Rearrange the result to spell a neighboring country. What greeting is it? What are the Southeast Asian country and neighboring country?
    Answer:
    Xin chao (Vietnamese for "Hello"); Vietnam, China (Xin chao - XO --> in cha --> China
    ENTREE #4:
    Think of a common greeting in a European country. You can rearrange its letters to get a common greeting spoken by the lead character in an award-winning movie released in a patriotically significant year, and a three-letter chant popularized four years later during the Olympic “Miracle on Ice.” What are these two greetings? What is the three-letter chant?
    Answer:
    Yasou (Hello in the Greek language), Yo (How Rocky Balboa greets Adrian in "Rocky"); U.S.A!

    Dessert Menu

    Easy To Swallow Dessert:
    The long and short of Capistrano

    Name two things, containing nine letters total, that swallow other things up.
    Two letters in the shorter word appear in the longer word.
    A homophone of a third letter in the shorter word appears in the longer word.
    What are these two words?
    Answer:
    Maw, vacuum
    The M and A in MAW appear in vAcuuM, as does a homophone of the letter W (double-u).

    Lego!

    ReplyDelete