Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, etc.! I hope you had/are having a safe and enjoyable holiday however you may celebrate (or not). I also send my wishes for a Happy New Year in advance, as next week’s puzzle will come out New Year’s Day. I had a nice Tibb’s Eve and Christmas Eve with family in Pennsylvania; we hosted Christmas dinner at our house and will be hosting New Year’s Eve as well, so it’s a busy time around here. I hope even if you are as busy as I am that you can find time to squeeze in this week’s solve – let’s go!
- Name: Hillbilly Humour
- Grid size: 15×15
- Entries: 76
- Difficulty: Easy (my solve time: 5:58)
This time I tried starting in the SE and working my way up the grid, but it really didn’t matter for getting the theme – there’s no revealer or gimmick that’s placed near the bottom of the grid in this week’s puzzle. The theme is pretty straightforward – the themers are all common phrases where the first word has been replaced by a soundalike or rhyming word that is a synonym for a rustic stereotype (hillbilly) and clued punnily:
- 17A: [Ether used in a hillbilly hospital?]: YOKEL ANESTHETIC – A yokel is a term for an unsophisticated or gullible person from the country or a small town, as opposed to a city slicker. I think I’d prefer a local anesthetic if I had to go to the hospital.
- 26A: [Garden plot reserved for hillbillies?]: BUMPKIN PATCH – A bumpkin is commonly used to refer to a person from the countryside who is considered awkward and stupid. It is also part of a sailing ship, defined in my copy of “Eagle Seamanship” as a “metal pole supported by chains extending from the side of the ship to support the blocks and braces and lead them clear of the side.” Here’s a diagram showing them on the ship. Whether in the countryside or on a ship, you’d be looking for a pumpkin patch in the fall before Halloween.
- 45A: [Footwear worn by a hillbilly Dorothy in Oz?]: RUBE SLIPPERS – A rube is an awkward unsophisticated person, usually from the countryside. Rube Goldberg was definitely not a rube, as the contraptions he conceived are far from unsophisticated (even though they are quite impractical, but that hasn’t stopped some folks). Non-hillbilly Dorothy (wait – she was from Kansas…) wore ruby slippers.
- 59A: [Two things at a hillbilly comedy club?]: HICKS AND GIGGLES – A hick is a person who lives in the country and regarded as being unintelligent or provincial. To do something for kicks and giggles is to do it without any serious purpose or motivation – or just for fun.
This was a pretty smooth solve with no real sticking points. The theme was a mild help in the solve – I had a pretty good idea of what it was and while I didn’t get any of the themers right off, once I had a few crosses I could get most of the phrase.
Canadian content:
- 34A: [C.B.C. Radio’s “___ Happens”]: AS IT – “As It Happens” is “one of Canada’s longest-running and most beloved shows.” It can also be heard on many US public radio stations.
- 37D: [Klondike Gold Rush area]: THE YUKON – The Klondike Gold Rush started when gold was discovered on the Klondike river in Yukon Territory in 1896.
Other stuff:
- 21A: [One on first, to Abbott and Costello]: WHO – In case this stumped you, here’s the routine where it comes from.
- 31A: [Atty.’s deg.]: LLB – This didn’t ring a bell with me, so I did a little research and this is a degree not given (anymore) in the US, but is used primarily in Commonwealth countries (but not most of Canada – apparently only in Quebec). I also learned the distinction between “solicitor” and “barrister.”
- 57A: [Baseball scoreboard letters]: RHE – This may have caused some head scratching, as usual three-letter baseball entries include RBI and ERA. The twist here is that they are scoreboard letters – where runs, hits, and errors are displayed.
- 25D: [Apple’s “flat-out fun” device]: IPAD – I don’t recall this advertising slogan, but I know it now as it was referenced twice in this puzzle, also at 48D.
Quote of the week:
“Just the other day, I was in my neighborhood Starbucks, waiting for the post office to open. I was enjoying a chocolatey cafe mocha when it occurred to me that to drink a mocha is to gulp down the entire history of the New World. From the Spanish exportation of Aztec cacao, and the Dutch invention of the chemical process for making cocoa, on down to the capitalist empire of Hershey, PA, and the lifestyle marketing of Seattle’s Starbucks, the modern mocha is a bittersweet concoction of imperialism, genocide, invention, and consumerism served with whipped cream on top. No wonder it costs so much.”
– Sarah Vowell