It was kind of chilly last week, but it has definitely warmed up now – I’m composing this sitting on my deck enjoying the trees and wild flowers (and not enjoying the pollen they’re producing). Barb said I was out and wouldn’t be doing a blog this week, but I’m sneaking this one in. I wasn’t actually traveling (though I will be next week), but I was super busy – had evening work-related events Monday and Tuesday, then Wednesday night I went to the Orioles game with a bunch of friends and was selected to help get the field ready before the game. Probably the highlight of my life as an Orioles fan, though the result of the game wasn’t great. They did end up winning the series Thursday, so there’s that. So, no excuses but that’s why this post is a day or so late. Enough about my week, let’s get to this week’s puzzle.
- Name: Look-alikes
- Size: 15×15
- Entries: 72
- Difficulty: Very easy (my solve time: 5:11)
I had a pretty good idea that this puzzle would involve homonyms or homographs (I had to look that word up), and I was not disappointed. The themers are common phrases where the final word can mean two different things, clued punnily as if the common meaning of the word in the phrase has been changed to its alternate meaning:
- 18A: [Fortunate anesthesiologist?]: LUCKY NUMBER – You might play your lucky number in the lottery, but you would rather your anesthesiologist would be skilled versus lucky at numbing you.
- 24A: [Proud parent?]: BABY SHOWER – This one probably could have gone either way – at a baby shower the proud parents definitely like to show off their baby. Well, if they already have a baby, I mean – baby showers are usually held before the baby being showered is born.
- 35A: [Make distressed, and jeans?]: REDUCE TO TEARS – I’m not a big fan of the distressed jeans fashion, so I might be reduced to tears and sobbing if someone ripped up my favourite pair of jeans.
- 49A: [No longer into mini golf?]: OFF PUTTING – Personally, I find some golfers off putting, as all they want to talk about is the game; you get the impression they’d rather be off putting (and driving, and chipping, and looking for their ball in the woods, etc.).
- 56A: [Carry out a heist at a graphite mine?]: TAKE THE LEAD – You better have a strong back or a fork lift and a dump truck if you plan to steal lead (that’s Pb on the periodic table). And if you go by foot, you definitely won’t take the lead for long if you get into a police chase.
I solved a few NY Times puzzles this week with just blazing speed (for me), and I could feel as I started solving this puzzle that it was going to be a quick one. As it turns out, it is the 8th fastest time in my ClassiCanadian solving history. As I look over it, there are some pretty obscure entries, but I guess I got most of the crosses or luckily remembered something. Let me know what your solve experience was in the comments – I’m always curious how other solvers find a puzzle that I find particularly easy or hard.
Canadian content:
- 2D: [Partner of Newfoundland]: LABRADOR – I sometimes forget that the province is Newfoundland and Labrador.
- 16A: [IIHF team beaten by Canada, 2024]: USA – I had to search to confirm that this referred to the International Ice Hockey Federation, which I was unaware of.
- 44D: [Canada’s “city that fun forgot”]: OTTAWA – Capital cities get a bad rap, sometimes deservedly. They’re usually a compromise to keep one city from being more powerful than others, and sometime are created from scratch just to be a capital that nobody likes. I grew up in the Washington, DC area and always appreciated the quote attributed to JFK that “Washington is a city of Northern charm, and Southern efficiency.”
- 59D: [Vancouver’s hardcore punk band]: DOA – I saw three letters, “Vancouver,” and “band” and I immediately put in CUB. I saw them open for They Might Be Giants in San Francisco in the 1990’s, and one of my favourite TMBG covers is of their song “New York City.” I have heard of D.O.A. and am not familiar with their work, but I found this interview with longtime bandmember Joey Keithley, so he gets the quote this week.
Other stuff:
- 10D: [Punch you can’t drink]: SLUG – …but it is a big drink of something.
- 19D: [Brewpub array]: MUGS – I must have had one of the crosses already as I would have reflexively put TAPS in here.
- 43A: [Study of gov’t.]: POLY SCI – I was a government major and always spelled it poli sci, so had it wrong and thought 46D was “I say!” or something like that.
- 51D: [One’s tight buds]: PEEPS – I put POSSE in here initially. It’s not long after Easter so I’m kind of surprised that the clue wasn’t “seasonal chewy, soon-to-be stale treat.”
- 64A: [“Curb Your Enthusiasm” nickname]: LAR – I cannot watch this show – I find it excruciating. But I’ve seen enough to know that Larry David is the star.
Quote of the week:
“Because we do live in a relatively fair society and a relatively civil society, if you want to change things it is best to talk people into it is my opinion. If that involves a general strike or really putting some wild pressure on the government or company or group of fascists then I am all for that. Blowing things up and killing people isn’t the way.”
– Joey [nickname redacted] Keithley