Like last week, I’m tardy in getting the puzzle solved and the blog done. Unlike last week, at least I knew I was going to be late and gave Barb a heads up. Work has me very busy as usual, and this week I had a brief but time-consuming trip that I knew would not allow me to get to the puzzle until late. But enough excuses – let’s get to the solve.
- Title: Oh Well, We Tried
- Grid size: 15×15
- Number of entries: 70
- Difficulty: Easy (my solve time: 5:21)
The title barely registered with me, and even after solving and figuring out the theme (which eluded me during the solve) my thick head still doesn’t quite see the connection. Maybe it will come to me after I go through the themers, which are all phrases that end with letters forming another word for “nothing;” as stated in the revealer, they “come to nothing:”
- 15A: [Honour awarded to Margaret Atwood, Leonard Cohen and Terry Fox]: ORDER OF CANADA – I didn’t know this one, but it was pretty easy to infer once I got a few crosses, which came easily. Nada comes from Spanish for “nothing.” This is also Canadian content.
- 20A: [Like skills learned on one’s own]: SELF TAUGHT – Took me a while to get this – I had a little trouble parsing the clue. Confusingly the various definitions of aught I found mean both “nothing” and “everything!“
- 31A: [Creamy yogurt brand]: DANONE – I knew this right off, even though Danone is known as Dannon in the US. None means, well, nothing. I may count this as Canadian content assuming Danone is what it goes by in Canada.
- 34A: [File compression program]: WINZIP – Probably showing my age that I knew this one right off – I’m sure I used WinZip on the first laptop computer I owned back in 1995. Zip meaning “nothing” apparently “came from kids in the 1900s when they referred to getting a zero on a test” according to this site, however where did “zip” = “zero” come from? And how often does anyone get a real zero on a test? Usually you get a point or two just for entering your name? I have many questions…
- 47A: [Surgical hand wear]: LATEX GLOVE – This one probably took me the longest because I frankly skimmed over the clue, didn’t get it right off, then moved on to the crosses which actually gave me more trouble – I tried 3 different cromulent words in 42D before getting the right one. Maybe it’s because my spouse is allergic to latex so we don’t have these gloves in the house. “Love” meaning “nothing” comes from tennis, but why does it mean nothing in that game? Well, I asked ChatGPT and here’s what it said:
In the game of tennis, the term “love” refers to a score of zero. When a player has no points, they are said to have a score of “love.” The concept of “love” in tennis has no inherent emotional or romantic meaning.
The reason why love means nothing in tennis is primarily historical. The origins of the term are not entirely clear, but it is believed to have come from the French word “l’oeuf,” which means “egg.” The shape of the number zero resembles an egg, and over time, “l’oeuf” evolved into “love” in English.
In tennis, the scoring system is based on a progression of points: 15, 30, 40, and then game. When a player has no points, they are at love. The purpose of the scoring system is to keep track of the progress of the game, and love simply represents a starting point or a lack of points.
In summary, love means nothing in tennis because it is a term used to denote a score of zero. It has no connection to emotions or romantic love, but rather serves as a way to keep track of points in the game.
This was probably the most “mowing the lawn” solve I’ve ever had – I started in NW and proceeded across and down each row with few diversions. Even after getting a few themers and not seeing the connection, I didn’t go lower in the puzzle to see if there was a revealer because I felt like I was cruising and that probably would have cost me more time. Even though I usually prefer a more challenging solve, this still seemed enjoyable to me – I think because there was some fresh fill, good Canadian content, and Barb’s usual clever cluing. I wavered whether to rate this as “Very Easy” or “Easy” and felt it had just enough grit to go up a notch on the difficulty scale (though I’ve rated a 5:25 solve as “Very Easy” in the past). Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Canadian content:
- 14A: [St. John’s, Newfoundland peninsula]: AVALON – I spent a lot of time around the Avalon peninsula and in St. Johns (many years ago) and this one came to me quickly.
- 15A: [Honour awarded to Margaret Atwood, Leonard Cohen and Terry Fox]: ORDER OF CANADA – Those invested into the Order of Canada have made extraordinary contributions to the nation and “exemplify the Order’s motto: DESIDERANTES MELIOREM PATRIAM (“They desire a better country”).”
- 31A: [Creamy yogurt brand]: DANONE – Yep – it’s Danone in Canada.
- 52D: [Man. summer clock setting]: CDT – I need to fine tune my geographic knowledge of where Manitoba is located as I initially put it in Mountain Daylight Time vs. Central.
- 55D: [Horton whose patrons “roll up the rim”]: TIM – I knew any clue that had “Horton” in it had to be referring to Tim Horton, but I had no idea what “roll up the rim” means… and apparently I’m not the only one confused. Confusion or not, Tim is the source of this week’s quote (which seems kind of Yogi Berra-ish to me).
Other stuff:
- 1A: [Big hit for Cyndi Lauper]: SHE BOP – I only recently learned there is a meaning to this song other than it being about a girl who enjoys music and dancing.
- 12D: [“… ___ sesame seed bun”]: ON A – Great… now I have that jingle running through my head.
- 16D: [Fifty-fifty test answer]: FALSE – I immediately put “YES NO” in here and it took a while to see that it was only looking for 50 percent of the possible answers…
- 18A: [Pant size measurement]: WAIST – I could not get “inseam” out of my head.
- 28A: [Distances in outer space]: PARSECS – Thank goodness Barb wasn’t only educated on the use of “parsecs” as a unit of measure from “Star Wars.”
- 42D: [Gives the boot]: EXPELS – I tried “evicts” and “ejects” here before moving on and getting a few crosses that gave me the correct answer.
Quote of the week:
“If we keep winning, our destiny is in our own hands.”
– Tim-Horton