Sunday, June 18, 2017

NPR Sunday Puzzle (June 18, 2017): Putting Your Best Foot Forward

NPR Sunday Puzzle (June 18, 2017): Putting Your Best Foot Forward:
Q: Think of a familiar two-word phrase starting with T and ending with S, in which the interior letters name part of the human body. Remove the first and last letters of that word, and what remains will name another part of the human body. What's the phrase, and what are the body parts?
I can tell you it isn't a knee.

Knee was a hint to NEA which is the National Endowment For The Arts
A: THE ARTS --> HEART --> EAR

115 comments:

  1. Here's my standard reminder... don't post the answer or any hints that could lead directly to the answer (e.g. via a chain of thought, or an internet search) before the deadline of Thursday at 3pm ET. If you know the answer, click the link and submit it to NPR, but don't give it away here.

    You may provide indirect hints to the answer to show you know it, but make sure they don't give the answer away. You can openly discuss your hints and the answer after the Thursday deadline. Thank you.

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  2. Just for this week, I am inserting an L in my name and will be known as Snippler.

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  3. I am more amused by trying to find a suitable clue than I was by solving this puzzle.

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  4. If you start the second word in the phrase with an "F", it's a lot more funny.

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  5. My answer required creativity.

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  6. A fine puzzle, especially as one answer may lead to the other. But not always.

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  7. Replies
    1. LBJ took the IRT
      Down to 4th Street USA
      When he got there
      What did he see?
      The youth of America on LSD

      LBJ IRT
      USA LSD

      LSD LBJ
      FBI CIA

      FBI CIA
      LSD LBJ

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  8. I solved it inside out. First the inner word, then the inner-inner word and then the phrase.

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    1. I solved it similarly. I started with the inner-inner word, built the inner word, and then the phrase.

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  9. First Gladys Knight and the Pips then Marvin Gaye.

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  10. One of the body parts was in the news recently, sort of.

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  11. Replies
    1. For an additional hint, pick one of the names above (be sure to pick the right one), replace one of it's letters with that letter's 'opposite', and insert another letter somewhere in the name.

      Delete
  12. It is going to be 108 degrees here today and I had several tons of hay baled up in my pasture.
    I thought the early hours would be better spent picking them up than listening to Will's avoiding jan's 87 alternative answers.
    The transcript is not up yet, so I would appreciate learning how he did it.
    Today's "challenge" would be appropriate for a fourth or fifth grade class

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    1. Hey, Mendo Jim, that may be insulting to fourth and fifth graders.

      Happy Father's Day, Blainesville dads!

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    2. Puzzle is up on the NPR site, they list a few of the answers folks here had.

      MJ you must be on the 101 side (close to 108!) of Mendo County, isn't it unusual for temps that high this early? I think the hottest I've experienced in Ukiah area is 106. My first strawbale house is nearby; my clients think summers have been getting hotter, but they've only lived there 20 years.

      Good to hear someone up there is still making bales rather than bricks.

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  13. As I said in the previous thread before this one was put up... I like to support them. :) --Margaret G.

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  14. Bonus puzzle (blanks are all body parts, # letters TBD):

    ch__ed - answer to last week's puzzle (start with an easy one)
    en__er - likely ally
    de__ed - what we all were once, some hope will be again, others hope they never have this happen.
    **__** - part of the answer to this week's puzzle, letters not given intentionally, please don't answer this one until Thursday.
    th__ss - what coming up with these puzzles is.

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    Replies
    1. I speak for myself (and likely other Blainesvillians also) when I say I am ch__ed by your puzzles that you have de__ed to us via this blog. I am grateful, which belies your final clue!
      I have not solved "en__er - likely ally," alas. The best I can do is filling the blank with a "body part: that is often modified by the word "nervous."
      I predict 1,500 correct entries to Will Shortz's puzzle this week.

      Here is my puzzle:
      The on-air contestant/puzzle winner this past Sunday was Mike Strong of Mechanicsburg, Va.
      What portion of that identifying phrase makes his Fathers Day appearance quite fitting?
      Hint: the answer involves a song's lyrics.

      LegoNervousNellyPervisBreakdownLaughterSystem

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    2. I know it, but for now I'll just refrain from saying it loud or, for that matter, clear.

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    3. BTW I too am stumped by en____er. Sometimes it seems like there are too many body parts, no?

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    4. Congrats, cranberry, on solving my "Mike Strong of Mechanicsburg, Va." puzzle. Good hint, too.

      I have now, perhaps, solved eco's "en__er - likely ally" mystery. I believe it involves a capital letter.

      LegoAddsThatTheAnswerToeco'sMysteryDescribesEachOneOfTheCreatorsOfTheSongInMy"MikeStrong"Puzzle

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    5. reMINDer, most of these are no-BRAINers.

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    6. Yes, a clASSic ReBUTTal.

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    7. So you took the pLUNGe and chose to acT ON GUEss.

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    8. It was either the ilLEGal veTOErs or the ecLIPSed obEYErs.

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    9. I had originally thought that the answer to eco's "en__er - likely ally" clue was "enticer," under the doubly wrongheaded assumption that:
      1. "Tic" is a "body part" instead of an affliction manifested by a body part, and
      2. "ally" bore some etymological kinship with "dalliance" or "dally," thereby making "enticer" plausible.

      LegoWhoMakesFalseStepsWithHisFoePaws

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    10. One more bonus puzzle:
      co__ia - nice places for long rests

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    11. eco,
      Just this moment got back home from a major event on the waterfront that was a huge feast including free excellent wines and more. So, I should have had a hard time solving the above, but I got it almost instantly. I suspect many others will not have such an easy time. Good one, eco.

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    12. Only a small portion of us will ever go there, it's definitely a niche market.

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    13. Oh, lay it to rest, eco, lay it to rest.

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    14. Remember what Superman said when his parents died. "It's the crypt tonight."

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    15. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    16. Yes, another great ecopuzzle! One which also hearkens back to last week's "Benjamin the Greenpeace Ombudsman..." NPR challenge, especially if you're a pirate.

      LegoWithAPeglegAndAParrotPerchedOnHisShoulderSays"BuyOne&GetOneThirty%off?!Ar!"

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    17. Just for the record, I believe Mike Strong lives in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, and listens to the Harrisburg NPR station.

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    18. Yup, just on the other side of Three Mile Island from puzzle legends Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon. (TMI?)

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    19. Lego, was your Strong hint a reference to "The Living Years" by Mike & The Mechanics?

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  15. It has made it to 108F, close to a record for the date but not the month. We usually have a few days around 114 in July with a disputed record of 119.
    We got the hay in the barn while it was cool.

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    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  16. If you knew where Boise is, everything would be clarified.

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    1. My hint isn't as elegant as Jan's: "where Boise is" is a clumsy reference to "Where The Boys Are," which featured a young actress Dolores Hart. Who later played Saint Clare, the companion to Saint Francis in "Francis of Assisi."

      Hart left Hollywood shortly thereafter to become a nun and has since published a book "The Ear of the Heart."

      But wait, there's more. She starred with Elvis in "Loving You." Years later she was asked what it was like kissing him, to which she replied "I think the limit for a screen kiss back then was something like 15 seconds. That one has lasted 40 years." Much more on wikipedia and IMdB for those who are interested.

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  18. I was going to stay in and try to solve this, but I chose to step outside and enjoy the glorious weather instead.

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  19. Musical Clue: Dave Edmunds.

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  20. NOT A CLUE: if the answer is "Trump Assets", where on the posterior is the umpas located ?

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  21. This week's challenge/puzzle will surely shatter all records for the most number of correct answers submitted. I predict over 3,000 correct submissions.
    I have been on vacation, unable to post until now.

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  22. My wife's favorite band constitute a dead-giveaway as a musical clue. BTW, that band isn't Spinal Tap.

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    Replies
    1. Not a hint: "This is Spinal Tap" is on TCM tonight. Sorry I can't reproduce the umlaut over the "n."

      I'm also sorry to say that IMDB has removed the feature, unique to its Spinal Tap page, that allowed you to give it an 11.

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    2. Wow, I didn't know that the Spinal Tap page once had that special feature.

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    3. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  23. Trump admits he has no "tapes" of his conversations with Comey. So I guess it was just another one of his lame threats. Right, ron?

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  24. THE ARTS > HEART > EAR

    My hint: “Marcus Antonius” Well known Roman economist of long ago who promoted the idea of funding government by borrowing ears. He was frequently heard in the streets of Rome yelling, (not to be confused with Janet Yellen) “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears!” It was widely rejected at the time when given a public hearing.

    I thought I showed great restraint in not hinting: Tony Bennett

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    Replies
    1. You remember Tony Bennett. "I left my ear in San Francisco."

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    2. Am I mistaken; was it his heart?

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    3. In 1962 he released his signature song, "I Left My Heart in San Francisco."

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    4. Huh? Could you speak up? I left my ear ....

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    5. WELL USE YOUR OTHER EAR, FOR ALLAH'S SAKE!

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    6. So, how's an auto mechanic like an art forger?

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    7. Is it something to do with wheeler dealers? Or is it a Spoonerism? A foxy > apoxy....

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    8. No, they both know how to make a van go. (Sticking with the missing ear theme.)

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    9. I was making it too complicated, like trying to make crooked frames work. Artful Dodgeer Spoonerism, etc.

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    10. As the great Myles na gCopaleen (you can look him up) was fond of saying, he would respond to your auto mechanic pun more in Seurat than in Ingres.

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  25. THE ARTS, HEART, EAR

    "jps" was a nod to Jan-Phillip Sendker who wrote the magical book, The ART of hEARing HEARTbeats. The lower-case letters are an homage to our very own jan, the man (also).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The upper-case initials in my reply were not a hint -- just a red herring.

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    2. You want to hear heartbeats, WW, use a Stephoscope.

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    3. ;-)

      I do recommend the book, after Stephoscope use.

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  26. Two word phrase: THE ARTS.
    Delete the T and S to get HEART, delete the H and T to get EAR.

    My comment about being more amused by coming up with an appropriate clue was a riff on the puzzle. Delete the A and D and you are left with muse – the Muses being the nine Greek Goddesses of the arts and sciences.

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  27. THE ARTS
    HEART
    EAR

    Last Sunday I said, “I solved it inside out. First the inner word, then the inner-inner word and then the phrase.” Then I added a clue, ““First Gladys Knight and the Pips and then Marvin Gaye.” Knight released I Heard it Through the Grapevine in 1967. Gaye released it in 1968. Heard is very similar to heart. Of course you hear things with your ear. And music, itself, is one of the arts.

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  28. THE ARTS>>>HEART>>>EAR

    My hint: “...shatter all records...” SHATTER anagrams to THE ARTS.

    Eco's NO-BRAINERS:

    1. ch__ed = chARMed
    2. en__er = enTAILer (body part: TAIL!) or enCODer (COD = scrotum, see “codpiece”)
    3. de__ed = deDUCTed or deHORNed or deTAILed.
    4. **__** = enHEARTen or unEARth, swEARer, clEARly, etc.
    5. th__ss = thANKLEss
    6. co__ia = coLUMBARia (LUMBAR, the noun)

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  29. THE ARTS -> HEART -> EAR

    > I'm having trouble finding any a clue that won't give the answer away.

    Not a typo. Refers phonetically to the NEA, the National Endowment for the Arts.

    > If body parts require a whole person to support them, someone is well-endowed.

    Ditto.

    > One of the body parts was in the news recently, sort of.

    As skydiveboy also hinted, refers to the "Lend me your ears" line in Julius Caesar. New York's Public Theater got into trouble (including a disclaimer from the NEA) with their recent production, which featured a Trump-like Caesar.

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  30. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  31. I wrote "A fine (as in Fine Arts) puzzle, especially as one answer may lead to the other. But not always." Did anyone notice that if you solve the puzzle with the second word you get "tears"? "The Arts" sometime lead to tears.

    So happy that Ron didn't get all of my puzzles!
    1. chARMed, yes, too easy, fit with last week's.
    2. enGLANDer is the likely ally.
    3. In a weird sense suppose I've been deducted from my parents' income taxes, but never dehorned or detailed. The intended answer was deLIVERed, which we all were, some wait for it each day until 3, but I, for one, would like to keep them.
    4. OrCHESTra was the mystery clue, and of course that is part of the arts. I probably could have given the clue more clearly.
    5. Thanks for the thanks, Lego and SDB.
    6. I wonder if Michael Graves ever designed a columbarium? He should. My thesis project was a crematorium on the upper east side of Manhattan.

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    Replies
    1. eco,
      Whatever happened to your crematorium theses project? Did it go up in smoke?

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    2. I just dug it up from my library.

      Working subtitle was "Burn-em and Urn-em", very funny to sleep-deprived architecture students familiar with the famed Chicago architect and planner Daniel Burnham. Humor is probably lost on everyone else, and you're better for it.

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    3. At least you were an urnest student and apparently buried in your work, which was not beneath you.

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    4. And didn't make an ash of yourself.

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    5. So, if Mitch McConnell were to die tomorrow, (Please! God, let it happen) and the family had him cremated and then buried the urn in a cemetery, would it be instead of, dust to dust—asshole to ash-hole?

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  32. The Arts/heart/ear

    YAM: The Bija mantra that opens the heart Chakra. The Bija mantras are one-syllable seed sounds that, when said aloud, activate the energy of the chakras in order to purify & balance the mind & body.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mmmm ... Yams and CABbaGe!
      (I'm only joking; I don't know precisely what's going on in the second picture.)

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    2. Is "Bah!" another one-syllable seed sound, clotheslover?

      Paul, I poked around on the website that picture came from, and, yes, it's a CABG (coronary artery bypass graft). The website belongs to an Oklahoma photographer, and the pictures are of his own surgery. (He asked the anesthesiologist to take the pictures.)

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    3. Well then at least we know the anesthesiologist wasn't asleep on the job.

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    4. Sorry, but when someone with a handle of "clotheslover" talks about mantras and chakras, I can't resist.

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    5. I'll try not to take it to heart. "Bah!" was the sound I made out loud when I clicked on the link and saw the image.

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  33. My puzzle read:
    The on-air contestant/puzzle winner this past Sunday was Mike Strong of Mechanicsburg, Va.
    What portion of that identifying phrase makes his Fathers Day appearance quite fitting?
    Hint: the answer involves a song's lyrics.
    Answer: English rock band Mike + the Mechanics' biggest hit was a song titled "The Living Years," in which a son regrets unresolved conflict with his now-deceased father.
    cranberry solved it and provided a fine hint. Thanks, cranberry.
    Paul provided a fine correction. Thank, Paul. Mike Strong, if you listen to the NPR audio, is indeed from Mechanicsburg, Pa (even more "quite fitting")., not Mechanicsburg, Va! I relied on this text. Next time I'll listen, not read!
    Incidentally, according to the Gazetteer, there are 16 U.S. communities that are named Mechanicsburg: they are located in Illinois, Indiana (5), Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio (4), Pennsylvania (2), Virginia and West Virginia.
    There is also a Mechanicsville in Virginia! Mechanics sure seems to be popular

    LegoDecriesThoseDarnNationalPublicRadioInternTranscribers(ButNotPopularMechanicsSubscribers)

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  34. THE ARTS/HEART/EAR
    I'm glad I solved it quickly. Would've hated to be trying to enjoy myself in FL if I couldn't get it.

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  35. This has been on the show or blog in some form before.
    It is hard to understand why Will uses such "challenges."
    I think we can assume the number of submissions will be based only on interest, not ability to solve it.

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  36. My hint: Nicholas = the tsar > ...

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    Replies
    1. You were being an Artful Codger, Damnit! I meant Artful Dodger.

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  37. An excellent puzzle by skydiveboy is among the nine Puzzleria! challenges this week, just uploaded. (The solution to skydiveboy's puzzle about a particular Polish composer may or may not involve Bluejay Greenberg.)
    The others:
    Six are Shortz Rip-Offs of varying degrees of difficulty.
    One takes place on an aircraft cabin grounded on the tarmac.
    One asks you to make a choice... like the reader of a Frank Stockton novel, or a costumed contestant on Monty Hall's "Let's Make a Deal."

    Just link to "Joseph Young's Puzzleria!" in Blaineville's PUZZLE LINKS.

    LegoWill"ChooseDoorNumberThreeMontyAndHeHopesThereIsNoTigerThereButInsteadEitherALadyOrANew1972FordPintoHatchback

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    1. Lego: I'll pass on the Pinto but that link has some pretty cool looking classic cars. I'd take that '58 Cadillac if I could!

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    2. Nice choice, 68Charger. Now there is one "classy chassis" that could use one of those protective car bras!

      LegoWhoWouldAlsoPassOnPintosButMightPlopAScoopOfGarbanzoBeansOntoHisPlate

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  38. If you should be looking for something interesting to do today after you finish shoveling the snow off your walk, then I suggest you head on over to Lego's Puzzleria! where you just might enjoy solving my somewhat sofistikated offering that is a homophone and should be easily solved. This is not a snow job.

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  39. Next week's challenge: This week's challenge comes from Kruno Matic, a correspondent of mine in Croatia. Take the name KIM KARDASHIAN. Rearrange the letters to get the last name of a famous actress along with a famous one-named singer. Who are these people?

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    1. The actress's name can be arranged to form two words that might apply to the same person.

      Trying to think of a good definition for a new word, as in "I solved this puzzle krunomatically."

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    2. So, in other words, we don't get a puzzle this week?

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    3. I object, on principle, to any puzzle that involves Kim Kardashian.

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    4. "Who are these people?" is the question I ask every time I hear the name "Kardashian".

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    5. > 1100 responses this week.

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  40. A joke of a puzzle this week. And I hear a body part in one of the answers.

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For NPR puzzle posts, don't post the answer or any hints that could lead to the answer before the deadline (usually Thursday at 3pm ET). If you know the answer, submit it to NPR, but don't give it away here.

You may provide indirect hints to the answer to show you know it, but make sure they don't assist with solving. You can openly discuss your hints and the answer after the deadline. Thank you.