I guess there's no need to craft an enigmatic clue when the puzzle is this easy.Q: Everyone knows what a spoonerism is, right? That's where you switch the initial consonant sounds of one phrase to get another — like "light rain" for "right lane." Here's the puzzle: Name a well-known world leader, first and last names. Spoonerize this, and you'll get a phrase that means "to have confidence in one of the martial arts." Who's the leader, and what's the phrase?
The clue was "craft" as in Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. Canada has the highest per capita consumption of Mac & Cheese.
A: JUSTIN TRUDEAU --> TRUST IN JUDO
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.
ReplyDeleteYou 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.
Write down the two answers. Cross out the first letter of the leader’s name, and the same letter within the phrase. Then cross out the second letter of the leader’s name and the same letter within the phrase. Do this for all the letters of the leader’s name that you can. You are left with two homonyms.
ReplyDeleteProof that a puzzle need not be terribly difficult to be entertaining.
ReplyDeleteI agree wholeheartedly.
Delete"Tom, I'm afraid you have a patent foramen ovale," murmured the doctor holeheartedly.
DeleteThe Society Laughing At Puzzles Spoonerized approves this message. Though we suspect the author doesn't consider this his best work.
ReplyDeleteThe Society To Reject Anagram Puzzles is proud that so many chose to join our boycott of last week's puzzle.
Too easy. SDB, did WS say anything about how easy this was?
ReplyDeleteGosh I wonder if I know any puzzling people from Seattle? Hmmmm.
Delete129 correct answers last week. I find this encouraging as the "journalist" is truly not.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing stories last week. I had to buy another for of Kleenex- especially the miraculous popcorn one. You might like Joe Burcha winter stories on Living on Earth last week- Native America story teller.
DeleteThanks, Plantsmith. I will check out Joe Burcha's winter stories.
DeleteI meant box as you know. So let me know what thou thinkest. Joe is an Abenaki elder. A tribe i had not heard of as i life in the land of the Salish.a nd Duwamish among which Chief Seattle was a legend and namesake for the emerald kingdom.
DeleteEasy. Expect a landslide of correct answers.
ReplyDeleteMy clue?
ReplyDeleteHaha, wouldn't you like to know!
This clue will kick you?
DeleteHmmmm, no. . .
DeleteFor those who may feel deprived without an enigmatic clue: Ted's Pet Shop is two doors down.
ReplyDeleteTed's Pet Shop is two doors down...from the "Mount Pilot Judo Society." From Season 5 Episode 8 of The Andy Griffith Show.
DeleteI can think of another world leader who's last name hints at this leader's country.
ReplyDeletePresident of Guyana: David Granger → gravid danger...
DeletePeople who don’t solve this puzzle will be kicking themselves.
ReplyDeleteAw, c'mon, Will, do your research on pronouncing Greta Thunberg's name:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.pronounceitright.com/pronunciation/greta-thunberg-14665
Three separate errors in 4 syllables (it's actually 5) was particularly egregious; so far Amy Goodman is the only journalist (and a REAL one at that) who pronounces her name correctly.
DeleteInteresting that Marie Yovanovitch's name is not listed in the On Air Challenge. Who ordered her removal this time?
It's part of his job to correctly pronounce words in his puzzle. He might have taken the 5 minutes to check the pronunciation of the 7 people in this week's puzzle.
DeleteI would have.
Will Shortz has always had an iffy relationship with pronunciation.
DeleteIt has often made his puzzles more puzzling.
Dead Tanson.
ReplyDeleteHere's a corollary puzzle to the main one.
ReplyDeleteTake ANOTHER WORLD LEADER and spoonerize the name. The result is a PHYSICAL ASSAULT on a painful caricature of African American Men.
I give this puzzle an A for effort but a D for difficulty. One spoonerism rules clarification - can a double consonant be used? Nsppy Hew Year to all!
ReplyDeleteYes, usually, with spoonserisms, you can swap the first two letters if they comprise a single "tone" in the language.
DeleteMy favorite spoonerism in the world does this, but it is a riddle, and while it is indeed hysterically funny, it is so terribly filthy that I wouldn't dare sully my name among my friends in Blainesville by repeating it here.
Really, I would never.
Possible answer to Ben's puzzle: MANGLE A URKEL?(ANGELA MERKEL)
DeleteDid I do that?
DeleteYou are correct!
DeleteWas it one of Robin Hood’s Merry Men?
DeleteI think it involves a bathtub.
DeleteWell, I can't give the punchline, for it may dulleth the edge of husbandry. But the setup involves the difference between an epileptic oyster salesman and a prostitute with diarrhea.
DeleteI was thinking you meant the one about a woman in church and...
DeleteNot filthy but funny and a favorite: Katherine Hepbone’s cheekburns.
ReplyDelete<<< Haven
ReplyDeleteRead your money.
ReplyDeleteChuck
Just another lame-o puzzle to get the response numbers up.
ReplyDeleteSerious and sincere congratulations from me to skydiveboy.
ReplyDeleteMark Scott is an excellent puzzle-maker whose often quirky but always clever creations, alas, tend not to conform to the usual NPR puzzle template. He has graciously allowed me to showcase several of his "skydiveboy bafflers" on Puzzleria!
A puzzle that better epitomizes Mark's puzzle mastery, in my opinion, is this Bonus French Chef Slice: 52-Card Poker Pick-up puzzle from five years ago.
LegoWhoExclaims"GreatScott!"
Congratulations SDB.
ReplyDeleteThere is, of course, the true solution; then there is a really clever, perhaps alternate, one. Just some kung foolery, you know. Reminiscent of the Dr. Oz/Dr. No - Jase/Jaws of not too long ago.
ReplyDeleteGB,
DeleteAs the author of the Dr. Oz/Dr. No puzzle, I am curious to see, in due time, your alternative riff-off puzzle answer.
I just finished writing a riff-off (for Friday's Puzzleria!) of skydiveboy's fine, fun puzzle with a phrase that contains more words.
LegoProvidingMoreFooleryForThisSpoonerFedFire
When you all say a puzzle is easy, I tend to groan inside because of the added pressure to solve it. My self confidence goes south. Not this time after my having missed the last 3. Thanks Will.
ReplyDeleteC a p, try to groan outside. You'll feel better. ;-)
DeleteSpeaking of which, WW:
DeleteThink of a green leafy vegetable in 7 letters, then spell a 3-letter drinking vessel. Now say it all out loud. What did you just say?
Shame on you Cranberry...I never do that in public!
DeleteWW You would have made a good psychiatrist. Such good advice!
C a p, is the group that oversees psychiatrists known as the Groaning Board? ;-)
DeleteAnd thanks!
DeleteYou're welcome. Have a happy New Year!
DeleteThink of a green leafy vegetable in 7 letters plus a root vegetable in 6 letters and a legume – it is what one dog says to another.
DeleteTHE LAST CARTOONS OF 2019.
ReplyDeleteSDB, you are an enigma unto yourself. Here you are, constantly complaining that the Sunday Puzzle is much too easy most weeks, and then your latest submission turns out to be the easiest puzzle you've ever actually created yourself. Familiar with the word "irony", by any chance?
ReplyDeleteIf the Rev. Spooner himself were worried about the atomic bomb dropping, would he hide in a shellout falter?
ReplyDeleteOur leader's name would be TRONALD DUMP.
ReplyDeleteHey, when I heard the puzzle this morning, I had no idea Mark Scott was SDB!
ReplyDelete(I agree with Paul: easy, but a fun one.)
In the list of leaders that make up a world, only bother with the 21st leader.
ReplyDelete"Leaders" sounds like "letters", and "world" sounds like "word". The list of letters that make up a word is the alphabet. To only bother with the 21st letter is to "just intrude a U."
DeleteHowever, it might seem like you should only bother with the 15th leader.
ReplyDeleteEven though Justin Trudeau's name ends with a U, it sounds like "just intrude O."
DeleteThank you, Everyone who commented on my puzzle. However I want to point out that Will did not post the puzzle I sent him, but he dumbed it down by both omitting and adding words, which changed it and made it much easier to solve than what I coined. Here is my original puzzle:
ReplyDeleteSpoonerize the name of a world leader to come up with a phrase that phonetically means to have confidence in martial arts. Who is it and what is the phrase?
I am grateful to Will for finally using one of my puzzle suggestions, but I would enjoy it more if he would use my better ones in the future.
SDB how many has he used?
DeleteOnly this one. I have another one ready, but it would need to wait an appropriate amount of time to pass before I would send it to him. The problem is that I do not want to have it spoiled by dumbing it down, or being altered in any way without my permission first.
DeleteWe who submit puzzles get nothing for our efforts; not even a lousy T-shirt. I am willing to donate puzzles I make up without remuneration, but only as long as they are what I created, and not altered. I do not think that is asking too much. I believe Sam Eliot insisted on the same control with all his puzzle submissions to magazines. We need to form a union!
Third day of Hannukah.
ReplyDeleteThis year Dec. 25th. Birthday of Justin Trudeau who as you know does love Judo.
DeleteSound investment advice for certain practitioners of martial arts might have been: "Ninja men, Bet on Yahoo."
ReplyDeleteGB,
DeleteThat is my riff-off puzzle to which I alluded in my Sun Dec 29, 07:39:00 PM PST post, above. It is the first possible solution I thought of when I initially heard skydiveboy's fine puzzle. I believe it to be beautifully serendipitous that two current world leaders are so connected to martial arts via spoonerizing.
LegoBornWithAPlasticSpoonInHisMouth
Back when I was in college, hard science majors would sometimes snottily claim that any major with "science" in its name (e.g., social science, political science, as opposed to physics, chem, or bio) wasn't. I imagine there are art majors with the same attitude toward martial "arts". (A popular book at the time was titled "Military Justice is to Justice as Military Music is to Music". Same idea, I guess.)
ReplyDeleteI've always preferred geology to geological sciences or earth science for that very reason!
DeleteA few weeks ago, SCHMEAR got us discussing the spelling of "tokhes". I just saw an ad for a local furniture store that consisted of shots of people's rear ends. The voiceover went, "Butt ... caboose ... tokhes ... Whatever you call them, many are suffering. Because they go home to old furniture and worn-out mattresses. If they could talk, they'd say, we wish you tokhes to Bernie and Phyl's Furniture..."
ReplyDeleteHello Blainesvillagers,
ReplyDeleteHaving met with you all weekly for 7 years next month, the time has come to plan a rendezvous in the Boston/Cape Cod area.
Asking for a show of hands of how many folks would like to meet up the week of June 15-19 (possibly the 20th). I'll be on Cape with my mom and family celebrating her 90th the weekend before. We'll be based in Brewster, the town with the coolest general store.
Comment below please with your thoughts, dates that work, etc.
Curious to meet some of you in person. Maizie, the wonder pup, is coming, too. . .
I'm in.
DeleteSorry, very unlikely to be in the area. And really hard to type and show hands at the same time.
DeleteAnd here we thought you were hand-some.
DeleteWW - great idea! We are easily tempted to plan a trip to the East Coast, especially Cape Cod, Boston, Providence and New York. Your suggestion makes this temptation irresistible! Janice and I (and possibly Carina, the great Maltese) would love to make this happen.
DeleteIs that close to Seattle?
DeleteLorenzo, great! The Cape is especially nice in mid June when the masses have not yet ascended.
DeleteBrewster is a quaint town on the inside of the elbow of the Cape, i.e., it's on the Bay side.
Sheep's Pond is where I like to swim when I'm there. It's two deep kettle ponds separated by a quite shallow, underwater connecting part. I swam its length every day for 3 weeks one June and then met the local gents sitting on the front porch of the general store. They congregate there every morning from 7-9 a.m. and talk about events of the day. EVERY DAY, even Christmas! It is a lovely tradition and the guys are a hoot.
Sdb, 3000 miles, but airplanes will get you there pronto...
Oh, a friend asked if it would be awkward to meet all these new people from Blainesville. I told her we could all bring pictures of our 13-year-old selves to remind us of what awkward really was/is ;-).
DeleteWhat, me fly?
DeleteDang! I just booked a family trip to Key West for then.
DeleteYou mean it's not spelled TUCKUS?
DeleteThere is also a Brewster,Wash. on the Columbia in Eastern, Wash. Tiny town with a huge dam.
DeleteDamn huge!
DeleteSomething is terribly wrong.
ReplyDeleteI read that interesting article and basically agree with the author, but I am also dismayed she did not mention some of the more pertinent causes of all this violence. I am speaking of our terrorist in chief, DJT and Israel's terrorist in chief, Benjamin Netanyahu. I believe these two are the major rabble rousers who are stirring up all this suppressed hatred of others and empowering them to act out violently. It will only get worse as people do not speak up and denounce their fascism.
DeleteThe author seems to conflate opposition to Israeli policies (especially Palestine) with anti-Semitism. Around here many are uncomfortable with Hillel and other mainstream Jewish groups because of the cruel violations of international law by the current government.
DeleteIn the larger picture the lately revealed tribalism is disturbing (Vlad must be thrilled) and of course, as Tom Lehrer pointed out, it ends up with the Jews.
WW Thank you for posting the article. But it pissed me off. I'm not a marranno, I'm Mike Schwartz who's pseudonym is Clark. BTW Superman was invented by to Brooklyn Jewish teenagers in 1938.
ReplyDeleteHi Mike, I'd never heard the term marrano before as I learned cerdo for the sweet and gentle pigs living in the village when I worked in Mexico for 6 months.
Deletehttps://forum.duolingo.com/comment/15040127/What-do-you-call-a-pig-in-Spanish
To me, marranos are wonderful creatures and it is not a derogatory term.
But, I hear it has different connotations to you and I am glad you spoke up.
That is two...forgive the typo.
ReplyDeleteMike
PS That makes Superman a JEW.
ReplyDeleteMike, now your screen name makes more sense to me.
DeleteThen, shouldn't that be Supermensch?
DeleteYup!! Someone who cares about a whole group of people in which he was an alien.
DeleteNo matter how many times he saved the world, his mother was still disappointed that he didn't become a doctor.
DeleteSorry if I sent you scrambling for edits, lego. Is that connection what WS would call "elegant"?
ReplyDeleteEco, That is a caricature which is ordinarily used by bigots. I hope you're not one.
ReplyDeleteEco, I apologize...It's been pretty upsetting today with the latest in Monsey,NY.
ReplyDeleteClark AP, it may be a stereotype but it certainly ran strong through my Jewish mother, who shrugged with some disappointment when I chose architecture - lawyer would have been better, but at least it's a profession so what're ya gonna do? Children always have to torment their mothers! OY!
DeleteMost Jews I know laugh at the stereotype, and I think humor is a strong defense mechanism against oppression. Both Jews and African-Americans seem to be highly represented in comedic circles, is that a coincidence?
So with that in mind, one of the few jokes I can remember:
At long last a woman is elected President of the United States, and it turns out she is also Jewish, another first. Her mother says she doesn't want to go to the inauguration ceremony, but she is finally convinced to come to Washington DC.
She's seated next to a Supreme Court Justice, and during the ceremony she leans over and says, "See that woman being sworn in as President?" The Justice responds yes, and the mother then replies "Her brother's a doctor!"
I've told that joke to dozens of Jewish friends, colleagues, and clients, and all have laughed uproariously. I hope you do the same, we need humor (and fighting spirit) in these times.
To the stabbing guy, I read today that he had recently searched "why did Hitler hate Jews", or something to that effect. His mother also said he had mental issues, and doing such a basic search would reinforce an idea that he was not in full control of his faculties and was acting out. Not sure if that's better or worse, certainly not having a neo-Nazi is a good thing, but it shows how an infection can spread among the many.
20 years ago a psychologist-client of mine wrote "The Power of Evil" which not only looked at individual evil, but also evil brought on by societal acceptance of certain normatives. As I recall he used the Bosnian War and torture/ slaughter of Muslims as his example; history offers a plethora of options.
I would agree that it is a stereotype. I would also argue that for any stereotype to be humorous it must also have ring of truth to it. I would again argue that it is not such a terrible stereotype to have either. I mean, it can pay the bills. Now there is also the fact that my MD and lawyer are also Jewish, as was my best friend growing up. Several of my closest friends over my lifetime have also been Jewish, including my favorite climbing partner, who is now a physics PhD and professor. I guess the poor bastard didn't quite make an M.D. or lawyer either, but I still lower myself to talk with him. Everyone probably is a member of one stereotype or another, and I see nothing wrong with making jokes about stereotypes.
DeleteThanks for the response Eco. I do think my parents decided I'd be an MD while I was still in utero. As a kid the conversations about my future were "When (not if) you go to medical school". Long story short I retired when I was 57 and have used retirement to reinvent myself as a potter on the Oregon Coast.
DeleteHumor goes a long way; certainly a lot further than hate.
DeletePaul, Would you care to elaborate on what you mean by that comment? It is somewhat ambiguous.
DeleteSDB,
DeleteI fear I can't elaborate.
But that doesn't mean I don't care.
Great joke, Eco –loved the laugh!
ReplyDeleteMe, too.
DeleteAnd, speaking of smart Jewish women: Shoshana Zuboff on surveillance capitalism.
ReplyDeleteThat was a very informative video, WW, thanks. Now I am going to invest in Google, but, of course, they already know that.
Deletesdb, use Duckduckgo.com and they won't!
DeleteI want to learn how to send things through a server elsewhere, just on principle.
Zuboff's points about instilling fear and longing in the vulnerable were spot on.
I tried DDG and didn't care for it, so returned to Google. Everyone already knows I want to violently, single handedly, overthrow the government anyway.
DeleteWhoops! I'll have to get back to you; someone's at the door. Now, I wonder who that could be this time of night.
I was surprised to learn that another well-known world leader predicted this one's ascendance 43 years earlier.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDelete13 Life-Learning Lessons from 13 Years.
Brain Pickings always delights.
A raygun is not an every day gun.
ReplyDeleteThis was just posted on Craigslist in the FREE section:
ReplyDeleteWell fed mature kids
© craigslist - Map data © OpenStreetMap
(google map)
condition: excellent
size / dimensions: 6'2"
Two well fed, mature boys.
23 year old, has dark hair, perfectly aligned teeth. Next year might go to university. Works full time.
Great for spending time. He can bring his girlfriend with him.
20 year old, has blond hair.
All good teeth.
Fatally in love in his girlfriend.
He can take her with him also.
They love to chat all night long.
I'll continue to pay for his cell phone services, or you can pay for them too.
Works full time.
They never smoked and I have all medical and shots records.
Willing to split them but wait! I'll throw $1000 each, as stimulation for your burden.
Please call or text
Jesus
Emails will not be responded.
What's the deal with all the plane crashes this past year? Seems like there has been a bunch of them and now, a few miles away from us at one of our local small airports, a small plane went down this afternoon. It looks like the small plane was hardly airborne when it veered left and crashed to the side of the runway, killing two people.
ReplyDeleteIt's way too early to know the cause but there sure has been a lot of crashes lately.
Not aware of any increase, but people are very good at perceiving patterns where none actually exist. It usually takes the NTSB Aviation Accident Database a few weeks for new accidents to show up, so let's compare 11/1/18 - 11/1/19 to the previous 12 months: The past year saw 1554 accidents/incidents, of which 386 involved fatal injuries. The previous year had 1650 accidents, of which 356 were fatal. Doesn't look like a significant change to me.
DeleteYou're probably right, maybe there are just more high profile crashes lately.
DeleteBut, either way, that's still a lot of crashes in an industry that is supposed to be highly regulated
There is a huge difference between commercial airline safety and private flying safety.
DeleteRemember, there are a lot of little 2- and 4-seat planes out there, way more than the number of airliners. (Though there are way fewer being sold these days than, say, 40 years ago.) Imagine if every automobile fender-bender was reported on the news.
DeleteHAPPY NEW YEAR 2020!
ReplyDeleteI've got a perfect vision for this year.
ReplyDeleteI'm waiting for a colonoscope manufacturer to announce a new 2020 Hindsight model.
Deletejan: how long have you been holding on to that one?
DeleteNote: punctuation is particularly relevant here.
Speaking of "on to" and "onto," any thoughts on ontology today, 1/1/2020?
Jan,
DeleteGood luck with that. Remember, you are dealing with people who have tunnel vision. So don't get your hopes up to where you can't keep your scopes up.
WW, it just came to me when I saw cranberry's comment. As for ontology, I'd say it recapitulates phylogeny, but that would just get your Haeckels up.
Deletejan and Word Woman,
DeleteDon't know much about history, biology, science, French, geography, trigonometry, algebra, ontology, oncology and all the other ologies...
But I do know that, regarding the latest in colonoscope technology, the Lambda Medical Group Inc. has already been there done that!
(Disclaimer: I am the majority shareholder of LMGI, which since the turn of the century, has been providing medical professionals who don't give a damn with the most mediocre in medical devices used in neuro-endoscopy, anesthesia and emergency medicine, gastroenterology, gynecology, and urology.)
Every five years since 2005, we at LMGI have introduced an updated model of our patented Hindsight series colonoscope. Our Hindsight 2005 model got rave reviews from prestigious publications such as NEJM, AJM, JAMA, SHAMA, RAMA, LAMA and DING DONG. But that was, alas, our high-water mark. The reviews of our 2010 model were less glowing, and on our 2015 model were even less glowing. The early returns of our Hindsight 2020 model are, frankly, just lukewarm. We project that our 2025, 2030, 2035, 2040... models will sustain that downhill trend.
LegoDon'tKnowMuchAboutOlogiesButDoKnowThatForPostingThisNonsenseHeOwesAllBlainesvilliansApologies
If I understood that, and I'm not sure I did, then things are looking up. Butt for how long?
DeleteMy proctologist's motto is: Anything Butt.
DeleteIt tokhes a long time to come up with that one.
DeleteHave you ever noticed that proctologists never say, "There's always light at the end of the tunnel?"
DeleteNow, now, guys, don't make asses of yourselves. You were reared better than that. You have to feel sorry for proctologists. They're always getting a little behind in their work. It's lonely at the bottom. But they always have time to look up old friends.
DeleteButt out, cranberry.
DeleteI'm just saying, proctologists are there when tush comes to shove!
DeleteI once knew a proctologist who ended up in arrears. Perhaps we should end on that note.
DeleteI'm just glad we avoided saying anything about "New Rear's Day".
DeleteAnd the rest of the world wears bifocals, Butch cranberry? One doesn't get a chance to use that one often in conversation either, WW.
ReplyDeleteRelax, GB. It was only a pun on 2020. On a true serious note, I may have to start wearing bifocals myself.
DeleteWhen I was a psychiatrist (in a previous life) I considered going into joint practice to be called "Odds and ends, nuts and butts". Happy New Year all
DeleteClark/Mike, it's interesting to me that you say "When I was a psychiatrist. . ." I will always consider myself a geologist. I'm not practicing the art and science of geology too much right now as I teach more, but I am still a geologist.
DeleteWere you happy to shed the psychiatrist skin?
Maybe Cap is a recovering psychiatrist. I have a friend who worked a short time in a furniture repair shop, and he is now fully recovered.
DeleteWW yes I was. Now if I screw up in my studio, it's just mud. But I do still have my psychiatric antennae, but when they quiver now, I just decide to avoid the person to whom I'm reacting.
DeleteI learned the term "dope slap" from Click and Clack. Does it apply to Francis' embarrassment over yesterday's pope slap, or to his discovery of "pope slap" in the Urban Dictionary?
ReplyDeleteI hadn't heard about that, but just watched the video. I think anyone would have reacted the same. I am sorry to hear he apologized. And it wasn't even Palm Sunday.
DeleteJan, I still miss the car guys!
DeleteThe light at the end of the tunnel is the light of an oncoming train -- provided by LGMI.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year, everybody,
D.E.
DE, watch for a new cryptic crossword coming your way this next week on Puzzleria!
ReplyDeleteShot who? Slid how far? Who are those guys?
ReplyDeleteww: I studied geology at uc berkeley. Had to map out the history of the bay area. It was a huge project. I loved the class. Fount out a defunct volcano is near me. I doubt anyone knows about that. I admire you to be a geologist. I am a nurse and biologist. Happy New Year! Glad to know you on this amazing blog site.
ReplyDeleteCorrection: found
DeleteI need to proof my postings!
Thanks, Natasha. Great to know you as well.
DeleteWhat did you like about the geology class at UC Berkeley?
Defunct volcanos/extrusive rocks are fun, even if they are rather quiet at the moment. And, intrusives -- wow -- now you're talking plutonic relationships. . .
Geology rocks!
DeleteGeologists aren't very romantic, though, so many rock hunting trips involve split-ups.
DeleteNatasha, I assume you mean Sibley Volcano, which is a nice hike but not as exciting as it used to be. We can thank the San Andreas fault for making the area unwelcome to lavas.
Have you been to Mt Konocti in Lake County? A once enormous volcano, as I recall Clear Lake is part of the caldera. We benefit with the geothermal plant at The Geysers, as well as the spas in Calistoga.
I've had a few projects near there, one was sited on a basaltic rock field from an ancient eruption. The worst of both worlds, the rock is exceedingly hard, but as large boulders they were too unstable to build upon.
But my favorite is Mount Lassen, the southern end of the volcanic Cascades. It was also the last to erupt in the lower 48 before St Helens. The park features 3 of the 4 types of volcanoes, and "cool" boiling pots and other features. And friendly bears.
Eco: The defunct volcano is called Roundtop.
Deletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Round_Top
Same volcano, they renamed the area surrounding it to Sibley Regional Volcanic Park.
DeleteHappy palindrome 02-2-20
ReplyDeleteSeems like January just flew past.
DeleteHow about 02-1-20, European style?
Delete... not that we Y2K vets condone 2-digit years.
DeleteIs it Groundhog Day already?
DeleteOnly the Shadow knows. . .
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete<<<
ReplyDelete^
^
<<< Nathan Pyle
Eco, I can't believe I'm trying to get this year to go by faster than they already seem to go.
ReplyDeleteThis is always my least favorite month a Blaine's. Other Thursdays, I can find my postings for the week (to post explanations) by just searching on my name. Since yesterday, and for the rest of the month, every damn comment has my name in it!
DeleteFWP
Deletejan,
DeleteI hate to be the one to tell you this but you only have yourself to blame. Your parents did not really choose your name, you did, just as you chose your parents. I know you will not think this is rational thinking on my part, but that is how it really works, and I can take people to where they can recall doing these things via past life regression, which you will most likely dismiss as nonsense. The problem is that I am tired of pretending these things are not true just in order to get along. Many things are not at all what we believe, such as the Sun traveling around the Earth. Okay, you can laugh now.
Skydiveboy, I can honestly say that I completely agree with some of what you just said.
DeleteYes, jan, I know. The part where 'you will most likely dismiss as nonsense,' right? LOL
DeleteJan, may I suggest you search for your posts using the Match Case setting?
DeleteI just sit here wondering, will a match case hold all my clothes...
DeleteJust returned from the dentist. He loves jokes so I told him eco's President/doctor joke. He and his dental assistant, Austin, roared.
ReplyDeleteWhen they completed the small filling and checked the bite, I told them there must be joke in there about dentists and strippers and "Bite and grind." They laughed, but I think it was a tad embarrassing to two guys with their hands in my mouth. . .
Frankly, I am really surprised they'd not heard it before.
Next time you go to the dentist tell them my favorite dentist joke I made up over 10 years ago:
DeleteWhy did Al Gore go to the dentist?
Because of an inconvenient tooth.
Thanks, but I've already told him that one...
DeleteHe leaves 2:30 (tooth hurty) open for last minute emergency appts.
JUSTIN TRUDEAU -> TRUST IN JUDO
ReplyDelete> I was surprised to learn that another well-known world leader predicted this one's ascendance 43 years earlier.
Per Wikipedia: On April 14, 1972, Trudeau's father and mother hosted a gala at the National Arts Centre, at which visiting U.S. president Richard M. Nixon said, "I'd like to toast the future prime minister of Canada, to Justin Pierre Trudeau" to which Pierre Elliott Trudeau responded that should his son ever assume the role, he hoped he would have "the grace and skill of the president".
I hit "Publish" on the above post just as the lights went down at a 3:00 pm ET showing of Little Women. Pretty good movie. Yesterday, my wife and I went to a New Years Day show at Improv Boston, at which 100 comics were given up to 75 seconds each to tell a new joke for the new year. Most were awful, but one guy with well-timed pauses stood out, and needed even less: "I went to see Little Women. [Long pause.] The women were all regular sized. [Long pause.] I got my money back."
DeleteTell us more about "pretty good."
DeleteMy friend did not like many of the characters and thought Meryl Streep just did her method acting thing.
Annie Lamott, a favorite author, also did not care for all the jumping around of the timeline in the new LW.
Another Smithie and I will go see it tomorrow anyway because we both loved Alcott's book.
And it was filmed in MA, college homeland. . .
Well, some of the characters are not wholly likable, but that's probably not what your friend meant. Mostly, the acting was good.
DeleteIf Annie Lamott doesn't like jumping around timelines, she should direct her own movie. This one is Greta Gerwig's, and I didn't have much trouble keeping track.
The cinematography will make you very nostalgic for New England. Especially without all the people here.
My Smith friend is soooo excited to see it with me tomorrow.
DeleteYeah, I do want to see the New England scenes and I generally enjoy Meryl Streep's acting.
I did read that LW was Alcott's least favorite work. . .
My Smithie friend and I enjoyed this version of LW immensely. Sumptuous cinematography and strong acting.
DeleteThe owner of the SIE theatre in Denver, a small local theater, gave an introductory talk about the 35 mm film used in the version we saw. It makes for richer, deeper colors. The projectionist is a big part of the process of watching the film, running 6 reels of film, about 20 minutes at a time, 2 reels cued up at once, seamlessly. That was interesting.
We happened to run into the owner afterwards and he wanted to know how we enjoyed the 35 mm experience. "Digital is just 1 and 0's after all." ;-).
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, TRUST IN JUDO
ReplyDeleteMy clue? Haha, wouldn't you like to know!
"Haha" hints at the movie "Home Alone 2" recently in the news >>>
https://nypost.com/2019/12/26/trump-blames-justin-trudeau-for-being-cut-from-home-alone-2-in-canada/
The scene was actually cut in 2014 for time constraints, well before 45* became prez/king.
We watched it for the first time in Salida on Christmas night. Seeing the 45* scene here in the US was just, well, -- 7 seconds of him is 7 seconds too long.
*impeached
DeleteJUSTIN TRUDEAU →
ReplyDeleteTRUST IN JUDO!
JUDO, a martial art.
JUSTIN TRUDEAU—>TRUST IN JUDO
ReplyDelete“a landslide of correct answers”: I considered “avalanche,” but thought it might be TMI. Having lived in Montreal in an earlier life for 6 years, I can say without fear of contradiction that it does snow
a lot, 100” per year on average, 160” the first year I was there.
Dang, I thought Kannamma Barathi was a world-leading soap opera.
ReplyDeleteMy clues -
ReplyDelete“A for effort” was a reference to the Canadian “eh”
My rules clarification question “can a double consonant be part of spoonerism” was purposely starting with ‘Canada’ phonetically. Thanks anyway, Ben, for the response.
Happy New Year fellow bloggers.
From Hillary Clinton's instagram account a few hours ago:
ReplyDelete"It’s my great privilege to become @QUBelfast's 11th—and first female—chancellor. It's a place I have great fondness for and have grown a strong relationship with over the years. The university's motto is "pro tanto quid retribuamus," which means: "What shall we give in return for so much?" I'm proud to be an ambassador for such a fine animating spirit, as well as for Queen's research, impact, and overall excellence."
much better than quid pro quo.
DeleteIndeed! I venture she chose to include the university's motto quite intentionally.
DeleteJustin Trudeau, trust in judo.
ReplyDeleteJUSTIN TRUDEAU, TRUST IN JUDO
ReplyDeleteThis was too easy to even be one of SDB's puzzles.
Blainesvillians:
ReplyDeleteThere's a lot to like (and to see and solve) in this week's edition of Joseph Young's Puzzleria!
It has just now been uploaded. See Blaine's PUZZLE LINKS for access.
First , there is another wonderful Cryptic Crossword Puzzle created by "cranberry" (also known as Patrick J. Berry).
Second, There are six Riff-Offs of this week's clever and fun NPR puzzle created by "skydiveboy" (also known as Mark Scott).
That's what I call "STAR POWER!"
Come visit us.
LegoBackInTheShillingSaddleAgain
I have an idea on the solution to Entree #2. I kept trying to shoehorn it in on SDB's.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete<<< Is this happening to you?
ReplyDeleteExcept, check? I wrote about 5 checks in 2019. . .
I can't read the text of that thumbnail, but here's a larger version.
DeleteThanks, jan.
DeleteMy mother's still in the Paleozoic: no computer, no smart phone, still writes checks in cursive that the handwriting recognition algorithm in my e-banking app can't recognize, so I have to walk to an ATM to deposit her checks.
DeleteMy mom, too, though we did get some automatic billing set up for her for gas, electric, phone.
DeleteWhen she sent me a check for Christmas, Maizie and I went to a different branch of my bank near her vet. She was fascinated by the Whoosh of the drive-through bank...and then a treat appeared out of thin air!
So, there's that delight in depositing actual checks.
It's weird, I have not messed up writing 2019 in my journal for this entire year so far. ;-)
For those who still write checks make sure you don't stop at 20.
DeleteI still write checks for many things.
DeleteAutomatic payments are fait accomplis for the payee. It is easier to protest or contest before they got your dough.
It is an old habit and not necessarily a bad one.
Justin Trudeau
ReplyDeletetrust in judo
Earlier this week I said, “Read your money.” “In God We Trust” is sort of a cart-before-the-horse “trust in.”