Monthly Archives: April 2021

NYT Spelling Bee 4-14-21 final

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It’s Wednesday, which means we watch an episode of the 1968 show The Prisoner. Without spoiling anything, it’s hard to consider either that we’re close to the end or that it hasn’t ended already. I won’t say anything more about that show for now.

Special nod to Calah for steering me toward CLOACA today. She reads the blog and knows the ones that I miss. If we worked together on these, we might get Queen Bee a lot of the time. Something to consider.

Yesterday I missed BABBLE, BABE, BLEACH, CELEB, HALE, HEAL, HEALABLE, HEEHAW, HEEL, WELL, WHEE, WHEW.

Meatier Misses

LECH: informal, derogatory A lecher.
(Bonus!) LECHER: A lecherous man.
(Double Bonus!) LECHEROUS: Having or showing excessive or offensive sexual desire. Oh. That wasn’t worth all that work. But good times.

WEAL: A red, swollen mark left on flesh by a blow or pressure. So like a welt?

From etymonline:

weal (n.2)

“raised mark on skin,” 1821, alteration of wale (q.v.).

wale (n.)

Old English walu “ridge, bank” of earth or stone, later “ridge made on flesh by a lash” (related to weal (n.2)); from Proto-Germanic *walu- (source also of Low German wale “weal,” Old Frisian walu “rod,” Old Norse völr “round piece of wood,” Gothic walus “a staff, stick,” Dutch wortel, German wurzel “root”), from PIE root *wel- (3) “to turn, revolve.” The common notion perhaps is “raised line.” Used in reference to the ridges of textile fabric from 1580s. Wales “horizontal planks which extend along a ship’s sides” is attested from late 13c.

So let’s see if I’m right.

welt (n.)

early 15c., a shoemaker’s term, perhaps related to Middle English welten “to overturn, roll over” (c. 1300), from Old Norse velta “to roll” (related to welter (v.)). Meaning “ridge on the skin from a wound” is first recorded 1800.

OK I think I’m right. That brings up the origin of etymonline. While it’s amazing and authoritative, it’s also run by a dude. Or the government. Or spies. I don’t know. Seems like a crazy undertaking for a solo individual.

Today’s summary

Final score: 55 words for 230 points.
Genius minimum: 226 points.
First word: ALCOHOL.
Last word: CHINCHILLA.
Pangram: ALCOHOLIC.
Tweets:

NYT Spelling Bee 4-13-21 final

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The internet went out again tonight. It seems to happen on Tuesday nights more than it happens on other nights. I don’t know why that is, but I’m certain it’s personal. Spectrum, man, I’m telling you. They told me that they do see that there’s an unplanned outage. They also said that they don’t know when it will be fixed. I’m writing this post in Notepad, and I’m going to try to toss it up on the blog by making my phone a hotspot as soon as I’m done writing. This certainly could be less annoying of a process. Using my phone’s browser, I looked briefly at T-Mobile for home internet. It doesn’t sound so bad. So I opened my computer to look more at the details. Of course I realized as I was typing that there was no internet to my computer, so that’s where my research has ended for the moment.

Yesterday I missed DOWDY, DOWRY, WILDWOOD, WILY, WIRY, WOOD, WOODY, WRYLY, and YOWL.

Meatier Misses

I guess luckily for me because the internet is down that the only words I missed were ones I really should have gotten. I’ve watched enough Project Runway to hear Tim Gunn say it. Though it’s always a shame that he has to say it at all. I also first consciously heard the word zaftig in that show. And to think they said learning stops after high school!

MANY GIFS OF TIM GUNN USING DOWDY WOULD HAVE BEEN HERE BUT FOR THE INTERNET OUTAGE. EVERYONE CAN THANK SPECTRUM FOR BEING ROBBED OF THAT COMPILATION.

Today’s Summary

Final score: 26 words for 104 points.
Genius minimum: 102 points.
First word: CHEWABLE.
Pangram: CHEWABLE.
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Woodworking: First-ever cushions project (Part 3)

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I left off last week in my seat cushion project having purchased the plywood boards I wanted but without a way to cut them to size. In a complete nonadventure, I purchased the jigsaw blades from amazon.

I had done a lot of research into which blades I needed because jigsaw blades come in many teeth arrangements. I learned that a 10 TPI (teeth per inch) blade is good for plywood, so that’s what I used. I got a multipack, so now I have ample supply. Also I guess there is no immediate need to expand my DeWalt set to include a cordless jigsaw because I have all these U-shank blades. Longtime readers of this blog know how my DeWalt set continues to expand.

Finally equipped with the tools I needed to cut the boards to size, it became a matter of tracing and actually cutting.

Rather than measuring, I used the perfect stencil: the prior seat board! And, lined up, it looked pretty good to me. And I did the same with the other chair so I could knock out

I clamped the board to my table, which is a super important step when cutting so it doesn’t chatter away or get grabbed and stuck in the teeth of the saw and just go out of control.

Then to the cutting. Now, I hadn’t used a jigsaw in I don’t know how long, so I was hopeful that I wouldn’t screw things up. I checked that the blade was firmly in place because, as I mentioned, this is a U-shank blade. A T-shank blade is supposed to snap into place without such concerns. Like how my impact driver bits snap into place for a quick change without having to tighten a chuck. I’ve not used a T-shank jigsaw, but this is my understanding of it.

That went well. Apparently, I have no pictures of the first cuts, but I do for the second board.

Things were looking up. The jigsaw was very easy to use.

I had spent all that time researching how to get pre-cut boards, and all it took to get some in this shape was a few quick cuts.

I was well on my way, sure, but the edges were rough. I had to find a way to chamfer them. But with all my tools, I didn’t have any planes. And I’d long learned my lesson that trying to sand a corner is a tedious process that makes lots of dust and is unreliable for a uniform surface.

I began to research planes. More on that next week.

NYT Spelling Bee 4-12-21 final

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I decided to make a pizza because I’m hungry. I looked in the fridge after having had to throw away one bag of cheese today because it was moldy and found a second bag of moldy cheese. Completely sealed. Sell by July of this year. I do not understand. I’m glad I had one more bag of cheese. Now it’s open. I’ll have to get more.

Yesterday I missed NEOCON and a bunch of words I don’t know.

Meatier Misses

FLOUNCE: Go or move in an exaggeratedly impatient or angry manner. This is the second pangram. I’ve never heard this used. It also isn’t fluid ounce.

From etymonline:

flounce (v.)

1540s, “to dash, plunge, flop,” perhaps from Scandinavian (compare dialectal Swedish flunsa “to plunge,” Norwegian flunsa “to hurry, work hurriedly,” but first record of these is 200 years later than the English word), said to be of imitative origin. Spelling likely influenced by bounce. Notions of “anger, impatience” began to adhere to the word 18c. Related: Flounced; flouncing. As a noun from 1580s in reference to a sudden fling or turn of the body; by mid-18c. especially as expressing impatience or disdain.

EFFLUENCE: A substance that flows out from something.
FECULENCE: The quality of or containing dirt, sediment, or waste matter. Essentially, crappiness.
LUNE: A crescent-shaped figure formed on a sphere or plane by two arcs intersecting at two points.

Intuitive, really.


NUCLEON: A proton or neutron.

Today’s summary

Final score: 17 words for 94 points.
Genius minimum: 88 points.
First word: WILLOWY.
PangramS: ROWDILY, WORDILY.

NYT Spelling Bee 4-11-21 final

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The other day I was talking to a friend of mine who works in the accounting and consulting side of restructuring businesses. We agreed that I look at accounting with businesses continuing to survive. You really can only work with a company on credit if you think it will continue to exist, and that is what the going concern principle is. The concern will keep going. But since he works in the restructuring and bankruptcy, he lives by different rules. I offered that he uses the going, going, gone principle. I’m not so smart that I’m the first person who has ever made that joke, but I’ve not heard it anywhere, so I came to it on my own.

Yesterday I missed ADDEND, ADDENDA, ADENINE, AGENDA, AIDE (though I got AIDED), DEAN, IDEA, KINDA, NAIAD, and NANNIED. Shame on me for missing ENGAGE, ENGAGED, and ENGAGING.

Meatier Misses

ENNEAD: A group or set of nine.
NANKEEN: A yellowish cotton cloth.

Today’s summary

Final score: 33 words for 120 points.
Genius minimum: 116 points.
First word: FUNNEL.
Pangram: CONFLUENCE.
Tweets:

WSJ Crossword Contest 4-9-21 Answer

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I initially had some struggles with this one, but it all worked out in the end. And I got to do the same pen-on-paper thing I like doing. Only a couple overwrites this time, which is better than other times. But the main thing is getting the answer and the hope at that coffee mug. It’s something that eludes me, and I never have my hopes up anymore.

As is always the case, I had to make it legible and highlightable.

With the title THE PLAY’S THE THING and a clue of “word from Hamlet’s “To be, or not to be” soliloquy.

My knowledge of Shakespeare is complete. I am fully aware of Bill Shakespeare. Dude is so famous that he was among the first to get the covid vaccine in England.

But my knowledge in Shakespeare appears to be shakier.

That is so say there was no way to do this from my memory. Which meant: To the googles!

I found the soliloquy on Wikipedia, but there are many versions, so that was a dead end. I only learned it was doomed a little while into it, but I’ll save you that experience.

I shifted to the approach I use for the puzzles when I don’t know the subject matter. It’s definitely a good idea because, you know, I don’t know the subject matter.

I began with highlighting the answers to the clues that used quotation marks. It wasn’t working out.

I followed that up with the standard: going off the longest answers.

With those identified, I saw some characters I recognized from Bill’s plays. I fumbled around and found others.

But it’s not the characters–THE PLAY’S THE THING. So it’s about which play the characters are in.

DUNCAN: Macbeth
IAGO: Othello
ROMEO: Romeo and Juliet
VIOLA: Twelfth Night
PUCK: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
BEROWNE: Love’s Labour’s Lost

MORTAL is the answer. No way I get there just from the soliloquy.

NYT Spelling Bee 4-10-21 final

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Today would have been my bubbie’s (grandmother’s) birthday. She passed away years ago. But this would have been her birthday.

There was an article that today the vaccines are open to everyone 16+ in Los Angeles. With spikes in many places in the country, this is a good thing! Let’s get the world back on track!

Yesterday I missed ADMAN, ADMIN, AIRMAN, AMID, IAMB, IAMBI, and IMAM.

Meatier Misses

MIDRIB: A large strengthened vein along the midline of a leaf.

Train in vein.


Today’s summary

Final score: 40 words for 187 points.
Genius minimum: 187 points.
First word: NAKED.
Pangram: KNEADING.
Tweet:

Baseball is back!

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Yesterday (today when I’m writing this) was Opening Day at Dodger Stadium. This reminds of near to when Calah and I were newly dating.

My friend Joe Scala came to visit from New York, and as we had gone to a Yankee game when I visited him (story on that another time), he and I went to Chavez Ravine during his trip out here. Calah joined us.

We got tickets near the foul pole in right field.

I don’t remember who won, but it was a lot of fun. We took Uber there and back, and the Uber story is worth telling, too. I think this is the first part of a baseball series.

Aren’t you excited?

NYT Spelling Bee 4-9-21 final

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Finally I got the pangram, and that it was MIDBRAIN and that it was a guess seems very appropriate for me. I certainly am glad it’s the weekend because I am wiped. A crazy thing is that in less than a week, all Californians will be eligible for the covid vaccines. Could it be that we’re getting out of this thing? I’m still waiting for the world to be declared safe to be convinced that the world is safe again.

Yesterday I missed BLIN, BLINI, and IBEX.

Meatier Misses

LIBELEE: Someone who is a victim of a published false statement that is damaging to a person’s reputation; the subject of an undue/inaccurate written defamation.

from etymonline:

libel (n.)

c. 1300, “formal written statement, a writing of any kind,” especially, in civil law, “plaintiff’s statement of charges” (mid-14c.); from Old French libelle (fem.) “small book; (legal) charge, claim; writ; written report” (13c.), from Latin libellus “a little book, pamphlet; petition, written accusation, complaint,” diminutive of liber “book” (see library). Meaning “false or defamatory statement” is from 1610s. Specific legal sense of “any published or written statement likely to harm a person’s reputation” is first attested 1630s.

Today’s summary

Final score: 33 words for 151 points.
Genius minimum: 131 points.
First word: MANDARIN.
Pangram: MIDBRAIN.
Tweets:

NYT Spelling Bee 4-8-21 final

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Short one today! I make up for it with more etymology from yesterday’s misses. Speaking of getting things wrong, I’ve been watching The Blacklist. There are so, so many inaccuracies that pull me out of the show. Just one example: Why does Elizabeth have a clearance that lets her go to a black site? But then again, Jared. So maybe it was just ahead of its time.

Yesterday I missed APOLOGY, GLOOMY, LALLYGAG, LOAMY, PAPALLY, PLAY, PLOY, and PYGMY.

Meatier Misses

AMYL: The straight-chain pentyl radical —C₅H₁₁.
LOGY: Dull and heavy in motion or thought; sluggish.

From etymonline:

logy (adj.)

also loggy, “dull and heavy,” 1847, American English, perhaps from Dutch log “heavy, dull” + -y (2); compare Middle Low German luggich “sleepy, sluggish.” Or perhaps a variant of loggy.

MAMMALOGY: The branch of zoology concerned with mammals.
PALMY: (especially of a previous period of time) flourishing or successful.

palmy (adj.)

“triumphant, flourishing,” literally “worthy of the palm” (of victory or triumph), c. 1600, from palm (n.2) in the “triumph” sense + -y (2). The meaning “full of palms” attested from 1660s.

Today’s summary

Final score: 17 words for 82 points.
Genius minimum: 73 points.
First word: BELIEF.
Pangram: INFLEXIBLE.