The MLB All-Star Game is returning to the Dodger Stadium next year! Does that mean I’ll get to go to the Home Run Derby? Only time will tell. But here’s to hoping!
Yesterday I missed DUNK, DUNKED, KENNELED, LUNE, UNCLE, and UNNEEDED.
Meatier Misses
ENDUE/D: Endow or provide with a quality or ability.
Today’s summary
Letters: OAIPRTY
Final score: 42 words for 190 points.
Genius minimum: 184 points.
First word: PRIORITY.
Pangram: ??????????
Tweets:
I’ve been watching It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. I watched the entire series years ago, but now there’s a lot more show than there was at that time. I’m in the seventh season now, which is where Mac got fat. I recently learned that he actually did just put on weight. Intentionally. For the show. Because he wanted to. Genius.
Yesterday I missed EYEHOLE, EYETEETH, EYETOOTH, GHETTO, GOTH, HOLT, HOOT, HOTLY, and THEE.
Meatier Misses
THOLE: A pin, typically one of a pair, fitted to the gunwale of a rowboat to act as the fulcrum for an oar.
Today’s summary
Letters: NCDEKLU
Final score: 33 words for 157 points.
Genius minimum: 138 points.
First word: DUNE.
Pangram: KNUCKLED and CLUNKED.
I’m sapped of energy by this mugginess. I don’t care for it. But do I prefer 6% relative humidity to 66% relative humidity? I don’t know. Probably not. I mean the fires that come when it’s too dry are a real bother.
Yesterday I missed ACTUAL, ALIT, ATILT, CATTAIL, INCANT, INITIAL, INTUIT, LINT, NATAL, NATANT, NAUTILI, TACTICIAN, TACTUAL, TANNIC, TILT, TUNIC, UNIT, and UNLIT.
Meatier Misses
CANTATA: A medium-length narrative piece of music for voices with instrumental accompaniment, typically with solos, chorus, and orchestra.
CULTIC: Adjective form of cult.
LANTANA: A tropical evergreen shrub of the verbena family, several kinds of which are cultivated as ornamentals.
Today’s summary
Letters: HEGLOTY
Final score: 20 words for 102 points.
Genius minimum: 102 points.
First word: GHEE.
Pangrams: ETHOLOGY and THEOLOGY.
I have to dash this one off because I’m only briefly on my computer. I will finish this Spelling Bee on my phone. Or at least I hope I will. Good thing for timed posts and the NYT Crossword app. Though it is a janky app that somehow keeps getting worse.
Yesterday I missed BOTTOM, LIMB, LIMBO, LIMO, LOBOTOMY, MOOT, and TOMTIT. Always missing the birds.
Meatier Misses
BOOMY: Making a loud, deep, resonant sound. Oh. Damn.
Today’s summary
Letters: TACILNU
Final score: 41 words for 183 points.
Genius minimum: 206 points.
First word: ANTIC.
Pangram: NAUTICAL.
Two years ago today, Calah and I went on our first date at a small café in the Valley. She thought I lived in the Valley, so this small place wasn’t far away from me. I very much did not live in the Valley and never intend to, but it was worth it to me to drive all the way out there to meet her. And it was! Happy two years together, Calah!
Yesterday I missed three words. Three words short of Queen Bee. MEET and METE. And…
Meatier Misses
MOTET: A short piece of sacred choral music, typically polyphonic and unaccompanied.
“choral composition on a sacred text, intended to be sung in a Church service,” late 14c., from Old French motet (13c.), diminutive of mot “word” (see mot), or from Medieval Latin motetum, diminutive of motto.
Today’s summary
Letters: HGILNRT
Final score: 20 words for 128 points.
Genius minimum: 125 points.
First word: HIGHLIGHTING.
Pangram: THRILLING.
I have run out of words. And after waking up pretty much fine and being good throughout the day, I’m back to having a stuffy head but worse than yesterday. It’s hard to keep my eyelids open to write this.
But I don’t know what I’ve missed for Queen Bee, but I’ve finally given up. I’ve gone almost 80 points past genius minimum. Still no Queen Bee.
Yesterday I missed RUMORING (the third pangram), GOUGING, MOOING, NOGGIN, NOIR, ONGOING, ONION, ORIGIN. RIGOR, and UNMOOR.
Meatier Miss
GORGON: Greek Mythology Each of three sisters, Stheno, Euryale, and Medusa, with snakes for hair, who had the power to turn anyone who looked at them to stone.
Today’s summary
Letters: TBELMNO
Final score: 65 words for 273 points.
Genius minimum: 196 points.
First word: BLOTTO.
Pangram: ENNOBLEMENT.
Tweet:
Happy Independence Day (observed)! I was really happy to have finished yesterday’s Spelling Bee. We were up in Santa Barbara, and we walked legitimately for 20 miles, though my phone only recorded 19.57. But with all the dust and stuff from yesterday, I have been sneezing like crazy today. I’m going to take a Benadryl and pass out so I’m all good for work in the morning.
Yesterday I missed BLIN, BLINI, BLINK, INFO, KINK, LILT, OINK, and TOOLKIT.
Meatier Misses
BIOTIN: A vitamin of the B complex, found in egg yolk, liver, and yeast. It is involved in the synthesis of fatty acids and glucose.
BOBOLINK: A North American songbird of the American blackbird family, with a bill resembling that of a finch. The male has black, buff, and white plumage.
BONITO: A smaller relative of the tunas, with dark oblique stripes on the back and important as a food and game fish.
Today’s summary
Letters: OGIMNRU
Final score: 36 words for 182 points.
Genius minimum: 176 points.
First word: GROOM.
Pangram: MOURNING and UNMOORING.
Tweet:
Happy Independence Day!!! It’s now 12:15 am on July 4, and I’ve finished the Spelling Bee. I knew I wouldn’t have time today–and there may be stories from today that I’ll share later–but I did what I could to get this out almost 24 hours from now. I hope I’m back home by now, but just in case I’m not, this is scheduled to go out at normal time.
Yesterday I missed ADDENDA, APNEA, INDIE, INNIE, NAAN, NADA, NAIAD, NANNIED, NEAP, NINEPIN, NIPPED, NIXED, PANINI, PEND, PENDED, and PENNE.
Meatier Misses
ADENINE: A compound which is one of the four constituent bases of nucleic acids. A purine derivative, it is paired with thymine in double-stranded DNA.
APIAN: Relating to bees.
ENNEAD: A group or set of nine.
PINNIPED: A carnivorous aquatic mammal of the order Pinnipedia, such as a seal or walrus.
Today’s summary
Letters: IBKLNOT
Final score: 30 words for 97 points.
Genius minimum: 97 points.
First word: KNIT.
Pangram: INKBLOT.
Tweet:
Since tomorrow will be a busy day, I knew that I would have to do as much as I could for this blog tonight. I hoped for an easy-ish Saturday crossword puzzle and a fine/fun Sunday crossword and for a Spelling Bee with a genius minimum of like 64 points instead of like 224. After all today is the latest Shabbat ends all year at 8:50pm. And I have to wake up early-early tomorrow. To my dismay, this was in excess of what I had dreaded as an upper bound.
But it went by surprisingly quickly. It’s 11:04 right now, and I’ve finished the Saturday and Sunday crossword puzzles and this puzzle. I don’t think I’ve stood up in the last two hours, and that’s probably not a good thing. Also I’ve been typing a lot during this time, and I should probably take a break. But I also have to sleep so, here I continue.
Yesterday I missed BOGEYMEN, the pangram, BONE, MONEYMEN, MONONYM, and YEOMEN.
Meatier Misses
With all the writing I have left to do tonight, I’m kinda lucky that I only missed pretty easy stuff. I’m off to write the Sunday NYTXW blog now that will post at 7:30 tomorrow morning yay!
Today’s summary
Letters: NAEDIPX
Final score: 47 words for 246 points.
Genius minimum: 241 points.
First word: PANDA.
Last word: DEPENDED.
Pangram: APPENDIX.
I found out yesterday that Costco stopped carrying Hello Panda cookies. I like the Hello Panda cookies. Calah seems to like the Hello Panda cookies. They’re kinda dry, but they’re filled with chocolate stuff. What I’m saying is that they’re fun snacks.
Yesterday I missed ABUT, ALIBI, BABA, BAHT, BATH, BATHTUB, BILL, BLAH, BLAT, BUILT, BULB, BUTT, and TUBA.
Meatier Misses
TABLA: A pair of small hand drums attached together, used in Indian music; one is slightly larger than the other and is played using pressure from the heel of the hand to vary the pitch.
TUBAL: Relating to or occurring in a tube, especially the fallopian tubes.
Today’s summary
Letters: VDEINTU
Final score: 31 words for 176 points.
Genius minimum: 175 points.
First word: INTUITIVE.
Last word: ENDIVE.
Pangram: UNINVITED.