Tuesday, 19 March 2013

No.10724, Tuesday 19 Mar 13, Gridman

If yesterday's puzzle was harder than usual by Gridman's standard because of the theme, today it was because of unfamiliar words both in solutions and wordplay! (INKHORN, COZENED, TET, YAZH/I, PATCHOULI). Having said that, it was still fun. Especially liked LYSOL, EYING, EXTERMINATE, and TOSSPOT.

ACROSS
1 Pristine dye's fixed: it's good fortune (11) SERENDIPITY (PRISTINE DYE)*
9 Curved old-time accessory into which writers dipped (7) INKHORN (CD) Had INKWELL initially and was stuck
10 Fooled college girl about meditation path (7) COZENED (COED outside ZEN)
11 Disheartened lady gets a little solution: it's a cleaning product (5) LYSOL (LadY + SOL)
12 Stay with the laid-back Communist for rest (9) REMAINDER (REMAIN + RED<=)
13 Having a view, for example, about feminine side (5) EYING (EG outside YIN)
15 Die to be apprised somehow about ace (9) DISAPPEAR (APPRISED* outside A)
18 One who sits on the stands for witnessing an event (9) SPECTATOR (CD)
21 Lure a politician into Hanoi festival (5) TEMPT (MP inside TET)
22 Bad breath caused by Thai's oils breaking down (9) HALITOSIS (THAI'S OILS)*
24 Greeting a place of turmoil with nothing (5) HELLO (HELL + O)
26 Antiquated street fixture that was illuminating (7) GASLAMP (CD)
27 Wail as African tribesman loses head, being behind time (7) ULULATE (zULU + LATE)
28 Do away with dead end (11) EXTERMINATE (EX + TERMINATE)

DOWN
1 Calm in not being involved in any activity? (9) STILLNESS (DD)
2 Searches thoroughly for rascals? (5) RAKES (DD)
3 Elemental luminosity in the long strip (4,5) NEON, LIGHT (C&DD)
4 Didn't pay attention to daughter going to disturbed region (7) IGNORED (REGION* + D)
5 Enters taxable items? (7) INCOMES (DD) Enters = Comes in, rather than in-comes? Probably "entries" would have worked better? See comments
6 Stringed instrument from ancient south India for young one in Navajo (5) YAZHI (YAZH + I)
7 Where Alice's adventures took place (2,1,5) IN, A, DREAM (GK)
8 Leaders of associations devoutly attend rallies in this biblical month (4) ADAR (Acrostic)
14 Ladies, I'm sorry! It's just high-minded belief! (8) IDEALISM (LADIES I'M)*
16 Fix French assent covering beginner's herb (9) PATCHOULI (PATCH + OUI outside L)
17 Move back as erector falls over journalist (9) RETROCEDE (ERECTOR* + ED<=)
19 Foolish person to ship cannabis (7) TOSSPOT (TO + SS + POT)
20 Knight in shining armour perhaps securer (7) RESCUER (SECURER)*
22 The kind of seas where piracy takes place (4) HIGH (E)
23 Make fun of team leader with effortlessness (5) TEASE (T + EASE)
25 Everyone back around forenoon to find this animal (5) LLAMA (ALL<= outside AM)

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48 comments:

  1. Deepak Gopinath19 March 2013 at 08:33

    I feel 'In comes' for enters is okay. We could say 'In comes the next batsman to a thunderous applause....

    ReplyDelete
  2. Suresh19 March 2013 at 08:40

    I wonder how you got YAZHI, Bhavan. I could never have got it,despite google and other devices.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bhavan19 March 2013 at 08:45

      For a long time I was looking for an instrument, but in desperation searched for "young one in Navajo" in google and landed on that answer.

      Delete
    2. Deepak Gopinath19 March 2013 at 08:46

      I got it after googling for 'Young one in Navajo'

      Delete
    3. Suresh19 March 2013 at 09:43

      I did that too. But could not find it. Required more research perhaps.

      Delete
    4. Shrikanth19 March 2013 at 12:11

      Actually I had Yazhi as an instrument first, as 1A gave away the beginning letter & 12A gave away the ending letter & I could connect. But was stuck because I didn't know Cozened as a word and a letter like Z always creates doubts.. Incidentally there is also a mythical animal called Yazhi which is a hybrid of a lion and elephant.. One can see many depictions of the same in Meenakshi Amman temple at Madurai.

      Delete
    5. Shrikanth19 March 2013 at 12:19

      Typo above .. Yazh as an instrument ...

      Delete
    6. Shrikanth19 March 2013 at 12:23

      Tirukural has reference to this instrument

      Kuzhal inithu yazh inidu enbar tham makkal
      Mazhalai chol keladavar

      This means 'Only those who haven't heard of their child's prattle will call Flute & Yazh as sweet :)

      Delete
    7. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 16:40

      Exactly the same Thirukkural led me to yazhi and you are right about the mythical figure too. There is a Yazhi vahanam in Srirangam temple and you can view the images in Wicki

      Delete
  3. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 08:46

    Re 'In comes'

    I was about to give the very same example as the Col has done above (in olden days when we used to hear cricket commentaries on the radio, we often heard: "In comes So-and-So (usu. the bowler rather than any batsman) etc"

    I must have had in mind the famous line from The Pied Piper of Hamelin:

    Into the street the piper stept...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 09:00

      Those of us who were hooked to the radio commentary before the advent of TV are too familiar with- like CV said- "IN comes Kapil Dev bowling from...."

      Delete
  4. Deepak Gopinath19 March 2013 at 08:47

    As usual the online edition of The HINDU has a corrupt CW grid eaten up from the edges due to which the App is unable to display a grid!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 09:06

      I have often written to/called TH about the grid not appearing properly but the error is not corrected even subsequently.

      It appears that the online edition is done mostly by automation and the editors and other staff just don't care to see the results.

      Delete
  5. jaggu19 March 2013 at 08:53

    Serendipity-It is like looking for a needle in a haystack and finding the farmer's daughter.[Courtesy Reader's Digest]

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 09:01

      Which reminds me of a book in my Uncle's bookshelf in CBE, a book that I saw as a boy of some 15 years.

      The title was Love in the Haystack. The cover pic was of a woman in blue sleeveless dress quite properly and primly worn but with much of the part below the neck exposed.

      Sorry, I don't remeber if the lover was nearby!

      I don't remember the author of the book either.

      Probably a 15-year old boy doesn't care fot those details!

      I think haystacks often figure in Hardy's novels usually set in rural parts.

      Delete
    2. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 09:27

      I forgot to add that she was leaning against a haystack, with her hands at the back as I recall.

      Delete
    3. Deepak Gopinath19 March 2013 at 10:10

      Are you referring to 'Love among the haystacks' by DH Lawrence? See the link. If so, the woman is not so prim and proper on the cover as you have mentioned.

      Delete
    4. Anonymous19 March 2013 at 10:20

      I remember DHL's Lady Chatterley's Lover was banned in India.

      Delete
    5. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 12:28

      After I posted the message I recalled the author's name. The cover illustration of the paperback that was in the CBE bookshelf was different.

      Delete
    6. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 12:30

      The title was not remembered exactly. Thanks, Deepak, for correcting me.

      Delete
    7. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 12:34

      I could have checked the facts on the Internet but then in this blog we usually remember, recall, reminisce, reflect and refresh our memories on the spur of a moment. Just imagine, a gag that Jaggu mentioned takes me back to a title that I had seen in someone's bookshelf decades ago.

      Delete
    8. Anonymous19 March 2013 at 15:28

      They probably re-covered the book after you had dis-covered it

      Delete
  6. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 08:55

    I was able to get Yazhi for the simple reason that I knew about Yazh as an old stringed instrument. Of course I had to google to confirm the Navajo connection. Nice of Gridman to connect the two.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 08:55

    In a way it helped me to get 'cozened' which I would not have otherwise got!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 08:57

    A doubt about Lysol. Is it a brand name?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 09:02

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysol

    But like Dettol this too is so commonly known that it may no longer be only a brand name- like for examole Xerox.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 09:03

    sorry for typo. It is example.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 09:13

    In dictionaries 'lysol' is a solution of cresol in soap, a poisonous disinfectant.

    It is used as a trademark in some countries.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous19 March 2013 at 09:45

      Lysol was a popular douching material long ago.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous19 March 2013 at 09:49

      I think we should distinguish between brands which have got into popular usage and find a place in the dictionary (albeit with initial capitalisation and the remark propr. appearing after them and pure brand-names. The former, I feel, can be used in crosswords and the latter not. Your opinions, please.

      Delete
    3. Deepak Gopinath19 March 2013 at 10:13

      I don't see why pure brand names cannot be used, if we can use names of people like Ken, Ted, Rose and Margaret etc

      Delete
    4. Anonymous19 March 2013 at 10:18

      I remember coming across Smith (as Wesson's partner) a few days back.

      8.3.13 Lightning:
      14 Makers of firearms, comfortable in retrospect, without Wesson's partner (9) GUNSMITHS (SNUG< around SMITH (of the Smith and Wesson fame)

      Delete
  12. PKPSwami19 March 2013 at 11:49

    Yazhi failed me in spite of the fact that Im conversant with yazh. Very interesting clues.I could easily crack serendipity & halitosis. Also inkhorn from websters.Nice entertaining puzzle.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Unknown19 March 2013 at 14:32

    Very interesting puzzle - but could not get Yazhi and Cozened. Learned two new words today!
    Always good to be brought down a peg or two!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. VP19 March 2013 at 15:56

    Learnt several new things today. Lucked out with a wild guess on Yazhi after getting the crossings and to level things up had to give up on inkhorn.
    Really liked patchouli - had no idea about this term as well, but was able to get it from the wordplay.

    ReplyDelete
  15. VP19 March 2013 at 16:03

    Wonder how Native Americans pronounce Yazhi

    ReplyDelete
  16. VJ19 March 2013 at 16:27

    I don't think IDEALISM for high-minded is very convincing. Any possible explanation as to how this could work?

    ReplyDelete
  17. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 16:30

    Lofty ideals.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. VJ19 March 2013 at 16:47

      If you're an idealist it doesn't mean you have lofty ideals - you'd merely be pursuing what you believe is ideal.

      Delete
  18. Lakshmi Vaidyanathan19 March 2013 at 16:59

    Enjoyable xword.Learnt a lot of new words.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 18:27

      'Patchouli', I think, may have its origins in Tamil பச்சிலை (pachchilai).

      Delete
  19. Ramani19 March 2013 at 18:31

    'Thunbam nerkaiyil yazh eduthu nee inbam serka maattaya'... flew over my mind. (Of Bharatidasan)

    ReplyDelete
  20. Chaturvasi19 March 2013 at 19:18

    Anbilaa nenjil thamizhai padi nee, Allal theerkka mattayaa - kannae...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lakshmi Vaidyanathan19 March 2013 at 19:59

      "Kuzhal endrum yazh endrum silar kooruvaar
      En kural kettapinaale avar maaruvaar"
      Indroru naazh podhuma song from Thiruvilayadal

      Delete
    2. Padmanabhan19 March 2013 at 21:26

      Lot of old film songs- many of them good and meaningful- being telecast contionuously on a few channels seems to have kindled a few inspirations!

      Delete

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