Monday 5 August 2013

No.10843, Monday 05 Aug 2013, Gridman


ACROSS
1 Academic, around 51, India’s leading chemist, is producing many works (8) PROLIFIC (PROF around LI + I C)
6 Lament there is little produce to begin with (4) WEEP (WEE P)
9 Fine distinction made by sister about a church (6) NUANCE (NUN about A, CE)
10 With which male can be restrained? (7) MANACLE (MALE CAN)*&LIT
          Ladies, do not despair ! For you, a womanacle can be used, if you have objection the above word
13 Signal ace put out for a number (9) ANALGESIC (SIGNAL ACE)*
          For my pains, I always prefer an Oralgesic, suppose it is required
14 Snacks from the French? Yes! (3-2) FRY UP (FR YUP)
15 Back objection to English conduit (4) TUBE (BUT< E)
16 Compositor on the limits of Trichy to annoy alien getting in (10) TYPESETTER (TrichY PESTER around ET)
          This is the guy who gave us the Upper Case and Lower Case usages, which are fast going out of use
19 Keep arguing as you eat something that isn’t lean (4,3,3) CHEW THE FAT CD,DD
21 Ultimately slow worker in poverty (4) WANT (W ANT)
24 Work for a time in record store section (5) OPERA (OP ERA)
25 Recurring theme is: “Limit vote somehow” (9) LEITMOTIV (LIMIT VOTE)*
          I think I came across Leitmotif (as it more commonly put) for the first time in James Hilton's Lost Horizon. I like to think of it as a literary Mandelbrot set, though there are differences...
26 Spooky public house worker’s mantra (7) PHANTOM (PH ANT OM)
          This one, while not only reminding me of one of our setters from Bengali (not from Bangla Desh or Poschim Bonga, but later Bangalla), also reminded me of The Phantom of the Opera, when read with 24A
27 “But he’s an __ knave” (Shakespeare) (6) ARRANT (GK)
28 I had the French doing nothing… (4) IDLE (I'D LE)
29 …on the main section abroad (8) OVERSEAS (2)
          If I were to go on an overland journey abroad, to a country like Nepal, for instance, can I say that I am going overseas ?
DOWN
2 Centre refits bar after royal row (7) RHUBARB (HUB after R, BAR*)
3 Story about a girl gets some newspaper space (6) LINAGE (LINE about A G)
4 There is no set way in this kind of wrestling (9) FREESTYLE (CD)
5 Firm note to city’s top wag (5) COMIC (CO MI C)
7 Put into code plaint described by revamped PEN before team leader (7) ENCRYPT (PEN* around CRY T)
          I heard that Egyptian pharaohs were usually encrypted in the pyramids
8 Occurring before surgery on agonising rep and spy (12) PREOPERATIVE (REP* OPERATIVE)
          "Operative" reminded me of the ilk of James Bond, Nick Carter, George Smiley, Paul Drake, ...
11 If __ __ are charged, it’s free (2,4) NO FEES (CD)
          The cartoon is for 4d read with 11d, where I had initially put in NO FARE, and accordingly put in TYPEWRITER in 16a, for which the wordplay did not work out, sending me back to the drawing board to revise the text in the cartoon
12 It is a done deed in Rome (4,8) FAIT ACCOMPLI (CD)
          A belated realisation came when I drew the cartoon. I understand that the phrase is actually French and not Latin, though it has a Latin origin
17 Get rid of the girl with delicacy after a long time (9) ERADICATE (ERA DI CATE)
18 Dilemma in taking almost all of the procession into the street (6) STRAIT (TRAIl  in ST. )
20 Watch for which I reportedly cry (7) EYEBALL (~I BAWL)
22 Feeler put out by worker to girl on the rise (7) ANTENNA (ANT ANNE<)
23 Hurts small stores (6) SMARTS (S MARTS)
25 Forgetfulness brings member to nought (5) LIMBO (LIMB 0)

54 comments:

  1. Kishore

    You cartoon at 12d is mischievous.

    But it is a testimony to your overflowing sense of humour, abundant thinking capacity, highly imaginative portrayal.

    The simple phrase 'We did' is eloquent. (I note that the bubble emanates from both man and bride.) The Latin tag from the church official is so apt!

    Congrats!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kishore,

      I hope you are preserving you cartoons for an exhibition at some later date.

      Delete
    2. I don't quite understand the cartoon. Anyways most of his works are good

      Delete
    3. Thanks, CV. The double bubble was on purpose.

      VJ, ponder and thou shall realise...

      Delete
    4. Deepak, I have a bin for them. Just reached 30

      Delete
    5. VJ, the resemblance of the groom's French beard is purely coincidental !

      Delete
    6. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    7. Thanks, all.

      VJ is it all about perception, conception. 'Figure' it out ;-)

      Delete
    8. Haha, ok, got it.. Her appearance says it all

      Delete
  2. Kishore

    I want to ask you a simple question as Arnab does with some of his panelists.

    How many times in a day do you say "I did".

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I do not usually advertise my conquest of the thunderbox...
      since it is usually a 12d !

      Delete
    2. a simple question

      WRT to above phrase, during my nearly 3 decades of practice, I have never had to answer a complicated question. Clients invariably start wrt to a simple question, where the answer may take even an hour or more to explain. Possibly a preemptive strategy to avoid billing. And since I am not a doctor, I can't even ask them to shed...

      Delete
    3. Ask a stupid question ......

      Delete
    4. ... and you get a complicated answer !

      Delete
    5. That is the true mark of a professional...

      Delete
    6. CV 9:02 - Most often, it could be "I didn't" by way of alibis...

      Delete
    7. I did say "I didn't", I didn't say "I did"

      Delete
  3. Techie question

    As my UPS needs charging and as there have been frequent power outages in Chennai this week, here's a qn -

    When we are writing in text box in our email, it saves periodically and we can always reclaim a draft from some point of time.

    Is there any app/prog that will do the same thing for us when we are writing in Notepad or Wordpad on our PC?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You need to use MS Word for your composing/editing. AFAIK Notepad/Wordpad do not Autosave

      Delete
  4. Replies
    1. Number in the sense of an anaesthetic and not figures 1,2,3....

      Delete
  5. Thanks. Didn't notice that MS Word has autosave facility. Will look for it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Talking of MS Word, I found 2003 ver. was much better than the earlier ones and I appreciated some features in it. But 2007 that I have now (having removed 2003) is cumbersome and in it I have to grope for certain things which I used to do facilely in 2003.

      Delete
  6. Kishore's comment @ 7D. Any typo in "I HEAD" ?

    ReplyDelete
  7. Kishore @ 13A
    Are you not sick of Analgesic and oralgesic ? ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Suppose it worries you ?

      Delete
    2. Sorry, that was supposed to read:

      Suppositories for you ?

      Delete
    3. At times, I keep remembering the song from the 1965 movie 'The Sound of Music' ""How do you solve a problem like .......?"

      Delete
    4. If you have not seen that movie, the rest of the nuns in the convent keep worrying as to how to manage with unmanageable person like Maria, played by Julie Andrews. Now you can jump to your own conclusion...

      Delete
    5. # with an unmanageable person, it should read.

      Delete
    6. I too made that leap of faith ;-)

      Delete
  8. @ Kishore regarding 9:08 comment Thanks for not charging consulting fees!:-)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Kishore @ 9:06
    Regarding your conquest of the THUNDERBOX. Well, my OED says, Thunderbox is nothing but a "Primitive or makeshift Toilet" !!
    I'm confused as to what you meant in your comment !? :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. He meant exactly what you found in your OED !!

      Delete
    2. I doubt very much, Col.Saheb !!! A man of his stature conquering......!?

      Delete
    3. What stature ???

      BTW, everyone, I repeat, everyone (irrespective of stature) has to do the business regularly. Otherwise, Dulcolax or enema will find its way into him. So having done one's business, one can announce to the world, "I did". I don't, MB. Hence, the comment at 906 as correctly interpreted by the Colonel.

      Delete
    4. My son, when he was small, was apt to engage us in dialogue when he was perched on the roost. We used to call it preaching from the pulpit.

      Delete
    5. Oh ! That settles the matter !! :-) Some times my brain works like a tubelight !!!

      Delete
    6. Change the starter !

      Delete
    7. ....running straight to the electrical shop now !

      Delete
  10. Kishore,
    What's with the beard and VJ?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mea culpa. That should have been VP, not VJ.

      Delete
  11. Reading all the comments more fun than actually solving the CW!!
    Have a nice evening, all....

    ReplyDelete
  12. Discussion about dulcolax & enema reminded me about the old joke about VKK Menon and his friend!

    Enjoying the comments late and from overseas

    ReplyDelete
  13. The moment I solved a few clues, I knew it was a 12 down ' fait accompli ' from Gridman !! Vvvverrry smooth today and his . 25 across couldn't be missed.

    As for Kishore's conquering the Thunderbox, isn't it the only place where one can do 'thani aavarthanam' , A tamil word I learnt for solo performance,(with accompanying orchestra) ? A sacred sanctum sanctorum for self-introspection and hence preach to oneself ?

    ReplyDelete

deepakgita@gmail.com