Tuesday, 20 January 2015

No.11296, Tuesday 20 Jan 2015, Lightning


Lightning is 29

Across
1 Box eccentric horse (8) CHESTNUT (CHEST NUT)
5 Spirit of unstable one, not entirely emotional for starters (6) PSYCHE (PSYCHo Emo...)
9 Department to rip off oriental cabinet (8) WARDROBE (WARD ROB E)
10 It is assumed that frozen water is not good upfront (6) OFFICE (OFF before ICE)
12 Verse of detailed song in religious education (5) RHYME (HYMn in RE)
13 Vehicle's diagram is something kept as a cherished item (9) AUTOGRAPH (AUTO GRAPH)
14 Chomp four bits (6) NIBBLE (2)
16 Applause from king leaving for victory speech (7) OVATION (ORATION-R+V)
19 Terminate mice stricken by plague, say (7) ENDEMIC (END MICE*)
21 Withheld estimate to shelter the most aged (6) ELDEST (T)
23 Insane ape gouged teacher (9) PEDAGOGUE (APE GOUGED)*
25 European entering revolving door in an event for cowboys (5) RODEO (E in DOOR*)
26 Hardened judge leaving hurt (6) INURED (INjURED)
27 Improper to rub black coal on high speed airliner (8) TURBOJET ((TO RUB)* JET)
28 Deal with unknown agreement (6) TREATY (TREAT Y)
29 Sapper likely to be trustworthy (8) RELIABLE (RE LIABLE)
          especially the THCC boss...

Down
1 Firm protected minor — one showing fear (6) COWARD (CO WARD)
2 One catching the worm, rarely flying across Belgium, Italy and Germany (5,4) EARLY BIRD (RARELY* across B I D)
3 Brief part of intersection (5) TERSE (T)
4 Annoyance shown by shadow government’s head at end of ordinance (7) UMBRAGE (UMBRA Gov.. ord..E)
6 Fraud's age changed for protection (9) SAFEGUARD (FRAUD'S AGE)*
7 Tea boxes in porcelain (5) CHINA (IN in CHA)
8 Factor, perhaps to replace grand, stylish animal (8) ELEPHANT (ELEGANT -G +PH)
11 To return to wealthy German (4) OTTO (TO< TO)
          Like Beetle Bailey's Sarge's dog ...
15 Yet begums going bananas after you (2,2,5) BE MY GUEST (YET BEGUMS)*
17 Embezzlement by trustee in form of employment providing extra money (6,3) INSIDE JOB (IN SIDE- JOB)
18 Establish meaning for 6-6(6-5)? (3,5) SET POINT (2)
          Reminds me of the days of Lendl, Connors, Evert, Navratilova, Becker and Graf, when I used to watch tennis ... 
20 Secretive about a guy leaving for all to see (4) CAGY (CA GuY)
21 Run from old girlfriend winning over engineer (7) EXECUTE (EX CUTE around CE<) (EX E CUTE) Thanks to Abhay, pl see comments
22 Detest old piercing instrument (6) LOATHE (O in LATHE)
24 Snuff out measure to protect university (5) DOUSE (DOSE around U)
25 Priest losing final buck (5) RABBI (RABBIt)

GRID

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59 comments:

  1. Deepak Gopinath20 January 2015 at 08:34

    Typo in Anno of 21D it should be EX CUTE over E

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Vasant20 January 2015 at 08:41

      I put it as: EX E(CUT)E

      Delete
    2. Kishore20 January 2015 at 08:44

      I tend to go along with DG. But was unsure of the anno for CUTE. Vasant, how would you annotate CUT?

      Delete
    3. Chaturvasi20 January 2015 at 09:03

      21 Run from old girlfriend winning over engineer (7) EXECUTE (EX CUTE around CE<)
      If the above means

      old - EX
      girlfriend - CUTE
      winning - c/c ind
      over - rev ind
      CE- enginner,

      I have a question and a comment.

      How do we really derive CUTE from girlfriend?

      'cute' is adj meaning 'pretty, endearing, sexually attractive'.

      'cutie' is someone who is attractive. I am not sure if it means girlfriend. To a man his girlfriend may be a cutie, but every cutie may not be a girlfriend. In any case, 'cute' is an adj and I don't think it can be used as a noun.

      Excuse me for writing what occurs to be immediately on reading a clue, sol and breakup.

      Finally 'Cuticura' is a favourite brand of talcum powder (LV/Sowmya: has it been used in BL brand crossword?) How do you think the brand name is derived?

      When someone said it aloud, my young granddaughter, during a visit from the U.S., said: "No, you don't say it like that. You say ..." I can't reproduce the American accent that Indian children born in the US use.

      Delete
    4. Vasant20 January 2015 at 09:07

      EX=old girl friend
      EE=Engineer
      CUT=Win
      EE over CUT
      Now putting it in words just does not sound right.

      Delete
    5. Kishore20 January 2015 at 09:09

      The same sentiment expressed in 844. On Cuticura, remembered that white and coloured oval shaped tin and pleasant smell. Many Indians pronounced it like KuTTY (our Keralite friend) followed by koora (our Telugu greens). Abroad, I heard it pronounced closer to CUTIE queue ra

      Delete
    6. Vasant20 January 2015 at 09:10

      But if we have CUTE=Pretty Girl we are one E or one C short & Only one E for engineer? as per COL's Anno

      Delete
    7. Kishore20 January 2015 at 09:10

      Vasant, agree with you. Something seems amiss other than the miss referred to as gf aka cute/cutie. Will wait for others to weigh in before amending ...

      Delete
    8. Chaturvasi20 January 2015 at 09:16

      Let me hasten to clarify that I have not solved the clue myself and have not parsed it.

      My remarks must be taken to just suggest that we can't derive 'girlfriend' from 'cute'.

      Delete
    9. Kishore20 January 2015 at 09:21

      So were are still at sq. 1

      Delete
    10. Raghunath20 January 2015 at 09:27

      Wonder where the problem lies assuming CUTE - GF.

      Old GF winning over Engineer = EX GF over E(Engineer from Chambers) = EX CUTE over E = EX E CUTE.

      Delete
    11. Kishore20 January 2015 at 09:35

      OT for the solution, but still on the question of girlfriend=cute/cutie, would anyone dare calling her any adjective / noun that is not endearing ? Calling her a rose, a lily, or Champa if fine, but any adventurers intrepid enough to refer to her as a cactus ...?

      In the prelude to this song from Tumse Achcha Kaun hai, Shamsher 'Shammi' Raj Kapoor addresses his beloved/s as "Hello, my sweetie ... Of course, of course" followed by "Hello, my love, my dove, my cactus plant ..."

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QT1-pc3VJpI

      Delete
    12. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 11:58

      Ref. to K's first paragraph, since we are talking about ex, one may call her anything!

      Delete
    13. Kishore20 January 2015 at 13:55

      Burning our bridges, are we ?!

      Delete
    14. Sowmya20 January 2015 at 17:08

      CV SIR - 9.03 - No, haven't yet clued this in BL. I think the name is derived from the Latin words cutis - skin and cura - care. Did some googling but could not really verify from thie site. However chanced some really fun articles written in 1907 about all these "new fangled" nostrums that promise cures (sic) :):) Apparently a Ponds product had even been touted once as a cure for meningitis!

      Delete
    15. Kishore20 January 2015 at 18:11

      Heard of Buck-U-Uppo, Soumya?

      Delete
    16. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 19:40

      A touch of PGW.

      Delete
    17. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 19:41

      Ref.to Kishore @ 1.55-
      I recently chanced to watch 'The Bridge on the River Kwi".

      Delete
  2. Rengaswamy20 January 2015 at 08:46

    2 One catching the worm, rarely flying across Belgium, Italy and Germany (5,4) EARLY BIRD (RARELY* across B I D)

    It should be Denmark and not Germany

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rengaswamy20 January 2015 at 08:48

      Why substitute Deutschland for Germany when Denmark is available?

      Delete
    2. Deepak Gopinath20 January 2015 at 08:49

      Germany = Deutschland = D

      Delete
    3. Kishore20 January 2015 at 09:05

      You will, no doubt, recognise the new song Deutschland Uber Alles car services ...

      Delete
    4. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 09:16

      Setter's prerogative.

      Delete
  3. Mukundala Balasubramanyam20 January 2015 at 08:48

    Nice one from Lightning. Happy to have completed before the Cricket match starts. Thanks, Lightning, for an entertaining puzzle. :-)))

    ReplyDelete
  4. Raghunath20 January 2015 at 08:51

    Some nice clues. Like the CD: INSIDE JOB.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kishore20 January 2015 at 08:58

      I have considered that as a charade. IN + SIDE JOB=form of employment providing extra money

      Delete
  5. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 09:12

    I have a question on 22D-
    Is lathe a piercing instrument? I don't think so. it is a machine tool.
    My grouse is that it robbed me of my samosa!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kishore20 January 2015 at 09:18

      Piercing is the insertion indicator for O=old to get into lathe. But is lathe a machine or an instrument, I leave it to the engineers, civil or otherwise ...

      Delete
    2. Vasant20 January 2015 at 09:20

      Piercing is container indicator; instrument is Lathe. That is the beauty of a devious surface.

      Delete
    3. Suresh20 January 2015 at 10:32

      Tool would have been a more appropriate word without affecting the surface

      Delete
  6. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 09:16

    Kishore,
    I missed my AWAD yesterday and was wondering where did you get 'Ultracrepidarian' from. Got it only this morning. It IS useful,at times!
    Did you notice yesterday's cupboard became wardrobe today with china coming in elsewhere?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kishore20 January 2015 at 09:19

      Yes, I did. The china has been cast away and clothes installed there. Ul...n came in handy.

      Delete
  7. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 09:19

    10A- Is the def. 'It is assumed' ? I am not able to follow.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kishore20 January 2015 at 09:22

      A little odd perhaps, but an office is assumed (by the incumbent)

      Delete
    2. Vasant20 January 2015 at 09:22

      that is right; remember you assume office

      Delete
  8. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 09:32

    A small typo in 4D- It is 'Umbra' in full incl.A.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 09:33

    Thank you Kishore & Vasanth for all the clarifications.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Abhay20 January 2015 at 09:36

    Good one from Lightning - thanks to setter and blogger!

    Re. 21D: I parsed is as {EX}{E}{CUTE}, with EX coming from old girlfriend and CUTE as a synonym of winning (as in "winning smile") going over (around) E(ngineer).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Raghunath20 January 2015 at 09:46

      That's spot on. Thefreedic has: CUTE as: appealing, sweet, attractive, engaging, charming, delightful, lovable, winsome, winning.

      Delete
    2. Vasant20 January 2015 at 09:46

      That sounds plausible. Great one Abhay!

      Delete
    3. Deepak Gopinath20 January 2015 at 10:01

      By the way that's what I said at 8:34

      Delete
    4. Chaturvasi20 January 2015 at 10:06

      That's it. Congrats Abhay.

      Delete
    5. Raghunath20 January 2015 at 10:07

      You hadn't elaborated and it looked no different from what all of us wrote.

      Delete
    6. Kishore20 January 2015 at 10:42

      Great, Abhay!

      Delete
  11. Shrikanth20 January 2015 at 09:42

    Very good entertainer from Lightning. Simple elegant surfaces (for eg 7D) . a pleasure to solve

    ReplyDelete
  12. Chaturvasi20 January 2015 at 10:20

    I agree. 7d is an excellent clue.
    I know that NYT and other has occasionally used crosswords submitted by Indians (from this country or here back from the US or still living there).
    Wonder if any UK paper has used a full-fledged cryptic crossword by an Indian.Anyone know?
    But then with so many setters waiting in line to be admitted in the panel, chances of Indians gaining a foothold there are slim, I think.
    To the credit of UK papers, they, of late, seem to be admitting some new hands.
    No paper including TH has open doors - in the sense you submit a crossword and if it is acceptable it will be used.
    They always have a panel of reliable setters who will keep up the supplies. If floodgates are opened, scrutinising the submissions, picking out the material, etc, becomes labour-intensive for which there is no wherewithal.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aakash Sridhar20 January 2015 at 10:39

      I agree about 7D.. Also I was wondering it would be acceptable as
      Tea boxes made of porcelain (5)
      As in , pretty lingeries 'in' silk
      Pretty lingeries 'made of' silk ..

      Delete
    2. Chaturvasi20 January 2015 at 10:50

      I would go with the published version.

      Delete
    3. Raghunath20 January 2015 at 10:52

      Though it's a good clue somehow boxes made of porcelain seemed strange. Coincidentally isn't tea also 'China'?

      Delete
    4. Raghunath20 January 2015 at 10:54

      Maybe:

      Tea cups in porcelain?

      Delete
  13. Aakash Sridhar20 January 2015 at 10:58

    Yes .. My question was only if the substitution would be acceptable

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Raghunath20 January 2015 at 11:03

      I referred to the clue and not yr comment though it had the same words as I'd written as a coincidence.

      Delete
  14. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 12:01

    MB,
    Nothing much seems to be left in the match to watch, unless of course we are able to get a few wickets for nothing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mukundala Balasubramanyam20 January 2015 at 12:26

      Nothing left in the match. That's why I am here going through all the comments! It will be a miracle if India wins today!!

      Delete
  15. Richard20 January 2015 at 15:17

    Did anyone answer CV's query 9:03 on Cuticura?

    Cuticura was discussed here way back in 2010, on July 9, to be precise. It was a Sankalak day. (Oh, so nostalgic!)

    I would recommend to everyone that day's comments - so much of fun.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Padmanabhan20 January 2015 at 15:44

    Richard @3.17- so much of fun and so interesting. Thank you. Would it have been possible w/o a computer database?
    8D in Sunday TOI CW- First-day cover? (3,4)

    ReplyDelete
  17. D.Srinivasan20 January 2015 at 16:13

    fun indeed.... thanks for taking us back to 'good old days'

    ReplyDelete
  18. PKPSwami20 January 2015 at 16:43

    I'm on cloud nine today showered with lightning's. gift. Iwas able to draw solace for my last week's drought. Thamks lightning.

    ReplyDelete

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