Sunday 22 November 2015

The Sunday Crossword (2868), Sunday 22 Nov 2015


ACROSS
1   Cheers received by Communist leader, quiet man in terrible event (11) CATASTROPHE {CA{TA}STRO}{P}{HE}
7   Grouse, not name for flightless bird (3) MOA MOAn
9   Lavish smear filled in by artist (7) LIBERAL {LIBE{RA}L}
10 Work silly dopes resisted (7) OPPOSED {OP}{DOPES*}
11 Striker, cross about conflict, following heart (6,7) CENTRE FORWARD {CENTRE}  {FOR{WAR}D}
13 Travel around, beginning to identify Polynesian language (5) MAORI {MAOR<=}{Id...y}
14 Trim coach having a change of colour (9) CHROMATIC*
15 Stern mind in conservative element (9) REARGUARD {REAR}{GUARD}
17 Part of lesson, a humourless book of the Bible (5) NAHUM [T]
19 Pompous man is left rambling about wine (4-9) SELF-IMPORTANT {MAN+IS+LEFT}* around {PORT}
22 Blushing, decline to be symbol of revolution (3,4) RED FLAG {RED} {FLAG}
23 Song packed with zest initially about part of USA (7) ARIZONA {ARI{Zest}{ON}A}
24 Occasional rum (3) ODD [DD]
25 Hot in spell, yet more shivery – not unknown indicator of fever? (11) THERMOMETER {T{H}ERM}{yET+MORE}*

DOWN
1   Cry about everything (4) CALL {C}{ALL}
2   Plant obtained by explorer turning up with company (7) TOBACCO {TOBAC<=}{CO}
3   One who's withdrawn from contract, one wrongly given lot (9,6) SHRINKING VIOLET {SHRINK}{1}{GIVEN+LOT}*
4   Head? It helps one draw the line (5) RULER [DD]
5   Academic dreaded having no answer to be presented (9) PROFFERED {PROF}{FEaRED}
6   Neat, simple mixer managed innovative approach (15) EXPERIMENTALISM*
7   Odd parts for chaps in film, being this? (7) MISCAST {MIS{ChApS}T}Semi&lit
8   Assistant made cape I'd ordered (4-2-4) AIDE-DE-CAMP*
12 Rascal with eccentric air rose to become producer (10) IMPRESARIO {IMP}{AIR+ROSE}*
14 Bubbly title-holder, beaten finally in time (9) CHAMPAGNE {CHAMP}{AG{b...eN}E}
16 Made reference and raised boring article with editor (7) ALLUDED {A}{LLUD}<={ED}
18 Fashionable and extremely loud, rising quickly (7) HOTFOOT {HOT}{F<=}{OOT<=}
20 Field occupying acre, almost (5) REALM [T]
21 Reasonable exhibition (4) FAIR [DD]

GRID

27 comments:

  1. 9 a.m. The paper not delivered at doorstep.
    I call a toll-free no.
    I am told to press a certain digit if I need to know about a new edition.
    For any other query, another one.
    I press the latter and line goes off.
    My anathema to mobile phones and mindless technology development increases.

    ReplyDelete
  2. At Kanchipuram also paper received at 7.30 only. thehind.com is also not working properly.
    Comparatively easy FAIR today. Completed in 30 mins.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Simple sunday fare ... a light, nutritious breakfast i guess...a couple of idlis?? what say :) hee hee

    ReplyDelete
  4. I used to have this problem of paper coming everyday after 7am. My news agent then worked out a mothod by which the suplier of papers at the Sheraton Hotel next door would drop the papers of the apartment at the gate and the watchman delivers to individual flats. Now the paper is in well before 6am.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 6am is an unearthly hour in Hyderabad

      Delete
    2. Exactly! A customer service must work out such solutions.
      The other day when paper was not delivered by 9 a.m. I made three/four alls on mobile to agent. They were not accepted.
      Calls to the desk of the paper produced no results.
      Mail received a silly automated reply that assumed I had not given the essential details when every detail expected to act on I had already given thoughtfully.
      On insistence, an executive spoke to me. That's all - no satisfactory resolution of the problem or an assurance that they will look into the matter.
      Even after that paper was received at 9 a.m. today.
      That is the org has no thraani or dhil to discipline last-mile deliver man.
      Their TV ad makes fun of comp.paper.
      But comp. paper came to me at 6-15.

      Delete
  5. Once in some previous decades I was a rabid Sunday crossword solver on paper and to the finish, perhaps using dicts but with no computer prog help available, These days I don't solve on this paper - the font is too thin and light for my eyes. Mails to the so-called Readers' Editor (busy deflecting BJP/Hindutwa trolls) is of no use.
    Why this feature cannot use the body texf font of other stories, I can't understand.
    A design editor who numbers pages as 01, 02, etc., to just 06 (at the most) and one who places these not on the left top of a left page for easy viewing while raising just the top corner of a page, must be devoid of ideas and must be doing novel things for novelty sake.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lots of such 'imaginative' people in this world. Why would anyone want a glass wall for the bathroom in hotels?

      Delete
    2. I read once about some billionaire who had glass walls for his bathroom in his mansion overlooking his private beach. That is fine if he wants to enjoy the view while in the bathtub.

      How this became an in thing to do for architects of hotels I could not figure out.

      Delete
  6. Suggestion to IXL organizers is to send an email or SMS a few minutes before they put up the grid, so that we don't need to be sitting in front of our PCs waiting for the grid to show up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Does it cost them any for such communications by email or SMS?

      Have the patience of an angler and wait for the bait to catch on !

      Delete
    2. Triggering automatic emails to registered participants does not involve significant cost (especially when compared to the cost of the competition as a whole).

      Delete
    3. They are in the business-- so why not? They ought to be more organized , unless the technology itself is failing them !

      Delete
    4. They do send emails/SMS on submission, don't they?

      Delete
    5. Raju, they are not really "in...business", and we are not paying clients - we are participants in a competition run by a group of enthusiasts. It is truly admirable that they take the time and the trouble to make this work. What is galling is that they take a lot trouble over setting up the whole thing but then overlook small but important things that can be taken care of through simple automation: sending alerts when the page goes live, letting people know of any disruptions/delays, putting up details of mistakes in the crossword (a clue missing once, a clue number missing in the grid both this week and last week) on both the administration site and the main site, etc.

      Delete
    6. Abhay: I see your point. I didn't ,mean any offence to them - I used the word business in the context of activity and NOT commercial. I am indeed grateful to them for all that they are doing . It ids indeed a stupendous task but they can certainly make our life easier. We certainly NOT take them to the Consumer Forum !!

      Delete
    7. That means Abhay, you finished this tough puzzle before 1210? :)

      Delete
    8. Submission email came in at 12:02. Having completed it in that time, of course, is no guarantee that I got it right! :)

      The puzzle was indeed tougher than the earlier ones. Luckily, I had come across at least one of the unusual words earlier, which helped!

      Delete
  7. It is 20 minutes past 11 and yet no sign of the site for ICL !!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Raju ICL (indian Cricket League) was wound up in 2009 !!

      Delete
    2. Sorry, I meant IXL - I C what you say !

      I intend writing an article on the confusing world of acronyms that we live in !! Especially in the newspapers, the free use of these abbrevs confuse me a lot when they prominently appear in the head lnes. Raj for Rajasthan and Mum for Mumbai etc and then you have these ICC ACC WC and what else you don't see !!

      Delete
    3. I thought you had uwed C tomean crossword

      Delete
    4. And pardon the typo. My left hand is a problem

      Delete
  8. Completed the grid and submitted successfully . Wracked my brains with one particular clue that took me a whole 20 minutes to crack and it looked so silly that I wasted so much time on that ; It e=was so obviously staring and glaring at me !

    ReplyDelete

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