No 13032, Friday 04 Sep 2020, Skulldugger

RULES FOR POSTING COMMENTS ON FRIDAYS ONLY

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ACROSS
5   After vacation, dress code ignored in ball outfit (6) LIVERY deLIVERY
6   Is able to reproduce appetiser (6) CANAPE {CAN}{APE}

9   Stops going off to bars (6) ABORTS*
10 Hang around in exotic maidens’ unmentionables (8) LINGERIE {LINGER}{In}{Ex...c}
11 Fantastic beast still independent (4) YETI {YET}{I}
12 Insensitive nutcases and nincompoops (10) NUMBSKULLS {NUMB}{SKULLS}
13 Manage a limo, develop narcissistic personality disorder (11) MEGALOMANIA*
18 Birds flying past margin (10) PTARMIGANS*

21 Excellent base (4) MEAN [DD?]
22 Modern perception presidents ignored catastrophically (8) NEOTERIC {pERCEpTION}*
23 Fired drunk (6) CANNED [DD]
24 Comedy routine in small boat (6) SKETCH {S}{KETCH}
25 Badger and hound (6) PESTER [E]

DOWN
1   More income by and by (8) OVERTIME [DD]
2   Every so often, permit child porridge (6) PRISON {PeRmIt}{SON}
3   White chemical substance derived from Asian gem (8) MAGNESIA*
4   Mark-up on revolutionary Gulf country’s dessert (6) GATEAU {TAG<=}{UAE<=}
5   Heaved novice and alumnus onto garden plot (6) LOBBED {L}{OB}{BED}
7   Capable of being polished off and put away! (6) EDIBLE [CD]
8   Exuberance represented by a flamenco (11) FLAMBOYANCE*
14 Trippy stoner music? (4,4) ACID ROCK {ACID}{ROCK}
15 Exemption for married Frenchman breaching international accord (8) IMMUNITY {M}{M} in {I}{UNITY}
16 Unrestrained, extremely eager, singular creatures (6) OTTERS {OTT}{EageR}{S}

17 Rush wildly through one’s life’s work (6) CAREER [DD]
19 Corrupt internet torrent partially backed up (6) ROTTEN [T<=]
20 Almost ooze confidence (6) SECRET SECRETe

Reference List

Independent = I, President = P, Small = S, Novice = L, Alumnus = OB(Old Boy), Married = M, Frenchman = M, International = I,  Unrestrained = OTT(Over the top), Singular = S

Dr RKE's TalePiece

Norbu Dorje was leading Daniel Taylor on the slopes near the Menlung Glacier. Taylor, an American, who had made it his CAREER to explore wildlife. He was here in the Himalayas to unlock the SECRET of the YETI, a search that had been mounted by several explorers since the giant footprint in ice, photographed by Eric Shipton in 1951 was published. They had had little to eat since the CANNED beans they had carried had become ROTTEN and unEDIBLE, unusual for the cold weather. All Taylor could do was to eat the tasty CANAPE and GATEAU which were only in his mind’s eyes. Dorje had caught a white grouse and said he could curry it for dinner. “Is it a PTARMIGAN” asked Taylor. Dorje said “I don’t know what a ptarmigan MEANs but this is a snowcock”.  

By noon, they were famished and rested in a hollow. Dorje started telling one of his usual tales about a NUMBSKULL Sherpa, who had declared once with FLAMBOYANCE about how he had escaped from the Drapchi PRISON (none had actually managed it so far) . OVER TIME, they grew weary of the search and were about to give up their quest when Taylor spotted a big hollow in the rock. “Am I imagining it or does it actually look like the abominable snowman’s foot?” He went closer and there were the unmistakable marks of the front paw with a separate thumb. He exclaimed “Norbu, we have found it, we have found it”. Norbu knew well that such hollows were caused by the ACIDic water containing MAGNESIA dripping through the cave but he had nothing to gain by dumbing down the enthusiasm of the NEOTERIC American.  “Take photo and let the world know” was all he said. After all, the wise old Thumpa Lobsang has said “there is nothing called absolute truth, only relative truth”