"Stress Test" - July 3, 2020

[sanmilton]

and Good Night Mrs. Calabash wherever you are.

Inka Dinka Doo Bob, Inka DInka Doo (can't tell you how many times I have had to tell younger colleagues who "that gravelly voiced guy singing Frosty the Snowman" was....

I'm sad that with the passing of Carl Reiner we now have one less old vaudevillian in our midst. I mean there are some good new comedians, but very few who could work "clean" and still get a laugh.

Thanks for mentioning Carl Reiner! May he rest in peace. His Times obituary carried a photo of him in an appearance as Alan Brady in his masterpiece, The Dick Van Dyke Show, still the GOAT sitcom IMHO.

[Hidden in 3D]

Well, I can honestly say that was the best AHA moment ever! Yes, I'm finally on the shore and agree that this is definitely in the 100% category. A special thanks to you kind Muggles who offered nudges; you know who you are! I'm glad I figured this one out without reading your hints. I just have a feeling the AHA wouldn't have been so much fun if I had.

[DrTom]

Unfortunately it is not a universal theorem and appears to work only for select things. It does not work for driving and, from hazy memories of 50+ years ago, does NOT make you cooler in bars. The bar phenomenon is best explained by refraction, where a witty repartee viewed through alcohol did not go the way it looked in your mind.

Tom, do you seriously think you can dissuade muggles from finding their optimal B.A.C.?

Oh, heck no! I am repeatedly trying to find mine! Never during work hours of course or if I have to get up real early. I think they have even given the attempt a name because I'm SURE I've heard people talk about B.A.C. Gamblin (or something like that). You get 15 drinks and the object is to get bare and off the table. There is even the chance to do doubles!

[whimsy]

Still Solidly So on the Ship. That's SSSOS, which sounds even more dire. But this is actually where I expected to be a lot of the time. I think I was only fueled (and fooled!) by beginner's luck the last couple of weeks. No matter -- I'm having a great time! But I will be happy to see this wacky and chuckle-worthy answer. I want in on the in joke!

[DrTom]

and Good Night Mrs. Calabash wherever you are.

Inka Dinka Doo Bob, Inka DInka Doo (can't tell you how many times I have had to tell younger colleagues who "that gravelly voiced guy singing Frosty the Snowman" was....

I'm sad that with the passing of Carl Reiner we now have one less old vaudevillian in our midst. I mean there are some good new comedians, but very few who could work "clean" and still get a laugh.

Thanks for mentioning Carl Reiner! May he rest in peace. His Times obituary carried a photo of him in an appearance as Alan Brady in his masterpiece, The Dick Van Dyke Show, still the GOAT sitcom IMHO.

Amen! Some day I hope to be at the show where Reiner, Ceasar, Burns & Allen, Gleeson, Skelton, Ford, Durante, etc each do their skit - then I'll know I'm in heaven.

[DrTom]

"Stress? Who could say? Ahh, but the strawberries! That's - that's where I had them. They laughed at me and made jokes, but I proved beyond the shadow of a doubt and with - geometric logic..... Send for Isaac at once!
Screen Shot 2020-07-05 at 8.38.32 PM.jpg

and tell him to bring the extra wardroom key!

[DrTom]

Oh well, it's a nice day to sit on the deck, the beer is cold and Isaac is good company. There might be sharks in the water and cannibals on the island.

Oh yes. there are sharks to the left and sharks to the right and you're the only bait in town!

[DrTom]

Happy 4th to all on the board. I will be celebrating with a little Kentucky nectar:

IMG_Jul42020at34223PM.jpg

Well there is a creature I've never seen either! I've heard the lore, and actually drunk some of its more distant relatives, but never met pappy myself. Guess I'll have to keep one eye open for it

(yes I know, if you don't do MGWCC this doesn't make much sense, but I know oldjudge does and, besides, I don't always feel the need to make much sense)

[DrTom]

Tautology

Well yes but you have to be more specific. In particular the ology I taught was Pharmacology. I taught that for many years...

I thought about teaching cosmetology but that made me blush and astrology, well let's just say that the stars never aligned correctly.

If you are going to lob punny material at me, do not be surprised if I try to hit it back over the net.

TIGHTly enough done.

It's TAUT-ology, not TAUNT-ology.

Like in "I TAUNT I taw a puddy cat?"

[TPS]

This thread is starting to remind me of my text feed to an ex-gf when I wake up with a Jameson hang over.

[DrTom]

If I'm going to drink single malts I like the smokey, peaty ones like Lagavulin and Laphroaig. Most of the time I will just enjoy Blue.

I have to be in the right mood for a peaty scotch like Lagavulin - I’m no Ron Swanson. I remember the first time I had Lagavulin when I was a I-banker and we were out at the Sullivan’s steakhouse in Austin after we closed a deal and one of the MDs bought a bottle of Lagavulin 1976 - I think it was $9,000 or something ridiculous like that. I took a sip and my first thoughts were “This tastes like what I imagine a band aid would taste like in liquid form.” So those two ounces were definitely wasted on me - since then my palate has evolved and I can appreciate a peaty scotch now but Speysides are still my goto.

If I am going to drink a blend 90% of the time it’s going to be Dimplepinch the other 10% it’s going to be Chivas.

LOL - that is EXACTLY what my went through my mind the first time I tasted on the boys from Islay. I could not believe that people actually sought that out. Even now JW Green is about as smoky as I can stand.

[Joe Ross]

[DrTom]

This thread is starting to remind me of my text feed to an ex-gf when I wake up with a Jameson hang over.

Never let your Jameson hang over, it hurts!

[DrTom]

I hope I got the right ANTELOPEMASSEUR!

[Geezer Weezer]

This thread is starting to remind me of my text feed to an ex-gf when I wake up with a Jameson hang over.

Never let your Jameson hang over, it hurts!

Careful what you say here, someone was offended by my previous screen name (Bulls*******).

[Laura M]

Oof, I didn't give this one enough credit (ha) for its cleverness. I had the right idea but didn't follow it through. Congrats to those who got it!

Edited to admit my answer: I literally submitted "island" backwards, DNALSI. Now I'm embarrassed...

[Jeff S]

I just saw the solution on Crossword Fiend, and there's definitely no way I ever would have gotten it

[MajordomoTom]

high marks for those who solved it - I am pleased I passed the "test", but this one was ... a tricsky little wabbit.

[MajordomoTom]

On shore, looking for the shaved ice stand ... do they pour lime & tequila over them on this island?

glad no one thought this posting was a spoiler. It wasn't intended to be, it just typed itself.

Then after I hit the "submit" button, I had second thoughts.

[TPS]

I don’t love metas that require the ability to break things down phonetically by syllables because as I think I have mentioned a few times I have learning disability that makes that extremely difficult for me. It was recommended that when I suspect the key to the meta might lie that way to use a dictionary - which I hadn’t thought of before. In this one it still might not have helped because Lindsey is a proper name - I may or may not have been able to ferret out the second theme clue with just the Eye part but given my history with metas - probably not.

But I can’t even really nit pick because I wouldn’t have solved this even if the Theme answers were just ANSWER, ISLAND, BACKWARD - I would have written it off as gibberish and looked elsewhere for the answer and probably given up after 2 days.

I am surprised that people found this easier than TALLY because I think recognizing foreign numbers especially “DOS” when keyed directly by a Clue - is far easier than recognizing that you should use STRESSed syllables. Further, TALLY had you just use numbers in a traditional crossword meta format for the second part - this actually required you to make the connection that those three words were directions and then determine what those directions actually meant.

Definitely a KAS 1 Billion for me - easily the most difficult non-PGW puzzle I have ever attempted.