"More Options"

[Dannyvee]

I’ll echo all the others: cute one

[Bird Lives]

The Wednesday morning roll call finds a band which is few in number, but, as the song says, the finest in the land. Maybe others are still on the couch or never made it to the couch to begin with.

1. Laura M
2. FrankieHeck
3. boharr
4. Meg
5. Kay W
6. Cindy
7. ChrisKochmanski
8. oldjudge
9. Tmart
10. Dave C
11. DJB
12. SewYoung
13. Beth Tyrpin
14. lbray53
15. Dannyvee
16. Tom Wilson
17. whimsy
18. Schmeel
19. hazmat

In any case, here is your first hint, the only one I can think of at the moment.

Try saying the answers to the starred clues out loud and at a fairly quick tempo.

[whimsy]

Confirmed upright as noted above --
Took embarrassingly longer than it should have considering (ahem, ahem) -- something.
This one was so clever and adorable I just wanted to
?? pinch its little cheeks!

[ReB]

Off the couch. I took another look this morning and immediately had a burst of inspiration/aha moment - before looking at spoilers, for once. Very clever

Awaiting confirmation.

[DrTom]

Wow, I could have SWORN I already put a "think I'm off the couch, awaiting confirmation" and a bit about how I had Netflix and Ellen DeGeneres to thank for a nudge...but not here. Oh well, I am OTC (Off The Couch as opposed to the more relevant Over The Counter). Fun puzzle and as usual, Bird level clever.

When I was on the couch I did find my perfect toon, which I have rather unabashedly purloined for my private, not for profit use:

[C=64]

LOL! The first hint gave me the answer in 10 seconds.

My rabbit hole: I tried to associate colors with each theme answer: black market, red/blue/purple state, blue nun, etc. The most amazing of these was "wee wee" being yellow.

[Dow Jones]

Awaiting confirmation. I was lost until the spoiler appeared. One of these days, I hope to get my brain firing on all cylinders at the same time.

[Hector]

Great puzzle, Bird!

[hcbirker]

Finally printed it out, and awaiting confirmation of being off the couch!

[Cinny]

Confirmed and off the couch. Great puzzle, although I should have solved it sooner!!

[Bob cruise director]

ibid

[Jaclyn]

Off the couch & confirmed. I had unknowingly gotten a glimmer before the hint, but I never would have followed it!

[BarbaraK]

I literally laughed out loud when I figured this one out. Didn’t need the hint, just the time. PMing now.

[RPardoe]

Had been staring at the grid for a few days.
Today fresh air while walking the dog saw the Aha pop into my thinking.

[Jeremy Smith]

Confirmed and off the couch.

[markhr]

OTC and confirmed. This is kind of... you see it or you don't.
I thought this was pretty imaginative, though, with an amusing twist.

[Bird Lives]

The Thursday Morning Report

Since Tuesday, another sixteen people have come in (masked and six feet apart, needless to say)

20. ReB
21. cbarbee002
22. DrTom
23. Rpardoe
24. Cinny
25. Dow Jones
26. C=64
27. hcbirker
28. Cindy N
29. Jaclyn
30. Hector
31. Bob cruise director
32. BarbaraK
33. m5rammy
34. markhr
35. Jeremy Smith

And here’s a second nudge:

The meta is based on something you heard long ago, so try Hint #1 (reading aloud) with a listener of a youthful age — young enough to be unfamiliar with asset valuation (20A), government-run accommodation (30A), or even French maids (48A) — and see if they can help you.

And a third:

Oh, to hell with it. The answer is . . . Oh wait, can’t do that.

[Joe Ross]

Not having read nudges 2 & 3, I've submitted & expect to be



toot de suite.

[ EDIT1: Confirmed. ]

[michaelm]

Needed that sledgehammer second nudge.
Will be smiling all day now as solve brought both Aha and warm memories.
Thanks!

[bhamren]

Off the couch. Just saw it this morning. Really fun!