Monday 6 February 2012

No 10378, Monday 06 Feb 12, Scintillator

I'm beginning to dislike Scintillator's offerings for reasons of obscure references. The Coimbatore power cut has delayed me also. I should have said it has upset my Apple cart!!
ACROSS
1   - Flight 7S in London (6) - STAIRS ? Anno  pending [DD] (See comments)
4   - Can I lop a piece of meat to cook beef? (8) - COMPLAIN {CO{M}PLAIN*}
9   - Thrilling stroke (6) - TICKLE [DD]
10 - Sherlock's quip said to be rustic (8) - HOMESPUN (~holmes){HOMES}{PUN}
12 - Crazy tenured professor, in essence is no nuts (8) - NEUTERED {TENURED+E*} Professor and 'E' ?
13 - Theatre business is a trying experience (6) - ORDEAL {OR}{DEAL} OR for 'Operation Room' ?
15 - Species of wild 7 found retreating in Nicobar Coast (4) - CRAB [T<-]
16 - A Sydney bog burnt down sometime back (6,4) - BYGONE DAYS*
19 - Resistance means at the end of matrimony, not united in Suhaag Raat, sadly (10) - SATYAGRAHA {Y+SuHAAG+RAAT}*
20 - Married female nurses provided botheration (4) - MIFF {M}{IF}{F}
23 - Present-day NIT's fast losing prime position (6) - RECENT {REC}{lENT}
25 - Surprising winner from top compiler (8) - UPSETTER {UP}{SETTER}
27 - It is wrong to admire a referee (8) - MEDIATOR*
28 - Pencil cartoon (6) - SKETCH [DD]
29 - Touching in the interiors of infected noses eventually causes this (8) - SORENESS {SO{RE}NES*}{S} Touching and RE ? (See comments)
30 - You're very perverse and I'm no less (6) - VOYEUR {YOURE+V}* Where's the definition?
DOWN
1   - Wicked, like Rushdie's poetry? (7) - SATANIC [DD]
2   - Gold polish has top eroded, worker is informed (2,7) - AU COURANT {AU} {sCOUR}{ANT}
3   - 'Perjure': Lie for gaining respite (6) - RELIEF [T]
5   - There is an honour about my organ (4) - OBOE {OB{O}E} My and 'O' ?
6   - See 7 -
7/6 - Perfect arrangement of fruit cake, say (5-3,5) - APPLE-PIE ORDER {APPLE-PIE} {ORDER}
8   - Puzzle: X/-? (7) - NONPLUS [MD]
11 - Big 7 is inexperienced to land the ball on the toes (3,4) - NEW YORK {NEW} {YORK}
14 - No drinks after eating hot meals (4-3) - NOSH-UPS {NO}{S{H}-UPS}
17 - A scripture's to let off philosopher (9) - ARISTOTLE {A}{RI'S}{TO}{LET*}
18 - Care for an almost inanimate brute (8) - MAINTAIN INANIMATe*
19 - Steals 7s and struggles to abduct prince (7) - SCRUMPS {SCRUM{P}S}
21 - See 22 -
22/21 - Stop searching for a variety of 7 (4-2-7) - SEEK-NO FURTHER What's the connection with 'Apple' ? (See comments)
24 - Crushed 7 cried foul (5) - CIDER*
26 - Ex-head of 7 businesses (4) - JOBS [DD]



20 comments:

  1. Not very happy today. Gotta go. Will try again in late evening...

    ReplyDelete
  2. 1a In Cockney Rhyming slang, in place of of "stairs", the rhyming phrase "apples and pears" is used. With the usual pattern of omission, "(and) pears" is dropped and "stairs" becomes "apples". Thus, we say "We are going up the apples" when we mean "We are going 'up the stairs' (upstairs)".
    This is a DD - Flight; apples in London.

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  3. 20 - Married female nurses provided botheration (4) - T(IF)F (a small draught of liquor)

    Married female - TF Tapered Female (terminology used in in pipe fittings)
    nurses - contains
    provided - IF

    Botheration - T(IF)F

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  4. 29A Touching and Re
    Touching = concerning, with respect to = as regards (re)

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  5. 22/21 D Seek-no-futher is an old favorite New England variety of apple used as a dessert apple.

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  6. 30 - You're very perverse and I'm no less (6) - VOYEUR {YOURE+V}* Where's the definition?

    Perverse is used as an anagram indicator (YOURE+V)*
    The definition appears to be "I'm no less (perverse)" - VOYEUR

    ReplyDelete
  7. one word for todays offering....DRAB

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  8. Google di goo today to finish the crossword.

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  9. We can keep the doctor away for a long time- too many apples today, some palatable but many not so.

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  10. What's the link between 7 and apple? Shall we have a poll on enjoyability of a CW?

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  11. 7 & 6D is 'Apple pie order', particularly the 7 part is apple. So,as far as this CW is concerned substitute apple for all 7's.

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  12. CV: Thanks.
    Microorganism: sledging the slugs, dust mites and silverfish with a hammer is not necessary. We know what you meant.

    I too value my books a lot and am known among my friends and relatives to be very meticulous in wrapping all books and paperbacks ,by transparent plastics, reinforced by cardboards in their spines and and fronts and back covers. In fact, they always lend me the books first to read so that they could get them back thus dressed like a bride. This way the books remain firm for a long time and do not get dog-eared. I always tell the wifey to use book marks,as she puts them down gaping recumbine,though not twirling them at the corners to resume reading.

    What to tell of a friend who refuses to remember to return your books? It means that he values them more and respects your taste so much that he wants to retain for himself?

    Haven't we all savoured the fresh smell of new books and even the old ones, retaining the flavours of the pap[er and the print?

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  13. 5 - There is an honour about my organ (4) - OBOE {OB{O}E} My and 'O' ?

    My = O as in the interjection expressing surprise.

    Finally I have access to blogger again!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ezhil
    I am new to this blog and I am searching for this blog for a long time. I a new to crosswords so I may need some clarications. I hope I can get replies from your end.

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  15. From A.G.Gardiner's essay 'On Umbrella Morals"

    "And as for books, who has any morals where they are concerned? I remember some years ago the library of a famous divine and literary critic, who had died, being sold. It was a splendid library of rare books, chiefly concerned with seventeenth-century writers, about whom he was a distinguished authority. Multitudes of the books had the marks of libraries all over the country. He had borrowed them and never found a convenient opportunity of returning them. They clung to him like precedents to law. Yet he was a holy man and preached admirable sermons, as I can bear witness. And, if you press me on the point, I shall have to own that it is hard to part with a book you have come to love.
    Indeed, the only sound rule about books is that adopted by the man who was asked by a friend to lend him a certain volume. "I'm sorry," he said, "but I can't." "Haven't you got it?" asked the other. "Yes, I've got it," he said, "but I make it a rule never to lend books. You see, nobody ever returns them. I know it is so from my own experience. Here, come with me." And he led the way to his library. "There," said he, "four thousand volumes. Every--one--of--'em--borrowed." No, never lend books. You can't trust your dearest friend there. I know. Where is that Gil Blas gone? Eh? And that Silvio Pellico? And.... But why continue the list.... He knows. HE KNOWS.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Jaggu!

      No, we should never be "kodai vallal".

      Delete
  16. To be frank I loved today's crossword. In my first attempt I could solve only three clues and I posted them and left for office. I could not crack the '7' and was thinking on the varieties of Crabs and acids and got bitten and etched.

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  17. Setting a themed crossword means more effort on the part of the setter.

    Also, it may be harder than the run-of-the-mill crosswords.

    ReplyDelete

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