Ever get freaked out, thinking that you’re imagining things? Me neither. Until today’s puzzle. Not kidding — I kept thinking lightly shaded letters were appearing in certain squares before I filled them in — like was my brain doing the puzzle ahead of me and tipping me off? Was it some glitch in the software? But then it stopped happening for a bit, so okay. And then it happened again.
As I got further into it, a light dawned in Marblehead, as the saying goes. The first theme clue/answer was at 18A: “Publication where this puzzle might be found.” Answer: IN-FLIGHT MAGAZINE.
Then, at 29A: “Where the 18-Across is commonly found.” SEATBACK POCKET.
And at 49A, what was happening became clear: “Person who may have ruined your puzzle experience.” PRIOR PASSENGER.
The puzzle was pretending someone filled in some of it before. Brilliant! Some of the prior answers were right and some were wrong. (I just tried to ignore them.)
The final theme clue/answer was at 61A: “Announcement that could put an end to the misery caused by the 49-Across.” RETURN TRAY TABLES.
The constructor, Sande Milton, didn’t go on to say what we were all thinking: “to their upright and locked position.”
Today’s our full-day outing to Bruges. It was our one “outing” splurge. The way Viking does it, you get one “shore excursion” as part of the deal every day. It covers the basics. Then there are additional outings you can pay for: like a visit to a cheese factory, a tour of a second area, a wine-tasting thingie. I don’t regret passing any of them up. The morning excursion plus overeating at lunch can knock you out (at my age). So we have been happy to rest in the afternoon and take a leisurely stroll on our own. But people have been raving about Bruges, so we didn’t want to miss it. Also, In Bruges was a beloved movie in our family. Oops, gotta run — bus is leaving in fifteen!
In a new feature of OC, we include a snippet of a poem that we elected NOT to share. To be clear, I am not judging them as good or bad. I don’t have the creds for that. It’s just a question of whether they “reach” me or not. Here’s today’s. (I swear I do not make these up.)
O ladle of ores, scoop ink here
now seeping from the foreigner,
be sighs, O oud, and cloven aches
in the dark of millions of ears.
Here is the equivalent of 1,000 words on Bruges.
I was disappointed in the tour. The guide was friendly enough and knowledgeable, but we weren’t taken inside at key places. We were supposed to consider returning during our long lunch break. But I can’t find my way around my own house, let alone a foreign city, so we weren’t about to start exploring Bruges on our own. But it’s a charming and historical city and nice to walk around.
For lunch, a burger joint that seemed popular with local high school girls (OC’s favorite demographic) lured us in. We met Kevin (the owner?) who patiently explained the system for ordering and we managed to bumble our way through it and enjoyed a lovely and delicious time dining outside in the square on the gorgeous sunny afternoon. We have been very very lucky with the weather.
We got hit having to socialize twice today. Ouch! Relaxing in the lounge with some coffee, a woman plopped down and joined us. Arrrrrgh. We gave her a few minutes before bolting for our room. And our favorite dinner locations way in the back were taken so we had to sit near others. Two women — one from Kentucky and one from LA. Nice enough, but it made the dinner stressful. This part of the trip makes no sense to me. Imagine you are treating yourself to a dinner at a fine restaurant. You settle in and are chatting happily with your partner. Then two complete strangers pull seats up to your table and you have to have your entire dinner with them. WTF!
Here’s a young Dutch woman to wish you goede nacht (good night), slaap zacht (sleep softly).
See you next time! Thanks for popping by.
The Wellington Files 