Here are some lines of a poem that did not make it past the Owl Chatter guard puppies:
I have built a house in the middle of the Ocean
Its windows are the rivers flowing from my eyes
Octopi are crawling all over where the walls are.
Creeps me out a little. Sounds like my dorm room at Penn.
Not to panic (much), but is it starting to seem a little obvious to you that Trump will not let the midterm elections proceed in a free and fair manner? He has already inured us to federal troops in blue state streets. At a minimum he will tie up the results to prevent Dems from taking their seats. Will anyone in the military leadership stand up on principle? Will the courts hold? Surely cannot count on the Supremes. As the viola teachers say: Stay tuned.
In a related matter, Owl Chatter headquarters were raided by ICE agents this morning. Fortunately, before they were able to make any arrests they melted. But as one of them was turning into a puddle he said “We’ll be back in the Winter!” Yikes. “F*ck you, puddle!” I shouted. “Bring it on!”
Did you have one of those inflatable punching bags when you were a kid? I had one that was a big clown and you punched it over and it bounced back up so you could punch it again. I’m going to get one made up with the image of Kilmar Abrego Garcia on it. Jeezus — was there ever a poor sucker more reviled by the government? What did he do — f*ck Stephen Miller’s wife or something? He finally gets a couple of days with his family freed by a judge after months of government harassment (including wrongful imprisonment in El Salvador with scary bald people in underwear), and they just have to grab him again. Have to cart him off. Hang him already — let’s get it over with.
Remember the horrific mass killing of 49 people at the gay nightclub Pulse in Orlando in 2016? A beautiful portion of the memorial to the victims was a crosswalk painted in Pride colors, approved by the state’s DOT at the time.
Well, under a coward’s cover of darkness (after 11 pm), a road crew of the state of Florida painted it over with black paint. In case anyone wondered what the message was (out of disbelief that the government could be so callous and homophobic), U.S. Transportation Sec’y Sean Duffy wrote: “Taxpayers expect their dollars to fund safe streets, not rainbow crosswalks.” And Florida’s Gov. DeSantis said he would not allow state roads “to be commandeered for political purposes.”
Brandon Wolf, a survivor of the shooting, stated “A memorial to my dead brothers isn’t political.” Within a day, angry citizens restored the Pride colors via sidewalk chalk, and within two days, the colors were restored in paint. According to the NYT, it’s unclear if the new rainbow paint pattern will stick around. But people left messages in chalk between the lines. “Not going anywhere,” one read.
God bless America.
I thought the puzzle today was fantastic and I only appreciated it after I finished and the grid lit up, see below. First of all, for a puzzle to be accepted by the NYT, it must be symmetrical. A rare exception will apply if the theme for some reason requires asymmetry. Today’s theme was “asymmetry” in two senses: first, the grid was not symmetrical vis-a-vis the black squares. BUT there was a giant symmetrical letter A comprised of all of the As in the grid! Get it? A-Symmetry. Incredible.
So the constructor, Kevin Curry, had to see to it that every A was in its proper place to form the big one, and that there were no other As anywhere else. Wordplay at its highest level, IMO.
Did he also sneak in a subtle nod to a namesake? At 57D the clue was “Shot that made its N.B.A. debut in 1979, slangily,” and the answer was TREY. Of course that’s the signature shot of Steph Curry.
At 24D the clue was “Where the sidewalk ends.” The answer was CURB. Pretty straightforward, no? But Rex’s sub today, Clare, recognized it as a Shel Silverstein poem: WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS.
There is
a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.
Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with
a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.
Yes we’ll walk with
a walk that is measured and slow,
And we’ll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.
At 60A the clue was “Fruit traditionally eaten with the fish it’s named for.” It’s SALMONBERRY. Really? Never heard of it. It’s prevalent in the Northwest. It gets its name from its salmon-like color — it has nothing else to do with the fish. Commenter Theo adds:
Grew up in the PNW. We call them salmonberries for the color, like blueberries or blackberries. They’re good straight off the bush when you’re hiking. I don’t know anyone who collects them to cook with — they’re not that good. I guess you could make a savory sauce out of them? But pale orange on pale orange will not be beautiful. I do pair berries with my salmon, but I use a heartier berry with more sweetness and tannins to pair with the richness of the fish: I recommend a sauce of blueberries, red wine, and cinnamon. If you gave me a basket of salmonberries, I’d want them with a smoked whitefish, not a salmon. If you have some pretty purple pansies, you could add some petals for color. Or I’d just enjoy the berries on top of a mixed green salad, with ricotta salata and bread and butter if you insist on making it into a main dish.
Here’s what I posted: If Halle Berry married Salmon Rushdie, she’d be Halle Rushdie. But in another universe . . .
Unless you live under a rock like I do, you don’t need Owl Chatter for the news that Taylor and Travis are engaged.
Phil caught that nice shot of them for us after she said “Alright, I guess so.” Phil also claims he had a hand in her decision to go with the striped dress by Ralph Lauren for the occasion. It’s selling for $319. But if you mention Owl Chatter when you place your order, you can get it for $350.
We’ll be up at the Stadium tomorrow for the Gnats-Yanks game. Will be rooting against Max Fried. Probably a sin.
Good night — see you tomorrow!
The Wellington Files 