Friday, April 2, 2010

Red Letter Day

Take note, that it was on Good Friday 2010, that I completed a Times cryptic crossword.

OK, it was yesterday's one. And there were a number of words which I had to check in a dictionary whether or not they even existed, let alone bore any relevance to the clue.

I now know that "ortulan" is some kind of bunting; an "indiaman" is a ship; "adipose" is fatty; and that a "ram" is a beak of some sort on a boat.

Respectively, the clues were:
  • Bunting taken from door to landing
  • Vessel a serving girl carried back into pub
  • Fatty is a dope, unfortunately
  • Beak given the staff required to press charges.
The whole answer to that last one is "ramrod". I tricked myself by having "reason" and then "ration" in there for quite some time.
  • Infuriating, like Gray's crowd concealling directions
This took me quite some time and wikipedia to rationalise, the answer is "maddening", I long suspected it was, but who knew that Thomas Hardy was quoting Thomas Gray? Not me.

Oh, and I still have no idea why
  • Expand home, adding fifth apartment
is "inflate", neither do I care, it just is.

Anyway, my work here is done.

3 comments:

  1. wow.. I can't even do the simple crosswords - I am not a puzzle fan: no patience, small brain. Well done you!

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  2. Oh, it's because "home" is "in", "fifth" is "e" (the fifth letter of the alphabet), and "flat" is "apartment" - for many years now I have tried to impress you... - MY

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  3. Ahaha! The "e" got me totally, but I did have my suspicions about the "flat".

    Brilliant MY.

    And Michelle, I'm convinced it's just a matter of practise (I never know whether practise should have a c or an s). I suck ar ubiks cubes & I've never attempted a sudoku.

    Neither am I particulary good at scrabble. Although I'll be looking to use ortolan at the earliest opportunity.

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