Comments on: Independent 8059/Morph

By: Dormouse

Dormouse — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 21:55:11 +0000

This weekend must have been more tiring than I thought. Tried to start this on the train home this morning and couldn’t get anything for a long while. Had another go when I got home and finally got started. Still a couple of clues I just couldn’t get at the end, including 24ac, which I just couldn’t see. Think I need more sleep.

By: Morph

Morph — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 19:00:09 +0000

Thanks for the blog, Pierre, and all your comments. I admit I say Queue-min too, but I have heard it the other way, and it’s in Chambers, so what the hell.
Maybe idiot was a bit too clever for its own good. Seeemed a good idea at the time.
I was afraid that summer would get going in earnest and make all my references to rain, written in July, look hopelessly dated. Sorry, I probably jinxed the weather.
Morph.

By: Pierre

Pierre — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 16:10:32 +0000

I’ve just posted a substitute blog for Raich’s Sunday puzzle.

By: Thomas99

Thomas99 — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 15:05:21 +0000

I have heard “cummin” (sounding like “come in”), though I say “cue-min”, unless I’m trying to be funny. According to an online pronunciation dictionary (you actually hear a man say it when you pass the mouse over the word), “come-in” is American. It was a very English lady I remember saying “come-in”, though, trying to teach me to cook.

By: allan_c

allan_c — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 14:46:04 +0000

Collins gives the two spellings, ‘cumin’ and ‘cummin’, but only the one pronunciation, with the short ‘u’. Chambers gives both pronunciations. Personally I pronounce it with the long ‘u’.

And I too was wondering about the absence of a blog for IoS 1172.

By: MikeC

MikeC — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 14:18:42 +0000

Thanks Thomas99 and Pierre (again!). What an I—- I am to have missed the adjectival sense

CUMIN I have heard most commonly as cooh-min but Chambers gives come-in as an option, and there is an alternative spelling with MM, which would almost have to be a short “U”. Perhaps we should all pronounce it “djeera”, avoiding the problem altogether?

By: Pierre

Pierre — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 13:59:23 +0000

Thanks for explaining IDIOT. I’ve corrected the clue to DUTCH ELM DISEASE, Thomas – my copy typing’s not what it used to be.

How do other people pronounce CUMIN? A quick survey among folk I’ve met today suggests that CUE-MIN is the most common way, but the other pronunciation must be acceptable, otherwise the clue wouldn’t work.

By: Wanderer

Wanderer — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 13:09:35 +0000

Loved the theme, and a big thumbs up for DUTCH ELM DISEASE. Also ‘Are you HR?’ made me smile. Failed to parse IDIOT so thanks to all for explaining it. URINAL took me forever to spot. Very enjoyable, many thanks to Morph and Pierre.

Also, forgive me for going off-topic, but I haven’t been able to find a blog for Raich’s IoS puzzle number 1172, published online yesterday. Just wanted to say (somewhere) that I found it a particularly enjoyable solve, so thanks Raich if by chance you should see this.

By: allan_c

allan_c — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 12:24:58 +0000

Could 24a be related to the ‘weather’ theme? When it’s raining in 17d’s – a real 19d – it can be said to be p***ing down.

By: rowland

rowland — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 12:20:23 +0000

An extremely tortuous clue, if I may say, in an otherwise very entertaining puzzle.

Indy gets it right with entertainment versus difficulty most of the time, and though we see some setters infrequently, this chap’s stuff stuff is very nice indeed. I’ll go with the weather clues for CODs.

Very many thanks to compiler and blogger!

Rowly.