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Jumble Answers for 11/25/2018

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LUDSOH – SHOULD

SLOYMT – MOSTLY

NESUGI – GENIUS

NDYOOB – NOBODY

IVTNIE – INVITE 

PLUCTS – SCULPT

CARTOON ANSWER:   THE ABACUS SELLER’S BUSINESS HAD PROSPERED WHICH ALLOWED HIM TO – – – 

SHL   OST   GNS   NB   IIE   SCU  =    COUNT HIS BLESSINGS

Good Morning, Everyone!           🔢 COUNT ME IN 🔢

🎶 “When I’m worried, and I can’t sleep, I COUNT my BLESSINGS instead of sheep. And I fall asleep….COUNTING my BLESSINGS …🎶 “Count Your Blessings” – Rosemary Clooney 1954       https://tinyurl.com/ycrt89mg

I think BLESSINGS seems to be the key word here today…This entire puzzle was ONE…Our words are all old favorites, and except for MOSTLY which appeared back on July 13th, 2017, the other five? – All repeats from the first four months of this year. But they were an easy, breezy, group…with not a pause to COUNT amongst them..NOBODY seems to be stumped this morning…

Today we find ourselves in Ancient Rome, at the ABACUS STORE. The owner,  STEVANO, as I’ll call him, seen off to the left, bearded and holding his hand to his chest…has grown his ABACUS BUSINESS from just a JOB, into a very successful enterprise. ONE can see from his COUNTenance that he’s very pleased with his lot in life, and is heard saying that he has a “new house and a new chariot”…He is truly BLESSED! And I don’t think he ever FIGUREd as much….We see his two employees, CiZERO, meeting and greeting, and the other, CASHius talking  “upgrading”..competing. It’s definitely ONE prosperous business…and something Stevano knows he can COUNT on to bring him many, many years of BEADitudes!  So what does it all ADD UP to? ..He now can COUNT HIS BLESSINGS! Great pun, David! I give you a “X”!

Ok, eye candy…Our panel today is very easy on the eyes…The “brick and mortar” work is a soft shade of gray…All of our CHARACTERS are dressed in white and they all look very nice TOGAther. The sole woman, easily outNUMBERED, is wearing her hair in an UPswept style, and there’s some strands of BEADS at her neck. The men, except for CiZERO at the entranceway are all sporting facial hair of some kind. ‘ZERO, as he’s less formally known, does look very young…the little SHAVER! All of the ABACI are colored a peachy brown shade…We see an ITER, (a Roman footpath, a Road) leading up to the store, and the grassy landscape leads to Rome in the background…(You know..all roads.., etc)! 😉 CASHius wears a wristwatch, showing a tiny Sun Dial. Great detail, Jeff. And Stevano wears Golden cuffs on both his wrists, a sign of his wealth. But the candy may be a little hard to put my FINGER on today…and I’ll tell you why…See the big “A” atop the archway? See the little placard on the desk near CASHius reading “ABACUS X”? And notice that he’s using the word “UPGRADED“? See the lanyard around his neck? It displays a tiny BEADED store symbol…So is it just me, or is Jeff, with his amazing sense of whimsy really PUSHING the envelope today? Does anyone else see a connection between STEVANO and the first of his JOBS? Hmm…Jeff? Did I ADD this UP right? So, There you have it, Folks, Done! Have a great day, Everyone…And I apologize for being so much later than usual with the post today…Had to make it to Mass…to COUNT my BLESSINGS! 🔢🍎🙋🏻

Jumble Answers for 11/24/2018

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HUGLC – GULCH

DEYNE – NEEDY

ORTHAT – THROAT

LWWOIL – WILLOW

CARTOON ANSWER:  THEY WANTED IT TO BE THE BEST PIG ROAST EVER, SO THEY – – –

GLH.  NEE   THO   WOW  =   WENT WHOLE-HOG 

Good Morning, Everyone!           🎶 🐷THERE MAY BE TRUFFLES AHEAD...🐷🎶

🎶 Don’t go BACON my heart…I couldn’t if I FRIED…Honey if I get restless…Baby you’re not that kind…🎶“Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” – (With apologies to): Elton John & Kiki Dee    1976    https://tinyurl.com/ybjuaqxr

🐷 This Little Piggy went to the Market, and this Little Piggy got snatched,
And after that he ended up where roofs are often thatched…
He went out being NEEDY, to shop a little bit…
And now he’s got his THROAT pierced with this great big Roasting Spit…
A walk along the Koloa’s GULCH, on his cell did he talk…
And now our Piggy’s ready to become Kalua pork!
Just strolling through the WILLOWs, relaxed as he did go…
He never thought he’d end up underground in an imu!
A lesson should be learnt here…cell phone put you in a fog?
Don’t be like this poor Piggy…because now…he WENT WHOLE HOG! 🐷

Today, it’s the 5-letter words that seem to be the SPIT FIRES. We’re seeing a new word in GULCH, and NEEDY, last seen on May 17th, 2017, was the one that caused the Early Morning Jumblers to take a second look. Seeing the letters “ED“, our minds tend to look at them to end a word, and it slowed down the completion time this morning. Our 6-letter words were easily recognizable, with THROAT going back as far as 2016, and WILLOW last appearing this past July.

Ok, now I’m going to SQUEAL on myself. Quickly glancing at today’s cartoon this morning, I settled on a LUAU, and went straight to writing about the Hawaiian tradition of ROASTING A PIG in an underground pit. I looked right at the support poles with the “Y” opening at top to secure the spit over the fire…and yet I still went aHEAD with the IMU method. So, feeling a little GILTy, and not wanting to make a RASHER decision and have it seem as if I was just BACON up the material I offered in my poem, I’ll include this link describing the WHOLE thing. https://tinyurl.com/y7ty7kgb. Truth be told, when I did go back to re-do it, and started looking at the pictures? …Well let’s just say it wasn’t that GReasy on the eyes, and that’s no HOGWASH. I really aBOARed the images. So…Our cartoon today takes us to a PIG ROAST, which we GRILL agree can be anywhere, since I even came across an article that said people were doing it in Brooklyn, NY!  We see a Chef and a Sous Chef carrying the HAM of the hour, a WHOLE PIG toward the fire pit. The dialogue between the two Event Planners, is telling us that this “FEAST” will “pull out all the stops“..So, in answer to our question…They: WENT WHOLE-HOG!…WILD done, David! You SHOAT us a good one!

Ok, eye candy. The entire panel’s shaded light green, with black landscaping across the back. Our Chefs are completely dressed in white, wearing gray shoes. Our Pig PORCINES, both holding clipBOARds, are clad in burgundy vests over CRISP white shirts, and have black pants and bow ties to complete their outfits. A bright yellow Banner stands at the left background, reading  “BIG PIG ROAST”. Yellow is also used to depict the fire, both in the flaming pit, and atop the two Tiki Torches under the Banner. Three tables are set up, the left one showing a Cornucopia with pineapples, bananas, grapes, and peaches, and the right sitting under a Blue Canopy, and holding a flowing Champagne Fountain, with 7 Flutes beside it. Atop the middle table is what looks to be an Ice Sculpture of a Porpoise. It could be a Watermelon carved sculpture instead, but with droplets seen dripping from the nose and tail of the creature, I’m taking for GRUNTed that it’s ice. Great details Jeff. But three tiny things SWILL do it for me this morning…One is the 5 ear piercings on the Sous Chef, the other is the two extinguisher caps of the Tiki Torches, and the last is the yellow glow illuminated against the gray stones surrounding the fire pit. You can see the fire CRACKLING! So, There you have it, Folks! Done! Have a great day, Everyone! And I wish you a PIECEful day that’s not LARD, or BOARing…but free of any rePORKcussions …🐷🙋🏻

Jumble Answers for 11/23/2018

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UGOBS – BOGUS

YKALE – LEAKY

RUPINT – TURNIP

BTEEAD – DEBATE

CARTOON ANSWER :  THEY EXAMINED THE WALL IN THE NEW GOLD MINE AND DISCOVERED IT WAS  – – –

BOG   LA   RNI   DEE   =   “LODE” – BEARING

Good Morning, Everyone!             ⛏🔦 GET A LOAD OF THIS! 🔦⛏

🎶 Yeah, I’m proud to be a coal MINER’S daughter…I remember well, the well where I drew water…The work we done was hard, At night we’d sleep ’cause we were tired…I never thought of ever leaving Butcher Holler…🎶 “Coal Miner’s Daughter” – Miss Loretta Lynn   1970       https://tinyurl.com/yddufryo

🔦⛏ A Miners job’s not easy, the dankness and the dark…
It takes a certain kind of man…it’s no walk in the park.
There’s always something LEAKY, there’s always things that crawl,
You never know what might “TURNIP“…it’s iffy after all.
Credentials can’t be BOGUS, you need to be have a grip,
A claustrophobic person would be so ill-equipped…
The issue of their safety, one always of DEBATE,
There is M H S A  but still…conditions ‘ain’t that great.
I tip my cap to one and all, their courage quite endearing…
A Mine’s a Mine…but my mind’s not one to be so “LODE”-BEARING ⛏🔦

With all of our words being old favorites, I was surprised to see DEBATE amongst the group, since we only tackled it a week ago today, when it appeared as BEDTEA. It didn’t pose any problem then, and so far this morning, it hasn’t come up for DISCUSSION. Amongst our other words, the oldest entry is LEAKY, which DROPPED in on March 22nd, 2017. No one’s voiced any concern with any of today’s entries…But I wish I could say the same for our answer. Being familiar with the word “LODE” in relation to mining, either from crossword puzzles ORE just general knowledge, and knowing about BEARING and Retaining Walls since I’ve helped to gut apartments and build a She-Shed or two…the solution was an instant read, especially seeing the words “SHORE UP” in the dialogue. But since a few of the Early Morning Jumblers have CAVED on the answer, I’m not SHORE if this one will be that easily solved. So instead of trying to BUILD a case for it, I’m going to add a link here describing https://tinyurl.com/y837u95t LOAD BEARING walls. It could just be a question of MINE over MATTER, but I’m SHORE it’ll explain it all a lot better than I ever could…

Since our cartoon today has us underground, AND IN THE DARK, the panel is showing a yellow-lit background coming from the flashlight held by the Miner at left, and the Head Lamp from the Hard Hat of the Miner at right, who’s holding a pick hammer. Both are clad in Blue work shirts and Brown work shoes. Miner left is wearing Blue pants held by suspenders, while Miner right wears Black pants with an extra open-front shirt. And as they discover the “LODE”-BEARING wall, I’ve discovered this as eye candy…Miner left’s head seems to be covered with a Red cap, instead of a Hard Hat. There is a circular image showing at the front of the crown, but it’s not that clear, so I’m not SHORE if it COVERS it…So, There you have it Folks, Done! Have a great day, Everyone and after all that eating most of us did yesterday…Today seems the perfect day to just kick back, relax and take a LOAD off! 🔦⛏🙋🏻

Jumble Answers for 11/22/2018

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TUBET = BUTTE

UKKSL = SKULK

FRIEVY = VERIFY

DZRAIL = LIZARD

 

CARTOON ANSWER:

THE THANKSGIVING COOKS’ CONVERSATION BECAME SERIOUS WHEN THEY – – –

TTE KUK ERY LAD = TALKED TURKEY

Happy Thanksgiving, Jumble friends! Today’s puzzle started out with two new clue words in BUTTE and SKULK. The other two were recycled favorites, but their anagrams were new. BUTTE was the only word that wasn’t instantly visible which made it my pick for the most difficult anagram of the day. I’ve heard of the city of Butte in Montana but wasn’t sure if it had another meaning until I looked it up in the dictionary. It was defined as an isolated hill or mountain with steep or precipitous sides usually having a smaller summit area than a mesa. Looking back on all of the words, LIZARD was the oldest in the group and was last scrambled as DRAIZL on 9/1/14.

Since today is Thanksgiving, I was very happy to see that Jeff gave us a cartoon that went along with the holiday. At first glance, I immediately recognized that this was the same setting as last years panel. There were four Jumble characters in the foreground with two shadowed characters on a couch in the background. The characters were drawn differently than our normal cast which leads me to believe that these are some of Jeff’s friends. The man in the rear left of the panel holding a glass of wine appears to be magician Mac King. Mac’s wife, Jennifer Sils, is probably the woman in the “kiss the cook” apron.

The cartoon had some great detail work with the plump turkey being the star of the show. The bird was in a roasting pan and was surrounded by carrots, onions and some herbs. There was a bowl of stuffing on the counter and a dog getting a very close look! My favorite detail was split between the Lions and Bears football game on the tv in the background and the man holding a baster which I overlooked at first.

The letter layout for the final solution consisted of 12-letters. I knew the answer upon reading the cartoon sentence making this one an instant solve. I wish all of you a very happy Thanksgiving and I’ll see you tomorrow. Enjoy the day!!! 🦃

Jumble Answers for 11/21/2018

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KAHTN = THANK

RYROW = WORRY

TACLET = CATTLE

ESFEUD = DEFUSE

 

CARTOON ANSWER:

TWITTER HAS A CHARACTER LIMIT SO THAT PEOPLE’S POSTS ARE – – –

THN WOR ATTE DSE = SHORT AND “TWEET”

Happy Wednesday, everyone! WORRY is a new clue word making its debut into gameplay this morning with the other three being familiar old friends. CATTLE ended up being the word that challenged me the most earning it the title of most difficult anagram of the day. Noticing that it had two T’s, I decided to couple them together in a technique that I refer to as the “double letter trick” and the answer came quickly thereafter. It was also the oldest clue word in the quartet with its last appearance on 3/9/16 and scrambled as TALCET.

Our cartoon brings us to a coffee shop where we happen upon two woman seated at a table. It looks like they’ve just received their hot beverages as evidenced by the steam escaping through the small sipping hole at the top of their cups. They seem to be very interested in their phones and the “Twitter” clue in the cartoon sentence informs us that they’re checking their social media feeds. The woman on the left just read a Tweet that her friend made about a party and she wants to know why she didn’t post more. The woman on the right states that the party was fine and that she felt that she had shared enough.

For those of you that are unfamiliar with Twitter, it is a social networking service where users post and interact with messages known as “tweets”. These tweets were originally restricted to 140 characters, but on November 7, 2017, the limit was doubled. I’ve been a fan of Twitter for a very long time and some people can get very creative with the limited amount of characters available to compose their tweets. If you’re interested in Twitter, you can join and follow @PlayJumble where the creators regularly post anagrams and scrambled sentences for users to decipher!

The details were aplenty in today’s panel with the steaming drinks already mentioned. Looking closely at the cups, they appear to be of two different sizes with the one on the left being slightly smaller than one on the right. They also both have a logo of a star on them which brought Starbucks to mind. My favorite detail of the piece had to be the people in the background. They’re waiting to place their orders at the counter and they’re talking and texting to pass the time.

Since I’m well schooled in the Twitter social media department, the final solution was an instant solve after reading the dialogue and sentence. If you had trouble figuring it out, the clue of “character limit” should have brought SHORT to mind. This was a very well crafted puzzle and the most difficult one that we’ve seen so far this week. Have a wonderful Wednesday, and I’ll see you tomorrow!

Jumble Answers for 11/20/2018

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ALDAS = SALAD

GOYSG = SOGGY

THOSEO = SOOTHE

RUWOBR = BURROW

 

CARTOON ANSWER:

THE SOD COMPANY’S APPROACH TO GETTING NEW BUSINESS WAS – – –

SASOGSTRRO = GRASS-ROOTS

Happy Tuesday, Jumble friends! This mornings clue words were all recycled favorites. We’ve definitely seen GOYSG and THOSEO before, but the other two anagrams appear to be new. SOOTHE took me a few extra seconds to decipher making it my pick for the most difficult anagram of the day. The solutions to the first three words all started with “S” and they were in alphabetical order.

The snow has started falling here so seeing a late spring or early summer cartoon was just the ray of sunshine that I needed. The panel features three Jumble characters with two of them having a conversation. The man on the left is standing next to a cart with three rolls of sod on it. The cart has no handle so I can only assume that he pushed it up the walkway. The cartoon sentence identifies him as an employee of a sod company and he’s going door to door in an attempt to make some green from his green. He informs his potential customer that he’s done work in the neighborhood and that he should ask around to see how pleased his neighbors are. The other gentleman informs him that he already has and he was impressed by his work.

I thought Jeff did a superb job on the details within the panel. The sod salesman was dressed in cargo shorts, a t-shirt, and an oversized safari hat with a chin cord. On the front of his hat is a circular logo featuring a few blades of grass. He’s also wearing a pair of work boots but I didn’t see any socks. The customer has shorts and a t-shirt on as well and his footwear is a pair of crocs. Thankfully he’s not wearing socks with them because that’s a fashion no no! We only get a small glimpse of the neighbor next door but the big smile on her face let’s us know that she’s hoping he springs for the sod. Her lawn is lush and green and her neighbors lawn looks old and worn. My favorite detail of the piece was the dead looking dandelions hidden within the tufts of grass!

The letter layout for the final solution consisted of 10-letters. The “G” within the anagram brought GRASS instantly to mind leaving ROOTS to be found shortly thereafter. Overall it was another easy puzzle, but just a bit more challenging than yesterday’s gimme. Have a terrific Tuesday, and I’ll see you tomorrow!

Jumble Answers for 11/19/2018

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NYIVL = VINYL

GITEN = TINGE

CAPYEH = PEACHY

ZLIFEZ = FIZZLE

 

CARTOON ANSWER:

THE CONCEITED ACTRESS HAD A SPECIAL DRESSING ROOM AND WAS SHOWING OFF HER – – –

VITNAI = VANITY

Happy Monday, everyone! David and Jeff offered up a simple puzzle to start off our week of Jumble duties. I’m sure it was a much needed respite for those players who had a difficult time with the envelope pushing surprise answers that we saw during the final days of Guest Jumbler Week.

All of today’s clue words were familiar favorites with GITEN being the only repeat anagram. They were all instantly visible upon first glance so I’ll leave a poll down below where you you can pick the stumper of the day. The oldest word in the pack was VINYL and it was last used on 6/4/16 and scrambled as YILVN. After solving all of the words, they were in reverse alphabetical order.

With Guest Jumbler Week #6 in the books, it’s time to welcome back our familiar cast of characters that we know and love. In today’s panel we see two women having a conversation in a dressing room. The woman on the left has a surprised look on her face as she observes the luxurious surroundings of her friend. The woman on the right is described by the cartoon sentence as a “conceited actress” which explains the over abundance of mirrors.

My eyes were instantly drawn to the large tri-fold mirror sitting upon a small table. Upon it is a hand mirror as well as another picture frame mirror. I was surprised that the table didn’t have any drawers for hair brushes or accessories. Since we’re only getting a small glimpse of the room, I’m sure there are other areas where those items are kept. There is a portrait of the actress in an ornate frame hanging on the wall which was a bit creepy to see. My favorite detail within the cartoon was the bust of her face on a pedestal. It has the same pointy nose as the actress as well as a stiff botox injected upper lip!

The layout for the final solution was a 6-letter anagram. VANITY jumped out at me instantly making this one an quick solve. I’m sure we’ll have some challenging puzzles later this week and maybe even a Thanksgiving themed cartoon on Thursday. Have a marvelous Monday, and I’ll see you tomorrow!

Jumble Answers for 11/18/2018

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TOONMI – MOTION

CBSTIE – BISECT

AURROP – UPROAR

FENDIE – DEFINE

OPLYFP – FLOPPY

TLEKTE – KETTLE

CARTOON ANSWER:   NO LONGER ACCEPTING CASH WAS A GOOD IDEA, AND THE STORE OWNER – – – 

OIO   CT   RR   DIE.  FO  KTT  =    TOOK CREDIT FOR IT 

Good Morning, Everyone!      💳 GIVING CREDIT…WHERE CREDIT’S DUE?…💳

🎶 Well, I guess this story must begin that fateful day a way back when,  I decided I should have a CREDIT CARD...So I filled out this application, listed all my recommendations…Sent it off in the mail…And in a month or so the mailman brought me my brand new CHARGE-ALL CARD...Better than checks, safer than money, and not near as dirty!…🎶 “The Credit Card Song” – Dick Feller   1974    https://tinyurl.com/ycjzpfnb

💳 I’ve read about this recently, the MOTION towards no cash,
And while not causing UPROAR, there’s certainly backlash.
A move to further BISECT the haves from the have nots?
I can’t DEFINE the reasoning to satisfy the lots…
But here to buy a FLOPPY shirt with graphics to display,
We see a whole new KETTLE of fish as people go to pay.
But everyone seems quite happy…I can’t help but admit…
And the owner’s even happier ’cause he TOOK CREDIT FOR IT! 💳

I wasn’t sure I’d find all of today’s words in our archives, but surprisingly, it PAID OFF to look. Two of them go back a while…BISECT, went back to 2014, but then appeared again on the 11th of October, in 2016. And FLOPPY was last seen on July 15th, 2016. The other four, 2017 and 18 entries. None of the Early Morning Jumblers were stumped this morning…but there was a slight tic at BISECT, and UPROAR, the latter being one of these compound words that tend to COST some of us a moment or two longer to decipher. Ok..Let’s not INVEST any more time here…Our cartoon awaits..

Before we begin, I’d like to offer my “Welcome Back” to our resident illustrator, Jeff Knurek. As much fun as Guest Jumbler Week can be, there’s no one can hold a stylus to Jeff. I’ve missed you, and I’m happy to have one of your cartoons DRAWING my attention this morning…

That being said, we find ourselves today at the SHIRT SHACK, a T-SHIRT Emporium. Two young women and a young man serve as our customers. The man and woman at the background left, owners as we can ADD UP by the dialogue, are happily discussing how the man’s decision to go CASH LESS proved to be nothing less than a savvy business move. He’s using the word “kids” to describe his clientele, so I suppose we can assume that the Shirt Shack appeals mostly to the YOUNG AT PART…because PARTING with their money they are! And since he’s also saying..”KNEW” and “THOUGHT” it’s pretty CLEAR that he’s PROFITING from his business acumen…He definitely TOOK CREDIT FOR IT! Well, wrap up those SHIRTS, Dave, you’ve made a SALE!

Ok, eye candy… Before I get into it, I first must also give some CREDIT where it’s due. The color’s today are some of the best we’ve seen in a long time. Our bearded owner is decked out in two great shades of blue. Our female shopper at left, a rarely-seen redhead, wearing dark purple, is holding a shirt of powder blue, while her friend, wearing light green, holds a pretty pink one. The CASHier..or shall we call her the CASH “where”?  is wearing a stunning shade of violet, as our male shopper dons the always-stylish basic black, over khaki pants. The display counter is a dark peach-toned wood, and our checkout counter is gray...A WEALTH of color today...and a wonderful BALANCE! It all looks great! As for the candied details? Let’s do the graphics on the shirts. We have the Eiffel Tower in white, a Bird in flight amongst the clouds in black, an angry Unicorn in pink, and an Owl adorning our PAYING customer. But ZEROing in? We see that he’s being CHARGED $25, and he’s having “No problem” tapping his..Gold colored .JUMBLE CREDIT CARD with it’s CHIP to pay! Would you look at that! A CREDIT CARD with Jeff’s signature “J”! That Jeff…What a CARD! So, There you have it Folks, DUN!!! Have a great day, Everyone! And I’ll leave you with one of my favorite CREDIT CARD jokes…”A man asked a Magic Fairy to make him desirable to all women…So she turned him into a CREDIT CARD”...And yes, in the INTEREST of full disclosure.. I did SWIPE the joke! 💳🙋🏻

 

 

 

Jumble Answers for 11/17/2018

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DRYNE – NERDY

CRIBK – BRICK

FEIDER – DEFIER

ZHDAAR – HAZARD

CARTOON ANSWER:   ONE OF THE DRAWBACKS OF A POLAR BEAR’S DIET – –

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Jumble Answers for 11/16/2018

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SIPTY – TIPSY

RWNDA – DRAWN

MRYAWL – WARMLY

BEDTEA – DEBATE

CARTOON ANSWER:  AFTER TÌA CARMEN FORGOT TO STUFF HER BAKED TREATS, BALDO CALLED THEM – – –

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Jumble Answers for 11/15/2018

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TOLTO = LOTTO

ROPEN = PRONE

IKOVNE = INVOKE

HAYTPC = PATCHY

 

CARTOON ANSWER:

WHEN YOUNG RUBE GOLDBERG WANTED TO CATCH A MOUSE, HE BUILT A – – –

OTTRNINOPAC = CON – “TRAP” – TION

Happy Thursday, everyone! Today’s puzzle featured two brand new clue words to baffle our brains. Both LOTTO and PATCHY made their debut into gameplay this morning but they were quickly deciphered along with the rest. Our other two words were both used in 2018 with INVOKE being the oldest of the group. We last saw it jumbled as OVENKI on 3/29 which was slightly more challenging than what we saw today. Since all of them were instantly visible to me, I’ll leave a poll down below where you can vote for the most difficult anagram of the day.

It’s hard to believe that we’re already at day #4 of Guest Jumbler Week. Yesterday’s puzzle ended up being the most searched for answer of all time for this blog so don’t feel bad if you weren’t able to figure it out. There was a LATTE discussion in the forums in which players went back and forth about the grammatical intricacies of the sentence, but overall it was a well brewed pun that suited the cartoon perfectly.

Today’s panel is courtesy of Ed Steckley who is an award winning illustrator from Queens, New York. The first thing that I noticed about the cartoon was the very fine detail work of the piece. Unfortunately my newspaper was a bit skimpy on the ink this morning so I had to look at the online version to get the full effect. The lines of the cartoon have a soft feel to them and it looks as though it might have been been drawn by hand without the aid of a digital device.

The cartoon sentence informs us that little Rube Goldberg wanted to catch a mouse so he constructed a thingamajig to get the job done. In his books, Mr. Steckley always has Rube devising inventions with interactive sequences which help him accomplish mundane tasks. It definitely was a treat starting at point A and following the the path to point K where he traps the silly looking mouse. I could go into great detail about every mechanism, but instead I’ll share with you my favorite part of the cartoon. If you look under the saw-horse that Rube is standing on, you can see the hole in the wall where the mouse has taken up residence. An absolutely superb drawing!

The final solve consisted of an 11-letter anagram that was rather cryptic. The painstaking detail of the machine and wording of the cartoon sentence made CONTRAPTION jump out at me after staring at the letters while enjoying a few sips of tea. If you enjoyed Ed’s cartoon, be sure to stop by his website and pick up a signed copy of his latest book which features more of Rube’s unconventional CONTRAPTIONS! Have a terrific Thursday, and I’ll see you tomorrow! 🐭

Jumble Answers for 11/14/2018

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LOBTA = BLOAT

OTAPI = PATIO

LESPYE = SLEEPY

KATMER = MARKET

 

CARTOON ANSWER:

DRINKING COFFEE AFTER THREE O’CLOCK CAUSED SUSAN A – – –

BLTPAOSLEEMRT = “LATTE” PROBLEMS

Happy Wednesday, Jumble geniuses! Today’s puzzle started off with a brand new clue word in BLOAT. It also ended up being the only word that wasn’t instantly visible so it’ll be my pick for the most difficult anagram of the day. The remaining three words were old friends, but their anagrams were new. MARKET ended up being the oldest one in the group and was last used on 11/9/17 and jumbled as KTREMA.

It’s Day #3 of Guest Jumbler Week and we’ve been treated to some really great cartoons so far. Today’s guest is Sandra Bell-Lundy and she brings us a a panel from her strip, “Between Friends“. Bell-Lundy, a Canadian native, launched her comic in May 1990 and it now appears in more than 175 newspapers. The comic focuses on three middle-aged professional women and the problems that they face in their lives.

In today’s panel we see a woman that just can’t fall asleep. It’s a situation that I’m all too aware of and it’s an absolutely horrible feeling. The cartoon sentence identifies the character as Susan and her sleepless night began after having a cup of coffee after 3pm. It looks like Susan might suffer from a caffeine intolerance and she should avoid those late afternoon pick me ups. But the damage is done and we see her lying in bed with her eyes open a mile wide and her pupils constricted to pinpoints.

The final solve consisted of a 13-letter anagram that was extremely cryptic and kept the solution well hidden. I noticed “SLEE” in the layout so I figured SLEEP would be in the answer. With the remaining letters resembling mush, I scrapped SLEEP and started again. Reading the sentence a couple of more times brought PROBLEM to mind and all of the letters were there. The leftovers looked like SEATTLE until I focused a bit and found LATTE. Placing the remaining “S” on PROBLEM finished this one off making for one clever answer! Have a wonderful Wednesday, and I’ll see you tomorrow! 😴

Jumble Answers for 11/13/2018

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NUEGL = LUNGE

NWEHI = WHINE

GUCTAH = CAUGHT

TAIGRU = GUITAR

 

CARTOON ANSWER:

WHEN THE ROBOT EXPERIENCED ABDOMINAL SURGERY, IT WAS – – –

NGEWHNCUTGIR = GUT-WRENCHING

Happy Tuesday, Jumble fans! The clue word choices for today’s puzzle were an interesting mix but not overly challenging. All of the anagrams were new but the words they produced were recycled favorites. GUITAR eneded up taking the most time to solve which made it my pick for the most difficult anagram of the day. We saw it exactly one month ago where it was jumbled as IGRUTA, but it still tripped me up. CAUGHT is the oldest word in the quartet and made its last appearance in gameplay on 1/20/17 where it was scrambled as GUCATH.

It’s day #2 of Guest Jumbler Week and today’s panel is courtesy of Dave Whamond. Mr. Whamond is the creative genius behind the “Reality Check” comic strip and was born in Edmonton, Alberta but grew up in the small northern Canadian town of Whitecourt. His strips provide a wacky vision of the world that exposes the hidden hilarity in ordinary circumstances which is exactly what we see today.

The setting for today’s piece is an operating room where we encounter three characters. The cartoon sentence informs us that the robot is undergoing abdominal surgery and we see a female and male duo performing the necessary repairs. Under the bright lights of the operating table we see that they’ve swapped their scalpels for wrenches in an attempt to remedy the situation, but what caught my eye was the fact that the robot was wide awake and watching the surgery take place!

There were a few other details that Mr. Whamond added to make his drawing visually appealing. We see a small bolt flying out of the robots “chest” cavity which was probably the cause of his discomfort. The head mirror on the male surgeon added a touch of realism to the piece, but what I was most impressed with was the dog robot that was looking into the operating room from behind the circular window in the rear of the panel. Was this robot the significant other of the patient bot? Even though robots don’t have feelings (yet), it was a well placed detail that gave the panel some emotion during a tense situation.

The final solve was an anagram consisting of 12-letters and created two words that were separated by a hyphen. Looking at the layout, I noticed the word CUT spelled out perfectly but it was too obvious. I saw the ING ending next so I decided to cross it out in an attempt to reduce the amount of letters I was working with. Still thinking about CUT, I saw the G next to it which brought GUT to mind. The rest of the answer flowed naturally for the finish after remembering the visual clue in the cartoon. Today’s cartoon was a hoot and the answer was definitely not a gimme. Have a terrific Tuesday, and I’ll see you tomorrow!

Jumble Answers for 11/12/2018

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RVPIE = VIPER

CABIS = BASIC

CEDDEA = DECADE

RUYTEK = TURKEY

 

CARTOON ANSWER:

YET AGAIN, KEESTERMAN’S MAILBOX GETS – – –

EBSDTU = “BUS” – TED

Happy Monday, Jumble friends! Regular players of the game will immediately recognize that today is the start of Guest Jumbler Week. This annual tradition is in its 6th year and features talented and popular cartoonists that draw their own cartoons and, in some cases, create puns for the puzzle. It’s always a unique spin on the game that introduces us to new characters and settings that broaden our Jumble horizons!

All of today’s clue words were old favorites with CEDDEA being the only anagram that we’ve definitely seen before. Even though it wasn’t new, it still took me the longest to decipher making it my pick for the most difficult anagram of the day. On an interesting note, BASIC was last used on 10/26/16 and VIPER was used the next day 10/27/17. TURKEY ended up being the oldest clue word of the group and was last used in gameplay on 5/6/17.

Today’s cartoon featured the comic strip “Crankshaft” which is written by Tom Batiuk and drawn by Dan Davis. The daily strip follows elderly bus driver, Ed Crankshaft, and the adventures he encounters while dealing with life’s curveballs.

In today’s panel we see that Crankshaft has, once again, driven his bus into his neighbors mailbox. This is a recurring gag in the strip and you can’t help but feel sorry for George Keesterman every time it happens! Keesterman has his right hand on his forehead and an obvious look of frustration on his face as his mailbox and all its contents lay strewn on the ground. Crankshaft can be seen looking out of the corners of his eyes at his neighbor with an apologetic “oopsie” kind of face.

The final solve was in typical Monday fashion with a short six-letter anagram to work through. After looking at the letters, BUS was quickly found leaving TED for the finish. It was a very easy start to Guest Jumbler Week and I look forward to seeing all of the talented artists that Jeff and David have lined up for us. Have a marvelous Monday, and I’ll see you tomorrow!

Jumble Answers for 11/11/2018

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LOLFAR – FLORAL

LIPEMP – PIMPLE

NIHYNW – WHINNY

LDUEDM – MUDDLE

REFTER – FERRET

SRAGSY – GRASSY

CARTOON ANSWER:  THE OIL DRILLER WHO DIDN’T HAVE A SINGLE EMPLOYEE – –

FOL   IML  WHI  DDL  FEE   RS  =  DID WELL FOR HIMSELF 

Good Morning, Everyone!                ⛽️  A JOB WELL DONE! ⛽️

🎶 You sacrificed to serve our nation, you make us proud in many ways. Because of you, we have our freedom….We honor you on VETERANS DAY...🎶 “On Veterans Day” – Words and Music by Karl Hitzemannm   2014   https://tinyurl.com/y8oe5qkq

🇺🇸 Today, Veterans Day…A day where we MUDDLE through the grounds of cemeteries, placing FLORAL pieces at the GRASSY headstones of our fallen heroes…A day to not make WHINNY sounds about the state of affairs of our nation, but to strive to FERRET out the issues that divide us, the PIMPLEs that besmirch our good name…And look to resolve them instead of worsening them…A day when we honor our Veterans, past and present, and hope that new days will dawn for America…days where every man can say that he DID WELL FOR HIMSELF...🇺🇸

To all our Veterans, to all our heroes, to you the heart and soul of all that is America, I thank you for your service, I pray for your strength, and I tip my hat to you in respect. Happy Veterans Day. God Bless America. Today and every day….🇺🇸

Today’s words weren’t OIL that easy…PIMPLE impelled a few of the Early Morning Jumblers to scratch their heads, while FERRET scurried around for a while before it came into view…The other 4 words…Iffy, but doable…

Our cartoon today has us back out on the OIL FIELDS, which we’ve visited many times before.  You may recall that just one month ago exactly, on October 11th, we visited with a couple who were not SITTING WELL because an OIL RIG had been erected right beyond their front porch…WELL at least today we’re nowhere near a Homestead…Instead we’re seeing a man who truly brings it on HOME! He’s a One–Man RIGGING Crew! And he’s telling us so, by saying..”I’m SUCCESSFUL because I do it all”! He DOES it all! And HE’s doing it WELL…Wink..Wink…He..DID WELL FOR HIMSELF! Good one, David! You definitely brought this one BARRELin’ home!

Ok, eye candy…You all know the DRILL..We look for the something that really WRENCHes our eye…We see an OIL BARON who stands out, but the rest is pretty BARREN…A green FIELD, two RIGS in the background. The Man of the Hour…all 24 of them, standing on a yellow ladder with a WRENCH in his hand, working on the MAIN gray RIG. On the ground beside him we see an opened red tool box…and right behind the RIG, we have the front end of an orange car. Not much to go on, a little BORING…But I did find three tiny BITS of candy…Our man is wearing a GREEN HAT, and a single bead of sweat is visible upon his face…But the real MONEY shot? The clasp on the OIL Barons’ TIE? There’s a tiny little OIL RIG on it! Jeff, that’s a HOLE lot of talent! So, There you have it Folks, Done! Have a great day, Everyone. And remember..OIL’s WELL THAT ENDS WELL, ⛽️🙋🏻