Mozart in Lviv

“We understood why musicians must not keep silent”: Natalia Dub, an audience member for a performance of the Mozart Requiem in Lviv, Ukraine.

Lambini & Sons

Lambini & Sons (The Far Side ). As the son of a tile man, I had a clipped-from-the-newspaper copy on my office door for years.

Related reading
All OCA tile posts (Pinboard)

Today’s Saturday Stumper

Today’s Newsday  Saturday Stumper is by Stan Newman, composing as “S.N.,” as in “iSN’t easy.” Today’s puzzle is one of the most difficult Stumpers I’ve seen. I started last night with 11-A, four letters, “Does one’s part” and 14-D, nine letters, “‘Home on the Range,’ e.g.” Half an hour later, I gave up with the puzzle half complete. When I started again this morning, I suddenly saw the right answer for 24-D, eight letters, “On which numbers are written.” And that gave me four other answers, and fifteen minutes later, I was done.

Some clue-and-answer pairs of note:

1-D, five letters, “The way of the world.” Even with the last three letters, it’s hard to see.

3-D, five letters, “Easy going.” You need to notice that it’s two words.

9-D, nine letters, “Advances in elevation.” A tough one.

12-D, nine letters, “Gorbachev predecessor.” Yes, that name is hard to pull up. (Unlike Gorbachev’s.)

13-D, “It’s in the bag.” Nifty.

20-A, six letters, “Repository of Lost Legends site.” I thought it had something to do with gamers.

30-A, eight letters, “Carry-ons regulated by the FAA.” Deceptive? Not deceptive? Deceptive.

32-D, nine letters, “One use for a horsehair.” I knew it, I knew it.

34-D, nine letters, “Of hiking, biking, etc.” I wanted OUTDOORSY.

42-A, seven letters, “It may suit you.” A fine clue for an out-of-the-way word.

47-D, six letters, “Denounce.” The answer came to me after I closed my MacBook last night.

53-A, five letters, “Something to rest on or reel in.” Funny to think of these two possibilities together.

56-D, five letters, “It’s slashed for all.” I understand the intent, but I don’t think the answer fits “all.”

58-A, six letters, “Top with a joke, say.” OUTWIT? No.

59-D, four letters, “Doctor’s order.” I can think of at least four plausible wrong answers.

67-A, ten letters, “Suitable for Champion magazine?” Perhaps in name only? But even if you don’t quibble about that, the answer doesn’t quite fit the clue. One of two clues about this magazine. It would have helped if I had heard of it.

No spoilers; the answers are in the comments.

Roger Angell (1920–2022)

What a wonderful writer, about baseball (which I know nothing about) and assorted other subjects. The New Yorker has a piece about him by David Remnick. The New York Times has an obituary.

One of the regrets of my teaching life is that I never found an occasion for asking students to read Angell’s 2014 essay about old age, “This Old Man.”

A handful of posts about Roger Angell
An excerpt from ”This Old Man“ : “The dream of a nine-year-old boy” : Notebook man : On Don Zimmer : On Trump’s tweetsOn voting

[P.S. to the Times: This Old Man, the book, is not “a collection of essays about aging.”]

New directions in chicken soup

Add smoked paprika to your bowl, a little or a lot. Yow!

You may need to follow up with a small dish of ice cream to cool your lips.

*

November 4: I can now say that I agree with Joe (see comments). Hot sauce in chicken soup is a good thing. Elaine and I added some Louisiana Hot Sauce to our bowls last night. (It was a long time between chickens.)

House hyphens

Consider the name of H.R. 7688: the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act.

Shouldn’t that be the Consumer Fuel Price-Gouging Prevention Act?

Shouldn’t that be the Consumer Fuel-Price Gouging-Prevention Act?

Shouldn’t that be the Consumer-Fuel-Price Gouging-Prevention Act?

Or — and why not? — the Consumer-Fuel-Price-Gouging-Prevention Act?

I can understand why the bill’s sponsor may have chosen to skip the hyphens.

Related reading
All OCA punctuation posts (Pinboard) : The Hammacher Schlemmer crazy making hyphen shortage problem. : Living on hyphens : Mr. Hyphen and Mr. Faulkner : One more from Mr. Hyphen

Some Miller votes

Representative Mary Miller (R, IL-15) has tweeted thoughts and prayers for Ukraine. Yet she voted last week against H.R. 7691, Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022. The bill passed, 368–57.

Miller has also tweeted about the scarcity of infant formula. (Never mind the reasons.) Yet she voted on Wednesday against H.R. 7790, the Infant Formula Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2022. The bill passed, 219–192.

Miller has also tweeted about the cost of fuel. (Never mind the reasons.) Yet she voted yesterday against H.R. 7688, the Consumer Fuel Price Gouging Prevention Act. The bill passed, 217–207.

Despite what I have read — in reliable sources — about Illinois redistricting, it’s now clear that my household will still be part of IL-15 in the upcoming election, and our representative come November will be Rodney Davis or Mary Miller. The horror.

Related reading
All OCA Mary Miller posts (Pinboard)

[GovTrack.us is far better than house.gov for following bills and votes.]

Griffy and Lippy and Sluggo

In today’s Zippy, Zippy is on vacation in downtown Duluth. (Fresca, take note.) Griffy is stuck with Zippy’s “diametrically opposite” twin Lippy. What to do? Griffy’s suggestion: “Wha’d’ya say we read a lot of old ‘Nancy’ comic strips & question th’ hidden subtext of Sluggo?”

[“Beating Around the Bushmiller.” Zippy, May 20, 2022.]

Related reading
All OCA Nancy posts : Nancy and Zippy posts : Zippy posts (Pinboard)

Elaine Fine, “Adoration” arranger

The online music-magazine Van (as in Beethoven) has an article by Felix Linsmeier about Florence Price’s “Adoration”: “Das Über-Orgel-Stück”. Or in (Google’s) translation, “The Over-Organ Piece.” The German title is a translation of Elaine’s characterization of “Adoration” as a “super-organ piece.”

The article credits Elaine as “wohl die Pionierin der weiten Welt der Adoration-Adaptionen” — “probably the pioneer of the wide world of ‘Adoration’ adaptations.” Elaine has arranged “Adoration” for violin, viola, cello, flute, clarinet, and tuba (each with piano), six violas, violin soloist and orchestra, string orchestra, and orchestra. She’s made all her arrangements of this (public domain) composition available at no cost through the IMSLP.

It’s good to see Florence Price’s music getting new attention in the twenty-first century. And it’s good to see an arranger — especially this one — get some recognition for her work. Give the composer some. And give the arranger some too.

Here, from 2020, is Elaine’s first arrangement of “Adoration,” for violin and piano, with the eminent violinist Augustin Hadelich at the piano and thirty-seven other musicians.

Free COVID-19 tests, round three

I’ve mentioned it to several people who didn’t already know, so I’ll mention it here too: third shipments of free at-home COVID-19 tests are now available to U.S. households.