190. Crossword Clue of the Day: April 1

Female buffoon (6 letters): [ A S S E S S ]

• Click the clue to see a (completely unhelpful) visual hint.
• Highlight the bracketed space with your cursor to reveal the answer.

189. Crossword Clue of the Day: March 31

Nor’s partner (6 letters): [ E A S T E R ]

• Click the clue to see a visual hint.
• Highlight the bracketed space with your cursor to reveal the answer.

188. Fishing on Lake George

musical accompaniment:

photo: pm

187. Mini Raves

From Up on Poppy Hill (just opened) – Animated drama film directed by Goro Miyazaki, son of the legendary Hayao Miyazaki:

Brilliant; moving; sometimes humorous; beautiful backgrounds. If you’ve seen Whisper of the Heart (by the same studio) and liked that film’s just-plain-nice, low-key, slice-of-real-life ambiance, you’ll like this.

Death for Five Voices (just ended) – World premiere of a musical drama by Peter Mills, directed and book co-written by Cara Reichel, based on the life of the infamous Renaissance composer Carlo Gesualdo. Musical director and pianist, Dan Feyer:

Terrific music and singing; especially rich and soaring ensemble numbers; well-plotted; worth watching for in the future.

Searching for Sugar Man  – Best Documentary winner at the 2013 Oscars:

Almost-beyond-belief story; habit-forming music; fascinating subject with a zenlike aura, Sixto Rodriquez. His two albums are also available, but I like the movie soundtrack, which cherry-picks from the two.

185. The ACPT in 11 Objects

1. Contestant sticker. 2. Marriott pen. 3. The contestants’ most-dreaded pen (used by the judges to mark incorrect answers). 4. No, wait, this is the contestants’ most-dreaded pen (used to mark correct answers when only a few letters have been entered in the grid). 5. Name tag. 6. Marriott room key. 7. Ophira Eisenberg, from NPR’s Ask Me Another, was in the house (and unofficial best-shod attendee). 8. Dr. Fill returned. 9. Freebie pencil from The New York Times. 10. Freebie pencil sharpener from crosswordtracker.com. 11. And wherever you turned, a circle of people were yelling out answers to Peter Gordon’s Celebrity: Get a Clue iPhone app. (Do you know who Uggie is?)

180. Do-Re-Me-Me-Me

If ”Do-Re-Mi” were written today, would it go like this?

Dough — the cash, that I live for,
Rage — the feeling when I drive.
Me — the only one who counts,
Fat — the food on which I thrive.
So? — Is that a problem, dude?!
Lots — is what I always owe,
Tee — a shirt that speaks my mind,
That will bring us back to … d’oh!

178. 2013 Calendar

The illustrated Mus musculus calendar is back by sufficient demand, this year with a science theme. Download a pdf in the size of your choice, or avoid future regret and download both.

5 x 7″ paper-saving size:
CLICK HERE to download

6.5 x 9″ cubicle-hanging size:
CLICK HERE to download

BONUS CHALLENGE:
Find “July 4″ in the drawing.

174. Ode to a Coffee Urn

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Cup by Cup

Today,
I drank my 100,000th cup of coffee.

I’ve been keeping count
for 47 years
entering one mark
for each cup
in a small spiral-bound notebook
that I keep in my pocket,
on the table,
somewhere nearby.

I drink,
I count,
I mark.

In the morning,
during the day,
as I sit wide awake long into the night.

And today,
I made the 100,000th mark.

I think I’m going to try pretzels next.

— pm

170. 60 Years of MAD (One of Them Not Bad)

Get a spot ready in front of your TV. On October 28th CBS Sunday Morning will air a 60th-anniversary visit to MAD magazine’s offices [here it is].

Here are some behind-the-scenes photos from the day the piece was filmed (I was on hand for part of it).

After you’ve finished rewatching the TV segment in slow motion on your DVR, hustle over to your local bookstore to camp out for the October 30th release of the 256-page book Totally MAD: 60 Years of Humor, Satire, Stupidity and Stupidity ($20.01 on Amazon—cheap!).

According to MAD’s press release, “The date when booksellers start slapping that giant ’75% Off’ sticker on the front cover obscuring the book’s title has not yet been determined.”

167. The Puzzler Shrine

A look at my home away from home in the Time-Life Building when putting the People Puzzler books together:

Atop my custom-made cardboard canopy (created from two Fedex boxes) is a white-paper pyramid that alerts unsuspecting passersby that this is The Puzzler Shrine.

162. Nutty

Warning: This jar of peanuts might be tainted by peanuts.
Pictured: The front label from a jar of America’s Choice peanuts (A&P’s store brand) with an inset of the allergy information that’s printed on the back.

160. On the Road Again

After an 18-month hiatus from bicycle riding (a geezer-driven 4-wheeler swerving across the wrong side of the road took me out), I am cycling again.

But I’ve hung up my road racing silks after 22 years and bought myself a replacement bike. It’s a Trek FX hybrid, halfway between a road and mountain bike, and it’s a blast to ride. Comfortable for tooling around town, great for a workout. You can check the line out here, starting with the 7.1 at $469 and going up from there.

I hope to modify mine soon with the geezer-defense system shown.

150. Thai Kwon Do

Synopsis: Autistic girl who’s a martial arts prodigy puts every bad guy in Thailand in the hospital. And no stunt double for the actress Yanin Vismitananda! Next film, she teams up with Lisbeth Salander.

A clip from Chocolate (2008).

148. Bob the Capybara

A capybara, the world’s largest rodent, is performing in this year’s Big Apple Circus! His name is Bob and one of his talents is riding in a car (another appears to be eating microphones).

Accompanying him in this year’s show is an African porcupine named Percy. Percy was temporarily sidelined with a case of low blood sugar, but a local vet saved the day by rubbing honey on his gums. He’s already back in action and shooting quills at audience members.

143. Dictionary Definition of the Day

Mo·a·za·gotl cloud \mōˈätsəˌgätəl\ n: one or more cloud banks formed on the lee side of a mountain under foehn conditions