E? I?…E? I?…Oh!
EIEIO by Dena Haynes----------------- Sunday, May 11, 2008 DONE WITH EASE, Puzzle by Tony Orbach and Patrick Blindauer, edited by Will Shortz Hope you like puns -- get ready to groan! Eight across entries -- NOWEANSITUATION (23. State of a bottle-fed baby?); ORIGINALSCENE (38. A platform in front of Elsinore in “Hamlet?); FEELINGSTATION (51. Massage therapist’s office?); TEAMDUNCAN (67. Group of yo-yo experts?); SHEENGUARD (70A. One willing to take a bullet for Martin or Charlie?); ABANDONEDSHEEP (91. Little Bo-Peep’s charges?); PEATORCHESTRA (99. Musicians at a marsh?); MINNESOTATWEENS (120. St. Paul sixth graders?), along with ELONGATE (93-Down: Stretch … or a hint to this puzzle’s theme?), are this Sunday crossword puzzle’s main entries which are metamorphosed via substitution of letters and imaginary exchange of the sound of the letter “i" for the letter “e” from ”No-win situation, original sin, filling station, Tim Duncan, shin guard, abandon ship, pit orchestra, and Minnesota Twins” to the aforementioned feeble paronomasia. The remainder of the puzzle is rather antiseptic -- the six-to-eight-letter entries are even less inspired: ACETONE, AMOEBA, ANGULAR, ANIONS, ARTURO, CCLAMPS, DIETER, EASTLA, EMBASSY, EMBEDS, ERROLL, ERSATZ, GLAREDAT, INDIRA, JETSFAN, JUMPSEAT, GLAREDAT, LUELLA, MANETS, NEUTER, OCTANE, OHSURE, PEROXIDE, PREYSON, REPLETE, RESONANT, ROBSON, ROLLEDIN, SEASONS, SISSY, SONGS, STEPON, TEABAGS, USEFORCE. Hot on the heels of that group of ho-hums are a flotilla of five-letter entries, including AFLAT, AMINO, ASBAD, AZTEC, KALEL, ONEPM, DELON, DRAPED, ECONO, EDENS, EDUCT, GHANA, IDEAS, JANOS, KALEL, LEADA, LLAMA, NBAER, NYSNC, ONYOU, PEEKA, QUASH, REUNE, RULES, SODOI, STYLE, TEWES, TIMOR, TIROL, ZELIG; four-letter entries AARE, ACES, AGRI, AIWA, AMEX, ANKA, ANSE, ATOP, AUST, AZUR, BING, CINQ, DUDE, EMAG, EMIL, ENID, ENZO, FOAM, KNEE, HERO, INTL, JOTS, LILI, LOGE, MANN, MEWS, MISS, MYMY, NATO, NEHI, NONE, OATH, OCTA, OMAN, POOL, RANG, SLUE, SOSO, SUMP, TADA, TIRE, TNUT, UNIT, YALE; and finally, three-letter left-overs ANN, ARP, CDE, DVO, ESO, GPA, HCL, LEI, NEA, NYS, SKA, ULT, WOO. Substitute letters at will -- it doesn't really matter! ----------------- For today's cartoon, go to The Crossword Puzzle Illustrated.
