Monday Puzzle #15 or "Seattle Travel Advisory"

Puzzle #15 was difficult only because of the excruciating pain in my right arm, wrist and hand. I strained or sprained or brained it while working in the yard on Saturday. Now I can’t open the fridge, pick anything up, turn on the faucet, wash my hair. Just the small stuff. I have a big ace bandage on it, which is helping to keep it stable. Typing only hurts a little bit. But, I did have to complete the puzzle with my left hand. Dedicated, no?

The puzzle actually went quite well. Completed it with no errors. And, just a few things that I need to look up.

1 across, “Tams.” CAPS. Hmpf. Actually pretty interesting. BFF tells me that the tam comes from Ireland/Scotland and derives from the Scottish national hat, the tam o’shanter. The tam is the hat that you would think of a Rastafarian wearing – big, colorful, with the dreadlocks tucked inside. I have to say that the tam has changed quite a bit from the tam o’shanter. And, why do all of these black culture items/words all have European derivations? I mean, I know why. But, it’s pretty frustrating.

34 across, “Katmandu’s land.” Got NEPAL. But, honestly never really thought about Katmandu being the capital of Nepal. Or, forgot.

40 across, “Vietnamese holiday.” TET. It’s the Vietnamese New Year.

19 down, “Communion plates.” Here we go with the religious stuff again. Can’t we have a separation of church and crossword? PATENS. I’ve seen a ton of patens – brought a few up to the alter way back when. I would’ve called it the little communion plate thingy.

21 down, “La ___, Bolivia.” PAZ. Heard of it. People go there. Other people oooh and aaaah when they hear that their friends are going there. That’s all I know. I now know that it is the capital of Bolivia. And, it looks like a totally cool place to visit. It is interesting to read the State Departments overview of Bolivia and the very factual way it states things such as, “In September 2008…the Bolivian government declared the U.S. ambassador persona non grata…(and) the Embassy encouraged all U.S. citizens to consider leaving Bolivia. Security concerns lead to the temporary suspension of Peace Corps activities in Bolivia, the removal of all volunteers, and the closure of most of its offices. The Bolivian government subsequently expelled the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) from Bolivia as of January 2009.”

I also appreciate the instructions on how to handle roadblocks, especially since protesters “have reacted with force when travelers attempt to pass through or go around roadblocks, and occasionally, have used explosives…U.S citizens who find themselves in a roadblock should not attempt to “run” a roadblock, as this may aggravate the situation and lead to physical harm…given that roadblocks may occur without warning and have stranded travelers for several days, travelers should take extra food and water.”

I wonder what the State Department’s travel advisory about Seattle would be like. “In 1999 protesters took to the street to speak out against the WTO in what is now called the Battle in Seattle. Travelers should avoid Nike wearing teenagers protesting globalization and corporate oppression by throwing rocks at McDonald’s…The last Friday of every month is the Critical Mass bike ride, which causes major traffic backups in downtown Seattle during rush hour. Travelers should hole themselves up in their hotel during Critical Mass. In general, travelers should avoid bicyclists in the Seattle area. And pedestrians. And, don’t jaywalk. And definitely pay attention to the don’t walk signals. Otherwise, a pedestrian and/or bicyclist will sneer at you.”

39 down, “Meets, greets and seats.” SEESIN. Another one of those “I’m not that quick” answers. Sees In. I was looking at it as See Sin. And then though maybe seesin is a word? It’s not.

47 down, “Colossus of ____ (one of the Seven Wonders).” I did actually get this – took me a while, but I remembered it is Colossus of Rhodes. Wanted to look it up just to help cement it in my brain. Very interesting.

That’s it. I’m off to rest my wrist.