Sat., 4/25 Daniel Nierenberg

[magus]

THEME:   none
   
GOOD ONES:    
Place to stretch one's legs   YOGA CLASS   
Field laborers   OXEN [never thought of animals as laborers]   
Dump closing?   STER   
   
BTW:   
ESTA is Spanish only   
   
EGAL is okay because we see egalite in the French motto, but it does not mean same as much as equal, which I see as different.   
   
Important star group   A-LIST [as heavenly stars are neither important nor unimportant, I'd go with "Major"]   
   
   
RATING:   
Three grins = Loved it; Two grins = Enjoyed it; One grin = A bit bland for my taste; One teardrop = Not much fun   

[Thomps2525]

Good morning, class. Today we'll be discussing two of today's more challenging crosswords. The Los Angeles Times puzzle included two 9-letter answers, eight 10-letter answers and two 11-letter answers, and the Daily News puzzle included nine 15-letter answers, three at the top, three in the middle and three at the bottom.

More specifically, I'd like you to think about two of those answers. "Place to stretch one's legs" was YOGACLASS, but do any of you think that a "class" can be considered as a "place"? I think the answer should have been YOGACLASSROOM. And "Bad marks" was EFS. You all know that I have never given a grade of EF on any of your essays. Can any of you cite an example of a teacher who has put an EF on a student's paper?

Anyone?

[magus]

Dear Mr. Ben Stein,

I've been sleeping in your class, so I never heard you tell us how to spell F, but what's wrong with spelling it ef?  And, if I wasn't sleeping in class, where was I sleeping?  Doesn't class mean classroom? 

Sincerely,

Benson Hurst

[Thomps2525]

Hey, Mister Benson Hurst, I'se gonna talk ta youse in yer own language so's ya can understand what I got to say. When I was in P.S. 132 in Brooklyn, my teachers would grade a poorly-written essay wit' an F. Not an "EF"---a simple F. An' I looked in the Merriam-Webster dictionary what I got and it says "class" is "a body of students which regularly meets to study the same subject" or "the period during which such a body meets" or "a course of dintruction." It do not say dat a "class" can be a classroom.

Now if youse will excuse me, the Honeymooners marathon is starting on channel 12.

[Thomps2525]

Ooh, I hate it when that guy takes over my computer! Mister magus, when you mentioned sleeping in class, I thought of a scene in the Marx Brothers' 1932 movie Horse Feathers. Groucho plays Professor Wagstaff:

"Have we got a college?"
"Yes."
"Have we got a football team?"
"Yes."
"Well, we can't afford both. Tomorrow we start tearing down the college."
"But, Professor, where will the students sleep?"
"Where they always sleep: in the classroom."

Yes, I know that there would be no classrooms if the college was torn down. The dialogue is illogical...but still funny.

[magus]

Dear Mr. Ben Stein,

What does the fifth definition from the Random House Dictionary mean?  I think it means you doubted Mr. Magus.  So, my cousin Vinny Boombatts is going to pay you a visit.

Sincerely,

Benson Hurst

class

Pronunciation: (klas, kläs), [key]
—n.
1. a number of persons or things regarded as forming a group by reason of common attributes, characteristics, qualities, or traits; kind; sort: a class of objects used in daily living.
2. a group of students meeting regularly to study a subject under the guidance of a teacher: The class had arrived on time for the lecture.
3. the period during which a group of students meets for instruction.
4. a meeting of a group of students for instruction.
5. a classroom.

Read more: class: meaning and definitions http://dictionary.infoplease.com/class#ixzz3YW7H1Pso

[Thomps2525]

So my dictionary does not say that "class" can mean "classroom" and your dictionary says that "class" can mean "classroom." Your dictionary settles the debate. There is no further need for us to get involved in class warfare.

(Cute? I made that up. )

[magus]

Not so fast!  You "corrected" The Magus but he did not need correction.  Vinny is still on his way!

Liked your class warfare.  Still think you should make a puzzle.