Tuesday December 25th 2018, NY Times Crossword

Time: 13:08
Tuesday Average: 13:27
Best Tuesday: 5:05

It’s a stealth Christmas-themed crossword today, at least if you’re me and have no idea what O TANNENBAUM is. Apparently it’s the German Christmas carol that is translated to ‘O Christmas Tree,” which I know. The theme answers all end with items that might be used to decorate that Christmas tree, with JUDY GARLAND, SUGAR CANE, LOS ANGELES ANGEL (is that what they’re called now?),  and MOVIE STAR. A garland  doesn’t occur to me as a tree decoration, but I’m confident that it’s a thing.

I forgot that the character from Fifty Shades of Gray was named Anastasia STEELE, which I only ever knew from the Flophouse Podcast. Of course, it makes me think of another podcast that features Steel’s Pots and Pans and was likely influenced by that book.

Doctor Doom, the ENEMY to the Fantastic Four, has yet to have a strong portrayal on the silver screen. For some reason, screen writers don’t seem to grasp that what makes Doctor Doom a top 10 villain is that he is a scientist and a magician and the dictator of a small Eastern European country. Stop trying to make him a “realistic” character.

Meanwhile, the word OATEN just reminds me of John Prine words like “boughten,” which memories can’t be.

Today, I learned about the AGAR PLATE, which is a Petri dish with agar, which is a gelatinous substance obtained from various kinds of red seaweed and used in biological culture media.

Now, I’m off to fly to Portugal, not for work but for fun! YAY!