Crossword Help Forum
Forum Rules

Good morning, Elle!
It is a beautiful day here.
Bright blue sky and not a breath of wind.
It rained during the night, though.
I went for a walk earlier, after I left ASDA.
I was too early for my paper!
May get one later.
I am meeting my pals from o'er the water soon.
Miss O is doing the driving.

Hi, Rusty!
Oh, that's good!
Have fun...talk later

Hi, Rusty!
I am not sure whether or not you will now be back at home?
I hope you had a great time with your friends …..and a good catch up personally on all the news?
Lucky you with the lovely weather!
It is still very wet here with fierce winds.
May it rain on all the fireworks!!
A nice crossword puzzle today, I thought?
I have answers for every clue , with only a few still requiring partial parsing.
I shall come back to those later ......inspiration may strike!

Good afternoon, Elle!
Yes, I am home, now!
May go out again later, though.
Yes, I met my friends.
Was good craic!
Your weather does not sound too good!
Fine weather forecast for the NY Marathon tomorrow.
Yes, a fine puzzle today.
I think I have all the parsing.
I did it online as I do not have the paper today.

Hi, Rusty!
I'm glad that you all had a good time!
It is nice that Miss O (and Miss L--B, too?) went with you.
Do the NI folk have youngsters of similar ages to your granddaughters?
Are you going out for a walk later?
We are staying firmly put indoors for the remainder of today!
I am rather surprised that the rain continues in the face of such strong winds....but for once I shall not brave the elements for a second walk!
Enough is enough!
If you have done all your parsings...how about 8d: Transparent sheet left over instrument (5)
I have "cello", but cannot see why?
And 19d: What stands up like this out of hot footwear? (7)
I have "tussock"
I can see "sock "for "footwear"?
But "what about "tus"?
I suspect I am being a tad dim here, and missing something very obvious?

Hello, Elle!
Just Miss O and me were out with my pals.
Miss L-B is working.
The NI folk are a generation younger than me and have school age children.
Still a lovely day here. Hope it keeps up!
8d, is "cello", "cel" is the abbreviation for "celluloid" (new to me!) and you can see through celluloid. With "L"left and "o" for over
I dont have the puzzle to remind me of the clue.
19, I have "tussock", too.
It looks like, "Like this" could mean "thus", remove "h" for hot, leaving "tus" plus "sock"/footwear.
Think that's it?

Good evening, Rusty!
Wet...and now dark...here!
The park Fireworks displays will start soon.
I believe there is a shorter one first for the children, followed by a larger (and presumably much noisier?) display for the adults.
The timings given were 5 till 10 .30 pm.
The dog is out in the garden now, with my husband ......hopefully doing all she will need to do, until after the end of the fireworks...….. as we shall not be able to persuade her outside again whilst the "bangs" last!
Thank you for your help with those two parsings.
I would never have thought of "cel "as an abbreviation for "celluloid" !
Yes, I can see "tussock" now that you have kindly explained it to me!
Oops, here we go... here come the bangs......the dog just made it back inside before the first "explosion"!

Hello, Elle!
Your poor dog, and thousands of others around the country!
A blooming shame for them being frightened like that!
I typed "cel" into Collins On-Line Dictionary and got "celluloid, a transparent sheet".
Heavy rain in Venice.
My son says they put out portable pavements during heavy rain to raise the road level above the water.
Seems a bit of a carry-on!

Hi, Rusty!
I haven't heard of "portable" pavements......I am learning a lot about Venice - and Italy in general - this week!
I know Venice is "sinking"...... due presumably to the muddy foundations......
Although wasn't marble deposited over the mud to make waterproof foundations , because marble is impermeable to water?
And aren't the authorities now building "gates" to hold back the rising water?
Something like that, anyway...?
I shall have to look it all up......
The rain has ceased ...but the wretched fireworks haven't!
Whatever happened to "noiseless" fireworks?
When I was but a tiddler, I remember my father buying "non-bangers" for our bonfire party?
The fireworks we had were pretty, but "silent"!

Hello, Elle!
I know very little about Venice sinking.....but!
I may have told you about my CD by Rondo Veneziano.
It is titled "Venice in Peril".
I wonder if that is because Venice is sinking?
It is a very good CD, I think. For me, anyway.
Baroque chamber music with a modern twist, using synthesisers etc.
And the musicians are all dressed in costume.
I hear fireworks now.
Blooming pests!
Your father had the right idea!