EV 852 Growth

[DocHH]

Another fairly straightforward EV this week. Populated the clued lights quite quickly, but probably spent a similar amount of time on the 2 sets of unclued lights! Ended up working backwards, SHRINKING rather than GROWING! So this is just to start an N&C!
Off to Gnome City on thursday for a couple of days.

[novalis]

I too worked backwards. Got one set of unclued lights quickly enough and three from the other but struggled abit with the last three. In my case it's the brain SHRINKING rather than GROWING with old age and dry rot!!

[copelander]

Yes, done and dusted and waiting to be posted. Have a good trip, DocHH.

[DocHH]

Hello Novalis and Copelander,
How long do you think it will be before our friend Devadolly appears?
I'll try and enjoy myself Copelander, but it is work, one of my 12 to 18 days a year! The entertainment/hospitality should be the highlight. It was the first time I went to Russia, it included tickets to the Bolshoi, with a delightful escort.

[copelander]

If that's work, I'm surprised you limit yourself to only a few days a year. Will you be back in time for next week's EV ?

[crofter]

I agree that this EV was straightforward, but does SEA grow into SALE ~ or PEA grow into PALE before blossoming into SEPAL etc?

[DocHH]

My other half insists I do not over-stress myself, and I certainly will be back in time for next weeks EV. Also I have no desire to be paying the same amount of tax as Fred the Shred!
Unfortunately I will miss the Speccie!

[novalis]

Hi Crofter!

How about sel ( Scottish form of self )becoming sale.

[novalis]

Hi DocHH!

I thought I got away lightly with about ten weeks work per year!! Enjoy your trip.

[copelander]

Oh dear, Crofter,maybe it wasn't as easy as I thought. I assumed PALE and PEA, and didn't even think of alternatives!

[DocHH]

Hello everyone,
Perhaps even Rustic had not considered the alternatives! Perhaps Clued-up aka Screwed-up has arrived here too!!

[novalis]

Hi DocHH!

I decided to go with sel-sale-sepal for the "simple" reason that I reckon Rustic knows what (s)he is doing. As ?EA would admit the two possibilities of sea and pea those two would seem to be ruled out on the grounds of ambiguity. Perhaps I'm totally wrong. ( Nothing new in that!! ) I was tempted to ask both a neighbour and our local MacMillan's organiser for their copies, as neither attempt EV, and send in all three possibilities. That, however, would be "cheating".

[DocHH]

I like your logic. I don't send them in any more, I don't need any more pens!

[devadolly]

Hello Everybody - the bad penny arrives. Didn't get a chance to look at the EV until waiting for the quack at 8am today. Got quite a few in and then ground to my usual halt without the faintest idea of what on earth the enigma was/is. Revved up old 'Albert' here to do the emails and sneaked a look ------------ 'Oh My Goodness' they have got it in the post and I'm floundering, and then I read on...........18 days!! 10 weeks!! Work that is, no wonder you have got it all done and dusted in time for Sunday tea!

So, come on N & C'ers, some hefty hints about the unclued lights so I can strain the brain again at bed-time.

Isn't Gnome City Zurich DocHH? Why the Bolshoi, lucky devil, I have never seen them?

Regards

[DocHH]

Hello Devadolly,
Yes it's Zurich, not been there for a while, so looking forward to the trip, but the taxi to take me to the airport is arriving at 04.45!! I'll be really on the ball for the meeting which starts at 14.00, having first been entertained to lunch!! Three more work trips this year, Stockholm, Brussels and Ottawa. You have no idea how demanding working 18 days a year can be! Then we have to find time for at least 2 fortnight holidays a year, Caribbean twice last year!
There are two series of unclued lights, both have 3,4,5,6,7&8 letter words. So the 4 letter word is 3 letter word plus 1 extra letter and then anagrammed, then the 5 letter word is the 4 letter one plus another letter and anagrammed etc. Look at crofters comment about SEA, SALE or PEA ,PALE. then blosssoming into SEPAL. The discussion is about the unclued 3 letter and 4 letter lights in the North East corner of the grid.
Do you need any hints on clued lights? i finished all those before doing anything about the 2 series.

[Christiana]

Hi all. Special hallo to Devadolly and words of encouragement. One or two sneaky ones but on the whole easier to get at this week - and the unclued lights are easy once you have the rest in place - apart from the sea, pea, sel sale, pale controversy.

[novalis]

Hi Devadolly!

Hope it was nothing serious at the quack's. DocHH's helpful hint should be getting you going. As he says -- gettimg the normal answers will help a great deal. Christiana talks about sneaky ones. I thought 30a was the sneakiest in some ways.

Nice trips Doc HH. Hope you enjoy them. We get as far as as Harrogate for our examiners' meetings!!! I still can't see any logic other than what I've already given to resolve the dilemma in the NE corner. I've looked to see if there is any link between the meanings of the three letteer words but to no avail.

[Christiana]

I was okay with 30a, though somewhat sneaky. I found 17a rather more so and also struggled for a while with 20d. I like the sound of your yearly schedule, Doc. Even Harrogate sounds pretty good, Novalis. I used to have to go to London for my examiners' meetings, and as that was from Cornwall it didn't feel much like a holiday.
Now I'm in the Algarve but suffering from the usual 'living in a holiday area' syndrome, in that I don't seem to find much time for outings and my visitors soon get to know the place better than I do. Not that I'm ungrateful. It's lovely at this time of year, with the almond blossom just going over and the mimosa already out.

[devadolly]

Thank you all for sounding so welcoming, will jot down the notes and take them up the 'little wooden hill' later.
Absolutely no pity about the 04.45am taxi DocHH, tell you what, will you swap your terrible work schedule for mine for 12 months? I work 7 days a week for about 45 weeks a year, do get chance for a few days here and there + a longer hol (the Amazon this Oct) but no sleaze to speak of, and when we do get away guess who does the planning, booking and packing??!!!!!!!!!!!!
Which reminds me, will have to get thinking about next week - it is Himself's b/day and we are off to..................wait for it.......Harrogate!!!!!!!!!!! Must be EV paradise. A murder/mystery w/end - more brain styraining but will definately have the EV waiting at home.
Thanks Novalis - no just the usual check to see the ME is still being beaten to death and the monthly jab.
Portugal sounds lovely Christina, some wonderful red wines coming from there now the Port market has slowed.
Thank's everyone for the craik.

[DocHH]

Hello Devadolly
Your last post seemed as if you had given up on this weeks EV and you sounded quite despondent. If you have, I am quite disappointed!
Take the notes up the wooden hill, I hope you'll get inspiration, but don't wake up Himself with an outburst. Enjoy Harrowgate, and although you might want to swap my current work programme with your current one, you would not have wanted to have my "pre-retirement" one. Yours sounds a doddle!
Sorry Christiana, forgot to say Hello, apologies to anyone else I ignored! Ciao

[devadolly]

Hi Doc, I'll give it a whirl, Darling Alistair has been throwing dosh at me for some time now but 'retirement' isn't an option when you are juggling plates in the farming world! Not despondent, you all just seem so clever and I seem to be getting bogged down and brain dead with ever more plates in danger of crashing down around me. Am really going to try hard later - insomnia doies have its uses!

Regards