01.27.13 — The Plane Truth — the Acrostic


 
 
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Sunday, January 27, 2012
 
ACROSTIC, Puzzle by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon
Edited by Will Shortz

This tough solve draws a highly enjoyable quotation (read the rest of the chapter, hell, read the whole book!) from the chapter entitled The Plane Truth or Dem Ain’t Goobers, Dem’s Peanuts!My Point…And I Do Have One by Ellen Degeneres.
 
I was awfully excited when I was asked to write a book. I was however, nervous. I was afraid I didn’t have anything important to say. But when I began writing, I realized that although I don’t know a lot about any one thing, I know a little about a whole bunch of things: baking a pie; dancing; curing the common cold; running the Iditarod–it’s all in the book. And I realized I notice things that maybe some people don’t notice (or they don’t notice that they don’t notice). That’s all in the book, too. ~ Ellen Degeneres, from the Trade Paperback edition.
 
The quotation: SO HERE I AM, SITTING IN MY SEAT, WORKING ON MY JOURNAL. HEY, THERE’S A FLY ON THIS PLANE. I AM SO SCARED OF FLYING, I CAN’T IMAGINE HOW FLIES DO IT ALL DAY EVERY DAY. BUT THEN AGAIN, THAT’S WHAT A FLY DOES, FLY DOES, FLY. IT’S HIS JOB.
 
The author’s name and the title of the work: DEGENERES, THE PLANE TRUTH

The defined words:

A. Muscle used in arm-flapping, DELTOID
B. Heavenly, blissful, divine, ELYSIAN
C. Sneaks and kicks (2 wds.), GYM SHOES
D. Discarded computers, TVs, mobile phones etc. (hyph.), E-WASTE
E. Star known for defying gravity, seemingly, NIJINSKY
F. Marriage within one’s own clan, ENDOGAMY
G. Mechanism with teeth and a pawl, RATCHET
H. Snobbishness, ELITISM
L. Vague and mysterious, hard to see through, SHADOWY
J. Buses, subways, rail, and such, TRANSIT
K. Title for the Bishop of Rome (2 wds.), HOLY FATHER
L. Combine, as oil and vinegar, EMULSIFY
M. Hang-up that might involve snakes or elevators, PHOBIA
N. Touchdown, LANDING
O. Equipment found in cockpits, AVOIONICS
P. Mount with a view of Penn State’s Beaver Stadium, NITTANY
Q. Rather pleasant, quite nice, ENJOYABLE
R. Musical effect meant to heighten drama, TREMOLO
S. In a New York minute (2 wds.), RIGHT AWAY
T. Like Chevrolet’s Corvair, per Ralph Nader, UNSAFE
U. Gradually lose volume, as speech (2 wds.), TRAIL OFF
V. Slime-exuding sea creature than can tie itself in knots, HAGFISH

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Image Stack - Fly Face by The Kav © All Rights Reserved

The paragraph of the quotation and the one following: So here I am, sitting in my seat, working on my journal. Hey there’s a fly on this plane. I am so scared of flying, I can’t imagine how flies do it all day, every day. But, then again, that’s what a fly does, fly. It’s his job. What’s going through that fly’s mind? He’s looking out the window and probably saying to himself, “Wow, look how high up I am. I”ve never gotten up this high, I am going very, very fast, and I’m not really working any harder than I usually do.

This fly just happened to wander onto a plane in Los Angeles. Several hours later it is going to get o ff in New York City. I’m concerned it will be disoriented, and not just from jet lag and being improperly dressed for New York, but more in a Home Alone 2 kind of way. ~ Ellen Degeneres, The Plane Truth, from My Point…And I Do Have One
 
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A little more from Degeneres on flying…
 

 
 
 
Click on image to enlarge.
 
Puzzle available on the internet at
 

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