COMICS
THE SUMTER ITEM
BIZARRO
SOUP TO NUTZ
ANDY CAPP
GARFIELD
BEETLE BAILEY
BORN LOSER
BLONDIE
ZITS
MOTHER GOOSE
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B7
DOG EAT DOUG
DILBERT
JEFF MACNELLY’S SHOE
Daughter appalled by treatment of dad’s ashes DEAR ABBY — My dad died in April after a brief illness. Before he passed, my stepmother encouraged Dear Abby him to donate his ABIGAIL body to sciVAN BUREN ence because she is to be buried with her first husband, and she didn’t want the expense of burying Dad. I went to pick up my father’s ashes as she requested. When I got there, she invited me into her bedroom to see that she had made a shrine to her first husband, who had died three years before she and Dad were married. The
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2014
one photo she had of Dad was 2 inches by 3 inches, and was the one from his memorial invitation. With a broken heart I made my way to the door. Abby, she was married to my dad for 30 years. He supported her, took care of her, and worked to the age of 75 to keep her happy — and that was a task! As I reached the front door, I remembered what I was there for in the first place -my dad’s ashes. They were still in the UPS wrap, in a bench that he kept his shoes and boots in by the door. Seriously, who does that? Grieving daughter in New York DEAR GRIEVING DAUGHTER — Please accept my deepest sympathy for the loss of your
THE DAILY CROSSWORD PUZZLE
father. Unless he spent the entire 30 years of his marriage sharing his bedroom with the shrine to your stepmother’s first husband, inviting you in to see it was beyond insensitive on her part. The only bright side I can see to this is that you’re now in possession of your beloved father’s ashes, and you will probably never have to see her again. Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www. DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069. To order “How to Write Letters for All Occasions,” send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to Dear Abby —Letter Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. Shipping and handling are included in the price.
JUMBLE
SUDOKU
THAT SCRAMBLED WORD GAME By David L. Hoyt and Jeff Knurek
HOW TO PLAY: Each row, column and set of 3-by-3 boxes must contain the numbers 1 through 9 without repetition.
ACROSS 1 Scavenging seabird 4 “You gotta be kidding me!” 9 “Cast Away” star 14 With 12Down, Rodin sculpture 15 “__ the big deal?” 16 Bustling 17 Sound that may be averted by holding one’s breath 18 “Take your time” 20 Machu Picchu dweller 22 Mashed taro, mostly 23 Promising words 24 1993 film loosely based on the Jamaican bobsled team 27 Cry 28 Graphic beginning? 29 Sass 32 Watch carefully 34 Equipped 36 __ wave 37 Beginning auspiciously ... like 18-, 24-, 46- and 55-Across? 40 Works on, as homework 41 Vocalist Vannelli 42 Heavy read-
ing? 43 Ukr., once 44 Disney World visitor’s airport, on bag tags 45 Bluish hue 46 NCAA regional semifinals, familiarly 51 Acadia National Park locale 53 Word with game or room 54 Like lingerie models 55 Greenskinned movie villain 58 __City: computer game 59 Bull on a glue container 60 Beaufort __ 61 World Cup cheer 62 Anoint 63 Celebrated 2014 sports retiree 64 Site site DOWN 1 Moral code 2 Safari sight 3 Colorful candy since 1847 4 Grass bristle 5 Throw together 6 Georgia’s __Bibb County 7 Enjoyed some home cooking
8 Codebreaker’s org. 9 Tried one’s hand 10 Provides inside information for, say 11 2014 Russell Crowe title role 12 See 14-Across 13 Foxy 19 “You don’t have to” 21 They may be red 25 More than modify 26 Domeshaped abode 29 “Love Actually” co-star 30 Memo words 31 Chinchillas, at times 32 “American __”: Neil Gaiman
novel 33 Sci-fi staples 34 Like acrobats 35 “__ appŽtit!” 36 Weasel kin 38 “It’s a deal!” 39 Charon’s river 44 Title holders 45 Group with a common bond 46 “Oliver Twist” bad guy 47 Double 48 Grabbed a stool next to 49 Banishment 50 Queens athlete, for short 51 Flour producer 52 Peak 55 Site site 56 Paper with NYSE news 57 Part of HRH