ELINOR LIPMAN, I CAN'T COMPLAIN — My mother had a condiment phobia. She refused to taste anything from the grocery aisle displaying relishes, mustards, pickles of any kind; salad dressings, barbecue sauces, the Tabascos, the Worcestershires, or the A.1.'s.
But my sister and I and our children, given the opportunity from within a time capsule, might have said to the gentleman, "It probably didn't hurt her skin one bit that she had a condiment phobia."
You see, before there were conspicuous vegans, before the era of lactose intolerance and sprue, when the description "picky eater" referred only to toddlers and children, my mother was famously finicky. I don't mean, If someone served her a hamburger with ketchup, she'd scrape it off and eat it nearly uncontaminated. What I mean is: If some unfortunate hostess put ketchup on the bun, my mother would push the offending plate away, unable to eat the accompanying potato chips, and ask for nothing else, her appetite ruined. And maybe eat a shirred egg when she got home. It was like our mother had a condition. She refused to taste anything that came from the grocery aisle displaying the vinegary and the savory, the relishes, the mustards, the pickles of any kind; the salad dressings, the barbecue sauces, the Tabascos, the Worcestershires or the A.1.'s. We didn't even own them.
| A. | Like the smells of a springtime garden | EARTHY |
| B. | One apt to get into hot water? | LOBSTER |
| C. | "Piece of cake" and "cup of tea" | IDIOMS |
| D. | People without a fixed address | NOMADS |
| E. | One among "the finest" | OFFICER |
| F. | Floral fruit used in herbal drinks (2 wds.) | ROSEHIPS |
| G. | What a "caret" pointing west might mean (2 wds.) | LESSTHAN |
| H. | Card-shedding game also called Cheat (3 wds.) | IDOUBTIT |
| I. | Those who don't complete their sentences? | PAROLEES |
| J. | International Workers' Day (2 wds.) | MAY |
| K. | "Variety is the spice of life" and "A watched pot never boils" | ADAGES |
| L. | Apt to be on a bad seasonal list | NAUGHTY |
| M. | Sharp, to shooters (2 wds.) | INFOCUS |
| N. | Laterally, often in a furtive manner | CRABWISE |
| O. | Rival of Williams and Wesleyan | AMHERST |
| P. | Gets nice and cozy | NESTLES |
| Q. | Exclamation of relief (2 wds.) | THANKGOD |
| R. | Plaything for Napoleon and Joseph Stalin (2 wds.) | CHESSSET |
| S. | Made a lot less clear | OBSCURED |
| T. | Field utensils (2 wds.) | MESSKIT |
| U. | Field of Fermi and Faraday | PHYSICS |
| V. | Like the sun-tanned skin of an old sea captain | LEATHERY |
| W. | One meaning of "cleave" | ADHERE |
| X. | Being the boss, calling the shots (2 wds.) | INCHARGE |
| Y. | Added spoken commentary to | NARRATED |