Hi Susan,
That's pretty normal I find - I can look at a clue for ages with no luck, come back to it an hour later and the answer instantly pops into my head. That's also incidentally why people can think you're really good at crosswords - bringing a fresh eye to a clue they're stuck on and answering it looks impressive, even though their own "fresh" eye would probably have done the same thing a bit later. Keep that just between us though!
Of course!
Finished it except for a few letters in one word, but
3 across: Moderate OK about cheers meeting Left's fibs (5,5)
is still puzzling. I guessed FAIRY TALES and first letters of down clues have proved that correct, but I cannot work out why. 'Moderate OK' is 'FAIR; and 'fibs' TALES, but the only part I can really see is the 'FAIR' part.
The letters missing are from:
21 across: Bar has man - boil, stirring, to infuse (7)
Letters: A - O - I - H
I think it is probably the word you mentioned a while ago, synonym of 'steep', but can't remember it.
Explanations will be appreciated.