Saturday Themeless by Zhouqin Burnikel
Solving C.C.'s clever puzzle had me following a familiar pattern. I searched for a solid foothold which came up at the grid-spanning PLEASE BE PATIENT/AND YET HERE WE ARE and everything grew out from there. I had a very pleasant 29-minute exercise where C.C.'s construction skills always made me feel I would never COME UP DRY. Another lovely feature was that she only used six 3-letter words.
1. Early revolutions: WARM UP LAPS 😀 Tradition at the Indy 500 has a pace car leading the cars around for the last WARM UP LAP.
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| 1964 Indy 500 |
11. Exam with a max score of 180: LSAT.
15. Only shopped at farmers markets, perhaps: ATE ORGANIC.
16. Set in stone: ETCH.
17. Help in obtaining top-shelf products: STEP LADDER 😀
18. "Educated: A Memoir" writer Westover: TARA ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
19. Homes for some queens: HIVES. 😀
20. Instrument invented by Hermes: LYRE.
21. Bamia or sambar: STEW. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
22. Frosted: ICED.
23. "Fore!" site: TEE 😀
24. Bundles: WADS.
26. Earring parts: POSTS.
28. Ending of "Oedipus": SIGMA - Oedipus is spelled Οιδίπους in Greek. The last letter is the lower case Greek letter SIGMA
31. Put on a bashful front: ACT COY.
35. Overdrive: HIGH GEAR.
37. Line for waiters: PLEASE BE PATIENT - All these peeps are in line and waiting to get to the top of Mt. Everest
39. Cannes Film Festival prize: PALME D'OR - Golden Palm
40. Prankster with opposable thumbs: MONKEY.
41. Aisha of "Archer": TYLER.
42. Oman neighbor: YEMEN.
44. Go, to the dogs: MUSH - 😀 The comma in the clue made this my fav clue.
46. General concern: WAR.
47. Material for some biodegradable bags: HEMP.
51. Kitchen work: PREP.
53. St. __ Fresh Skin Apricot Scrub: IVES ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
55. "Brave" studio: PIXAR - It netted a $350 M profit at the box office
56. Zest source: RIND - I loved orange marmalade before I knew it was zest from the RIND that gave it such a distinctive flavor
57. "Great, now we're pouting": REAL MATURE.
59. Smell: ODOR.
60. Messages that something's gone wrong: ERROR CODES.
61. Word in skin care ads: DEWY.
62. One who has seen it all: EYEWITNESS.
Down:
1. Paper used in origami: WASHI ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
2. Unfinished story, perhaps: ATTIC 😀 Oh, the top story of a house
3. "Still Me" memoirist Christopher: REEVE - My favorite movie portrayer of Superman wrote this after his horse riding accident left him paralyzed.
4. Wore a long face: MOPED.
5. Addresses with dots: URLS. 😀
6. Org. with many excellent drivers: PGA - Fore!
7. Big scoops: LADLES.
8. "... somehow nothing has changed": AND YET HERE WE ARE.
9. Huntington Beach landmark: PIER.
10. Item that's often turned in: SCREW 😀
11. "Our food's getting cold!": LET'S DIG IN.
12. One who might crunch numbers for fun: STATS GEEK - Uh, I might be guilty
13. Orchard unit: ACRE.
14. Spring break?: THAW.
23. Trifled (with): TOYED.
25. Running back Jeanty who was runner-up for the 2024 Heisman Trophy: ASHTON.
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27. Nurse: SIP.
29. Thick hair: MANE.
30. Like some indie movies: ARTY.
31. Cal. entry: APPT.
32. Roland Garros surface: CLAY - The CLAY court in Paris is named for WWI air hero Roland Garros who died in combat in 1918 but never played tennis.
34. Left empty-handed, in a way: CAME UP DRY - In this state that depends heavily on irrigation this can be a big problem
36. Fortnite streamer, e.g.: GAMER ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ An online streaming game
38. Little dude: BOY.
43. Psychologist who created a notable hierarchy: MASLOW - I'm sure I memorized this list when I got my M.A. in Counseling.
45. New team member: HIREE.
47. Suddenly come up with: HIT ON - Dick Fosbury HIT ON the idea of high jumping with his face up and completely changed the sport.
49. Some stable parents: MARES 😀
50. Iron: PRESS.
51. Nudge: PROD.
52. Wheels: RIDE.
54. VIP member?: VERY 😀
55. Formal agreement: PACT.
58. Scan that may diagnose a torn ACL: MRI - “An MRI has confirmed that Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes sustained a torn ACL in his left knee in today’s game. Patrick and the club are currently exploring surgical options.”
