Thursday, July 9th 2020 Stella Zawistowski

Theme: Food Fad - as the theme reveal explains:

62A. Diet that involves eating fat, cutting carbs, and avoiding the ends of the answers to the starred clues: KETO.

And so we find:

20A. *49ers Hall of Famer who was MVP of Super Bowl XXIII: JERRY RICE. He was best known as a 49er although after he was released by San Francisco he played for the Raiders, the Seahawks and the Broncos. When he was ready to retire in 2006 he signed a one-day contract with the 49ers to allow him to retire as a member of the team where his NFL career began.

26A. *Inactive sort: COUCH POTATO

40A. *One hard to fool: SMART COOKIE

51A. *Head honcho: TOP BANANA. Here's the famous Andy Warhol painting that appeared on the cover of the 1967 album "The Velvet Underground and Nico" and now graces a record label's logo.

According to University of Chicago Medicine, following the keto diet can cause low blood pressure, kidney stones, constipation, nutrient deficiencies and an increased risk of heart disease. No thanks, I'll stick to my rice and cookies.

So a straightforward enough theme from Stella with the keto diet unifying four random foods. The fill was nicely done with a couple of longer downs and generally a very solid word list, nothing to make you groan which is always nice. Let's take a foray into said fill:

Across:

1. Number system in Programming 101?: BINARY. There are 10 types of people in the world - those who understand binary, and those who don't.

7. Tyler, the Creator work that won the 2019 Grammy for Best Rap Album: IGOR. Thank you, crosses. Rap isn't really my strong suit.

11. NYSE news: IPO

14. Gets around: EVADES

15. __ colada: PIÑA

16. Golf scorecard word: PAR. A word not often seen on my scorecards, that's a fact.

17. Best Actress between Halle and Charlize: NICOLE. Kidman in 2002 for her portrayal of Virginia Woolf in The Hours.

18. Late-day religious service: EVENSONG

22. Envelope-pushing: EDGY

23. Produit de la tête: IDÉE. Une bonne une, avec optimisme.

24. Maze rodent: RAT

25. Writer Deighton: LEN. British author best known for spy novels, but did you know he also writes cookbooks and illustrated cookstrips?

31. Bit of verbal derision: CATCALL

35. Like some patches: IRON-ON

36. Student, to a counselor: ADVISEE. One of those words which has gained more currency in recent years. It wasn't really seen around much before the 1950's.

37. Not empirically derived: A PRIORI. Theoretical deduction rather than evidence-based.

38. Sequel title words: PART II. Did Shakespeare write an 11-part play about the famous English King Iv, or am I imagining that? I'm sure I remember the final installment - Henry Iv, Part 11.

39. Shows contempt for: SPITS AT

43. __ tee: TO A

44. Newark-based insurer, on the NYSE: PRU. The ticker symbol for Prudential Financial Inc. My first office job was in a marine insurance underwriters' office who were agents for the Pru. I filed claim forms and entered policy details into a ledger the size of a desk. After six months of that I begged and pleaded to be allowed to learn how to program the computer, and the rest is history.

45. Musical note connector: SLUR

49. Leg bone: SHIN

54. Rest stop facility: MEN'S ROOM

57. Like much humor: IRONIC. It's ironic that none of the situations described in Alanis Morrisette's song "Ironic" are actually ironic. Good song though. Here's a refresher if you've not heard it for a while.

58. Assn.: ORG.

59. Sooty passage: FLUE

60. It has its pros and cons: DEBATE

61. Grill fuel: GAS. I was recently given a table-top electric grill; it's awesome for "skewer" meals like Korean barbeque and yakitori.

63. Not so tough: EASIER

Down:

1. Scruffy film dog: BENJI. Is he that scruffy? He's a mongrel, but cute.

2. Like some college walls: IVIED. Some baseball infield walls also. A ball lost in the Wrigley Field ivy is a ground-rule double.

3. Mussel shell lining: NACRE

4. Absolutely flip for: ADORE

5. Bank (on): RELY

6. River of Flanders: YSER

7. Poison remedy: IPECAC. Nasty stuff, it was an emetic given orally. No longer recommended, as apparently a good session of throwing up doesn't really do much good. Activated charcoal is much more effective and gives your whole system a good clean.

8. Donates, biblically: GIVETH

9. Unseparated: ONE

10. Bled or fled: RAN

11. Music players discontinued in 2017: IPOD NANOS. I've got a mini one lying around somewhere. It holds a grand total of about 50 songs but was quite the thing back in the day.

12. Hunger twinge: PANG

13. Wild indulgence: ORGY

19. "Get this done": SEE TO IT

21. "Who's better than me?!": I RULE! Yay me!

25. "Five Minutes" country singer Morgan: LORRIE. Thank you, crosses. Country music apparently isn't really my thing either.

26. Small Spanish house: CASITA

27. Acid found in vegetable oil: OLEIC

28. Longstocking of kiddie lit: PIPPI. I tried PIPPY first until SMART COOKYE looked a little too medieval English to be correct.

29. __ Bora: Afghan cave complex: TORA

30. "I'll get this done": ON IT

31. Baseball hats: CAPS

32. Cain raiser: ADAM

33. Nielsen concern: TV RATINGS. The Nielsen ratings are becoming less important as the shift continues towards streaming content rather than watching broadcast TV. Instead of estimating audience numbers by polling a small number of households, the streaming figures are actual views.

34. Thick-skinned yellow fruit: CITRONS. Here's one:

37. Invite to a balcony: ASK UP

41. Refuse to participate: OPT OUT

42. Words from a balcony: O ROMEO

O Romeo, Romeo! wherefore art thou Romeo?

Deny thy father and refuse thy name;

Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,

And I'll no longer be a Capulet.

45. Ones looking down: SNOBS

46. Molokai neighbor: LANAI. Maui too, they're both about the same distance from Lanai. Molokai is home to the highest sea cliffs in the world.

47. Become 9-Down: UNITE

48. Slot car, for one: RACER

49. Urban portmanteau: SMOG

50. Greek goddess of marriage: HERA

52. Wait for: BIDE

53. Zone: AREA

55. '60s atty. general: RFK

56. Cheer for un gol: OLÉ! Not really, you cheer for a gol by saying "gol!", and in the case of Mexican soccer commentators, strung out ad nauseam. Olé! tends to be used when a team is putting together an extended series of passes and keeping the ball away from the opposition.

And with Programming 101 to start, and Football Chants 101 to finish, here's the grid:

Steve

Note from C.C.:

 

Happy Birthday to dear Tony (Anonymous-T), who has helped me and this blog tremendously all these years. Thank you so much for your generosity Tony! You make our blogging so much easier and you lighten up our blog!

 

At Wit's End near Carmel on Father's Day 2017

Wednesday July 8th, 2020 Margit Christenson

Theme: A LONG LEASH (59. Lots of freedom, as illustrated in each set of circles)

17. "Horsefeathers!": BALDERDASH.

27. Imbibes to excess: DRINKS LIKE A FISH.

45. Wee-hours program with James Corden: THE LATE LATE SHOW.

Boomer again, filling in a blog schedule gap. LA Times debut for Margit Christenson. Congratulations!

C.C. has me on a short LEASH but I am happy to be here, I just want to help the ball club (Crash Davis).

Across:

1. More ironic, as a smile: WRYER.

6. Bunyan's blue ox: BABE.  Babe lives at the Paul Bunyan Center in Brainerd, Minnesota..

10. Questlove hairdo: AFRO.  I wonder if Colin Kaepernick will be offered a job this year.

14. "... said __ ever": NO ONE.

15. "Jeopardy!" host Trebek: ALEX.  I sort of backed off from Jeopardy,  I guess they can not tape new shows due to the virus, so they are showing replays.  Last week they showed the one where James got beat.

16. Dull: BLAH.  "The force can't do a decent job 'cause the kids have no respect for the law today ... and BLAH, BLAH, BLAH."  Save the Life of my Child.  - Simon and Garfunkel.

19. "Piece of cake!": EASY.

20. One-celled creature: AMOEBA.

21. Artist's paint holder: PALETTE.

23. Having prolonged success: ON A ROLL.  The only time I was ever "ON A ROLL" was in a bowling center.

26. Air traffic branch of the DOT: FAA.  The Federal Aviation Administration is probably not too busy these days.

32. Actress Chaplin: OONA. Granddaughter of Charlie Chaplin.

33. Instrument from the French for "high wood": OBOE.  "On Base On an Error?"  MLB is opening soon they say.  From a Twins fan - "Miguel Sano tested positive."

34. Cal. column: MON. "Monday, Monday, So good to me". Mamas and the Papas.

35. Sea debris: JETSAM.

37. Eateries' outdoor seating areas: PATIOS.  We have a few here, without problems so far.  It seems that the indoor restaurants and bars have trouble with social distancing.

40. Boater or bowler: HAT.  I am a BOWLER but no one ever called me a hat.  I've been called lots of other names though.

41. Sleeper agent: MOLE.

44. Org. that collects workplace injury data: OSHA.  I remember when Graybar had to reorganize the warehouse stock so nothing heavy fell on my head.

49. "Ouch!": YOW.

50. Take up again: RE-ADOPT.

51. Treatise on verse: POETICS.

53. Confession about the last piece of cake: I ATE IT.

58. Fencing sword: EPEE.  This is not a sign in a men's bathroom.

62. Alan of "M*A*S*H": ALDA.  "The game of life is hard to play, you're gonna lose it anyway."

63. Head of France: TETE.

64. App with pics, familiarly: INSTA. Instagram.

65. Get fresh with: SASS.

66. Canadian gas: ESSO.  "Canadian gas eh"

67. Early fur trader: ASTOR.  John Jacob had a few bucks. 

Down:

1. Org. with the Sun, Storm and Sky: WNBA.  We have the LYNX.  With former star Lindsey Whalen.  She now coaches the Minnesota Gopher Women's team.

2. Go here and there: ROAM.  Montana - Room to Roam.

3. "Life is short" initialism: YOLO. You Only Live Once.

4. "The Neverending Story" author: ENDE. Michael.

5. Adidas subsidiary: REEBOK.  No shoes, but I do have a comfortable pair of stretch pants perfect for bowling.  I also have bowling equipment.  Now all I need is a vaccine.

6. Word that oddly can mean "good" in slang: BAD.  or it could mean "Leroy Brown".

7. Chicken __ king: A LA.  "Oh moon of Alabama, we now must say goodbye". The Doors.

8. Custom-made: BESPOKE.  I used to have these on my beecycle wheels.

9. Sigh, say: EXHALE.

10. Have __ in one's bonnet: A BEE.  I have never owned a bonnet but I have swatted a few bees.

11. Common paint choice for ceilings: FLAT FINISH.  Only for FLAT ceilings.

12. Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer: RASTAS.

13. "I remember now": OH YEAH.

18. Kidnapper's demand: RANSOM.  I have never been kidnapped.  I must not be worth a RANSOM

22. Peruvian pack animal: LLAMA.  Since the Washington team is changing their name, Maybe Chicago NFL team could become the LLAMAs ??  Sorry TTP, I didn't mean it.

24. Neighbor of Greece: Abbr.: ALB.

25. 2016 Olympics city: RIO.  Now they are holding the Covid - 19 Olympiad

27. Attorney General's org.: DOJ.  You may want to pronounce it DODGE.  Oops, no politics.

28. __ v. Wade: ROE.

29. Overwhelmed with diner orders, as a server: IN THE WEEDS.  Where some of my tee shots land.

30. Like Fran Drescher's voice: NASAL.

31. Pics: FOTOS.  This seems to be spelled incorrectly.

36. Pong game maker: ATARI.  I spent hours attacking "PACMAN" back around 1980.  Now he shows up on the computer now and then.

37. Domesticated farm squealer: PET PIG.  Nice to call them pigs.  I think most are not pets, but rather a supply of pork.

38. "What have we here?!": OHO.

39. Carpenter's tool: SAW.

41. The first "M" in the MMR vaccine: MEASLES.  I had measles when I was a kid.  Must have been before the vaccine was invented.

42. Same __ story: OLD.  "Who you callin' OLD."

43. Philosopher __-tzu: LAO.

45. Ambitious, outgoing sorts: TYPE A's.

46. Hubbub: HOOPLA.  Quite a bit going on last weekend.  Celebrating USA's 244th Birthday.

47. Beer named for a Baja city: TECATE.

48. Latin "and others": ET ALIA.

52. High times?: TEAS.  C.C. is the TEA expert in our home.

54. Change for a twenty, maybe: TENS.  I don't think you can get change when spending a twenty,  Everything costs more than that.

55. Toward sunrise: EAST.  Most of the beaches on the EAST coast are closed, but a few are hangin' in there.

56. Analogy words: IS TO.

57. "__ she blows!": THAR.

60. Tie-breakers: Abbr.: OTS.

61. Classical prefix: NEO.

Boomer

Tuesday July 7, 2020 Evan Kalish

Off to the Races:  The word Gate can be placed at the "Start" of the first word of each theme answer to give us a new concept.

19-Across. Outdoor security illumination: FLOOD LIGHTING.  Flood Gates.  Everything you wanted to know about the Flood Gates of New Orleans, but didn't know to ask.

30-Across. Teeth: PEARLY WHITES.  Pearly Gates.

40-Across. First ten U.S. constitutional amendments: BILL OF RIGHTS.  Bill Gates.

William Henry Gates, III (b. Oct. 28, 1955)

And the Unifier:
55-Across. Where horse races begin ... and where the beginning of 19-, 30- and 40-Across might be seen: STARTING GATES.

WARNING:  There is a bad word at the very end of this very funny Video.

Across:

1. Baroque composer of many fugues: BACH.  Remove the "C" and you get 1-Down: Scroogean scoff: BAH!  

The Bach family was very musical, but probably the best known is Johann Sebastian Bach (Mar. 31, 1685 ~ July 28, 1750).  The "forgotten son" of the family was P.D.Q. Bach.

5. "__ did you say?": WHAT.

9. Pageant adornment: SASH.

13. Workout reminder: ACHE.

14. Team instructor: COACH.  Also the name of a company that makes high-end handbags.

15. Stage in an insect's life cycle: PUPA.  Some insects undergo 3 stages, others have a 4 stage life cycle.

16. Stiletto __: shoe part: HEEL.  High heels are really not all that comfortable.  Since the Quar, I have been either been going barefoot, in my gym shoes, or wearing flip-flops.  Not sure I ever want to go back to dress shoes.

17. Waze suggestion: ROUTE.

18. Chief Norse deity: ODIN.  A crossword staple.

22. Tennis toppers: VISORS.

24. Shucked shellfish: OYSTER.  Grilled oysters are a speciality in many restaurants in South Louisiana.

25. German cry: ACH!

26. Tummy muscles: ABs.  This is becoming a crossword staple.

28. Election night graphic: MAP.  Results from the 1900 Presidential election.  Looks like William McKinley (Jan. 29, 1843 ~ Sept. 14, 1901) beat William Jennings Bryan (Mar. 19, 1860 ~ July 26, 1925).

29. Sloppy room metaphor: STY.

34. Caesar's last gasp: ET TU.

35. Gut punch reaction: OOF!

36. __ na tigela: Brazilian berry dish in a bowl: AÇAI.  Açai berry has become a very popular crossword word.  They look like blue berries.

45. "Fill 'er up" fluid: GAS.

48. Michelle Obama __ Robinson: NÉE.  Before she married Barack Obama (b. Aug. 4, 1961) in October, 1992, she was known as Michelle LaVaught Robinson (b. Jan. 17, 1964).

49. Turn on the waterworks: SOB.  I initially tried Cry.

50. Charged particle: ION.  Ions appear with some regularity in the crossword puzzles.

51. Defeat cunningly: OUTFOX.

53. Flat renter: TENANT.  I initially tried Leasee then I tried Renter, before finally settling on Tenant.

59. State with a greeting in its name: OHIO.  //  A shortened version of 4-Down: Word of greeting: HELLO!

60. Apple pie-making tool: CORER.

61. Hoops officials: REFs.  As in Referees.  The ref is in the stripped shirt.

64. Lady's man: LORD.  You, too, can become a Lord or Lady.

65. Egg producer: OVARY.

66. Bridal accessory: VEIL.  Bridal veils can be of varying lengths, as shown below.

67. Approximately: OR SO.

68. Word after user or stage: NAME.  As in User Name or Stage Name.

69. Provocative, as humor: EDGY.

Down:

2. Versatile blackjack card: ACE.

3. Culinary topper: CHEF'S HAT.  The usual crossword answer to a clue like this is Toque.

5. Stove fuel: WOOD.

6. In it for the long __: HAUL.

7. Play opening: ACT I.

8. One blamed for losing a game: THE GOAT.  But GOAT also means Greatest Of All Time.

9. Unchangeable leopard markings, in Jeremiah: SPOTS.  The Biblical phrase can be found in Jeremiah 13:23.

10. IRS-conducted ordeals: AUDITS.

11. Small piano: SPINET.  Here are some sizes and names of keyboard instruments.

12. Irritably needing food: HANGRY.  Hangry is a portmanteau of Hungry and Angry.  There is a physiological reason for this condition.

14. Bing who teamed with Hope in "Road to ..." films: CROSBY.  Bing Crosby (né Harry Lillis Crosby, Jr.; May 3, 1903 ~ Oct. 14, 1977), Bob Hope (né May 29, 1903 ~ July 18, 2003), and Dorothy Lamour (née Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton; Dec. 10, 1914 ~ Sept. 22, 1996) made several "Road to ..." movies that were adventurous, comedic, romantic and musical.

20. Like much lore: ORAL.

21. Pre-release buzz: HYPE.  There was a lot of Hype before the release of the last Star Wars movie.

22. Enjoy an e-cig: VAPE.  This is becoming a crossword staple.

23. Very cool rapper?: ICE T.  Ice T (né Tracy Lauren Marrow; b. Feb. 16, 1958) is also an actor.  He portrayed Detective Odafin Tutuola on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

27. Extremely muscular, in modern parlance: SWOLE.  I am not familiar with this word.  It is derived from the word "swollen", but also describes an extremely muscular physique.

28. Annoys: MIFFS.

31. Massage: RUB.

32. Owl's sound: HOO.  Hand up if your owl said "Who!"

33. Mattress problem: SAG.

37. Smoothie additive also used to sprout "hair" on terracotta "pets": CHIA SEED.

38. Lots and lots: A TON.

39. "__ it obvious?": ISN'T.

41. Playing an extra NBA period: IN OT.  As in In Over Time.

42. Dictionary: LEXICON.  John McWhorter (b. Oct. 6, 1965) is a professor at Columbia University where he teaches English and linguistics.  He also hosts a podcast called Lexicon Valley, which provides fascinating lectures on language etymology.

43. Traffic circle: ROTARY.  These circular traffic intersections go by many names.  We called them roundabouts.  They are supposed to ease the flow of traffic, but sometime it can be difficult to exit if there are too many exit options.

44. "Su-u-ure": I BET!

45. Split with the band, maybe: GO SOLO.  Members of the Beatles began to go solo near the end of the band's run.

46. Novelist, e.g.: AUTHOR.

47. Alternative to a crowded elevator: STAIRS.  I worked on the 7th floor of a 7-story building.  I would usually take the stairs because it was good exercise.

52. Hobbit on a quest: FRODO.  A reference to Frodo Baggins.  I never understood the appeal to the Hobbits.

54. Optic __: NERVE.

56. Starburst?: NOVA.

57. Ma's ma: GRAM.  My maternal grandmother went by Nana.

58. Roberts' "Pretty Woman" co-star: GERE.  Pretty Woman is a 1990 romantic comedy about a "working girl", played by Julia Roberts (b. Oct. 28, 1967), and a wealthy businessman, played by Richard Gere (b. Aug. 31, 1949).

62. Newton fruit: FIG.  Fun Facts about the Fig Newton.

63. Sneaky: SLY.

Here's the Grid:

QOD:  It's fine to celebrate success, but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure.  ~  Bill Gates (b. Oct. 28, 1955)

Monday July 6th, 2020 Jeff Stillman

Theme: Cartoon Catchwords

18. Catchwords from Bart Simpson: AY CARAMBA.

20. Catchwords from Ren: YOU EEDIOT.

35. Catchwords from Fred Flintstone: YABBA DABBA DOO.

52. Catchwords from Charlie Brown: GOOD GRIEF.

54. Catchword from a Ninja Turtle: COWABUNGA.

Boomer here.  

Happy Monday and I hope everyone stayed safe over the holiday weekend.  C.C. and I stayed pretty close to home while the southern part of our USA seemed to soar with Covid problems.  Last year here in Minnesota we had four days with a high temp of 90+ degrees.  We had that many last week with more to come. Our Monday golf was rained out, so a couple of friends and I played a par 72 course last Thursday. I was wiped out and I lost about 8 pounds. My clothes were so sweaty that C.C. helped me peel them off.  However I made it with no serious health reaction but I think my next round will be in the 80s.  The temp, not my score.

Across:

1. IRS form experts: CPAS. Certified Public Account however in my career with Graybar as a pricing manager our CPA was a Customer Price Authority.

5. Computer data unit: BYTE.

9. MLB's Indians, on scoreboards: CLE.  Rumor has it that this will change soon.  But first we may see a new name for the Washington NFL team.

12. Natural history museum piece: RELIC.

14. __ beef: ROAST.  I like ROAST beef, but I also enjoyed the Celebrity Roasts, mostly from Las Vegas.

16. Put on TV: AIR.  Some of it is Hot AIR, just like our weather.

17. First Hebrew letter: ALEPH.

22. Pretty pitcher: EWER.

23. Giant of a Giant Mel: OTT.  Hall of Famer who played a little before my time. In fact, his last season was the year I was born.

24. Rx orders: MEDS.  I get to take 8 prescribed pills daily plus a couple of over the counter MEDS.  They seem to be working so far.

25. Proves to be false: BELIES.

27. "m" and "n" sounds: NASALS.  Another NASAL sound is blowing your nose.

29. "Far out, dude!": RAD.

30. Greatest possible degree: NTH.  Sounds like our Minnesota Temps last week.

31. Decorated the walls, in a way: PAPERED.  Our walls are all painted.

34. James of blues: ETTA.  I remember ETTA KETT in the comics in the 60s.

38. Speaker's place: DAIS.

39. In perfect circumstances: IDEALLY.  It's a wonderful toy, it's IDEAL

40. City trains above the street: ELS. Or one of my favorite Golfers, ERNIE.

41. React to sad news: CRY.

42. Twins Mary-Kate and Ashley: OLSENS.

46. Dudes: FELLAS.

48. Sheet of ice: FLOE.  I am sure it all melted here.  But ice fishing season is just around the corner.

50. By way of, in itineraries: VIA.

51. Lager or pilsner: BEER.  Beer, Beer, Beer said the privates, happy men are we.  There's none so fair as can compare with the fighting infantry.

56. Designer Nina: RICCI.  I only remember Toni RICCI who was Abby Carmichael's friend on "Law and Order".  RICCI was murdered in the episode.

57. Airline once owned by Howard Hughes: TWA.  I think TWA was one of Howard's toys.  He bought a few hotels and a bunch of land on Las Vegas Boulevard and made a ton of $$$$.

58. Done in, as a dragon: SLAIN.

59. Furry swimmer: OTTER.  I keep thinking of  "Animal House".

60. Cagey: SLY. and the Family Stone.

61. "Green" Vt. peaks: MTNS.  From the MTNS, to the Prairies, to the Ocean white with foam ...

62. To be, to Brutus: ESSE. 

Down:

1. Kid's coloring stick: CRAYON.  Crayola has been around a long time.  I had a box when I was young.

2. Jai alai ball: PELOTA.

3. Indigenous Alaskan islanders: ALEUTS.

4. '70s-'80s quarterback Brian: SIPE.  He managed 10 ordinary years with the Cleveland Browns.

5. Interweave, as hair: BRAID.  My hair is not long enough.

6. "Around the world" toys: YO-YOS.  Duncans were the best.  I could do Around the Worlds, Walk the dog, and a bunch more.

7. Mediator's forte: TACT.  As you can tell by my expos, I do not have a lot of TACT.

8. That, in Madrid: ESA.

9. Inherited, as a lot of money: CAME INTO. Not me, but I did win $80.00 in Las Vegas last February. Then they had to close the casinos.  I never thought I would strain them financially.

10. Opera text: LIBRETTO.

11. Chapter in history: ERA.

13. School course with beakers: CHEM LAB.  I cannot remember if I ever told this story.  We had a chem lab in high school and the teacher was Earl Thompson who was about 5 feet six inches tall.  Larry Mikan was in chemistry class and he may have been struggling and his father, George, of the Minneapolis Lakers came for a conference.  Sorry but I had to chuckle.

15. Trapped on a branch, say: TREED.

19. Hole-making tool: AWL.

21. Abandons all hope: DESPAIRS.  GIVES UP did not quite fit.

25. Hostile feelings, as between feuding families: BAD BLOOD.

26. __ Na Na: SHA.  That group used to sing some of my favorites.  Especially Bowser.

28. Alerts from the LAPD: APBS.  All Points Bulletins. Are there a lot of points in LA?

29. Country star McEntire: REBA.  Great singer!  I think she has done a couple of gigs at our State Fair in August. C.C. and I have been to the fair a few  times in St. Paul.  Unfortunately it has been cancelled this year.

32. Water whirled: EDDY.

33. Female name that's a body part backwards: RAE.  What ??  I have to turn around to hear you.

34. Ice cream brand: EDY'S.

35. Home of the Ivy League's Bulldogs: YALE BOWL.  I suppose YALE will be open in the fall.  It does not look good for BOWL Centers.  Do not call the building ALLEYS and those things inside the Bowling Centers are called LANES. Thank you. 

36. Warehouse passage: AISLEWAY.  This might be called a LANE also.

37. Swiftly, to Schubert: ALLEGRO.

38. Dict. meaning: DEF.  Definition of course.  I am old enough to remember dictionaries.  If you cannot, you can always Google one.

41. Atkins diet concern: CARBS.  I've been loading up to try and get the weight back I left on the golf course last Thursday.

43. Forces out: EVICTS.  Sadly there have been quite a few during the unemployment caused by the virus.  We have a few tent cities in some of our public city parks.

44. Nephews' sisters: NIECES.

45. "On Language" columnist William: SAFIRE.

47. Grazing locale: LEA.  Minnesota has the city of Albert Lea.  I think he was a founding citizen.  I don't think he grazed.

48. Paralyze with mist, as an airport: FOG IN.  We don't see much fog.  We did have a snow problem at MSP last February. Oddly, C.C. and I were delayed many hours.  MSP Airport these days probably says goodbye to one jet every hour.

49. Student financing options: LOANS.

52. Tiny biter: GNAT.

53. Baptism or bris: RITE.

54. Pennies: Abbr.: CTS.

55. Einstein's birth city: ULM.  Minnesota also has a city named NEW ULM.  Home of "Herman the German".  I bowled a State Tournament there once at their Bowling CENTER.

  

 Good luck to you, Abejo!

Abejo and Harvey, the Knights Templar, 2013

Boomer