Theme: FIRST THINGS FIRST
(61. "Start at the beginning," and a hint to the four other longest
Across answers) - First can precede the first word of each theme entry.
18. 2010s sci-fi crime drama starring Michael Emerson: PERSON OF INTEREST. First person.
24. Completed in haste: DOWN AND DIRTY. First down.
39. Equine sprinter: QUARTER HORSE. First quarter.
53. Pull-and-peel food item: STRING CHEESE. First string.
Boomer here again, filling in another blogging gap, blogging another 16x15 grid.
I lived in Hopkins Minnesota from 1952 to 1997. Although I went to a Catholic High School in a neighboring suburb, my three sisters all went to Hopkins High. The reason I mention this is because a recent graduate named Paige Bueckers graduated from Hopkins last year after tearing up the Lake Conference and is now shooting hoops for UConn in the NCAA Tournament. I am not a huge Basketball fan but I am waiting for Major League Baseball starting the end of this week. Go Twins!
.jpg/320px-7_Paige_Bueckers_(cropped_2).jpg)
Across:
6. "Ditto!": SO AM I. Yup!
11. Qatar's capital: DOHA.
15. Largest members of the dolphin family: ORCAS. They are huge fish. I do not think any are swimming around in the pool at Tampa Bay's Stadium.
16. B's equivalent: C FLAT.
17. Iridescent gem: OPAL.
21. Two after epsilon: ETA. I was never any good at the Greek alphabet. But I know Alpha and Beta.
22. Full Sail offering: ALE. Canada Dry zero sugar Ginger ALE is one of my favorites.
23. "Rats!": DANG. I sometimes use a different word when I miss a ten pin.
30. Bill collection?: WAD. Nice to think about, but only if they are Benjamins.
32. Diva's numbers: SOLOS.
33. Stalls: BUYS TIME. Talk about BUYING TIME? I was watching the match play golf on TV last weekend and it took those guys forever to play.
35. NBA official: REF. They have a rough time in the NCAA Tournament.
37. "I'll skip it": PASS. The REF has to make a quick decision about whether a PASS was okay.
38. Noodle output?: IDEA.
42. Leave speechless: STUN.
44. "Silly me!": OOPS. DANG, I missed another Ten Pin.
45. Discouraging words: NOS.
46. NBC drama with two pronouns in its title: THIS IS US.
48. Brass in parades: TUBAS. I don't remember seeing TUBAS in
parades. They are big and heavy and not comfortable to walk down a
street two miles or more while wearing a band uniform on a hot summer
day.
52. Name that's also a Roman numeral: LIV. Super Bowl LIV was a year or two ago. Liv Tyler is the daughter of Steve Tyler.
57. Dresden denial: NEIN. I was in Germany once and learned this word first.
59. Castle queenside, in chess notation: OOO.
60. "Atonement" author McEwan: IAN.
67. Smoothie berry: ACAI.
68. Traffic cop?: NARCO. Drug traffic. 31. Anti-traffic org.: DEA.
69. More loyal: TRUER. TRUER words were never spoken.
70. Ping-Pong supplies: NETS. The Puzzlemaster Will Shortz is an avid player.
71. Kids: TYKES. I never got a chance to coach high school
bowling this year. They are kids but I think they might have to be
younger to be called TYKES.
72. Showing one's claws, so to speak: CATTY.
Down:
2. Playground rebuttal: ARE TOO. YES I AM!
3. Prescription, to a layperson?: SCRAWL. Hmmm. I don't think mine are SCRAWLED. They just show up in my mailbox on time, and C.C. keeps track.
4. Remote batteries: AAS. Very popular and necessary. We have a drawer full of them.
5. Prefix with metric: ISO.
6. Take to task: SCOLD.
7. Did in: OFFED.
8. Whom Clay became: ALI. Cassius Clay.
9. Fellow: MAN.
10. Wednesday kin: ITT. Proud member of the Addams Family but I cannot remember if ITT was a girl or a boy ??
11. TV explorer with a monkey named Boots: DORA.
12. Hygienist's request: OPEN WIDE. Wife's request - SHUT UP !
13. Can really play: HAS GAME. We'll see how many Major Leaguers HAVE GAME next week.
14. Ctrl-__-Del: ALT. I would stay away from the sequence.
19. Photographer Goldin: NAN.
20. Freezer aisle brand: EDYS. I've been eating Breyer's for dessert. They have no sugar added.
25. Shutout feature: NO RUNS. How many Pitchers will HAVE GAME ??
26. Crossing the pond, say: ASEA. He joined the Navy, to see the world but he only saw the SEA.
27. Pronoun-shaped girders: I BARS.
28. Hurry: RUSH. Speaking of RUSH. We lost Mr. Limbaugh a few weeks ago.
29. Emmy winner Cicely: TYSON.
34. Crying need: TISSUE. Okay if I just call it a Kleenex?
36. Cold coat: FROST. It looks like we Minnesotans might have to wait until November to see our breath outside again.
37. __ Challenge: soft drink promotion: PEPSI. That's my other soft drink, Diet Pepsi next to the zero sugar Ginger Ale.
39. Shake in fear over: QUIVER AT.
40. Series of dates: TOUR.
41. With 66-Down, nest egg option: ROTH. 66. See 41-Down: IRA. I have a regular IRA. I never understood the Roth kind. It seemed to have a lot of ifs, ands and buts.
42. Cardinal letters: STL. Home of the Arch. If you want to
take a ride to the top, it takes 45 minutes. I did not go. Instead I
visited the Bowling Hall of Fame. I was not in it and I heard that it
has been moved to Texas.
43. Metaphor for a treacherous situation: THIN ICE. It's not a metaphor here. We have laws to take ice fishing houses off the lakes by earlier this month.
47. Ain't right?: ISN'T.
49. Lebanon's capital: BEIRUT. Didn't he hit 714 Home Runs for the Yankees?
50. How flatware is usually sold: AS A SET. I always called it silverware, even though it was some other kind of metal.
51. Guard at the gate: SENTRY.
54. Time being: NONCE.
55. "We Got the Beat" group: GO GOS. You cannot fool me. This goes back to the 1970s. Are they still around?
56. Trig. ratio: COS.
58. Goddess with cow's horns: ISIS.
61. Ceiling fixture: FAN. We have one of these but we seldom use it. It can keep you awake.
62. Big bang letters?: TNT. Turner Network Television. It has
some classic old movies sometimes. I never knew that Ronnie Howard was
in "The Music Man" until I saw it on TNT.
63. Mare's meal: HAY. Mare's eat oats and Does eat oats, and Little Lambs eat Ivy.
64. Really bug: IRK.
65. Consumer protection org.: FTC.
Boomer
