Don't leave mad, just leave.
20-Across. Departure instructions for an ornithologist?: LEAVE THE NEST. Birds leave the Nest.
35-Across. Departure instructions for a railway worker?: MAKE TRACKS. Railway workers leave the Tracks.
42-Across. Departure instructions for a student pilot?: TAKE FLIGHT. Pilots leave when they take Flight.
And the unifier:
53-Across. Plan for ending involvement, or an apt title for this puzzle: EXIT STRATEGY.
Here's the grid:
Across:
1. Closes, as a parka: ZIPS.
10. Morning joe: JAVA.
14. Prepare for publication: EDIT.
15. Secret stash: CACHE.
16. Decorative pitcher in still lifes: EWER.
 |
| Still Life with Ewer, by Willem Kalf |
17. Silicon Valley city Palo __: ALTO.
18. Catchall option on a survey: OTHER.
19. Smartphone message: TEXT.
24. Behr product: PAINT.
31. Green vegetable in a pod: PEA.
33. Soccer star Hamm: MIA. Mia Hamm (née Mariel Margaret Hamm, b. Mar. 17, 1972) is an American former professional soccer player, two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion. She played as a forward for the United States national team from 1987 to 2004.
39. Box office bomb: FLOP.
40. Stadium: ARENA.
41. Eccentric fellow: COOT. Also a water bird.
45. Blackjack card: ACE.
46. Spearheaded: LED.
47. Back tooth: MOLAR.
50. Tiny bits: IOTAS.
59. Bowl over: STUN.
62. Unpleasant, as weather: NASTY.
63. Speck in the ocean: ISLE.
64. Machu Picchu country: PERU. // And 54-Down. Machu Picchu native: INCA. Machu Picchu will really take your breath away.
65. Crossword hints: CLUES.
66. Old Testament brother: CAIN. // And 56. Old Testament brother: ESAU. So many choices here. I had to wait for the down answer to find Cain, who slew Abel. This biblical story is the basic theme of John Steinbeck's novel East of Eden. Esau was the fraternal twin brother of the patriarch, Jacob. Jacob and Esau were the sons of Isaac and Rebekah.
68. Bright-eyed: ALERT.
69. Underwater vessels: SUBS.
1. Unbridled enthusiasm: ZEAL.
2. Loafing around: IDLE. Not to be confused with Eric Idle, who is anything but.
 |
| Eric Idle (b. Mar. 29, 1943) |
4. Hat worn by Abraham Lincoln: STOVE PIPE.
5. "Severance" star Adam: SCOTT. Adam Scott (né Adam Paul Scott) also portrayed Ben Wyatt on Parks and Recreation. I tried watching Severance, but quickly got bored.
6. Spinning shaper in a woodshop: LATHE.
7. Earthy pigment: OCHER. This pigment contains ferric oxide, which gives it varying shades light yellow to brown or red.
9. Roll-call response: HERE.
10. Volkswagen sedan: JETTA.
12. Irk: VEX.
13. Museum collection: ART.
21. Coast Guard rank: Abbr.: ENS. As in Ensign. The Coast Guard Ensign is the most junior commissioned officer rank.
22. Practice boxing: SPAR.
25. "That works for me": I'M COOL.
26. Inventor Tesla: NIKOLA. Nikola Tesla (July 9, 1856 ~ Jan. 7, 1943) was a Croatian-American inventor and futurist. He is best known for designing the AC electrical system, the global standard for power transmission. In 1898, he also invented a remote-controlled boat.
28. Flowy robe with long sleeves: CAFTAN.
29. Loosen, as a shoe: UNLACE.
30. Novelist Bram who created Dracula: STOKER. Bram Stoker (né Abraham Stoker; Nov. 8, 1847 ~ Apr. 20, 1912) was an Irish novelist. He is best known for writing the 1897 novel Dracula, the Transylvanian vampire. and the creator of the fictional character Count Dracula. Stoker never went to Transylvania, but did a lot of research to create its environs.
32. Coup d'__: sudden regime change: ETAT.
35. Like green-headed mallards: MALE.
36. Extremely dry: ARID.
37. Beer barrel: KEG.
38. Word puzzles with hidden messages: ACROSTICS.
43. Move a muscle: FLEX.
47. Goat's bleat: MAA.
49. Event site: VENUE. Radio City Music Hall is the venue of the Rockettes. Did you know that the Rockettes are celebrating their 100th anniversary this year? The dance troupe was actually founded in St. Louis, Missouri in 1925 before moving to New York in 1932. They were first known as the Missouri Rockets. The venue has a seating capacity of just under 6,000!
51. Furry swimmer: OTTER.
52. Lovers' meeting: TRYST.
55. Like skyscrapers: TALL.
57. Smooth-talking: GLIB.
58. Cravings: YENS. Not to be confused with the currency of Japan.
58. Cravings: YENS. Not to be confused with the currency of Japan.
59. Pampering place: SPA.
61. Web address: URL. As in Universal Resource Locator. This has become a crossword staple.
~~~~~~~
Apropos of yesterday's puzzle, and of special interest to Lucina, Idris Elba has just been knighted. According to the chart that Sumdaze provided, being a knight is a lower ranking noble, but still an honor to our dear actor.
We will miss you dearly, Sumdaze. All the best to you and I hope you pop in to see us on occasion.
חתולה
4 comments:
Not too tough, and the
gimmick was kind of fun.
I don’t have anything else to say
about this puzzle except
FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
"Leave The Nest" reminded me that we saw baby ducks leap from a treetop nest, plummet to the ground, bounce, and then waddle off. Amazing they weren't killed. They didn't learn to fly, but they did TAKE FLIGHT. "Machu Picchu will really take your breath away" -- methinks it's altitude. Thanks to both Susans for today's entertainment. Even d-o got the theme. Yay.
FIR without erasure.
Behr PAINT is primarily found in Home Depot, but HD doesn't own the brand. The brand is owned by the same company that owns Delta and Peerless faucets.
I have a 10:30 dentist appointment today to fill a couple of cavities up front, and to remove a crown from one of my MOLARS. Not looking forward to the visit.
No idea about the clued Adam SCOTT. I would have immediately known "former world #1 player in professional golf Adam."
Back in the day my wife and I set up our own wine tasting. We bought eight bottles of Chardonnet, from el cheapo to fairly expensive. We arranged them in random order, then tasted them and ranked them in order of preference. Both of us ranked them in the exact order of their costs, with the most expensive being our top selection. (We were trying to disprove that price and taste were directly correlated, but failed.)
Thanks to Susan for teh fun puzzle, and to Ha2la for another fun review.
FIR. Somewhat easy Tuesday fare. There wasn't much to dislike today except maybe a few proper names I didn't know.
I liked the theme and lot. It was quite clever.
So overall an enjoyable puzzle.
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