Wednesday, Dec 24th, 2025 ~ Leslie Young

NOT "16"

...and not "8" - she needs better math skills

Leslie Young, née (oooh, I got to use it for real~! ) Leslie Rogers, was part of this collaboration here at the LA Times, and has been published in a few other places as well.  I really liked the theme today - a solid, non-reveal type that has multiple examples of the common 4x4, "four by four" term we use day to day.  All the themers are unique, cosisting of always-hard-to-use, 12-letter fills ( or, 4x3 if you like ), in a standard grid, and none of the trite trappings - NO circles (yay), just a few names, a few abbrs, and nothing vague or "meh".  The FOUR themers;

19. Where to find a sturdy 4x4: THE HOME DEPOT - my "second" home; A 4x4 in this instance actually starts as lumber four inches by four inches square, but once dried and planed, measures 3-1/2" x 3-1/2" - and a judge upheld this "nominal" terminology.  I used a short one for the center leg of this table I made as a Christmas present for my brother.

My first try at epoxy, too

26. Where to find a caloric 4x4: IN N' OUT BURGER - there are no locations of this west-coast franchise beyond TX ( TN is next ) as of 2025 - a 4x4 is this mouth-watering construction

My trainer would tell me this is my entire daily caloric intake in one sa'mich

42. Where to find an adventurous 4x4: OFF-ROAD TRAIL - the "classic" definition of a 4x4, which is a 'truck' with all four wheels powered; nowadays, there's also "all-wheel drive" - A.I. says this is the original four-wheel drive - the Wiki

Great sales pitch imagery

51. Where to find an athletic 4x4: RUNNING TRACK - I had to look this one up, as I am not "athletic", per se; it's the 4 x 400 meter dash - more from this website

An'  A w
!          a
~         y
o G  eW


ACROSS:

1. Gift wrapping need: TAPE - For all those "last minute" Christmas types, of which I was once a part, you now have less than 24hrs to minimum safe distance . . . 

5. Sound in "The Addams Family" theme song: SNAP - Twice, preceded by; Du-Du-Du DUM

9. Dramatic haircut: CHOP

13. Jazz legend Fitzgerald: ELLA - name #1

14. Award presented at the World Science Fiction Convention: HUGO - name #2 - I am a voracious reader, and I switch between Crime/Detective/Mystery & Sci-Fi to change it up, so I knew what a "Hugo Award" was; can anyone recommend an author from any of these genres~?  I am looking to read someone new...

15. Origami bird: CRANE

16. Fortnite's company: EPIC GAMES - Learned by doing crosswords; more here

18. Noodle dish: RAMEN

21. "You __ to be there": "HAD"- wouldn't be Wednesday without a Monday dupe . . . .

22. Tug-of-__: WAR

23. Endless expanse: OCEAN - wouldn't be Wednesday without a Monday dupe . . . .

30. Shadowboxes: SPARS

33. Disapproving chorus: BOOs

34. Brew that may be hazy: IPA - getting to be a cliché fill now

35. Lines that are often blue: URLs - like this

36. Out of it: LOOPY - I have been there....

38. Glitz: GLAM - Two weeks in a row with "GLAM" for me

39. Stock quote?: MOO - cattle = stock, cows 'say' moo - clever clue/answer

40. Took a tumble: FELL

41. In one's __: emotional: FEELS - never heard this phrase; the "F" was my last "eff-in" fill

46. Drummer twice inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: STARR - Ringo, and I learned today the second induction was as a solo artist in 2015; name #3

And previously as the drummer for The Beatles

47. Subj. for an aspiring polyglot: ESL - polyglot = knowing or using several (English as Second) Language(s)

48. Faux __: PAS - Foe Paaah, Frawnche, "false step"

55. Baggage __: CLAIM - I have not been in an airport for over 20yrs, and I don't travel much anymore - two weeks ago, I had some questions from Cornerites; unclefred asked about the pipe organ job - I left in February as I felt I was not being given the chance to grow into the company - and then they changed owners in June, as well ... see also 31D.

58. Eight-sided solids: OCTAHEDRA - Dungeons & Dragons fans know . . . .

59. Provokes: BAITS

60. Backup camera's view: REAR

61. Send out: EMIT

62. Quick and nimble: SPRY

63. Blend together: MELD

64. Dull: FADE - the verb instead of the adjective

DOWN:

1. Pearly whites: TEETH

2. Omega opposite: ALPHA - it's all Greek to me . . . .

3. Practiced, as a trade: PLIED - I am learning much as I ply(wood) my new trade as a handyman member of Home Advisor on the Angi app; just finished this bar for a client 

Home Depot 1x oak boards and 3/4" oak plywood - a learned a few "bar" things, too

4. Per person: EACH

5. Spiritual healer: SHAMAN - good WAG on my part

6. Dos, por ejemplo: NUMERO - Español, 'two', but I didn't suss the 'No.' connection

7. Like black vinegar: AGED - I have never heard of 'black' vinegar

8. Billy Porter series about 1980s ball culture: POSE - name #4, totally unknown to me; "ball" refers to ballroom culture, the Wiki on that; here's Billy Porter's Wiki

9. Result of a blast from the past?: CRATER

That'll leave a mark....

10. Cordon bleu meat: HAM

11. End of a countdown: ONE - Give it a week, and "Yule" understand this clue/answer

12. Write: PEN - I am still gathering ideas for my own Sci-Fi book/screenplay

15. Early spring bloomer: CROCUS - I found out ASTER "comes up", er, short

17. Met Gala garb: GOWNS - Dah~!  Got suckered by the lack of  'plural' in the clue

I'm down with the gown~!

20. NOLA sandwich: PO'BOY - I am reading James Lee Burke's Robicheaux series - the main character Dave is an alcoholic cop who goes to AA, set in Lousiana. ( CSO to Big Easy & Hahtoolah ), name(ish)

24. Quick and nimble: AGILE

25. Annapurna's country: NEPAL - filled via perps

In the center

26. W-2 org.: IRS - Death & Taxes, or, phonetically, the "hearse and the irse"

27. Horseshoe-shaped fastener: U-BOLT

28. Spinner: TOP

29. Merino males: RAMS - Motorized Machines, too

I worked with a guy who liked to point out "Ram in front, Dodge behind"

30. Japan's national sport: SUMO - does make sense

31. Tenured employees, for short: PROFs - ...and Prof M asked two weeks ago why the "~"~?  It started waaay back in texts - I like to see an "!" stand out from a "1", "or an "l", and it just went from there

32. Floating in the air: ALOFT

36. Get the hang of: LEARN

37. Word before some language names: OLD - Old Enlgish, Old Norse, e.g.

38. Insole option: GEL

40. Subreddits, e.g.: FORUMS - should this be forA~?  Or am I being too forMAL~?

41. Sordid matter: FILTH - "I read this disgusting filth. Twice."

43. Triple play, for one: RARITY - Did C.C. know this fact~?

44. Vacation cottage, often: RENTAL - Ah.  Not  A-FRAME - but 50% correct letter-wise

45. Realm in Norse cosmology: ASGARD - that's the "A" word I could not recall; name #5

48. "Love, Loss, and What We Ate" memoirist Lakshmi: PADMA - no clue, filled via perps, and I WAGed the last "A", since I misunderstood what "DULL" referred to at 64A.  Name #6

49. Pungent: ACRID - but I nailed this one

50. Walk on water, essentially: SKATE - har-har....

NY Rangers and the NHL's highest-paid goalie, Igor Shesterkin~!

52. Convention: NORM - here's a simply complicated explanation

53. Slushy drink: ICEE

54. "Finding Nemo" setting: REEF - A-ha; OCEAN was in the grid already, and SEA was too short

55. Network with an eye on television: CBS

56. F1 unit: LAP - Formula One racing

57. Yoga ball filler: AIR - I think the girl in this GIF gets some air . . . .

Wednesday Splynter, Signing Off . . . . see you next year~! 

Grid Flow was a low 26.0

Merry Christmas, Festivus, and Happy New Year~!