Life is Short. Eat Dessert First. The circles spell out order of courses in a meal, but spelled backwards, or in Reverse. Technically, to be in reverse order, we would also start with Dessert and end with the Appetizers.
20-Across. Trousers with tool-carrying pockets and loops: CARPENTER PANTS. STARTER, or as I would say, Appetizer.
30-Across. "So glad I don't have to deal with that": BETTER YOU THAN ME. ENTRÉE.
38-Across. Goal of meditation, perhaps: STRESS REDUCTION. DESSERT.
And the unifier:
51-Across. Backpedaled, or what's found in 20-, 30-, and 38-Across: REVERSED COURSE.
What other tasty morsels are in today's puzzle?
Across:
1. Facing attack from all sides: BESET.
6. Getup: GARB.
10. Target's target, for one: LOGO.
14. "Well done!": BRAVO.
15. Double-reed woodwind: OBOE. Oboes appear often in the crossword puzzles.
16. Each, informally: A POP.
17. Uses as evidence in a research paper: CITES.
18. Run a rag over: WIPE.
19. Tuckered out: BEAT.
23. Elite squads: A-TEAMS.
24. Bubble source, maybe: GUM.
25. __ Lanka: SRI. The formal name of Sri Lanka is the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. From 1948 to May 1972, the country was known as Ceylon. The country is the tear-shaped island in the Indian Ocean, separated from India by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait.
26. Give up, in an idiom: CUT BAIT.
35. Broke bread: ATE.
36. Amazement: AWE.
37. "By __ way ... ": THE. I textspeak, this would be BTW.
45. Lifestyle brand with origins in surf culture: HANG TEN.
46. "Yeah, right!": HAH!
47. Liquor in a bee's knees cocktail: GIN. The phrase "Bee's Knees" was slang in the 1920s, which means something was The Best! The cocktail came about during the Prohibition-era cocktail. It's a drink made with gin, lemon juice and honey.
48. Fitting measurement: INSEAM.
56. Desertlike: ARID.
57. Layered cookie: OREO.
58. Whirlpool subsidiary: AMANA. Amana is the "budget-friendly" line of Whirlpool appliances.
60. __ de gallo: salsa choice: PICO. Yummers! Pico de Gallo is a chunky salsa made with tomatoes, onion, jalapeno peppers, and lime juice.
61. "Hot To Go!" singer Chappell: ROAN. Chappell Roan's given name is Kayleigh Rose Amstutz (b. Feb. 19, 1998). I am not familiar with her music.
62. Resonates, as a successful joke: LANDS.
63. Witnessed: SEEN.
64. IDs that never begin with 666: SSNs. As in Social Security Numbers.
65. Punctuation in a web address: SLASH.
Down:
1. "EastEnders" airer: BBC. EastEnders is a British soap opera that has been running on British television since 1985.
2. Oldest child on "The Goldbergs": ERICA. The Goldbergs was a sitcom that ran for 10 years, from 2013 to 2023.
3. Occupied, as a diner booth: SAT AT.
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| Nighthawks, by Edward Hopper |
4. "Into Thin Air" mountain peak: EVEREST. Into Thin Air, by Jon Krakauer is the 1997 non-fiction book about fateful expedition climbing Mt. Everest in 1996. During the climb, a storm arise, killing 8 hikers and stranding several more. I highly recommend this book.
5. More than is needed: TO SPARE.
6. Bridal shop selections: GOWNS.
7. "You haven't changed __!": A BIT.
8. Tire swing line: ROPE.
9. Potbelly: BEER GUT.
10. Ritchie Valens hit: LA BAMBA. Ritchie Valens (né Richard Steven Valenzuela; May 13, 1941 ~ Feb. 3, 1949) was only 17 years old when he was killed in a plane crash. Although he had several hits, he is best known for La Bamba.
11. Doing business: OPEN.
12. Farm animal in some yoga classes: GOAT. This is not a form I yoga that I want to try. Where did this idea even come from?
13. Makes a choice: OPTS.
21. Dubai dignitary: EMIR.
22. "How Long" singer Charlie: PUTH. I had never heard of Charlie Puth (né Charles Otto Puth, Jr.; b. dec. 2, 1991) before his appearance in this puzzle. Strangely, however, while I was driving this week, his name popped up on my radio screen and one of his songs was playing. Apparently, he got is name out there from posting his songs on YouTube.
26. Prompted on stage: CUED.
27. Against: ANTI.
28. "If u ask me ... ": IMHO. Textspeak for In My Humble Opinion.
29. Many a promgoer: TEEN.
30. Big blast: BASH.
31. "At Last" singer James: ETTA. It's nice to see our old friend Etta James (née Jamesetta Hawkins; Jan. 25, 1938 ~ Jan. 20, 2012) visits us again.
32. Arctic seabird: TERN. Tern or Ern? What's the difference?
 |
| Tern |
 |
| Ern |
33. Crochet need: YARN.
34. Be behind, in a way: OWE.
39. Spurred to action: EGGED ON.
40. Tend to risotto: STIR. It takes a lot of stirring, but the end result is tasty.
41. Motion detectors for automatic doors: SENSORS.
42. "Yeah, try again": UH, NO!
43. Informal clothing: CASUALS.
44. Rising current of warm air: THERMAL.
48. Significant figures: ICONS.
49. Yoga pose: ASANA. Yoga can be done without goats.
50. Fixes: MENDS.
51. Hard knocks?: RAPS.
52. Source of Buffalo's lake-effect snow: ERIE. Buffalo, New York is one of the snowiest cities in the United States.
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| Snow in Buffalo, New York |
53. Moral shortcoming: VICE.
54. Cupid's counterpart: EROS. Eros is the Greek god of love and Cupid is the Roman god of love.
55. Academic administrator with a list: DEAN.
59. Barbecue residue: ASH.
That's this week's meal.
חתולה
When “the circles”
ReplyDeletedidn’t make sense reading the usual way, I tried reading them backwards and got my “Aha!” moment.
So I was all primed for the reveal, and almost knew what it had to be even before filling it in!
So this puzzle was pretty easy for me, and
FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteMy CARPENTER began life as CARGO -- wrong pants. PICO is mandatory with Tex-Mex fajitas; here in the southland the ingredient list must include cilantro. Ritchie Valens died shortly after releasing LA BAMBA in the plane crash that also took the lives of Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper. D-o tried to make sense of the circled letters, but really needed the reveal to bring it home. Thanx, Dylan and Hahtoolah. (That Off The Mark cartoon was priceless.)
Don McLean referred to the plane crash that killed Ritchie Valens, The Big Bopper and Buddy Holly as the Day the Music Died.
DeleteQOD: By the time you’re 80 years old, you’ve learned everything. You only have to remember it. ~ George Burns (né Nathan Birnbaum; Jan. 20, 1896 ~ Mar. 9, 1996), American comedian and actor
FIR, but not->HEH, in use->SAT AT, and veils->GOWNS.
ReplyDeleteI second the BRAVO for Into Thin Air. The author was basically left for dead on EVEREST, a bit prematurely as it turned out.
Big week for me. I'm finally getting my new patient visit with a cardiologist this morning, then my permanent crown this afternoon, then getting my Mohs stitches removed Thursday.
Thanks to Dylan for the Tuesday fun. And thanks to Ha2la for another fine tour. My favorites were OREO 51 and Frank and Ernest.
FLN - Congrats on your windfall from your FIL's collection. I had a few valuable items, but all told less than $1,000.
Frank and Ernest reminds me of this clip from Long Kiss Goodnight
DeleteFIR. As usual I ignored the circles. The puzzle essentially was very easy. When I got to the reveal I went back to see what those pesky circles were all about. I admit it was clever, albeit totally unnecessary.
ReplyDeleteOverall an enjoyable puzzle.
A fairly easy puzzle and clever theme.
ReplyDelete46A “yeah, right” … crossing ….42D “yeah, try again” is pure dreck and a nose wrinkler.
Chappell Roan had a catchy hit song last Spring called “Pink Pony Club”. I have it on my playlist.
I waited until the end to write out the circled letters as they didn't help the solve. But Dylan's reveal proved to be clever. And I liked that the meal was in order, at least until Hahtoolah mentioned they probably should be reversed as well.
ReplyDeleteI lived in Syracuse, NY in my youth, and we got our intense lake-effect snow from Lake Ontario. I remember sitting by the radio hoping for the announcement of another snow day. And the incredible Blizzard of '66!
Hahtoolah nailed the review, as usual. Thanks for the ern/tern pics. I've seen them forever in xwords but never bothered to look them up!