Tuesday, June 30, 2026 ~ Scott Earl & Katherine Baicker

Pocket Money

Good day Cornerites! Today, Scott & Katherine give us some things you can scratch. Let's take a look...

17. Old 45, perhaps: VINYL RECORD. Run DMC talked about doing Walk this Way w/ Aerosmith. They had no idea who Aerosmith was except it was the scratch on Track 4 of that Toys in the Attic album which all street rappers used. Here's a 45 where the B-side is the bigger hit -- it better not be scratched...

A-Side

B-Side

24. Hiker's annoyance: INSECT BITE. Those make ya' scratch.

35. Lucky purchase, one hopes: LOTTERY TICKET. The Big Money!

We had LOTERIA in my last Tuesday expo

48. Yen for adventure: TRAVEL ITCH. If you've got the time & scratch, scratch that itch.

57. "Never mind!," or what could be said about 17-, 24-, 35-, or 48-Across: SCRATCH THAT.

Close enough.

Across:

1. "Heated Rivalry" co-star Williams: HUDSON. A TV show of two hockey players on rival teams hiding their romance. Heard of it but never seen it.

7. Mountain goat with long horns: IBEX.

Alpine ibex

11. Pigpen: STY.

No.  This is Pig-Pen

14. Boxer's punch combo: ONE-TWO.

15. The whole __ yards: NINE. Here's Words Unravelled on idioms. //Listen long enough and you'll hear our sports BAGEL explanation.

16. Red letters?: IOU. An "I Owe You" means you're in the red.

17. [See: Theme]

19. Male turkey: TOM.

20. Dark deeds: EVILS.

21. Oscar winner Malek: RAMI. I liked him best in the first season of Mr. Robot.

22. Population fig., often: EST. An ESTimate.

23. Hard to track down: RARE.

24. [See: Theme]

27. Put points on the board: SCORED.

29. African American folk magic: HOODOO.

I had to check to see if Harvey Korman said Hoodoo or Voodoo.

30. More than wants: NEEDS. OK, I NEEDed to check Korman's words ;-)

34. Preppy tops: POLOS.

35. [See: Theme]

39. Sherri's twin on "The Simpsons": TERRI.

The Twins

40. "Stuart Little" actress Davis: GEENA.

41. Writer/editor Dave who founded McSweeney's Publishing: EGGERS.

43. X-ray follow-up, perhaps: CT SCAN. A Computed Tomography SCAN.

48. [See: Theme]

52. "__ from New York ... !": LIVE. Chevy Chase first said it back in '75.

Reminiscent of Python's

  Hungarian Phrase Book Sketch.

53. Singer DiFranco: ANI.

54. "__ not see that coming": I DID.

55. Desert refuge: OASIS.

56. Game system with Nunchuk controllers: WII.

We have a Wii; haven't used it in years.

57. [See: Theme]

59. Braying animal: ASS.

60. Person named in a will: HEIR.

61. Orange snack puff: CHEETO.

62. Emerald or ruby: GEM.

63. Greek peak: OSSA. Oh, not a look [peek] under the toga but...

this kinda peak.

64. Female sibling: SISTER. As you're reading this, I'm with one of mine in Dallas.

Down:

1. Watches overprotectively: HOVERS.

2. Pioneering mainframe: UNIVAC. What?!? A singular VACuum tube? Counts to one, does it? ;-)

3. Robert of "Killers of the Flower Moon": DENIRO. I know who DeNiro is but not in this context.  After reading the WikiP, I should probably see the movie.

4. Salon tool: STYLER.

5. Hooting birds: OWLS.

6. Neither partner: NOR.

7. Native Peruvians: INCAS.

8. Ecosystem: BIOME.

Caution, Here Be [36d] ORGANISMS.

9. Make more nutritious, say: ENRICH.

10. Crossed through, with "out": X-ED.

11. Stands by: SITS IDLE.

12. Sound from a choo choo train: TOOT TOOT.

13. "Delish!": YUM. Where's the -mers? Oh, that's right, Hahtoolah will be back soon w/ her yummers :-)

18. Directional ending: ERN. NortherERN, SouthERN, et.al.

22. Kindle unit: E-BOOK.

24. Notion, in French: IDEE. French idea.

25. Hanna-Barbera feline who hatched schemes in an alley: TOP CAT.

He's the one with the tennis banjo

26. Greek goddess of the dawn: EOS.

28. Whole: ENTIRE.

31. Rowing machine, colloquially: ERG.

32. Henna, for one: DYE.

33. Fr. holy woman: STE. French Saint.

35. Core-engaging exercise: LEG RAISE.

36. Living creature: ORGANISM.

RUSH's Natural Science w/ Anika.
(Song addresses organisms in a tide pool so that counts, right?)

37. Rome's __ Fountain: TREVI.

If you're a bit peckish, there's a gelato joint on your left.

38. Creep (along): INCH.

39. Vietnamese New Year: TET.

42. Pie servings: SLICES.

44. Lists of candidates: SLATES.

45. Non-LGBTQ+ portmanteau: CIS/HET. A cisgender and heterosexual individual.

46. Fly a plane: AVIATE.

47. "The Morning Show" actor Carbonell: NESTOR.

49. Actor Elba: IDRIS.

There you go, ladies ;-)

50. Small crown: TIARA.

51. Chi. summer hrs.: CDT. Central Daylight Time. Aka, UTC-5.

55. "Fancy meeting you here!": OH HI.

56. Move like a happy pooch's tail: WAG.

57. "Dexter: Resurrection" airer, for short: SHO. HBO's rival SHOtime

58. Includes on an email: CCS. Carbon CopieS - An anachronistic way of saying "also informed."

The Grid:

The Grid

WO: TOP kAT (thought it was spelt like Krazy Kat)
ESP: HUDSON
Fav: I liked UNIVAC, the successor to ENIAC. Anyone remember Asimov's SciFi Multivac?

I'm in Dallas w/ Eldest and the oldest of my littles Bro & Sis. #RUSH goes down tonight!

Cheers, -T

Tuesday, June 23, 2026 ~ Adam Shapiro

Games' Afoot

Hi All!

Adam Shapiro delivers a cute Tuesday puzzle which I find impressive since his 1st LAT was ~6mo ago (17 DEC 2025). I enjoyed the fresh clues for pedestrian fill and the new fill I've not seen before. Well done Adam.
Point of order - I can't figure out if Adam is related to NPR's Ari or not. If anyone knows better...

16. Disc-tossing team sport: ULTIMATE FRISBEE.

  

Ultimate Frisbee

The Game of Life

23. Contest played on a star-shaped board: CHINESE CHECKERS.

Chinese Checkers

Chess

41. Pool hall activity: POCKET BILLIARDS.

Pocket Billiards Table

Poker

54. Nintendo player's side quest, or what the circled letters of 16-, 23-, and 41-Across create: GAME WITHIN A GAME. All I can come up w/ in the reveal is the NAME Game.

So, if you're not pickin' up what Adam's putting down... A side quest is a mini-adventure for your avatar to gain coin, information, or skills within the wider scope of the game #DnD. Ergo, a game within a game - exactly what Adam found in the spanners. Let's explore the rest of the grid.

Across:

1. Voting faction: BLOC.

5. Botanical transplant: GRAFT. All you wanted to know.

10. Post that's bigger than a gig: JOB. I saw "bigger" and "gig." My first two thoughts, "Tera" & "Peta," were too long.

13. Like chocolate lava cake: RICH.

14. "Folklore" music artist Swift: TAYLOR.

15. "__ seen worse": I'VE.

I've had worse...

16. [See: Theme]

19. "Aw, so sweet!": TOO CUTE.

20. Like elevator music: AMBIENT.

21. Chicken __ king: ALA.

22. Actor Cariou: LEN.

Len's Wikipedia Page

23. [See: Theme]

32. Ascends: RISES.

33. South African language with click consonants: XHOSA. I knew the answer but not the spelling.

Trevor Noah

34. Tuna roll topper: ROE.

35. Some hazy brews, for short: IPAS.

36. Piano pieces for four hands: DUETS.

37. "You're not wrong": TRUE.

38. 28-Down amenity, maybe: SPA.

39. Ballet class rail: BARRE.

Degas' Dancers Practicing at the Barre

40. Plump pet, slangily: CHONK. Chonk: adj. fat in a pleasant way.

41. [See: Theme]

44. __ de la Cit : Notre-Dame home: ILE.

45. Coffee container: URN.

46. Not much: A LITTLE.

50. Spine-tingling artwork?: BACK TAT. Cute. A tattoo on the back would tingle the spine.

54. [See: Theme]

56. Cenozoic __: ERA. The last 66 million years and our current era.

57. Like alpacas: ANDEAN.

58. A bird flying into the house, say: OMEN. So I Googled this... Some say it's good luck others say death soon. I think it means your screen door is broken.

59. Cold War operative: SPY.

Spy Vs Spy

60. Agreements: YESES.

61. Bit of headway: DENT. I've made a DENT in this expo - I'm done w/ the acrosses.

Down:

1. Like dry champagne: BRUT.

2. Disney girl who teaches Stitch the meaning of ohana: LILO. Ohana is Hawaiian for family.  I saw this movie w/ the Girls when they were so little. It's kinda hard to believe they're both in grad school now.
 

3. Prefix meaning "eight": OCTO.

4. Sequences of tight turns on racecourses: CHICANES. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ A few Googles latter... A chicane is an "S" bend in the road that forces drivers to slow down. They're also used in urban settings to not only slow traffic but also increase the amount of public space. Seems like CHICANEry to me.

A chicane in Orlando

5. Frontier departure point?: GATE. Ha! The airline Frontier.

6. Marbled bread: RYE.

7. Italian sports car, briefly: ALFA.

'86 Alfa Spider

8. Unshaped: FORMLESS.

9. NYC nabe south of SoHo: TRIBECA. SoHo is SOuth of HOuston Street.

Yep, there's Tribeca South of SoHo.

10. Align (with): JIBE. Nice.

11. Roasting appliance: OVEN.

12. Red root vegetable used in some dyes: BEET.

14. Breezy goodbyes: TATAS.

17. Cocktails made with lime, vodka, and ginger beer: MULES.

18. Dishwasher's station: SINK.

23. Like tempura: CRISP.

Yummers!

24. River-dwelling mammal that can't swim: HIPPO.

25. Sci-fi writer Asimov: ISAAC.

26. Area far from downtown: EXURB.

27. French darling: CHERI.

Pepé Le Pew

28. Tourist's base: HOTEL.

29. __ in judgment: ERROR.

30. Tournament division: ROUND.

31. Tries to find: SEEKS.

36. NBC news show since 1992: DATE LINE.

37. "What a relief!": THANK GOD.

39. I-495 in Washington, D.C., e.g.: BELTWAY.

40. About, in dates: CIRCA.

42. Toy that may get stuck in a tree: KITE.

The Kite Eating Tree

43. Greg Evans comic strip: LUANN.

A Comic Strip since '85

46. Grows older: AGES.

47. In-person fantasy event, casually: LARP. Live Action Role-Playing GAME.

48. "Thinking about it": I MAY.

49. LAX projections: ETDS. Estimated Times of Departure.

50. Lack of objectivity: BIAS.

51. Unlikely to get out of hand: TAME.

52. "Darn straight": AMEN.

53. Sleeping bag spot: TENT.

55. "__ Haw": HEE.

The Grid:

The Grid

WO: FRIzBEE
ESPs: Spelling of XHOSA, CHONK
Fav:  It's a toss-up - my fav SciFi writer, ISAAC Asimov, or XHOSA just  'cuz I've never seen it in a puzzle before.

Well, do tell - how'd you enjoy Adam's little GAME?  RISES to your definition of fun or you just gonna BLOC it out of your mind 'cuz #circles?  :-)

Cheers, -T
T-7 days 'till RUSH!

Tuesday, June 9th, 2026 ~ Amanda Rafkin & Amie Walker

Made of STEEL

Hot Stuff

Hi All!

Today, Amanda & Amie collaborate on a rugged theme. From what I've found, these two have joined forces at the LAT twice as Amie & Amanda [12 JUN & 08 OCT 2025]. They've had a Wednesday & a Thursday, so this will be their first Tuesday together.

Let's ROCK & Roll:

17. Cocktail poured with a heavy hand: STIFF DRINK.

Looks like a strong pour to me.

29. Honest amount of reliable work: SOLID EFFORT.

45. Resilient person: TOUGH COOKIE.

60. Social media debut of a romantic relationship, or what 17-, 29-, and 45-Across have: HARD LAUNCH.

STIFF is 18th on the list...

DW & I met when #SocialMedia consisted of messages on BBS (Bulletin Board System). So, to me,  HARD LAUNCH means "no turning back now." As for Social Media, we had to tell our friends to be at the Judge's house Sunday, IRL (In Real Life).

Across:

1. Wig makeup: HAIR. I soooo wanted talc in the barrister's wig he waggled.

I Waggled Me Wig

5. Food that might be served alla vodka: PASTA. Penne alla Vodka is a simple dish that will put you into a happy coma.

10. Diamond experts?: UMPS. Baseball! And an Easter Egg as diamonds are rock HARD.

14. "KPop Demon Hunters" bandmate of Mira and Zoey: RUMI. KPop Demon Hunters blew up so big last year, they dropped in on SLN:

Feat. Bad Bunny

15. Fuel-carrying ship: OILER. So many stuck in the Strait of Hormuz - did no one really NOT see that coming?

16. Go past a simmer: BOIL. Warm, heat, simmer, rapid simmer, BOIL.

17. [See: Theme]

19. Teeny bit: IOTA.

20. Norway's capital: OSLO.

21. Texting format, briefly: SMS. Short Message Service. It's a crime carriers charged us $0.10 for piggybacking a message on mobile to tower control-channel pings. Jinx, care to comment?

22. School composition: ESSAY. Not a crappy-production play put on by 3rd graders ;-)

23. "As __ on TV": SEEN. This c/a screams Weird Al...

Mr. Popeil

25. Dessert that quivers: JELLO. Oasis came to mind until I saw the clue's second S.

An Oasis

27. Chopping tool: AXE.

29. [See: Theme]

34. Young chap: LAD.

35. Male cat: TOM.

36. Some church donations: TITHES. I attended Catholic school on and off [depending on parental custody], and, what Pop appreciated, one only paid according to means. Pop tithed ~10% and we got a SOLID education at St. Joe's.

37. Frosty: ICY.

38. Grasped: GOT.

39. __ and yang: YIN.

40. Hoppy beer letters: IPA. Indian Pale Ale.

41. Like plagiarized text: STOLEN.

43. Delt neighbor: LAT.

44. La Brea __ Pits: TAR.

45. [See: Theme]

48. Method: Abbr.: SYS.

49. Sportscaster Musburger: BRENT. The answerer would have filled faster if clued "Light, sweet crude."

50. "Another thing ... ": ALSO.

52. Like steaks with a lot of marbling: FATTY. Don't fat-shame your dinner ;-)

55. Mermaid's realm: SEA.

57. Singular: LONE.

59. Baghdad locale: IRAQ.

60. [See: Theme]

63. iPhone virtual assistant: SIRI.

64. Skip, as a syllable: ELIDE.

65. Passed-down tales: LORE.

66. "Ciao!": TATA. I waited for the perp b/f not filling Tigger's TTFN.

67. Breadmaking need: YEAST. If it's unleavened, you don't kneed naan :-)

68. Like some Olympic races: SWUM. Time out! Is this really a word? Yes, swim, swam, and the past participle, SWUM. It's one of a few non-Germanic words I know that's got a Triple-U.* Swung, wuss, Kuwait, and wurst [admit it, that German word is so borrowed it's English :-)] are the others.

Down:

1. Time sheet figs.: HRS. When my team was on the clock for multiple clients, I created the "Bing sheet." Every 6 minutes, a clock would go "Bing," and you'd quickly scribble down the client you're currently working with / billing. //My buddy's dad was a lawyer - that's where the 6 min. came from :-)

2. Car: AUTO.

3. "So happy to be back together!": I MISSED YOU. I say nothing, just hugs & kisses.

4. Rummage (through): RIFLE.

5. "Love Is Blind" personal space: POD. No clue.

6. Broadcasts: AIRS. Something you can also put on for puffery.

7. Car-unlocking tool: SLIM JIM. This is in my lane - Eldest & I enjoy picking locks.

Eldest with her first picks
and beginner's lock.

8. Grew anxious: TENSED.

9. Torah holder: ARK.

10. Assassin's Creed game company: UBISOFT. I never played the game but I know of the company. Their origin story is interesting.

11. Sounds from cows: MOOS. Where is Gary Larson when the world needs him?

[See also: 39-down]

12. Pocket bread: PITA.

13. Defeat, as a dragon: SLAY. Roll a 17 or better on a d20 and you're heralded the hero.

A d20 for the uninitiated ;-)

18. Enemies: FOES.

22. Pixieish: ELFIN. Are we still playing D&D?

24. Never: NOT ONCE.

26. Wright of "Black Panther": LETITIA.

Letitia Wright

27. Red carpet celebs: A-LIST.

28. Precision knife brand: X-ACTO.

30. "Thanks a __!": LOT.

31. "You asked for a fight, you'll get one!": OH, IT'S ON NOW. "TOUGH words," said The Dragon.

32. Square up with: REPAY.

33. Former Russian rulers: TSARS.

38. Walt Disney Concert Hall designer Frank: GEHRY.

Frank Gehry's WikiP

39. Shaggy ox: YAK.

42. Letters on some Pride merch: LGBTQIA+. Click here for an explanation.

43. Traditional Mexican game of chance: LOTERIA. Lottery in Spanish.

46. At a reduced price: ON SALE.

47. Jazz icon Fitzgerald: ELLA.

51. All __ Day: November 2: SOULS.

52. Black Power symbol: FIST.

53. Song that might end on a high note: ARIA. Cute.

54. Like a cranberry, or a dessert that might contain cranberries: TART.

56. Does some math: ADDS.

58. Very light brown: ECRU.

60. "Wait just a minute!": HEY. Did you just say, "Heads I win; tails you lose?"

61. Permit: LET.

62. Dress edge: HEM. If mumbling while sewing, are you hawing your hem?

The Grid:

The Grid

WOs: N/A
ESPs: BRENT, LETITIA, GEHRY
Fav: OH, IT'S ON NOW

Cheers, -T
*W is Double-U, ergo SWUM can be written as sUUUm -- with a Triple-U :-)

Tuesday, May 26, 2026 ~ Stella Zawistowski

It's Taco Tuesday!

Hi All!
First, the elephant in the room: circles vs. no circles. Personally, I don't care.
Or, as DW told the Girls when they were little, "You get what you get and you don't throw a fit."

If you've ever attempted Stella's Saturday puzzles, you know she doesn't go easy on the solver. There's one or two "This is a Tuesday?"s in today's, but overall she constructed a smooth, light on the A&E, and cruft-free grid with a bit of crunch.

So, let's grab a tortilla, toss in some carne, onion, & cilantro and take a stroll.

Fajita beef, onion, & cilantro breakfast taco.

17. Toyota pickup since 1995: TACOMA TRUCK.

Rear view of the 2025 model

26. Sarcastic "Great idea!": WHAT A CONCEPT. Not!

45. Requires sacrifice to achieve: COMES AT A COST.

61. Portable Tex-Mex snack, or a progression depicted in this puzzle: WALKING TACO.

Get it? The [circled] TACO "walks" from left to right in the grid. Cute.

Er, more like a stumbling TACO
after leaving the pub :-)

Across:

1. Treadmill settings: PACES. ??? All my treadmill says is "speed" and "incline."

6. Learn to fit in: ADAPT. Adjust, ADAPT, Overcome.

11. Fuel for some stoves: GAS. I've got a glass cooktop.  You?

14. Enticing scent: AROMA.

15. Brings to the ground: RAZES.

16. "How We Do (Party)" singer Rita: ORA.

Not my cuppa, but you might like it.

17. [See: Theme]

19. Decimal base: TEN. As a child of the '70's, I got the experimental "new math" and the metric system (this was in '77 through '80 (?)). However, both came in quite handy whilst pursing degrees in EE & CS [#6d_STEAM - I married for the Arts :-) ] .

20. "Rooster" network: HBO. Home Box Office. I'd not known of this show but, from the trailer, it looks good.

21. Coin slot directive: INSERT.

Donkey Kong's Directive

22. Bullfrog relative: TOAD.

23. Ironman race, for short: TRI. TRIathlon.

24. "Well, sort of": ISH.

26. [See: Theme]

32. Pre-1917 Russian ruler: TSAR.

34. Molecule part: ATOM.

35. Land parcels: ACRES.

37. Pancake topper: SYRUP. Here's my go-to from grocer H-E-B.

I'm a sucker for cute packaging :-)

39. Take legal action against: SUE.

40. Large herbivore in India's Kaziranga National Park: RHINO.

This Rhino's in Oregon's Zoo.

41. "Cowboy Bebop" genre: ANIME. With a perp & an educated guess...

42. "Logically, this means ... ": ERGO. #Latin

44. "Toy Story" boy: ANDY.

Fun Fact: On Buzz Lightyear's boot,
Andy's N is not written backwards [cite].

45. [See: Theme]

48. Brian of Roxy Music: ENO.

Brian Eno was commissioned by Microsoft for Win95's 3.25 second
startup sound that he composed it on his Mac.

49. Before, in classic ballads: ERE.

50. Confident and courageous: BOLD.

53. Rum cocktail: MAI TAI. A recipe.

57. Embrace: HUG.

60. Cry of realization: AHA.

61. [See: Theme]

63. Grab a chair: SIT.

64. Common feature of flannel shirts: PLAID.

For the fans like me: Python's Lumberjack Song

65. Volunteer's offer: I WILL.

66. Earth-turning tool: HOE.

67. Actress/writer Kaling: MINDY. I would have known "Mork's friend" who, according to WikiP, Kaling was named after.

Mindy Kaling

68. Vanlifer, for one: NOMAD. Not sure that Matt Foley was considered a nomad :-)

Down:

1. Hiker's trail: PATH.

2. Many a Yemeni: ARAB.

3. Pixar film set in Mexico: COCO.

Coco's Trailer

4. Punk subgenre: EMO.

5. Wiley of "The Handmaid's Tale": SAMIRA. You say so...

6. The "A" of STEAM: ARTS. Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Maths.

7. Truth or __: DARE.

8. C te d'__, France: AZUR.

9. Substance that makes jelly gel: PECTIN.

10. "You should know better!": TSK.

11. Favorite choice: GO-TO.

12. District: AREA.

13. Temporary castle material: SAND.

Here's some more really cool ephemeral sculptures..

18. Maria's friend in "West Side Story": ANITA.

22. TV quiz show with Cash Builder rounds: THE CHASE. No clue. A few Googles later I learned that this is another US import of a UK game show. Here's the US trailer...

23. Played monotonously: THRUMMED.

25. Surgical memento: SCAR.

26. Nintendo character in purple overalls: WARIO. On autopilot, I first ink'd mARIO.

27. Completely lost: AT SEA.

28. Tennis venue: COURT.

29. Last Greek letter: OMEGA.

30. "Read the fine __": PRINT.

31. Care for: TEND.

32. Airport org. with wands: TSA.

33. Match, as a laptop and the cloud: SYNC. 

36. Tofu base: SOY.

38. Part of a hammer: PEEN.

43. Bounding main: OCEAN.

46. Mogadishu native: SOMALI.

47. Starting point: ORIGIN.

50. Wild party: BASH.

51. Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's state: OHIO. DJ Donna Halper introduced RUSH to the US when she played Working Man on Cleveland, OHIO's WMMS.

Crossword's fav architect, I.M. Pei (and Co.), designed the RRHOF.

52. Not on time: LATE.

54. Astronaut Shepard: ALAN. Husker Gary, can you hit the ball "Miles and miles and miles"?

Alan Shepard slices it ;-)

55. "Just joking!": I KID.

56. In apple-pie order: TIDY.

57. Pop band with sisters Este, Danielle, and Alana: HAIM.

58. Home of the NCAA's Bruins: UCLA.

59. Top Olympic prize: GOLD.

61. Typist's stat: WPM. Words Per Minute. With copious use of the backspace key, I get about 42 wpm.

62. "It takes __ to tango": TWO.

The Grid:

The Grid

My solve:
WO: mARIO -> WARIO
ESPs: ORA, ANIME (as clued), MINDY, SAMIRA, HAIM
Fav: SUE x-ing COURT made me chortle.

Cheers, -T

Most every workday am, I get breakfast tacos
from Moderno's across from the office *chef's kiss*.