Sunday, October 8, 2023 Carl Larson

Theme: "The ESPY Awards" - SP is added to each common phrase.

23. Advice for making a stick more fun?: PUT A SPRING ON IT. Put a Ring on it.

33. One with joint custody of a pet cat?: KITTY SPLITTER. Kitty litter.

43. Request from a chef who ran out of asparagus?: LEND ME YOUR SPEARS. Lend me your ears.

62. Treatment for phaser burns?: SPACE BANDAGE. Ace Bandage.

69. Peloton instructor from hell?: SPINNER DEMON. Inner demon.

85. Litterbugs in Alberta's capital?: EDMONTON SPOILERS. Edmonton Oilers.

94. Encouragement to a waiter adding ground pepper to a dish?: BREAK THE SPICE. Break the ice.

108. Budget for "Hamlet," "Macbeth," "Othello," et al.?: TRAGIC SPENDING. Tragic ending. 

I don't recall seeing this SP addition before. Great title!

Congrats to Carl on his LAT debut. Here's his intro from Xword Info: "My name is Carl Larson, I'm 56, retired and living in Studio City, California. When working, I was an electrical engineer and marketing manager in the computer industry."

 Across:

1. "We Create Music" org.: ASCAP. The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers.

6. Unplanned break from school: SNOW DAY. I might still hike Elm Creek when it snows. My favorite place on earth these days. So pretty with all the fall colors now.

13. Stood out: POPPED.

19. Ristorante choices: PASTAS.

21. Emphasize strongly: RAM HOME.

22. "One ring __ them all": "LOTR" line: TO RULE. Patti normally limits partials to 5 letters.

25. Enthusiasm: SPIRIT.

26. Capote nickname: TRU.

27. Ocho menos cinco: TRES. All Spanish.

28. Quaint contraction: TIS.

30. Snarky: SNIDE.

31. Hannah of "Sense8": DARYL. She's married to Neil Young.

38. Big game locale: ARENA.

40. Yoga poses: ASANAS.

42. Ukrainian port on the Black Sea: ODESA. Their preferred spelling.

47. Energy bar bit: NUT.

50. Array in linear algebra: MATRIX.

51. Astronaut Jemison: MAE.

52. Slapstick prop: PIE. Here's a picture of Carmen's meal for Mid-Autumn Festival (9/29/2023). Behind the grapes are two steamed taros.

53. Freshness symbol: DAISY.

55. View from a pew: APSE.

56. Top with spaghetti straps, informally: CAMI.

58. Within: AMID.

60. Tablet alternative: GELCAP. 64. Pain-relieving drug: OPIATE.

61. Attic pests: MICE.

67. Coastal flock: TERNS.

68. World Cup chant: OLE OLE.

71. Silver-tongued: GLIB.

72. Bountiful residents: UTAHNS. City in Utah.

73. Sprinkle, say: RAIN.

74. Level or bevel: TOOL.

75. Invitation letters: RSVP.

79. "The Terminator" actress Hamilton: LINDA.

80. Rapper will.__: I AM.

81. __ Speedwagon: REO.

82. Runs together?: ELOPES.

84. Card game cry: UNO.

89. Writer Mario Vargas __: LLOSA. Peruvian novelist.

 

92. Kit with paints, markers, colored pencils, etc.: ART SET.

93. Kilt detail: PLEAT.

98. Ticked off: RILED.

100. Hops-drying kilns: OASTS.

101. Energy bar bit: OAT.

102. Kolkata dress: SARI.

103. "New Rules" singer __ Lipa: DUA.

106. Rebel: RISE UP.

114. __ St. Brown: NFL player named for an Egyptian deity: AMON-RA. Unknown to me. Is he good?

115. Many a family car: MINIVAN.

116. Tranquil: SEDATE.

117. Like some windshields: TINTED.

118. Arnold Palmer and Shirley Temple, e.g.: EPONYMS.

119. Job-related moves, for short: RELOS.

Down:

1. Google Calendar entry: Abbr.: APPT.

2. Ending with dino-: SAUR.

3. Kids of the 70s?: C STUDENTS. Nice clue.

4. __ loss for words: AT A.

5. Langer's Deli specialty: PASTRAMI. Learning moment for me. Wikipedia says it's a kosher deli in LA. "Founded in 1947, Langer's is known for its No. 19 pastrami on rye sandwich, described by the Los Angeles Times as "the Marilyn Monroe of pastrami sandwiches".

6. Indian honorifics: SRIS.

7. Editor Talese with her own Doubleday imprint: NAN.

8. "r u kidding me?!": OMG.

9. "__ knew?": WHO.

10. Slip on: DON.

11. Friendship: AMITY.

12. "Smallfoot" creatures: YETIS.

13. Qt. halves: PTS.

14. "Clumsy me!": OOPSIE.

15. Museum store purchases: PRINTS.

16. Rigidly moral: PURITANICAL.

17. Skip over, as syllables: ELIDE.

18. Try to stop: DETER.

20. Quick and nimble: SPRY.

24. Pass along: RELAY.

29. Fern bump: SPORE.

32. Actor Braugher: ANDRE. He's in "Brooklyn Nine-Nine"

33. Island home of the Grand Canyon of the Pacific: KAUAI.

34. Memo phrase: IN RE.

35. Univ. helpers: TAS.

36. Kitchen meas.: TSP.

37. Mormon initials: LDS.

38. __ mater: ALMA.

39. Gather: REAP.

41. River in northern France: SOMME. So many 5-letter rivers in France. Seine, Rhone, Loire, Isere, Saone. What else?

44. Fires up: EXCITES.

45. Cinematic spectacles: EPICS.

46. White House staffer: AIDE.

48. Stylebook subject: USAGE.

49. Classify, as blood: TYPE.

53. Summer triangle star: DENEB.

54. Designer Gucci: ALDO. Messy family.

57. Taiwan-based laptop brand: ACER.

58. Food Network cover: APRON.

59. Grammy winner Aimee: MANN.

60. Italian astronomer who embraced heliocentrism: GALILEO.

61. Food from heaven: MANNA.

62. Big rig: SEMI.

63. LAPD alert: BOLO.

64. Decide to take part: OPT IN.

65. Where to learn key concepts?: PIANO LESSON. Another great clue.

66. Aired with sharp resolution: IN HD.

67. Spanish "I love you": TE AMO. Boomer used "wo ai ni" from time to time.

69. Helmsman under Kirk: SULU.

70. Ounce fraction: DRAM.

71. "Duck, duck" follower: GOOSE.

74. Nerve-wracking: TENSE.

75. Esther of "Good Times": ROLLE.

76. One-touch shortcut: SPEED DIAL.

77. Designer Wang: VERA.

78. Soft "Over here!": PSST.

80. Shoshone Falls state: IDAHO.

81. College mil. unit: ROTC.

83. Makeup bag item: LIP-LINER.

85. Approximate fig.: EST.

86. Midday refresher: NAP.

87. TNT part: TRI.

88. Curved plumbing piece: P-TRAP.

90. Dormant: LATENT.

91. "Fine, whatever": OK SURE.

94. Sacha Baron Cohen persona: BORAT.

95. "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" director Sam: RAIMI.

96. Wonderland cake instruction: EAT ME.

97. Funny pages unit: STRIP.

99. Ticks off: IRES.

102. IDs on tax forms: SSNS.

104. "Do __ others ... ": UNTO.

105. Forever: AGES.

107. __ thai: PAD.

109. "It's __-brainer!": A NO.

110. Card game cry: GIN.

111. Wrigley Field climber: IVY.

112. Kiss follower: CAM.

113. JFK predecessor: DDE.

 

A few extra notes:

1) I'm relieved to tell you that the 5501 renters are finally gone. I got way too close to a gun one day. Scary and scarring. The 5505 renter, the guy with a gun and does drugs, seems to have left also. Not sure. The renter before him had a gun also, but the gun was not able to save his life.

Anyway, I celebrated the Pyrrhic victory with my sweet neighbor Valerie (5507) at P. F. Chang's. She saved me the day I had the car tire problem. I was cold and hungry, sobbing in the rain, then she showed up.

Valerie My Neighbor, 10/5/2023

2) Belated 74th "Happy Birthday" to Pat and her husband. And 80th "Happy Birthday" to Dennis. Sorry I missed both on the blog.

3) Happy 82nd birthday to dear Jayce! Hope it's a day full of love and good food. I bet you've tried the Kung Pao Brussels sprouts P. F. Chang's, so good.

Jayce and his wife on their wedding day

C.C.