Tuesday, June 17, 2025 Lee Taylor

The Dog Days of Summer.  The first word of each two-word theme answer is a breed of dog.

9-Down. Classmate who helps with a science project: LAB PARTNER.  Everything you wanted to know about the Labrador Retriever. 

11-Down. Post-retirement period: GOLDEN YEARS.  Things you might not know about the Golden Retriever.

25-Down. Briefs alternative: BOXER SHORTS.  Everything you ever wanted to know about a Boxer.

30. Hoarse speaker's feature: HUSKY VOICE.  Things you might not know about a Husky.

And the unifier:

71-Across. Head honcho, and a feature of 9-, 11-, 25-, and 30-Down: TOP DOG.  Note that each theme answer is in the Down position with the breed Dog at the Top of the answer.

Here's the Grid, so you can find all the Top Dogs.

Across:

1. Container on a bar top: TIP JAR.

7. Hay bundle: BALE.

11. Wrigley product: GUM.

14. Fire up: AROUSE.

15. Site whose original name was AuctionWeb: EBAY.

16. __ and only: ONE.

17. Literary realm created by C.S. Lewis: NARNIA.  Usually its the characters from Narnia are we are asked to identify.

18. Piercing spot: LOBE.

19. "The Book of Mormon" org.: LDS.  As in the Latter Day Saints.

20. Winter hat feature: EARFLAP.

22. Big commotions: ADOs.  Much Ado About Nothing.

23. "Dancing Queen" pop quartet: ABBA.  ABBA was a Swedish pop group that was named using the initials of its 4 members: Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.  In 1974, ABBA was Sweden's first winner of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song Waterloo.

26. Harp constellation: LYRA.  Can't you just see the harp shape??

27. Actress Russo or artist Magritte: RENÉ.  One female, one male.

René with a René.

28. "You Bet Your Life" host Marx: GROUCHO.  His given name was Julius Henry Marx (Oct. 2, 1890 ~ Aug. 19, 1977).  He had two older brothers (Chico and Harpo) and two younger brothers (Gummo and Zeppo).

31. Depleted: DRAINED.

33. Tyrannosaurus __: REX.

34. Throw, as a shot put: HURL.

36. Cafeteria item: TRAY.

37. Fill with wonder: AWE.

38. "Stop asking me!": I SAID NO!

40. Subj. for some citizenship applicants: ESL.  As in English as a Second Language.  This has become a crossword staple.

43. Skating venue: RINK.

45. Regard as: DEEM.

46. __ moment: AHA!

47. Causes consternation: DISMAYS.

50. Off-campus housing area: FRAT ROW.

52. Amazon gadget activated by saying "Alexa": ECHO.

53. Lemming kin: VOLE.  More than you ever wanted to know about Lemmings and Voles.

55. "Full Court Press" network: ESPN.

56. Like some vivid colors: NEON.

57. Wind instrument with an oval body: OCARINA.

60. Sealing goo: TAR.

61. Insta uploads: PICS.

62. Quarterback Joe who was MVP of the 1969 Super Bowl: NAMATH.

66. Writer's rep: AGT.  As in Agent.

67. Gets an A+ on: ACES.

68. Small apartment: STUDIO.

69. "__ Misérables": LES.  This musical was in the news recently.

70. Love, in tennis: ZERO.  Why is Zero called Love in tennis?  Who knows?

Down:

1. Browned by the sun: TAN.

2. Nest egg inits.: IRA.  As in Individual Retirement Account.

3. __ favor: please, in Spanish: POR.  Today's Spanish lesson.

4. Alaska's capital: JUNEAU.  The capital of Alaska is named after Joseph Juneau (May 28, 1836 ~ Mar 1, 1899), a French-Canadian gold miner and prospector.

5. Himalayas continent: ASIA.

6. Caboose: REAR.  //  And 8-Down. On a train: ABOARD.

7. __ laugh: BELLY.

10. Hurricane center: EYE.  We have now entered hurricane season.  Fortunately, there is no activity yet.

12. Incomplete: UNDONE.

13. Botched, with "up": MESSED.

21. Regional plant life: FLORA.

22. Met solo: ARIA.  You knew I was going to include this Aria from Carmen.

23. Taj Mahal city: AGRA.

24. Prepare, as coffee or tea: BREW.

29. Dishes for a special meal: CHINA.

32. Bakery allure: AROMA.

35. To-go cup top: LID.

39. Put off: DEFER.

41. Hunt for bargains: SHOP.

42. Putting green, e.g.: LAWN.

44. "It's showtime!": I'M ON!

47. Insurance type that may complement medical: DENTAL.

48. Global cold spell: ICE AGE.

49. Mia Hamm's sport: SOCCER.  Mia Hamm (née Marial Margaret Hamm; b. Mar. 17, 1972) makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.

51. Join forces: TEAM UP.

54. Coach Ted played by Jason Sudeikis: LASSO.

58. Research org.: INST.  As an Institution.

59. Alliance headed by Mark Rutte: Abbr.: NATO.  Mark Rutte (b. Feb. 17, 1967) is s a Dutch politician who has served as the 14th secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization since October 2024.

61. La __, Bolivia: PAZ.

63. Contribute (to): ADD.

64. Spanish uncle: TIO.  More of today's Spanish lesson.

65. Greedy one: HOG.

חתולה

Sunday, November 15, 2020 Lee Taylor

Theme: "Workplace Superstitions"  - Various superstitions are punnily reinterpreted, somewhat fitting the profession in each clue.

22A. Weather forecaster's "Don't"?: OPEN AN UMBRELLA INDOORS.

29A. Beautician's "Don't"?: BREAK A MIRROR.

67A. Carpenter's "Do"?: KNOCK ON WOOD.

99A. Ice skater's "Don't"?: STEP ON A CRACK.

109A. Banker's "Do"?: FIND A PENNY AND PICK IT UP.

15D. Pianist's "Do"?: CROSS YOUR FINGERS.

38D. Construction worker's "Don't"?: WALK UNDER A LADDER.

I'm not familiar with "Don't step on a crack". Winters in Minnesota are brutal, impossible to avoid cracked roads when we walk.

In China, we have a few superstitions: Don't share a pear with others. Pear & "separation" have the same pronunciations in Chinese. Don't clip your fingernails at night. You're inviting ghosts. 

And of course, everyone eats fish for Spring Festival. Fish sounds like "surplus". So you won't be poor  next year.

Across:

1. Street fights: SCUFFLES.

 

9. Skimpy skirt: MINI.

 

13. Diacritic for a long vowel sound: MACRON. Like this.

19. Caltech city: PASADENA. Rose Bowl! By the way, Gary, we don't follow the Lynx. Boomer watches the Timberwolves from time to time.

20. Low-pH material: ACID.

21. Italian innkeeper: PADRONE. New word to me.

25. Throw away: TOSS.

26. Batter's stat: RBI. Tiny dupe: 89. Baseball stat: RUN.

27. Caesar's rebuke: ET TU.

28. Manuscript marking: STET.

34. Pink Floyd's Barrett: SYD.

35. Boarding aid: JETWAY. The bridge.

39. "American Idol" fixture until 2010: SIMON. Had a terrifying motorcycle accident a few months ago.

40. Other side: ENEMY.

42. Gave a sigh: EXHALED.

44. Words heard shortly after many a marriage pronouncement: NOW KISS. "You may now kiss the bride".

46. Major artery: AORTA.

50. Exercise, as power: WIELD.

51. Kimono ties: OBIS.

53. Tolkien talking plant: ENT.

54. 17th/18th-century British ruling house: STUART.

55. Little guy: TYKE.

56. "__ Misérables": LES.

57. Home security co.: ADT. Our neighbor used to have a ADT sign in their yard. Now it's gone. But when I walk closer to their yard on my way to our mailbox, something beeps. I'm just trying to avoid the icy patches on the road.

58. Indigenous Nepal mountain people: SHERPAS.

59. Bear genus: URSUS.

61. "Narc" co-star Ray: LIOTTA.

63. Bona __: FIDE.

64. Big name in romance fiction: AVON.

70. Brainchild: IDEA.

71. Vulcan mind __: MELD. This concept happens in some Chinese fantasy novels also.

72. Start of a play: ACT ONE.

73. Versatile game piece: QUEEN.

75. Comprehensive: IN DEPTH.

77. Wanna-__: BES.

78. Snack item: NUT. And 85. They're often tapped out: BEERS.

79. Corp. leaders: MGMT. Management.

82. After-dinner party: SOIREE. This sounds so surreal right now. Boomer and I just live in our two-person "Disney Bubble".

83. Heartache: WOE.

84. Christmas tune: NOEL.

87. Bit of character assassination: SMEAR.

88. One hanging at a food court: MALL RAT.

90. Had a longing: YEARNED.

92. Sucked (in): LURED.

94. Spring bulb: TULIP. I don't think these are ginger roots, Jayce. Some of you mentioned that they might be iris or daffodils bulbs. I clipped the picture from a Japanese lady who was visiting her grandma in the countryside last week. I originally thought they might be taro roots.She had no captions.

96. Follows: ENSUES.

97. Doo-wop group __ Na Na: SHA.

102. Copied: APED.

103. Henry __: VIII.

104. Ages and ages: EON.

105. "An Essay on Criticism" poet: POPE.

116. Russia, vis-à-vis Crimea, in 2014: ANNEXER.

117. "__ it a rest!": GIVE.

118. Prepare for conflict: EMBATTLE. I've only used the form "embattled".

119. Brought up: REARED.

120. Eject: SPEW.

121. Final shot: LAST HOPE. Properly placed in the grid.

Down:

1. Catch a glimpse of: SPOT.

2. Guitar gadget: CAPO.

3. Plays for a fool: USES.

4. Some coolers: FANS.

5. Big Pharma watchdog: Abbr.: FDA.

6. Sportscaster Berman: LEN.

7. Harden: ENURE.

8. South American dances: SAMBAS.

9. Put a dent in: MAR.

10. __ fishing: ICE. Hardy soul. 

11. Zippo: NIL.

12. One stuck in traffic, at times: IDLER.

13. Fertilizer ingredient: MANURE.

14. Say further: ADD.

16. Difficult to hoe: ROOTY. Look, I uprooted this tree.

17. When rights may be restricted: ON RED.

18. Fit together compactly: NEST.

21. Climbing equipment: PITONS.

23. Two-piece suits: BIKINIS.

24. Words in Newton's first law: AT REST. Copy from NASA:  Newton's first law states that every object will remain at rest or in uniform motion in a straight line unless compelled to change its state by the action of an external force. This is normally taken as the definition of inertia. ... If that velocity is zero, then the object remains at rest.

29. Son of Odin and Frigg: BALDER.

30. Deli option: RYE.

31. "Famous" cookie maker: AMOS.

32. Work on a green, say: MOW.

33. Entered permanently: INKED IN.

35. Bar mitzvah celebrant: JEW.

36. Red sign over a door: EXIT.

37. Nonbinary gender pronoun: THEY. Singular they. The example Wiki gives:

"This is my friend, Jay. I met them at work. They are a talented artist."

41. Deckhand: MATE.

43. Grab a bite together: DO LUNCH. Nope. Need to stay in our "Disney Bubble". See also 80. Restaurant window posting: MENU.

45. Being dragged along: IN TOW.

47. Speedy: RAPID. Hope your mom has fully recovered, Nina!

48. Fantasy football deal: TRADE.

49. Lost completely: AT SEA.

52. Utterly infatuate: BESOT.

54. Relief from the heat: SHADE.

57. Lotion ingredients: ALOES.

58. With determination: STOUTLY.

60. Take to the rink: SKATE.

62. Chef's hat: TOQUE. Happy chef.

64. Not quite right: AMISS.

65. Spiteful feeling: VENOM.

66. Classic tune: OLDIE.

68. Early programming acronym: COBOL. Tony probably knows it, but he's more of the modern programming wizard.

69. Show reverence for, as a deity: KNEEL TO.

74. Confine with a dike, say: EMBANK.

76. Northern neighbor of Chile: PERU.

78. Took in: NOTICED. Boomer and I were stunned to see these wild turkeys at the VA hospital.

81. Corner, in a way: TREE.

83. Attack with enthusiasm, as a project: WADE IN.

84. "The Lion King" lioness: NALA.

86. '60s radical gp.: SDS.

88. Area of expertise: METIER.

91. Common Market initials: EEC.

93. Promised to attend, perhaps: RSVPed.

95. Drive forward: PROPEL.

97. Title holder: SPINE. I mentioned before. One of our blog readers actually read this classic Chinese book. I was stunned. It was so complicated for me.

98. Temporary tattoo dye: HENNA.

100. Sonar sounds: PINGS.

101. Jungian archetype: ANIMA. Learned from doing crosswords.

102. Hardly in the neighborhood: AFAR.

105. Core: PITH.

106. Chicago Bulls forward __ Porter, Jr.: OTTO.

107. Feature of some orange juice: PULP.

108. Sport in which the entire body is a valid target: EPEE.

110. Firefighting tool: AXE.

111. Pup's protest: YIP.

112. Michigan in Chicago: Abbr.: AVE.

113. Word before age or year: NEW.

114. "60 Minutes" airer: CBS.

115. Dennings of "2 Broke Girls": KAT.

C.C.