Hello Cornerites! Happy Boxing Day! Let's celebrate by filling in the boxes on Lynn K. Watson and Will Nediger's CW grid!
Today's theme is:
 |
| A CASE FOR CRACKERJACK SOLVERS |
We will start with the reveal:
57. Across Solve a mystery, and a hint to the answers to the starred clues: CRACK THE CASE. It takes a crackerjack solver to see that in all 3 of the themers, there is a "CRACK" in the word "CASE". The "CRACKs" are filled not with caulk, but with letters to form a familiar thing or phrase.
The themers are:
20. Across* Pink flower native to eastern North America: CAROLINA ROSE.
35. Across* Like a game that involves evasive subterfuge: CAT AND MOUSE. An idiom referring to a dedicated pursuit with near captures and close escapes. (No "EEKS" today!)
43. Across* Migratory honker: CANADA GOOSE. CSO to CanadianEh!
Some people say "Canadian goose" and some say "Canada goose". It's a regional thing. Where I live, the geese prefer to not migrate. Instead, they stay all year, enjoying the mild climate and getting very fat grazing on golf course grass. I suspect they are too fat to make the trip home to Canada!
 |
| Ever vigilant, the male (gander) holds his head up higher. |
Let's investigate the other clues:
Across:
1. Warning sound from a rattlesnake: HISS. I once had a cat that got bit by a rattlesnake. She survived. HENCEforth, she would spend the rest of the day hiding in the closest whenever a hose kinked and made a HISS noise!5. Electrical pioneer Nikola: TESLA. 11 things about Nikola TESLA
10. Certain partner: WIFE. At first I thought this was one of those paired words clues so I kept trying to think of a word that went with "certain".
Movie trailer for The Wife (2017), starring Glenn Close.
14. "Hello... hello... hello...," e.g.: ECHO. Clever way to clue a CW staple.
15. To no __: without success: AVAIL.
15. To no __: without success: AVAIL.
16. Each, informally: A POP. a piece
17. Sign gas: NEON. Can also be used to pimp your ride.
50 sec. video
18. Paper size longer than letter: LEGAL. In the U.S. and Canada, LEGAL paper is 8.5 X 14 inches. When I worked at the Australian Embassy in D.C., I had to adjust to size A4. It might not seem like that much of a difference but one's brain recognizes the disconnect right away.
23. Leftover: EXTRA. Many people like to have EXTRA Christmas turkey so they can make sandwiches on Boxing Day.
24. Sound system: STEREO.
27. Eyes a bull's-eye, say: AIMS. "Eyes" is a verb here.
30. Chapel centerpiece: ALTAR.
32. U.K. lawmakers: MPS. United Kingdom is abbreviated. So is MemberS of Parliament.
39. Oodles: A LOT. In Nov. 2016, Crystal, a standard poodle, gave birth to 16 puppies in Lancaster, MN -- possibly tying the record for her breed. The puppies are 9 weeks old in this pic. (It looks like they trapped the puppies on a suspended board to get them to line up.)
30. Chapel centerpiece: ALTAR.
32. U.K. lawmakers: MPS. United Kingdom is abbreviated. So is MemberS of Parliament.
39. Oodles: A LOT. In Nov. 2016, Crystal, a standard poodle, gave birth to 16 puppies in Lancaster, MN -- possibly tying the record for her breed. The puppies are 9 weeks old in this pic. (It looks like they trapped the puppies on a suspended board to get them to line up.)
 |
| Oodles of Poodles |
42. Chief Valhalla god: ODIN.
46. WNW's opposite: ESE.
47. Reptile in the Chinese zodiac: SNAKE. The only other reptile is a dragon.
You are a SNAKE if you were born in 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, or 2013. The next Year of the Snake is 2025.
48. __-esteem: SELF.
 |
| Miss Wormwood was always one step ahead of Calvin. |
50. Pays for everyone: TREATS. My dog loves this word!
53. Reading lights: LAMPS.
61. "Veep" actress Chlumsky: ANNA.
 |
| Anna with her Veep castmates |
64. Latest craze: MANIA.
65. Tehran's land: IRAN. Last week I read Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America by Firoozeh Dumas (2004). It is a humorous look at the immigrant experience. Two thumbs up!!
66. See 28-Down: BEAR. and 28D. With 66-Across, fairy-tale character whose bed was too soft: MAMA. "Papa", "MAMA", and "Baby" all have 4 letters but only MAMA BEAR's bed was too soft.
67. Campaign button word: ELECT.
68. Guitarist Lofgren: NILS. An American rock musician born in 1951 in Chicago, IL. Among other things, he is know for being a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band since 1984.
65. Tehran's land: IRAN. Last week I read Funny in Farsi: A Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America by Firoozeh Dumas (2004). It is a humorous look at the immigrant experience. Two thumbs up!!
66. See 28-Down: BEAR. and 28D. With 66-Across, fairy-tale character whose bed was too soft: MAMA. "Papa", "MAMA", and "Baby" all have 4 letters but only MAMA BEAR's bed was too soft.
67. Campaign button word: ELECT.
68. Guitarist Lofgren: NILS. An American rock musician born in 1951 in Chicago, IL. Among other things, he is know for being a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band since 1984.
NILS Lofgren -- Pretty Soon (2019)
69. Deal (with): COPE.
70. Searches for: SEEKS.
71. Checkers or chess: GAME. "Or" keeps it singular. "And" would make it plural.
Down:
1. From this point forward: HENCE. Hence, we shall commence the Down clues.
2. Climbing tool for frozen surfaces: ICE AX.
3. Low on funds: SHORT. SHORT for "SHORT on cash".
4. Mexican state bordering Arizona: SONORA. Also, SONORA, California, nicknamed the "Queen of the Southern Mines", is a Gold Rush town named by Mexican miners in 1948 from the state of SONORA. It is 3 miles south of Columbia State Historic Park, a popular field trip destination for 4th graders in CA studying their state's history.
5. Anklebones: TALI. "Talus" is singular. "TALI" is plural. Both are pronounced with a 'long a' sound.
70. Searches for: SEEKS.
71. Checkers or chess: GAME. "Or" keeps it singular. "And" would make it plural.
Down:
1. From this point forward: HENCE. Hence, we shall commence the Down clues.
2. Climbing tool for frozen surfaces: ICE AX.
3. Low on funds: SHORT. SHORT for "SHORT on cash".
4. Mexican state bordering Arizona: SONORA. Also, SONORA, California, nicknamed the "Queen of the Southern Mines", is a Gold Rush town named by Mexican miners in 1948 from the state of SONORA. It is 3 miles south of Columbia State Historic Park, a popular field trip destination for 4th graders in CA studying their state's history.
5. Anklebones: TALI. "Talus" is singular. "TALI" is plural. Both are pronounced with a 'long a' sound.
6. Level: EVEN.
8. Perjurers: LIARS. "Lies" would not fit. Then I read the clue more carefully: perjurERs
9. Parcel out: ALLOT. not "oodles"
10. ABBA hit with the line "I was defeated, you won the war": WATERLOO. Did you remember this song from 63D yesterday? Taking you back to 1974...
11. Craft beer letters: IPA.
12. "Sour grapes" critter: FOX. Grateful to 19A for limiting my WAGs to all animal names spelled with 3 letters and ending in "x".
13. Prefix with -logue: EPI. Hand up for trying "pro" first. EPIlogues vs Afterwards vs Appendices
21. Not of the clergy: LAIC.
22. Tailor's line: SEAM. This clue seemed more difficult when I first read it.
25. Piano piece: ÉTUDE.
/ˈāˌto͞od/
noun
- a short musical composition, typically for one instrument, designed as an exercise to improve the technique or demonstrate the skill of the player.
26. Welcome sight in the desert: OASIS. Other good answers: Yuman, Chairman Moe, Lucina, and OwenKL. I hope I did not leave out any other Cornerite desert dwellers. lmk
29. Male deer: STAG.
31. Actress Russo: RENE. I love this scene from In the Line of Fire (1993). RENE Russo and Clint Eastwood play Secret Service Agents. (2.07 min.)
"If she looks back, that means she's interested."
"Well Abe. Wish I coulda been there for ya pal."
32. Apple computers: MACS. Mine is a PC.
33. Garden growth: PLANT. I am a gardener. I learned from my farmer grandfathers.
 |
| I set up this greenhouse in my backyard when I lived in Colorado. |
34. Underwater detector: SONAR. animals that use echolocation
36. "It's __-win situation": A NO.
37. Private aid gps.: NGOS. "Groups" is abbreviated. So is "Non-Governmental OrganizatonS".
38. Prescribed amount: DOSE.
40. Friendly send-off: TAKE CARE.
44. Cherished: DEAR.
45. Fashion monthly: ELLE.
 |
| this month's cover |
49. Not back-to-back with: FACING.
 |
| Downward FACING Dog (Yoga) |
51. Makes less unruly: TAMES.
52. Bathroom accessory: SCALE.
54. Tennis star Sharapova: MARIA.
54. Tennis star Sharapova: MARIA.
 |
| MARIA is one of 10 women (and the only Russian) to achieve the career Grand Slam. |
55. Sacred song: PSALM.
56. Smell, for one: SENSE.
56. Smell, for one: SENSE.
58. Joint between the foot and the hip: KNEE. KNEEs are hinge joints. Avoid injuries by making sure your KNEES and toes are pointing in the same directing when doing Yoga or other strenuous movements.
59. Clock sound: TICK. or tock
60. Bowlers and berets: HATS.
 |
| Bowler Beret |
61. Start of the alphabet song: ABC.
62. "The Matrix" hero: NEO.
 |
| Keanu Reeves as Neo in The Matrix (1999) One Cool Dude |
63. Quick snooze: NAP. I'm ready for one now.
Here's the completed grid:
How did you do? Did you earn your CRACKer Jack Detective pin?
That's all for today. I look forward to reading your comments!
