Thursday August 27, 2026 Rebecca Goldstein & Matthew Stock

Rebecca Goldstein and Matthew Stock have gotten together and bought stakes in a new steakhouse! 

3. Card game that's really taking off?: STRIP POKER. STRIP POKER is a card game where players forfeit clothing instead of chips...unless you call their buff. 

8. Namesake of Converse's All Star sneaker: CHUCK TAYLOR. Charles Hollis "CHUCK" TAYLOR (1901–1969) was an American semi-professional basketball player and an all-star shoe salesman. 

15. Dance around what's really important: SKIRT THE ISSUE. To SKIRT THE ISSUE means to avoid talking about a complex or awkward topic. As in, "Does this skirt make me look fat?" Umm...

23. Links activity: ROUND OF GOLF. A standard ROUND OF GOLF consists of playing 18 holes in sequential order, though a shorter 9-hole round is also common. It's also a drink order at the 19th hole!

And what do these seemingly unrelated answers have in common? I needed the revealer for this one:

31. With a lot on the line, or a phonetic hint to 3-, 8-, 15-, and 23-Down: HIGH STAKES. Even with the revealer, it still took me a moment to figure out that STAKES becomes STEAKS. Each of the four vertical themers begin (in the HIGH position) with a different cut of steak: STRIP steak; CHUCK steak; SKIRT steak; and ROUND steak.

Our two chefs have cooked up a meaty one today. Vertical themes are rare, and always seem a little tougher, but the rest of the fill was easy to cut through. Over all, I think it was well done.

Let's see what sides they're serving with this:

Across:

1. "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" network: PBS. Fred Roger's show ran from 1968 to 2001 on the Public Broadcasting Service.

4. Collision sound: BAM. Also the sound when seasoning hits the steak!

7. Hill partner, in textbook publishing and country music: MCGRAW. Interesting parallel. Educational publisher MCGRAW Hill vis-à-vis Tim MCGRAW and his wife Faith Hill.

13. Big sellers: HOTCAKES. People scooped up pancakes quickly while they were still warm.

16. "That's old news": I HEARD. 

17. "Could there possibly be a good explanation for this?": DARE I ASK. 

18. Skating jumps similar to toe loops: LUTZES. Rightbrain grew up in her uncle's roller rink. The first time I met her family was at the rink, and they suggested she take her fiancé for a spin. Being my first time on skates, I'm sure they weren't thinking LUTZES but KLUTZES. That was 45 years ago, and I still appreciate that they somehow kept a straight face.

19. Ruckus: STIR. 

20. Motorcycle attachments: SIDECARS. SIDECARS are also cocktails containing brandy, orange liqueur and lemon juice. But best not to mix the two.

22. Hair line?: PART. My favorite PART was when they sang the Hair line, "This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius."

25. Dangers: RISKS.

26. Disconnect: GAP.

28. "Get __ town!": OUTTA. No way!

30. Ski area near Reno: TAHOE.

34. Gold at the Milano Cortina Olympics?: ORO. Italian for gold.

35. Second, but not first: UNIT. A second is a unit of time. 

36. Getting the check: PAYING. ON ME per 57D

37. __ choy: BOK. Florida is so flat, that various entrepreneurs have erected towers (there are three of them) in the middle of nowhere to attract tourists. The most famous is the 205' BOK Tower built in 1920's during the state's land boom. The National Historic Landmark features a 60-bell carillon that plays a concert twice daily to visitors of the surrounding 250-acre gardens.

38. Every evening: NIGHTLY.

40. Prefix with political: GEO. GEOpolitical relates to how a country's physical location, size, and resources affect its politics, power, and relationships with other nations.

41. Revises: AMENDS.

43. Assessment, briefly: EVAL. A quick EVALuation.

44. Boater or bowler: HAT. In my business, a wear a lot of HATs, but neither of these.

45. Greta of classic Hollywood: GARBO. The great Swedish/American actress often just went by GARBO. In 1954, she was awarded an Academy Honorary Award "for her luminous and unforgettable screen performances."

46. Hustle genre: DISCO. Did you do the Hustle?

47. Texting tech: SMS. Short Message Service.

48. Some natural hairstyles: AFROS.

50. Part of QED: ERAT. "Quod ERAT Demonstrandum," said Pliny the Elder in Latin class. "It is proven. Any questions?"

52. Trench coat, wig, and big sunglasses, maybe: DISGUISE. 

Yep, she'd blend in anywhere.

55. Sando spread: MAYO. A sando is a Japanese-style sandwich. The word comes from a shortened form of sandoitchi, the Japanese loanword for sandwich. 

58. Patchy-patterned horses: PINTOS. This patchy PINTO only had 54 horses. On a quiet night, you can hear it rusting.

59. Tacit: UNSPOKEN.

62. Certain spot: LOCALE. 

63. Application that combats dark circles: EYE CREAM. I scream, you scream, we all scream for EYE CREAM?

64. Gobbles (down): SNARFS.

65. Some GEs: ACS. General Electric Air Conditioners.

66. __/her/hers: SHE.

Down:

1. Degs. conferred after defenses: PHDS. Knowing me as you do, can you believe I have a brother with Doctor of Philosophy degree?

2. Large sushi order: BOAT. 

Yum! Hand me the chopsticks!

3. [theme]

4. "WonderWater" brand: BAI. So many brands to keep track of...

5. Alias letters: AKA. Also Known As.

6. "Cleanup on aisle five" impetus: MESS. It's always aisle five. If I ran a store, I'd skip 5 like they skip the 13th floor in tall buildings. 

7. Half marathon's 13.1: MILES. Athens to Marathon is 26.2 MILES.

8. [theme]

9. Participate in decision-making: GET A SAY.

10. Motorola phone: RAZR. Cell phones kept getting smaller, and my RAZR was the smallest one I owned. Then screen size became a thing and now they are bigger than ever.

11. Combative Olympian?: ARES.

12. Dict. entries: WDS. Dictionary entries are words.

14. Michael of "Juno": CERA. I think he'll still look like a young boy when he's an old man.

15. [theme]

21. Opposite of noite: DIA. It's the difference between night and day! In Portuguese, that is.

23. [theme]

24. North African capital: TUNIS. 

26. Emergency kit: GO BAG. It usually contains enough basic supplies to sustain you for three days after a disaster.

27. Sweet smell: AROMA.

29. Comedian Notaro: TIG. TIG Notaro is an Emmy, Grammy, and Oscar-nominated comedian, actor, writer, producer, and podcaster. She's gotten the nod for 75% of an EGOT! 

31. [theme]

32. Wee hour: ONE AM. Two am is the wee wee hour. 

33. Showbiz quartets: EGOTS. The grand slam of winning Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony Awards.

36. Come in second: PLACE. Win, PLACE, and Show are bets in horse racing. A Win bet wins only if your selection finishes 1st. A Place bet wins if it finishes 1st or 2nd (so not just "come in second"). A Show bet wins if it finishes 1st, 2nd, or 3rd. 

39. Sports bar sets: TVS. You can sometimes watch horse racing on sports bar Televisions.

42. Supreme court presence?: NBA STAR. Fun clue...and holding court on TVS in another sports bar.

46. Eager agreement: DO I.

49. Tricks: RUSES.

51. "Te quiero, __ mio": AMOR. "I love you, my love," in español. Sounds a bit redundant.

52. Singer Celine: DION. Her heart will go on and on and....

53. Empire also known as the "Realm of the Four Parts": INCA. The INCA Empire was a vast pre-Columbian state in South America divided into four administrative regions.

54. New Age singer who speaks Irish: ENYA. Everyone's favorite New Ager in crosswords.

56. "Totes": YEAH. "Totes" is slang for "totally", so YEAH seems like a weak equivalent.

57. "I'll get the check": ON ME. PAYING like 36A.

58. [Praying emoji]: PLS. Please! 🙏🏻Some people use this as a "high five" emoji...don't get me started! 😂

60. Org. with LSU Tigers, Auburn Tigers, and Missouri Tigers: SEC. All these college teams are copy cats, and are members of the the Southeastern Conference of the NCAA.

61. WFH devices: PCS. People who Work From Home often use Personal Computers.

Okay, I'm done grilling these guys.

Be good. RB

 

Notes from C.C.

Happy Birthday to Lemonade, our Friday sherpa for a long long time. Hope all is well with you and Oo!

Monday October 20, 2025 Matthew Stock

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here, struggling to keep up with Mathew Stock's clever clues. Is it just me and too much time off or was this one tricky for a Monday? Well, at least the theme was easy an easy order:  

The unifier spells it out:

54 Across. Combo meal component, and what the answers to the starred clues have: SIDE OF FRIES. All the themed answers have a type of French fries at the right SIDE of the answer. We have:

16 Across. *Breakfast chain founded in metro Atlanta: WAFFLE HOUSE.  I went to one once to see what it was all about. Not really my thing.  

This is the WAFFLE HOUSE scene from the 2010 movie Due Date, 

starring Zach Galifianakis and Robert Downey Jr. (4:18 min.)

Truthfully, I find this genre of movies too uncomfortable to watch.

18 Across. *Harlem Globetrotters legend known for his shaved head: CURLY NEAL. I loved the Globetrotters as a kid so I remembered CURLY but guessed "bEAL" for his last name as I was unfamiliar with 13-Down and thought it could have been an initialism.  

Here is #22 in action. 

I like the last clip where he does a bounce pass though his opponent's legs to himself.

1:12 min. (It's worth the click just to hear their theme song again!)

34 Across. *Dramatic snag in the outfield: SHOESTRING CATCH.  I was unfamiliar with this term but clocking the theme helped (as it should). It is when a baseball player catches a ball close to his feet, meaning very close to the ground.  

This video is just 12 seconds.

51 Across. *Feature of some blocky footwear: WEDGE HEEL.  Women's footwear -- finally something I can relate to!  

Here they all are:

(l. to r.) WAFFLE, CURLY, SHOESTRING, and WEDGE FRIES
We're going to need more ketchup!

Next, we'll dip into the remaining clues:

Across:

1. Prefix with gender: CIS-.

4. East Coast gas station chain with a goose logo: WAWA.  I used to live near one when I lived in Virginia back in the aughts. DH loved their coffee. I've never been a coffee drinker so....

Do you see the yellow goose?

8. Play group?: BAND.  The question mark indicates word play. Think "musicians". 

I was trying to decide which BAND to link, then it hit me -- The BAND!  

The Band     ~     Up On Cripple Creek     ~     1969

Note:  Some of you might be disappointed I did not use The Weight.

I've used it in the past so I went with something different. You can hear that song here.

12. Little troublemaker: IMP.  CSO to our Cornerite IMP!

13. Purple flower: LILAC.  My old neighborhood in Colorado had several old LILAC bushes. I was told they were planted back when people had outhouses. Their fragrance helped mask the odor when  things began to thaw in the spring.

14. Wind instrument that typically has 23 tone holes: OBOE.

15. Hopping pal of Pooh: ROO.  

20. Florida freshwater springs mammal: OTTER.  

This is a 2:32 min. video about freshwater OTTERs in Montana.

(It is shorter plus it has better information than the Florida ones I viewed.)

21. Make it to: ATTEND.  Ah, as in, "Did you ATTEND the fundraiser?" / "Did you make it to the fundraiser?"

Trying to make ATTain work tied me up in the NW.

22. "Gracious!": OH, MY.     and     25-Across. "Gracious!": WOWIE.

24. __ Diego Padres: SAN.

27. Ceiling spinner: FAN.  

30. Brief "We'll figure it out later": TBD.  To Be Determined

31. Jazz horn: SAX.  

Charlie Parker [1920-1955]     ~     All the Things You Are

32. Baseball apparel company: NEW ERA.  Gracious! I did not know this one either!

37. "Pick up the pace!": PRONTO.

38. Female 11-Down: DOE.     and     11-Down. Buck or 38-Across: DEER.   

Here's a pic from my recent trip.
This wild buck let me hand-feed it an apple.
He and his buddies hang out in the orchard,
waiting for humans to pick the apples they cannot reach.
Yes, I was a bit nervous of those antlers!

39. "Go team!": RAH.  

40. Guffaw: YUK.  A guffaw is a loud or boisterous burst of laughter.

41. __ and aahed: OOHED.

43. Theater chain initials: AMC.  AMC originally stood for American Multi-Cinema.

44. Research on a rival, briefly: OPPO.  OPPOsition Research  more from the Political Dictionary

45. Tennis legend Gibson: ALTHEA.  Althea Neale Gibson [1927-2003] was an American tennis player and golfer. In 1956 she became the first Black player to win a Grand Slam event.  more achievements

48. Cupcake topper: ICING.  Here are some fun ones for Halloween:  

56. Bard's before: ERE.  "Bard's" hints at Old English.

57. More than one can count: A TON.  

58. Some UNESCO World Heritage Sites: RUINS.  "UNESCO" stands for United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Its website says, "We strengthen ties between people to build peace." An example of an UNESCO RUINS site is the Ruins of Leon Viejo in Nicaragua.

59. Quoter's "I'm aware of the error": [SIC].

60. Join using heat: WELD.  

Welding for Beginners  (4:14 min.)

61. Singles: ONES.  Think "dollar bills".

62. Shriek of fear: EEK.  

Down:

1. Historian's word of approximation: CIRCA.  CIRCA is a preposition which means "at approximately". It is used especially with dates. It comes from the Latin circum, meaning around. In a roundabout way, it is related to circumference.

2. "Later": I'M OUT.

3. Gambling venue that may offer Super Bowl parlays: SPORTSBOOK.  A SPORTSBOOK is a place -- either a website or a building -- that accepts bets on sporting events, especially college and professional events. more from Investopedia  Thanks, perps!

Coincidentally, Wiki sported this pic & caption. (See 16-Down.)

4. Elastigirl, to Mr. Incredible: WIFE.  

5. __ Romeo: ALFA.  CSO to -T!

6. Enjoy a mudhole: WALLOW.  When my dog was 3 years old, we went to a group picnic in the hills and she found a smelly, wild pig mudhole. She thought it was glorious! I cannot remember how many baths it took to get rid of the smell.  

7. Blackjack card: ACE.

8. Pirate riches: BOOTY.     and     9-Down. Sit beside: ABUT.  <snicker, snicker>

10. Won by a __: NOSE.  This idiom means to defeat an opponent by a very small margin. It is believed to have originated in horse racing.

13. __ Back: movement focused on ancestral sovereignty: LAND.  Learning moment for me. Of course it makes sense now that I see the answer....

16. MGM Grand rival: WYNN.  I did not know this one either but I knew that the MGM Grand was a casino so a homophone for "win" seemed plausible.

(See photo for 3-Down.)

17. HS course that taught practical skills: HOME EC.  I am wondering why this clue is in the past tense. Do they no longer teach HOME EConomics in High Schools?

19. Tough to move: LEADEN.  Trying to make LoADEd work added to my difficulties with 21-Across.

23. Dating app "designed to be deleted": HINGE.  This one was out of my wheelhouse as well. Apparently HINGE is a dating app geared more towards finding a serious relationship. "Designed to be deleted" probably means that you will find your true love in the first go-round and then no longer need the app so you will delete it from your phone.

25. Card game that requires no skill: WAR.  WAR is the Candy Land of card games. There is no mechanism for players to impact the results.  

26. Iron __: rust: OXIDE.  CSO to RustyBrain!

Here's a brief engineering science lesson:  Iron is a metal and metals have a crystalline molecular structure. The crystalline structure of iron oxide is less dense than that of iron so it flakes off in what we call "rust", exposing additional iron to even further rust. Contrast this with another metal, aluminum. Aluminum oxide has a more dense crystalline structure than aluminum. This means you get a denser surface but do not get the flaking. As a result, you will not have additional aluminum exposed to further oxidation. Now, think about why we use aluminum cans to store food.

27. Greek salad topper: FETA CHEESE.  It originates from Greece and is made from sheep's milk or a mixture of sheep's and goats' milk.

How to make FETA CHEESE at home

28. St. Louis landmark: ARCH.  The Gateway Arch is a 630-foot-tall monument in St. Louis, Missouri. Clad in stainless steel and built in the form of a weighted catenary arch, it is the world's tallest arch and Missouri's tallest accessible structure.  website

29. "Pass": NAH.

30. Drive-__ window: THRU.  

Click to enlarge.

31. Hunch over: STOOP.  SlOuch did not quite fit.

33. Campfire output: WARMTH.  This one took a minute, probably because I have been conditioned to think of "ash"-related words when we see campfire in a clue.

34. Mission-driven individual?: SPY.  Is this clue referring to the Mission Impossible films???

35. Slow-moving, as traffic: STOP GO.  STOP-and-GO???  

36. Silent "Go for it": NOD.

42. "Sounds like a blast!": HOW FUN.

43. Brewmaster brews: ALES.

44. Without stopping: ON END.  For example, "The sun shone for days ON END."

45. Many moons: AGES.  The Earth's moon's cycle repeats every 29.5 days.  

46. Spooky: EERIE.     and     52-Down. Lake between Toledo and Buffalo: ERIE.

47. Smart __: ALECK.  I think I've always spelled this without the "K". Merriam-Webster says my spelling is a less common variant.

48. "That much was clear to me": I SAW.

49. Quote as a source: CITE.

50. Megastar: IDOL.

53. Commotions: DINS.

55. To's counterpart: FRO.  

Today's grid: 

We do not usually see themed answers on consecutive rows.

Many thanks to RustyBrain and Anonymous T for filling in these past five weeks! While I was away, I did two back-to-back bicycling trips. The first was centered around Bend, OR and the stunning Crater Lake. The second was a tent-camping trip through CA, NV, and UT. Here I am towing my dog, Meadow, in Goblin Valley State Park, UT.  

Tuesday, October 7, 2025 Matthew Stock and Mark Valdez

Steal  My Heart. 

16-Across. Replace a player on the basepath: PINCH RUN.

20-Across. Comedian who co-created the Netflix animated series "Big Mouth": NICK KROLL.

32-Across. Ski resort pass: LIFT TICKET.

43-Across. "RuPaul's Drag Race" segment featuring celebrity impressions: SNATCH GAME.

57-Across. Reject, on a dating app: SWIPE LEFT.

63-Across. Go on a break, or what the starts of 16-, 20-, 32-, 43-, and 57-Across can be called: TAKE FIVE.  Five examples of stealing.

Across:

1. Scrabble piece: TILE.

5. Come to a close: END.

8. Small fruit pie: TART.

12. Beyoncé, to the Beyhive: IDOL.  Before she went out on her own, Beyoncé Giselle Knowles (b. Sept. 4, 1981), she was the lead singer of Destiny's Child.  Her ardent fans are known as the Beyhive.

13. Caviar: ROE.

14. "Makes sense now": AH, I SEE!

18. Sibling's daughters: NIECES.  //  Lots of family relationships in today's puzzle.  We also saw 24-Across. Unlike 18-Across: MALE.  //  And we have 40-Across. Mama's hermana: TIA.

19. Critical time: D-DAY.

22. October birthstone: OPAL.  Many opals are found in Australia.  Hi, Kazie!

25. Bag-checking org.: TSA.  As in the Transportation Security Administration.

26. Dana Bash's channel: CNN.  Dana Ruth Bash (b. 1971) is an American journalist, news anchor, host of Inside Politics and co-anchor of State of the Union on CNN.

28. Loose-leaf beverage: TEA.  //  And 3-Down. Drink made with Earl Grey tea and steamed milk: LONDON FOG.  I thought London Fog was a clothing manufacturer.

30. Fly or fish, for example: VERB.  //  And 6-Down. Fly or fish, for example: NOUN.

35. Top poker cards: ACES.

39. Houseplant that seldom needs watering: ALOE.

41. Iditarod town: NOME.  A brief history of the Iditarod sled race.

42. Prefix with watts: MEGA.-  So fraught with meaning ...

46. Bread served with biryani: ROTI.  Let's travel to India for today's meal.  Roti is a simple, unleavened flatbread and biryani is an elaborate, aromatic mixed rice dish.  Yummers!

48. Body of water: SEA.

49. Glum: SAD.

50. Orbiting facility: Abbr.: ISS.  As in the International Space Station.

53. __ de gallo: PICO.  Now let's travel to Mexico for our next meal.  Pico de gallo is a Mexican salsa.  Yummers!

55. Dethrone: OUST.

60. Informed: TOLD.

62. Bemoan: LAMENT.

66. Add a raised design to: EMBOSS.

67. Younger "ManningCast" host: ELI.  Eli Manning (né Elisha Nelson Manning; b. Jan. 3, 1981) is the son of Archie (né Elisha Archibald Manning, III; b. May 19, 1949) and the younger brother of Cooper (né  Cooper Archibald Manning) and Peyton (né Peyton Williams Manning; b. Mar. 24, 1976).  The sons were all born in New Orleans.  Cooper's dreams of following the family into a football career were dashed when he was diagnosed with spinal stenosis.  His son, Arch (Archibald Charles Manning; b. Apr. 27, 2004) plays college football.

68. Reverse: UNDO.

69. Stretch across: SPAN.  Bridge building is an engineering feat.

70. Earn after taxes: NET.

71. Loch with a legend: NESS.

Down:

1. Helpful pointer: TIP.

2. Terse confession: I DID.

4. Yosemite Valley landmark, for short: EL CAP.  It's formal name is El Capitan and it is a vertical rock formation in Yosemite National Park.  Sadly, just last week a young climber, Balin Miller (Jan. 12, 2002 ~ October 1, 2025), fell to his death attempting a climb up the face of this rock formation.

5. Use bleach on a load of colored laundry, say: ERR.

7. Jeans fabric: DENIM.  A brief history of Denim.

8. Cake layer: TIER.

9. Posh neckwear: ASCOT.

10. Film spools: REELS.

11. Unit of magnetic flux density: TESLA.

14. Belly dancer's jewelry: ANKLET.

15. Someone to trail behind?: HIKER.

17. Luxury hotel chain: HYATT.

21. Warnings: CAVEATS.

23. "Lilo & Stitch" costume accessory: LEI.

26. Chowder morsel: CLAM.  New England or Manhattan?

27. Cairo's river: NILE.

29. "Smile and be on your best behavior!": ACT NICE!

31. Sharp noise: BANG.

33. Origami slipup: TEAR.

34. Korean automaker: KIA.

36. Boundary between land and water: COASTLINE.

37. Actress Thompson: EMMA.

Emma Thompson, b. Apr. 15, 1959

38. Bird feeder filler: SEED.

43. Tall circus performer's pair: STILTS.

44. Corp. leader: CEO.  As in the Chief Executive Officer.

45. High in the Alps?: HAUTE.  Today's French lesson.  A portion of the Alps are in France.

47. Works the first shift at a café, say: OPENS.

50. Cruise stopovers: ISLES.

51. Shrek's home: SWAMP.

52. Lion hoisted skyward during "Circle of Life": SIMBA.  A reference to The Lion King.

54. Not infrequently: OFTEN.

56. "Whee!": SO FUN!

58. Laborer: PEON.

59. Story: TALE.

61. Box set units: DVDs.

64. Baby fox: KIT.

65. Lip balm brand: EOS. Although EOS is the name of the Greek Goddess of Dawn, in the realm of lip balm, it refers to the Evolution Of Smoothness.

Here's the Grid:

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