Saturday, December 9, 2023, Enrique Henestorza Anquiano

 Themeless Saturday by Enrique Henestroza Anquiano

I’m a data scientist from Oakland, CA, with a background in computational linguistics. I fully dove into crosswords as a daily solver and then constructor in 2019, and I love that both sides have allowed me to continually engage with everything I love about language, wordplay, and even coding. I also appreciate the friends I’ve made so far through this great community. 

As a forever Simpson's fan, here's a photo of me noshing on "The Homer" from Voodoo donuts in Portland.

This is my third Saturday themeless puzzle of Enrique's I have blogged and I have been able to solve them in great time while being entertained. This one took some time for me to break loose but it all came together. The three horizontal and one vertical grid spanners were very helpful. 

Across:

1. All over the place: GLOBAL.

7. Period: TERM - When I got my BS, our TERM was 15 weeks (trimesters) and not 18.

11. Chilled: COOLED IT - (2:43)

13. Absorb: SOP UP and 15. Need after spilling the tea?: MOP - Crosswords recently taught me that "spilling the tea" can also be gossiping which might require other actions.

14. Features of "Step by Step" and "Sister, Sister": BLENDED FAMILIES - I don't have any idea why Enrique didn't use the Brady Bunch 🤔

 

16. Gets rid of: LOSES - This sense is conciously getting rid of something as opposed to misplacing it.

17. Chips away at: ERODES - Living with a seaside view is a two-edged sword

18. Fertility clinic cells: OVA.

19. Made shorter: SNIPPED OFF - Yeah, I thought of that too...

23. "Save it for the honeymoon!": GET A ROOM - Too much PDA for Rodney!

26. Vietnamese garment: AO DAI - The  ÁO DÀI dress.

27. Small bucks and does: RABBITS 😀

30. Play a proper noun in Scrabble, say: ERR - I'm pretty sure ASMRIST (from two weeks ago) won't work either.

31. Declaration after a trial?: FOR REAL THIS TIME - Do you suppose Mickey Rooney said that for all eight of his marriages? 

36. Honor for David Oyelowo: Abbr.: OBE - Order of the British Empire. He played MLK in the movie Selma.

37. Astonished cry: DEAR GOD.

38. "But to no __": AVAIL.

41. Does as ordered?: TENDS BAR 😀 Some of you will recognize this man who TENDS BAR and the iconic TV show where he appeared. (*answer at bottom)

45. Craft goods that might be barrel-aged: MICRO BREWS - The difference between Craft Beer and MICRO BREWS

48. Classified letters: OBO - Or Best Offer

49. Resident of Number One Observatory Circle since 2021: HARRIS - The traditional home of the Vice-President

50. Enviable trait: ASSET.

52. "You really don't want to go there": AVOID AT ALL COSTS - That can mean a location or a topic of discussion

56. No-goodnik: LOUSE.

57. Paper clips?: ARTICLES 😀

58. Precursor to a deal: ANTE - Pay to play

59. Like some pop-up clinics: TENTED - Here's one for Covid shots that was just outside Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo.

Down:

1. Tackles: GOES AT.

2. Single: LONE and 51. Single: SOLE.Was Oswald the LONE or SOLE shooter?

3. "Grey Girl" poet Sharon: OLDS - The text of Grey Girl. Crossword car guy Ransom Eli Olds gets Saturday off.

4. Bumbling sort?: BEE 😀

5. Sum things up: ADD.

6. Anti-mimetic position held by Oscar Wilde: LIFE IMITATES ART - Mimetic means miming behavior you see in others. Oscar Wilde was a famous iconoclast who definitely went his own way.

7. Largest Ohio city that doesn't start with "C": TOLEDO.

8. Film with a boy named Anakin, familiarly: EPISODE I 

9. "You'll __ the day!": RUE.

10. House of Commons reps: MPS - Members Of Parliament

11. Garam masala ingredient: CLOVE.

12. Grounds crew's roll: TARP and 34. Grounds crew's roll: SOD. 😀

13. Hit home?: SIDE A - This took a while to see SIDE A is the home of the hit side of a record as opposed to the SIDE B. Here's the Top 5 A-Side/B-Side hits of all time and highest ranking obtained:

  1.  DON'T BE CRUEL / HOUND DOG - Elvis Presley  (1956)  

        RCA Records 47-6604   (Peaks:  A-Side -  1 / B-Side -  1)

   2.  COME TOGETHER / SOMETHING - The Beatles  (1969)

         Apple Records 2654  (Peaks:  A-Side - 1 / B-Side - 2)

   3.  TRAVELIN' MAN / HELLO, MARY LOU - Rick Nelson  (1961)

         Imperial Records 5741  (Peaks:  A-Side - 1 / B-Side - 9)

   4.  DOWN ON THE CORNER / FORTUNATE SON - Creedence Clearwater Revival  (1969)

         Fantasy Records 634   (Peakes:  A-Side - 3 / B-Side - 6)

   5.  HEY JUDE / REVOLUTION - The Beatles  (1968)

         Apple Records 2276   (Peaks:  A-Side - 1 / B-Side - 11)

14. WordPress.com offering: BLOG - Not what we use here.

19. Just wretched: SO BAD.

20. To the manor born: NOBLE.

21. Amass goods repetitively, in video games: FARM - The process of going through the same set of tasks to accumulate some specific set of resources or wealth in a video game. You're welcome.

22. Dumpster __: FIRE - Also a euphemism for a hopeless person or situation. Husker football comes to mind.

24. Talk Like a Pirate Day sound: ARR.

25. "Hair Love" voice actress: RAE.

Issa RAE.         

28. Organized: THREW - The Royal family THREW an impressive coronation for King Charles

This is a slideshow

29. Traces: SIGNS - Parks don't want you to leave any

31. __ roller: FOAM.

32. Curt "Duh": OBVIously

33. Try to touch or get in touch: REACH OUT - Today one does not call or write, they REACH OUT to someone 

35. Reasons for WRs to dance: TDS or...

39. Aggressive response to a bluff: I RAISE.

40. "Solar Power" singer-songwriter: LORDE - From 11/28/23 puzzle: "14. Poet/activist Lorde: AUDRE."

42. Ordered: BOSSED.

43. Plans a nice getaway?: ABETS - 😀 That makes you as guilty as the perpetrators

44. Turns: ROTS.

46. Cosabella product: BRA - Google all the images you want

47. Moreno in two "West Side Story" films: RITA.

1961                         2021

50. No. on a bank statement: ACCT.

52. __ provençale: ALA - Of, relating to, or characteristic of Provence or the people of Provence or Provençale: cooked with garlic, onion, mushrooms, tomato, olive oil, and herbs.

53. Artist Dutch whose name became a fashion brand: VON.

54. Cell service letters: LTE - On my iPhone the four bars show the strength of my LTE (Long Term Evolution) signal. The next symbol shows I am using WiFI and not cell towers.

55. Former NBAer Jeremy: LIN - He was the first NBA player of Taiwanese descent, a Harvard grad and the hottest thing in basketball in 2012.

*That bartender was Sam Noonan (played by George Strange) who tended bar for Miss Kitty at the Long Branch Saloon on the show Gunsmoke 

 

Notes from C.C.:

Happy birthday to our caring and sharp-witted Tuesday Sherpa Hahtoolah (Susan), who's vacationing at the moment. Splynter will guide us for the next few weeks.

Saturday, December 2, 2023, Kristian House

 Saturday Themeless by Kristian House 

This is Kristin's seventh LA Times puzzle as a sole and  co-constructor. His first entry was in late 2017 just a month before I started as the regular Saturday blogger in December of that year. I am now starting my seventh year at that post.

Kristian, of Oneta, NY, says he is a "Dad, Math Content Writer, Crossword Puzzle Creator and Supporter of the Infield Fly Rule"

Across:

1. Band that contributes to knee flexion, for short: ACL - Many an athletic career has been ended by an injury to the Anterior Cruciate Ligament

4. Hot breakfast cereal: FARINA.

10. Beaker's syllable: MEEP - Beaker was the lab assistant to the wacky Muppet scientist Dr. Bunsen Honeydew. (Did anyone else think of MEEP being the call of the Roadrunner as he ran from Wiley Coyote?)

14. Ice cream novelties discontinued in 2022: CHOCOTACOS - The Good Humor Company discontinued this item as a cost saving move.

16. Concerning: IN RE.

17. House money, at times: CASH OFFERS 😀 It sure beats waiting for the prospective purchaser to sell his house first.

18. "Now!": STAT.

19. Tarantula legs, e.g.: OCTAD - Any group of eight 

20. Meadows on TV: TIM - A lot of us here probably first thought of Audrey  (addendum link - h.g.)

21. Like the air in a greenhouse: MOIST - Humid means the same thing and has six letters but...

22. Second-largest branch of Islam: SHIISM.

24. Zip: NADA - zero, bupkis, nil, naught, etc.

26. Mens __: REA.

27. Ink spot?: TAT.

28. Landry who was the first coach of the Cowboys: TOM - Always nattily attired 

30. "La Dolce Vita" star: EKBERG.

32. Capitol gains?: SENATE SEATS - It's a close proposition these days

35. Modest reply to a compliment: WHAT CAN I SAY.

36. Reeling feeling: SHAME SPIRAL.

37. Stare daggers (at): GLOWER.

38. Department of the Interior head Haaland: DEB - The first Native American cabinet member.

39. "The Simpsons" character once voiced by Hank Azaria: APU - Hank quit voicing the character because he said it was reenforcing stereotypes and he felt bad about it.

42. Many a Monet: OIL.

43. Doesn't keep: ROTS.

46. Johnson who won the 2020 Masters Tournament: DUSTIN - I didn't get the name of the gentleman on the right who is presenting the jacket. 😀

48. Simmers: STEWS.

50. Shake a leg, quaintly: HIE - I got, "Come here so I can tell you something."

52. Dark times, informally: NITES 😀

53. "Small world": OH HI.

54. Teased: MESSED WITH.

56. "Coming Home" singer Bridges: LEON.

57. "No one's being straight with me!": IT'S ALL A LIE.

58. AAA and BBB: ORGS 😀 - If the AAA doesn't treat you right, report them to the BBB

59. Like some park passes: DAY USE - So you want to go to Disney World...

60. Inclusive word: AND.

Down:

1. Confront: ACCOST - I had ACC_S_ and used another but incorrect word

2. Three-step process?: CHA CHA 😀 The dance characterized by the triplet Cha Cha Cha rhythm is commonly just called the CHA CHA. You're welcome.

3. Flipped: LOST IT - An unfortunate trait of Bobby Knight

4. Some Hamilton Beach appliances: FOOD STEAMERS - A double header

5. Org. for traffic cops?: ATF - Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms

6. Host: RAFT - Candidates will be making a RAFT (host) of promises next year.

7. Trap during February, maybe: ICE IN.

8. Kamali who uses silk parachutes in many of her designs: NORMA - This is her 1974 "parachute dress" in international orange.

9. Burro: ASS.

10. Umami-rich paste: MISO - Umami means "savoriness" in Japanese

11. Aggregate: ENTIRETY.

12. Things that get bad marks: ERASERS 😀

13. Collar attachment: PET TAG - We call them Lily's license plates

15. Cardamom-infused brew: CHAI.

21. Rakes it in: MAKES A BUNDLE - What many who go to Vegas delude themselves will happen to them.

23. Lil Nas X album with the hit "Industry Baby": MONTERO - Google if you must

25. Sought-after: DESIRED.

29. Safari runners: MACS - 😀 The browser on my MacBook

31. Canaanite idol: BAAL - Need more?

32. "Killing Eve" actress Fiona: SHAW.

33. Bug: TAP.

34. Oklahoma city: ENID.

35. Completely: WHOLE HOG.

36. Act like a snake: SLITHER.

37. Strike out?: GO SOLO - The story of why Diana struck out on her own is in the 12/1/69 Soul Magazine article

39. __ the Hun: ATTILA.

40. Cobbler pan: PIE TIN.

41. Held back, as tears: UNSHED - An uncommon but easily sussed word

44. __ rhythm: brain waves pattern: THETA.

45. Actress Spacek: SISSY - Was this 47-yr-old movie anyone else's first thought?

47. YouTube star JoJo: SIWA - Go to YouTube and search for her if you must

49. Lands: WINS - A boxer can land a punch, a gymnast can land a vault, a salesman can land a contract, a fisherman can land a fish...

51. Biblical twin of Jacob: ESAU.

54. Central: MID.

55. Half the characters in "Kill Bill"?: ELS - 😀 Last week we had the meta clue for two iotas in Illiad (Iliad in Greek is Ιλιάδα). Today we have four EL'S for half the eight letters in Kill Bill.