Wednesday, November 13th, 2024 ~ Jack Maurer

 DIAMETRIC OPPOSITES

 A fresh and enjoyable debut puzzle from Jack Maurer for the LA Times, with four planets ( worlds ) "separated" across the theme answers of  11-, 13- and a 15-letter spanners.  Not quite in planetary order, but a very well constructed crossword.  Yes, we have circles, but thankfully a mere three(ish) names by my count and just 21 TLWs.  4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ / 5 rating.  The theme answers, with some musical interpretation:

16. Focus of some nongovernmental organizations: HUMAN RIGHTS - MARS - Interesting that the God of war be found in the phrase; I considered Human League, their song "Human", and Rage Against the Machine, but settled for this one....

Civil War - Guns N' Roses - lyric @ 1:35

22. The five ways romantic partners connect and communicate, per Gary Chapman: 

LOVE LANGUAGES - VENUS - Very cool that this planet/goddess be found in the phrase; I did an internet search for songs titled "Love Language", but I cannot listen to them - Period.  So I will go with the actual topic in the answer, the Love Languages. . . .

I like to receive Time and Touch; I am good at giving Service and Gifts

36. In succession: ONE AFTER ANOTHER - EARTH - there is only ONE home planet, and this song is close enough . . . .

One Thing Leads to Another - The Fixx

46. Musician's calling card: SIGNATURE TUNE - SATURN - the God of time, wealth, and liberation - here is my signature "warm-up" karaoke tune; keep your hands off my wealth. . . .

Keep Your Hands to Yourself - The Georgia Satellites

57. Utterly different, and what can be found in four of this puzzle's answers: W O R L D S APART

Separate Ways ( Worlds Apart ) - Journey

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Roti flour: ATTA - AND - 66A. Org.: ASSN - AND - 55D. Memo abbr.: ATTN: see also 51A.

5. "Stop that!": "DON'T!"

9. Papa: DAD - AND - 25D. Nana: GRAN - it was "granny" when I was growing up

12. Hatchling: CHICK

14. Made noise while throwing tomatoes, maybe: BOOed

15. Alter __: EGO

18. Maker of tools for writing and lighting: BIC - AND - 58. Maker of tools for paring and peeling: OXO - a clever way to clue a couple of 3LWs

19. Opposite of WNW: ESE

20. Splitting target: ATOM

21. Build muscles, with "up": BULK

Yeah, I'll get into shape - I am tired of "round" being my shape

27. Pizzeria purchases: SLICES

29. "A simple yes __ will do": OR NO

30. Bit of help: HINT

31. Gold unit: KARAT

33. "__ asked?": WHO - meh.

40. Signs off on: OKs

41. Reluctant (to): LOATH

42. Bring on board: HIRE

43. Sea swallow: TERN  - Crossword staple

44. Thrills: ELATES

51. Plenty: ALOT - I don't care for "ALOT" and "ATON" in crosswords

52. Idyllic spot: EDEN

53. IRS form expert: CPA - had this one yesterday

56. Actress Wasikowska: MIA - Her IMDb

61. __ milk: OAT - this or "SOY" would have worked

62. Pig Latin rejection: IXNAY - Formed when the N of "Nix" moves to the end + "ay"

63. Transfer, as a houseplant: REPOT - Hey, guess what~?  My mother's last remaining house plant is doing well again after a repot almost a year ago.  Phew.

64. Feature of some lower-priced streaming services: ADS - I pay $4/mo. for Pandora - worth every penny to not be interrupted with overly loud advertising while trying to relax with music

65. Overly curious: NOSY


DOWN:

1. Heating pad target: ACHE - I have a beanbag version that I can microwave for those times when my lower back tightens up

2. In this manner: THUS - "À LA" was too short

3. Social media feeds: TIMELINES - I don't Facebook, Instagram, or SnapChat, etc., and I am banned on Pinterest

4. Legislation from the Obama Era, initially: ACA - Affordable Care Act

5. Religious doctrine: DOGMA

6. "Aah" counterpart: "OOH"

7. Court feature in basketball and tennis: NET - Thanks to HuskerG for the shout-out, as I used to "mind" the net in hockey; Tolland Town is building new pickleball courts at Heron Cove park just around the corner from my house

Love the color palette of this image

8. NFL scores: TDs

9. Clean up, as code: DEBUG

10. Limber: AGILE

11. Prepares to disembark, say: DOCKS

13. Scoundrel: KNAVE

14. Life sci.: BIOLogy

17. Numbered hwys.: RTEs - also in yesterday's puzzle

21. Pixar short featuring a dumpling that comes to life: BAO

The Wiki

23. Twice tetra-: OCTA - 2 x four  = eight in prefixes

24. "Come Away With Me" singer Jones: NORAH

26. Golden Rule preposition: UNTO - do UNTO others, as sumdaze did to us Monday

27. "Git!": "SHOO~!"

28. Clickable text: LINK - Like this

31. Reeves of "The Matrix": KEANU - I was never a huge fan of "The Matrix" films, but my brother and I have this ongoing thing of sending the other a text whenever a "John Wick" movie comes on TV

32. National Gallery collection: ART

33. Waves on rough seas: WHITECAPS - found in the stained glass window of the church where the latest pipe organ installation continues

It's getting close to finished

34. "Take this": "HERE."

35. Raw metals: ORES - is it the raw metal, or is this the rock it be found in~?

37. Pet shampoo target: FLEA - I tried ODOR to start . . . 

38. Legal wrong: TORT - learned by doing crosswords

39. Comparison word: THAN

Or this scene from Men in Black

43. Explosive initials: TNT - Not really "initials" IMO, just an abbr.; Everything you ever wanted to know about trinitrotoluene

44. French summers: ETES - Frawnche

45. __ eclipse: LUNAR - Dah~! Not SOLar - I had a 50/50 chance because I start by doing the DOWN clues first(ly) - aaaaand SOLAR was on Monday as well 

46. Girl Scout Cookie with coconut: SAMOA - Cookie #3 in the lineup below

I see they're called Caramel deLites, too 

47. Trojan War epic with a 2023 translation by Emily Wilson: ILIAD - Her Wiki; born in 1971, like me

48. Animals in some yoga classes: GOATS - they really do have goats in the class

And I thought it was just a pose

49. Swim team event: RELAY

50. Whirlpool: EDDY

54. __ and cons: PROS

57. Come out on top: WIN

59. Some ER workers: RNs  Emergency Room : Registered Nurse

The cure for what ails me

60. Pod unit: PEA - also also yesterday

Splynter

Notes from C.C.:

 

Happy birthday to George (Big Easy), husband of Louisiana Tennis Hall of Famer Diane. I'll never forget his call last Christmas when I was walking alone on the trail. Thanks for the care all these years, George!

Big Easy and his wife Diane

Wednesday, Nov 6th, 2024 ~ Sala Wanetick

  CRISS-CROSS-EYED

This appears to be Sala Wanetick's first solo effort for the LA Times - I found three other puzzles with a co-constructor, Emily Biegas.  The grid is size 15 x 16, and the theme is two-word formations known as reduplication.  Some really vague clues/answers today, 18 TLWs, just two less than the number of four letter words, and a handful names, some of them totally obscure.  The themers;

18. Drag one's feet: DILLY-DALLY

27. Idle banter: CHIT-CHAT

40. Indecisive: WISHY-WASHY

57. Mixed bag: MISH-MASH

69. Tchotchke: KNICK-KNACK - I learned the word "tchotchke" ( CHOCH-key) from the terminal manager at Roadway Express - he was referring to the truckload of Home Interiors goods we had to sort every Friday night

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Loose-fitting: BAGGY

6. Hiker's snack mix: GORP  - AND -  32A. Tidbit in 6-Across: NUT - Good Ol' Raisins & Peanuts

10. New England fish: SCROD

15. Tunisian couturier Azzedine __: ALAÏA - Wow.  On a Wednesday.  Beyond obscure.  His Wiki.  Name #1

16. Is short: OWES

17. __ Troopa: Mario Bros. turtlelike foe: KOOPA - I grew up with Atari 2600; 

this was the "next generation" of video gaming - Name #2

Sort of theme-ish, too

20. "All good here": "I'M SET."

21. Italian sub slice: SALAMI

22. Unleash (on): SIC

23. Management level: TIER

24. Seeking, in ads: ISO - the old newspaper classified dating section - In Search Of . . . .

25. Organic lip balm brand: EOS

30. Cabinet-level div.: DEPartmenT

34. Drops in on: VISITS

35. Petro-Canada rival: ESSO - Name #3, but a common fill

36. Play areas?: STAGES

39. __ rally: PEP

44. "Silent Sunday Nights" cable network: TCM - filled via perps

47. Hangs loose: CHILLS - how 'bout some Chillaxing music~?

Rapture At Sea

48. Presidential terms, maybe: ERAS - did we go back to another era~?

52. "Got it": "OH, I SEE" - a bit meh.

54. Secret agent: SPY

56. Knitting loop: PURL - I used to watch several women in AA meetings knit, to the point where my curiosity got the better of me, and I asked Carol to teach me. 

60. Slangy greeting: 'SUP

I made my own UPS logos, too

62. NYC bus org.: MTA - the Metropolitan Transit Authority - some history

63. Like those on a world cruise: ASEA - Rapture~?

64. Float filler: AIR - I was not sure what "float" this referred to - I am guessing this . . . .

My brother once participated in the parade, holding on to Garfield

66. Out of this world: COSMIC - AND - 11D. Funny pages: COMICS - same letters

68. Hybrid piece of flatware: SPORK

71. Neutral shade: TAUPE

eBay Vintage

72. Easter haul: EGGS

73. Aerie nester: EAGLE

74. Counterpart of "ser," in Spanish: ESTAR - I had no idea - I used Google translate; both mean "be"

75. "Save me a __!": SEAT

76. Track athlete's asset: SPEED


DOWN:

1. Less photogenic angle: BAD SIDE - my "top side" is bad; the field manager is obsessed with taking pictures of my bald spot

My "bad side" at Washington National Cathedral

2. Names on falsified papers: ALIASES

3. Runs fast: GALLOPS

4. __ monster: GILA

5. Self-congratulatory cheer: "YAY ME~!" - cute, but a bit meh.

6. Smallest state in India: GOA - learned by doing crosswords; name #4

7. Parliament birds: OWLS - a 'parliament' being a group of owls - very clever

8. Piece of history: RELIC - this was my nick-name when I worked at Winn-Dixie; I was 27yrs old, roughly 10 years older than the rest of the stock crew - I was actually enamored of the moniker

9. "Gotcha!": "PSYCH~!"

10. Like some newly rescued dogs: SKITTISH - understandable

12. Fruit from a flowering shrub: ROSE HIP

For more, here's the Wiki

13. Manage: OPERATE - manage/operate is more Saturday clue/answer, IMO

14. Who __ Nation: New Orleans Saints fans: DAT - I have heard of this; it appears from the Corner map that Hahtoolah and Big Easy might be fans of this NFL team . . . .

19. Pop diva Celine: DION - Name #5, but I knew this one

26. Food that may be served via conveyor belt: SUSHI - I did not understand this clue; when I did an internet search, I discovered that there are restaurants that have sushi dishes going around on a belt - fascinating~! 

Here's a site about eating at one

28. St. __ Fresh Skin Apricot Scrub: IVES - fresh cluing for an old fill

29. Seasoning amt.: TSP - teaspoon

31. Auto club service: TOW - I toyed with AAA first, but that would be the club, not the service

33. Texting farewell: TTYL - text-speak, Talk To You Later

37. Knob-handled stickers: AWLS - stickers has different meanings in different places.  I was asked by an associate of the Pipe Organ company to get a couple of "stickers"; growing up on Long Island, "stickers" are the self-adhesive images that went on your books and binders - here in New England, it would seem that they are the "chocks" for under lumber stacks.  Go figure.  In this clue/answer, the term "sticker" is more like "poke-r"

Get it~?

38. Sounds of awe: GASPS - Like your reaction to the above image

41. Spot with falling rocks?: ICEMAKER - very clever clue / answer

42. Former home of the Mets: SHEA - name #6, but I grew up a Mets fan on Long Island, so . . . . 

43. "Reckon so": "YEP."

44. Actor Holland: TOM - name #7; his IMDb

45. Mexican state bordering Guatemala: CHIAPAS - name #8, no clue; tough for a Wednesday

Bottom right-hand corner

46. Lose an opportunity: MISS OUT - YOLO, ICYMO

49. Riffle (through): RUMMAGE

50. Thing: ARTICLE - ITEM was way too short

51. Didn't bring one's A game, say: SLACKED

53. Ethnic group native to Nepal and Tibet: SHERPA

55. "Ew! Gross!": "YUCK~!"

58. Fermented brews often served warm: SAKES - Sock-EEs, to drink with your conveyor belt sushi

59. Shutter hardware: HINGE - Shutters SHUT; I have "fake" shutters that would not come close to protecting the windows on my house

The "shutters" on the picture window are absurd -

they will come off when I do stucco in the future

61. Prods: POKES - you mean, with a sticker~?  Or an awl~?

65. Latvia's capital: RIGA - learned by doing crosswords

67. Onesie feature: SNAP

I just don't know who - yet

68. Sault __ Marie: STE - crossword staple

70. Winter hrs. in Tulsa: CST - the clocks are "normal" again

Splynter

Wednesday, Oct 30th, 2024 ~ Marshal Herrmann

"THE HEAT"

Labor Statistics on cooks, chefs & bakers

It would appear that today's crossword from Marshal Herrmann is his debut for the LA Times, and it's the closest we are going to get to a "Halloween" themed puzzle, as far as I can tell.  Three Across theme answers, plus the reveal, with two equally long 11-letter non-theme fills in the Down as well.  Double the number of four-letter words over TLWs, no circles, and a mere handful of names - though I did not know half of them.  I note, too, that several answers are straight definitions of the clues.  The theme answers;  

20. Chiles near the top of the Scoville scale: GHOST PEPPERS

36. Hard-boiled hors d'oeuvres: DEVILED EGGS

42. Citrus with red pulp: BLOOD ORANGE

56. Gordon Ramsay cooking competition that sounds like it should involve 20-, 36-, and 42-Across?: HELL'S KITCHEN - Devils, yes; Ghosts, likely; Blood, not so much . . . .

I actually watched the show, way back when it first aired

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Supermodel Banks: TYRA - name #1, but learned from Crosswords

5. Ritalin target: Abbr.: ADHD - Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder

9. The real deal: LEGIT

14. Zig or zag: VEER

15. Darling: DEAR

16. Many a resident of the Fertile Crescent: IRAQI - I tried iraNi first

17. Treadmill setting: PACE - I do the Downs first; the "P" made my 1D. wrong

Cat on a hot tread mill

18. Gumbo ingredient: OKRA - regular crossword ingredient

19. So last year: PASSÉ

23. Plant anchor: ROOT

24. Cornea locale: EYE

25. Concealed: HID

28. __ and reel: ROD - made my 28D. wrong

30. One of a set needed for a monopoly in Monopoly: DEED

This is the first time I have paid attention to the "Connecticut" square since

I moved to the state - right next to "jail"

33. Landform generally bigger than a gully but smaller than a valley: RAVINE

35. Curved path: ARC

38. Ernie's bestie: BERT - name #2, but who doesn't know this duo~?

40. Halloween night, to All Saints' Day: EVE - it's the Eve of the Eve - but not the theme

41. "Hot Girl Summer" rapper Megan __ Stallion: THEE - no clue, filled via perps, name #3

47. Not close: FAR

48. "Honest!": "I SWEAR~!"

49. Arise (from): STEM

50. Gallery collection: ART - I am slowly building a collection of art in my home

51. Fictional coach Lasso: TED - name #4, I know, but never watched the show

52. Light touch: TAP - not DAB

54. Pine for: MISS 

61. Off the cuff: AD LIB

64. Comparable (to): AKIN

65. Word on an Irish passport: EIRE - AND - 7D. Symbol on an Irish passport: HARP

66. Small crown: TIARA

67. Casserole pasta: ZITI

68. Eggy seasonal drinks: NOGS - with EGGS in a theme answer, I would have preferred a different clue for this fill

69. Taxi fare calculator: METER

70. Primatology subjects: APES

71. Grandson of Adam: ENOS - name #5


DOWN:

1. Common sitcom rating: TV-PG - I figured it was a little more mature; TV-MA . . . . 

2. "Sure," informally: "YEAH..."

3. Feature of a 2023 women's volleyball match at Nebraska's Memorial Stadium: RECORD CROWD - they moved the game to the football stadium to beat another record; watch to hear why . . . .

Did you make it to the game, HuskerG~?

4. Playground retort: "ARE SO~!" - oops, not AM TOO

5. Rescued dog, e.g.: ADOPTEE - I SO want to adopt a dog, but going on the road to install Pipe Organs, like I did for the last two weeks, this week, and next week, is not fair to the animal, even with a dog-sitter.  Here is the progress of the organ we are installing at St. Peters in Harwich, MA

Note the bourdon wood pipes laying flat against the back wall

6. Hockey feint: DEKE - I'd like to find a deck hockey league and play goalie again 

8. Hang, as a curtain: DRAPE

9. Watch what one says?: LIP READ - great clue / answer

10. Notable times: ERAS

11. Neon or xenon: GAS - noble, no less

12. Educ. testing data: IQs

13. Deadlock: TIE

21. Welker's "Meet the Press" predecessor: TODD - name #6, no clue

22. Brontë's "Jane __": EYRE - name #7, but a crossword standard

25. Haute couture: HIGH FASHION - Frawnche for "high sewing", according to Google translate

26. Ready to go: IN GEAR

27. Climate for Utah's "Mighty Five" national parks: DESERT - the website for Utah parks

28. Protein in a traditional paella: RABBIT - ah.  Not SHRIMP - rabbit in Spanish is coneja

29. Vague warning: OR ELSE - or else what~?

31. At any point: EVER

32. Prima donnas: DIVAS

34. Nov. honoree: VETerans Day - The History of why it's the 11th

37. Pre-Easter period: LENT

39. __ the line: TOE

43. Baked snack with dried fruit: DATE BAR

A recipe here

44. Spoken: ORAL

45. Some June babies: GEMINIs - Ha~!  CANCERS fit, too

46. Give off: EMIT

53. Public square: PLAZA

55. Part of an act: SCENE

56. Put on the payroll: HIRE

57. Button that plays the next song on a playlist: SKIP - ah.  Stumped me at first

58. Toy on a string: KITE - I toyed with YO-YO

59. Thus: ERGO

60. Loch __ monster: NESS

61. 20s dispenser: ATM

62. Stop working, as a battery: DIE

63. Long. counterpart: LAT - Longitude and Latitude

Splynter

Wednesday, Oct 16th, 2024, Rebecca Goldstein

  INGREDIENTS

Today's construction from RG was not a great one for me - I find the theme answers to be vaguely tied to the reveal at best, and we had a handful of names again, one of which was an 'ingredient' in the recipe for my disaster.  20 TLWs and 24 four-letter words, but we get a reprieve from circles, at least.  Sadly, I 49A. "flubbed" the middle left of the grid today, so I have to admit to cheating; though in hindsight, I shoulda known - maybe that's why I am not a fan of this puzzle.  The Themers;

16. Fruit given to Snow White by the Evil Queen: POISON APPLE

21. Rabble-rouser: BAD EGG

He's been "sEGGregated"

26. Youthful rebelliousness: WILD OATS - I missed my error here - I had Wild Rats, the "R" from DRS, which didn't jibe, and then a Wild Cats "C", which made no sense at all in the Down

45. Unrefined petroleum: CRUDE OIL

I cave in and put gas in my Prius once every six weeks

50. With 58-Across, conditions likely to lead to catastrophe, or what 16-, 21-, 26-, and 45-Across are ingredients for?: RECIPE - AND - 58A. See 50-Across: FOR DISASTER - with these "four" ingredients, I think you end up with a McDonald's Apple Pie

And Away We Go~!

ACROSS:

1. Rapid transit vehicles?: RAFTS - Rapid(s) as in white water, and "rafting" upon them

6. "Dancing Queen" quartet: ABBA - CrossWord Staple, still a name - #1

10. Weep loudly: SOB

13. Introverted, maybe: ALOOF - I am definitely introverted

14. Watering can part: SPOUT

15. Actress Thurman: UMA - CWS, still a name - #2

18. Write: PEN

19. Bombard, as with snowballs: PELT

20. Cribside coos: AWS - Meh.  I would have preferred "Amazon Web Services" for this clue; plus, it's usually AWW in crosswords

23. Tosses in: ADDS - AND - 34A. Much of magazines: ADS - meh on the semi-dupe

25. Turkish dough: LIRAS

 $1 US = 34.31 Lira

30. __ party: sudsy celebration: FOAM - I am not familiar with this "type" of party, but it makes sense - I stopped drinking 20yrs ago, and essentially stopped partying the same time as well. . . . Sigh

31. Literature Nobel laureate Bashevis Singer: ISAAC - No clue, waited on perps, and that didn't help either - note my little black triangles in the cel corners in the grid below; I just could not be bothered to think about finding the answers - just cheat and reveal the letters. . . . AND name - #3

32. Off-balance: ATILT

AWW, cute

37. Put down: DISS - Meh.  Usually has just one "S", as in DISrespect

38. Comrade: CRONY

39. First Nations people of Canada: CREE - had the last "E", but it's not OTOE - CWS and name #4

40. Rough no.: ESTimate

41. Hits upon the answer: HAS IT

42. Relaxed: CHILL

43. Look to be: SEEM

47. Gush with naches: KVELL - All I can say about seeing this in a Wednesday crossword is "What?!?"  21st century-speak for spewing pride.  P.S. naches is also the rump of a cow, and one might say I am leaning towards that definition in context. . . .

49. Flubs: ERRS

52. Prefix with -logue: EPI - epilogue, the wrapping up,  "last chapter", in a novel - this does SEEM to be trying too hard to avoid being the 'usual' crossword clue/answer. e.g. Epi Pen

53. Fries or tots: SIDE

57. Latin for "I": EGO

61. End of many superhero names: MAN  - let me count the ways. . . .

62. Reversed: UNDID - I am truly grateful for the "UNDO" button on several pieces of software, including the Blogger

63. Home of the Kaaba: MECCA - no clue, but I had M_C_A, so...name #5

64. Come to a close: END

65. Future AG's exam: LSAT

66. Oldest of the Three Musketeers: ATHOS - name #6

DOWN:

1. Reneé of "Mean Girls": RAPP - no clue, name - #7 - her IMDb

2. Succulent genus: ALOE - A shout-out to Hahtoolah

3. Wrap for leftovers: FOIL  - SARAN didn't fit

4. Open-faced dishes with crispy tortillas: TOSTADAS - my last fill, and I toyed with the last vowel - "A" or "O"~? even tho I knew it was an A

5. Hub across the Bay from OAK: SFO - San Francisco airport code; my closest airport code is BDL

6. Starters, casually: APPS - APPetizerS, trying again to NOT be typical, but it just doesn't work on Wed, IMHO

7. Danceable song: BOP - we (I) just learned this last Friday

8. Glowing object on a marquee: BULB - Meh.  IN a marquee seems better

9. Went back for thirds, maybe: ATE A LOT - Ugh.  I don't care for ALOT in puzzles to begin with

10. Nintendo platform game series: SUPER MARIO

11. Seamaster watchmaker: OMEGA - it was either this or ROLEX, as Audemars Piguet doesn't fit - I was a CAD designer for their Southampton store, which required bullet-proof glass - their most expensive piece is $430K, almost twice the cost of my house

NOTE: the website selling this watch is

offering $100 off your first order - ooh, good deal~!

12. Fringe on some foreheads: BANGS - A shout-out to our host C.C.

She likes the BANGS in this picture

14. Reacted to something striking?: SAW STARS

17. Absolutely nothing: NADA

22. San José day: DIA - Spanish lesson

24. OB or GYN: DOCtor - I knew DRS (plural) didn't match with the "or" in the clue

26. Broad: WIDE

27. Egyptian goddess: ISIS - name, #7

28. Stressful time for a procrastinator: LAST SECOND

29. Showing no fear, maybe: STOIC

30. Wing it?: FLY

33. Boldly brave: INTREPID - and then we have great fill like this

35. Market with a pickle barrel: DELI - Um, OK - when I did an internet search, I expected to find A LOT of B&W images, but no

36. Move merchandise: SELL

38. Laptop lens: CAMera - I have one at work for Teams meetings

39. Drawing board?: CHESS SET - a "draw" in chess is rare, but not unheard of; I plan to make a table for my living room with a chess board in the center

41. Advantageous: HELPFUL

42. Sr. officer: CDR - commander; I happen to know it's the abbr. for these, too

44. Nickname that drops -jah: ELI - again, trying to NOT be the typical "Yale" clue/answer

46. Novelist Leon: URIS - name #8

47. Krispy __: KREME - Mmmm, Donuts. . . . 

48. Plant-based: VEGAN - Do donuts count~?  I mean, the sugar comes from a plant, right~?

51. Many millennia: EONS - or AGES~?

52. Resolve a tense disagreement?: EDIT - correcting verb tenses - clever

54. Burning desire: ITCH - I have a "burning desire" in the form of poison ivy (oak, sumac) all over my arms from the yard work I did two weeks ago.  Yay.

55. Miami Beach style: DECO - Had something similar yesterday

56. Distinct periods: ERAS - is it going to be ERAS or AGES~?

59. Dietary amt.: RDA - Recommended Daily Allowance - my Daily Allowance these days is totally UN-recommended; I need to stop eating and start exercising - this is my New Year's Resolution

60. 24-Down's org.: AMA - American Medical Association

Splynter

Notes from C.C.

1) Happy Birthday to dear Dave (CrossEyedDave), the best birthday cake maker in the world. Your posts always brighten up our day, Dave!

CrossEyedDave

2) Happy Birthday also to Blue Hen. Hope all's well!