google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Zachary David Levy

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Showing posts with label Zachary David Levy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Zachary David Levy. Show all posts

Sep 17, 2025

Wednesday, September 17, 2025 Zachary David Levy

div>Theme: Getting Away.  The last word of each two word theme entry is a synonym for departure.

17 A. *Ice cream sundae traditionally served in a boat: BANANA SPLIT.   A classic American ice cream dessert made with a peeled banana split lengthwise, a trio of ice cream scoops, and a variety of toppings, including syrups, nuts, whipped cream, and cherries.   SPLIT also means  to leave a place, or to depart quickly. 
 
40 A. *Salt-free seasoning introduced in 1983: MRS DASH.    A brand of salt-free seasonings introduced in 1983 and marketed by B&G Foods, offering various herb and spice blends to add flavor to food without sodium. The brand dropped the "Mrs." to create a modern identity and emphasize its ability to provide a quick, salt-free flavor boost.  DASH also means to move or run very quickly.

65 A. *Rehearsal: PRACTICE RUN.    A trial, test, or rehearsal performed before a real event, performance, or deployment to ensure it is prepared and functions correctly.   To RUN is to move at a speed faster than a walk, never having both or all the feet on the ground at the same time.

11 D. *Inflatable structure at a kids party: MOON BOUNCE.    An inflatable structure (also known as a bounce house) that children play in at events, named for the bouncing motion that resembles astronauts walking on the moon.   I had BOUNCE HOUSE, which set me back.  In slang, to BOUNCE means to leave or depart from a place, often quickly or abruptly. 

30 D. *Listing of all-time accomplishments: RECORD BOOK.   A compilation of outstanding achievements or best results in a specific field.  In slang,  BOOK means to leave or depart suddenly and quickly, often to hurry or flee.

And the unifier: 73 A. Have the final turn, and what can be found in the answers to the starred clues?: GO LAST.    This is clever construction, a synonym for "go" is in the last part of the fill.  Well played!

Since many of these departures suggest getting away or escaping, here is today's theme song.




Across:

1. Premolar neighbor: CANINE.  A pointed tooth between the incisors and premolars of a mammal, often greatly enlarged in carnivores.

7. Opposite of sans: AVEC.  Without, and with, in French.

11. Bub: MAC.  Dude, bro, bud, guy.

14. Handy: USEFUL.  Able to be used for a practical purpose or in several ways.

15. Indistinct number: SOME.  More than a few, maybe.

16. Lone: ONE.   Alone, solitary, or the only one of its kind.

19. Fertility clinic cells: OVA.   The mature female reproductive cells, or egg cells, which are the gametes produced by a female organism that, upon fertilization by a male gamete (sperm), can develop into a new individual. 

20. Minor dustup: SPAT.   A brief petty quarrel or angry outburst; 

21. Masks and gowns in the OR, e.g.: PPEPersonal Protective Equipment, worn to minimize exposure to hazards that cause serious workplace injuries and illnesses.

22. Game featuring matches and love: TENNIS.  In tennis, "love" means zero. When a player or team has scored no points, their score is "love," such as "15-love" for 15 points to 0.

24. Organize: ASSORT.  Arrange or order by classes or categories.

27. Money with a double-headed eagle: RUBLE.   The basic monetary unit of Russia and some other former republics of the Soviet Union, equal to 100 kopeks.

28. Before now: EARLIER.  In the recent past.

31. San Antonio landmark: ALAMO.   A fort in San Antonio, Texas, the site of a pivotal siege and massacre in 1836 during the Texas Revolution. 

33. Fast Amtrak train: ACELA.    Amtrak's flagship passenger train service along the Northeast Corridor (NEC) in the Northeastern United States between Washington, D.C. and Boston via 13 intermediate stops, including Baltimore, New York City and Philadelphia. 

34. Pledge drive gift: TOTE.   A large, roomy bag, often open-topped, with parallel handles, used to carry many items. 

36. __ mail: BULK.    A method of sending large volumes of mail at reduced rates, either as part of a marketing or communication campaign or as physical mail sent by an organization. 

39. Brief moment in time?: SEC.  One second, a 60th on a minute.

43. Highland rejection: NAE.    The Scottish word for "no" or "not", 

44. Walked heavily: TROD.  Stomped.

46. "I'm standing right here": AHEM.  The clearing of one's throat.  I can see the connection to the clue, but am not fond of it in a puzzle.

47. Footnote abbr.: OP CIT.  An abbreviation of the Latin phrase opus citatum or opere citato, meaning "the work cited" or in the cited work, respectively.

49. Riding event: RODEO.    An exhibition or contest in which cowboys show their skill at riding broncos, roping calves, wrestling steers, etc.

51. Become familiar with: INURE TO.  Accustom someone to something, especially something unpleasant.

53. "The Princess Bride" co-star __ the Giant: ANDRE.   André René Roussimoff (19 May 1946 – 28 January 1993), better known by his ring name André the Giant, was a French professional wrestler and actor. Dubbed "the Eighth Wonder of the World", Roussimoff was known for his great size, which was a result of gigantism caused by excess human growth hormone.

55. Leonard who wrote "Get Shorty": ELMORE.  Elmore John Leonard Jr. (October 11, 1925 – August 20, 2013) was an American novelist, short story author and screenwriter. He was, according to British journalist Anthony Lane, "hailed as one of the best crime writers in the land". His earliest novels, published in the 1950s, were Westerns, but he went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures. 

57. Jewish mystical doctrine: CABALA.   The ancient Jewish tradition of mystical interpretation of the Bible, first transmitted orally and using esoteric methods (including ciphers). It reached the height of its influence in the later Middle Ages and remains significant in Hasidism.

59. Energy bar grain: OAT.   A species of cereal grain grown for its seed, which is known by the same name (usually in the plural). Oats appear to have been domesticated as a secondary crop, as their seeds resembled those of other cereals closely enough for them to be included by early cultivators. 

60. Named names: SANG.    Confessed, especially under interrogation, or acted as an informer.   Here, the latter is indicated.

64. GI show gp.: USO.   The United Service Organizations (USO) show, a popular form of entertainment for troops.

68. Eastern "way": TAO.  In Chinese philosophy, the absolute principle underlying the universe, combining within itself the principles of yin and yang and signifying the way, or code of behavior, that is in harmony with the natural order. 

69. Above the strike zone: HIGH. The baseball strike zone is an invisible area over home plate, extending from the midpoint between a batter's shoulders and the top of their uniform pants, down to just below the kneecaps, when the batter is in their stance and ready to swing. A pitch outside the strike zone is called a ball.  

70. Nabe in lower Manhattan: NOLITA.   Derived from "Northern Little Italy", Nolita is situated in Lower Manhattan, bounded on the north by Houston Street, on the east by the Bowery, on the south roughly by Broome Street, and on the west by Lafayette Street.[4] It lies east of SoHo, south of NoHo, west of the Lower East Side, and north of Little Italy and Chinatown.

71. Antlered buglers: ELK.    The second largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The word "elk" originally referred to the European variety of the moose, Alces alces, but was transferred to Cervus canadensis by North American colonists.

72. Pi Day follower: IDES.  Pi day is 3/14, representing the first 3 digits of the number π, 3.14; and the IDES is 3/15, a day falling roughly in the middle of each month.

Down:

1. Windy City team: CUBS.  The Chicago Cubs are currently in 2nd place in the National League Central Division of Major League Baseball.

2. Urgent letters: ASAPAs Soon As Possible.

3. "99 Luftballons" singer: NENA.  Gabriele Susanne Kerner (born 24 March 1960), better known by her stage name Nena, is a German singer who rose to international fame in 1983 as the lead vocalist of the band Nena with the Neue Deutsche Welle song "99 Luftballons". In that same year, the band re-recorded this song in English as "99 Red Balloons".


And here is the English language version.



4. "Maybe not even that": IF AT ALL.    It indicates that something is unlikely to happen, or rarely happens, and that it will occur in a negative or restricted way if it does happen. 

5. Convent member: NUN.   A member of a religious community of women, especially a cloistered one, living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.

6. Go by: ELAPSE.    Of time: to slip or pass by. 



7. In accordance with: AS PER.   A formal phrase that means "in accordance with" or "according to". 

8. Up/down arrows on a remote: Abbr.: VOLume.  Controlling the loudness of the broadcast medium.

9. Send off: EMIT.   Produce and discharge something, especially a sound, gas or radiation.

10. Peter of Chicago: CETERA.   Peter Paul Cetera Jr. is a retired American singer, songwriter, bassist, and producer. He's best known as a founding member of the rock band Chicago, where he played bass and sang lead vocals from 1967 to 1985. Cetera recorded 17 albums with Chicago and launched a successful solo career with eight studio albums. 


12. Middle ear bone: ANVIL.  The middle ear contains three small bones called the ossicles. These bones are: Malleus (hammer): Attached to the eardrum.  Incus (anvil): Connected to the malleus and stapes.  Stapes (stirrup): Attached to the oval window, which leads to the inner ear.   The ossicles amplify and transmit sound vibrations from the eardrum to the inner ear. They play a crucial role in hearing.


13. Discontinue: CEASE.  Stop!

18. Adidas offering: SPORT SHOE.    Footwear designed for physical activity, such as running, playing basketball, or exercising, and comes in various types like running shoes, tennis shoes, and cross-trainers. 

23. Not really feeling it?: NUMB.   Deprived of the power of sensation.

25. Thailand, once: SIAM.  A country in Southeast Asia that was known as Siam for centuries before being renamed Thailand in the late 1930s. The name Siam is an exonym, a term used by outsiders, and also refers to several historical kingdoms and the ethnic group that later became known as the Thais. 

26. Flooring in a ryokan: TATAMI MAT.   A traditional Japanese flooring or sleeping surface made of woven rush grass over a compressed rice straw core, known for its natural insulation, moisture-absorbing properties, and a firm yet yielding surface. 

28. Sunrise locale: EAST.   The direction toward the point of the horizon where the sun rises at the equinoxes, on the right-hand side of a person facing north, or the point on the horizon itself.

29. Taiwanese tech giant: ACER.    A Taiwanese multinational computer hardware and electronics company known for its laptops, desktops, monitors, and gaming systems like the Predator brand.

32. French article: LES.   A plural form of the definite article "the" with any plural noun, regardless of gender, when referring to specific or general items.

35. "__ of Girls' Things": poem by Sharon Olds: ODE.   Sharon Olds (born November 19, 1942) is an American poet. She won the first San Francisco Poetry Center Award in 1980, the 1984 National Book Critics Circle Award, and the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.She teaches creative writing at New York University and is a previous director of the Creative Writing Program at NYU.  Her poem can be found here.

37. Café addition: LAIT.   French milk.

38. Fat-heavy diet: KETO.   A high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet that aims to put the body into a metabolic state called ketosis. In ketosis, the body burns fat for energy instead of carbohydrates. 

41. Issa of "Insecure": RAE.  Jo-Issa Rae Diop is an award-winning actress, writer, producer, director, and web series creator. She first gained recognition for her 2011 YouTube series Awkward Black Girl, which she also wrote and starred in. Rae is perhaps best known for her role in the HBO show Insecure, which she co-created, co-wrote, and starred in from 2016 to 2021. She has received multiple Golden Globe and Emmy nominations for her work on the show. 

42. Time division: HOUR.  A unit of time equal to 60 minutes or 3,600 seconds, representing one-twenty-fourth of a day. 

45. Cartoon explorer: DORA.  Dora the Explorer is an American children's animated television series in the Dora the Explorer franchise, created by Chris Gifford, Valerie Walsh Valdes, and Eric Weiner that premiered on Nickelodeon on August 14, 2000, and ended on August 9, 2019. The series was produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio.



48. Make available ahead of time: PRE-SELL.    To market and sell a product or service before it is fully manufactured, constructed, or completed, allowing businesses to validate demand, fund production, and build excitement with customers who commit to buying in advance. 

50. Oracle site: DELPHI.   The Oracle at Delphi was the most renowned prophetic institution in ancient Greece, featuring a priestess known as the Pythia who delivered prophecies from the god Apollo, often through ambiguous answers to questions from seekers across the Greek world. 

52. Observing: NOTING.   Noticing or perceiving something and registering it as being significant.

53. Between zero and 90 degrees: ACUTE.  Said of any angle so described.


54. Congested, perhaps: NASAL.  Said of a condition possibly affecting one's voice or breathing.

56. Scottish bodies of water: LOCHS.  Lakes or sea inlets.

58. Extremely dry: ARID.  Long time no sea.

61. Solo at the Met: ARIA.  A long accompanied song for a solo voice, typically one in an opera or oratorio.

62. 17-Across topper: NUTS.   A nut is a fruit consisting of hard or tough shell around an edible kernel.  The kernel is sometimes crushed and used as desert garnish.

63. Buzzer in a cloud: GNAT.   A small two-winged fly that resembles a mosquito. Gnats include both biting and nonbiting forms, and they typically form large swarms.

66. Mature: AGE.    Develop a desirable quality through a period of time,

67. Talk sweetly: COO.    To make a soft, murmuring sound, like that of a dove or pigeon, or to speak in a soft, quiet voice to express affection. 

And so we bring another Wednesday to an affectionate close.  Now it's time to get away.

Coo regards!
JzB









Sep 8, 2025

Monday September 8, 2025 Zachary David Levy

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here.  
Theme:                  Based on Ball Teams

Constructor Zachary David Levy pitched four fun themers our way:

17 Across. Cheap wines at some restaurants: HOUSE REDS.  A HOUSE wine is generally less expensive than other wines on the menu but they often fit with the cuisine. 
Tip:  If the restaurant has red checkered tablecloths, try the HOUSE RED. 

25 Across. Large planets made mostly of hydrogen and helium: GAS GIANTS.  
We have four GAS GIANTS in our solar system.

52 Across. Some sinister siblings: EVIL TWINS.  I thought of The Shining (1980). 

62 Across. Emissions that turned Bruce Banner into the Incredible Hulk: GAMMA RAYS.  
The Incredible Hulk   ~   opening sequence to the 1977 TV series (1 min.)

Today's reveal spans the equator:

39 Across. Rough estimates, and what can be found at the ends of 17-, 25-, 52-, and 62-Across: BALL PARK FIGURES.  This U.S. English idiom refers to guesses that are close enough to be useful but not expected to be exact.
Sometimes we see this answer as a clue for "umps" or "refs". Today it points to players on MLB teams. 

 Next up, the remaining clues:

Across:

1. "While we're on the subject ... ": ALSO.

5. Georgetown athlete: HOYA.  Does this answer wander into foul territory?

9. Flower part: PETAL.

14. Business VIPs: CEOS.

15. Resigned expression: ALAS.  
16. Egg-producing organ: OVARY.

19. Big cat hybrid: LIGER.  Napoleon Dynamite 'pretty much' owns this one.
20. Loose organization unit: PILE.  This one makes me think of sorting laundry.  

21. Increasingly quaint phone sound: DIAL TONE.  Quaint is used here to mean "pleasingly or strikingly old fashioned".

23. Massachusetts city that becomes a tourist hot spot in October: SALEM.  
Hot Spot indeed
26. In the style of: 
À LA.

27. Set eyes on: SEE.

29. Pull behind: TOW.  
My dog does not like being left at home
so I TOW her behind my hybrid bike.

30. Discount grocery chain: ALDI.  
Click to enlarge.

32. Writer/actress Issa: RAE.  Rae's 2015 memoir, The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl, became a New York Times bestseller.

34. "Well, shucks!": OH, GEE.

43. Turtle cover: SHELL.  CSO to Misty and Gophie!

44. Impossibly long stretch: EON.     and     28-Down. Notable period: ERA.

45. Wrongful act: TORT.  Def.:  (noun) a wrongful act other than a breach of contract for which relief may be obtained in the form of damages or an injunction.

46. Tiebreakers, briefly: OTS.  sports overtimes

49. UFO occupants: ETS.  An abbreviation in the clue hints to an abbreviated answer.

51. Illegal turn, maybe: UIE.  
This one came from across the pond.

57. According to: AS PER.

59. Hibachi-style restaurant chain: BENIHANA.  Nice fill!  
Benihana owns 69 teppanyaki-style restaurants, one Samarai restaurant, and 13 RA Sushi restaurants. This link goes to their FAQs page. Below is a 1 min. video of a Benihana chef's performance.

60. Go downhill fast?: SLED.  SLED is a verb here, meaning to ride a SLED.

61. Pop singer Mars: BRUNO.  

66. Ford flop: EDSEL.

67. Neutral shade: ECRU.

68. Great Salt Lake state: UTAH.  The Great Salt Lake is the largest natural lake west of the Mississippi River. It is salty because it does not have an outlet. Tributary rivers are constantly bringing in small amounts of salt dissolved in their fresh water flow. Once in the Great Salt Lake, much of the water evaporates, leaving the salt behind. Read more here, including which aquatic species it can support.

69. Big name in field equipment: DEERE.  
John Deere equipment in a corn field

70. Rotisserie rod: SPIT.  
71. Viral post: MEME.  Popular MEMEs often feature a recognizable image paired with a witty caption.  
Apparently MEME creators are above Copyright Infringement Law.

Down:

1. German "Bah!": ACH.  Bah is an interjection used to express disbelief or disgust.

2. Sign between Cancer and Virgo: LEO.  Read as "Three-letter astrological sign:  LEO."

3. Scoop in a tureen: SOUP LADLE.  A tureen is something the hostess asks you to carry to the table and you are petrified you will drop it. More specifically, it is a deep and usually covered bowl from which foods (such as soup) are served. They are generally not for preparing foods.  
Sometimes they have a slot for the SOUP LADLE's handle.

4. "Do the Right Thing" actor Davis: OSSIE.  (1917 - 2005)

5. Big hopper: HARE.  I watched about a dozen videos about HAREs, bunnies, and rabbits to bring you the best one. Stay tuned for the final fun fact.  (3:22 min.)

6. The Grand __ Opry: OLE.

7. When repeated, "et cetera": YADDA.  Here's the famous Seinfeld clip (54 sec.):  

8. Lend a hand: ASSIST.

9. Tadpole: POLLIWOG.  I liked this 8-letter fill, too!  The terms tadpole and POLLIWOG can be used interchangeably.
10. Andrew Lloyd Webber musical set in Argentina: EVITA.  
Don't Cry for Me Argentina  ~  Madonna
1996 film adaptation

11. Include as an extra: TAG ON.  The travel industry has been known to TAG ON extra fees.

12. "__ you sweet!": AREN'T.

13. Ancient harps: LYRES.  I always feel better after listening to composer and harpist Mary Lattimore. This song is called We Wave From Our Boats (2021).  

18. Stately trees: ELMS.  ...especially the state of Massachusetts.  
22. Previously: AGO.

23. Bygone Swedish autos: SAABS.

24. God of Islam: ALLAH.

25. Equipment: GEAR.  
31. Down and out: ILL.

33. __ out a living: EKE.

35. Modest home: HUT.

36. Social outing for couples: GROUP DATE.

37. Otherworldly: EERIE.  This woman is playing the opening theme to Dark Shadows on a theremin.  (52 secs.)

38. Poly- ending: ESTER.  

40. Logical oversight in a story: PLOT HOLE.  20 Movies with the Biggest Plot Holes
The first film on the list (#20) highlights a literal HOLE in Shawshank Redemption. Film #2 points out something I never noticed about Cinderella's glass slipper.

41. Enemies: FOES.

42. Picked-off pass, for short: INT.  INTerception  
Goal line interceptions are especially exciting.

47. Carrier whose JFK terminal is now a landmark hotel: TWA.  The TWA Hotel opened in 2019, using space originally designed to contain TWA's flight center. The original architect may be familiar to solvers -- Eero Saarinen. Reading this Forbes article makes me want to stay there!

48. Scorches: SINGES.

50. Casa chamber: SALA.  This Spanish answer matches its Spanish clue. A SALA is a large room or hall.

52. Receded: EBBED.

53. Colorado's Mesa __ National Park: VERDE.  park website

54. Not available: IN USE.  Perhaps if you wanted to rent a specific vehicle but someone else had already rented it, it would be not available/IN USE.

55. Cruise ship: LINER.

56. Civil rights org.: NAACP.  An abbreviation in the clue hints to an abbreviated answer.

58. Blood component: SERUM.  Blood SERUM is the liquid that remains after the blood has clotted. Plasma is the liquid that remains when clotting is prevented with the addition of an anticoagulant. Both are light-yellow to clear in color.

60. Filthy material: SMUT.

63. CT scan kin: MRI.  An abbreviation in the clue hints to an abbreviated answer.

64. Orange tuber: YAM.  

65. That girl: SHE.  ALAS, "Marlo Thomas" is too long. Nevertheless, here is video is the opening scene for Season 5 of the TV show That Girl (1966-1971): 
How cute is SHE? Right?

Today's grid:
All four of the themers are nine letters long.

I am wondering if you will give Zachary's puzzle straight A's.  😄

I will be traveling when this blog is published. Fingers crossed everything goes OK. Please address any questions you might have to the regulars. They are a smart and helpful group!

Aug 15, 2025

Friday August 15, 2025 Zachary David Levy

Well, it's RustyBrain again, Moe's alter ego for the third and final time, so let's call this a visit from the spirit of Chairman future!

Zachary David Levy is an assistant professor of neurosurgery and emergency medicine at Hofstra's Zucker School of Medicine on Long Island. He's also the crossword editor for Ocean City magazine. You don't have to be a brain surgeon to create crosswords, but it can't hurt!

No revealer today, so watch how HASTE makes WASTE, sorta:


17. Speed needed to harvest lilacs, violets, and lavender for dye?: PURPLE HASTE. Derived from "purple haze," slang for assorted varieties of pot or LSD (thus a fitting 60s song title).


28. "Waterfowl found to prefer celibacy"?: WILD GOOSE CHASTE. A twist on the familiar phrase "wild goose chase." 

 

44. Enigmatic pile of trash?: MYSTERIOUS WASTE. From "mysterious ways," describing things that are difficult to understand or explain, often divine or supernatural. (Must everything be a album cover with this guy?)


57. Fake gems that add sparkle to a gastropod shell?: SNAIL'S PASTE. "Snail's pace" is an idiom describing something moving very slowly, often to the point of being frustrating. Some snails don't know when to stop.


Most of these themers seemed a bit forced, rather than wacky, with a convoluted clue leading to an equally nonsensical answer. Only MYSTERIOUS WASTE rises to the occasion as a plausible thing. I used AI to make picture sense of a couple of them, and I didn't really like the the results so I resorted to my old standbys - album covers! 

The changed words all rhyme, but the original words they replace don't. So, while haze and ways rhyme, as do chase and pace, the two pairs don't match each other. Rhyming aside, the fill overall was decent, although a tad easy for a Friday. 

Are you braced for a taste?

Across:

1. Photo display option: ALBUM. A great way to display pics of four friends.


6. Early PC platform: MS-DOS. MicroSoft Disk Operating System. Bill Gates quickly needed an operating system for the new IBM PC, so he bought 86-DOS from Seattle Computer Products for $25K. He renamed it MS-DOS and the rest is history.

11. NFL Hall of Famer Marino: DAN. This jersey gives you an idea of how long I've been a fan of "DAN the Man." In December 1985, I attended my first NFL game on a epic Monday night in the Orange Bowl vs. the then undefeated Chicago Bears. I was hoarse the next day from shouting so loud! Been a Dolfan ever since.


14. "CSI" city: MIAMI. Home to #13 Dan Marino and the MIAMI Dolphins.

15. Unescorted: ALONE.

16. Moody genre: EMO.

17. [theme]

19. Cry before a jump: BOO. Because "Geronimo!" didn't fit.

20. Tahini ingredient: SESAME. Tahini is a Middle Eastern condiment made from crushed SESAME seeds. Cultivation of sesame began 3,500 years ago in the Tigris and Euphrates region of Mesopotamia, so check the expiration date on your tahini before you buy.


21. "Aw, rats!": CRUD. "The tahini has expired!"

22. Custard ingredient: EGG.

25. NYM rival: ATL. The New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves are both in the National League (NL) East division. Pictured is a Brave trying to give a Met a wedgie as they jockey for the pennant.


26. Sore: ACHING.

28. [theme]

32. Blue shade: AZURE. Another shot from my visit to the PNW a few weeks ago (seems like longer!). This is Diablo Lake in North Cascades National Park. Look at that color!


33. Russian saint for whom an alphabet is named: CYRIL. The Cyrillic alphabet is used for several languages across Eurasia. It's based on the Greek Alphabet with additional letters developed to represent Slavic sounds.

34. Post-WWII gp.: NATO. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a political and military alliance of countries in Europe and North America, founded in the aftermath of World War II.

35. Giggle syllables: TEHEE. I prefer tee-hee, but the usual response to my jokes is a groan. 

37. Hesitant denial: UM NO. UM NO, not wild about this one. 

41. Biblical song: PSALM

43. Yves Saint Laurent fragrance since 1977: OPIUM. One of RightBrain's favs. (BTW, my wife chose this name for my blogs because she's always...oh, you know.)


44. [theme]

49. "The Grass Harp" author: CAPOTE. Truman CAPOTE.

50. A Bobbsey twin: NAN. Oddly, her twin is also named NAN, but spelled backwards. As they are fraternal twins, the boy's name was later changed to MAN to avoid confusion...or so I heard.

51. 1040 fig.: SSN. Social Security Number. Wow, there are a lot of abbreviations in this puzzle!

52. Sleep apnea device, briefly: CPAPContinuous Positive Airway Pressure machines use a hose connected to a mask or nose-piece to deliver steady air pressure to help breathing while asleep.

53. Saguaro National Park growth: CACTUS. The large saguaro CACTUSes (cacti in Latin) stand like silent sentinels in the desert. Reminds me a bit of Easter Island.


56. Car loan fig.: APR. Annual Percentage Rate

57. [theme]

62. Shipping charge, e.g.: FEE.

63. "The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up" writer Marie: KONDO. "Just thank an item for it's service and let it go." But I paid good money for it! 

64. Word in some bank names: TRUST. Your money is safe here <wink> TRUST me.


65. Publishing VIPs: EDS. Editors, or possibly famous newsmen like Ed Bradley and Edwin Newman.

66. Luggage attachment: ID TAG. TAG is short for...I mean ID is short for IDentification. I'm getting bleary-eyed keeping up with all these abbrev.

67. Cries in sties: OINKS

Down:
1. Psych (up): AMP. This one goes up to 11.


2. Simu of "Barbie": LIU

3. __ exam: BAR. And now, a BAR exam for you. (Hint: the correct answer is Almond Joy, because I'm nuts! I mean, I like nuts. I like all kinds of people, actually. I'm gonna stop now...)


4. Cricket officials: UMPSBaseball is believed to have originated from older bat-and-ball games such as cricket and rounders, hense similar terms like UMPires. 

5. Line in some expense reports: MILEAGE. Yours may vary.

6. Hawaiian "thank you": MAHALO. I just started watching the Hawaiian historical drama "Chief of War" on Apple TV. Fascinating to see Hawaii in the late 18th century before being "discovered."



7. Criticize harshly: SLAM. "Boo! You can't end a poem with orange!"


8. Rx information: DOSEThe term "Rx" on a prescription originates from the Latin word recipe, meaning "to take."

9. Blue Jays prov.: ONT. The Blue Jays play in ONTario's capital city of Toronto.

10. "Happy now?": SEE

11. Remains: DEBRIS.

12. Specification in a recipe: AMOUNT. It could be a tsp. or even a tbsp. (adding some abbreviations of my own).

13. Annoying one: NOODGE.

18. This, in Spanish: ESTO.

21. Fried dish named for a small boat: CHALUPA. Here's a flotilla of CHALUPAs.


22. Actor McGregor: EWAN.

23. Home of the Grand Egyptian Museum: GIZA. Finally open after over a decade of delays, the GEM is the world's largest archaeological museum and features the 83-ton, 3200-year old statue of Ramesses II in the entrance hall.


24. Surplus: GLUT.

26. Farm unit: ACRE.

27. Chinese life force: CHI.

29. Convertible: DROP TOP. Once upon a time we had this beauty, a 1998 Jaguar XK8 Cabriolet (fancy name for a DROP TOP, so they could charge more). Unfortunately, the DROP TOP turned into a rag top under the intense Florida sun.


30. Knucklehead: SCHMO. Also a very popular Harley-Davidson V-twin motorcycle engine.

31. Contact site: EYE.

35. Container weight: TARE. To get an accurate weight of an object, especially one packed to ship (such as the knucklehead engine above), you first weigh the empty crate (or truck) to determine its TARE. Then you weigh them both together and subtract the TARE to find the item's actual weight. 

36. Civil War-era pharmacist Lilly: ELI. "When it says Lilly's Lilly's Lilly's on the label, label, label, you will like it, like it, like it, on your..." Wait a minute, that's not right.

38. Battleship cry: MISS. I once called an old battleship MISS and she hit me with her pocketbook.

39. "Aw, rats!": NUTS

40. Sign: OMEN.

42. Gel: SET.

43. Take responsibility for: OWN UP TO.

44. Maker of Baked Apple Pie K-Cups: MC CAFE. Sounds awful. Then again, I'm a black coffee kind of guy.

45. Prattled on: YAPPED. "...and as I was saying, the bunny hopped over my garden fence - I guess I should've made it taller - and maybe painted it. The fence, not the bunny, anyway..."

46. Extras: SPARES. Mom said always carry an extra pair of socks, just in case all the stores close right after you step in a puddle.

47. Clear: UNCLOG. Years ago, I used a pressurized drain cleaner in my apartment. Suddenly, the people downstairs started yelling as I created a geyser in their kitchen sink! Not the best way to meet the neighbors.


48. Hurdles for srs.: SATS. High school seniors take Scholastic Assessment Tests, which use to be called Scholastic Aptitude Tests but now SAT officially stands for nothing (actually true!).

53. "Sorry, busy": CAN'T.

54. Elton John musical: AIDA.

55. Dress at some Asian weddings: SARI. "Oops! I accidentally spilled wine on your dress." "SARI." "Yes, I am."

57. Slalom runner: SKI

58. Bobblehead's motion: NOD.

59. Great ball of fire: SUN.


60. Disapproving sound: TSK. Reminds me of my elementary school piano teacher for some reason. I quit after a year or so (I'm apparently not a childhood prodigy). It wasn't until high school that I got back into music, only this time on guitar. A number of years ago, I picked up keyboards again. It's amazing what you can learn on YouTube, but the rudiments from my youth came in handy. Thank you Mrs. Price, wherever you are!

61. Non-earthlings, for short: ETS. ExtraTerrestrialS. Are we finally done with all these initials and abbreviations?

Moe, please hurry back! Fridays are hard!!