BRAIN CRAMP
I'm a fan of the Canucks, like Bert - or perhaps you know of this card game
I do the DOWN clues to start, so I quickly discovered that the theme was DOWN, as well - and I know there are a few visitors to the Corner who are not fond of this type of construction, and now, combined with the always admired circles - just like yesterday~!. Sigh. John had one other contribution to the LA Times in the past, almost four years ago to the day with a similar theme that Boomer covered. I have not had the pleasure of blogging one of his puzzles; I am totally impressed with the theme fills, and their clever arrangement, but some of the other clue/answers didn't thrill me. A handful of names, 24 each of four- and five-letter words - more than the 17 3LWs - a 15x15 grid, and three unique (*) fills;
5. The Guess Who song covered by Lenny Kravitz: AMERICAN WOMAN* - I never cared for the original, so the remake did nothing for me - sorry.
10. Principle that anything that can go wrong will go wrong: MURPHY'S LAW - There are more now;
I have proven the Workshop law too many times to count - hardware as well as tools
19. Comedian's self-deprecating assurance: "I'M HERE ALL WEEK.~!"* - Ba-dum-tiss
29. Unseen collective character on "The Office": CAMERA CREW
I so wanted to link the "best of" this phrase, but it's NSF Work - ironically
7. Routine before a race, or what can be found in this puzzle's circled letters:
WARM UP STRETCHES* - The circles denote the letters W A R M that s-t-r-e-t-c-h "up" the theme answers - one needs to limber up the noggin before working a crossword puzzle . . . .
Grid Flow is 35.2, roughly the average
And Away We Go~!
ACROSS:
1. __ lines: mysterious geoglyphs in Peru: NAZCA - I like watching "Ancient Aliens", and the Lines are a frequent topic on that show - the Wiki; geo name#1
And now A I has discovered 300+ more glyphs - the website
6. Couple: TWO
9. Love, in Spanish: AMOR
13. Geometry class statement: AXIOM - here's an explanation, sort of . . .
14. Ink pouches: SACS
16. Knockoff version: DUPE - no abbr indicated for "duplicate"
17. Chop finely: MINCE - my AXLE/IRON made this - L O C - , so I knew something was not right
18. Some Hollywood red-carpet events: PREMIERES - Solid fill
20. Go along with: ESCORT
Air Force One with a fighter "escort"
22. Formal address: MA'AM
23. Con's opposite: PRO - Corrections Officer was too long 😜
24. Celebratory gesture after a success: AIR PUNCH
'tis the season~!
26. "You __ one job!": "HAD~!"
27. TV network based in Central London: BBC - network #1, the "beeb"
30. Complain: CARP
A goldfish carp - get it~?
31. "Claws" actor Jack: KESY - No clue, filled via perps; his IMDb; name #2
33. In the style of, on French menus: À LA
34. Sailor's "Halt!": "AVAST~!"
36. Puts one's feet up: RESTS
39. Instant noodles option: RAMEN - I made my mac N cheese for Thanksgiving, but when I opened this box of Penne, it had Rotini in it
It's an "im-pasta"
41. Ultimate degree: Nth
42. Razzle-dazzle: ÉCLAT - more Frawnche, "burst out"
43. "Sullivan's Crossing" channel: THE CW - network #2 , never watched, filled via perps - name (ish)
44. Caribbean island near Venezuela: ARUBA - geo name #2
46. Blackjack card: ACE - see also 63D.
47. Crucifix: ROOD - My US History teacher in high school was Mr. Rood; he claimed his "rock band" went by the name "Merchants of Death", from the historical WWI pejorative - and he would tell us on Fridays to "make it a better weekend for someone else.", which I always appreciated.
49. Track legend Zátopek: EMIL - name #3
50. __ factor: WOW
51. AIT scanner org.: TSA - three days in a row now; Advanced Imaging Technology, Transportation Security Admin.
53. Spaghetti topper: MEATBALL
Looked so good when I wrote the blog, I went and made more "Ro-Penne" with meatballs
Or is it Pen-tini~?
56. "Monsters, __": INC.
57. With, on French menus: AVEC - more more Frawnche; without = sans
58. Dives like a hawk: SWOOPS
62. Taylor Swift hit that aptly spent two weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100: FORTNIGHT
65. Easy-to-spot jigsaw pieces: EDGES - I had a picture of Cooper made into a jigsaw puzzle as a present for my sister-in-law last year; she and my brother are tackling it now to be done before this Christmas
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Me 'n Cooper, loungin' on the couch
66. Release: FREE - messed up my "SPATS" @ 51D.
67. In __ of: LIEU - send donations to the Splynter board game fund in lieu of flowers . . . .
68. Everglades wading bird: EGRET - showed up in Monday's puzzle, too - I lived in Florida for two years, don't rEGRET moving 😜
69. Threaded together: SEWN
70. Form 1099 fig.: SSN - IRS didn't work
71. Falls (over): KEELS
DOWN:
1. Topic of conversation for parents-to-be: NAME - #. 1. name. Ha~!
2. Turning point?: AXIS - I put in AXLE, but in retrospect, an axle is not really a "point"
3. Multivitamin element: ZINC - Dah~! Not IRON
4. Drinkable chocolate: COCOA - I like Ryze mushroom cocoa, but it does not make me as sleepy as advertised
6. Cook's meas.: TSP - a "tisp" is smaller than a tibble-spip, ( TBSP ) amounts I am working with when following a 'ree-sype'
8. One of a geographic quintet: OCEAN - Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, Antarctic - which is now called Southern
9. Summery drink suffix: ADE - hi Lemonade~!
11. "Tosca," for one: OPERA
12. Fill in, as a bare spot in a yard: RESOD
I think I see a "bare spot" in the yard
15. Noisy kiss: SMACK
21. Chiefs star Kelce, to fans: TRAV - Since I am so NOT a Chiefs fan, I had no clue; this season, no NFL team seems to be the run-away favorite, as far as I can tell - name #4
25. Sanskrit for "life force": PRANA - ooops, not ASANA - that's a hatha yoga posture
27. Oldest Simpson kid: BART - Lisa, & Maggie haven't aged a day in almost 40 years - name #5
28. Ho-hum: "BLAH."
32. Min. fraction: SEC
35. Stick out like a sore __: THUMB
37. Food truck fare: TACO
38. Nurse a grudge, say: STEW - we already had several 'food' clues & answers
40. Green prefix: ECO
45. Slant: BIAS
48. New Jersey NHL player: DEVIL - I lived in Albany, NY, which is home to their farm team, the River Rats
51. Petty quarrels: TIFFS - my answer was Bzzzt~!
52. "Zzz" sound: SNORE - I prefer this ZZ sound
A post-Thanksgiving "TV Dinners", ZZ top
54. Protection: AEGIS - filled via perps; the OE dictionary says it's of Greek origin meaning "shield"
55. Ski resort building: LODGE - A-FRAME didn't fit
59. Fantasy heavy: OGRE
60. Banana skin: PEEL
61. Retired jets, briefly: SSTs - Super-Sonic TransportS - The Concorde, e.g. - this fill has been making a comeback, lately
63. Royal flush card: TEN - had to change my ACE here due to its showing up for Blackjack @ 46A.
64. Winery vat: TUN - filled via perps; etymology here
Splynter
