Thursday, September 11, 2014 Steve Marron

Theme: "To the Point"

18-Across. Zero degrees Celsius, for water : FREEZING. We'll be freezing soon enough (see 50- and 51-Down!)

22-Across. Capacity limit : SATURATION. OK, I get it, but shouldn't there be something else?

52-Across. Moment of change : TRANSITION. This works alone, too, but...

58-Across. Sensitive spot : PRESSURE. OK, this one really needs to get to the point!!

38-Across. Not getting it, and, in a different way, what 18-, 22-, 52- and 58-Across are : MISSING THE POINT. Oh, I GET IT!!  Wonderful reveal, and elegant theme, when it's all put together.

So we have FREEZING [point], SATURATION [point], TRANSITION [point] and PRESSURE [point]. Ahhh, much better!

HaHa, I get to blog our Wednesday Sherpa Steve's debut solo puzzle. His first was a collaboration with C.C. just last month. Well done, Steve!  And a credit to C.C.'s caring guidance and enthusiasm for crossword puzzles and puzzlers, how many people on this blog are constructors! Let's see what other fun Steve has for us today.


Across

1. Wildlife photographs may be a memento of one : SAFARI...sa-goodie.

7. Visit Overstock.com, say : SHOP.

11. It's near Miss. : ALA. Cute clue. Yours, Steve?

14. Reebok rival : ADIDAS.

15. Piece of glass : PANE. (In the A**?)

16. "Collages" novelist : NIN. Anais. Absolutely nailed it - it's about the statues in Vienna, Austria.

17. Triangular chip : DORITO.

Yes, indeed.

20. Go out with : SEE.

21. Synthetic rubber, for one : POLYMER.

27. Turn down : DENY.

28. Bathroom fixtures : TUBS.

29. Airline seat pocket item, briefly : MAG.azine (not "wheel.")

30. Word with ball or cup : EYE.

32. Molar mender's org. : ADA. American Dental Association. But also, American Diabetes Association, American Dietetic Association, adenosine deaminase, Americans for Democratic Action...

33. University of Nevada city : RENO.

34. Pinnacles : ACMES.

42. Pound and Poe : POETS. I like how POETS contains "Poe."

43. Bounders : CADS.

44. Santa __, California : ANA. Barbara, Clara, Cruz, Clarita, Fe Springs, Maria, Monica, Paula and Rosa were all too long!

45. Attorney's thing : RES. Lemony, what's your "thing"?

47. I-5, for one : HWY. It runs north from Mexico to Canada.

48. Salt Lake City Winter Olympics year : MMII. 2002.

49. Abbey recess : APSE. Not to be confused with Benedictine monks taking a refreshing break.

55. Viruses, worms, etc. : MALWARE.

57. Bk. after Ezra : NEH.emiah.

60. Be unable to stand : DETEST. Because "drunk" was too short...

63. Squeeze (out) : EKE.

64. Govt. agent : T-MAN. Treasury-man.

65. Like most wedding cakes : ORNATE.

66. Who __ Nation: New Orleans Saints fans : DAT. The phrase "Who Dat" originated in minstrel shows!

67. Exists no more : ISN'T.

68. Said : STATED.


Down

1. In a funk : SAD.

2. Stir : ADO.

3. Diamond corner : FIRST BASE.

4. Parting words : ADIEUS.

5. Olympic judge, e.g. : RATER.

6. Equi- kin : ISO. Is an equi-lateral triangle the same as an iso-sceles one? (I didn't think so)  ;-)

7. Beach lotion letters : SPF. Sun Protection Factor. As I have said in the past, I don't think the "sun" needs protecting, but the "skin" does!!

8. Horn honker of classic comedy : HARPO. Marx.

9. Score that often requires overtime : ONE-ONE.

10. Spa treatment : PEEL.

11. Cartoon genre : ANIME.

Like this.

12. Hotel housekeeping supply : LINEN.

13. Fuming : ANGRY.

19. Louisiana music style : ZYDECO. Love the music! Can any of you dance like this? 3:17

22. Forever __ : STAMP. Hands up for wanting "yours"?

23. TV feed component : AUDIO. or "video"??? (Wait for perp help!)

24. Hymn ender : AMEN.

25. Cranberry quality : TANG. One of my cats has urinary tract issues. I feed her a cranberry tablet every morning, and she just gobbles it up. Maybe she likes the "tang"???

26. Practical joker's cry : I GOTCHA.

31. Kennel sounds : YAPS. I wanted "yips," but 34-A had to be ACMES. ("There is no ' I ' in ACME!")

33. Opposite of set : RISE.

35. American Airlines Arena team : MIAMI HEAT.

36. Film composer Morricone : ENNIO. We've had him before, but I still needed all perps to remember his name!

37. Carpet blemish : STAIN. With three cats, I don't even want to go there with you...

39. Scatters, as petals : STREWS. I envisioned a cute little flower girl, but NOT like this!! 1:14

40. "Private Benjamin" star : HAWN. Goldie.

41. Nestlé ice cream brand : EDYS.

46. Plays chords, in a way : STRUMS.

48. Medit. hot spot : MT. ETNA.

49. Unlike rock bands on MTV's "Unplugged" : AMPED. I like this "REM" unplugged version. 4:45

50. Insulated jacket : PARKA. Ooohhh, it's too soon to be thinking of those!

51. Winter fall : SLEET. NOOOOOOOOooooooooohhhhh!!! WAY too soon.

53. Aired again : RERAN.

54. Not reactive : INERT.

56. Wine from Italy : ASTI.

59. Otitis-treating MD : ENT. Ear-Nose-and-Throat specialist. Otitis is inflammation of the ear.

60. Uno y uno : DOS. 1 + 1 = 2 in Spanish. (Funny...it adds up to the same thing in English!)

61. Law firm office, perhaps: Abbr. : STE. Suite. Sweet!

62. Journalist Koppel : TED. I used to love him on "Nightline." Which reminds me, time to say night-night!

Marti, over and out.

Notes from C.C.:

1) I'll echo What Marti said earlier Steve: "Well done!". I'm so incredibly proud of what you accomplished in such a short period of time.

2) Happy Birthday to Husker Gary! Shortly before we met, Gary and I exchanged over 40 emails in one morning, just to get the blog format correct. His attention to detail and "never quit" spirit is inspiring.

Left to Right: Boomer, Gary, CC & Joann

August 22, 2014