Theme: "Say Ah" - "Ah" sound is added to each theme entry.
23A. Haggling over a parrot purchase? : POLLY BARGAINING. Plea bargaining.
48A. Hug in the pool? : WATER CARESS. Watercress. The added sound is a schwa sound for me.
73A. Excitement about boxing practice? : SPARRING FEVER. Spring fever.
97A. Venue for unwise investments? : FOLLY MARKET. Flea market. Similar to 23A.
126A. Post-Renaissance gal pals? : TWO BAROQUE GIRLS. 2 Broken Girl. Also a schwa sound for me.
16D. Walden Pond headrest? : THOREAU PILLOW. Throw pillow.
60D. Cold spell in Manama? : BAHRAIN FREEZE. Brain freeze.
Hey,
we have another new constructor! I did not find Jake Braun's name in
our blog labels. Sunday puzzles are very challenging to make, the sheer
size is daunting. I'm always in awe when others make their debut on a
Sunday.
This type of sound change is always hard for me, as my English is very Chinese. I pronounce ISIS as "Asses". I wish the White House and newspapers would stop dignifying those thugs with ISIL.
Across:
1. Rush order shorthand : ASAP
5. Heart, basically : PUMP
9. Expand : SWELL
14. Prefix with sexual : METRO. Metrosexual like Clooney. Armani all the way.
19. 1944 invasion city : ST LO
20. Eye part containing the iris : UVEA
21. Salk vaccine target : POLIO
22. "... O, be some __ name": Juliet : OTHER
26. Soprano Kiri Te Kanawa, e.g. : MAORI
27. Domestic sci. : HOME EC
28. Crunch's rank : CAP'N
29. Get real? : COME TRUE. Nice clue/answer.
31. In the style of : A LA
32. MGM motto word : ARS
34. Acknowledge quietly : NOD TO
37. Last word of Kipling's "If—" : SON. Can you recite the whole poem, Yellowrocks? Also, have you tried long beans? They're very good with almonds too. You should find them at Asian grocery stores.
38. Big picture?: Abbr. : ENL (Enlarged)
39. Rapper __ Jon : LIL
40. Sounds of uncertainty : HAWS
42. Pizazz : OOMPH
44. Bluesy James : ETTA
46. Overflow : TEEM
51. Forgets the words, maybe : HUMS. What's your favorite song to sing in the shower?
54. Story set to music : BALLAD
56. One may be wired : NARC
57. Each : A POP
58. Capital near Casablanca : RABAT
61. Easy-to-make breakfast brand : EGGOS
64. Ding Dong relative : HO HO
66. Cairo's river : NILE
67. Does a classroom chore : ERASES
69. Gutter locale : EAVE
70. Saintly : ANGELIC. That's Argyle, who just got his second puzzle accepted by the NY Times. His first one was published last Oct. He has a 100% acceptance rate with the NYT!
72. "Phooey!" : BAH
78. Tennis do-over : LET
79. DVD box caution : UNRATED
81. Takei role : SULU
82. Capital of Pakistan's Punjab province : LAHORE
84. North __ : STAR
85. Something you break when you leave it : CAMP. Tricky for me. Never been to a camp.
88. Goolagong rival : EVERT (Chris)
90. World __ : POWER
91. Leave : EXIT
92. Kindle competitor : NOOK
94. More spine-tingling : EERIER
96. Level-headed : SANE
100. Makes a move : ACTS
104. Diamond irregularity : FLAW
106. Alpine Austrian state : TYROL. We just had this yesterday. Innsbruck is its capital. Marti mentioned she stayed there last year.
107. Entry level pos. : ASST
109. Item on a Billboard list : HIT
110. Certain camera, for short : SLR
112. Hamm of soccer : MIA.
Bill G, next time you bump into her, just say "Hello Mia, my name is
Bill, do you solve crosswords? Your name appear there often." Maybe you
should print out this puzzle and get her autographed.
114. Medicare section : PART B
116. Spotted : SAW
117. Physician's org. : AMA
118. Lively folk dances : HOEDOWNS
121. Fictional plantation : TARA
123. More risky : DICIER
125. "It's my concern ..." : I FEAR
130. "Zoom-Zoom" sloganeer : MAZDA
131. Artist's aid : EASEL
132. "I'm __ here!" : OUTA
133. Durable wood : TEAK
134. Great buy : STEAL. I normally find some spectacular stuff at flea markets, not this year.
135. Fries-to-be : SPUDS
136. Movie critic Pauline : KAEL. Never read her reviews. Was she harsh?
137. Pacing, perhaps : EDGY
Down:
1. Road crew supply : ASPHALT
2. Info provider : STOOLIE
3. Like many barbershop quartets : ALL MALE. And4. Barbershop symbol : POLE
5. Barhopping tour : PUB CRAWL. I used to barhop all the time. Guangzhou is full of great bars & great food.
6. Sch. founded by Jefferson : UVA
7. Grand Marquis, for short : MERC
8. Certain polytheist : PAGAN
9. PR specialist: SPIN DOC
10. Acquired : WON
11. Connecticut Ivy Leaguer : ELI
12. Omar's "Mod Squad" role : LINC
13. Firm symbols : LOGOS
14. Point in time : MOMENT
15. State, to Jacques : ETAT
17. "Breaking Bad" marathon component, e.g. : RERUN
18. Cantilevered window : ORIEL
24. Word repeated after "She loves you," in a '60s hit : YEAH
25. "It's __ sort of memory that only works backward": Carroll : A POOR
30. Homer's watering hole : MOE'S. I'm amazed by Chairman Moe's prediction on Ryder Cup. He said on Sept 26: "My not so welcome or popular prediction: Final Score after Sunday, Euro's 17, Yank's 11". The result: 16½ points vs 11½.
33. Low area : SWALE
35. IRS employee : T-MAN
36. Long-running talk show : OPRAH
41. Play producer : STAGER
43. Sub in a bag : HERO
45. Macbeth, vis-à-vis Glamis : THANE. The Thane of Glamis.
47. Grad school degs. : MBAs
49. Award named for a mystery writer : EDGAR
50. Chilled soup : SCHAV. Cold sorrel dish. Never had it. I don't think I've had sorrel before.
52. "Le Misanthrope" playwright : MOLIERE. His Chinese name sounds very sad.
53. Ghost : SPECTER
55. '50s nuclear trial : A TEST
58. Puzzles in the game show "Concentration" : REBUSES
59. Three-time French Open champ __ Sánchez Vicario : ARANTXA. No idea. Looks harder to pronounce than my Zhouqin.
62. Prefix with sac : OVI
63. Sixth __ : SENSE
65. Scott Turow work : ONE L. One of the few English books I've read.
68. Job detail : SPEC
71. Pinot, for one : GRAPE
74. Fictional bell town : ADANO
75. Mate : GUV
76. Baseball card brand : FLEER. Bygone brand. Nowadays only Topps and Upper Deck.
77. "I have it!" : EUREKA
80. Soviet cooperative : ARTEL. I forgot. Wiki said this term was used "between the 1860s through 1950s".
83. Circle dance : HORA
86. Jump out of one's skin? : MOLT. Cute clue.
87. Coral component : POLYP
89. Head lock : TRESS
93. Sedgwick of "The Closer" : KYRA
95. "I'm ready to sign" : IT'S A DEAL
97. Text message qualifier : FWIW (For What it's Worth)
98. Fools, to Puck : MORTALS. Lord, what fools these mortals be!
99. Wedding site : ALTAR
101. Led : CHAIRED
102. Interval between related events : TIME LAG
103. TV partner of Hutch : STARSKY
105. Unconcerned with right and wrong : AMORAL
108. Branch branch : TWIG. Tree branch.
110. Leveling wedges : SHIMS
111. Dieter's catchword : LoFat
113. Pot starters : ANTES
115. Runner in the woods : BROOK. Lovely clue.
119. Arp genre : DADA
120. Switch : SWAP
122. Cyan shade : AQUA
124. Use as a reference : CITE
127. The Beavers of the Pac-12 : OSU. The Oregon State.
128. Breakfast companion? : BED. Bed and breakfast.
129. Colorado native : UTE
C.C.
