Theme: "Again" - A is added to the front of the second word in each theme entry.
22A. Comedy club road sign? : CHUCKLE AHEAD. Chucklehead. The clue makes me smile.
33A. Distaste for jury duty? : TRIAL AVERSION. Trial version. I like the big transition from version to aversion.
52A. Digression to a cabbie? : PASSENGER ASIDE. Passenger side.
70A. Erase? : RUB THE WRONG AWAY. Rub the wrong way.
91A. Prize for the fastest delivery? : MATERNITY AWARD. Maternity ward. Nice change also.
107A. Drag one's feet on the gangplank? : SHUFFLE ABOARD. Shuffleboard.
123A. Doctors' agreement? : MEDICINE AMEN. Medicine man. Nice change also.
I adore this theme & theme answers, esp those entries where the new A-words share no roots with the old A-less words.
Super smooth grid also, hallmark of Melanie Miller & Gail G. They might stump you with a twisty or unfamiliar clue, not a strange entry.
Across:
Across:
1. "__ the fruited plain!" : ABOVE. "America the Beautiful".
6. "The Lion King" hero : SIMBA. No NALA today,
11. Holds : OWNS
15. Senior exec : CEO
18. Kvetch : CAVIL. I like both words.
19. Lament : BEMOAN
20. Kitchen protection : MITT. I bought a box of frozen egg tarts last week. All gone now, Jayce!
21. Type of current : AIR
24. Magnifies : ENHANCES
26. Get control of : TAME
27. Italian wine region : ASTI
28. Breakfast brand : EGGO. So I finally tried Eggo. No too bad. Egg tarts are better.
30. Two to one, for one : RATIO
31. King with fiddlers : COLE. I could only think of the fiddling NERO (46A. Emperor after Claudius)
37. Circus performers : ACROBATS
41. Four Seasons alternative : OMNI
42. Brand used in cones : EDY'S
43. Like moccasins : SLIP-ON
44. Pipe smoker's gadget : TAMP. Got via crosses.
48. Tout de suite : ASAP. I wonder if Splynter uses "Tout de suite" in his daily conversations.
55. Immoral profit : LUCRE
56. Sonnet preposition : ERE
57. White-tailed eagle : ERNE
58. First European to sail to India : DA GAMA
61. Beer seller's concern : AGE
62. Said with a pinched nose : NASAL
65. Mollusks with beaks : OCTOPI
68. Hill worker : SENATOR. And 110D. Political employees : AIDES
74. Keeper, in a big way : PACK RAT. Boomer is one.
77. Road race city : LE MANS.
Wiki says it's "the world's oldest active sports car race in endurance
racing, held annually since 1923 near the town of Le Mans, France".
78. Pre-Columbian people : INCAS
82. Conspiracy theory subj. : UFO
83. Top-drawer : CHOICE
86. Discontinued depilatory : NEET
88. Trading card stat : RBI. Be careful. Some of the old-looking cards are re-prints.
89. Party co-founded by Arafat : FATAH. So what's the difference between Fatah and PLO?
96. Worry : FRET
97. Tax __ : LOSS
99. Kid stuff : TOYS
100. Original : PRIMAL
101. Seriously injure : MAIM
103. O'Neill's "__ Christie" : ANNA
105. "Honest!" : SO HELP ME
112. Assigned amount of work : LOAD
113. Zany adventure : CAPER
114. Teller of stories : LIAR
115. Luxury Swiss watch : RADO. Belong to the Swatch Group. We also have OMEGA (11D. Arch-like letter).
117. Wine cellar item : CASK
121. Like potatoes pre-prep : UNPEELED. Here is D-Otto's Potato Dumpling recipe. He and his wife Susan make those every Christmas.
127. Opponent : FOE
128. Fully assuage : SATE
129. Electrical measure : AMPERE
130. Tell stories, in a way : WRITE
131. December purchase : FIR
132. Biggest of three '50s-'60s TV brothers : HOSS . "Bonanza". I got via crosses.
133. River through Orléans : LOIRE
134. Clothing giant Bauer : EDDIE
Down:
1. No. on a bill : ACCT
2. Island band The __ Men : BAHA. "Who Let the Dogs Out?"
3. Female gamete : OVUM
4. Squad raiders : VICE COPS
5. Caribou kin : ELK
6. Super Bowl prize? : SEAT. Got via crosses also. Nice clue.
7. Paintball cry : I'M HIT
8. Sitcom beer server : MOE. OK, "Simpsons".
9. Petting zoo call : BAA. And 60. Kitten's "Got milk?" : MEW. Can you imagine a blog post written by Dave, Irish Miss?
10. From Quito, say : ANDEAN
12. Bring around : WIN OVER
13. Unspecified power : NTH
14. Van Gogh's "The __ Night" : STARRY
15. Low-maintenance plants : CACTI
16. Three-note quintet : E I E I O
17. Bean in Hollywood : ORSON
19. Harassed : BESET
23. Fitness promoter born of French immigrants : LALANNE. My juicer is Jack LaLanne.
25. New Providence port : NASSAU
29. She put the ruby slippers on Dorothy : GLINDA. The Good Witch.
32. Slim woodwind : OBOE
34. Tomato option : ROMA
35. Little patience testers : IMPS
36. Pre-1868 Tokyo : EDO. Modern sushi was invented in Edo period. Sushi rice, though sticky, is different from sticky rice, Yellowrocks. Think of Japanese rice cake Mochi, it's made of sticky rice. Trader Joe's has this sinful Mochi Ice Cream.
37. Sun Valley alternative : ASPEN. Ski resort.
38. Nurse Barton : CLARA
39. Heads up : RISES
40. Offensive smell : STENCH
45. Knife-like ridge : ARETE. This and ESKER always remind me of Spitzboov.
47. Neurofeedback readout : EEG
49. Stray dismissal : SCAT
50. 2012 Affleck thriller : ARGO
51. Equal : PEER
53. Cave : GROTTO
54. Barking up the wrong tree, e.g. : IDIOM
55. Tropical veranda : LANAI. This one looks so nice.
59. How DVDs may be sold : AS A SET
63. Early solution for bad weather : ARK. Nice clue.
64. Reel : LURCH
66. Baby barn critter : OWLET
67. Paid leader? : PRE. Pre-pay.
69. "Who is John Galt?" writer Rand : AYN
71. Word of disapproval : BAH
72. McPhee's job, in a 2005 film : NANNY. Drew a blank. "Nanny McPhee".
73. Layered rock : GNEISS
74. Locomotive output : PUFF
75. Hardly within shouting distance : AFAR
76. Refuge for a frequent flier? : COTE. Nailed it.
79. Runner's bane : CRAMP
80. Delano : FDR :: __ : Garfield : ABRAM. Middle name. Nailed it also.
81. Move furtively : SIDLE
84. Online exchange : IMs
85. Winter melon : CASABA. In China, this kind of big gourd is called "winter melon". Cantonese love their winter melon soup
87. Pacific weather event : TYPHOON
90. Cost of bread? : ATM FEE. Another great clue.
92. Sicilian smoker : ETNA
93. Drag strip sound : ROAR
94. It may be residential : AREA
95. Joker : WILD CARD
97. Tiny, in a tiny way : LIL
98. They're folded in kitchens : OMELETS
102. In a new way : AFRESH
104. Unexceptional : NORMAL
106. Nostalgia source : OLDIE
107. Oxford mark : SCUFF. Oxford shoes.
108. Red River capital : HANOI. And 122. Mekong River language : LAO. No plural form in Lao neither. Or "the", my biggest problem.
109. Has the __ hand : UPPER
111. Less soggy : DRIER
116. Piece of farmland : ACRE
118. In an atmosphere of : AMID
119. Space exploration acronym : SETI
120. Spot for a bouncing baby boy : KNEE
124. Rock genre : EMO
125. Printer spec. : DPI. Dots Per Inch.
126. Livestock lady : EWE
I just learned that there are nine Xi'an Famous Foods restaurants in New York City. Have any of you eaten there? I pored over their menu and found their food visually authentic. Try their cold noodles and pork burgers if you happen to be there.
C.C.
