Theme: "Workplace Superstitions" - Various superstitions are punnily reinterpreted, somewhat fitting the profession in each clue.
22A. Weather forecaster's "Don't"?: OPEN AN UMBRELLA INDOORS.
29A. Beautician's "Don't"?: BREAK A MIRROR.
67A. Carpenter's "Do"?: KNOCK ON WOOD.
99A. Ice skater's "Don't"?: STEP ON A CRACK.
109A. Banker's "Do"?: FIND A PENNY AND PICK IT UP.
15D. Pianist's "Do"?: CROSS YOUR FINGERS.
38D. Construction worker's "Don't"?: WALK UNDER A LADDER.I'm not familiar with "Don't step on a crack". Winters in Minnesota are brutal, impossible to avoid cracked roads when we walk.
In China, we have a few superstitions: Don't share a pear with others. Pear & "separation" have the same pronunciations in Chinese. Don't clip your fingernails at night. You're inviting ghosts.
And of course, everyone eats fish for Spring Festival. Fish sounds like
"surplus". So you won't be poor next year.
Across:
19. Caltech city: PASADENA. Rose Bowl! By the way, Gary, we don't
follow the Lynx. Boomer watches the Timberwolves from time to time.
20. Low-pH material: ACID.
21. Italian innkeeper: PADRONE. New word to me.
25. Throw away: TOSS.
26. Batter's stat: RBI. Tiny dupe: 89. Baseball stat:
RUN.
27. Caesar's rebuke: ET TU.
28. Manuscript marking: STET.
34. Pink Floyd's Barrett: SYD.
35. Boarding aid: JETWAY. The bridge.
39. "American Idol" fixture until 2010: SIMON. Had a terrifying
motorcycle accident a few months ago.
40. Other side: ENEMY.
42. Gave a sigh: EXHALED.
44. Words heard shortly after many a marriage pronouncement: NOW KISS.
"You may now kiss the bride".
46. Major artery: AORTA.
50. Exercise, as power: WIELD.
51. Kimono ties: OBIS.
53. Tolkien talking plant: ENT.
54. 17th/18th-century British ruling house: STUART.
55. Little guy: TYKE.
56. "__ Misérables": LES.
57. Home security co.: ADT. Our neighbor used to have a ADT sign in
their yard. Now it's gone. But when I walk closer to their yard on my way to
our mailbox, something beeps. I'm just trying to avoid the icy patches on the
road.
58. Indigenous Nepal mountain people: SHERPAS.
59. Bear genus: URSUS.
61. "Narc" co-star Ray: LIOTTA.
63. Bona __: FIDE.
64. Big name in romance fiction: AVON.
70. Brainchild: IDEA.
71. Vulcan mind __: MELD. This concept happens in some Chinese fantasy
novels also.
72. Start of a play: ACT ONE.
73. Versatile game piece: QUEEN.
75. Comprehensive: IN DEPTH.
77. Wanna-__: BES.
78. Snack item: NUT. And 85. They're often tapped out:
BEERS.
79. Corp. leaders: MGMT. Management.
82. After-dinner party: SOIREE. This sounds so surreal right now.
Boomer and I just live in our two-person "Disney Bubble".
83. Heartache: WOE.
84. Christmas tune: NOEL.
87. Bit of character assassination: SMEAR.
88. One hanging at a food court: MALL RAT.
90. Had a longing: YEARNED.
92. Sucked (in): LURED.
94. Spring bulb: TULIP. I don't think these are ginger roots, Jayce.
Some of you mentioned that they might be iris or daffodils bulbs. I clipped
the picture from a Japanese lady who was visiting her grandma in the
countryside last week. I originally thought they might be taro roots.She had
no captions.
96. Follows: ENSUES.
97. Doo-wop group __ Na Na: SHA.
102. Copied: APED.
103. Henry __: VIII.
104. Ages and ages: EON.
105. "An Essay on Criticism" poet: POPE.
116. Russia, vis-à-vis Crimea, in 2014: ANNEXER.
117. "__ it a rest!": GIVE.
118. Prepare for conflict: EMBATTLE. I've only used the form
"embattled".
119. Brought up: REARED.
120. Eject: SPEW.
121. Final shot: LAST HOPE. Properly placed in the grid.
Down:
2. Guitar gadget: CAPO.
3. Plays for a fool: USES.
4. Some coolers: FANS.
5. Big Pharma watchdog: Abbr.: FDA.
6. Sportscaster Berman: LEN.
7. Harden: ENURE.
8. South American dances: SAMBAS.
9. Put a dent in: MAR.
10. __ fishing: ICE. Hardy soul.
11. Zippo: NIL.
12. One stuck in traffic, at times: IDLER.
13. Fertilizer ingredient: MANURE.
14. Say further: ADD.
16. Difficult to hoe: ROOTY. Look, I uprooted this tree.
17. When rights may be restricted: ON RED.
18. Fit together compactly: NEST.
21. Climbing equipment: PITONS.
23. Two-piece suits: BIKINIS.
24. Words in Newton's first law: AT REST. Copy from NASA:
Newton's first law states that every object will remain at rest or in
uniform motion in a straight line unless compelled to change its state by
the action of an external force. This is normally taken as the definition
of inertia. ... If that velocity is zero, then the object remains at
rest.
29. Son of Odin and Frigg: BALDER.
30. Deli option: RYE.
31. "Famous" cookie maker: AMOS.
32. Work on a green, say: MOW.
33. Entered permanently: INKED IN.
35. Bar mitzvah celebrant: JEW.
36. Red sign over a door: EXIT.
37. Nonbinary gender pronoun: THEY. Singular they. The example Wiki
gives:
"This is my friend, Jay. I met them at work. They are a
talented artist."
41. Deckhand: MATE.
43. Grab a bite together: DO LUNCH. Nope. Need to stay in our "Disney
Bubble". See also 80. Restaurant window posting: MENU.
45. Being dragged along: IN TOW.
47. Speedy: RAPID. Hope your mom has fully recovered, Nina!
48. Fantasy football deal: TRADE.
49. Lost completely: AT SEA.
52. Utterly infatuate: BESOT.
54. Relief from the heat: SHADE.
57. Lotion ingredients: ALOES.
58. With determination: STOUTLY.
60. Take to the rink: SKATE.
62. Chef's hat: TOQUE. Happy chef.
64. Not quite right: AMISS.
65. Spiteful feeling: VENOM.
66. Classic tune: OLDIE.
68. Early programming acronym: COBOL. Tony probably knows it, but he's
more of the modern programming wizard.
69. Show reverence for, as a deity: KNEEL TO.
74. Confine with a dike, say: EMBANK.
76. Northern neighbor of Chile: PERU.
78. Took in: NOTICED. Boomer and I were stunned to see these wild turkeys at the VA hospital.
81. Corner, in a way: TREE.
83. Attack with enthusiasm, as a project: WADE IN.
84. "The Lion King" lioness: NALA.
86. '60s radical gp.: SDS.
88. Area of expertise: METIER.
91. Common Market initials: EEC.
93. Promised to attend, perhaps: RSVPed.
95. Drive forward: PROPEL.
97. Title holder: SPINE. I mentioned before. One of our blog readers
actually read this classic Chinese book. I was stunned. It was so complicated
for me.
98. Temporary tattoo dye: HENNA.
100. Sonar sounds: PINGS.
101. Jungian archetype: ANIMA. Learned from doing crosswords.
102. Hardly in the neighborhood: AFAR.
105. Core: PITH.
106. Chicago Bulls forward __ Porter, Jr.: OTTO.
107. Feature of some orange juice: PULP.
108. Sport in which the entire body is a valid target:
EPEE.
110. Firefighting tool: AXE.
111. Pup's protest: YIP.
112. Michigan in Chicago: Abbr.: AVE.
113. Word before age or year: NEW.
114. "60 Minutes" airer: CBS.
115. Dennings of "2 Broke Girls": KAT.
C.C.
