Merry Christmas, everyone!
sumdaze here. I wish you all joy, peace, & love today and always -- but especially today! 
I was hoping for a holiday-themed puzzle. My thanks to constructor Barbara Lin and the LA Times Crossword Puzzle editorial staff. You did not disappoint!
Today's puzzle has five themers, including a fun grid-spanner across the equator. Each is an in-the-language phrase that is repurposed to complete a sentence telling the story of Santa's activities on Christmas Eve. I like that the activities appear in chronological order -- not an easy feat. Well done!
Let's take a look:
17 Across. Santa and his reindeer landed __: ON THE HOUSE. the customer does not have to pay for the goods/services
We've recently had this idiomatic phrase last Monday at 61-Across and the Friday before last at 5-Across.
27 Across. Before heading down the chimney, Santa __: GOT THE SACK. to be fired from a job
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| It's OK kiddos. Santa was not fired. |
33 Across. Stepping out of the fireplace, Santa left a __: CARBON FOOTPRINT. a measure of the amount of carbon dioxide and other carbon compounds emitted due to the consumption of fossil fuels by a particular person, group, etc.
(This one was my favorite because Santa's boots get ash (a carbon compound) on them when he comes down the chimney. Very clever!)
42 Across. After filling the last one, Santa hung the __: STOCKING UP. to amass extra amounts of something for future use 
58 Across. All in all, Santa had a very busy __!: PRESENT DAY. current
Let's see what else Barbara left under the tree for us:
1. Saudi Arabia neighbor: OMAN.
5. Protractor's measure: ANGLE.
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| Gotta love an clue with a math ANGLE to it! 😜 |
10. Caustic chemical: ACID.
14. Forbidding word: DON'T. OK, I won't.
15. President between Harrison and Polk: TYLER. John Tyler was the 10th president of the U.S. What I remember from 10th grade U.S. History class is that President Harrison wanted everyone to see his fancy clothes at his inauguration so he refused to wear a coat even though Washington, D.C. is cold in January on a normal year -- and that was a really cold year. So #9 got sick and died just 31 days after his swearing in and TYLER took over as #10...or something like that.
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| Click to expand. |
16. Writer Jaffe: RONA. (1931-2005) bio
19. Territory near the Mariana Trench: GUAM. (Hi D-Otto!)
20. Actress/writer Issa: RAE.
21. Many Christmas trees: PINES. 🎄 and 53 Across. Editorialize: OPINE.
So when we sing O Christmas Tree around a PINE tree, do we O PINE?
22. Oklahoma city on the Arkansas River: TULSA.
23. Correcting myopia, maybe: LASING. LASIK eye surgery
25. Stockholm citizens: SWEDES.
26. Small snack: BITE.
30. App reviewers: USERS.
32. Length of TV's "60 Minutes": HOUR. I hesitated, asking myself, "Is this a trick question?"
40. Quarter or pound: COIN.
41. Like some garden lights: SOLAR. CSO to unclefred!
48. "Children of Blood and Bone" writer Adeyemi: TOMI. Goodreads link
49. On the up and up: KOSHER. This adjective has a specific definition in Jewish law but is often used informally to mean "genuine and legitimate".
50. Homegrown: NATIVE. This word comes to us from the Latin word nativus, as does another word often heard this time of year -- nativity.
52. Broad necktie: ASCOT.
55. Flight takeoff approximation: Abbr.: ETD. Estimated Time of Departure
57. Old Russian leader: TSAR.
60. French 101 verb: ETRE. to be
61. __ tot: TATER.
62. Like a red Red Delicious: RIPE.
63. Diana of the Supremes: ROSS.
Aretha Franklin sings O Christmas Tree (1992)
22. Oklahoma city on the Arkansas River: TULSA.
23. Correcting myopia, maybe: LASING. LASIK eye surgery
25. Stockholm citizens: SWEDES.
26. Small snack: BITE.
32. Length of TV's "60 Minutes": HOUR. I hesitated, asking myself, "Is this a trick question?"
40. Quarter or pound: COIN.
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| As of this writing, one U.S. quarter equals about 0.20 Pound sterling. |
41. Like some garden lights: SOLAR. CSO to unclefred!
48. "Children of Blood and Bone" writer Adeyemi: TOMI. Goodreads link
49. On the up and up: KOSHER. This adjective has a specific definition in Jewish law but is often used informally to mean "genuine and legitimate".
50. Homegrown: NATIVE. This word comes to us from the Latin word nativus, as does another word often heard this time of year -- nativity.
52. Broad necktie: ASCOT.
55. Flight takeoff approximation: Abbr.: ETD. Estimated Time of Departure
57. Old Russian leader: TSAR.
60. French 101 verb: ETRE. to be
61. __ tot: TATER.
62. Like a red Red Delicious: RIPE.
63. Diana of the Supremes: ROSS.
Diana Ross sings The Christmas Song (1994)
64. Speaker of the house?: ALEXA. Fun clue! ALEXA is Amazon's virtual assistant technology accessed through a Wi-Fi bug, erm, I mean "speaker" in your house.
65. Beehive State people: UTES.
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| If you've driven through Utah, you've seen their beehive signs. |
1. Fragrance: ODOR.
2. Da Vinci portrait in the Louvre: MONA LISA.
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| This famous painting is smaller than you might think. It is 30 in. x 21 in. (77 cm. x 53 cm.) |
3. Long-tongued insectivore: ANTEATER. Did you know that a baby ANTEATER is called a pup? Check out this 1 min. video of an ANTEATER pup at the NyÃregyháza Zoo in Hungary.
4. Utmost degree: NTH. Basically, the nth term is a mathematical expression that enables us to find the value of any term in a sequence. The 'n' stands for the term number. So if I have 5+n and if n=1 then it would be 5+1 = 6. Likewise, if n=2, it would be 5+2=7. And so on. Since there are an infinite amount of values we can give to n, the sequence can go on to infinity. That idea of "going to infinity" has given us the idiom "nth degree", meaning "as much as possible" or "extremely".
6. "Black Panther" star Lupita: NYONG'O. Lupita is a Mexican-Kenyan actress born March 1, 1983 in Mexico City. In 2014 she won an Oscar for her work in 12 Years a Slave. Here she is in her Nakia role from Black Panther.
7. Sticky stuff: GLUE.
4. Utmost degree: NTH. Basically, the nth term is a mathematical expression that enables us to find the value of any term in a sequence. The 'n' stands for the term number. So if I have 5+n and if n=1 then it would be 5+1 = 6. Likewise, if n=2, it would be 5+2=7. And so on. Since there are an infinite amount of values we can give to n, the sequence can go on to infinity. That idea of "going to infinity" has given us the idiom "nth degree", meaning "as much as possible" or "extremely".
5. "I haven't __ to wear!": A THING. I knew this one right away but I am not sure why.
6. "Black Panther" star Lupita: NYONG'O. Lupita is a Mexican-Kenyan actress born March 1, 1983 in Mexico City. In 2014 she won an Oscar for her work in 12 Years a Slave. Here she is in her Nakia role from Black Panther.
7. Sticky stuff: GLUE.
8. More or __: LESS.
This famous poem, originally titled A Visit or A Visit From St. Nicholas, was first published anonymously on December 23, 1823, in a Troy, New York (another Cornerite CSO!) newspaper called The Sentinel. article from "The Parade"
10. Bickers: ARGUES.
11. May've: COULDA. Woulda, coulda, shoulda -- all three are colloquialisms that replace the verb "have" with "a". Likewise, the clue replaces "have" via the use of an apostrophe.
12. "Almost ready!": IN A SEC.
13. Fabric named for Syria's capital: DAMASK. This fabric is named for Damascus, which is where this textile product originated. Known for its intricate and reversible patterns, DAMASK fabric is prized for its ornateness. These days, however, it is easy to make incredibly complex damask patterns with modern textile machines. Read more here.
18. Prefix with center: EPI-. Earthquakes come to mind. (Hi Jayce!)
22. Whippersnappers: TWERPS.
24. Croat's neighbor: SERB.
25. Tightly closed: SHUT.
26. Tampa Bay NFLer: BUC.
28. Havaianas shoe, e.g.: THONG.
Speaking of Hawaii, here is Bing Crosby and the Andrew Sisters with a Hawaiian Christmas song:
29. Additionally: TOO.
31. Lightbulb's place: SOCKET. Did someone say that it's Sock It To Me Time?
35. Classic Cadillac feature: FIN.
36. Round flatbread: ROTI.
37. "Five stars!": I LOVED IT. Answer to, "What did I think of today's puzzle?"
38. Personalized iron-on: NAME TAPE. The "NAME" part filled quickly. Some solvers might not be familiar with the "TAPE" part. In the military, a NAME TAPE is a rectangle-shaped piece of fabric with one's surname stitched into it then permanently sewn onto one's uniform. It stays on through the laundry and the life of that uniform; whereas, a name tag is a metal pin that is attached when wearing the uniform and removed when laundering the uniform. Do other professions share this lexicon? Perhaps some of those professions use an iron-on variety.
39. Bi- plus one: TRI.
42. Adam Rippon, for one: SKATER.
43. Play catch with: TOSS TO.
44. Hollywood awards: OSCARS.
45. Washing dishes, doing laundry, etc.: CHORES.
46. Not gender-specific: UNISEX.
47. Bacon Turkey Bravo sandwich chain: PANERA.
51. Number of digits in a billion: TEN. 1,000,000,000
53. __ hygiene: ORAL.
54. Folk icon Seeger: PETE.
56. Changes color, perhaps: DYES.
58. Org. that may support a school board: PTA. "Organization" is abbreviated, so is Parent Teacher Association.
59. Hilton brand: TRU. TRU by Hilton is an American chain of hotels owned by Hilton Worldwide.
I hope you enjoyed today's puzzle, the CSO's, and the holiday music. I'm going to leave you with one more tune. It's an extraordinary version of The 12 Day of Christmas by the acapella group Straight No Chaser. It might not be what you are expecting so don't give up on it too early.
Notes from C.C.:
10. Bickers: ARGUES.
11. May've: COULDA. Woulda, coulda, shoulda -- all three are colloquialisms that replace the verb "have" with "a". Likewise, the clue replaces "have" via the use of an apostrophe.
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| another CSO |
12. "Almost ready!": IN A SEC.
13. Fabric named for Syria's capital: DAMASK. This fabric is named for Damascus, which is where this textile product originated. Known for its intricate and reversible patterns, DAMASK fabric is prized for its ornateness. These days, however, it is easy to make incredibly complex damask patterns with modern textile machines. Read more here.
18. Prefix with center: EPI-. Earthquakes come to mind. (Hi Jayce!)
22. Whippersnappers: TWERPS.
24. Croat's neighbor: SERB.
25. Tightly closed: SHUT.
26. Tampa Bay NFLer: BUC.
28. Havaianas shoe, e.g.: THONG.
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| Click to expand. |
Mele Kalikimaka (1950)
29. Additionally: TOO.
31. Lightbulb's place: SOCKET. Did someone say that it's Sock It To Me Time?
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1967-73)
How many faces do you recognize?
34. Gritty film genre: NOIR.35. Classic Cadillac feature: FIN.
36. Round flatbread: ROTI.
37. "Five stars!": I LOVED IT. Answer to, "What did I think of today's puzzle?"
38. Personalized iron-on: NAME TAPE. The "NAME" part filled quickly. Some solvers might not be familiar with the "TAPE" part. In the military, a NAME TAPE is a rectangle-shaped piece of fabric with one's surname stitched into it then permanently sewn onto one's uniform. It stays on through the laundry and the life of that uniform; whereas, a name tag is a metal pin that is attached when wearing the uniform and removed when laundering the uniform. Do other professions share this lexicon? Perhaps some of those professions use an iron-on variety.
42. Adam Rippon, for one: SKATER.
43. Play catch with: TOSS TO.
44. Hollywood awards: OSCARS.
45. Washing dishes, doing laundry, etc.: CHORES.
46. Not gender-specific: UNISEX.
51. Number of digits in a billion: TEN. 1,000,000,000
53. __ hygiene: ORAL.
54. Folk icon Seeger: PETE.
Pete Seeger (1919-2014) sings The First Noel (1967)
58. Org. that may support a school board: PTA. "Organization" is abbreviated, so is Parent Teacher Association.
59. Hilton brand: TRU. TRU by Hilton is an American chain of hotels owned by Hilton Worldwide.
Time to wrap things up. Here's the grid:
Notes from C.C.:
1) Happy birthday to dear Kathy
(Yellowrocks). So glad you're back on the blog again.
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| Kathy (Yellowrocks), Dec 10, 2020 |
2) Happy Birthday to Lorraine (Fermatprime) also. Her good friend Malcolm reads our blog regularly and emailed me this: "She is still living in her house in the San Fernando Valley, playing a Word Solitaire game, which she consistently gets the highest score of all other players, but every so often she gets an even higher score before any other player. Her feistiness and the peculiar rules of the game allow her to get the extra two points before any other player of the game does."
