Theme: Incidentally ...
[note, this cartoon is totally unrelated to the puzzle]
Puzzling thoughts:
I thought the name Dylan Schiff looked familiar. I discovered that I was the blogger of his January 8, 2021 LA Times debut crossword puzzle; a collaboration between he and Mark McClain
BTW, yesterday we had a puzzle from Zachary Schiff. Might they be related?
I digress ...
After completing today's puzzle I kept thinking, "is there more to this that I am missing?" So, with Mark McClain's help, I was able to reach out to Dylan and ask him about his thought process in coming up with today's puzzle. And no, I didn't miss anything. [phew!]
BTW, Dylan promises to stop by today and see what you all have to say about this, and answer any questions, so be nice!! 😀
Here are the entries:
17-across. Homeland, nation, or state?: ALT-COUNTRY. Three different (alternative) synonyms for the word "country"
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| The thesaurus-saurus agrees, in part |
25-across. Soapstone, shale, or mudstone?: SOFT ROCK. Three different kinds of "rocks" that have a Moh's Scale rating of 2 or less. Remember when Chairman Moe used the scale below to rate puzzles??
50-across. Cheerwine, Maine Root, or Jones Soda?: INDIE POP. Not familiar with Cheerwine? How about Maine Root? Does Jones Soda come to mind when you think of a soft drink? As those who live or grew up in the Midwest/western PA area know, the word "pop" is the term used to describe a carbonated beverage. Other parts of the country refer to it as "soda", and "Coke" (see map in the video below). And for those in the deep South, you know that the word "Coke" refers to any carbonated beverage.
Here is an example of ordering a soft drink at a drive-through in Mobile, AL:
[you] "I'd like a Big Mac, Fries, and a Coke."
[voice in the drive-thru]: "What kind of Coke do you want?"
[you]: "I'd like a Pepsi, if you have it. If not, make it a Mr. Pibb"
Fun Fact: The term "indie" refers to independent (as in the term "indie" films which are produced by smaller companies not called "MGM", "Universal", "Disney", et al) Here, the examples of "indies" are the three independent bottlers
And the reveal:
38-across. Score that sets the mood, and an apt description of 17-, 25-, 50-, and 62-across?: INCIDENTAL MUSIC. From Dylan's e-mail reply to me: "This puzzle takes four music subgenres and clues them in non-music contexts by providing 3 examples. The revealer INCIDENTAL MUSIC points to how each of them also "happens to be" a music subgenre when put back in the musical context" ... so don't look for another, hidden meaning!! 😁
I've enclosed the finished grid to help you find the other answers ... since this puzzle featured an incidental reference to hardness, I will use the Moh's Scale Rating today instead of assigning ⭐'s. Given that it took me just 6:33 to solve (more like my time for solving a Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday puzzle) I have to rate it less than a "5", as it barely "whet my apatite" (pun, intended - go back and look at the Moh's Scale)
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| The completed grid |
Across:
1. Food in red paraffin wax: EDAM. Moe-ku #1:
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| What bears might think about glampers |
And in a similar vein:
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| 😂 |
10. Bird of prey: HAWK.
14. Flatbread made with 3-Down: ROTI. Here is a DIY recipe for ROTI
15. Bay Area NFLer: NINER. As in "Forty-Niner" - the nickname (singular) of the SF area pro football team
16. DOL division: OSHA.
17. [entry]
19. Fix, as a pet: SPAY. Of course, I doubt that the pet would agree to be "fixed" if they had a say in it 😀
20. Beatles drummer: STARR. Moe-ku #2:
21. Unagi roll protein: EEL. One of 19 three-letter-words in today's puzzle. Hard to avoid that many when you have 4 entries (36 letters, total) and 1 reveal (15 letters) taking up so much real estate
22. Brand sold at Mattress Firm: SERTA.
23. Gondola propeller: OAR. "Gondolier" was too big to fit
31. With 30-Down, accessory that may coordinate with cuff links: TIE. (30-down. See 31-Across: PIN.)
32. More, in Mexico: MAS. I kind of prefer this as an actual word (mas = Spanish for "more") as opposed to a clue that might read "Pa's companions"
33. __ out: discuss in detail: HASH. Moe-ku #3
34. Falsehood: LIE. Fib also fits
36. Like many legal terms: LATIN.
42. French military caps: KEPIS. Also worn during the US Civil War/War Between the States
43. Movie SFX: CGI. Imagine that!
44. Insta- kin: REDI. OK, I know that this is not the "redi" that Dylan was after, but I much prefer videos ... this video dates back to 2009. I hope the plant in Pensacola is now able to meet demand for this fun-to-use product
45. Writing tool: PEN.
46. Baby hyena: CUB. My first choice was pup. Yours?
48. Without stopping: ON AND ON. Kind of like my sentences when I write a blog ...
50. [entry]
53. "Shameless" network, for short: SHO. Not a subscriber
54. "My goodness!": EGADS. For all of the solvers here that are members of the "Silent Generation"
55. Media center?: DEE. The "?" in the clue gave this away. The letter D is in the center of the word, media
57. Flattens (out): EVENS. I chose irons - anyone else make that mistake?
61. "Bob's Burgers" daughter: TINA. This solved by perps as I never watched this sitcom
62. [entry]
64. Part of a foot: INCH. Heel/sole/arch also fit, but I measured my choice precisely ...
65. See eye to eye: AGREE. Kind of an easy Friday clue
66. Assign stars to: RATE. So, if I did assign ⭐'s to this puzzle I would give it a solid ⭐⭐⭐⭐
67. "Because of You" R&B singer: NE-YO. Total perps. [internet info] "Shaffer Chimere Smith, known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer and songwriter. Regarded as a leading figure of 2000s R&B music, he is the recipient of numerous accolades, including three Grammy Awards. He gained recognition for his songwriting abilities following the success of his first major credit, Mario's 2004 single "Let Me Love You"
68. __ verde: SALSA. Mi favorito!
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| Salsa = sauce; Verde = green |
69. Approach bumper-to-bumper traffic, say: SLOW. I tried using the word "cuss" ... which is what I might have done once or twice back in my commuting days ...
Down:
1. Notable times: ERAS. We are currently in the Chairman Moe/Malodorous Manatee ERA of Crossword blogging. I am coming up on my fifth year here at the Corner as your co-Friday blogger; MalMan is close behind ...
2. Numbskull: DOLT.
3. Flour ground in a chakki: ATTA. Not familiar with the word "chakki". The "Silent Generation" (and this "Boomer") would prefer this clue: " ___ girl!"
4. Aid in locating a lost pet: MICROCHIP.
5. Serengeti grazer: GNU. Moe-ku #4:
6. Actor's "What am I supposed to say?": LINE. Very clever clue for this word
7. Chips in?: ANTES. How many different ways has this word been clued?
8. Bordeaux grape: MERLOT. In my former life as a wine rep/sommelier, the "casual" wine drinker was still focused on the line from the movie "Sideways" and the popularity of merlot plummeted. I can honestly say that the best ever wine I drank was a bottle of 2001 Paloma Merlot (ok, it was a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, but it was f***ing awesome!)
Here is a clip of the movie and Paul Giamatti's utterance (NSFW). BTW, the character, Miles, loves Merlot. The problem is, so did his ex-wife; and every time he encounters that grape varietal it reminds him (negatively) of her
9. Be nosy: PRY. I reached out to Dylan for his thoughts about this puzzle before I finished my blog. Hope he didn't think I was pry-ing
10. Canadian lout: HOSER. Not sure that I would ever call this a CSO ... but maybe our resident Canadian, "Canadian, Eh!" can chirp in here and give us the true explanation for this 😉
11. "Just like we discussed ... ": AS PROMISED. I confirmed [@Crossword Tracker] that this entry phrase is seldom used; just twice (2019 and 2020)
13. Whitewater vessels: KAYAKS.
18. Like many a thesis defense: ORAL. Just throw in a bunch of Latin words to impress and defend!
22. Cook over boiling water: STEAM.
24. Maddens: RILES UP. If the clue had read "Madden's", the answer would have had a far different meaning (sports gamers will get this!)
26. Temps: FILL-INS. Moe-ku #5:
27. Steak choice: AHI. The only kind of steak (tuna) that offers a three-letter answer - unless you count the word "RAW" as a steak choice (har har! Tartare!) 😂
28. Thomas, for one: TANK ENGINE. Congratulations, Dylan, this is a first use for the phrase tank engine in a major crossword publication! For those unaware of who this is ...
30. [see in the across comments]
35. List-shortening abbr.: ETC. and its clecho @ (58-down. List-shortening abbr.): ET. AL..
37. Fruit-filled pastries: TURNOVERS.
39. Chops finely: DICES.
40. In the past: AGO.
41. NL Central team: CIN. STL/MIL/PIT/CHI all fit, so I waited until a few perps came to the rescue
45. [see in the across section]
51. The Gem State: IDAHO. Immediately following is (52-down. Gem from a mollusk): PEARL
56. Holiday lead-ins: EVES.
59. __ phonetic alphabet: NATO. *Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliett, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo, Sierra, Tango, Unicorn, Victor, Whiskey, X-Ray, Yankee, and Zulu
(*Who can spot the mistake?)
60. Whole bunch: SLEW.
62. Holds: HAS.
63. Assenting vote: YEA.
That's a wrap, folks. See you in a couple of weeks. A personal "ps" from the Chairman, today is my little big sister's birthday. I know she won't be stopping by but as my only sibling, it is more than worth giving her a shout out. Happy Birthday, sis! 🎂
