Saturday Themeless by Rich Feely
Rich's puzzle provided a real challenge which yielded to my "hunt and peck" strategy.
The fill in the NW had some fun learning (TOUCH GRASS) and cleverISH cluing that took some time.
The SW where I finished also took some effort with obscure-to-me names ATOP each other but it was very satisfying π³ when I got the Congratulations message.
1. Toss: SCRAP - Modern slang of YEET was only four letters and PITCH didn't work.
6. "The Sound of Music" backdrop, briefly: WWII - ALPS joined PITCH from 1 Across as "close but no cigar".
 |
| Baron von Trapp shows his feeling towards Nazis |
10. Start and end of New Mexico's Enchanted Circle Scenic Byway: TAOS.
14. "Put your phone down": TOUCH GRASS - π I had no idea but it made perfect sense when I filled in the last letters. It means "get off your devices and go out in the real world".
17. Quarterfinalists: ELITE EIGHT - The winners of these games went to the Final Four. Rumor has it that EIGHT TEAMS would have worked too.
18. French head: TETE.
19. Chaps: MEN.
20. Folder's forfeit: ANTE - You paid to see the cards and if you fold your hand you forfeit that money. This is statistically the worst starting cards in Texas Hold 'Em.
and 11. Payment guarantee?: A BET IS A BET.
21. Polite gesture: HAT TIP.
23. "Say no more": I SEE.
24. Lollygags: DALLIES
28. Feels for: PITIES.
29. Lightweight material: LINEN - Leonardo di Caprio looking cool in LINEN as Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby.
30. Unconscious __: BIAS.
31. "And there you have it": TADA.
34. Happy accident: A FEATURE NOT A BUG.
37. Connected by a common thread: SEWN π
38. Take into account: NOTE - Duly NOTED.
39. Two-time WNBA MVP __ Delle Donne: ELENA ¯\_(γ)_/¯
40. Time for curls: ARM DAY - It is recommended that you alternate
42. UNESCO City of Literature in Devon: EXETER - Exeter is a city in the county of Devon.
43. Multifaceted: LAYERED.
45. Sheep sounds: BAAS.
46. One vertex of the Summer Triangle: ALTAIR - A gimme for us astronomy peeps. Like the Big Dipper, it is an asterism not a constellation.
47. Cobra or bridge surfaces: MATS.
48. Sign of success: SRO - Husker VB is the only women's NCAA sport to make a profit thanks to its string of 376 consecutive sellouts that feature Standing Room Only crowds.
51. Designer Lagerfeld: KARL - ¯\_(γ)_/¯
52. Uninterested in the party scene, perhaps: APOLITICAL.
55. Comedian Wakim who is the first Lebanese American cast member of "SNL": EMIL. ¯\_(γ)_/¯
56. Texter's "Hey, boo": GHOST EMOJI - π»
57. Viscous: ROPY - In Earth Science we call this ROPY lava pahoehoe (pun hoy hoy) lava.
58. Chef Lewis who specialized in Southern cooking: EDNA ¯\_(γ)_/¯
59. City on the Nile north of Lake Nasser: ASWAN.
Down:
1. Cherry picker's target: STEM.
2. 2023 AL Cy Young winner Gerrit: COLE.
3. Demolish: RUIN.
4. Pretend: ACT.
5. Gallinaceous bird native to Eurasia: PHEASANT - Some Nebraska landowners open their ground to PHEASANT hunting when they are in season.
 |
| Tekamah, Nebraska |
6. Dash off: WRITE - I try to dash off a reply as quick as I can when I get an email
7. Pay: WAGE.
8. "Plus or minus": ISH - My solve time for this puzzle was 30ISH minutes
9. Skeptical response: IS THAT SO.
10. Folks who tend to give things away: TATTLE TALES
12. Navel type: OUTIE.
13. Tally on some trackers: STEPS.
13. Tally on some trackers: STEPS.
 |
| On an Apple Watch |
15. Small inheritance?: GENES.
22. Boxing legend: ALI.
23. "They cannot be serious": I MEAN REALLY.
24. Guerrero of "Doom Patrol": DIANE ¯\_(γ)_/¯
25. Sigh of woe: ALAS.
26. Teeming (with): RIFE.
27. Journey in a relocation: ONE WAY TRIP π
28. Devotion: PIETY.
30. Overarching: BROAD - The overarching goals of athletic teams is to win a championship.
32. TimothΓ©e Chalamet epic set on a desert planet: DUNE - The star at top center ¯\_(γ)_/¯
35. In the minority?: UNDER AGE π
36. Crude, slangily: TEXAS TEA - I sent these TV theme lyrics below to my 28-yr-old granddaughter and asked if she had ever heard them before. She quickly replied, "No". Sigh... The show is at the bottom of this write-up.*
Come and listen to my story
'Bout a man named Jed
A poor mountaineer,
Barely kept his family fed.
And then one day
He was shootin' at some food,
And up through the ground came a-bubblin' crude.
Oil that is, black gold, TEXAS TEA.
41. CT scan kin: MRI.
42. Fail big-time: EAT IT.
43. Former Minneapolis NBA player: LAKER - I am old enough to remember when the LAKERS played in Minneapolis in the 50's and their star was George Mikan who is seen below at the right with Kareem and Shaq. In 1960, the LAKERS took the team and the nickname westward although LA is not known for any significant lakes.
'Bout a man named Jed
A poor mountaineer,
Barely kept his family fed.
And then one day
He was shootin' at some food,
And up through the ground came a-bubblin' crude.
Oil that is, black gold, TEXAS TEA.
41. CT scan kin: MRI.
42. Fail big-time: EAT IT.
43. Former Minneapolis NBA player: LAKER - I am old enough to remember when the LAKERS played in Minneapolis in the 50's and their star was George Mikan who is seen below at the right with Kareem and Shaq. In 1960, the LAKERS took the team and the nickname westward although LA is not known for any significant lakes.
44. Site of Crockett's last stand: ALAMO - A silent movie version. I remember Fess Parker and John Wayne playing that role later.
47. New __: MOON - Ten days from now, the Moon will "rise" with the Sun and will not be able to be seen all day. As I have told thousands of students, the MOON is not in the evening sky every night.
48. Garbage barge: SCOW.
49. Indian royal: RAJA can be RANA also
50. Actor/director Ken: OLIN - I remember him as Det. Harry Garibaldi (far right) in the fabulous Hill Street Blues.
53. High deg.: PHD.
54. Uses Kik, say: IMS ¯\_(γ)_/¯
* Jed Clampett and family after they discovered and cashed in on their TEXAS TEA.
