Tuesday March 1, 2022 Jerry Edelstein

Are you Smarter than a 5th Grader?

18-Across. Sequence of missed calls: PHONE TAG.  Smart Phone.

21-Across. Place for Oreos: COOKIE JAR.  Smart Cookie.  A Smart Cookie is a clever person with good ideas.

38-Across. Let it slide: LOOK THE OTHER WAY.  Smart Look.

52-Across. Wallet or purse alternative: MONEY BELT.  Smart Money.

And the unifier:

58-Across. Fashionable group ... and what the starts of 18-, 21-, 38- and 52-Across form: SMART SET.  The word Smart can precede the first word of each theme answer to give us a new concept.

Today is not only Mardi Gras, but it's a White Rabbit Day.  Happy first of March and Mardi Gras!

Across:

1. Gaming site whose machines originally took pennies: ARCADE.  That's why they were called Penny Arcades.

7. Invite (to): ASK.

10. Serve, as coffee: POUR.

14. Jumped: LEAPED.

15. Wide-angle view: PANORAMA.  Guess the panoramic city below.

17. Mom or dad: PARENT.

19. Pitcher's control, say: ASSET.

20. Wood-splitting tool: AXE.

25. Extra: SPARE.

30. New England cape: ANN.  Cape Ann is north of Boston.

31. Fountain offerings: SODAS.

33. When tied NFL games may be decided: IN OT.  As in in Over Time.

34. Spanish folk hero: EL CID.  We've seen El Cid before.

36. Does some self-grooming, as a bird: PREENS.

42. Counsel: ADVISE.

43. Things one can't do without: NEEDS.

44. Bearing: MIEN.

45. Salt or fresh follower: WATER.  Ever wonder about the differences between Fresh and Salt Water?

47. Mayo, por ejemplo: MES.  Today's Spanish Lesson.  May is a Month.  Hi, Lucina!

50. North Atlantic hazards: BERGS.

55. "What was __ do?": I TO.

57. Lord's home: MANOR.

63. Barely manage, with "by": SCRAPE.  //  And 34-Down. Barely managing, with "by": EKING.

64. Lone Ranger, to Tonto: KEMO SABE.  The complicated origin of the term Kemo Sabe.

65. Kitchen appliances: RANGES.

66. Inside scoop: INFO.

67. Force (through), as legislation: RAM.

68. Evaluate: ASSESS.

Down:

1. Andes grazer: ALPACA.

2. Motive: REASON.

3. Novelist McCullers: CARSON.  Carson McCullers (née Lula Carson Smith; Feb. 19, 1917 ~ Sept. 29, 1967) was an American author whose writings generally take place in the deep South.  She is probably best known for her 1940 novel The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, which was also made into a film.  It was also made into a 1968 film, starring Alan Arkin.

4. Sneak __: look secretly: A PEEK.

5. Teeth: Pref.: DENTI-.

6. Georgia summer hrs.: EDT.  As in Eastern Daylight Time.  Much of the country goes into Daylight Time soon.

7. Uber or Lyft: APP.

8. African desert: SAHARA.

9. Kentucky fort: KNOX.  Not to be confused with the Fort Knox in Maine.

10. Eminent leader?: PRE-.  As in Preeminent.  In a snooty publication, the word might be spelled as Preëminent.

11. Cereal grain: OAT.

12. Thurman of "Pulp Fiction": UMA.

13. Torn old shirt, perhaps: RAG.

16. Small bills: ONEs.

22. Avoid: ESCHEW.

23. __ de vivre: JOIE.  Today's French lesson.  The phrase Joie de Vivre, roughly translates into English as Enjoyment of Life

24. Expand, as a house: ADD ONTO.

26. Places to fish from: PIERS.

27. From the beginning: ANEW.

28. Gossip columnist Barrett: RONA.

Rona Barrett (née Rona Burstein; b. Oct. 8, 1936)

29. Website featuring crafts: ETSY.

32. Ball shape: SPHERE.

35. Sgt.'s superiors: LTS. Lieutenants are Sergeant's superiors.

37. Color suggesting anger: RED.

38. Mary's was little: LAMB.

39. Drooling comics dog: ODIE.  Garfield's pal.

40. Done: OVER.

41. High schooler, usually: TEEN.

46. Microscopic organism: AMOEBA.

47. Household, from the French: MÉNAGE.  More of today's French lesson.

48. Marries in secret: ELOPES.  A crossword staple.

49. Emphasize: STRESS.

51. Remains on the shelf: SITS.

The Elf on the Shelf

53. Some youth ctrs.: YMCAs.

54. Structures raised by Amish: BARNS.

56. Peter the Great, e.g.: TSAR.  Tsar or Czar?

58. Enjoy Aspen: SKI.

59. Chess pieces: MEN.

60. Big initials in bowling: AMF.  Hi, Boomer!

61. Friend of Pooh: ROO.

62. President pro __: TEM.

63. Mexican Mrs.: SRA.  More of today's Spanish lesson.

Here's the Grid:

 

חתולה

Happy Mardi Gras, Chère!  Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler!

Monday February 28, 2022 John Michael Currie

Theme: SECRET SAUCE (55. Subtle element in a success story ... and what's revealed by each set of circles) - Five type of sauces are hidden in the theme answers.

 20A. Like civilizations that antedate written records: PREHISTORIC. Pesto.

 30A. Pop singer's list of recordings, e.g.: DISCOGRAPHY. Soy.

 46A. Sourced locally, as a menu: FARM TO TABLE. Mole.

 11D. Official inspection spot: CHECKPOINT. Hot.

 29D. Diver's rotation: SOMERSAULT. Meat.

Boomer here. 

Well, I have certainly had SOY sauce over the years and I can also say I have enjoyed HOT sauce now and then. PESTO, MOLE, and MEAT are not enjoyed in our house. 

Happy to say so long to February which contributed about a dozen days where the thermometer hit a mark below zero.  Add that to January and we had about a total of 30 minus days.  I think it is a new record of minus for the land of 10,000 lakes.

Across:

1. Taiwanese bubble tea: BOBA.

 

 

5. Yawn-inducing: BANAL.

10. Dull pain: ACHE. Attacks my left leg frequently.

14. Racetrack shape: OVAL.  Kentucky Derby is coming soon.  Place your bets.  Minnesota has "Canterbury Downs" where they show a video of Churchill downs and betting is open.

15. Fruit whose oil is used in cooking: OLIVE.  Popeye's girlfriend.

16. Onetime Ralston cereal now owned by General Mills: CHEX.  My favorites are simple Wheat and Corn Chex.  I see a lot of sugary Chex in the cereal aisle and cinnamon are not too bad.  Most of the others have lots of sugar.  Except Rice which are not a favorite.

17. Wine lover's prefix: OENO. As in "oenophile".

18. Nine-piece combo: NONET.

19. U. of Maryland athlete: TERP.  Short for Terrapin.

23. Pigeon sound: COO.  We do not see many Pigeons.  They are known to make a mess.

24. "SNL" alum Gasteyer: ANA.

25. Armored vehicle: TANK.  We have one that holds about $60.00 worth of gasoline.  Of course that is this week.  Who knows about next week.

27. Tres menos uno: DOS. Three minus one.

36. Traditional piano key wood: EBONY.  Blacker than the Ace of spades.

38. Root for a luau: TARO.

39. Pâté de __ gras: FOIE.

40. Covert ops outfit: CAMO.  I used to have some Camo stuff left over from Uncle Sam.  It's gone now. 

41. "Chopsticks __ fork?": OR A.  Fork for me, sticks for my dear wife.

42. Fey with nine Emmys: TINA.  I could never stay up late enough to watch Saturday Night Live.

43. Part of BSA: Abbr.: AMER. The Boy Scouts of America.

44. Ponder (over): MULL.  I'll think about it.

45. Hunger signs that hurt: PANGS.  Not me.  I always eat before the PANGS show up.

49. Vietnamese New Year: TET.

50. Articulated: SAID.

51. Tiny colonist: ANT.  Driveway is covered with snow right now.  Amazing how these little bugs can dig holes in the tar and create a home in the spring.

53. Reggae relative: SKA.

62. Unseating plan?: COUP.  I don't know.  There is usually enough room in the back.

64. Avoid, as duty: SHIRK.

65. Broadway event: SHOW.  "SHOW me the way to go home.  I'm tired and I wanna go to bed."

66. Adept: ABLE.  I have not been ABLE to bowl for awhile. Working on PT rehab.

67. One of the senses: TASTE.

68. Joint above the ankle: KNEE.

69. Greek B: BETA.  Alpha, BETA, Gamma, Delta.  Only one Airline in the Greek Alphabet.

70. "Oof!": YIKES.

71. Abel and Cain, to Adam and Eve: SONS.  Don't forget SETH. 

Down:

1. Cutesy nose-poke word: BOOP.  Betty's last name.

 

 

2. Mind-matter link: OVER.  "Why don't we stop fooling ourselves.  The game is OVER, OVER, OVER."  Simon and Garfunkel.

3. Scourge: BANE.

4. Hawaiian greeting: ALOHA. Also can be "See you later".

5. Dwarf planting: BONSAI.

6. Very much: A LOT.  Where I park at the grocery store.

7. Barcelona boy: NINO.

8. Declare: AVER.

9. "Time to stop obsessing on this": LET IT GO.  Aaron Rodgers - are you listening?

10. Play a part (in): ACT.

12. One who comes to the rescue: HERO.  A big sandwich.

13. Montreal MLBer before 2005: EXPO.  Montreal left Canada and became the Washington Nationals.  The Minnesota Twins were the Senators that left Washington in 1960.

21. "500" race, familiarly: INDY.  This OVAL track race is also coming soon.  Around Memorial Day.

22. Automobile: CAR.  These Fast, Faster will be at INDY but never in my garage.

26. Tripartite commerce pact acronym: NAFTA.  North America Free Trade.

27. Pre-bedtime coffee, often: DECAF.  I am enjoying this now.  I guess Chemotherapy patients are not supposed to have caffeine.

28. President with degrees from Columbia and Harvard: OBAMA.  I remember him.

31. Dark beer: STOUT.  I have never liked beer.

32. Diane's "Cheers" co-server: CARLA.  Where everybody knows your name.

33. Colgate rival: ORAL B.

34. Depend (on): HINGE.  Depends on keeping your door in place.

35. Brewery need: YEAST.  Also needed for pizza dough.

37. __ Rae, Sally Field role: NORMA.

44. "Aw shucks" quality: MODESTY.

45. Writers' tools: PENS.  Pigs lived in them on my Uncle Bill's farm in Siren, Wisconsin..

47. Apt "it's" anagram: TIS.  The season to feel jolly.

48. Hanukkah pancakes: LATKES.

52. Duties: TASKS.  The physical therapy lady gives me a few tasks.

53. Wound cover: SCAB.  I cover with a Band Aid.  The SCAB comes later.

54. Asian beef city: KOBE.  Mr. BRYANT was a great LA Laker Basketball player, before he went down in a helicopter.

56. Indian spiced tea: CHAI.

57. Take a chance on: RISK.  I think Kramer played RISK with Neuman in Jerry's Apartment.

58. Art Deco artist: ERTE.

59. "Hmm ... doubt it": UH NO.

60. Ethan or Joel of film: COEN.

61. Fleecy females: EWES.

63. Podded plant: PEA.  C.C. likes all kinds of veggies.

Boomer

Sunday February 27, 2022 Katrina Lee

Theme: "Juicy Tidbits" - Four different teas are dropped from four long Across theme entries.

1A. Often abbreviated reaction to information overload: TO (O LONG), DIDN'T READ.

2D. Chinese for "black dragon": OOLONG.

32A. Completely different situation: A WHOLE OTH(ER BAL) GAME.

35D. Like some remedies: HERBAL.

70A. Middle-earth ring bearer: BILB (O BA)GGINS. And 12. 70-Across nephew: FRODO.

71D. Fett in "The Mandalorian": BOBA.

106A. Résumé alert about an unfinished goal: DEG(REE N)OT COMPLETED.

108D. Putting __: GREEN.

Reveal:

130. "Give me some gossip!" ... and a hint to this puzzle's sets of circles, which affect four Across answers: SPILL THE TEA.

Congrats to Katrina for her first LAT puzzle. And a Sunday!

I don't think we've seen a puzzles with a 11-letter Across, normally the first themer starts at the 3rd row. Amazing grid! "Dropping" theme is always trickier to design and fill.

 
Across:

12. Ukulele ridge: FRET.

16. "Gotcha" sounds: AHS.

19. Starter: HORS D'OEUVRE. 22. Altruism: SELFLESSNESS. Partnered with two more long entries: 120. Total removals: ERADICATIONS. 127. "The Crocodile" of early tennis: RENE LACOSTE.

20. Indian flatbread: ROTI. Not NAAN.

 

21. Laser pointer chaser: CAT.

23. Most of the 2010s: OBAMA ERA.

25. Span of a scale with three sharps: A TO A. Tricky to parse.

26. That, in Madrid: ESA. Or ESO.

27. Gucci of fashion: ALDO.

29. "Elements of Algebra" author: EULER. Wikipedia says he wrote the book around 1765 in German.

30. "Don't back down, bro!": MAN UP.

36. Certain carton components: EGG CUPS.

39. Reunion attendees: AUNTS.

40. Café freebie: EAU. And 112. Like a romantic dinner, in Paris: A DEUX. 117. Paris gal pal: AMIE. 28. Paris article: LES.

41. "Don't think so": I BET.

42. Nos. for alums: YRS.

43. Comparative data diagram: BAR GRAPH. So many fantastic entries in this grid: 64. "Play it cool": ACT CASUAL. 78. Raggedy: MOTH-EATEN. 92. Dad's referral?: GO ASK MOM. 15D. Zoom annoyance: TIME LAG.

48. "The Misery Index" network: TBS.

51. Bulgarian's neighbor: SERB.

53. Type of diet that might replace potatoes with cauliflower: LOW CARB. I'd be miserable with such a diet.

 56. New Deal agcy.: NRA.

57. "High Rollers" co-host __ Lee: RUTA.  Here with Alex Trebek.

59. Grams: NANAS.

61. Alert on the road: HONK AT.

63. __ in Charlie: C AS.

66. Prefix with treat or giving: MIS.

67. Blow a fuse: LOSE IT.

69. Sellers of KAFFEREP cinnamon buns: IKEAS.

74. Following: POSSE.

75. Tokyo airport: NARITA. Busiest airport in Japan. The first two characters 成田 is Narita.

77. Apple runs on it: IOS.

80. Hot state: IRE.

81. How three nursery-rhyme merchants went to sea: IN A TUB.

84. Trailer follower: MOVIE.

85. Laker legend, familiarly: KOBE. Bryant.

86. Votes against: NOS.

87. Soybeans served in the pod: EDAMAME. It's called "mao dou" in Chinese. Same thing.

89. Gawk at: OGLE.

91. With 6-Down, Rudolph's guiding light: RED. And 6. See 91-Across: NOSE.

95. Boarding precedes it: Abbr.: ETD. Also 14. ORD posting: ETA.

97. Penicillium, e.g.: MOLD.

99. Half a martial art: TAI. Tai chi.

100. Kendrick with a Pulitzer: LAMAR. For his album DAMN.

102. On the lam: AT LARGE.

113. Chef's protection: APRON.

114. Word with words or chance: LAST.

115. Org. with many returns: IRS. And 128. ID on many returns: SSN. Have not done ours yet.

118. Most sentimental: WEEPIEST.

125. Maiden name preceder: NEE.

126. __-Ball: SKEE.

129. Post: SEND.

Down:

1. What Rickey Henderson often beat: THE TAG. 1,406 stolen bases. Record of course.

 

3. NIAID director: DR FAUCI. The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
 
4. Luzon, for one: Abbr.: ISL. Island. Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines.

5. JFK predecessor: DDE.

7. Thompson of Marvel movies: TESSA.

8. Beat it: RUN AWAY.

9. Night before: EVE.

10. ___ Technica: tech news website: ARS.

11. Make drinkable, as seawater: DESALT.

13. "Mr. __": Rami Malek drama: ROBOT.

 16. Amtrak speedster: ACELA.

17. Sultan's group: HAREM. 

18. Intimidate, with "down": STARE.

22. Identical: SAME.

24. Foretell: AUGUR.

31. Trivia night settings: PUBS.

33. Flings: HURLS.

34. "That's wrong __ many levels": ON SO.

37. Hammer parts: PEENS.

38. "Ghost Story" author Peter: STRAUB. Learning moment for me.

43. Forbid: BAN.

44. Flood shelter: ARK.

45. 23andMe discovery: ANCESTOR.

46. "Thank the Lord!": PRAISE BE.

47. Got a move on: HASTENED.

48. Instruction: TRAINING.

49. "__ Holiday": opening section of Copland's "Rodeo": BUCKAROO.

50. First woman to be named Doctor of the Church, briefly: ST TERESA. Sometimes we see AVILA clued as [St. Teresa's city].

 

 

52. __ B'rith: BNAI.

54. Tory adversary: WHIG.

55. __ de' Medici, first de facto Lord of Florence: COSIMO. Also new to me.

58. Berry in a bowl: ACAI.

60. Garlic genus: ALLIUM. Onion, leek, chive all belong to this genus.

62. Get plastered: TOPE. Not a word I use.

65. Piedmont bubbly: ASTI.

66. Classic U.K. sports cars: MGS.

68. Prepare, as beans: SOAK. I like peas better, esp black-eyed peas, widely used in Cantonese soup.

72. De __: again: NOVO.

73. Stain: STIGMA.

76. Short on iron, maybe: ANEMIC. Beans and peas are high in iron.

79. Serf of Sparta: HELOT.

82. Ruckus: ADO.

83. Cap with a pompon: TAM.

84. Convened in: MET AT.

88. Idea that spreads in a culture: MEME.

90. "First Lady of Song": ELLA. And 116. 90-Down's improv: SCAT.

93. Entrance porch: STOOP.

94. Teen dystopian novel narrator: KATNISS. "The Hunger Games".

96. Hanukkah top: DREIDEL.

98. Duchamp, for one: DADAIST.

100. CD precursors: LPS.

101. Lets out, say: ALTERS. Sometimes I struggle to fold Boomer's walker. Not fun when it's -12 and windy. I'm surprised that it takes a long time for my cracked finger to heal. I'm also surprised that the same spot can be cracked twice. I need to be a better glove-wearer.

103. Channel changer: REMOTE.

104. Kind of pig that's not a pig: GUINEA.

105. They can be tricky to run into: EXES.

106. Daybreaks: DAWNS.

107. Foil relatives: EPEES.

109. Designer Ashley: OLSEN. Here with her twin.

110. Like some cornered kings: MATED.

111. "You know the __": DRILL.

119. Just make, with "out": EKE.

121. Good name, briefly: REP.

122. "Star Wars" nickname: ANI. Nickname for the young Darth Vader.

123. German "Alas!": ACH.

124. __ the line: TOE.

We have another busy week ahead. VA every day. Thursday is tougher with four appointments, including Boomer's chemo infusion and a meeting with the neurosurgeon.

But there's no more below zero in the forecast. So happy. We had a tough time last Tuesday with the snowstorm.

C.C.