Sunday December 3, 2023 Steve Marron & Zhouqin Burnikel

Theme: "Do the Dishes" - The last word of each common phrase is replaced by its food homophone.

23A. Score a seafood morsel in a bite of paella?: PULL A MUSSEL. Pull a muscle.

25A. Carefully check some deli stock?: SCREEN LOX. Screen locks.

53A. Hamburgers and hot dogs sold at a NASCAR race?: TRACK MEAT. Track meet.

66A. Ingredient that tends to fly out of the stand mixer?: WILD FLOUR. Wild flour.

82A. Make an unusual choice while making borscht?: SKIP A BEET. Skip a beet.

112A. Sketch the Thanksgiving turkey before it's carved?: DRAW A FOWL. Draw a foul.

114A. Request to a fishmonger for smaller portions?: BREAK MY SOLE. Break My Soul.

41D. "This herb is amazing!"?: GREAT THYME. Great time.

45D. Avoid the downside in a corn investment?: HEDGE MAIZE. Hedge maze.

This theme was inspired by another food idea Steve had. I pervaded him to go with the "verb & food item" so "Do the Dishes" works nicely as a title. 

The theme clues went through substantial changes. Patti's are much more imaginative than our originals. 

Just FYI, all my future LAT puzzles will have the Zhouqin Burnikel byline.

Across:

1. Saoirse of "Lady Bird": RONAN. Her parents are Irish.

6. Casino request: HIT ME.

11. Go to the polls: VOTE.

15. Ship's staff: CREW.

19. IRS option: E FILE.

20. Lakers legend Shaquille: ONEAL.

21. Nutrient in dried beans: IRON. I eat tofu every day. Plenty of iron. No beans.

22. Letter before kappa: IOTA.

27. City viewed from Holmenkollbakken: OSLO. It's ski jumping hill in Oslo. Never heard of it until I read Steve's clue. He might have skied there.

28. Miles and meters: UNITS.

29. Decree: FIAT.

30. Intel microprocessor: XEON.

31. Kelp and sargassum: SEAWEEDS. Sargassum is brown seaweed.

33. Sour: TART.

35. Mosque leader: IMAM.

37. Certain, for sure: Abbr.: SYN. I love this clue. Patti's also. Certain is a synonym of sure.

38. __ firma: TERRA.

40. Patterns in an aviary: PLUMAGES.

44. Most bashful: SHIEST.

47. Low-pressure technique: SOFT SELL.

49. Numbered hwy.: RTE.

50. No Doubt lead singer Stefani: GWEN.

51. "__ a wrap": THAT'S.

56. Landscaping supply: SOD.

57. Travis or Haggard of country music: MERLE.

58. Polite interruption: AHEM.

60. Court proceeding: TRIAL. So pricey to have a lawyer to handle this probate issue. Gosh. Hope to have this thing wrapped up soon.

61. Restricted zone: NO-GO AREA.

63. Scottish lowland: GLEN.

64. Kind: SORT.

65. Magician Jillette: PENN.

70. Understands: GETS.

72. Repast: MEAL. I got papaya salad from our Asian grocery store for Thanksgiving. So spicy. I just can't handle hot pepper.

74. 50+ group: AARP.

75. Golfing compliment: NICE SHOT.

78. Steam room: SAUNA.

79. Lid woe: STYE.

80. Raga instrument: SITAR.

81. Ming who is the tallest player in the basketball Hall of Fame: YAO. He's 7'6".

84. Stocky dog: BOXER.

85. Little devils: IMPS.

86. "The Long Goodbye" Oscar winner Ahmed: RIZ. British actor.

87. Biometric recognition method: FACE SCAN.

90. Talks back: SASSES.

92. Artists' lofts: ATELIERS.

95. Mike Brady or Phil Dunphy: TV DAD. The latter from "Modern Family".

97. Mauna __: LOA.

98. Scraped (by): EKED.

99. Warthog feature: TUSK.

100. Far from calm: IN A PANIC.

105. Utter delight: GLEE.

107. Picnicker's worry: RAIN.

109. Battle of the brands: AD WAR.

111. Credit alternative: CASH.

116. Aria deliverer: DIVA.

117. Ignored the limit: SPED.

118. Abundant: AMPLE.

119. Noggins: DOMES.

120. "Please don't go!": STAY.

121. Letters on egg cartons: USDA.

122. Speedy: RAPID.

123. Piques: SNITS.

Down:

1. Some tow tasks, for short: REPOS.

2. Functional: OF USE.

3. Wafer named for its flavor: NILLA.

4. Admits: ALLOWS IN.

5. Read Across America org.: NEA.

6. Beagle, for one: HOUND.

7. Refuse to bend: INSIST.

8. Reason to hit the books: TEST.

9. Super conductors?: MAESTROS. Steve's clue. I love it.

10. Annex shape, perhaps: ELL.

11. Take a trip to: VISIT.

12. Killer whale: ORCA.

13. Chimichanga wrap: TORTILLA. Never had this.

14. Chemical suffix: ENE.

15. Picture house: CINEMA.

16. Caramel-filled treat: ROLO.

17. Town across the Thames from Windsor: ETON.

18. Spa treatment: WAX.

24. Jack kin: MUENSTER. No cheese for me.

26. Reason to hit the books: EXAM.

29. Campus brothers: FRAT.

32. __ contact: EYE.

34. Bark: ARF.

36. Punishes with a fine: MULCTS. Did this word give any of you trouble?

39. Oldest Haim sister: ESTE. Danielle, Este and Alana Haim. 

40. Pricey salon job: PERM.

42. Citation shortener: ET AL.

43. Movie location: SET.

44. In one fell __: SWOOP.

46. Pitched: THREW.

48. Court fig.: STENO.

50. "Who Wants To Be a Millionaire" channel: GSN.

52. Jai __: ALAI.

54. Retail giant that owns Food 4 Less and Ralphs: KROGER. I don't think we have a Kroger here in Minnesota.

55. Swamps: MIRES.

57. "See ya!": MANANA.

58. Actress Woodard: ALFRE.

59. Pitch in: HELP.

62. Outdo: ONE UP.

63. Aussie greeting: G DAY.

67. Drink with foam art: LATTE.

68. Operating system developed by Bell Labs: UNIX.

69. Ceremonies: RITES.

71. Melodramatic fare: SOAPS.

73. Chem class cost: LAB FEE.

76. Garage cacophony: CAR ALARM.

77. How-__: manuals: TOS.

78. Comedy bit: SKIT.

79. Min. parts: SECS.

80. Movsesian who co-hosts "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend": SONA. Does your paper have the "Movesian" spelling? Patti corrected the error, but your local paper might still have the typo.

82. Sp. woman: SRA.

83. Dangling jewelry: EAR DROPS.

84. Unhappy returns?: BAD KARMA.

85. "Elon Musk" biographer Walter: ISAACSON. I told Steve not to use Elon Musk, way too divisive. So he went with Steve Jobs. Then Patti used Elon Musk. Shows you how much I know Patti's preferences. 

88. Bowl over: STUN. And 108. Blown away: AWED.

89. Walgreens rival: CVS.

91. Soak (up): SOP.

93. Elbow room: LEEWAY.

94. Furniture chain founded in Sweden: IKEA.

96. Hindu festival of lights: DIWALI. One of Patti's test solvers grew up in India.

99. Actress Swinton: TILDA.

101. Blunt, as truth: NAKED.

102. Supermodel Campbell: NAOMI.

103. Spot of land: ISLET.

104. Game with rooks: CHESS.

105. Sandpaper surface: GRIT.

106. Etna emission: LAVA.

110. "The Idol" actress Lily-Rose: DEPP. Johnny Depp's daughter.

112. Driller's deg.: DDS.

113. Tallahassee sch.: FSU.

114. Watering hole: BAR.

115. Fantasy football stat: YDS.

OK, guys, I finally got a "bent elbow" now. I need to work on rotating my shoulders more so the recovery arm is "over the top" rather than "on the side". I'm going to try Renee's "reach out in front of your nose" idea.

The biggest problem is now my kicks. With a kickboard, I kick like a pro, left/right, left/right, very rhythmic. Without my kickboard, my legs seem to kick randomly. Sometimes I have the mini dolphin kicks mixed in. Sometimes I stop kicking for a second, esp when I breathe. I don't know why. I'm going to wean myself off the kickboard. 

C.C.

 

Saturday, December 2, 2023, Kristian House

 Saturday Themeless by Kristian House 

This is Kristin's seventh LA Times puzzle as a sole and  co-constructor. His first entry was in late 2017 just a month before I started as the regular Saturday blogger in December of that year. I am now starting my seventh year at that post.

Kristian, of Oneta, NY, says he is a "Dad, Math Content Writer, Crossword Puzzle Creator and Supporter of the Infield Fly Rule"

Across:

1. Band that contributes to knee flexion, for short: ACL - Many an athletic career has been ended by an injury to the Anterior Cruciate Ligament

4. Hot breakfast cereal: FARINA.

10. Beaker's syllable: MEEP - Beaker was the lab assistant to the wacky Muppet scientist Dr. Bunsen Honeydew. (Did anyone else think of MEEP being the call of the Roadrunner as he ran from Wiley Coyote?)

14. Ice cream novelties discontinued in 2022: CHOCOTACOS - The Good Humor Company discontinued this item as a cost saving move.

16. Concerning: IN RE.

17. House money, at times: CASH OFFERS 😀 It sure beats waiting for the prospective purchaser to sell his house first.

18. "Now!": STAT.

19. Tarantula legs, e.g.: OCTAD - Any group of eight 

20. Meadows on TV: TIM - A lot of us here probably first thought of Audrey  (addendum link - h.g.)

21. Like the air in a greenhouse: MOIST - Humid means the same thing and has six letters but...

22. Second-largest branch of Islam: SHIISM.

24. Zip: NADA - zero, bupkis, nil, naught, etc.

26. Mens __: REA.

27. Ink spot?: TAT.

28. Landry who was the first coach of the Cowboys: TOM - Always nattily attired 

30. "La Dolce Vita" star: EKBERG.

32. Capitol gains?: SENATE SEATS - It's a close proposition these days

35. Modest reply to a compliment: WHAT CAN I SAY.

36. Reeling feeling: SHAME SPIRAL.

37. Stare daggers (at): GLOWER.

38. Department of the Interior head Haaland: DEB - The first Native American cabinet member.

39. "The Simpsons" character once voiced by Hank Azaria: APU - Hank quit voicing the character because he said it was reenforcing stereotypes and he felt bad about it.

42. Many a Monet: OIL.

43. Doesn't keep: ROTS.

46. Johnson who won the 2020 Masters Tournament: DUSTIN - I didn't get the name of the gentleman on the right who is presenting the jacket. 😀

48. Simmers: STEWS.

50. Shake a leg, quaintly: HIE - I got, "Come here so I can tell you something."

52. Dark times, informally: NITES 😀

53. "Small world": OH HI.

54. Teased: MESSED WITH.

56. "Coming Home" singer Bridges: LEON.

57. "No one's being straight with me!": IT'S ALL A LIE.

58. AAA and BBB: ORGS 😀 - If the AAA doesn't treat you right, report them to the BBB

59. Like some park passes: DAY USE - So you want to go to Disney World...

60. Inclusive word: AND.

Down:

1. Confront: ACCOST - I had ACC_S_ and used another but incorrect word

2. Three-step process?: CHA CHA 😀 The dance characterized by the triplet Cha Cha Cha rhythm is commonly just called the CHA CHA. You're welcome.

3. Flipped: LOST IT - An unfortunate trait of Bobby Knight

4. Some Hamilton Beach appliances: FOOD STEAMERS - A double header

5. Org. for traffic cops?: ATF - Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms

6. Host: RAFT - Candidates will be making a RAFT (host) of promises next year.

7. Trap during February, maybe: ICE IN.

8. Kamali who uses silk parachutes in many of her designs: NORMA - This is her 1974 "parachute dress" in international orange.

9. Burro: ASS.

10. Umami-rich paste: MISO - Umami means "savoriness" in Japanese

11. Aggregate: ENTIRETY.

12. Things that get bad marks: ERASERS 😀

13. Collar attachment: PET TAG - We call them Lily's license plates

15. Cardamom-infused brew: CHAI.

21. Rakes it in: MAKES A BUNDLE - What many who go to Vegas delude themselves will happen to them.

23. Lil Nas X album with the hit "Industry Baby": MONTERO - Google if you must

25. Sought-after: DESIRED.

29. Safari runners: MACS - 😀 The browser on my MacBook

31. Canaanite idol: BAAL - Need more?

32. "Killing Eve" actress Fiona: SHAW.

33. Bug: TAP.

34. Oklahoma city: ENID.

35. Completely: WHOLE HOG.

36. Act like a snake: SLITHER.

37. Strike out?: GO SOLO - The story of why Diana struck out on her own is in the 12/1/69 Soul Magazine article

39. __ the Hun: ATTILA.

40. Cobbler pan: PIE TIN.

41. Held back, as tears: UNSHED - An uncommon but easily sussed word

44. __ rhythm: brain waves pattern: THETA.

45. Actress Spacek: SISSY - Was this 47-yr-old movie anyone else's first thought?

47. YouTube star JoJo: SIWA - Go to YouTube and search for her if you must

49. Lands: WINS - A boxer can land a punch, a gymnast can land a vault, a salesman can land a contract, a fisherman can land a fish...

51. Biblical twin of Jacob: ESAU.

54. Central: MID.

55. Half the characters in "Kill Bill"?: ELS - 😀 Last week we had the meta clue for two iotas in Illiad (Iliad in Greek is Ιλιάδα). Today we have four EL'S for half the eight letters in Kill Bill.