Saturday by Stacy Yaruss McCullough & Matthew Stock
Today is the Winter Solstice which means Nebraska will only get 9 hrs 11 minutes and 47 seconds of daylight. Tomorrow we will add four seconds to that total as we head towards spring.
This puzzle kept me in the dark most of the way through. What a slog!
On a personal note, this week marks the beginning of my eighth year of blogging Saturday themeless puzzles for C.C. at her wonderful site.
Across:
1. Bad Bunny genre: LATIN TRAP - I found out it is not LATINO RAP. Here is what it is.
10. Maker of Cleansing Melts soap pads: OLAY.
14. "There's a storm brewing": I CAN FEEL IT - As seen from Nebraska Memorial Stadium last spring
16. Traffic sign: CONE ๐
17. Digs at the beach: SAND CASTLE - I got "Digs" as a noun and eventually the rest came
18. New clothes hangers?: TAGS - Minnie Pearl's iconic TAG
19. Yurchenko double __: vault now called the Biles II: PIKE.
20. Stick in the water: POOL NOODLE - BOAT PADDLE worked for a long time! Is this really a stick? ๐
22. Oaf: CLOD.
24. CrossFit moves: BURPEES.
25. Neither early nor late: ON BEAT ๐ Rhythm!
28. Dark: MORBID.
29. Artistic hot spots: KILNS ๐
30. Products of deductive reasoning?: TAXES ๐
31. Study: DEN - Noun not verb
34. Loads: A LOT.
35. Yarns: TALES.
36. Exclamation of approval: VIVA - _ _ V _ turned out to not be RAVE
37. Bow wood: YEW -
38. Acts like a gobstopper: LASTS - We called them Jaw Breakers in my misspent yute
39. Unspoken: TACIT.
40. News segment: SPORTS.
42. Grapefruit relative: POMELO.
43. "Do I look like I care?": SPARE ME -
45. Word with freeze or fry: DEEP.
46. Precursor to getting one's just desserts?: CAKE BATTER ๐
48. "Well, that used to be true ... ": I WAS.
52. Quarreling: AT IT.
53. Lao Gan Ma condiment: CHILI CRISP - ¯\_(ใ)_/¯ Lao Gan Ma (old grandmother in English) was invented in a small Chinese town by Tao Huambo. This has become very popular and made her very wealthy. All you'd want to know. From C.C.: This brand is hugely popular in China. [My brother] Andy puts it in everything. Cantonese food is mild. Not much chilis. But Sichuan food is super spicy.
55. Eerie spray: MIST.
56. One of three in the Girl Scouts logo: SILHOUETTE.
57. Bridesmaid's accessory: POSY - Today I learned a POSY is simply flowers joined together by stems or floral wire to make it easier to carry.
58. Entertainment on a carousel, once: SLIDE SHOW - This fabulous scene from Mad Men is great TV writing and would have made for amazing ad copy.
Down:
1. Condition whose therapy may include hissing like a snake: LISP.
2. __ palm: ACAI - A Swiss Army knife of cwds
3. School house?: TANK ๐
4. Overexposed?: INDECENT.
5. George Halas Trophy org.: NFC - The Philadelphia Eagles were champions of the National Football Conference of the NFL but lost to the AFC champion KC Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
6. Vessel at a teddy bear picnic: TEAPOT ๐
7. Task on a postseason to-do list: RESOD - We chose to merely RESEED and it worked out fine
8. High, in Italian: ALTO - L'affitto รจ molto ALTO. (The rent is very high)
9. Some brimless hats: PILLBOXES - On 11/22/63 Jackie gave this hat to her secretary Mary Gallagher at Parkland Hospital but no one knows what happened to it after that.
10. Deep-ocean mollusks: OCTOPI.
11. Funny bones?: LOADED DICE.
12. Perspective: ANGLE.
13. Party planner's list: YESES.
15. Grants for researchers?: TENURES - Getting that grant can go a long way toward keeping your job
21. Contact juggler's props: ORBS - Contact manipulation is a form of object manipulation that focuses on the movement of objects such as balls in contact with the body.
23. __ Vegas Raiders: LAS - To some of us, they will always be the Oakland Raiders. My dad always referred to the Brooklyn Dodgers not the LA ones.
25. 3 out of 5, say: OKAY.
26. __ Valley sunbird: Middle Eastern species: NILE.
27. Air busses?: BLOWS A KISS ๐
28. Soda shop treats: MALTS.
30. Spoon-fed line: TASTE THIS ๐
32. Profoundly bad: EVIL.
33. Gp. with a compass rose emblem on its flag: NATO.
35. Southwest expanses?: TARMACS ๐
36. Many "What We Do in the Shadows" characters: VAMPIRES.
38. First unsigned artist to record a Billboard No. 1 hit: LOEB.
39. Golf club part: TOE - Not where you want to hit the ball
41. Sort of: PRETTY.
42. Stopping point: PERIOD ๐
43. Rascal: SCAMP.
44. Grillmaster's domain: PATIO.
45. Territory nearly surrounded by Haryana: DELHI - As you can see, DELHI is mostly in the state of Haryana (yellow below) but extends into Uttar Pradesh
47. Contribute to grass roots movements?: TILL - I had seed as the first verb
Sorry for my brevity today, but the holiday season has made blogging duties take a back seat. Today's puzzle by Alan Siegel uses an assortment of spoonerisms to add some levity to our crossword puzzle solving. I will describe these as the puzzle unfolds
Today's puzzle was not as difficult as some Friday puzzles I've blogged, nor was it so hilarious and/or clever that I got majorly excited. On my 5-star rating scale, I give this one a ⭐⭐and 1/2⭐
Solved grid - my one mistake @ 44-down
Across:
1. Bunches of bucks: WADS. The dollar bills; not the stags
5. A neighbor: B FLAT. It is right next to "A". Don't believe me? See the image below:
10. Annoyance that may be tough to reach: ITCH. Nothing more satisfying than an itch being scratched
14. Hodgepodge: OLIO. Crosswordese
15. Still kicking: ALIVE. As in "alive, and kicking"
16. Grand Canyon carrier: MULE. I'm going to go out on a limb here and ask Picard to post a picture of him on a mule, descending into the Grand Canyon ... don't let me down, Robert!!
17. Org. that works with SpaceX: NASA. Outsourced to Elon Musk
(Entry #1) 20. Au pair with a sinister sidekick: CROOK AND NANNY. First of the Spoonerisms: the more recognized phrase is NOOK and CRANNY
23. Big name in battery-powered lawn equipment: EGO. Unfamiliar to me; solved with perps. I know that many of you dislike taking a word such as ego and clueing it as a proper noun/name
25. Briny delicacy: ROE. This:
26. Official timekeeper of the Olympic Games: OMEGA. Dunno why I chose ROLEX first
(Entry #2) 27. Purchases for an organized gardener: SHED AND HOLDERS. Second of the Spoonerisms: the more recognized phrase is HEAD AND SHOULDERS
32. Danger: PERIL.
33. Lines of praise: ODES. Cute clue
34. Thumbs-up votes: YEAS. AYES also fit
35. Italian fashion brand: PRADA. Didn't the devil wear Prada?
37. Slash mark: SCAR. The most recent famous one:
Harry Potter scar
41. Symbol on a dressing room door: STAR. Also found on a famous street in Hollywood
Walk of Fame
And another clue/entry whose word means "star" in French: (44-down. Prima ballerina:) ETOILE.
42. Roughly: CIRCA. Referring to a date, perhaps ... I was born circa 1950, e.g. ... rounding the actual number up or down
(Entry #3) 43. Common sights in the Caribbean: KEYS AND PARROTS. Third of the Spoonerisms: the more recognized phrase PEAS and CARROTS (made famous by Forrest Gump)
48. Adjust to, as a radio dial: SET AT. Green paint? I have a number of pre-sets on my car radio
49. Flamenco shout: OLE.
50. Wee taste: SIP. I am having a wee sip of Scotch as I am writing my blog tonight
(Entry #4) 51. Some pieces in an avian-themed chess set: CROWS AND PAWNS. Fourth of the Spoonerisms: the more recognized phrase PROS AND CONS
56. Has __ with: AN IN.
57. Lack of musical ability: NO EAR. Moe-ku #1:
Vincent Van Gogh was
Tone deaf. He had an excuse
'Cause he had NO EAR (literally)
58. Naturally curly style: AFRO. This hair style is making a comeback
61. TV component?: TELE. As in: TELE Vision
62. Gas meter unit: THERM. "a unit of heat equivalent to 100,000 Btu or 1.055 × 10 joules" [according to Dictionary dot com]
63. Feature of some vacation homes: VIEW. I erroneously placed LOFT in here
64. Luge, for one: SLED. I thought that the word "luge" meant an Olympic event ...
65. Arranges in order: SORTS. One of the many functions of an Excel spreadsheet
66. School visible from Windsor Castle: ETON. This was too easy for a Friday clue
Down:
1. Finished up?: WON. Huh? As in, finished (a game, e.g.) and were the winner? Meh
3. Summer's "Hot Stuff" time: DISCO ERA. This one gave me fits, at first, as I misspelled olio as oleo and I couldn't figure out what "time" began DESC_ERE (I also had AYES instead of YEAS in 34-across). I eventually saw the ways of my errors and corrected it. And of course, I spent the rest of the puzzle solving with this ear worm ...
4. Fly high: SOAR.
5. Primate with a doglike muzzle: BABOON. Woof!
6. Like Maldon sea salt: FLAKED. Two thoughts about this:
1) Who among us even knew about the Maldon "sea" and its salt? (I didn't)
2) And if we didn't know, how would we determine that it is flaked?
Moe to the rescue ... this short (2 minute) video is quite the "Cliff Notes" version of this fascinating place
7. Turkish currency: LIRA. Italy sent all of theirs to Turkey when the Euro was coined ...
8. Bath flower?: AVON. ROSE might have fit if:
1) There was no ? in the clue
2) The word "flower" meant a member of the flora family
This tricky clue plays on the word "flower" as something that "flows" (a river, perhaps?), and the word "Bath" refers to a city in England. The River Avon flows through the city. And now you know
9. See (to): TEND. I tend the Crossword Corner blog every two weeks ...
12. Metallic sounds: CLANGS. This may be the most bizarre video that Chairman Moe has ever attached to one of his blogs ...
13. OutKast hit that asks, "What's cooler than being cool?": HEY YA. This might be the second most bizarre video that C-Moe has shared ...
21. Administered with a spoon: ORAL. This one almost gagged me (with a spoon) ...
22. Silent assents: NODS. Okay
23. Award won by Caitlin Clark: ESPY. Caitlin Clark wowed the basketball world with her gritty performance in the NCAA Tournament for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes this past March/April, and then went on to wow the WNBA with her Rookie of the Year performance for the Indiana Fever
24. Biryani butter: GHEE. Moe-ku #2:
What's the best butter?
Some say Irish; I say GHEE.
Just to clarify ...
[groan]
28. Bad-mouth: DIS. Are you in the "one S" camp, or the two? Dis versus diss
29. Stockpile: HOARD. After my Mom passed away, and I was left to go through her stuff, I realized just how much of a hoarder she was
30. Peculiar: ODD. Couldn't this be "EVEN"?? The word peculiar has eight letters ... just sayin'
31. Grassy meadow: LEA. For as many times as I've seen the word "lea" in crossword puzzles, I don't think I've ever used it (in everyday conversation) to describe a grassy meadow
35. Org. with moms, dads, and educators: PTA.
36. Operated: RAN.
37. Post-dubbing title: SIR.
38. Workout regimen with tire flipping: CROSSFIT. Oh, to be young again ...
39. Dramatic beginning: ACT I. This is more of a Friday clue
40. Filing tool: RASP.
41. Bygone jets, briefly: SSTS.
42. __ cut: CREW. BUZZ also fit
43. Essence of an idea: KERNEL. This seems kinda corny, to me
45. Displayed boredom: YAWNED. I thought that you yawned to get more oxygen into your lungs ...
46. Warhol genre: POP ART. Why didn't I think of this??? Could've made a fortune
47. Scares: ALARMS. The verb form
48. Sings jazzy nonsense syllables: SCATS. She was the best
52. Farm insects: ANTS. Some might argue that ants were the original colonists
53. L.A. nabe with an arts district: NO HO. Short for North Hollywood
54. Animal on "XING" signs: DEER. Have you ever seen a deer actually cross at one of these signs??
55. Cathedral area: NAVE. APSE fits, too
59. __ Speedwagon: REO. Last of the videos ...
60. Cop to: OWN. See you all in 2025 ... Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Happy Holidays!
I believe that today's constructor Boaz Moser is making his debut on the Corner about a year and two months after first appearing in the New York Times. His theme is about numerology, the meaning behind numbers. We'll start with the reveal ...
58. "You're not fooling me!," or what 18-, 28-, and 43-Across might say?: I'VE GOT YOUR NUMBER. and here are the theme clues ...
18A. Physician who specializes in perioperative care: ANESTHESIOLOGIST. Right off the bat I missed the meaning of this number. I fell for the old silent B in NUMBER trick, i.e. "I've got the stuff that numbs you". A tip of the hat to C.C. for the life raft (Teri also suggested that perhaps the anesthesiologist was saying "Count to 10 ..." after giving you a shot of propofol!).
28A. One who never draws a blank?: BINGO CALLER. The guy who calls out the next "B 12". He never draws a blank because he doesn't need to -- every card has a built-in wild space in the center. If you're interested in a part time gig as a bingo caller here are the qualifications.
43A. Tribute act: COVER ARTIST. And for their next number here are the Fab Four playing the first Beatles song I ever heard -- I Wanna Hold Your Hand ... Here's the grid ...
I hope that has primed you for the rest of the review ๐ ...
Across:
1. At the stern: AFT.
4. Revolutionary tool?: LATHE. The LATHE was certainly revolutionary when it was invented, circa 1300 BC, most likely in Egypt. A lathe is a machine tool that rotates a wood or metal workpiece about an axis of rotation to perform various operations such as cutting, sanding, knurling, drilling, deformation, facing, threading and turning, with tools that are applied to the workpiece to create an object with symmetry about that axis. Teri's dad was a machinist who used a lathe in the creation of prototypes for Black and Decker electric tools.
A modern metal lathe
The Wiki article cited above also suggests that a potter's wheel is a type of lathe. In the old English Wedgewood potteries pots were often quickly thrown with thick walls on a potter's wheel, allowed to stiffen, and then mounted on an actual lathe for trimming down to the final thickness.
9. Ebbs: ABATES.
15. Place to pick up trinkets and tchotchkes: CURIO SHOP. Not all CURIO SHOPS sell cheap goods: e.g. this Curio Shop is selling this18th Century Compagnie Des Indes Porcelain Tureen for only $2,200 ...
Porcelain Tureen 18th Century
17. Action hero with amnesia: BOURNE. The Bourne Identity is a 2002 action-thriller based on Robert Ludlum's 1980 novel of the same name. It is the first installment in the Bourne franchise, and the film stars Matt Damon, Franka Potente, Chris Cooper, Clive Owen, Brian Cox, and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje. In the film, Jason Bourne (Damon) suffers from psychogenic amnesia and is forced to fight to unlock his identity and his mysterious connection to the CIA. Here's a trailer ...
18. [Theme clue]
20. Use one's gray matter: IDEATE. The construction, solving, and reviewing of crossword puzzles takes a lot of IDEATION, as does the extensive commenting on them that occurs after the fact.
21. Change: ALTER.
22. Start of a protestor's cry, perhaps: BUT.
23. Pair: TWO.
24. Pretzel shape: KNOT. According to this article, legend has it that the pretzel was invented by a monk experimenting with leftover bread dough in or around the year 610 AD and was presented to little children as a reward for learning their prayers. This one is really just a loose overhand knot.
26. Prefix with thermal: GEO. Here are some basics of geothermal energy. This geothermal power station in Iceland shown below produces approximately 120 MW of electrical power; it also delivers around 1,100 litres (290 US gal) of hot water per second, around half of the space heating and hot water needs of the capital city of Reykjavรญk.
40. "Sweet!": YAS. Sorry, but I'm not a YAS man. ๐
41. Genre with retrofuturistic technology: STEAM PUNK. Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction inspired by, but not limited to, 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery. Steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the Victorian era or the American frontier, where steam power remains in mainstream use, or in a fantasy world that similarly employs steam power.
And of course it has spawned its own genre of music. Here's the steampunk band Abney Park with their video Airship Pirates ...
48. Toss, slangily: YEET. Some definitions from the Urban Dictionary.
49. Big stretches: EONS.
50. Not awesome: MEH. meh.
52. Convent figure: NUN. Some of them sing ... 53. Like some orange juice: PULPY.
55. Tricolor cat: CALICO. Here are two of the cats that own my grandchildren: a bicolor and a tricolor calico cat. I believe they're litter mates ...
Brooksie and Winchester
58. [Theme reveal]
61. Haitian language: CREOLE. To be clear Haitians do not speak a language called CREOLE. In this case the term is used as an adjective. They speak creole languages, a linguistic term for stable natural languages that develop from the process of different languages mixing and simplifying into a new form (often a pidgin). The new forms then expand and elaborate into a full-fledged language with native speakers, all within a fairly brief period. At present there are 3 main dialects of the Haitian creole.
I would be remiss here if I didn't include a creole dish -- here's Lauren's recipe for Shrimp Creole made from a mix of shrimp, tomatoes, spices, and rice ...
Shrimp Creole
62. Mooches: FREE LOADS.
63. "__ you right!": SERVES.
64. Darts about: FLITS.
65. Speed Wagon maker: REO. The initials for early auto designer Ransom E. Olds and an eponym for the band REO Speed Wagon. Here's their poignant video of Can't Fight This Feeling ...Down:
1. Amazon berry: ACAI.
2. Slush __: FUND. "Slush fund" was originally a nautical term for the cash that a ship's crew raised by selling fat (slush) scraped from cooking pots to tallow makers. This cash was kept separate from the ship's accounts and used to make small purchases for the crew.
Nowadays a slush fund is an account used for miscellaneous income and expenses, particularly when these are corrupt or illegal. I'm really glad that none of that goes on today in the US. ๐
3. Canopy makeup: TREE TOPS. In forest ecology, the canopy is the upper layer or habitat zone, formed by mature tree crowns and including other biological organisms (epiphytes, lianas, arboreal animals, etc.). The communities that inhabit the canopy layer are thought to be involved in maintaining forest diversity, resilience, and functioning. Shade trees normally have a dense canopy that blocks light from lower growing plants.
Forest canopy Andaman Islands, Myanmar
4. Drawing worth a lot of money?: LOTTO.
5. Tennis great Arthur: ASHE. Here's his story ... 6. English article: THE.
7. Church cry of praise: HOSANNA. These folks have really got the spirit! ... 8. Postscripts: EPILOGS.
9. Fit: ABLE.
10. Classless one: BOOR. Even a high-class aristocrat can be a BOOR.
11. Summer mo.: AUG.
12. Like some elders: TRIBAL. Elders, in Indigenous North American cultures, are repositories of cultural and philosophical knowledge within their tribal communities, as well as the transmitters of this storehouse of information. They are regarded as living libraries, with information on a wide variety of practical, spiritual and ceremonial topics, including "basic beliefs and teachings, encouraging...faith in the Great Spirit, the Creator". Here's an example of Indigenous Elders helping archeologists decode ancient rock art.
13. Secure: ENSURE.
14. Dog for pheasant hunters: SETTER. Both Irish setters and English setters are used for hunting pheasants. The hunters in this video prefer English setters. Trigger warning: some pheasants were harmed in the making of this video ...
16. "That didn't escape my attention": I SAW. My DIL has a plaque in her kitchen that says "I SAW THAT! -- God".
19. Director Preminger: OTTO. Otto Ludwig Preminger (5 December 1905 – 23 April 1986) was an Austrian-American theatre and film director, film producer, and actor. He directed more than 35 feature films in a five-decade career after leaving the theatre. He first gained attention for film noir mysteries such as Laura (1944) and Fallen Angel (1945), while in the 1950s and 1960s, he directed high-profile adaptations of popular novels and stage works. Several of these later films pushed the boundaries of censorship by dealing with themes which were then taboo in Hollywood, such as drug addiction (The Man with the Golden Arm, 1955), rape (Anatomy of a Murder, 1959) and homosexuality (Advise & Consent, 1962). He was twice nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director. He also had several acting roles.
Otto Preminger
24. Joshes: KIDS.
25. Fastener: CLASP. Often to attach 26Ds.
26. Glam rock?: GEM. One of the more glam rocks in the world is the Hope Diamond in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History's gem and minerals wing in D.C.. This storied blue gem weighs 45.52 carats and is worth an estimated $350 million.
The Hope Diamond
The diamond is exhibited in the center of a cul-de-sac in the last room in the wing and I've always found it anti-climactic after traversing dozens of exhibits of mineral specimens with spectacular natural crystalline forms. This is only a glimmer of the incredible beauty on display there.
27. Australian avian: EMU.
28. Light wood: BALSA. The balsa tree, Ochroma pyramidale, is a large, fast-growing tree native to the Americas. The tree is famous for its wide usage in woodworking, due to its softness and its high strength compared to its low density. The name balsa is the Spanish word for "raft" and the Portuguese word for "ferry". Balsa wood played a historical role in Thor Heyerdahl's Kon-Tiki expedition where it was used to build the raft used to cross the Pacific Ocean from South America to the Polynesian islands.
Balsa Tree Costa Rica
29. 26-Down weight: CARAT. CARAT vs KARAT vs CARET vs CARROT -- what's the difference?
30. Classless one?: ALUM. A clecho to 10D.
32. To date: AS YET.
33. Approach: NEAR.
36. Crime novelist Gerritsen: TESS. Terry ("Tess") Gerritsen (born June 12, 1953) is the child of a Chinese immigrant and a Chinese-American seafood chef. While growing up in San Diego she longed to be a writer, but her family had reservations about the sustainability of a writing career, prompting Gerritsen to choose a career in medicine. She received her medical degree from UCSF in 1979 and started work as a physician in Honolulu, Hawaii. While on maternity leave she submitted a short story to a statewide fiction contest in the magazine Honolulu and won first prize. She pursued writing part time and eventually wrote several romantic novels, medical thrillers, and crime thrillers. She is probably best known for her Rizzoli and Isles series of crime novels, which were eventually adapted into a popular TV series of the same name.
Tess Gerritsen
37. Place to order rolls: SUSHI BAR. My favorite is the Rainbow Roll ...
Rainbow Roll
38. "Music for Airports" composer Brian: ENO. Here is the first 4:34 min of the 48:39 min album. If you want to relax for a while, here's the whole album. 39. Big __ Country: SKY. Big Sky Country is a song written and recorded by American singer-songwriter and guitarist, Chris Whitley. It was the second single to be released from his 1991 dรฉbut album, Living with the Law, and became a hit single in the United States.
42. Link-shortening service: TINY URL. TinyURL is a URL shortening web service, which provides short aliases for redirection of long URLs. Kevin Gilbertson, a web developer, launched the service in January 2002 as a way to post links in newsgroup postings which frequently had long, cumbersome addresses.
43. Critics of good-faith efforts: CYNICS. Modern cynicism has been defined as an attitude of distrust toward claimed ethical and social values and a rejection of the need to be socially involved. It is pessimistic about the capacity of human beings to make correct ethical choices. IMO this is a form of psychological projection -- attributing to others characteristics that cynics have themselves.
44. Canon: OEUVRE. The Dinosaur isn't buying it ...
... but nobody told his twin brother ...
45. False front: VENEER. The word VENEER has a lot of meanings, e.g. a thin layer of finer material covering another material such as inexpensive wood or a covering over a tooth to improve its appearance. However the use of "false" as an adjective points to another meaning -- the use of charm by someone with an antisocial personality disorder to cover up his/her real motives while exploiting others.
46. Depend (on): RELY.
50. Heavy hammers: MAULS. Here's a maul for splitting logs ...
Splitting Maul
51. Red Muppet: ELMO. ELMO is the Muppet who always refers to himself in the 3rd person. Here he teaches Elmo's Song to other Muppets ... 53. Propulsion aid: POLE. A POLE is used to propel a flat bottom boat called "skiff" in shallow waters. Here's how it's done ... 54. Versatile vehicles, for short: UTES. And a versatile bit of crosswordese -- not only are UTES short for Sports Utility Vehicles, but sports fans will know them as the University of Utah football team, and they are also the oldest residents of Colorado, and their vehicles are horses ...
Southern Ute Indian Tribe
55. Tech review site acquired by Ziff Davis in 2024: CNET. CNET is an American media website that publishes reviews, news, articles, blogs, podcasts and videos on global technology and consumer electronics. CNET has the highest readership among web news sites. It has over 200 million readers per month. It was among the 200 most visited websites globally in 2015.
56. Give up: CEDE.
57. Ish: OR SO.
59. End of a congressional address: GOV. Mercifully short!
60. Retailer that sells crampons and chalk bags: REI. Recreational Equipment, Inc., doing business as REI, is an American retail and outdoor recreation services corporation founded in 1938. It was formerly governed, and continues to brand itself, as a consumers' co-operative. REI sells camping gear, hiking, climbing, cycling, water, running, fitness, snow, travel equipment, and men, women and kids clothing. It also offers services such as outdoor-oriented vacations and courses. Unlike other outdoor sports stores, it does not sell hunting or fishing equipment.
Cheers,
Bill
And as always, thanks to Teri for proof reading and for her constructive criticism.
And we wish a MerryChristmas and a Happy Hannukah to all those who celebrate them!
A clever puzzle from a constructor I've had the pleasure to blog before, Juneteenth this year. The same "word" moving - that is, falling - through the grid, yet always in the same position relative to the edge of the puzzle. Not an easy task to accomplish without using the "word" as itself and stay within the vernacular, too. The grid has mirror symmetry, four unique fills (*) a handful of names ( but ones we see constantly in crosswords ) the same # of TLW & 4LWs (22), and a Moe ( per Splynter ) rating of 4 out of 5⭐. The theme fill falls thusly;
20. "Take time to consider ... ": * ASK YOURSELF
40. 1983 Tom Cruise teen comedy: * RISKY BUSINESS
47. Hangout for a long-distance couple: * SKYPE DATE
60. Chicken Little's warning, and an apt title for this puzzle?: THE SKY IS FALLING
And Away We Go~!
ACROSS:
1. Lawyer Goodman in the "Breaking Bad" franchise: SAUL - With the spin-off series "Better Call Saul" - I have watched neither series, and reduced my TV bill from $105/mo. to $20/mo. by "dropping" Disney and ESPN - I just don't watch much TV
5. Brazen: BRASH - a bit 'meh' with both words starting with 'B-R-A-'
10. Deliberate loss: DIVE - TANK did not fit with my DOWNS
14. Workforce addition: HIRE - usually with "new"
15. New __, India: DELHI
16. Gulf States title: EMIR
17. Actor Idris: ELBA - name #1, but we see it all the time
18. City in Provence: ARLES
Bottom left on the map
19. Energizer options: AAAs - I just got a 12-pack from Amazon
23. "Tiny Bubbles" singer: DON HO - we had this recently; name #2
25. Scepter companion: ORB - The Crown Jewels of the UK - more here
"I am your king"/"well I didn't vote for you."
26. Under-the-sink piece: P-TRAP
29. "Looking for" shorthand: ISO - In Search Of . . . . also a TV series hosted by Leonard Nimoy and "Skinner" from the X-files, with its own spin-off (if you will ) called "Ancient Aliens"
30. Bandleader of the Electric Mayhem on "The Muppet Show": DR. TEETH - name #3
"Animal" on the drums
33. Fitting: APT
34. Sunday __: dread of returning to work on Monday: SCARIES - I had the Sunday Scaries for school when I was a youngster - hearing the theme of the PBS show "All Creatures Great & Small" starting up for the closing credits meant bedtime, and I knew I hadn't done my book report . . . .
The theme song
36. Fossil-preserving spots: TAR PITS
38. Fast-__ restaurant: CASUAL - never heard of this; filled via perps
39. Shaped: MOLDED - I had FORMED first
44. NNW opposite: SSE
45. Tempe sch.: ASU - Arizona State University
46. Automated spammer: 'BOT
52. "Pokรฉmon" protagonist Ketchum: ASH - no clue; the "S" was my last fill; name #4
55. "Mangia!": "EAT~!"
56. Newcastle Brown __: ALE
57. Shearing day sound: BAA
64. Code with dits and dahs: MORSE
65. "The Batman" actress Kravitz: ZOE - Daughter of Lenny Kravitz & Lisa Bonet; name #5
66. Barista canvas: LATTE - canvas as in the "art" in the cream/froth atop an espresso
67. Imminently: SOON
68. Stop: END
69. Pollinators that can see in the ultraviolet spectrum: BEES
DOWN:
1. Feminine pronoun: SHE -or "HER"~? I do the DOWNS first, but I WAGed correctly
SHE's got legs
2. Feel rotten: AIL
3. Green spot in a concrete jungle: URBAN OASIS * - I see this is an HGTV show, too
4. Obedience school item: LEASH - I'm going to need me some dog food & supplies soon
5. Dec. 25, for Justin Trudeau: BDAY - Dah~! I was going to fill in "B-DAY", but I thought I was the only one who abbreviated it this way....
6. Digs into new digs, say: REROOTS - not MOVES IN
7. Magnetic power: ALLURE - my buddy Adam owns a restaurant of this name, sorta
A Lure, Southold, NY - the "SKY" is very blue
8. Frozen dessert: SHERBET - I read this as DESERT, and TUNDRA did not fit . . . .
9. Radiator sound: HISS - my house has baseboards, but they still "radiate" - much preferred over the forced-air system in my parents house
10. Gave a hand: DEALT - not AIDED -- a "hand" as in a poker game. Very clever
11. "Sorry, but it's true": "I'M AFRAID SO." - two of the last three clues fooled me~? I'm afraid so. . . .
12. Passing through: VIA
13. Hosp. triage units: ERs
21. Alaskan bear: KODIAK
22. Filmmaker Nora: EPHRON - I am sure you've seen at least ONE of her movies - her IMDb; name #6
23. __ jockey: DISC
24. Academy honors: OSCARS - I had the wrong academy in mind - see below, 37D.
27. Subj.-specific exam for the college-bound: AP TEST - Advanced Placement - I took the classes, but only one of the tests
28. Condition that may be treated with exposure therapy, for short: PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - George Carlin's take on the "words" - ** WARNING** may be considered "political"
31. Count (on): RELY
32. Roman of "The Ms. Pat Show": TAMI - no idea; filled via perps; her IMDb; name #7
35. Sly tactics: RUSES
37. Academy cadet: PLEBE
41. Christen: BAPTIZE
42. Play for a pawn: USE
43. Decongestant brand: SUDAFED
48. Palmer of "Nope": KEKE - also no clue, her Wiki; name #8
49. "Woo-hoo!": "YAY~!"
50. __ mode: ร LA
51. Bluffer's giveaway: TELL - more poker
52. Cash dispensers: ATMs
53. Wave away: "SHOO~!"
54. Foot-long sandwich: HERO - I just had one for the first time in a looong time for lunch Friday
57. Orthodontist's instruction: BITE - yeah. but meh.
58. Poker game starter: ANTE - and yet more poker
59. Range listed on board games: AGES - ah; did not make sense until it filled in
Parker Brothers RISK is appropriate for AGES 10 to Adult
61. Tax form ID: SSN - Social Security Number
62. Daughter's brother: SON - did you have to "think" about this~? I did - too funny. How about this~? My aunt married the brother of her mother's second husband - try and figure that one out . . . .
Today is the Winter Solstice which means Nebraska will only get 9 hrs 11 minutes and 47 seconds of daylight. Tomorrow we will add four seconds to that total as we head towards spring. 
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