Saturday, December 22, 2018, C.C. Burnikel

Themeless Saturday Puzzle by C.C. Burnikel

Since 1999, December 22nd has been the day to celebrate Abilities Day. The school where I sub has a girl who lost her right forearm in a ATV accident. Here you can see her as she is competing in a recent swim meet where she won two events. If you need a hero, she would be someone you should consider.

C.C. has a Saturday themeless for the third time in two months and made me feel like I had limited abilities! It took me only 15 minutes to get to this NE corner and then I took a detour on the Natick Turnpike.  I had no shot on 10, 11 and 12 Down and 14 Across and had wrong answers on 20 and 24 Across. After another fifteen minutes, I threw in the towel and got help from the U.S.S. Google! I still had fun and humble pie is not fattening!

Personal note - It has been one year since I became the regular Saturday blogger and I appreciate C.C. giving me the chance and for you to not giving me the boot.

And now let's see C.C.'s many abilities on this wonderful Weekend puzzle:

Across:

1. Hypoallergenic wool: ALPACA While similar to sheep’s wool, ALPACA fiber  is warmer, not prickly, and has no lanolin, which makes it hypoallergenic (unlikely to cause an allergic reaction)

7. Chinese way of life: TAOISM 

13. Be the victim of a slaying?: ROAR AT - Good comedians are said to "slay" the audience who are probably ROARing AT them

14. Taiwanese drink originally made with milk and tapioca pearls: BOBA TEA - I had no idea but here is the finished product and a kit to make said beverage

15. Sports cheaters: DOPERS - Jose Canseco's book blew the whistle on this practice

16. Series of celebratory visits: PUB CRAWL - This ritual seems to be de rigueur for some 21st birthdays

17. Squeeze (out): EKE.

18. Fixes, as a pump: RESOLES - C.C. loves shoes and I'm sure has many pairs of pumps

20. Green span: LEA - A wonderful play on Alan Greenspan for an old cwd friend

21. Convention: NORM - The NORM at this site is educated discourse 23. Because it fits: APTLY to the subjects at hand

24. Cat's hangout: SILL - Not the cat in its LAIR but the kitty on the window SILL

25. Prominent parade brass: TUBAS - If you're a musician you probably already know which of the below is a TUBA and which is a Sousaphone. If you aren't you probably don't care. Here's the difference

27. The Cuban?: LAS - A Cuban speaking Spanish would know LAS Vegas literally means "THE Meadows"

28. Wolf in "The Jungle Book": AKELA - The Disney Wolf was voiced by this gentleman. AKELA was also the name of the leader in our cub scout pack.

29. Kicks back: TAKES IT EASY

32. Place for a frozen treat: GELATO STAND - A ubiquity in Rome

34. Response to a welcome return: WE MISSED YOU - A common sentiment when a former blogger returns to our fold 

36. Apps with errors: BETAS - Fortunately, now they've got all the bugs out 😅

39. Avril follower: MAI - Les averses d'avril apportent des fleurs de MAI (April showers bring May Flowers)

40. Stopped lying: AROSE - As opposed to started telling the truth

42. Drained of color: ASHY.

43. Sharp picker-upper: TALON.

45. Put under: DRUG.

46. Early Melotone Records competitor: RCA -Melotone

47. Produce aisle option: ORGANIC - Is it really better?

49. Turn sharply: ZAG - After a zig

50. Factor in exit velocity, in baseball: BAT SPEED

52. Wore thin: GOT OLD - Remember the political ads this fall?

54. Life-saving devices, at times: EPIPENS 

55. In a calm manner: EVENLY.

56. Make drinkable, in a way: DESALT - This Carlsbad DESAL(T) plant will provide 7% of San Diego's water from the ocean

57. Two-day trip, often: RED EYE - Guide to conquering Red Eye Flights


Down:

1. Deeply devoted: ARDENT.

2. Guard: LOOKOUT - Bikers must LOOKOUT in the 33. Hazardous area for a bicyclist passing a parked car: DOOR ZONE 

3. Checkout choice: PAPER BAG - Or in the Dr.'s office

4. Equal: ARE.

5. __ Fire: 230,000-acre Northern California conflagration of 2018: CARR.

6. Bewildered: AT SEA.

7. Maguire of "Spider-Man": TOBEY.

8. Early lesson: ABC'S - Here's where you can begin!

9. Boat mover: OAR.

10. Ballet's birthplace, to Parisians: ITALIE - The word ballet comes from the country of ITALIE (French for Italy) where the Italian word ballade meaning to dance. C.C. at her best!

11. "Black Beauty" author: SEWELL - My Dad said, "That is the only book I ever remember reading"

12. __ Fund: org. supporting girls' education founded by a 2014 Nobelist: MALALA - Another hero!

14. Informal discussion: BULL SESSION.

16. Side with a dog: POTATO SALAD - Substitute CHIPS for SALAD for me










19. Elmore Leonard novel whose title overlaps itself on some covers: SPLIT IMAGES - Yup.

22. Step aside: MAKE WAY.

24. "Sweet Home Alabama" band, familiarly: SKYNYRD - (Lynyrd SKYNRD). That and Georgia On My Mind are two great songs about states

26. Four-time Australian Open champ: SELES - Monica the tennis player

28. Carne __: ASADA - Literally "meat grilled" because those pesky Spanish have the adjective follow the noun

30. Finger-pointing uncle: SAM  - Now 101 years old

31. Enjoyed a roll: ATE.

35. By and large: USUALLY.

36. Like fishhooks, as a rule: BARBED.

37. Pen pals' plan?: ESCAPE - Debate continues whether these penitentiary pals make it

38. "In other words ... ": THAT IS - Fourscore and seven, THAT IS, eighty seven years ago

41. Dip popular at Easter: EGG DYE.

43. 16th-century council site: TRENT - An 18 year series of meetings in TRENTo, Italy where Pope Paul III tried to end corrupt practices in the Catholic Church. Hmmm... 

44. African country with rich uranium deposits: NIGER - So far this month we have had Gabon, Burkina Faso and now NIGER

47. German auto: OPEL - 1964 Opel Ad. I wonder what the words Economisch, Rulm, Pitting and Handig below the picture mean

48. Dock setting: COVE.

51. Mother's Day destination: SPA.

53. Talk acronym: TED - Are you up to a 12 minute M.I.T.  TED talk about puzzles and constructors?

Friday, December 21, 2018, Paul Coulter

Title: Where the 'ell is the L? There is no end to it!

I continue in pig heaven with today's fun, challenging puzzle from one of Rich's stable of consistent Friday winners. Very simple theme but it took unraveling HELIOSTAT to get me going in the right direction. I love that the reveal was both tricky and very helpful. It also was a parsing of words that took a skilled eye. I so admire the minds that spot these opportunities and make them into crossword puzzles.  Paul also includes FITNESS,  NEWAGER,  ONESHOT,  SHINDIG, the aforementioned HELIOSTAT, and MISS ELLIE.  I know you are anxious to finish wrapping presents, so-on with the show.

17A. Cartoon drawing of Rip Van Winkle?: SLEEPER CELL (10). Cartoons are made up of cels, very different from a terrorist cell whose members work undercover in an area until sent into action, as featured in this TV SHOW. I never heard of it, but I do know this ACTOR from NCIS. Since he has lots of credits, maybe he can replace the awful OD'ed in puzzledom. He really was born in Tel Aviv.

24A. Decoration for a Tinseltown party gift?: HOLLYWOOD BOWL (12). A Bow is a common part of packaging a gift. Since its opening in 1922, the Hollywood Bowl has been the premier destination for live music in Southern California, hosting everyone from Billie Holiday to The Beatles to Yo-Yo Ma under the iconic silhouette of its concentric-arched band shell. It was renovated in 2000. Wiki I think.

39A. Dismiss a disobedient film computer?: FIRE HALL (7). In the US and Canada, this is more commonly called a fire station, but they are the same thing. I like the image of firing the out of control 2001 Space Odessey whose full name is HAL Heuristically programmed ALgorithmic computer9000. 

51A. Dixie hospitality, e.g.?: SOUTHERN DRAWL (12). This is fun, I guess it means that hospitality is the reason why people are Drawn to visit the South. Whenever I would go to Alabama to visit my then wife's family I morphed into a Southern boy with a draw, y'all.

64A. Allowing use of, as a library does ... or, in three parts, a hint to four puzzle answers:  L ENDING OUT (10). They often are called  Lending libraries; here, however, it the "L" as the ending of each of the theme phrase that comes out. Brilliant!

Across:

1. Spite: VENOM. Isn't there a movie? I still can't believe Stan Lee is gone.

6. Don't believe it: MYTH. Is as good as a mile?

10. Lying lion in "The Lion King": SCAR.

14. Colleague of Samuel and Sonia: ELENA.
Alito, Sotomayor, and Kagan of the  SUPREMES. The clecho, 12D. Colleague of Kagan and Kavanaugh: ALITO. 1st names, then last names.

15. Yorkshire river: OUSE. A CSO to Steve and a challenge as there are 4 rivers in the UK with this name.

16. In fine fettle: HALE. And often hearty unless you are a golfer, then you are just HALE.

19. Camera part: IRIS. Like any eye, it opens and closes. LINK.

20. Blackens: TARS. Meh.

21. "We need to get a cat!": EEK. A very cute clue for a mouse.

22. Set off: IGNITE. From Latin ignitus, past participle of igniō, ignire (“to set on fire, ignite”); we also get ignition for our automobile.

27. Seat for a shot: STOOL. In the doctor's office? Sounds dirty.

30. Piedmont province: ASTI. Spumante.

31. Orchestral gong: TAM-TAM. I see it written both with and without the hyphen, Chau gong (Tam-tam) The familiar "Chinese" gong is the Chau gong or bullseye gong. Large Chau gongs, called tam-tams have become part of the symphony orchestra. Wiki. This one is made by the same people who make the best cymbals.

33. Salem winter hrs.: PST.

34. Hat-removing event: GUST. We are having 50 mph gusts today.

38. Be off base: ERR. But it is human.

42. Future fish: ROE. Do roe row?

43. "Oliver Twist" type: WAIF. Words change; it began as meaning
"person (especially a child) without home or friends" first attested 1784, from legal phrase waif and stray (1620s), from the adjective in the sense "lost, strayed, homeless." Neglected children being uncommonly thin, the word tended toward this sense. Connotations of "fashionable, small, slender woman" began 1991 with application to childishly slim supermodels such as Kate Moss. oed.

45. Farm mom: SOW.

46. It may be held or bitten: TONGUE. Generally a good idea.

48. "Insecure" Emmy nominee __ Rae: ISSA. I was not aware of this TV series which she created, produces, writes and stars in much like a modern-day George Burns. She did change the character name from Issa Rae to Issa Dee.

50. Bad looks: LEERS. Deceptive.

57. Dig: TUNNEL. This took a minute to see.

58. Macabre monogram: EAP. Edgar Allan Poe.

59. Name of two of Henry VIII's wives: ANNE. Which is Boleyn and which Cleves? *



63. Massachusetts motto opener: ENSE.  This has appeared very often. "By the sword we seek peace, but peace only under liberty." "Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem."

67. First-rate: ACES.

68. Angry: IRED. I am tired of ired; nobody says this.

69. Busybody: YENTA. Yenta or Yente (Yiddish: יענטאַ‎) is a woman who is a gentlewoman or noblewoman - genteel/gentle. But because the matchmaker in Fiddler on the Roof was named Yenta, the idea of it meaning gossip or busybody took control.

70. Two-time World Series champs: METS. 1986 World Series vs Boston Red Sox; 1969 World Series vs. Baltimore Orioles.

71. Like falling off a log?: EASY.

72. Boorish: CRASS.

Down:

1. Protective wear, often: VEST. Bulletproof hopefully.

2. Self-titled 1969 jazz album: ELLA.

3. Poetic negative: NE'ER.  I never use this in my poetry.

4. Not to be repeated: ONESHOT. This was a Friday clue/fill.

5. Blueprint: MAP.

6. Culinary mushroom: MOREL. The old picture for the Corner.

7. Foul: YUCKY. Eventually, C.C. decided it was.

8. "Ash Wednesday" poet's monogram: TSE. T.S. Eliot comes to us in so many ways.

9. Device that generates solar power: HELIOSTAT. An instrument in which a mirror is automatically moved so that it reflects sunlight in a constant direction. It is used with a pyrheliometer to make continuous measurements of solar radiation. It is from helios, the Greek word for sun, and stat, as in stationary. various.

10. Bash: SHINDIG. Or old TV

11. West Indies native: CARIB. This very misleading. They are members of an indigenous South American people living mainly in coastal regions of French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, and Venezuela. Island Caribs, are an indigenous people of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean.

13. Alter with thread: RESEW.

18. Unagi, e.g.: EEL. C.C. shout out.

23. Nabbed: GOT.

25. Kiddie lit count: OLAF. Count Olaf is the main antagonist of Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events.

26. Clean with soap: WASH.

27. Brood: STEW.

28. Twelve Oaks neighbor: TARA. GWTW home. next to Southfork. I got to play on the set one night; what a great party, but I did not take pictures to show you all. Drat. It was before camera phones.

29. Katz of "Dallas": OMRI. He played John Ross III. It is an adjoining clecho to help parse...32D. Mother of J.R. and Bobby: MISS ELLIE.

33. Row of seats: PEW.

35. Advocate: URGE.

36. Whiskey __: SOUR.

37. Cafepress.com offerings: TEES. And so much more. Look them up.

40. Big laugh: ROAR.

41. 1970 Kinks hit: LOLA. First the Animals now the KINKS. Timely link.

44. Gym goal: FITNESS.



47. Hard-to-define spiritualist: NEW AGER. I disagree the world wide web says DEFINITION.

49. Cow, for one: SHE.

51. Cook, as clams: STEAM. So many choices. LINK.

52. Not a heavy weight: OUNCE. I like the cadence of this clue.

53. Up in the air: UNSET. Literal.

54. Bogotá babies: NENES.

55. Family nickname: DADDY. Warbucks?

56. N.Y. engineering sch.: RPI. Back again for another CSO.

60. Actress Gaye of "Ali": NONA. Daughter of Marvin.

61. Bar freebies: NUTS.

62. Itinerary info: ETAS.

65. Victorian __: ERA.

66. 9/11 Memorial site: Abbr.: NYC.

My next to the last blog of 2018, and a wonderful way to go. Paul is not only prolific but he has so many styles and so much wit. Thank you, Paul and all. One more and on to 2019. Lemonade out.

* Speaking of Henry VIII and his six wives; today is the 4 year anniversary of my marriage to my sweetheart Oo. It has been very good.

Thursday, December 20th 2018 Frank Virzi

Theme: The Buck Starts Here: Slang terms for the mighty dollar bill head up five down entries, as the reveal explains:

35D. Highest price, and what five Down answers have: TOP DOLLAR. The dollar term is on the top of the answer, hence the need to have the themers running vertically, not horizontally.

3D. Uncovered, in a way: BUCK NAKED. Those Duluth Trading commercials have certainly had an impact, like them or not. That was the first thing I thought of when I filled this in.

6D. Grade-school formation: SINGLE FILE.

9D. Personal, as a talk: ONE-TO-ONE. I had one-ON-one first, that didn't work out so well.

31D. Political commentator who wrote "Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball": GEORGE WILL.

"Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona."

39D. Beach cookout: CLAMBAKE. Food! Now you're talking. Here's a New England version:

From New England to Old England, where I'm currently enjoying some typical British rain weather. Fun puzzle from Frank, the theme worked nicely and an absence of any "clunk" in the fill made for a smooth solve.

Let's see what else we've got to talk about:

Across:

1. Goes out: EBBS.

5. Car ad fig.: MSRP. Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. I'm not quite sure how realistic the MSRP on cars actually is, no dealer ever sticks to their MSRP guns. Maybe Tesla?

9. Poppy extract: OPIUM.

14. Stretched to the max: TAUT.

15. Cambodian cash: RIEL. The British conveniently forget that trading giant Jardine Matheson was founded on the opium trade.

16. Italian grandma: NONNA.

17. West Coast gas acronym: ARCO. Atlantic Richfield Company. Known for cheap gas. I don't put it in my car, the engine doesn't like it.

18. Violation of trust: INFIDELITY.

20. Kipling's Rikki-__-Tavi: TIKKI. The mongoose in Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book:

22. __ Dane: GREAT. What happened to the little dane? The great dane is certainly aptly-named.

23. Familia member: TIA.

24. Really get to: NETTLE. Tried NEEDLE, changed it.

26. Beeps and peeps: NOISES.

28. Fluffy neckwear: BOA.

30. Acts charitably: DOES GOOD.

32. Ararat lander: ARK.

33. "__ be married, / My grave is like to be my wedding bed": Juliet: IF HE.

34. Potentially offensive, briefly: NOT PC.

38. Bumbling one: BEE.

39. MDX ÷ X: CLI. Your Roman math. Ten into 1510 gets you 151.

40. Unlock, in verse: OPE.

42. Bit of soccer support: OLÉ.

43. Feature of some Gene Autry songs: YODEL.

45. Pasternak heroine: LARA. From "Doctor Zhivago". Inspired by the real-life Olga Ivinskaya, Pasternak's great love and literary support (or manipulative self-server, depending on who you believe).

47. "An everyday spud is a commentator," e.g.: PUN. Pretty awful, this one. "Common 'Tater".

48. Super Soaker, e.g.: WATER GUN.

51. It starts in Mar.: DST. Daylight Saving Time. Californians voted to keep daylight savings time year round this November. Sensible folk, no more springing and falling.

52. Distressed damsel's cry: SAVE ME! I went for HELP ME! first and made a virtual ink-blot fixing it.

55. Do business with: SELL TO.

57. Takeout menu general: TSO.

58. Moisten: BEDEW. Very poetic.

60. Tops off: FILLS.

63. Too high for people to catch?: ULTRASONIC. Not sure what I was thinking with "HYPERSONIC", but it seemed OK at the time.

66. Meh: BLAH.

67. Jacobi of "Murder on the Orient Express" (2017): DEREK.

68. UNC Chapel __: HILL. University of North Carolina.

69. Shakespearean schemer: IAGO. From Othello. Here's Laurence Fishburne and Kenneth Branagh from the 1995 movie version:

70. Nobel, for one: SWEDE.

71. Rights org.: ACLU.

72. 1990s-2010s slugging nickname: A-ROD.

Down:

1. Californie or Floride: ÉTAT. State, in yer French, of course.

2. Italian port: BARI.

4. Stir up: STOKE.

5. Hosp. test: MRI.

7. Browser button with a curved arrow icon: REFRESH. Ah, I've got one of those. I didn't see the HOME button last week, but my refresh button is right there.

8. Move in a tutu: PLIÉ.

10. Party pro: POL.

11. Monogram ltrs.: INITS.

12. Loosen, as laces: UNTIE.

13. Uxmal inhabitants: MAYAS. Important Mayan site on the Yucatan peninsula:

 

19. Five-O nickname: DANO. "Book 'em, Dano!"

21. "__ be an honor!": IT'D.

25. Work up a sweat: TOIL.

27. Altar words: I DO.

28. Treat with supreme care: BABY.

29. McFlurry flavor: OREO. I've never had a McFlurry. Do they do other flavors? Speaking of Oreos, I travelled to the UK with a roll-on sized bag full of Oreos and M&M's. My family are addicted to the more unusual flavors which they can't get this side of the pond.

36. +: PLUS.

37. Lowest price: CENT.

41. Songwriter with John: PAUL. Very few of the Lennon/McCartney songs were true collaborations.

44. Girl in a pasture: EWE.

46. Poison in some whodunits: ARSENIC.

49. Tight ends?: TEES.

50. Viet Cong org.: NLF. National Liberation Front.

52. Small earrings: STUDS.

53. Heaps: A SLEW.

54. "À __ santé!" : VOTRE. Cheers! To your good health!

56. Calf neighbor: TIBIA. One of your lower leg bones. A very close neighbor to your calf.

59. Persian Gulf capital: DOHA.

61. Mar-a-__: Florida estate: LAGO. Lago and Iago today.

62. Flip-flopped?: SHOD. Who was it who blew out a flip-flop? Ah yes ... Jimmy

64. Rosy: RED.

65. Gulager of "The Virginian": CLU. William Martin "Clu" Gulager to give him his full moniker. His nickname was given to him by his father, after the clu-clu birds, or martins, nesting at the family home.

That about does it for me. Time to find out if the rain has stopped! Here's the grid, and a picture of the old mill at dusk in Lower Slaughter, the charmingly-named village I'm staying in tonight (there's an Upper Slaughter as well!)

And finally the grid:

Steve

Notes from C.C.:

1) Hi Steve, hello from the other side!

2) Here are two pictures of Melissa's sweet granddaughter Jaelyn, who's going to be a big sister next year.

Jaelyn was a pink flamingo for Halloween. you can see her black eye - she was accidentally kicked in the face by an exuberant cousin just before trick-or-treating.

Jaelyn is going to be a big sister in may!

Wednesday, December 19 2018, Jeffrey Wechsler

Theme:WHAT ON EARTH?

17. Flowering plant also called May bells: LILY OF THE VALLEY.

35. 1960 King Coleman dance song: DO THE HULLY GULLY.

25. Pig out: GORGE ONESELF.

43. "Galveston" singer: GLEN CAMPBELL.

59. Title subject of a children's song that ends with "cheese stands alone": FARMER IN THE DELL.

Each theme answer hides a geological feature. The three grid-spanners (impressive) have the hidden word at the end, and the other two at the beginning, which is part of what threw me off in parsing the theme. I also got stuck on the L's, thinking they meant something. Nope. As usual, it seems obvious after the light is turned on.

Across:

1. Quite puzzled: AT SEA. I can relate.

6. Often-painted body part: NAIL. Often chipped, too.

10. Those with privileges, briefly: VIPS. When singular, it's Very Important Person. Plural would technically make it Very Important People, so the S is superfluous, no?

14. Sturm und __: DRANG. From britannica.com: (German: “Storm and Stress”), German literary movement of the late 18th century that exalted nature, feeling, and human individualism and sought to overthrow the Enlightenment cult of Rationalism. Goethe and Schiller began their careers as prominent members of the movement.

15. Midshipman-to-be: Abbr.: USNA CADET. US Navy.

19. "That's precious!": ITS A GEM.

20. Big name in riding mowers: DEERE.

21. Actress Arthur: BEA. And then there's Maude.

22. __ Lingus: AER. Irish airline.

24. Leftover food bit: ORT.

31. Equipment: GEAR.

33. Like the light at twilight: DIM.

34. Small, in a small way: LIL. Cute clue.

40. Whitewater rafter's need: OAR.

41. Quarterback Manning: ELI. New York Giants.

42. Proof word: ERAT. Wiktionary says: "third-person singular imperfect active indicative of sum." Sure! Let's try it this way: Sum = “I am.” Erat = “he/she/it was.” For example “Caesar imperator erat” would mean, “Caesar was a general."

48. Caveman Alley: OOP. 

 Also a basketball term. Per Wiki: "an offensive play in which one player throws the ball near the basket to a teammate who jumps, catches the ball in mid air and puts it in the hoop before touching the ground." It also says the term is derived from the French term allez hop!, the cry of a circus acrobat about to leap."

49. Wasn't active: SAT.

50. "A Wrinkle in Time" director DuVernay: AVA.

53. Bewitch: CHARM.

56. Rhodes __: SCHOLAR.

63. Underpass concern: CLEARANCE.

64. Renée's "Chicago" role: ROXIE. Zellweger.

65. Corporate symbol: SEAL.

66. Bit of news: WORD.

67. Floorboard repair nails: BRADS.

Down:

1. Many a Robin Williams bit: AD LIB.

2. Overused: TRITE.

3. Taquería bowlful: SALSA.

4. "Orinoco Flow" singer: ENYA.

5. Flabbergasted: AGOG.

6. Grated spice: NUTMEG.

7. Tree with "helicopter" seeds: ASH. Seeds that spiral through the air during dispersal. Interesting aerodynamics.

8. Suffix with salt: INE. Saline.

9. Loo: LAV. Loo is British slang. Lav is shortened version of Lavatory, is that equivalent? I guess so, both are primarily used by Brits, although one is shortened and one is not. Ew.

10. Restaurant workers with lots of keys: VALETS.

11. Not occupied: IDLE.

12. __ review: PEER.

13. Lid inflammation: STYE.

16. Specially trained group: CADRE.

18. "Then live, Macduff. What need I __ of thee?": Macbeth: FEAR.

23. Facial features in many cosmetics ads: RED LIPS.

24. "__ honor!": "Promise!": ON MY. I will do my duty ...

25. Cry of frustration: GAH.

26. Natural resource: ORE.

27. Natural resource: OIL. Clecho.

28. First name in jazz vocals: ELLA.

29. Bouncy tune: LILT. Don't remember seeing this word as a noun before.

30. Word with house or horse: FLY.

31. Score on the ice: GOAL.

32. French 101 infinitive: ETRE. "Be."

35. 2018 Chinese New Year animal: DOG. 2019 is pig.

36. Disorganized pile: HEAP.

37. Einstein's birthplace: ULM.

38. Salon goop: GEL.

39. Result of Googling: URL.

44. As expected: NORMAL.

45. Rising star: COMER.

46. Like juicy turkeys: BASTED.

47. Mark for good: ETCH. Dig this clue. I bought my son a new iPod for Christmas this year, and discovered you can now get them engraved for free.

50. One taking home orders?: ALEXA. Amazon's virtual assistant.

51. Not expired, as a license: VALID.

52. Van Gogh's "Bedroom in __": ARLES.

53. Ozone-depleting chemicals, briefly: CFCS. Chlorofluorocarbons.

54. Spy Nathan: HALE.

55. Environs: AREA.

57. Catnip, e.g.: HERB.

58. Air Wick target: ODOR.

60. Unprocessed: RAW.

61. Italian diminutive suffix: INO. Bambino - masculine. Feminine is Bambina.

62. ATM giant: NCR.