Title: Take a left and go north
I get to introduce another first time LAT constructor. I could not find any other publications for this August August, so welcome to the wild and wooly world of words. The theme has a visual curveball, so let us get right to it. Did the circles help?
I would have been stumped but for my problem with milk. When 20A took me to the doorstep of Lactose Intolerant but had no room for the "ant," I had two thoughts. 1. There was going to be a picnic theme with"ants" missing from all of the themers. 2. It was visual and the "ant" was going to crawl up the puzzle. Neither was correct, but I did grok that the end of the fill just went up. The circles made that choice obvious. A fun idea that created much room for sparkly fill. Ta-Da!
MINOR IN, SUMMONS, GOES BOOM, OPERA HAT, ABECEDARY, IN THE AREA, IRS AGENTS and SKATE PUNK
20A. Deficient in a certain enzyme: LACTOSE INTOLERA.
12D. It's south of Vesuvius: ETNA. Volcanoes. Etna, Stromboli, and Vesuvius. I have never eaten an Etna nor a Vesuvius.
24A. Brit's "Don't get upset, now": KEEP YOUR HAI.8D. Study on the side: MINOR IN. One of our new entries today; mine was English. I do not know the phrase keep your hair on, where is Steve now that I need him.
45A. Hand-to-hand battle: UNARMED COMB.
36D. Whack: STAB. Karate? Judo?
1. Key __: remote-start devices: FOBS. The word was appropriated from the watch fob, which grew from the German -the word Fuppe, meaning "pocket,"
5. Not straight, in a way: GAY. How nice that this word does not cause much reaction any longer.
8. Haggard of country: MERLE. One of the greats.
14. People: ONES.
16. Lock up the victory: ICE IT. A bit of hockey jargon.
17. They have taxing jobs: IRS AGENTS. Bad pun #1040.
22. Recede: EBB. and flow.
23. Court orders: WRITS. These days they are mostly just Orders, but it is a fine old word.
30. Org. fighting for refugees: ACLU. American Civil Liberties Union.
31. Columbus' home: OHIO. Not the sailor but the city.
32. Some traffic monitors: NARCS. Drug traffickers.
37. Word after greater or lesser: THAN.
38. Very many, informally: MUCHO. Unless you speak Spanish...
40. Situation, metaphorically: BOAT. You would not want to be in my boat...from the ancient Greeks.
41. Passes (out): ZONKS. This word has been around since the 50s.
43. Take another tour: REUP. Reenlist.
44. "Enchanted" girl in a 2004 film: ELLA. Anne Hathaway is back.
51. Dwell on, maybe: RUE.
59. State with a panhandle: IDAHO. There are a few
60. Nearby: IN THE AREA. Stop by if you ever are.
61. Compare: LIKEN.
62. Georgetown cager: HOYA.
63. __ Malek, Best Actor winner for "Bohemian Rhapsody": RAMI.
ALL ABOUT RAMI
64. Neptune's are about 165 times longer than ours: YEARS.
65. Sandwich with a bit of crunch: BLT.
66. 2010 Ringo Starr album: YNOT.
2. Cajun food staple: OKRA.
3. Pear variety: BOSC.
4. Rock subgenre whose music is featured in "Tony Hawk's" games: SKATE PUNK. An inferable but unknown term for me. Apparently, Lucy, it is very popular in your area. LINK.
5. Blows up: GOES BOOM. Baby talk?
6. Actress Hathaway: ANNE. But wait, didn't we already see her today? A bizarre clecho? A blecho?
7. Himalayan with a thick coat: YETI. I have never petted one.
9. Food recall reason: ECOLI. Escherichia coli (abbreviated as E. coli) are bacteria found in the environment, foods, and intestines of people and animals.
10. Subleased: RELET.
11. Yarn weavers: LIARS. Very nice deception because Loom loomed big in my brain.
15. Fig. on a return: SSN. More taxing cling- hey it isn't April.
18. Pass: GO BY. Not to be confused with a desert.
21. Defunct airline: TWA.
24. Apt surname for a vet: KATZ. a purrfect name?
25. __ chamber: ECHO.
26. Panache: ELAN.
27. "Star Trek" linguistics expert: UHURA. Almost exactly 52 years since the airing of the KISS.
28. Kitchen gadget: RICER.
29. Just meh: HO HUM.
33. School primer: ABECEDARY. More unknown but inferable stuff. Not a great movie.
34. Candy with a gooey center: ROLO.
35. Still, as a day: CALM.
39. Collapsible headwear: OPERA HAT.
42. It's usually bad to be served with one: SUMMONS.
46. Hush-hush org.: NSA.
47. Sci-fi classic set on an arid world: DUNE.
48. "White Teeth" novelist Smith: ZADIE. The third new word added to the lexicon. Here SHE is.
49. Japan's second-largest city: OSAKA.
50. Catch-all survey option: OTHER.
52. __ of the valley: LILY.
53. Medical research agcy.: NIH.
54. Stuck-up sort: SNOB.
55. Texter's sign-off: TTYL. Almost time, but hang in.
56. Caspian Sea land: IRAN.
57. Film fish to find: NEMO. I wasn't looking but I think my wife caught and ate him.
58. Way of walking: GAIT. I have no idea but this stems from GATE which to me is the antithesis of walking, but it is a great segue for me to say TTFN, great to see you all here back at my Friday post. Happy birthday tomorrow to my firstborn son, and be safe all.
