Tuesday March 29, 2022 Rafael Musa

Theme: ALMOST NEVER (60. Rarely ... or what each set of circled letters is?) - Each circled set is an anagram of four letters in NEVER.

17. Having the same ability: ON EVEN TERMS.

24. Touch and go, grammatically: ACTION VERBS.

39. "Guilty or not guilty?": WHAT'S THE VERDICT.

48. 1939 Stephen Foster biopic: SWANEE RIVER.

Boomer again. The incomparable Haltoolah (Susan) is in New England taking care of her dad's estate. She will be back next Tuesday.  I'm happy to be here. 

C.C. said this is a LA Times debut for Rafael Musa. Congratulations!.

Across:

1. Costume: OUTFIT.  Take your time.  Halloween is 7 months away.

7. Word with friendly or interface: USER. 

11. NFL team leaders: QBS.  We still have Cousins.  Packers have that other guy.

14. Do very well: THRIVE.

15. Backsplash piece: TILE.  A piece for Scrabble.

16. In the style of: A LA. KING ??

19. Prom rental: TUX.  We all wore a white TUX while performing in the H.S. Glee Club. I'm on the most right.

20. Firefighting aid: HOSE.  I water my garden and lawn with one of these.

21. On the __: being broadcast: AIR.

22. In the loop: AWARE.

27. Amount to take, in an Rx: DOSAGE.  I have plenty of DOSAGES at this time.

31. Property claim: LIEN. I receive the Minneapolis Star Tribune daily.  I cannot believe how many pages are mortgage foreclosures!

32. Acting together: AS ONE.

33. Gardener's bagful: SOIL.  Ours is lying in front of the house. No bag.

35. "Good point": TRUE.

42. Back of the neck: NAPE.

43. D.C. helper: AIDE.  Do they really need help??

44. Exams for Ph.D. candidates: ORALS.

45. Top line on many an application form: NAME.

47. Deny: NAYSAY.  I never said that!

53. "Coco" studio: PIXAR.

54. Collectible records, for short: LPS.  I have a few favorites, but nothing to play them on anymore.

55. "Roll Tide" school: BAMA.  Crimson Tide.

59. Yalie: ELI.

64. Hoopla: ADO.  Much ADO about nothing.

65. Brewpub array: TAPS.  Or a bugle at a funeral.

66. In a scary way: EERILY.  Doesn't scare me.

67. Dreaming sleep stage: REM.

68. Preferred brownie piece, for some: EDGE.  Odd name for a FORD.

69. Spanish "You're welcome": DE NADA.

Down:

1. "Conversely," in texts: OTOH.  On the other hand.

2. "Hmm ... no chance": UH NO.

3. Square root of nueve: TRES.  3 X 3 is 9

4. Pillars of Islam count: FIVE.  I never counted them.

5. "__ had enough!": I'VE.  Not yet, we have more clues.

6. King-jack, e.g., in bridge: TEN ACE.

7. Wombs: UTERI.

8. Polite title: SIR.  "To Sir with love."  Lulu.

9. West __: high-end furniture outlet: ELM.  I have not heard of West Elm. 

10. Back up, as a backup: RE-SAVE.  I have RE-SAVED many baseball cards.

11. Doha's country: QATAR.  Doha is the capital city.

12. Words on a jacket: BLURB.  My jacket says 300 game and 830 Series.  March of 2009.

13. Jazz woodwinds: SAXES.

18. __ for tat: TIT.  No comment.

23. Stopped running, as a stream: WENT DRY.

24. A long time: AGES.  What we all do every year.  It never stops.

25. Tapenade ingredient: OLIVE.  Popeye's girlfriend.

26. White or Blue river: NILE.

27. First light: DAWN.  "DAWN, go away I'm no good for you."  Four Seasons.

28. Workplace safety org.: OSHA.  Changed a lot of warehouses years ago.

29. Source of some suds: SOAP.  Operas on daytime TV.  I never watch.

30. Rabbit ears: ANTENNA.  I remember those on the TV.  We don't need them anymore.

33. Less likely to speak up, maybe: SHIER.

34. Ref. work that added "freshperson" in 2021: OED. Oxford English Dictionary.

36. Narrow inlets: RIAS.

37. NCAA Bruins' home: UCLA.  Basketball team is legendary.

38. Site for handmade gifts: ETSY.  This is starting to claim fame.

40. Get under control: TAME.

41. Crowd eruption: ROAR.  Major League Baseball starts April 7th.

46. Make fizzy: AERATE.

47. Like matryoshka dolls: NESTED.  I never heard of these kind of dolls.

48. Asparagus piece: SPEAR.  Taste pretty good !

49. Olivia of "House": WILDE.

50. Set theory truth: AXIOM.

51. "Uncle!": I LOSE.

52. Corp. honchos: VPS.  Also one step away from President.

55. Swiss capital: BERN.

56. Asics competitor: AVIA.  Pants and shoes.  I think Walmart has them in stock.

57. Fuse: MELD.  I believe you can MELD cards in Canasta.

58. "Game of Thrones" girl __ Stark: ARYA.

61. Chap: LAD.

62. New car stat: MPG.  Also any car stat.  With the price of gasoline it's a bit more important.

63. Word before a birth name: NEE.  Maiden name.

Boomer

Notes from C.C.:

Today we celebrate a big milestone of our ATLGranny (Judy), who turns 80 years old. Thank you for always reading all our blog spots and comments so attentively, Judy, you make our blogging job such a rewarding experience!