Constructor: Nam Jin Yoon
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium (4:53)
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THEME: none
Word of the Day: Ashanti empire (45D: Modern-day home of the Ashanti empire => GHANA) —
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As with Wednesday's puzzle, I destroyed it and I very much enjoyed destroying it. Did not start out so great, though. Forgot KAFKA wrote "A Hunger Artist," ugh. Also read "Network" instead of "Noted work" at beginning of 1A: Noted work in which many different positions are discussed (KAMA SUTRA). Seems like if my memory and reading capabilities had been functioning satisfactorily, I could've really flown through this thing. Instead, I relied on three of my favorite things, yoga (ASANAS) and coffee (FLATWHITE) and poetry (Rita DOVE) to (eventually) bail me out ... oh, and KATE McKinnon, I knew her too. Thought for sure I'd get the "Othello" clue straight off, but the generic ATTENDANT never occurred to me (not before I got the ATTEN- part, anyway) (4D: Emilia vis-à-vis Desdemona, in "Othello"). Wrote a paper my senior year on Emilia—fat lot of good it did me! Anyway, after the flailing in the NW, I escaped via the lovely LAWYER UP (!), and wow did things speed up after that. Terminal "U" made NEHRU a cinch, and then whoooosh, there went the NE. I feel like I know the term GROUPCHAT from my daughter, but now that I think about it, it's not especially youth-y—but it is fresh, and one of my favorite answers of the day.
Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium (4:53)
Word of the Day: Ashanti empire (45D: Modern-day home of the Ashanti empire => GHANA) —
The Asante Empire (Asante Twi: Asanteman) was an Akan empire and kingdom from 1701 to 1957, in what is now modern-day Ghana. [...] The Ashanti Empire fought several wars with neighboring kingdoms and lesser organized tribes such as the Fante. The Ashanti defeated the British Empire's invasions in the first two of the four Anglo-Ashanti Wars, killing and keeping British army general Sir Charles MacCarthy's skull as a gold-rimmed drinking cup in 1824. Due to British improvements in weapons technology, burning and looting of the capital Kumasi and final defeat at the fifth Anglo-Ashanti War, the Ashanti empire became part of the Gold Coast colony in January 1, 1902. // Today, the Ashanti Kingdom survives as a constitutionally protected, sub-national traditional state in union with the Republic of Ghana. The current king of the Ashanti Kingdom is Otumfuo Osei Tutu II Asantehene. The Ashanti Kingdom is the home to Lake Bosumtwi, Ghana's only natural lake. The state's current economic revenue is derived mainly from trading in gold bars, cocoa, kola nuts and agriculture. (wikipedia)
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[Erik SATIE, Gymnopédies 3]
Took PREGGO right into the SE, where CHOU and GHANA were gimmes and so there went that corner. Then went up and swung back through the center quite easily thanks to some more of my favorite things (mushrooms, GINS). Finally came at the SW corner from both sides (the north, the east), and despite some floundering around the DAFT / DAB / ALE, I made pretty short work of it all. Ended on the "B" in DAB. Clue on ALE didn't make sense to me—I raise a glass *for* ALE?? (40A: Something to raise a glass for). But I guess if you have already had a pint and you want to signal to the bartender that you want another, sure, at that point, you might raise your glass to indicate that you wanted another ALE. Or maybe you're just raising it to your face so that you can drink it, I dunno. What matters is I came in under 5, and that the puzzle featured many an EYE-OPENER and (more importantly) was never awful.
[Black Box, "Open Your Eyes"]
FLAT WHITEs are "similar" to lattes, it's true, but somehow also infinitely superior. They were not a thing here until fairly recently. We drank them constantly in NZ, which has a bizarrely advanced coffee culture. I don't think I've ever heard a NE-YO song, even though his name is now as familiar to me as ENYA's (I exaggerate, but not a lot) (50D: "So Sick" hitmaker of 2006). I don't think I've ever been less attuned to popular music than I was in the 00s, i.e. the first decade of my job and the first decade of my daughter's life. Big blank spot in my knowledge. Then things start to come back online a little around 2011. But "SHOOP" ... "SHOOP" I was around for.
[Salt-N-Pepa, "Shoop"]
Nice Nirvana reference in the ANGST clue (10A: Teen spirit, perhaps). No good mistakes today, though I did write in ALERO (LOL) instead of MIATA at 3D: Chicago Auto Show debut of 1989. Gonna go listen to some SATIE now because "Gymnopédies" is soooothing and I need to wind down before bed. Hope you all enjoyed this puzzle as much as I did. No weak spots. Bouncy and fresh. Totally crushable. Everything a Friday should be. And I'm pretty sure it's a debut! Nice. See you later.