Constructor: Meredith Colton Hazy
Relative difficulty: This took me 8:11, which is fast for me (I spotted the theme quickly)
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Bullets:
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Relative difficulty: This took me 8:11, which is fast for me (I spotted the theme quickly)
THEME: Literal interpretations of phrases that have a positional word
Theme answers:
Word of the Day: GLUON (52A-- Particle binding quarks together) —
- BENDS / BACKWARDS [Goes to great lengths]-- "bends over backwards"
- A CUT / THE REST [Superior]-- "a cut above the rest"
- THE BELT / HITS [Plays dirty]-- "hits below the belt"
- THE BRIDGE / WATER [No longer an issue]-- "water under the bridge"
Word of the Day: GLUON (52A-- Particle binding quarks together) —
A gluon is an elementary particle that acts as the exchange particle for the strong force between quarks. It is analogous to the exchange of photons in the electromagnetic force between two charged particles. Gluons bind quarks together, forming hadrons such as protons and neutrons (Wikipedia)
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Hey solvers! I'm Malaika. You might know me from the Vulture 10x10s, Crossword Fiend, or 7xwords (2021 - 2021, may she rest in peace). Or you might know me from the last time I guest blogged, when I asked y'all not to be mean about .puz files and a commenter called me condescending. Well, I'm back, baby! Ready to condescend, and so much more. I'll be here for the first Wednesday of every month, which I'll call Malaika MWednesdays unless any of you beautiful comment-leavers have a better idea.Onwards!! Y'all, this puzzle was delightful. First of all, a very pretty grid layout with nice flow. And those little "colonnades" of long side-by-side down answers are such a nice treat while solving, one that I typically associate with C.C. Burnikel's grids. And I really, really liked the theme. From a solver's perspective, it was fun to uncover, and not so tricksy that it was a slog. From a constructor's perspective, it is soooo impressive to have those themies stacked and symmetrical. She made it seem effortless!
Here is the deal: When I really, really like a theme, I don't nitpick. I just let the good puzzle vibes wash over me like scented bathwater.
...But okay fine, I suppose you are here to watch me pick nits, so I can do that if I must. Three of the themies used the word THE and one didn't, which feels imbalanced. The HOT TEA / GOT HOT dupe stood out to me because those entries were positioned symmetrically in the grid. I hate when the Times clues GIT as like.... a dialect-y screech? Rather than the enormously widely used version control software. ONE ON is an incredibly ugly partial. And..... that's it!
That's all I got! So much good stuff in here... CUBANO, with that lovely little clue, [Sandwich invented in Florida, despite what its name suggests]. And YODELER, also with a lovely little clue, [One in peak singing condition?]. And MINIBAR, also with a lovely little clue, [What might display a little spirit?]. I liked seeing OBO ("or best offer") because it's an abbreviation that I, a serial Craig's List browser, see all the time.
Bullets:
- AUBREY — I wonder if the decision to use a 19th century illustrator rather than the beloved actress / comedian Aubrey Plaza was a decision from the Times or from the constructor
- TARO — Excellent to see a boba shoutout in this clue
- BREECH — This was clued as [Bottom-first birth position] and I cracked myself up imagining the team of editors sitting in a circle being like "can we say tush?""no no. let's just do butt.""no guys, we can't say butt.""okay what can we say then??"
- SILO — This meaning isolate "in modern lingo" feels, like, absurd to me, (people at my office use it all the time) but I suppose I am of the age that the Times would consider me a user of modern lingo?
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