July 3, 2020

Title: INNER EAR

Constructor: Caitlin Reid

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

JOKE AROUND (17A: Provide some comic relief)

CRY ME A RIVER (33A: "Oh, boohoo!")

FRINGE AREAS (40A: Peripheral regions)

DIANE ARBUS (58A: Who said "A photograph is a secret about a secret")

Theme synopsis: The theme answers all contain the letters E-A-R in order, and spanning the words in the phrases. Each theme answer contains an INNER EAR.

Things I learned:

• DEKE (28D: Fake from a Washington Capital) The Washington Capital in this clue is an ice hockey player, and a DEKE is a feint that draws an opposing player out of position. The term derived from a shortening of the word "decoy." Everything I need to know about sports I learned from crossword puzzles!
• TOFU (32D: What douhua is made with) Douhua is a Chinese snack sometimes referred to as TOFU pudding.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• CRY ME A RIVER (33A: "Oh, boohoo!") Such a fun, snarky phrase! I'm not sure whether I should admit I filled it in immediately without needing any crosses. 
• DIANE ARBUS (58A: Who said "A photograph is a secret about a secret") An interesting quote and an enjoyable clue. I wasn't familiar with the quote and didn't fill this answer in right away, but I'm okay with that. DIANE ARBUS was a photographer whose works have been displayed at the Museum of Modern Art. Through her photography, DIANE ARBUS worked to highlight the importance of representation of all people.
• NAILED IT (10D: Did a perfect job) For me this phrase evokes memes of Pinterest fails and the TV show with its name...times when the job was done less than perfectly. I wanted to add an "...or not" to the clue!
• EVADE (29D: Manage to sidestep) Remember two days ago when I said I never know whether it's EVADE or ELUDE? When I encountered this clue today, I already had the V from CRY ME A RIVER. Problem solved.
• SNOW DAYS (37D: Winter school closings) I'm a fan of SNOW DAYS! Seeing this answer on July 3rd made me smile.
• GUAC (41D: Dip for chips, for short) and SALSA (42D: Dip for chips) Nice pairing and nicely placed close to each other. I'm a fan of both of these chip dips.
• NINA (53D: Simone, the High Priestess of Soul) When NINA Simone began playing piano at an Atlantic City nightclub, she used the name NINA Simone, rather than her given name of Eunice Kathleen Waymon, to disguise herself from family members.

Geography review:

• NEPAL (30D: Country where the Himalayan Times is published) NEPAL is a landlocked country in South Asia located mainly in the Himalayas. NEPAL is home to eight of the world's ten tallest mountains, including Mount Everest.

A straightforward theme which I was able to guess correctly from the title. Some delightful choices for theme answers. JOKE AROUND, CRY ME A RIVER, and DIANE ARBUS were all lovely, so the lackluster FRINGE AREAS is accepted. A fairly smooth and enjoyable solve on this holiday Friday.

My take on themes: 

I've been thinking about crossword puzzle themes a lot after reading a comment left on yesterday's post. The comment complained about the simplicity and commonality of the theme in yesterday's puzzle. Today's puzzle also has a simple, straightforward, commonly-seen type of theme. I've noticed that people can have strong opinions about themes. There are people who: dislike all quote puzzles, dislike word ladders in crossword puzzles, dislike themes when the theme answers aren't exhaustive, dislike themes that are frequently employed... I could go on, but you get the idea. Here's my take - none of these things bother me. 

I enjoy themed crossword puzzles. And, yes, I'm delighted when I work a puzzle with a clever, unique theme that I haven't seen before. However, I also enjoy puzzles with straightforward themes if the fill is solid and the puzzle contains some clues and answers that interest me, delight me, make me laugh, or make me want to learn more. The theme is only part of a puzzle. Given the choice between a unique and cleverly-themed puzzle with unexciting fill and poorly written clues or a straightforward-themed puzzle  with smooth fill and some delightful clues and answers, I'll choose the straightforward theme every time. 

P.S. I was reminded of a delightful blog post I recently read about crosswordese. It was written in 2010 by Liz Gorski. If you haven't read it, I recommend it.