October 16, 2021

Title: P.A. SYSTEMS

Constructor: Jess Goldstein

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

PAST PARTICIPLE (14A: "Biked" or "swum," grammatically)

PAISLEY PARK (26A: Prince's estate) 

PAJAMA PARTY (42A: One might involve a pillow fight)

PARCHMENT PAPER (53A: Cake pan liner)

Theme synopsis: Each theme answer consists of two words beginning with the letters PA.

Things I learned:

• ABED (33A: Pal of Troy on "Community") Community is a TV series that ran for six seasons, originally airing from 2009 to 2015. The show featured an ensemble cast of characters that were part of a college study group. Danny Pudi played the role of ABED Nabir, a film student who becomes best friends with former high school star quarterback Troy Barnes, played by Donald Glover.
• STIR-FRY (6D: Prepare like jeyuk bokkeum) Jeyuk-bokkeum is a STIR-FRY pork dish in Korean cuisine.
• YAM (45D: Etor ingredient) Etor is a YAM purée originating in Ghanian cuisine.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• RICO (13A: Rapper ___ Nasty) Hip hop and trap artist RICO Nasty has said she resonates "with being a pop-punk princess."
• PAST PARTICIPLE (14A: "Biked" or "swum," grammatically) In case it's been a minute or two since you've studied grammar, here's a brief review. In English, there are two PARTICIPLE forms: PAST PARTICIPLE and present PARTICIPLE. The PAST PARTICIPLE generally expresses completed action, and is typically formed by adding "-ed" (e.g. biked), though numerous irregular forms exist (e.g. swum). A present PARTICIPLE is formed by adding "-ing" (e.g. biking or swimming). In addition to being used as verbs, PARTICIPLEs can be used as adjectives (e.g. "the biked route," or "the swum race").
• HAIM (18A: Group featured on Taylor Swift's "no body, no crime") A single from Taylor Swift's 2020 album, Evermore, "no body, no crime" featured guest vocals from the rock band HAIM. The members of HAIM are three sisters: Este, Danielle, and Alana. Taylor Swift has discussed the back story of this song, which is about the murder of a woman named Este.
• I'LL (21A: "Reach Out (___ Be There)") "Reach Out (I'LL Be There)" is a 1967 song by the Four Tops. The song was used by Joe Biden as a campaign soundtrack in the 2020 Presidential election.
• PAISLEY PARK (26A: Prince's estate) It took me a bit to realize this clue wasn't talking about the estate of a generic prince, but rather the estate of musician Prince. AHA! (1A: "I cracked the code!") PAISLEY PARK was Prince's home and studio, and is now open for public tours.
• CSA (50A: Direct-to-consumer farm model (Abbr.)) CSA = Community supported agriculture. The CSA food delivery system connects food producers (farmers) with consumers. As I've mentioned before, we've been CSA members for many years. We love "our farmer," Farmer Kate! 
• URDU (58A: Pakistan's national language) URDU is the official national language of Pakistan, is recognized by the constitution in India, and is a registered regional dialect in Nepal.
• FRITO (7D: 2021 ___-Lay strike) Earlier this year, FRITO-Lay workers in Topeka, Kansas held a 20-day strike to protest poor working conditions. 
• LIP (8D: Part of the face) and ACL (9D: Part of the knee) and TOE (10D: Part of the foot) This "part of the puzzle" was a delightful triple clue echo.
• LIBRARY FEES (23D: Borrowing fines declared "a form of social inequity" by the ALA in 2019) Like the FRITO clue, this clue offered additional information instead of a straight definition. I'm a fan of these "value-added" clues. Earlier this month, the New York Public Library joined the list of libraries around the country that have abolished LIBRARY FEES. 
• DOJ (36D: The AG leads it) The Attorney General (AG) heads the Department of Justice (DOJ). The current AG is Merrick Garland. 
• PUG (53D: Flat-faced dog) I have previously written about PUGs. Edited to add: After posting this I became aware that yesterday was National PUG Day.
• PUP (57D: Baby shark) If you're in search of an earworm to keep you company today, here you go! 

Geography review:

• OMAN (11A: Arabian Peninsula country) The capital of OMAN is Muscat. Arabic is the official language of OMAN, and its currency is the Omani rial.
• IDA (30A: State east of Oregon (Abbr.)) IDAho is the only state east of Oregon. Washington (and a small section of IDAho) is north of Oregon. California and Nevada are south of Oregon. The Pacific Ocean lies to the west of Oregon.
• ERIE (59A: Great Lake near Detroit) Lake ERIE lies on the border between the United States and Canada. Four states border Lake ERIE: Michigan (Detroit is near the western shore of the Great Lake), Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York. The province of Ontario borders Lake ERIE on the Canadian side. This is the third appearance of our crossword-friend ERIE this month.
• AMALFI COAST (1D: Italian tourist destination) The AMALFI COAST is a stretch of coastline in southern Italy that was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. This COAST of the Tyrrhenian Sea in the Gulf of Salerno has a Mediterranean climate characterized by warm summers and mild winters. Here's a fun fact about this popular tourist destination: The scenes from the 2017 movie Wonder Woman that depicted the Amazon island of Themyscira were filmed on the AMALFI COAST. 
• ANA (29D: Santa ___, California) Santa ANA, California is the county seat of Orange County, and is part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area.

When I saw this title, I thought the theme might feature phrases with the first word beginning with P, and the second word beginning with A. It was a pleasant surprise to discover I was wrong. A solid set of theme answers with both words beginning with PA- provided a nice framework for this puzzle. In addition to those answers I've highlighted above, CARAMEL, TYPEFACE, and ANT HILLS were fun. This puzzle was an enjoyable way to begin my Saturday.