October 4, 2021

Title: SHAKEUP

Constructor:  Rebecca Goldstein

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

FAIR TRADE COFFEE (5D: BLK & Bold offering)

HAND DELIVERED (11D: Given in person)

MILK MUSTACHES (14D: Facial features in some dairy ads)

Theme synopsis: The first word of each vertical theme answer (which is UP at the top of the puzzle) can be placed in front of the word SHAKE, giving us FAIR SHAKE, HANDSHAKE, and MILKSHAKE.

Things I learned:

• SKA (1A: We Are the Union genre) We Are the Union is a SKA punk band formed in 2005. Their latest album, Ordinary Life, was released in June of this year, and features the single, "Make It Easy."
• ONE (43A: Number on Alyssa Naeher's jersey) Alyssa Naeher is a goalkeeper for the Chicago Red Stars of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (USWNT). You can purchase your own Alyssa Naeher number ONE jersey, available in many styles. 
• KIKI (2D: Actress Layne) KIKI Layne played the role of Princess Meeka Joffer in the 2021 movie, Coming 2 America. She also played the role of U.S. Marine, Nile Freeman, in the 2020 movie, The Old Guard. 
• FAIR TRADE COFFEE (5D: BLK & Bold offering) FAIR TRADE COFFEE is certified stating it has been produced to standards aimed at helping countries achieve sustainable and equitable trade relationships. (That part I knew.) BLK & Bold is a coffee company founded by Pernell & Rod. They sell FAIR TRADE COFFEE, and give 5% of their profits to youth programming initiatives. (This part I learned.) Here's a quote from co-founder Pernell Cezar, "If you don't drink bottom shelf wine, you shouldn't be drinking bottom shelf coffee."
• HAHN (55D: "Mrs. Fletcher" star Kathryn) Mrs. Fletcher is a miniseries based on Tom Perrotta's 2017 novel of the same name. Kathryn HAHN plays the role of Eve Fletcher, a divorced woman in her mid-40s who decides she doesn't want to be her old self.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• SON (7A: "Young man...") When I first read this clue, I missed the quotation marks indicating it was a spoken phrase, and typed in "lad." When the crosses made it apparent that answer was incorrect, I read the clue again, and appreciated this creative clue for "SON..."
• HIGH (10A: The ___ Holidays) The HIGH Holidays, also referred to as the HIGH Holy Days, refers to the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. 
• OKRA (15A: Bhindi masala vegetable) The word bhindi is borrowed from Hindi, and refers to the vegetable OKRA when used in Indian cooking. 
• ASIAN (16A: "It's an honor just to be ___" (Sandra Oh quote)) This Sandra Oh quote is from a skit at the 2018 Emmy Awards. A year later, before she co-hosted the award show, Sandra Oh tweeted a photo of her family wearing t-shirts featuring the quote.
• IMAM (17A: Masjid figure) Masjid is the Arabic place of worship, and an IMAM is an Islamic worship leader. 
• AUDRE (39A: Lorde who said "The master's tools will never dismantle the master's house") I like this clue a lot. This is a thought-provoking quote from AUDRE Lorde, who described herself as "Black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet."
• FLASH MOB (58A: Sudden public performance) The first FLASH MOB took place on June 17, 2003 at Macy's rug department in Manhattan. Here's a fascinating (and lengthy) article by Bill Wasik, the inventor of the FLASH MOB. 
• MILK MUSTACHES (14D: Facial features in some dairy ads) The "got milk?" ads by MilkPEP (Milk Processor Education Program) featuring various celebrities with MILK MUSTACHES began in 1995 and ran through 2014. 
• PREP (24D: HIV prevention method) PREP is short for "pre-exposure prophylaxis," a term used to describe the use of antiviral medications in HIV prevention, specifically in persons not yet exposed to the virus.

Geography review:

• AGRA (3D: Indian city home to Itimad-ud-Daulah's tomb) The Tomb of I'timād-ud Daulah is sometimes described as a "jewel box," and was the first tomb in India built entirely in white marble. The mausoleum is was built between 1622 and 1628, and is often regarded as a draft of the Taj Mahal which was built between 1632 and 1653. The tomb, located on the east bank of the Yamuna River in AGRA, India, has an interesting history. It was commissioned by a daughter as a tribute to her father. You can read more about it (and I recommend you do!) in the article I lined above.
• OMAN (8D: Neighbor of Yemen) OMAN is located on the Arabian Peninsula. In addition to neighboring Yemen, OMAN is a neighbor of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Saudi Arabia. The capital of OMAN is Muscat.
• NOME (9D: Alaska city) NOME, Alaska is the endpoint of the annual Iditarod Dog Sled Race. 
• OHIO (60D: Cincinnati's state) Cincinnati is located in southern OHIO, on the Kentucky border.

Let's SHAKE things UP on this Monday morning, with a delightful theme with three great theme answers. As for my favorite theme answer, it's a toss-UP between FAIR TRADE COFFEE and MILK MUSTACHES, with MILK MUSTACHES barely winning out, simply because it leads to the new phrase, MILKSHAKE, of which I am a huge fan. So much to enjoy in this puzzle. It was definitely an enjoyable way to begin my Monday.