January 3, 2022

Title: INSIDE LAP

Constructor: Erik Agard

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

HOLA PAPI (18A:John Paul Brammer memoir subtitled: How to Come Out in a Walmart Parking Lot and Other Life Lessons")

CARAMEL APPLES (33A: Sticky treats on sticks)

HUALAPAI (53A: People for whom Ha'Kamwe' is sacred)

Theme synopsis: The word LAP is found INSIDE each theme answer.

Things I learned:

• SOROR (17A: Fellow AKA) Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA) was the first Black Greek-lettered sorority. It was founded at Howard University. This part I knew, but the term SOROR is new to me. The word SOROR is used to refer to a sorority sister. 
• HOLA PAPI (18A:John Paul Brammer memoir subtitled: How to Come Out in a Walmart Parking Lot and Other Life Lessons") John Paul Brammer is a writer and artist. In 2017 he started an LGBTQ and Latino advice column on Substack called "HOLA PAPI!" His memoir, HOLA PAPI: How to Come Out in a Walmart Parking Lot and Other Life Lessons was published in June of 2021. I was amused to read on John Paul Brammer's website that work he's proud of can be found on that site, and work he's less proud of can be found on Twitter.
• ALE (22A: ___-8-One (soft drink)) ALE-8-One is a ginger and citrus soda bottled in Kentucky. It's also available in cherry and orange cream varieties. ALE-8-One was introduced in 1926, but until a few years ago, it was only available in central and eastern parts of Kentucky. The soda is now available nationwide at Cracker Barrel and The Fresh Market stores. 
• HUALAPAI (53A: People for whom Ha'Kamwe' is sacred) The HUALAPAI are a federally recognized tribe located in northwestern Arizona. "HUALAPAI" means "People of the Tall Pines." Ha'Kamwe' (which means "warm spring" in the language of the HUALAPAI) is a sacred medicinal spring in Arizona that has been affected by lithium mining. 
• REZBALL (37D: Fast-paced hoops style) REZBALL is short for "reservation ball," and is a style of basketball play specific to some Native American teams. REZBALL is characterized by its lightning-quick pace.The sport will be featured in an upcoming Netflix movie.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• TACO (13A: Food with an edible shell) and TARO (14A: Food that's 13-Across with one letter changed) I filled in TACO and then enjoyed the little bit of wordplay needed to figure out TARO as the next answer.
• SCOT (15A: Get off ___-free) I have previously written about the tax-related origins of the term SCOT-free.
• PALETTE (23A: Tool for a landscape artist or makeup artist) I enjoyed envisioning both landscape artists and makeup artists choosing their colors from a PALETTE. I also noticed while I was reviewing the puzzle that the word PALETTE features a reverse LAP.
• EVA (38A: Sula's grandmother) This is a reference to Toni Morrison's 1973 novel, Sula. As the clue informs us, EVA is Sula's grandmother.
• AUG (39A: National Catfish Month (Abbr.)) AUGust has been National Catfish Month since 1984. The designation was created with the aim of educating people about the agricultural importance of catfish.
• BERATE (52A: Chastise) and SCOLDS (3D: Chastises) I feel properly chastised.
• BLUE (59A: "In Moonlight Black Boys Look ___") Tarell Alvin McCraney wrote the autobiographical play, In Moonlight Black Boys Look BLUE, as a drama school project. The play was the basis for the screenplay of the 2016 movie, Moonlight, which McCraney co-wrote with Barry Jenkins.
• ELLE (60A: Name that's also a French 101 word) and LES (61A: Name that's also a French 101 word) This was a fun consecutive pair of clues. "ELLE" means "she" in French, and "LES" means "the."
• FORGERY (11D: Adolfo Kaminsky's specialty) Adolfo Kaminsky's story has been told in a short documentary film titled Forging Identity, a biography written by his daughter titled, Adolfo Kaminsky: A Forger's Life, and in a short New York Times documentary film titled The Forger. A former member of the French Resistance, Adolfo Kaminsky's FORGERY helped save the lives of 14,000 Jewish people that were about to be deported to Auschwitz by creating false identity papers for them.
• PEPA (23D: Salt-N-___) Salt-N-PEPA has sold over 15 million records, making them one of the bestselling hip-hop groups of all time.
• ANAGRAMS (34D: Rico Nasty and Satyricon, for example) Why yes, Rico Nasty and Satyricon contain exactly the same letters. I enjoy a fun ANAGRAMS clue.
• ZARA (48D: Cully who played Mother Jefferson) ZARA Cully played the role of Olivia Jefferson (referred to as Mother Jefferson) on the TV series The Jeffersons. She died in 1978 at the age of 86. Her last appearance in The Jeffersons was in Season 4, and aired three months before her death. The Jeffersons addressed her death in the second episode of the fifth season.

Geography review:

• INCA (12A: Resident of old Cusco) Cusco is a city in Peru. It was the capital of the INCA Empire from the 13th to 16th centuries.
• NEPALI (44D: Person from Kathmandu, for example) Kathmandu is the capital of Nepal.

A classic theme type today, with a title that let me know what to expect. I liked the similarity of the letter patterns in the theme answers HOLA PAPI and HUALAPAI. I also like CARAMEL APPLES, both to eat and in my puzzle, and enjoyed the "stick" repetition in that clue. Other answers I particularly enjoyed today: BARITONE, CUTIE PIE, and BISHOP. This puzzle was a great way to begin my Monday.