February 16, 2022

Title: OUTSCORE

Constructor: Zhouqin Burnikel

Editors: Mollie Cowger & Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

GAY PRIDE PARADE (16A: March with many rainbow flags)

GOES ON A TIRADE (35A: Indulges in a long rant)

GLOBAL TRADE (60A: International commerce)

Theme synopsis: Each theme answer's SCORE - in the form of a GRADE - is found at the OUTside edges.

Things I learned:

• SEAR (28A: Prepare like katsuo no tataki) Katsuo no tataki is a dish that originated in the Japanese city of Kōchi. Skipjack tuna is lightly SEARed, and served with ginger, garlic, and onions.
• ATE (7D: Enjoyed roujiamo, e.g.) Roujiamo is a meat sandwich sometimes referred to as a Chinese hamburger. The meat in roujiamo may be pork, beef, or lamb.
• RED CLOUD (11D: Oglala chief who resisted U.S. occupation of the Powder River country) The Powder River Basin is an area of the Great Plains in what is now southeast Montana and northeast Wyoming. From 1866 to 1868, Chief RED CLOUD led the Oglala Lakota in resisting U.S. occupation of this area, a conflict referred to as RED CLOUD's War, the Bozeman War, or the Powder River War. In 1868, after the U.S. removed all troops from along the Bozeman Trail (a route through southern Montana of importance during the gold rush), Chief RED CLOUD signed the Treaty of Fort Laramie.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• GOES ON A TIRADE (35A: Indulges in a long rant) I feel like perhaps I should go on a rant here, but I'm feeling unruffled today (so far anyway...).
• AGATES (2D: Banded rocks) There are many varieties of AGATES, but all of these microcrystalline quartz gemstones share the characteristic of having a banded pattern. AGATE is a relatively hard mineral, rating between 7-9 on the Mohs scale. (The Mohs scale rates mineral hardness, and is sometimes seen in crosswords in relation to talc, which is 1 on the scale, or diamond, which is 10 on the scale.) AGATES are primarily formed within volcanic rocks, and come in many different colors.
• SARA (26D: "Blacklist" author Paretsky) Blacklist (2003) is one of a series of novels SARA Paretsky has written featuring V.I. Warshawski (known as Vic to her friends), a private investigator from Chicago. A couple of fun facts I learned: The first novel featuring V.I. Warshawski, Indemnity Only, was published 40 years ago in January, 1982. SARA Paretsky was born in Ames, Iowa and grew up in Kansas.
• GOAT MILK (35D: What chabichou cheese is made from) Chabichou is a semi-soft GOAT MILK cheese originating from France.
• SAM (42D: Captain America alter ego ___ Wilson) and AKA (10D: Letters before an alias) Anthony Mackie portrays SAM Wilson AKA Captain America in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
• BOO (59D: Halloween shout) and BIN (59A: Storage container) Funny solving story: My storage container was originally a TIN, resulting in the traditional Halloween shout of "TOO!" Oops!

Geography review:

• CST (21A: NOLA time zone) New Orleans, Louisiana (NOLA) is on Central Standard Time (CST).
• COYOTE (3D: South Dakota's state animal) One of South Dakota's unofficial nicknames is "The COYOTE State." COYOTEs are native to the state, and were designated the state animal in 1949. South Dakota is the only state with COYOTE as its state animal. 
• TEL (52D: ___ Aviv) TEL Aviv is located on Israel's Mediterranean coast.

My favorite answer today was EYES ON ME (12D: "Look this way"). Having spent some time working with children, I have uttered this phrase a time or two. This puzzle was an enjoyable way to begin my Wednesday.