May 12, 2022

Title: ALL I'S ON ME

Constructor: Brooke Husic

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

STRING BIKINI (20A: Swimsuit whose top can be styled upside down)

DIVING RIGHT IN (36A: Opposite of testing the waters)

IT'S IN HIS KISS (52A: Answer to "How can I tell if he loves me so?" in "The Shoop Shoop Song")

Theme synopsis: The only vowel in each theme answer is the letter I.

And now a word from our constructor:

Brooke: i had so much fun with this one! all the theme answers were really fun to clue. this is certainly a cousin or sister to my april 4 puzzle, but i came up with and wrote today's first!

Things I learned:

• TEJ (40A: Ethiopian honey wine) TEJ is a honey wine consisting of three main ingredients: honey, water, and gesho (a medicinal shrub). The beverage is brewed in Ethiopia and Eritrea. TEJ is similar to mead, which we just saw as an answer three days ago. 
• OLGA (28D: Movie star Kurylenko) OLGA Kurylenko played the roles of Camille Montes, the Bond Girl in Quantum of Solace (2008) and Taskmaster, a supervillain in Black Widow (2021). OLGA Kurylenko was born in Berdansk, a city in southeastern Ukraine, which is currently under Russian military control. She has French and Ukranian citizenship.
• XINAG (51D: Deg ___ (one of Alaska's official languages)) Deg XINAG is one of Alaska's 21 official languages. Spoken by the Deg Hit'an people, Deg XINAG is a severely endangered language. It is estimated that there are only 40 native speakers of Deg XINAG worldwide.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• ECONO (17A: Budget-friendly prefix) and ECO (23D: Environment-friendly prefix) This is a fun pair of similarly-phrased clues with answers that share the first three letters.
• RIH (30A: "S&M" singer, to fans) "S&M" is a 2011 song by Rihanna - known as RIH or RIH-RIH or Riri to her fans - from her album, Loud. 
• AIR (42A: Make public) and EXPOSE (50A: Make public) Another pair of related answers, this time with identical cluing.
• IT'S IN HIS KISS (52A: Answer to "How can I tell if he loves me so?" in "The Shoop Shoop Song") "The Shoop Shoop Song (IT'S IN HIS KISS)" was recorded by Cher in 1990 and became an international hit. The song has been recorded by multiple artists since 1963, including Betty Everett, Ramona King, and Linda Lewis. Some of the versions have been titled "IT'S IN HIS KISS." In case this answer results in "The Shoop Shoop Song" becoming an earworm for you, I recently learned that chewing gum can help get rid of a song stuck in your head. Isn't science fascinating?
• TWO-SPIRIT (3D: Indigenous gender identity) TWO-SPIRIT is a term used in some indigenous cultures to describe a person with both a feminine and masculine SPIRIT living in the same body.
• FRUIT HAT (10D: Headpiece that might have grapes) A FRUIT HAT is exactly what it sounds like, a HAT adorned with FRUIT. The FRUIT HAT is often associated with singer, dancer, and movie star Carmen Miranda (1909-1955) who wore exotic HATs, often adorned with FRUIT. The Chiquita Banana logo featuring a woman wearing a FRUIT HAT was inspired by Carmen Miranda. (The logo was originally an anthropomorphic banana wearing a FRUIT HAT.)
• IOWAN (21D: The Daily ___ (Midwestern newspaper)) Hmmm, what could this answer be...? This was a gimme for me. The Daily IOWAN is a student-run newspaper in Iowa City, Iowa. The staff of The Daily IOWAN are University of Iowa students, though the paper is run independently of the University.
• SHE'S (54D: "___ All Fat: A Fat Positive Podcast") SHE'S All Fat: A Fat Positive Podcast is hosted by Sophia Carter-Kahn. I first learned about this podcast from the May 28, 2021 puzzle.

Geography review:

• EL PASO (23A: Texas city north of the Rio Bravo) The Rio Bravo - known in the United States as the Rio Grande - originates in Colorado and flows to the Gulf of Mexico. The river forms the border between the U.S. State of Texas, and Mexico. EL PASO is located in the southwestern part of Texas. The Rio Grande/Rio Bravo separates EL PASO from Ciudad Juárez in the Mexican state of Chihuahua.
• ERIE (61A: Great Lake home to Pelee Island) Pelee Island, which is part of Ontario, Canada, is the largest island in Lake ERIE. The island has been used for vineyards and wine making since the mid-1800s, and is currently home to Pelee Island Winery. 

ALL I'S ON ME, because it's ALL I'S in the theme answers today. I also noticed that each theme answer contained exactly four of the letter I. The theme answers increase in word count moving down the puzzle. We have the two-word STRING BIKINI, the three-word DIVING RIGHT IN, and finally, the four-word IT'S IN HIS KISS. Fun stuff. As Brooke mentioned, this theme is similar-but-different to her April 4 puzzle, 1, 2, 3 EYES ON ME. My daughter made a comment the other day about being amazed that crossword constructors can come up with so many different theme ideas. I'm with her on that - always fun to see the multitude of variations! Speaking of similarities, if you looked at the grid of today's puzzle and thought, "Hmmm, that looks familiar..." you were right. Today's grid - particularly that distinctive pattern of black squares in the center - is similar to yesterday's grid. Here's a side-by-side comparison of the grids (photo courtesy of Brooke):

Apparently the running of these grids on consecutive days was a coincidence, and it's a fun one. Let's see, back to today's puzzle. HIJABI and PIANO SOLO were fun entries. I do not have any NITS (39D: Minor complaints) to pick, or have a BEEF (60A: Major complaint) with this puzzle. Thanks, Brooke, for a puzzle that was a delightful way to begin my Thursday.

One more crossword thing today. Registration is now open for the first ever STL Crossword Puzzle Tournament to be held June 18. Registration is free, but limited to 100 participants, so if this sounds like fun to you, register soon. I'll be there and would love to see you!