January 21, 2023

Title: CHILL OUT

Constructor: Matthew Stock

Editor: Anna Gundlach

Theme Answers:

CHICAGO BULL (18A: Windy City basketball player)

CHINA DOLL (38A: Porcelain plaything)

CHICKEN RICE BALL (53A: Spherical Malaysian dish based on a Hainanese dish)

Theme synopsis: The word CHILL is found on the OUTside edges of the theme answers.

Things I learned:

• CHICKEN RICE BALL (53A: Spherical Malaysian dish based on a Hainanese dish) Hainanese CHICKEN RICE is, as the name suggests, a dish of poached CHICKEN served with a bowl of seasoned RICE. It is one of the national dishes of Singapore. In Malaysia, the RICE is served in a BALL rather than in a bowl, leading to the name CHICKEN RICE BALL.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• CHICAGO BULL (18A: Windy City basketball player) The Windy City is a nickname for CHICAGO, Illinois. (I have previously written about how this nickname was not coined as a reference to CHICAGO's weather.) NBA's CHICAGO BULLs have played in CHICAGO since 1966.
• WASABI (44A: Spicy condiment at an izakaya) An izakaya is a type of informal Japanese bar. Dining at an izakaya is generally done slowly, with food being ordered in several courses rather than all at once. WASABI, also known as Japanese horseradish, is a spicy condiment often served alongside sushi.
• SHI (49A: "Turning Red" writer/director Domee) Domee SHI has been working for Pixar since 2011, and is the first woman to have a solo directing credit for a Pixar feature film, the 2022 animated movie, Turning Red.  Mei, the protagonist of Turning Red, is a 13-year-old Chinese-Canadian girl who transforms into a giant red panda when she feels strong emotions.
• HODA (57A: "Today" co-host Kotb) HODA Kotb has co-hosted Today since 2007. She's also an author, and has written books for children and adults. Her 2010 autobiography is titled, HODA: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee. 
• RAE (2D: "Insecure" star Issa) The HBO TV series, Insecure, is partially based on Issa RAE's web series, The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl. Issa RAE plays the role of Issa Dee on Insecure, which takes a look at the experiences of contemporary Black women.
• EVE CURIE (3D: Journalist who wrote a biography on her Nobel-winning mother, Marie) ÈVE CURIE (1904-2007) was a journalist, and the youngest of Marie and Pierre CURIE's two daughters. The biography she wrote about her mother, Madame CURIE, was first published in 1937. ÈVE CURIE Labouisse often joked about being the only one in her family not to have won a Nobel Prize.   Her parents were co-winners of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903, and her mother won a second Nobel Prize, this time in chemistry, in 1911. Her older sister, Irène Joliot-Curie won a Nobel Prize for Chemistry with her husband. ÈVE CURIE Labouisse's husband, Henry Labouisse, accepted the Nobel Peace Prize when it was awarded to Unicef in 1965. 
• UNHIP (5D: Not cool) This clue made me chuckle. It seemed UNHIP in a puzzle encouraging us to CHILL OUT.
• GUINEA (19D: ___ pig (animal that is neither a pig nor from Africa)) This answer reminded me of the GUINEA pig photo shared last month.
• PETCO (27D: Chain that sells catnip mice) As I was writing this, Willow came up behind me, as she often does. Perhaps she was whispering in my ear that I need to make a purchase from PETCO. 

  

  My helper, Willow

  
  
• LEI DAY (43D: Hawaiian celebration with floral necklaces) LEI DAY is a statewide celebration in Hawaii on May 1. LEI DAY is a celebration of Hawaiian culture and is commonly celebrated by people giving one another gifts of leis.

Geography review:

• CORDOBA (15A: City in Andalusia, Spain, home to the Great Mosque) Since 1978, the country of Spain has been divided into 17 autonomous communities and two autonomous cities. Andalusia is the southernmost and the most populous of the autonomous communities in Peninsular Spain. And, as the clue tells us, Andalusia is home to the city of CÓRDOBA, which is the capital of the province of the same name. The Great Mosque of CÓRDOBA is also known as the Mosque-Cathedral of CÓRDOBA, Mezquita-Catedral, and the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption. It is currently a Roman Catholic cathedral, but has an interesting history as a mosque built on the site of a Christian church. (There may also have been a Roman temple to Janus on the site at one point, though historians disagree about that fact.) This Smarthistory article discusses the history and architecture of the Great Mosque of CÓRDOBA, and includes an amazing aerial photo of the building.
• PERU (22A: Lima's country) Lima, the capital and largest city of PERU is located on the western edge of the country, and overlooks the Pacific Ocean. One-third of the people in PERU live in the Lima metropolitan area.
• ERIE (31A: Great Lake by Pennsylvania) In addition to Pennsylvania, Lake ERIE is near the U.S. states of Michigan, Ohio, and New York, and the Canadian province of Ontario.
• LAS (12D: ___ Vegas) LAS Vegas is the largest city in Nevada. In addition to its many casinos and nightclubs, LAS Vegas is home to the Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, which opened in 2009, and is associated with the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. The Lou Ruvo Center provides patient care, as well as conducting research on Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and other diseases. The building was designed by Frank Gehry, and has a striking appearance. (Apparently today is the day I recommend you look at architecture.)

Solving this puzzle was an excellent way to CHILL OUT this morning. In addition to the answers I highlighted above, I enjoyed SAID HELLO, SORBET, and STAR SIGN. Thank you, Matthew, for this puzzle that was a fabulous way to start my Saturday.