July 26, 2023

Title: BURIED TREASURE

Constructor: Ada Nicolle

Editor: Anna Gundlach

Theme Answers:

WATCHES THE CLOCK (19A: Keeps impatiently checking the time)

KALUSH ORCHESTRA (36A: Ukrainian group that won Eurovision 2022 with the song, "Stefania")

BUNCHES TOGETHER (54A: Moves closer to form a tight group)

Theme synopsis: The word CHEST, presumable containing BURIED TREASURE, is found in each theme answer.

Things I learned:

• KALUSH ORCHESTRA (36A: Ukrainian group that won Eurovision 2022 with the song, "Stefania") The Eurovision Song Contest is an international competition in which participants representing European countries sing original songs. Countries then cast votes to determine the winner. Eurovision has been held annually since 1956 (with the exception of 2020). Eurovision 2022 was held in Turin, Italy, as Italy won the 2021 contest. (Generally the winning country hosts the contest the following year.) Forty countries participated in Eurovision 2022, and the winner was the Ukrainian hip-hop group KALUSH ORCHESTRA, performing, as the clue informs us, the song "Stefania." The song is sung entirely in Ukrainian, and has been described as an ode to a mother. The music video, released shortly after Eurovision, was filmed in Ukrainian cities that have been attacked during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and features military women taking children from burning and bombed-out buildings and returning them to their mothers. (Due to the Russian invasion, Ukraine was unable to host Eurovision 2023, which was held in Liverpool, United Kingdom, as the United Kingdom placed second in 2022.)

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• PIPE (15A: Transportation tube for Mario) Of course the title character of the Mario video games moves through PIPEs. After all, he's an Italian plumber. This is the second day in a row we've seen a Mario reference. Yesterday's puzzle referenced the TWINS, Mario and Luigi.
• OREOS (16A: Crushed cookies in a "dirt and worms" dessert) "Dirt and worms," made with crushed OREOS, pudding, and gummy worms, is a classic dessert.
• TESSA (23A: "Kitchen Song" singer Violet) I learned about singer-songwriter TESSA Violet from the November 15, 2021 puzzle. From the January 27, 2022 puzzle, I learned that TESSA Violet, who began her career as a video blogger, was previously known as Meekakitty. Today I learned that TESSA Violet's album released earlier this month is titled My God!, and contains the single, "Kitchen Song."
• GAL (25A: Actress Gadot) GAL Gadot, who was born in Israel, is a former Miss Israel, having won that title in 2004, at the age of 18. GAL Gadot's film credits include the title role of Wonder Woman (2017) and Wonder Woman 1984 (2020), and the role of Linnet Ridgeway in Death on the Nile.
• KPH (46A: Abbr. in Canadian speed limits) My thought when reading this clue was, "Oh, thank you for that reminder, Ada!" My husband and I are planning a trip in September that includes driving across western Canada. It's time to remind myself how to set our car to show KPH (kilometers per hour) instead of mph (miles per hour).
• GIGI (60A: Model Hadid) GIGI Hadid is a model, as are her younger siblings, Bella Hadid and Anwar Hadid. GIGI Hadid has been modeling since she was two years old, when she was a model for Baby Guess.
• SEED (63A: Subject of the "Lorax" song "Let It Grow") The song, "Let It Grow," which is about a SEED, is from the 2012 animated movie The Lorax. The movie is based on the 1971 Dr. Seuss book of the same name. Like so many things, the song "Let It Grow" has been turned into an Internet meme. 
• SPELLS (9D: "Final Fantasy" mage's repertoire) Final Fantasy is a video game franchise. We saw FINAL FANTASY as a theme answer August 18, 2022. For solvers unfamiliar with Final Fantasy, the word mage is a nice hint, as a mage is a magician or sorcerer, and therefore would use SPELLS.
• UNH (27D: New England college (Abbr.)) The University of New Hampshire (UNH), a public land-grant research university, has its main campus in Durham, New Hampshire. The University of New Haven (UNH) is a private university in New Haven, Connecticut. Interestingly, both of these institutions fit this clue, as New England is a term referring to the U.S. States Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
• ROBOT-SUMO (31D: Sport where machines try to push each other out of a circle) The clue has perfectly described the sport of ROBOT-SUMO. There are different classes of ROBOT-SUMO, for ROBOTs of different sizes and weights. ROBOT-SUMO is an engineering challenge in which a ROBOT needs to be able to find its opponent, push its opponent out of the circle, and make sure it stays in the circle.
• PREY (53D: Hares, to a lynx) A lynx is a medium-sized wildcat, with characteristic tufts

  

  Willow

  of hair on the tips of their ears, and large padded feet. They PREY on a wide range of animals including snowshoe HARES. Willow is thankful (I think) that she doesn't have to hunt for PREY like her wildcat relatives.
• EDEN (55D: Actress Sher) I learned about EDEN Sher, who plays the role of Sue on the TV series, The Middle, from the December 12, 2020 puzzle. 

Geography review:

• ERIE (18A: One of the Great Lakes) The Great Lakes are five interconnected freshwater lakes. The other lakes that comprise the Great Lakes in addition to Lake ERIE are Huron, Ontario, Michigan, and Superior. Our crossword friend ERIE is making its second appearance this month. 
• UTAH (57A: Arizona neighbor) UTAH is Arizona's neighbor to the north. Arizona and UTAH are two of the states that abut to form the Four Corners region, named for the boundary where the four states meet. Time for a Geography Review Quiz! Can you name the other two states in the Four Corners? Answer to the Geography Review Quiz is at the end of this blog post.

I'm always happy to see Ada Nicolle's byline. It's like discovering BURIED TREASURE! What a great theme. PIROUETTE, HASHTAGS, ESPRESSO, MECHANICS, and I'LL MANAGE are all great long answers. I had the delight of meeting Ada Nicolle at the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament (ACPT) earlier this year. My husband took this photo of us. I don't remember what we were discussing, but I think this photo is wonderful, because it illustrates that we both obviously talk with our hands! Thank you, Ada, for this puzzle, that was a fantastic way to start my Wednesday.

Ada and me at ACPT

Answer to Geography Review Quiz: The Four Corners states are UTAH, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona.