December 19, 2023

Title: LATTE ART (Freestyle)

Constructor: Jasmeet Arora

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Freestyle: This is a themeless puzzle. LATTE ART is a nod to ESPRESSO BAR (27D: Cafe that might serve cappuccinos).

And now a word from our constructor:

Jasmeet: making this puzzle was so fun! i especially like 27-Down, 4-Down, 36-Across, 50-Across, and of course 18-Across :)

• ESPRESSO BAR (27D: Cafe that might serve cappuccinos)
• COHABITANTS (4D: Platonic life partners, maybe)
• PAPA (36A: Bear whose porridge was too hot for Goldilocks)
• PAST (50A: Tense in "Nevertheless, she persisted")
• EAT THE RICH (18A: Slogan demanding wealth redistribution)

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• TECH (17A: Girls in ___ (nonprofit that hosts hackathons)) The mission of the nonprofit Girls in TECH, is to "eliminate the gender gap in TECH." The organization was founded in 2007 by Adriana Gascoigne, and now has over 35 chapters around the world. Girls in TECH has many programs, including hosting hackathons, such as the one held earlier this year: Girls in TECH: Hack for the Environment.
• EAT THE RICH (18A: Slogan demanding wealth redistribution) The slogan EAT THE RICH has been attributed to political philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, derived from the quote, "When the people shall have nothing more to EAT, they will EAT THE RICH." The slogan, used to demand wealth redistribution (as the clue informs us) encourages people to stand up to those in power, and hold them accountable.
• BURPEE (24A: Squat-to-plank exercise) Did you know that the BURPEE is named after physiologist Royal H. BURPEE? He created the exercise in the 1930s as a fitness test.
• HARISSA (28A: Hot chili pepper paste) The hot chili pepper paste known as HARISSA is native to the Maghreb, an area of Northwest Africa. The biggest exporter of HARISSA is the country of Tunisia. The roasted red pepper paste is so important in Tunisia, that UNESCO lists it as part of the country's Intangible Cultural Heritage. 
• PAST (50A: Tense in "Nevertheless, she persisted") This is a fabulous clue for the word PAST. I wrote about "Nevertheless, she persisted," earlier this year.
• CHORDS (57A: The song "Poker Face" uses five) "Poker Face" is a 2008 song by Lady Gaga. Referencing a specific song is a fun and interesting way to clue CHORDS.
• CARROT CAKE (61A: Dessert made with a vegetable) I am a fan of CARROT CAKE. In my opinion, CARROT CAKE should always feature cream cheese frosting, and never contain raisins.
• AAVE (37D: Dialect created in Black U.S. communities) African American Vernacular English (AAVE) is a dialect of English spoken by many Black people in urban U.S. communities. If you'd like to learn more about AAVE, I recommend this Lingua Obscura article. 
• PIANO (50D: Main instrument in the song "A Thousand Miles") "A Thousand Miles" is the 2002 debut single of singer-songwriter and PIANO player Vanessa Carlton (who I learned about from the January 12, 2021 puzzle). The music video for "A Thousand Miles" is worth a watch. Throughout the video, Vanessa Carlton is playing the PIANO, first in a garage, and then in various locations throughout Newbury Park and Los Angeles, California, where it was filmed. To film the video, the PIANO was put on a custom built dolly in order to transfer it to a flatbed truck. 
• ARROW (51D: Symbol on Aang's forehead) Aang is the main character of the animated TV series, Avatar: The Last Airbender. He has a light blue ARROW tattoo on his forehead, denoting that he is an airbender master.
• A few other clues I especially liked:
• RAIL (42A: Skateboarders may grind or slide on one)
• MELON (66A: Component of most fruit salads)
• BUTTERFLIES (8D: Some adult caterpillars)

Geography review:

• ALTO (14A: Palo ___ (Bay Area city)) Palo ALTO is located in California's Bay Area, south of San Francisco. Palo ALTO is named after a specific coastal redwood tree, El Palo ALTO. 
• SAHARA (20A: North African desert) The SAHARA Desert is the largest hot desert in the world. Stretching across much of North Africa, the SAHARA covers parts of Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Western SAHARA, Sudan, and Tunisia.
• IOWA (68A: State where the World Food Prize is awarded) The World Food Prize is an international award that recognizes individuals that have made "exceptional achievements in addressing food security." This year's World Food Prize was awarded to Heidi Kühn, for her work to restore agriculture in former conflict zones. The $250,000 award is given by the World Food Prize Foundation, headquartered in Des Moines, IOWA. The prize was originally conceived of by IOWA native Norman Borlaug (1914-2009), who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 in recognition of his contributions to world peace by increasing global food production. If you're ever in Des Moines, IOWA, you can visit the World Food Prize Hall of Laureates. I was happy to see this clue highlighting a positive thing about my state!
• ATL (22D: Georgia airport letters) The Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) is located south of Atlanta, Georgia.

Although we've seen Jasmeet Arora's name on several collaborations, this is her first solo USA Today crossword. That's exciting! When I first opened today's puzzle, I thought, "Haven't we seen this theme before?" (We have: LATTE ART FOR BEGINNERS.) Silly me, however, because when I looked at the title again I noticed this is a freestyle (themeless) puzzle. There's so much great stuff in here. Thank you, Jasmeet, for this puzzle that was a terrific way to start my Tuesday.

One more thing today: Speaking of Jasmeet, Lil AVC X, an indie puzzle organization that publishes midis twice a week, recently announced its roster of constructors for 2024, and Jasmeet is one of them!