January 9, 2024

Title: RISING RATES

Constructors: Sally Hoelscher & Wendy L. Brandes

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme Answers:

PLEASE ELABORATE (3D: "Kindly tell me more...")

DOCTORATE DEGREE (7D: Highest level of academic achievement)

CRATER LAKE (10D: Centerpiece of Oregon's only National Park)

Theme synopsis: The word RATE is found in each vertical theme answer, and is seen RISING in the grid, moving from left to right.

• PLEASE ELABORATE
• DOCTORATE DEGREE 
• CRATER LAKE

And now a word from our constructors:

Sally:  It's always delightful to work with Wendy, and I'm glad she was willing to take on this theme idea with me.

Wendy: I loved working on this one with Sally -- I'm so happy she shared her great theme idea with me. My favorite theme answer was: PLEASE ELABORATE -- such a great phrase (and a great stall if you have no clue what the speaker is talking about)! I also enjoyed Sally's enthusiasm for including CRATER LAKE in the puzzle (I love the photo). Hope you enjoy this one!

Things I learned:

• SHEET (12A: One might be worn to an Anything But Clothes party) An Anything But Clothes party, or an ABC party for short, is a themed party where attendees are encourage to wear, well, anything but clothes. For example, one might wrap up in a SHEET. If you've been invited to an ABC party and you're feeling a little more adventurous, check out these ideas that range from Caution Tape to a pizza box. This clue was added in the editing process, and I had never heard of an Anything But Clothes party. To be fair, my college party-going days are long behind me.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• AC/DC (5A: "Back in Black" group) Back in Black is a 1980 album by AC/DC. It was the group's first album with Brian Johnson as lead vocalist. Back in Black is one of the best-selling albums of all time.
• SARAH (15A: Novelist Dessen) SARAH Dessen is an author that writes novels for teens. In 2017, she was awarded the Margaret Edwards Award, an award presented by the American Library Association to recognize an author for "significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature." SARAH Dessen's novels include Along for the Ride, The Moon and More, and The Rest of the Story.
• SHINTO (24A: Polytheistic religion originating from Japan) SHINTO is a polytheistic religion that originated in Japan. In Shintoism, kami are supernatural entities believed to inhabit all things. A SHINTO shrine is a structure built to house one of more kami. Over 400 SHINTO shrines can be found in Kyoto, the capital of Japan's Kyoto Prefecture.
• ELLEN (35A: Astronaut Ochoa) ELLEN Ochoa was the first Hispanic woman to go to space. She was part of a 1993 mission on the Space Shuttle Discovery.
• I'LL (38A: "___ Be Around" (Spinners' song)) "I'LL Be Around" is a 1972 song by the R&B group The Spinners.
• OTTERS (48A: Mammals that hold hands while sleeping) In a behavior known as rafting, OTTERS hold hands while sleeping in order to prevent them from drifting away from each other. Staying close to each other helps the OTTERS retain body heat.
• H.E.R. (54A: "Back of My Mind" singer) "Back of My Mind" is the title track of H.E.R.'s 2021 debut album. 
• APPS (1D: Libby and TikTok) Libby is an APP that many libraries use. With a library card, users can use the Libby APP to access library services. TikTok is a video-focused social media APP.
• DOCTORATE DEGREE (7D: Highest level of academic achievement) I'm happy we got to use DOCTORATE DEGREE as a theme answer. I'm also happy to have my DOCTORATE DEGREE and have my graduate school days as a distant memory!
• CLEO (8D: Artist and poet Wade) CLEO Wade's poetry and art feature themes of female empowerment, affirmation, activism, and inspiration. She is the author of Heart Talk: Wisdom for a Better Life (2018), Where to Begin: A Small Book About Your Power to Create Big Change in Our Crazy World, and Remember Love: Words for Tender Times (2023).
• PAGE (34D: "Bridgerton" actor Rege-Jean) Regé-Jean Page plays the role of Simon Basset, Duke of Hastings in the Netflix series, Bridgerton. For the role, Regé-Jean PAGE received an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series. Regé-Jean PAGE will appear in Paramount's upcoming reboot of The Saint.
• NOT (43D: "___ Your Barbie Girl" (Ava Max song)) "Not Your Barbie Girl" is a 2018 song by AVA Max.

Geography review:

• ATL (5D: Georgia's capital (Abbr.)) Atlanta (ATL for short) is the capital of Georgia, as well as the state's most populous city.
• CRATER LAKE (10D: Centerpiece of Oregon's only National Park) CRATER LAKE, the centerpiece of CRATER LAKE National Park in south-central Oregon, is in a caldera formed over 7,500 years ago by the collapse of a volcano. CRATER LAKE has a depth of 1,949 feet,

  

  CRATER LAKE

  making it the deepest lake in the United States. CRATER LAKE is known for its clarity and deep blue color, the result of the fact that there are no rivers flowing into or out of the lake. I enjoy putting National Parks into puzzles. My husband and I are a fan of the National Parks, and are on a quest to visit as many of them as we can. We were at CRATER LAKE National Park in October 2022. 

No need to be alarmed by these RISING RATES! This theme idea came to me when I was solving a puzzle one day and I noticed two vertical answers next to each other that both contained the letter pattern -RATE-, but it was offset by one square. I thought, "Oh, that RATE is RISING..." And here we are several months later. The funny thing is that I don't remember what the original words were, and although I've looked I can't find the puzzle that planted this idea in my brain. It's possible I just dreamt it! I hope you enjoyed this puzzle from Wendy and me.

One more thing today: It's a double puzzle day for me! I also constructed today's Lil AVC X offering, a lighthearted 12x11 midi titled, "Sounds Like..." If you're not an AVCX subscriber, you can purchase individual puzzles for $1.00. If you choose to solve that one, I hope you enjoy it!