Off the Grid: Sally breaks down Paste BN's daily crossword puzzle, Doesn't Hold Water
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Doesn't Hold Water
Constructors: Dan Kammann & Zhouqin Burnikel
Editor: Amanda Rafkin
What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle
- ACRES (49A: There are 4,310 in Griffith Park) Griffith Park is located in Los Angeles, California. The Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Commission characterizes the 4,310 ACRES of Griffith Park as "urban wilderness." Since we learned three days ago that an ACRE is about 75% of the size of a football field, I did some math and calculated that Griffith Park is about the size of 3,260 football fields.
Random Thoughts & Interesting Things
- TRIO (14A: The Chicks or the Magi) The Chicks are a country music TRIO of Natalie Maines, Martie Erwin Maguire, and Emily Strayer. The Magi are a TRIO of Wise Ones who are written about in the Biblical book of Matthew as traveling from the east to pay homage to the Christ Child. The gospel of Matthew does not actually state that the Magi were a TRIO (no specific number of Magi is given), however traditionally many people think about the Magi as a TRIO, corresponding to the three gifts mentioned – gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
- ERIVO (15A: "Wicked" star Cynthia) Cynthia ERIVO portrays Elphaba Thropp, who becomes the Wicked Witch of the West, in the 2024 movie Wicked: Part 1. She will reprise the role in Wicked: For Good, which will be released in November of this year. The official trailer for Wicked: For Good was recently released. I am looking forward to this movie.
- NEIL (23A: "Harvest" singer Young) NEIL Young's fourth studio album, Harvest, was released in 1972. It contains the hit song "Heart of Gold," which I associate with high school show choir ever since my daughter's show choir danced to it.
- BAE DOONA (37A: She played Sun Bak in "Sense8") Sense8 is a Netflix sci-fi series that originally aired from 2015-2018. The movie explores a psychic connection between eight strangers who live in different places around the world. BAE DOONA portrays Sun Bak, who lives in Seoul, South Korea and is involved in the underground kickboxing world. I learned about BAE DOONA from May 24, 2022 crossword.
- PETE (48A: Tennis legend Sampras) PETE Sampras is a former professional tennis player. He retired after winning the 2002 US Open, which was his 14th major singles title. PETE Sampras was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2007.
- LUTE (58A: Instrument similar to the oud) A LUTE, like an oud, is a plucked string instrument with a hollow cavity and a neck. The oud has a smaller neck than the LUTE, and does not have frets. A LUTE may have frets, though some do not.
- PETA (4D: Org. opposed to bullfighting) People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, is a nonprofit organization founded in 1980. PETA advocates for the end of bullfighting, which is illegal in most countries, but remains legal in Spain and Portugal..
- ORCHID (6D: Flower with bilateral symmetry) Many flowers – such as sunflowers and daisies – have radial symmetry, with their petals arranged in a circular pattern around a central point. An ORCHID, however, displays bilateral symmetry, so if a line is drawn vertically down the middle of the flower, the two halves are mirror images of each other.
- DOSA (8D: Thin, savory food that might be served on a thali plate) Thali refers to an Indian-style meal that consists of a number of dishes arranged and served on a round plate called a thali. One of those dishes may be DOSAs, crepes made from a fermented batter of lentils and rice.
- INDIA (20D: Country with 22 official languages) The Constitution of INDIA recognizes 22 languages. Hindi and English are designated as the languages used for official purposes and documents. Although 22 official languages is quite a few, INDIA is not the country with the most official languages. That designation goes to Bolivia, which recognizes 37 official languages.
- FRIES (30D: Poutine's crispy component) Poutine, a dish associated with Quebec cuisine, consists of French FRIES topped with cheese curds and brown gravy.
- PARSLEY (42D: Herb in tabbouleh) Tabbouleh is a salad in Mediterranean cuisine made of chopped PARSLEY, tomatoes, mint, onion, and bulgur combined with a dressing of olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
- PREEMIE (43D: Newborn who might need extra care) Shout-out to my PREEMIE, my son who was born nine weeks early weighing 4 pounds 4 ounces, who is now a thriving six-foot-four-inch tall adult!
Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis
- STRAIGHT ANSWER (19A: Response that tells it like it is)
- BAE DOONA (37A: She played Sun Bak in "Sense8")
- SEE FOR YOURSELF (53A: "Go look, if you don't believe me!")
DOESN'T HOLD WATER: Each theme answer begins with something that DOESN'T HOLD WATER, but is a homophone of something that does HOLD WATER: STRAIGHT/strait, BAE/bay, and SEE/sea.
After solving this puzzle I stared at it for some time trying to figure out the theme. There was a lovely "AHA!" (60D: "Now I get it!") moment when I finally caught on. It's quite satisfying to figure out a theme that takes a little bit of extra thought. Thank you, Dan and Zhouqin, for this stellar puzzle.