Today I finished the crossword before I even looked at the Wordplay article AND I didn’t Google anything. Feeling highly accomplished 🤩
A nice Monday meander. Incidentally, my wife and I often call ourselves Meanderthals cause that's what we like doing when travelling overseas or exploring previously unvisited parts of our own beautiful city.
My five favorite original clues from last week (in order of appearance): 1. Best Picture winner found hiding in "and the Oscar goes to..." (4) 2. They might have deposits (7) 3. Dessert often eaten before the ides of March (3) 4. Plot device (4) 5. _NIGHT (8)(8) ARGO BOTTLES PIE HOSE HEADLESS HORSEMAN
My favorite encore clues from last week: [Duck down] (5) [Jordan joined it in 1984] (3) EIDER NBA
@Lewis I was hoping "Fabulous collection" might make the cut. A confounding clue, that was beautiful in retrospect, IMHO.
I like to point out from time to time, because I’m so impressed, that English is not CC’s native language, and here she is, creator of 85 NYT puzzles and many more elsewhere. (HAI)L (HAI)L, CC! Today she sprinkled the grid with loveliness -- JAMJARS, SCREEDS, NOSHED, MIMOSA, MEANDER – and bolstered the global theme with international flavor (PAOLO, EIN, KPH, ISIS, UAE, OSLO, OSSO, HABANERO, MAPO, ESO, MARINARA, ASTI). I liked the very short tale: I SEE / UNDO / REDO. Also lovely was the abutting schwa-enders cascading down the grid – MARINARA / MIMOSA / THETA. Then there was the sweet serendipity of the SI-SI theme answer being crossed by a backward SISI. Terrific idea for a theme, CC, and a terrific execution. Thank you once again, for a splendid outing!
"In his acceptance email, Ian Livengood mentioned that MAPO (3D) might be a bit tough for a Monday. I hope it didn’t cause anyone trouble. I ate a ton of MAPO tofu growing up." C.C., I trust that solvers not familiar with MAPO tofu will have no problem with any of the crossing letters. Was this a fun Monday? Yes! Yes!
@Barry Ancona Having had a tofu-free childhood, I thought of Maypo...which I also never ate but at least had heard of.
It was over too soon! (That's a compliment, not a complaint)
Do I like C.C.'s puzzles? Sí, sí. (For those who don't know, our constructor generally goes by C. C., but the NYT requires legal names in the byline. Odd, as its first editor, Margaret Farrar, was known to contribute puzzles under pseudonyms, most egregriously, "Anna Gram.")
@Steve L When you're the boss, you get to break the rules. See writings on the theory of the Unitary Executive.
Clever theme and extremely well constructed. This was the closest I have ever gotten to solving a Monday with just acrosses (maybe it helps that two of the themes were down.) TROLLS did me in—I couldn’t get GNOMES out of my head, and S-S, -AND and -ETS had too many possibilities. The fact is, KOA almost did me in for the whole puzzle—I had KIA and had to flyspeck. KOA and ROAN was a Natick for me, and I confess I thought Chappell was a last name. That’s all on me. Anyways, terrific Monday, it was SUPERCUTe which is handy because Supercuts is my favorite HAIrcut cHAIn (and the Japanese doubly agree).
How do people feel about 22A? I thought it would be the German “km/h”. At least that’s what the language of the clue is communicating, no? It was an easy fix with the down clue. I hope people aren’t throwing metals at weddings 😂
@Chaz L. It very recently showed up in another puzzle as also KPH. Maybe it's justified by the clue saying Germany, not Deutschland, signaling that it's looking for the abbreviation that's widely used in the U.S.
@Chaz L. And if you Google "european speedometer image," you will in fact find the units are km/h.
@Chaz L. This clue/answer has bothered me for ages in the Times crossword. KPH is a weird American-only “backronym” from MPH, and not a real unit designation. No speedometer in any metric-using country has anything other than km/h on the dial.
@Chaz L. KPH is an abomination. Speedometers, road signs etc say "km/h."
I'm sure this has been said before, but since this is the second time in a few weeks that O notice this: If the speed unit hint is associated with an Autobahn, it would make more sense for it to solve to km/h, amd not kph. No German in Germany would use kph.
@Masonbee I came to post this! It’s the second time in a few weeks that I’ve seen KPH as an answer with Autobahn in the clue. If done “correctly “ as KMH the down answer would have been METALS — so it’s not as though the P was absolutely necessary.
@Masonbee Maybe the editors will adopt "Data entry meas.", i.e., "keystrokes per hour".
@Masonbee thanks, came to comment on the thing
@Masonbee Because we “Americanize” everything.
As to the clue for 31-A, it really depends on what the meaning of Isis is. (Apologies to Bill Clinton)
LOUIE LOUIE Oh Yeah. That’ll be the ear worm for today then. Great Monday puzzle; breezy but with excellent clues and no stodgy fill, so of course it’s a CC offering. Lovely. Now, can someone explain KISSCAM for me? I know what it is, having seen it in many films etc, plus I guess it was the conveyance for the infamous Coldplay cheaters outing. But what I don’t get is, why? Why do you have it? What’s the connection with sport? Is it a specific sport or just arena sport in general? I cannot imagine such a thing working in the UK. You aim a camera at the average football crowd and a kiss is most definitely not the reaction you’d get!
Helen Wright, Of course, you aim a crossword puzzle at the average human being, and “doing it” is not the typical reaction you’ll get, either. But here we are! :)
@Helen Wright Can you imagine a KISSCAM at a Millwall FC home game? You would see more moons than astronomers have found around Saturn!
Ahh, C.C., what a very lovely — dare I say delicious — puzzle! I always especially love your comments related to food, and here we have a grid full of culinary delights. From LIME and HABANERO through MAPO tofu (which I adore); MARINARA specifically paired with [Mozzarella sticks], a diner-order tradition for my niece and me; sautéed YAM from the Midnight Diner episode I serendipitously watched just last night; an OLIVE for my dirty martini. (Later, I swear! With the OSSO [buco].) In the meantime, LET'S not forget ASTI [Spumante] in a MIMOSA with – and adjacent to – O.J.s, perhaps even one from Minute MAID. Muddle some MINT in mine, please. Not a morning drinker? MIMOSA PETALS are as bright as a buttercup. They'd make a pretty still-life over those JAM JARS and toast. I'm so glad we NOSHED together! None of it STANK, no need for a SCREED. SO THERE! // Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories, episode 8 <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6232990" target="_blank">https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6232990</a>/
Sweet potato and YAM are not the same thing, not even related botanically, but since Americans commonly conflate them, I suppose 62D is acceptable in crosswordland.
@NanuNanu Popeye didn’t just eat spinach; he ate sweet potatoes, too. That’s why he always said, I YAM what I YAM.
@NanuNanu I knew someone was going to mention this! I can never remember what the difference is. I've read conflicting definitions, and the grocery stores can't keep it straight either. I just know I like the orange ones, not the yellow stringy ones.
How did the GEESE fly over the Himalayas? They went the in-formation, super-high way. (I know, I know… it 7D)
@JohnWM excellent! Love it! I’m tempted to say the V-formation might be more at home flying over Silly-cone Valley, or perhaps Honk Kong!
YES AND YES, a million times YES to a C.C. puzzle, in all the world's languages! But I'm a little sad that it was over too soon. I went slowly, enjoying it, but it still took me only 10 minutes and made me wish it went on. I almost felt nostalgic for when I first started solving a few years back and even a Monday would take me forever. Something like "Sound asleep?" would have found me in deep thought, having to get SNORE from the crosses, and then studying the connection between clue and entry before I'd learned about question marks, misdirects, and all that good stuff that makes NYT crosswords so special. And C.C.'s puzzles are always a treat, beautifully constructed, and made to be savored. Thank you so much for each and every one of them! (A song by the band YES would be the most appropriate for this puzzle, but Jon Anderson's voice is not a favorite of mine. And so I leave you with Pink Floyd instead) – <a href="https://youtu.be/KmIkJgHISMo?is=MJXGSyFeYyAwst8P" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/KmIkJgHISMo?is=MJXGSyFeYyAwst8P</a>
@sotto voce Pink Floyd is always a great choice. However, when I saw the theme, I flashed back to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. <a href="https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=exqCFoPiwpk&list=RDexqCFoPiwpk&start_radio=1&pp=oAcB0gcJCfkLAYcqIYzv" target="_blank">https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=exqCFoPiwpk&list=RDexqCFoPiwpk&start_radio=1&pp=oAcB0gcJCfkLAYcqIYzv</a>
@sotto voce I agree absolutely about a C.C. puzzle — and about Yes! (In fact I had to endure some Jon Anderson yesterday while my partner went down a YouTube rabbit hole that included Jon and Vangelis, that epitome of 80's synth rock...) @Warren And I agree absolutely with your flashback! I posted exactly the same just prior to this comment, replying to @Vaer. I debated a link to the mix, as you did, but LANDed on Maps instead — in an unreferenced attempt to tie into the puzzle.
Always a pleasure to solve a puzzle by CC. I did trip myself up a bit by spelling LOUIE as LOUIs and deciding that the theme answer was YES, YES, YES* without verifying. And here are a few too many Yeahs. <a href="https://youtu.be/nGbWU8S3vzs?si=RV6TthcxFAK4te2k" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/nGbWU8S3vzs?si=RV6TthcxFAK4te2k</a> *OT Shout-out to Meg Ryan.
@Vaer I read "a few too many Yeahs" and assumed a much more current band! <a href="https://youtu.be/oIIxlgcuQRU?is=zmmxIAAeKa7CQ6r_" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/oIIxlgcuQRU?is=zmmxIAAeKa7CQ6r_</a>
Doing the "Acrosses Only" challenge today and succeeded, although I couldn't remember the camping organization (KOA) for a while, and I thought the down clue might be referencing the "Knives Out" director RiAN Johnson. For those looking for a challenge on Mondays, this is a nice way to slow things down a bit. For others, there's the New Yorker puzzle, which offers its most challenging puzzle of the week on Mondays: <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/puzzles-and-games-dept/crossword/2026/08/17" target="_blank">https://www.newyorker.com/puzzles-and-games-dept/crossword/2026/08/17</a>
@The X-Phile We dig! (We dug for 75 minutes, which just made it even more satisfying when it finally came together)
@The X-Phile Aye aye, that's how I did it. The revealer itself was the trickiest clue for me, even though I had the theme answers. Managed to finish in a whisker under 25:00.
If you would like to try a "real" Erik Agard puzzle... <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/puzzles-and-games-dept/crossword/2026/08/17" target="_blank">https://www.newyorker.com/puzzles-and-games-dept/crossword/2026/08/17</a>
@Barry Ancona That was a workout! (I almost felt like one of those commenters who complain about obscure proper names (trivia?), but I got it done!)
@Barry Ancona Curious to know if you and Steve L and anyone else who does the Monday/Tuesday New Yorker puzzles, have noticed an easening over there, too. I used to find them very difficult, but now, not so much. I know I've improved my solving skills somewhat, but not that much. I think they've toned done the truly esoteric trivia.
@Barry Ancona I gave it about 5 minutes then hit reveal. My NYT streak never needs to know.
@Barry Ancona Nice one! After reading all the reactions to "cheating" in the Games Newsletter, and finding several recent puzzles difficult that others found easy, this one was a balm. It wasn't easy, but steadily approachable and I was able to solve with no outside help--although I couldn't remember whether the doctor's name was spelled with an E or an A. TIL that the book and the show use different spellings. But this extra treat was great for the end of a stressful day.
I wonder if the companion puzzle with revealer THATSANONO is already in production.
Driving on the Autobahn daily, obviously I know it is km/h. I noticed the error when I wondered why anyone would want to cover newlyweds in metals.
@Anna Exactly! I was so irritated by that one. Oh well.
I literally grinned when I came to mapo tofu—one of my favorite dishes. Plus Chappell Roan and a fun language based theme? Thanks for a fun puzzle Zhouqin!
Whoops, I mean “thank you C.C.” And thank you to the commenters who educated me!
50D [2016 prize for Bob Dylan] NOBEL Here's Bob Dylan's 2016 Nobel Lecture in Literature--all about his journey as a musician. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TlcPRlau2Q" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TlcPRlau2Q</a>
@Kurt congrats! My thumbs are no longer that fast or nimble 🤣
Wonderful to see a CC puzzle today! It's always a treat to see her name on a puzzle. (For newer players, our puzzle creator also goes by the initials CC, and she is a prolific and creative puzzler. You can also meet her in the comments sometimes!) This was a wonderful Monday puzzle, and just the right speed for me today. Several clues had no meaning for me, but I was able to get them from the crosses, and filed them in my mental file box. (My husband says, as we get older, we need to go into the cul-de-sac of our memories to find things we thought we'd forgotten. It just takes longer.) I know there are people who will cringe at the term "yam" but c'mon folks, we're not creating a recipe, we're doing a puzzle. You don't have to eat it. (Just mix some butter with cinnamon and brown sugar, then apply to your colorful tuber and enjoy. You won't care how it's spelled.)
@Marlene I loved your comments. Especially the wonderful idea of having to go into the cul-de-sac of our memories as we get older. I am finding it hard to remember names lately. It scares me, friends tell me it happens to them too. Doing crosswords every day helps to reassure me that I'm still functioning, at least adequately if not quite on all cylinders. I really enjoyed the puzzle too :-)
What a perfect C.C. puzzle, thank you Ms. Burnikel’
Are we still calling hotel workers "maids"? I thought they were now called "housekeepers" or cleaners or other professional names. Many of them are men.
@jennieIn the Middle East 70-80% of hotel workers are men
@jennie I have a "friend" with whom I email regularly who always refers to her house cleaner, who comes to her house bi-weekly, as the maid. I have never learned this woman's name. It really eats at my craw; I find it demeaning. I also have a house cleaner, and always refer to her by name. (I put the word "friend" in quotes because of the way the email chain started, and I wouldn't be her friend in a different world.)
poem made from words in today’s puzzle a/ the arctic birds circled the volcano as in prayer in wild rants in languages dormant the fjord d/ asleep with the earth tossed…with a sweeping a/ snore ‘yes-yes…i see… i must see”
My new kitten had her first vet appointment today and was so scared but was brave when she got her vaccines. So I tried to be as brave during the monday and beat my average my 10 minutes. Thank you for the inspiration, Neshe
My late and brilliant horticulturist friend would be at pains to remind us: Although often confused in US supermarkets, yams and sweet potatoes are entirely different, unrelated plants with distinct physical traits, tastes, and botanical families. Virtually all orange-fleshed roots sold as "yams" in American grocery stores are actually sweet potatoes. Learn more at: <a href="https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=yam+vs.+sweet+potato&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8" target="_blank">https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=yam+vs.+sweet+potato&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8</a>
@Mike I'll say it here, and hope it covers all the previous iterations of this complaint. Knowledge is when you are aware that tomatoes are fruit. Wisdom is when you know not to put them in a fruit salad. Our "sweet potatoes" are not the yams that West African enslaved people knew from their old lands; they are a different species. But they called our sweet potatoes "yams," and it stuck. In our ethnically diverse supermarkets, true yams are sold as "ñame," sometimes rendered confusingly as "name," based on what the Spanish, well, name. For the vast majority of the population, sweet potatoes and yams are the same thing, the staple of Thanksgiving dinners. Google "yams" and click on Shopping, and here's what you'll find: <a href="https://tinyurl.com/43zfj29s" target="_blank">https://tinyurl.com/43zfj29s</a> Note that there are many brands of sweet potatoes that are prominently called yams. Loose fresh tubers are called "sweet potatoes (yams)." The other vegetable is called "Ghana yams" or "African yam tubers." Some of the true yams are called "yams," but so are sweet potatoes (and to a much greater degree). A "yam" is now defined in the dictionary as either the African tuber or the sweet potato. <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yam" target="_blank">https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yam</a> <a href="https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/yam" target="_blank">https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/yam</a> <a href="https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/yam" target="_blank">https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/yam</a> This is a ship that has sailed. Sometimes when the people have spoken, the pedants have to listen. After all, no one thinks a hot dog is made from dogs.
Speaking of 15A [Italian "Paul"], here's a book I found by the popular constructor PAOLO Pasca, "Crossword Puzzles for Kids: A Fun and Challenging Puzzle Book." <a href="https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B088SZ97TZ?ccs_id=fa148424-816c-4948-9dad-072c50370b65" target="_blank">https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B088SZ97TZ?ccs_id=fa148424-816c-4948-9dad-072c50370b65</a>
lucky13, Perhaps you'd like to try one of his puzzles for adults: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/crosswords/game/daily/2023/11/16" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/crosswords/game/daily/2023/11/16</a>
...and Gibraltar as a girl where I was a Flower of the mountain yes when I put the rose in my hair like the Andalusian girls used or shall I wear a red yes and how he kissed me under the Moorish wall and I thought well as well him as another and then I asked him with my eyes to ask again yes and then he asked me would I yes to say yes my mountain flower and first I put my arms around him yes and drew him down to me so he could feel my brεαsts all perfume yes and his heart was going like mad and yes I said yes I will Yes. (I wish there was a Ulysses reference in this puzzle.) When I watched news on TV or read the local paper, neither of which I've done in years, I'd see mention of the annual Dapper Dan Dinner, always at some old-timey downtown club, with photos and footage of big beefy grinning middle aged men in padded dacron suits patting each other on the back, as they lifted their mugs to salute the Dapper Dan Man of the Year, voted as the biggest, beefiest, most ill-fitting suit-owning, with a heart that pumped pure gold, dapperest most polyesterized dude Pittsburgh would ever see the likes of til the following year. There's nothing I miss more than reportage of that banquet. (I always thought he must have been a Pittsburgh dandy in times of yore, but now I know that Dapper Dan is a mythological creature known across the globe, so this puzzle has been quite enlightening). Also, plus one for [Sound asleep?]!
@john ezra Perhaps a Dublin and/or Joyce-themed puzzle for the week of Bloomsday (next one: Wednesday, 06/16/2027).
I sense that the number of comments has fallen in the last week or so. I may be wrong, and there may be rational explanations (like prolific commenters such as @Andrzej taking a holiday) but i personally have a nagging suspicion that it is because of the redesign of the NYT app. You can get a third page easily enough via the standalone Games App, but there is no easy way of finding this page if you’re on the NYT app — on an iPhone anyway (my personal preference). I love the vibe here, and i think we have some great repartee. Long may it continue. Am i worrying unduly?
@Petrol arrrgh spellcheck! “You can get a third page” should say “You can get to this page”!
@Petrol I’m with you. I find the new layout as it appears on my iPad intensely annoying. Yes, it is partly why I come here less than I used to. Far from the enjoyment I used to get scrolling the comments daily over a cuppa, I now only bother if I want to post and will then spend a few minutes scrolling around. The inability to toggle between this page and the puzzle feels like an unnecessarily belligerent move from the IT bods. What was the point? End of SNIT (but not in my head)
@Petrol I don’t mind the redesign. What I do mind is being asked to rate it every day now, despite doing so just to close the pop-up every time.
@Petrol I think you're right, that the change to the app has reduced engagement in the column. Not the only factor but contributory. The best workaround seems to be to keep the wordplay column bookmarked in your browser, and toggle between the app and your browser. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/daily-crossword-column" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/spotlight/daily-crossword-column</a> Just reporting what others have said, I don't use the apps.
@Petrol Count me as one who doesn't visit the comments any more, in no small part because of the Comments redesign — though it's been a few months, and not related to any app redesign. (I use mobile web.) Visiting for the first time in a long time today, because this sweet puzzle pushed me past my disinclination — and yes (or YES) there is some great repartee and I often enjoy the vibe here. Thanks for helping me see both sides! You may "see" me return sooner than later. :)
Set out to solve this one using only the Across clues. Sailed through the grid, got all the long entries, got the theme and the revealer, and ... then spent about 15 minutes completely stumped by _RO__ for "Doll with neon hair". GROGU? FRODO? No name I could think of worked along with the three vertical entries. Unable to conjure up anything better, I went with TROLL---and was quite surprised when I heard music. Finished in 28:36, but it felt really good.
@Xword Junkie I accomplished the "Acrosses only" challenge today, as well. For me, the two stumbling blocks were K_A for the camping chain, and the revealer itself. I knew it was going to be YES-something or something-YES, but it took me a while to see that it was YES AND YES!
Louie Louie is sung at Mariner home games during 7th inning stretch except in 2024 and 2025 when some objected to the lyrics. Few know the lyrics though.
Mapo tofu sounds like a Quebec invention. I imagine that at least one person has tried grilled tofu with a maple syrup marinade. Nice Monday puzzle.
@Esmerelda And I was right. Here's the recipe from the omnipresent Ricardo: <a href="https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/10686-crispy-maple-tofu" target="_blank">https://www.ricardocuisine.com/en/recipes/10686-crispy-maple-tofu</a>
Fun Monday puzzle. Always glad to see a C.C. and wasn't disappointed today. And was close to finishing before I finally caught on to the theme. Nice touch. And, a somewhat appropriate puzzle find today. A Thursday from June 3, 2021 by Kyra Wilson and Sophia Maymudes. The reveal in that puzzle was "DOUBLEDOWN" and that described all the theme answers. They were all downs and each of them had a double rebus of the same letter in each square. Some examples: (DD)(AA)(TT)(EE)(SS) (the implication being 'double dates.' And a couple of others: (AA)(GG)(EE)(NN)(TT) (OO)(VV)(EE)(RR) Here's that link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=6/3/2021&h=22d" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=6/3/2021&h=22d</a> ....
@Rich in Atlanta And one more. A Monday from May 27, 2013 by Doug Peterson. All the theme answers in that one were downs, and the 'reveal' was DOUBLEDOWN. Some of those answers: DURANDURAN WALLAWALLA GOODYGOODY LOUIELOUIE KNOCKKNOCK Here's that link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=5/27/2013&h=31d" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=5/27/2013&h=31d</a> I'm done. ....
One more puzzle find. A Thursday from December 9, 2021 by Alexander Liebeskind. Theme answers in that one: LALALANDING GREENBOOKING JURASSICPARKING KNIVESOUTING KILLBILLING Here's that link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=12/9/2021&h=18a" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=12/9/2021&h=18a</a> .....
@Rich in Atlanta It is fine to recommend puzzles from the archive--I do it fairly often. Not so cool to include spoilers.
Thanks for a really fun puzzle today, not frustrating but still crunchy in spots. I know this constructor has always given us great puzzles, no matter what day of the week they get published on.
Delightful. The only way that 3D troubled me was by making me hungry.
Not a fan of OSLO being clued as "Capital with fjord tours." My understanding is that there are no true fjords in Oslo; the fjords we all think of are several hours away. The word "fjord" in Norwegian can refer to a bunch of different waterways, but those aren't actual fjords. To me, this is an example of a clue that's trying too hard to be different, and by doing so, sacrifices clarity. Now if "Capital with fjord tours" had led to KRONE, I would have thought it was a great clue.
@Bradley As someone living in Oslo, I can assure you: There is definitely a fjord here! “Fjord” has a specific meaning - it is an inlet of water carved out by a glacier during the Ice Age.
@Bradley Martin is right, but you're not wrong. Oslofjord is certainly a fjord in ordinary geographic usage, and Oslo sits at its inner end. But you have a point about the geology: Oslofjord isn't a classic glacially carved fjord in the strict sense; it follows an ancient fault/rift valley that was later shaped by glaciation. So the crossword clue is fair, as it's, “Capital with fjord tours,” not “Capital adjoining a textbook example of a glacially excavated U-shaped marine inlet.”
@Bradley A few years ago I took a Norwegian Fjords cruise (not on Norwegian Cruise Lines, thank goodness) and Oslo wasn't anywhere near where the cruise went, which was much further north.
KOA crossed with ROAN was a natick for me. Never heard of MAPO tofu either. Otherwise a Monday.
A fun puzzle although I couldn't figure out what SOT HERE was until after the puzzle was solved. It reminded me of a sign we once saw: "Do not remove alcoholic from patio."
Loved the theme! It took me a second to put it together but it helped me with DAPPERDAN. Fun Monday puzzle! Rating: 9/10
Various earworms have already been suggested. Adding Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, old school: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HKiSIWGyJw" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HKiSIWGyJw</a> and yip yip yow <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9Gj3maiYT4" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9Gj3maiYT4</a>
Going full steam ahead until I hit 48D/53A, of which I'd heard of neither. Nothing a quick search didn't fix but disappointing for a Monday :( And yes I have noticed it's a United States publication
@Ged The kids are listening to Chappell ROAN in Australia. Her signature song, “Pink Pony Club”placed higher on the charts (#2 vs. #4) in Australia than in the US. That might be a generational issue.
@Ged What do you get when you cross a modern alt-pop singer with a chain of campgrounds? A blue-star Monday!
@Ged Well, I'm from the USA, but I too got done in by that crossing. And on a Monday, sigh.