Saturday, July 24, 2021, Adam Aaronson and Ricky Cruz

Once again, today, I had to go backwards a little in order to finish. Things went along slowly but surely in all areas except the NW, where I had entered telEPHONE quite confidently for "One might be off the hook." I had INESSENCE (At bottom) and PDAS (Palm products, for short), although I worried that the latter might be too easy for a Saturday and took it out several times. My real problem was that I am not familiar with WHITECLAW (Popular brand of alcoholic seltzer) and I didn't know the term WHIPS (Fancy cars, in modern slang), so I was in a real fix. Finally, I took out the "tele" part of 14-Across and guessed WHITECLAW, and then it all came together.

It me.

Interesting to learn the first name of Soichiro HONDA. We drove HONDAs for many years, until the Civic became more of a muscle car than an economy car and we had to look to other brands. Sad.

I don't think SANER is quite right for "More with it," but elsewhere, I enjoyed the three French answers, ENTRE, TRES, and the amusingly clued ETAT (French word whose plural is its English translation backward). COINKYDINK (Happenstance, cutely) made me laugh out loud, because Frannie and her sister love to use that word. 

Loved the clues for NOTETAKER (Record producer?) and TATTOOINK (Stuff that's hard to get off your chest?). I am slightly troubled by the clue for ANCHOVY, though. I don't like imagining that there are Caesar salads without anchovies. What's the point?

"Hallus, less formally" (BIGTOE) doesn't fool me anymore. And speaking of that, have you all watched "The Twelfth Man?" I'd explain why those things are related, but it would be TMI.

For me, there was a little too much THEESPYS, MARIOKART, WHITECLAW, and NBAPLAYER for it to move into the upper echelon of puzzle solves, but still it was a solid, challenging Saturday, and that'll do.

- Horace