Saturday, April 15, 2023, Kameron Austin Collins

Well, I have to AMEND my words, written only yesterday, about my few areas of expertise not showing up in puzzles. Today, we have "Nickname for France's Louis VI, with 'the'" - which, to be completely accurate is a bit outside my wheelhouse as his run was in the 12th century, but I recently read a couple of books about Eleanor of Aquitaine, and he and his apparently apt epithet (FAT) were mentioned therein. So, thanks to all that reading, I got to drop in one three-letter answer in a Saturday puzzle. Woot! :) 

In a related turn of events, I thought for sure I would be able to get "Field of computing" at 1A once I got a few Downs, but first of all, I didn't get any Down answers for quite some time (see below), and 12iii., as intended, I was lead astray by the clever clue. ADDRESSBAR is a different kind of field of computing than I had in mind. Ha! 

Also, I did know "Grp. influenced by the 1963 book 'The Feminine Mystique'" (NOW) thanks to my job, which helped me change my first guess of SNapPEAS to the correct SNOWPEAS ("Produce in pods). Finally, my career has some meaning. 

Also, how about the classic EEL obfuscated by the probably-obscure-to-most clue "Food traditionally eaten on Japan's Doyo no Ushi no Hi ('Midsummer Day of the Ox')"? That fact somehow slipped by me these past 50 years or so. 

Overall, for this solver, today's puzzle was a very good Saturday-level challenge. Some of my favorite C/APs were "Sketchy boardwalk offering?" (CARICATURE), "Note taker?" (THIEF) - nicely ambiguous clue - also, wasn't this a recent Wordle word?, and "Phone number?" (RINGTONE). MOTTO for State line?" was clever, but somehow I caught on to that one RILL quick. And, in the non-QMC category, how about "Sings about" (RATSON)? I think we can all agree that Mr. Collins is among today's crossword ARTISTES.  

I did have some trouble in the northwest. I stared at that blank stack of three ten-letter answers for a good five minutes until some correct guesses and a RESET or two helped me STITCH together the correct answers. After I finally broke through in the northwest, I thought things were GOINGRATES, but I did end up with a FWOE due to the group of unknown-to-me names in the mid-east (RHAMES, NORRIS, and RHONDA).  

Tangentially, I feel like there's a short story buried within the three answers DOYOUMIND, ICANTEVEN, and MEANINGWHAT? Discuss. :)

~Frannie.