Benjamin Ashford|Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword, But Daddy I Love Crosswords

There are Benjamin Ashfordspoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! But Daddy I Love Crosswords

Constructor: Rafael Musa

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• ORE (15A: Portland's state (Abbr.)) and STL (City on the Missouri-Illinois border, for short) I thought maybe the mention of these two cities would turn out to be bonus theme content, but alas, TAYLOR SWIFT's Eras Tour did not play in either Portland, Oregon (ORE.) or St. Louis (STL), Missouri.
• THE TORTURED (16A: With 35-Across, 2024 album that led to a new era in the ERAS Tour) and POETS DEPARTMENT (35A: See 16-Across) and TAYLOR SWIFT (55A: 16- and 35-Across artist) THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT is TAYLOR SWIFT's most recent studio album, released in April of this year. You might be aware that TAYLOR SWIFT is currently on tour. TAYLOR SWIFT launched the Eras Tour on March 17, 2023 in Glendale, Arizona. The tour is scheduled to conclude later this year, on December 8, in Vancouver, Canada. Each concert is divided into sections called "eras," each era representing one of TAYLOR SWIFT's albums. After the release of THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT, another era was added to the concert.
• PINT (21A: Unit for ice cream or beer) This is a fun clue. Ice cream and beer are, indeed, both sold in PINTs. Given a choice between the two, I will always choose a PINT of ice cream. How about you?
• LOS ALAMOS (31A: New Mexico town with government research labs) LOS ALAMOS, New Mexico is located near Santa Fe, and is the home of the LOS ALAMOS National Laboratory (LANL). One of sixteen research and development laboratories of the United States Department of Energy, LANL was established in 1943 as a top-secret site for designing nuclear weapons as part of the Manhattan Project. Since the end of the Cold War, LANL has focused on other projects.
• PCP (49A: Go-to-doctor, for short) PCP here is short for primary care physician.
• Bonus theme answers:
  • ARENAS (51A: Eras Tour venues)
  • STAN (53D: Person losing their freakin' mind at the Eras Tour)
• ERG (54A: Energy unit hidden in "energy") The name of this energy unit is derived from a Greek word meaning "work" or "task." In case you were wondering, an ERG is equal to 100 nanojoules.
• ART (1D: Kabuki, pottery, or drawing) Since this clue offers three examples of ARTs, it allows solvers to be successful even if they aren't familiar with all three. I am familiar with pottery and drawing, and know of kabuki because I learned about it from a previous puzzle. Kabuki is a classical form of Japanese theater that dates back to the 1600s.
• YTD (9D: Since Jan. 1) YTD = year-to-date
• COPING MECHANISM (10D: Strategy for dealing with a tough situation) This is a bit more tangential, but I'm also counting this as a bonus theme answer. TAYLOR SWIFT has said she uses her concerts as a COPING MECHANISM. Her fans don't appear to be complaining about that.
• PANAMA (21D: Country with a famous canal) PANAMA is a Central American country located on the isthmus of PANAMA, a strip of land that connects North and South America, and separates the Atlantic Ocean (specifically the Caribbean Sea) and the Pacific Ocean. The PANAMA Canal is 51 miles long, and cuts across the Isthmus of PANAMA, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Construction on the PANAMA Canal began in 1904, and the CANAL opened in 1914. An expansion project that was started in 2007 was completed in 2016. 
• ELLEN (23D: "GLOW" actress Wong) GLOW is a TV series about the 1980s syndicated women's professional wrestling circuit, Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW). ELLEN Wong plays recurring character, Jenny "Fortune Cookie" Chey.
• BOLT (24D: Leave quickly) and SIPS (25D: Drinks slowly) I enjoyed the quickly-slowly wording in this pair of consecutive clues.
• OPI (32D: Nail polish brand with the color (Bee)FFR) According to the OPI website, (Bee)FFR is "a bumbly yellow gel nail polish" that will give you "big bee energy with its soft hue and sunshine-y sheen."
• AFRO (52D: Prefix with "beat" or "futurism") AFRObeat is a music genre from Nigeria that combines aspects of Yoruba percussion, funk, and jazz. AFROfuturism is an artistic movement that explores the African American experience by combining elements of science-fiction, history, and fantasy.

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• THE TORTURED (16A: With 35-Across, 2024 album that led to a new era in the ERAS Tour)
• POETS DEPARTMENT (35A: See 16-Across)
• TAYLOR SWIFT (55A: 16- and 35-Across artist)

BUT DADDY I LOVE CROSSWORDS: This is a TAYLOR SWIFT appreciation puzzle, and the title is a nod to "BUT DADDY I LOVE Him," a song on THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT.

If I did not already know that today's constructor is a huge fan of TAYLOR SWIFT, this puzzle would have clued me in! The title of this puzzle could just as easily be "An Ode to TAYLOR SWIFT." (Well, okay, it couldn't have been because TAYLOR SWIFT is an answer in the puzzle, but humor me.) Today's puzzle reminded me of the June 30, 2024 puzzle, which was also a TAYLOR SWIFT tribute puzzle, and was titled "THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT." In addition to all of the TAYLOR SWIFT content, I also enjoyed the grid-spanner KEEP ON KEEPING ON (3D: Continue chugging along). Thank you, Rafa, for this delightful puzzle.

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