QOD:  Life is like a dogsled team.  If you ain’t the lead dog, the scenery never changes.  ~ Lewis Grizzard (né Lewis McDonald Grizzard, Jr.; Oct. 20, 1947 ~ Mar. 20, 1994), American journalist and humorist

The Private Eye is on Your Trail.

17-Across. Pregame activity in a parking lot: TAILGATING.

25-Across. Cursor control on some older laptops: TRACKBALL.

36-Across. Like a place with free treats and a full water dish, presumably: DOG FRIENDLY.

50-Across. Wells Fargo rival: CHASE BANK.

And the unifier:

59-Across. Point to future plot developments, or a feature of 17-, 25-, 36-, and 50-Across: FORESHADOW.  The first word in each theme answer is another term for "shadowing" someone.  This theme caught me off guard at first.  The words Tail, Dog, and Chase, made we think we were looking at some type of animal, but how did Track fit into that?  Then it dawned on me, I was being Shadowed

Here's the Grid.

What else is in today's puzzle?

Across:

1. Snack (on): NOSH.  Today's Yiddish lesson.  To Nosh means to take a bite of food.

5. Muscle twitch: SPASM.

10. Endure: LAST.

14. Really feel yesterday's workout: ACHE.

15. Country singer Tucker: TANYA.  Tanya Denise Tucker (b. Oct. 10, 1958) was big in the country scene in the 1970s and 1980s.  She had her first big hit in 1972 at age 13 with her rendition of Delta Dawn.

16. Suspecting: ON TO.

19. Place in the overhead bin, say: STOW.

20. Disconnect from work, colloquially: UNPLUG.

21. "__ the season ... ": TIS.

23. "The Simpsons" bartender: MOE.

24. Silky semisynthetic fabric: RAYON.  A brief history of Rayon.

28. Oral health org.: ADA.  As in the American Dental Association.

29. Indigenous language with Dakota and Lakota dialects: SIOUX.

31. Charged particles: IONS.

32. Ulrich of Metallica: LARS.  Lars Ulrich (b. Dec. 26, 1963) is a Danish musician.  He is the drummer and a founding member of the heavy metal band Metallica.

34. Well-worn pencil: NUB.

35. London's __ Gardens: KEW.  Kew Gardens is a botanic garden in southwest London founded in 1759.  It claims to house the largest and most diverse botanical and mycological collections in the world. 

40. Language similar to Thai: LAO.  Thailand and Laos are neighboring countries.

41. Couple: TWO.

42. __-care: SELF.

45. Senior-year dance: PROM.

47. Hilarious folks: RIOTS.

49. "U slay me!": LOL.  Textspeak for Laughing Out Loud, or as some people think, Lots Of Love.

52. "Deck the Halls" plant: HOLLY.  'Tis the Season ...

54. Use oars: ROW.

55. Daily grind: RUT.

56. "The Situation Room" co-host Brown: PAMELA.  Pamela Ashley Brown (b. Nov. 29, 1983) is currently CNN's chief investigative correspondent and anchor.  Since March 2025, she has served, together with Wolf Blitzer, as the co-host of The Situation Room.

57. "Waterloo" pop group: ABBA.  The Swedish band was formed in 1972.  It  took its name by using the first initial of each member:  Agnetha Fältskog (b. Apr. 5, 1950), Björn Ulvaeus (B. Apr. 25, 1945), Benny Andersson (b. Dec. 16, 1946) and Anni-Frid Lyngstad (b. Nov. 15, 1945).  Agnetha was married to Björn. and Benny was married to Anni-Frid.

62. Small glass container: VIAL.

A Vile Vial.

63. Energy sources: FUELS.

64. California wine region: NAPA.

65. __ Grey tea: EARL.  I am not keen on Earl Grey tea.  The addition of Bergamot oil gives this tea its distinctive flavor.  The tea is named after Charles Grey, the 2nd Earl Grey (Mar. 13, 1764 ~ July 17, 1845),  He served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from November 1830 to July 1834.

66. Clown's perch: STILT.

67. Tiny: ITSY.

Down:

1. One with innate talent: NATURAL.

2. Anthem played at Blue Jays home games: O CANADA.  A shout out to our very own CanadianEh!

3. Boat-building spot: SHIPYARD.

4. Word of welcome: HELLO.

5. Male deer: STAG.

6. Butter square: PAT.

7. Singer DiFranco: ANI.  Ani DiFranco (née Angela Maria DiFranco; b. Sept. 23, 1970) has released more than 20 albums.  

8. Grammar subject: SYNTAX.  Syntax is the set of rules that govern how words, phrases, and symbols are arranged to form well-structured sentences.

9. Facetious response to "How did you do that?": MAGIC.

10. Part of LAX: LOS.  The Los Angeles airport code

11. Marvel superhero who shrinks to the size of a bug: ANTMAN.

12. Bar seats: STOOLS.

13. Spa handout: TOWEL.

18. Revs, as an engine: GUNS.

22. Hit the slopes: SKIED.

25. Guided visit: TOUR.

26. Add insult to injury: RUB IT IN.

27. Soup dishes: BOWLS.

30. Deets: INFO.  I need the Details!

33. Jam band highlights: SOLOS.

35. Pretzel shape: KNOT.

37. Fortnite enthusiast, e.g.: GAMER.

38. "Return of the Jedi" creature: EWOK.  Ewoks are the fictional species of small, furry, critters that are native to the forest moon of Endor in the Star Wars movies.

39. Gave quite an earful: YELLED AT.

43. Bounces clumsily: LOLLOPS.  Not to be confused with Lollipops.  According to Webster's Dictionary, "Lollop is an intransitive verb meaning to move or run in an awkward, unhurried, bounding, or rolling way."

44. Take off: FLYAWAY.

Flyaway hair

45. Extreme fear: PHOBIA.

46. Venue that sells shellfish: RAW BAR.

47. Squeal on: RAT OUT.

48. Iranian ruler until 1979: SHAH.  I just read Marjan Kamali's novel The Stationery Shop, which is about the 1953 uprising in Tehran.  The Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh was overthrown in a coup d'état that strengthened the rule of the Shah.

50. Really yen for: CRAVE.

51. Enthusiasts: BUFFS.

53. Muscat resident: OMANI.

56. Hissed "Hey!": PSST.

58. __-purpose flour: ALL.  Who knew there were so many types of flour.

60. Big name in camping gear: REI.  This company makes frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.  REI stands for Recreational Equipment, Inc.

61. Pipe bend: ELL.

חתולה

Tuesday, October 13, 2026

QOD:  To know one’s self is wisdom, but not to know one’s neighbors is genius.  ~  Minna Antrim (née Minna Thomas Antrim; b. Oct. 13, 1861 ~ 1950), American writer

You Think You're Feta Than Me?  We are in dairy country today where the first word of each theme answer is a type of cheese.

17-Across. Seth MacFarlane cartoon series: AMERICAN DAD.  American cheese was invented in the 1910s by James L. Kraft (né James Lewis Kraft; Dec. 11, 1874 ~ Feb. 16, 1953), the founder of Kraft Foods Inc.  He patented his manufacturing process in 1916.

26-Across. Conversation that might involve Jordan and LeBron: GOAT DEBATE.  Both Michael Jordan (b. Feb. 17, 1963) and LeBron James (b. Dec. 30, 1984) may be considered the Greatest Of All Time basketball players.  A brief history of Goat Cheese.

38-Across. Big lottery win: JACKPOT.  Jack cheese, also known as Monterey Jack, is a mild, semi-hard white cheese made from cow's milk.  What is the true origin of Jack Cheese?

52-Across. "Room" Best Actress Oscar winner: BRIE LARSON.  Everything you ever wanted to know about Brie Cheese, but were afraid to inquire.

60-Across. Green Bay Packers fans, or what 17-, 26-, 38-, and 52-Across have: CHEESE HEADS.  Note that the first part (or Head) of each phrase is a type of Cheese.

Here's the Grid:

I found this to be another challenging Tuesday puzzle.

Across:

1. Make red-faced: ABASH.

6. Feature of some Southern accents: TWANG.

A Twang so southern it is from New Zealand.

11. Bread with caraway seeds: RYE.  Yummers!  Rye bread with caraway seeds is a hearty, dense loaf featuring an earthy rye flavor paired with the distinct citrusy, peppery, and anise-like taste of caraway.

14. Like unhelpful hints: VAGUE.

15. Civic-minded brand?: HONDA.  Cute clue.

16. Snakelike fish: EEL.

19. Language in which "Baw pen nyang" means "It's nothing": LAO.  The language of Laos.

20. Ballpark snack: FRANK.

21. Hotel customer: GUEST.

23. Lane of "Superman": LOIS.

29. Promises: ASSURES.

31. Solemn acts: RITES.

32. Letter before lambda: KAPPA.  It's Greek to me.

33. Moral wrong: SIN.

34. Get a better loan rate, for short: RE-FI.  As in ReFinance.

37. __ out a living: EKE.

42. __ sum: bite-sized Chinese fare: DIM.  We went to a traditional Dim Sum at Maxim's Palace the last time we were in Hong Kong.  There were so many tempting dishes to select from.

43. Truly engrossed: RAPT.

45. Quaker possessive: THY.

46. Running track shapes, often: OVALS.

48. Seven, in Spanish: SIETE.  Today's Spanish math lesson.

50. Sea cow: MANATEE.  A shout out to our very own Manatee.

55. Take a day off, say: REST.

56. Baggy: LOOSE.

57. __-frutti: TUTTI.  Today's Italian lesson.  Tutti frutti roughly translates from Italian as all fruits.  It's also a Little Richard song.

59. Wine cask wood: OAK.

66. Carry-on screeners: Abbr.: TSA.  As in Transportation Security Administration.

67. Bridgestone products: TIRES.

68. Bright courtyards: ATRIA.  Today's Latin lesson.  The word atria is the Latin plural of atrium, meaning the central room or entrance hall of an ancient Roman house.

69. "Charlotte's Web" enclosure: STY.  The the backstory of Charlotte's Web.

70. Bowling score indicated by a slash: SPARE.

71. Used a keyboard: TYPED.

Down:

1. "Hacks" comedy writer Daniels: AVA.  Ava Daniels is the fictional character in the sit-com Hacks.  She was portrayed by Hannah Einbinder (b. May 21, 1995), who is the daughter of Laraine Newman (b. Mar. 2, 1952) of Saturday Night Live fame.

Laraine Newman with her daughter, Hannah

2. Impact sound: BAM.

3. The "A" of A/S/L: AGE.  Apparently this means Age, Sex, Location and was used in chat rooms.

4. "Let's catch some waves!": SURF'S UP.

5. Whodunit suspect: HEIR.

6. Marvel villain played by Josh Brolin: THANOS.  I am not up on my Marvel villains.  

7. Fictional chocolatier: WONKA.  As in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.  It as an adaptation of the book, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, by Roald Dahl (Sept. 13, 1916 ~ Nov. 23, 1990).

8. "On top of that ... ": AND.

9. Secrecy doc: NDA.  As in a Non-Disclosure Agreement.

10. Gizmo: GADGET.

11. Information on a movie poster: RELEASE DATE.

12. Baker's supply: YEAST.

13. Mexican corn dish: ELOTE.  Yummers!

18. Bird house?: CAGE.

22. App with a Women Drivers option: UBER.

23. L.A. NBAer: LAKER.

24. Honshu port city: OSAKA.  Honshu is the largest of the four main islands of Japan.  Osaka is the second largest city in Japan.

25. Server's query after a drink order, perhaps: IS PEPSI OKAY?  No, Pepsi is NOT okay.

27. Journey: TRIP.

28. T. rex, for one: DINO.

30. TV friend of Sheldon and Howard: RAJ.  A reference to The Big Bang Theory.  I never saw the attraction of this show, but it was very popular.

33. Cloud location: SKY.

35. Computer folder contents: FILES.

36. "Nothing for me, thanks!": I'M SET.

39. Flour for chapati and roti: ATTA.  This wheat has been making frequent appearances in the puzzles.

40. "Believe" diva: CHER.  It's hard to believe that Cher (née Cheryl Sarkisian; b. May 20, 1946) it 80 years old.

41. Heavy load: TON.

44. Formal neckwear: TIES.

47. Assortment: VARIETY.

49. Puts in office: ELECTS.  Election day is coming up.  I'll be glad when it's over.

50. Styling foam: MOUSSE.

51. Poker stake: ANTE.

52. Rorschach test shapes: BLOTS.

53. Cook in an oven: ROAST.

54. Pilot: STEER.

58. The one there: THAT.

61. __-hop music: HIP.

62. Slice of history: ERA.

63. Dada artist Jean: ARP.  Jean Arp (né Hans Peter Wilhelm Arp; Sept. 16, 1886 ~ June 7, 1966) used to make frequent guest appearances in the puzzles.

64. Monopoly cube: DIE.

65. Melancholy: SAD.

Don't be Sad the puzzle is completely.  Just provide us with your comments.

חתולה