Benjamin Ashford|Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's crossword puzzle, Cross My Heart (Freestyle)

There are Benjamin Ashfordspoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Cross My Heart (Freestyle)

Constructor: Rafael Musa

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• ISAAK (2D: "Wicked Game" singer Chris) "Wicked Game" is a 1989 song from Chris ISAAK's album, Heart Shaped World. The song was featured in the 1990 movie Wild at Heart. There are two music videos for "Wicked Game," one that was filmed in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, and another that features Laura Dern and Nicolas Cage in scenes from Wild at Heart.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• UTAH (4A: Bryce Canyon's state) and SLC (14D: Capital of 4-Across, for short) Bryce Canyon is the centerpiece of Bryce Canyon National Park in southwestern UTAH. The distinctive feature of Bryce Canyon is its abundance of geological features called hoodoos. UTAH's capital, Salt Lake City – SLC, for short – is located in north central UTAH.

• NOTE (15A: "___ to self…") "NOTE to self…" is a phrase I use often. And yes, I'm often talking out loud to myself when I use it. When I was a teenager, a wise older woman told me, "It's okay to talk to yourself. It's even okay to answer yourself. You know you're in trouble when you ask, 'What did you say?'"
• LIRA (28A: Turkish currency) Turkey is a country mostly located in West Asia (a part of the country extends into Southeast Europe). The capital of Turkey is Ankara, and its currency is the Turkish LIRA.
• SIAMESE (29A: Blue-eyed cat breed) The SIAMESE cat, known for its distinctive features – almond-shaped blue eyes, triangular ears, short hair, and slender body – is one of the most popular cat breeds in the world. My calico cat, Willow, has green eyes, unlike her feline cousins, the SIAMESE. One of the places Willow likes to lay is on my desk between my keyboard and monitor. From this vantage point she can carefully monitor my activity.

• SLEDGE (31A: "We Are Family" group Sister ___) "We Are Family" was released in 1979 and became Sister SLEDGE's signature song. Thank you to this clue for the "We Are Family" earworm. "We are family / I got all my sisters with me / We are family / Get up everybody and sing..."
• SLAV (34A: Eastern European person) SLAVs are a group of people who speak any of the SLAVic languages: Russian, Belarusian, Ukranian, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Serbo-Croatian, and Slovene. The SLAVic people are the largest ethnographic-linguistic group in Europe.
• SNL (35A: "Weekend Update" show) Weekend Update is a satirical news sketch on Saturday Night Live (SNL). Chevy Chase was the first Weekend Update anchor, in 1975. It is the longest-running recurring sketch on SNL.
• DOG-EAR (39A: Fold down, like the corner of a book page) Ouch, it hurt me a little bit just to read this clue. I admit that in the past I have used an occasional DOG-EAR to mark my place, but I've managed to break myself of this habit. Instead, I use the flap of the book jacket to mark my place, or my favorite impromptu bookmark, an unused Kleenex.
• FOG (51A: Karl the ___ (San Francisco weather phenomenon)) FOG is a common weather occurrence in the Bay Area of California. The people of San Francisco have named their FOG Karl. The practice began in 2010 when an anonymous person began a social media account (on Twitter, which is now X) for Karl the FOG (who is named after the giant in the movie Big Fish).
• TRIP (53A: "Bad was the blood of the song in the cab on your first ___ to L.A." ("Invisible String" lyric)) "Invisible String" is a 2020 song by Taylor Swift. It is from her eighth studio album, Folklore. "Bad was the blood of the song in the cab / on your first TRIP to L.A. / You ate at my favorite spot for dinner / Bold was the waitress on our three-year TRIP / Getting lunch down by the Lakes / She said I looked like an American singer."
• IKEA (61A: Retailer with POANG chairs) IKEA's POÄNG chairs are made of wood and are designed such that the chair has a slight swing to it, giving a sense that the chair is rocking. The chair was originally named "Poem," but the name was changed alongside a redesign in 1992.
• POMP (62A: ___ and circumstance) The phrase "POMP and circumstance" is used to describe impressively formal ceremonies. It's fitting then, that a song often used for graduation processionals is a  section of POMP and Circumstance March No. 1 in D - one of five marches composed by Sir Edward Elgar between 1901 and 1907. The song was first played at a graduation in 1905 at Yale University when Edward Elgar was given an honorary doctorate of music.
• ASMR (64A: ASMR stands for autonomous sensory meridian response, and refers to a tingling sensation beginning at the scalp and moving down the back of the neck and the spine. ASMR may be triggered by auditory or visual stimuli, and some people are more susceptible to the experience than others. There are many YouTube videos designed to induce ASMR. 
• PERSIA (43D: Old name for Iran)  It was in 1935 that the Shah of PERSIA (Reza Shah) requested the country be referred to as Iran rather than PERSIA. In 1959, Reza Shah's son decided that the names PERSIA and Iran could be used interchangeably in formal correspondence, but Iran is the name that is generally used.

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

CROSS MY HEART (Freestyle): There's no theme today, as this is a freestyle, or themeless, puzzle. CROSS MY HEART is a nod to BELIEVE ME (18D: "It's the truth!").

Although Rafa occasionally makes a themed puzzle for us, his specialty is themeless puzzles. This one is filled with great entries like GENIUSES, LOVE POEM, and SUREFIRE, just to name a few. In addition to the clues and answers I've highlighted above, I also enjoyed the reference to a drama LLAMA and clueing SLEEPOVER as [31D: Overnight hangout]. I can also count on Rafa for Taylor Swift and cat references. Thank you, Rafa, for this delightful puzzle (and happy birthday!).

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