Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Down Time

There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Down Time

Constructor: Dena R. Witkes

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Comments from Today’s Crossword Constructor

Dena: This is my first themed puzzle in USA Today and another opportunity to learn fun facts from the editing team! 9D and 24D clues were both new to me and fall into the "good to know" category. I appreciated being able to keep the clues I wrote for 13A and 44A as a nod to fellow Gen Xers and especially enjoyed racking my brain for a worthy clue for 28D.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• TALLER (13A: "I wish I was a little bit ___..." (Skee-Lo lyric)) "I wish I was a little bit TALLER," is a line from the song, "I Wish" by rap artist Skee-Lo. "I Wish" is the title track from Skee-Lo's 1995 debut studio album.
• ADULTS (16A: People never seen in "Peanuts") This clue made me smile! In the Peanuts comic strips by Charles M. Schulz, ADULTS are never seen and rarely heard. In the animated adaptations of the comic strips, when ADULTS are heard, the sound is always the same, the now iconic muted trombone sound "mwa, mwa, mwa, mwa..." Charles Schulz said, "I usually say that [ADULTS] do not appear because the daily strip is only an inch and a half high, and they wouldn't have room to stand up."
• DATES (19A: May 10th and July 2nd, e.g.) A nice touch to choose today's date as one of the examples here.
• DUBAI (29A: Burj Khalifa's city) The Burj Kalifa, located in DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (UAE), is the world's tallest building. It is just over half a mile tall (2,717 feet), and has 163 floors. The Burj Khalifa features 57 elevators and 8 escalators.
• REF (32A: Professional whistle blower) and UMP (50A: Strike caller) I enjoyed that the clues for both of these officials were written in a way that might hint at a corporate whistle blower or a labor strike.
• NORAH (39A: "Come Away With Me" singer Jones) Come Away With Me is the 2002 debut album by NORAH Jones. The album won Grammy Awards for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album.
• PFLAG (44A: LGBTQ+ advocacy group mentioned in "Reality Bites") Reality Bites is a 1994 movie starring Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, and Ben Stiller. We saw REALITY BITES as an answer in the June 7, 2024 crossword. And yes, PFLAG, a national organization for LGBTQ+ people, their parents, families, and allies, is mentioned in the movie.
• QUA (46A: Sine ___ non) "Sine QUA non" is a Latin phrase whose literal translation is "without which, not." The phrase is used to refer to something that is absolutely indispensable or essential. For example, one might say, "Interesting clues are the sine QUA non of entertaining crossword puzzles."
• ASHE (49A: Namesake of ESPN's Courage Award) I have previously written about tennis great Arthur ASHE, for whom the ESPN Courage Award is named. The Arthur ASHE Courage Award is presented as part of the ESPY Awards to individuals or groups who "reflect the spirit of Arthur ASHE, possessing strength in the face of adversity, courage in the face of peril and the willingness to stand up for their beliefs no matter what the cost." The 2023 Arthur ASHE Award was given to the U.S. Women's Soccer Team in recognition of their courage in fighting for equal pay.
• THA (53A: "J to ___ L-O! The Remixes") Jennifer Lopez released her remix album, J to THA L-O!, in 2002. The album contains remixes of songs from the singer's first two albums, On the 6 (1999) and J.Lo (2001).
• MOHS (58A: Talc-to-diamond hardness scale) The MOHS scale of mineral hardness characterizes scratch resistance of minerals on a qualitative scale from talc (one) to diamond (ten).
• TAZ (65A: Devilish toon) The Tasmanian Devil, or TAZ for short, is a Looney Toons cartoon character. The character was designed after the animal of the same name that is native to Australia, although the Tasmanian Devil's only real similarity to its animal namesake is its ravenous appetite. The word "toon" in the clue, the shortened form of the word "cartoon," alerts solvers that the answer will be the shortened form TAZ.
• TANTRA (67A: Hindu text) In Hinduism, the TANTRAs are scriptures dealing with techniques and practices aimed at expanding one's consciousness and channeling divine energy. The tantric texts are generally in the format of a dialogue between god and goddess.
• WES (69A: Jazz guitarist Montgomery) WES Montgomery (1923-1968) was a self-taught jazz guitarist who was known for an unusual technique of striking the strings with his right thumb instead of a pick.
• SLAYER (70A: Buffy, for one) Specifically, Buffy is a SLAYER of vampires, and the title character of the TV series Buffy the Vampire SLAYER (1997-2003).
• ELLEN (4D: Astronaut Ochoa) ELLEN Ochoa was the first Hispanic woman to go to space. She was part of a 1993 mission on the Space Shuttle Discovery. Earlier this year, ELLEN Ochoa was awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom.
• ODE (9D: "___ to the Loop-de-Loop" (Clint Smith poem)) Clint Smith is a staff writer for The Atlantic. His book, How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America won the 2021 National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction. "ODE to the Loop-de-Loop" is from Clint Smith's 2016 poetry collection, Counting Descent.
• IBEX (10D: Long-horned goat) The IBEX is a species of wild goat found in Eurasia, North Africa, and East Africa. Both male and female IBEX have large horns that curve backwards and have knobby ridges.
• SARI (11D: Dress worn with a choli) A choli is a fitted blouse worn with a SARI. 
• AUG (24D: National Clown Day mo.) National Clown Day is the first Saturday in August, which this year will be AUG. 3. The day is part of International Clown Week – the first seven days of August – celebrated to recognize clowns, of course.
• PUN (28D: "Whiteboard are remarkable," e.g.) My response to this clue was, "HAH!" (40D: "Funny!")
• BTS (64D: "Butter" K-pop band) The BTS song, "Butter," begins, "Smooth like butter / like a criminal undercover..." "Butter" was released in 2021, and was the second BTS song fully recorded in English.

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• GLUTEN FREE (3D: Like a diet that avoids wheat)
• ASK YOUR FATHER (14D: Frustrated mother's retort, maybe)
• AIR QUALITY (30D: Measure of environmental pollutants affected by wind, temperature, and humans)

The last word of each vertical – i.e. DOWN – theme answer can precede the word TIME to create a new phrase. We have FREE TIME, FATHER TIME, and QUALITY TIME.

The word DOWN in today's title alerts us to look for the theme in the vertical, or DOWN answers. There we find that the last, or DOWNmost, word of each theme answer can be paired with the other word in today's title, TIME. This is a classic USA Today theme type. Thank you, Dena, for this enjoyable puzzle.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles

• USA TODAY’s Daily Crossword Puzzles
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