LA TIMES CROSSWORD
ACROSS
1 Puzzle (out) 5 Synonymous 9 Software glitches 13 Leg joint 14 Slacks, slangily 15 Fall birthstone 16 Thing
17 Wag
18 Like an unswept
hearth 19 Watering hole where servers may wear leis
21 Animal Planet’s “Crikey! It’s the Irwins” co-star 23 Dead __ Scrolls 24 “The Memory of
Trees” singer 26 Youngsters 29 Quote
31 Linguist Chomsky 33 Org. concerned with “forever chemicals” 34 Language related
to Czech
36 SHO subsidiary 37 Yemeni port 38 Residence
39 Pal
41 F-150 maker 42 Catch
43 Spy-fi org. 44 Breathing room 46 Unceasingly, in
poetry
47 Policy pro 48 Home turf? 49 President __ 51 Pedicure targets 53 Saturn or
Mercury
56 Asia’s __
Peninsula 58 Verification tool for online alcohol retailers, e.g. 60 Not that
62 Way to go 64 Furniture retailer that sells FIXA tool kits 65 Remove from
power
66 Lip
67 Clockwork part 68 __ of life
69 “Clue” actress
Madeline 70 Systems of
principles
DOWN
1 Funny sketches 2 Loosen, as a
bow
3 *Act the mediator 4 Interstate rig 5 Tale
6 Craft for the first
couples cruise?
7 Chandon’s
partner
8 *Illinois alma mater of Ronald Reagan 9 Scrabble surface 10 Desserts flipped after baking, and what can be found in the answers to the starred clues 11 Exasperated cry 12 Underhanded 17 *”Malcolm in the
Middle” actress 20 __ test
22 Lip
25 Like the Dada
movement 27 Judith Weir
composition 28 Blondish
30 Tony winner
Judith 3/21/24 Wednesday’s Puzzle Solved 32 Astonished
letters 34 Subject of a late-night countdown 35 Also-ran 37 Three or four 40 Soccer star
Hamm
45 Let (up) 47 Cartoon frame 50 Officiate at a
cook-off, say 52 Like some
granola 54 First-stringers 55 Brings up 57 Jedi with an unusual speech pattern 59 Supermodel
Hadid
60 Small fry 61 “Ben-__” 63 Exasperated
cry
Dear Abby: I have been married for 28 years. Last year I was diagnosed with cancer. It was discovered because of a seizure I had at work. They put me in an ambulance, took me to the hospital and did a CT scan, which revealed my stage-4 cancer. Prior to this, my wife didn’t work, while I had a well-paying job. This instantly reversed for obvious reasons.
My wife was extremely attentive. She started taking me to all my appointments and spent a lot of time with me in the hospital on her days off. This was about a six-month ordeal, and long story short, when I saw my doctors last week, they announced that after 35 radiation treatments and seven chemo treatments, they can no longer find any visual evidence of the cancer. I was so thrilled I cried.
Since then, my wife has been drinking heavily and getting angry with me just about every night. I don’t know what’s going on with her or what to do. She’s the best woman I’ve ever met, and I don’t want to lose her, but she’s starting to become violent. Could you give me some advice?
Recovering But Confused
Dear Recovering: Your wife may be reacting to the trauma she suffered when you became ill, which meant she had to become the primary caregiver. This, however, does not excuse her excessive drinking and violent episodes. Of one thing I am certain: You MUST NOT allow the status quo to continue, regardless of how much you love her. She should be evaluated by her doctor to see if something is medically wrong with her. And the two of you need to get into counseling right away, and because she can’t handle her drinking, she may need to start rehab or join a self-help group.
Dear Abby: My 22-year-old stepdaughter has been receiving very large Venmo payments into her bank account. I know this because my husband, her father, is also on the account and I have access to it. We have asked her several times where the money is coming from. The first time, she lied and said it was from dog walking. (She has a history of lying.)
She has recently started claiming that her old “boyfriend” from four years ago – whom she broke up with because she found tons of photos of half-naked women on his phone – was sending her money. Abby, this isn’t $20 or even $100. It’s thousands of dollars EVERY month. Her ex was a delivery driver. No way can he make that much after-tax money. Where do you think she’s getting the money? I say sex, but my husband refuses to believe it. What should I do?
Suspicious In Texas
Dear Suspicious: I, too, suspect that your stepdaughter may be involved in something sex-related. She could be an escort, have found herself a sugar daddy, or be participating in a sex webcam show. She could also be involved in selling illegal drugs.
Because your husband refuses to believe his daughter would do anything illicit, for the sake of your marriage, take a step back. Wait to see what transpires. His daughter is an adult and is responsible for making her own decisions. Because she has trouble telling the truth, there is nothing you can do to help.
Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com.