Monday March 4th 2019, NY Times Crossword

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Time: 8:52
Monday Average: 8:21
Best Monday: 4:10

I entered almost nothing on my first pass through the acrosses, which gave me a bit of a scare for a Monday. Fortunately, you can always count on finding an ASEA ("Between ports") in any given crossword, so I had something to build off. I didn't WHOMP this puzzle by any stretch, but I managed.

I suppose it's a "Starts with B" themed crossword, which doesn't really require a revealer. So, we get B MINOR MASS (needed most crosses for this one), BEA ARTHUR (her name is not automatic for me, but it'll come eventually), BEE STINGS (sure), and BE YOURSELF, clued as "Bit of advice to the insecure." As a member of the Insecure, I can assure you that this advice, while well meaning, accomplishes absolutely nothing. How, exactly, do I be myself?

I hadn't heard of PONE, which is apparently unleavened cornbread in the form of flat oval cakes. Although it's clued as southern food, I'm told it's not out of place in rural Indiana either.

I don't know if I'll ever be happy to see AFL-CIO, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, in the crossword. Maybe it doesn't RILE me so much anymore, but it's not remotely exciting as an answer. 

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