My time: 16:10, about a minute slower than average. UGH. By definition, I guess they can't all be faster than average, although in my defense I washed my hands while not noticing the timer was still going.
Theme: The Ben Franklin adage TIME IS MONEY. Four phrases that end in time have that word taken out and replaced with a money word that fits with the first part of the original time phrase. So "Cheat on, say" is two-time, but it becomes TWO CENTS.
The one that made it all click first was "rough patch," meaning hard time, in the puzzle as HARD CASH. I wish that had been clued a little better, like maybe "serious stretch in prison." My favorite themed clue is "when many people solve crosswords" — in their spare time, which is in the puzzle as SPARE CHANGE.
I had a few wrong answers. For "Cinemax competitor" I put *HBO but it's TMC. For "price per piece" I put *ITEM COST but it's UNIT COST. For "org.? What org.?" I put *OSS but it's NSA.
"Becoming new, in a way" had me completely stumped. It's WANING, as in becoming a new moon.
Apparently a double magnum bottle holds three LITERs.
I don't like HAH HAH for "everybody's a comedian." I had *HAR HAR, which I think conveys the sarcastic tone much better.
There have been a lot of Ritas in the puzzle over the years, but I don't think British pop star Rita ORA has appeared on this blog. She's a singer with a #1 hit and has done some minor acting. I am not hip to the youths' musics of today.
"Sony console of the 2000s, for short" is PSP, or PlayStation Portable. It kind of looks like a Switch.
Bach wrote between 150 to just under 200 (sources vary) CANTATAs, or vocal pieces. By Bach's time (1685-1750), cantatas were generally works that contained several movements or distinct sections with tempo and key changes. If a work did not feature a solo voice at any point, it was usually called a motet instead of a cantata.
ATM maker NCR was in the puzzle as recently as August 15, but I had forgotten it completely.
The yellow gems called CITRINES appeared on September 20. Today it's clued as "gemstones resembling topaz."
Clever clues: "'It' factor?" is HORROR. "Core components, for short" is ABS, as in your torso's core. (I was thinking about school and put *ABC, even though I knew it wasn't quite right.) "44 years?" is a very recondite clue for OBAMA ERA. (I hope in the future some enterprising crossword creator uses "45 years?" as a clue for TRUMPSTER FIRE.)
Whew, this one was a toughie, mostly because of that theme and its improperly defined clues. It's good to be challenged, THOUGH. Otherwise you get complacent and SPOILT.
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