Ethermac Exchange-Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Key West

There are Ethermac Exchangespoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Key West

Constructors: Shannon Rapp & Will Eisenberg

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Comments from Today’s Crossword Constructors

Shannon & Will: We got the idea for this puzzle during a vacation to the Florida Keys a few months ago. As we drove back to Miami, we came up with several crossword ideas that we're now seeing come to fruition this summer. We'd like to dedicate this puzzle to Henry, a sea turtle we met who's half-blind and maybe a century old, and to the polydactyl cats roaming the Hemingway House & Museum.

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• DOESN'T (35D: "The World ___ Require You" (Rion Amilcar Scott story collection)) Rion Amilcar Scott is a writer whose work has been featured in The New Yorker and The Kenyon Review. The World DOESN'T Require You (2019) is his second published collection of short stories. His debut short story collection, Insurrections, was published in 2016.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• TRIS (6A: Shoulder press targets, for short) and BICEP (45A: "Curled muscle) We're getting a bit of a workout with our crossword today.
• SPAM (10A: Musubi meat) Musubi is a popular Hawaiian dish. A slice of grilled SPAM is placed on top of a block of rice and then wrapped with nori (edible seaweed).
• AIN'T (15A: "___ No Sunshine") In 1971, singer songwriter Bill Withers (1938-2020) released "AIN'T No Sunshine," the song that would become his breakthrough hit. "AIN'T No Sunshine" won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Song. Fun fact: When Bill Withers wrote "AIN'T No Sunshine," he was working for a factory that made bathrooms for 747s. When his music career took off, the company he was working for gave him a gold toilet seat.
• DOJO (18A: Aikido training hall) Aikido is a martial art that was developed in Japan, by Morihel Ueshiba, in the late 1920s. Aikido places an emphasis on defending against and harmlessly redirecting attacks. Like other martial arts, aikido is practiced in a DŌJŌ. Back-to-back appearances for DŌJŌ, as we also saw it in the puzzle yesterday.
• EPIC (19A: Expansive film like "RRR") RRR is an EPIC Telugu-language movie that tells a fictional story of two revolutionaries in India who fight against British rule. In April of 2023, we saw RRR as a puzzle theme.
• SIGNATURE DISH (20A: Chef's iconic creation) I enjoyed this answer so much! It reminds me of one of my favorite Food Network shows. I don't watch much TV while I'm at home, but when I am traveling and staying in a hotel, I like to binge-watch Food Network shows. It always makes me happy when Beat Bobby Flay is on. As the name implies, on this competition cooking show, chefs attempt to make dishes that beat chef Bobby Flay's dishes in a blind taste test. The show has two rounds. In the first round, two guest chefs compete against each other to see who will cook against Bobby Flay. The winner of round one gets to choose their SIGNATURE DISH to be made in the second round. As I filled in this answer I heard Bobby Flay's voice saying, "What are we cooking today?" And the chef replying, "My SIGNATURE DISH is..." (There's always a dramatic pause before the name of the SIGNATURE DISH is revealed.)
• ENVY (28A: Emotion new to "Inside Out 2") This answer also made me happy! I'm sure that I've mentioned before that Pixar's 2015 animated movie, Inside Out, is one of my favorites. The original movie takes a peek inside the mind of a young girl (Riley) and introduced us to the emotions of Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust. I have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Inside Out 2, which sees 13-year-old Riley getting ready to attend high school. Inside Out 2 introduces the new emotions of ENVY, Embarrassment, Ennui, and Anxiety. Inside Out 2 was released this past weekend, and it just so happens that my husband and I are going to see it this afternoon.
• LIME SCOOTER (36A: Bright-green rental for urban riders) LIME SCOOTERs are electric SCOOTERs available for rent in some cities. In some urban areas, the transportation company LIME also has electric bikes and electric mopeds available for rent. Not everyone is a fan of LIME SCOOTERs. Some cities (including Reno, Nevada) have sent the company cease-and-desist letters to stop them from doing business in their area.
• IPA (42A: Voodoo Ranger, e.g.) Voodoo Ranger IPA is a beer produced by New Belgium Brewing Company. The company makes several varieties of Voodoo Ranger beers, and according to the website, these are "brewed with trendsetting hop and malt varieties–and served with a side of sarcasm."
• UNO (50A: Card game with a sequel called DOS) UNO is a classic card game. Its sequel, DOS, was released in 2018. Similar to UNO, the object of the game DOS is to get rid of the cards in your hand. The gameplay differs in that cards are discarded onto a center row of cards, rather than a single stack. There are also some additional mechanisms to discard cards that involve adding the numbers on the cards. In other words, DOS involves math.
• CHAIN REACTION (55A: Domino effect) A few days ago when we saw the answer ODDLY SATISFYING in the grid, I posted a link to a spectacular CHAIN REACTION video featuring 250,000 dominoes. Here's another enjoyable CHAIN REACTION video. This one features domino CHAIN REACTIONs and CHAIN REACTION machines.
• KART (59A: Vehicle for Mario, Toad, or Daisy)  In the Mario KART video games, players compete in go-KART races. The games feature characters from the Mario franchise, including Mario himself, Toad, and Daisy.
• IOWA (60A: Maquoketa's state) Well, hello from IOWA! Maquoketa, IOWA is located in eastern IOWA along the Maquoketa River. Maquoketa Caves State Park is located just northwest of the city. As you might guess from its name, Maquoketa Caves State Park is known for its extensive system of caves.
• ARGON (69A: Gas in purple "neon" signs) The chemical element ARGON is the third most abundant gas in Earth's atmosphere (following nitrogen and oxygen). ARGON is classified as a noble gas on the periodic table, and its atomic number is 18. ARGON exhibits a purple glow when it is placed in an electric field, making it useful to create the color purple in "neon" signs.
• NES (29D: The Legend of Zelda console) The Legend of Zelda is a video game franchise. The original Legend of Zelda was released by Nintendo in 1986. NES stands for Nintendo Entertainment System.
• GRITS (52D: Dish that originated among the Muskogee) GRITS are a type of porridge made from ground dried maize. The dish originated with the Muskogee, a group of Indigenous peoples whose historical homelands are in what is now the southeastern part of the United States. I, for one, am thankful to the Muskogee, because I am a fan of GRITS. I enjoy GRITS either with butter and honey, or with cheese (aka cheesy GRITS). Bonus: Here's a recap of a Beat Bobby Flay episode in which the SIGNATURE DISH is Shrimp and GRITS.
• AISHA (54D: "Wannabe" author Harris) AISHA Harris is one of the co-hosts of the NPR show, Pop Culture Happy Hour. As a tie-in with another answer in this puzzle, several days ago Pop Culture Happy Hour did an episode about Inside Out 2. AISHA Harris' debut book, Wannabe: Reckonings with the Pop Culture that Shapes Me was published last year.
• CANE (58D: Prop for Scrooge McDuck) Scrooge McDuck is a Disney cartoon character first created in 1947. He is the uncle of Donald Duck, and is typically depicted wearing a frock coat, top hat, and pince-nez glasses, and carrying a CANE. Scrooge McDuck was named after Charles Dickens' character, Ebenezer Scrooge.

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• SIGNATURE DISH (20A: Chef's iconic creation)
• LIME SCOOTER (36A: Bright-green rental for urban riders)
• CHAIN REACTION (55A: Domino effect)

The left-most (WEST) word of each theme answer can follow the word KEY to form a new phrase: KEY SIGNATURE, KEY LIME, and KEY CHAIN.

This is a delightful theme. I enjoyed all of the theme answers, as well as the new KEY phrases. Thank you, Shannon and Will, for this excellent puzzle.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles

• USA TODAY’s Daily Crossword Puzzles
• Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers