Friday, May 28, 2010

Coda: Why Stop Now?
Envoi for my puzzle blog.

1) Writing Career
I started this to keep in practice when the economy tanked all over my markets. Things have picked up to the point that dropping everything on Friday has gotten inconvenient. Yeah!

2) Vox Clamantis in Deserto
I never asked for a cult fan base but the radio silence has been deafening. When I started, I had one follower. Yippee! For a while I just had that one follower. Not so yip. Then my one follower decamped, leaving me feeling like an orphan puppy in a rain storm. Over the months I've had one viable comment (thank you). The rest have been foreign and of dubious linkage. I should have suspected that I'd want to hear from folks. I was one of those annoying kids always saying, 'Mommy, Mommy, look at me' or 'Mommy, Mommy, watch this.' What else is a blog but 'Hey Internet, watch this'?

3) Utility
I take it as read that people who create are higher on the food chain that those who comment. When I had a book column, I soothed myself that I wasn't a book critic as much as a book hunter, helping books find good homes. With a puzzle blog, reader and puzzle have already met. I did locate a few cool websites but wasn't really adding any new data to the system.

I so wanted to be a person who'd had a blog for a year. The symmetry appealed. However, the arbitrariness of the goal could not hold out against the above.

I will miss the Constructor's Corner.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Friday, May 21, 2010

Friends in Low Places
by Harvey Estes
edited by Mike Shenk
May 21, 2010


Commentary: Back at ?
Taking a blog break for a day, a week, forever ....
you'll be the second to know.

"Create because you love it & it brings you joy,
not because this is your assigned hobby."
BrickJournal Issue 5, Volume 2, Spring 2009, p20


ACPT Countdown Clock: 300 days
Friday, May 21, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.


Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Friday, May 14, 2010

Insurance Claims
by Marie Kelley
edited by Mike Shenk
May14, 2010
Marie Kelly is "Really Mike"

As of this posting, full answers not yet available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page. Therefore, take these answers with a condiment of sensibility.

Theme: HMO inserted to make the clued phrase.
SINGH MOLE SPACING {23A Distance between golfer Vijay's blemishes?}
CASH MOTOR OIL {29A Singer Johnny's auto care product?}
DISH MONEY LAND {41A Area where chefs get paid?}
SLIDING SCHMO ALE {63A Brew whose mascot is a jerk coming home lying down?}
RAHM ON THE SHOW {87A Barack's chief of staff making a TV appearance?}
SHAH MOVED ICE {101A Ousted Iranian monarch got a job hawking sorbet?}
MATH MORON OF HONOR {109A Title awarded to the student who does worst in algebra?}
I was hoping for a common and therefore comment-able root between the five MO__ words. No luck: Middle Low German, Classical Latin, Anglo-Norman (2), & ancient Greek. I guess "mo" is an easy noise to make in English & we use it for all manner of adaptions.


Admissions of Defeat: 1 square
ETHELS {119A Waters and others}/ALFRE {100D Emmy winner Woodard}. I guessed A at the intersection ?THELS/ALFR?. Drat. I can't seem to get that last square for a perfect score.


Commentary: Book Recommendation
Brainiac: Adventures in the Curious, Competitive, Compulsive World of Trivia Buffs by Ken Jennings (Villard 2006). Jennings was the fellow with the 75-game Jeopardy! run in 2003. He writes about that interspersed with the history of trivia. Answer: buzzer management, nerves, and knowledge. Question: What are the important factors for playing on Jeopardy! in order?

Naturally, every person wants their particular patch of turf to be greenest and bestest. "And, unlike a game of pinochle or an issue of Easy Crosswords magazine, trivia often delivers content that's far from trivial." [p152] Ok, I'll give him easy but what about hard crosswords? What position could be less trivial that the White House Chief of Staff? Plus we have to manipulate words from from Disney to DISH MONEY. Ack! Thppt! Our patch is better. Furthermore, he has the nerve ! to call Stamford, "an elite national tournament for even the geekiest of endeavors."[p236] OTOH, coming from someone who calls himself a "nerd folk icon," [p235] this might be a compliment. But really, it's a distinction without a difference. What could be a better audience for a Jeopardy! book than a hardcore crossword puzzle crowd?

Wordplay got me doing crosswords regularly. Brainac got me watching Jeopardy! again. Is it life-changing if the change is small?


Commentary: Shortness excuse
The paying word pile that delayed last week's blog took the rest of this week to wrestle to the ground. I find my desire to wiggle my fingers over the keyboard severely limited at the moment. (Except for talking about books. I could do that from a coma.)


ACPT Countdown Clock: 307 days
Friday, May 14, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.


Constructor's Corner: Marie Kelly
"I realized going into this puzzle that the resulting theme answers would be pretty peculiar, which means that they're more challenging to clue in a way that makes them sound sensible. I hope I succeeded with at least a couple of them.

"My favorite answer that didn't fit into the finished puzzle because I had no answer of the same length to balance it: ELECTRIC SHAH MOVER. (I imagine some kind of golf cart-like vehicle with a Peacock Throne mounted on it.) So the SHAH had to settle for a shorter answer.

"I also had BRING HOME THE BACH MOON on my list. That would have been funny after last week's Capitalist Pig puzzle."

Thank you Ms. Kelly.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Saturday, May 8, 2010

Capitalist Pig
by Dan Fisher
edited by Mike Shenk
May 7, 2010

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

Theme: Piiiiigs Iiiiiiin Puuuuuzzle*
BRING HOME THE BACON {22A What the capitalist pig will do by working} - One page says the phrase is from a 12th C church in England, two others say a boxing match in the 20th C. The first theory is awfully specific for 900 years ago. In the second case, the phrase must have already had currency for the sportscaster to use it, otherwise why not bring home the pancakes? Either way, a ghoulish thing for a pig to do. And - apparently - an illegal thing for chefs to do. Bacon fandom.
GRUNT WORK {36A What the capitalist pig did in his first job} - We've all done grunt work. The OED says it began with the workers who stay on the ground to help electrical linemen. Are there linewomen out there? Either way, they too have a fan base - and targeted products.
THE PICK OF THE LITTER {43A What the capitalist pig's financial clout gives him when shopping} - Okay, I also thought it meant best.
SILK PURSE FROM A SOW'S EAR {69A What even a capitalist pig can't make} - But the chemists at Arthur D. Little can. Really, ya gotta look.
LIVING HIGH ON THE HOG {88A How the capitalist pig enjoys his wealth} - Another ancient seeming phrase with a modern pedigree.
PEN PUSHER {99A What the capitalist pig was earlier in his career} - I got nuthin.
CONGRESSIONAL PORK {115A What the capitalist pig embraces when elected to office} - Wiki says this originates with a 1863 story by Edward Everett Hale. That is one cannibalistic porker. For those who wish to watch the CPs in action.


News To Me: 13
Words
FIDO {6A Name that means "faithful"} - I thought it just meant dog.
ENOUNCES {84D States} - as in enunciate, from the French enoncer (with'). OED

Movie, TV, Radio & Book
EGAN {31A Richard of "A Summer Place"}
SIAE {42A Phillips of "I, Claudius"}
FIBBER {1D Molly's husband} - famous radio duo & owner of famed closet.
SO BIG {10D Nickname of Dick DeJong in a 1924 novel} - Edna Ferber, Pulitzer in 1925.

People
AALTO {109A Architect known as "The Father of Modernism"}

Places
INCA {123A Kingdom of Cuzco native} - Peru.
HIPPO {83D Kruger National Park sight} - South Africa. Krugerrand should have been a tipoff, but no.
NICOSIA {91D Divided world capital} - Cyprus. Divided Greek & Turkish.

Songs
EBB TIDE {62A Hit for Vic Damone & the Righteous Brothers} - & Sinatra
AGER {80A Milton who composed "Hard Hearted Hannah"} - Ella Fitzgerald
OYE {116D "Oye Como Va"} - Tito Puente & Santana


Admissions of Defeat: 2
AALT+pick-a-vowel/NIC-where??-SIA
SIA__mystery letter__/OWN TO {30D Acknowledge} - Could have been OWe TO.


Admission of Incomprehension: 1
ISES {74A Follower's suffix} - ??


Commentary:
I had thought this would give me opportunity to pontificate on the importance of pigs in our culture and pig idioms in our language. Instead surfing showed me that the world is a vast and weird place. I keep learning this lesson and then finding out it is even more v&w than I had thought.

*The Muppets have their own Wiki. That's fame.


ACPT Countdown Clock: 314 days
Friday, May 7, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Friday, May 7, 2010

Capitalist Pig
by Dan Fisher
edited by Mike Shenk
May 7, 2010

The paying gigs interfered. Tune in tomorrow, or by the end of this weekend at the latest.

ACPT Countdown Clock: 314 days
Friday, May 7, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Friday, April 30, 2010

E-Books
by Judith Seretto
edited by Mike Shenk
April 30, 2010

As of this posting, full answers not yet available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page. Therefore, take these answers with requisite grain of salt.

Theme: Literature with an E
FEATHERS AND SONS {21A Book about characters like Icarus?} - Ivan Turgenev

WEAR AND PEACE {31A Book about concerns of an army tank maintainer?} - Leo Tolstoy

HEARD TIMES {41A Book about a newspaper's audio version?} - Charles Dickens

THE LEAST OF THE MOHICANS {63A Book about a tribe's smallest member?} - James Fenimore Cooper. Diary of a Crossword Fiend has a point, “How come we never just call him Cooper?” Compare JFC to the rest of these authors, although Seuss is usually Dr.

RABBIT RUNE {83A Book about a symbol found on a prehistoric burrow wall?} - John Updike

AS I LAY DYEING {93A Book about a relaxed beautician?} - William Faulkner

THE CAT IN THE HEAT {107A Book about a pet basking in sunlight?} - Dr. Seuss


Word of the Week: ISOGRAMS
{11D Words with no repeated letters}
Pursuing this intriguing concept led me to
Word Ways: The Journal of Recreational Linguistics
Making the Alphabet Dance by Ross Eckler
Language on Vacation: An Olio of Orthographical Oddities by Dmitri Borgmann
How can I go so quickly from complete ignorance to I must have this?

Recreational linguistics, also called logology, is the study of words, particularly letter patterns. Logology can also refer to the study of corporate logos, which are all about the visuals. Logos also has a biblical application that is above my pay grade. Therefore logo can be text, graphics, or content. English is weird.


News To Me: 6
ENVOI {33D Poetic summary} - related to a diplomatic envoy because the final words are sending the poem out into the world. So says the OED.

PATEN {54D Eucharist plate}

HAVER {65D June of “Scudda Hoo! Scudda Hay!”}

MARNI {73D Dubbing legend Nixon} - “Miss Nixon is the singing voice of Deborah Kerr, Natalie Wood and Audrey Hepburn in the Motion Pictures and on the Soundtracks of The King and I, An Affair to Remember, West Side Story, and My Fair Lady.” Legend indeed.

HUG {109D Bear's offering} - for any other reason than bearhug? Given the venue, a stock tip? I recently learned about the bear subculture from Logo TV. Forget heaven & earth, there are more things in my immediate neighborhood than are dreamt of in my philosophy. BTW – and yet another use of logo.

EMO {110D Dashboard Confessional's music} - What the heck *is* emo anyway?


Admissions of Defeat: 1 or 2...
...depending how you count. Took flyers on a nest of 5 squares involving 5 words. Got 4 of the squares and 3 of the words.

Correctly guessed
??T?R {68A Gunpowder ingredient} - NITER, after giving up on wedging in peTER, as in salt-.
PAT?N {54D} – PATEN, as above
CA?N? {60D “Deathtrapco-star} – CAINE, as in Michael. Particularly difficult as I kept reading Death Wish.

Missed the intersecting D
O??R {75A German border river} & E?I? {64D Writer Blyton} - ODER & ENID not OsER & ENIs. A reasonable guess, if wrong, no?


ACPT Countdown Clock: 321 days
Friday, April 30, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.


Added later.
Constructor's Corner: Judith Seretto
"When I came up with the idea for an e-books puzzle, my first thought was prefixing titles with an E to make new titles. After a bit of work on this idea with no good examples, I realized I had to be a bit more flexible.

Here are a few of the titles I came up with that didn't fit into the finished puzzle: THE RED PEONY; THE GRAPES OF WREATH; INVISIBLE MEAN; and the very questionable THE GOLDEN BOWEL."

Thank you Ms. Seretto.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Friday, April 16, 2010

Joint Accounts
by Alice Long
edited by Mike Shenk
April 16, 2010
&
?
by ?
edited by Mike Shenk
April 23, 2010

Delay of game.
I will be volunteering at a horse show next week. Like a backed-up drain, that has pushed my chores from next week into this week. No time for puzzle fun. I will get to the 4/16 and 4/23 puzzles but it may be May.

ACPT Countdown Clock: 335 days
Friday, April 16, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.

Back soon.
Puzzle Fan

Friday, April 9, 2010

Moral Compass
by Brendan Emmett Quigley
edited by Mike Shenk
April 9, 2010

As of this posting, full answers not yet available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page. Therefore, take these answers with g. of salt.

Theme: A timely tax quote
THE BEST MEASURE OF {24A Start of a quote by 83-Across}
A MANS HONESTY {36A Part 2 of the quote}
ISNT HIS INCOME {50A Part 3 of the quote }
TAX RETURN ITS THE {65A Part 4 of the quote}
ZERO ADJUST ON {97A Part 5 of the quote}
HIS BATHROOM SCALE {111A End of the quote}
ARTHUR C CLARKE {83A Science fiction author and source of the quote}
Wiki attributes this to “The Mammoth Book of Zingers, Quips, and One-Liners (2004) by Geoff Tibballs, p. 264.” The man, the foundation, the quotes – which are worth a detour. I tried to pick one as an example but wanted to paste them all. A blogger starving between two pages of text.

The quote is also cited in a list of tax quotes by the IRS, which proves that someone there has a sense of humor, not matter how unlikely that seems to someone else who was up until 1 am wrestling with Form 2210's Annualized Income Installment Method.


Letter of the Puzzle: W
I don't have the cool crucimetrics of An Englishman but I couldn't help noticing lots of spiky letters. This was no mistake, in an interview, the constructor said, “I think going all Scrabbly with the fill is, on the whole, a good thing.”


News To Me: 7
OCARINA {21A Instrument with finger holes} – a old-time flute.
REFIT {55A Accouter anew} - as in accoutrements.
EReS {57A Aces' are low} – No idea. All I get are Spanish sites. I'm thinking the ' after Aces is important. I'm fairly sure about the crossings but am open to amendment. Later: Diary of a Crossword Fiend says, “57A. [Aces' are low] – ERAS. As in baseball pitchers.” I misspelled Lamb Chop's alter ego!?! {SHARI 45D Lewis with Lamb Chop} Shame on me. I adore both Ms. Lewis and Ms. Chop. I saw them live at the Kennedy Center years ago and her (Shari's) ability to enthrall a concert hall of both kids & adults has become one my definitions of what it means to be an entertainer. This is the song that never ends..., available as ringtone & MP3 download. Even later: This is the song that never gets out of your head...

IPANEMA {63A Beach adjacent to Copacabana Beach} – in Brazil not on old CDs.
PTRAP {64D Letter-shaped plumbing fitting} – I would have, and tried to, call it a u-bend.
ESTO {105D “___ perpetua” (Idaho motto)} – It is perpetual.
ORTS {107D Table scraps} – Perhaps a new clue could be Oral Rehydration Therapy. OK, it doesn't pass the breakfast test but it's such a simple fix to a serious problem.


Admissions of Defeat: 0? Make that 1?
The constructor must have toned down the fill for a quote puzzle, o/w there is no way I'd move that quickly nor successfully through a BEQ puzzle. Thursday was my day to feel smart. Since this puzzle was posted the night before, it was the same day as Matt Ginsberg's NYT Jabberwocky puzzle [4/8/10]. MG is another constructor who causes me to sigh in resignation when I see his name on the top of the page. However, I've always said that my poetry appreciation ends with Jabberwocky – and now it's finally done me some good.

Both puzzles also had ENTS{59A Forest of Fangorn creatures}/ {57D Tolkien creatures}NYT and NEER {17D“I __ saw true beauty till this night”: Romeo}/{26D Opposite of alway}NYT. I'm going to stop doing that. One could spend hours cross-referencing words that appear between various puzzles in a given week. I don't need to give any more invitation to the Terrible Trivium, the “demon of petty tasks and worthless jobs, ogre of wasted effort, and monster of habit.” [The Phantom Tollbooth by Norman Juster, Random, 1961 p213] No really, it's more efficient to have my colored pens sorted by type.


ACPT Countdown Clock: 342 days
Friday, April 9, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.


Constructor's Corner: BEQ
“Well, I've known Mike Shenk for as long as he's been editing the Wall Street Journal puzzles, and since it's my Dad's favorite newspaper, I feel like I have to make sure to appear in there every now and again. Usually, the hardest parts for making a WSJ puzzle is coming up with a suitable "business-y" theme. In this instance, I found that the taxes related quote could split up symmetrically (not as easy as you'd think). Mike liked it, and we rushed it to print in time before 4/15.

“The hardest part for me was the SE section. 75-Down, specifically. When you have a long entry like that, you really want it to pop. It took a while to come up with something clean (always crucial) and fresh. Of course, as dumb luck would have it, the entry in the grid I sent Mike is a crucial entry that is appearing in tomorrow's variety puzzle. So, he redid the corner. Great minds think alike, I guess.”

Thank you, Mr. Quigley.
[75D appeared as TALETELLER {Raconteur}]

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Pole Dance
by Patrick Blindauer
edited by Mike Shenk
April 2, 2010

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

Theme: Geomagnetic reversal comes early & suddenly.
PANNED THE BUCK {23A Gave Bambi a bad review?}- passed
BOSUN TRACK {38A Career path for a petty officer?}- bonus
FROST LAWS {49A Rules concerning cold cases?}- front lawns
PUNNY CAT {58A Hipster who's a quipster?}- pussy
CHARITY CANE {68A Support for the sympathetic?}- case
CLONE COMBAT {76A Conflict between truly identical twins}- close. Can something be more identical? Yes, if you put it to music. Apparently identical twins aren't.
SASSY CAM {89A Impertinent Hockey Hall of Famer Neely?}- nanny
FUSSY GIRL {98A Lass who's hard to please?}- funny
NEW AGE TASK {108A Endeavor for Enya?}- sewage tank
DETROIT PINTOS {125A Painted ponies from Michigan?}- Pistons


Crosswordpuzzlese: Yeah or Nay?
Elizabeth Gorski says that crosswordese doesn't exist. I disagree, it's like pornography, you know it when you see it. Or for a more operational definition, facts to commit to memory because you're Gonna See Them Again:
ERATO {40A Muse of love poetry} & her sisters.
Everything about Arthur ASHE {56D “Off the Court” autobiographer} & Yoko ONO {127D Walking on Thin Ice” singer}.
ILER {5D Robert of “The Sopranos”} – We better hope that R.I. gets a new gig once this one runs its cultural course.
&
TSAR{24D Pre-Lenin leader} – Although the editor is on record as saying he prefers Czar. [1st question under Ask? Will]


News To Me: 6
BICEPS {29A “Guns”} - All over the Web. Nothing definitive.
INDRA {46A God of war and storms, in Hinduism}
NAS {61A”Illmatic” rapper} - debut album
OTO {37D Native Oklahoman}
TASM {60D Loc. of some devils} - as in Tasmania?
OILY {122D Pinguid} - Who doesn't envision a greasy penguin?
Small world. Friday evening my hubby uses guns in conversation, in reference to the shirt policy at his gym. I'd never heard the word before that day. Then on Sunday, I read that “Blue denoted .... the raincloak of Indra, the war and fertility god of the Hindus.” in The Healing Power of Color by Betty Wood [Destiny 1984/1992] p15. Ditto.


Admissions of Defeat: 2 of 7
While I admire the puzzle's puns & plays, i.e. C CUP {34D Support spec} or SENS {19D D.C. 100}, I get cranky when a 48 year-old song [ESO BESO {75A 1962 Paul Anka hit}] crosses a local politician [CORY {71D Newark mayor Booker}] or when two actors intersect [OLMOS {57A “Battlestar Gallactica” star}/OSSIE{45D Ruby's longtime husband}]. Surprisingly I got those right, despite the fact that OSSIE has nothing to do with and is not even spelled the same as Ozzy Osbourne. So, while my score was two technically, I took a flyer on seven squares & really should have gotten RIDS {81A Clears} from ?I?S. If you don't know that DALASI is {83D Gambia's monetary unit} there's not much you can do. But for not getting a simple English word there is no one to crank at but oneself.


Commentary: Delay
Apologies. I am aware that predictability is a plus for posting. However, this weekend has not been my favorite few days.
--- The joy is that animals live with us. ---
--- The sorrow is that they do not live as long as us. ---
Paraphrased from somewhere. On to more cheerful topics.


ACPT Countdown Clock: 349 days
Friday, April 2, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.


Constructor's Corner: Patrick Blindauer
“My latest 'word baby' started out even more complicated with all 4 directions in play. N would become E, E become S, S become W, and W become N, but it became clear pretty quickly that it would be hard to
find a decent set of theme answers (it's especially tough to change a vowel to a consonant or a consonant to a vowel). I narrowed the scope by focusing on N and S, thought of the title, and was on my way. Sort of.

“I found a few good entries on my own off the top of my head, but I figured there were more waiting to be discovered. So I turned to my friend the computer to help me find all the possibilities; I doubt I would've ever found NEWAGETASK on my own. FWIW, I replaced every S in my word list with *, replaced every N with S, and replaced every * with N, which switched all the N's with all the S's. Then I compared this new list with the original and kept only those words on both lists, which gave me possible theme words upon which to build. A favorite unused theme answer: THEBRADYBUSCH (13).”

Thank you Mr. Blindauer

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Friday, March 26, 2010

“Enough!”
by Myles Callum
edited by Mike Shenk
March 26, 2010

Full answers not yet available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page. So take all answers with g. of salt.

Theme: Phrases joined by the letters TMI and clued with Too Much Information.
FILET MIGNON {23A *Cut from the tenderloin – its name means “dainty cut”!}
SALT MINES {25A *Sources of halite – that's a type of evaporitic deposit!}
DETROIT MICHIGAN {35A *Midwest metropolis – it has a view of Canada to the south!} - The southwestern section of Ontario runs between Lakes Huron and Erie, passing south and west of the eastern edge of the lower Michigan peninsula – a toe of Canada under the thumb of the mitten, as it were. Windsor, the city at the tip and the southernmost area of Canada, connects to Detroit by the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel. Similarly, I am always surprised at how much of California is east of Reno, NV. I tend to think of the states as neatly-outlined, brightly-colored boxes rather than as accretions formed war, transportation, and/or commerce. Where did I come by such grid-like thinking? For the full story on state borders, see How the States Got Their Shapes by Mark Stein [Collins 2008], an historical trivia goldmine.
ROBERT MITCHUM {55A *“Night of the Hunter” star – his middle names are Charles Durman!}
I DONT MIND A BIT {76A *“Fine by me!” - that sounds like something Mr. Ed might say!}
CABINET MINISTER {98A *High-ranking official – Canada's Leona Aglukkaq is one!}
GRIST MILL {114A *Flour-making plant – the Greek geographer Strabo wrote about one!}
COCONUT MILK {116A *White liquid used in cooking – it's called gata in the Philippines!} - Part of Thai cooking.
TMI {71D Briefly, a feature of each starred clue, and a chunk of its answer}

It's a Small, Small Puzzle World: 4
Given 242 answers in this puzzle and ~2000 words during the week (2 puzzles [LAT & NYT] x 6 days x over-100 words per puzzle + 2 Sunday puzzles x over-200 wpp + large fudge factor), odds are something will repeat. I'm not talking about bizarre crosswordpuzzlese but simple English words or puns with similar sensibilities. There are a finite number of English words and an even smaller set that fit happily into a crossword. However, this week hits one of those weird statistical blips between the weekly WSJ puzzle and today's [Friday 3/26/10] LA Times:
OR SO {31A Estimator's phrase}WSJ &{14A End of an estimate}LAT
LOL {13D Online chuckle} WSJ & {60D Tester's tehee*} LAT
CELL {11A Pen holder} WSJ & FELON {47D Pen resident} LAT
ROSE {84D Got up} WSJ & AROSE {38A Lost a lap?} LAT
*I would have said teehee but Urban Dictionary says it's a cute girlish laugh.

News To Me: 3
ELIHU {19A Benefactor Yale} - long version of the crossword-familiar Eli.
ANIS {29D Tropical cuckoos}
ONE O(ld) CAT {93D Classic baseball variant} - “This is town-ball modified to suit the occasion when only three or four boys play the game.” What, girls can't play?

Admissions of Defeat: 0?
Guessed on OCTAL {6A Notation used for Unix permissions}/COGNOMEN {7D Handle} - lOGNOMEN? nOGNOMEN? During my daily weight-bearing-stave-off-osteoporosis walk, the random noise in my head offer up COG- as in cognate, cognition, etc. That makes OCT- which sounds sufficiently computeresque. BTW, I believe the usage is UNIX. WSJ style may dictate otherwise. Also guessed on TNN {33A It became Spike in 2003}/ANIS. Was it The Nashville Network? By Jove, it was. Knowing the answer is the best, but guessing right is a close second.

ACPT Countdown Clock: 356 days
Friday, March 26, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.
Likelihood of my attendance at the ACPT: 20%.
Down from a baseline of 30%. Had trouble with Wed & Thurs NYT this week. Only a decent showing on this puzzle saves it from going lower. I thought lack of progress was frustrating. Now I'm backsliding!

Constructor's Corner: Myles Callum
bio, scroll down
“The hard part is coming up with a theme that will be fun or reasonably entertaining. For the Wall Street Journal, I sometimes comb through financial glossaries looking for terms to play off or construe literally, like "Back Pay," where you can come up with lively entries that have words at the end that are synonyms for money-e.g., SHAKE YOUR BOOTY, HIT A SOUR NOTE, LOVE ME TENDER, etc. And I like doing puzzles that have words or acronyms hidden inside, like the TMI in this one. But the fun part here was getting the idea to liven it up by also giving "too much information" in the clues.

“It´s always instructive to see how Mike Shenk changes your puzzle, both in clues and grid fill. My 1-Across was RATSO, which Mike changed to LOTTO. That didn't surprise me; even as I used it, I was afraid RATSO was too easy because the limited clues are giveaways.

“My original clue for FILET MIGNON was "Cut from the tenderloin. It´s also called the psoas major!" But Mike changed the TMI part to "-its name means `dainty cut´!" which I like a lot better; my version was too esoteric by half, even though it was definitely too much information. Mike also has strong feelings about words used in grid fill, and in most of my early puzzles there were a lot of changes. In my more recent puzzles there are fewer changes, so after 12 years I may be getting the hang of it.”

Thank you Mr. Callum.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Friday, March 19, 2010

Pontification
by Joon Pahk
edited by Mike Shenk
March 19, 2010

Full answers not yet available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page. So take all answers with the appropriate amount of salt. (I still haven't figured out how to amend a blog without reposting and changing the date – and if I'm going to have my act together sufficiently to post this early, I want it recorded!)

Theme: Papal names inserted into common phrases.
URBANE COMMERCE {23A Suave business dealings?}
ALL INCLEMENT {33A Totally stormy?}
KOSHER SALTPETER {52A Ingredient for making gunpowder during passover?}
SATURN BENEDICTION {71A Blessing from a Roman deity?}
PRODIGAL PAULSON {88A Former Treasury secretary who couldn't keep to a budget?}
SIMONLEON SAYS {104A Game in which money talks?}
MIRACLE GROPIUS {121A Wondrous Bauhaus School founder?}
A list of popes.

Full disclosure: Got the pontifical connection. Was less than impressed with the resulting theme answers. I expect better. Totally missed that it was an insertion theme until reading Mr. Pahk's discussion below. I'll take stupid for $200, Alex. In his blog about the 2010 ACPT, Tyler Hinman says, “Here's a little tip: If you have "I guess that sort of makes sense" crossing "I guess that's just a word I've never heard before," YOU'RE WRONG, DUMBASS.” My corollary, if two professional and way-smart cruciverbalists create what seems to be a flaccid puzzle, YWDA.

Nomination for Word of the Week: SANTA
There has to be a very special level of punsters' hell for someone who can clue this with {104D Pole star}. It's the sort of answer where you get the word and have a minute to think, Huh? before the sandbag of sense thumps you upside the pun bone. Also MOO {99D Lea low} - a low in the lea, not a clever term for low-lying meadow & DRESSER {130A Unmentionable place} - a place for unmentionables. Mr. Pahk would easily hold his own at a pun tournament in Callahan's Crosstime Saloon [Spider Robinson /Ace 1977, Tor 1999].

News to Me: 4
PI DAY {117A March 14, to math teachers} - It's got it's own web page. It must exist.

ACETAL {126A Volatile solvent}

ORNETTE {127A Jazz great Coleman}

NO MAS {108A Roberto Duran's uncle?} - Spanish for no more, i.e. crying uncle. Apparently Duran is known for saying that in a rematch with Sugar Ray Leonard. Or maybe not.

Admissions of Defeat: ??
Results skewed this week. I got so excited about the new section that I read it before finishing the puzzle. Had been hung up on a 5x13 box in the bottom, left corner. Still, I never would have gotten HOMESLICE {82D Bro}. HOMEboy & HOMies wouldn't stretch and even I drew the line at HOMEdudes. With that & SIMOLEON SAYS (& the massive theme hint), I completed the rest with no ?s, although that doesn't guarantee no errors. Filed between the Aggg of last week and Almost of the week before.

ACPT Countdown Clock: 363 days
Friday, March 19, 2010, to Friday, March 18, 2011.

Likelihood of my attendance at the ACPT: 30% and falling.
Took a stab at the 2009 puzzles, available by mail. Flew through #1 – ARMS RACE by Byron Walden. Came to a screeching halt on #2 – ALLOW ME TO INTRODUCE MYSELF by Brendan Emmett Quigley. Am girding loins to look at #3.

Enough from me. Below I have started a new section, to which Mr. Pahk was generous enough to contribute.

Constructor's Corner: Joon Pahk
“Random thoughts about the puzzle's construction:

“i don't remember the origin of this puzzle. you might think that PIUS -> GROPIUS would have to be the seed entry, but i don't think that was actually the case. it might actually be one of those puzzles where the title asserted itself first, and then the theme fleshed itself out around it. the idea of doing an insertion theme where you don't insert the same letter or letters every time is, if not exactly new, at least rarely seen. so i wanted to try that, but of course you need to have the inserted bits fall into a narrowly-defined group; otherwise it's just unfair on the solver. anyway, i have a bit of a thing for catholic trivia, but it turns out there are only so many pope names that are famous as being pope names as well as usable in this kind of wordplay. JOHN PAUL is probably the most famous pope name among the current generation, but of course it's not really a part of any longer word or phrase. the same was very nearly true of PIUS; i'm certainly familiar with walter gropius, but i was a bit concerned that he wasn't quite famous enough for a theme answer. the only pope that had a lot of lively pun possibilities was LEO, perhaps in part because it's the shortest, and perhaps because it's the only one that could be slipped into the middle of a word instead of having to be tacked onto the beginning or end. some ideas that i left on the cutting room floor were LEONINE TAILS, HOWDY LEOPARD, OLEO PIONEERS, and the sneaky PILE ON CUSHIONS. i'm pretty happy with SIMOLEON SAYS as the best of the bunch, though, especially with the apt clue about "money talks." (while we're here, happy 60th birthday to my father-in-law, also named LEO.)

“i think the original version of this puzzle had 8 theme answers: the 7 popes in the final version plus JOHN. but JOHN wasn't doing very much other than just sitting there. i think the answer was CHICKEN LITTLE JOHN. and the fill wasn't very good. on the advice of brendan emmett quigley, i redid the puzzle with just the seven strongest theme answers, and to compensate for the relatively light theme, i tried to go for a low word count (136, not easy to do in a 21x puzzle), resulting in some wide-open spaces. there are a few more partial phrases (EYE ON, IS MY, SAID A, ARE UP, IN HER) and a few more "cheater" squares in the grid than i usually prefer, but overall i'm pleased with the fill. HOMESLICE is a new answer that i was very excited about, and the US HISTORY/THE NATION stack is pretty fun. i also kind of liked {They lean to the right}, ITALS, sitting on top of {Left-leaning weekly}, THE NATION, in the grid.”

Thank you Mr. Pahk

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Signs of the Times
by Randolph Ross
edited by Mike Shenk
March 12, 2010

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

Theme: Road signs starting common phrases
ONE WAY OR ANOTHER {22A Somehow}
SLOW MOTION REPLAY {30A Sports analyst's aid}
ENTER THE DRAGON {46A 1973 Bruce Lee classic}
STAY RIGHT THERE {82A “Don't move!”}
WRONG WAY CORRIGAN {98A Directionally challenged pilot of 1938}
STOP THE BLEEDING {111A Get a bad situation under control}
YIELD THE FLOOR {3D Let someone else speak}
EXIT INTERVIEW {54D Conversation after canning}


Nomination for Word of the Week: EGOISTS {64A I guys}
To my mind, egoist is a pompous way to say egotist, but the OED gives three definitions of the former, only one of which = the latter. Both talk about themselves, in addition, an -ist uses self as, “the guiding principle of his conduct.”


People of the Puzzle: EDISON {43D Holder of 1,093 patents}
1,093! A fact worth a pause for respect.

MOHS {74D Scale on which diamond is 10} – Is it immortality if society knows the name but only science knows the person? Poor Frederick doesn't even make Anonyponymous by John Bemelmans Marciano [Bloomsbury 2009].


Crosswordpuzzlese: DRE {11D Rap Dr.}
Got right off. So, either I'm getting cooler or doing too many crossword puzzles – which is likely to lead the other way. Geek Power!


News to Me: PAWLs {97D Ratchet parts}
The widget that moves the toothed wheel.


Admissions of Defeat: Nevermind.
Too many mystery Proper Noun crosses such as WILEY{25A Pilot Post}/ODAY{5D Jazz Singer Anita} (which I got) or LEON{51A First name in the CIA}/SENNETT{30D Mack, maker of madcap movies} (which I did not). ASHpit/ASHPAN? {39A Fireplace receptacle}. BAAaaaaaa{41A Sheepish response}. File in the Thank You for Playing category.


Commentary: The im/possibility of improvement?
When I first started doing puzzles regularly, I saw a jump in performance after 2-3 months. Since then I've been stuck. Good days/weeks; then bad. So, is it possible to move from a mid-level puzzler to an expert? Or does a certain type of intelligence lend itself to a certain level of puzzling and ya gotta dance with what ya brung? Gloom flowers strewn in my path this week.


ACPT Countdown Clock: 370 days
Friday March 12, 2010, to March 18, 2011.

Likelihood of my attendance at the ACPT: 30%.
Base level of interest: 10% NYC, 10% PuzzleFest, 10% interested traveling companion. 0% of 25% each for Friday NYT, Saturday NYT, & Fireball. Didn't even try this week. (re math: What can I say, it's not an exact science)


Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

And the Nominees Are...
by Pancho Harrison
edited by Mike Shenk
March 5, 2010

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

Theme: Best Actress (mostly) nominees (trivia from BA commentary - mostly)
BURSTYN OUT {23A Ellen's sign-off? (1971, 1973, 1974, 1978, 1980, 2000)} – Ellen Burstyn (real-name Edna Rae Gillooly, and first appearing with screen name Ellen McRae), Best Actress winner for Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974).
BERRY AT SEA {25A Halle in a state of confusion? (2001)} – Won with her first nomination for Monster's Ball.
DUNNE DEAL {48A Irene's business transaction? (1931, 1936, 1937, 1939, 1948)} - No wins; two nominations were consecutive (from 1936-1937).
MOORE INFO {58A Contents of Julianne's bio? (1997, 1999, 2002)} - Often, actresses have been nominated for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress for different films in the same year. ..... A total of eleven performers .... have duplicated that feat. Julianne Moore (Best Actress for Far From Heaven (2002) and Best Supporting Actress for The Hours (2002)).
BATES TRAP {87A Mouse catcher for Kathy? (1990, 1998, 2002)} - It also helps .... for showing acting diversity (Kathy Bates as the horror villainess in Misery (1990).
CRUZ LINES {98A What Penelope has to memorize? (2006, 2008)} - Spanish actress Penelope Cruz was nominated as Best Actress for her role as single mother Raimunda in Volver (2006) - she became the first Spanish woman to be nominated for a best actress Academy Award for a non-English speaking role.
DERN TOOTIN {123A Laura on her horn? (1991)}
THER ON ROOM {126A Charlize's bedchamber? (2003, 2005)} - The first acting Oscar winner from South Africa was Charlize Theron as Best Actress for Monster (2003). In the same year, Theron and Djimon Hounsou were the first African-born performers to be nominated for an Oscar. ...Theron won the Best Actress Oscar as a serial-killer prostitute.
BASSETT HOUND {34A Angela's dog? (1993)} - Gratuitous plug for Thursday Night Bassett Blogging & Sunday Night Puppy Blogging
WATTS COOKING {39A Dishes from Naomi's kitchen? (2003)}


WORD SIBLINGS: _ORE
My last square was the M of MORE {3D Added}/ERMA {1A Aretha's gospel singing sister}. Since my total lack of cool &/or musical knowledge prevented me from checking the cross, I ran thru the possibles for _ORE. I got 11: BORE, CORE, FORE, GORE, LORE, MORE, PORE, SORE, TORE, WORE, YORE. The Million Word Crossword Answer Book by Stanley Newman and Daniel Stark [2007 Collins 2008] added two more [p33]: DORE {French painter} [p1196] & VORE {Eater: Comb. form} [p1265 ].


It's a Small, Small Puzzle World: ERMA
Appeared again in the Sunday NYT [3/7/10] {57A Franklin who sang “Piece of my Heart.”}. Sister Aretha may get the press, but Erma gets the crossword puzzles.


Admissions of Defeat: 1
Phooey, phooey, phooey. I was so proud of myself for catching a mistake that would have ruined a perfect round. In pondering possible pithy comments, I would explain the mysterious PLe. I figured {65A Abba's group} was the Swedish congress, the Swedish music national academy, or whatever. Hmmm. Dunno who Abba is, but PLO works and CROAK makes more sense than CReAK as {54D Swamp sound}. Yippee. Although I got done early, I waited for the answers to be up before claiming my smashing victory. Darn. The San Francisco airport {51A N. Cal. Hub} is SFO not SFa and ADOPT works as well as ADaPT {36D Start using}.

Went down in a – for me – quick hour & ½ during a bout of insomnia Thursday night. Maybe I should get up in the middle of the night more often – despite the vowel confusion.


ACPT Countdown Clock: 378 days
I'm having trouble find a link or on-screen clock that is accepted and allows me to edit. So, for now the hand-cranked version. From Friday March 5, 2010, to March 18, 2011.

Likelihood of my attendance at the ACPT: 80% for the moment. Found a friend who said she'd go if I would. I'll settle down to a more realistic number soon but a compatriot is good for at least a 10% overall gain.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Saturday, February 27, 2010

Table Talk
by Harvey Estes
edited by Mike Shenk
February 26, 2010
http://www.puzzability.com/whois.html

Full answers not yet available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page. So take all answers with a g. of s.

Theme: “PAT” removed from the top set of answers and added to the bottom set.
(PAT)TERN BALDNESS {23A Avian alopecia?}
(PAT)RIOT MISSILE {33A Object thrown at a demonstration?}
(PAT)RON OF THE ARTS {47A Howard as a museum supporter?}
PALPATE FACES {81A Check mugs for lumps?}
PATINA SENSE {92A Asset for bronze cleaners?}
PITAPAT BREAD {109A Money that makes the heart beat faster?}
PASS THE BUTTER {63A Table request, and this puzzle's theme}
PAT {110D Apply 63-Across to this word in three pairs of answers}

Ringing changes on the add-a-word/drop-a-word themes. Reminiscent of “Come Together” on October 9, 2009, by Mr. Estes, where he dropped various letters from song titles to form new titles. The dropped letters came together for LENNON. Mr. Estes doesn't just drop letters. He likes to play with them after.


Admissions of Defeat: 1?
No Googling, confidence in most of the answers. However, there always seems to be one box that devolves into guesswork. I guessed correctly on Tokyo for TSE {38A Japan's Big Board} and I like the rest of the acrosses but that leaves TROLL for {38D Sing in a carefree way}. Huh? Resolution pending appearance of the answers and my discovering how to update a post without reposting.


Commentary: Short post.
Overwhelmed with work in civilian life. You wouldn't think a once-a-week blog would be hard to fit in but it be. I've said it before. I can not imagine how folks puzzle & post everyday. Perhaps it would be easier if I could time my puzzle solving with a clock rather than a calendar.


ACPT countdown: (Extrapolating from 2010 dates.)



Chances of my going: 40%
A surge of hope arising from a surprise showing on Friday's NYT. Fireball, Saturday, etc. still hopeless.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

I’m A Mac
By Janet Bender
Edited by Mike Shenk
February 19, 2010
http://www.puzzability.com/whois.html

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

THEME: Words ending in –MA joined with words starting with C-.
The two words ending in –MA are from Latin. The five place names come from languages indigenous to that area when the dictionary writers showed up.
PIMA COTTON {25A Underwear fabric}- Named after Pima County AZ where it was first grown. [OED] The county was named after a local tribe.
SUMMA CUM LAUDE {27A Valedictorian’s honor} – From Latin for highest. [OED]
OKLAHOMA CRUDE {47A 1973 George C. Scott film} – From Choctaw meaning red people.
DRAMA CRITICS {54A Some opening night attendees} – Via Latin from Greek, “deed, action, play, esp. tragedy.” [OED]
SONOMA COUNTY {79A Home to more then 250 wineries} – Chocuyen Indian name translated by some as "Valley of the Moon" and by others as "land or tribe of the Chief Nose." Wiki says Coast Miwok and the Pomo tribe plus VotM.
REDEEM A COUPON {85A Save 50c, say}
OBAMA CAMPAIGN {105A “The Audacity to Win” subject} – African/Kenyan Luo language, “Luo verb that means "to be slightly bent" or "to be twisted". Though no one knows for sure why his [BHO's] great-grandfather was given the name, experts on Luo language and culture think the most likely possibilities are that the baby either had a leg or arm that looked a little bent just after he was born, or that he was born in the breech position.” [Wiki ans]
PANAMA CITY {108A Museo del Canal Interoceanico setting} – Guarani word meaning a "butterfly,"

A cousin to "I'm a PC" by Myles Callum on November 6, 2009. Praise songs and accolades of the highest honor to the first constructor who creates I’m A Linux.

How many –MA words did Ms. Bender have to chose from? 166 according to the The Million Word Crossword Answer Book by Stanley Newman and Daniel Stark [2007 Collins 2008 pb], superior to the OED as a crossword-specific dictionary since it includes abbreviations, partial words, multiple words, popular culture, and proper names both geographic and personal.
Nine 3 letter words for _ MA (p4), including OMA {Medical suffix (p1237)}.
Forty-four 4 letter words for _ _ MA (p28), including CYMA {Cornice molding (p1193)}.
Forty-seven 5 letter words for _ _ _ MA (p108), including NAIMA {John Coltrane ballad (p1232)}.
Forty-Three 6 letter words for _ _ _ _ MA (p328), including LOOK MA.
Twenty-Three 7 letter words for _ _ _ _ _ MA (p841), including ATACAMA, the desert driven across in Road Fever: A High-Speed Travelogue [Random 1991]. Author Tim Cahill says that trees from the foothills can be uprooted by spring runoff, brought down into the salt pan, and then covered with wind-blown grit and sand, “The Atacama is the only place on earth where people mine wood.” (p163)


Admissions of Defeat: 3
I made a few errors, notably pulling an Al Saunders and leaving 2 squares blank. I’m irate with myself. Imagine if the ACPT had been on the line? Back in 1996, I volunteered at the Atlanta Olympics. We watched a Canadian competitor ride right past a jump to eliminate herself. It must be kinda like that.

On the plus side, I’m giving myself points for letting the word ‘protein’ tip the R(d)NA {78A Protein synthesis participant} guesswork scales in the right direction.


Commentary: ACPT
Thought about them all weekend. Wished I was there. So, I am making a public announcement that I will go in 2011.
IF
I can make headway on the Friday/Saturday NYT puzzles. I assume that basic competence at this level is a requirement to survive the championship. I’m currently a solid Wed/Thur/WSJ solver with a minimum of errors. Right now the only thing I can do with Fri/Sat printouts is use them for coasters. I’m not asking for 100% correct, just greater than 50% filled in. Whenever I thought about competing this year, I had an image of myself sitting in front of a sheet of paper with nothing to do for 45 minutes but draw smiley faces in the boxes.

See you in 2011. I hope.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Washington Square
by Elizabeth C. Gorski
edited by Mike Shenk
February 12, 2010

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

Theme: A border of presidential names with nonpresidential clues.
HOOVER {1A Big name in carpet cleaning}
CLINTON {7A “Atomic Dog” singer George}
REAGAN {14A Frank who led the NFL in interceptions in 1947}
ARTHUR {130A He worked knights}
KENNEDY {131A “Ironweed” author William}
MONROE {132A DiMaggio's love}
HARRISON {1D “Here Comes the Sun” writer}
NIXON {19D Co-star of Parker, Cattrall and Davis}
PIERCE {52D Puncture}
TAYLOR {63D Grammy winner Swift}
COOLIDGE {92D “All Time High” singer Rita}
OBAMA {105D Port north of Kyoto}
PRESIDENTS BOX {72A Theater VIP section, as suggested by the answers on this puzzle's edges}

Although not suggested by the answer clue, five other names appear. I imagine Ms. Gorski had five more clues she didn't want to waste.
BUSH {33A Wild parts of Australia}
LINCOLN {42A Car introduced in 1920}
MADISON {99A Avenue east of Fifth}
FORD {111A Cross, in a way}
JEFFERSON {48D Blues legend Blind Lemon}
These were so symmetric, I wanted the inner names to form a second pattern, or perhaps a secret message along with the black boxes, but that would have been gilding the lily.

The clues came from a range of human activity.
Commerce: HOOVER, LINCOLN
Music: CLINTON, HARRISON, TAYLOR, COOLIDGE, JEFFERSON
Sports: REAGAN
Myth: ARTHUR
Literature: KENNEDY
Film & TV: MONROE, NIXON
Misc verbs: PIERCE, FORD
Geography: OBAMA, BUSH, MADISON
Ten of the 17 clues were proper names.

This should have been easy. Seventeen names from a finite list of 43* names which any American should know by heart. I didn't. Furthermore, I spent waay too long being confused by a president's whose name ends in an A?? Seriously. Being inclined to think historically is no excuse.

*Obama is our 44th president but Grover Cleveland split terms so counts as 22nd and 24th. Therefore 43 men have been 44 presidents.

Off topic: Other presidential trivia. My source for the above was a Presidents of the United States of America laminated placemat that doubles as my desk blotter. According to this infallible source, 4 presidents had full beards; 3 had mustaches; and 3 had an assortment of other face fuzz. Taft's mustache in 1913 was the last facial hair in the White House. Since Kennedy, 8 of the 10 recent presidents are pictured with toothy smiles.


Admissions of Defeat: 2
No comment. I'm not a confrontation person. I don't want to go on record with my opinion of SSW vs. SSe {115A Toronto-to-D.C. heading} being decided by a Flemish Painter {116D FP Jan van __}. Nor how my attachment to GEl instead of GEM {108A Setting item} colors my attitude toward BEDIMS {83D Obfuscates}.


Commentary: ACPT
The American Crossword Puzzle Tournament is next weekend. There will be another puzzle before that but it will probably be over before I post. For those who chose to live vicariously:
Wordplay, the movie.
Crossworld: One Man's Journey into America's Crossword Obsession by Marc Ramano (Broadway 2005). “This book, then, is the story of my quest ... to place at least near the top half of the single largest such competition in the nation.” p28.
From Square One: A Mediation, with Digression, on Crosswords by Dean Olsher (Scribner 2009). Watching Al Sounders lose, pp101-103.
Cruciverbalism: A Crossword Fanatic's Guide to Life in the Grid by Stanley Newman. (Collins 2006). Preparing for and winning in 1981, pp25-35.
Zen and the Art of Crossword Puzzles: A Journey Down and Across by Nikki Katz (Adams 2006). Interviews with Ellen Ripstein & Tyler Hinman, pp177-187.
The Crossword Obsession: The History and Lore of the World's Most Popular Pastime by Coral Amende (Berkley 2001). Commentary on the ACPT from a dozen+ people, pp173-180.
And the winner is
Gridlock: Crossword Puzzles and the Mad Geniuses Who Create Them by Matt Gaffney (Thunder's Mouth 2006). A chapter on judging the ACPT, pp 1-32.
Enjoy.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Friday, February 12, 2010

Dance Number
by Todd McClary
edited by Mike Shenk
February 5, 2010

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

Theme: Answers where pairs of phrases combine to clue TANGO. Kinda. Yeah, it was that complicated.

BRITS WORD OF THANKS {23A Partner of 114-Across} = ta
& DINH DIEM OF VIETNAM {114A Partner of 23-Across}= ngo
What would NDD have thought of Vietnam.com, complete with an explanation of TET {59A Asian celebration}?

BEACH SKIN TONE {33A Partner of 100-Across}= tan
& MONOPOLY SPACE {100A Partner of 33-Across}= go

ORANGE DRINK MIX {43A Partner of 93-Across} = tang
& WOMENS MAGAZINE {93A Partner of 43-Across}= o

IT TAKES TWO TO TANGO {66A Maxim demonstrated by the partnered answers in this puzzle}

All is forgiven. Impenetrable on the way it; delivered on the finish. Even with the explanation answer and some of the theme answers, I was still asea. TANG was finally my way in. Do kids still know from Tang? It's out there, now in grape & tropical passionfruit. Less of a blip on the cultural radar than it used to be. Unfortunately I got so excited about grokking the answer I wrote in BRIef WORD OF THANKS without considering that ANeIGUN {4D Like NRA foes} made no sense.

Usually, I solve on paper and highlight the theme boxes with a colored pen.* For this one I color-coded the theme pairs in different colors. How in the world did online solvers keep track?

*[Recently overheard: That's not OCD, that's organized. My new mantra.]


Admissions of Defeat: 4
In addition to the two above, S(f)T(r)EIG {24D Shrek creator William} crossing BONIT(r)A {27A Madonna's “La Isla ___” } was random letter generation that I generated incorrectly. Also, SOOEY(e) {41A Message for a pen pal?}/MINKSY(e) {13D Big name in burlesque}.


Variety Puzzle: Acrostic
My solving of acrostics is always overshadowed by wondering How do they do it? One has a given set of letters - the quote – and a mandated number of words with the first letter fixed - the name and title. How do constructors not have a pile of stray letters left over???


Variety Puzzle: Rows Garden
I worry when the instructions are longer than the clues. Which is my way of saying I had no luck. So far my loyalty to the grid has not been tested.


Commentary: So taken with the main conceit that I don't have much to say about the rest of the puzzle. Plus I'm way late. Tomorrow is another week.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Monday, February 1, 2010

Brainstorming
by Myles Callum
edited by Mike Shenk
January 29, 2010

Full answers not yet available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

Theme: IDEA
Word embedded in phrases, mostly in front: RIDE A-, BRIDE A-, PRIDE A-, HIDE A-, DECIDE A-, WIDE A-, SIDE A-. One in the back half of the phrase: -I DEALER.


Just Because: 2
HONALEE {21A Puff the Magic Dragon's land} - I've always hated that song because I feel for Puff. He's going to live forever without someone to visit him? No, thank you. Abandonment issues anyone? It is not however, about drugs, so says Snopes.

LEGO {85D Company whose name comes from the Danish for "play well"} - Who says childhood has to end? Ogden Nash: “You are only young once, but you can stay immature indefinitely.” The Bible: “...and become as little children...” Matthew 18:3 KJV.


Admissions of Defeat: 0?
When the teacher doesn't show up to grade our work, doesn't that mean we give ourselves and A and go home?


Commentary: A decent puzzle that did not grab me nor inspire discussion. The second hide-a-word in a row, a theme more about letter order than any radical cleverness in content, and half a dozen deju vu words. Granted I'm casting aspersions without doing the research to back them up but I'd swear I'd seen ONE LOVE elsewhere in the past week. However, I defer to the puzzlers's authority & admit I may not be feeling grabesque just now. When everyone in the party is getting up your nose, it's time to consider the common denominator.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Making a Few Bucks
by Colin Gale*
edited by Mike Shenk
January 22, 2010

*Pseudonym of Mike Shenk as an ANAGRAM {2D Ancients, for instance} of collegian, so I'm told. Not to be confused with Colin Gale the Head of the School of Textiles, Birmingham Institute of Art and Design, University of Central England. I recently met a woman who has contacted all of 3 her Internet name-mates. I've looked up mine but haven't contacted her.

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page.

Theme: STAG rebus
Instead of typing out 14 clues which you already know, I've broken down the word usage. (It's my party and I'll make laziness a virtue if I want to.)

stag-
STAGNATE
STAGGER

-stag-, as a form of -stage
HOSTAGES
POSTAGE
UPSTAGE

-st ag-
BELFAST AGREEMENT
PROTEST AGAINST
CONTRAST AGENTS
FIRST AGE

-s tag
MATTRESS TAG
PLAYS TAG

-st a g-
CAST A GIANT SHADOW
BUST A GUT
JUST A GIGOLO

A question for anyone out there who solves online. I can easily write 4 letters in one square. How do you convince the crossword program to do so? Okay, I read the instructions but how does having only the first letter influence your solving, particularly if the rebus is mid-word?


Sub-theme: UP
SETS UP {83A Frames}
WAS UP {38D Batted}
UPSTAGE {58D Eclipse}
FINISH UP {81D Prepare to leave for the day}
Also ON in 11 clues, including 2 three-way nests but only 1 as stand-alone, ON TOPIC {19A Relevant}


Crosswordpuzzlese: 1
A new category. Haven't the foggiest but get because they are standard crossword puzzle answers. Don't know a car clue or {66A Royale Sedans, for example}? Try REOS.


News To Me: 4
EGIS {26A Protection} – Part of defensive armor. I couldn't parse this even after I got the letters. Duh. A variant was the name of my college yearbook. Or, the phrase “under the aegis of...”.

ARA {31A Parseghian in the College Football Hall of Fame} – also a disease foundation.

MIRIMEE {41A Carmen's creator} – written not sung.

ARETES {50A Knifelike ridges} – I should have known this from cwpuzzlese.


Opportunities To Learn New Things: 0
Admissions of Defeat: 0
My first for 2010! Odd, considering the trouble I had wrestling this sucker to the ground.


Variety Puzzle: Snowflake
I have snowflaked my way into a corner. I know (or looked up) that Potomac [River] belongs but there is no place for it to flow. Which means I need to erase words and start again with different words &/or arrangements. I dislike backing up. Words should stay were they are put.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Thursday, January 21, 2010

I Have A Dream
by Gabriel Stone
edited by Mike Shenk
January 15, 2010

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page [note: this is a new link, see below].

Theme: A word from Monday split various ways across words & phrases.
SPANISH OPENING {22A Set of chess moves also called the Ruy Lopez}
ARCHBISHOP EMERITUS {37A Catholic retiree}
ORTHOPEDIST {50A Joint expert}
PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS {65A Consumer product from Adobe}
ANCHO PEPPER {84A Sweet chili ingredient}
ARTHUR SCHOPENHUAER {91A Proponent of the philosophy of pessimism}
SMOOTH OPERATOR {113A Sade song}
HOPE {104D Dream found in this puzzle's seven longest answers} – You may agree or disagree with the message, but MKL was an amazing speaker.
(Presenting both sides is lovely in theory but allow me to plant my flag as part of the 'liberal media conspiracy' when I say there are a lot of wackos, um, strident individuals with anger issues, out there.)


Family of the Week: The Brady Bunch
CAROL {62A Mike Brady's second wife}
STEPPARENT {46D Mike Brady, for one} - What is with the '70s nostalgia? It wasn't that much fun the first time around. Furthermore, the parts that were worthy of being remembered, such as Billie Jean King's defeat of Bobby Riggs in the Battle of the Sexes in 1973, aren't. Of course, sometimes kitsch is the point, as with Monk's Cooper Clan.


Opportunities To Learn New Things: 2
ELYRIA {96D City of northeast Ohio} – So, are all cities over 50K fair game in crosswords? The Census Bureau lists 718 of which Elyria is #612 with a population 55,953. Or perhaps all county seats [Lorain]? Wiki lists 3140 counties. BTW, “At the 2000 U.S. Census, only 16.7% of U.S. counties had more than 100,000 inhabitants.”

HIRT {102D “Sugar Lips” trumpeter} – All musicians are obscure to me.


Admissions of Defeat: 1
MACK {32A Womanizer in hip-hop slang}/PLINKO {10D “The Price is Right” game} - PLINKO was a goner, as was any slang but I should have known MACK from Buffy. So, I'm uncool. I'm comfortable with that. Since I'm also a word geek: “But mack is actually much older than hip-hop. It is found in jazz slang as well and is recorded as far back as 1887.”


Commentary: Their New Toy
The WSJ now has a dedicated puzzle page, including a commentary section. So far the consensus is Don't F*** with the crossword puzzle.

They have added a variety puzzle every Saturday to go with the standard Friday crossword. Once a month will be a British-style cryptic crossword by Emily Cox & Henry Rathvon or an acrostic by Mike Shenk. These will alternate with a biweekly novelty word puzzle by Patrick Berry & Mike Shenk, in which the across-and-down grid will be replaced with snakes, snowflakes, honeycombs, and other shapes. So they say.

I have to confess, I did not attempt the inaugural cryptic. As it is, crosswords are threatening to take over my life. Which is my way of avoiding the fact that I have no clue how to approach a cryptic. It's on my list.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Potluck Dinner
by Randolph Ross
edited by Mike Shenk
January 8, 2010

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page [note: this is a new link for 2010] or with the following week's puzzle on WSJ's online Leisure Weekend or Lifestyle Arts pages.

Theme: A dozen menu items of professional interest.
NAVAL ORANGES {25A What the admiral brought to the p.l.d.?}
BUNION SOUP {39A What the podiatrist brought to the p.l.d.?}
KARAT CAKE {49A What the goldsmith brought to the p.l.d.?}
FRENCH FLIES {60A What the entomologist brought to the p.l.d.?}
SEIZER SALAD {74A What the repo man brought to the p.l.d.?}
PI A LA MODE {84A What the mathematician brought ...?}
ENGLISH TEE {95A What the British Open winner brought ...?}
RITZ QUACKERS {115A What the duck hunter brought ...?}
TUNER CASSEROLE {3D What the piano repairman brought ...?}
WRY BREAD {5D What the satirist brought to the p.l.d.?}
BAGELS AND LOCKS {54D What the hair stylist brought ...?}
COALSLAW {87DA What the miner brought to the p.l.d.?}
An impressive number of theme answers, but some dishes only Andrew Zimmern would eat. That's the trouble with potlucks. You can't control what people bring.


It's a Small, Small Crossworld: 7, at least
IMUS {19A Morning man on the radio} & NYT Fri [1/8/10] {51D 1989 Radio Hall of Fame inductee} Another clue that's easier, make that inescapable, if you live in NYC.

RAE {51D Explorer of Canada's coast} & LAT Sat [1/9/10] {22A Northwest Passage explorer}

ETO {75D WWII sphere} & NYT Sun [1/10/10] {49A D.D.E's 1942 Command}

EON {98D Very long time} & LAT Wed [1/13/10] {59A Years and years}

Same letters, different usage
OAR {66D Galley item} & NYT Fri [1/8/10] {45A Put in one's ____ (interfere)}

Different letters, same usage
SACRA {45A Pelvis connectors} & SACRUM NYT Wed [1/13/10] {9D Pelvis part}

And while we're at it
APED {100A Made like} & APE NYT Tue [1/12/10] {5D Monkey's uncle?}

For commentary, see blogs listed on left. (That's too many links even for my Google addiction!)


Admissions of Defeat: 3
Got AVANTI {9D 1972 Billy Wilder film} because of the car rather than the movie.

Completely missed on MELANIE {58A “Brand New Key” singer}. I had bELAmIE with bFA and emS. Technically, I would argue that curating is competitive enough one would need a PHD. So while MFAs was the answer for {58D Curators' degs.}, neither would be correct. Once I had the initial b, I tried to fill the singer's name out with m, creating the bastard child of Belafonte and the Bellamy Brothers. Totally barked up the wrong tree with ANS {52D T or F, often}. Well, T and F are small, about the size of an em-dash, perhaps? Amazing the contortions the mind can generate. Got the second a in KARAT wrong but after all of the above, a minor matter.


Commentary: I'm going out on a limb and assuming that crossword puzzle people are word people. If you laugh, or at least smile, at the sight of the word impluvious (adj.) “Wet with rain”, check out Reading the OED: One Man, One Year, 21,730 Pages by Ammon Shea (Perigee 2008/2009 pb [p87]). For the rest of you, move along, nothing to see here, move along.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Welcoming '10
by Alice Long
edited by Mike Shenk
January 1, 2010

Alice Long is sister to last week's Natalia Shore, i.e. an alias of the editor, an anagram of collegian. So I'm told.

Full answers available on WSJ's crossword puzzle page [note: this is a new link for 2010] or with the following week's puzzle on WSJ's online Leisure Weekend or Lifestyle Arts pages.


Theme: 10 added to phrases in celebration of the new decade.*
POR-TEN-T AUTHORITY {23A Oracle?}
PO-TEN-T BELLY {33A Sumo wrestler's asset?}
WOULDN(')T HURT TEN-A()FLY {47A Campaign slogan for a New Jersey mayoral candidate?}
HEAR-TEN-ING AID {66A Cheering section, say?}
AMBULANCE CHAS-TEN-ER {82A One taking emergency vehicles to task}
ARMY TEN-ANTS {99A Base residents?}
TEN-SING LIKE A BIRD {11A Imitating Tom Turkey before Thanksgiving?}
[* I hopped up and down about 2001 being the real start of the century, but loosen up after I read a convincing argument for it all being arbitrary.]


News To Me:
ESTOPPED {38A Prevented legally} – 'Oh no you don't. My lawyer won't let you.'

ELD {65A Former times, poetically} - According to my OED connection, ELD can be noun, adjective or verb, mostly to do with old age. Byron and Longfellow both used it in the sense it is used here.

CUGAT {44D Bandleader Xavier} – Known for Latin music.

AARONIC {88D Like lower-order Mormon priests} – Named after Moses's brother.

Speaking of Aaron, Webster's Third lists eight words starting with AA: aardvark, aardwolf, Aarhus (Denmark), Aaron~ic, ~ite,~'s-beard, &~'s-rod, and aasvogel (vulture).

News words are saved from blank-squarehood by their crosses. Even then, all I know about them is the information contained in the clue and answer. Just above these on the solving scale are recall words. {14D Arthur's foster brother} had the solving impenetrability of a news word but once I saw KAY, White's The Sword in the Stone came rolling back.


Admissions of Defeat: 1
So close. I guessed on 3 letters/5 words and missed one. Why does it always come down to an evil cross of proper nouns? This one had a 50/50 cross in the middle right and a nest of p.n.s at the bottom.

WOULDN(')T HURT TEN-A()FLY/ELAYNE {37D Comic Boosler}. Tenafli, NJ, seemed more likely but the expression calls for fly. Boosler's name could have gone either way. I took a flyer on Y and stuck the landing.

EAKINS {105A “The Gross Clinic” painter}
EGAN {105D Richard of “A Summer Place”}
SARA {107D Singer Bareilles}
Couldn't get the beginning or end of the painter here. Had a vague memory of the name Richard Egan without context. Bareilles was right out of the ballpark. Given EAKIN_, it could have been EAKINg but gARA made no sense. I settled on EAKINd with dARA. But no.

For Your Amusement, a totally unrelated Summer Place.


Commentary: With apologies, in the winter a compulsive puzzler's fancies lightly turns to thoughts of the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, February 19-21, Brooklyn, NY. I've never attended but hope to, so I stick with the Monday & Tuesday NYT & LAT puzzles. Partly, I figure I may see words that will repeat later with harder cluing. Also, in Crossworld [Broadway, 2005], Marc Romano advises potential attendees to keep up with all levels of puzzles, “Since there's an art to doing the easier puzzles as much as there's an art to doing a Friday or a Saturday, and knowing it is important to scoring high in the first few rounds during a tournament.”[p66]

OTOH, Monday has become a bit of a fill-in exercise. I have a misty recollection of reading that left-handed writing stretches one's brain cells. [I believe it is in Dean Olsher's From Square One [S&S 2009] but couldn't locate the passage.] So I did. I filled in this Monday's NYT left-handed. While it is too soon to tell the effect on brain function, it did make the puzzle amusingly difficult. Did I have this much trouble learning to write the first time around? Another thing I did years ago in the interest of body balance was to switch my mouse to my left hand. Unclear what this has done to my chi, but now I can click & take notes without having to switch hands.

Katherine Walcott
Puzzle Fan