I just wanted to tekka minute to thank Evan Kalish for his tasty puzzle. It was fun, geometric, and didn't maki me feel crabby at all. This one must be a real feather in his kappa! It takes ingenuity tomago crossword this fresh. I'm guessing Evan bento-ver backwards to make the theme work so neatly. No reason for him to be Modesto... he has every right to 'brag' a little bit and maybe say "I'll shoyu how it's done!" Umami must be very proud! *ducks the stream of pelted tomatoes* Thanks Evan!
Good omens in this puzzle, right? California rolls over the piping bag. What would Aretha say? R-E-S-P-E-C-T! No TV for me today, no mags. No videos of apes in red desecrating Ave Maria at a rally. No sage advice from some Eli from Yale is going to make any difference now. When we go high C, they nolo. K-Pop, you got this. But what really buoys me is that despite everything, America, I trust you.
So, I solved Evan’s fun and amazingly constructed puzzle today, and afterward found out in the comments section here and from reading Rex Parker that the NYT digital tech workers – the people who bring us the on-line crossword, along with Wordle and other games, and features like “Cooking” -- went on strike at midnight last night. Because the strike involves only the digital workers, solving the puzzle in the hard copy of the Times, or through a third-party app, according to Rex, is not crossing the picket line. I have decided to honor the strike by continuing to solve the puzzle in either of the methods I’ve just mentioned, which would mean busting my 3,047-puzzle streak, so I’m hoping the strike gets resolved today. In any case, I’ll be back to comment as usual tomorrow, and may this Election Day turn out as it should!
They were out of California rolls, but I won't crab about it. (And that's a wrap!)
@Mike -- Keeping those rolls stocked is always such a haddock!, but what EELS is new? It's all abate and switch lately.
Fun puzzle. Loved the spirals. Perfect distraction. My first time commenting. I have been doing the NYT xword for only a few months. I've learned a great deal and have much improved .. finally getting gold stars if only Mondays and Tuesdays so far. I appreciate this community and feel like a member even though I have only been a lurker until now. Thanks to all for your support, explanations, and tips for us "newbies." And yes, I even know about the ... emus
@qtip in cinti Welcome aboard. There’s got to be a story behind your handle. — — — — — — — — — — — —
Time to say goodbye to my 2000 crossword streak. I’m lucky enough to have an employer who appreciates my work and treats me with respect and consideration. I want the tech workers who make the start to my day so much more enjoyable to have decent working conditions too.
Thanks! I’ve never thought of a crossword as “cute” before, but this one definitely was :-)
How can a puzzle be like a roller coaster? Well, like this one—harrowing, loopy, intimidating, fast and fun. I was amazed and disappointed when the wild ride was suddenly over. Thank you, Evan Kalish, for the joyride. It was perfect for a Tuesday—not too hard if you don't panic, but challenging nevertheless. (And I, for one, liked seeing Mies in the puzzle. Having an architect join us seems just right for this tricky construction.)
I decided that I didn’t like this grid. How dare they put fol-de-rol graphics in on a Tuesday? What’s the world coming to? And other harrumphs. Then I filled the grid; a little challenging for Tuesday, read Wordplay. Went back and found the beach names, which I would not have got without help as I’m not familiar with any of them. Then took my Eeyore head off and QUOTH ‘Wow’. Hats off to you Mr Kalish, I’m a total convert. Drop before INCH, Pei (as in Shar) before PUG. Thoroughly enjoyable. Even made me forget my latest bruise as our heifer headbutted my leg. Again. She just will not wait for her pellets to hit the trough. I’m hitting the Carribean beaches on Saturday. I’m going to look bonny in a cossie with multi-coloured limbs.
@Helen Wright They’re not beaches - they’re cities. A little surprised you’ve never heard of San Diego but, ok.
This was one of the most creative puzzles I've seen in quite some time. Congratulations and thanks to Evan Kalish for a masterpiece!
Cute puzzle! So happy to have this election-free theme. Also glad to see the Eads Bridge get some recognition, as this year marks the 150th anniversary of its opening. The foundations were built over 100’ below the water level, setting a record. The workers suffered from decompression sickness, then called caisson disease. The physician in charge developed the disease himself and coined the term “the bends.”
@Someone Hi! My father was keen on architecture and engineering and passed that enthusiasm along to me. I was pleased to be able to present this unique angle for STL, which I'm grateful the NYT editors kept. [I didn't know that workers suffered from decompression sickness with this construction; I learned about "the bends" while watching (if I recall correctly) Ken Burns' Brooklyn Bridge documentary as a child.]
@Evan Kalish Yes, your memory serves you well. Per Wikipedia, the new engineering principles developed for the Eads Bridge were used for later projects, including the Brooklyn Bridge which began construction in 1870. Thanks for touching base, Evan.
Figured out it was SAN_DIEGO in the snail shell once the NW corner was filled, and had a good laugh when I discovered that's how CALIFORNIA ROLLS. Abso appreciate the help in proceeding immediately to ROLL up the other corners, and hope there's no plan to sue she who did so. It might be that today, moreso than any other day, I'm likely to jump the gun Am still ridiculously impressed by this construction of city SPIRALs, which seems to have developed :first by selecting 8- and 9--letter CALIFORNIA names, :then by rolling them either clockwise or counter-clockwise, :then by starting the city-name in any one of 8 possible (non-central) squares, to see if the result would fit into any 3x3 ennead However it was done, I'll say EvanK came up with a darNED BEATTYful result. AND SO we now ARE THAt much closer to seeing if the nation has managed to Net Out The Vote.. Personally, I plan to stay INSPOi-RED. I TRUST YOU gentlefolk will allow what I just SAID, and Honi soit qui MALI pense. I suspect as the HRS ROLL by, we'll all be in our CUPS. In closing, shall just suggest every German HERR consider changing the honorific to THEMM PS: EELiasn must be appreciating Mies van der ROHE and I have A GEE for ELI YALE. Plenty ZIP, Mr. Kalish!
@Leapfinger Almost! For years I’d been working with only nine-letter California city names, of which there are surprisingly few [well-known ones]. When I accepted the idea of two 9s and two 8s it came together quickly. I insisted two rolls be CW and two CCW (and they roll from the outside in). The LONGBEACH roll was the first I filled around, trying out numerous placements. I thought this result, especially with unexpected letter strings, was so fun (despite a couple of compromises in the short fill) that this grid layout was largely set in stone. That otherwise shoddy crossing of NOLO and ROHE could also be checked as the O in Long Beach, and I love when sussing out a theme can help actually solve the puzzle in such a situation. It was fun seeing which/how patterns of letter strings were consistent throughout the permutations of rolling.
As mayor, lifetime resident, leading citizen, and founder of Cupertino, I was dismayed that Cupertino wasn't given more prominence in this puzzle. Not only should it have been in the first spiral, but in all four, ideally. Come visit and you will see why Paris is often referred to as "the Cupertino of Europe."
Solved the first half as a themeless until the revealer showed up, then recognized the rolls as California cities, which helped a little with the last two. Fun puzzle; thanks, Evan.
Evan Kalish hit a HIGHC and constructed a yummy puzzle with a nice twist, or should I say roll, for a Tuesday. Having spent a lot of time in SANDIEGO when courting my wife, I caught on to the CALIFORNIAROLLS right off the bat and had fun watching them materialize as I filled in the answers. The nifty construction gave this one a little ZAP for me.
Loved HALO for ring light, and happy to see Chappell Roan make (her first?) appearance. As an Indian, taking as long as I did for SUTRAS was shameful!
What a marvelous puzzle construction! I can't imagine how difficult it was to make a consistently Tuesday-level puzzle (I thought today was Wednesday), with fair cluing and almost zero (maybe zero) filler, and all the while build such an intricate theme. Beautiful execution! I didn't use the theme at all. It was extraneous to solving, and yet SO nicely done that I just admire it with a smile. Great work. ____________________ Jesse Goldberg 8/28/2024 for Puzzle of the Decade (I do this instead of emuing)
@B Thank you. I did think a couple of entries were suboptimal, but they were rather “load-bearing” and the crosses seemed fair (with the exception of the shoddy NOLO/ROHE cross, though could also be confirmed by way of the LONGBEACH roll).
Such a fun solve! Some puzzles have felt like a bit of a slog lately but this one was pure joy. As soon as I opened it up and saw the spirals I was excited and even stayed up late with a sleeping baby to finish it up. Nice to have something so fun and full of a theme early in the week!
This is my fourth presidential election living in my (van der Rohe) building which serves as a polling place. I've never before seen even a dozen voters at one time here, but going out for coffee this morning I saw a line that spilled out our front door. Not the longest line in the country today, but still. I have nothing to say about the puzzle(sorry, Evan) or the comments or even the issue that Lewis mentioned. I just don't have the bandwidth. Good luck, everyone.
Oh, to be hanging out with ISSA in Barbieland getting our nails done with a fun OPI color listening to some ARETHA and thinking about having CALIFORNIA ROLLS for lunch. I muttered a little when I saw the ROLLS, but was won over by the end. A candidate for early week POY. Nice job, Evan. Gotta turn on Show Overlays in your settings, people.
@Vaer It's not in settings on my laptop. IDK where it is.
Yay for my adopted town and state for 40 years! I was wondering what the spiral of San Diego was going to mean and then there it was right across the middle. Once again, I’m amazed at the creativity of the constructor.
NYT Guild went on strike today. Sorry to break my streak but: from The Guardian: "The Guild is asking that readers honor their picket line by boycotting the Times’ selection of games, including Wordle and the daily digital crossword, and to avoid other digital extensions such as the Cooking app. Annie Shields, a campaign lead for the News Guild of New York, encouraged people to sacrifice their streaks in the wildly popular Wordle and Connections games in order to support the strike."
Excellent Tuesday puzzle. I enjoyed discovering the cities. But I have to say my favorite part of today's solve was reading @Sam Corbin's suggested answer to the the clue [Number of carolers?] Great suggestion, Sam! Does anyone know if this has been used before? I look forward to seeing it in some future puzzle
This puzzle just goes to show that an easy puzzle can have an innovative theme!
After perusing only a handful of recent comments, all I can say is that I sure am happy that I know nothing about what record labels singers were with... ARETHA was a gimme for me. Not a fan of actual CALIFORNIAROLLS but this puzzle was a delight, more like spicy girl ROLLS—delicious with a bit of spicy zip and crunch! Thanks for a fun and cute puzzle, Mr. Kalish, and for sticking with it all this time. It was a perfect ROLLout! :-)
ICK! Feeling a bit JarJar Binks here.. "Did yousa missa ISAA in Atlanta?" "Whatta messa saying?" "Deesa plasticky dolly hard solvin'!" For da luv of all yous hold dere, VOTE, yes-yes!
Now I want sushi. Fun solve.
Very creative and FUN, thank you, Evan Kalish!
I lived in PASADENA for several years. Enjoyed viewing Wayne Manor as I drove to my office in Seal Beach, sorta near Long Beach. Enough about me. Nice one Evan. Nil for ZIP was a problem. I found it helps if you read the clues.
@dk Visited Seal Beach a few months back, to visit the post offices (one of the ways I use my time outside of crossword construction). Been to all the ones in Pasadena and Long Beach, too!
This was a perfect puzzle to curl up with at the end of a long day. I appreciate the creativity, and loved the playful vibe. As soon as I saw the spirals, I was hooked! This was one twisted road trip, and definitely worth the journey.
Yet another puzzle that I seem to be the only one that found it quite difficult for a Tuesday. Of course I was impressed by the construction and clever theme. It must have been quite difficult to get it to work so well. Well done, Evan.
@suejean Not the only one! There were plenty of clues with multiple potential answers, and I was leery of filling in anything before I knew how the spirals would be involved. (And I don't know how to spell MAwL.)
@suejean -- I agree that this puzzle was a cut above what I think of as a Tuesday. More chewy, more crunchy, and erm, obvi more intricate. And then it covered a range with ZIP ZAP at one end of the continuum, balanced by IT_RUST_YOU and the culinary PIPING_BAG at the other. How classical to use that latter, at a time most icers would just cut a corner from a ZIPloc baggie! Hope all well with you and the Hare Krishna contingent.
Evan, I love your puzzle! Having so many squares be in three answers must have been extremely technically difficult, but the puzzles flows extremely well. Very clever and very impressive!
Love it. As a California native this was super fun!
@Dominic Totally agree. Reminded me of Randy Newman's "I Love LA"! Century Boulevard! Victory Boulevard! Santa Monica Boulevard! Sixth Street!! (How bizarre would that be as a themer!)
This was an impressive puzzle. Kudos to the constructor. For an embarrasingly long time I was looking for actual sushi types, but caught on eventually.
Clever puzzle and a good long workout for me. But... have to admit that I never caught on to the theme while I was working and had to look at it on Xword Info to finally see the trick. No big deal - that's all on me. One answer history search and puzzle find today was inspired by 8d. Looked up HAILMARY. That's only been an answer in 3 puzzles, but it was part of the theme in a Tuesday puzzle from 1997. Other theme answers in that one: DROMEDARY STATUARY TIPPERARY APOTHECARY HEREDITARY A couple of other puzzle finds today. I'll put those in a reply. ..
@Rich in Atlanta As threatened: First a Sunday from March 23, 2003 by Con Pederson with the title: "Grand finale." One theme clue and answer example: "Like flies caught by flypaper? :" LIVINGINTHEPASTE And some other theme answers - all of them making their one and only appearance: RAISINGTHEBARE KICKTHECANE SHOPPINGTRIPE THERESTHERUBE WELCOMEMATE HAVEAFIRMGRIPE DOANYTHINGTOWINE Here's the Xword Info link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=3/23/2003&g=99&d=A" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=3/23/2003&g=99&d=A</a> I'll put the other puzzle find in another reply. ..
Indication that I need more caffeine: Thought process this morning: filled in first California city - OK, the ones in the highlighted areas will be California cities. Next, answered the California Roll question. Then I thought to myself, "Wow, that's kind of neat that different types of California rolls are named after different cities in California". Just as I finished the puzzle, the penny dropped. Cute Tuesday puzzle with a nice visual appeal, even for those who need a cup of coffee to notice that the California cities are actually "rolled" and not named for different types of sushi.
Thank you, Evan Kalish! 10/10 on fun factor. Easy, smooth solve. 13 distracted minutes for me.
This puzzle was a delightful bit of California dreamin'. I thoroughly enjoyed it!
@Bibliocat 1A of the 11/5/96 puzzle recommended earlier by @Anthony: ["_____ your name" Mamas and Papas lyric] I should probably mute the TV tonight and listen to them instead!
Just a couple of things from an unusually pedantic solver (maybe it's a Monday mood): 1) The plural of Run Batted In (RBI) is not RBIS. It is Runs Batted In, which remains RBI. 2) Though I get the idea, George W. Bush is not George H.W. Bush, so the elder Bush is not "BushSr."
@RP George H. W. Bush was often referred to as Bush, Senior in the media, to distinguish him from George W., even though it's not accurate per actual lineage.
@RP from Wikipedia: Common nicknames for an RBI include "ribby" (or "ribbie"), "rib", and "ribeye". The plural of "RBI" is a matter of "(very) minor controversy" for baseball fans:[3] it is usually "RBIs", in accordance with the usual practice for pluralizing initialisms in English;[4][5] however, some sources use "RBI" as the plural, on the basis that it can stand for "runs batted in".[3][4]
@RP MLB website uses plural for RBIs, and many initialisms are indeed pluralized in English. Also, Bush Sr is a very common way to refer to the first Bush.
@RP You pluralize an initialism by adding an s to the letters. A recruiter receives many CVs.
@RP 1. Both RBI and RBIS are considered correct plurals of RBI. <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/RBI" target="_blank">https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/RBI</a> <a href="https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/rbi" target="_blank">https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/rbi</a> <a href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/RBI" target="_blank">https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/RBI</a> I'd venture that RBIS is the more common version. 2. I think most of us know that the Bushes didn't have identical names, but we also understand and have heard BUSH SR. (and Bush Jr.) The clue "Prez #41" signals informality. I don't think there's really a nit to pick here. Plus, you, like most everyone else, get the idea.
@RP and Merrick Garland and Eric Holder are two AGs. But, more important, good to see the Pasadena spiral.
@RP I'm not very smart but I got both answers correctly.
This puzzle happily reminded me of all the delightful culinary discovery I experienced during my relo in southern CA. Sushi, hotpot, Mongolian BBQ, Korean BBQ, shabu-shabu, pho, Khmer, and on. These plus countless Asian food markets - some as big as "superstores" - where if you're inclined you can buy the raw ingredients yourself, but advisable to be escorted by someone who can help you navigate, and read the signs! This was equalled by the Latin American food fest that's there too. All of these may exist elsewhere in the US, but not with nearly the authenticity and variety I think. I miss all of that now like I used to miss cheese steaks and hoagies and scrapple, which barely exist there.
"All of these may exist elsewhere in the US, but not with nearly the authenticity and variety I think." JB, Come on up from Philly to New York, and do some shopping in Brooklyn and Queens.
Super cute. I like puzzles that incorporate something unique. Thanks.
At first I avoided all the answers with the overlay. Then I got "California rolls" (yum!), and all was filled in except for the 'rolls'. I started answering these, realizing there wasn't an odd rolling answer, but that they could be answered like regular answers. Then I looked at the letters in the rolls, cities! I was able to figure out all the cities, after realizing 'Onitrepuc' was rolling the wrong way. Fun one! So mentally tasty!
Lovely and well excecuted theme. I think placed well, difficulty-wise, on a Tuesday, but the construction could stand up to a Thursday with ease. A stress-free solve for me, which is just what I needed. I voted last week, so all I can do is wait and see. Peace and love, folks!
I wonder if anyone has yet mentioned that Aretha didn't technically record for Motown Records, even though she lived in the city known as Motown. ;) Kidding. It's been mentioned by about 103 people and counting, including what was apparently the very first post way down at the bottom there. We get it. :) ____________________ Jesse Goldberg 8/28/2024 for Puzzle of the Decade Evan Kalish 11/5 Runner-Up for 2024 (emu filler)
B, But as you and I and the emus know, it never stops the people who post before reading any comments.
@B Some people don't read all of the comments and can't do a search on words to see if a subject has been addressed. I like to answer when I can. Reading all of the comments can be time consuming for those who do the puzzle late in the day. I usually do it early then just periodically check in to see if there's anything new. Today, I got here late, so I probably won't read most of them. I can see how people miss things. It *is* kind of funny when people stridently declare that a puzzle has an error, without checking the facts.
I'm with Sam. Fell in love with the grid at first glance, but wish I could have savored it longer. One time through the across clues, one time through the down clues for the blanks that remained, and done. Spent longer going back to read the four rolls and the clues I hadn't needed the first time than I had spent on the solve. But I would say the entertainment per minute ratio was excellent.
I will forever remember Mies van der Rohe from a mandatory undergraduate arts survey course. Not my favorite course.
George H. W. Bush did not name his son George H. W. Bush, Jr., and so is not George Sr.
@Chet That is true, but it is fairly common shorthand to causally differentiate the two as “Bush senior” and “Bush junior.” I didn’t feel tripped up by this one.
@Chet I just go with "Bush the Elder" and "Bush the Younger." It gives it a nice dynastic feel.
@Chet The clue [Prez #41] hints at the informality of the answer. As has been noted, the elder Bush was often referred to as BUSH SR, and the son as Bush Jr. !!!!
Fun and light. Just what I wanted this morning. Pretty AS A picture! Thank you Evan!
Fun puzzle! Got NW right away, but couldn’t make any sense out of the rolled up SAN DIEGO. But that was nothing compared to my bewilderment over the apparently correct IT RUST YOU. (Yes, I figured it out eventually.). Now, if I could just remember that nail polish brand from one puzzle to the next…