FLEA is a respectable fill but I must register my shock at the clue which describes it as a “canine”pest. As an ardent cat lover this gave me paws and I am itching to set the record straight. In fact I am jumping up and down in indignation, ticked off and seeing red (well, small red welts in a few areas of my skin, anyway). The New York Times has a long record of bias on this issue. Clearly the theme of today’s puzzle was extremely dog-focused, with a mention of PEANUTS (an overt reference to the comic strip featuring a dog), another clue that was literally “molars and CANINES” (ugh!) and one that was about “PUPPY sounds”! (Bleeuch - have you actually met any puppies?) and a whole slew of clues that only make sense if you’re a mailman or someone putting things in boxes — a “boxer”?? oh yes, we all noticed that one! It is very important to recognize that Fleas (or by their proper name “Siphonaptera”) do not only affect dogs but also cats, lobsters, llamas, Eagles and probably succulent stars like Erma Bombeck and Stephen Rea. I demand that the NYT remove this offensive clue, if not the whole puzzle, and we start again from scratch! Meow! Yours parasitically, Claude
@Petrol If I ever construct a puzzle, I'll certainly include "Erma Bombeck's pest" 🤣 Actually... No! The poor flea just wants to live and it has to feed. Calling it a pest is cruel and insensitive. Erma Bombeck's companion?
@Petrol As a cat lady, I was highly offended. The token inclusion of MANX was not enough to appease me. I'm taking this to the ACLU--the American Cat Ladies' Union.
@Petrol You certainly packed them off with a FLEA in their ear, as the saying goes! A perfect hissy fit! Good work! Cat People Rock!
@Petrol Did a cat write this? 👀
@Petrol on a more serious note.... For those dealing with fleas, I've been there, done that. Both cat and dog had the problem. (We are an un-biased household.) Our vet told us to spray the lawn. Ha! The dog would regularly get out and go run through the multi-acre city park nearby. Flea collars didn't help much. Then someone gave us the solution. Buy a jug of boric acid powder at the hardware store. Sprinkle it all around in all the carpets and brush it in with a broom. It was supposed to last at least 6 months, but we never had fleas again!!! And we do vacuum regularly. :o)
@Petrol Thank goodness you haven't been de-Claude! All joking aside, I hope no one anywhere ever de-claws a cat again. So cruel!
@Petrol - You will never find a flea of the Order Siphonaptera infesting a lobster.
"I sent a package the exact same way!" "Crate minds think alike!" ("I almost forgot to send it at all! Must have shipped my mind.")
@Mike Well, at least if you get your ears boxed, there'll be something inside.
@Mike Thanks for the wrap up. It has my stamp of approval.
@Mike I believe that if your mail service is not working properly you should call a post doc
@Mike UPS! That would have been a terrible accident.
My five favorite original clues from last week (in order of appearance): 1. Baby sitter? (8) 2. Life partner, perhaps? (4)(4) 3. Best performances by an actor in a short film? (4)(4) 4. Gets into a tight spot ((9) 5. Law, but not order (6) STROLLER CELL MATE DEMO REEL SHOEHORNS CAREER
My five favorite encore clues from last week: [A person] (4) [Gathering of moles] (5) EACH INTEL
@Lewis I must have really wanted #4 to be Snookered, that bit took me a while.
A fine Monday light workout, but I feel it's not quite the total package based on recent experiences with the post office where certain orders got left in the rain and the PAGES of book I wanted did indeed SOP up a lot of water. It was a shame. So some wrapping material, possibly a sealed plastic bag might have helped. Gaia must hate us right now and is letting us know of her fury. Out of control fires...and soon even Nepal will be a deep swamp. All because of oil! And sadly, if that wannabe from Ohio whose hillbilly bio belies his lack of ethical tenets assumes power he will enact laws that will turn the agua from here to Peru an ecru color that you would hesitate to let your llama lap up, let alone your children, lest their teeth full out. And why is that lobster such an odd color? Perhaps from consuming all that non bio degradable rayon and junk from countless K-Marts bit by bit? I fear it is too late. Next time I'll just download some books on tape.
A perfect Monday puzzle with an enjoyable theme to suss out. Oorah was new to me and I kept doubting that starting double o for longer than I should. Today's solve pushed my streak to 1500. Onward.
@JBW OORAH with that meaning was new to me, too. I am familiar with the word as the name of an Orthodox Jewish outreach group that aims to connect fellow Jews with their roots, and perhaps bring them into the more religious fold. <a href="https://www.oorah.org" target="_blank">https://www.oorah.org</a>/ The word literally means “wake up.”
@JBW Welp, I always misheard what they were saying as Boo-rah so this was a TIL.
@JBW, Congratulations on reaching 1500! That’s an impressive streak!
Erma Bombeck twice in one week? It's gonna be a good week. 💃🏻
@Molly in Wake Forest I did an archived puzzle yesterday that also featured her. One stumper turned into two gimmes.
Nice fast puzzle. I made sure to complete it before the "ICE RAIN" (pardon my crosswordese) starts up in southern Québec, with the accompanying risk of an extended power outage. First things first when you're preparing for a possible emergency!
@Esmerelda Wise move. Had to go out this evening and the pavements and roads were skating rinks.
Esmerelda & SBK, I’m suiting up in bubble wrap, since that weather package is now being delivered to my location.
Oh boy, you'll open a real can of worms claiming a lap is two lengths of the pool, and not one! This is a lengthy debate amongst swimmers, pretty split, but FINA and most world bodies agree that lap = length, i.e., from one end of the pool to the other. It's a recurring argument on Reddit!
@Darren "length" is unambiguous, you literally used that word in your comment to disambiguate the ambiguous "lap", so it seems kinda obvious that "length" should be the word to refer to a "length". But anyway, don't mean to get in a debate here, I am just curious ... If a "lap" for you means "length", then what word do you use for two lengths? Or just prefer never to use that counting unit?
@Darren Swimmer here, in total agreement, on all points.
To me, a lap implies a loop, i.e. a return to start.
@Darren right? I absolutely loled. Can't decide if this is citable proof for Team Down and Back or purely a case of fools rush in! :D For anybody who wants to stick an oar in, your opinion on this matter only counts if you do spend a bit of time in the water. You might still be on one side or another, but if you don't get that there are Reasons to support each you're not actually *in* the discussion.
Quibble about 63A, it’s not THETOTALPACKAGE, it’s just TOTALPACKAGE. /sarcasm regarding yesterday’s forum off/
@Geoff Offermann, I love this! 😂😂😂
I found the bottom section quite hard, not knowing PITCHY, Cincinnati's river, STAG for partner-less (I've heard of STAG parties, but I never considered what the word might meant on its own, in a human context), wondering whether the sporting city would be sTL or ATL, and not being familiar with the revealer expression as a description of an ideal partner. Thus, I finished in Tuesday time, in the end. Also, packing peanuts are not a thing in Poland, and maybe even Europe - I've opened countless packages over the decades (mostly sent from Poland, but occasionally also other European countries), and I encountered foam or starch peanuts once, maybe twice. If our packages require padding, crumpled recycled paper is used these days. I once ordered fancy second-hand wheels for my car, from a private seller. They came wrapped in... Worn-out garden furniture cushions 🤣 My father is taking care of Lucek the puppy while we're on Madeira. He keeps sending us pics. The dog is as cute as ever: <a href="https://imgur.com/a/EvhD2O5" target="_blank">https://imgur.com/a/EvhD2O5</a>
@Andrzej Packing peanuts used to be quite common here, but I don’t remember the last time I saw any. Now, it’s either wadded paper or little plastic bags filled with air. “Stag” doesn’t just mean single, it means single male. As in big manly deer with antlers. Without any does to ruin all the fun. Except I’ve never heard of a doe party. Wonder why?
@A & @H A single male an also be said to "go stag," to a mixed-sex party, where most of the attendees are coupled (OTOH, I've never heard of a woman "going doe.") And, @H, there is such a thing as a "buck and doe party," especially in rural Canada, but that's a very different thing--basically a fund-raiser for an engaged couple, to help them pay for wedding costs and a new household.
@Andrzej This might be my favorite photo of your pup! Poodles have fantastic eyes & gazes.
@C How about this pic my late mother took of the late Jorge the Lab as a puppy: <a href="https://imgur.com/a/EVV3En3" target="_blank">https://imgur.com/a/EVV3En3</a> It's sad all living things pass, but the happy memories remain.
@Andrzej Packing peanuts got a bad rep for being polystyrene, so bad for the land-fill. Never bio-degrade. There are now new ones made from cornstarch. When you are done with them, put them out in the yard and when they get wet they just melt into the soil. Or send to the landfill, and the same thing will happen. Hate to think what happens if your package gets stuck out in a rainstorm.....
A pleasant Monday outing. I notice ERMA back again. Is this the ERMA-ssance?
Elegant how the last words of the theme answers, in context, have a different meaning than their “package” meaning. With PEANUTS being an inexpensive food, LABEL being a brand, BOX being a court setting, and TAPE being audiotape. That was a very nice touch. Got a great workout on the mental treadmill trying to guess the revealer without reading its clue. Never came close, though, as PEANUTS threw me off. Then, looking at SPOT, I remembered that as a child I discovered with a big “Wow!” how many common words (6) could be made from those four letters (yes, I was a word nerd even back then). This sent me down a little rabbit hole today, to see if there were more such letter combinations, and in that side trip, I came across an unrelated wordplay riddle that I liked: What word can you take three letters away from, and it still holds the same meaning? (Answer in reply.) Good to see you back, Chase, after a nearly two-year absence. Thank you for a fun outing!
The word is FIVE, as when you remove F, I, and E, it leaves you with the Roman numeral with the same meaning.
@Lewis Or could be NIL, as when you remove N, I and L, it leaves you with nothing! I also like looking at words that make a lot of other words. I think TEA is the one that comes closest to ALL of its possible permutations being real words (TEA, TAE (Scottish "to"), EAT, ETA (Greek letter), ATE, AET (? apparently not, darn!) TEAS has a lot for a 4-letter word, maybe one more than SPOT: TEAS TASE (tesa tsea tsae taes) EAST EATS ETAS (esat esta etsa) SATE SEAT (saet seta stea stae) (Can't see any beginning with A) SPOT STOP (spto stpo sopt sotp) OPTS (opst otsp otps ostp ospt) POST POTS (ptos ptso psot psto) TOPS (tosp tpos tpso tspo tsop)
Once I realized that PEANUTS are those tiny, puffy, scatter-y things that protect whatever is inside your PACKAGE and that mean you'd better open that package anywhere that is not inside your own home -- otherwise you'll be spending the rest of the day getting them off your floor, your dining table, your couch, wherever -- that's when I saw the connection to the other theme answers. "It's something about a PACKAGE", I thought, only I had no idea exactly what. THE TOTAL PACKAGE is nice. WORKS FOR PEANUTS is an especially colorful phrase. Wonder if it's a first-time appearance? A very clean puzzle with no junk. I found this a pleasant Monday.
Nancy, It is a first-time appearance.
Eww Eww We were at the beach (Eww) Everybody had matching towels (Eww) Somebody went under a dock (Eww) And there they saw a rock (Eww) It wasn't a rock (Eww) Was a rock lobster (Eww) your ear worm <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4QSYx4wVQg" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4QSYx4wVQg</a>
With another mention of ERMA Bombeck, I must assume that the NYT Crossword Crew is encouraging folks to write a (max 450-word) humorous or human interest piece and enter the writing contest named for her before the January 6th deadline. C'mon, I know you have stories to tell! This is also a second appearance for RECORD (or union) LABEL. Late yesterday someone actually posted: "What is a union label? Label union?" Wow, huh? I left a helpful explanation--just a few minutes ago, Judy from California. Hope you see it. This was a nice Monday solve, but I must say, I myself have met THE TOTAL PACKAGE...only to find [him], like the one in this puzzle, quite empty.
@Mean Old Lady I hadn't come across the union label either. I think it's just in the US.
This was THE TOTAL PACKAGE for a Monday puzzle – zippy yet interesting and with a creative theme. This wasn't, however, the first time I've seen ECRU clued as a light brown, and I must object. Editors, please make a note –ECRU is, in fact, and off-white creamy color that looks like this: <a href="https://www.pantone.com/color-finder/11-0809-TPX?srsltid=AfmBOoqCdtXFtupGI8llZd7Ej4QAIcF3rp0SkJF0Sb66y6M1d5XRBukm" target="_blank">https://www.pantone.com/color-finder/11-0809-TPX?srsltid=AfmBOoqCdtXFtupGI8llZd7Ej4QAIcF3rp0SkJF0Sb66y6M1d5XRBukm</a> From the JURY BOX, that would be my only quibble. Other than that, a splendid Monday! Thank you, Mr. Dittrich!
@sotto voce With you on what ECRU looks like, though someone will probably be along to argue that there is brown in it somewhere.
@sotto voce it's a pale brown-- it has nearly equal parts red and green in the mix (brown). Plus white, making it a pale brown!
@sotto voce I’m with you. That ECRU clue felt off to me, too. When I still needed to wear dress shirts on a daily basis, I often preferred ecru ones to white. But I never thought of them as “light brown.”
The CELLO clue seemed a little off to me--technically, it is the "endpin" which rests on the floor, and cellos didn't always have endpins. "The endpin was introduced by Adrien Servais c. 1845 to give the instrument greater stability" (This is not a name and date I had as ready knowledge--thank you, Cambridge Companion to the Cello, via Wikipedia) Before that, cellos were supported between the player's calves, and the contact of the leg with the instrument would have affected the sound, in some subtle way, I expect. And, since the advent of the "Historically Informed Performance" movement ("HIP"!), once again, not all cellos have endpins. Here's Giovana Barbati, carefully keeping her cello from touching the floor: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OnPbYYxpIc&list=RD-OnPbYYxpIc&start_radio=1" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OnPbYYxpIc&list=RD-OnPbYYxpIc&start_radio=1</a> But "pitchy"? Never heard it! Well, per the OED, it has only been used since the late 1990's, and in the context of pop music, usually by judges on televised songster contests--"American Idol," and the like. So, long after my conservatory days. Etymologically suspect, but a very useful word, which I will probably incorporate into my "use vocabulary." (I considered linking a YouTube of Florence Jenkins Foster, who was pitchy before it was fashionable, but decided that would be cruel.)
Bill, FFJ’s “Queen of the Night” will be my ear-worm today.
All: seek out “guy singing O Holy Night horribly” on YT. He’s pitchy (on purpose), he’s histrionic, he’s hilarious.
@Bill Coincidentally, today, December 29th, happens to be International Cello Day!--something I wouldn't have been aware of, save that a little icon of a cello appeared on the taskbar of my laptop. December 29th is the birthday of Catalan cellist Pau (Pablo) Casals. Here is Mr. Casals, letting his cello--not at all pitchy--rest on the ground: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KX1YtvFZOj0&list=RDKX1YtvFZOj0&start_radio=1" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KX1YtvFZOj0&list=RDKX1YtvFZOj0&start_radio=1</a>
@Bill Thanks for taking care of the 'endpin matter.' I noted it in passing ("What philistine would put their stringed instrument on the ground??!!") but forgot in the midst of all the LAP dog-related entries (ARFS, FLEA, BIT, PEANUTS, SPOT.) Now we just need an ex-Marine to take on 3D's OORAH--oh, the SHAME!
@Bill The word "pitchy" immediately makes me flash on American Idol judge Randy Jackson from the early days of the show. It's amusing to think that he may have invented the term, as well as popularized it. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrnEkwyeq4Q" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrnEkwyeq4Q</a> [go to the 1:10 mark for pitchiness]
@Bill "Pitchy," meaning off-pitch, affects me about the same way that "tony," meaning stylish or upscale, does. Both make me grind my teeth a little. On the other hand, I think about the 110-year-old cookbook I have that used to belong to my wife's father (who was a German chef who as a teenager reached the US by impulsively stowing away on a ship from Kiel on a dare shortly before World War One). The author of that cookbook was railing against the term "menu," asking why everything needed to be Frenchified, and asking: "What's wrong with good old-fashioned 'bill of fare?'" So maybe I'm like that author, railing against something that'll just end up as acceptable and unremarkable.
@Bill Thank you, that was beautiful. How on earth does she keep a heavy CELLO still without the end pin???
@Bill End pin is the answer to an archive puzzle and working on right now. I only knew it because of you and this comment today, so thank you! ☺️
I, for one, stand with Harry Connick Jr.: despite Randy Jackson's best, multi-year efforts, PITCHY just isn't a word. "It's called singing off-pitch." There was really no need for a made-up colloquialism when proper musical terminology was already available. Thank you and have a great day.
@John Peil Words change, and new words come into the vernacular. I hear it all the time. Not sure if it’s still colloquial enough that it should have been modified as such (slightly out of tune, colloquially) but railing that it’s not a word just because it’s a newly coined one is not a valid argument.
Heat is out in my apartment and I think I might freeze to death, but at least the puzzle was fun! Every time I see BOOKS ON TAPE all I can think is, "I'm old now, aren't I?" Though I never liked audiobooks--what do I do with my hands? I prefer to read a physical book. That said, I do see the appeal right now, as it's so cold I do not want my hands out from under the blanket. Someone come read to me.
@Katie When I see BOOKS ON TAPE, all I can think is, "Who has a TAPE player these days?"
@Katie Stay safe! If you can get out, try libraries, a store, or a warming center if you need to get warmth. 🫶
@Katie I love books-on-tape-on-cd-streaming -- they make any chore enjoyable for me! I have to listen with headphones, though, or I get too easily distracted by outside noise.
@Katie Just checking in. Is your heat on? Have you gone somewhere warm? How goes it? December in Minnesota with no heat is no joke!
@Katie When my son was 2 he'd come in our room in the middle of the night saying "Mommy, come and play with me!" We taught him early on how to find a book with its tape. Play the tape and turn the pages when the tape beeps. Mommy could sleep.... Then when same son was in school 4 hours away and we wanted to drive to go watch his soccer games we started on library books-on-CD in the car. Wonderful! But books weren't always exactly 8 hours long, so I'd finish over the next week or two while driving around. Then I got an iPod. And discovered Overdrive -- now Libby. I listen to books constantly. 2 or 3 a week. While driving, while housecleaning, while gardening. Even sometimes at work while doing mindless something or other. So that mostly solves the "what do I do with my hands?" problem. But when I just want to sit and listen, I can knit. If you want easy, useful knitting projects here are two: knittedknockers.org -- prostheses for breast cancer survivors. Handed out free to anyone who asks. Fostercare 2 Success Red Scarf Project -- red scarves on Valentine's day to youth aging out of foster care.
As someone who sticks to Mondays and Tuesdays mainly, this was a solid puzzle! Right on par and fun to solve. Only difficult point for me is that there are two prominent Stephen’s with 3-letter last names in “V for Vendetta”! I had the wrong one and it left me confused for quite a bit!
Rayon is - more accurately - semi-synthetic. Think bamboo fabric, which is universally thought of as "natural". Well, it is but it's made with chemicals. Rayon and bamboo fabrics are the same, except rayon uses wood pulp.
Random down under tidbit, Kmart is a reimagined giant again in Australia.
Nice quick, solid Monday puzzle. Thanks, Chase!
You may already be a fan of Metropolitan Diary, which appears in the NY Times every Sunday. The last entry says it all. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/28/nyregion/metropolitan-diary.html?unlocked_article_code=1.AFA.uuot.dFFgRIWJEtAj&smid=url-share" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/28/nyregion/metropolitan-diary.html?unlocked_article_code=1.AFA.uuot.dFFgRIWJEtAj&smid=url-share</a>
@dutchiris Thank you! I still get Sunday delivery so that I can get the magazine and the Variety puzzle page. I'm a big fan, but I haven't been able to get to actually read the paper in a couple of weeks. I would have been aghast at that bagel order, too. Nothing says "tourist" like whitefish on a cinnamon raisin bagel. Sorta like pastrami on white bread with mayonnaise. I've had my own Metro Diary submission sitting in my files for a couple of years. Maybe this will prod me into sending it in.
Easy Breezy Monday. Know OORAH, but didn’t realize it was a battle cry. Huge fan of BOOKSONTAPE, though I listen on audio apps instead now. 4:04 under my Monday average
Trying again with one word changed... Ratites are omnivorous. We see they eat vegans.
@Barry Ancona I just tuned back in to see if the vegan rant was still up. I guess that answers that.
I once had a room-mate, a former Marine, who greeted each dawn with a call that sounded, to my ears, like "AROOGAH!" I guess it was OORAH, the Marine Corp battle cry. Anyway, it sure scared the birds.
@mirle234 the only reason I knew Oorah is bc I always watch tv with captions and it was used all the time on Boots on Netflix!
A little tougher than usual for a Monday. Good puzzle overall but two Natick squares for me. OORAH/ADO for one, I still don’t get how ADO is a kerfuffle. Then ERMA/MANX.
@Chris ADO and kerfuffle both basically mean a fusser commotion. ADO is clued in similar ways somewhat often, so it's a good one to keep in your pocket. Hope that helps!
@Chris Think "Much Ado About Nothing." Making a big deal about not much of anything.
I don't understand the insistence on associating Stephen REA and V for Vendetta. I've seen that exact clue more than once. I assume it's to create confusion with Stephen FRY who also has a three-letter last name and is also in that film. It seems too cute for a Monday puzzle.
@Lex It's teaching you to use the crosses to determine the correct answer when there's more than one option. If I was going to guess, I'd guess REA, because the letters in his name are more constructor friendly.
I've managed a few Monday crosswords without any look-ups or reveals, but there were a few clues today that I just couldn't get - DEREK, rushing yards (American football?) the snowman, got Grubhub's solution from the crossers, and not familiar with 'peanuts' in that sense. Not a complaint, my ignorance, and it was enjoyable nevertheless.
Dear @Jane Wheelaghan, While we’re complaining about word choices, “ignorance” is not a word I would associate with someone as wise and thoughtful as you. 😊
@Jane Wheelaghan The styro "peanuts" used in packing are a mixed blessing; they do protect breakables, but static electricity means that they go everywhere --quite the nuisance! I was confused at first, since of course the NUTS were my immediate association. I missed the Grubhub clue/entry entirely as that area had filled via Down crossings. DEREK Jeter is in the Baseball Hall of Fame now, both names being ever helpful to crossword constructors...
Anyone else have a love/hate reaction to really old cello tape on books? I solved this puzzle upsidedown, but with care.
@JohnWM I did mine while looking at it in a mirror.
@JohnWM Americans never shortened CELLOPHANE to CELLO as you Brits'n'Canadians do, so someone is likely to say, "What?" But I love, love, love this wordplay! (Can't wait for Mike in Munster to see it..)
Surprisingly chewy for a Monday. Good though.
Fun puzzle today, but I don't have much to say about it other than being so completely grateful that I really did get the total package in my husband! What I wanted to comment on though is that I just did an archive puzzle from 2020 and in it was endpin for a cello, which I only knew about because Bill in Detroit was discussing it earlier in the comments today. Fun surprise! It also contained Menlo Park, which I only got because Steve L provided some interesting commentary on it just a I don't know a week or two ago I think. When it came up before, I think I got it on all crosses, but today I was like oh, that's Menlo! Still, I was done in by not knowing rolfs regarding massages, nor do I know anything about cigars or their names, so I ended up having to reveal those last two squares. Just thought it was fun that two very recent comment section conversations showed up in my archive puzzle today.
@HeathieJ Glad to have helped. Rolfing is a thing I have heard of outside of crosswords (there’s someone who specializes in it near where I live), but the great thing about doing crosswords is that you pick up so much that you eventually know them the next time. And you also know them in real life.
Chase, I'm glad for us that your ship came in again puzzlewise. I give this one an enthusiastic stamp of approval.
Oh, we got two crossover clues from the Mini today, albeit one in plural form...
Great fun! And anewpersonalbest. It clicked from the start so I went quickly instead of lovingly.
Nice Monday puzzle. Mostly smooth solve, with some working the crosses. And... must confess that I wasn't really grasping how 17a worked with the theme even after I filled it in. No big deal - that's just me. Unusual puzzle find today - I might put that in a reply. ...
@Rich in Atlanta As threatened: A Sunday from December 19, 2010 by Kevin G. Der with the title "Hope for clear skies." Not real easy to describe this one but... ... an arc of rebus squares near the top of the puzzle - those being: -------------------------MOON----------------------- -----------------DARK----------DARK-------------- -----------DIM---------------------------DIM BRIGHT ---------------------------------------BRIGHT And then two more rebus square down the middle of the puzzle - one halfway down and one at the bottom, with one more answer just above the second one: --------------------------(EARTH)------------------------------ ------------------TOTALLUNARECLIPSE------------------- ----------------------------(SUN)------------------------------ Just don't recall another one anything like that. Here's that link if you want to see what it was like: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=12/19/2010&g=125&d=A" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=12/19/2010&g=125&d=A</a> ....
Thankfully, an actually easy puzzle! We've been on a brutal stretch of really tough ones last week.
Oh, one more puzzle find - a Tuesday from October 2, 2018 by Paul Coulter. I had done this one but of course had completely forgotten it. Will just say that is rather... unusual. Anyway - theme clues and answers (and will note that there was no additional 'reveal': "Megacorporation? [1996, 1970]" BIGCOMPANY "Pomade? [1968, 1972]" HAIRGREASE "Supreme Court that's corrupt? [2003, 1982]" WICKEDNINE "Melted? [2018, 2012]" FROZENONCE Here's that link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=10/2/2018&g=61&d=A" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=10/2/2018&g=61&d=A</a> ....
Has anyone noticed that THE TOTAL PACKAGE seems to be missing something? You know, the thing you actually bought. The only part of THE TOTAL PACKAGE that you don't throw away (hopefully). Not a complaint; just an observation.
The X-Phile, MOL noticed it rather humorously within the hour. In case you missed it: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/4courh?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/shared/comment/4courh?rsrc=cshare&smid=url-share</a>
@The X-Phile Very true! Unless you happen to ask a cat. 😺
Thank you, Chase, for a very fun start to the week! For me, the theme and clever clues were THETOTALPACKAGE. Also, thanks for repping our 🦞 as it doesn't get as much SPACE in these PAGES during the winter.😉 Happy Monday, everyone!
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/29/crosswords/2025s-crossword-constructor-debuts.html?unlocked_article_code=1.AVA.JaLb.mxV_Z2_2X4xs&smid=url-share" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/29/crosswords/2025s-crossword-constructor-debuts.html?unlocked_article_code=1.AVA.JaLb.mxV_Z2_2X4xs&smid=url-share</a>
@Eric Hougland That’s a nice article. Thank you Isaac and thank you Eric.
Got very confused by synthetic fiber and Stephen from V for Vendetta. Nylon is a synthetic fiber that fits, and there is a character, Stephen Fry that hold the 2 perfectly. Took a while to discover the problem
@Mike Added to which, 'buff' is a four light brown colour. For an otherwise breezy puzzle I spent a long time struggling there!
Fast Monday, but argh that middle section… I had to look at the column to get JURYBOX so I could learn what ECRU, MANX and that there was more than Stephen in V for Vendetta.
Well, maybe not on a Monday, but instead of "River past Cincinnati" it would have been nice to see "Lima's land" used for both OHIO and the adjacent PERU. Yes, I know the two cities are pronounced differently. Solved this one on an iPad, which perhaps made it seem more difficult than a typical Monday puzzle. Certainly took me longer, as I had to adapt to a different interface. Solid theme for a Monday puzzle, with four thematic entries and a nice revealer.
@Xword Junkie Pierce Brosnan is still remembered for misi-pronouncing LIMA, OHIO in that movie ("Mrs. Doubtfire")... but PERU, for me, evokes a family memory: I used the expression, "darkest Africa" and was corrected by 3-yr-old PhysDau, a devotee of Paddington-Bear. "No, Mama, darkest Pe-Wu!"
<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/29/crosswords/2025-crossword-new-words.html?unlocked_article_code=1.AVA.Qq9g.3fJsB7U_BESL&smid=url-share" target="_blank">https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/29/crosswords/2025-crossword-new-words.html?unlocked_article_code=1.AVA.Qq9g.3fJsB7U_BESL&smid=url-share</a>
@Eric Hougland Thanks Eric. I often forget to look at what's been posted in the Gameplay feed. People may also be interested in the post entitled 25 Memorable Puzzles From 2025, also.
One more late puzzle find - another quite unusual one. A Sunday from October 9, 1994 by Bryant White with the title "Promotions." Will just list some of the theme answers: CORPORALENTRANCE GENERALMUSTARD SERGEANTPUNISHMENT COLONELLEAGUER MAJORSCOURAGEOUS CAPTAINGOVERNORS LIEUTENANTPEPPER Here's the link: <a href="https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=10/9/1994&g=77&d=A" target="_blank">https://www.xwordinfo.com/Crossword?date=10/9/1994&g=77&d=A</a> ....
Don’t have time to read other comments, as I didn’t get to this puzzle until very late in the day. But popping in to say it was great fun to solve.