Well, my jaw actually dropped when I first saw this grid. It was kind of a combination smile and jawdrop. This grid is a piece of beauty! I mean look at it! Ever seen anything like it? No, you haven’t. And it’s wonderfully quirky. Even with an extra column and row, it has 12 fewer words than the usual Sunday. And the one that really gets me is that the usual Sunday has 74 black squares and this one has 132! Oh, you rebel, Kathryn, breaking conventions left and right, but finding a theme to justify it. Hah! Only words of two lengths! And making those lengths 10-4, to tie them into National Truckers Day, which falls on this Sunday. So, let’s see. You’ve got chutzpah, Kathryn, and you’ve got amazing grid-building skill, and this is your NYT debut. Wow is all I can say, and I can’t imagine what you might follow this up with – but I want to see it! Thank you!
@Lewis Agree totally, thank you for your positive comments. We need much more of them. Kathryn, congrats on your debut!
@Lewis This is one of the most amazing constructions I’ve seen, especially from the get go with seeing the title, then seeing the grid, and thinking, “there’s no way all the answers are only four or ten letters long.” But indeed they are! Fascinating breakdown of the stats, and it explains why I felt like I was tearing through this one (less to fill in even though the grid is bigger). Usually there’s a bit more glue for these stunt constructions, but there’s only a few egregious answers in my opinion (SUITSTOATEE, SPUTNIKONE, and ABUDHABIAN stand out). Fantastic construction Kathryn, and one of the distinctive looking grids I’ve ever seen. For me, definitely a puzzle of the year contender, if not all time. Great job!
I can’t wait for the boo-birds to come out. Too much of this or too easy or too natticky. When I first opened this puzzle my eyes did a double take. Could this be the prettiest grid in some time? Just look at the symmetry. Then to find out that this is a debut submission. I AM IN AWE OF YOUR GIFT. I look forward to your next dazzling display. Thanks for sharing it Kathryn, BRAVA!
@Dan Collins I agree. This is the most beautiful empty puzzle I've ever seen. Four-fold symmetry, with four mirror reflection planes (one from side-to-side, one from top-to-bottom, and one along each diagonal. Gorgeous. And unique. And quite daring for a new constructor (or at least a constructor that hasn't appeared in the NYT yet).
ILOVEDTHIS TONS! Before all else, I took a moment to admire and be mystified by the grid design. And then I had a rollin' good time with the solve, very smooth and satisfying. Congrats on and thank you for a beautiful debut, Ms. Bale! One of my two brothers had a knack for saving money and then spending it on hefty acquisitions that he intended to learn to use but never did (a surfboard, a drum kit, a CB radio...) Well, the CB radio we did use. Once. I was fourteen, he was fifteen, and here we were interrupting the truckers' banter, saying hi. They could tell from our voices that we were young, and they were super careful with their language, refraining from jargon and coarseness and going out of their way to be welcoming and nice. Here's a shout-out to all truckers on their day. It can't be easy being on the road with so many bad drivers who never learned that you don't cut in front of a truck. My heart goes out to all of you. :-)
All too often, these very gimmicky puzzles strike me as giving more joy to the creator than the solver. But not here. At least for me, there joy is for both. Well done.
OK so we can make some fun 10-4 combos from the entries: CREAMPUFFS NAPS: sort of like that tryptophan thing TOE THE LINE NUNS: very strict SIDEGLANCE LOVE: meet-cute in the produce aisle REDUCED FAT LOOT: the Halloween rice cakes given out by the quirky neighbors Any more??
@Cat Lady Margaret won't be long before LAKE ITASCA ICES.
@Cat Lady Margaret OLDER PIPES ODOR: Why residents in a brownstone may call the plumber CREAMPUFFS ANON: a 12-step program for licking your profiteroles addiction REDUCED FAT LOVE: kind of romance that might bloom at a Creampuffs Anon meeting 10-4 good buddy!
@Cat Lady Margaret NUNS INTO NUDE SCENES: Why is there a pile of habits on the floor? HUGE PASTA SALAD GLUT: Result of not giving assignments for the potluck.
You know what else fits at 110A? mybirthDAY. I was tempted to enter that, because it is. So tickled when I opened it up and saw the title. Enjoyed the solve too. Thanks, Kathryn!
@J - Happy Birthday! Ayuh!
Excellent debut puzzle, Kathryn. I am very impressed, especially given the constraints you put on yourself in creating this. Fine work.
This is probably one of the most fun Sundays I've ever solved. The clues were a bit easy for a Sunday, but the gorgeous grid and clever theme certainly made up for it. Bravo!
Enjoyed this Clever construction. 96 reasonable 4 letter words was impressive and no Oreo! I had paper plates before pasta salad for summer cook out dish. Favorite clues were for older pipes and microscope.
All 10s and 4s. Can't even imagine trying to build something like that - and that on a Sunday scale. Well done!
I literally laughed out loud when I saw this grid. My second thought, after only a few clues, that there would be tons of complaints about the ease of many of the answers. Well below my Sunday average, a bit above my best, but the fun, coupled with the appreciation for the construction, made it worthwhile. But seriously, all those four letter words and no OREO?
@Jack McCullough Or a PEON singing an ARIA while eating OLEO on NAAN? But at least we had a NENE sighting.
@Jack McCullough And not an ORCA in sight.
The very interesting idea of limiting answers to four letters and ten letters does not overcome my distaste for a Sunday themeless with mostly Monday- and Tuesday-level clues. (A graph theory theme would have been interesting.)
@Barry Ancona. Yikes. I’m embarrassed. The clues were complete mysteries to me. Couldn’t finish without hitting “reveal” for most of the answers, not just the names. Never would have gotten the answers without help. Oh well.
@Barry Ancona Barry, my brother. You and I must have solved VERY different puzzles. This was the hardest Sunday cluing I can remember. 1:30 later, I would have almost been angry at the difficulty level if it weren’t for the genius of the construction. You had your A game today, sir, if you flew through this one.
congratulations and kudos to Kathryn Bale - this is a crossword classic!
I had never heard of solar farts before.🤪
@GEETEEBEE So your T crosses with tIRE...I guess, when you tire, morass is dragging.
@GEETEEBEE 😂 Yes! When the sun farts, it ejects a few billion tons of gas, mostly in the form of plasmic hydrogen and helium. Quite impressive. I wish I were the sun.
Lots of fun, and the construction was such a clever conceit that never felt too forced. Though I must say, the overwhelming majority of MICROSCOPEs can not see viruses, which are too small to be seen with optical microscopes and require more exquisite devices like scanning electron microscopes, so that one threw me a bit, though I realize I may have been too clever by half there!
@Lucas Had the same thought. That was a very bad clue. Also “suits to a tee” is not exactly a thing. I guess people say it, but it should at minimum be “T”. We’re not talking about a shirt.
@Lucas TIL, but a scanning electron microscope is a microscope, isn't it?
@Lucas But naked eye 1) is only 8 letters, and 2) can't see viruses either.
@Lucas. , I agree but it was fun to sort out and get the desired answer.
@Lucas - I agree for the most part with your assessment, but there are giant viruses, mostly in the marine realm, that are easily seen with a regular light microscope. Check out Megavirus chilensis. Granted, they are not much larger than the limit of resolution for light microscopy, but you *can* see them, if not in great detail. If you want to see more detail, then you go to SEM or TEM.
Guess I'm the party pooper this evening. This puzzle did not spark joy for me. I felt like I was trudging through it. I did like thinking about the Morton Salt girl, a link to my younger self, with her brolly and galoshes. And then wondering are there Morton families and Diamond Crystal families just like there are Skippy and Jif peanut butter family. Jim Horne at xwordinfo.com informs me that there are 96 four letter entries in this puzzle. Here's a song with a tear for each one*. <a href="https://youtu.be/xS7qvxm3FbM?si=CIAtW6Z5puDHiH23" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/xS7qvxm3FbM?si=CIAtW6Z5puDHiH23</a> *32 10 letter entries
@Vaer One of my former bosses was a Morton Salt girl—I don’t know the specifics, only that she was the inspiration and may have posed, I assume, for the illustration.
@Vaer --- Y'all are crushing it with the youtube links today. 96 tears of joy is what I got from that video!
@Vaer Great song. After I watched it I clicked on this video with a kid who nearly outfreddiemercuries Freddie Mercury: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTBAM_fgREM" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTBAM_fgREM</a>
@Vaer Wow! Great musical tie-in, and a home-town connection to boot!
Pretty amazing puzzle design. 67D was one of my first gets, as my grandmother had gotten a Spaniel around this date and named him Sputnik, but “One” threw me for a bit. I know that some may have found this to be less of a challenge, but I found that the beauty of the layout superseded the need to have all of it be challenging. I also found that sometimes getting the 10-letter answers easier than the 4-letter ones, and that they were the answers that put me on the path to nailing a section. I thought it was a lot of fun—nicely done!
This is what I call a constructor’s puzzle. The constructor set herself an amazing challenge and pulled it off in impressive fashion with a grid that’s beautiful to behold. As for the solving experience? Let’s just say that it wasn’t as impressive, for this particular solver.
@The X-Phile Came here to say exactly this! I am sure it was lots of fun and challenging to set this puzzle, but the solve was more of a slog.
Lovely! Speedy but fun, and I loved the 10- or 4-letter constraint topped with a dazzling grid. I've whined about proper nouns too much lately, and this constructor handled them perfectly. I'd never heard of LAKE ITASCA but was totally able to get it with crossers. I'd always thought of ESTD as being "established," never "estimated." TIL it could be either! Thank you for the fun Sunday puzzle
TIL the history of the MORTONSALT tagline. Morton was the first to add an anti-caking agent (magnesium carbonate) to keep their salt free-flowing even in high humidity conditions. The brilliant ad-men tweaked the adage “It never rains, but it pours” to the tagline “When it rains, it pours”, and over time that tagline itself replaced the older adage to become the common idiom used today. And as a kid, I thought there was nothing other than Morton (brand) salt.
@BobSolo In my post late last night, I wondered if there were Morton families and Diamond Crystal families just like there were Skippy and Jif families.
"10/4 celebration ... as suggested by this grid" ...the mess I had in the lower right corner because I took "as suggested by this grid" far too literally and was convinced it was CHECKERDAY for quite a long time (the 4x4 squares looked checkerboard-ish to me). Anyway, the October 4th holiday I celebrate is Cinnamon Bun Day. I invite you to join me.
Ah yes, another one of those puzzles that seems more fun for the constructor than the solver. A themeless Sunday in disguise. I admit, when I first beheld the grid, I was stunned by how much time and effort undoubtedly went into its construction. But TBH I do Sundays for the wordplay and themes, not to marvel at how pretty the grid looks empty.
@Kelli Agree - this was a fun puzzle for the constructor, undoubtedly. But i would prefer a theme on Sunday.
@Kelli Not sure why you think it is themeless. CB code tied to the day the puzzle dropped and alternate interpretations of said code along with the length of the answers. Maybe you did the midi?
@Kelli I found this puzzle to be elegantly themed… quite constrained, but weaving in the theme in such a variety of ways.
@Kelli Well, this solver thoroughly enjoyed it. As they say, "chacun a son gout".
I guess I am in the minority, but I really disliked this puzzle. Fine construction effort, but dull puzzle. I expect more out of my Sundays.
@Phil The key to happiness is managing your expectations! I’ve learned not to set them too high when it comes to the Sunday puzzle..
Enough with puzzles whose construction is impressive, but the solving experience unenjoyable. And you told us the revealer in the clue! Why?
@Roberta well said ….have a better Sunday
@Roberta Mind if I take a crack at the first crossword you’ve had published in the Times to see how it compares?
Jester, Any reason you think disappointment with a solve should only be expressed here by published constructors?
Love the premise and the 10-4 construction on 10-4 (which I didn't know was 110A) but I finished it waaaay too quickly! It's so disappointing to basically look at a clue and fill in the answer. Now what am I supposed to do with the rest of my evening? ;) But kudos, Kathryn, on pulling off the structure!
An architectural gem; a crucverbial meh. (Very few clue/answers sparkled with creativity.) Overall, I hate to do it, 7/10. tc
I don't care whether a grid was a feat of construction. I just want to have an enjoyable solve. Personally I found today's puzzle a bit meh. There were some nice spots with fun misdirection ("Nails will do it, but not teeth"), but most of the clueing was boring and direct. Then there was the area with FI__, AN__, AR__, and MORT__SALT crossing - to me it made for a naticky mess I was only able to resolve with lookups.
Incidentally, 10 April 2010 was the day of the air disaster that kiIIed the Polish president, his wife, and 90+ other people, many of them politicians and high-ranking public officials: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smolensk_air_disaster" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smolensk_air_disaster</a>
Excellent theme, so many layers. The length of the answers. The direct meanings of 10-4. The date references. Beautiful grid.
This is a remarkable achievement. To pull off this grid with clean, fun fill is very very impressive. Love it!!
Phenomenal grid (and debut?!) from Kathryn B. 10/4 Grant R. stars
Nice to have this puzzle honoring truckers. It isn't an easy time for them, and the work they do deserves recognition. And here's yet another tribute via song. Linda Ronstadt's cover of 'Willin'' by Little Feat.
<a href="https://youtu.be/_2pAfJy1lTo?si=bKoWcRUFLCLsMWv6" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/_2pAfJy1lTo?si=bKoWcRUFLCLsMWv6</a>
“So when ya see that big truck rollin by Wave yer hand or kinda wink yer eye, Cuz that's Bud the Spud from old PEI, with another big load a’ potatoes!“ <a href="https://youtu.be/HtySGSuKZe8?si=itkYMdu6CjZUKc-h" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/HtySGSuKZe8?si=itkYMdu6CjZUKc-h</a>
@JohnWM - Then there's Dick Curless's classic, Tombstone Every Mile. It's about a stretch of US 2A in Hainesville, ME, a bit to your West. Or maybe SW. Or NW Or maybe S, depending on where in NB you're at. Hainesville is sometimes known as Hangsville, thanks to the song. I've driven this stretch of road, and it's still considered a hazardous road. <a href="https://youtu.be/1uKNTqZrWUk?si=AneHbgDlIAITn0Ka" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/1uKNTqZrWUk?si=AneHbgDlIAITn0Ka</a>
Today is our 51st anniversary and we’re still truckin’ on down the road. Fun puzzle and was stumped on “reflective post” so I cheated a little, googled it and presto…puzzle solved. Word Guides works every time!
A joy based on the construction alone. Fun and zippy with a few clever mis directs. What more could you ask for a Sunday?
Quite impressive! Unusual grid, and a unique constraint that obviously took some time to assemble. Nice debut, Kathryn, and hope to see more of your work.
This one was fun. Called on my memories of watching BJ and The Bear when I was young. Who knew that would come in handy almost 50 years later!?! My daughter and I managed to finish this one relatively quickly (~90 mins, which is quick for us on a Sunday), so completing it filled me with some pride…well…almost! We cracked all but two clues: the FICO and ARCO intersection. We’re Canadian, and FICO does not operate up here so that entity was totally unknown to me. We could have overcome that barrier had we been familiar with the arcane Italian commands given to players of the violin or other orchestral stringed instruments. But, alas, such is the nature of these NYT crosswords! Looking forward to the next one.
ARCO is hardly arcane, IRL or here (even for Sunday-only solvers). Sun Jun 28, 2026 20A Score direction for some stringed instruments Rebecca Goldstein and Christina Iverson Thu May 14, 2026 40A Direction to bow, in music Simeon Seigel Sun Apr 12, 2026 62D Bowed, musically Lance Enfinger and John Kugelman
@Ken This is what I love about crosswords and these comments. BJ and the Bear! Haven’t thought about that one for what, 40 years? You keep my memory neurons firing on all cylinders!
"Sputnik-oh-nee?" I asked, befuddled "Sputnik One," my long-suffering mate clarified from her position doubled over in pain with an unspecified GI ailment. I'm thankful she retained the faculties to manage my foolishness. Such a gorgeous grid and a super fun solve. Really enjoyed this puzzle! My only nit to pick is that I think there are a million ways to clue DOVE and stripping the turtle- from the song's doves is an odd way to do it. I guess it's a swans-a-swimming misdirect, but we ducked that by having already filled in SIDE GLANCE when we came upon it. The glut of four-letter biblical boys had us grumbling too, but we're working on mnemonics to try and remember everyone's parentage for future puzzles.
@Erin & Erin Jeez, I hope your mate is ok, and Sputnik One for your crossword puzzle wasn't their last words! Almost plays out as a darkly comedic scene.
So.... 9A "Other sock" isn't right? Har!! That makes no sense to me. Most of my socks are MATEless. Found this to be a very enjoyable solve on a lovely grid! And I definitely appreciate the shout out to good ole LAKEITASCA. If you ever get the opportunity, be sure to stop in and walk across the head waters of the Mighty Mississippi. Love it!
Oh dear! The har was meant to follow my first entry for 9A: lost.
I can't say enough about the masterful conceptual levels with this one. The publication date, truckers, Sputnik I and the grid itself. Great interwoven alignments.
I'm a little late to the game tonight, and I'm shocked--shocked!--that no one has posted the day's anthem: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sd5ZLJWQmss" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sd5ZLJWQmss</a>
@Steve L Fun stuff – Put a smile on my face!
@Steve L I listened to it, but I have something else in mind to post, if I get around to it.
@Steve L A lot of action but I'm not sure what all that was about. I have to watch the movie, I guess. Here's another roadie favorite of mine. Johnny Cash, "I've Been Everywhere Man." <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a-IO54sDx4" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7a-IO54sDx4</a>
My first thought, when I saw the grid, was "this looks easy...all those short answers". My second thought was terror, realizing there were so many 2x2 sections unconnected with most of the rest of the puzzle--a sure fire way to get completely stuck. So every time I got a section done I breathed a bit easier. But I was sure one of them was gonna get me good.
Clever concept but a comparatively easy solve for me. Just over twenty minutes, ten minutes under average. I've never seen a puzzle that looked quite like this one, though. My mind loves symmetry so I enjoyed this puzzle quite a bit. Well done.
Loved this puzzle, both the layout and the clues. I was struck by its visual appeal as soon as I opened it and the fun, creative, and just challenging enough fill made my Sunday. Thank you for a great debut puzzle, I look forward to seeing your next piece of art.
@J I've solved hundreds of Sundays and this took me 1:33.08 It"s not the time, it"s the enjoyment! Congrats and keep on truckin.
Beautiful grid! So beautiful, in fact, that I didn't notice it's only 22x22. With fewer squares to fill, that's probably why my solve time was lower than average. These constructors, they're so clever!
@Pezhead Had it in my head that a Sunday puzzle is 25x25. Yeah, I'm a dope.
@Pezhead Most other Sundays are actually 21x21, of course, but this one might have gone by faster because with all those blocks (black squares), there is actually less real estate to fill in. The word count is 128, whereas the average word count for a Sunday is 139.
I’ve been retired for a while, but back in the day we referred to physicians in a certain field, and the name of the field itself, by either just saying the letters “O-B-G-Y-N”, e.g. “send a referral to OBGYN” or the phrase ”O-B Gyne” (hard G). I never heard the word “gyno”. The “o” at the end of that word actually makes it sound a little weird. Google tells me it is also an abbreviation for the condition gynecomastia
@RandallP Yeah I’ve brought this up before and the comments supported me, no self respecting OB/GYN wants to be called a GYNO. Maybe an obstetrician who only delivered babies might call themselves a GINO? Gynecologist In Name Only?
@RandallP/SP Well doctors, most women I know, who are not going to an OB/GYN for reasons related to being pregnant, say they are going to the GYNO, have an appointment with their GYNO, needs to see the GYNO, is afraid to see the GYNO, and so on. They may not say it their GYNO's face, but that's what they call them out in the wild.
My former OB-GYN dropped the obstetrics side of things (worse hours, more liability insurance, etc.) and was only a gyno after that. Then this year she decided to retire. Practicing medicine is not for the faint-hearted these days, I think.
@RandallP Doctors may not use the term “GYNO.” Women do.
@RandallP I assume you haven't ever received health services from a gynecologist? Most who have know they are often called "My Gyno".