Karl M
Ithaca NY
Just a general comment about something I see illustrated almost every time I read the comments section. It’s fascinating to me that there are so many of our species who are so absolutely certain they are correct about some detail or other…when the evidence to the contrary is so readily available.
@LJADZ So you just Google them all….and it’s the puzzle constructor who’s lazy? I must be missing something.
I need to find out how to get my puzzle stats fixed, since they can’t possibly be correct. It says I have solved 1779 crossword puzzles, but if that were true then surely I would be much better at it than I seem to be.
@Pua Iki I don’t understand what you mean. The lone rebus in this puzzle has nothing to do with making it easier for the constructors. It’s a witticism. It’s the EYE of the duck…or rabbit. Get it? I get that some solvers don’t like rebus puzzles…but they do not make it easier for the constructors. Usually it makes the construction more complex…not easier.
Very clever and enjoyable Wednesday puzzle with a nod to a lovely small city in the Finger Lakes. Delightful!
Thank you, Deb! You have played such a significant role in helping to set the tone for this puzzle solving community. Your wit, compassion and kindness have been greatly appreciated. All the best in your future adventures!
This was a very satisfying solve for me. After my first pass through I thought there was no chance I would complete it…but as I kept at it and ventured some guesses it started to fill in and, with some chuckles along the way, I got there. Nice puzzle!
I didn’t pay much attention to the theme, but I found this to be more fun than the typical Tuesday puzzle. I liked it.
This was a fun puzzle to solve…with multiple aha moments. Just right for a Thursday. Nice job on this, Damon!
For me, this was a perfect Sunday puzzle. I never got bogged down and was always able to find something I could solve to keep making progress overall. Had a “duh” moment when I finally filled in FTMEADE…since I was stationed there many decades ago. It did strike me that there were a number of answers that appeared in some way or another in recent puzzles: REFS, UVEA, BRAVA, DAISY. Am I right about that? Enjoyable puzzle with a clever theme. Nice Sunday diversion.
“And that is why we solve puzzles, isn’t it? They are one way to feel mastery over chaos, even when other areas of our lives seem out of control.” Thank you for that astute observation, Deb. It certainly rings true for me. Excellent puzzle, Timothy, though learning it was the first one you ever created (!) makes me cringe when thinking of my own first effort.
Don’t know why this puzzle seemed so inscrutable to me. I certainly should have come up with NINA SIMONE and ANNE MEARA, who I remember from the Ed Sullivan days, but my first pass or so left little to show for my efforts. Had to go to the column for a few answers that got me going, and then things fell into place without too much trouble. I doubt, though, that I ever would have come up with GALUMPHED, SNAKEEYES, GOTCHADAY or TENREC, and some clever misdirects also had me scratching my head. Anyway…Saturdays are supposed to be hard and I was sufficiently humbled on this one.
Cute puzzle. Having a lone rebus was a bit tricky, but I loved when the connection lines revealed the location of that rebus. Neat!
Well…any thoughts regarding today’s puzzle are certainly secondary to Deb’s announcement in the Wordplay column. As I’m sure many others will voice in these comments…we will miss your wit, compassion and buoyant spirit, Deb. You have encouraged this community of disparate solvers and cheerily welcomed new members. Thank you! Wishing you all the best in your next adventures!
Like Mr. O’Neill, I memorized this Frost poem in HS back in the 60s which definitely made the puzzle easier…though GIDDYUP took a little while.
@LJADZ First, I am curious as to how you think the constructor “just googled whatever would fit.” Second, do you really think that a person couldn’t know all the answers to these clues without googling some of them? I can pretty much guarantee that you are wrong about that.
@Michael And I am not in the slightest interested in your time of 13.5 minutes to complete the grid but, alas, you insist on making sure we all know.
@Francis Unfortunately, “Trust us to manage our own community” doesn’t always work so well…based on reading comment sections in other publications. Have you read comments in the WaPo, for example?
Very enjoyable puzzle, and suitably challenging for a Saturday. Well done, Owen!
Another Saturday puzzle that makes me think…hey, I can do these. Of course, next Saturday or the week after, I’m sure I will be slapped back down to my more familiar stumbling through the darkness. Some clever misdirects in this one, and a fun solve overall.
@K P It’s certainly your right to hate rebus puzzles, but saying that “It’s lazy” indicates a misunderstanding of puzzle construction. Building thematic rebuses into a puzzle adds a layer that makes the construction more difficult. It does also make it more challenging for solvers…but after getting more experience solving perhaps you’ll grow to like that challenge as many of us do.
@Divs What doesn’t make sense about a BUTT DIAL being a cell phone embarrassment…or CLOUDY SKIES being a gray day quality?
Wow! Saturday puzzles are often sooo much harder than Fridays…and this one was for me. Yesterday’s was a challenge, but doable. Today? Not a chance. Even reading the column barely helps.
Add me to the list of those who enjoyed this puzzle. A bit tricky, yes, but not too difficult to figure out the gambit, though it did take me a little while to identify the kind of brunch offering the unlimited mimosas.
@David Connell Very interesting. Thank you the clear explanation of this linguistic feature.
@Sian Thanks for the information on Viola Desmond. Though I’ve visited Canada dozens of times over the years, I was unaware of her inspiring story. How great that Canada has honored her on its currency. Another example of how the U.S. could learn from our neighbors to the north.
@Grumpy Toronto isn’t that far away. My wife and I often travel there. Come for a visit to the beautiful Finger Lakes and see Ithaca’s gorges.
@Ben Blackwell Any good puzzle constructor should be aiming for interesting and often entertaining clues and answers. I certainly don’t see that as “trying to be clever” in any negative sense. I found this puzzle to be challenging, but fun and interesting.
@Lukas Well…stating that one solved a hard Friday puzzle in just over ten minutes seems kind of smug to me.
I somehow got it in my head that it was GROUCHO’s something that MUST ACHE…so I kept trying to figure out what that “something” was…his lip, his arm, his eye. Held me up for a long time. Sometimes IMAMORON.
@Barb K I don’t see how why is being a killjoy. It was a simple question that could draw a straightforward response…which then might enlighten the questioner. I didn’t sense anything mean spirited in why’s question.
@Barb K And…back in the day you likely didn’t time yourselves to see if you broke your personal best, nor kept track of your streak of consecutive puzzles solved, nor boasted to each other about either.
@Ken Burk I’d bet you have met someone who has an oil tank, but just didn’t know it. What kind of heating system one has at home isn’t a common topic of conversation.
@Jennifer Not only unrelated meanings…but words that have completely opposite meanings (e.g. sanction) always throw me for a loop. What a strange language!
@Shimmer I was unaware of the word EWER…until I encountered it in crossword puzzles. Now, as long as I have a letter or two to jog my memory…it comes to mind.
Enjoyable puzzle with a clever theme…but I got stuck in the NW corner because I was sooo sure 8D had to be LAU…Los Angeles Unified, the largest public school system in the country. Just never considered the clue could be referencing a public university. My bad.
@Samantha N. Seeing a movie isn’t always necessary to be somewhat familiar with its subject and genre from reviews, ads, or general public references. For example, I imagine that many people who haven’t seen Downton Abbey or Shogun still know that they are historical dramas.
@Jacob I’m lucky if I can read and understand all the clues in 26 minutes let alone solve them. When did solving a crossword become a race against the clock, anyway? I guess when the NYT inserted a timer. I doubt people timed themselves back in the day of pencil and paper solving.
@Barry Ancona A thumb is not a finger? That’s also a new one on me.
After being completely flummoxed by yesterday’s puzzle (especially the SW corner!) today’s was challenging but fun with some clever clues. Picking up on the theme helped me finish up several answers. Good Sunday diversion!
@Marc A. Leaf I second that. Hickey’s podcast is an impressive and fascinating journey through rock history…including some jazz, blues and pop side roads.
@Laura Yeah I have to agree that this was unusually easy for a Saturday puzzle.
@Tony Back when I was a soda jerk at a drug store soda fountain in the Borscht Belt Catskills eons ago…there was a bit of a competition over who made the best egg cream. I also made a killer Lime Rickey. Probably heard orders for a chocolate malt more often than a malted, so I’m with you on that.
@HeathieJ I feel the same way about Saturday puzzles…like taking medicine but certainly no fun, and I agree that this one was much less of a slog. The SE corner was the last to fall for me as well.
@KK It’s pretty common in pro sports I believe where rookies are expected to take on certain tasks for the vets, as in…Hey rook, carry my bag.
@CLN Apparently it is a competition for some people, notably those who seem to be racing against the clock trying to beat their best time…and then boasting about it in these comments. Oh well…whatever.
@Jim Yep…that was the last to fall for me. Had me stuck for quite awhile.
@Xword Junkie In tournament chess, very few games at all actually end with a checkmate as most end with a resignation. According to ChatGPT, fewer than 10% of tournament games end in checkmate, and of those only 1 in 5 happen in the endgame. Chat says there is no standard definition of “endgame” but cites “the queens are off the board and/or each side has only a few pieces left” as a generally accepted one.
@Vaer I live in the Finger Lakes region, and referring to Oneida as the thumb is a new one on me…though I see it’s mentioned in Wikipedia so what do I know?