Friday, February 7, 2025 - Have a sip of TEXASTEA 🫖

This was Sam Ezersky's 57th NYTimes crossword, so while we feel that a reference to Heinz would've been in order (as in Heinz 57 Sauce), even without there was a lot of spice in the grid. There were educational clues: 16D, Length of William Henry Harrison's presidency, ONEMONTH; the astonishing 110D, Nickname for Francisco, PACO (surely a gimme for the bay area folk around San PACO); and the delightful 95A, Hardy follower, HAR (HAR, HAR, HAR 😀). In short, a wonderful Sunday diversion, ...

11 Marras 202421min

There's only one time when we enjoy riding a STRUGGLEBUS, and that's when we're working on a tough Saturday crossword, like this one -- which, coincidentally, happened to feature an actual STRUGGLEBUS in the grid. Now long time solvers and listeners know, through experience, that clues become more cryptic, and answers longer, over the course of the week, from Monday to Saturday. To quantify this, however, someone has made a splendid visualization plotting word length versus day of the w...

10 Marras 202414min

Evans Clinchy's bio pic in xwordinfo.com shows him chowing down on a burrito, and that may or may not have any connection with the presence of both CHEESECAKE and TRESLECHES in the grid. What we do know for certain is that Evans has crafted a challenging but fair Friday crossword, just the kind we like! Indeed, the grid just sparkles, with clues such as 4D, Doofuses, TOMFOOLS (definitely fun to say); 10D, Beyond clean, STERILE (can't argue with that!); 49D, It comes down hard, HAIL (makes mor...

9 Marras 202417min

Joe Deeney can definitely BEPROUD of this crossword, as it is, in a word, SUHWEET! While the grid does contain a standing-ovation-worthy hairpiece pun, it is still the theme that rules SUPREME. Deets inside! Show note imagery: An EGRET, with a look that says, don't even think about making a pun about my name! We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpodcast@icloud.com. Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there...

8 Marras 202412min

Today's crossword was fabulous -- that's the LONGANDSHORTOFIT! A deftly constructed theme and delightlful clues (43A, Snack brand from the Spanish word for "fried", FRITOS; 8D, Hip hop's Madvillian or Mob Deep, DUO; and 69A, Second smallest of seven, EUROPE) make for a great mid-week solve. Deets inside! Show note imagery: A MEADOWLARK, who, fortunately, looks very good in yellow We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpodcast@icloud....

7 Marras 202415min

A fine Tuesday crossword by Evan Kalish, and as this is his 22nd NYTimes crossword, it would be fair to say that he is on a roll. It would also be hilarious to say that he is on a roll, but to find out why that is the case, you'll want to download today's episode, which also includes Jean in an epic Triplet Tuesday™️ segment. Show note imagery: The crossword, like the depicted outfit, was truly INSPO We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop...

6 Marras 202419min

A clever Monday crossword by Colin Adams, that may (or may not) have been tricker than the usual Monday. Listeners, what say ye? Did you find this puzzle particularly easy, hard, or just your typical Monday? Let us know, either by clicking on the Fan Mail button or dropping us a line! Show note imagery: HORUS, a Falcon-headed Egyptian god. We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a line, crosswordpodcast@icloud.com. Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel fr...

5 Marras 202411min

Sid Sivakumar, known for his exceedingly crunchy Saturday crosswords, goes easy on us (relatively speaking) in this fun Sunday outing. There are oodles of delightful clues, including 29A, Who has successfully juggled 15 balls simultaneously, NOONE (nice!); 103A, Name that sounds like its first two letters reversed, ELLY (oho!); and the magnificent 118A, Tower in a port, TUG (just brilliant!). The theme's a pretty piece of work too, and to hear more about that -- as well as a selection of othe...

4 Marras 202421min