Wednesday, February 26, 2025 - We long for more crosswords by Dan Caprera 😁

Enrique Henestroza Anguiano and Matthew Stock have teamed up to rack 'em up, with a clever Scrabble-based theme. It briefly looked like today might been a four leaf clover of a crossword, a Sunday puzzle with a rebus: but in this case, the trick was to construct the rebus mentally, while writing only a single letter in the grid itself. It's complicated, but we've got the 411 on all of it, so dig into today's episode, and, as always, let us know what you think. Show note imagery: Sekhme...

11 Mars 202415min

A fine Saturday crossword by John Guzzetta -- and if that name seems familiar, that's perhaps because he has had 40 NYTimes crosswords published since 2012. Of those, 50% of them were Friday or Saturday puzzles, so he's definitely in his element here. Though themeless (as is tradition for a Saturday NYTimes crossword), there were of course many fine clues, which we dive into in today's episode. Beyond those, however, we would be remiss if we did not at least mention 27D, Concupiscent o...

10 Mars 202416min

There were challenges galore in today's crossword, with the rockiest of rocky shoals cropping up in the southwest portion of the grid. There were so many great clues that it would take, oh, a 15x15 grid to list all of them, but here are a few (that didn't make it into the podcast): 13D, Butt of a joke?, WHOOPEECUSHION (ha!); 9D, Like the homes of roughly one in six Americans, rural (huh!); 45A, In, in the past, HEP (har!); and there were many, many more. In other news, we have a listen...

9 Mars 202417min

This is Joe O'Neill's very first NYTimes crossword, and it's a doozie, with the theme revolving around one of Robert Frost's most famous poems. Now "famous" is relative: while Jean had a casual acquaintance with the poem, Mike was, as usual, clueless -- and therefore answerless -- so he had to rely exclusively on the not -always-easy crosses, and serendipity, to see him through. There were some great clues throughout the grid that deserve some air time. There was the euphonious 53A, Wa...

8 Mars 202416min

Brad Wiegmann has produced a fabulous Wednesday crossword, and for those keeping track this is the second crossword this week where the theme was on the subtle and cerebral side. We loved it for a number of reasons, detailed inside -- as well as some exciting listener mail that will be of special interest to residents of PARAMUS, NJ. Deets within, so dive in (as long as it's been at least an hour since you ate 😀) and enjoy! Show note imagery: Machu Picchu, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and on...

7 Mars 202414min

Today's crossword was by veteran crossword constructor Christina Iverson, who has a knack for writing absolutely effervescent puzzles. Just consider a few of the clues in today's grid: 51A, Queen's pawn?, ANT (nice once, CI); 42D, Swift to fill a concert hall?, TAYLOR (who else?); and 24A, Like a tightrope, ideally, TAUT (we tought, er, thought so too 😉). Show note imagery: David Aguilar's amazing prosthetic ARM and EMORY university library (in the old days!) We love feedback! Send us a...

6 Mars 202416min

This is Samantha Podos Novak's debut NYTimes crossword, and it is a delicious treat, thanks to a tasty theme and a generous sprinkling of cromulent clues throughout the grid. And if you're sensing a food theme, you are correct! For all the deets -- including which food, and how many calories it has -- you are heartily encouraged to download, listen up, and, of course, enjoy today's podcast! Show note imagery: YER out! We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener m...

5 Mars 202413min

You can always count on Hoang-Kim Vu to produce a splendid crossword, and today you can also count on him to ... count, because that's the theme: countdown, to be specific, is the title of the crossword as well as a large hint as to what you have to be able to do to solve said crossword. We have all the deets inside, so have a listen, and let us know what you think. Show note imagery: PARAMUS Park, New Jersey We love feedback! Send us a text... Contact Info: We love listener mail! Drop us a ...

4 Mars 202420min