The happiest dump in the world (Sunday brunch: August 17, 2014)

Take It Or Leave It

Back in ‘Sconset for another short vacation. One of the activities last time we were here was helping to clean out my parents’ garage and haul some scrap wood, cardboard, leftover paint and other things to the dump. Sabers went along to assist, and I promised him his choice of three books in return for his help.

He gave me a puzzled look, and we drove off. He didn’t know about an island tradition called Take It Or Leave It: a shack next to the main trash and recycling trailers where all kinds of people drop off unwanted stuff and collect wanted stuff.  The tradition of Yankee thrift is so ingrained that people from all walks of life come to the dump and pick up someone else’s unwanted items.  They brag about their finds to nobody in particular and go on about how tastes have changed.

There are enough books there to stock a small library, jigsaw puzzles for rainy days, old clothes and various linens, unmatched linens, and much more.  I brought a couple of pair of very old cross-country skis and some touch-up paint for a Toyota, which were gone by the time we came out from hunting for books.  We didn’t take anything besides a few books, since we already had a carload of stuff to take back home with us from my parents’.  Furthermore, we already had stuff like martini glasses from the church rummage sale, which is just like Take It Or Leave It, except that we make a donation to some very good causes in exchange for the stuff others brought.

No junk here: just fine new puzzles.

The Wall Street Journal puzzle is a Seven Sages by Patrick Berry.  Aside from one mistake which I quickly noticed (but didn’t rectify as quickly), I found it easier than the last one of these he set, but it’s still a challenge which requires logic and adjoining answers in order to get a toehold.  Some may find these more frustrating than other variety crosswords, since you can lose momentum quickly even after you get the first few answers in.  You might also like the Friday straight crossword, which is on a Woodstock theme for the 45th anniversary of that concert.

The New York Times variety puzzle (behind the paywall) is a Puns and Anagrams by Mel Taub.  Carrying on with the recycling theme, it re-uses the same grid from the April P&A.  Deb gives it the staredown (and spoilers) at Wordplay.

The new Harper’s is out, with a Richard Maltby variety cryptic called One Upmanship.

Kevin Wald’s latest variety cryptic is his Lollapuzzoola puzzle called “Fearful Symmetry.”  Since it was set for in-person tournament solving, it’s not as intricate as some of his other cryptics, and will take less time to solve. Still just as good.

The Hex cryptic in the National Post (blogged by Falcon) has an interesting (but not very connected) grid.  The syndicated cryptic in the Globe and Mail is pretty hard.

BEQ has a wrap-up of Lollapuzzoola, and reminds us you can still purchase the puzzles (six of them, by top-flight constructors) at bemoresmarter.com.  And while we’re on the subject of BEQ, he’s sounding out interest in a possible subscription series (bi-weekly) of Marching Bands.  See here for a sample.  Like good variety crosswords?  Send him an e-mail of encouragement.

New York Times solution: August 17, 2014

Below the fold is the solution to this weekend’s New York Times variety puzzle, a Puns & Anagrams by Mel Taub.

Anyone else notice that this puzzle used the same grid as the April P&A?  More recycling this weekend in Sunday brunch!

`

Boy among men [and women] (Sunday brunch: August 3, 2014)

We have a good young fencer at the club, whom I don’t see very much of since his weapon is foil and my son’s is saber.  Like my son, he’s also been encouraged to do some refereeing, and the coach decided to have him work the tournament at the club last Sunday.  One important difference: he’s 10 or 11 years old.
[continued below the fold]

You’re never too young to try a new puzzle though, and there are lots to choose from (see Kegler and scroll to the bottom for a pair of cryptics created for middle schoolers).

The new Harper’s is out, with a Richard Maltby variety cryptic called “4 Across.”  No hints since it’s a prize puzzle, but I will say it makes up for what Erica thought was a shortfall of tackiness in June.  See her blog for a rundown of last month’s Sixes and Sevens (and Twelves).

In the Wall Street Journal, we have a Double or Nothing by Patrick Berry.  Each space in the grid is filled with either two letters or none: never one.  Enumerations are not given so you have to figure out the length of each answer and which spaces have to be left blank as you fill it in.  It actually isn’t as hard as you think.  Getting the first few words in is tough, but once you have that, the rest is very satisfying.  Give it a shot, and if you really can’t hack it, I’ve posted a hint grid and solution elsewhere on the blog.

Also on the blog is the solution to this weekend’s New York Times variety puzzle, a diagramless by Paula Gamache.  Solve it (puzzle is behind the NYT paywall) and then click over to Wordplay for solvers’ notes from Deb Amlen.

Weekly straight cryptics are in the National Post (by Hex) and the Globe and Mail (syndicated).

New York Times solution: August 3, 2014

This weekend’s New York Times variety puzzle is a themed diagramless by Paula Gamache.  The solution is below the fold.  There are all sorts of other new and interesting puzzles this week, including a Patrick Berry variety crossword and cryptics by Richard Maltby and by Hex.  All this and more are linked at Sunday brunch this week and every week.

Long weekend (Sunday brunch: July 6, 2014)

Joey has the right idea for
 a long, restful weekend

Early edition of Sunday brunch for this long weekend.  Good thing too, since there are plenty of new cryptics to keep you busy.  We start in the New York Times (behind the paywall).  Richard Silvestri is the constructor.  Look for the solution here.

North of the border, it was Canada Day Tuesday, but neither Fraser Simpson nor Hex marked the event with their weekend puzzles for the Globe and Mail and the National Post respectively.  And in case you missed it, there was a new The Nation cryptic (and a cluing challenge) Thursday.

Multiple variety cryptics too this weekend.  The change tracker I was using to follow Kevin Wald’s page doesn’t seem to have worked too well, so I missed a few recent puzzles.  I’ll post links over the next few weeks to catch up, starting with 6/28, which logically (of course Kevin does things logically) was posted last weekend.  Great puzzle, and not as difficult to finish as some of Kevin’s other cryptics.  Give it a try.

Tom Toce has his bi-monthly variety cryptic in Contingencies.  It’s a Double Trouble, where there are two grids and each clue is actually two clues, one for each grid.  You have to figure out which one. Note there are a couple of errors in the grids: there should be a bar to the left of square 19, so the enumeration of 17a is (5), and the square at the bottom left corner should be numbered 27.

In other puzzling pastimes, the Wall Street Journal has a Rows Garden by Patrick Berry.  Medium difficulty.  If you’re feeling creative, you can also add to the comment thread for the Friday non-puzzle.

Nathan Curtis is back!  He’s been preoccupied with BAPHL, which went off in Boston last weekend, so there hasn’t been time for any new puzzles.  With that done, he’s posted a new mini Rows Garden.

New York Times solution: July 6, 2014

Below the fold is the solution to this weekend’s New York Times variety puzzle, a straight cryptic by Richard Silvestri.  If you want explanations of any of the answers, just ask in the comments.

Once you’re done, why not stick around for Sunday brunch.  Many more cryptics and other puzzles on the menu this week: so many that they’re being served up early.

New York Times solution: June 22, 2014

Below the fold is the solution to this weekend’s New York Times variety puzzle, a diagramless by Fred Piscop.

New York Times solution: June 8, 2014

Below the fold is the solution to the New York Times variety puzzle for June 8, 2014: a vowelless crossword by Arthur Schulman.

If you liked that one, try Patrick Berry’s Magic Box and the other puzzles noted in this weekend’s Sunday brunch.

Abuse of officials (Sunday brunch: June 8, 2014)

The last two hockey posts were about abuse of officials, which is an unfortunate but inevitable part of the referee’s job.  Aside from the garden-variety four-letter outbursts, I’ve only had two such incidents in my career: both of them were in the 90s.

One was a men’s league game.  I was the deep official, down in the corner as the puck was cleared out of the zone.  I started skating up-ice to follow the play when one of the defensemen who’d been there in the corner reached over as he passed and gave me a two-handed shove, but not quite a cross-check.

While he used the typical four-letter words as he was shoving me, I decided that the action was not intended to be abusive: the player was just upset that I was in his way.  But we can’t really tolerate that kind of physical abuse.  I was skating in my normal lane, and I was skating at my normal speed, letting the players get ahead so I could watch everyone from the trailing position.

So rather than giving the player a gross misconduct, the kind of penalty Dan Carcillo got for elbowing a linesman, I gave him a ten-minute misconduct for interference with an official (what you’d get for shooting the puck away when the referee is coming to pick it up).  He wasn’t happy with it, but I pointed out that all the other options would be a lot worse: he’d be back in the game later and his team wouldn’t have to kill off a power play. Not purely by the book, but I felt that justice was served.

How about letting some great puzzle constructors hit you with their best shots?

Patrick Berry is back in the The Wall Street Journal.  His puzzle is called Magic Cabinet.  Do it in pencil because it requires you to alter answers for entry in the grid and you’ll probably need to do some erasing on the way.  Do this and the The Nation puzzle, and you’ll be prepared to tackle a variety cryptic like the ones in Cryptic All-Stars.  I’ve got hints if you need them, and the solution elsewhere on the blog.

The New York Times has a vowelless crossword this weekend (behind the paywall).  It’s by Arthur Schulman.  Definitely a different test of your crossword skills.

Want to try some of Matt Gaffney’s metas as discussed over at Word Salad?  Click here for the Vulture.
Regular cryptic service resumes at the National Post Cryptic Crossword Forum after Falcon’s vacation, and the Fraser Simpson cryptic is its reliable self at the Globe and Mail.

New York Times solution: May 25, 2014

[back-posted to keep the current The Nation post at the top]

Below the fold is the solution to this weekend’s New York Times variety puzzle: a straight cryptic by Richard Silvestri.

After you look at that, why not look around the rest of the blog?  We have links to new cryptics from The Nation most Thursdays, solutions on the subsequent Mondays, and Sunday brunch every weekend, featuring a smorgasbord of cryptic and variety crosswords, interspersed with hockey, music, fencing, and other such topics.

The NHL draw (Sunday brunch: May 18, 2014)

Typical men's league faceoff.

Last Sunday I had a spring league double-header.  Off-season hockey ought to be more about building skills than being competitive. There was a summer league I worked in Maryland twenty years ago that had the right idea.  Body checking was not allowed, and the organizers told the players they were expected to play defense by outskating the puck carrier instead of hitting him or going for his stick.

Even at this point in my career, I too still look for opportunities to work on new skills, and last weekend was one of them.  The first game was 9- and 10-year-olds, and many of them look to have just moved up from mite-level.  So I decided this would be a great time to try an NHL-style draw: down way low with your arm out to present the puck.  Colorado wants us to use that type of draw, but most of us value our safety more than pleasing the USA Hockey administration, so we drop the puck the way they used to instruct us to do.

An NHL face-off.  See where the players are?

But a spring league game, with players who probably couldn’t hurt me if they tried?  Perfect time to work on a new technique.  The photo at left shows what it should look like: get your rear end down and form a diamond with your rear end, your shoulders, your puck hand, and your skates.

But I bounced the puck through the whole first period.  Once I was comfortable with the position and still bouncing pucks, I shifted my hand and put two fingers on top of the puck.  The pucks started landing flat.  Mission accomplished.

Work on your pencil-holding grip for these puzzles.

It’s an excellent weekend for variety cryptic fans like me.  The Wall Street Journal puzzle is a Hex cryptic called “Rebuses.”  There are fifteen unconventional clues: you should be able to figure out how they work.  If you can’t, try these hints.

Next we’ve got the new Harper’s, which is called “Full Circle.”  A dozen answers are unclued.  How do you take on a puzzle like this?  Get as many of the regularly-clued answers as you can and hope they give you enough intersecting letters for you to get some of the unclued answers.  Then those might help with the rest of the regular ones.  I couldn’t figure out the theme connecting the unclued answers until I was nearly through with the entire grid.

And on top of that Mark Halpin has a Sondheim-themed puzzle called “There’s Always a Woman.” These are good puzzles, not impossibly difficult, but hard enough that getting all the themework done gives you a real sense of accomplishment.

Straight cryptics?  Hex have you covered in the National Post (blogged quickly by Falcon, who is going off on vacation), while Fraser Simpson’s weekly puzzle is in the Globe and Mail.

This week’s New York Times variety puzzle (behind the paywall) is a Hex acrostic.   Deb Amlen felt like getting a drink when she was through with it.  That sounds like a good idea.

Happy birthday, Raydoc (Sunday Brunch: May 11, 2014)

Raydoc (right) and family
on a blustery day in Nantucket

Today we wish a very happy birthday (one with a zero!) to Raydoc.  Being a diagnostician by trade, it’s not surprising he likes puzzles too.

We have a nice Rows Garden (by Patrick Berry) in the Wall Street Journal this weekend. Hints are available if you need them.  They’re in white print so you can take as much or as little help as you need.

Mark Halpin has composed a tough variety cryptic in honor of the documentary “Six by Sondheim.”

There is a diagramless by Fred Piscop in the New York Times today.  Comment (and spoilers) by Deb Amlen at Wordplay.  The solution is posted elsewhere on the blog.

The National Post cryptic by Hex has a few baseball-related clues, but is otherwise themeless, and not too difficult.

Fraser Simpson’s Globe and Mail cryptic isn’t as easy as last week.  2d is a good example of the difference between his puzzles and most other North American cryptics: the clue is “close of play” and the answer is EPILOGUE.  The clue is a single definition and no wordplay.  The cryptic element comes because the phrase “close of play” is usually used to describe the schedule of a cricket match and not a drama.

New York Times solution: May 11, 2014

Below the fold is the solution to this weekend’s New York Times variety puzzle, a diagramless by Fred Piscop.  Once you are done with this one, take a look at the rest of the Sunday Brunch menu.  There’s a Rows Garden by Patrick Berry, a Hex cryptic, a Mark Halpin variety cryptic, and more.

Catching up (Sunday brunch: May 4, 2014)

If there’s anything this weekend is notable for, it’s the lack of new cryptic and variety puzzles.  So I’m going to use my puzzling time to work on Cryptic All-Stars.

Tom Toce’s latest puzzle in Contingencies isn’t a cryptic, it’s his second annual Academy Awards sonnet: this one containing the anagrammed titles of 14 Best Picture nominees.

The Wall Street Journal weekend puzzle isn’t a cryptic: it’s an acrostic by Mike Shenk.

The New York Times variety puzzle isn’t a cryptic: it’s an acrostic by Hex.  (Puzzle behind the paywall, comments and spoilers at Wordplay).  Meanwhile, I can see that Deb is not a fencer: she illustrated a post on a puzzle themed “double-edged” with a couple of kids fencing épée, and you don’t get credit for using the edge in that weapon, you have to hit with the point.  Spearing, not slashing.

There are cryptics at the usual weekly Canadian sources: the National Post (Hex: blogged by Falcon, easy top and bottom 15s make this an easy solve) and the Globe and Mail (Fraser Simpson, I almost finished it).

Nothing new from the other regular sources either.  

Fancy a trip to the rock-bound coast?  The NPL has announced its annual gathering: MaineCon in Portland July 17-20.  The weather in New England is really nice in summer: you’ll solve puzzles and eat lobsters and clams by day, and sleep wonderfully soundly by night.

Holy Week (Sunday brunch: April 20, 2014)

Happy Easter to all, and a joyous Passover as well.  I think these holidays are best when you get a good story to tell out of them.  This year, one of Bangle’s classmates was scheduled to lead the Palm Sunday procession over to St. Luke’s, where we join with our neighbor churches for the blessing of the palms. But she got hit with a softball Saturday and was sporting a lovely black eye.  Of course she went ahead and led the procession, and her father made sure to get lots of pictures.

“Truly, I tell you: one of you will betray me tonight.”
da Vinci’s painting brought to life in Glenside.

Usually during Holy Week, we’ll have the Passion story read at least once, if not twice, but this year for Good Friday, we instead heard the Living Last Words, a companion work to the Living Last Supper that our church has put on the past several years.  Both pieces tell the narrative as seen through the eyes of the participants.

The teens were the performers in the Living Last Words, and Sabers (as the centurion) and Bangle (as the shepherd) gained much praise for their portrayals.

Meanwhile, my friend Burt scored the one-liner of the season: “I thought my wife and I would never hear those words from my daughter: ‘Let’s have the Seder at our house this year.’”

Got a story to share?  Comments are open.  On to the weekend’s puzzles.

The Wall Street Journal has a Hex variety cryptic: quite appropriately an Egg Hunt.  The solution is posted elsewhere on the blog.  Ask there if you need any of the clues explained; some of them are pretty clever.

Falcon found the Hex straight cryptic in the National Post to be harder than usual for the second week in a row.  I thought the same, and we probably both finished on the same answer.  And the Fraser Simpson puzzle from the Globe and Mail (printable, Java) was pretty hard too.

We learn this week from her latest Brit cryptic that LizR likes King Crimson.

The New York Times puzzle (behind the paywall) is a Hex acrostic.  Deb Amlen has comments and some answers at Wordplay.

If you didn’t see the update to Thursday’s post, Puzzazz released a new book of variety crosswords by Mike Shenk, and it shows off the advantages of the app really well.

Daffodils (Sunday brunch: April 13, 2014)

Lots of them left even after I cut three dozen.
The daylillies in this bed multiply just as well as
the daffodils. 

With the late spring, it’s been a peculiar year in the garden.  We had crocuses and daffodils at the same time, and the forsythia bloomed only this week.  The compressed schedule means that the daffodils came in about a two week span rather than three or four.  It does make an impressive show in the back yard, but the main reason I divide and transplant bulbs every year is to have more flowers to cut and share.

Some for the dining room table, some for the office, some for The Other Doctor Mitchell’s birthday (they’re her favorite flower), and even bunches to hand out to the winners of the fencing tournament today.

Finish these puzzles and earn yourself a virtual bouquet.

It was kind of a weird weekend.  I had a particularly tough time with the National Post puzzle by Hex, which usually is a breeze.  Falcon agreed, and gave us a breakdown of his solving effort on his blog.   Meanwhile, I got a lot more of Fraser Simpson’s Globe and Mail puzzle (Java, printable) than usual.

The New York Times variety puzzle was a Puns and Anagrams by Mel Taub (paywall).  That was hard too, and there are still a few clues I can’t parse.  However, I think I’m learning enough to get better at the genre, and also learning enough to understand why I don’t like them as much as proper cryptics: terseness of cluing is valued over elegance.  But I solved it, and the solution is posted elsewhere on the blog.  Deb Amlen solved it too, and blogs the puzzle (spoilers) at Wordplay.

Patrick Berry fans are happy: he has a Beginnings and Ends in the weekend’s Wall Street Journal.  Solution and hints are also posted elsewhere on the blog (please welcome our guests).

On the right is a drift of double daffodils, the genetics of which are described here (no, I’m not a flower geek, just a backyard gardener).

LizR has a new Brit cryptic up, which she says goes well with coffee.  Some delightful clues there, worth a go even if you won’t finish the puzzle.

The new Harper’s is out this week.  The Richard Maltby variety cryptic is that old The Listener favorite: Theme and Variations.  Erica (who survived the battle with the bedbugs) blogs this puzzle, though on a month’s delay because it’s a prize puzzle.

Flowers doing their intended job.
The women’s saber winners were Helen, Shelby, and Vanessa.

New York Times solution (April 13, 2014)

Below the fold is the solution to today’s New York Times variety puzzle, a Puns and Anagrams by Mel Taub.

More puzzles today and every week at Sunday brunch.  Join us, won’t you?

Tabbies (Sunday brunch: April 6, 2014)

Don’t know if Hot and Trazom planned it that way, but in 3,319, they had TABBIES in 2d intersecting CATS in 1a.  So let’s introduce the feline members of the family, who both happen to be tabbies.

First there’s Joey, whose given name is Job.  We got him from a rescue group five years ago.  Sabers and Bangle had been angling for a pet, but there were concerns with everyone’s allergies, so we first spent an hour or so with him at the apartment of the person who was taking care of him.  There was no sneezing or asthma or rash, so he came home with us a week later.

Joey is built like a defensive end: big and strong and fast.  Even his whiskers are big, and his tail is like a labrador’s.  He’s almost six now, so he’s more like a retired defensive end, but he still gets his way around the house.

A year after we got Joey, another cat came up to the front window and knocked very politely.  We gave him a bite to eat, ascertained that there weren’t any other humans in the neighborhood looking for him, and got him to the vet, but he was certain that this was home.

Bangle (who was seven at the time) named him Dusty because of his pale tabby coloring.  Dusty’s a big cat too, but not as athletic as his brother.  His coat is not as fine, and it looks like it doesn’t quite fit him properly (if you can imagine that!).  He bites his nails too, so his claws are constantly broken.  But he has the most pleasant disposition.  He makes a fine lap kitty (if your lap is big enough), and purrs at the drop of a hat.  But he doesn’t speak much.  About the only time he’ll meow is if someone goes down to the back door: he’ll go down, reach up to the doorknob, and ask to go out.  Once he’s out, his desires are quite simple: roll around on the driveway and nibble on some grass.  I’ve never seen a cat eat as much grass as this one.

Find a lap kitty and a clipboard, and work on these puzzles.

The Hex cryptic in the National Post was interesting and maybe a little harder than usual.

There were two acrostics: in the New York Times (by Hex, behind the paywall, and Deb notes that the web wizards of the Times now have a non-Java online version) and Wall Street Journal by Mike Shenk.  On the latter, I think this was the first puzzle where I solved the acrostic before I even looked at the grid, so try it out.

Not much else this week, but if you subscribe to PandA or to Aries’s Rows Gardens, or you’ve got Cryptic All-Stars, you’ve got puzzles to catch up on.  I know I do.

Long words (Sunday brunch: March 30, 2014)

Apologies for the late post, I was down in Maryland most of the day yesterday and am running a tournament today.  —Braze

Congratulations to Bangle, who finished second in the Morris Open skating competition yesterday: second in her preliminary flight even though she went the wrong direction after a spin and had to adjust on the fly, and then second in the championship round.  Kid sports are a good place to learn resiliency.

The week’s puzzles include a diagramless from Ed Stein and Paula Gamache (fun--a double byline) in the New York Times (behind the paywall, comments [and spoilers] from Deb Amlen).

It’s a weekend for long words in puzzle grids.  Hex’s block cryptic in the National Post is a picture frame of 15s, and the rest of the grid is nicely interlocked.  Falcon was impressed.

See the reflection of the skate way down there?

The Wall Street Journal has a Spell Weaving by Mike Shenk.  He must have had fun with this one: there’s a 19-letter answer, a 16, and some other long ones too.

From large to small.  Nathan Curtis’s weekly puzzle is a Mini Rows Garden.  Go over and read the whole post for more news about what Nathan is up to.

Master Rows Gardner Andrew Ries has announced a weekly straight crossword to go with his Rows Garden series.

And the regular weekly Brit-style cryptic from Fraser Simpson can be found at the Globe and Mail in Java and print formats.

New York Times solution: March 30, 2014

Below the fold is the solution to this weekend’s New York Times variety puzzle: a diagramless by Ed Stein and Paula Gamache (commentary and spoilers at Wordplay).

Want more interesting puzzles?  Like 19, 16, and 15 letter answers?  Sunday brunch is still on the table. Maybe Bangle will skate it over to you.