Do Again as a Radio Bit Crossword
wordplay, the crossword column
Where 100 Is Not a Perfect Score
Evans Clinchy comes pretty darn shut, though.
FRIDAY PUZZLE — There are a few things that constructors can do to brand their puzzles interesting, but you lot can e'er win me over with first-class fill. Peculiarly on Fridays, when the grids are wide open up and the potential for long, shiny, heady phrases exists. What constructors acquire very apace is that it is easy to fill a crossword puzzle, but it takes skill to fill it well.
So let'south stop to appreciate some really fine long make full in Evans Clinchy'southward puzzle: Beloved CONQUERS ALL, LEAD A DOUBLE LIFE, HATERS GONNA HATE, OVEROPINIONATED (who, me?) and QUICK QUESTION, the entry that plunges through the center of the grid and reminded me of Peter Falk's TV character, Lieutenant Columbo.
The other matter constructors can do to brand a puzzle heady is to make the solver believe that virtually all is lost, only that if they simply go on trying, they will be victorious. I don't know if you felt that manner when you got to 15A's "Adage attributed to Virgil's 'Eclogue X'," but I sure did. Ditto for the band at 32D, but mayhap that's but considering I am non Canadian.
It took me a while to fissure Mr. Clinchy's puzzle, just the saving grace, equally experienced solvers know, is that no matter how hard a puzzle is, in that location will ever exist something you know — a way in. In my case, those entries were 20A's EENIE, 50A's NED and 14D'south SLEEPY. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to get me off to a expert starting time.
And sometimes, a good start is all yous need.
Tricky Clues
8A. "They might assist with the dishes" conjures upwards the image of people rolling up their sleeves to help make clean, merely that is not the "they" to which this clue is referring. RECIPES help cooks put together dishes, unless you are like me and you lot adhere to the principle of "just cook until information technology tastes good."
15A. "Omnia vincit amor," or Honey CONQUERS ALL, is one of the themes of Virgil'southward "Eclogue X." In information technology, the poet Gallus defends love confronting the charge that information technology is not a satisfactory pursuit.
26A. I had the T in TSP and, from years of doling out liquid medications to my children, knew that 5 ml was equivalent to a teaspoon.
41A. You may accept heard me saying "Ooh, that kind of crown!" when I finished the puzzle. I was thinking of the kind of crown that is worn on the caput, but this inkling referred to the crown of a tooth. The reply is ENAMEL.
66A. An odd clue when read at face value, simply "What father knows best?" are PRAYERS, if the father is a priest.
1D. Dainty play on the internet radio station, only these "Pandora releases" are about the myth, and the answer is the ILLS of the world.
24D. "Spin, equally old yarn?" is not hinting at fiber; information technology's almost RETELLing old stories, or yarns.
38D. Very clever clue. If you "Really dig" someone, you like them a lot. In a Friday puzzle, withal, the answer is non going to exist that simple. To "Actually dig" is to EXCAVATE.
42D. I hoped fervently that "Cleared ane'due south cookies?" was not going to be a vomit pun. Thankfully, the answer is ATE, as in clearing the cookies off the plate by putting them in your oral fissure.
51D. "Winter air" can be frosty, simply that's not where this clue is going. An "air" is a melody for phonation or instrument, and 1 sung during the winter can exist a CAROL.
Constructor Notes
This was my white whale. For every bit long equally I've been trying my hand at constructing crosswords, which is about ten years at this indicate, I've always wanted to build a grid effectually the phrase QUICK QUESTION. It's ane of my go-to expressions in real-life conversation. I tin't tell yous how many times over the years I've walked into a room, struck upwardly a chat with a friend or co-worker and said "Hey there, quick question." Plus, y'know, information technology'due south got two Q's, so it's crossword aureate.
I spent years lilliputian effectually with various filigree designs, trying to find the best manner to build around those Q'southward without making ugly sacrifices in the rest of the grid. There were a lot of faux starts. But at some indicate in 2020, I hit upon this pattern, with the long QUICK QUESTION running through the center and the pairs of fifteen-alphabetic character answers cutting through it, and I was overjoyed to discover that information technology actually worked. Once Love CONQUERS ALL and LEAD A DOUBLE LIFE savage into identify, it was on. The rest of the grid practically filled itself.
Cheers to the New York Times Crossword editorial team for publishing this i and, equally always, for punching upward my clues. "They might aid with the dishes" is great for RECIPES, and the team came up with a cool factoid about UTAH equally well. And I'm glad they kept my reference to LEN's striking song "Steal My Sunshine," a banger if e'er there was 1.
Hope anybody enjoyed the solve!
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Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/24/crosswords/daily-puzzle-2022-03-25.html
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