Words: 72
Average Length: 5.27
32 Across was the main seed entry, but I’m particularly pleased with the 1A/64A pair (with a call-out to 53/55A as well). Please enjoy!
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Author: Jeff
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Prisms and Primates
1 Across was the seed for this puzzle. I wasn’t sure about including 12 Across because he isn’t so well-known as he should be. As the clue indicates, this is someone who should be considered a giant of the 20th century, whether you agree with his politics or not. (He was caught up in the persecution of artists by HUAC and had been an outspoken supporter of the Soviet Union.) Check out his Wikipedia entry.
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Horns and Halos
Words: 74
Average Length: 5.05
This should be a straightforward themed puzzle. The seeds were the grid-spanners. For your watching pleasure, here are links to 6 Down and 33 Down. Please enjoy and, if you do and aren’t already a “follower” of this blog, sign up – the blog might get a boost in search algorithms and you’ll get an email whenever I post a new puzzle (almost always twice a week). Win-win!
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Haze and Rain
Words: 10 (5×5)
Average Length: 5.0
Here’s the second of my late-night-in-the-Hong-Kong-airport puzzles. This one should play smooth and easy (I hope), just like the Glenmorangie I had at the airport bar.
This revised version has a corrected clue for 7 Across.
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Themeless 75
Words: 72 (17×13)
Average Length: 5.22
The seeds for this puzzle were 22 Across and 52 Across. Originally, I was going to use 22 Across in a themed puzzle set among the stacks; the clue was going to be PG-rated (you can reverse-engineer any number of possibilities once you solve the puzzle). I didn’t have enough good theme answers, though, so here it is in a themeless. 52 Across is something I don’t believe at all, at least with respect to individuals. People in groups are an entirely different matter:
“In individuals insanity is rare, but in groups, parties, and epochs it is the rule.” (Nietschze)
Words: 11 (5×7)
Average Length: 4.36
I constructed this week’s and next week’s minis while chipping away at a long, late-night layover at the Hong Kong Airport. Please enjoy and share!
Just a reminder that my travel blog, PuffinlessTravel.com, has write-ups and photos from my recent trip to Hong Kong, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand – check it out!
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Breakfast Test
Words: 75 (14×15)
Average Length: 4.69
There’s a convention in mainstream (newspaper) crosswords that a puzzle should pass the “breakfast test” – it shouldn’t contain anything that might upset, gross out, or otherwise discomfort a solver inking in answers while eating their oatmeal. I always found this curious; given the contents of the rest of the newspaper, even an edgy puzzle would be tame by comparison.
Anyway, this puzzle takes “breakfast test” literally. Cheerio!
Words: 16 (7×7)
Average Length: 5.25
Among my many useless talents, I can pretty much quote Monty Python and the Holy Grail (and many other Python offerings) word for word. Here’s a puzzle built around some of my favorite bits (and links to each of them).
3 Down: here
9 Across: here
15 Across: here
I’m returning home today after three wonderful weeks in Hong Kong, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand. I’ve been writing about the trip (and posting lots of pictures) on my travel blog, PuffinlessTravel.com. Please check it out if you’re interested!
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Themeless 74
Words: 70
Average Length: 5.46
I had a lot of fun constructing this one. It started with 20 Across (a pun I’ve had in mind for a while) and 19 Down (a joke I heard from one of my fellow travelers to Australia and New Zealand, the incredibly nice and funny John C. from Ft. Worth, Texas, who along with his wife Charlotte and friends Urbin and Gay were wonderful travel companions). Next came 6 Down, crossed with 44 Across. Have fun!
Words: 36
Average Length: 4.67
My wife loves to bake (I specialize in consumption), and we watch a lot of baking shows. My favorite is the Kids Baking Championship, where 9-12 year old kids make me feel like at least part of our future is in good hands! In addition to creating spectacular treats, they toss around terms like 11 Across with abandon. After looking it up, I figured I’d create a midi around a basket of French pastry. (Best solved with a strong coffee or some 26 Across.)
Jeff's Puzzles 