Category: Themed

Categories
Holiday Themed

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

Castle housing 58 Across, Co. Cork, Ireland (June 2019)

Words: 78

Average Length: 4.64

Of all the overseas places I’ve visited – 99 and counting – Ireland is the friendliest.  Although I don’t have a bit of Irish blood, I’ve never felt so at home anywhere else.  The people are warm, quick to laugh, and hospitable beyond belief, and the scenery’s not too shabby either.  And then there’s the literature: on an island of barely over 7 million people, seemingly every tenth person is a prize-winning author, poet, or playwright.  (Given that books are my crack, I’ve crammed several Irish writers into this grid and clues, including several of my all-time favorites (Roddy Doyle,  Kevin Barry, Maggie O’Farrell).)

Sláinte and Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Themed

Gaia Glamor Shots

Flying over the Alps, March 2019 – about as close to outer space as I’m likely to get

Words: 72

Average Length: 5.22

I could have saved this puzzle for Earth Day, assuming it’s not outlawed by the Despoiler of All Things Precious and Good, but I’ve been making my way through Cixin Liu’s brilliant “Three-Body Problem” trilogy and felt compelled to publish it a month early.

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Themed

Paternal Music

See 25 Down. Photo taken in Nusfjord, Norway, June 2017.

Words: 73

Average Length: 5.15

This grid is inspired by common ground between a reggaeton star, an indie solo artist, and a nu metal band. 

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Supersized Themed

Like PB&J

See 73 Down. Photo taken in Havelock, New Zealand, Jan. 2024

Words: 94 (17×17)

Average Length: 5.11

Here’s a super-sized, tasty grid for your solving pleasure.  It can double as your menu for the next few days if you’re so inclined.

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Midi Themed

AI Caramba!

Nothing to do with the puzzle, but you can never post too many puffin pictures. (Iceland, July 2024)

Words: 42 (11×11)

Average Length: 4.86

Constructing a puzzle using A and I as the only vowels, it turns out, is not a trivial undertaking.  This grid is my third attempt – the first two tries (a 7×7 and a 9×9) were fatally fill-compromised, to put it politely.  I bumped the grid size up to 11x, and that did the trick; there’s only one truly unfortunate entry (3 Down) and, I hope you’ll agree, lots of good stuff. 

Once I had the fill where I wanted it, the second part of the challenge – writing clues whose initial letter alternated between A and I –  proved almost as difficult.   May you find the end result amusing and informative!

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Mini Themed

Say Cheese

Amsterdam, Oct. 2019

Words: 18

Average Length: 5.00

The seed for this mini was the clue/answer combination at 3 Down, but as I began to fill it, a mini-theme developed centering on cheese.  Havarti at it!

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Themed

Mere Anarchy

Amsterdam, Oct. 2019 (see 26 Down)

Words: 66

Average Length: 5.42

“The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.”  I constructed this puzzle shortly after the US presidential election.  The poem that underlies the grid’s theme – considered one of the most important poems of the 20th century – was written just after the first World War.  It precisely captures the anxiety and dismay of the current moment.  You can read the full poem here.

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Themed Word Ladder

As Dr. King Said

Not a 41 Across Dragon. (Near Cairns, Australia, Jan. 2024)

Words: 71 (14×15)

Average Length: 4.96

On Sunday afternoon (Jan. 19), I sat down to construct a basic word ladder puzzle.  When I started to clue the puzzle, I realized the quote from Dr. King referenced in 1 Across and 62 Across would be a good framing device.  Originally, I thought I’d post this puzzle in late March, since I’ve got several other grids lined up already.  But given that today commemorates Dr. King, whose message was founded in 62 Across, and is simultaneously the inauguration of a man whose message fosters 1 Across, I decided to rush the puzzle out the door, so to speak.  Let’s all do our best to turn 1 Across into 62 Across!

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Themed

Don’t Go Viral

Venice (Oct. 2024) (see 11 Down)

Once I had the seed (36 Across) , the puzzle’s design was almost a foregone conclusion. Enjoy!

online | puz | pdf | solution

Categories
Themed

A Little Child Shall Lead Them

Falljökull glacier, Icleand (see 34 Across). Photo taken Aug. 2024.

Words:  74

Average Length:  5.00

The inspiration for this puzzle came to me while waiting to catch a flight.  Who’d’ve thunk it?

online | puz | pdf | solution

Speaking of travel, I’ve been cruising around the South Pacific for the past two weeks, starting in Tahiti and visiting Bora Bora, Rarotonga, American Samoa, Samo, Tonga, and Fiji so far, with Vanuatu, Brisbane, and Melbourne still to come. I’ve been posting about the trip, with lots of photos, in my travel blog, PuffinlessTravel.com. Please stop by if you’re interested!