Words: 76
Average Length: 5.00
Here’s a gently springy puzzle for early April, as well as a poem that I wrote after walking around the neighborhood.
Spring in My Feet
Einstein-haired forsythias wave
To daffodils who bow and brave
The bagpipe drone and wheeze of blowers
Lofting leaves among the flowers
Callow cherries blush with pride,
Their elders slumber on and bide
The time til arthritic limbs
Break out in pinkly glorious hymns
Zoysia steals more Zs before
It grudgingly comes green once more,
For now the onion grass stands guard
While squirrels scrabble ‘cross the yard
Weekday children walk to school
In shorts though temps be cold not cool,
Weekend farmers make their beds
With shredded hardwood, blacks and reds.
I’m glad my verse you did indulge;
My friends I thank you very mulch.
Words: 11
Average Length: 4.55
This is the last Venn Mini for a bit – they’re a bit of a pain to construct, to be honest. Same rules as always: each half of the clue is like a circle in a Venn Diagram; the answer falls in the intersection of the clues and is something they have in common – it could be a name, a place, the same word used in different context, or some other commonality. Explanations follow the photo.
1A – You BASTE a turkey and a seam
6A – Shaq and the Great One both played CENTER, though in different sports. (Seeing Shaq ice skate might be interesting!)
7A – HAVANA was a hit for Camilla Cabello, and the USS Maine sank in Havana harbor, igniting the Spanish-American War
8A – EDITS as a verb includes cuts; director’s cuts may be considered EDITS used as a noun. I apologize for this one, which is the real weak link in the grid.
9A – Spike LEE; a shelter is on the LEE side
1D – BEAD is associated with drops of sweat and Mardi Gras
2D – One of the bones in your ear is the ANVIL, which is also used in a forge
3D – STATE of matter (liquid) and of the union
4D – Future is a TENSE, a cliffhanger is tense
5D – ERA – as an acronym for the Equal Rights Amendment, which was supported by NOW (the National Organization for Women), and for Earned Run Average, a key pitching stat
6D – CHE is the narrator of Evita, and Michael Che is known from SNL
Words: 74
Average Length: 5.05
Well here’s a surprise: a puzzle combining music and food. Whatever conclusions you might draw from my proclivity for this combination likely are correct. (For another example, see Meals in Motown.)
Words: 10
Average Length: 4.80
Spoilers/solving notes below:
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1A: A shepherd uses a STAFF and an employer hires a STAFF
6A: An ear has a CANAL, and Erie is one
7A: Lewis Carroll wrote about ALICE in Wonderland, and Jefferson Airplane’s song White Rabbit is based on Carroll’s book
8A: Bags are TOTES and in “I Love You Man,” Paul Rudd’s character says “TOTES McGotes”
9A: Mathematician John NASH was the subject of “A Beautiful Mind,” and Graham NASH was a founding member of The Hollies
1D: Ella Fitzgerald was known for SCAT singing, and animal poop is called SCAT
2D: An eagle has TALONs, and TALON is a major brand of zipper
3D: ANITA Hill accused Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment, and ANITA is Maria’s friend in West Side Story
4D: Clocks have FACES and Rod Stewart was in a band called FACES
5D: In The Merchant of Venice, Shylock famously speaks of “the pound of FLESH, which I demand of [Antonio]”, and Matthew 26 contains the line “the spirit is willing but the FLESH is weak”
Words: 10
Average Length: 4.60
1A: STEAM comes from a kettle and a steamroller is a piece of construction equipment
6A: a HEDGE is a kind of bush and one can hedge a bet
7A: Mike Trout is an ANGEL, as is an investor in a start-up
8A: ROAST can mean good-natured kidding, and one roasts a turkey
9A: ERR works as a prefix for both -and and -or
1D: Kids learn to SHARE in kindergarten, and stocks are sold in shares
2D: Coltrane played TENOR sax and Pavarotti was a tenor
3D: EDGAR Allen Poe wrote “The Raven” and EDGAR Degas painted “The Dancing Class”
4D: AGES follows both “Stone” and “Middle”
5D: Ice will MELT, and a tuna melt is a (delicious!) sandwich
Words: 10
Average Length: 4.60
This one may (or may not) play a bit tougher than previous VMs – I can never tell. Spolers/explanation below the break.
1A. AMP – amplifier, ampere
4A. CORDS – newborns have umbilical cords and cords (corduroy pants) have wales (ridges)
7A. IDIOT – Village idiot; Dostoevsky wrote The Idiot
8A. DEMME – Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins appeared together in Silence of the Lambs, Jonathan Demme’s most famous movie.
9A. SLEEP – REM is a sleep stage; the famous Hamlet soliloquy contains the line “to sleep, perchance to dream”. (The clue would work equally well for DREAM.) I wanted to further the REM misdirection by having the second half of the clue be “Sidewinder”; the band had a medium-sized hit song called “The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite,” but it’s 30 years old and I wasn’t sure how well-known it is.
1D. ACIDS are used in etching, and “on acid” is slang for tripping on LSD
2D. MODEL – a model poses on a runway, and an A380 is an airplane model from Airbus. Major misdirect on this one!
3D. PRIME – beef and numbers both may be prime
5D. DOME – Buckminster Fuller is known for designing a geodesic dome, and the Pantheon in Rome is one of the most famous domed buildings in the world
6D. STEP – it’s a synonym for stair and, in music, a step is a whole tone (e.g., from C to D).
Words: 10
Average Length: 4.40
Explanation/spoilers below the break
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1A: SPARE is a score in bowling and an emergency tire
6A: PEDALs are used to ride a bicycle and to stop a car
7A: ATOMS have nuclei, and Thom Yorke/Flea’s band was Atoms for Peace
8A: DEBS is short for debutantes and also the surname of Eugene V. Debs, a 5-time Socialist candidate for US President
9A: ERE is contained in both Where and There
1D: SPADE is a suit in a deck of cards and also a garden tool
2D: PETER Cottontail was Flopsy and Mopsy’s brother; a famous Tsar was Peter the Great
3D: ADOBE is a type of clay brick as well as the developer of Acrobat software
4D: RAMS are pick-up trucks from Dodge and an NFL franchise in Los Angeles
5D: ELS (elevated train) are operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), and Ernie Els is a noted member of the PGA Tour
Jeff's Puzzles