
Words: 15 (6×7)
Average Length: 4.53
Here’s a simple theme that came to me at 5 a.m. Monday while my jet-lagged body was trying to decide whether it was time to wake up. (It wasn’t.)

Words: 15 (6×7)
Average Length: 4.53
Here’s a simple theme that came to me at 5 a.m. Monday while my jet-lagged body was trying to decide whether it was time to wake up. (It wasn’t.)

Words: 42
Average Length: 4.71
I’m nearing the end of two phenomenal weeks in Egypt, during which I’ve gotten to see the pyramids of Giza, the Sphinx, the new Grand Egyptian Museum, Abu Simbel, and the temples and tombs of Luxor. The sights have been spectacular and the Egyptian people warm and welcoming. Here’s a puzzle celebrating this wonderful country.
I’ve been blogging about the trip on my PuffinlessTravel blog – please stop by to see photos and read all about it.

Words: 14
Average Length: 5.29
I started with the grid shape and 8 Across and then looked for some interesting stuff to go around it. The result has a bit of an unintended celestial theme.
Words: 18

Average Length: 4.56
I read something Friday morning that included the phrase in 5 Across, and then 9 Across popped into my mind, which tells you how insufferable my mind can be at times. Then I came up with 1 Across (which I might have seen in a puzzle before), and decided I had to make the grid work with those three entries as the top three acrosses. After I finished a draft, I came up with “Herr apparent” as a clue, but couldn’t think of a corresponding answer. Perhaps you’ll see it in a future grid!

Words: 73
Average Length: 5.10
Today’s puzzle is clued very gently (for me) – guess I was in a particularly mellow mood when I constructed it. I figure it’s a good tonic after last Thursday’s jeremiad.

Word: 78
Average Length: 4.64
Trigger warning: if you think the current occupant of what’s left of the White House is doing a bang-up job running what’s left of our country, this puzzle will upset you.
Apology: There’s no online option for today’s puzzle because, in the current political environment, I didn’t want to risk bringing haters’ wrath down on other distribution outlets.
Disclaimer: The puzzle resembles a word ladder, but it’s really not – turns out I could connect 1A to 67A by changing only 3 letters.

Words: 18
Average Length: 4.67
The seeds for this puzzle, which you’ll identify while solving, originally were ideas for a cryptic puzzle (for obvious reasons). Having said that, 15A, a non-seed entry, has my favorite clue.
Words: 30
Average Length: 4.73
At 10:36 this morning, my wife Sandy and I welcomed our second grandchild, Noah, into the world. Noah is 20 inches and 8.2 pounds, and he and his parents (Andrea and Eli) are doing great. I had to mark the occasion with a puzzle, of course!

Words: 70
Average Length: 5.34
Today’s puzzle follows a tried and true – meaning hoary – model. Hopefully, it’s fresh nonetheless, as 55 Across should be.
I just got back from 2 weeks in France, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. I posted extensively about the trip on my travel blog, Puffinlesstravel.com – if you’re interested, please check it out!