Words: 66
Average Length: 5.76
The seeds for this grid were 18 and 50 Across, but the clue I’m “proudest” of (in a that’ll-make-them-groan sense) is 3 Down. As an extra treat, here’s 1 Across singing “The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins.”
Words: 18 (7×7)
Average Length: 5.00
February is finally ending (save for one quadrennial last gasp tomorrow), which means Opening Day is just a few weeks away. Here’s a grid welcoming the new season, including my predictions for the NL, AL, and World Series champs.
Words: 74
Average Length: 5.24
The phrase that seeded this puzzle apparently goes back to an 18th century play by Oliver Goldsmith entitled “She Stoops To Conquer.” It’s also been used in songs by Bing Crosby, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and others, as well as books by Charles Dickens and J.K. Rowling.
63 Across is one of my all-time favorite songs by one of my all-time favorite groups. Here’s a link, which can double as a hint if you’re stuck on the lyrics.
Words: 42 (11×11)
Average Length: 4.57
Australia is magnificent; New Zealand is magical. Plus, the indigenous (4 Down) language is vowel-heavy, making commonly used names for various fauna, flora, customs, etc. wonderfully crossword-friendly. Enjoy the puzzle and visit PuffinlessTravel.com for photos and my write-up of New Zealand – I promise if you read the posts you’ll get past any unfamiliar 30 Across content!
Words: 69
Average Length: 5.04
The seed for this one was 15 Across, which I was going to use in a totally different puzzle that proved recalcitrant. So – reduce, reuse, recycle, and poof – this nutritious if overdressed grid. (Phillies fans, I know you’re not exactly famous for being able to take a joke, but if you finish with the worst defensive metrics in baseball you deserve to be tweaked in a clue (6 Down), even one written by a fan of the currently irrelevant Nats.)
Words: 42
Average Length: 4.52
Here’s my 2 Down to the fascinating, magnificent country of Australia, where I was fortunate to spend ten days in early January. I visited Melbourne, Sydney, Queensland, Uluru, and the Great Barrier Reef and loved all of them, notwithstanding rainfall befitting construction of an Ark. If you want to see some pictures and my travelogue, please visit my travel blog, PuffinlessTravel.com and search for Australia.
Words: 72
Average Length: 5.19
Here’s the third and final “Color Meld” puzzle, for the simple reason that there are only three unique ways to combine the three primary colors. Warning: this puzzle might leave you hungry!
Words: 70
Average Length: 5.43
Originally, 22 Across and 5 Down were going to be theme answers in a puzzle about barriers, real and metaphorical, but I couldn’t come up with three more decent themers to make it work. Presto change-o, I repurposed them as the seeds for this themeless.
I’ve wanted to work 30 Across into a puzzle for a while and managed to do so here. As for the clues to 31 Down and 50 Down, I’ve been doing a lot of reading/singing with my granddaughter. Hopefully this puzzle won’t go bumpety-bump-bump while you’re solving it!
Words: 72
Average Length: 5.22
Listening to Sirius XM’s ‘60s channel a few months ago, the title song came on. [Yes, the ‘60s were more than half a century ago. Yes, I’m still shocked when I’m told that some album I remember running to Korvette’s to buy is now 50 years old. Yes, I am approaching ancientness.]
It’s a pretty catchy song, and after singing along for a while (making sure my windows were shut to avoid any road rage incidents) I realized that the band’s name was 15 letters long. Not only that, the name suggests an architectural feature that could work as an organizing theme.
A few days later I crafted this puzzle, only to realize when preparing today’s write-up that the band spelled its name rather creatively. So it goes – the puzzle remains unchanged and I have been chastened, yet again, to check those things I’m certain of. Sound advice, no?
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