The actual dates defined by each age depend on the society, as the timing of the transition from the use of one material to another varied around the globe. 18 Rocky time? : STONE AGEĪncient societies can be classified by the “three-age system”, which depends on the prevalence of materials used to make tools. She started off with “’A’ Is for Alibi” in 1982 and worked her way up to “‘Y’ is for Yesterday” before she passed away in 2017. Sue Grafton wrote detective novels, and her “alphabet series” feature the private investigator Kinsey Millhone. 15 “Y Is for Yesterday” sleuth Millhone : KINSEY “Safari” is a Swahili word meaning “journey” or “expedition”. Since this was a straightforward theme type, tried and true, I would have preferred it to run on a Tues/Wed, and for the grid to be smoothed out at the cost of some of the nice long bonuses.Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies Across nothing is terrible, but as a whole, it's over my threshold for elegance. It's when they all pile up, with ESSE, MOL, ANGE, IRR, etc. I don't mind a few minor dings like ITE, EER, AGA. But what a great clue, misdirecting to a "corner piece" of a brownie tray. A GLASS EYE, one of my favorite card games in EUCHRE, a TRANSITION, BY GOLLY! These all helped hold my attention.Īnd lil' ol' STAPLED usually would be a neutral element of the grid to me. It's no wonder that I've never gotten a pun theme accepted by any major crossword outlet.Īnyhoo, I like Rich's attempt to add in some good bonus fill in case the puns didn't tickle solvers' funny bones, or caused HEADSHAKES. But then again, are puns supposed to make sense? I liked GHANA FLY NOW as an amusing marketing slogan for a Ghanaian airline, but BAHRAIN WASH didn't make as much sense to me. I'm terrible judging how good puns are since to be good, they sometimes must be bad. Clearly, I owe flowers and a note of apology to my mother-in-law.
The original clue was "Request for clean up in the Gulf.") Obscure allusions to the actual name of the "Theme from Rocky" and Henny Youngman's trademark one-liner were replaced with universally-understood references. For example, specific geographic hints were added to the themed clues. When it was, I was expecting my clues to be made more difficult. I was surprised to see this puzzle pegged for a Thursday. One area I need to work on is gauging puzzle difficulty.
I'm sure by now I've completely squelched any desire they may have had to see the world. I came up with more than could fit in this puzzle, such as "DO A ONE HAITI," "ACOUSTIC QATAR," and "Suggestion for a Mexican who can't stand the heat? - NORWAY JOSE." I still have the list of countries, and pull it out on long drives to quiz my kids on international geography. I printed out a list of countries and capitals, and put on my pun hat. I overheard, "Jamaica me crazy!" which got me wondering. The inspiration for this puzzle came from a playdate my son was having. My mother-in-law remains one of my indispensable test solvers of new puzzles. I came home after Thanksgiving a couple of years ago and decided to give constructing a try. but let's just say you don't want to be the last person to complete the puzzle. The mornings always begin with delicious bagels and a copy of the NYT puzzle for everyone. For the past 15 years, I've been regularly traveling to Long Island to visit my in-laws. It is a humbling honor to make my debut today.