I must have had ballet on the brain even more than usual this spring, because when I went to check my slush pile of completed puzzles, I had another one with a dance seed entry in there. No, that’s not what I’m posting today, but don’t be surprised if more TERPSICHOREan content shows up next time or in a month. (And if you can’t get enough ballet, check out how you get married if you are arguably America’s most famous active ballerina and you’re marrying another ballet dancer. My niece pointed out “she’s even got her toes pointed in the makeup chair!” and I pointed out that they’re literally doing the last scene from Dirty Dancing at their reception. Swoon!)
Tag: puzzle
Themeless #142
One reason I won’t be leaving NYC in the foreseeable future is that I love ballet (watching it, not doing it; flexibility has never been one of my strong points). If you know that, it won’t be hard to guess what my seed entry was here.
Themeless #141
I’ve just come back from a really fun week at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, where my husband and I, plus some good friends (one of whom is an accomplished amateur pianist), got to geek out over some brilliant young people playing a lot of concertos. Because I’m not the kinda gal who whips up a themeless in seconds, you won’t find ARISTO SHAM in this puzzle, but don’t be shocked if there’s some piano content in the puzzle in about a month!
In the meantime, I made this puzzle a while ago but realized the seed entry was geographically a little too close to that of another themeless, so I spaced it out. Enough vague dancing around it — hope you enjoy solving!
Themeless #139
I seeded this one with 15A. Enjoy!
Themeless #138
My deep apologies for multiple screwed-up clue cross-references in recent puzzles. I’m a one-woman operation and this is for precisely zero dollars, but I can still do better on that. I promise I checked this time. (And if the one pair of cross-refs in this puzzle is still wrong, please feel free to give me shit.)
Bonus puzzle: Let AI Finish It For You
Warning! This puzzle has some less-than-ideal fill and asymmetry that would preclude it from me submitting it anywhere. But I thought it was a fun enough theme to be worth it.
If you ask an AI to solve this puzzle for you, I won’t tell.
Themeless #137
It’s Wednesday! Happy solving!
Bonus puzzle!
This puzzle, entitled “Sing It With Me: They’re Our Friends,” was inspired by my deep, deep disgust for that guy in the White House and, in particular, the stupidity of imposing tariffs ON OUR FRIENDS. Life is better with Mexican avocados, Spanish ham, and a whole lot of other things. I suppose it would have made more sense to make a puzzle specifically about consumer goods from [SPOILER REDACTED], but instead you get pop music.
I hope you find a little joy in this puzzle amid the chaos.
(Edited to add: There are two cross-reference clues that say “Across” but should say “Down” — apologies, it’s easier to note that here than to redo all the files)
Themeless #136
At least once a year I think I should put some ACPT-related content in the puzzle that goes up closest to ACPT, and every year I don’t do it in time. This year is no exception. Please enjoy this crossword that has nothing to do with ACPT other than that it is a crossword, and ACPT involves doing crosswords.
Send good vibes! A gal wants to make the finals.
Bonus puzzle: “Wrapped in Fabric”
I’ve had this theme rejected enough times to stop trying, but I still think it’s a pretty cool idea so I’m posting the puzzle here. For those who continue to come here for a Tough as Nails experience: This puzzle is NOT particularly hard. You’ve been warned!
Crosswords and Trivia by Stella Zawistowski 