Jean & Mike Do The New York Times Crossword

Hold the (homo)phone!, it's another  delightful Monday crossword by Jennifer Nutt (her 9th, in fact). There were some revelations in the grid, such as 2D, "Bear" in a eucalyptus forest, KOALA; 33D, It broke up on December 26, 1991, USSR; and Mike's favorite, 8D, Fur tycoon John Jacob, ASTOR (yay!). Deets inside, so download, listen up, and ... let us know what you think!

P.S. To read "The Purloined Letter" and other stories, check out PoeStories.com, 

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

A great start to our crossword solving week, courtesy of Michael Schlossberg, who seems to be pathologically unable to construct anything less than a stellar crossword -- and we offer as evidence, exhibit A, in fact, today's puzzle.

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

A nice Saturday crossword, and a debut by David P. Williams, so kudos not only for getting published, but for constructing such an excellent puzzle, with such tremendously enjoyable phrases as the aforementioned GILDTHELILY, MOLLYCODDLE, and one of our favorite words, PROSAIC.

Today's WYMSA (Words You Might See Again) entry is 33A, Asian appetizer, SATAY, so add that to your favorite crossword clues notebook, you'll probably ... see it again!

It's Saturday,and our JAMCOTWA (Jean And Mike Crossword Of The Week Award) winner is ... nope, no spoilers! Have a listen to find out, and let us know if you agree/disagree or are neutral on the subject!

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Kameron Austin Collins is another reliably fabulous cruciverbalist, who specializes in Saturday puzzles but occasionally produces a Friday (such as the fine one we dive into in here). 

In other news, it's Fun Fact Friday ™️, and today's star is none other than the lady we met for the first time in. yesterday's grid, Effa Manley.

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

They say that practice makes perfect, and this crossword is a perfect example, It's by Erik Agard (his 77th for the NYTimes), and is a master class in great cluing. For example, we were very chuffed to see ... 48A, Chuffed, GLAD; we were also thrilled to see an answer from yesterday make a reappearance, but in an entirely different clue: 59A, Part of the Hollywood monogram J.E.J., EARL; and has this word ever been clued better, we think not -- 57D, Inanimate object with a tongue, SHOE. Oh, there were more, and we dive into them in today's puzzle, so have a listen, and let us know what you think.

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

In honor of Indian Independence Day, we have  this visually stunning crossword (click on the link to see what we mean). It doesn't look quite like the original, but considering the medium is crossword squares, it's pretty good. Deets inside, and, a first, we have some episode artwork!

Remember, the NYTimes crossword is a great way to stay sharp and expand your horizons. They're always eager to have you as a subscriber, so head over to nytimes.com/crosswords, and tell 'em Jean and Mike sent ya!

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

A trendy, Tuesday  crossword by Malaika Handa, with a smattering of rarer clues, such as 18D, Gun control activist David, HOGG; 11D, Payment after a split between unmarried partners, PALIMONY (amusing word for a decidedly unamusing subject);  and 12D, Italian sparkling wine, PROSECCO (not to be confused, as Mike was wont to do, with PROSCIUTTO).

It's Triplet Tuesday, so see if you can beat Mike to the answers in today's thrilling battle of wits. Finally, Will Shortz, the head honcho at NYTimes Crossword HQ, was interviewed by the New Yorker, and is definitely worth a read.

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Today's crossword is a real deal - two puzzles for the price of one, and the second involves math (or at least arithmetic). Fear not, though, a calculator is not required, but a willingness to have fun is -- and if you're listening to this podcast, fun is guaranteed.

In other news, we have more on MOCHAS thanks to listener mail, and a reminder that tomorrow is Triplet Tuesday, so haul out that Thinking Cap, Tuesday will be here before you know it!!

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

Good crossword puzzles, like those that grace the pages of the NYTimes, are a celebration of English - its history, present, and future. So, when we come across a word we haven't seen before (but, it usually transpires. everybody else has), we want to raise a toast in honor of a newly-found friend. Today's nouveau ami,  is INSPO, short for ... nope, we're going to end these notes here on a cliff-hanger! To find out the meaning of INSPO, and get all the deets on the rest of the great clues in today's puzzle, all you need do is tap that ol' download button, followed by the ol' play button, and all will be revealed.

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!

A more than CROMULENT Saturday crossword by the dynamic duo of Rachel Fabi and Christina Iverson. Jean found it to be a bit of a slog, thanks to the double-whammy in the northwest of 1A, Perfectly acceptable, humorously, CROMULENT, and 15A, Serpentine symbol of rebirth, from the Greek for "tail-devouring", OUROBOROS. There were challenges in the rest of the grid as well, but the end result was a fine puzzle, definitely worth 5 squares on the JAMCR scale.

In other news, our JAMCOTWA is out -- congrats to Natan Last and the JASA Crossword  Class -- and, we have listener mail 😍. So to enjoy all of this goodness, you are cordially invited to do what countless others have done before you: subscribe (so you never miss an episode), download, listen up, enjoy, and learn!!

We love feedback! Send us a text...

Contact Info:
We love listener mail! Drop us a line, [email protected].

Also, we're on FaceBook, so feel free to drop by there and strike up a conversation!