The joys of being a crossword constructor are a mixed bag. Slaving over a cantankerous grid trying to get just the right fill can be satisfying or frustrating depending on your mood and how soon you have to publish the danged thing. Finding a clue for OLEO that hasn’t been used 500 times already is mostly just annoying. However, sometimes you get to write a clue like “Circumnavigatory desire?” (39 across). [No, the answer isn’t OLEO. Try to keep up with me here.] There just aren’t a lot of other avocations in which you can use a word or a phrase like that one, much less be able to justify doing so. Such rewards are just bound to brighten a cruciverbalist’s day. (We’ve heard tell, however, that some people think us a bit eccentric. We’re not sure why.)
Title: Trident Please
Difficulty: Thursday
Download: Across Lite or printable PNG (w/ solution)
“Circumnavigatory desire”? Why, that could only mean “EASY PASSAGE”!
No, it doesn’t?
Damn!!!
.
Back to square one…
Comment by Tuning Spork — July 6, 2009 @ 1:58 am
Okay.
I’ve spent about twenty minutes doing this puzzle and we need to talk.
Comment by Tuning Spork — July 6, 2009 @ 2:06 am
I tried it again and if it weren’t for the check feature I never would have completed the north-east, center-east and south-east sections. I had to use the reveal feature for 12-D to get a foothold. Never heard of her.
I don’t understand the clue for 53-D/11-D. 37-D’s a bit of a pate-scratcher, as well.
The rest of the puzzle was right up my alley.
Comment by Tuning Spork — July 8, 2009 @ 1:29 am
I just got it — at 5:00 am. “An 11-Down” Duh! **smacks palm painfully into forehead** That’s what I get for solving your puzzle when it’s past my bedtime. Well played.
Comment by Tuning Spork — July 8, 2009 @ 4:16 am
Well, you *did* ask for tougher challenges. I’m glad to oblige. 🙂
I’ll freely admit that 37-D is mostly crossword-ese — we try to avoid it, but sometimes it slips in when we get ambitious with our grids. As for 12-D, she’s not a crossword stand-by, but she’s starting to show up in pop culture. Ask any “Legend of Zelda” fan and they’ll have no trouble with the “horse” connection.
Comment by keeper — July 8, 2009 @ 2:30 pm