One Man Banned
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Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in
pauer's LiveJournal:
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| Monday, February 9th, 2009 | | 7:06 pm |
Last solo Sun puz tomorrow
Yes, that's right: my last day in the Sun by myself. My very last Sun puzzle is next Wednesday (with ACME), and what a long, strange trip it's been. Just to show you the depth of Peter's patience, in the first theme I ever sent him I subtracted some letters, but sadly the resulting letters were gobbledegook. He sent me a puzzle of Trip's in which the resulting phrases actually made sense - much better! Luckily, I caught on to such subtleties fairly quickly, so now the only gobbledegook puzzles I make are on purpose. One of the first ideas I actually sold Peter on was "Digital Connections" (3/24/06) which he was kind enough to run on the day of my first ACPT. What a thrill to watch David Rosen and Merl Reagle solve my puzzle at the same table after some wine & cheese. And make no mistake: the theme was but a kernel when I brought it to Peter - he molded it and got the symmetry right and made it 1,000% better. He slaved over every theme in the Sun, fixed every grid when it needed fixing (I think I had 3 totally unchanged grids, all told), and gave every clue the attention it deserves. He's taught me a great deal about puzzles - I find myself avoiding partials (like ANOSE and ATEE) like the plague, and I've learned a lot more about baseball than I ever thought I would (or wanted to, for that matter). Both as a solver and a constructor, I'll miss that venue very much. | | Tuesday, December 30th, 2008 | | 9:19 am |
The view from here
I write this from Bossier City, Louisiana, which is 129 miles from Alexandria, where I was born 32 years ago. My parents have been living down here for 5 months, due to my mom's job. This was the first Christmas I can remember in which I could actually eat lunch outside and not freeze my tuckus off. It was in the 70's a few times this week, and I could get used to that. What I can't get used to is the number of times I have been over- or under-charged by cashiers. Apparently, this part of the state can't afford cash registers or calculators, and the cashiers themselves never seem to have learned to add or subtract. This whole area needs emergency copies of "Ken-Ken" airdropped posthaste. | | Thursday, September 4th, 2008 | | 7:09 pm |
If the Sun folds ...(in no particular order)
... I'll cry five days a week (but not on holidays). ... I'll continually pester Peter about what's to become of all the cool stuff I have in the pipeline. ... I'll miss getting rejection emails that consist of three words. ... I'll have nowhere to send all of my math, baseball, and Survivor themes. ... I'll think an awful lot about the 110 employees of the paper who will lose their jobs, not just their precious puzzle appearances. ... I'll stop believing in Virginia AND in Santa Claus. | | Monday, March 31st, 2008 | | 7:07 am |
Stiff neck
I must've slept funny, and not "ha ha" funny. My neck is killing me, bad enough to warrant calling in, but I have too much on my desk that needs to get out by week's end (as well as a meeting with the Art Dept. at 2) so I guess I'll just grimace and bear it. Maybe I'll swing by the pharmacy on the way in and get some ointment, that way *everybody* will smell my pain. | | Monday, March 24th, 2008 | | 7:24 am |
16 year old pictures
Tonight I'm meeting up with an old flame from California, who will have pictures from our summer of love. We didn't stay in touch, but eHarmony matched us up 16 years later which some might take as a sign. I'm staying realistic: we're different people now and who knows if we'll hit it off again. Either way, it's a good story. Wish me luck! | | Thursday, March 20th, 2008 | | 10:17 pm |
A Little Blogging Goes a Long Way
Just got done slogging through the comments on Rex's blog, which I rarely read unless I hear there's something juicy (which I did). This reminds me of something I've thought about for quite a while now: with whom do my blogging loyalties lie? The answer for me is a resounding O-R-A-N-G-E, since she's a top-notch solver who doesn't rant. Also, Orange focuses on markets besides the NYT. Still, one has to wonder why Rex has caught on so quickly, or at least I do. I think much of it has to do with putting "New York Times Crossword" in his title, and if I had thought of it earlier I might have titled this page "Patrick Solves the New York Times Crossword Puzzle New York Times Crossword Puzzle New York Times Crossword Puzzle." Well, hindsight and all that... In other news, I'd like to take this opportunity to announce my addiction to iTunes. Somebody, please schedule an intervention ASAP. | | Monday, March 17th, 2008 | | 7:52 am |
Yeah, well ...
... the chain of blogging was broken again. Big surprise. To make up for it, please enjoy the song stylings of a very talented songwriter: Pete Mills. http://pcmills.tripod.com/songs.htmlI don't actually know the guy, but Dan F. tells me he's bustin' out all over. | | Thursday, March 13th, 2008 | | 6:54 am |
| | Wednesday, March 12th, 2008 | | 7:40 am |
back in the saddle again
Maybe if I start blogging again slowly it won't be so jarring to my system. I've just gotten out of the habit, is all. So let's start small, and perhaps with a link or two: Here's constructor Pancho Harrison's link to his CD: http://cdbaby.com/cd/panchohAnd here's a place to get low-cost business cards: http://www.moo.com/Okay - I don't want to overdo it. Hasta mañana, P | | Monday, January 21st, 2008 | | 11:10 am |
MIT Mystery Hunt, Part I
Last year was my first time, and the puzzles were spectacular. I thought, "Nobody can top that." I thought wrong. The internal structure was inspired, and the puzzles that I worked on were either stellar (when we solved them) or sucked (when we didn't). I'm sure when I see the answers to the sucky ones I'll appreciate them, and suspect that I sucked for not spotting their solutions sooner. Still fun. Still exhausting. Still wish I had gotten those boar to behave in "Safari Park." Oh, and "The World's Tallest Cryptic" is pure awesome. | | Wednesday, December 5th, 2007 | | 6:37 pm |
The Fake SMBT
Okay, so here are some crossword entries that would fail the Sunday Morning Breakfast Test, but only if clued in an inappropriate way: AHOLE [Have ___ in one's head] AIDS [Helps out] ANAL [Freud subj.] PENIS [The ___ mightier than the sword] PMS [Afts.] or [U.K. leaders] STD [Norm: Abbr.] Can you think of others? | | Saturday, November 17th, 2007 | | 6:39 pm |
The "Sunday Morning Breakfast Test" Test
Here are some less-than-appetizing entries that don't pass my SMBT: MUCUS PHLEGM BARF PUKE VOMIT SMEGMA FART The question is: which one has appeared in the NY Times? (Answer in comments) Which words are on your SMBT? | | Thursday, October 18th, 2007 | | 8:06 pm |
NYC Puzzler's Lunch
Whew! It's dusty in here! Look at all those cobwebs and virtual dust bunnies...tsk. Just a quick query for the NYC-area word jockeys out there: who's up for a weekly Puzzler's Lunch? I understand that there used to be one, but this would be very informal: just a standing date at a place with a large menu and open seating. Who's with me? Bueller? Bueller? Posts and private replies are welcome. | | Saturday, September 8th, 2007 | | 4:58 pm |
For Rich Hall
Remember sniglets? You know, a 'word that should be in the dictionary, but isn't' as popularized by Rich Hall on "Not Necessarily the News" back in the day? Well, anyway, here are a few favorites that I reencountered recently. Enjoy! CHARP: The green, mutant potato chip found in every bag GLACKETT: The noisy ball inside a spray-paint can SIRLINES: The lines on a grilled steak STROODLE: The annoying strand of cheese stretching from a slice of hot pizza to one's mouth TWINCH: The movement a dog makes with its head when it hears a high-pitched noise GLARPO: The juncture of the ear and skull where pencils are stored | | Tuesday, August 21st, 2007 | | 7:10 pm |
Misc.
Hi, gang: My spies tell me that my next NYT puz comes out tomorrow, but I have no idea which one it is. I'm hoping it's one of the 'accepted over a year ago' ones, since I've begun to wonder if they fell into an oubliette. (That is one nice thing about writing for Peter: you know when the puzzle will run once you submit the clues. He works pretty far ahead, so you still have to wait but you know how long the wait will be.) The waiting really *is* the hardest part. No matter where a puzzle might end up running, there's a lag. Sometimes the lag is longer between acceptance and publication, other times it's between publication and payment. Of course, I'm thrilled that each of my word babies see print at all, so I'm willing to wait as long as it takes. As you may have guessed from my recent spate of puzzles, I had a pretty productive spring. I feel like I moved into a different phase as a constructor, too, concentrating on 'what's next' gimmicks and grid design. My next goal is to sell a themeless, which requires a very similar (but not congruent) set of skills. I think I'm on my way, since today i realized that DINNY (of comics) and FCUK (of clothing) have yet to make it into the database. Then again, maybe there's a reason for that. Best, PB (no J) | | Wednesday, July 18th, 2007 | | 7:01 pm |
My new favorite word
ragtimey, adj. That is all. Back to the non-stop puzzle marathon that is my life. | | Monday, July 2nd, 2007 | | 10:23 pm |
| | Wednesday, June 6th, 2007 | | 6:25 am |
Today's NYT is by Rich Silvestri, who is one of the greats. ( Spoilers behind cut ) In any case, swell puzzle, Rich. Now I'm anxiously awaiting the release of your "Wordplay Crosswords #2" for more of the same, though hopefully we'll seen your byline before that, too. | | Tuesday, May 29th, 2007 | | 9:07 pm |
FJAWRWP CX LXMN-KANJTNAB! MX WXC NWM DY URTN CQRB PDH!
Today I heard from a fellow in PA who'd found a mistake; he was right, I'm afraid. When i asked him what kind of puzzles he liked, he said 'really hard cryptograms, preferably without word breaks.' Apparently, he finds them too easy with the word breaks. Wowza. I have an odd feeling that this man may be the death of me. | | 6:16 am |
looking for some cryptic reviews
If you know either of these two books: National Puzzlers' League Cryptic Crosswords or Hard-to-Solve Cryptograms Can you say a few words about them? I'd appreciate it, and nothing you say will be used against you in a court of law (by me, at least). |
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