PUZZLE #27: Off to a Rocky Start

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SOLUTION to the last puzzle

Sorry about the long break between puzzles; I've been working on a few puzzle projects, and planning a few changes to the blog, which I hope you'll be excited about. Plus I was on a school trip over the last two Sundays, so I haven't had a lot of time by my laptop to publish anything.

Speaking of changes to the blog, here's one I'm particularly excited about: you now can solve puzzles directly in your browser, thanks to an embedded applet courtesy of Amuse Labs. You can see the applet below the break. Let me know how it works, and if there's anything I can do to make the solving experience easier.

As always, hope you enjoy!
-Paolo

PUZZLE #26: Themeless 8

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SOLUTION to the last puzzle

Hello, solvers! A few notes:

• The only time I've listened to the song at 6A in full was when I was confirming the fact in the clue. It was a last resort-- all the sources I looked up had different information, and I don't trust lyric websites-- and I wouldn't do it again. The things I do for this site, I swear.
• Also, I'd be remiss if I left out this Chris King puzzle, which was the highlight of my puzzle-solving week year.

Hope you enjoy the themeless!
-Paolo

PUZZLE #25: Propositional Phrases

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SOLUTION to the last puzzle

Welcome back, solvers!

A quick puzzle recap: over the off weekend, the Mystery Hunt happened. This was my first year actually participating (as a remote solver for team Palindrome), and it was an experience. I'm still tired after the three-day straight puzzle deluge, so I won't write a lot about it. Main points: the theme (Pixar's "Inside Out") was incredible, and the puzzles themselves were so much fun to work on. I'm hoping to be able to head down to next year's Hunt in person, just to get the full experience. For more specificities, you can check out this article about the hunt.

Onto today's puzzle: definitely a modern one, but hopefully there's something for everyone to enjoy. Also, the theme's much less elaborate than a Mystery Hunt puzzle, so it's got that going for it as well.

Hope you enjoy!
-Paolo

PUZZLE #24: Personal Space

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SOLUTION to the last puzzle

Surprise, it's an off-week, non-Sunday puzzle! Today's puzzle is about a subject near and dear to my heart, and I hope you enjoy it. Fair warning: if you don't get the theme when you're done, it might take some Googling. Or, to cut the hassle, just click here (SPOILERS for the puzzle, of course).

Also, check out this link, which talks about part of an initiative by Erik Agard and Will Nediger, among others, to reduce the (horrific, IMO) gender imbalance in crosswords and puzzles in general. Check out the linked Facebook group for more information, especially if you're a female-identifying/otherwise underrepresented individual who wants to construct puzzles. My line's always open as well-- email me at the address in the sidebar if you're interested in collaborating.

As always, enjoy the puzzle!
-Paolo

PUZZLE #23: Themeless 7 (and an announcement)

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LAST PUZZLE'S solution

It's been a while, solvers! First, apologies for the unannounced Christmas/New Year's break; school happened, then I had to play catchup for a little. So you don't get burned again, but I can still stay sane, I'm going to ease up on the schedule a little: as of today, Grids These Days will be publishing every other week. This is hopefully going to be a temporary measure-- going biweekly would let me build a puzzle backlog up again.

In other news, shoutout to the American Values Club crossword for allowing me to trick them into joining the team. You'll be seeing some of my puzzles there in the future; if you like the pop culture deal of this blog, smash that subscribe button. You won't be disappointed.

Onto today's puzzle: another themeless, with a very clear seed entry. After you're done solving, click here (SPOILERS) to see the origins of that entry, and its usage since then.

Also, a non-spoiler thing that's still very cool, that test-solver/very good constructor Chris Adams pointed out: Pyeongchang, the site of the 2018 Winter Games, is adopting the internally-capitalized name PyeongChang. The reason: to avoid confusion with Pyongyang. It's factoids like these that make the blurbs on this site worthwhile.

Enjoy the puzzle!

Best,
Paolo

PUZZLE #22: Themeless 6

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SOLUTION to last week's puzzle

Welcome back, solvers! It's been a few months since the last themeless; here's a puzzle to break the theme hegemony.

If this still doesn't satisfy your themeless fix, check out this erik agard collaboration. You know as well as I do that the man's a crossword wizard. Just look at that puzzle's 1-Across clue (which was all him) and let your jaw drop.

Anyway, enjoy the puzzle!

PUZZLE #21: "Yes, And..."

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SOLUTION to last week's puzzle

Hello! Late puzzle, but better late than never.

This is a puzzle from the "write what you know" division. Last Friday, I played in a showcase for my school's improv team for the first time. Long story short, it was insanely rewarding, I loved it, and I would do it again in a heartbeat. So, here's a puzzle based on that, titled after the golden rule of improv.

Hope you enjoy!
-Paolo