CROSSWORD #245

ACROSS LITE PUZZLE: [ EAT MY SHORTS] 
PROGRAM: [Across Lite]

PROGRAM: [Java]

PRINTOUT PUZZLE: [ EAT MY SHORTS]

PROGRAM: [Adobe Acrobat]

In case you were unaware, I have today’s New York Times puzzle with The Peeb a.k.a El Blindito a.k.a. The Smoke Monster a.k.a a few other nicknames unsuitable for publication (even for sites like this one). You don’t know who I’m talking about? Eye roll It’s Pat Blindauer, duh! So enough already, and get to it: [Across Lite] [PDF]

This blog puzzle goes out to Elisa Camiscioli of Binghamton, NY. She tipped last week and asked for more Easy puzzles. The proof is out there: BEQ is amenable to being bribed. And yeah, it’s most definitely an Easy one, downs-only Easy for those into that sort of thing. I like how it’s a balance for the harder themed puzzle that ran in the Times.

And who’s that dapper feller just below the puzzle and just above the post? That would the latest fan du jour of the BEQ.com: Eric Peterson of Fort Lauderdale. Astute followers of the site know Eric made the bosser than boss “B.E.Q. Reckoning” spoof t-shirt that is showcased in the store to your right. And I guess he took his prize that he won for making said shirt (“Diagramless” crosswords) with him on a cruise. It appears that Eric’s creeping up to that super-duper almost stalker-ish level of fandom. Take it away, Eric.

I’m packing for the cruise that Mrs. eP and I and the boys are planning to take from Tampa to Grand Cayman and Cozumel. Naturally, the first things to get packed were the puzzle books, followed immediately by the pencils. Unfortunately, it turns out that having fun relaxing on a cruise takes a considerable amount of time and effort. Between eating and exploring and eating and drinking and eating and sunbathing and eating and partying and eating and sleeping, the time for puzzles never materialized to the extent I expected.

I finally managed to get some puzzling in on our second full day at sea. The ship had a rack full of free single-sheet puzzles – crosswords, sudokus, etc. I didn’t recognize the editorial format of the crosswords, so I tried solving one. I am at a loss for the right word to describer the editorial standards of the Carnival Crossword Constructors, so let me offer a few examples. {Lemon skin} (4) was the clue … was the answer PEEL? RIND? ZEST? No, Gentle Solver, it was LIME. My only guess is that the clue was supposed to be {Lemon’s kin}. Apparently, the crew’s struggle with English extended to the puzzle writers. Moving on, {Picnic invaders} was ANT, and it got worse from there. My recommendation, if you cruise on Carnival, BYOP.

Duly noted. Thanks for the photo/report, Eric. And it’s good to see that puzzle snobdom never rests. Maybe if I’m inspired I’ll hit up Carnival and offer them my services. Anyway, I’m not sure what to offer you seeing as you have the book already and created the t-shirt, how about fifteen minutes of fleeting fame for appearing the number one crossword site on the planet?

Share the puzzles. Keep the fan pics coming. New one on Monday.