Sample Page Title

Constructor: John Westwig

Relative issue: Medium

THEME: none 

Word of the Day: THE CATCH (13A: Famous game-saving 1954 World Series play by Willie Mays) —

The Catch was a baseball play made by New York Giants heart fielder Willie Mayson September 29, 1954, throughout Game 1 of the 1954 World Series on the Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan, New York City. During the eighth inning with the rating tied 2–2, Cleveland Indians batter Vic Wertz hit a deep fly ball to heart discipline that had the runners on base poised to attain. However, Mays made an over-the-shoulder catch whereas on the run to document the out, and his throw again to the infield prevented the runners from advancing. The Giants received the sport 5–2 in further innings, and finally the World Series. The Catch is thought to be one of many biggest performs in baseball historical past. (wikipedia) 

• • •

Weird U-shaped starting to this clear up, as I went ETHOS, SEEPED, after which, tentatively, JIBED (8D: Agreed). IRANI was additionally tentative, although JAM UP was extra assured, and eventually UNO CARD went in, the very first thing that really felt rock stable (11D: Skip or Reverse). That reply may additionally have been the spotlight of this puzzle for me, as PINERY (?) set issues on a tough monitor (12D: Dole Plantation, e.g.), after which the primary marquee reply, HOLD A SEANCE, continued down that monitor, solely a bit of extra so. Look, HOLD A SEANCE is just not precisely EAT A SANDWICH in its arbitrary verb-phrasiness, nevertheless it’s positively EAT A SANDWICH-esque. HOLD A SEANCE is tighter, for certain, extra centered. I do not even dislike it, actually. It’s simply that … there are solely two different solutions in the entire puzzle which are this lengthy or longer, so it is bearing quite a lot of weight, this reply; perhaps if the remainder of the grid had been actually buzzing, HOLD A SEANCE would appear like a high quality, even colourful addition to the get together. But the brilliant, longer solutions are merely few and much between at present, and the opposite stuff is merely OK. HOLD A SEANCE is not actually as much as the duty of being considered one of so few marquee solutions at present. Early within the clear up, that reply simply felt a bit clunky, *as marquee solutions go*, and it did not really feel like a harbinger of excellent. Once I dropped by way of NOT GOOD and CRAPPY, it felt just like the grid was attempting to inform me one thing. Confessing one thing. 

I do not truly suppose the puzzle was CRAPPY, however … take CRAPPY (38A: Bad). I actually hate it in my grid. I imply, I say it, sometimes, nevertheless it’s an unpleasant phrase. It makes the grid ugly and miserable in a approach that CRUMMY or CRUDDY simply would not. IOSAPP can also be ugly, differently—a considerably worse approach, as a result of it feels prefer it desires to be authentic and recent, nevertheless it simply appears to be like made-up and bizarre. I imply, it is an actual factor, nevertheless it’s simply not an entertaining reply. Feels pressured. PRSAVVY additionally feels pressured. Very pressured. Like, extraordinarily pressured. PRSKILLS googles twice as nicely, and even that feels a bit of iffy. I get that the it should be tempting to debut a solution, however perhaps that reply in your swollen wordlist is not … nice. Consider it. 

Always good to study one thing from a crossword after which be capable to put it to make use of … fifteen years later (!). What else? Not certain why we’re nonetheless doing Harry Potter clues, actually. I imply, in the event you’ve bought SNAPE, then you do not actually have every other cluing choices, however RAT!? To be clear, I’m, in actual fact, attempting to “cancel” J.Okay. Rowling. That is exactly what’s going on. I will not succeed. But she’s the wealthy white nice-lady face of a worldwide bigotry motion, so … go. “RAP GOD” feels exceedingly arduous as clued (17D: Eminem monitor with the Guinness World Record for “most phrases in successful single”). I’m not practically as rap-averse as lots of you—not rap-averse in any respect, in actual fact—however the very existence of this music was information to me. But I do not thoughts it, in that you could infer the reply from truthful crosses, and also you study a little bit of trivia alongside the best way. I bought super-annoyed on the puzzle once I tried to maneuver up into the NW nook from under, in the direction of the tip, and whereas I may work out CHAI TEA from -TEA (2D: Cardamom-containing coffeehouse creation), the opposite two 7-letter Downs main up into that part have been giving me -ING and … -ING (not useful!):

Luckily THE CATCH ended up being a gimme, and the nook fell from there. Only actual error at present got here slam-bang in the midst of the puzzle, the place, confronted with -DDAYS at 34A: Romps, I wrote in SALAD DAYS. But then I bought out of that jam with the assistance of the LADIES, who gave me the “L”—”Take the L,” they mentioned (This appeared unkind … however then I understood). The “L” helped me ditch SALAD and change it with completely different greenery: FIELD! I completed the puzzle having no concept how I used to be purported to get from [Unsalted, perhaps] to ICY. Just baffled. Was fascinated with snacks, cocktails … folks’s inclinations … it was solely after I began down the highway of “what are some issues which are ICY?” that I stumble on “sidewalks in winter,” and bam, the connection between salt and ice hastily made sense. Maybe if I’d solved this puzzle in winter, that connection would’ve been clearer. We definitely salt our walkway and sidewalk a number of instances every winter to maintain ourselves and our neighbors from, you understand, dying. But right here in early November, no ice as but, so the clue didn’t compute. And at present, no ice once more. 70 levels in actual fact. Gonna go soak it in whereas I can. Enjoy the remainder of your day.