Favorite Clue of ACPT 2016

One of the reasons I love Crossword puzzles is that they always open paths to conversations about other interests.
At ACPT 2016, my favorite example is Mike Shenk's puzzle #3 25D - Autos available with "Bonnet stripes".  The answer, of course, is MINIS.

So why did I care?  Because My MINI has said bonnet stripes, and, the only picture I had on my phone was not of my actual car, but of the scale model that I "park" in the driveway of the Presépio (Christmas Village) that I build each year.
Boom - 3 passions in one crossword clue!!

Thanks Mr. Shenk, and everyone at ACPT.

A Friend Indeed

A much overdue shoutout to my dear puzzle friend Jen.
While I met Jen through crossword puzzles and Rex Parker (thanks Michael), I know we would have been friends had we met some more "conventional" way.

Those of you who have been to this blog most likely know her as JenCT.  So you already know she raises chickens (and sometimes names them for her friends!), makes the most awesome bread I've tasted this side of France, rescues animals, gardens, volunteers at ACPT - I'm getting tired just trying to think of all the cool things she does.  What you may not know is that she has MS, and since it's been getting worst, has now turned her efforts towards procuring a van that can transport her and her eagerly anticipated service dog.
She is asking for help in funding this custom vehicle here: A van for Jen.

Help if you can!  (I am, as I want to make sure that she and her new pal have the wheels available to come by and visit often!)

Rebus, writeovers, and MEMEMEMEME

Today's NYTimes Croswword Puzzle by Mr. Schoenholz was great fun, with my favorite xword contrivance, the Rebus!

Here is how my grid looked - in keeping with the theme, I rendered my rebi as tiny visages of Moi - I mean ME.  Love the way I can open up a palette, and draw whetever I want.  (An outlet for my inner artiste...)

The different thicknesses of the letters show either how unsure I was of the answer (light gray), or how many times I erased and re-entered.

Also, shout-out to my newest cousin, tiny ANOUK, who was 1 year old on Christmas Eve!

Handwriting- finally, a reason to own an iPad

In spite of many friends and colleagues sporting sleek & shiny iPads, I really could think of no good reason to own a tablet myself.
Until now...with my spanking new Google Nexus 7 tablet, I am happy as a clam, doing puzzles the old-fashioned way - writing and doodling directly into the grid.  Only I use my tablet.

It feels totally natural, and so much nicer than hunting and pecking on a faux keyboard.  You can use a stylus or not - believe it or not, using your finger works really well.  Even lumberjack puzzle-spouse can use his finger.
I use both - if I have the stylus handy, I write with it.  I found a nice one with a smaller, tapered nib than most - it is so much like using a pen!
But often, I don't even remember to look for the stylus - I just pick up the Nexus and get started.
(Works on any iPad, Kindle Fire, tablets like Google Nexus 7, Samsung, even Windows Surface tablet!)
See above for pics.  I will try and post a video of me solving at some point.

P.S. - Erasing is fun - makes you feel better about your mistakes, cause it's so easy to erase!)

Metamorphosis and Lunch

Brilliant sunshine and a warm fall day in New England -- the perfect setting for lunch and more... 
A few Rexvillians (mac, Sparky, JenCT), some spouses (Paul, Phil), a couple of German tourists (Michael & Silke), and a botanist (Sheila) or two rounded out the field for a delicious meal, a smattering of crossword gossip, and plenty of conversation about everything else.  It's a curious and marvelous thing that the internet has wrought, enabling such a meeting.

First, the menu: chouriço with Jen's fabulous bread, Phil's garden tomato salsa, beef bulgogi & chicken satay, and for desert, mac's perfection of a pound cake with fresh berries and Il Bacio ice cream (the best you'll ever have!). 

Now for ordinary folks, that would have been enough for a spectacular day.
But Jen, our in-house part-time lepidopterist, brought us all a little bit of magic...

A crystal-clear jewel of a chrysalis, with a soon-to-emerge Monarch waiting within.  She held it in front of the AC vents in the car during the 1-1/2 hour drive, to make sure it wouldn't emerge until just the right moment!

Neither words nor pictures can convey the wonder of seeing this happen before your very eyes.  But do click on more below and take a look.

Happy Birthday, Will!

Warmest wishes for your 60th birthday, Mr. Shortz, and many happy returns!
We were just coming back up for air after having spent 3 delightful weeks of playing tourguides and innkeepers to waves of friends from near and far, when what should appear in my Inbox but an email from Andrea Carla Michaels pointing me towards a seemingly endless slew of tribute puzzles.  And here I thought I was actually going to be productive this week...

Well, of course I can't resist, so beauty sleep be damned, full speed ahead!
Here are my musings and tags on the first 3 I tackled...from the King and Queen of Mondays, Tom Pepper and Andrea.
I'll post the others as I am able to steal time away.
At the right is the very apropos KUDOS I get whenever my puzzle is correct - a smiling Will!  Today he has even more reason to smile.

(Please click read more below to read my summaries on the 2 ACME and the Tom Pepper puzzles.)

Lollapuzzoola 5

Lollapuzzoola 5, a set on Flickr (courtesy Bob Kerfuffle).

My first Lollapuzzola was a blast. It was a fun gathering of like-minded smart people who decided it would also be fun to do a few puzzles together.

Brian Cimmet was a Master of Ceremonies par excellence. The getting-to-know-you "People Bingo" game was inspired...you had to run around the room filling out a bingo card with things like "Someone wearing purple"; "Can name all six Friends"; Can speak more than one language"; Can make a sound like a fire alarm (make them do it)". Getting you entire card filled out with names earns you a prize. But of course, it was jsut fun to have a completely inane excuse to walk up to total strangers and strike up a conversation.

I liked that it was very relaxed - the rather loose time frames gave us time to talk with old friends and make new ones. Because face it, most of us** are there for the camaraderie, not to make it to the finals! A few other group games kept things loose and kept us from having our brains fried by the really challenging puzzles.

For the record, I am the 99th greatest crossword puzzle solver in the world*!
(I've decided that from now on, my ranking will be reflected by either 1) my most recent competition, or b) my highest ranking, whichever is highest...)

Oh yeah - Joon Pahk and Glen Ryan won!!!! Congratulations! See the official writeup at Brian's site.

*"World" in this context is defined as all the people that were at Lollapuzzola 5...a grand total of 122 folks!

** With the exception of some of you - you know who you are - who actually ARE right up there in the stratosphere...

 P.S.  Really liked that there is a Pairs competition - might convince puzzle husband to join in...
Only disappointment was missing out on some of the zaniness that I heard about from the previous years - maybe if we all clap really hard, they'll bring it back for next year!