tuesday, october 09, 2007
timothy powell / will shortz
difficulty factor: again, no band-aids needed. this just isn't normal... for me! another breeze puzzle... i was nary scathed!
theme: none that i could distinguish. just kidding. sort of, anyway. there were four CLUES that were "homonyms of a word that rhymes with 'door' and have a 'b' instead of the 'd'", but the ANSWERS in the grid had nothing in common past the fact that they all were fifteen spaces long. it's a cute gimmick, but not exactly a theme, is it?
a BOHR, a BOER, a BOAR, and a BORE
no, i did NOT time my efforts, but i downloaded it at 11pm edt... and i'm already commenting about it... less than 7 minutes?! woo-hoo! (now i must admit that it was a mildly performance enhanced event -- maybe "beer-aided" is a better choice of words?! -- and i have taken it upon myself to personally notify the authoritative governing body for GAMERS everywhere, the Galactic Association Most Effective Regulating Solutions (or Rebuking Solvers, i forget which) of my guilt in this matter. they have no real choice but to challenge my time, revoke the crown, berate and disavow me publicly for such unmitigated frivolity, but... wow! it's near a first for me to "nail" a tuesday puzzle in any manner.
friends of mine gathered at a local establishment to (watch the yankees self-destruct, and) play hearts tonight for the first of what we hope will be many regular mondays, to honor a friend of ours who died tragically young at 43 of mesothelioma several years ago. you see, it was at the tavern that jim owned that we got him "hooked" on the game after his initial putdown: "i don't get it. how can ANYbody sit down for hours to a card game where you're not playin' for money?!" as was expected, because he gave his every effort to anything he ever did, in the two years that preceded his death jim did "get it" and became quite a good player.
now i have no idea how six beers in four hours may have been a factor, but it seems to have altered the thinker in me; that is to say i didn't over-think anything, and seemed to better intuit the most far-fetched answers. i worked - almost exclusively - the down clues. i was overflowing with the appropriate french, abbreviations, and even multiple-word answers, it was spooky. now that i think of it... jim was a bit of a crossword puzzler... maybe he helped me!
i'm too tired for a more detailed explanation. (maybe later.)
keep on keepin' on...
dann
8 comments:
Looking good!
donald,
thanks for your encouraging comment. i thought this bloggin' thang was gonna be easy, but holy crap, there's a heluva lotta bells and whistles! i'll hang tough, though. thanks again!
how do i get my sextant/parrot pic in this comment window?
dann
dann
Under "Edit User Profile" go to "Photograph", select a jpeg and paste in "Photo URL" -- then "Save Profile".
Your visual presentations, collages, compartmentalized coloring of text and the puzzle grid certainly require some ability and talent -- plus your "ramblings" are a real solid main dish!
Quid pro quo -- how do you color the puzzle squares -- I've been using a crayon!
donald,
as for coloring individual spaces, i...
1. print finished puzzle screen
2. paste into ms paint®
3. cut out grid
4. cut all else (select all/delete)
5. shrink field
6. paste grid
7. create "pastel" colors on pallette
8. fill spaces with color
9. save as .jpg
now, i realize that there are other methods, but
this relatively antiquated program and method
take less than two minutes to accomplish.
a "real" themed weekday puzzle takes less than
five minutes. a "real" themed sunday pozzle can
take ten or more minutes as i use up to nine
colors (and sometimes tints thereof for a total
of eighteen... you'll see evidence soon enough.
most graphics pros think ms paint® is a clunky
dinosaur, but i think it is a very useful one
for very simple thing such as this, blogger®
is not user friendly at all in comparison.
i really hate the composing/adding graphics
procedures in blogger®. the many differences
between the composition field and published
field are just plain aggravating. (ie. fonts,
field size, graphics placement/orientation, etc.)
i have had experience in writing ad copy and
graphic design and the whole process is so
counter-intuitive.
all other graphic work i do in adobe photoshop®
many, many more options and shortcuts are at
my fingertips.
i thank my grandfather for my love of puzzling,
my father, and a few great teachers for my love
of reading, and therefore a semblance of wit,
and YOU for you comments!
dann
donald,
i think i've got a profile pic.
thank you again.
dann
nice blog, dann. i'm glad i found it. i think i'll link it to my page.
"The opposite of a correct statement is a false statement. But the opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth" - Niels Bohr
Dann,
Colorful blog, good rambling. Doesn't get any better than that.
I think that coloring with a crayon (or highlighter, my personal favorite) is way easier.
Keep up the good work!
Rick, loved the Bohr quote.
linda,
i agree about the "ease" factor... but it's ... so... so... ANALOG!
(and i was gonna go the way of dinosaurs before i got a computer... almost 15 years ago!)
thanx for the kind words.
rick,
thanks for the link and encouragement!
dann
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