Crossword Conundrum

The Dowbrigade, like the
Redhead, has long been a fan
of the daily crossword in the Boston
Globe.  Frankly, the main reason
for this is that the crosswords in the New York Times are just too damn
hard. You
practically
have to
be a Nobel Prize winning polyglot with a photographic memory to finish
their Sunday puzzles without help, and if you do need help you have a
choice between doing your research via Google, which we consider cheating,
or paying $3.95 per clue to call the Times for the correct word, which
we consider a blantant rip-off useful only to those with both too much
time on their hands and more money than they know what to do with.

On the other hand, the crossword in the Daily Metro, distributed free
on the MBTA, is much too easy to be any fun. Anybody
know
a six
letter
word for "lacks intelligence"?

The Globe, like the third option in the Goldilocks tale, seemed just
right. It usually took us between 20 and 30 minutes to finish, and if
we got frustratingly stuck, the answer was always there on the Comics
page.  We started our day with a feeling of accomplishment when
we were able to complete it without looking, which was about half the
time. Plus, we usually learned a new word or two, which is definitely
a plus in the Dowbrigade’s book. From today’s puzzle, for example, how
many of you knew that a "Sumpter" was a pack animal?  We
thought it was a fort!

So it was with some dissapointment when we saw last week that the editors
of the Globe had adopted the mercenary methodology of its nominal parent,
the NYT, and no longer included the answers in that day’s paper.  They
would, we were advised, be available in the NEXT day’s paper. Who keeps
the paper from one day to the next? Norma Yvonne would kill me. And if
you can’t wait, you can get the answers over the phone, for 3 bucks a
pop.

Now, we know the newspaper business in the United States has been waning
for years, and we are sure they are searching for additional revenue
streams, but was it really necessary to turn one of life’s little pleasures
into yet another reminder of the crass commercialism which is the hallmark
of our Times?

How rare it is to have a wish granted, without even filing a formal
request! Today, we were delighted to see that the puzzle is back where
it belongs, with the answers as well, back on the comics page.  For
free!

In addition, there is an excellent, on-line
Shockwave version of the puzzles available on the web site, so
we can continue to enjoy this diversion next month while we sip our
morning coffee and stare out
at the endless breakers caressing the pristine Pacific beach in Manta,
Ecuador. (All our non-Boston readers can see it there as well).

Enlightened by elation, we finished today’s puzzle in a near record
14 minutes, and without looking at the answers once!