New York Times, Thursday, August 31, 2023

Of the many (too) weird and (too) wacky Thursdays I've ever submitted, this one runs much easier in comparison, as you could technically solve the whole puzzle being oblivious to the gimmick. The NYT team was even half contemplating it for a Wednesday. Thankfully, it did publish today, so I can finally hit for the cycle (bucket list!).

In previous Thursday puzzles, constructors have played around with pretty much everything they can get their hands on — from what can go in the white/black squares to the space outside of the grid and, of course, to the clues themselves. Why not play around with the clue numbers, too, I thought?

I restricted the theme entries to those with Arabic numerals only, as per the clue numbering format. Since moving black squares affected the numbering sequence, there was a whole bunch of trial and error in the construction, given the need for symmetry. I would have loved to restrict the theme squares to only one Arabic number per entry, but in the end, it wasn't worth sacrificing for the additional flexibility.

Kudos to the NYT team for clues 43A and 63A!

Constructors log: submitted/accepted in May/August 2022.

Day four of "Gotta JET" (Jeff's expressions of thanks)! I've loved corresponding with so many constructors and especially enjoyed seeing people's journeys as they progress. It's exciting to hear a constructor's raw joy as they share their first acceptances with me, and it's even better to follow a select few constructors' paths to both depth and breadth of craftsmanship.

It's a rare breed who even aspires to hitting for the cycle, since it takes such different skill sets to pull off a silky-smooth Monday, a rule-breaking tricksy Thursday, a themeless that's both colorful and clean, and the daunting 140-word 21x21 Sunday. There are so few Shohei Ohtanis in the world.

Freddie has been working at construction for as long as I have (my debut just a week before his!) and it's been a pleasure getting to know a bit about him in our correspondence. Finally, the elusive Thursday puzzle falls in his quest for the cycle — well-deserved congrats, Freddie!

I appreciate all the communications I've had with constructors over the years. It's helped me build a valuable community of intelligent, funny, caring folks. Such a great privilege.