Meconya Alford author page
1 puzzle by Meconya Alford
with Jeff Chen comments
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| O | A | H | U | R | O | M | A | R | E | E | L | E | D | ||
| G | R | U | B | I | S | A | Y | E | R | R | A | N | D | ||
| B | U | D | D | Y | C | O | P | M | O | V | I | E | S | ||
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| B | A | R | N | E | Y | F | I | F | E | O | M | I | T | ||
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| S | U | P | S | B | O | T | R | E | E | D | A | T | A | ||
| K | A | I | L | U | A | A | C | A | I | B | A | M | |||
| L | E | O | N | M | A | J | O | R | S | C | A | L | E | ||
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| I | N | L | O | V | E | E | L | S | A | R | O | K | U | ||
| T | E | A | S | E | S | D | O | E | R | S | T | E | P |
★ I'm a dog person (don't tell the ghosts of my RIP cats, Sam and Riley), and this theme scratched my belly. It was a much slower solve than usual, and I had to admit defeat in my "Name that Theme" game. I was sure that BUDDY, BARNEY, MAJOR had to be related in some way … but how? I spent way too much time sweeping the corners of my brain for details on the movie "Elf." His name is BUDDY; there's probably a BARNEY character ... wasn't Major MAJOR from Catch-22 in that movie?
This is why you should never listen to me.
WHITE HOUSE DOGS! I don't know that I would have gotten such a great a-ha if it hadn't been for MAJOR's Putinesque shenanigans. I'd hate to be the Secret Service agent assigned to MAJOR duty, that troublemaker.
I couldn't remember dogs from bygone eras, so I was glad to get a hint from the clues ... and that's when I realized the genius of this puzzle. BUDDY from POTUS 42. BARNEY from 43. BO from 44. (45 didn't have a dog.) MAJOR from 46.
They're all in order!
If you're not as wowed as I am, think about how difficult it is to get everything to work with crossword symmetry. You have some flexibility with BUDDY and MAJOR, but not much with BARNEY. (I don't remember BARNEY FIFE, but I imagine older generations will.) It's hard to believe that the crossword gods allowed the stars to align.
I wouldn't have hesitated to give this the POW! if it had run later in the week. However, I don't think it's a great puzzle for newer solvers, as some crossings felt treacherous. BUSK / KAILUA … I've had the fortune to visit Honolulu a handful of times, and I debated, was it KAILUA or HAILUA? "Busker" sounded vaguely familiar, though. And Jim Horne told me a great story about BUSKing in Montreal, where it's an art form. You have to audition for a busking spot in the Metro alcoves!
I appreciated the rhyming clue for YUBA, giving me a much-needed nudge. There's no way I'd figure out YUBA crossing KAILUA without it. And thankfully, I remembered Obama's adorable BO, as the BO TREE didn't ring a bell.
Some trade-offs, but well worth the novel and delightful theme. Plus RHUBARB PIE! Such an impressive debut.