Posting late tonight because we sat for Caity’s kids so she and Danny could attend a wedding of one of Danny’s several zillion cousins. We watched a not-too-bad kids movie about emojis — pretty clever — Steven Wright was the voice of the “meh” emoji. And then, miraculously, they all went to bed without much of a fight by nine. Dinner was pizza (voo den?).
Don’t mope. Here’s a poem about anagrams. It’s “Anagrammer,” by Peter Pereira, from The Poetry Foundation.
If you believe in the magic of language,
then Elvis really Lives
and Princess Diana foretold I end as car spin.
If you believe the letters themselves
contain a power within them,
then you understand
what makes outside tedious,
how desperation becomes a rope ends it.
The circular logic that allows senator to become treason,
and treason to become atoners.
That eleven plus two is twelve plus one,
and an admirer is also married.
That if you could just rearrange things the right way
you’d find your true life,
the right path, the answer to your questions:
you’d understand how the Titanic
turns into that ice tin,
and debit card becomes bad credit.
How listen is the same as silent,
and not one letter separates stained from sainted.
The clue at 60D today was “‘Kia ___’ (New Zealand greeting),” and the answer was ORA. Rex’s wife is from New Zealand and he said you would hear this phrase a lot if you flew Air New Zealand. It’s not just a way to say hello. It’s much deeper. It’s beautiful.
Here’s a song Son Volt shared with us called “Look at Miss Ohio.” I don’t know what in the puzzle led him to think of it, but I’m glad he did. The puzzles, and Rex’s little group, have opened me up to learn so much new stuff. If I had to devise an adult ed course, I think I’d have it be on the daily NYTXW, and maybe puzzles from some other sources. The students would be assigned to do the puzzles at their level and share something (or things) they learned from it: Maybe a celeb they hadn’t heard of, or a song, or a new word — whatever. Nothing would be planned in advance — it would be entirely based on what happens to be in the puzzles during the week.
Anyway, so where was I? Oh, yeah — This song is haunting.
“I wanna do right, but not right now.”
The puzzle was constructed by Adrian Johnson. It had a stack of three answers spanning the entire grid right in the middle. PORTRAIT ARTISTS (“Rembrandt and Sargent, notably”); IT MEANS A LOT TO ME (“‘Much appreciated’”); and THAT WASN’T MY IDEA (“Line from a blame-shifter”). One right on top of the other.
On that middle one, Okanaganer wrote: Each year my sister goes to a lot of trouble to make a custom birthday card for me. Last year the back of it had this witty note: “Thank you for teaching me the meaning of ‘plethora’. It means a lot!”
And Lewis brought us this gift — a note Adrian wrote in the “constructor’s notes” when a different puzzle of his was accepted by the Times last January.
“The day I received the review proof of this puzzle was also the day my grandfather died.
“Normally I’d have a profound puzzle insight to share, but what’s on my mind today is gratitude — for the time I spent with him, but particularly for the friendship Alvin, a dear family friend, forged with him during his final years.
“Alvin, who began as his landscaper, first came by as a casual friend after grandpa’s hip replacement, continuing to come over regularly during the 11 years that grandpa outlived my grandma. Alvin’s visits often took the shape of coffee and conversation after dropping his kids off at school. They discussed things including family, life, hobbies and current events. Some days grandpa would invite Alvin for steak dinners, but other days they’d barely speak and spend the morning watching the news.
“The important thing was his presence: the conscious, routine decision to be involved and engaged, and to make the mundane life of an old man meaningful. Tonight, this morning, whenever you’re reading this, take a few minutes to say hello and check in with someone older whom you care about. Those hellos can make all the difference.”
To end with a pretty face, here’s Chloe Grace Moretz, on the cover of TEEN VOGUE. The publication was in the puzzle clued with “Youth-centric magazine spinoff.” Rex referred to it as “a force for good.” And who am I to quibble.
See you tomorrow!
The Wellington Files 