Special thanks to Astoria Bob for letting us know that the poet Maria Lisella whose work we featured a few days ago lives in his co-op complex and he knows her a bit. She’s the poet laureate of Queens!
Here’s a poem of hers called “We.”
Like that day in February—crisp, sharp cloudless
it’s like that today when winter refuses to fade.
The sheets over and under you, creaseless like the sky.
I bend over your hospital bed, release the railing between us
in silence we call mercy into the room.
Stu Davies posted the following sweet note for the Dull Men’s Club (UK) and it rallied the membership, generating close to 100 warm wishes. Here’s what he said:
Life changing unexpectedly.
When I joined this page it was for two reasons…
The first reason was because I am a dull man, the second reason was the word “chapter” in the title reminded me of 1% motorcycle clubs, I liked the juxtaposition.
What I never envisioned was that typing a few words onto a keyboard would be a life changing act.
Picture the scene, Dear Reader…
A slightly overweight fifty something man who was made unexpectedly single after his wife and his “friend” made “plans” in his absence that didn’t include him.
Life consisted of work, home, sleep, work, home, sleep, work, home, sleep, with no change predicted at any point.
I am a firm believer that humour may be the cheapest and most available remedy to some of life’s ills, so when I stumbled across this very site I decided to join in the fun.
At some point I noticed that a particular lady was a great fan of my early work and regularly commented.
In a rare moment of boldness I suggested we friend each other on Facebook, so we could converse on messenger.
We did this for a few weeks, until one evening in a not very rare moment of clumsiness I managed to accidentally press the button to call her, before I realised what I had done she answered.
We must have talked for well over an hour, the conversation just flowed and then again the next night.
Conversation soon turned into a plan to meet and she drove down to my area for a few days that spring. A fifty something bloke soon began to feel like an awkward teenager again.
She was lovely with lovely eyes and a wicked sense of mickey taking humour
Love has blossomed and my supposed autumn years have rewound back to spring again. I now challenge myself to actually be more outgoing than I have ever been and actively try to engage strangers in conversation, all due to her example.
The last two years have been a blast and when I’m able to I relish perambulating furiously the 120 miles to her place on a Saturday night to spend quality time with a lovely lady, or her venturing to mine for some adventures.
I am not going to write her name, because she is a private person.
So a few words written on a tablet on a lonely winters evening have lead to a whole new happy life that could never have been predicted and someone to think of when I go to bed and when I wake up.
Comments:
Avi Liveson: You’ve given me the courage to leave my wife. Just kidding! Very happy for you. Made my day, mate.
Mark Wrigley: Fantastic stuff, for both of you, long may it continue sir!
Matthew Reed (admin): Oh Stu, I can’t tell you how happy your happiness makes me! To think that my decision to set up this group has facilitated a new beginning for you both, filled with joy and happiness, fills me with joy and happiness! Many, many happy wishes for your future together!
Oh, and if Diane and I don’t at least get an invite to the evening reception then you are both blocked. 
Diane Reed: That’s proper warmed me cockles, that has. So lovely and not dull in any way.
Wendy Brown: As corny/dull as it sounds.. we all need to feel needed.. (Well some of us do.) I am really pleased for you both!
Helen Cann Powell: Hardly dull – in fact more like a never ending and fulfilling brief encounter. What a nice hopeful read for many dull men. All the best for your future.
Jennifer Brand: This has made a cold and dull Saturday night, stuck at home swallowing antibiotics for a dental infection, a little brighter. Out of darkness, light. Congratulations to you both. 
Jose Rogers: What a wonderful story ! I am so pleased to be part of the UK Chapter! Wishing you and all of our fellow members well xx
And on and on . . . I’ve never seen our dull membership so joyful and full of good wishes. Love this club!
My favorite Bernie Sanders line was when he was running against Hilary. An interviewer asked him if he’d be able to handle the proverbial crisis phone call at 3 am. Bernie said, “I’m usually up at that hour to go to the bathroom.” Well, if he was up at that hour last night he could have watched the end of the LA-Toronto World Series game. Six hours and 39 minutes; 18 innings. Freddie Freeman ended it with a blast over the center field fence. He’s a good guy. If someone had to do it for them, we’re glad it was him.
I rely on my sixteen-year-old granddaughter Robin (nee Lianna) to help keep me up with some of the latest rock music, but I get most of the current lingo from XW puzzles. E.g., from today’s puzzle, are you familiar with GO HAM? It means to go all out. To put in your maximum effort; to hold nothing back. It was popularized by a couple of rap hits and it may come from an acronym: to go as “hard as a motherf*cker.” To help make it stick, I’m gonna go ham in trying to use it in upcoming OC posts.
It was a very lively and fresh puzzle, meaning there was a lot of neat stuff in it, from ZEBRA COLTS (“Little guys in striped coats”), to TO GO CUPS (“Beverage containers for people on the move”), and a SOFA FORT (“Child’s living room hideaway”). Hungry? Grab some NAAN, a very popular bread in Crossworld, General TSO’S shrimp, or make a stop at the OMELET BAR. You might find the “Sweet but Psycho” singer AVA Max there, or the vampiry ESME Cullen, or droolingly handsome Adam BRODY of the O.C. (the other one: not Owl Chatter). Here they are, respectively.
It was constructed by Adrianne Baik. This is what she wrote in connection with an earlier puzzle (her first) she had accepted by the Times:
I am a college student studying chemistry and climate. I started creating crosswords almost a year ago and am excited to continue making them for people!
When I returned to college for my sophomore year, I rarely mentioned my new passion for crossword construction. Truthfully, I was embarrassed. I was 19, only a few months deep into the hobby and afraid to take myself seriously.
I told my family and closest friends, but beyond that, I just told Arjun, my partner in organic chemistry lab. Every Monday from 1:15 to 5:15 p.m., as we waited for our chemical reactions, we passed time on the NYT Games app, starting with Wordle and ending with the Crossword.
When I first admitted to Arjun that I was creating puzzles, he asked where to find my work. I immediately argued that it was “just a hobby” and I wasn’t good enough for publication. Jokingly, I mentioned that maybe someday, I’d be published in The Times, and we could do my puzzle in lab. He ignored my sarcasm and said he couldn’t wait. I laughed it off.
That night, I felt cautiously optimistic. Empowered, I poured hours into a themeless puzzle with six grid spanners and submitted it. It was spontaneous, one of my first themeless puzzles, and here it is [the earlier puzzle, not today’s].
I suppose the biggest thing I learned from the creation process was to be persistent and be ready to push through lots of frustration and disappointment when a seemingly promising idea didn’t work out. I had to be OK with failing and trust the process. Even when this puzzle was accepted, I had to rewrite the majority of my clues, since this was my first themeless puzzle and I didn’t know how to increase the difficulty.
Today, as my debut Times puzzle is published, I’m filled with gratitude. Special shout-out to my family, my friend Jenny Ngo and my chemistry professor/mentor Spencer Brucks: Thank you for celebrating all the little victories with me this year.
That October day in lab was my last with Arjun, as he died the next day. In the following weeks, his absence was so strong it became a presence itself. Initially, I refused to solve crosswords because they reminded me of the loss. But with time, I understood that he would have wanted me to keep going. I remembered his unwavering belief in me, leaned into it and never looked back.
He continues to inspire me every day. I hope sharing his story will inspire you, too.
Here are two photos of Adrianne. In the second one, she is smack dab in the middle with her chemistry group. I’m going to keep this photo of beautiful kids in mind in case I start to lose hope in the future.
Thanks for stopping by! See you tomorrow.
The Wellington Files 