Living the Dream!

Difficulty ● ● ◐ ○ ○

Puzzle Notes

Greetings Ladies and Gentlemen,

Every so often, things get weird when you’re making puzzles. Sometimes I am constructing while watching “Jeopardy!” and right on cue, the contestant calls out a "question" that is exactly the word I’d just constructed into the puzzle. This happens with unusual, longer words like: ACROPHOBIA or BURRITO. Or . . . as you’re entering ROLEX in the grid, an ad for ROLEX watches pops up on TV. It’s a weird coincidence that happens more often than expected.

This week it happened again, but in a mystical and otherworldly way. After deciding on the lyrics for the 3-Down clue, I paused for a second. As if on cue, 3-Down suddenly came across the radio (106.7 FM, New York City), and I typed in the lyrics in real time, with the radio -- cruciverbal karaoke-style. I’d always loved 3-Down for its out-of-this-world, dreamy lyrics. It dovetails nicely with the puzzle title. 

The puzzle also contains some welcome signs at 34-Down. Perhaps they're portents of better days ahead as we face another pandemic winter. I hope so.

I’d like to thank the many subscribers who re-upped recently. It’s been a year since we teamed up with the good folks at Stand Alone. As a result, deliveries have been much smoother. I appreciate your coming along for the ride!

Welcome to Week 539 of Crossword Nation. For your immediate consideration, we present “Living the Dream!” as your puzzle of the week. Stay safe and take care.

Until next time, I remain . . .

Cruciverbally yours, 

Liz

Solvers of The New Yorker puzzles: Themeless puzzlers, please check out my latest crossword (a “challenging" diversion, per the editors).

Mini Crossword Aficionados: For a quick solve, please try the Daily Mini Crossword in the L. A. Times. It's free! Simply bookmark and visit daily for a new puzzle.

Recovering Lost Puzzles: If, for some reason, our weekly puzzle email doesn't appear in your mailbox on Monday evenings, no worries -- you can always "re-send" the puzzle to yourself.

But first ....

  1. Please check the Spam folder. Sometimes the Crossword Nation emails are redirected to Spam folders. This can happen after a software or system update. If it's not in the Spam folder, then try Step 2.
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https://xwnation.puzzleanywhere.com/enable-account/

Choose the "Resend Puzzle" link at the bottom right of the page. From there, you can choose which puzzle to send to your mailbox! 

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Happy solving and be well!

Liz Gorski

www.crosswordnation.com