Saturday June 27, 2026 by Zhouqin Burnikel

 Saturday Themeless by Zhouqin Burnikel

Solving C.C.'s clever puzzle had me following a familiar pattern. I searched for a solid foothold which came up at the grid-spanning PLEASE BE PATIENT/AND YET HERE WE ARE and everything grew out from there. I had a very pleasant 29-minute exercise where C.C.'s construction skills always made me feel I would never COME UP DRY. Another lovely feature was that she only used six 3-letter words.

Across:

1. Early revolutions: WARM UP LAPS 😀 Tradition at the Indy 500 has a pace car leading the cars around for the last WARM UP LAP.

1964 Indy 500

11. Exam with a max score of 180: LSAT.

15. Only shopped at farmers markets, perhaps: ATE ORGANIC.

16. Set in stone: ETCH.

17. Help in obtaining top-shelf products: STEP LADDER 😀

18. "Educated: A Memoir" writer Westover: TARA ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

19. Homes for some queens: HIVES. 😀

20. Instrument invented by Hermes: LYRE.

21. Bamia or sambar: STEW. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

 

22. Frosted: ICED.

23. "Fore!" site: TEE 😀

24. Bundles: WADS.

26. Earring parts: POSTS.

28. Ending of "Oedipus": SIGMA - Oedipus is spelled Οιδίπους in Greek. The last letter is the lower case Greek letter SIGMA

31. Put on a bashful front: ACT COY.

35. Overdrive: HIGH GEAR.

37. Line for waiters: PLEASE BE PATIENT - All these peeps are in line and waiting to get to the top of Mt. Everest

39. Cannes Film Festival prize: PALME D'OR - Golden Palm

40. Prankster with opposable thumbs: MONKEY.

41. Aisha of "Archer": TYLER.

42. Oman neighbor: YEMEN.

44. Go, to the dogs: MUSH - 😀 The comma in the clue made this was my fav clue.

46. General concern: WAR.

47. Material for some biodegradable bags: HEMP.

51. Kitchen work: PREP.

53. St. __ Fresh Skin Apricot Scrub: IVES ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

55. "Brave" studio: PIXAR - It netted a $350 M profit at the box office

56. Zest source: RIND - I loved orange marmalade before I knew it was zest from the RIND that gave it such a distinctive flavor

57. "Great, now we're pouting": REAL MATURE.

59. Smell: ODOR.

60. Messages that something's gone wrong: ERROR CODES.

61. Word in skin care ads: DEWY.

62. One who has seen it all: EYEWITNESS.

Down:

1. Paper used in origami: WASHI ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

2. Unfinished story, perhaps: ATTIC 😀 Oh, the top story of a house

3. "Still Me" memoirist Christopher: REEVE - My favorite movie portrayer of Superman wrote this after his horse riding accident left him paralyzed.

4. Wore a long face: MOPED.

5. Addresses with dots: URLS. 😀

6. Org. with many excellent drivers: PGA - Fore!

7. Big scoops: LADLES.

8. "... somehow nothing has changed": AND YET HERE WE ARE.

9. Huntington Beach landmark: PIER.

10. Item that's often turned in: SCREW 😀

11. "Our food's getting cold!": LET'S DIG IN.

12. One who might crunch numbers for fun: STATS GEEK - Uh, I might be guilty 

13. Orchard unit: ACRE.

14. Spring break?: THAW.

23. Trifled (with): TOYED.

25. Running back Jeanty who was runner-up for the 2024 Heisman Trophy: ASHTON.

26. Tough puzzles: POSERS.

27. Nurse: SIP.

29. Thick hair: MANE.

30. Like some indie movies: ARTY.

31. Cal. entry: APPT.

32. Roland Garros surface: CLAY - The CLAY court in Paris is named for WWI air hero Roland Garros who died in combat in 1918 but never played tennis.

 

33. "I can't wait for an answer!": TELL ME NOW.

34. Left empty-handed, in a way: CAME UP DRY - In this state that depends heavily on irrigation this can be a big problem

36. Fortnite streamer, e.g.: GAMER ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  An online streaming game

38. Little dude: BOY.

43. Psychologist who created a notable hierarchy: MASLOW - I'm sure I memorized this list when I got my M.A. in Counseling.

45. New team member: HIREE.

47. Suddenly come up with: HIT ON - Dick Fosbury HIT ON the idea of high jumping with his face up and completely changed the sport.

48. Radiate: EXUDE.

49. Some stable parents: MARES 😀

50. Iron: PRESS.

51. Nudge: PROD.

52. Wheels: RIDE.

54. VIP member?: VERY 😀

55. Formal agreement: PACT.

58. Scan that may diagnose a torn ACL: MRI - “An MRI has confirmed that Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes sustained a torn ACL in his left knee in today’s game. Patrick and the club are currently exploring surgical options.”

Saturday, June 20, 2026, Craig Stowe

 Saturday Themeless by Craig Stowe

Here's a nice note from Craig about this fun puzzle:

Hi Gary,

Thanks for reaching out, it's been a while!  I haven't been as constructive as of late mainly because I don't have as much free time these days.  For your Canadian solvers I have a couple of puzzles at thewalrus.ca if anyone is interested in checking them out.  It has a fun (and free) crossword section similar to the LA Times or Universal in terms of difficulty.

As is often the case I was staring at a blank grid wondering how to start when I heard the phrase AS THE KIDS SAY on tv.  I typed it in and let the puzzle reveal itself.  The fun of making themeless grids is solving the puzzle as you go, making changes to the grid when necessary and learning new words - ANNOYWARE, for example, is something most of us have experienced but probably didn't have a name for.  Hopefully the crossing are fair enough that solvers can figure it out without too much difficulty.

 Happy solving!

Craig

p.s. Slight update, I'm still at the hotel but I work in finance now. 

  

Across:

1. Iodine source: KELP - Since Craig is in Canada, he may pronounce this EYE oh deen 

      

5. Kenny Chesney hit about living in the moment: HERE AND NOW 

A lot of people dreamin' 'bout a one day

Somedays waitin' just around the bend

I used to be one, wonderin' when they'd come

But now I'm livin' in (But now I'm livin' in)

Here and now

15. "Toodles": CIAO.

16. Birthstone for many Pisces: AQUAMARINE.

17. Genesis preposition: UNTO.

18. Splurges, in a way: RUNS UP A TAB.

19. Coevals: PEERS - Our school administrator once had us evaluate our colleagues/PEERS and it really did not go well.

21. Quite a stretch: AGES.

22. Bowler's edge: BRIM - Liza wore one well

23. Take third, say: STEAL 😀- Here's my current fav ball player Bobby Witt Jr. doing it

25. Bulb choice: LED - How do you decide?

27. MDW alternative: ORD - O'Hare International Airport in Chicago is an alternative to Midway

28. Comment after using a new expression: AS THE KIDS SAY - Craig's seed entry. Isn't it obvi you just totes adorb the new expressions? 😀

32. For sure: DEFINITE.

33. __ pudding: PEASE - The chant for PEASE porridge (aka pudding) hot, PEASE porridge cold clapping song we all did growing up (picture is a little old!)

 

37. Actor Arkin: ALAN.

38. Queens player: NY MET.

41. Cut: SNIP.

42. "Roots" actress Sinclair: MADGE. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Some of us seniors might remember this MADGE.

44. Splurging: ON A BINGE.

46. Top-notch: SECOND TO NONE.

49. Nerve center: HUB.

52. Fa follower: SOL.

53. Uncool in a cool way: NERDY - My NERDY high school classmate became pretty cool when he became a tech multimillionaire. 

54. French 101 verb: ETRE.

56. Storage structure: SILO - Harveststore is a big name around here

58. Critters that can regenerate limbs: NEWTS.

61. Start again: REACTIVATE.

64. British noble: EARL.

65. "... any time, really": OR WHENEVER.

66. Three, in Kindergarten: DREI 😀 Kindergarten is a German word so...

67. Photography collection subtitled "Mathematicians and Their Chalkboards": DO NOT ERASE. I love the irony of this picture I saw last year while subbing.

68. Throw, 28-Across: YEET - As the kids say...

Down:

1. Coffee option: K-CUP - Part of my daily routine

2. A on a German test?: EINE - The title below is A Little Night Music. Sample as much of this beautiful music as you like

3. This week's TikTok trend, e.g.: LATEST FAD - Some can be very dangerous

4. Oscar-winning film based on an Alasdair Gray novel: POOR THINGS.

5. Chuckle syllable: HAR - Ralph Kramden did it the best!

6. Goal of many civil rights organizations: EQUALITY.

7. Step up or down: RUNG 😀

8. Stands in a studio: EASELS - Stands is used as a noun not a verb

9. Tickles: AMUSES.

10. Quick recharge: NAP - Ten minutes and I'm good to go!

11. Uninspired: DRAB.

12. Coffee option: NITRO - Coffee infused with Nitrogen gas

13. Live in a studio?: ON AIR. 😀

14. Site with health advice: WEB MD - Check it out

20. "I feel __": SEEN.

24. Related: AKIN.

26. Big name in caulk: DAP.

28. Driver in Hollywood: ADAM.

29. "Homesick: A Memoir" writer Ward: SELA.

30. Inner being?: DEMON - We all have 'em

31. "For sure, for sure!": YES INDEEDY.

34. Application with persistent pop-ups: ANNOYWARE - Annoyware is software that continuously shows reminders or pop-up windows to remind users to perform a particular action, such as registering or buying 

35. Ink: SIGN - ink as a verb not a noun

36. Olympic event since 1900: EPEE.

39. Thesis section: END NOTES.

40. London home of many works by Louise Bourgeois: TATE - Her work is displayed in London's TATE museum

43. Some RPI grads: EES - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

45. "I was __ ready!": BORN.

47. Secant reciprocal: COSINE - COSINE is a common trig function and its inverse is called a secant.

48. "Where Is Love?" musical: OLIVER.

49. Judean king known for ambitious building projects: HEROD.

50. In __: UTERO.

51. Might: BRAWN.

55. Bounce back: ECHO.

57. Mountain flower: LAVA - 😀 A flower is something that flows as well as a plant

59. Fig or olive: TREE.

60. Paper cut: SLIT.

62. Holiday celebrated with banh chung: TET - Hmmm..., a three letter Asian holiday... 

63. "I'll see thee damned __ I call thee coward": "Henry IV, Part 1": ERE - Along with a translation into, uh, English. 😀