Saturday, January 3, 2026, Dr. Kyle Dolan

  Saturday Themeless by Dr. Kyle Dolan

This is the 21st themeless Saturday puzzle by Dr. Dolan I have blogged. As per my usual M.O. for Saturday puzzles I struggled with some small fills until the very gettable long entries shouted, "C'mon, Gary, you know this." This reduced Kyle's puzzle to manageable  proportions.

Across:

1. 2013 memoir that was followed in 2025 by "Finding My Way": I AM MALALA - The true story of Malala Yousafzai, the girl who survived an assassination attempt after standing up to the Taliban over education. More on this heroic woman.

10. Passing muster?: AWOL - Muster is when troops are assembled and if someone has 38. Left: GONE, he's AWOL. 

14. Interns, at times: FREE LABOR.

15. Birds whose collective noun is chime: WRENS - A group of wrens is called a chime. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

16. Shared pleasantries: SMALL TALK - Confidently filling in GREETINGS was my first, but not the last, misstep in Kyle's puzzle.

17. Sank, in a way: HOLED - Success in golf in when the ball is HOLED. In pool, it's when the  ball is pocketed. 

18. Olive often found with spinach: OYL 😀 This toon usually featured Olive being saved by her boyfriend Popeye who has "hulked out" on Spinach.

19. Word on a green helmet: JETS - The entire helmet was not green when the JETS won their only Super Bowl.

                                 

                        1969

 

2025

 

20. Without restraint: MADLY.

21. Essential: CORE.

22. Destiny: LOT.

23. Brio: PEP.

25. Haterade: FLAK - Haterade is a pseudo-word (a play on Gatorade) for what is said by mean people who give others FLAK

27. Two pieces?: DUETS - Hey, I loved the Everly Brothers but this is magic

29. Thai's neighbor: LAO.

30. Physical location: CLINIC 😀 The physical location of where you get a, uh, physical 

32. Drops from above: RAIN 😀

33. Fine print, e.g.: ART.

34. Question asked by a fan?: HOT ENOUGH FOR YOU? 😀 A fine example of anthropomorphism

37. Wonder: AWE.

39. Prepares (oneself): STEELS.

40. Big mo. for florists: FEB.

41. Top-tier: A-LIST.

43. Rundgren in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame: TODD - He's now 77 years old.

44. Be wrong: ERR.

45. First perfect number: SIX - The next two are 28 and 496

46. Olympic archer?: EROS.

48. Pop by: VISIT.

50. Giveaway: TELL - Dr. Winchester of M*A*S*H got cleaned out because he starting whistling every time he had nothing.

51. "Fancy!": OOH.

54. Saw: DATED. 😀

55. Scenario just before a board takeover?: MATE IN TWO - The solution is at the bottom of the write-up. 

57. Volunteer's offer: USE ME.

58. Sharp kicks?: ICE SKATES - 😀 Kicks are slang for footwear and skates are sharp so...

59. From South Asia, perhaps: DESI - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Originating from the Sanskrit word desa, meaning "land" or "country," desi historically meant "local" or "indigenous". 

60. Namesakes of some days in English: NORSE GODS - Not so for Saturday

Down:

1. "In that case ... ": IF SO.

2. Theater group?: ARMY - Several divisions of the U.S. ARMY fought in WWII's European Theater of Operations.

3. Series of courses: MEAL 😀 

4. Former "The Great British Baking Show" co-host Giedroyc: MEL ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Mr. Ott sits the bench today

5. "Seriously ... ": ALL JOKING ASIDE.

6. Down the road: LATER.

7. Let up: ABATED.

8. Chuckles at a gif, say: LOLS.

9. Sanctuary: ARK.

10. Nickname of the slugger who holds the MLB record for most career grand slams: A-ROD - I thought this was a very interesting chart

11. "Clever": WELL PLAYED.

12. No longer a foal: ONE YEAR OLD.

13. Drug needed for some trips: LSD 

15. Rhetorical expression of approval: WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE - A lovely puzzle by Kyle

20. Characteristic patterns: MOTIFS.

21. Support staff?: CANE 😀

22. "Queen of Creole Cuisine" Chase: LEAH. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

24. C in C: POTUS - This filled in automatically and then I eventually saw Commander in Chief

25. Spot for getting one's buds together?: FLOWER VASE.

26. Classic toys with colorful pegs: LITE BRITES - I spent many an hour with our girls playing with this

28. Pushes: URGES. Goads, dares, prods

30. Rub the wrong way?: CHAFE 😀

31. "Simmer down!": COOL IT.

35. Early operating system: UNIX.

36. Some vintage cars: REOS.

42. Rock: TEETER.

47. Like May through August: R-LESS - This is not necessarily so these days.

49. 50% up front?: SEMI - 😀 I guess that presumes the other 50% is behind

50. Birria order: TACO.

51. "The Simpsons" character whose surname is Mann: OTTO.

 
52. Due: OWED.

53. Informal ride: HOSS - Also Ben Cartwright's son 

54. Lemon: DUD.

55. Hr. division: MIN.

56. Hound: NAG - Persistent reminding?

* White queen to F5

* Black pawn to H5 is black's only move

* White queen takes pawn at H5 and it is checkmate

Saturday, December 27, 2025, August Miller

 Saturday Themeless by August Miller

This is my fifth Saturday themeless blog this year for August Miller. He is a former physics Ph.D. candidate turned farmer who lives in Berkshire County, MA.

Here is part of a very nice interview with August: Once upon a time I was going to be a physics PhD. I studied physics in undergrad and tried graduate school (twice), but ultimately that environment just didn’t work for me. And now I come home at night smelling of cows and hay, and it feels so much better.

I was able to make good headway through August's puzzle and enjoyed the trip. Unlike Stella's 12/13/25 puzzle, the long fills were familiar and helpful. My last fill was a stab in the dark at "K" at TAI_A/S_A.

Across:

1. Squirrel away: STOW and 1. Squirrel away: STASH - It was fun to have the same clue in the far NW corner.

5. Barely usable pencils: NUBS.

9. "Kapow!": WHAM.

13. Snaps: TAKES A PIC - What we all can do now on a whim. Now when I was a kid...

15. Banchero who was the 2023 NBA Rookie of the Year: PAOLO ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  I will have taken more time on this comment than I will watching any NBA games this season.

16. Manipulator of one of the four elements, in a classic animated series: AIR BENDER - This guy is in orange below. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

17. Natural styles: AFROS.

18. __ punk: "Tragic Kingdom" genre: SKA and 2. Waititi of "Our Flag Means Death": TAIKA - I knew SKA was some form of music that was foreign to me and I took a flyer on a "K" where it crossed equally unknown TAIKA. Tada!

19. "All My Children" actress Kathleen: NOONE - She was there from 1977 - 1989

 

To the far left

20. "Failing that ... ": IF NOT.

21. Must: HAS TO.

23. Like some waiters: EARLY 😀 - You really want an iPhone 16 so bad you're willing to wait in line.

25. Hesitant sounds: ERS.

27. Mikey Day's show, for short: SNL - If you really care, you'll pick him out, if you don't care, just move on. 😗

28. Guests' guesses: ETAS - You can tell peeps when to arrive but...

31. Some boxing losses: SPLIT DECISIONS - Gane won this match because two judges gave him more points and one did not.

35. "And??": CARE TO ELABORATE.

36. "Who Shot Mr. Burns?," for one: TWO PART EPISODE - Remind you of anything? 😀

37. Glom __: ONTO.

38. Some humanities degs.: MAS.

39. Confession confession: SIN.

40. "The best in pests" company: ORKIN.

42. Attracted to more than one gender, informally: MSPEC - Multisexual Spectrum

46. Peak reward: VISTA - The VISTA from the peak of Everest

48. Stay at a 57-Across, perhaps: GLAMP - Today's portmanteau: GLAMcamPing at Indian Lake, NY which is a 57. Sustainable place to unwind: ECO RESORT.

52. "Hadestown" Tony nominee Noblezada: EVA - I'm guessing August has never heard of the Little EVA song Locomotion.

53. Big name in chips: INTEL - Would you like an Apple with your chips? 

54. Hot bodies?: LAVA LAKES - This one is near the South Pole

56. Close call: SCARE.

58. Good listeners?: EARS - My 79-yr-old models need electronic assistance 

59. __-eyed: DEWY.

60. Code breakers: KEYS.

Down:

3. Mallow family plants with edible seed pods: OKRAS.

                

Okra

 

4. Intricate trap: WEB.

5. Tech startup?: NANO.

6. Top knot, e.g.: UPDO.

7. "Très __!": BIEN and a 14. Miss living in Mexico, say: SENORITA could say Muy BIEN.

8. Safari snap: SCREEN CAP - I made a SCREEN CAPture of the image below on my Safari Browser using this key combination

9. Array at a hotel breakfast bar: WAFFLE IRONS 😀

10. Lizard with defensive spines: HORNY TOAD - A variation of the name HORNED TOAD

11. __ gobi: ALOO - ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ - Aloo gobi, literally "potato cauliflower" in Hindi. 

12. More than some: MOST.

15. Duo: PAIR.

22. Forms of rapid transit: TELEPORTERS - Hallmark makes an ornament of one used on Star Trek.

24. Crime stories?: ALIBIS.

26. Kylie's daughter: STORMI - An addition to the Kardashian clan

27. Tennis great Monica: SELES.

29. Up the __: ANTE.

30. Compass pt.: SSE.

31. Like cut lumber: SAWN.

32. One just starting to shine: PROTOSTAR.

33. Forced a comb through, say: DETANGLED.

34. "Easy-peasy!": SO SIMPLE.

35. Exec who might oversee R&D: CTO - Chief Technology Officer

41. Superfood whose "special power is tasting bad," per Jim Gaffigan: KALE 😀

43. Tea type: PEKOE.

44. Not just some: EVERY.

45. Gives a role: CASTS - This character from Breakfast At Tiffany's may be the worst CASTING decision in movie history. The Boston Globe called the Mr. Yunioshi "an irascible bucktoothed nerd and an offensive ethnic caricature"

46. Bench clamp: VISE.

47. Worshipper of the goddess Pachamama: INCA ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

49. Peignoir trim: LACE.

50. Declare: AVOW.

51. Writer Shelley: MARY.

55. "Why do you __?": ASK.