First, a little about me. When I’m not working, I spend up to three hours a day standing buttons on end, and I’m a regular presence at barbecue chicken events, hoping to add to my charcoal collection. I once entered a blindfolded Mah Jongg tournament, which I believed I could have won if I hadn’t gotten into an accident on the way to the event (Note to self: next year, don’t put the blindfold on until I get to the tournament. Whoops!). And I was once arrested for trying to alphabetize all the street signs in Linux Habitation (which locals call “Linux Habitatio” for short).
Anyway, one day when my buttons fell over during a .112 magnitude earthquake, I decided that maybe it was time for another hobby, and one that came to mind was writing crossword puzzles. After a series of rejections from the usual outfits – New York Times (“the number of clues should equal the number of grid entries”), Washington Post (“Shouldn’t there be some white squares in the grid?”), Highlights Magazine (“This puzzle insults the intelligence of our readers”) and McDonald’s (“Sir, this is a fast-food franchise”) – I finally decided to submit to the Muggles Forum.
I went through every meta from the beginning of the forum in 2019, and after reviewing thousands of clues, grids, comments and meta mechanisms (hey, has anyone ever thought of calling them ‘metanisms’? Hmmm?), I finally felt like I was ready to create one of my own. I contacted MMM test solvers @Abide, @Al Sisti and @Cap'n Rick, and after several rounds of suggestions, erasures, and a complete rework of all the clues and entries, they ultimately accepted my puzzle, after my check for what they called an “Initiation Fee” cleared.
So, my new fellow Muggles, here at long last is my debut puzzle, called “Happy Anniversary!” I’m looking for a 7-letter word. Enjoy!
Happy Anniversary! Crosshare
Happy Anniversary! PUZ
Happy Anniversary! PDF
Happy Anniversary! spreadsheet
(Note: If you enjoy solving on Crosshare, help keep the site running by donating a few bucks.)
Nudges are here.
Reveal is here.
