Alright, guys, so I’ve been trying to get better at the NYT crossword, and I thought I’d share my little journey. It’s been… well, let’s just say it’s been a learning experience.
The Beginning (aka, Utter Failure)
I started, like most people probably do, by just jumping in. I printed out a Monday puzzle (Mondays are supposed to be the easiest, right?) and… stared at it. I think I got, like, three words. It was brutal. I felt pretty dumb, honestly. I thought I was at least somewhat smart before this, but the crossword made me question everything.
Baby Steps with Some Help
Then, I realized I needed some help. I started to pay attention to the little numbers after some clues, for those “cross-referenced” clues. Those helped a little, to fill in some spaces once I had any words at all. It was a super slow process.
- Look for fill-in-the-blank clues. Those are usually the easiest.
- Short words first. It’s tempting to go for the big, impressive-looking ones, but the little three and four-letter words are your friends. They give you more letters to work with.
I also started to look for patterns, like I was learning a new language. I saw so many random words I’d never used in my life.
Getting (Slightly) Better
I kept at it. I did a Monday puzzle almost every day. Some days were better than others. I started to recognize some of the “crosswordese” – those weird words that show up all the time in crosswords but almost never in real life. I’m looking at you, “OLEO.”
It wasn’t pretty, and I still relied pretty heavily on looking up answers and thinking about what I could do to get the answer on my own. It felt like cheating, but I told myself it was “learning.”
Practice, Practice, Practice
The biggest thing, really, is just doing them. The more I did, the more I started to understand the clues, the wordplay, and the, uh, “logic” of the crossword constructors. I realized that they love puns, and I hate puns, but I must endure.
I even got my hands on a couple of those “easy” crossword books. Those felt good, like a little confidence boost after getting destroyed by the NYT ones.
Still Not a Pro, But…
So, I’m still no expert. I can usually finish a Monday puzzle now, and sometimes a Tuesday. Wednesday is a struggle, and anything beyond that? Forget about it. But it’s progress! I’m hoping to get a streak on the mini-crosswords, so I’m also doing those for a speed-improvement.
It’s kind of like learning a new skill, I guess. You suck at first, but if you keep at it, you slowly get better. And hey, it’s a fun way to keep the brain working, right? I’m just using these new words I’ve picked up in my daily life, like a crazy person.
