A Canard on Toto
We are definitely not in Kansas anymore. During my (long overdue) first visit ever to Toronto, I am tempted to conclude that I am still in the U.S., but someone has gone back in time and killed a dinosaur. Everything feels and looks more or less the same as back home, except for the electric streetcars on tracks, “washrooms,” and, believe it or not, PHONE BOOTHS, complete with multi-volume phone directories (intact) still hanging in binders.
And then there are the puzzles. The Diversions page of the National Post captures Canada’s split psyche: a cryptic crossword nods to the Commonwealth, while the Canadian Crisscross is an “American” style puzzle. The only problem is that you have to be from here to finish it. The theme for Friday’s crisscross was Canadian sports figures. Through cross-checking, I figured out that the “Canadian who plays for the Royals” is MATT STAIRS. I had all but the second letter for “Canadian who played for the Dodgers.” GOODY ROSEN made the most sense, since anyone born with the name Grody would have changed it by now. I gather everyone who follows the Olympics (i.e., everyone but me) knows that “_____ Stojko (Canadian figure skater)” is ELVIS. This yielded an utterly alien answer, however, for “Ancient Greek oil flask”: OLPE. Olpe? Sure enough, Google confirms it is so. Can it be possible that Canada has its own crosswordese, distinct from ours down south? What an odd way to claim cultural distinctiveness.
Today’s National Post featured an extraordinary treat: a cryptic by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon. A taste of home, from the best constructors I know. I don’t recognize this particular puzzle of theirs, and I think I’ve done all the cryptics they’ve ever made. What makes it special is the degree to which it is governed by a theme. Their excellent acrostics for the New York Times are loaded with themed clues all the time, but I’ve never seen a cryptic (by them or anyone) in which practically every across clue has something to do with a single subject—in this case, various kinds of boats. Are they creating new work for Canada that doesn’t appear in the U.S.? I suppose it’s possible this puzzle will appear some day in the Times. Still, I can't shake this fantasy in which their cryptics appear every Saturday in the National Post (which doesn’t seem to put its crossword online, so I’m having a hard time confirming). If Cox and Rathvon are in fact weekly fixture here, that settles it: I am moving to Canada. It seems to me the most legitimate reason to expatriate, much more than seeking political asylum.
And then there are the puzzles. The Diversions page of the National Post captures Canada’s split psyche: a cryptic crossword nods to the Commonwealth, while the Canadian Crisscross is an “American” style puzzle. The only problem is that you have to be from here to finish it. The theme for Friday’s crisscross was Canadian sports figures. Through cross-checking, I figured out that the “Canadian who plays for the Royals” is MATT STAIRS. I had all but the second letter for “Canadian who played for the Dodgers.” GOODY ROSEN made the most sense, since anyone born with the name Grody would have changed it by now. I gather everyone who follows the Olympics (i.e., everyone but me) knows that “_____ Stojko (Canadian figure skater)” is ELVIS. This yielded an utterly alien answer, however, for “Ancient Greek oil flask”: OLPE. Olpe? Sure enough, Google confirms it is so. Can it be possible that Canada has its own crosswordese, distinct from ours down south? What an odd way to claim cultural distinctiveness.
Today’s National Post featured an extraordinary treat: a cryptic by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon. A taste of home, from the best constructors I know. I don’t recognize this particular puzzle of theirs, and I think I’ve done all the cryptics they’ve ever made. What makes it special is the degree to which it is governed by a theme. Their excellent acrostics for the New York Times are loaded with themed clues all the time, but I’ve never seen a cryptic (by them or anyone) in which practically every across clue has something to do with a single subject—in this case, various kinds of boats. Are they creating new work for Canada that doesn’t appear in the U.S.? I suppose it’s possible this puzzle will appear some day in the Times. Still, I can't shake this fantasy in which their cryptics appear every Saturday in the National Post (which doesn’t seem to put its crossword online, so I’m having a hard time confirming). If Cox and Rathvon are in fact weekly fixture here, that settles it: I am moving to Canada. It seems to me the most legitimate reason to expatriate, much more than seeking political asylum.
posted by DO at 11:31 AM
2 Comments:
They do indeed write weekly cryptics for the National Post. But you don't have to emigrate! Sterling is publishing a collection of their Canadian puzzles later this year. (I just proofread it.) It has the not-especially-communicative title "Mensa Cryptic Crosswords", if you want to keep an eye out for it.
Damn. There goes my good excuse to emigrate.
I wonder if I can think of any others....
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