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The Real Thing

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Hello! It is August now! Towards the end of last year I made a list of what I called stupid goals, things I could keep in mind in order to keep myself going. One of them was to "win an xw tournament." This was supposed to be an impossible feat, but in the online Boswords tournament last week somehow.... it happened??? I am very surprised and very glad! Thank you to the Boswords people for putting on a great tournament, and a special thank you to the 4-5 solvers who decided not to attend! You know who you are! Now to something a bit less bright. Today's puzzle is meant to be a fun themed puzzle, a simple theme that probably lots of people have had the idea for or have already made. But this puzzle was constructed out of a place of anger and sadness. There's a real chance I just might not like things anymore! I guess I should use this as a call to make the things that I want to make, in the way I want to make, and enjoy the things I still enjoy. These things are abs...
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Leo Season 2 (Cryptic #4)

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Guess what everyone... it's the best time of year again! Leo Season!! Do whatever you want all the time! You *are* the main character!! Anyone who doesn't like you is trash!! Feel your feelings and let everyone know!!! In all honesty, I feel so inhibited most of the year and it is nice for once to feel uninhibited. As a little treat, I have a new 13x13 celebrating my favorite Leos. Skáldskaparmál test solved it and gave great feedback. Theme explanation will be hidden below the fold. Thanks for solving! [ .puz ] [ Direct Crosshare link ] SPOILERS...... highlight to read /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// All cats are Leos, right? This puzzle features a few different coats - ORANGE, CALICO, TORTOISE SHELL, SPHINX, TUXEDO. It also features my cats PAPRIKA and BABKA, as well as the cats I had growing up, SPICY and Nutmeg (who we called NUTTY). If you are living in a big city it's also possible to find cats UP ONE'S ALLEY.
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Two midis

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I feel like I talk a lot about having intrusive thoughts, and part of that is a joke and part of it is not. The two midi puzzles I have for you today are full of them! I'm not sure if this is good or bad or what exactly I should do about it. The first midi is a themeless that came about from learning a new piece of information, and the second one is themed and also really dumb. Norah tested them! Plese enjoy! "torn up" [ .puz ] [ Direct Crosshare link ] "child's play" [ .puz ] [ Direct Crosshare link ]
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Themeless #10

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I had the experience recently of reading a book of short stories and then realizing the author's name was 15 letters long. Thus, a puzzle! I wanted to try a grid I hadn't used before, which I usually call an "orb" but I just learned is referred to as a "cookie." Then I let it go for a few months because I'm finding cluing (and general ideas-having) to be difficult! Does it have to do with outside conditions ("the world") or internal ones? I don't know, but here we are now! Thanks Norah for the test! [ .puz ] [ Direct Crosshare link ]
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Themeless #9 (with Rose Sloan)

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Hello, I have for you today a collaboration with the one and only Dr. Rose Sloan ! Rose is currently doing a puzzle a week this summer on her blog, so please go there if you haven't already!! Today's puzzle was rejected by various outlets for being "too awesome" and "overly fun and cool" (their words not mine) (okay my words but i was reading between the lines). We hope you will enjoy! [ .puz ] [ Direct Crosshare link ]
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Two minis

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It has been a while since a puzzle here, so why not two? Be warned: these minis are a little mid-y, if you know what I mean!! I don't feel that either one merits its own blog post, so they're both here. They are both flawed in certain ways, but enough about them is good/interesting that I'm going to post them anyway. Not everything can be 100%! The first puzzle was rejected recently from a publication, and the second one is an idea I had but struggled to make work. This is how it is sometimes! Of course these have not been test solved!!! Please try to enjoy. "means of transport" [ .puz ] [ Direct Crosshare link ] "how i roll" [ .puz ] [ Direct Crosshare link ]
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Early Providers (Cryptic #3)

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Hello, I was tired of not having a new puzzle out so I decided to make one! This is actually an idea I had about a year ago, but never got around to finishing it until this month. Making a cryptic is difficult!! The only thing is, I'm not sure why I chose this particular theme for a puzzle, which might not make sense to people under 30. Is it just nostalgia? I think I wanted a puzzle about how things were different at one point and that they continue to evolve, but... does it matter? Unclear. In any case, I asked Joe to look at this, so thank you! Any problems with the clues were pointed out to me and ignored. It's a learning process! Please enjoy! [ .puz ] [ Direct Crosshare link ]
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