Mirthwright Puzzles & Games

Hey loyal followers! If you're still around, I just wanted to have a quick update to point out there is no puzzle today, but I'll have one up next week.

Happy Friday! This week would have been my mother's birthday. So this puzzle is in her honor, and specifically 22-Down who seeded the grid, as one of her favorite poets. She and her father both did crosswords every day as long as I can remember, and are the ones who introduced me to them. My crosswording mentors. My grandfather, pictured above, insisted on being referred to by his first name by all of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. No "Grandpa" or any such thing for him, as even at 90-plus he didn't want to seem old. Also in honor of my mom, here's the song that my dad spent many a tearful night with after we lost her to cancer four years ago. And here's the puzzle.

So sorry for no puzzle last Friday. It was a long week. I'll have one this week. It's that time of year when we're all hunkered down for what looks to be an underwhelming snowstorm, and that has me thinking about planning my garden for the spring. Song of the puzzle is a classic: Enjoy!