So, today I decided to tackle a crossword puzzle, and the theme was “Excuses, Excuses.” I thought, “Alright, let’s see how many excuses I can come up with, or at least how many the puzzle makers did.” I grabbed my pen, you know, the one with the good grip that makes me feel like I’m signing important documents, and got started.
I started filling in the easy ones. I saw a clue that said “forgives” and I immediately thought “Well, that’s a type of excuse, right?”. I quickly wrote it down. Then things got a little trickier. Some clues were pretty straightforward, like “pretexts” and “outs.” Those were a breeze. I filled those in, feeling pretty good about my progress. I felt like a crossword whiz, you know?
- FORGIVES – This was an easy one to start with.
- PRETEXTS – Another straightforward clue.
- OUTS – Knocked this one out quickly.
But then came the real head-scratchers. There was this one clue, eight letters long, and it just said “Excuses.” I’m staring at it, thinking of all the excuses I’ve ever used or heard. “I’m late because traffic was bad,” “I didn’t finish it because I didn’t have enough time,” “The dog ate my homework…” None of them were eight letters long, though. I skipped it for a while and moved on to other clues. I managed to fill in “alibis” and “dodges,” which felt like a win.
- ALIBIS – Felt good about solving this one.
- DODGES – This one was a bit tricky but I got it.
I kept circling back to that eight-letter clue, but nothing was coming to me. I even started looking around the room, hoping something would spark an idea. My eyes landed on a picture of my friend, and I remembered how he always gets out of stuff by saying the people in his life are condoning his actions. And then it hit me – “condones”! I quickly filled it in and, man, did that feel good. I even did a little victory dance in my chair.
- CONDONES – Finally cracked the eight-letter clue!
After that, I was on a roll. I filled in a few more, like “pardons” and “let off.” It was like the puzzle pieces were just falling into place. I was in the zone, feeling like a crossword master. The satisfaction of solving each clue was just so addictive. I totally get why people love these puzzles now.
- PARDONS – The answers started flowing after “condones.”
- LETSOFF – Another one bites the dust!
By the end, I had a grid full of words, all related to excuses. I learned that there are so many ways to express the idea of an excuse. It wasn’t just about finding the right word, but also about understanding the nuances of each one. It was a fun little mental workout, and I felt pretty accomplished when I finally put my pen down. That crossword puzzle didn’t stand a chance against me! It made me realize how much I enjoy these little challenges. I’m definitely going to do more crosswords in the future. Maybe I’ll even try a harder one next time.
